Beginning of a New Spring (MHA/PJO crossover)

Chapter 43

Soba: Thank you all who've added this and continue reading! It would be a lie to say it didn't feel like a burden to make sure I don't take too long to write chapters, but it's also a motivation at the same time to do since Ophelia's story has wormed its way into me even though it was supposed to be a stepping stone to help me write better. So I'm happy everyone enjoys this too!

They had given Hizashi the rundown of the last few hours when they got home before the two pro-heroes left to get matters in order at the school. It was inevitable that they had to inform the teachers since the situation had drastically changed, she didn't want to be the one to tell them, however. If the teachers doubted the words of Shouta and Hizashi, then she'd step in. According to Shouta though, Principle Nezu already had his suspicions, he just didn't voice them.

It had left Katsuki and her alone in the house with time to talk about their internships. They laid on the couch, her fingers running along his arm as she told him about all the members she met and what she learned with Edgeshot and Kei before her week hit a curve. She could tell he held Beast Jeanist in high regard as he complained about him and his uneventful week, even though they had their fair share of villains he ran into.

"You want to talk about it?"

Ophelia knew what he was asking, but how could she begin to explain what he had left out? Edgeshot and Kei only knew since the laistrygonian had no filter, though they only knew of the place and not the torment it did to one's mind. Shouta had more of an idea, so his anger that day wasn't misplaced, even though there was little to nothing any of them could do to quell her demons. Katsuki was the closest that came to destroying the labyrinth that held her mind hostage to them. It was his explosive quirk and attitude that never gave up on her to make it as far as she had.

Katsuki's grip tightened around her waist briefly as his breath fanned through her hair in a sigh. "I know."

Ophelia's posture went rigid in his embrace, mind whirling with what he meant, even though her mind knew what he meant. He knew and never let on. She didn't know whether to be disappointed in herself for not noticing or being able to utter the words to him from her own lips.

"There's only one place you could fall to unwillingly with Nico that would make you terrified of falling. You also don't like the complete darkness, there always has to be some kind of light. I'm not scared of the dark to keep a night light, pollen-head, you just didn't notice I put it in when there wasn't any moonlight to cast through my window whenever you came over. I won't lie and say I wish you had told me, because even now, I can feel how afraid you are talking about it. It's not something I can physically help with and that's what angers me. I can't help you fight something I can't see, but I'll be damned if you think you're alone," Katsuki growled, tightening his hold as he pulled her flush against his chest.

Tears blurred her vision as she listened to his words. She gripped his wrist on her waist as her other hand clung to the arm around her chest. He never ceased to amaze her with how rough his exterior seemed, yet gentle and affectionate he was with her. It took her a few minutes to find her voice to admit he was right. It took even longer to talk about what happened down there as the fear clawed at her heart, his embrace the one thing she clung to outside of her mind to know she wasn't alone.

Skin burned with boils when they first arrived that were excruciatingly painful when they popped and the air was thick to breathe in. She remembered holding Nico's hand in their delirious state as they trudged through Tartarus in no particular direction. The landscape was a dense fog with rocky hills and boulders as big as their cabins. The only alleviation they found was in the form of a river of fire— the Phlegethon— that flowed through his domain. It kept them going until their unfortunate run-in with Akhlys, the Goddess of misery. Her fate seemed inevitable as Akhlys stared at her, while telling Nico she had little to no more to make him suffer. The grip he had on her hand tightened at that time, tugged at her heart, even in the embrace of one she cared for deeply. Death in Tartarus was an ending that would have broken her soul into pieces and Nico's mind further.