Blossoms of the Dark

CXXXIX Selene: Hassle

I have a severe headache.

Combined with a fever and sore throat.

Not to mention my intense period cramps.

All in all, I am having a miserable day. I'm confined to bed rest for the duration of the retreat.

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Pro-Heroes did locate Bakugou-san, Shouto-kun, and me. They found my spectacles at the site where I had tumbled into the ravine, but could not track my cane. Bloody wonderful! I was given medical treatment and sedatives the moment all of us arrived at the lodge. But some time later, the effect of the sedatives have worn off, and I am enduring hell. The only good thing that came out of all of this is that I was left undisturbed for most of the time. Meals were brought to me, and I got excused from the recreation events I once looked forward to, now absolutely abhor.

Having so much time to myself allowed me to communicate with Shigaraki and Kurogiri. For the past few nights, I scheduled my visit times to the bar. And I had received the opportunity to better understand my to-be captors. Their personalities and their quirks. Quirks which I absorbed. Dabi viewed me as nothing more than a nuisance, and I could say the same about him. But at the very least, we agreed to put aside our differences for the purpose of this mission. He became the de facto leader of the operation. Mr. Compress was fond of classical literature and theater, both Western and Eastern. Furthermore, he had a proclivity for gloves and canes. That further increased my amiability toward him. Twice, I learned, had a sort of split personality disorder. He constantly contradicted himself, so I figured that his first statement was usually the truthful one. Overall, he was approachable. Spinner remained indifferent, which was completely fine by me. Magne seemed to have insecurity issues, since she heavily pointed out my feminine wiles so often. And Toga - she insisted I call her by her first name - was not as bad as I had originally thought. She was still a vampire, yes, but I was more akin to her than I realized. She was bloodthirsty, so was I; she loved knives, so did I; she craved torturing her victims, so did I. Her quirk involved drinking blood, so I couldn't fault her for having a penchant for it.

She insisted on having a taste of my blood again, and I relented that time. My only demand was that I would decide where the incision would be made. I pointed to an old scar on my arm and let her part the skin with her blade. She brought her mouth to my arm and sucked at the blood. I'm certain she sank her teeth in, too. The instant she transformed into me, I felt a laceration on my other arm appear, courtesy of my quirk. She complained how she felt so tired and dead. Like a malfunctioning machine with broken wires and sparks bursting. "Now you know what it is like to live with this disease," I had replied. She couldn't wait to return to her normal body.

Then I met the three other villains who were absent the first night but would also be involved in this abduction. The first was a boorish behemoth with a revolting attitude. The second could not stop foaming from his mouth. And the last had an affinity for releasing poisonous gas. It would be a lie to say that I was pleased to meet them, but as long as they were cooperative, I could tolerate their behavior.

Every night, all of us strategized. I gave them the itinerary, identities and information about the Pro-Heroes and students, locations, maps, etcetera. The idea was to capture me and Bakugou-san in isolation. Of course, I would go along willingly. The real hassle was to kidnap Bakugou-san.

But, there was another hassle. The best way to abduct us would be with Mr. Compress's quirk, to trap anything of any size or stature into a small, blue marble. That meant I had to grow accustomed to rapidly shrinking and growing when being trapped and released from a marble. I realized that it was best I remain on empty stomach during these sessions, otherwise all the food contents I had ingested would come out as a messy rainbow from my mouth.

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Tonight, our efforts will grant fruit.

The Vanguard Action Squad will strike.

The nine villains and the noumu will descend upon this forest and attack at the heart of hero society. If we succeed, then the aspirations and hopes people put upon heroes will crumble as the heroes fall to their knees. There are only two complications: the first, the Vanguard does not know that I will not be outside, partaking in the recreational night adventure; the second, I am in no condition to walk. Unintentionally, my existence and cursed luck became the third hassle. I miss my cane so much.

Voices from outside the lodge echo indiscernible sounds. The owners of those voices sound eager, excited, and energetic. I wait for the sounds to change into those of horror, terror, and fear. My patience pays off. Bursts of elation echo into shrieks of panic into the night.

In the meantime, I reminisce over the conversation I had with Shigaraki, following the announcement of my and Bakugou-san's abduction.

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After introductions, the villains had left to rest for the night. Shigaraki and I had a lengthy discussion in my bedroom.

"I thought you resented the Hero Killer. Even when Dabi and Toga first arrived and said that they were aficionados of Stain, you became livid. What changed?" I asked as I propped a pillow in a lap.

Shigaraki took a seat opposite me. He examined one of his plaster hands. "Remember when I talked to broccoli boy at the mall? He changed my perspective on the whole Stain thing. You're right. I was enraged at all the press the annoying spokesperson of creed and purpose received. Would you believe it that merch was being sold in his name? It's been months since his arrest, but he's still making headlines. So yeah, that jealousy simmered and boiled over. Why were people so fascinated with him but ignoring me? I liked to destroy stuff; so did he. Broccoli boy said that Stain had a creed that he understood but did not agree. Whereas, he neither understood nor agreed with my motives. He pointed out how Stain idolized All Might, and lived and killed to encourage heroes to be like All Might. That's when I understood why I was so angry. Everything just revolved and came back to All Might. The shitbag I hate the most, second to Stain.

"I decided to swallow my pride for the possibilities this revelation would bring me. I chose to adopt Stain's ideals for my own. If that brought villains to our door, so be it. The goal is still to kill All Might and cripple hero society beyond recovery. Prove that justice is nonexistent. That's still my creed. But Stain is just a stepping stone toward that goal." He put the hand on his face.

That gave me plenty of answers. Of course, Stain's message sparked a fire in villains and vigilantes alike. It made me like him a little more. There were bound to be others who would decide to follow his creed. And where better to do so than with the League of Villains? It took time. Months. But the patience was worth it. Shigaraki suppressing his pride for the moment was worth it. And that was why the recruits were impatient for action. Deep down, Shigaraki must have been, too. Now, this hassle was over. This opportunity was like finding a vein of diamonds in a mine of coal.

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Blue flames ignite the trees like an aurora borealis and australis.

Hazy, noxious gas fumes and catalyzes the flames.

It is utter chaos outside.

And I revel in it. 

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