*Creeeak*

Before Momo could take another step...

"Nobody move!"

Aizawa Sensei's voice boomed.

Momo opened the door partially. She could only spot Aizawa with his hair floating at the corner of the room.

What's happening? Is there a villain?

The door is just annoyingly covering up the important bit of the scene.

Momo's heart was beating... It wasn't definitely the first time she encountered an enemy, but someone, she felt that the severity of this situation was something she had not faced before.

Looking at Aizawa, she wondered why he haven't removed the person's quirk yet...

Looking at how Aizawa is still staring at the villain, she knew that something was probably blocking eye contact between the villain and Aizawa. So looking at the villain won't do any harm.

Using her quirk, she created a mirror and angled it over the door.

The first thing she noticed was the haphazard room. There were papers, books and shredded pieces of Aizawa's tape everywhere mixed with splatters of blood.

In the middle of the mess was...

Hmm?

A pair of red wings wrapped up in a cocoon... No. It was a cocoon of red feathers.

Red feathers?

She remembered a hero with the same feature...

One of the top heroes...

Ughh! Presque vu*, now of all times!

.

"Don't you dare!"

Aizawa Sensei boomed, making Momo flinch out of her thoughts.

"Don't you dare kill yourself in front of a growing hero, you're going to hurt her passion!"

Hawks?

Duh.

Hawks is definitely tormented by the loss of his intern, Tokoyami. Receiving many hateful comments and definitely scarred his confidence. Yet how does that drive someone nonchalant like Hawks to be suicidal?

The red-feathered cocoon suddenly shifted, opening a hole facing her while still covering eye contact with Aizawa Sensei.

Hawks could be seen inside. Momo caught eye contact with him. His eyes were glinting with lunacy. He held a matching disturbing smile. Yet, he seemed sad on the inside.

Something else was glinting in the darkness with him, something more disturbing...

A knife...

His knife glinted in the light, providing more vision inside the cocoon.

Momo gasped with shock as the gruesome scene unfolded in front of her...

Hawks was embedded with feathers, not on him, but in him. Razor-sharp feathers that snuggled deeply in his entire form.

Momo grimaced as she visualised the pain. She could not see clearly inside the cocoon, but Hawks was definitely covered in blood. The knife that Hawks was carrying definitely would be the finishing blow.

It must have served the purpose of ending his life without the use of his quirk if Aizawa removed it.

She shook her head.

What am I doing, come to my senses! This isn't the time to be analysing!

Suddenly, she saw a hint of movement from Hawks.

She closed her eyes and commanded as loudly as she could.

"Tokoyami is still alive!"

Everything stopped.

The air went still...

Her eyes were shut tightly, half expecting that a gruesome mess would appear when she reopened.

"What?"

A raspy voice said.

She opened her eyes, Hawks had his knife inches away from his throat.

Momo knew she couldn't do anything to help, controlling a pro hero? An unstable pro hero? Not a chance.

She ain't the protagonist after all...

"HahahahaaHAHAHAAHAAAHHAAAAA-you're lying."

!!!

She closed her eyes.

Filling her vision with darkness

She was too late.

--

It was pitch black.

When vision returned, Kirishima was approaching.

(The scene had changed. A transition from Momo's closed eyes to Tokoyami.)

Tokoyami had his eyes closed to send a signal to his classmates that he was in no mood to talk about the kidnappings or anything in general.

Someone didn't get the memo.

"Hey Tokoyami, glad to have you back! We're all grateful that you're safe. "

Tokoyami simply nodded.

"Are you injured anywhere?"

Without warning, Kirishima circled him, looking closely for any injuries.

Tokoyami held a sigh of relief for his new body. It definitely doesn't provide any hints about his injuries.

Kirishima was circling him the fourth time.

" Kirishima, that's enough. What are you, a policeman? Are you going to give me a pat-down next?"

"Oh, good idea! Stand up for a moment."

Tokoyami shifted uncomfortably. Midoriya stood up and dragged Kirishima away, telling him to give Tokoyami some space.

"Sometimes, the abyss wishes to be undisturbed. Anyone who lay their eyes on it would be disturbed forever." Tokoyami muttered.

He looked at the time. The class is 10 minutes late.

He closed his eyes again and folded his arms.

He wished nothing out of the ordinary is happening right now.

Today's definitely normal.

--

It's too late.

.

.

.

But.

As a slit of vision returned again, she found Hawks not on the floor anymore.

Aizawa's tape surrounded Hawks.

When she reopened her eyes fully again, she realised she wasn't at the door. She was almost right next to Hawks.

Her body moved on its own...

"Thank you Momo, you gave me an opening when there was none, now for the more important stuff, what did you say? "

"Tokoyami is still alive, I came here to inform you, Aizawa Sensei. I didn't know things escalated this quickly."

"YOU'RE LYING!"

A recorded voice of Tokoyami filled the room.

...

"Come on, we got to send you to a hospital," Aizawa said as he dragged Hawks out of the room.

Sadness slowly crept its way to Hawks face, his eyes filling with tears as he held his blank face.

Momo hoped that he recovers from his broken state.

As Aizawa walked past her, he whispered to her.

"Whatever happened here does not leave this room, you hear me?"

Yeah, I thought so too. But Tokoyami deserves to know...

Her mind wandered to Hawks smiling like a lunatic.

Well, maybe after he recovers a little. Don't want to worry him right now.

--

The clock ticked by, now even Midoriya was a little curious about Tokoyami. Being left in the dark really put the class on edge. Tokoyami had gotten multiple whispers in the ear, asking him what really happened.

Well, it's not helping them by keeping quiet.

"Fine."

Within seconds, dead silence.

Suddenly, a question from the left.

"Honestly, are you injured or hurt?"

Tokoyami closed his eyes and lowered his head.

"No."

Not in this body.

"Why did the villain wanted to kidnap you?"

"I don't know."

"Who's the villain in the first place?"

Belenus smiling face as a friend appeared in his mind.

"I'm sor-"

Tokoyami voice cracked.

Everyone got the memo.

He felt a pat on his shoulder on his right.

"It's going to be OK"

Koda signalled him.

Before he could react, the door opened and Momo strolled in.

Iida immediately stood up.

"Momo, being the class rep, you should know better than to arrive this late!"

"I had some matters to settle with Aizawa Sensei."

Another figure entered the door. It was Aizawa Sensei.

"Everyone settle down, we'll start class immediately."

Of course, Aizawa's eyes were on him.

Tokoyami averted his eyes and prepared for the worst.

The class seemed to remember that Aizawa wasn't informed, but they put two and two together after what Momo had said and understood the situation.

"Tokoyami..."

Uh oh, here we go...

"After class. I've delayed the class for far too long."

And with that, the class started as per normal with some occasional glances from the teachers.

Unfortunately for him, Physical Education was the next period.

"Everybody meet me at the P.E. Grounds in 15 minutes." Aizawa Sensei said before leaving the class.

Tokoyami strolled to the changing room, wondering what he should do.

I guess the most logical thing for me to do is to fake sickness.

But this would only work once, he thought.

Since he isn't going to do any physical activity, there's no need to change.

By the time the entire class was in the P.E. Grounds, he was the only one still wearing the school uniform.

Everyone curiously looked at him as he approached Aizawa Sensei.

"Sensei, I'm afraid I'm not fit enough for today's training."

"Hmm? On what basis?"

Tokoyami held his word for a while.

I can't say from my injuries or my trauma, that's basically spilling the beans that I lied to them.

"I..."

"Sensei, Tokoyami was not himself this morning." Shoji suddenly interrupted.

Tokoyami sneaked a glance at his direction.

Thank god Shoji saved me... Wait, why would he defend me?

"Yeah, Tokoyami had a headache," Momo recalled.

Tokoyami looked back at his classmate, catching a glimpse of Midoriya eying him curiously.

"Well, whatever. Someone send him to the sickbay then."

"I will," Shoji said immediately.

Mina and Denki snickered a little, earning them a death stare from Tokoyami.

Shoji stood beside him.

"I can go there myself."

"I insist."

"No, it's OK, you don't have to worry about me."

"We need to talk."

With that, Tokoyami had no choice but to comply.

...

...

...

*chhh* *chhh* *chhh* *chhh*

The dragging of shoes echoed in the hallway.

The silence was blasting Tokoyami's ears off. Needles penetrated his skull repeatedly, making him unable to think straight.

He couldn't stand it anymore...

"What do you want to talk about?"

"..."

More needles...

"Shoji?"

"Why didn't you tell anyone?"

"... About what happ-"

"No."

"In the lift?"

"Tokoyami, I'm not joking around."

"I'm not too, I'm jus-"

"Bring out Dark shadow, I want to talk to him."

Tokoyami was caught off guard for a few seconds, stumbling.

"Shoji, I can't bring him out now, I'm not fit enough to do so."

"Just as I thought, he's gone isn't he?"

Tokoyami stopped in his tracks. Shoji followed suit.

Oh, so that's why.

The afternoon air stood still.

"How did you find out?" Tokoyami said quietly.

"I'm sorry, Toko. It was bugging me the whole night. I couldn't sleep... and the cries..."

"..."

"The cries forced me to do it. I knew it was hard for anyone who went through that. I thought I could've helped. I never knew that it was far more complicated than I thought."

"Shoji..."

"I... I eavesdropped on you, Ok? I'm sorry. I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to. I wish I haven't..."

"It's OK, it's my fault."

Shoji placed an arm on Tokoyami's shoulder.

"It's not your fault Tokoyami. None of it is."

"I was weak. Crying even though it had already passed."

"... You're saying that it's your fault that I heard your misery? Tokoyami, we're all here for yo-"

"Yes, and make you guys suffer as well. What's the point? I'd rather you guys lead a normal happy life."

"Toko... You are not just a passerby in our lives, you need to understand that. 1A without you wouldn't be 1A.

This few months had already created a hole in our hearts that cannot be mended."

Tokoyami placed both hands in his eyes. What he said next shook Shoji to the bone.