Time Traveling Hero

"He did what?"

"So-sorry sir, but he left."

The hooded man rubbed his eyes with his forefinger and thumb, slightly shaking his head. "I see, a shame too. I did want to meet him as soon as possible. Is it possible for you to get him to come here right now?"

"Um, he's already left the confines of the facility, and probably almost home by now."

He couldn't help but groan. "I see, what a mess." He turned to four of the Seated, who were watching patiently. "And none of you could've possibly have stopped him?"

"Sorry Director, but his logic was... astounding to say the least." Mars said, shaking his head in disbelief.

"If you were there, you would understand." Astraea agreed.

"He sure is an interesting character, huh Deimos!?" Hebe turned toward Deimos, a grin on her childish face.

"Keke, he's one to watch out fo' that's fo' sure," Deimos agreed, his blue braids jumbling about as he laughed.

"I see... I would've like to give him so advice, but he'll probably be alright. Let's just hope the ATF doesn't catch wind of this." The hooded man looked up at the ceiling. "Let us meet soon, newest 'Hero'"

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"Big bro, welcome home!"

"Hey lil' bro, took you long enough!"

Standing at the door waiting for Anna and I were my two sisters, Luna and Eris. A smiled filled with relief overcame my face.

"Yeah, I'm home. Sorry, it took me longer than expected to get it done."

"Master worked really hard."

"Oi, I know you can call me Hiro, I heard you say it earlier."

"Anna does not know what Master is talking about. Was probably Master's imagination."

I sighed and ran my hand through my hair. "Anyway, it's good to be back home. Come on, let's go in already."

I moved past my two sisters and opened the door, where I took my shoes off before making my way upstairs.

"Oh, big bro! Dinner will be done in about 20 minutes, so make sure you're ready!"

"Got it! Thanks Luna!" I reached upstairs and walked into my room, smiling at the two sisters at the bottom of the stairs before closing the door shut.

I collapsed onto the floor, finally allowing the wave of exhaustion hit me. I was up for one and a half days, with no sleep and barely any food and water. Tack along the mental and emotional duress I felt, and you had one very tired Hiro.

I g.r.o.a.n.e.d as the some of the memories tried to surface, and managed to pull myself up to my feet. I can't let it take over yet. There's still some things I have to do. I sat down on my bed and grabbed my phone from out of my pocket. Miraculously, it was still alive, and I went to my contacts and scrolled into I reached the one I wanted.

I called them and let the phone ring, and with a click, they answered rather quickly.

"Hello, is something wrong?"

I smiled at the voice. "Hey Dad, can we talk for a little bit?"

"Of course son, it's what a parent is for after all! So, what'd'ya need?"

"I need some time off from school this week."

"Hey now, I know you're smart and all, but we can't exactly have you missing school because you think you're too good for it or something!"

"I want to visit her."

Silence on the other end after I uttered these words. "I see, I'll give you the week off, okay?"

"Hey, I don't need that much time off Dad."

"Nope, I'll call the school and tell them you're sick. I must insist. It's the least I can do..."

"Dad, it isn't..." I trailed off, the memory of my late mother resurfacing in my head.

"It'll be the first time you visit her, so tell her as much as possible, okay? I don't know what change happened, but I'll make sure you get that time off from school, okay?"

"... Thanks Dad."

"I wish I could be there with you, but it seems I'll be stuck here for a while longer. Your stepmom should be back by next week though, so tell Luna, okay?"

"Yeah, I will."

"And son? Just know, it'll be alright, even if you're unable to go in the end, okay?"

I smiled. "Yeah, I know. Alright, I'll talk to you later Dad. Love you."

"Love you too son. Bye."

"Bye." And our brief phone conversation ended. I laid back into the softness of my bed and sighed. I really am so tired. Before I could drift off to dream land, however, I heard a knock on my door.

"Come in," I said, and in came Eris. She happily made her way over to my bed, and I scooted over so she could lay down next to me.

"So, what's up lil' bro? Did something happen?" I turned to her sparkling green eyes, filled with worry.

"I don't think I ever thanked you for saving me that day," I murmured.

"Hmm? What day?"

"The day I was going to jump off the bridge."

"You know, you're right! I should've just let you jump. You're more trouble than you're worth you know."

I didn't respond, and simply turned to look up at the dark ceiling above me.

"Something most definitely happened, didn't it? That was a really long time ago, so what made you decide to revisit them?"

"Stuff. A lot of stuff I don't want to talk about right now."

"I see! Well, you'll tell me eventually, so I'm not too worried about it." She got out of the bed and dragged me along with her.

"Come on, dinner is ready, so let's eat some grub!"

We made our way downstairs to find the meal Luna prepared for us, a meal composed of one of my favorite foods, beef ribs and fries.

My mouth started to water as the smell of ribs and fries wafted into my nose. I turned towards Luna, who was grinning at me.

"It was a surprise! It was my first-time making ribs, so hopefully you like it," She said, tapping her two index fingers together nervously. Ah yes, I've missed my dose of my adorable and cute sister Luna.

I gave her a fierce hug, which I held for a long while. "Thank you lil' sis. I mean, I love you so much right now!"

"Big bro, that's embarrassing!" She ended up hugging me back, sniffing my shirt.

I released her at last, and felt my body rejuvenate. "Yep, my Luna levels are a-okay now! I feel way better!"

"Um, I hate to ask, but why are you wearing perfume?" Luna asked, examining my shirt. "Now that I think about it, this isn't even your shirt."

Eh? I was? I looked down at my shirt, and the events of my date rolled back through my head. I was still wearing the Prez's shirt. How this was even possible is beyond me.

"Oh, you're right. This isn't even a guy's shirt; this is meant for females." Ah crap, I might be screwed. I turned to face two angry sisters, one little one who was pouting and crossing her arms over her c.h.e.s.t, the other cracking her knuckles, looking ready to kill me.

"Uh, this is kinda awkward, isn't it? Trust me, this isn't what you're thinking, I promise. She forced me to change shirts with her since she was sweaty!"

"Oh, so you can get back your shirt?" Eris asked.

"Ah, no, probably not." It was probably stuck with that Prez for eternity, unless it somehow managed to make its way here, although I have no clue how that would be possible.

"And who is this she that you changed shirts with!?" Luna asked.

"Uh, can we please save questions after we eat? I'm really hungry." Please, let me live through this!

"Hmph! Fine, but me and Luna want a full explanation later!" Yes, thank god these two are semi-reasonable. I was just about to sit down before I felt a hand grip my shoulder, and I turned to face Eris.

"But, if we find out that someone at your age is doing illicit things, well, you know what'll happen."

"Parents!"

Oh please God no. They can't find out I took extremely dangerous Trials to become a Hero of some organization. They would kill me, bring me back to life, do it over again, and then I would never see the light of day again. I shivered. Just thinking about it makes me want to crawl over and die.

"Trust me, no lies between us! When have I ever told a lie to you two?"

"You lied quite a bit when I first met you," Eris commented.

"Yeah, big bro was a troublemaker back then," Luna agreed.

"Master is a troublemaker now."

"When did you get here Anna!?" Crap, this is getting me nowhere. I'm too tired to deal with this right now.

"Whatever, I give up. Please, just let me eat already!" The two looked at each other and shrugged.

"If he's lying, we'll force him to do things for us!"

"Yeah, like letting me win at games!" Ah, innocent Luna indeed. They finally let me sit down and eat, and eat I did.

"You look like you haven't eaten in days!" Eris remarked, watching me devour my food with a fierce intensity.

"Eh, something like that yeah," I managed to say through my mouthfuls of food. I was continuously downing glass after glass of water, quickly making our way through Luna's meal. Until...

"Oh, I ate everything." I burped as I finished another glass of water and sighed. Ah, nothing beats a homecooked meal made by your cute little sister.

"I should've made more. Lately, big bro's appetite has been weird," Luna said, watching me lull into relaxation. "Don't worry, I'll make something for everybody else too."

I felt all warm and fuzzy after that meal. I slowly managed to get up, stretching my body, "I'm going to take a shower and then crash. I guess I should tell you guys now, but I won't be going to school this week."

"Eh! What's with this random development!?" Eris exclaimed, clearly shocked. "Why are you missing school!? Is your Dad okay with this!? Does this have to do with what you did this weekend!?"

I gazed at everyone's shocked face, everyone's except for Anna's, who was calm. I smiled at all them.

"I'm going to visit Mom."

The entire room fell into an awed silence, and Eris' frosty white skin started to lose its l.u.s.ter after hearing my words.

"Are, are you sure? You haven't visited at all, so why?"

"It'll be alright Eris, I'll be fine. It's just something I have to do. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a hot date with a wonderful shower." I excused myself and went into my room gathering up my pajamas, u.n.d.e.r.w.e.a.r, and socks. I took my stuff into the bathroom and got undressed, starting with my shirt. Before I finished unbuttoning however, I noticed a slight bulge in the c.h.e.s.t pocket. I pulled it out, and it was a folded piece of paper.

I flipped it over, and on the other side it said "Please give this to me whenever you wish. It is my final request for us." I took a shaky breath as I set it down on the sink, and I felt my heart start to ache.

"No, not now. I need to sleep first," I murmured before finishing getting undressed, and I stepped into the hot shower, allowing the hot water run over my dark skin. Ah, I could fall asleep right here. I sleepily shook my head. Nope, can't do that. That would be embarrassing.

I finished taking a shower and getting changed into pajamas, and started to brush my teeth, yawning loudly as did so.

"Master, are you sure you are all right?" I turned towards the doorway, and Anna was standing there, her yellow eyes focused in on me.

I finished brushing my teeth and nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just need to some sleep is all."

"Very well. When do you want to report back to the TRTF?"

Ah, I guess I do have to do that, don't I? "Next week on Monday, okay?"

"Affirmative, Anna will tell them so." And she left, her silver hair trailing behind her. Yawning loudly again, I got back into my room, where I got into my bed, before finally relaxing into well needed sleep...

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I woke up three days later, on Wednesday at around 5 in the afternoon. It was then I finally decided to look over all of what had happened to me over the course of the weekend. I also took the time to redecorate my room a bit, with me finally making some extremely hard decisions before I drifted off to sleep once more.

It was on Thursday that I got ready for my journey. Luna peeked her head out from behind a wall, staring at me as I put on some shoes.

"Big bro, you do know you slept for three days, right?"

I turned around, and saw her cute face filled with worry. I flashed her a reassuring smile. "Don't worry about me. I'm fine, really."

"But..."

I opened my arms, and she came rushing into me, holding me tight. "It'll be alright. Really, it's nothing I can't handle. Besides, starting tomorrow, I'll be spending the next three days with you, so be happy!"

She nodded, still holding me tight. I gently stroked her head, smiling down at her. I really do appreciate her, far more than she could possibly know.

"Be safe big bro." She finally released me and hoisted up a lunchbox. "Here, for if you get hungry."

"Thanks. Well, I'm off. I'll be back before the sun sets, I promise." And with that final goodbye, I was off, onward towards my destination. I took the bus there, deciding to take it nice and easy today instead of using Raijin.

I watched the scenery flash by me from outside the bus window as I rode quietly, deep in my own thoughts, trying so very hard to not feel the growing sense of unease.

It'll be fine. I'll be fine. Nothing to worry about. I clenched my fists as I watched us pass through the suburbs and reach the older parts of the city, nature long overtaking the surrounding buildings.

I got off a couple of stops after that, and was met with farmland and rivers. I was northeast, albeit more north than east. I was near the eastern side of the mountain Olympus, with the sea to the south of me. It was sparsely populated out here, but peaceful, nonetheless.

I gazed up the side of the mountain and saw a set of stone steps going upward. It was surrounded by a forest, and a wooden gateway was the only sign that told me I was at the right place. I adjusted my bag before making the ascent up. It was hot outside, and the humidity only made it worse, with sweat starting to pour down my face. The trees didn't help either, making the air around me feel dense and trapped.

I got up about halfway before I stopped at a nearby bench and collapsed. I took out my one of my water bottles and started to chug it down, drinking about half of it before stopping with a satisfying sigh.

I pulled out my phone, which said the time was about 1 o'clock in the afternoon. I pulled out the lunch my sister packed for me and opened it up to find delicious food waiting for me, along with another one of her signature notes.

"Good luck, Big Bro!" is what is simply said, and I smiled at the note before pocketing it. I clapped my hands together and said our special phrase before digging in.

After eating, I continued my hike up, taking my time and admiring the scenery, absorbing in the nature. I read somewhere that trees had healing properties if you walk by them or something, although the details elude me at the moment.

And then I ran out stairs, and was instead met with a large open space that overlooked much of the farmlands, the city, and the sea. In front of me, towering high above, was Olympus, going high above the clouds.

I started to walk around, trying to find my destination. I scanned the area, and once I set my eyes on it, I knew I found it.

I walked over to the gravestone and plopped myself down next to it. Engraved on it was my mother's name, Cassandra, along with her middle and last name. I opened my bag and took out two drinks, a soda for myself and on for her. I opened up both of them and set hers gently down onto the ground and clutched mine with both hands.

"Well, I'm here Mom. Sorry that it took me so long."

Silence, almost too much for me to bear. But I couldn't leave yet. I needed to do this. I took a deep breath and relaxed.

"I guess I should start from the beginning. 10 years ago, after I woke up in the hospital and found out you were gone..."

And I continued on with my talk, alone in a sea of stone.

And his life-changing tribulations had begun.