Ryuuzaki became dimly aware of raindrops landing on their face. Sluggishly opening their eyes, they saw the night sky stretching before them, dimly lit by the silvery disk of the moon on the horizon, peeking the from between the clouds. And all around them was the sea.
They were floating on their back, arms and legs limp in the water, the ocean surface as still as a pool and broken only by the ripples of the rain. The water was pleasantly warm, but it was like frozen icicles had been stabbed into their body. They tried to turn around, begin swimming, but it was as if their limbs were made of lead. No matter how much they tried to move, they were paralyzed, unable to move.
Then, they felt something. The tiniest of currents in the water.
Ryuuzaki ceased their struggles to move, and all was still. Not a sound could be heard save for their laborious breathing, even despite the downpour.
Then they felt it again. A tremble in the water, stronger this time, they could feel the water moving, lapping over their face. There was something moving in water.
Something right behind them. They could feel its mass passing by again, avoiding a brush by mere inches. There was a distant sound, a distorted wurble that grew in intensity, seeming to come from all around them.
Ryuuzaki struggled to turn around, to see, to fight, or even just flee, but their body refused to obey. Something moved under them again, right below them, the wake of it's passing washing over them.
Then it was gone. The water was still once more. But Ryuuzaki knew exactly where it had gone. It had not fled. It had dived. It was gathering speed for an attack.
Ryuuzaki redoubled their efforts, but it was to no avail. The background roar grew higher in pitch, and volume. A certain manner of manic desperation began to set in, and one of their fingers twitched. Then their arm. The sluggishness that had afflicted them was soon gone. And yet they knew it was far too late.
Before they could turn around there was a lance of pain across their back, and then nothing.
My eyes flew open, taking in the sight of my bedroom.
I looked down, seeing my white-scaled, clawed forelimbs, slowly controlling my breathing. My subconscious liked to taunt me, and I was almost always human in my dreams.
And when I had dreams, most of my them were nightmares.
I screwed my eyes shut for a moment, trying to scrub the memory from my head. Mercifully it faded quickly, as dreams are wont to do, and soon enough it was nothing more than a vague jumble of impressions.
Pillows were scattered on the floor- I must have been tossing and turning in my sleep. I gently gathered each of them and tossed them back to the pile that served as my bed before yawning and stretching my wings, the clawed tips scraping the walls. The digital clock across the room told me it was 6AM, meaning I'd gotten maybe five hours of sleep. Less than ideal, but I wasn't going to be able to fall asleep again, so I might as well begin the day.
-----
"Favorite colour?"
"Orange."
"Favorite Food?"
"Minced chicken with cream."
"Alright, what about favorite hero? And you can't say All-Might."
"Ryukyu, obviously." I replied without missing a beat, rolling my eyes.
"Okay, I deserved that one." Kendo said with a laugh, raising her arms in surrender. "It's crazy to think that the Number Ten Hero is your big sister. That's almost like having All-Might in your family."
"It's really not." Honenuki interjected. "All-Might is such a mythical figure because we don't really know him. If you knew All-Might personally he wouldn't be All-Might to you, he'd be, well, whatever his real name is." The skull-faced boy stopped and glanced at me, and then hastened to add. "Of course, that's just my thoughts on the matter-"
"No, no, you're right." I admitted. "It's pretty much like that. Ryuko is an awesome hero, but it's hard to see her with the same awe as everyone else seems to. She's, well, to me she's been my sister for a lot longer than she's been a Pro-Hero."
"I guess that makes sense." Kendo deflated a little, before perking up again. "Yui, how come you never told me you knew Ryukyu's sister?"
"...You never asked."
We hadn't exactly made some grand announcement of it, but the others had clued in pretty fast that Yui and I had made amends, even if they didn't know what it had been about.
"I did! Many times! But every time I asked you about what school was like you just deflected."
"Oh." Yui replied flatly. "Must have slipped my mind."
Ever since, I'd noticed Kendo had taken steps to include me in their group of friends, including inviting Pony and I to sit at their table during lunch. Which was how I found myself there, curled on the floor beside the very crowded table, occasionally taking a bite out of the steaming pile of meat in front of me.
"So, what about-"
"Just give it a rest already, Kendo."
"Come on Setsuna, I know you like Ryukyu too!"
"I do, I just don't see what the big deal is."
To be honest the crowd was a little uncomfortable. Cramming five people and an elephant-sized dragon around a single table wasn't exactly ideal. I took up one entire side of the table, with Pony and Honesuki on either side and Kendo, Yui and Tokage filling the long side opposite to me. I'd curled my tail around myself, but even so I was acutely aware of how much space I was taking, and even a small movement could knock somebody over.
But declining the invitation would have been rude. And I didn't want to make Pony feel like she needed to refuse for my sake.
"But aren't you interested to hear more about her?" Kendo pressed Tokage.
"Kendo, I don't doubt anybody here is uninterested, but don't you think you've interrogated Tatsuma enough for now?" Honenuki intervened. "In fact, let's turn it around. Who are everyone's favorite heroes?"
"That's a great idea!" Pony piped in. "Let's make it so that All-Might and family members are forbidden."
"Conveniently that leaves you able to nominate Ryukyu." I noted.
"Well, yeah." Pony huffed. "But that's true, Ryukyu's my favorite. She's just always so cool. I could never be so calm and collected."
"I should get you to actually meet her." I mused. "I assure you, she's not nearly as cool once you get to know her."
"Stop ruining my childhood idol for me." Pony whined, shoving at the side of my head. "You can go next, then, if you're going to be like that."
"No All-Might or family, huh?" I scratched the side of my head. "It would have to be Gang Orca." I paused, and after a moment of consideration went on. "You know, from a distance. But he's genuinely trying to the best with what he's got."
"What about you Yui?" Honenuki asked.
"...Miruko."
"Come on, you could at least explain your rationale!" Kendo prodded, but Yui only gave her a flat look that screamed "I have said my piece, now leave me alone".
Apparently the two of them had been neighbours ever since they were little, though they went to different schools, which put Kendo in an awkward spot between me and Yui recently. I think she felt bad for me, especially after the fiasco during Battle Training, but also felt obligated to take her friend's side in our little squabble, and now she was trying to make up. I wasn't sure how much I liked that thought. She was nice enough to be around, but being pitied didn't sit well with me.
But then again what did I know about her motivations? I was fully aware that I didn't always quite get people.
"Setsuna? I know you like Ryukyu." Kendo asked, once it was clear Yui would volunteer no more information. Tokage had seemed a little glum the entire time, and I wondered if that was because of me. Again, though, I had no idea.
"Eh, she's pretty good, but Golden Saurian is even better. Dinosaurs are cooler than dragons anyway."
What?!
I surged to my feet, suddenly looming over everyone, and slammed a clawed forelimb on the table.
"How dare you?!"
I leaned forward, the metal creaking under me, though I was careful not to put my full weight on the table. "Dinosaurs. Are. Not. Cooler. Than. Dragons."
Nobody moved, and for a moment I was afraid I'd gone a step too far.
Then Pony snickered, and the tension suffused.
"Dragons are just lizards with wings." Tokage replied, kicking back on her chair. "Cheap imitations of the real thing."
"Cheap? They're the classics, the original monsters. Knights versus dragons is a staple of storytelling!"
"Jurassic Park is a timeless masterpiece and honestly Rexy is better than any dragon." By now, the others seemed to be completely lost as to what we were talking about.
"Toothless would like to disagree with you." I muttered.
"The what now?"
"Uh, nothing." I cursed at myself, trying to think of something that had retained its relevance better. "Er, Smaug! Smaug is better than Rexy."
Tokage scowled. "Smaug is just an overgrown worm with wings. You can't compare him to a proper dinosaur."
"But can a dinosaur fly, or breathe fire? I didn't think so. Anything a dinosaur can do, a dragon can do better."
"Yeah, 'cept they're not real. Anybody can just slap extra traits on to an existing animal to try and make it look cool. At least we know dinosaurs existed."
"Emphasis on the past tense."
"You think dragons would have survived being hit by an asteroid?"
"All I'm saying is, dinosaurs had their chance. Dragons cannot disappoint us."
"Because, again, they're imaginary. My point is, dinosaurs are killing machines perfected by evolution, following its rules. Dragons can never come close to matching that kind of authenticity."
"You're going to stand there and talk about authenticity right after bringing up Jurassic Freaking Park? For starters, where are the feathers-"
"Oh my fucking god do not even start on the goddamn feathers-"
Tokage looked ready to go on, only for a thin vine suddenly whip out from behind me, poking her in the chin.
"Do not take the Lord's name in vain!" Shiozaki yelled from the neighbouring table, while giving us the stink-eye. Tokage only groaned in frustration and put her head on the table.
Soon after that things started to calm down, as everyone began to realize we needed to finish eating before the next class started, and I was glad for the bit of peace and quiet. Don't get me wrong, it had been surprisingly fun to spend time with my peers and socialize, it was just something to be engaged in in moderation.
With the lunch break coming to an end we returned to our Homeroom, where Vlad King was waiting for us.
"Today's class will be mainly theoretical." Vlad King began, only to be met with a chorus of groans that were summarily ignored as he pressed on. "On Monday, you had a chance to demonstrate your Quirks in battle. Over the course of the next three years you will all become intimately familiar with the strengths and weaknesses of your classmates and their Quirks. But out there in the real world, you will come face to face with a dizzying variety of enemies and situations, and you will be expected to be able to take on each and every one of them. Adaptivity and analytical skills are strict necessities for a Hero, and they are what we will be working on today."
Vlad King laid a stack of papers on his desk. "I have prepared several different hypothetical scenarios for you to take on. Working in pairs, you will prepare a plan for how you, as a team, would approach the scenario and achieve success. Points will be awarded based not on the magnitude of your combat skills or Quirk, but how well you are able to apply them, and understand your own strengths and weaknesses. Pick your pairs and retrieve a scenario paper from my desk."
Huh. That… actually sounded like it could be real fun.
I turned towards Pony. "Do you want to-"
Then, just as they had yesterday, alarms suddenly roared to life, filling the air with sirens. But this time there was something off, a different pitch in the noise.
"What, did the reporters get in again?" Somebody asked.
"No, this is the Level Five alarm." Vlad King frowned. He reached under his desk, pressing some hidden button, and the alarms cut out. At the same time armoured shutters slammed on the windows, whilst a huge blast door descended from the ceiling to cover the doorway.
"What does Level Five mean?" I asked, a sudden feeling of dread descending into my stomach.
Vlad King paused, taking a deep breath. "Level Five is code for villain attack on UA."
A stunned silence settled over the class as everyone struggled to process the statement. Villains. In UA.
"A-Are you serious?"
"What do we do?"
"Are we in danger?"
"I'm needed elsewhere. Kendo. Tatsuma. You have the class in my absence." Vlad King opened a drawer on his desk, taking out a folder and handing it to Kendo. "Do not, under any circumstances, open the door until I return and present the code phrase written inside this. With the lockdown active this classroom is built to withstand military ordnance, and can only be opened from the inside. It has its own air supply and generator. All other classes and personnel are also on lockdown in their own classes, so you have no reason to open the door until I return. In case of further emergency, the folder has instructions."
I felt a strange sort of calm settle over me as Vlad King rattled off the instructions. I was self-aware enough to know that given the opportunity, I could twist myself into knots of uncertainty and indecision. But this I knew how to deal with.
"Right." I breathed out, hoping I looked more confident than I felt. "We won't disappoint you."
"I have faith that you will not. And remember, you open the door only for me, only with these codes. Nobody else."
He gave Kendo and I a hard look, before putting a hand to his ear, probably to some hidden communicator.
"This is Vlad King, 1-B is in lockdown. I'm on my way." He hurried out of the door, the locks clicking into place behind him.
A deathly quiet fell over the class once more, nobody quite sure what to say or do.
Then, the silence was finally broken by a scraping noise as Yoarashi pushed off his desk and sprung up to his feet.
"I'm going after him."
"I'm coming with you." Tetsutetsu said, scrambling to follow the taller student towards the door, but I was faster.
"No you're not." I said, moving to physically block the doorway with my body. "Did you not hear what Vlad King just said?"
"You think we're just going to stand and wait here while there's villains running around the place?" Yoarashi asked, pulling closer. "When people's lives are at stake?"
"We were given an order." I growled down at him, vehemence creeping into my voice that surprised even myself. "You two know what those are, right?"
"Alright, let's cool down everyone." Kendo said, stepping between us with her hands held out. Yoarashi backed off and I sat down against the door with a snort.
"I know what you're going through." Kendo went on. "We all do. But you two can't just run off on your own. Think about it, you don't even know where the villains are."
Tetsutetsu looked down at his feet, sullen, but Yoarashi seemed willing to argue.
"Then we'll find them! If there's even a small chance that we'll be able to help, we have to take it!"
"At any cost?" Shishida asked from his seat, pushing up his glasses. "Engaging villains without permission or license, when not in self defence… I hope you realize that it would be vigilantism? That's a real, legally defined crime."
"That's a risk I'm willing to take, if it means helping those in need." Yoarashi scowled. "A Hero should never hesitate."
"You may be ready to pay the price, but consider this: you would be getting everyone here in trouble, not just the two of you." Monoma pointed out, having stood up as well. "Kendo and Tatsuma certainly, for allowing you to go. I won't insult them by saying that's why they're against this plan of yours, but you must understand that your actions have consequences beyond yourselves. All four of you could end up expelled."
Yoarashi looked defiant, but when he opened his mouth to argue nothing came out. After a few moments, he cast his gaze down and wordlessly returned to his seat, though he still seemed furious.
"I know we're all shocked and stressed out, but please, let's just all calm down a little." Kendo said, hopping onto a chair to address the whole class. "There's nothing we can do about what's happening out there, so let's try to take our minds off it, alright? Let's get some homework done while we wait for Vlad King to return."
"You want us to do homework while there's villains on the school grounds?" Tokage asked incredulously.
"Do you have a better idea?" Kendo replied. "In fact, I could use a little bit of help with that derivative problem Ectoplasm gave us during Math class…"
She trailed off, as everyone simply looked at her. I winced.
"Come on Yanagi, I know you know what I'm talking about. It's the one on page fifteen."
The pale-haired girl sighed. "Well, you just have to…"
It was an incredibly transparent attempt at a distraction. And yet, for all that, it worked. Little by little she drew everyone in, not taking a no for an answer, providing the first spark to get people started.
I felt a newfound respect kindle for Kendo. I did not think I could have done what she could, breaking the ice like that.
I think on some level everyone wanted to let themselves be distracted, and for the next few minutes she went around the class, organizing people into study groups.
"This is crazy." Kendo confessed in a low voice, having joined me by the door once everyone had gotten settled, flipping through the folder Vlad King had given her. "Look at this, there's different passwords depending on the time of the day, code words to convey hidden messages in case somebody's listening... And then there's the instructions for… as far as I can tell, every scenario under the sun. There's food, water and a medical assistant bot in the closet. There's a hidden doorway into the toilets, which are also in lockdown." She kept going through the pages, glancing in the direction of the others to make sure they were out of earshot. "There's even instructions in case of a nuclear war, pandemic, earthquake or tsunami."
"I guess Vlad King wasn't kidding when he said they take security very seriously." I ventured, unsure what to say.
"I suppose." She took in a deep breath, and glanced in the direction of the rest of the class. "This is all just… kind of crazy. Like, I'm not alone in that, right?"
"You're not. I don't think there's anyone in this room who would disagree with that sentiment."
"You seem to be very calm about it." She pointed out, to which I could only shrug.
"I'm just good at hiding it." I said, truthfully. "And, well, we have our orders. We know exactly what to do. There's a certain kind of comfort in that certainty."
"Fair enough." Kendo said. "Anyway, if you watch the door I'll try to keep the others distracted."
"Agreed." It seemed like a fair division of responsibilities.
And that was that. While the others got started on homework I waited by the entrance, watching and listening for any signs of Vlad King's return. The blast door that had replaced the regular door was a thick slab of metal, a small window mounted on it. There were no handles, only a pair of buttons, titled "alarm" and "open/close".
Time passed. I wasn't sure how long, I didn't check a clock, though it can't have been more than a few minutes, when I heard something.
"Sssh." I hissed to the others, my ears twitching. "Footsteps. Approaching."
Vlad King had said everyone was in lockdown. So either it was one of the Pro-Hero teachers, who were all supposed to be heading out to deal with the villains, or-
I felt my blood freeze as the source of the footsteps walked around the corner. A tall man in his mid-twenties, messy brown hair coming to his shoulders. He walked with a slough, checking each door he walked past. I saw the badly scarred hands, and instantly knew who it was.
I slammed a claw on the alarm button, and a keening alert sounded throughout the building once again. By now everyone had noticed the commotion by the door, and were gathering behind me.
"Is that a villain?!"
"What's happening?!"
"Ah, just who I was looking for! Long time no see!" Every word was like a cold needle being shoved underneath my skin. The voice wasn't quite the same as in my memories, dripping with smug self-satisfaction rather than fury, but it was undoubtedly him.
"You cannot be here."
"I can't? Hm." He looked down at himself, theatrically spreading his hands. "But here I am."
"Tatsuma, who is this?"
"Are these your classmates? Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Katsuke Fujiwara." I heard a sharp intake of air from Yui.
"He's a villain." I bit out. "That's all."
"Now now, you're selling me short here, after all I did for you!" Fujiwara continued taunting.
"Tatsuma!" Kendo shoved at me, putting a bit of enhanced strength into it to emphasize. "You're burning up the floor."
I looked down and lifted my forelimb, only to see clawed footprints scorched into the floor. I took a deep breath, struggling to control my emotions.
I felt beyond frustrated at myself.
I was supposed to be past this. I'd gone to therapy and everything. I hadn't had an issue in months. And now he could just waltz back and take that all away. It felt like I was right back to where I'd begun.
"How are you here?" I spat out at Fujiwara, a bit of smoke escaping from between my teeth. "You're supposed to be in prison."
"Oh you know, just thought I'd come in for a visit." He smiled, showing a gap-toothed grin. "A couple new friends of mine gave me a lift, and with them distracting everyone over at USJ I thought it'd be a perfect opportunity to come and say hi."
"So this was all just set-up?" I asked, incredulity momentarily overriding my anger. "The villain attack, everything?"
"Tatsuma, are you sure you should be-"
"Don't kid yourself, you're not that important. No, they have much bigger fish in mind. They needed some extra muscle, and I needed a ticket inside, so I simply took the opportunity. But they've served their purpose."
"So that's it?" Yui said, pushing her way to the door. "You're just here because you can't let go of a childish grudge?"
Fujiwara scowled at her, but I didn't see a spark of recognition in his eyes. He'd always been a terrible teacher, so I wasn't surprised he didn't remember Yui. "Hardly. I serve but my own role in a much greater design."
"And that is?"
"Ridding the world of fake Heroes, those who feed upon the hypocrisy of society, one at a time."
"And you're doing that by assaulting a school?" I bristled, leaning forward - when had I stood up?
"If that's what it takes." He shrugged his shoulders.
"Fake heroes… you're a follower of Stain, aren't you?" Monoma asked, realization dawning on his face.
"What can I say? Life in prison has a way of showing you the way the world really works." Fujiwara shrugged his shoulders. "I was illuminated to the truth."
"How do the two of you know each other?" Tokage asked from behind me and for just that moment, I felt like punching her.
"He tried to kill me." I growled.
"Tried? Trying to sell me short again, are you? I did kill you."
"What are you talking about?" Somebody asked.
"It didn't take, as is obvious." He nodded towards me, oblivious to the glare I was directing his way. "But I did kill her. There was quite a lot of blood, as I recall."
"Shut up."
"And screaming, too. It was all rather pathetic." He went on. "Do you remember it? That day in the park? I wasn't planning on killing you, but then you went and broke my nose. You just don't do that to a guy. So really, you brought it on yourself."
"Shut up."
"Tatsuma…"
"It was a sight to behold. One of the great and proud Tatsuma clan, with a proud tradition stretching back to the emergence of Quirks, choking in her own blood and screaming for her big sist-"
"I SAID SHUT UP!" The entire blast door shook. Detachedly, I saw that my fist was resting against it, the metal around it dented.
I looked down at my hands, and blinked.
Clawed, scaled, massive.
Not soft, tiny and weak.
I took a shaky breath and then released it, smoke streaming out into the air.
"Tatsuma." Kendo put a hand on my side. "Stop. Please. Calm down."
"Why is he still talking?" Monoma spoke up, pointing at Fujiwara. "No, really, why? He has to have come all this way for a reason. But now that he's here, he's not even trying to get inside. He's just talking, almost as if he can't get insi-"
"Shut up!" With a sudden roar, Fujiwara brought up his hand towards him, and a horrible bang rang out. I closed my eyes, and for a moment I thought I felt a burning pinprick in my chest, but when I dared to open my eyes there was nothing. Only a small mark had appeared in the armoured window, and a hole in the opposite wall where the bullet had ricocheted off to.
"See?" Monoma looked a little shaken, but to his credit he quickly regained his composure. I didn't think I could have, in his position. "That- that just proves my point. He can't get inside. There's nothing he can do to us from the other side of that door, unless one of us opens it. He's just trying to provoke you into opening it for him."
I recoiled as if struck, as the moment of horrible realization washed over me, and everything clicked into place, why he was here. It had been bugging me this entire time. I was a dragon with bulletproof scales, and we had already seen how that fight would go.
"He's trying to get you into trouble." Yui whispered. "He doesn't need to kill you. If you open that door…"
Not only would I be engaging in vigilantism, I'd also be putting my classmates in danger. I'd be betraying the trust Vlad King and my class had placed on me. I'd be facing expulsion, or worse. That was what he was after.
"I- you're right." I bowed my head as i stepped back from the door, my tongue suddenly feeling heavy in my mouth.
"Coward!" Fujiwara howled, metal fingers beating on the armoured glass. His smarmy mask from before was gone completely, his face twisted with fury. "Come out and face me!"
"Why?" Pony piped up from where she's moved to stand beside me. She almost shied away as everyone's attention suddenly turned on her, but she straightened her spine and spoke up. "Why should she?"
"If you don't open this fucking door." He spat out, leaning forward. "I am going to go find the next classroom and kill every last little shit in there instead."
"Everyone is already in lockdown." I pointed out. "If you can't get through our door you can't get through theirs. You have nothing. No leverage."
Fujiwara scowled, but said nothing.
Then, I heard a sound. Could it be…
I scrambled to my feet, pressing against the window.
"You failed again." I began, slowly picking up speed. "You couldn't kill me two years ago, and you can't stop me from becoming a Hero now. That's all you are, a washed-up failure."
I felt myself get angrier and angrier, streams of smoke escaping from between my teeth. He really thought he could just walk out of this with no consequences? Well fuck him. Might as well keep going, now that I'd gotten started.
"You can hide behind Stain's ideology all you want, but in the end you're just a petty, vindictive asshole who can't accept that you and only you ruined your life and your future. You want to ruin my chance to become a Hero? Well you can't, because I am going to become a better hero than you ever could have."
"Don't make me laugh, you-" Fujiwara began, but I simply raised my voice and talked over him.
"I wasn't done talking yet. Remember that spiel about how Hero families have an unfair advantage?! You might've even had a point about that! But then you lost every little bit of ground you might have had to stand on when you decided to take it out on a thirteen-year old who had done nothing to you! So you can take it and shove it up your ass too! In fact, no, I'll do one better, I'm going to fix it because fuck you and everything ou stand for. And, and-"
A cluster of translucent, shimmering red tendrils suddenly wrapped around Fujiwara's hands, coiling around his fingers and binding them in place.
"-And I've kept your attention just about long enough.
"You-" Whatever he was about to say was interrupted as yet more tendrils wrapped around his face and ankles, yanking him off his feet, dragging him backwards. He slammed into the wall, more and more red liquid surging around him to form a cocoon that began to rapidly harden.
I sagged in relief; I was just about out of material. But it had been cathartic as hell to let it all out.
"Well done." Vlad King said, stepping into the view of the blast door window. "You heard my approach?"
"I heard footsteps and hoped it was you."
"I came as fast as I could, once you rang the alarm." Vlad King nodded, glancing at the dent in the door. "None of you were hurt? He didn't get inside?"
"No, sir." Kendo supplied. "He tried, but failed."
"He's, uh…" I tried to figure out the best way to explain. "I know him. He was here to, well, he wanted to provoke me into opening the door."
I glanced at Fujiwara, his eyes blazing with fury though his mouth was bound by a layer of hardened blood, and I saw Vlad King's eyes widen widen slightly in recognition.
"We can go over the details later. At any case, the danger's passed. You can open the door now."
Kendo nodded and moved to open the blast door, but I stopped her. "He didn't say the code word."
"Really?" Vlad King said, raising an eyebrow. "At a time like this?"
"A time like this is exactly when it should be insisted upon." I replied, doing my best to hold firm, hoping I was right. "You were very clear in your instructions, at any rate."
Slowly Vlad King's expression morphed into a smile. "Well done. Most fall for that."
There was a moment of silence.
"You still haven't said the code word.
His smile got fractionally wider. "One-one-one-one-three Beekeeper Trifecta Germany Epsilon Budapest."
"Checks out!" Kendo said after a moment of consulting the folder, and I pressed the button.
The door groaned as it was pulled open, the dented metal grinding against the rails as it retracted into the ceiling. I had hit it very hard indeed, but Vlad King hadn't been lying about it's durability. The dent was shallow, and the mechanisms overengineered.
Vlad King stepped inside, his eyes taking in every detail. I felt like disappearing into the ether as his gaze swept over the burnt claw-marks on the floor. But he said nothing, and eventually nodded slowly in approval.
"You did well, all of you." He said, folding his arms. "This was not a situation you should have been expected to be able to deal with, not this early into your training. That none of you were hurt is the important part."
"Um... I don't mean to pry, but-" Kaibara began, only for Tetsutetsu to interrupt.
"If you feel the need to say "I don't mean to pry", you're definitely prying."
"I'm just saying, a villain just tried to break into our classroom. I mean, I think that's a situation that deserves at least an explanation."
I gave Vlad King what I hoped to be a pleading look. I knew I'd need to tell the full story eventually, or the others would fill in the gaps with their own imagination, but, just… not now. I had a feeling I'd have to revisit that day more than enough, by the end of the day.
"We can talk about it another day." He said with a shake of his head. "For now, we are needed outside. The police are here, and your families have been notified and are on their way."
"What happened out there? Was anyone hurt?" Pony asked.
An odd look crossed Vlad King's face. "It was… a villain attack. There were no life-threatening injuries. That's all I'll say on the matter" He said with an air of finality.
He lead us into the same hall where the entrance ceremony had taken place, with the other classes already gathered, with one notable exception. 1-A seemed nowhere to be seen, and with Fujiwara's mention of the USJ I suddenly began to develop an idea of what might have happened.
We settled down to wait, as the police called people one by one to different rooms to take their statements, though judging by the turnover rate it didn't seem like most students had much to say. From what I could make out of the general chatter and gossip, the closest the others had come to contact with the villains had been seeing Fujiwara pass by, and hearing gunshots and yelling. All of which continued to further point towards 1-A as having been the target of the main attack.
Predictably when it came 1-B's turn the interviews took significantly longer, which didn't go unnoticed among the general student base. Rumors were already starting to circulate, as 1-A's continued absence began to stand out.
When my name was called, I gave the officer a full account of what had happened, from the beginning of the lockdown until now, as well as who Fujiwara was and why he had been after me.
By the time he was done asking questions I was tired to the bone, and I laid down to wait, doing my best to tune out the chatter of the other students. Little by little the crowd was starting to disperse, as parents arrived to pick their children up. Thankfully, my classmates gave me a bit of space, and didn't try to talk to me.
I think I drifted off for a moment, until I was brought back to awareness by a rush of noise. There was a commotion by the doors, and a moment later they were thrown open, two figures walking in.
"You might be the Number Ten Hero, but you can't just walk into the middle of a police operation!" The frustrated detective yelled out.
"Watch me, and see if I give a damn." Ryuko replied without so much as slowing down her pace, her gaze sweeping across the room. "Where is my sister?"
An instant later her eyes settled on me, and no amount of protests could keep her as she rushed to my side. I pulled Ryuko into an awkward half-hug, and to my surprise she didn't protest, throwing her arms around my neck despite the dozens of eyes upon us.
"Are you alright? You're not hurt, are you?"
"I'm alright." I breathed in, taking in my big sister's scent. She smelled of ozone and… home. "I'm alright now."