Holy shit. I have no idea if anyone will read this, it's been so long, but wow. Press R to pay respects guys. 

This book last updated in May of 2022. It has been an insanely long time, and to any of you who've been waiting, I apologize. This is a book I plan to finish in full and I want to rewrite it after I do, even if it takes me forever. It is so close to its end-- I really hope I can take it there.

Thank you to anyone who's stuck around, and thank you to new readers coming in. 

(Because of the existence of Patreon, this chapter was written IN 2022. Patreon is two chapters ahead perpetually, so if the grammar isn't up to my usual par, I do apologize to all of you. I broke up some of the larger paragraphs to make it easier to read!)

Third person pov

The call to Mihoko? It backfired. It backfired so bad. It should've occurred to Lillian before that the woman probably wasn't going to let her within a ten mile radius of any sort of fight after she'd just been shot and had her quirk incapacitated. 

Lillian realized this only after the fact, and now they were on a time crunch. Mihoko was on her way, and if she got here first, there was no way they were getting out of here! Lillian had to think fast. Who else did she know that had a car? And who could get here before Mihoko did?

Her dad presumably had no idea she was here and she definitely wanted to keep it that way. They could call and UBER or Taxi, but that meant involving a stranger in their shit and she didn't feel great about that either. Inko had a van of her own, but the woman had been going through so much lately that Lillian didn't think bothering her with this was a good idea. 

She still struggled so hard with what her son had done, and Lillian felt like inviting her out on this excursion was only going to make that fact worse. Especially since Lillian had been like... shot at. Thanks for the memories, even though they weren't that great... not the time for Fall Out Boy. Or maybe it's always the time for Fall Out Boy. It depends on her mood.

Anyway, to summarize, their limited options are dwindling and they're dwindling fast. Eri looks extremely anxious, red-eyes rounded and wide. Amajiki actually looks incredibly relieved that all her plans are failing, but Lillian is pretty sure that's because he's a pussy through and through. 

Takes one to know one. We call this solidarity, folks. Take some notes. Lillian has reached peak trauma and has become semi-numb to anxiety. At least for the moment. Amajiki isn't there yet and though she's going to rag on him for it internally, she understands. R in the chat to that guy, as Katsuki would say.

The blue-eyed girl shoots All Might a glance too just to try and gauge how he's feeling but the guy is kinda spaced. She's about 90% he could not give two damns what they decide to do. He's like a walking nickelback song, if you catch her drift. That's all besides the point. Lillian only sees one more option left, and though it's a longshot, it's worth a try. 

This is a situation in which stops must be pulled, and thus she will trek forth. Eri is counting on her! If Chad can be badass quirkless, Lillian can do the same. Besides, she pretended to be quirkless like, her whole life. She's got this shit scanned and bagged.

Eri scoots a bit closer to her as she brings the phone up to her ear, the freckled girl holding her breath as it begins to ring. If this doesn't work they're going to have to make a break for it on foot or something. Will that go well considering All Might's leg is literally fucked? Probably not, but you know what? 

They can probably find some overachieving fans along the way to carry him like he's their god. His fanbase is still strong out there. Amen. Does All Might even feel pain anymore? He looks so tired that she's not sure he has the energy to feel anything but done.

The phone ringing cuts off. Lillian's eyes grow wide, and she hunches forward slightly. Kumbaya, my lord. He answered!

"Lillian?" Masaru Bakugo sounds confused to see that she's calling, but she's glad he picked up nonetheless. There's a tint of worry in his tone. Good. This is a serious situation, and he should be freaking out. Lillian knows she is. She got shot at, freaked out, and ruined their whole plan! And now they were out there fighting the mafia! What if they needed help? "Are you okay? Did... Did you mean to call me?"

"H-Hi, Mr. Bakugo!" Lillian stutters out as brightly as she can manage considering her current state. Amajiki flinches like she just slapped him or something. Probably because he doesn't understand how she can summon this much optimism after being traumatized for what has to be the millionth time now. That's okay. She really doesn't get it either. "I'm really sorry t-to bother you like this. A-Are you busy right now? Is it a bad time?"

"What? No! No, no, right now is fine, Lillian!" Masaru rushes out, and she hears what sounds like a door shutting. Is he at work? The situation is too dire for her to feel guilty. She'll do that later, when she inevitably has a mental breakdown and loses her shit. All in due time. "What can I help you with?"

Masaru sounded a little giddy now that he'd gotten over his initial worry. You see, Katsuki's dad... yeah, he adores her. Which is weird to think about, but he lives with two hot-headed blondes who do nothing but scream all day. The first time Lillian walked through that door at Katsuki's side, she's pretty sure the clouds parted for the man. She literally saw hope revive itself in his eyes at the sight of her alone. 

She's (kind of) sane and doesn't have anger issues. She's meek! He values that incredibly and has made it no secret that he wants her and Katsuki together. It would make her more embarrassed if she hadn't already come to terms with her feelings. At least she knows she has his unwavering support.

She wonders if he knows that even if she and Katsuki did end up together-- not that they're going to, because she cries a lot and looks like a trashed muppet even on her best days-- that holidays will be filled with chaos. Her dad, her dad's parents, Present Mic, Hitoshi and his family, Neito, Shoto, probably Kaminari, Chad, Dabi, Vlad, Eri, and definitely more. 

(Maybe even All Might now. Perhaps just having one person who can get on his level is enough. The man needs a buffer. Or an emotional support animal. Maybe both? She wonders if he likes cats.)

"O-Okay, don't panic, but it's sort of an emergency." Lillian rushed out. Again, Mihoko was probably on her way right now. This train needed to chug. "S-So I got shot at and lost control of my quirk, and then I had to stab myself with a dart to erase my quirk, so now I'm effectively quirkless for the time being. A-And Katsuki and everyone else just ran off to fight the Yakuza by themselves, but we want to observe from a distance to make sure everything is okay. L-Like backup? Eri has a plan! But we sort of need a ride and I-- you're the o-only other person I could call for help."

That was the most discombobulated shit she'd ever spewed out. Wow. Lillian hates herself. Is it getting harder to breathe for anyone else? No? Just her? There's a lot more explanation to the situation than what she just told him. Vital details she left out, but you know. 

She's sort of panicking. But in a not-panicky way, because she's still in some form of shock. None of this is healthy. But you know what? Running out to fight the mafia wasn't healthy either, and everyone seemed pretty keen on doing that. 

"I-- are you at a hospital?" Masaru sounded shocked and definitely worried now. Lillian bit the inside of her cheek. No, no, no! His dad-ness was coming out and it was going to ruin her entire pitch. "Lillian, I don't know if it's a good idea for you to go after them. I'm sure they have it handled. With what you just went through and with your quirk, it's sounds like it's best t-"

"I'll ask your son on a date." Lillian cut him off, closing her eyes softly and taking a deep breath. This was what Masaru wanted more than anything. She'd heard him mutter it herself. Lillian would have to take one for the team and nuke a friendship in the pursuit of this mafia takedown. She opened her eyes just in time to see Amajiki pull a face of sympathy, as did Eri. She nodded grimly. This was what she had to do. "In the pursuit of marriage, if you speed here as fast as you can comfortably without dying."

"Tell me the address." Masaru's voice came out scarily monotone, and she heard the sound of a car door opening on the other line. Clearly, he was willing to negotiate. And that... Lillian could work with that.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Obviously, the original plan had not been to all crowd together and then storm the Yakuza base to 'fight the mafia'. Nighteye had meticulously planned their attack beforehand. In fact, it was originally meant to be more of an ambush than anything else, involving far more pro heroes and far less teenagers. 

However, Katsuki remembers his internship with Chad vividly and had known beforehand that things would turn out this way one way or another. This man didn't know what sneaking even was. He just crashed in guns blazing and went to town with it.

Nighteye's plot had too many steps. Besides, look what the fuck had happened to Lillian. Like hell any of them were going to stand for that. Nighteye had been taking way, way, way too long in literally everyone else's opinion. 

This was much more efficient. Even if Chad's way of doing things was way more likely to get them killed, it was worth it to finally rip the goddamn band aid off. How long had Chad been after these bitches now? Finally, he had the support he needed to back him.

"This isn't sanctioned." Nighteye hissed out, uncomfortable. He didn't want to be here. This was an awful idea and they were all going to die, and he wasn't going to be even the slightest bit surprised when they did. Why was he going along with this? Why wouldn't they listen to him when he insisted they stop? "We need to plan. The Shie Hassaikai aren't to be underestimated!" 

"If anyone asks I'll just tell them All Might told me it was okay. We're like, totally bros now." Chad was wearing sunglasses and civilian clothes. Of all the things to wear in a situation like this! Nighteye felt vaguely disgusted. "Besides, I've been after these moldy burritos for literal ages now, bro. It's about time I stepped up and fucked them in the ass once and for all, you know?" 

Nighteye stared because no, he did not know. Such vulgar language from someone who was supposed to be a pro hero. How had this 'Chad' individual even gotten his license? This felt immensely illegal! There needed to be more preparation-- a bigger team to take this all on. 

According to their intel, the Shei Hassaikai had approximately ten or so main properties in which they, or groups related to them, operated. It was all on a map that would've been presented at their meeting with the other heroes had the call not been made to rush in headfirst! They were making a huge mistake here. Couldn't they see that?

"This is bigger than you think it is." Nighteye hissed, fumbling to pull the information up on his tablet. He had to show them-- get them to stop this madness before it was too late. How many students were they taking into the line of fire?  "Pull the car over. Call this off! The chances of Chisaki being at this location are slim to none!" 

This was supposed to be a team composed primarily of capable, seasoned pro heroes! Not children who'd hardly had any real field experience. Just because their class had been attacked by villains did not mean they had the same honed instincts as pros who've been on the job for long periods of time.

Katsuki scoffed from his place in the backseat. Could they not just drop this bastard off somewhere? It was cramped as hell back here with Vlad and Dabi. Not to fucking body shame anyone, but Nomu were big as hell and needed two seats all to themselves if anyone wanted to be comfortable. Besides, wasn't Dabi supposed to be in front? Being married to Chad and all? 

All this future-seeing bastard was doing was whining. Had Katsuki known shit would turn out like this, he never would've done his work study with this clown! He'd gone to him for the resources and information they'd suspected he could provide, but was this really all the supposedly ingenious Sir Nighteye, former sidekick of All Might, could offer?

Nighteye pulled up the list of coordinates, all pinpointed on a massive map of Japan and thrust it towards Chad. The blonde man was fully unbothered by Nighteye's relentless teeth-grinding and glaring as he waxed on and on about how they were going to die, and this was a horrible idea, and they needed to plan more. Had he stopped to consider maybe Chad had a plan already? Like, he didn't, but what if he had? Nighteye had his head so far up his ass he couldn't see anything but his own shit! 

"Oh, bro. Don't even worry about those." Chad snorted, barely giving the map a glance. Dabi and Katsuki leaned forward to also sneak a peek. The explosive blonde rolled his eyes, and Dabi audibly laughed out loud. Nighteye looked pale. Was he about to have a mental breakdown? He could so totally join the club. "I took out those and then some. What do you think I've been doing all this time? Fucking around for fun?"

"Actually, you didn't take out those two." Dabi pointed out, grinning in a way that pulled at his staples and made him look utterly unhinged. He tapped on two markers near the lower left of the map, seeming infinitely smug. "Eri and Vlad did."

The expression on Nighteye's face was comical. He blanched as the creature in question trilled, preening under the acknowledgement Dabi had offered. Bakugo couldn't help but grin himself despite his stress. He was anxious about leaving Lillian behind, but relieved she wasn't going to be involved. 

She needed a break more than any of them, and her quirk malfunctioning was only proof. Though he'd feel a bit better if Mr. Aizawa was here, he'd probably shut this down to some degree too if he were present. Send Katsuki back-- probably the turnip fucker too, since he was down a hand. As though that actually impaired his quirk. Whatever. 

"But-- that's impossible! You--" Nighteye blundered. He looked genuinely spooked and out of his depth. Katsuki crossed his arms and leaned back in his seat. They were closer now. The road was smoothing out as they gained length into this nicer part of the prefecture, the buildings a little newer and a little nicer. Chisaki was a clean freak and that extended out into the atmosphere in which he placed himself. He hated dingy areas, and would probably pass out if he had to step foot in one of the warehouses he had under his care. At least, that's what Chad said. Katsuki was confident enough in him to take his word for it.

"Chisaki's definitely here." Chad reassured, grinning. Maybe it was the just the angle of the rearview mirror, but Katsuki swore he could see the man's eyes glowing behind his the lenses of his sunglasses. "Just remembered that this is a concentration of all the fuckers who've evaded me so far. So expect them to be like, totally beefed up. Also know that they are tunnels like... fucking everywhere under there. So be ready to explore some Outcast-level horror type shit, you read?"

The implication was terrifying, but true. A lot of the Yakuza's key players-- the ones who stuck closest to Overhaul-- were probably in there. The ones behind Chad and All Might's kidnapping, and the ones who had probably hurt Eri the most in the past. To think even Chad hadn't been able to corner them until now... it was actually pretty scary. 

Katsuki was man enough to fucking admit it. Anyone Chad wasn't able to immediately get under his shoe had to have some major fucking skills. Chad was a force not to be reckoned with, especially when it came to Eri in particular. 

Nighteye was rather shocked speechless by this entire turn of events. Where was he? Who was he? What was even going on? This Chad individual didn't seem like he could possibly be real, and yet he was, truly a living and breathing entity. All of what he said tracked, too. 

They'd known for a while now that someone out there was hunting the Yakuza for sport. They'd thought for certain it was a group of some kind, however. To think it was a singular man, a nomu, and a child. How... How absolutely impossible. As good at Nighteye was with prediction, he hadn't seen this variable coming from a mile away. Not even fucking close.

The building's gates were just up ahead. Though they were closed, they were notably damaged, like maybe they'd been recently rammed into before. Who could've done that? Shoutout to whoever had! Wink wink! Anyway, it was pretty obvious they were in the process of repairing the entire thing. 

That meant their security was compromised, and their security being compromised implied they'd have more actual people on guard. More people to fight and catch... it seemed like an oddly specific coincidence. 

Rather than slow down, Chad pressed his foot down even harder on the gas and sped in the direction of the entrance, cutting off Nightweenie's sputtering and causing him to gasp in shock instead. The car's engine roared in compliance to the new speed, humming in a way no 2011 Honda should be able to whatsoever. 

Katsuki found himself sweating out of nerves just a little bit as the speedometer maxed out. Chad just threw his head back and laughed, his glasses getting knocked up atop his head in the process. Katsuki could see his eyes in the rearview mirror, and yeah, they were definitely glowing.

"Brace yourselves, amigos!" Chad cackled, gripping the wheel tighter. Nighteye opened his mouth and screamed.

Their car slammed into the gate so hard Katsuki felt it reverberate up through his entire body, rattling his bones and making his skull vibrate. The gate doors slammed open hard, snapping open with ease at the force of the vehicle. 

The tires squealed loud, drowning out the sound of the impact as the car turned to the side, sliding so hard and fast against the concrete there were actual sparks. Burnt rubber, metal crunching-- it was a whole car crash, but if anyone knew how to wreck a car without hurting anyone, it would be Chad. Katsuki's word spun. He laughed. 

A mountain of a man leapt out of the dust before any of them could fully process, boots slamming down on crumpled hood and crushing it further. Smoke billowed out in response, the engine sputtering in complaint. They were massive, with bulging muscles and a bird-like helmet that encased their entire head and concealed their face entirely. 

One of Chisaki's top men, Katsuki recognized as he scrambled to unbuckle his seatbelt and react. Chad was ten steps ahead of him, just as he always was with just about everyone. Aside from Eri, who was as unpredictable as it got. She was likely the only one who could ever hope to outdo the blonde man who'd taken her in.

Chad was crashing through the cracked windshield in an instant, slamming into the man shoulder first and sending him absolutely flying back. Hawks' feathers shot after the pair as they tumbled, intent on helping. Vlad shrieked and ripped forward as well, following in an animalistic manner. Katsuki couldn't help but bare his teeth in a grin.

The fight had begun. 

~~~~~~~

"Two dates! I'll go on two dates! Two of them! In the pursuit of marriage!" Lillian shrieked at the top of her lungs as Masaru's dingy little Ford Fiesta hurtled around yet another corner. Eri, Amajiki and All Might were all in the backseat experiencing varying degrees of unrest. The tiniest of the three was only moderately concerned by this turn of events, Elf Sasuke was just about to piss himself, and Twig Man was once again dissociating into oblivion. If only Lillian had that luxury. "Lose Mihoko and I will literally do anything you want, Mr. Bakugo!"

This seemed to spark new vigor in the brown-haired man, who pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose and slammed his foot down harder onto the gas pedal. He'd gotten there right before Mihoko had and they'd jumped in just as the woman's van had screeched up. 

It was only through begging and putting on their seatbelts in a timely fashion that they escaped. Well, if you could call this escaping. Mihoko Shinso is a terrifying woman when she wants to be and this high-speed car chase is only further proof.

"Her van should not be able to go that fast!" Masaru called over the sound of the car's obnoxiously loud humming. Did that noise mean it was going to blow up? Because there was no way that was normal. The Bakugo's weren't rich or anything, but they could for sure afford a new car. 

Masaru deserved better than this. Actually, was now even the time to be thinking about that? Probably not considering Mihoko was on their tail. Lillian wasn't sure what the gas mileage was like in this car but let it just be said that she has zero faith in it. Should they pull over and resign to their fate?

They'd ended up going to opposite direction of the Yakuza fight. Yeah. As in, the wrong way. As in, they were getting further and further away from where they needed to go as they spoke. As in, this was all slowly becoming more and more pointless! 

Mihoko was definitely herding them away from their destination on purpose. As long as she could keep them from getting to the Grand Mafia Showdown Deluxe, she'd have succeeded. This wasn't about catching them. It was about stopping them from throwing themselves into harm's way. Damn!

"You have no room to talk!" Eri shrieked from the backseat. Mihoko was someone who'd babysat Eri often, so the little girl was a fierce defender of the woman, even in this situation. "What even is this thing?! The Nerd-mobile?!" 

Literally the most childish insult ever, but Masaru still looked like he'd gotten his feelings hurt. As though he didn't live with a pair of literal demons who threw curse words around like hot potatoes and called each other names constantly. 

You know, it was whatever. Masaru had a sensitive soul and maybe that's okay. It's healthy to get hurt sometimes, right? Lillian had a panic attack earlier and almost died at the hands of her own quirk and she's feeling great! Endlessly fearful of what's going to happen if they run out of gas and Mihoko gets to them, but you know! This is all a part of uh... of growing up, and stuff.

Lillian felt her entire body get jerked to the left as they took another turn that almost had their car flipping on its side, cursing slightly and twisting around as Mihoko's van skidded to follow. It was like a little roller skate, taking those corners like a goddamn champ. It was all about technique and Masaru had none! 

Actually, Mihoko... was Mihoko not alone? Yeah, right there in the passenger's seat-- oh, no. No, no, how could Lillian have forgotten about this?! 

"I-Is that P-Present Mic in the passenger's s-seat?" Amajiki looked mortified to see his very own English teacher speeding after them. Fuck. Yeah, Lillian was pretty horrified too. Tamaki got a free pass on the freaking out this time. Certified: Not A Pussy. Because wow, the terror levels had just reached a peak. This was bad. "O-Oh man. We're going to be in s-so much trouble."

Lillian shared a wide-eyed look with Eri. How could they have been so fucking stupid? Present Mic, Mihoko, and Rei always had tea together the second week of the month! Same day and everything! It was an event marked on her calendar, because interrupting it meant risking your life. 

Nobody got in the way of their little tea get-together unless it was important. This was horrifying. Beyond horrifying. She'd bet money Rei was in the back seat right now. It was a miracle she hadn't frozen their car's tires to the ground yet.

It's not that Mihoko was going to be upset that they were interrupted. As long as it was important, it was okay. But them running away? There was no way any of them were getting out of this alive. 

Masaru least of all, since he was the one driving. All Might too since he was a certified adult. Though, he was sort of catatonic still, so maybe he'd be branded a victim and sent off with a cup of hot chocolate and a trauma blanket. Good for him, but that didn't un-fuck any of them in the slightest. 

Lillian flipped back to face the front, sweating. This was bad. They were still getting further and further away from Chisaki Kai's location too! Maybe giving up would be good. If they surrendered the blow would be tons lighter, right? 

That was definitely wishful thinking on her part. God, and she still felt like garbage from the whole organs-getting-shredded-by-her-quirk thing. Why had it freaked out on her again? She guessed it didn't matter since shawty was erased for the time being. Damn. She'd just freeze Mihoko's van if she could, but that clearly wasn't an option. 

They took another corner, once again coming startlingly close to flipping sixteen times and then slamming into a ditch where their car would then proceed to spontaneously combust with them inside. Lillian sucked in a sharp breath of air as her eyes came to settle on something a ways down the road. 

Her world came to a standstill. Because no, it wasn't just a something. No, no, no, it was a someone. 

They were sort of hunched over, definitely bleeding. Masaru seemed to slow down a little at the sight of them. There was no way to turn and they weren't moving, standing there shakily. Lillian could not believe their luck. Especially since they didn't appear to notice the steady approach of their car.

Shigaraki Tomura. That was Shigaraki-fucking-Tomura standing in the middle of the street right in front of them. He looked like he'd just been beat up, but that was him nonetheless. Piece of shit who'd kidnapped them and attacked their class on numerous occasions. The very same one, she was dead fucking serious. 

Her luck was astronomical. Through the roof. God felt bad about almost killing her with her own quirk and traumatizing her (huge L) and was giving her this freebie in return. She'd take it. Time to cash in the coupon. 

The others would be fine against the Yakuza, right? This was clearly fate. She had to make sure they got dust buster over here. She couldn't freeze him, so that left their options severely limited. Lillian refused to let him get away again, no matter the sacrifice. 

The others were out there taking down the mafia? Maybe they could take out the League of Villains whilst they were busy. Even if she had to make a deal with the devil. One she couldn't take back and that would turn her life on its head. This could potentially ruin everything she'd gained so far, but for this, it was worth it.

"Mr. Bakugo." Lillian turned to him, eyes big and earnest. Her voice was steady and her resolve steely. "I will confess my crush to your son, in front of you so that you can film it, if you run that man over."

The engine roared anew without a second of hesitation. Shigaraki hardly had time to see them coming.

~~~~~~~~

This... was not good. 

It really wasn't. Aizawa spends over half an hour clearing Hitoshi and Neito's names only to come back to find them gone? His phone was missing too which only made the sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach even stronger. As if their little jailbreak wasn't bad enough, Hitoshi had also taken a whole drawer of classified files with him in the process. 

Aizawa was speechless. Honest to god fucking speechless. He's going to put in for an early retirement. He's got enough money to keep him and Lillian plenty comfortable for the rest of their lives. Whoever said teaching was rewarding was a dirty goddamn liar.

The CCTV footage showed them answering Aizawa's phone and then promptly leaving in a rush. There was no audio because this place was dingy and on a budget. He'd used one of their phones to try phoning a few people, but nobody had picked up. The only thing left for him to do after that was to aimlessly stand in front of the station and wonder what the fuck he was supposed to know now. His two interns were MIA and he couldn't reach his kid or any of her other little maniac friends.

He felt a little numb. What was his life anymore? He had a kid that he loved and adored more than anything and was the acting Number One Hero. It felt like he'd stepped into another reality. An alternate plane of existence in which everything was just... honestly fucked. 

No, really. A supervillain only he could kill that could take and give quirks that was several centuries old? What the hell even was that? Sounded like something you'd find in a Shonen manga. Or maybe out of a cringey fanfiction. 

Aizawa stared down at his hands. They were scarred and rough from all his years of hero work. He felt worn out. He just wanted to go live a simple life with his daughter. He wanted Lillian to be safe. He's glad she decided to become a hero, because the chances he would've met her otherwise were slim to none. But to see all she'd been through... what all his students this year had been through, really. 

It was a little heart wrenching. They were all just kids. They didn't need to be seeing each other get shot and betrayed. Killed and amputated. The world had always been a dark place, but these days it really felt like the sun was hiding behind the clouds.

The revving of an engine and the sudden squeal of tires snapped him out of his train of thoughts. The telltale sounds of a car screeching its way down the street far past the speed limit sounded. 

It was all happening before he could quite process. Already dazed and tired from this whole Neito and Hitoshi experience, this was the last thing he expected to happen. And yet here he was, and there was Tomura Shigaraki, arching through the air like a starfish. He flew through the air so fast it was hard to track it. 

The impact had been loud, but so quick you could've blinked and missed it. A little red car, a thump, and then the supervillain responsible for half his students' torment was hurtling through the air like a ragdoll. Aizawa's mouth fell open in agape. 

Things seemed to go in slow motion as the villain achieved optimal airtime. He barely registered the offending car screeching to a stop right in front of him. He blinked, eyes wide as the passenger-side window flew down. He opened and closed his mouth a few times in search of words.

Was that Bakugo's dad behind the wheel? Why was All Might in the backseat? And... yeah, that was definitely Amajiki. But Fatgum was nowhere to be seen, and he was supposed to watch Lillian dutifully and not take his eyes off of her for even a second! 

He could vividly recall the stern phone call they'd had before Lillian went off to her work study. He'd been so afraid of sending her he hadn't been able to resist dishing out at least a few threats.

"Dad!" Lillian exclaimed. There was a crack as Shigaraki hit the ground. It sounded disgustingly wet. "What're you doing here?"

Mihoko's van almost rear-ended them as the girl spoke. Aizawa watched, flabbergasted as it barely managed to skid around them in time. He met eyes with Hizashi and only felt more lost, gaze darting between his daughter, his best friend, and Shigaraki Tomura's twitching corpse as his brain struggled to catch up with what was happening. 

He thought he'd gotten pretty good at taking Lillian's shenanigans in stride, but this was a whole new level of unexpected. He didn't see Monoma or Shinso anywhere. Was why they left unrelated? And had they really needed to take his phone?

"Uh." Aizawa stared at her. Lillian looked sort of awful. Had something happened? She looked like she'd been crying. Something... why had no one-- wait. Wait, wait, wait. Someone had called him, hadn't they?! Dammit! He should've been more conscious of his phone! Those stupid fucking brats. He was going to kill that blonde one for good. "What are you doing here?"

"Well-" Lillian started, glancing over nervously as Mihoko, Rei, and Mic all emerged from the van-- the latter not in his hero costume for once. Mihoko in particular looked notably upset, eyes narrowed and hands on her hip. 

A clear sign Lillian had done something she wasn't supposed to. It probably had everything to do with why she looked like shit and was in Masaru Bakugo's car, too. Amajiki seemed like he was going to cry and-- was that Eri back there too? 

(Why was she glaring at him like that? He hadn't done anything! He was just standing here! This was all them, as per usual.)

"Little Listener!" Mic wailed, cutting anything Lillian might've said off. He seemed genuinely distraught, rounding the car to get a better look at her. His concern made Aizawa tense. Something bad had happened and he'd missed it, hadn't he? "Why would y-"

A loud rumble sounded before the voice hero could say anything else. Mihoko's mouth snapped shut, and Mic reached up to adjust his hearing aid, frowning visibly as the ground vibrated under his feet. Lillian froze, gaze ticking over to where Shigaraki was laid out. 

His eyes were cracked open. Though many of his limbs were twisted in ways no limbs should twist, he still managed to raise his head. He looked terrifying, blood coating his teeth as he grimaced at them, enraged. It was sort of totally awful. Someone should go kick him in the head. Should she be that someone? What if he bit her?

They all retained their silence as a hiss of air escaped him in something akin to a gurgle. The group watched with tense posture and unwavering stares as he shifted painfully, his body making uncomfortable creaks and cracks as he did so. Lillian flipped him off, because he deserved it. 

Probably not a good time based on the look her dad is giving her right now, but Rei looks like she found it funny, so Lillian's taking the win. The freckled girl swallowed heavily as Eri clambered out of her seat for a better look, Amajiki shivering next to her. Even All Might leaned closer, seeming more aware than he'd been all day. At least since Lillian had seen him.

Another rumble, this one closer, shook the ground once more. Lillian had a not so great feeling about this. Shigaraki's eyes narrowed, and she realized belatedly that he was now smiling.

 Considering he just got taken the fuck out by the most pathetic car on the face of the planet, she's going to go ahead and say that's probably not a good thing. Her dad sucked in a sharp breath of air, his eyes narrowing and his quirk activating. Shigaraki let out a broken laugh.

"Hood." The man voice rasped out, seeming to echo down the silent street. His broken hands twitched, and another rumble sounded as he struggled to move. "F...Forget the b-brat. Kill them."

~~~~~~~

Thank you all again, and thank you to all my amazing patrons who have patiently waited for this to update and kept my love for Lillian alive through requests. As always, you can read the next two chapters of Freeze Frame there, as well as gain access to several side stories and one shots involving Lillian in various AUs.