Once Again From Better Days

The hours continue to pass uneventfully, but Katsuki can't help the creeping feeling that something is going to happen. It's easy to attribute the feeling to the dread of what will happen during the Nighteye internship, though things are so different now, there's no telling how similar or different they'll be. Katsuki hopes he'll somehow be able to fix what happened. If the fight against the Eight Precepts had gone differently last time, they would have had more strength to stand against the villains at the end. And maybe they wouldn't have– Maybe Izuku wouldn't have–

Katsuki recoils from the inevitable end to that line of thought. Dwelling on the past will not help him. Just regretting his mistakes doesn't make up for them. His knowledge of what happened before feels less and less helpful, and he doesn't know the details of the Nighteye internship anyway. He only knows the aftermath.

On Monday morning, the tentative peace is broken. The train ride to Nighteye's office is as crowded as usual, but there's a sombre mood in the air. Each person from the salaryman in the corner to the junior high student huddled on one of the benches look tense. If anything big happens at UA, the citizens of the city, if not the entire country, react. 

And the disappearance of a teacher is nothing if not big. 

Izuku spends the hour-long commute searching for updates. His elbows are pinned to his sides by the mass of other people, but he manages to hold his phone up to his face. Katsuki peers over his shoulder, pretending that being packed in with too many other people is the only reason he's leaning on Izuku.

For the first time since they ran into Eri, he isn't thinking about the Eight Precepts or the children. Aizawa's face stares at them from every headline. The police force and other pro heroes are quiet save for promising to do all they can. Katsuki can feel a kind of anxiety rising in his c.h.e.s.t. Kidnapping a UA teacher is a bold move, but there are no clear suspects. If Toga is affiliated with other villains, it could be her group. But then again, it could be someone else. 

Halfway through the train ride, a new notification pops up. Some passerby leaked footage of a cordoned off area near Aizawa's home. Despite the somewhat blurry quality of the picture, the evidence of a fight is clear. To take down someone like Aizawa, a reasonable amount of strength is needed. Whoever was responsible, must have impressive fighting power. And that thought is not reassuring.

Katsuki remains preoccupied even as they walk into the Nighteye Agency. Togata hurries over to them almost as soon as they pass through the door. At first glance, any sign of his usual smile is gone, but he manages a small one as he says his greetings. He leads them to a conference room where an assortment of pro heroes are already collected. A couple have interns with them.

The air in the room feels heavy, much like it did on the train. Everyone speaking is using hushed tones. A few break off as Katsuki and the others pass by, but most keep talking. When they reach Nighteye at the head of the table, he greets them with a strained smile. Not only is the news about Aizawa upsetting in a general sense, it also means the loss of a pro hero who would have helped them deal with the Eight Precepts.

A few minutes after they arrive, Nighteye calls the meeting to order. The pro heroes and others take seats around the large conference table. Across the way, he sees a familiar head of red hair next to elf ears – or rather, Amajiki. He glances around farther. He recognizes most of the pro heroes. While his knowledge of them might not be as encyclopedic as Izuku's, he has a good memory for this type of thing and has spent a lot of time around Izuku. 

Next to Kirishima and Amajiki sits Fat Gum, a very round, tall man wearing a bright orange jacket. A bit to the left of their group, he sees Iida sitting next to someone who looks almost exactly the same except for the lack of glasses. Even their hero costumes are similar. Katsuki remembers he once heard Iida's brother had been a hero, but not much more than that. Even farther around the table, he sees Uraraka and Tsuyu next to a woman he recognizes as the current 9th ranked hero.

Before he has time to dwell on the other heroes present in the room, including the current number 4 hero, Nighteye demands their attention. He announces that they've found evidence to suggest that The Eight Precepts of Death is dealing in illegal drugs. This serves as justification to find and search their hideout. 

As someone with experience with illegal quirk-affecting drugs, Fat Gum speaks up next. In the process of hunting down users of quirk-enhancing drugs, Amajiki was shot with a quirk-disabling bullet (Togata interrupts the conversation to ask if he's ok). While the effects only lasted a short while, if it were developed to be more stable, a drug like that would be disastrous for the world of heroes. Pro heroes could lose their quirks, and the general public would lose their protection. Katsuki shudders at the prospect.

And if the threat of what such a drug could do if optimized and mass-produced wasn't enough, the ingredients are another horror.