Smile for Me

Chapter 28: Let's Get Started

Madame Maniacal POV:

Madame Maniacal awoke to what felt like a head full of cotton.

Ugh. Well, that could've gone better...

She looked around to see that she was in her room/cell once more. She slowly sat up and stretched a bit. The bluenette then walked out to the bar to see where everyone was, to see that no one was there.

Where could they be?

Out of curiosity she started roaming the halls searching for her new friends, when she heard low voices. She approached the room that the voices were coming from and saw that they were in the chamber of bad memories. She shuddered a bit, then pressed her ear to the door to eavesdrop.

"...Trust her. I mean, we saw her at the same time as Eraserhead was leaving. I mean, he knows where we are now; doesn't that mean she could've betrayed us?"

Typical Dabi...

"She was also unconscious! I don't believe that my bestie would betray us."

"Are you sure you finished the brainwashing, Shigaraki?- That sounded like the fun part!!"

"Yes, Twice. I'm sure. Although it was the first test subject, it seems to have worked. I mean, look at her! She stole for us and helped you all escape of her own volition."

"Yeah, and that 'help' let Eraserhead straight to us!" Dabi exclaimed.

"Watch your tone Dabi," Kurogiri said calmly, "Shigaraki is still in charge here. And you needn't be so rude."

Brainwashing? Tests?...

She began to think... her head still hurt.

~"Joke, listen to me. They're using you!"~

"Shut up." she growled at her own head.

She walked back to her room and laid down on the bed.

God, I wish my brain would shut up for once.

You mean our brain?

Like I said, you need to shut up.

Madame Maniacal stared up at the ceiling and thought about Eraser and the things he said.

"Ha." she laughed at the memory of him trying to convince her he didn't cause this to happen. That he did "care".

She rolled over on her side.

What a Joke.

Aizawa's POV:

"You what?!?!" Present Mic yelled.

Aizawa rubbed his temples. "Keep you voice down, Mic. Come in here and I'll explain."

The two male Heroes walked into Aizawa's empty classroom (it was lunch hour) and found Midnight waiting for them.

"Alright, so here's what I was thinking-" Aizawa began.

"You were thinking when you made this plan?" Midnight asked. "Sounds like suicide."

"Listen, I was gonna do it regardless of whether or not you two approved, I just thought you'd like to know."

Hizashi and Nemuri looked at each other hesitantly, then back at their friend.

"Alright, go on." Nemuri urged.

Aizawa sighed. What he was about to say and do were not going to be easy...

"What happened to Ms.Joke could've been avoided if I had gotten there sooner. I was just so reluctant to show up because I knew she was there and didn't feel like dealing with her. I could've helped her, but I didn't."

The two other Heroes stared at their friend in shock. They had no idea he was carrying this burden...

"That's why I'm going to get her back."

Now that caught their attention even more, if it was possible.

"Shouta...Emi is gone." Mic said reluctantly.

"No, she's not."

"If you're talking about that Villain we saw a few weeks ago, it just looked like her. It wasn't-"

"I know it's her, okay!" Aizawa said, raising his voice.

He sighed, leaning his head back to regain his composure.

"I went to the police station a few days ago and asked them to send me, and only me, a ding whenever someone matching that woman's description came up on any cameras, and I managed to find her again."

Midnight and Mic looked like they wanted to say or ask something, but they decided to let him finish.

Aizawa continued, "When I got there, she was driving some of the League of Villains away from a crime scene, and eventually went back to what I can only assume is one of their bases. I snuck in and hid in the rafters, and she spotted me, but didn't tell the others. Instead, she lured me outside, and attacked me...." He looked up solemnly.

"She had Emi's quirk."

They looked up in shock. Not only at the news they just received, but also that Aizawa just called her Emi rather than "Joke".

"I responded to one of her statements, and suddenly I couldn't control my own laughter. It was hard to breathe, and she knew it." he looked down. "I managed to get some of her blood, and sent it to a lab at the station and confirmed it was her blood. That woman is Emi Fukukado."

It took some time to process what had just been told to them; the careful and logical Eraserhead going behind Nezu's back, his chasing of the mysterious woman, and finding out their friend was not only alive, but... a villain?

"I...I-I don't know how to process this." Nemuri said, sitting down in a chair, rather than on the desk where she was.

"So...what can we do?" Hizashi asked.

"I was going to get her from the League and bring her back here. I don't know why shes a Villain now, or what they did to her, but we can know more about what happened if we have her in custody."

"Why didn't you just ask Nezu's permission and do this mission officially?" Hizashi asked.

"That could take more time than we have for him to approve it. And he wouldn't approve of my more...direct methods." He looked up at his fellow teachers. "I need your help to do this."

They once more looked around at each other.

Midnight looks up at Eraserhead.

"How do we start?"

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Sorry for the shorter filler chapter, but it's important to set up a bit for what's about to happen so...Get ready! uwu

-Sarah