Pressure. Intense pressure like she'd never felt before. The sheer strength of Daichi's will was dizzying, constantly threatening to crush her skull in the longer it kept up. And damn, did he keep it up. Hina's body was shaking, hands pressing flat against the mental brick wall that stood between her and the man looking to completely destroy her. Of course, after hours of use, her own usual headache was also rearing its ugly head, contributing to the severe pain spiking through at regular intervals.
A loud rumble on the other side as he launched another fierce attack. She felt the vibrations through her palms, felt the bricks shake, heavy and substantial. Her protections hadn't taken any sort of damage in years, never having really come across another mental quirk user since he'd been put in prison. The extra layer she forced into the wall with her own willpower was possibly the only reason it hadn't fallen yet, and she feared for the moment that her own endurance gave out, granting him that small slip, that small opportunity to force his way through and reach her subconscious. A fearful glance to the beach's dock behind her confirmed that the light blue orb was still floating there, glowing brightly and intact.
Hina faced forward, closing her eyes and concentrating on blocking another round of Daichi's mental assaults. They were almost lazy and uncoordinated now, striking at random and in indiscernible patterns. She felt a bead of sweat slide down her forehead, the shaking in her hands growing more pronounced. Each hit was felt against her skull, as if the wall were simply an extension of her head. And to a degree, it was.
And then it stopped. As suddenly as they'd originally come. Most of the pressure alleviated, subsiding into a much more manageable throb. He'd pulled away, released his hold on her mind. Tired, Hina did the same. The beach surrounding her faded, the sand disappearing and the sun dimming into nothingness.
Reality was much more bleak. There was only darkness, and she could feel the chains still locking her wrists to the floor. It was cold, hard. Concrete. She sat cross-legged and hunched. Moving her head side to side, she still felt the thick band of fabric restricting her vision, preventing her from being able to activate her quirk on Daichi. Of course, not like he'd just let her fight back. He knew every one of her weaknesses, because they were his too.
She still felt sick overall, breaths coming out in uneven pants as she reoriented herself to the environment. Despite being blind, she was surprised to hear Daichi's own labored breathing. His strength aside, even he had a limit to the length of time he could continuously use his quirk, a fact she was very much thankful for now.
"You're definitely much more difficult to break, I'll give you that." He said, a mix of anger and curiosity lacing his words. "But that's alright. Now that you're here, I can really take my time forcing my way to the answers I want. Without food and water, you'll eventually weaken enough to let me in."
Hina swallowed down her panic, not wanting to think about the long term. "Can we please talk about this, Daichi?"
He scoffed mockingly. "Talk? What, did you want some sort of family reunion? Too bad I didn't bake a cake to celebrate the occasion. Should I braid your hair like I used to?"
"Don't. Just...stop patronizing me." She shot back, irritated that he was of course still mocking her. Just like the last time they'd faced each other. Perhaps she should have watched what she said for fear of retaliation, but the familiarity eased away any caution.
"Wouldn't dream of it, sis." He said, amusement clearly evident in his tone. She shifted in place, testing how much give the chain had. Not very far. Daichi must have noticed what she was doing and chuckled to himself. "But fine. I'll take the bait. Let's talk. Have a little chat. It has been, what...five years, right? Surely your exciting and heroic life will more than make up for my lack of interesting stuff to share."
His sardonic words were meant to sting, to poke uncomfortably. Hina didn't want to admit that it was working, but it was. She'd never wanted him to go down this path he'd chosen for himself, the reasons why still confusing her. Whatever hope that maybe he'd still hold some inkling of compassion or remorse in him was dashed. Still, she had to know a few things, her curiosity getting the better of her. "Won't you just tell me why?"
"Why what?"
Hina shook her head, knowing he was just being coy. "Why did you turn your back on your dream, on me? To be a hero, like dad? No lies, no bullshit. Just tell me the truth. I think I deserve that much. What happened that made you so...evil?"
Another scoff. "You really think I'm evil, huh? Figures..."
"What else would you call it, tearing people's minds apart?" Came her incredulous question.
"Exercising the quirk I was born with. Why should I be seen as evil for exploring the full extent of my power and potential? It's a part of me, isn't it? Why would being who I am make me evil?"
That certainly hadn't been what she was expecting, and for several moments she couldn't even respond, struck absolutely speechless. "A-are you serious? You just see it as...practice? Just...extending your free will?"
"I wouldn't expect you to understand. Someone who was coddled, told you could do no wrong. You've always been weaker, Hina. You never had to hide a part of yourself behind a wall, never to see the light of day. We may have grown up in the same house, but you and I are nothing alike because that's how mom and dad wanted it. They took one look at what I could do and tried to suppress it." The bitterness grew in his voice, and Hina feared that he'd lash out in anger. But to hear him speak of his reasons...
"What are you talking about...coddled?"
"Oh, come on, you can't be that naive." He admonished, a harsh undertone creeping in. "I always knew you were the sheltered one, but seriously. You've barely grown up at all."
"Just spit it out, already. Quit talking in circles." Hina bit, frustrated by his beat-around-the-bush accusations.
"Mom and dad, maybe they were great parents to you, but I'd never consider them family. Not after the bullshit and borderline abuse they put me through."
Hina felt a surge of anger, facing the direction she believed Daichi to be. "That's a lie! Mom and dad were never abusive, they loved both of us! They would never...I don't know what the hell you're trying to play at, but...how could you even say-"
She startled when she felt him grab at the cloth around her eyes, yanking it off viciously and making her look him straight in the face. She blinked several times, getting used to the sudden change in light. It was the first time she'd seen him outside of her mind. And in person, he was much more intimidating. The rage was striking in his expression.
"Look me in the eyes and tell me I'm lying!" He yelled, holding her face and shaking it just inches form his own. "Go on, Hina! Tell me! That the childhood I lived was all just a bad dream, a delusion! See for yourself, just what a perfect fucking life I had."
Terrified, she couldn't see any semblance of mistruth in his expression. But people could become excellent liars. Deception came easily to villains, right? She needed to see for herself and so activated her quirk, delving into the center of his head to see what he would show her.
It was like she'd stepped into a memory. Actually, that's exactly what this was. Their old childhood home. She could smell her father's cologne and her mother's incense wafting through the house like the air itself. The combination sent a pang of nostalgia and yearning through her chest, se deep it felt like a physical blow. It had been so long since she'd recognized the scent, and yet it was so familiar, almost instinctual.
Everything was as she remembered it; complete with the dozens of toys and games and books that always seemed to litter the front room's floor no matter how many times their mother cleaned it, and the wall that had been converted into their height chart as they grew taller and taller.
Ignoring Daichi, who stood watching her from the center of the room, she walked over to the wall, inspecting the pencil marks that lined the edge. In red, her mother had written 'Daichi, Age 5' with a height of 43". Several inches beneath that was Hina's own measurement. In purple, her favorite color at the time. 'Hina, Age 3." She touched the marks with reverence. They were so young back then...
"Dachi!" A little voice cried, unable to properly pronounce her brother's name.
She turned, watching her toddler-self stumble into the front room, holding a book and blanket at the ready. Her red hair barely reached past her chin, and was secured in two tiny hairbands on other side of her head. "Dachi! Book, book!"
Her much-younger older brother, who sat playing with one of his action figures, looked up at her as she ran into the room. "I'm playing with my toy. I don't wanna read." He said, going back to bending the little figure's arms and legs and miming fighting moves with it.
"Mmm..." Hina groaned out in that way that children did, throwing on her best petulant pout and slumped her little shoulders. "But, story time!"
"Go ask mom." He said with clear displeasure, but their little child argument had reached the ears of their mother, who Hina could hear working on dinner in the next room. She popped her head around the corner and looked at her children.
Hina's heart hurt once more. Their mother...Marie Hitagawa was a natural beauty, her crimson hair and striking face what had caught their father's eye and never let it go. And even after motherhood, she was still someone capable of turning heads. Her eyes looked down at her son, an eyebrow quirked.
"Daichi, you've been playing with your action figures all day. Why don't you spend some time with your sister and read her the book?" She suggested in the signature mom-voice, making it clear that it really wasn't a suggestion at all.
Annoyed, he dropped his toy and pulled a face. "Ugh, fine!"
Little Hina dropped down beside him with a pleased smile, setting the book in his lap and scooting closer so she could see the pictures as he read. Still upset that he was being forced to read when he didn't want to, little Daichi's grumpy face was set firmly in place as he flipped to the first page.
Adult Hina turned to look at her brother, who was staring down at the two of them without expression. "Why are you showing me-?"
"Watch." He spat, not even giving her an acknowledgement. Reluctantly, she did as told.
Little Daichi read through the book, with little Hina hanging onto every word. There came a part in the story where the character came across a forest of wild monsters, and despite loving having her brother read to her, she'd always been afraid of that book in particular. Why she'd chosen it, neither could say. So, when it came to the part that they were supposed to let out mighty roars, Hina hid her head under her blanket and whined.
"The monsters are so scary..." She said, and Daichi shook his head.
"No way, you're just a baby. You know what is scary?" His face split into an excited grin as Hina's head popped out from the blanket.
"What?"
"Vampires." He said, and both adult siblings watched the way his eyes began glowing their cyan hue.
Little Hina let out a terrified scream, followed by scared crying, and Hina's mom came rushing out from the kitchen, eyes searching for whatever had scared her child. She knelt in front of her and held on to her shoulders.
"What's going on?" She questioned, the sounds of their father's footsteps coming down the stairs further in the house. "Hina, what happened?"
"B-bampire!" Came her sobbing reply, pointing over at the corner where she'd seen the creature looming over her. Hina's mother searched for any trace of the supposed 'vampire' but found nothing, finally turning to her son, whose eyes were only just beginning to fade. He didn't seem phased at all.
"Daichi, did you do something to your sister?"
He shrugged, looking back down at his toy and picking it up. "I just showed her something scary. I didn't know she was gonna cry." Their mother appeared distressed at his response.
"What happened?" Their father asked, stepping into the front room as their mother stared with a frown at Daichi. He saw the expression on her face and stopped.
"Takeshi..." She muttered, picking Hina up and walking towards the way he'd just come. "I need to speak with you, right now."
As their mother walked away carrying a still-crying Hina, the memory faded, vanishing into the darkness around them. Adult Daichi stood, staring where the scene had played out with a tight expression.
"That was the first moment, when my freedoms began disappearing one by one." He said, and Hina shook her head.
"You scared me as a kid, so what? You had just developed your quirk, you didn't have control over it. Neither did I, when mine appeared." Hina didn't see the significance of the event, but he turned his cold stare to her.
"Dad couldn't project images until he'd trained his quirk for years. I could do it from day one." He explained, and she finally saw the significance. "They realized just how powerful I really was. And it scared them, Dad especially."
The pro hero couldn't come up with something to say, and instead drew her attention back to their surroundings as it changed into a brand new scene. This time, in their middle school principal's office.
Daichi, now a teenager complete with a pre-pubescent attitude, slouched in the chair in the office's lobby, just outside the principal's closed door. The receptionist sat at her desk nearby, tapping away at her computer but glancing over at the teen every once in awhile to make sure he wasn't up to no good.
Even from behind the closed door, they could still hear some of the conversation from within.
"...third time he's used his quirk to cheat on a test, and frankly at this rate, I won't be able to reasonably justify anything but expulsion." The old man said within, and the teen Daichi gave an exaggerated eye roll. "He's out of control. His teachers have complained several times about his behavior, and the illegal use of his quirk to manipulate others."
"Has he harmed any students?" Their father asked seriously inside.
"No, not physically. Or...mentally, I suppose you could say. Nothing that has caused serious, lasting damage."
"But, there have been incidents?" Their mother asked.
"Yes." The principal sighed. "One student had a panic attack in their physical education class, claiming that they were trapped in a black box with no way out. Another, just a few weeks ago, says that he was manipulated into believing a female student liked him. It caused a socially embarrassing scene, according to the student."
His mother sighed heavily, but Teen Daichi was eyeing the receptionist with contempt to intentionally ignore the conversation from there forward, eyes narrowing as he watched her work at something on her screen. His eyes began to glow a faint blue.
She gasped, pushing away with a terrified expression. Then, she looked down, standing and frantically brushing away at her clothing with loud whimpers.
Hina turned to her brother, who was smirking.
Daichi gave her a glance. "Spiders."
Turning back, she frowned, watching his eyes fade away just a moment before the principal's door opened. Their parents and the older gentlemen stepped out, noticing the receptionist's startled appearance.
"Are you alright, Yui?"
"Yes, gomen'ne..." She flustered a response, patting at her face and glancing around with fear. "There was just...a few spiders. They startled me."
Takeshi Hitagawa turned and gave a hard look at his son, who looked away after a moment of locking eyes. "I apologize for any trouble my son has caused you. It won't happen again." He stressed.
Again, the scene faded, and Daichi's head shook.
"I wouldn't realize it for a few years but...Mom and Dad decided to put me on a quirk suppression medication after that. Slipped it into my food at dinner, I guess. They figured if I wasn't as powerful as I used to be, maybe I'd settle down and conform to their...ideology."
"I don't remember you ever being a troubled student..." Hina said quietly, thinking about everything she'd seen.
"'Don't let Hina see your bad habits,' they'd always say." Daichi shrugged, eyeing her maliciously again. "They didn't want your childhood to be sullied, I guess."
She only shook her head, unsure what to say. A final memory materialized into being, and this one she actually remembered very clearly, even before they'd said a word.
"My high school dance..." She muttered sadly, seeing her younger self trying to get ready in the mirror. Looking back, the dark green dress really wasn't doing her any favors, clashing strangely with her hair color, but she'd been adamant back then that it had been the one she'd wanted.
She brushed and tugged at her long hair, though it wasn't nearly as long as her current style now. Frustrated that it wasn't cooperating with her, she gave a huff and grabbed the can of hairspray to try something else.
"Hina-" Daichi said as he stepped around the corner, but was just in time to get a face-full of the spray, missing her hair and making his sputter out in a coughing fit.
"Oh, shoot, sorry!" She said, setting it down and holding out her hands to somehow help. Hina remembered the guilt she'd felt for having caused such a thing, but he quickly recovered and waved the apology off.
"'s fine, it's fine..." A few more coughs got the most of the chemical out of his lungs. "Aren't you done, yet? I have to take you to the school in ten minutes."
"Ten minutes!?" She cried, grabbing her phone and seeing the time. "I haven't even started on my makeup yet...I'm gonna be so late. Kenzo's gonna think I stood him up."
"Why does your hair look like that?" He asked, pointing at the strange lumps and odd curls she'd tried in various places on her head. She sighed, digging out her makeup bag to begin the application.
"I can't figure out how to style it...but now this is all I have time for. Guess I'll be the laughing stock this year..."
"Just put it in a braid or something." He suggested.
"I've never been able to do it on myself. It's a weird angle, and it just doesn't work out..." She said in defeat, opening her mascara bottle and leaning forward to apply the stuff. Her eyes looked glassy in her reflection.
Daichi stared at her, finally sighing before settling himself behind her and grabbing the brush from the counter. "Stay still, or this might not look right."
"What are you-?"
"If we're gonna leave on time, do your make up while I fix your hair. But don't expect this to be a regular thing. Just wouldn't want everyone laughing at a Hitagawa..." He grumped, brushing out the kinks in her hair and smoothing out the areas that the hairspray had made stiff.
At first Hina said nothing, but the mirror made it obvious that she was struggling not to cry from gratitude. "Thank you."
Again, the scene faded, and Hina turned to her brother. "Why did you show me that one?"
He didn't answer immediately, eyes away from her and staring into the darkness. "It was just on my mind..."
A tiny little spark bloomed in her chest. That maybe there was an inkling of the old Daichi in there somewhere. Why else would he have uncovered a memory like that? "How come you didn't go to the dance that year? I know several girls had asked you."
The hard edge returned to his gaze. "I was basically under house arrest. Dad didn't trust me not to use my quirk, so he restricted what school functions I could go to."
How quickly the hope died away. Hina sighed. The darkness brightened until she was sitting chained to the floor again, back in touch with reality. Daichi stared down at her coldly again, expression hard.
"I was watched like a hawk growing up, for any sign that I might snap. That house...was so stifling, so rigid and structured...it felt like little more than a prison. And trust me, I'd know the difference." He spat. "For awhile, after my little outbursts in school, I tried doing it the hero's way. I tried bending over backwards to keep myself in check and follow the rules. But in the end I just felt this...pressure. Like my quirk was building up inside me and would explode at any moment. It was an awful feeling. Those were the worst years of my life."
He put on a mocking smile, a huff escaping his lips. "And even then, Mom and Dad still fucking watched me closely. Even when I was good, they didn't trust me not to snap. So I gave up trying. I realized that they'd never accept what I wanted, that I'd always have to be someone I wasn't until they weren't part of my life anymore. When they died...I'd never felt so...free."
Hina looked away. What was she to say to that? She'd had no experience with such things growing up, her outlook on their family happy and healthy. To see it from his perspective was...disappointing. Due mostly to the fact that even after witnessing it, she still couldn't relate to what he felt.
"Daichi..." She started, choosing her words carefully. "You can rehabilitate. You can still be who you want to be, even by following the rules, somehow. We can find a way. Just let me help you. You can redeem yourself from the stain of being a villain-"
"No." He cut her short. "Look at all the heroes I put down. You think anyone would accept me after that? You think I care about them accepting me? I'm no villain, Hina. I never was. I'm the one who should be calling the world a villain, for trying to stamp it's foot on who I am."
"You still hate me, don't you? For arresting you? Oof-!" She doubled over in pain as his foot shot out and kicked into her chest. Curling into herself protectively, she coughed as the pain began to radiate stronger where it had connected.
"What do you think?" Came his reply. But another kick didn't come, thankfully. "My own family, throwing me in prison. It'd make anyone a little angry. I may have hated Mom and Dad most, but you'd never done anything to snub me out. But then, after you helped lock me away, and this...I realized you're just the same as them."
"You left a young woman traumatized." Hina stated hoarsely in defense, slowly gaining her breath back. "You would have done the same to me, and anyone else who got in your way. What else was I supposed to do?"
"I'm sick of talking about this. You won't understand, no matter how much I explain." He said simply with a furious glare. "Just like mom and dad never did."
Hina grunted out in pain, feeling the second round of his assaults jab into her mind, and she hastened to her safe space, once more holding back the blows to her psyche.
Night had fallen. Exhausted from the hours of probing at Hina's head, Daichi had stopped and elected to get some rest. To recharge and recuperate his strength to begin again in the morning. He left Hina as she was, chained to the floor and shutting off the lights as he'd left.
Hina tried getting some sort of rest on the floor of the building she was trapped in, but sleep wouldn't come. Her fears of the morning kept her awake, kept her constantly thinking. The room had left nothing to use as a means to escape, but desperation bred creativity.
Desperation also bred plans with a zero chance of success.
So she reached out. Just as she'd done in the ruins of Kamino Ward, Hina extended her quirk, struggling and failing to push it past the borders of her concrete prison. No one in sight, she was utterly useless, but she knew without a means to communicate, Daichi would win. He'd eventually break her, no matter how strong she was or how long she'd trained, he had the advantage of time on his hands.
Left weak and tired, she would constantly be fighting an uphill battle. And then she'd break. And then he'd win. She couldn't allow that to happen, afraid of what might transpire if he got his hands on their grandfather's ring. The strength it could provide him, the destruction he could cause...
Eyes glowing, she pushed, desperate for some sort of way to overcome her quirk's biggest weakness. She'd heard of hero's making breakthroughs with their quirks late into their careers, pushed into a life-threatening or harrowing situation, which gave them the motivation needed to create a miracle super move, or technique never thought of before. Hina was hoping for something similar, but knew the chances were slim.
Panting from exhaustion, she kept searching, hopeful that somehow, someway, she'd connect with someone.
ns 18.68.41.181da2
