Mission Midoriya || A RuthTheNerd MHA fanfiction||

Chapter 17: Secrets, Secrets.

Toshi didn't hurt Reiko.

That was frankly surprising to the girls, and the notion surprised him, too. After all, he was usually itching to find an excuse to pound Reiko's head into the floor, and now he only had the energy to pour raw malice into his words. He'd just woken up and was limp, frail, and unwilling to put up a fight. He was ashamed to think like that, though. After all, throughout all the years and bullies that he'd protected Ryo from, Reiko was by far her biggest tormentor. Her taunts stung like bites, and Toshi had sworn to keep her away from what he considered his biggest enemy.

But once they entered high school, the two were forced to interact- to brawl. And he was forced to stand there, watching Ryo struggle with her newfound quirk.

It was painful.

Reiko was gawking at his sluggishness, and he could see the snooty remark at the tip of her tongue when he raised a glowing palm into the air and swiped it, air-slapping her. She sat, stunned as a pale mark on her cheek began to burn red.

The surprise didn't last long, though, as she got up. Her own hands flared up, balls of magenta fire at her service. Her quirk was nearly as explosive and showy as Bakugo's- she could summon purple fire. Orange fire was hot, and blue was hotter. But purple didn't signify an even hotter level- no, her flames were cold. They brought an ominous chill to the battlefield, and the touch of them was even worse than being burnt alive.

She gave him a vicious glare and sauntered forwards. He muttered a curse and shook his hand again, the gesture so ridiculously lazy it was hard to believe that the intended affect was to inflict harm. He heard a thump as Rieko tripped over a pillow that he'd placed in her path. Now she was running towards him. She was a foot away. Seven inches. Six.

Before he could pull another move, Ryo yanked Reiko back, holding tightly onto the angry girl's hoodie. She retreated back and the flames got bigger to sync to Reiko's anger before fizzling out in surrender. "What?"

"What? I'm not about to let you guys bomb up the place! We've already thinned Aizawa's patience."

"You think I care about that old man?" Reiko snarled. "I have priorities."

"Twisted ones," Ryo returned the snarl with one of her own. "And speaking of priorities, we need to figure out what to do."

"Right," Toshi stretched, his bones popping as he did. "Erm, how do we get out of here?"

"That," Reiko began, "is a horrible starting question."

Ryo sighed in irritation. "That isn't what I meant. I mean, what do we do about them?"

"Them?" both Reiko and Toshi asked in unison, then proceeded to glare at one another until Ryo spoke up.

"The students," she answered, snorting at their immaturity. "I hope you haven't forgotten that they saw you exit that portal, Reiko. The minute we leave this room, there will be questions. We need a lie, and a good one."

"Y'know, I just realized that you guys are wearing disguises," Reiko said. "I could try something like that."

"Fat chance," Toshi scoffed. "They've already seen you, and trust me, they won't be forgetting your appearance any time soon."

"Is that supposed to be a compliment or an insult, you fucker?" Reiko cursed, waving her fist at him.

Ryo rubbed her temples. "Let's just say it's a compliment. And Toshi's right, the disguise idea won't work. We could say it's a quirk."

"Okay," Toshi muttered. "I'll let you do all the talking."

.                           .                          . 

Reiko was not ready for what was to come.

The thought just residing in her head made her reel back with disgust. What kind of hero was she if she wasn't one who could take anything and everything? A couple of mangy students shouldn't have made her feel so anxious, yet it did. Perhaps it was because of their appearances, or maybe it was the startling realization that she was stuck here. 

Her eyes didn't know who to look at first. Her gaze settled on a curious boy in the back, one with green curls and a sprinkle of freckles across his face. 

Oh, for all the stars. It was Deku.

The name rattled around in her head, an endless echo. He was much younger than the muscular, taller man she knew back home, but that same thirst for knowledge was in his gleaming emerald eyes. He was wearing a white shirt and peering eagerly at the group. Next to him was a concerned, lean teen with pristinely-styled blue hair and glasses that reflected the sunlight with a bright platinum sheen. 

Iida, she knew him. He was probably as much of a stickler for rules as his grown-up counter part was. Wouldn't that just be wonderful.

A girl sprinted between the two, her eyes wide and joyful. Her hair was soft, short, and brown, with two strands framing her face. Uraraka. 

Reiko continued like this, identifying everyone by the time Ryo was finished explaining what had happened to Momo Yaoyorozu, who was taking charge in the absence of Aizawa. Reiko wasn't sure if she'd believe them. Her expression was poker-faced, and she rubbed her chin in thought. This version of Momo seemed exactly the same as the Creati she knew- calm and calculating; always radiating intelligence and absolute rationality. 

She glanced over at Toshi, who was tapping his foot in anticipation and tugging at his yellow sweater. A warm feeling stemmed up from the pit of her stomach, making her want to reach out and tell him that it would be okay. 

What the fuck? Where did that come from? 

She bit her lip, the tangy taste of iron filling her tongue. She licked her lips, trying to dispel of the taste before clueing back into reality. Ryo was standing regally, her arms behind her back. Reiko could see them twitching with anxiety.

"It makes sense," Momo finally said. "And she's a friend of yours?"

"Yes," Ryo answered crisply. Reiko recognized her tactics from training. When being interrogated, it was best to answer simple questions, well, simply. Adding too many details was suspicious.

"I would have to check with Aizawa, but I suppose you could stay. It is a hero's job to provide shelter to those who are in dire need of refuge. I have but one question."

"Of course," Ryo said. The twitching stopped- she was probably relieved that their plan had worked.

"I'd like to know a bit about your quirk," said Momo. "After all, it greatly resembles that of our classmate's. I'm just curious."

The twitching started again.

"Oh." her words were blank, and so was her face. Her eyes went all over the place, like she was searching for an answer to her problems. Toshi glanced at Reiko, and a silent message both passed between them.

"It's super speed," Reiko blurted out. She waited a moment, and Toshi continued the lie, picking up right where she'd ended it. The method wasn't anything they'd learned from training. It was just improv.

"Yeah. The green lightning is just a product of it," Toshi finished. Momo looked like she had more to say, but a shout from the elevator stopped her. Everyone's heads swiveled towards an angry girl.

Mina was furious as she stepped out of the silver-coated elevator. In her hands she held a bottle of black hair dye, and the tip was open and facing the ground. Not a drop fell out.

"Someone's been stealing my dye!" she shouted, waving the empty bottle around. "I had a full bottle just a few days ago!"

Reiko turned to both of the twins. Toshi gulped, and Ryo's face was empty. She didn't look scared at all, but her hands gave her away. 

They were trembling.

______

Woops? Late update? Hope you like it!

Also, Reiko, WHat The FUck WAs THat?

Hm. What do you guys think it was?

-Ruth