Heroics or Villainy

Forgetting the Mission Entirely

            Running. He told me to run and I did. I needed to get home as quickly as possible so I could get the groceries dropped off and book it back out to get him. I didn't know how much time he had as All Might and I knew that if I didn't try to stop him, Mom would be pissed. So, I booked it, doing so with the intent of throwing bags down on the kitchen counter in my home and then barreling back out the door. However, I wasn't much of a fast runner.

As I ran, I started to adjust the position of my shoes, attempting to slip out of them. It nearly worked, but I soon had to start hopping on one foot as fast as I could because I had to reach down and remove it the rest of the way. Once it was off though, I could feel the Earth under my one foot, the roots and vines underneath the concrete. One was shoe was enough to give me a bit of a surge. Enough to pull one root out of the ground.

I concentrated as hard as I could while continuing to run, at least I was running until I flicked my wrist and felt something grab my ankle. It worked! Knowing that, with a swift motion, I moved my arm up, felt myself leave the ground, and then flung my arm as though I was making a pitch, throwing myself home to avoid the blocks, houses, and roadways.

While the feeling of flying through the air with the groceries my mother had requested was exciting, it was short-lived as I saw the ground approaching quickly. Panic overtook me. I didn't even think this would work, so I didn't think about if it did, how would I get down. Or...what would happen when I hit the ground. Unfortunately, I was going to be finding out pretty soon what it felt like to eat asphalt. So, with a deep breath, I grit my teeth and prepared to impact with the ground...that was before I felt something wrap around my mid-drift and pull me away from my imminent pain.

In confusion and some panic, I looked around my middle to see that what had grabbed me was an arm. An arm...that was connected to my neighbor, Kiraga Nadeshiko. While I found her the world's most strange and obnoxious neighbor, I couldn't help but be thankful in this moment for her presence. She lowered me to the ground carefully before letting the slew of quick questions leave her mouth. "What were you doing flying through the air like that Hana? You could have gotten really hurt! Did something happen? Is it something to do with your father?"

I began dusting myself off hurriedly before I ran out of her gated yard to head next door to mine, shouting back, "No time to explain! Thank you!" With that, I burst through the front door of my house without a second regard to my mother's response, and made my way to the kitchen.

Mom was home. And I heard her yelling coming from the back office as she made her way towards the kitchen. "What the Hell are you two-" Her figure appeared in the entryway of the kitchen, and when she saw that it was just me, standing there alone with a disarrayed uniform, one shoe on, and her groceries, her expression went from irritation...to nervous rage. "Where is he?"

I shook my head, my pigtails sweeping back and forth with the motion as I rushed to put the groceries down and head back outside. "No idea." I began sprinting to the door, taking off my other shoe in the process. I was intent on going out there to find my father and bring him home before something bad happened.

However, my motions were halted by the weak, but extremely angry grip of my mother. "And where do you think you're going?" I was hesitated and afraid of the expression my mother would have on her face when I looked back at her. But the threat of not looking was worse. I glanced over my shoulder to see wrath incarnated behind her glaring green eyes. "You're staying right here."

A shiver went down my spine. Whenever Dad was done with this...he was dead. If this didn't kill, Mom was going to. I gulped reflexively as I tried to explain, "B-But...D-Dad's going to run out of time."