MHA: Dark Matter

I miraculously convinced the girl that I was fine and would be back soon, then let out a heavy sigh. Despite her usual cheerful voice, I could feel deep down her suspicion and nervousness. She was clearly starting to suspect something, which wasn't surprising since she lived with me. But she wasn't ready for the truth yet. Her moral compass was still aligned with this rotten society. I sighed.

"You're Ticci Micc, aren't you?"

The girl's question made me flinch. Her voice sounded so foreign. Such a cocktail of emotions... I had no choice but to nod.

"Can you stop being a villain?"

I looked in surprise at the back of Ayame's head as she drove. My precious bond. My throat suddenly dry, I answered. For some reason, right now, all my eloquence vanished.

"No."

"Why? What do you lack? Money? Fights? Killings? Why do you RISK so much?"

The girl shouted, glancing quickly at me. The light of the streetlamps reflected off the tears welling in her eyes. But it lasted only a second, as she turned her attention back to the road. An ambulance sped past.

"You almost got killed."

Her unusually weak voice made me sick. It was the same voice she'd used when she told me about the harassment from that pig I'd had to kill. How I wanted to kill myself for bringing my loved one to such a state.

"I need to eliminate the threats."

"Threats? What threats? To what?"

An empty smile crept onto my face.

"Threats to our precious bonds."

"Ken, nothing threatens us. The heroes protect us. Even that unbelievable villain in Kamino lost to them."

There was a strange worry in the girl's soothing voice. Not for herself, but for me? She had nothing to worry about. I was strong now and would become even stronger in the future.

"No. No. No. They're too unreliable. Last time, they didn't save me. So they might not save you either. That's why I need to become stronger, to eliminate all threats to us. Don't worry, I'll be more careful from now on and try not to put you in danger anymore."

"What threats are you even talking about? Wait. What do you mean, 'didn't save you'?"

I created a Dark Matter tendril to straighten the car's steering wheel as we almost crashed into another vehicle because of the distracted girl. My past interested her more than the potential danger to her own life?

"Well, when I was a kid, I was taken from the orphanage to a lab where they experimented on children. Later, thanks to my awakened Quirk, I managed to escape, killing all the guards. Once I was on the streets, I didn't dare go to the authorities because I was afraid the organization behind the lab would find me. And I had to eat. So I started as a thief, then realized that by killing various villain scum, I could become stronger. In a nutshell, that's how the villain Ticci Micc was born."

I exhaled tiredly and leaned back in the back seat, gently stroking the sleeping Hana's hair. The older Yoshioka's eyes widened as I spoke. At the end, a curse slipped from her lips.

"And your adoptive father?"

"A bought man who doesn't know who I am. I pay him well, and he keeps quiet and follows my instructions."

"Ken, do you t-trust me that much? Telling me all this."

The girl's voice trembled. What a stupid question.

"Well, I wasn't planning on revealing it, because I didn't want to worry you. But since you saw me like this, lying is pointless. Besides, my life has no meaning without you."

I grinned widely and closed my eyes. For some reason, I understood the girl better than ever right now. This feeling of understanding and closeness was so pleasant. What had happened while I was unconscious?

The next five minutes in the car were silent. Her cheeks slightly flushed, the girl watched the road. I admired her current hair. Once matte black, it now had a crimson hue, making it look like a shade of purple. So unusual.

"If this organization hasn't found you yet, chances are they won't in the future, right? Wouldn't acting as a villain just attract their attention? Wouldn't it be better to sic the heroes on them?"

The girl began to reason quite logically. She just didn't know everything.

"All Might has lost his power."

My words hit the girl's consciousness like a bucket of ice water.

"Many forces that have been hiding for years are now, or will soon be, on the move. The League of Villains is just the vanguard, with others to follow. That organization, though..."

I fell silent, remembering my conversation with All For One a couple of days after kidnapping the head of the Tosaka family. HYDRA's ambitions... They were too great.

"...poses a huge threat. It must be destroyed."

A black flame of hatred blazed in my chest. Having destroyed my life once, they could do it again. And my life is my precious bonds. Destroying them is unacceptable.

Hana, who'd been stirring restlessly, interrupted my thoughts. Apparently, someone didn't like me stopping what I was doing. My hands resumed stroking her soft hair, and my mind drifted into a kind of trance, perhaps even Buddhist "zen." Loaded with new information, Ayame drove quietly, not rushing to continue the conversation. It didn't even cross my mind that she might tell the heroes about me. I knew she wouldn't. And if, in some incredible, unreal case she did... then what are our relationships worth? What is my life worth?

I don't know how much time passed, but one obvious problem occurred to me. I still hadn't changed my clothes. And I smelled like burnt fabric. Embarrassed by my current state, I turned to Ayame.

"I should probably go. My current look isn't really suitable for talking to strangers."

The girl, who'd been sitting thoughtfully behind the wheel, looked at me. And snorted. Right, the magnificent and irresistible S-class villain with an awkward expression on his face, sitting in rags on the back seat of her car, stroking her ward's hair.

"Where can I drop you?"

I thought about it. Abandoning the girl before she got home wasn't great. But my current look might raise questions from people, especially with everyone on edge because of the Kamino battle.

"You can drop me off on the outskirts of Musutafu. I can get to a stash with spare clothes quickly from there."

"Okay."

We fell silent. For some reason, I felt like I should say something. And besides, I could become invisible, and I should help carry the sleeping Hana. So it would be better to ride with them to their house. I opened my mouth, then shut it. For some reason, I was sure that if I went all the way to their house, I wouldn't leave it tonight. And Mei was waiting for me, worried.

The car stopped. I carefully lifted Hana's head from my lap and got out.

"Ken."

I turned my head and looked at the older Yoshioka, who'd also gotten out. She hesitated for a moment, then stepped toward me decisively and...

"Mmm?"

I stared wide-eyed at the girl's face so close to mine. Our lips touched, and my body flushed with heat. Chaos reigned in my head. Her, me, Mei. Mei and I... So I'd cheated? But this was Ayame... What do I do? Maybe it was a kiss of gratitude? Followed by sex out of gratitude? What gratitude? They helped me. So I should be...

My stream of idiotic thoughts was interrupted by Ayame's flustered voice.

"Take care of yourself."

A wave of hair brushed my face as the older Yoshioka abruptly turned and got back in the car. Watching the car drive away, I tried to calm down. Ridding myself of all the thoughts that plague teenagers suffering from a "thirst for female attention," I headed toward my stash. Hatsume, however, was in for my hot apologies for worrying her. In the horizontal position.

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[POV from the outside]

"You should have pulled him back into the car. Then Nee-san could have had great sex."

"Eep!"

Startled, jumping in the driver's seat, Ayame stared in shock at the no-longer-sleeping black-haired girl with the expressionless face sitting in the back seat. Shock quickly turned to indignation.

"HANA!"

"I'm too young for that."

Ayame choked. About to scold her ward for the vulgar language, she suddenly darkened. Her mind flashed to the image of the girl lying in a hospital bed with indifferent eyes after being rescued from the underground brothel. Guilt squeezed her heart like slimy tentacles.

"Nee-san, it's not your fault."

"Sorry, sorry. If only I had..."

A small hand squeezed Ayame's sleeve.

"It's okay, Nee-san. Big brother saved me then."

The older Yoshioka calmed down. As the older one, it wasn't her place to behave like this in front of her younger relative. She was already a terrible guardian. Remembering today, the girl frowned.

"Hana-chan, what did you do before that monster attacked? You did something, didn't you? Because of what you did, I can still feel Ken even now."

The little black-haired girl smiled. Her expressive gray eyes glowed with a mystical light.

"Now, big brother will be with us forever."

"Huh?"

"Together-together. Forever. "

[End POV from the outside]

*****A/N*****

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