Refocus

As the moon hit its apex over Kyoto, several lights went out. Good students knew that sleep and studying were equally important for success in your exams. Several lights still lingered on. Some bad students hoping hours of cramming would prove sufficient substitute for months of learning. Some horrible students, who just didn’t care about their performance and were reading a manga they enjoyed. And one… honors student that no-one would ever accuse of being a good student.

This student had been blessed with a prodigious memory, as such he felt he’d finished studying nearly a week ago. Even if his special restrictions required him to achieve a perfect score on every test. He was confident he'd get a perfect score in every subject. Despite that confidence his light still lingered, and he showed no signs of moving from his desk. He was hunched over his desk, scribbling furiously in a plain black 3-ring binder. An outside observer would assume he was still studying, satisfying that paranoia honor students seemed to have.

Christopher wasn’t studying. It’d just taken till now to write down everything that'd happened.

Today had been an eventful day and though his memory was prodigious, his quirk betrayed it regularly. Requiring him to take precautions against his own mind. Precautions that drove him to create a way for him to remember, should he forget someone important.

‘Yui knew I was lying, so I saw no choice but to tell her everything. I thought it’d be scarier to tell someone, but it’s honestly a relief that someone else knows now. Makes life less scary. Even if I forget the entire class there will be someone who has a prayer of knowing what’s happened to me.’

Christopher turned to the next page in Yui’s plain black binder. He was almost done recording the events of today, though there was one last oddity he felt a need to remember.

‘Afterwards she hugged me.’

Christopher shook his head at that. He hadn’t been hugged since he was six. He remembered the day dad graduated him to handshakes and high fives with some pride. The idea that Yui thought a child’s gesture was the best way to comfort him made Christopher feel… condescended to. But, maybe that’s how he looked during his confession. Like a child. He wouldn’t hold it against her either way.

‘It was extremely awkward.’

With those last words written, Christopher closed Yui’s binder with a thump. He leaned back in his chair and stretched. He felt light. Lighter than he’d ever felt before.

Christopher’s phone buzzed. He glanced at the number. It was a local number, but he didn’t recognize it. He declined the call on reflex. No-one should be calling him at midnight anyway.

Really it was a bit of a miracle this reconciliation had happened in the first place. At one point Christopher had seriously considered burning the binder and forgetting Yui. But… that’d be treating the drawback as something to be used wouldn’t it? Like he wanted it.

Like he’d accepted it.

Christopher would never accept his memory loss. He couldn’t do that to himself. Those binders, those meticulous records, they were his way of fighting back. To make sure his quirk’s drawback had as little impact on his life as possible.

Of course, if he was serious about it not having an impact he could always just enroll in general studies and never use the quirk again. He’d thought of it before. That, however, would mean he’d admit being a hero wasn’t worth forgetting his mom. He wasn’t sure he could do that to himself either.

His phone rang again. Same number. Christopher declined the call again. Telemarketers.

Christopher’s mind wandered onto a new tangent. Yui knew now. There was a risk she’d blab or otherwise let it slip. Was there anyone Christopher felt he needed to tell? Who deserved to hear it from him instead of hearing, potential, rumors? Kaylee and Inigo should obviously have been the first told if he was going to tell anyone. They were his best friends. Just… Yui’d needed to know. They didn’t.

Christopher frowned. Really he had never wanted anyone to worry about his shit. Kaylee and Inigo had every right to know but no need. And even if they knew what then? Wouldn’t they just pity him? Didn’t Yui pity him? Wasn’t that what a hug meant?

Wasn’t a hug just: ‘come here little person, you need comfort to not cry’?

… maybe.

Christopher twitched. There was something scratching at the back of his head. Telling him he was wrong about something. He ignored it. It was just the feeling he got when his brain tried to access a lost memory. When he was a kid he’d try to focus on that feeling, hoping it’d lead him to what he’d forgotten. Nothing had ever come of it though; it’d just frustrate him.

The phone rang again. Same number. Christopher furrowed his brow. Who the Hell would be calling him? The entire list of people who’d have cause to contact him had their numbers saved in his phone… wait… did Yui have a phone? He didn’t know. Didn’t matter she wouldn’t have his num-- she could’ve just asked Inigo.

“Shit.” Christopher picked up his phone and clicked answer. He hoped he wasn’t in too much shit for ignoring the last 2 calls.

“Hello?”

“You really shouldn’t decline calls young man. It’s very RUDE.”

Christopher’s blood ran cold as an old man’s sonorous voice drifted through his receiver. A voice he remembered all too well.

The smell of wet asphalt flooded Christopher’s mind.

“I’m just calling to inform you.” Desolator continued. “That you’ll face no repercussions from our encounter. The Five’s employer has insisted that the Shiketsu students are off limits. Unless, of course, you were to attack us. Then you’re fair game.”

Christopher dug his thumb into his pointer finger. He forced himself to focus on the now. On the fact that the bastard that put him in the hospital was calling him. That he’d felt guilty for ignoring what he’d assumed were a friend’s calls, and it was THIS SON OF A BITCH on the other end. His stomach started getting hot.

“Obviously, you’ll have dispensation if one of the Five crosses into your patrol routes while you’re going through your internship.”

‘How dare he?’ Christopher thought. ‘How dare he call me at my home. Where I sleep. Where my DAD sleeps. How dare he?’ Christopher’s line of thinking had driven him past fear. Now he was accelerating past anger into something new.

“ Any questions?”

This new feeling, Christopher didn’t have a name for it. He had never hated anyone before, as such he had no resistance to the desire that comes with hatred. The desire to just hurt at any cost. It was an irresistible temptation to such an inexperienced vessel.

“Yeah.” The words came out low, calm and clear. “Did it hurt when my mom tore your leg off?”

“Excuse me?”

“Must’ve hurt your pride even more than your body. Some rank 10 nobody, disables two of the infamous Five. Then tears your leg off to boot? The leg of DESOLATOR? God I can’t imagine how much that stung. Actually, different question. How long did you spend depressed over your lost rep?”

“… you should choose your words more carefully child. This contract won’t last forever. And then, I’m free to hunt you at my leisure.”

Christopher didn’t hesitate with his response. His words dripped with venom. “I hope you do. I want to be the one to send you to Tartarus and finding you myself sounds like a pain in the ass.”

The world went silent for a moment after Christopher’s declaration. The silence that can only follow two men swearing lifelong enmity. That one man had only just learned of this enmity and the other had held it for two long years didn’t matter. What mattered was that now, it was shared.

Christopher could feel Desolator, that beast of Hell, smile over the phone. “I look forward to it.”

The line went dead.

Christopher put his phone down. He expected to feel regret over his words, his hasty challenge. At the very least, he expected to feel trepidation. He didn’t. He felt elated.

Christopher had felt guilty about that night in the alley. He hadn’t just been hurt. He hadn’t just been stupid. He’d failed. He hadn’t stopped Desolator. The psycho was still out there, still killing.

Christopher had had a chance, a slim one, but still a chance, to end the killing in that alley. To save hundreds if not thousands of lives. He’d failed.

Now. Now Christopher felt he had the courage to rectify that mistake. He smiled.

‘Plan.’ Christopher thought. ‘I need a plan.’

Christopher stood and picked up Yui’s binder. He hurriedly made his way over to the binder shelf. He gently returned Yui’s binder to its place. Then bent over and retrieved a stack of loose leaf paper and an empty black binder. He made his way back to his desk and began writing.

A plan to capture Desolator wouldn’t be easy. Christopher remembered Kaylee’s approach to battle. He was in Stage 1: Visualization. He had just decided to fight this battle. Now, he needed to plan it.

A dozen pages of failed plans later, Christopher came to a sobering conclusion. He wasn’t good enough. Even if he had help he just couldn’t see a path where he could capture Desolator… not as he was. Every scenario he visualized ended with failure. Either Desolator escaped, avoided the conflict entirely or killed Christopher and whomever was with him. He hadn’t even included the rest of the Five in those visualizations yet. It wasn’t enough. Christopher wasn’t enough.

‘Okay, get better then.’ Christopher decided. But how? He was already working out like a madman, training like an idiot, and making friends like a socialite. What was left?

Experience.

Getting experience was the quickest way to get better. And the quickest way to get experience was actually something Desolator himself had brought up, an internship. And he’d need a good one to get better fast enough to make good on his promise to Desolator.

The upcoming tournament provided a fantastic venue to attract internships… the only problem there was his opponent.

Christopher closed his eyes. Publicly Sandatsu’s quirk was a mutant quirk. Christopher had never disputed that, even in a private conversation. But Christopher knew it was a lie. He could mirror Sandy’s quirk, which meant it wasn’t a mutant quirk. But he couldn’t do anything with it.

That quirk, whatever it was, it was nothing like Sandy described. Christopher had had no special control over his body even with the quirk mirrored. He didn’t spend a lot of time practicing with that quirk granted; it made him feel cold.

Christopher shivered at the memory. If he knew Sandy’s capabilities, he’d feel better about the fight. He didn’t. As such, he had no confidence in his ability to win. Christopher opened his eyes and grinned as he came to a realization.

It didn’t matter if he won. All that mattered was that he showed off his capabilities. Which meant being open to switching quirks mid fight as they became more viable than Jugo+Hailey’s.

He’d forget a lot of his classmates if he did that… but they weren’t the only ones there. There’d be a ton of pro heroes in attendance. An absolute smorgasbord of quirks for him to select. And fortunately, Christopher was a dumbass that’d spent the first two months of the year ignoring all social activity to learn the who’s who of Japan’s hero scene. He was confident he knew all he could about everyone’s quirks and that he would’ve already thought through how to use them.

IF he forgot some people along the way… well, he’d already forgotten his mom to save one life. What were a dozen memories on the path to stopping Desolator?

And if things went long enough. Christopher had always wanted to try Todoroki and Toya’s quirks together. How terrifying would that flame be? And with the Ice to protect himself from the heat? It seemed a match made in heaven. … but, also extraordinarily dangerous for everyone in the stadium.

Christopher frowned. He’d have to be careful of thinking like that. IF he happened to miss Sandy and hit the crowd he’d never forgive himself. He’d rather lose than put the crowd at risk. Internship be damned. He’d just think of another route to taking down Desolator. He could do it. God didn’t make Christopher much, but He did make him smart. He’d find another way without hurting innocent people.