"Ohhh... my head..." groaned Kimika, clutching her head in a futile attempt to ease the throbbing pain.
Gathering her strength, she sat up, but immediately began swaying in place, trying not to fall... onto a soft bed?
"Where am I?..." she whispered, her sleepy eyes starting to scan the room she had found herself in. But...
The longer she tried to figure out where she was, the blurrier the scene before her became, as if she were looking through dirty glass.
Not understanding what was happening, Kimika began rubbing her eyes with her hands, but despite all her efforts, the image before her remained just as unclear and hazy. No movement helped — her vision did not become any sharper. And the fact that the room was dark, likely due to the night outside the window, only made the situation worse.
Yet, despite her blurry vision and the dense darkness, she gradually managed to make out the vague outlines of the furniture. And this room... it was definitely not her room at the family home.
When she tried to recall how she had ended up here, the throbbing pain in her head intensified, and hazy images of unfamiliar people began to appear before her eyes.
An elderly lady tenderly doing something nearby… a strange man with small, funny mustaches, spiky light hair, headphones, and sunglasses… a woman in a revealing outfit holding a whip…
But among them, familiar faces also emerged. All Might, Eraser Head… and the image of the world-renowned principal of the most prestigious hero academy — the very academy she had longed to join with all her heart, until… until her father ended up in the hospital…
And although she couldn't begin to comprehend the reasons or significance of these images, nor the source of the unbearable headache, what puzzled her even more was how she had ended up in this room at all.
Just a moment ago, she had simply arrived at the old house where Toga had asked her to come, and suddenly… she woke up here.
The more she tried to recall what had happened, the more unbearable the pain in her head became. It was so intense that it felt as though it was tearing her apart from the inside, forcing her to shy away from the thoughts that might help her understand where she was and what had occurred.
Kimika kept trying to remember, but the pain grew so excruciating that she realized — those fragmented memories weren't worth enduring such agony.
Summoning her strength, she began piecing together everything she could recall, and her thoughts slowly started to form a coherent picture.
"I went into the house... Then a creak... Yes! I remember! I fell and hit... Or no... maybe something fell on me?" she whispered, scratching the most painful spot on the back of her head. "And then... probably Toga came and brought me here... So... Yes! She must be somewhere around here!" she exclaimed joyfully, only to regret it a moment later. The pain in her head became even more unbearable.
Groaning in pain, she still felt a slight relief that she had managed to piece together fragments of what had happened. Realizing that she hadn't been kidnapped or fallen into the hands of heroes, Kimika let out a relieved sigh.
But at that very moment, she realized something incredibly terrifying!
"Mom... Mom might come into my room... and if I don't get home before that happens... she'll start to panic. She… she'll want to know where I am, and then it's over... all of mine and Toga's activities could come to an end. And who... who will help Dad then…"
Summoning all her strength and determination, Kimika began trying to get to her feet, despite the overwhelming weakness in her body that reminded her of the aftermath of hellish training sessions with Toga.
"Come on, Kimika, get up!" she whispered to herself, clenching her fists and trying to gather the remnants of her strength. "You're strong! You managed to give up your dreams and become a criminal, and now you can't even stand up?"
Even though her first attempt ended with a loud thud as she collapsed to the ground, and each subsequent try saw her fall again, she refused to give up. With every effort, it got a little better. And finally, she stood up!
Gripping the nightstand by the bed tightly with both hands, she felt her arms trembling under the strain.
And although she could no longer help but ask herself why Toga hadn't come to her numerous falls, the question quickly faded into the background, giving way to the joy that was finally overflowing within her.
"Hooray!" Kimika exclaimed joyfully, raising her arms up in the air in happiness. But in just a moment, with a loud thud, she was back on the ground. "Dammit...."
But no matter how much it hurt, over time, her body seemed to awaken from the pain, and with the experience she had gained, she began to fall less and less, until she was able to stand once again.
"Now I need to find Toga and get home as quickly as possible before Mom notices I'm gone!"
Holding onto the walls and moving blindly, Kimika accidentally found the light switch by the door. A faint smile lit up her face — a simple thing, once an everyday occurrence, now felt like a gift and a salvation.
"Let there be light!"
The bright light immediately spread across the room, piercing the darkness and exposing every detail around. And despite Kimika's brief joy, the light hit her eyes directly, causing her to squint from its harsh, unforgiving brightness. She covered her eyes with her hands, feeling them pulse with pain.
And the vision, which she thought should have improved from the light, remained dim and blurred.
The sensitivity of her eyes to the lighting was so strong that it felt as though she had gazed directly into the scorching sun.
"Damn, why does it hurt so much?" she whispered, starting to rub her eyes in hopes of getting rid of the burning pain. She felt tears involuntarily begin to flow down her cheeks.
"What... what's wrong with my eyes?" Her voice trembled, and fear, like a cold chain, squeezed her heart tighter and tighter.
For some unknown reason, just a few small tears quickly turned into a stream of hot, salty tears of despair.
An incomprehensible wave of painful emotions — sadness, despair, as if from the loss of someone close — suddenly overwhelmed her. She began to cry so hard and loudly that she could no longer stand.
Her knees buckled, and she slowly sank to the floor, pressing her back against the wall, hugging her shoulders as if trying to keep herself from falling apart into pieces.
"It's okay... Just... I just need to wait a little... And everything will pass..." she whispered through her tears, trying to gather her strength. "Toga... where are you..."
Suddenly, her father's words, long forgotten, unexpectedly resurfaced in her memory. She remembered herself as a little girl, sitting in her room, crying under the blanket, tightly hugging her favorite stuffed toy — the All Might doll — after another day when she had witnessed bullying against Izuku.
And her dad, who on that rare day was home while her mom was away, sat beside her, gently stroking her head, whispering the lyrics of a song her mom often sang to her:
Even heroes have their darkest days,
Fighting through the storm, in many ways,
But love will shine, and heal the pain,
For every hero, there's a hand to take.
The strongest hate will fade away,
Love's light will guide, make it okay,
So hold on tight, you're not alone,
In the darkest night, love will lead you home.
Kimika, all in tears, whispered these words through her sobs, trying to find at least a little peace. Her breathing slowly evened out. And finally, wiping her wet cheeks with her hand and breathing heavily, she stood up.
Already wishing to leave the bedroom to check the other rooms and finally find Toga, she accidentally noticed the dark outline of a photo frame on the nightstand by the bed.
Taking the frame in her hands, she brought it so close to her eyes that even with her current vision and still teary eyes, she could make out the image.
In the photo, it was her and Toga, happily hugging on the old swings, at the same spot where they first met. A warm wave flooded her heart, pushing away all traces of sadness.
Hugging the frame, Kimika pressed it tightly to her chest, recalling the happy life before all of this… before she became a criminal, before her life changed forever.
But realizing that she needed to return home as quickly as possible, before her mother noticed her absence, Kimika slowly placed the frame back with a warm smile on her face.
"I'll need to plan a fun day, like Toga does… movies, rides, ice cream… though no, I need to think of something else," Kimika mumbled, noting it down in her internal plan.
Leaving the bedroom, she began to slowly inspect each room of the large two-story house, which, despite its size, felt oddly cozy and well-kept.
"How did Toga manage to find an uninhabited house in such good condition?" she asked herself, but immediately dismissed the troubling thoughts that surged within her, assuming that Toga had probably just asked Giran for the house, as he valued her immensely.
Or perhaps, knowing that after she lost consciousness, Toga found this place driven by an incredible desire to take care of her, seizing the unique opportunity to care for her unconscious friend. "You always take care of me," Kimika whispered, feeling her heart fill with warmth.
Unconsciously, she ran her hand over the spot where Toga always bit her and drank her blood. And suddenly, not feeling any scars, Kimika couldn't help but be surprised. 'How many days was I unconscious?'
As she continued to examine room after room, Kimika became more and more convinced that Toga was not here. Each room was unique, with its own character and purpose, but they all shared one common trait — the absence of the one she was searching for.
This seemed quite unusual to Kimika, as she was sure her friend wouldn't have left her alone, knowing she could wake up at any moment. Especially considering Toga's nature — she would never, unless against her will, miss the chance to stay close.
"The last room, where you won't be either?" Kimika whispered softly, stopping in front of the bathroom door. And although she was absolutely certain that Toga wouldn't be there, just like in all the other rooms, she still couldn't help but enter and check.
She carefully and tensely opened the door, as Toga had taught her during their 'games' — instilling in her the rule that you should never relax, not even in your own home, because the enemy could be hiding around every corner.
She turned on the light and, squinting at the brightness, began to survey the room. The bathroom was clean, undamaged, but completely empty, just like the rest of the house.
"No one..." she whispered with disappointment, scanning the room again, trying to find something that could explain Toga's absence. It wasn't until her gaze accidentally fell on the mirror.
Frozen and unable to believe her eyes, Kimika quickly stepped closer and began to scrutinize her reflection, hoping it was just the result of her poor vision or a trick of her imagination.
But what she saw made her break out in cold sweat, and goosebumps covered her entire skin. Her heart was pounding so loudly that it seemed to fill the silence of the room, if not the entire house.
It was her, but… her horns. They were gone…
"No... this can't be... this can't be real!" Kimika screamed, her eyes wide open in an attempt to see better.
Unintentionally, her hands reached for her head, trying to check if it was all just her imagination, but she didn't feel the horns... Only hair.
Suddenly, her fingers felt a small curve, which, to her surprise, resembled tiny horns — the kind she had only seen in old childhood photos her mom used to constantly show her. They were so small that they almost blended with her skin.
"WHAT THE HELL?!" Kimika screamed, nervously feeling the two tiny horns on her head. "What the hell happened while I was unconscious?!"
From the nervous groping of her horns, or perhaps due to the overwhelming fear that surged within her, or maybe for some unknown reason, her vision instantly improved.
She quickly focused on her reflection in the mirror, and this time, she saw not a blurry outline, but a clear and sharp image like never before. However, what she saw didn't calm her in the slightest.
In addition to her horns being as small as those of a one-year-old child — which was already shocking — her eyes... her once beautiful heterochromatic eyes, which had been her pride — the red and blue eye, were now nothing but single-colored pebbles — gray and colorless. They were... dead.
"Ha-ha... it's just a dream... just a dream!" Kimika nervously laughed, stepping back from the mirror and bringing her hand to her cheek. "Yes... yes! It's just a dream, and nothing more! I'll pinch myself... and I'll wake up in my warm bed at home... Toga will be beside me, and everything will go back to normal."
Slowly bringing her hand to her face, she pinched her cheek as hard as she could, her eyes wide open, anticipating that there would be no pain.
But... feeling the sharp pain, she continued to stand there, in the bathroom, staring at her clear reflection in the mirror...
"Yes... this isn't a dream..."
A sense of despair overwhelmed her, and, unable to believe what she saw and felt, Kimika abruptly ran out of the bathroom.
But because of this, she couldn't see how her reflection in the mirror not only didn't disappear but started changing.
The once frightened face twisted into a cold calm, and her lips curled into a sly, malicious smile. Her eyes returned to their former color but darkened significantly, horns began to grow from the spots where they were meant to be, and dark liquid, as black as her eyes and horns, began to seep from her mouth.
Dark fangs protruded from beneath her lips, and around the figure in the mirror, a stream of black slime began to flow, dripping onto the floor.
She watched as Kimika fled, her smile growing even more sinister.
"Eye, you wanted to get rid of me so badly that you even asked for everything you could use to destroy me? But, unfortunately for you, I'm still here!" — the dark Kimika sneered from the mirror. "Well, as for you, Kimika, we have an interesting introduction ahead of us, because you can't run away from yourself."
With those words, leaving behind an ironic laugh, her figure in the mirror dissipated, leaving no trace of her presence.
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Memory loss... Well, if you think about it, this had to happen, both because of Kimika's stress and possibly due to the influence of Hatred or this "eye"?
So here begins the arc dedicated to Kimika's character growth, as, left alone with Hatred, she will likely find out what happened to Toga and try to save her.
Oh, and also, occasionally, there will be chapters featuring other heroes, like Toga, Kimika's parents, and Nezu's research, and maybe some others!
In short, we can expect numerous fights with both heroes and villains!
Want to see the continuation even faster than the next day? Or perhaps you want even more chapters? Head over to my Patreon — it's all there! But don't worry, sooner or later, it will be here too! patreon.com/Zoi4erom
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