I sip from my hot chocolate while staring with a raised eyebrow at One, who's sitting across from me. "So... run by me again how you decided murdering someone makes for a good Christmas present?" I think on that for a second before clarifying. "I mean murdering the person. Murder itself is a pretty good present. In fact, I'm taking Himi out to the mall tomorrow for a twenty minute speed killing. Extra points for people who aren't in the holiday spirit."
After discovering One's quirk, I really didn't expect to see him again, but surprisingly he wanted to keep in touch. Even after he found out that we're a group of villains. He'd text and call us often, usually just about how his day is going, or what new insults other students come up with for him.
Oh yeah! He's apparently a second year in high school, so I was right about him not being much older than Himi and I. Anyways, he said that he showed off his quirk and the bullying did die down, but didn't completely vanish. It went from "He's less than human, why should it matter?" to "Such a freak, getting his quirk so late," and "What a pathetic quirk".
See, some people didn't like the fact that a 'quirkless' somehow developed a quirk, seeing him as unnatural. But most of his teachers didn't see it the same way and actually tried to stop the bullying when they're around, which in itself made his life so much easier.
It was going well, according to him. All the way up until he found himself calling me in a panic, practically begging for us to portal him somewhere safe immediately. And me being me, obviously I asked for his coordinates and asked Kurogiri to get him. Which leaves us here, with him sitting across from me shaking like he was when we first met. His face is bruised, and blood flows from a long horizontal cut between his lip and his nose, which Himi is currently bandaging.
Kind of gives him a delinquent vibe.
He takes a deep, shaky breath, making Himi slap the back of his head for throwing off her wrapping rhythm. The action seems to calm him down in how normal it is. He swallows before beginning his explanation..
"W-well some relatives came over for the holidays; my uncle and his kids. Minamoto and Hikari. Th-th-they have good quirks. H-heroic quirks."
He goes to shake his head, Himi's scowl stopping him just in time as she finishes tying off the bandages. "N-n-none of them like the q-quirkless. Or villain quirks. They didn't k-know about my quirk, my parents were going to surprise them!"
He lets out a choked laugh that's halfway to a sob. "Th-they were surprised all right." his face darkens. "They started bad-mouthing me at the first opportunity. Not where my parents could hear o-obviously, not dumb. Smart enough to get into decent hero schools."
"But they wouldn't listen!" One shouts, gesturing wildly. "I showed them my quirk, but they just sneered and said it was a cheap trick! Then my uncle stormed into the room and grabbed my wrist, he dragged me in front of my parents and threw me in front of them!"
He scowls, clenching his fists so hard that his nails dig into his palms. "He said that a quirkless can't just suddenly develop a quirk. That I need to be faking it somehow. And you know what I saw when I looked at my parents?"
He glares at me, anger radiating from his eyes. "They fucking agreed with him! They didn't think I actually had a quirk! Even when I showed them!" His hand clench at his hair, ripping at it while his eyes become bloodshot from reliving his words.
"They didn't believe me. They never believed me. They acted like they were just humoring me. Like I was gods damned delusional! So you know what I did?"
The sneer that crosses his face is clearly forced, the terror and anger fighting for dominance in his psyche. "I made sure they couldn't dismiss me. That they'd have to admit that I have a quirk! I made gum appear. And you know what I found out?"
A broken chuckle scraps its way out of his throat. "As long as it's close enough, I can make bubblegum appear anywhere around me. Anywhere."
I nod. "So you made it appear in their hands or something? Or in the air?"
"Ha! No, that wouldn't have worked, they would have just said it was another trick. I needed something they couldn't deny. A-a-and I was so angry."
He leans back in the booth staring up at the ceiling with suddenly tired eyes. "I was so fucking stupid. My life is over. I'm going to go to prison. Hell, I'll probably get killed on the way to prison."
"One," I speak softly, trying not to startle him. "Where did you make the gum appear?"
He doesn't answer for a few moments, but eventually he sighs, dropping his head onto the table with a dull thunk. "...ngs."
I lean forward. "I couldn't hear you." His mumble is even less intelligible somehow. "One more time, and make it louder."
"HIS LUNGS, OK!? I MADE THE FUCKING BUBBLEGUM APPEAR IN HIS LUNGS!" He shoots up and slams his palms into the table, his emotions apparently hitting a breaking point before draining out of him just as quickly. He falls back into his seat, his head falling into his hands.
"He fucking choked on it. There was screaming, everyone was panicking. Hikari used her quirk to make something out of light and threw it at me. It cut a gash in my face and I ran. I ran until I remembered you guys."
He looks up at me with tears in his eyes, just a scared kid who's accidentally plowed into the road of villainy headfirst. He swallows. "Y-y-you've gotta help me! Hide me, help me escape the country- Something! Please!"
I reach out and gently put a hand on his shoulder. His own flies to it, holding onto my arm like a lifeline as I meet his eyes. A lifeline that will help him, give him a way out of this situation. I open my mouth.
"How did it feel?" I ask.
"W-what?" His eyes widen and he tries to pull away, but my grip is firm. Even when he tries to push away from the table after letting go of me.
"How did it feel?" I ask again, my grip tightening. "How did it feel to kill? To show the people who looked down on you that you aren't the weak, worthless quirkless they thought you to be? To see someone who saw themselves as so far above you, brought so low in so little time?"
He's struggling now, his head shaking wildly. "N-n-n-no! I didn't feel anything! I didn't mean to!"
"You didn't feel anything? Nothing at all?" My eyes peer into his own, pinning him into place. "You felt nothing at all about taking your uncle's life? The man who treated you with such casual disregard that he thought nothing of throwing you to the ground in front of your parents? Then what about your parents? How did you feel when they said nothing? When they saw the abuse as something normal? The disgust in their eyes when they decided that you're nothing more than a delusional quirkless relying and cheap tricks to fake a quirk? Was it the pity, the disgust? The patronizing smiles? Come on, One! TELL ME HOW IT FELT!"
I'm standing now, holding One up by his collar as I shout a demand for answers into his face. His eyes are wild, darting all over the place as he tries to look at anything except me. His hands are holding my wrists hard enough to bruise.
"I don't know!" He shouts. "I DON'T KNOW HOW I FEEL! I DON'T KNOW HOW THEY FEEL! I DON'T WANT TO KNOW! I JUST WANT TO BE SOMEWHERE ELSE!"
"I CAN'T HELP YOU UNLESS YOU'RE HONEST! TELL ME HOW IT FELT! HOW MUCH YOU ENJOYED SEEING HIM STRUGGLE! THE ANGER YOU FELT WATCHING EVERYONE TRY TO HELP HIM, IGNORING YOU WHO'D JUST BEEN ATTACKED! WHY SHOULD YOU CARE ABOUT WHAT THEY THINK OF YOU!? THEY CLEARLY DON'T!"
"I LIKED IT! OK!?" Finally, he looks at me, bloodshot eyes meeting sparkling ones. "I LIKE THAT I HAVE POWER! THAT I COULD MAKE THEM FEEL WHAT I'VE FELT MY ENTIRE LIFE! THAT I FUCKING MATTER! I LIKE IT! IS THAT WHAT YOU WANT TO HEAR!?"
I smile, gently setting him on the floor only for him to fall to his knees with his face in his hands. Muffled sobs echo forth from him, filling the silent bar as our audience watches. Himi chews on some popcorn seasoned with dried blood, Shiggy is scowling at how loud we're being, and Kurogiri is looking on with an impressed air around him.
"That's exactly what I wanted to hear." I say to One as I crouch in front of him. I put a hand on his head, petting him. "In fact, that's what we all wanted to hear. It means we can help you."
He looks up at me with a look of disbelief, snot and tears leaking from his face. There's a tinge of hope in his eyes as he asks, "R…really? You can help me?"
I give him a smile, one that can brighten up the darkest room. "Of course I can. In fact, you won't even need to leave the country!"
I lean forward, my smile becoming more mischievous as it leaves his line of sight, as I whisper directly into his ear. "Actually~, if you want, we can help you get more of that feeling."
He tenses, his breath catching as I continue. "You can show more than just your family that you have worth. That you matter. That you won't sit quietly as they use you as a tool to take out their frustrations on."
"We can make you into someone of respect. Someone that nobody will be able to look down on. We can make sure that you get that sweet, sweet feeling so much, that everything before seems like a distant memory."
I step back, doing a little spin before I extend my hand while giving a little half bow. "So, One," My smile practically splits my face it's so wide. "Would you like to join this little family we have? Where we accept one another for who we are? The family that we like to call the League of Villains?"