One More Step (Would It Make Me Free?)

Save Her

Hitoshi wasn't entirely sure how long it had been since he'd been kidnapped, since he'd been taught how pointless disobedience was. Years, he knew based on how much he'd grown and matured, though he wasn't sure how many. He figured he was probably a teenager by now, at least. He just wasn't sure where exactly in that age range he was.

It was hard to believe how much of his life he'd spent locked up. At least a decade by now, he was almost certain of that. He had no idea what a normal teenager's life was like, but he desperately wished for it all the same.

He found himself on more than one occasion dreaming of making his escape on his own rather than waiting on someone to come rescue him. It wasn't something he ever expected to actually succeed, though.

A few years ago, he had tried testing the waters, to get a little glimpse of what might happen should he try and fail to get out, by using his quirk on Overhaul. It was something he immediately regretted. The lackeys with him had immediately taken it upon themselves to beat him for it, ensuring Overhaul was swiftly freed from his influence. After what felt like ages of being bloodied and beaten and bruised by people much bigger and stronger than him, who was of course still a child, Overhaul immediately came over to him with a gloveless hand, disassembling and reassembling Hitoshi over and over again. It had only been five minutes of that, he knew, but they were the most excruciating five minutes of his life. Each second felt like a century.

Needless to say, he never tried that again.

If that was what happened after using his quirk on Overhaul for a mere moment, he didn't want to even think about what would happen if he were caught escaping. It would be severe, that was for certain. Hitoshi dreaded the very thought of just what would happen to him if that were the case.

There was just no way he would ever try to escape. The consequences of getting caught weren't worth the potential reward of freedom. Especially not when he was all but certain he'd fail anyway.

He looked up as his cell door opened, a tray of food and water placed in front of him before the door was shut again. There was enough food to actually count as a meal for once, which he knew meant he'd be pulled for more quirk practice soon. That's how it always worked; they only fed him enough when they wanted him to use his quirk because of the energy and focus it required. He couldn't complain too much, though. At least he'd actually get to feel full for a while.

He ate as slowly as he knew he could get away with without frustrating Overhaul, doing his best to savor it. It was by no means the best food in the world - okay, it wasn't even good - but he was too happy to have an actual meal to care.

Not too long after he'd finished, Hitoshi was taken from his cell to see Overhaul. He swallowed nervously as he walked. The training and experiments were normal enough by now, but the routine wasn't enough to dispel his anxiety. There was no telling beforehand whether their little session would be completely unremarkable or a living hell. The uncertainty of it always made him apprehensive.

Fortunately for him, it seemed to be okay today. Overhaul wanted him to work on brainwashing multiple people at a time, better his control. That was fine. He could do that. That was nothing.

He found himself wondering once again what the hell Overhaul wanted with him in the first place. He'd questioned it many times over the years he'd been with the man. He seemed very intent on training Hitoshi as well as possible, though he wasn't sure what he could possibly get out of it. They'd been at it for so long now and Hitoshi didn't have the slightest clue why he even bothered in the first place. The question ate at his mind.

Still, he knew better than to look for answers. He wouldn't learn anything by asking, anyway. The only thing that would accomplish was making Overhaul angry. That was the last thing Hitoshi wanted to do. No, he wouldn't do anything that would risk the man's wrath. He just had to focus on the task at hand. That was easy enough, at least.