Chapter 44: Raven and RoseNotes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
"Hey Green, got a minute?" Kyoka asked, approaching the boy at the kitchen's sink with Reiko in tow. Since it would have been pretty rude to just stand there and watch as he and the others worked, she and the grey-haired girl both started helping.
The greenette turned, smiling, without stopping his hands as they rinsed the plates. "Always. What's up?"
She let out a short thankful hum at his everlasting helpfulness. "Well, here's the thing. You know that theory you had about [Poltergeist] being sentient?"
"Yup. Do you have some news about it?" he asked, looking between her and Reiko.
"That we do," the ghostly girl nodded. "This same night, Kyoka seems to have entertained a conversation with my Quirk. As I was asleep, I do not recall any part of the interaction but, given what she described, I am prone to believe that it might be something more than my usual sleepwalking."
"And I just thought that you might have some more ideas on what to do," she added with a light shrug.
Green's smile widened as his eyes glinted with interest and surprise. "Tell me all about it," he asked, moving his attention back the punkette.
She nodded before beginning with a fair warning. "So, don't you laugh, but the whole thing started when a flying pretzel woke me up..."
Kyoka told the whole story as well as she could. Considering that the brief discussion had happened while she had been less than half-awake, they would have to take what she could give. By the end of the tale, the boy was wearing the thoughtful look with a bright smile that he showed whenever concocting some crazy new theory on their Quirks.
"It might be even better than I hoped..." she heard him whisper to himself before speaking up. "Alright, I think we could be discovering something amazing, but we need a few people for what I have in mind, and... Question: would you be okay with being put to sleep for testing purposes? With teachers there, of course," Green asked Reiko.
The girl thought about it for a few seconds and answered with a decisive nod. "If teachers will be present, then I don't see a problem with it."
"Great!" He dried his hands with a rug as he seemed to be making a mental calculation. "It'll take a bit to have everything sorted, so can you meet me in the Development Studio in... let's say, an hour and a half?"
"We shall be there," Reiko agreed as Kyoka did the same with a "Sure thing, Green."
"Great!" he rejoiced. She watched him take out his phone and start messaging, his fingers being faster than she believed possible. "I'll get everything ready. See you soon!" he spoke as he rushed out of the dorm.
Reiko hummed as they saw him go. "Your recommendation seems to have been spot on, Kyoka. I'm truly grateful for your quick thinking over this matter."
"Eh, don't mention it," she gave a shy smile and waved her hand to dismiss her new friend's politeness.
She didn't deserve that much praise, as it wasn't like she had done a lot anyway. She would have offered the same help to any one of their classmates, and after seeing how the girl's Quirk acted only a heartless idiot wouldn't have strived to lend a helping hand. Moreover, this was another way to get a bit more insight on the green-haired teen and his strange ways, so it wasn't like she wasn't getting anything out of it.
"As you wish, but know that you have my thanks," the ghostly girl reiterated with a small smile.
"Sure, whatever floats your boat," Kyoka let out a huff before letting her eyes wander to the rest of the groups in the common room, setting her sights on the girls chatting on the sofas. "Want to waste some time before going?" she asked, pointing with one of her jacks.
"Let's," Reiko answered. "I believe our friends may be interested in this extracurricular as well."
Nemuri hadn't expected her breakfast to be interrupted by a sudden message from the principal, but for Heroes things hardly went as planned, even during their free time. The alarm-like sound had her putting down the low-fat cheese bagel and stretching to reach the mobile phone on the other end of the counter at lightning speeds.
Nezu—territorial like a fierce predator—might have been incredibly protective of his staff, students, and school in general, but he sure didn't like being made to wait when he was in a rush. Since the teachers never knew what the god-like rat would be asking and how important it would be, it had become a general rule of thumb and a suggestion shared with the newcomers to never leave the principal unanswered for too long. How "long" that meant was also completely up in the air, so Nemuri really didn't feel like pushing her luck.
She opened the chat and eyed the message as she bit on a few apple slices, a habit which she had recently gained thanks to an adorable little girl who she ended up looking after at least once a week. Her brow furrowed slightly as she read the report about the school's most recent acquisitions. The principal had hinted at the possibility of new people making their way into the school's roster for security reasons, but she had expected other Heroes, maybe young or Underground ones who weren't as known by the public and, consequentially, by Villains. Instead, she was now looking at a couple of individuals she had seen before—online—in a not-so-commendable fashion. The series of images of the two, showing both their civilian identities and their costumed counterparts, identified them as the C-Rank Villain Gentle Criminal and his companion, or support, La Brava.
Admittedly, Nemuri had seen their streamings once or twice. She had laughed a bit at the goofy presentation, and again when a few of her less-then-competent colleagues were incapacitated. The Duo did deserve their lower rank, having only ever robbed and fought forgettable Heroes. Still, in the public's eye they were still Villains. If working with Vigilantes was sometimes justifiable—Shota seemed to have accept that part of his Underground work as a standard occurrence—doing it with Villains came much, much closer to something that couldn't be glossed over.
She wondered what the rat was thinking. The text written by the principal clarified how they would be kept under surveillance until they could be safely integrated in the school's systems—which made her huff, as it would certainly mean more work for the lot of them—and that he was already completing his own way of circumventing the HPSC's procedures.
- Nezu's lucky we're all just as mad as he is... - she thought with a shake of her head, soon putting aside the idea as they all knew how the chimera had hand-picked his entire staff. Nezu didn't require luck for his endeavors.
She was brought out of her thoughts by the sound of a sliding door, moved by a yawning man in the process of tying up his blonde hair in a bun. He saw her and smiled, walking over to the kitchen with light steps.
"Mornin' Nem," Hizashi whispered with that easy-going and happy tone of his.
"Morning, Zashi," she replied at the same volume, just as careful to keep things on the quiet side. "Message woke you up?"
"Yeah," he yawned again, making her struggle not to do the same. "Pretty wild, uh? Wonder what brought it on."
"I guess that's an interesting conversation we'll have at our next teachers' meeting," she sighed, tapping a few times on her fruit smoothie.
"Oh, for sure," Hizashi chuckled as he started the coffee maker before sitting on one of the stools on the other side of the counter and snatching a bagel from her paper bag. "Any plans for today?" he asked in between munches.
"Nothing much," she smiled. "I might just take it easy before my patrol. Maybe check on Eri in a bit."
"Come on Nem, today ain't even your turn!" the blonde snorted and showed a mocking smirk under his glasses. "Kiddy woke up some maternal instinct in ya?"
Nemuri's eyes became as wide as saucers before turning into a fiery glare. She speared one of her apple slices and raised it, pointing it menacingly at the man. "Hizashi Yamada..."
"Okay, okay," he raised his hands to give up, though his smile told another tale. "Touchy subject."
"You know it," she huffed before biting off the fruit.
- And not something to discuss with just the two of us, - she thought, postponing the very long talk that would require to another day.
"Anyway, I understand it. Little listener's adorable," Hizashi chuckled to break the tension. "Who could have abandoned her like that? Can't believe Shota just found her out there."
She couldn't either, mostly because it probably wasn't true. Shota could have "just found her," yes, but that didn't explain why she had to remain as a special ward of U.A. and have her appearance partially altered. It was most likely another one of Nezu's long-term plans, and Shota just happened to be the most reliable member to pin the finding on. She also wondered what part Midoriya played in the whole affair, since the excuse they had given publicly was just that: an excuse.
Somebody could call him gullible, but Hizashi's belief in Shota's words was just part of his charm. His heart of gold was worth a lot more than his boisterous act.
"I just hope things will be resolved for the best," Nemuri nodded, drinking the last of her smoothie.
Just a few minutes of chattering later her phone rang again, the same alarming tone blaring for her attention.
"Uh, not a sound from mine," Hizashi commented, checking how his device hadn't even vibrated in his pocket. "This one's just for you."
She groaned as she checked the new message, the man taking away some of her concentration with the question they usually pestered Shota with, "What's Nezu got for you this time?"
She finished the paragraph and let out a pleased hum. "Well, it seems I'll get front row seats on the next Midoriya discovery."
Fumikage deemed himself one of the closest things a human could be to a creature of the night, in no small measure due to his eternal companion, who was just that. [Dark Shadow] and him had a few preferences that many didn't share but weren't so detached from humanity as to be incomprehensible.
The two tried to keep a "balanced" relationship with lights in general, as it wasn't just a "dark is good, light is bad" line of thought. The Sun during a summer day was bothersome but acceptable, as it just was. Clouds that mellowed the sky's rage were better, but those that carried black storms were already too much. Moonless nights were a good thing only occasionally, and only if he had a source of artificial light at hand to keep themselves in check should the necessity arise. Just as he couldn't stand complete, pitch-black darkness, he also couldn't help but get his feathers ruffled by sudden bursts of light that made his companion flinch like they'd been hit.
Another thing that neither of them liked was to stay in places with too many people or loud noises. The brutal cacophony of dozens of voices was more acceptable from a certain distance, as he'd discovered by flying with Hawks, but he couldn't just fly away from his problems every time. Maybe it was due to his avian mutation, which granted him a slightly better hearing than normal, but thundering sounds and the like made his ears hurt and their heads beat like a drum.
No, he didn't resent Bakugo for the way he'd won their match during the Sports Festival, but he did wish to pay him back on their next bout.
Given those reasons, it was easy to think that Fumikage wouldn't be caught dead anywhere near a place like the Development Studio, as rumor had it that the place contained as much chaos and clamor as Pandora's box held curses.
Still, his eternal companion had insisted on coming along after reading Midoriya's message, being intrigued by the idea of somebody else like them potentially existing so close. [Dark Shadow] was almost quivering at the prospect of meeting a fellow sentient Quirk, as it would have been a first.
He added to the surprises of his morning as he was called amicably by three of his classmates who were waiting before the very same door he was walking to.
"Tokoyami, hi!" Komori waved in his direction, followed by a welcoming gesture from Yanagi and a "Hey," from Jiro.
"Good morning to you as well," he replied with a nod.
"Odd meeting you here of all places. What brings you to the Studio?" Yanagi asked as he stopped before them.
"Midoriya!" [Dark Shadow] answered for him from above his shoulder with way too much zest. "There's a sentient Quirk and I want to meet them!"
"He has petitioned for our presence, as we may be able to aid in his endeavor concerning this Quirk, yes," Fumikage rolled his eyes and explained better.
"Ooh," Komori let out a surprised exclamation. "Then you're in the right place! Reiko's the one with it!"
That admittedly surprised the black-feathered boy, and he could feel a rush of interest coming from the shadow entity and mixing with his own.
Fumikage didn't hold contempt for any of his current classmates, but some of them were just easier to get along with. Shoji, quiet and level-headed, was the best example of his preferences, as was Koda, since the gentle soul had gradually adapted to [Dark Shadow], making him comfortable in their presence. Then there was Midoriya, who neither he nor his Quirk could quite place, even though they could only sense positive things from the boy. Although they hadn't interacted as much, he also felt a connection with the black-skinned teen in 1-B, Kuroiro, and the pale ghostly girl herself, Yanagi, as they both seemed to share at least part of his own peculiarities. Yes, if asked, Fumikage would respond that he rather liked these fellow Heroes in training.
While wondering how this novel notion might alter his relationship with Yanagi, he moved his attention to the girl in question, who merely nodded.
"That seems to be the case, but perhaps we should enter before telling the tale once more. I wouldn't want to tire Kyoka with rehashing it repeatedly," she commented.
"It's fine, but you're also right. Green should be done already," Jiro shrugged before stepping closer to the door and knocking.
Fumikage had thought that the use of first names would have been a prerogative of the more outspoken mushroom girl but, apparently, they all shared a greater form of intimacy than he remembered from the previous day.
- How strange. -
-- Don't sweat the unimportant stuff! Who cares about names and whatnot! -- his Quirk chided in his mind.
[Dark Shadow] had never been the greatest at remembering names. They "bored him" apparently, so he only kept in mind the ones of people they really found interesting.
It didn't take long for the door to open, showing them one of the teachers they saw the least.
"Ah, you must be the ones Midoriya's been talking about," Power Loader said, giving them a quick look before turning back and waving for them to get inside. "Follow me and mind your surroundings. Workshop's almost empty today, but things can still be dangerous."
Fumikage breathed a sigh of relief at that notion. Unfortunately for him, the part of the room that they were approaching was the source of the only noises of the entire place.
They found Midoriya standing and hunched over a workbench, watching as a pink-haired girl worked on something small, perhaps circuitry. The greenette turned to welcome them with a smile. "Hi everyone! We're just waiting for a few more people-"
Fumikage didn't have the time to wonder who those people could be, since Midoriya's words were interjected by the sound of the door opening once again. Midnight, Recovery Girl, and Principal Nezu walked in, the former two listening as the latter talked. The animal's interest immediately moved to the room's occupants, making [Dark Shadow] send a subtle feeling of distress to the teen. Knowing to trust his Quirk and their sixth sense that warned them against dangers, they both promised to each other to be on their best behavior for as long as they remained under those scrutinizing beady eyes.
"Good morning!" the principal piped up, apparently in a good mood, making the group reply with curtesy, if not with as much energy. "Thank you all for coming on such a short notice."
"Like I'd leave Hatsume to experiment in my studio without checking for proper safety procedures," Power Loader snorted. The pink-haired girl didn't look like she had caught onto his words, or simply ignored them to keep working.
"I hope I won't be needed, but calling me in was a smart choice," the older Hero in the room commented as she sat on a nearby bench.
"I still don't know why I'm here, but I'm all ears," Midnight added as she looked at the students with interest.
"Soon said!" the principal chuckled lightly and turned toward the students. "Midoriya, would you explain what we're trying to accomplish here?"
"Of course," the boy nodded. "Starting from the beginning, when I analyzed Yanagi's Quirk a few days ago I noticed something..."
Fumikage and [Dark Shadow] listened intently as the Class Representative weaved a peculiar tale of discovery, being aided by Jiro's and Yanagi's own testimonies over last night and the pale girl's past occurrences of sleepwalking.
The idea of a sentient, ghostly presence chained by their inability to communicate with the outside world was incredibly sad to him, and he felt sorry for Yanagi's Quirk in an unexpectedly strong fashion. Fumikage didn't want to imagine what it would have been like for [Dark Shadow] not to be able to express themselves, nor could he picture a world where he wasn't linked to his Quirk in such a profound way. For somebody else to be missing on that connection when they had the chance to have it was heartbreaking.
Midnight was the first to speak up after the end of the story. "So, you want me to put her to sleep to see if her Quirk will react in the same way?"
"Pretty much, yes. We won't be able to start if she's awake," Midoriya said.
The woman hummed, moving her eyes to inquire about consent. "And I assume you're fine with it, Yanagi?"
"I am," the cryptic girl nodded. "It doesn't seem like a great sacrifice for gaining more insight into my power."
Fumikage refrained from furrowing his brow. Was that guilt they were feeling from her?
"At least we'll be here to check that nothing goes wrong," Recovery Girl huffed.
"Since we're in the Development Studio and not in the Nurse's Office, what else have you concocted?" the principal asked.
Midoriya smiled as he started to point at a few pieces of equipment that were being handled by the Excavation Hero and the Support student. "From Jiro's tale and the most common occurrences of sleepwalking, I think we can assume that [Poltergeist]'s sentient side was able to appear during the third stage of non-REM sleep. There, breathing and heartbeat are slowed to their lowest levels, muscles get relaxed, and it's harder to be randomly awakened. Furthermore, brainwaves also become slower, so that may help release Yanagi's 'passive' hold on her Quirk, letting it act more freely. We can examine those brainwaves to see if I'm right, and if there are some abnormal signs of which we should be aware of. Then-"
"Done!" Hatsume interjected the boy for the second time in a few minutes, raising her newest project in the air. She then turned and blinked twice, noticing that more people had come into the room and were staring at her. "Uh, when did you all come from?"
"We've been here for a while," Jiro sighed, rolling her eyes.
"Oh! Sorry, had to finish this baby. Anyway, Boss, here!" She handed a keyboard-like object to the greenette.
"Thanks, Mei," he received it with a chuckle. "As I was saying, we also have this. It should work as a sort of keyboard, and I'm hoping that [Poltergeist] shares Yanagi's knowledge and understands how to write something more complex than a "yes or no." Since Jiro told us that the pretzel's movements were barely stable, we don't know how much force it could use, if too much or none. This should be able to take a good amount of pressure, without needing too much for a single input. And we can calibrate it to better suit our needs as we go," he said, tapping on the instrument and showing its function, as the characters he pressed appeared on a monitor in front of Hatsume. "If the Quirk shows to be able to write, we might also be able to connect specific brainwaves to characters or words, which in theory could make the whole process easier, and probably applicable even when Yanagi is awake."
The grey-haired girl gasped lightly at the thought.
"I'm sure we can do that!" The inventor seemed proud of the result, but she wasn't finished. "I can also give it a voice! Just give me a few-"
"Perhaps later, Mei," Midoriya stopped her before she could start rambling. "Then I had Tokoyami come because [Poltergeist] may feel more comfortable expressing itself before a being that can relate to them on a fundamental level. [Dark Shadow] may not be trapped like [Poltergeist] is, but they're the only two sentient Quirks in who knows how many kilometers and nobody else should be able to understand the concept of sharing your life with another so deeply."
"It's not like I have a choice," his companion cackled. "But yeah, I can help!"
"We shall do our best," Fumikage nodded resolutely.
"Perfect!" Nezu commended with a light clap. "Well then, shall we start?"
"Yes. Yanagi, if you would," Midoriya said to the ghostly girl, showing a chair for her to rest in during the analysis.
Yanagi walked over, keeping a quiet demeanor as Power Loader and Hatsume adjusted several sensors to her head and other body parts. Fumikage had never particularly liked the feeling of being studied, especially when the doctors would treat [Dark Shadow] as an unthinking animal or thing, but the girl didn't seem to have a problem with the process.
A few displays started showing the girl's vital signs, letting the Youthful Hero comment how everything seemed perfectly normal and that they could proceed.
Midoriya then turned to Midnight, who, after a last question of Yanagi's willingness, simply stepped over and gently brought her hand close to the girl's mouth and nose.
"Take a breath, dear, and relax," the teacher said as she let out a few strands of [Somnambulist]'s aroma.
Fumikage and the others took care in staying away, but the Pro knew how to keep her powers contained. After a single sniff, Yanagi's head was already tilting down, her consciousness having departed from the waking world.
"And now we wait," Midoriya declared with a whisper as he sat beside the rest of the students.
Half an hour went by quickly as they chatted about their recent improvements. Although Fumikage didn't show his happiness at being praised as much as Komori did he still appreciated the greenette's words, especially when they were followed by the same kind of approval from the Pro Heroes in the room. Meanwhile, [Dark Shadow]'s focus didn't move away from the sleeping girl for a single moment.
"Yanagi has entered the third stage," Nezu suddenly declared as the images on the screen started moving differently.
"Any moment now," Midoriya added in anticipation.
Fumikage nodded, turning back to the main event. He didn't expect some grandiose show to manifest suddenly, but he remained quiet and alert. It proved to be a wise choice.
When the change happened, Fumikage was the first to feel it, through his Quirk.
Fumikage could easily recognize the differences between what his eternal companion felt in the presence of others. They differentiated between animals and people, of course, but also between good intentions and bad. [Dark Shadow] was a being that thrived on emotions, and they could almost smell them in others. Fear and distress were easy to recognize, as they were what many felt in the dark, and so were their opposites, calmness and peace. There were a few harder cases which would require more focus than the sentient Quirk would deem acceptable before losing interest, but those were rare.
But what Fumikage felt in that moment... His Quirk was almost vibrating as it sent him a flood of something new, a sensation they had never shared before. It wasn't like any other type of creature they had seen, but it also felt extremely familiar, something that gave them a sense of kinship that made his skin tingle with goosebumps and [Dark Shadow]'s form quiver in excitement.
A purple hue appeared around the strange keyboard, but Yanagi seemed to be deeply asleep still.
Komori was the only one to gasp, but it was clear that everyone but Jiro, Midoriya, and Nezu—who appeared very pleased by the sight—were just as shocked.
"Told you," the punkette smirked, keeping her eyes on the event.
Recovery Girl was more focused on the graphs shown on the other set of screens. "Look at these... Her brain activity is..."
"As if two minds were overlapping," the principal whispered before jumping onto the closest table, taking control of the terminal connected to Power Loader's station. The creature's paws moved with a precision and speed unreachable by common means, and soon the images were separating into two distinct diagrams.
"Damn, Nezu, try not to fry my equipment," the Excavation Hero lamented with an impressed huff.
"I'll gladly pay for any damages from my own pockets if it means we'll get a better understanding of Miss Yanagi's Quirk," the creature replied with a tone that didn't leave room for further replies.
Fumikage didn't know anything about the subject of brainwaves and such, but it wasn't hard to distinguish them: Yanagi's still showed her being deeply asleep, while the other had sudden spikes and a level of activity that surpassed the one the girl had shown even when awake.
Slowly, somethi- someone started to press the keys, making characters appears on the inventor's screen one by one.
"I-It's working," Komori said, seemingly trying her best to keep her voice down.
Midoriya had enough presence of mind to immediately muffle Hatsume's shout of "Of course it is!"
A few seconds later, the first message from the Quirk who never had a voice appeared before them.
"Hello. Thank you for this."
"You're very welcome," the principal piped up with a smile.
"I have wanted to speak for so long... It feels like a dream come true."
Komori cooed, wearing the same touched expression Midnight was showing.
"Happy to help," Midoriya's tone conveyed his happiness as much as his eyes did.
The principal moved his gaze from between the screen to check a few things, keeping his pleased expression. "Well then, since everything seems to be fine, would you answer a few questions for us?" the animal asked, clearly too interested in the subject to slow down his hyperactive brain. "How long has it been since you've gained sentience? Are you letting Yanagi borrow your powers, or are those out of your control when she is awake? How can you see us while-"
"What's your name?" Fumikage heard his Quirk ask, having somehow changed his opinion on the matter. They were gazing intently at a spot above Yanagi's head, and they couldn't care less about how they had interjected the teacher's questions despite the subliminal fear the creature imposed.
The rest of the group turned towards him, but the boy ignored them. He couldn't help but feel his own gaze be drawn to the same spot [Dark Shadow] was eyeing, as it felt extremely important. The others had been watching the screens, but if you want to entertain a real conversation, shouldn't you be facing the other person directly?
Fumikage knew they were right, because he could feel that his gaze was being reciprocated, and because his was the first question answered.
"Emily! My name is Emily! Thank you for asking, [Dark Shadow]," the Quirk quickly wrote, ending the text message with a smiley face.
Fumikage found it incredibly hard to maintain his stoic demeanor with how much happiness the shadow was sharing with him.
"Oh dear, my apologies," the animal teacher spoke, now following the duo's eyes to their interlocutor. "It is such a novel experience that I must have let myself be carried by the thirst for knowledge."
"If I may," Midoriya said, catching the principal's attention, "perhaps we could let [Dark Shadow] handle the interaction? As expected, there's something we may be missing, but they seem to be on the right track. Power Loader and Hatsume may be able to get the answers we need more easily with a normal conversation, right?"
"Sure! Just get her to talk more, and I'll take care of the rest!" the pink-haired Support student smirked as she tapped on her own keyboard.
"Fine by me," the teacher nodded.
Nezu shared a look with Midoriya and hummed. "Well then, carry on!"
Fumikage appreciated the approval, though he knew that his other self wouldn't have let anybody else take the reins of this conversation away from them.
And so, one of the strangest couple of hours of their life continued with a chat between a living shadow and an invisible ghost.
- Revelry in the dark, - he thought, turning a laugh into a pleased huff.
-- Yeah, Fumi, revelry and stuff, -- his companion chuckled between answers.
"Reiko? Come on, Miss Midnight's Quirk should be off now!"
For the second time in one day, Reiko was awakened by a peppy voice. She blinked, moving a hand to rub her eyes, before taking in her friend's silhouette. "I'm awake, Kinoko."
"Oh, you're up!" the mushroom girl piped up, delighted.
"I told you it would be easier after a few hours," the R-18 Heroine chuckled.
Her mind—despite the fogginess from the sudden awakening—quickly recollected where she was and what she had been doing asleep. She still felt the sensors attached to her head, so the exam probably hadn't ended completely. As her eyes moved between the group that surrounded her, Reiko noticed how they were all smiling reassuringly. Was she to be expecting good news?
"May I ask how the experiment went?" she inquired.
"It was incredible!" Kinoko cried out, almost jumping in place. "You were asleep for half an hour and then bam! Those brainwaves things started going crazy, the keyboard started glowing purple, she started writing, and [Dark Shadow] just started chatting with her!"
Reiko tilted her head slightly to the side, a bit confused at the wording and fast retelling. "I'm sorry, she? Are you referring to [Poltergeist]?"
"Yes," Midoriya provided with a warm agreeing nod. "We were able to talk with your Quirk, though she prefers to be address as 'Emily' instead. She must really like your Hero name," the boy smiled with a light chuckle.
"Oh." The surprised exclamation left her mouth before she could close it. She... did she use that name knowing what it meant to her? Had she really been around that long?
"She's so sweet! She thanked everyone too!" Kinoko interjected again, making her look around for further details.
The Support teacher turned a screen, letting her see rows and rows of phrases that must have been half of a conversation. She felt just a pang of pain in her chest at not seeing her name anywhere in those admittedly friendly sentences. Was her Quirk not interested in talking with her?
"Just a few words for helping you this morning," Kyoka shrugged, though her smile told her that she liked what had come of her little nightly surprise.
"And for supporting the discovery today," Nezu added. "A marvelous occurrence, truly!"
"I'm just happy it all worked out with no incidents," Recovery Girl sighed. "She really appreciated being able to speak."
"Well... I'm glad she could," Reiko nodded. But she would have been happier if she could have talked to her herself. "Though, I must ask, are we cursed to each live in the other's absence?"
"Quite the contrary," Tokoyami shook his head, a light smirk being just noticeable at the edge of his mouth. "We have the pleasure of being the bearers of good tidings."
"YUP!" Hatsume shouted, startling Reiko as she hadn't noticed that somebody was standing behind her. "Don't worry! We've got a fix for that!"
"W-What do you mean?" she asked, confused.
"Here!" The inventor showed a small device held between her index and thumb. "Put this in your ear!"
Reiko looked around for confirmation and, seeing only nods and reassuring smiles, she complied. The earphone-like object fit her perfectly, and she had just put it inside when it started working.
"H-Hi, Reiko," a female voice said, sounding similar to her own but more robotic. "It's nice to finally meet you."
Her mouth hung open as she realized what she was hearing. "Is- Is this...?"
"Of course it's her!" [Dark Shadow] cried out, looking at the girl with a grin that should have looked terrifying but was quite adorable when coupled with the excited shaking they showed. The ethereal sentient Quirk looked like a dog wagging its tail more than ever.
"How-?" She didn't even get to finish her question before Hatsume started ranting.
"We got enough data to translate your brainwaves into words! See, this baby's connected to a few sensors over your occipital and temporal bones, we take your brainwaves and-"
"Mei," Midoriya interjected, making the girl close her mouth immediately, "let them talk. Or better, let's all give them some space."
"Indeed, that may be for the best," the principal nodded. "Chop-chop, everybody out!"
"You got this!" Kinoko and [Dark Shadow] gave her a thumb up as the group left the room, followed by a reminder about not touching anything from the Support teacher and a few more heartening words by the rest.
Reiko found herself alone as a last cry of "But my babies!" echoed in the now empty room. Despite her current almost solitude, she decided to close her eyes to focus on what was most important. This wasn't how she had expected it to happen—though, to be fair, she hadn't had much time to fantasize on the matter—but she was just happy she had the possibility.
She took a big breath, put on a light smile, and spoke, trying to keep her voice from wavering. "It's nice to meet you too, Emily." She waited a few seconds for a response.
"I... I'm really happy right now," the voice Emily said.
"I am happy too," she confessed, her hands clenching a little harder on her lap. "I'm sorry I never knew."
"It's not your fault." She could almost picture a head shaking. "I waited for so long, Reiko... I had almost lost hope... I thought I was going to just fade away and disappear..." Almost hear a few sobs, unstable breathing. "But now..." Almost see a sorrowful expression turn into a grateful smile. "Now I get to talk to you, and you can finally hear me, and answer me, and- and-"
Reiko let the tears flow freely on her cheeks. Her lips were wobbling, dancing but never quite stabilizing on the smile she was trying to keep.
"No! Please, don't cry!" Emily pleaded. "Did- Did I do something wrong? I-"
"Don't worry," she said as she shook her head lightly and sniffed. "I'm... These are tears of joy."
It wasn't completely true, but her happiness for Emily's existence was on par with her sadness for her prolonged ignorance.
They couldn't touch, but Reiko had never been a... "touchy-feely" type, as Kinoko would say. She would rather express herself with words, if only they would come out in the right way.
"Thank you for never giving up, Emily. I know it's years too late, and I know that I've simply lived without the knowledge of how much you were suffering, but I hope that you may believe me when I say that I am sorry." She bowed, almost losing her balance on her seat. "Could you ever forgive me?"
"There's nothing to forgive," the Quirk replied. "I've been with you for eleven years, Reiko. I've seen every one of your highs and lows... I've seen you excited and terrified, hopeful and depressed, quiet and angry... I've caused you so many Quirk accidents and sleepwalking nights... Many more than I want to remember... So many problems just because I wanted to be discovered..."
Her heart writhed in her chest as she realized that every little problem she had faced with her Quirk, every bout on unluck she had despised and cursed at, was merely a cry for help she had ignored.
"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry for ignoring you for so long," she sobbed, raising her hands to hug her own arms.
"Reiko, please, listen to me. Don't feel sorry for something you couldn't control... Neither of us had any idea of what to do, or that there was anything to do at all." Emily waited a minute, letting her take a few breaths to stop weeping.
The girl sobbed a bit more, but ultimately managed to settled back into a smile... which felt truer than her previous one.
"I don't know what the future holds, but I know I want to get to know you like you know me. Would you do me the honor of walking with me?"
She heard what seemed to be a short, serene laugh. "You are such a dork." When Emily talked next, the tone felt somewhat softer, if possible. "Of course I will. Even if I might not always agree on your choices or like what you do, I am and will always be with you. You're my everything, Reiko."
Who would have thought that a random Saturday morning would have brought her to hear something that she would hold dear for years to come?
"Thank you, Emily. Thank you."
They would have all the time they wanted to make up for the decade they'd lost, filling that empty space Reiko had never known was there.
Notes:
I did think about splitting this between other stuff, but it wouldn't have made as much sense. That's why the Mina and Tsu stuff has been moved further away anyway.
I think I could have done a better job with the last part, but I can't lose sleep on it, so here it is.
For those who are wondering, the "Rose" in the title refers to The Exorcism of Emily Rose. Guess where Horikoshi found Reiko's Hero name?
And I think you can guess where I'm heading with Fumikage and Reiko. I already think they fit well enough together, and adding this whole mess just gave me another reason. Also, you can't tell me that [Dark Shadow] wouldn't be the excitable puppy in this situation.
Oh, I've also started the third fic in the series, and the first instance of Tsuyu's Hoplight mentioned back in chapter 26. Pretty proud of that first chapter, can't wait to work more on it.
Up next, Gym Time for 1-B's latest trio!