Rules of the street

Chapter 14 - Don't ask questions. If someone asks you questions, don't answer.

A/N Just so y'all know, this is the second to last chapter!! 

Rule 14: Don't ask questions. If someone asks you questions, don't answer.

She darted forward, and I leapt into the air, turning as she flew past me. My foot pushed off her retreating back, giving me the lift I needed to secure a hand around an arm of the chandelier (the only good use for it, in my opinion). Scrambling, I tried to haul myself up, but she managed to get a hold of my ankle.

She pulled, and I braced myself for the fall.

"That should teach you to take my love away from me!"

"What are you talking about?! I didn't steal anything!" Using the distraction, I slid under the table, my legs sweeping hers out from under her. She hit the floor hard, a knife scattering from her grip.

I snatched it up, hearing a sharp hiss from behind me.

"Well, even if it wasn't you, you're just too cute to pass up!"

I was- what?

I shoved the thought aside, for when there weren't any serial killers or people unconscious and/or tied to chairs.

Chairs.

That gave me an idea.

Using the hard-wooden back to lever myself into the air and the nearby wall to stay horizontal, I managed to direct a spinning kick towards her, feeling it land on her shoulder. She fell back, giving me a few precious seconds to slip Shoto the knife. Glancing up again, the present received, I noticed Toga was just beginning to right herself again, a hand against the wall for support. She met my gaze, one of her trademark grins filling my vision, getting bigger and bigger-

Wait, I needed to move-

The thought entered my head far too late, and before I knew it a familiar prickle was pushing against my neck.

"Just come with me, yeah sweetie? Come with me, and I'll leave all these people behind... Just for you..." She whispered into the shell of my ear, an action that made me shiver. The very thought of going voluntarily with Toga, the aptly named 'Blood Demon', was enough to make me feel sick. But I knew I had to play along, if only to save them.

Nodding the best I could, she turned us so that we were facing the door, and the five hostages. Shoto and Katsuki were both straining at their bonds, blood dripping off their bodies and totally ruining the carpet.

Well, that's one upside.

Shoto seemed to be trying to create some slack in which to work the knife, and Katsuki was just pulling as hard as he could. If Toga had done a decent job, and at this point, I had no doubt that she had, then neither method would work-

Focus, Izuku.

They were both bleeding, quite badly actually, from the leg and arm respectively. Shoto seemed the worse off, appearing more tired than hurt. That probably meant he was close to passing out with blood-loss, and from the amount Katsuki was moving, he probably wasn't far behind.

However, the person occupying the left chair made me worry the most, if only because she wasn't trying to escape at all. From what I could see, she was shaking, her feet that barely reached the floor were knocking together.

Oh, Eri.

Everything I'd done was to escape this situation, to make sure she never came across harm's way. But now, it was all for nothing, her life was in danger and there was nothing I could do.