Where Fear Resides (MHA X Reader)

For her

Everything seemed to happen all at once.

The students were running for the door one moment and disappearing into darkness the next, by the time you could even process what was happening, you had been dropped onto the hard ground.

Groaning and getting back on your feet you can't help but be impressed by a quirk that powerful. Whoever these people are, they seem like a force to be reckoned with, and you know Mari is going to be more than intrigued with them.

It takes only a few seconds to collect yourself, taking in the chaos surrounding you, the man covered in hands standing just a few feet away. When he turns to acknowledge your presence, you're moving with no hesitation, lunging straight for him with kunai drawn.

The first attack fails when he swiftly dodges, easily sidestepping your weapon, blade coming mere inches away from slicing his arm. One missed attack does not deter you, an impressed laugh escapes you at his speed, Mari is definitely going to want to know about him.

"You know, it's a real shame we have to be fighting right now. My sister would love you, she's into the big bad villain type."

As you had hoped, something about that comment sparks his interest, his guard coming down for a moment. That small window of time is all you need to attack again, rushing forward with your kunai ready, this time the blade cuts through the fabric of his shirt and right into his side.

A grunt of pain and rushed footsteps are the sounds that alert you to a successful attack and to the now infuriated man charging full speed at you. Thoughts are quick to flood your once focused mind, a sudden realization hits you like a truck, you have no idea what his quirk is.

Fuck! There's no way to dodge, what type of quirk would use touch? Please let this be right.

Panic sets in when his hands wrap tightly around your throat, your blood feels like it's just been set on fire, the skin under his hands begins to melt. To your confusion, his grip disappears, you nearly start to celebrate until a scratchy voice stops your internal victory.

"That's strange, my decay has never made someone melt before. A hallucination quirk? I haven't seen many of those before."

The half melted image ripples before it fades completely revealing the real you, a smug smirk forming at the clearly agitated man staring you down.

"What can I say? You seem gross enough to have a quirk that melts people and seeing as how you mentioned decay I wasn't too far off. Pretty impressive, huh?"

He doesn't seem to think so, especially not when he is once again rushing straight for you, somehow moving faster than before. This time though you know what to expect and in a similar fashion as before, you draw your weapons, preparing to deal real damage.

Within a matter of seconds you're slicing and dodging, a deadly dance that is oddly beautiful in its own twisted way, two people with the desire for revenge fighting for a chance to fulfill that need. The only difference is the way that one of these desires doesn't need to remain hidden, its viciousness has free reign, while the other needs to stay locked away.

Anger bubbles in your chest at the thought of having to work alongside the very people that caused your family and so many other families so much grief. You had to be the one to play buddy buddy especially with his kid, the one person in the world you wanted to suffer the most, and this psychopath gets to just barge into the school and do whatever he feels like.

With a particularly forceful movement, one of the kunai pierces his bicep, blood instantly gushing from the wound. Something about the sight of it sets you off even further, a second kunai is stabbed violently into his abdomen, the villain doubling over at the sudden burst of pain.

There is no mercy in the way you shove him onto his back, straddling his chest, a third kunai is drawn and pressed against his scratched up neck. Any teasing mood you had been in has long vanished, fury filled eyes bore holes into pained red ones, you can't help but laugh at the pathetic sight.

"Why the hell are you even here? What insane goal did you come here trying to achieve? Obviously it's some vendetta against heroes. I bet they killed your family too didn't they?

An unnervingly calm look fills the injured man's eyes, his own hand coming up to remove the disembodied one from his face, sympathy floods you at the sight of him. Blood is dripping from his mouth thanks to you, the skin under his eyes looks painfully dry, his lips look even worse.

"Who are you?"

The question escapes before you can stop it, you've spent way too much time on him as it is, you cannot afford to make anyone else suspicious. Just as you're about to get up and back away, he answers you, stopping you from moving.

"Tomura Shigaraki."

An idea crosses your mind, and before you can even talk yourself out of it, your quirk activates. A large hallucination of you and Shigaraki fighting is projected to anyone who looks in this direction, you won't be able to keep this up for long but for now, it's the best you can do.

The look of restrained amazement that crosses Shigaraki's features makes your heart hurt, there is something almost childlike about the expression and yet, he looks like he's fighting that inner child off. Someone hurt him in an unimaginable way, even if you don't know how, that expression is the very same one Mari wears when she fights off any emotion that isn't anger.

"You're not here to be a hero are you? One of them stole someone you loved didn't they?"

That's all it takes for your defenses to go up, massive brick walls shielding your broken heart from a harsh reality, you have to remember why you're here.

"I don't know what you're talking about. What I do know is this hallucination takes a lot of energy to maintain, energy I don't have, so listen up. I don't really care why you're here but it's going to get real ugly when the other pro's show up. I suggest cutting your losses and retreating."

A twisted grin takes over Shigaraki's cracked lips, that moment of amazement dwindling away as quickly as it appeared, he has a mission here.

"I'm here for All Might and I'll destroy anyone that steps in my way. Except for you of course, there are too many questions that I have to ask you, they'll just have to wait."

Just like before, darkness surrounds you, this time you're dropped near the exit door where some of the other students are standing. That is where you stay, when your teacher is all but crushed by the monster that Shigaraki brought to kill All Might.

Even when the Symbol of Peace himself and the other pros show up to claim their victory, you just stand there, so many thoughts flooding your mind. You came way too close to blowing your cover, even if no one else could hear you, speaking about it to anyone is forbidden.

That wicked little mantra plays in your head as you're led out of the USJ with the other students, those twisted words used to keep that burning hatred alive, the only reason you're even at this dreadful school.

This is all for her.