Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

“So, we think that they’re being held in a building that was made by a quirk, and that’s why they can’t get out?” Aizawa asks, leaning forward across the table. 

Endeavor nods. 

“Yes, from what the other heroes that experienced this have said, the building was made and hence reinforced with a quirk. There are no doors, windows, or other ways out. He builds it around the subjects, and makes it practically unbreakable.” 

“What happens when his quirk gets deactivated? Do we have any idea?” 

“No, none, but we figure you’re our best chance of figuring that out. Especially since something like that would have to be passive, or they wouldn’t be able to keep it up that long.” 

“Alright. How do we find them?” 

“We already have an idea. They wanted me to brief you before we checked it out.” 

“Ok, well, I’ll get my gear. I’ll also get Vlad, cause he’s probably driving everyone mad.” 

“Why?” 

“Two of his students went missing too.” 

“Oh, well, he can come too. As long as he’s helpful and doesn’t get in the way.” 

Aizawa nods, standing. 

“I’ll be back in less than ten minutes, and we can go.” 

“I’ll be waiting.” 

Aizawa comes back with his gear and Vlad in five minutes, and they pack up to get the kids. It’s a warehouse outside of town, far enough out that it took them a week and a half to even find the kids. The villains don’t even have a chance, not with the number one pro, and a super pissed teacher against them. 

Then Aizawa heads from the warehouse to the white stucco building beside it that looks incredibly out of place. Everything else out there is dark and starting to show signs of wear and tear, so Aizawa assumes that this is the building the kids are in. He’s proven right as he walks around it to find that it has no doors or windows. Since the quirk has been canceled out, it’s not hard to break the wall. He just chucks something heavy at it with his scarf, and it busts a huge hole in the wall. He cringes. 

I might have thrown that too hard. I don’t want to accidentally hurt one of the children. 

He breaks away some more of the wall before stepping inside. The rooms are all completely white, and the bedroom that he just stepped into is empty. 

Well, at least I didn’t hit a kid with a rock. 

“Shinso? Bakugo? Deku?” he calls as he opens the door. 

He hears something shift in the room across from him, so he heads in that direction. He’s moving slowly and carefully, just in case the kids weren’t alone in here. Also, the people that this happened to were not in good shape when they were released. 

Why would anyone do this, especially to children? This is extremely cruel, and I can’t even imagine what the kids have been through in this last week and a half. 

Aizawa puts a hand on the doorknob, swinging it open. He walks in, looking around. He freezes when he sees the figure curled up in the corner. Shinso darts to his feet, but stumbles immediately. His eyes are dark, his fingers and arms looking much thinner than they did the last time they trained. He falls, and Aizawa immediately catches his arm, keeping him upright. 

“Shinso.” 

Shinso swings at him, but he’s off balance and uncoordinated, causing him to completely miss. Aizawa pulls him closer to make sure that he does fall. 

“Shinso, calm down. It’s just me, Aizawa.” 

Shinso pauses, wobbling. He locks eyes with Aizawa before sagging against him. 

“Where are the others?” 

Shinso doesn’t respond other than taking a shaky breath. Aizawa helps him over to the bed, laying him down. 

“I’m going to find the others. I will be right back, I promise.” 

Shinso nods, just the smallest bit, and Aizawa isn’t even sure that he’s actually nodding. He takes it though, and sets off to find the others. The third bedroom is also empty, but the last door is locked. He breaks it down by kicking it. He hears someone scream when he does that, and he immediately takes off running. 

Mina is in the living room with her hands clamped over her ears. She’s shaking like a leaf, and also looks thin and sick. Aizawa swivels, checking out the rest of the room for assailants. Bakugo is on the couch, leaning back against the cushions. He looks like death with his empty eyes, swollen joints, and bright red face. 

Aizawa rushes over, putting a finger against his pulse point. Before he can note anything other than the fact that he has a pulse, Bakugo jerks away harshly. He blinks, some light coming back into his eyes. 

“Sensei?” he asks, his voice cracking. 

He blinks lethargically, his eyes still trained on Aizawa. 

“Yeah, I’m here, kid. We’re going to get you kids home, ok?” 

“Ok, where are the others?” 

“They’re still in there,” Mina says, crawling over to them. 

She presses her face against Aizawa’s leg, still shaking really badly. 

“Are you two alright?” he asks, his voice also shaking a little bit. 

Mina starts crying, pressing herself closer. Bakugo bites his bottom lip. 

“I don’t know if the others are still alive,” Bakugo whispers. 

Aizawa feels his heart rate skyrocket. 

“Ok, Mina, you gotta let go of me. I have to check on your classmates. Make sure that they’re ok.” 

She turns to Bakugo, who gently places a hand on the top of her head. Aizawa darts for the first door, fearing what he’s going to find inside. He takes a breath, steeling himself as he reaches for the knob. 

Bakugo watches Aizawa walk into one of the rooms as Endeavor steps through the hole in the wall. He has to break it a bit more, but paramedics follow him too. 

“Go ahead and get those two into an ambulance. Tell your colleagues to leave Shinso alone until his teacher can talk to him and calm him down,” Endeavor commands as he strides over to them. 

He kneels down, getting on eye level with Bakugo. Bakugo stares back at him, knowing how empty his gaze looks. He honestly feels more like he’s looking through Endeavor than at him. Endeavor watches him for a moment before speaking. 

“His name is Bakugo Katsuki and her name is Ashido Mina. UA will have their medical files.” 

He stands up and steps out of the way. Despite the guilt, fear, and anxiety about his friends that’s settled in his chest, he doesn’t fight them when they get him on the stretcher. He just turns his head as Aizawa walks out of the room. 

“Go get Vlad,” he says to Endeavor, his voice tight. 

He turns and walks into the next room immediately. Endeavor leaves right before the paramedics. Bakugo doesn’t see when he tells Vlad where Monoma and Shinso are, but that doesn’t bother him. In fact, he’s glad that he doesn’t have to face what caused the shift in Aizawa’s tone when he walked out of the room that Bakugo is sure Monoma was locked in. 

He drifts in and out during the ride to the hospital, tuning out what the people around him are saying. He falls asleep at some point, and he’s in a room when he wakes up. He’s alone, and still feels terrible, but not as bad as earlier. His muscles and joints don’t feel like they’re on fire. Instead it’s just a dull ache, the same kind that’s residing behind his eyes. 

It’s completely quiet, including the buzzing. That’s one of the first things he notices, and he breathes a sigh of relief. He looks around, spotting his hearing aids on the nightstand. He tucks them into his ears. The brain fog is still present, and making it hard to remember what happened in the last few days. He remembers a lot of banging, crying, and someone screaming.

My brain may also be blocking it out to protect me, or maybe it shut down when it happened for the same reason. It’s possible that I was dissociating most of the time. 

The door opens and Aizawa walks in. 

“Bakugo.” 

“Sensei.” 

“How are you feeling?” 

“Better. What happened? Where are the others?” 

“They’re all in their own rooms. You’re the first one to wake up. Well, technically Mina woke up earlier, but she was completely out of it.” 

“Are Monoma and Shinso ok?” 

Aizawa flinches, it’s miniscule, but Bakugo still notices. 

“Sensei, are they ok?” 

“Shinso was panicking when we found him. As soon as he came back to himself enough to move around and force his way past the dehydration symptoms, he ended up attacking Endeavor. Endeavor tried to calm him down, but he ended up hurting himself.”

“What do you mean by hurting himself?” 

“He fell and hit his head, bled a lot. Monoma was in a coma when we found him. He hasn’t woken up, and he has swelling in his brain. There are a lot of bruises and some broken ribs, but those are fixable. We’re not sure what the brain damage is going to do to him, especially since they haven’t been able to get the swelling to go down. They said that a lot also depends on how long that takes.” 

“Oh, well what about the others?” 

“Deku is stable. He was dehydrated, but you all were. Mina is also going to be fine. I’m more worried about their mental states.” 

“Sensei, what about-” 

He’s cut off by a loud bang from down the hall. Aizawa is on his feet in a second, darting for the door. 

“I’ll be right back.” 

He races out of the door as Bakugo sits up. His heart is beating at a hundred miles per hour, and he’s already broken out in a cold sweat. He tries to take a breath, but he can’t seem to get any air in. He feels like his throat is closing up, and he can’t breathe. 

Mina wakes up and immediately begins crying. She doesn’t even know where she is, or what’s going on, but she keeps crying anyway. It’s not long before someone touches her arm. She flinches away, but doesn’t attempt to do anything else. 

“Dear, please open your eyes,” a soft, familiar voice says. 

He’s close to her, at most a foot away. She squints her eyes open, but all she sees through her tears is yellow. A hand gently lands on her arm, and she doesn’t pull away this time. She does start crying harder, not even sure why at this point. 

“Mina, dear, you need to breathe.” 

She takes a deep breath, shaking like a leaf. Her head starts to clear a little bit as she starts breathing again. When her tears finally stop, and her vision clears, she can see that the person in front of her is All Might. She sniffles, rubbing her nose with her elbow. 

“What happened? Where are the others?” 

“They’re alright, well, as alright as they can be. Mr. Aizawa is with young Bakugo, and the rest of them are still asleep. We don’t have to go into all of the details right now.” 

She nods shakily. 

“But they’re all going to live?” 

All Might doesn’t respond immediately, and she feels her chest constrict. 

“Who isn’t? Who are we not sure about?” Mina demands, tears springing to her eyes again. 

“Monoma had pretty severe damage when we found him. He has brain damage, and we’re unsure of how bad it is as of right now.” 

“Is it because we left him? Did he fall back asleep?” 

“Nothing that happened was your fault. We’re not sure how the damage was inflicted, but we do know that he has no signs of external head trauma. That makes us think that it’s one of their quirks, though we can’t be sure. That means that one of them hurt him, and it had nothing to do with you. I promise that you are not at fault for what happened to any of your classmates.” 

“But that’s just not true. At least tell me that Shinso didn’t do anything drastic. Oh, I should have made Deku leave him alone. I should have done something.” 

She pulls her knees up to her chest, starting to hyperventilate again. All Might stands, grabbing his phone. He texts someone before sitting back down. 

“Shinso is alright. He’s fine, recovering just like the rest of you. He’s getting some much needed rest, and Aizawa will be there for him when he wakes up. We’re going to get you guys all the help that you need to move past this and feel better, whether that’s medical or psychological.” 

“Bakugo said that he figured something out, but I didn’t let him tell me what it was. Has he told you guys anything?” she asks, remembering Bakugo’s vague words from before. 

“No, he hasn’t mentioned anything as far as I’m aware, but he just woke up a little while ago. I texted Aizawa to ask if he had any new updates concerning your classmates, or when all of your parents would be here. He hasn’t gotten back to me yet, but I will let you know as soon as he does.” 

“My parents are coming?” 

“Of course they are, dear.”

“Oh, thank God. They’ll know what I should do.” 

All Might’s gaze softens, and he puts his hand on the back of her hand. 

“It’ll be alright, Mina. We’re going to figure all of this out.” 

“What did they even want?” 

“I don’t know if you need to know that right now… but we think they were running an experiment of some sort. They put you in certain circumstances and altered different things for each of you. Added stressors and different elements all while closely watching how you responded to those changes and stressors. They kept everything very well documented, but we have yet to figure out why they were running these experiments, or why you were the targets.” 

“What’s going to happen to them?” 

“They’re being taken care of.” 

Shinso feels panic and anxiety flood his veins as soon as wakes up. His eyes fly open, and he looks around wildly. He’s alone in a white hospital room. He darts to his feet, blindly pulling the IV out. His head is throbbing, and his knees go out. He hits the ground as a nurse runs in. She races around the bed, reaching a hand towards him. 

“Stop!” 

“Sir-” 

She freezes as he activates his quirk. He makes her take a few steps back as he tries to drag himself back to his feet. All of his thought processes are thrown out of the window as panic freezes his brain. He runs out of the room, the cold floor startling him. His legs are barely supporting his weight, but he pushes forward anyway. Blood drips down his arm as he runs past unsuspecting staff and parents that are wandering around. 

He gets a few wild looks, but he doesn’t even notice. Eventually someone grabs his arm, and he has to stop. His legs immediately give out on him again once he stops, and the security guard has to catch him before he hits the floor. Shinso turns, a wild and petrified look on his face. The guard drags him back to his room. He doesn’t fight, or make any noise. It’s only a minute after that when Kaminari runs in. He’s dressed in light colored jeans, a Metallica t-shirt, and a yellow and black flannel shirt over that. 

“Hey, are you ok?” 

Shinso shakes his head violently, his eyes never leaving the security guard by the door. 

“Can you leave? You’re scaring him,” Kaminari says harshly. 

“Can you keep him calm and in the room?” 

“Yes.” 

He nods, walking out. 

“Don’t worry, Mr. Aizawa is just finishing up with Bakugo. Apparently Midoriya got violent, so he went to deal with that. Then when he got back, Bakugo was having a panic attack. How are you feeling?” 

“Did they? Wait, how are you?” 

“I’m fine. I was asking you how you are.” 

“I know, but how are you fine?” 

“I don’t understand.” 

“You were… You weren’t there, were you?” 

“No, what do you mean? You guys were taken, and we were all freaking out. I was just the first one to get here, and I saw you take off down the hallway like a bat out of hell.” 

“You weren’t there. We saw you, and talked to you. It had to have been that man’s quirk.” 

Shinso starts laughing, putting his head into his knees. 

“Why are you laughing?” Kaminari asks, sounding more concerned. 

“Deku assaulted me. He said that me and Monoma were the only ones that couldn’t be real cause he didn’t know us well enough, and it was you the whole time.” 

He keeps laughing, hiding his face. Kaminari watches him calculatingly, trying to figure out what to say in this situation. 

“Well, are you alright? I’m really sorry that happened.” 

“I’m fine, I’m fine. I was just really stressed. The whole thing was hell. I think I might have assaulted the number one hero.” 

Someone knocks on the door before walking in. It’s a kind looking woman in her early thirties. 

“I was sent to check on your IV wound.” 

Shinso holds his arm out, though he can’t stop it from shaking. She checks him over, and wraps up his arm. 

“If you don’t want another IV, I’ll bring you some more water.” 

Shinso nods, pulling his arm back to his chest. “So, what’s this about you assaulting Endeavor?” 

“I think I might have had him punch himself in the face. Then I think I hit my head on a doorway when someone tried to grab me.” 

“Well, Todoroki would be proud of you for making his dad punch himself. They’re doing better, but I think he’s still gonna find that hilarious.” 

Shinso smiles. It barely turns the side of his mouth up, but it’s something. That makes Kaminari smile, and feel a little bit more hopeful. It’s another fifteen minutes before Aizawa walks in. By then, Kaminari is sitting on the edge of the bed, talking about some kind of filler topic. Neither of them are actually listening to what he’s saying, but just enjoying the background noise. Shinso has his head tipped to the side on top of his knees as he watches Kaminari. 

“Hey.” 

They both turn to him. 

“Hey, Mr. Aizawa. What’s up? How are the others?” 

“Most of them are alright. I just had to explain to them that you weren’t with them. I assume Shinso already filled you in.” 

Kaminari nods. 

“Well, I’m sorry you had to find out that way, Shinso. Kaminari, can you check in with Bakugo? I need to talk to Shinso alone.” 

Kaminari glances at Shinso, then nods. 

“I’ll be back.” 

He slips out, and Aizawa walks closer. 

“Bakugo said that there’s something you need to tell me.” 

Shinso looks down. 

“I think I know what he’s talking about. I kind of expected this. I did react very poorly to what Deku did.” 

“Yeah, he also gave me a run down of what happened while he was awake. I was hoping you could fill in the rest.” 

“Yeah, we can start with that, then I’ll explain what I think he’s talking about.” 

Once he goes through a rough idea of everything that he remembers, he puts his hands into his lap. He fidgets as Aizawa just continues to sit and listen. He waits for Shinso to keep going, which takes a few minutes of silence. 

“My foster dad… He hits me.” 

Aizawa looks at him, the peaceful look on his face never wavering. 

“How long?” 

“The entire time I’ve been in school. Actually it’s been almost two years now that I’ve lived with these parents, and he’s done it since my first day in their house.” 

“I’ll handle it. You won’t have to go back there. I assume that’s why you reacted the way that you did to Midoriya?” 

Shinso nods, feeling the adrenaline crash start to hit him. 

“I thought you weren’t going to believe me.” 

“I will never blow you off about something so important. You’ve given me no reason to think you would ever lie about something like this. I’m here for you. As much as I wish you’d told me sooner, I understand. You’ve probably been let down by a lot of people, but I won’t be one of those people.” 

“Thank you.” 

Aizawa nods, standing up. 

“I’ll wait here until Kaminari comes back. Then I’m going to do the rounds. What do you want me to tell the others if anything at all?” 

“You can just tell them the truth. After what we’ve been through together, honesty is the least they deserve.” 

Aizawa gives him a small smile. 

“That’s very brave of you. I don’t have to tell them though. I can appreciate your point of view, but don’t do anything that you’re going to regret.” 

“I’m going to have to tell them at some point. It’s better if it’s now, and I’d prefer if you could do it.” 

“I can.” 

Kaminari walks back in, looking more distraught than when he left. Aizawa immediately picks up on it. 

“What’s wrong?” 

“Nothing, I just… I’ve never seen Bakugo so quiet. He was timid. I didn’t even know that he knew what that word meant.” 

Aizawa nods. 

“Ok, well, I’ll talk to him. They’re all going to struggle. This was really traumatic. I’m going to check on them. Do you want me to talk to him first?” he asks, turning to Shinso. 

“I can tell Kaminari.” 

Aizawa gives him a small nod before walking out. 

Bakugo walks down the hall slowly, pulling his IV behind him. He pauses in front of Deku’s room, his hand held up. He stalls for a moment before knocking on the door. 

“Go away!” 

“Deku, can I please come in?” 

“Kacchan?” Deku asks, sounding like he’s trying to stop himself from crying. 

Bakugo opens the door, stepping inside. His entire body is still aching, and he’s shaking from the walk to Deku’s room. He shuts the door and sits down beside Deku’s bed. 

“Hey, are you alright?” 

“No, I don’t know why I did what I did. Mr. Aizawa just told me about Shinso.” 

The tears start flowing then. 

“I was just so angry, stressed, and scared. I was terrified. I’ve never felt so scared, and I’ve never lashed out like that. I didn’t know what to do, so I just attacked the first person I could. I didn’t think anything could push me to that point. I didn’t even realize what I was doing. I hurt him so badly, and I don’t think anyone is ever going to trust me again. I don’t even blame them. All of this is my fault.” 

“Deku… Look, I won’t lie to you. It was really bad. I don’t know what was going through your head, but that situation was bad. I’m not sure Shinso is going to forgive you, but sometimes we do unforgivable things. That doesn’t mean we won’t be forgiven, cause our people are amazing, but you’re going to have to figure out how to live with what you did to him. You’re going to have to learn how to move past it, even if he can’t. 

He’s going to need to do a lot to get over what his parents did to him. Hopefully that will include forgiving you. You’re one of the most honest and caring people that I know, and he knows that you didn’t mean to hurt him. You didn’t know. That doesn’t make what you did right, but it does mean that you didn’t know what it was going to do. You’re a good person who made a bad, really stupid decision. Whether he can get over it or not, I’ll be here. No one blames you for what happened. If Shinso can’t get over it, it’s because of how this has affected him, not because of you. Mr. Aizawa said that he thinks Shinso is going to be fine, and I think you’re going to be fine. We’ll figure this out.” 

Deku nods, sniffling. 

“Thanks, Kacchan. I really hope he can forgive me, because I don’t know how to forgive myself.” 

“Yeah, but I can tell you from experience, that him deciding to forgive you won’t let you forgive yourself. I understand that it won’t happen any time soon, but you have to decide that you’re ready for that. I also think that we’re all going to need so much therapy after this. Even then, I’m not sure we’re ever going to fully get past it. The amount of psychological disorders that we can possibly develop from all the shit that happened is insane. Mina is already dealing with severe anxiety, and I don’t think it’s fully hit everyone yet.” 

“I don’t think the gravity of everything has hit me yet. We don’t even know if Monoma’s going to wake up.”

“I know, and it’s killing me that there isn’t anything we can do for him. Especially with what the other guy told me about Monoma. I told Mr. Aizawa that he’s having some mental and familial issues, but I don’t know any details. None of his family has even come to visit him. Speaking of which, the rest of the class is in the waiting room. They’re waiting for permission to come see us. Mr. Aizawa said that it was ok if we didn’t feel up to visitors.” 

Deku nods. 

“I’m really not, but… can you stay?” 

“Of course I can. Don’t worry about anything right now. I’ll talk to Shinso and Mr. Aizawa later, and figure out exactly what’s going on. It’ll be ok though. We’re going to make it through this.” 

“How can you be so sure? I think this might have broken us.” 

“I don’t doubt it did, but so did other things. They’re not the first villains that we’ve faced.” 

“Yeah, but they were in our heads. This has never happened before.” 

“It hasn’t. You’re right, but we’ve come through bad things before. Maybe not anything quite as bad as this, or similar to this, but we’re tough. We can get through anything. We’ve had the odds stacked against us since we started school. We’ve been targeted by almost everyone. That hasn’t changed, and it probably won’t. All we can do is roll with the punches and figure out what we need to do to recover. It’s definitely possible, we just need to do the work.”

“I hope you’re right, Kacchan,” Deku says, his eyes drooping. They linger on Bakugo’s bandage wrapped arms before slipping closed. 

Bakugo leans back with a sigh. 

Man, I am so full of bullshit. I think he bought it though. He seemed to be feeling better. 

He stays in his seat, unable to sleep. Deku only sleeps for a few hours before waking up again. He wakes up because the door creaks open. Mrs. Midoriya walks in, rushing to stand beside Bakugo. 

“Are you two alright?” 

“I don’t think so, but we will be,” Bakugo says with a smile. “I’m going to check in with Mr. Aizawa, Shinso, and Kaminari.” 

“You don’t have to leave.” 

“I know, but I’ll just let you guys talk. I’ll be back, promise.” 

He walks to Shinso’s room. He knocks, leaning heavily against the wall. His body continues to protest all of his recent movements and walking around. 

“Come in,” Kaminari calls. 

Bakugo walks in. Shinso is sitting cross legged with his chin in his propped up hand. 

“Hey, what’s up, Bakugo? Shouldn’t you be resting?” Kaminari asks while Shinso just looks over. 

He gives Bakugo a small smile as Bakugo responds, “Nah, I’m fine. I was just with Deku. He was worried, so I thought I’d come check on you. I was hoping that Sensei would be in here too.” 

“He was earlier. He’s directing Mina’s parents to her room right now.” 

“Has anyone else shown up?” 

“Yeah, I was the only one who agreed to have visitors, so your whole class and half of mine took turns coming in here. Mr. Aizawa said that you didn’t respond, so he assumed it was a no.” 

“It wasn’t. I mean, it was for Deku, but I’m fine seeing them. I’ll probably head out to the lobby in a little while to see them before I head back to Deku’s room.” 

“Yeah. How is he?” Shinso asks, shifting nervously. 

“Upset. He’s beating himself up about everything that happened. His mom just got here, so that should help.” 

“Good. Can you tell him that I’m free to talk whenever he wants? I want to clear the air. Let him know that while I am triggered by what happened, I’m not mad at him,” Shinso says, wringing his hands tightly. 

“Yeah, I can. I told him that I thought you two would be alright, but he’ll be happy to hear it from you.” 

Shinso nods. 

“So, are your parents coming, Bakugo?” 

“Probably. I don’t know, cause I haven’t heard from them yet. I’m sure that they were doing something when they heard that I was found. Till then I’ll probably just wander.” 

“That’s sad. Are you alright?” 

“Yeah, I’m fine, really.” 

“Ok, well, do you want to sit with us until Mr. Aizawa gets back?” 

“Yeah, I’ll do that.” 

He sits down with a small groan. Kaminari pats his shoulder before turning back to Shinso. 

“Shinso was just telling me about a cat that he wants to adopt. He said that the poor baby has been in the shelter for years, and never gotten adopted.” 

“Yeah, and it’s weird. He’s not old or anything. He was barely a year old when I started volunteering there. He doesn’t have any health issues, or anything else that would make people not want him. I mean, he is a black cat, and there are superstitions around them, but I didn’t think it would be that bad.” 

“Yeah, that doesn’t normally affect the adoption process that long. Years are a long time. How old is he now?” Bakugo asks. 

“Almost four.” 

“Aw, that is a long time.” 

“Yeah, but I go in every Friday. I make sure that he gets plenty of cuddles before I leave.” 

The door opens, and Mr. Aizawa walks in. He takes in the three boys in the room before settling on Bakugo. 

“What’s going on?” 

“I just wanted to check in with you, see how everyone’s doing.” 

“Well, I have good news on that front. Mina’s parents are here. That calmed her down significantly. Also, the swelling in Monoma’s brain started going down. He hasn’t woken up yet, but they’re pretty sure that he will.” 

“Do they know if there’s going to be any permanent damage?” Kaminari asks. 

“No. They can’t know that until he wakes up, but they did say that I’ll be the first to know any updates. At least until his parents get here.” 

“Are they coming?” Shinso asks, his tone hard. 

“I don’t know.” 

“What are you guys talking about? Why wouldn’t his parents come?” Kaminari asks, looking between them, realizing that he’s the only one who doesn’t know what’s going on. 

“Monoma never had a good relationship with his parents. I don’t know the details, but I know that they don’t treat him very well. They said that he’s not good enough to be their heir, or something like that,” Shinso replies. 

Mr. Aizawa glances at Bakugo before sighing. 

“I don’t know. I have no way of knowing if they’re coming, or if they even heard my message. If they did, they should get back to me soon. If not, I’ll have Mic swing by their house.” 

Shinso nods. 

“Bakugo, walk with me.” 

Bakugo gets up, following Mr. Aizawa out of the room. 

“What’s up, Sensei?” 

“I wanted to ask how Midoriya is doing. I went to check on you two, but his mother was there.” 

“I think he’ll be better once he sits down to have a conversation with Shinso. Shinso already said that he wants to do that as soon as Deku’s ready. Can you walk me to the waiting room? I know that the rest of them are waiting out there, and they haven’t gotten to see anyone other than Shinso.” 

“Of course,” Aizawa says, diverting their path. 

“He’s taking this really hard, of course, but I think he’ll be fine in the long run. He’s gonna need a lot of therapy.” 

“You all will. I’m already getting that set up for all of you.” 

“Awesome.” 

They reach the waiting room, and it almost instantly explodes into chatter once they see Bakugo. It takes Mr. Aizawa and the nurse at the desk to get them to calm down. 

“Slow down, guys. I can’t even understand what you’re saying,” Bakugo grumbles, folding his arms. 

“We’re just really happy to see you, man. We were worried,” Kirishima says, shifting excitedly. 

“Yeah, I just fell asleep in Deku’s room. It’s not a big deal,” he lies, figuring that it’s better to say that he was asleep than to say that Deku didn’t feel comfortable by himself. 

“We weren’t worried about where you were. You just really scared us, man.” 

Bakugo rolls his eyes, leaning against the wall. He stays to chat for almost half an hour before Aizawa takes him back to Deku’s room. It’s only another half hour before they head back to Shinso’s room. Kaminari isn’t in there anymore, and Shinso is sitting alone. 

“Where are Sensei and Kaminari?” Bakugo asks as Deku lingers in the doorway behind him. 

“Kaminari went to stay with Mina while her parents are getting her real food. Mr. Aizawa is checking on Monoma.” 

“Deku, get in here. You’re going to give me anxiety,” Bakugo snaps, glaring at Deku. 

Deku smiles sheepishly. 

“Sorry, Kacchan. I just wasn’t sure if I should… I don’t know.” 

He walks in, his eyes locked on the floor. 

“Hey, man, don’t worry about what happened. I was reacting to something that didn’t have anything to do with you.” 

“What I did was so wrong. How can you just forgive me? Even if you didn’t have any trauma, that was still so bad.” 

“I know, and I didn’t say it was right. I’m just saying that… while it was bad, it wasn’t as bad as the situation made it seem. We were all losing it, as much as we don’t want to admit it. We were all just on the verge of a breakdown for hours before it finally happened. I was considering strangling you or Monoma. I know that he had it the worst, but I thought I was going to kill someone if I had to listen to him talk to thin air like that any longer.” 

Deku laughs. It’s small, but genuine. 

“Yeah, I’m sure that must have been weird since you guys couldn’t see her. I wonder if her poking him had any actual, physical reaction.” 

Deku starts muttering as he goes down the rabbit hole of thinking about that guy’s quirk. Bakugo turns to Shinso. 

“That went well. He even paid attention for a whole two minutes.” 

Shinso snickers, ducking his head. 

“What are you laughing about?” Deku asks, snapping back into reality. 

“Nothing, don’t worry about it.” 

Two Weeks Later 

“Can you believe that Monoma is coming back today?” Mina asks, looking around. 

She’s smiling, even though it’s not as bright as it used to be. 

“Yeah, I can. It’s been two weeks. The rest of us are in therapy and having counseling every day. It’s about time he got released, and started all of that,” Bakugo replies, folding his arms. 

Shinso plays with his shoe laces as he sits on the couch. 

“I’m just glad that he didn’t end up having any permanent damage.” 

Deku nods. 

“Me too.” 

Monoma walks into the dorms with Vlad behind him. 

“Why are you all here? Only one of you lives here.” 

“We came to welcome you back,” Mina says, running over. 

She grabs Monoma’s hand, who looks at her like she’s crazy. 

“How are you feeling? We were worried.” 

“This doesn’t mean that I have to join the cult that you’ve formed out of your class, does it?” 

Shinso laughs while Mina and Deku look offended. Bakugo smirks, but doesn’t say anything. 

“That’s rude. It’s not a cult. We just care about each other,” Deku says, pouting. 

Mina whacks Monoma’s arm. 

“Shut up.” 

“That’s hilarious,” Shinso mutters, picking up his drink. 

Monoma walks past the other three to sit down beside Shinso. 

“So, we haven’t had the chance to talk. How are all of you doing? One at the time, please.” 

It’s quiet for a few seconds before Mina says, “I… Things haven’t been great. I can’t sleep, my anxiety is constantly weighing on my chest, and I can’t stop thinking about everything that happened.” 

“Me too. I’m really sorry about everything,” Deku says, hanging his head. 

“I’m fine,” Bakugo says, folding his arms and looking away. 

Shinso chews on his cuticle with a firm expression on his face. 

“I think I’m going to be alright. I haven’t had to see my foster parents, and I’m staying with Mr. Aizawa and Present Mic right now. Since the dorms have been closed, Mr. Aizawa’s been staying with Present Mic, but he said that we’d figure out something more permanent for while the dorms are closed. The whole thing was hard, but it’s over now.” 

Monoma nods. 

“I’m glad that you’re feeling better. Mina, I know that it’s hard right now, but it can get easier. You should think about getting medicated while you’re trying to adjust to how things are now. Deku, you need to stop apologizing for everything. We all did things we regret, and all of us were just a bad minute away from snapping. You’re ok. Bakugo, it’s ok not to be alright, none of us are. If any of us did say that, we’d be lying. If you’re not ready to talk about it, or don’t want to talk to me, that’s fine. Just don’t bottle things up too long cause that’s going to be more harmful than helpful in the long run.” 

Bakugo rolls his eyes, but nods. 

“Hey, on more positive news, we made a new friend out of this,” Mina says, grinning at Monoma, who raises one eyebrow. 

“I’m not your friend.” 

“Yes you are. You don’t have a say anymore.” 

Shinso watches as they start bickering. A smile crosses his face as he settles his chin onto his knees.