30

Chapter Text

"Life is a precious thing. All life. You may laugh, because isn't that obvious? It's something we all hear from the moment we are born until the very moment we die. Not because we all have some kind of higher purpose, or because we are all pawns in the games of a benevolent god. But because there is the capacity for good in every being. Even if we were the play toys of something cosmically greater, I would still say every life is precious and hold to that ideal. I have taken lives. Too many to count, and each weighs on me greater than the last. Not because of guilt, but rather regret. Every life's value is priceless."

—Excerpt from the memoirs of underground hero Shimura Nana.

The walk towards Midoriya's waiting vehicle was strained. The atmosphere once Nedzu climbed into the back with him was just shy of purely venomous. Nedzu was surprised to find the head of security for Moonlit Industries behind the wheel, as well as his other student in the passenger seat. It shouldn't surprise him, of course. Hatsume had known somehow even before he had. Nedzu had expected to see the head of security. An incident had occurred with one of the CEOs, and Dabi was dedicated to the two heads of the company in a way that made the chimera shiver. That level of loyalty was dangerous.

"Mei. You didn't have to come." Midoriya's voice was still rough, but not entirely from the fury that was practically radiating off the man like heat radiated from the sun.

"You're right, I didn't." Mei tossed back what appeared to be a pen of some kind before turning back to the front of the vehicle and silently signaling Dabi to take them to the hospital.

Midoriya stared at the back of her head for a long moment as the car got underway, and if the eyes were a portal to one's soul, then the emotions in Midoriya's could have been told as an epic. The anger melted away, leaving only a weary thankfulness towards Hatsume. Midoriya let out a long sigh before slumping down in his seat and resting his head in his hands.

Midoriya coughed now into his hands before taking the pen that Hatsume had given him and pressing it against his neck with a hiss. Nedzu's eyes widened in shock. Pressure syringes and coughing blood. Yet another conversation I'll have to have.

…

The four members of the vehicle went their separate ways once they were in the parking garage. Midoriya had asked Hatsume to show the president to his office once they'd stopped, and Midoriya wasted no time in turning to Dabi once they'd been alone.

"Sir?" Dabi stood in parade rest with his back to the sleek black four-door sedan they had arrived in.

"I do believe I've told you before how weird that is coming from you. Stop that." Midoriya shook his head and shuddered a little. That was just so utterly wrong coming from Dabi.

"Thank fuck. I just thought I'd be a bit more professional, all things considered. It's weird for me too. What do you need?"

"Phoenix has already brought you up to speed on what happened?"

"Gave me the basic outline. All Might put you into a matchup that shouldn't have happened, and shit got ugly. All four of you were wounded with one going critical after a building collapse."

Midoriya frowned but nodded slowly. "Close enough. Here's what I want you to do. Get filled in fully, then contact our agent embedded with JNN. Get her up to speed and make sure her story gets through. Mobilize whatever assets you need to within reason."

Dabi scowled and shook his head. He still wasn't fond of the media even if he weren't a wanted criminal anymore. "Why do we need to get Ms. Imada involved here? It's not like this won't be the front page of the next cycle. U.A. is the preeminent hero college in Japan, as well as part of the big five. Besides that, it involves All Might of all people."

"It's precisely because All Might is involved that we need to contact Ms. Imada. There is no way the HSPC won't step in to do damage control, and they have both NNN and FNN practically in their pocket. We won't win this, of course. Even for all the influence I wield right now, I don't have any particular way of beating them in a media war. But we don't need to. All we need is the other side circulating."

"Mmm. Fuckers keep glossing over Endeavour's messes, and if they can do that, then this won't be any trouble for them."

"We also need to talk about your brother later." The words were barely out of Midoriya's mouth when Dabi's head snapped around to him and his hand froze from where it was trying to fish a cigarette out of his pocket.

"Natsuo? Did something happen with him?" Logically, Dabi knew that wasn't the case. Phoenix would have alerted him the moment something happened to the man. But Midoriya could tell logic wasn't ruling his mind right now. Not if the panic in his piercing ice-blue eyes was anything to go off of.

"No, no. Not Natsuo. He's fine, as far as I know. He's probably in class about now. No, this is about Shoto."

Dabi let out a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding before shakily resuming his search for his cigarettes. "Okay. Okay, what about Shoto?"

"He's refusing to use his fire." Dabi looked up while placing a cigarette between his lips and lighting it with his fingertip. He merely quirked one eyebrow at Midoriya. "Yes, I know. I still plan on letting you handle your own family's affairs until you want to involve me. But I almost had to force him into using it in a rescue setting."

Dabi sighed, blowing smoke from his nose and tilting his head back to rest against the roof of the sedan. His right hand rested against the door with the still-burning cigarette, a low orange glow in the dim lights of the hospital's parking garage, smoke wisping away towards the ceiling. "I understand the spite all too well. If I had his quirk, I doubt I'd use my fire either, but during a crisis like that? Hell…"

Midoriya sighed. His head of security might have had a raging murder boner for Endeavour, that he might have encouraged to a degree, but he knew right from wrong. "Yeah. Hell about sums it up."

…

Midoriya took only one step into his office before he wanted to turn around and walk back out. The president of U.A. was sitting in his office, one of his feet dangling out of the fifth-story window. Smoking a cigarette. "What. The fuck. Must every chimera smoke? The world might never know."

"Hmm? Oh, Midoriya, I didn't hear you come in. Sorry about the smoke, but I needed to settle my nerves after everything so far. While I was waiting on you seemed like a good time."

"That isn't even remotely what is bothering me about this situation. Where did Mei go?" Izuku pulled open the drawer to his desk, pulling out an ashtray and handing it to the president, before pulling out medical supplies for himself.

Nedzu crushed the cigarette in the ashtray before setting it aside and hopping off the ledge, back into the room. "She said she was going to go check on some of her babies. I wasn't aware she had any in a hospital. That kind of technology seems like it's more up your alley. Speaking of which, why is your office about as far away as it could be from the other offices?"

"I may be one of their biggest benefactors, but that doesn't mean I'm immune to having to deal with bullshit politics involving the hospital's board of trustees. The doctors don't like a quirkless upstart rooting into their territory, especially one that 'isn't a real doctor.' Apparently, without doing a multi-year residency, some of the doctors get a bit bitchy. Don't ask. Mei must be referring to several of her test patients. The hospital, after some more arguing, allowed patients to volunteer for prosthesis testing. She's probably just checking on them, since the last iteration had some finicky little glitches in the software."

Midoriya had pulled what remained of his pant leg up over his kneecap and begun bandaging the damaged tissue but froze when the next question came softly out of the president's muzzle. "And the syringe you used in the car? The blood you were coughing up?"

Midoriya stayed tense for a moment but forced himself to relax. An action not unnoticed by the president. "A cocktail. Nutrients, proteins, antibiotics, whatever I might need."

"For whatever healing quirk you have working on your leg right now? It's bad, but isn't nearly as bad as it was an hour ago, if the report from Aizawa is any indication." Midoriya scowled before snorting.

"I don't have a quirk. I've told you that."

Nedzu didn't believe he was being lied to, so he frowned. A facial feature that was becoming more and more common as he had to deal with Midoriya. "Then how?"

"Company secret."

"Midoriya…"

"Don't ask questions you don't want the answer to, Nedzu." The president froze, skin crawling at Midoriya's soft tone. It was warm and smooth. Inviting the listener to relax into it before snapping closed its jaws. "I don't lie. Manipulate, redirect, twist, and on occasion, I'll outright not answer. But I don't lie. So do not ask a question that you don't want the answer to."

Midoriya tied off the bandage around his leg before spinning to the small computer terminal at his desk. The room was silent for a long moment. Nedzu absorbing what he'd just been told, Midoriya typing away on the computer.

"Uraraka is still in surgery, according to the nurses on duty at the moment. I'll be calling her parents in just a moment. I assume you wish to speak with them when they get here?"

"You would assume correctly."

"Then I'll make sure a room is set aside for it." Midoriya tapped several more buttons before sighing and reaching up to tap at the communicator embedded in his skin. "Phoenix, put me through to Mr. Uraraka. I've already sent you the number."

Nedzu looked at him as if he wanted to ask, but Midoriya said nothing and simply stared back as the dial tone buzzed. He'll either ask or he won't. I certainly won't be telling him without the question. At least I know that Aizawa is good for his word on not reporting Phoenix.

"You've reached Uraraka Contracting, how may I help you?" Midoriya glanced up at the clock and sighed. The poor man seemed tired, and based on the time, that didn't surprise him. He was likely either just stepping away from a site or had just gotten back from one. Regardless, he didn't really like dumping this news on his classmate's father at such a time. But it had to be done.

"I take it I am speaking with Mr. Uraraka himself?"

"You are, how can I help you?"

"I'm sorry to intrude at the end of your workday, sir, but I'm Doctor Midoriya Izuku calling from Musutafu General Hospital in regards to your daughter, Uraraka Ochako."

Midoriya heard the hiss of a breath sucked in and the sound of a woman in the background asking him what was wrong. Midoriya closed his eyes and breathed deeply. This part was never easy, and gods forbid he have to notify them of her death. "Wh-what's wrong?! Has something happened to Ochako?!"

More panic in the background, Midoriya noted. The mother would be his guess. "I'm sorry to inform you, sir, that your daughter was admitted to the hospital only a short time ago in critical condition after an incident during training at her college. She's currently in surgery, but I would advise you to make your way to the hospital immediately."

"Wh- no! I just spoke to Ochako a few hours ago. There has to be some kind of mistake."

"I'm sorry, but there is no mistake, Mr. Uraraka. There is a shuttle awaiting you and your wife at Matsusaka airport. It'll bring you here."

…

It wasn't even an hour before Mr. and Mrs. Uraraka were sprinting into the waiting room of the ER. Not enough time to stop looking like absolute shit, but enough time to get some color back into Midoriya's cheeks. Enough time to get showered and changed into clothes that weren't covered in their daughter's blood.

Midoriya found them, after limping into the waiting room with a cane, arguing with the poor nurse at reception regarding their daughter. Midoriya waved to the poor nurse and caught her attention before gesturing to the two in an indication to send them back to him in the conference room.

Midoriya sat down in his chair as he waited for his classmate's parents and winced mildly as he bumped his calf against the table. The adrenaline had worn off in the hour of status reports, and as he had backed down on his augments once he was out of danger, his leg hurt like an absolute bitch. He'd had worse, but that didn't stop him from wincing.

The low, quiet humming from the president next to him was offset only by the sound of shuffling chairs, indicating the arrival of the two distressed parents. Midoriya opened his eyes and observed the two. They were pale, and upon seeing both the president and himself, seemed to lose another couple shades of color, becoming practically grey.

"I know you now. We looked you up on the way here because the name sounded familiar. You're the head of Moonlit Industries. Then, of course, President Nedzu is also here. Ochako really was hurt, wasn't she?" It was the mother that spoke first, soft and shaken. Nedzu nodded slowly, making sure their eyes were on him when he spoke.

"I'm sorry, but yes. One of our new professors allowed a training exercise to go too far, and she was unfortunately caught in the following accident. You have my sincere apologies on behalf of the entire staff and the university, as well as my assurances that steps are being taken to make sure something like this never happens again."

"How bad?" Mr. Uraraka croaked the words out like he was in a bad dream. "How badly was our daughter hurt?" Both parents looked at Midoriya now. It shouldn't have surprised him. The white lab coat indicated him as a medical professional here.

Slowly, Midoriya chose his words. "First, I should offer my apologies, as well. Uraraka was my partner during the training exercise, and her injuries are in part my responsibility. If I'd been a bit faster, this never would have happened." Both parents' eyes widened in surprise at the revelation. The doctor who had called them was evidently their daughter's classmate, as well.

"Unfortunately, I wasn't fast enough. As such, Uraraka was severely injured during the incident. She was then brought in immediately upon retrieval from the collapsed building and went straight into operation. She is no longer in immediate danger, but she will have to be kept in the ICU for the time being while she's monitored. I expect she'll wake around tomorrow morning, but until she does, she still isn't entirely in the clear."

Mr. Uraraka choked a bit before putting his head in his hands, while his wife grimaced and clenched her fists in her lap. "Wh-what aren't you telling us?" Midoriya grimaced. He respected the woman's backbone, but sometimes information was best given in small doses.

"Are you sure you want the full details and don't just want to go to her?"

"Tell us."

…

Everything was dark. Not the kind of dark that came in the dead of night, but the pitch black of the void. The deep darkness of unending endings. In that darkness was simultaneously everything and yet nothing at the same time. Uraraka Ochako found her consciousness in this place. Was she awake? Was she asleep? Was she alive or dead?

Uraraka didn't know, and that scared her more than anything else. Her body screamed at her in pain, and her lungs shrieked for oxygen as she sobbed in that land of pure nothing. She couldn't breathe. She couldn't move. She couldn't do anything.

A flash of light, and as quickly as it came, it was gone. Air flooded into her lungs and she gasped on the floor. Tile was the first thing she registered when she gathered her senses back to herself. How long had she been laying there? Was it a minute? An hour? A year? Uraraka couldn't tell. The second thing she processed was her surroundings. Hospital hallway was her first thought. The fluorescent lights, the clinical tile, the doorways leading to countless patient rooms.

Countless patient rooms? Uraraka took another look, harder this time, and realized the hallway didn't end. As far as she could see in either direction, door, after door, after door lined the hallway.

Tip. Tap. Tip. Tap. Uraraka stood shakily. Her legs felt like gelatin, and her body revolted at the motion. Her head spun as if she'd stood too quickly, and her stomach heaved as it tried to empty its nonexistent contents.

"Well, well. What do we have here." Uraraka turned her head and froze. She had looked because her mind had cried out in elation. A person! How long had it been since she had spoken with someone? Or had she just spoken with someone? What had she been doing? Where was she again?

It was only after she looked that she had an inkling of her mistake. Her eyes burnt as she stared at the thing. A masculine figure stood beside her with its head cocked to the side. A cane shaped like an hourglass in his old hands. Young hands? Uraraka blinked because she couldn't decide. He wore a business suit, a navy blue on a body entirely too long to be human. His face was covered by a golden mask made to represent a person.

"Uraraka Ochako, I do wonder what you'll become. What path will you choose? Will you take?"

"Wh-wha." She tried to choke out words, but her throat was dry, her tongue sandpaper in her mouth. Or was it? Why was she having problems talking? That didn't seem to be the case at all.

"It really is such a shame. Young Midoriya is so interesting because we can't see his path. I wonder what caused it? It's so exciting to have a mystery, wouldn't you agree?"

Slowly, Uraraka nodded her head. Who was this… person? Thing? The man seemed to shudder in place in ecstasy. When she blinked, the gold mask had shifted into a smile. Uraraka didn't like that smile. It was too happy. Too unnaturally wide.

"I agree so much. I know just the gift for you, since you like mystery just like me! It's been so long since I've had such a conversation. Or has it not been any time? Time! Ah, who cares." The creature laughed, and Uraraka thought her ears would bleed. The sound of a million shards of glass scraping across her eardrums brought tears to her eyes. "Yes, yes! Tears of joy, I could weep as well. Let's see your paths, shall we?"

The man grabbed Uraraka's shoulder, and suddenly, a million images flashed across her eyes. Herself, old and grey in a wheelchair. She rested on a wooden porch, a blanket covering her lap. Uraraka wept now, for her eyes were soulless and dead. Another image came, herself, old once more, but standing strong, eyes full of life. She wore what looked like a hero costume and a proud grin on her face. One of her legs pressed down on the spine of a criminal who struggled to crawl away. Her leg? Something wasn't quite right…

Another image flashed, faster now, across her eyes. Her classmates spread out in horror, some already dead in a courtyard, surrounded by crisis. All Might being ripped apart by a black bird. Another image, even faster. Midoriya standing atop a mountain of corpses, laughing as he gutted a man wearing hands.

Another image. A child, gutted and strung up by the trees, his eyes crying out for help as a large beast bathed in his blood. Another of a gun barrel shoved into Bakugo's throat. Another image of a city torn in half, civilians dead and broken across it.

"Chomes, enough!" The hand on her shoulder was ripped away from her, and Uraraka collapsed onto her knees, retching as blood leaked from her eyes and ears. Her breath came in labored gasps, and her vision swam with the appearance of yet another figure. Tall and built like an amazonian, the woman's eyes were the bright yellow of a cat's eyes, and her skin was as blue as the deepest oceans. Gold body paint trailed over parts of her visible skin, and what wasn't revealed was covered by a thin, silk dress. "You know you aren't welcome in this realm. You are too unstable."

Chomes let out a low, crazy purr from the back of his throat. "Oh come now, Ova. Midoriya's are so interesting. I couldn't let the opportunity pass by to play with her a bit. He never lets his own come here."

"For good reason, with the likes of you around. We'll see if you are laughing once I've dealt with you. But for now," Ova kneeled down next to Uraraka and cupped her by the cheek. Her presence was comforting, Uraraka realized. Nothing like the man. He made her feel like she was in too many places at once. The woman felt like a warm embrace. She could just snuggle into her and sleep forever. "Oh no you don't. I'm sorry, my darling. But right now, you need to wake up."

…

Midoriya was just outside Uraraka's room, once again convincing the doctor on shift that he didn't need to sleep. He'd be more than happy to continue to stand there for another day if he had to. After he had finished speaking with Uraraka's parents—and hadn't that been fun, telling them their daughter had flatlined twice during surgery—he had brought them straight to her room. They, much like Midoriya, hadn't left her side since they got there nine hours earlier.

The girl looked rough, that was putting it lightly. Tubes and wires ran across her, monitoring every little thing that could go wrong, while others did their best to keep her alive. Her parents had wept initially, tear streaks still marred their faces, but now, at least, they were merely silent.

Initially, they had been worried about the costs. Until, of course, Nedzu had told them in that no-nonsense way he had that U.A. would be covering the costs of their daughter's stay. Even better, they had jumped on Midoriya's offer of relocating them to one of the low rent buildings around Moonlit Industries. He had been mildly afraid they were going to have a heart attack, though, when Hatsume had come back and offered them a position as the company's main contractors.

Midoriya had thought to bring up the idea of using Uraraka's family's construction as the main company for their upcoming projects before this point, but it was a relief that they were on the same page. He hadn't needed to speak with Hatsume about the topic. Uraraka had mentioned her family was struggling financially. It was a little thing they could do to help them.

He was still arguing with the doctor when the alarms inside the room went off and sent both of them sprinting inside. Uraraka was awake, it seemed. Her eyes bolted around the room wildly, her heart rate spiked well beyond safe levels, and her fingers scraped against her neck as if she couldn't breathe.

"Uraraka. Uraraka! Breathe. Hey, yeah, focus on me. Look at me. No, don't look away. Look me in the eyes. Focus on me and breathe. One. Two. You are fine, you're safe. You are in the hospital." Slowly, her heart rate came down and the panic leached out of her eyes, only to be replaced with a bone-deep tiredness.

"Mi-Midoriya?" Uraraka croaked out the word as if she weren't sure of anything anymore. Her eyes darted around the room before falling on her parents who had rushed to her left side. "Mom? Dad?"

Uraraka closed her eyes and took a deep breath, evidently taking stock of everything. The moment Midoriya was dreading occurred not a moment later when her eyes shot back open. Panic once again filled them as her gaze darted from Midoriya, to the doctor checking her vitals, and back to Midoriya again.

"Why can't I feel my legs?!"

Notes:

Hehe. I'm evil and I'm not sorry.

Who's up for theory crafting now?