Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

I have no idea how long I’ve been here.

Like really, no idea. 

Everything is really hazy.

The last thing I remember clearly is...water. Lots and lots of water. I think I had been drowning? No, because then I wouldn’t be here alive. 

Alive. 

Hold on.

Yeah okay, I am alive. Pulse, heartbeat, and all, I just needed to make sure. Would I even be able to type anything if I was a ghost? Hmm...maybe? Maybe not. I’m not sure since that’s not important right now. 

What is important is figuring out what the heck happened to us. I haven’t seen or heard any trace of Katsuki, Todoroki, or Mido. I woke up alone in a puddle, and I’m still in the said puddle leaning against a tree. I’ve been here for a while 

I’m not ready to climb down and deal with whatever is down below me, I’m on a sort of a ledge I think. Something is crawling around down there. Either it can’t climb or it hasn’t noticed me yet, all I know is that I keep seeing it every few minutes. 

Well ‘see’ is being generous. It’s more like I can hear it. It makes a weird noise whenever it comes by, like a mix of clicking and something squishy. I don’t know how to describe it. I’m not sure I even want to see what it looks like...considering the noises. Besides, I can’t see it, and maybe that’s a good thing. And if I shine a light down to see it, it’ll see me. 

I mean I’d have to shine a light anywhere to see anything. Everything is dark, like pitch black. I can’t even see any other branches or trees or anything. 

I just woke in this place, and I already hate it. 

I know that I’m leaning against a tree trunk, so that means I could possibly climb up and get a good look at what’s around me. Hopefully, there’s nothing in the air that’ll snatch me up and kill me.

…

I mean if worst comes to worst I can always duck back down and kinda fall back down the tree and on the ground. 

Man, this is all such a bad idea.

And it’s all just even more frustrating because I can’t remember what happened!

I keep trying to, but it’s always so fuzzy. 

I wish the others were here, that way they could fill me in. Unless they’re having a hard time remembering stuff too. Then that sucks.

But right now I’m just hoping that they’re okay. They’ve got to be around here somewhere. There’s no way they aren’t. We can’t really be scattered too far from each other, can we? I hope not, because that would really suck. 

Even if I don’t find them, I trust that they’ll find me. 

All this really sucks. 

But in the meantime, I guess I’ll wait for the morning before I do anything. Since it looks like it’s nighttime...yeah it’s night. I can see stars. I just hope that I’m safe here for now and the others stay safe too. 

Morning time

Sort of

I think

I don’t know. 

By all means, it’s still kind of dark but it’s not as bad as it was last night. And dude, I heard some shit last night. 

It’s like, I’m pretty sure I heard some screaming, and a bunch of stuff breaking. Whatever was screaming didn’t sound human, and what broke was what I’m going to guess a bunch of trees and/or rocks. I’m not sure. But whatever monsters are here might have gotten into a fight. I’ve heard it happen before and it sounds terrifying . 

But for now, it looks like whatever was below is gone. I can’t hear it, and I definitely can’t see it. And looking down I see that it is like a long fall, holy crap I’m glad I didn’t go walking around last night. 

Waiting for the day was a good idea, it’s still pretty dark but I can see more. It’s all cloudy, and the sun can’t really shine through. But I shouldn’t complain. Instead, I’ve got to start moving if I’m going to be finding any of the others. 

Knowing them they’re probably already looking. Probably started last night in fact, meanwhile, I’ve been sitting here just waiting for sunrise. Or something close to it I guess. 

I’ve been trying to wrack my brain since last night for what happened. But if I’m going, to be honest the last thing I remember clearly is…

Oh

Leaving Mido in that water pit place and going into that cramped space. Another part of the mines. Then after that, nothing. Then I wake up here. 

Holy shit, I hope Mido is okay. I know we were yelling at each other but...still. Shit, how long has it been since been? I hope he’s still not down there. I shouldn’t have left him, if anything I should have convinced him to come with me. Maybe then we’d be together in this mess. 

But still, how did I end up here? How did I end up in this place? Because this place looks nothing like a mine or a water pit, or whatever. I know we had been running from that swampy village place. Did I end up climbing upwards somehow?

If that’s the case then there has to be some kind of shaft that led up here right? 

Uh, no. No there is no mineshaft behind the tree I was leaning against. There is a hill though, which is much better than the scary drop I had been facing all night. Kinda glad I didn’t decide to try and climb down last night.

Okay, time to make my way through the forest. Alone.

Fun.

What did I get myself into? Why didn’t I just stay with Mido? Now I’m in a part of the forest I’ve never seen before. Which means I’m lost. I have no idea which way is home, and I have no idea which way is Mido or the swamp village is. Man, I really messed up. 

Leaving him behind, even though I was frustrated that...that wasn’t very manly of me.

Okay, enough of that. 

Right now it’s time to go and see what’s around this place. It’s really dense around here like I can tell just from where I am right now that going any further will block out most if not all the light. I don’t want to have to use a flashlight since that’ll eat through most of my battery. 

If the forest is this thick then it really makes me wonder just how far I went. I know the forest is big and compared to how much there actually is I don’t think we’ve really gone that far. The farthest we’ve gone is...yeah that swamp place. And now here. 

I’m trying to sorta stick to some kind of straight-line while I’m walking, and finding landmarks because seriously as soon as I start winding around it’s going to be over for me. I need to be able to make my way back to that little hilltop. I think that’s as good as a home base as I’m gonna get in this place. 

I’ve considered marking the trees like I normally would but...no. The trees around me feel weird if that makes sense. Like I don’t even want to touch any of them. They’re covered in this weird goopy black stuff. 

It sorta looks like vines if they melted then tried to turn into vines again. The thing I like about it the least is how it kinda churns and pulsates. I swear if I touched it, it would probably pop. I think that’s what would happen anyway, I’d rather not find out. 

It’s also unnervingly quiet; there's no birds, no wind, no noise at all. It’s been a while since I’ve dealt with this kind of quiet. But even so, this feels different, like usually there’s something bad about the quiet anyway. 

But this? 

This is worse.

Everything here just screams danger again and again. Even walking around as quietly as I can just feels like I’m putting myself in danger. But if I don’t keep moving around that’ll be worse. Much worse. 

This is all such a bad idea,..but then again going into the woods in the first place is a bad idea. So, I can’t really complain. Bad decisions and all that fun jazz.

I’m really just hoping the others are okay. Especially Mido. God I still can’t believe I left him down there. Damn, he certifiably deserves to sock me in the face the next time he sees me. 

Man, I can imagine how pissed off Todorki and Katsuki are gonna be when they find out. I hope that at least they found him, or that Mido was able to find a way out. 

I just really hope the others are okay. Whatever, I got myself into this mess, I’m probably gonna have to get myself out. But hey, that’s just the consequences coming to bite me in the…

Oh, oh I don’t like that. Oh, I very much don’t like that.

I am half tempted to just run in the other direction, back to my little hilltop with the tree I can probably climb up to. 

Actually no I doubt that this thing would be deterred by something like a fucking tree ! It would probably either knock it down or climb it. Hell if I know!

This thing is...gross. I can hear it and I can just imagine how slimy and gross it would probably feel. There’s something in the woods... obviously . I know there’s some crazy shit in the woods, we all know this. It’s practically common knowledge at this point!

But I didn’t think I’d ever see something like that .

It’s...I dunno what else to call it other than an amalgamation. It looks slimy and wet, this big hulking mass of...I dunno flesh? Just dragging itself around, using whatever arms are sticking out it to grab and pull at the trees and the ground to move forward. It’s got what looks like eyes and mouths scattered around it. 

The eyes just roll around in their sockets, I swear I think they move around the body too. Sinking into the flesh and opening again somewhere else. The mouths are moving around too, not making any noise but instead just opening and closing and breathing. 

It’s disgusting. 

And I don’t want to deal with it.

I’m hiding behind trees, just trying to stay out of its sight. It’s got eyes all over there’s no way it won’t spot me. I don’t even want to imagine what that thing would do if it got a hold of me. 

Ugh

I keep moving, just in the opposite direction of that thing If I can avoid it. 

I have to wonder, is that thing the only one, or are there others like it? God what an awful thought, more of those things crawling around. Ugh. 

One is enough, and I’d prefer to never have to deal with it. 

Still, I have no idea where I’m going, but as long as I keep moving I should be fine. I think. I hope. 

If anything I’m more concerned with heading deeper into the forest instead of walking out of it. That’s the scary part...then again once I start hitting anything like a mountain I guess I’ll know which way I should or shouldn’t be going. 

But I’d have to be really far in. Like really, really, really far in…

That would really suck.

I wonder if it wasn’t so much as me wandering off, so much that it was some kind of monster kidnapping me. Damn if that’s the case the others are probably worried sick.

I know I keep rambling about this but...there’s too much I don’t know, and too much I need to know but there’s nobody around. And that’s scary. In a place like this, being alone is scary…

I really hope Mido is okay. 

Okay, enough of that. I seriously need to stop, I need to focus on finding out where I am. Then I can go over how stupid I was earlier. I need to put my phone down for a bit, I really need to focus on getting around this place. 

I’ve been walking around for hours, and at first, I thought I made no progress, but I think I’ve found something. It’s better than nothing. It’s a path, or some kind of trail. It’s worn and mostly overgrown, but it’s something. That means I might be close to a town, maybe Eileen’s Town if I’m lucky. 

Small issue though. 

I have no idea which way to go. Left or right, uphill or downhill. 

I’m leaning more towards uphill, maybe I can get a vantage point and actually see where I am and where I’m going. 

Uphill it is, I just have to keep moving. I don’t want to be caught sitting still out here. In this place, you just have to make a decision and go with it. I think I’m being followed, and I think it’s been around for a while. 

I just noticed it a few minutes ago. That weird feeling you get when you’re being watched when something is following your every move. I can feel something else watching me, multiple somethings, but this one thing is relentless. It keeps its distance.

I haven’t looked over my shoulder once and quite frankly, I’m too scared too. I’m afraid this thing will be right on top of me. 

Maybe if I just get out of this part of the forest it’ll leave me alone. I’m in its territory, and as soon as I get out it won’t be that mad at me anymore. It’s still deciding what to do with me, whether or not to catch me, and possibly make an example out of me. Maybe split me in half and leave my entrails strewn about the trees like some gorey tinsel. 

Ugh, that’s morbid.

But true. 

I hate the silence around me, I would kill to have someone to talk to. Even if it’d be whispering. Something is better than nothing, I just wanna hear someone’s voice. I want to find the others. 

I’m climbing up and up, it’s a pretty steep hill. But I think I can see some buildings in the distance. So there is another town, that swampy place, and Eileen’s Town aren’t the only places!

Okay, I think I know what may have happened now. After we got separated I must have found a way out, and then I might have seen this place from a distance. If I was panicking I probably thought it was Eileen’s Town. Oh man, it probably isn’t. But maybe I’ll be able to see something from up there. 

If I’m lucky I’ll be able to see Eileen’s Town, and then I can head back. 

Any and all excitement or joy I had, flew out the window when I reached the top of that hill

The minute I stepped into this place I knew it was a mistake. 

There was something here, and it was bad . 

You know how in some cases people say they can smell fear, or like something else can smell fear?

I think I know that stench.

Rotten, acrid, and bitter. Leaving you gagging and wanting to run in the other direction. But I can’t, because I don’t want to turn around and see the thing that’s following me. And even if I did, I think turning my back to this place is the worst thing I can do. 

There’s something here, and as soon as I take my eyes off whatever is here is going to jump out and take a swipe at me. 

All the buildings are decrepit. Rotting wood and cracked brick, most of the buildings are caved in. With plants, vines, and in some cases trees growing out of their remains. Those black vines are everywhere, winding around the trees and buildings. Pulsing and thumping, like a heartbeat. 

The roads, paved with stone are all torn up. Either through the overgrown plants, or something had once actively torn them up. It looks like there are some holes here and there around the town. Deep but, only in one part of the town. 

Whatever buildings are standing look fragile, sure they’re mostly made of brick, but it’s clear that enough force is going to send them toppling. 

You know it’s kind of funny, one of the buildings has a bell on top of it. Standing perfectly still. 

Yet for some reason I can hear some bells ringing. Low and faint. 

I didn’t want to turn around and see the thing that’s been following me. Even though I think leaving this place is probably the best idea…

It’s a lose-lose situation. I can’t get out of this. It’s either face one monster, or face the other. I can’t see one, but I know it’s there. But I don’t think it knows about me yet, so I’ll take my chances.

I walked further into the town, avoiding all the torn up pieces of the road, and making sure not to kick or snap anything. If I make even one sound, I think it’ll all be over. 

I just...I just need a minute to rest and regroup. Figure out what the heck I’m gonna do. I just need to hide, and what better place to hide than one of these broken and rotting buildings right?

At least some are intact, they have to be. I just need one good place to hunker down. 

There are a only few buildings here and there, some that are still standing with windows or doors broken. Easy access points, the scariest part to me is that I don’t know if there’s anything in them. 

I already know there’s one thing in this place, and then another monster following me. So I have to be careful. For all I know if I set one monster off it’ll prompt the others to come after.

I can still hear those bells, sometimes they sound louder but if I keep moving in a certain direction they get fainter. 

Ugh I hate this. Hardly any place to hide. Well, actually I think I see one decent place. It’s a pretty big building off to the side of the street. A couple windows are broken, or even caved in. The doors are sort of open...open meaning one is knocked off its hinges and the other is barely hanging on. 

You know what? Fine, this is fine. This is a good place as any to hide. 

I don’t hear any bells, so this has to be safe. 

I ducked inside, I hope whatever has been following either stayed out of the town borders or is too big to come in here. I just need some luck, stome stroke of luck. 

Maybe coming into a building made of rotting wood is not a good way to get that stroke of luck. 

It smells damp and moldy in here, everything is creaking even I’m not moving. 

Just by looking around I think this place used to be some sort of archive or library. The shelves are sort of empty, whatever is left on them that isn’t mildew or dust are pages and remains of books. I think if I pick up one it’ll just turn to dust in my hands. 

There’s a second floor that looks similar. There’s a wooden railing up there, not that it’ll do much seeing as half of it is missing. I don’t hear anything in here other than lack of structural integrity. Even so, I just step around the books and papers and broken floorboards. It’s quiet, but in a good way. I have room to think. 

I just moved around enough to the out of the way of the door. I went over to a section of the building where the stairs are. No I wasn’t doing to go up there, but it was a good place to hide. 

There’s a wall on both sides, and from where I am I can see the door. Thankfully there’s nothing there, no monster, nothing following me. Right across from me is another set of stairs, once again, there’s no door. I don’t even want to guess what could be down there. 

Either way, I can go up or down, if I have to. Up is probably the better option, since I can at least hop out one of the windows. 

Okay, I have a little bit of time. Now...what the hell am I going to do? I have to get out of this little town place. Little...the hell am I talking about, this place is actually kinda big. But I have to find an exit. I just have to pick a direction and run.

Okay, maybe that’s not the smartest idea. I still need to figure out where I’m going, where I am in this hellhole. 

So, find a high spot, maybe the roof of this building is good enough. Then from there I can look around. Then I can start heading back to town. Or find some kind of landmark, something. Anything. I just need to get out of here.

Alright, I’ve got some semblance of a plan. I just need to find my way up to the roof and be careful not to mess anything up. Sounds simple enough. Yup. I’ve gone through way worse. 

Just as I was about to get up and start moving, I heard it. The bells were back. Faint, but they were there. 

I had a bad, bad feeling. 

I went up the stairs, I had to hide. Just until the bells left. Just until I was safe. As I ran up the stairs I realized I wasn’t the only one who had the idae to come in here. As I made my way upstairs, I peeked over the railing to see something crawl inside. Snarling and panting frantically. 

It looked like some sort of malformed dog. It’s face was all scarred and messy, like half of it had been ripped off. I think it was supposed to have 6 legs, but instead had 5. Like one had been cut off...wait. Wait maybe that was Mido, maybe Mido did that! That might mean he’s here, that he’s nearby!

The monster gasped and wheezed as it paced around downstairs, dragging itself around. The bells got louder all of a sudden and the monster screeched and dove away. Tucking itself into a corner to hide. 

I had the same idea and ran across the way and hid under some knocked over bookshelf leaning on the railing. I can see what looks like a room around the corner, just a few feet away, with an actual intact door, but I don’t want to try my luck. I’m perfectly content staying right here. 

I couldn’t quite see the entrance, and you know what maybe that’s a good thing. The air grew a lot colder all of a sudden, cold enough that I could see my breath. I think I saw some frost start to form on my hands. 

It’s cold. 

The bells, somehow quiet yet deafening at the same time. Ringing rhythmically. They kept getting louder and louder.

Then I saw it. 

It was like all the light was sucked out of the room. Even whatever faint sunlight managed to make it inside. Something came in, a dark mist winding through where the front door was and gathering in the center of the room. Slowly building and growing into this huge figure.

It looks like it’s draped in some kind of cloak, there’s a dark void where it’s face should be. The cloak looks like its made of shadows, yet somehow in tatters. 

In one hand it’s holding a small lantern. I think that’s where all the light went, glowing soft and yellow, barely bright enough for me to look around. In the other hand is this huge scythe. It looks like it’s been dulled down, with chips and nicks on the blade. 

That doesn’t make it seem any less deadly. 

I think this is Death, like actually Death in the flesh. 

I hope to whatever god is up there, that it’s not here for me. 

I want to run. I want to run away, I want to get to that office and hide in there. In some kind of enclosed space. Somewhere I can actually feel safe but that won’t work!

The bells are so loud.

I can’t move.

It’s looking around, scanning the room and floating around. 

I want to cry but I can’t. Because as soon as I do it’ll find me. And I’ll be dead. 

It’s still looking around, looming over everything. I want to see what it’s doing, but I can’t bring myself to move. I can’t see it anymore I think it’s under the walkway. 

And then I hear it. 

That thing that came in just a moment ago starts screeching and yelping. I can see it run out into the open, trying to make a break for the door. 

It never got there. 

Before it could run out the door, the scythe came down and cleaved it in two. Or I thought that’s what should have happened. It didn’t split in two, it just stopped and stumbled around before falling over. Dead. 

And then it...it sort of dissolved. Its skin just turned into a black goop and spilled around in the ground, and the bones turned into dust. 

It happened in an instant. It was just... dead . 

It just dissolved . 

And that...and that’s what’s going to happen to me if it finds me. I’ll be dead, nobody will find me. They wouldn’t even have my body to bring back and bury. I’d just...I would just stop existing. 

My heart’s beating too fast, I can feel it. It’s too loud and too fast, and it’s going to hear me and come for me. 

It’s just floating there over the monster’s remains. The light is still gone, still in the lamp. I think it might be looking for something else to kill off. Whether it be me or some other monster I don’t know. I just want it to go away. 

I hate it doesn’t even make any noise. All I hear are the bells, but even those don’t sound real. It sounds like it’s all in my head but I know it isn’t! 

I want it to leave, why can’t it leave?

It’s still just down there, but now it’s looking around. Shining the lantern everywhere.

I think it’s looking for me. 

Then I heard something creak, the door to the office. I could see it open slightly. 

The mons...the thing... Death just stopped and whirled around towards the noise. Holding up the lantern higher and pointing it towards the door, completely missing me. It paused there for a bit, sitting there. Watching and waiting. 

Looking for the second intruder in this place. 

The bells kept ringing, and Death kept watching. Until it lowered its lantern and scythe. Slowly, the light began to bleed out from the lantern and come back into the building. And Death started to disappear, turning back into black mist and leaving the building. 

Even though it was gone I could still hear the bells. They were still ringing, loud and clear. I wasn’t safe yet. It was still here, probably lurking outside the building. 

I don’t know how long I sat there, watching the door and listening to the sound of the bells. It felt like hours until it began to fade. They slowly stopped and went away. 

I was safe. 

Death never found me.

I still didn’t want to move, even when I heard the door creak again. I couldn’t bring myself to look at what was there, what was waiting in the office. Not even when I heard the ground creaking with slow, heavy footsteps. 

I couldn’t do it.

I nearly screamed when I felt something grab my jacket and drag me out, the only reason I didn’t was because my mouth was covered. I felt myself flailing around, I didn’t want to die! Now now! Not when I barely escaped!

Whatever it was dragged me into the office and threw me down before shutting the door. I looked behind me to see an open window. 

Before I could make a break for it the thing dragged me back and held me down. I was about to yell when it slammed my face against the floor.

“Shut up! Shut. Up! If you yell it’s going to come back and next time it won’t leave until it finds us!” 

I recognized that voice. When I stopped struggling he let me go, and I turned around to see him.

It was Toodorki

He was just as shaky as I was, pale and clammy. Poor guy looked like he’d been through the wringer. There was a nasty gash on the side of his head, there was some ice there but it’s melting. 

“Holy sh...h-how did you...how did you get here? I thought you’d be at the swamp town or Eileen’s town. Are you okay? Did you come to find Mido and me? Todoroki I’m sorry but I-

“What?” He glared down at me. “Why the hell would I be at that swampy hell hole? Or Eileen’s?”

“Since that’s where you were last? You and Katsuki. Where is he? Is he okay?”

“What the…” He stopped and looked over me. “Your eyes are red again...Kirishima what is the last thing you remember?”

“What?”

“Just tell me, you idiot!” 

“Okay! Okay...uh....leaving.” I swallowed hard. He was going to kill me and he is totally justified in doing so. “Leaving Mido behind, in the water pit...and going into the mines.” I kept my eyes down. “I fought with him, and then I left him behind. I’m sorry. And then I woke up here.”

He was quiet, I could feel him just staring at me. Quiet and angry rage...but also disappointment. 

“You don’t remember anything else? Not a single thing after leaving him?

“I...no. But I think I’ve gotten a few glimpses, feelings? I don’t know, all I know is that I think I felt really mad. But...right now I don’t have more than that. I’m sorry.”

“Right. Hey, look at me.”

I sighed, I knew what was coming. 

As soon as I looked up I got a solid punch to the face. I almost fell over but he caught me and kept me on my feet. 

“I am so pissed at you, but damn it Izuku deserves to beat you to a fucking pulp. And when we’re all out of this mess I am going to let him .”

I hissed and felt my nose, it was bleeding. 

“Why? Dude I don’t know what-”

“Oh, I am going to tell you what you did and all the horrible shit you said to him. So sit your ass down and listen. And once we’re done with that, we’re going to figure out a way out of this place.” 

He was mad but also hurt. He was worried, he was scared. And right now he needed to take it out on someone...and right now that someone had to be me. 

Besides I...I don’t know what he’s talking about. He knows stuff, he seems to know what happened.

And I gotta know.

So I just sat down against a wall, and I let him speak.

I am a horrible person. I mean it, I am a horrible, horrible person…

Oh my god Mido deserves to break my face after all this. 

I left him behind. 

That was bad enough, I left him behind in the worst way possible. But then he had to force himself to pull his shit together and went into the mines to get me. Apparently, I ran into some sort of monster that took away my memories for a bit...I don’t remember that. Not all of it, but I think I can imagine its face. What it looked like. I...that huge blank is starting to fill in again. Slowly, but it’s getting there. 

Then Mido came to save me and...I was horrible to him. 

I called him a maniac, I called him so many things. I was mean to him, I bullied him. After he came to the one place he hated more than anything to come and save me. I was so mean to him, I didn’t even care about him. 

I didn’t care about him.

I left him to die in the woods after he saved me, again . 

And then, worst of all! Out of everything I could have done, I outed his secret!

…

I knew Mido killed Hisashi….well I didn’t know for certain but I had a strong feeling about it. All the signs were there. He had been close to a breaking point already and that Hisashi bastard just kept pushing it.

But I kept that secret to myself. I swore to myself that I would take it to the grave. 

I know Mido, I know he didn’t do that lightly…

And stupid amnesiac me held it against him. I called him a monster, a murderer, a freak.

I hurt him in the worst way possible...and I don’t think he’s going to be able to forgive me. 

...I don’t think I can forgive myself .

“...I really messed up.”

“Yeah, you did.”

“I hurt him.”

“Yeah, you did.”

“...I don’t think he’s going to forgive me.”

Todoroki shook his head. “I’m not sure…”

“But either way I deserve. Damn why did I do that to him?”

“I don’t know. But you were stupid.”

“Yeah...and then...then what happened? After I said all that?”

Todoroki sighed and leaned back. 

“He blacked out, he just...snapped. He attacked you and you fought back. You two tore up the front of the store before taking it outside. He tried to strangle you, then managed to get himself together. And then your attacked him and tried to drown him. It was flooding.”

I groaned and nearly bashed my head in the wall. “And then?”

“And then...then the water came.” He frowned. “I don’t...It dragged us down. I remember trying to run, but then I got dragged under. Izuku tried to save me, but The Hobo held him back. So I don’t think he got dragged down.”

I froze.

We were dragged down, dragged into the water. Into...who knows where.

“Do you know how long it’s been?” I asked. “How long since all that has happened?”

He shook his head. “No, I don’t.”

“...How long has Mido been alone. Oh my god he must be losing his mind.” 

Todoroki froze. Like it just sunk in for him.

“He probably is, holy- he probably is! He has no idea where to even look! Who knows how long he’s been looking, he’s got to be...he’s all alone.” He looked down. “He’s all alone. He watched us- he watched the water take us !”

“And he couldn’t help us.” I nodded. “That...that has to be eating him alive.”

“Probably.”

We just sat there for a bit, letting all that sink in. He’s alone with the Hobo Hero...he’s an adult. Maybe he’s helped keep Mido in check? Or...I don’t know if it would be worse to think if he might have taken Mido and just left the town. Ditched this place. 

I wouldn’t blame him. But I don’t think Mido would go willingly. 

After what I did, would he even want to come save me?

I don’t know.

“Hey, Kirishima.”

I looked up. “What’s up?”

“...When did he tell you?”

“Tell me what?”

He gave me a look. “When did he tell you that he...killed him?”

I watched him for a bit, I could see him shaking. Hands balled up into fists, he was starting to steam.

“...You’re mad at him. For killing Hisashi?”

“No, what the fuck!” He raised his voice, then slapped a hand over his mouth. We both tensed up. We waited, and we listened. Listened for any noise, any trace of the monsters or...Death. 

We waited, and waited, after what felt like forever we finally relaxed. 

Nothing was coming. 

“No.” He glared at me. “I’m not mad he killed that rat bastard. I’m more angry that he...why did he tell you? And then you outed him but...why did you tell you?” 

I raised an eyebrow. “You’re mad he didn’t confess murder to you?”

“...Well, I mean when you put it like that. But he did deserve it but, just hearing it was a shock. I didn’t know how to feel. I still kind of don’t.” He frowned. 

I stared at him for a while before looking at the wall, and all it’s peeling paint. 

“He didn’t tell me. I figured it out.”

“What?”

“Yeah, I figured it out. It wasn’t...yeah it wasn’t that hard. I didn’t believe it at first. I mean it’s Mido. But...he was standoffish for a while. A little jumpy. Even if this was after the mines, of course he was gonna be like that. But...he was hiding something. And I had a feeling it wasn’t about something in the mines. If anything, after those thugs came looking for Hisashi that pretty much confirmed it. The guy never left town.”

Todoroki watched me before sighing. 

“When you say it like that it sounds obvious.”

“Eh, but it wasn’t. I don’t blame you for not noticing. He was, is, a wreck. If anything you were just trying to keep him afloat.”

“Yeah, pretty much.” 

I dared a peek out the office door, just looking under the gap. Nothing, thankfully. It doesn’t hurt to check,

“You know, I don’t think Mido really processed it either.” 

“No?”

“No. I don’t blame him. It’s gotta be hard in some way, doing that to someone who you thought was your father. Someone you knew almost your whole life. There’s probably some part of him that still feels really bad about it. Or else he wouldn’t have kept it to himself and hid it. It’s Mido he...he doesn’t do that.”

“Unless you’re a monster.”

“Yeah, but that’s a whole other realm.”

“...Even if you understand and aren’t mad at him he’s still going to want to break your face.”

“Oh I know, and I’m expecting it.”

“Good.”

We sat there for a minute, just being quiet. Enjoying that bit of peace. It’s Todoroki, and even though he’s kinda mad at me I’m glad he’s here. I’m glad I found him. I’m not alone. Not anymore. I have a feeling it’s going to be okay now...mostly. Hopefully. 

After a while he nudged me and started to get up. It was time to go, time to figure out what we’re gonna do. 

“Hey so, if the water had dragged us under, then spit us back out, where did you end up? I woke up in a big puddle.”

“I woke up in the basement of this place.”

“...Oh.”

“It’s flooded.”

“That’s...that’s cool.”

He took a deep breath. “So, the big question is what are we going to do now? We have to get out of here but I’d like to have a direction to go.”

“Agreed. Well, when I found this place it was initially to hide and chill for a bit. I figured somehow I could get to the roof and use that as a vantage point.” I peeked out the window, thankfully there’s nothing roaming the streets. “Since I figured this is the forest, I thought I could spot a landmark or something. Anything. Maybe Eileen’s town or even the swamp town.”

“Just trying to get your bearings. I had the same idea earlier too.”

“You did?” I raised an eyebrow. 

“Yeah, right outside that window there’s a pipe. I was about to climb it when I heard something come in here. I thought it might have been the Reaper.”

“Reaper?”

“Yeah, that freaky monster with the lantern and the scythe. I almost ran into that thing a couple times. When I first woke up and just wanted to figure out where I was. I walked around maybe one or two streets when I heard it.” He shuddered. “The bells.”

I felt a chill go up my spine.

“And you ran back here?”

“Yeah, since there was nothing in here when I woke up. I figured I could hide until it was gone. Then it actually came in here.” He rubbed his arms. 

“Yeah, I think it was chasing the other monster. One came in here a little after me. Dude, it cut the thing in half, but instead of well...falling into pieces, it just fell over and died. And dissolved.”

He went quiet at that. 

“Holy shit.”

“Yeah.”

“If that thing catches us it’s game over. We’re dead.” He muttered. 

“Yeah and that stupid scythe is huge. And the lantern just sucked all the light out of the room.”

“That was why it got so dark?”

“Yeah.” 

“Can it only do that in buildings? Can it do that out in the open?”

“No idea.” I shook my head. “All I know is that we have to avoid that thing like the plague. I don’t know if it’s like Eileen and can’t leave this town. But I don’t want to try my luck.” 

“Good point. The more distance we put between ourselves and that thing the better. But we need to find Bakugo. He was dragged under too, and who knows where he ended up.”

I nodded. I really want to find him, it’s practically killing me that I don’t know where he is. But he’s tough, I know he can take care of himself. He can get himself out of trouble if he has to. He’s Katsuki.

We just have to get out of here.

“Okay, so get to the roof, pick a direction, and just start running.” I laid the plan out.

“With caution.” He added. 

“With caution.”

Once we agreed on the plan we got to work. He watched the outside for a bit, staring out the window and listening for any signs of Death. I know he called it the Reaper but I like my nickname more. 

It was quiet out there, the streets were empty. There was nothing roaming around. And I think we know why now.

Todoroki went first, slipping out the window and making small holds on the wall with his Quirk, just to make it easier to climb. I kept watch while he climbed, also to catch him if he fell. It’s actually a pretty good drop. 

I watched him climb up, and once he was up there I waited for a bit. Staring and listening, I didn’t want Death to catch us. 

Once I was sure nothing was coming, I started to climb. I’m glad Todoroki went first, made it a lot easier to get up there. It’ll be easy getting down too thankfully. 

On the last few small ledges, Todoroki reached over and pulled me up to the roof. It was quiet up there, but in a way felt more peaceful than inside. We sat there for a minute before standing up and getting a look at everything. 

We’re pretty high up, and that’s a good thing. But...there’s not a lot to see. Yeah, we can see the rest of the town, and most of its destroyed buildings. And then the forest. Just trees, trees, and even more trees. It’s dark over there, obviously. We’re high enough to see the tops of the trees but I bet the ground over there dips real low. 

“We’re really deep in the forest.” I muttered. 

“Yeah, damn it.”

I kept looking around. Honestly, the mountains seemed a hell of a lot closer than the town.

We kept looking around, for something, anything. Some kind of landmark. Something to help get us home. 

Then I saw it.

I grabbed Todoroki’s arm and pointed it out. It was in the other direction of the town, I came from that direction. 

There was what looked like a huge spire in the distance, but it was tilted. Like it was so close to falling over. It was the only big thing that stood out, but it was something. That might mean another town, another place to hide and regroup. Possibly where Katsuki went. 

“I think that’s the only place we can go.” I said.

“Yeah, me too. It’s not much but it’s something.” He looked over the edge of the building. Nothing. He didn’t waste any time and started to climb down. I waited until he was inside to follow him down and get back in. 

Once we were inside we started to get ready to make the run for it.

I knew which direction to take, I also know there’s a path we can follow. I also warned him that there are some pretty nasty things in this section of the woods. I warned him about the amalgamation and the inevitability of something following us. But if we keep moving we should be fine. 

As soon as we were set on what to do we made out way out of the office, creeping across the walkway and crawling under the bookcase. It was quiet, not a single sound. No bells. 

We cringed and froze whenever we accidentally stepped on a creaky floorboard. Afraid it was going to summon Death. Thankfully it never did, I guess it was too far to hear us being absolute idiots that weren’t looking where we were going. 

Once we were down we waited for a bit before slipping outside. From there we just took off at a dead sprint towards the edge of town, towards the tilted spire. 

We’re going to find Bakugo, and then we’re gonna get home. We’ll get back to town, get back to Mido, and then...I don’t know. Maybe we’ll just get the hell out of this town. 

Just as we reached the edge of the town, we thought we were home free. 

And then we heard the bells.