Little Miss Aizawa | Dadzawa [BOOK 2]

Chapter 21 - The Broken Road Ahead

WARNINGS: dislocated limb, blood

"C'mon, kid." Dabi reached his arm out. Neito, hearing the silent demand, brushes his fingers across the sliver of exposed skin at his wrist. Instantly, he could feel the eternal warmth of the fire Quirk circling up his arm and into him. He flexed his arm, a stream of flames stretching up his bicep and around his shoulders. It didn't burn like last time, but the smell of his suit being singed was still present as the flickering sparks died down.

"Let's do this." The blond nodded.

The street was eerily quiet as Dabi led him back the way he came. He'd expected shouting, at the very least. Hawks has this bad habit of gloating during fights, even if the odds were far out of his favour. The sounds of a struggle would even have been a comfort at this point.

There was nothing but dead silence, scarlet feathers strewn across the ground.

Dabi felt his heart plummet into his stomach. It may as well have been blood, at least then he'd have had the chance to believe it wasn't his partner who looked like he'd been ripped apart.

"Oh, fucking hell." He reached down and plucked a feather from the ground, the end tinted maroon by blood. Whose blood didn't bear thinking about, not when the choice was either his boyfriend or (not that he'd ever admit this) his best friend. He felt sick to his stomach, reaching for another.

"Where are they?" Neito asked, the yellow rings of his mask scanning the area.

The Villain felt a chasm opening in his chest, like the question had taken a knife to the scarred skin and slashed it right open. Where are they?

"No fucking idea." His hand clawed at his hair, tugging at the white roots. The dye, as well as growing out, had began to fade, leaving his hair a weird shade of dark grey rather than charcoal black. "But..." His eyes narrowed, honing in on a speckled trail of crimson marking the concrete. "I don't like the look of this." He ignited a flame at the tip of his finger, holding it above the trail. Yep. Definitely blood. Why did it always have to be blood. "C'mon."

Neito flipped a switch on the side of his mask. The inside visor flashed for a moment, then settled into the green haze brought by the night vision setting. He really needs to give Hanta a pat on the back when all this is said and done, this tech is some impressive work for a rookie - even if most of it was borrowed (stolen).

He scanned the area, words flashing across his vision and disappearing before he had the chance to read them. A warning appeared in the corner of the screen, flashing red as the arrows pinpointed Dabi walking just ahead.

"Hey, your blood pressure is a bit high." Neito said, clearing the tiny box from the corner. Dabi shot him a look over him shoulder. "What? Just thought you should know."

"How the hell are you a Hero in training? That was, like, the least helpful thing to say in this situation."

Neito startled at the words. "What's that supposed to mean?" What the hell? He had every right to be a Hero, and anybody could tell this is what he was made for just by looking at him. How could Dabi even question it? How... Why was he now questioning it?

"Y'know, we've studied you lot for a while now." Dabi said, the words sounding almost automatic as he surveyed their surroundings. "Gotta keep tabs on the next generation of Heroes, after all. You're good at what ya do, Quirks pretty badass, but your heart never seemed to be in it. The fighting part, anyway. Kinda wondering why you're here, now."

Neito looked affronted, even if Dabi couldn't see. "Because my family needs me."

"Is that why you fight?"