(Toga?)

I quietly hum happily to myself as I walk down the halls of the Yakuza base towards Eri’s room. The guy I’m disguised as right now is set as the one to watch her after the last one let her get out of the base. Which just so happened to be the guy I impersonated to gain access to the base. A bit of trouble, but kidnapping another random member and draining them of their blood fixed that problem lickity split! Emphasis on the lickity!

Bonus points for getting assigned to watch the little unicorn after bringing the first guy’s tortured body to one of the higher ups. I would have taken it directly to Overhaul, but the guy is a total germaphobe.

He’s going to be really upset when he’s covered in his own blood~.

Wait, would he? Germaphobes are all about everything else being gross, so would he be okay being covered in his own stuff? Hmm. Oh well! Covering him in his own blood is more for my enjoyment instead of his! And he won’t be covered in it in a good way!

He sucks! Seriously. Taking Eri’s blood? It’s fine, happens to everyone all the time. Sure, they’re usually at least a bit older than Eri is, but still not outside of the norm. Heck, I don’t even wait for people to offer it before I take it! But using his quirk on her to get the ‘purest’ form of her dna?

Yeah… that’s crazy talk. And I would know!

I can see the door leading to her room, and I quickly school my expression. Chronostasis, one of Overhaul’s ‘hands’ is standing outside of it. He’s not much of a fighter from what I’ve seen, but he’s pretty close to me in stealth skills. I can’t say who would win in a game of hide and seek between the two of us.

Still though, he’s not nearly as dangerous for me to be around as Nemoto. After I learned about his quirk, I’ve done everything I can to avoid being in his presence for any longer than necessary.

“There you are,” Chronostasis says as I approach. “You’ve been doing good work with the girl. Kai is pleased.”

I smile at him, holding back from the urge to slit his throat, let the blood splatter across the boring white hallways. The only good thing about how white everything is is the fact that a nice blood splatter is going to look absolutely heavenly.

But not yet. Patience, patience. It will be soon. Soon I’ll get to cut as much as I want! Bleed people as much as I want! Catia’s been so boring ever since she started hanging out with Izu-kun. He’s a bad influence on her! Doesn’t mean I don’t like him- but he’s still a bad influence on her!

Ever since she started listening to him ramble on about heroes she’s been holding both of us back! Less hunts! Less blood! Less killing! Less fun!

She’s even started buying into the whole hero schtick! Like, actually being a hero!

I let out a mental sigh as I responded to him. “I’m happy to be of use.”

He nods. “Continue with your work. She’s been more accepting of the procedures since you’ve taken charge. Though-” Suddenly there’s a dozen thick arrow-like hairs less than an inch away from my face. “-I still don’t like the fact that you got rid of the camera in her room.”

I swallow, not that I’m actually scared or anything. But it’s what whoever I look like would do. “I-It’s part of t-the p-p-plan. If she doesn’t think the b-boss is watching her, she doesn’t have to be worried she’ll make him upset without knowing.”

He hums as his hair withdraws, not looking away. The way everyone’s eyes peer out through these plague masks is creepy! Not even creepy-cute! “Just see to it that no problems arise. Wouldn’t want you to have to go on a…vacation…and get Eri a new watcher.”

I say nothing, just nod frantically. After all, the last guy who went on a ‘vacation’ was the one I killed.

Seeing that I’ve ‘gotten the message’, or whatever his piddly threats were supposed to be, he leaves. I cannot understate just how much I’m looking forward to my blood bath. If Overhaul doesn’t die here, maybe I can get Kurogiri to portal him back to the LoV’s base so I can drain him properly?

That’s one of the better things about them than the Cult- they won’t judge me for how I am. Sure, none of the Cult say anything or do anything, but the weirded out looks when I talk about blood, or the disgusted looks whenever I use it for anything other than drinking; those I still see. The few true friends I have there do their best to stop them, to get the others to understand me, but it’s a futile effort. They don’t want to understand.

The League is different. They actually do understand me. Not well, but they understand how I am. They just wave my blood stuff off as me being me, the same way we wave off Shiggy talking about life like it’s a game. We understand that none of us are right in the head, and we accept that.

It’s something that I think Catia is starting to forget, being in that hero school of hers.

I open the door and give an honest smile as I see Eri using crayons to write out some letters. It took a while, way too long for a kid her age, but I eventually managed to get her to start using some of the stuff that’s filling her room.

She looks up with a scared expression, terrified that Overhaul has come for another session with her. But seeing that it’s me she gives a small smile. Another thing that should come naturally to her, but I needed to teach.

How to enjoy herself.

How to write.

How to read (still in the starting phases).

How to have fun.

 How to smile.

If Catia hadn’t told me that she already has a handle on razing this place to the ground I would have already called Kurogiri for pickup.

And enough bombs to level the neighborhood.

One thing that Catia has managed to stick into my messed up head is the fact that there are people much worse than us, who by comparison to what we do, makes us heroes!

I always scoffed at the idea of being a hero. Where were they when I needed help? For someone to tell me to be myself? That I didn’t have to hold back.

They didn’t bother showing up until they could earn some fame from trying to catch me after my first attack.

They quickly learned that I wasn’t just some defenseless middle schooler.

But that’s all in the past! For now, I’ll just spend the day with Eri, maybe show her that the tv is a lonely girl’s best friend. There’s also-

I’m jolted out of the day’s planning by an earthquake, the building around us shaking. It’s the first time since I’ve been here, and judging by how scared Eri is as she simultaneously tries to hold me and not to hold me, it’s the first time she’s felt it as well.

I smile. “It looks like the fun’s finally beginning.”

“I’ll say,” another voice echoes throughout the room as a person pulls themselves out from under the bed. “It was getting annoying having to spend so much time under the bed. You have no idea how uncomfortable it is!”

I laugh as the blonde teenage girl in front of me pouts. “It’s not the first time I’ve had to hide under someone’s bed. That’s why you’re the one doing it!”

She rolls her eyes. “I’m pretty sure this counts as cruel and unusual punishment,” she crosses her arms.

“Well you aren’t the original of us, so it doesn’t really matter.”

“Oh? And how sure are you that you’re the original?” I shrug.

“Who knows~.” I do a little spin that ends with me facing the clone Twice made for me before I infiltrated. One of me is good, but more is better! “But if I am a clone then I’m going to enjoy my short life to the fullest!”

I proudly fist pump the air, quickly followed by my clone who lets out her own exuberant yell. Little Eri does the same, even though it’s clear that she has no idea what we’re doing.

And that’s how Shin Nemoto finds us as he throws the door open. “Kai said to grab the girl, heroes are-” He chokes on his words as he sees us, eyes flashing between each person. His sudden entrance takes us off guard too.

There’s an awkward stand off for a few moments as none of us are sure what to do. It ends once he draws his gun. “TRAITOR!” He screams as he opens fire.

I wasn’t expecting to do much while Catia takes them down with the heroes, but it looks like I’m going to be more involved than I thought with the Shie Hassaikai Raid.