Villainous [Hitoshi Shinso X Reader]

[Chapter 30]: Day Of Reckoning

Note: Play song towards the end of the chapter
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   All I saw was black.
It felt like I was swimming in it, drowning in it, struggling to stay afloat atop an inky sea. I couldn't remember how I ended up here or even how long it had been since I'd arrived, yet there was a nagging feeling in the back of my mind. A voice telling me that I had to leave.
But it was quiet in here. Peaceful, even.
I wasn't sure why, but I felt like I hadn't known peace in a very long time. Selfishly, I wanted to stay.
With that thought in mind, I relaxed my muscles—uncurled my toes and closed my eyes—and allowed myself to drift freely through the dark. The murky waters lapped over my torso, consumed my body and then washed over my face like eager fingers until I was submerged completely. It felt like I was being dragged beneath the current by dozens of needy hands. But I wasn't scared. Despite knowing that I was sinking, that I could no longer suck oxygen into my burning lungs, I didn't panic.
The voice was shouting now. Distorted and angry in my ears, but still coherent. It was demanding me to swim.
Against my better judgement, I reopened my eyes and suddenly I was breathing again. I gasped as my body spasmed. Air was rushing into my lungs without my consent, the dark waters around me were dispersing back into the depths beneath my now floating form.
All I saw was white.
My eyes were instantly blinded by billions of burning stars piercing through the darkness all around me. Some were small, others were staggering, but all of them were pulsating with urgency. It was all I could see, these twinkling lights illuminating the world around me like stars guiding me home. There was no more darkness.
One in the distance caught my eye. It was small, drifting closer and closer, and something was drawing me towards it. Unlike the others this light was calm, not roiling with untameable electricity but swaying with a gentle purpose. There was something else about it too. Something that I couldn't quite place. Something familiar.
As the purple light drifted closer, I did the same. Eventually its shape came into focus and it became clear to me that it wasn't a glowing orb like the rest of them. It was almost... human.
This was the voice.
"You're such a pain."
I blinked against the intensity of the figure's luminescence searing into my eyes. A hand bathed in purple light extended towards me through the miraculously shortened distance between us. It was pale and smooth, beckoning me to take it.
"Who are you?" I whispered. "Why am I here?"
The light pulsed in such a way that it looked sad. It didn't make sense. A light couldn't look sad, it couldn't express emotion at all, and yet the sorrow it was conveying to me was clear as day. The bizarreness of that simple observation struck me like a blow. I felt the need to protect this light. To save it.
"You know who I am... As for why," its tone suggested the figure bathed in light was smiling. "I thought that you could use a reminder."
Confusion made me draw back from the cryptic voice, distrust colouring my own tone when I spoke. "Reminder?"
The light burned brighter. Advanced a bit closer. "Yes. A reminder that this power is yours, nobody else's. They can't just rip it away from you. Not if you don't let them."
My brow pinched as I grappled to understand the meaning behind the words being spoken to me. A small voice in the back of my mind that was growing increasingly demanding by the minute felt like this message was important. "Who are you?" I repeated.
"Please," the figure ignored my question. "Don't let them."
All I saw was purple.
Rushing forward with the strength of a wave was a little girl wrapped in a cloak of purple light. Her aura. She pressed her palm to my chest, disorienting my senses as she sent my figure spiralling back through the lights surrounding me. Souls.
Instinctively I reached forward, desperate to grab her hand. One name was bouncing around me head, begging to tear free from my throat, but no sound came out.
Saya.
Smiling with hot, fat teardrops dripping down her face, she offered a tiny wave. I shook my head to display the disapproval I felt towards the situation, screaming silently as I ripped past the blurring lights. Saya closed her eyes. Took a deep breath.
And then I was watching her fall.
She plunged into the darkness, into the black sea below, fleeting as a falling star in the night sky. Then her light was gone, swallowed by the raging tides.
     She had winked out of existence before my very eyes and I was powerless to stop her. I tried to scream. No sound came out.
     But I still heard a voice.
"It's time for you to wake up now, (Y/N)."
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I jolted, gasping for air. My body was aching, stiff as a board, and I realized with growing dread where I was. Heart monitors were beeping frantically around the cramped metallic room, echoing around me like a drum as my breathing picked up in speed. There were leather straps still restraining me to an examining table. I had bigger problems.
Hitoshi. I agonized. Where is he?
Glancing side to side with forceful jerky movements, I managed to locate his figure in the corner of the room. He was holding a small figure, shouting obscenities and obviously in distress. But he was alive.
My eyes fell on the limp figure in his arms. Saya.
An indignant screech of rage drew the attention of everyone else in the room to me.
"Holy shit!" Saiki laughed jubilantly as he bounded to my side. "You're awake?! Boss gave you enough of that sedative stuff to keep you out for days."
I struggled harder, desperate to free my hands. To do something. Thrashing was useless, however, as Saiki only clasped another set of metal cuffs to my wrists and ankles in response.
     The blue-haired boy ogled my seething figure.
"You just might be the most beautiful girl I've ever met," Saiki sighed dreamily as he took in my sweaty form and snarling mouth.
I spat in his smiling face. His grin turned maniacal as he flicked it away from his cheek with a satisfied purr. There were practically hearts dancing around in his blue eyes as he clasped his hands together and leaned uncomfortably close.
"I think I'm in love!"
     Tirelessly, I tried to scream. But my vocal chords still refused to listen.
"Saiki," All For One's voice spoke lowly, as calculating as a predator stalking its prey. "Strap Shinsou to the table. I think it's time that we put an end to this charade and show my daughter her place in this world."
"Sure thing, boss."
I grit my teeth so hard that I nearly cracked a molar, my jaw aching from the strain. "Don't touch him."
The man I was unfortunately bound to by blood stalked closer until he was looming above me with a promise of absolute menace. I stared threateningly into his wrecked face.
"My poor child," his fingers brushed gently over my cheek, a revolting contrast to his malicious tone. "The heroes have defiled you. Used you. Lied to you."
"Projecting, much? You didn't strike me as the type." My eyes were positively feral, my mind overrun by the need to escape.
Something was wrong.
     I still couldn't scream.
All For One shook his head, feigning disdain. "They have you so far under their thumbs that you can't even see the truth. But don't worry, (Y/N)," I recoiled as his breath fanned over my face, trying in vain not to flinch away from the close proximity. "I won't lie to you."
As if on cue, Saiki came into my line of sight, dragging something heavy alongside him. Only now did I hear the shouting of Hitoshi in the background. Hauling up the thing captured in his grip, Saiki offered it to my father. My breath hitched painfully in my chest, and I vaguely registered the taste of blood in my mouth.
All I saw was red.
My sister, being dragged across the floor like a toy, was limp. Saiki's countenance was delighted while All For One remained steely. His teeth that were flashing in a crude mockery of a smile were menacing. Lips peeled back, he displayed Saya's small figure to me, sagging over like a doll as his hand fisted into her hair to keep her upright.
Rage exploded behind my eyes. It was all I could see, all I could feel. My feet kicked, my mouth growled threats, but All For One just kept on talking. His hand traced Saya's shoulder.
"She was such a good girl, wasn't she?" He contemplated aloud. "Nothing like you, (Y/N)—"
"Don't listen to him!" Hitoshi yelled at me from where he was struggling against his own straps. "He's lying. That's not her—"
Saiki was quick to hit Hitoshi over the head with a metal dish, rendering him unconscious. He slumped against the table. All For One clucked his tongue, seemingly displeased with Hitoshi's interference.
"That boy has no tact, (Y/N). I truly don't see what you see in him."
Ignoring his jive, I demanded. "What does he mean she isn't Saya?"
Sighing somewhat regretfully—though I doubted it was because of his daughter's pitiful state—All For One pulled Saya up by the arms and spun her around. He shifted her closer to me. "Look closely."
My eyes travelled over the body that was supposed to be my sister, taking in every detail. The long brown hair, the pale skin, even the freckle just below her left eye... But she was too still. Too waxy. Too stiff.
Eyes watering disbelievingly, I whispered, "Is that—is that a doll?"
"You didn't really think that your sister somehow came back from the dead, did you?" All For One laughed harshly. "You always have been gullible."
     My world was shattering around me, shards of everything I thought to be true piercing me like a million tiny blades.
"B-but," I spluttered, tears and snot choking me as I struggled to form words. "I thought I was going insane."
"Tell me, child. What is it that you thought Himiko Toga took from you that day you were in the hospital?"
The suddenness of the question made me falter. I stared sceptically, unsure whether or not it was better if I remained quiet or relented by offering a response. I opted to remain silent.
"Ah. 'Daddy' didn't tell you?" The malice in his voice when he spoke of Aizawa was palpable. "You're a lab rat, child. A weapon. First wielded by me and now wielded by the heroes. Oh, how far the mighty have fallen..."
     That was the final straw. I was just about done with all of the vagueness being forced down my throat today.
"Fuck off with all of these bullshit mind games," I demanded callously. "Tell me the truth."
     All For One tutted.
"I'm going to overlook your attitude just this once because I know that you're in pain," he remarked with false compassion. "But I am telling the truth."
"No," I shook my head derisively. "I'm not a lab rat."
"Then explain to me why the heroes allowed Eraserhead to keep you like some pet?" He taunted. "After everything you did. All of the people that you killed. You're a villain through and through, daughter, and the heroes are not forgiving."
Bristling like a cat, I hissed, "You're wrong. I'm not a villain and Aizawa is more of a father to me than you ever were—"
"Yet, I wasn't the one who allowed you to be experimented on by Mr. Hamada." All For One splayed his hands as if to showcase his innocence and Saya's figure dropped to the floor. "A shame that he was a double agent, truly..."
The beating of my heart grew in time with the beeping of the monitor attached to me. My fingers twisted, wrists bleeding from the new metal cuffs digging into my flesh. I wasn't going to feed into his lies so easily. I wasn't going to give him the satisfaction.
"I don't believe you."
Scoffing, the man who fathered me regarded me with distaste. It was almost comical, the look he gave me. As if he were truly a parent scolding his child. But he wasn't my dad. He never was.
"Hamada worked for the military as a scientist. One that specialized in the weaponization of quirks, actually." All For One declared with a note of bitterness in his authoritative voice. "So imagine his delight when he was granted the perfect opportunity to experiment on you. The great (Y/N), daughter of none other than the ever allusive All For One."
"A bit full of yourself, don't you think?"
He paid me no mind, obviously too busy revelling in the way my voice minutely quivered at his words. "He struck a deal. The heroes were allowed to keep you, use you as they saw fit—all they had to do was give him the jurisdiction to cut you open."
"No," I shook my head. "Aizawa would never—"
"Oh," he interrupted gleefully. "But he did. He allowed government labs to rip you apart from the inside out. It was the only way to ensure your obedience and minimize the threat you posed to society. And you know what our dear friend, Hamada, did to achieve that?" All For One leaned in conspiratorially. "He did the exact same thing I did. Forced you to bring forth your little sister's soul and extracted it from your body. The best part? He synthetically bonded her soul to your own to keep you in control! It was the ideal situation, you having a dead sister. The compatibility of your souls allowed then to coexist peacefully at all times without one destroying the other."
Tears were leaking from my eyes. My throat was clogged and I couldn't find the words to stop the assault of his lies battering my ears.
"The little sister protecting the big sister. Do you know how many times my little Saya has prevented you from losing it when your quirk has gotten out of control over the years?"
"She's not yours," I protested weakly. "She never was."
"Hamada was clever, I'll give him that." All For One sidestepped my declaration with practiced ease. "He knew that whenever you began to slip, Saya's soul would take over and utilize her happiness quirk to calm you down. It was inevitable! If she didn't you would be shot down on sight and even dead, Saya didn't want to see her big sister in pain."
He was preparing another syringe, one that was glistening with a dark red liquid that looked suspiciously like poison. I swallowed the bile rising in my throat. It burned, but I didn't care.
"Isn't that sweet, (Y/N)?"
The needle drew closer, but I didn't move. I didn't try to scream. In fact my body was so still that I could've been mistaken for dead had it not been for the constant stream of tears streaking down my face like a broken dam.
"I suppose Hamada and I didn't do exactly the same thing." He mused idly. "I certainly didn't feel the need to wipe your memory like Hamada did. Such a strange quirk he has... But I digress."
"Memory... Wiped...?" My mind was reeling. A memory wiping quirk? Why would Aizawa let them do that to me? He wouldn't. He couldn't. Not willingly.
No, I reaffirmed. You know Aizawa. And you know he wouldn't do something like that without one hell of a good reason.
"I am grateful to him," All For One blabbered on. "His endeavours certainly made all of this possible. All I had to do was get Himiko to drug you and the rest was child's play. My quirk made it easy to detach Saya's soul again and place it into this thing," said thing was kicked viciously across the room where it landed with a dull thud in front of Hitoshi and rolled until its empty eyes were staring back at me like reflective plates. "But it's useless to me now. Right when she finished what she was brought back to do, her soul disappeared. My sincerest apologies. I suppose this means that you've lost your sister twice now. But without you," he pressed the needle to my vein, "maybe she'll finally find some peace."
Just as the poison was about to be inserted into my bloodstream, I jerked. The syringe flew from All For One's hand and smashed against the concrete floor, dumping its contents like blood escaping a body. I bit down into his flesh with vicious force. He yanked himself free. His eyes flashed and he smacked me across the face with the back of his bloodied hand while barking orders at Saiki.
"Kill the boy," he seethed. "I want her to watch."
Don't let them. Saya's voice whispered in my mind. It's your power.
And then all I saw were fireworks.
Rage snapped within me and finally I was able to scream. My voice had come back. I would no longer be silent.
My body was thrumming with energy, pulsing like a live wire. There was a radiant glow lighting up the room—a glow that was emanating from me.
Loud as a crack of thunder, the earth split around me, shattering the silence with unearthly shrieks and yowls. My body rocked with the force. The table shifted.
And then I was dropping through empty air as I was consumed by the darkness once again. The lights were back, pushing and pulling at my clothes and skin. Tugging me down into the bottomless sea.
But this time I wouldn't allow myself to sink. This time I would rise.
The shackles that were binding my hands and feet fell away and I laughed from the liberation of it. Blood flowed freely from long, fresh gashes torn into my flesh where it now lacked the pressure that kept it at bay. It didn't matter. I was free.
Eerie green wisps caressed my face, my shoulders, my legs. Thick, heavy chains that were soft as vapour attached themselves to my body with rattling defiance and splayed out around me like claws reaching towards the surface. Then I knew.
My quirk was back. The souls of the underworld were once again under my command.
This is my power.
Spirits flew all around me as I shot back up from the depths of the underworld and back into All For One's lab. They whipped my hair, my maelstrom of souls, and knocked over the shelves filled with glass vials and medical equipment while screeching almost happily.
Saiki was scrambling around on the floor, trying to find purchase on something—anything—to avoid being sucked into the void I had created. All For One had crossed the room and was now standing resolutely with a scalpel pressed to Hitoshi's neck. At some point during the madness he had awoken and now he was staring up at me with marvelling amethyst hues. Our eyes locked.
"Stop this, (Y/N)," All For One demanded coolly. "Or I will kill him."
But his words had no sway over me, not anymore. I was in control. This was my game now.
The chains were chipping.
"You took my sister." I bellowed. "Used her as a pawn in your games."
All For One tried to speak, but I barrelled onwards. I watched as a soul wrapped around Saiki's slim body, slicing his skin as he struggled to reach the other man. The tongue of a viper lashed out at his captor, but to no avail—you can't hurt something that is already dead. Saiki hissed in frustration. My head tilted, connecting gazes with him.
"You defiled her name," the soul around Saiki squeezed, chittering and cackling as he shrieked in agony. "I will never allow you to do it again."
    The bindings tethering the souls to my own were falling away.
Saiki was whipped across the room like a rag doll. His back smacked against the wall with a sickening crack before he slumped to the ground in a lifeless heap. The telltale sound of his breathy wheezing proved to me that he was still alive, but I was too preoccupied with glowering defiantly at my father to care.
"Saya was good. Her quirk was good." I said stonily, but my voice cracked half way through. "And you took that away!"
The scalpel pressed into Hitoshi's neck, a blossom of red staining his pale throat like the petals of a rose. Hitoshi didn't even flinch. He was far too busy staring at me.
"But you can't hurt us anymore!" I shouted fiercely. A cacophony of shrieks rose to meet my declaration. "I won't let you!"
The bonds that remained were exploding all around me, one by one, into a tinkling symphony of ringing bells.
All For One roared with fury.
Before he could plunge the scalpel home, a soul shot like a lightning bolt through the air and coiled around his arm. It yanked his hand back, stilling his movements. All For One's face held placidity with notable effort as he stared up at my form floating atop the souls of the dead.
"Look at yourself," he mocked, indicating my billowing hair and clothes. "All rage and pain. You have so much power, so much potential. You're a villain. It's all you'll ever be. No matter how hard you try, child, you'll always be my daughter—"
And then they were gone.
Tiny fissures opened up in all of my shackles, cracking with deafening finality before shattering and disappearing completely. The confines that had been locked on me were broken.
More spirits flew forward in a whirlwind of turbulent energy, latching onto All For One's body like snakes as they pinned him to the wall. They writhed and howled while they awaited my orders, the chains that once bounded us together no longer necessary for them to obey my orders.
"I am not defined by you!" I screamed. "I am my own person! This is my power and mine alone!" My chin jutted upwards, eyes peering down at the monster that had been plaguing my every thought for far too long with newfound vigour. "I AM (Y/N) AIZAWA! AND I'M GOING TO BE A HERO—!"
A gasp tore from my throat as a strange tension burst in my chest. For a moment, everything was still.
And then I was imploding.
Tendrils of light rushed forth in a display of kaleidoscope colours, dancing around the room like a rainbow strobe light being clasped tightly in the palm of someone's hand. It was then that I learned the truth.
I did have a soul. And this, this surge of energy, this chaotic, unfathomable blend of colours—this was it. I had finally been unleashed.
Bricks and debris caved inwards and a part of me recognized the familiar shouts of Aizawa and other Pros. Turning my eyes to the side, my breath stuttered in shock. My friends. All of them were there, staring at me like I was some ethereal being, decked out in their hero outfits. They had come for us. For me. I noticed the way the side of Hitoshi's mouth hitched upwards.
His eyes said it all. He had done this. He had contacted the heroes, after all.
I fought back the elated exasperation I felt towards the boy that I had grown to love. So you're not entirely hopeless, Bedhead.
"It's over for you, All For One."
With my body projecting the soul that I never knew I had for all the world to see, I smiled. A true, genuine smile. One that lit up the entire room and stopped the Pros and all of my friends dead in their tracks. Everything felt so inexplicably light. Like I was a feather caught in the wind.
Aizawa was breathing heavily only a few steps away from me, looking dishevelled as always, but his eyes were so proud.
The souls tittered around me, thrumming with excitement as I drifted to All For One's level. I met his icy stare levelly.
"You can't hurt me anymore. I'm finally free. In a weird way, you're the one that made this all happen," he lurched forwards, trying to get me, but the souls were adamant in their hold. I smiled smugly.
Hitoshi cleared his throat, glancing pointedly at the cuffs locking him to the table. Sheepishly, I released his bonds and he gratefully rubbed at his tender wrists. We stared at each other.
"So," he began calmly. "Does this mean we're even for the shitty coffee I made you?"
Hitoshi grinned cheekily and I strode forward, wasting no time as I hooked my fingers in his collar and smashed my lips to his in a much needed kiss. My friends whistled and catcalled in the background—leave it to Class 1-A to spoil a moment, I thought warmly—and I recognized a distinct muttering that could definitely be attributed to Aizawa.
     When we pulled away, Hitoshi was smirking confidently. "Not even close." His grin dropped into a pout as I patted his cheek with a snicker.
I felt happy.
But happy endings will have to wait. I told myself. There's still something I need to do.
     Hitoshi noticed the determination in my eyes and allowed me to step around him. With nothing left between us, I came face to face with my fears. All For One seethed.
"I'm going to make sure that you never hurt anyone ever again." The people I loved rallied around me, standing firm and resolute like a reliable shield. A reminder that we were in this together.
A reminder...
"All For One," my voice echoed in the gathering silence, strong and proud. "This is your day of reckoning."