One in a Billion

Chapter Fifty Three: The Apples and Their Trees

Hina groaned as her eyes fluttered open. Quickly, she noticed her entirely new surroundings. She was laying on a slightly ragged mattress in a dark, silent room. She quickly sat up, fully realising her new environment. Her breathing starts to accelerate once again but she took a moment to try and control it whilst trying to think of what to do next. "Okay, okay. New place. Small room. Blocked windows so I can't tell what time it is or even guess where the fuck I am." She looked around at the floor and things beside the bed. "Good chance my phone isn't here, it's not in my pocket. Clothes are fine. This just seems like a normal-looking bedroom." She whispered to herself. She then looked at the door. Standing up, she slowly sneaked towards it, as to not make much noise. She then slowly opened the door to find a living area, just as rundown as the bedroom. She didn't want to use her Selective Hearing quirk as she was still feeling drowsy so she stayed as quiet as possible to listen for any indication she wasn't the only one in there.

Then, she hears a door creak open and shut seconds later. She quickly darted back into the bedroom, bracing for anything. "I know you're up, Hina. Come on out, I won't bite." The voice was undoubtedly Dabi's. "Oh yeah, stalking, assaulting and kidnapping is fine but biting is where you draw the line. Your moral compass is fucking in orbit right now." Hina said, loud enough for him to hear. He chuckled in response. "You better get out here before your food gets cold." He said. The faint smell of food passed Hina's nose as she peeked out the door. She saw Dabi setting down a fast-food paper bag on a table as he sat down on a sofa, in front of it. "Who's the stalker now?" He asked, taking the contents out of the bag. "I'm not hungry." She replied, making the villain kiss his teeth. "I think you'll find this new arrangement a lot more easy if you follow my instructions. Don't let my money go to waste and get out here." He said, sternly. She slightly winced at his tone and slowly walked out of the room. "That wasn't so hard, was it?" He smirked. "So, what's your plan? Beat me into submission? Brainwash me into telling you UA secrets?" She asked, carefully approaching him.

He chuckled at her. "You love your theories, don't you? You have a fascinating brain, that's for sure." He said, pushing her meal towards her. "Also, because of your bitchiness, you're sitting on the floor." He added. Hina scoffed as she crossed her legs and sat down. "As if I was gonna sit next to you." He groaned as he picked up a burger and started to eat. Hina slowly picked up her burger, examining it. "Why would I kidnap you just to poison and kill you? Eat, goddamnit." He complained. Hina looked up at him as she took a small bite. She noticed it tasted slightly different from a normal hamburger but she kept it to herself. "You know, despite what people say, there are quite a lot of benefits to keeping in close touch with your ex." Dabi said. "Especially when they still keep the illusion of their past relationship." Hina looked up at the man, sensing an unpleasant aura from him. "I know a lot about you, and you have Kazuya to thank for that." He smiled.

It took her a while but she was able to identify the strange taste. "W-What time is it?" She asked. "You don't have to worry about time here. We have loads of that. You must be tired." He replied, leaning closer to her. Her head started swaying to the side. "I guess I am." She yawned. Rest up. I'm gonna need your help when you have energy." He smirked as she slowly got up and walked back to the bedroom. She shut the door behind her and tucked herself under the bedsheets. She took a second to control her breathing. She felt like she'd been holding her breath for that whole interaction. That weird taste she detected earlier resonated with her as she racked her brain, trying to think of where she recognises it from. Then it hit her. Her arms started growing green as her sub-conscious remembered the taste for her. Out grew a poppy. She sighed as she realised what he was trying to do. "Poppy seeds." She whispered to herself as she laid in the bed.

~ Around the same time ~

Daichi sits among other prisoners in a recreational room. He tries to make the quirk disabler around his neck less uncomfortable by tugging on its edge but the gloves her was forced to wear didn't help and the disabler just stabbed him more. As he winces, a prison guard walks over to the small TV that hangs on the wall and turns it on. The news channel flickers on. "Breaking news. We now have confirmation on the UA student who has been abducted. She is a first year called Katsu Hina-Yamada, the same student who was suspected on attacking Inei Kondo not long ago." Daichi's head snaps towards the screen at the familiar name. "The authorities have made this kidnapping top priority. People online have been connecting this to Kondo's case as some believe that it is the same villain who has committed these acts. Rumours are the villain by the name of Dabi is behind this. If anyone knows Hina's whereabouts or have any form of a clue, we encourage you to contact the police or your local hero agency as all heroes have been told to be on the lookout-"

As the reporter was talking, a prisoner changed the channel. Daichi scanned the room for the remote and found it in the hands of a quirkless but muscular inmate. He got up and towered over him. "Change it back." He growled as the inmate glared up at him. "Nah, that shit is just boring." He said as he looked back at the TV, which was on an animal channel. Daichi looked over at the guards to make sure they weren't paying attention. He punched the inmate on the back of the head, knocking him out and out of his chair. By the time the guards noticed, Daichi had managed to pick the remote up with his gloved hands and walk up to a different inmate who saw the assault. "Switch it back to the news channel. And if you say a word about that, it's your head next." He sternly stated as the inmate trembled, changing the channel. "I-Is that your daughter? That t-they're talking about?" The inmate nervously asked. "Unfortunately." He hissed as he sat back in his seat.

~ Around the same time ~

The top 10 pro heroes sat at a table, discussing the best way to deal with this situation. "Do we know the LOV's current location? How difficult will it be to locate them?" Kamui Woods asked. "We have pros trying that right now but I don't think we should start with them. I say that we look closer into any surveillance footage around the area before we solidify any suspects." Ryukyu replied. "The police will be covering that front and will report to us as soon as they have anything. But I think it's fair to connect this case to Kondo's case." Edgeshot stated. As the discussion went on, two heroes in particular stayed in silence: Mirko and Endeavour. The two were sat next to each other as they were both going through a wave of emotions. Hawks looked at the two and spoke up. "Endeavour. It looks like you have something to say. Same with you, Mirko." The two looked at Hawks, wanting to strangle him for bringing them up.

"Edgeshot is right. I believe the two cases to be connected. Long story short, I believe the online rumours are correct. I believe the villain Dabi is behind this." He sighed. He looked over at Mirko and noticed her hands are balled up rather tightly. He put his hand on her shoulder, making her tense up a bit more but slightly relaxing as she made eye contact with the pro. "I don't have much evidence to connect the two cases but I promise you all, I will do everything and anything in my power to find Hina. I promise." While he was speaking to the room, Mirko could tell it was mainly directed towards her. "How is the family?" He asked Mirko. "Uh, they're coping. For safety, UA has relocated them for the time being; just in case the assailant had any personal information on them. Ryu- I mean, Father Nature has been working tirelessly on this case as well. Obviously, they're deeply worried and troubled but they're getting any and every update that we come up with." She debriefed. "Great. So, we'll keep searching until she returns to them." He nodded at her. The situation couldn't help but make him think of his first born, Touya.