Requiem of the Broken

Chapter 13: Blitzkrieg

The lineup of food was awe-inspiring. Several tables had been set up by staff members while everyone had been pre-occupied in the pool. From purely vegetarian dishes, a small meat array that even Bakugo was impressed by, and several more complex dishes there was enough food to feed them all and then some. Several comfy chairs designed for outside use had been set up in a circle with a large circular table in the middle with filled wine glasses at every spot. It took them all a few minutes to get their food, but before long they were all seated at the table. They all started diving into their food in earnest then. Ochako nabbed a seat between Tokoyami and Bakugo and turned to Tokoyami.

"So, what brought you to Musustafu last month? Apart from Tsu I mean," she asked Tokoyami, she was curious why he might have been in the area.

Tokoyami seemed to choke a bit at that last remark, but since he lacked the ability to blush, trying to read him was extraordinarily difficult. She got the faint sense that it had indeed flustered him somewhat but only her personal familiarity with him granted her that insight. He had cultivated quite the poker face over the years, which made it even harder but he had his weaknesses.

Tokoyami cleared his throat and answered, "Nezu wanted me to help him with a project of his. He didn't want the H.A. getting their fingers in it so he had me conduct some clandestine investigations on his behalf both within and outside the city, and no, I can't disclose the nature of the said investigations." He replied as he continued to eat.

Ochako mulled that over while she was eating, then replied, "It's about his new initiative to start getting more heroes to fill our depleted ranks, isn't it?"

A small laugh sounded right in Ochako's ear and she jumped, swiping a hand out to touch whoever it was out of reflex. Only to realize that Dark Shadow had snuck up behind her.

"Dark Shadow, you should know better than to sneak up on people here. If it were Bakugo or Todoroki then the entire table would have been destroyed." Tokoyami admonished his quirk.

Dark Shadow merely cackled and said, "Oh lighten up, we're supposed to be having fun."

Tokoyami merely sighed, "Very well, but do keep it under control."

Dark Shadow gave a smile, then turned back to Ochako. "Well to answer your question you'd be correct."

"SHADOW!" Said Tokoyami sharply.

"It's fine, she already knows it exists, but she doesn't know the details. Do you?" said Dark Shadow looking back at her.

"Well... no, I don't," admitted Ochako. She had to admit that Dark Shadow had become quite intelligent over the years. Compared to what it had been like during her school days, it had advanced quite far in both body and mind. Tokoyami had trained both himself and Dark Shadow exceptionally well.

"See? It's fine, I know what I'm doing." Said Dark Shadow with a smirk.

"That's what worries me..." grumbled Tokoyami, but he did ultimately go back to his food. At least until he got into talking with Tsu who was next to him.

Dark Shadow for its part floated from Ochako's shoulder to shrinking in size and laying down in front of Ochako on the table. It reached a handover and picked some food from her plate and ate it.

"Do you even need to eat?" she asked curiously.

"No, but it tastes good," it said plucking some food from Tokoyami's plate.

"How does he have a sense of taste? Does he have a stomach separate from Tokoyami?" Wondered Ochako, the many mysteries of Dark Shadow continuing to plague her.