Chapter Text
Yoichi felt uneasy as he walked across the silk red carpet of the president’s mansion. A picture of his brother loomed over Yoichi, smiling brightly and holding a scepter like a king. Why did his older brother own so many portraits of himself? It kept Yoichi on his toes, convinced the real thing might pop out at any moment. He’d spent years avoiding missions that would take him anywhere near the capitol because he had a secret fear of coincidentally running into his older brother. Now he’d walked straight into All for One’s home. Only for Izuku.
Inko touched his shoulder, lightly. Her face looked worried under her stolen maid’s cap. She’d always been good at telling when he was nervous. That hadn’t changed, nor had the comfort he got from the gesture. He placed his hand on top of hers and squeezed. He had to act natural. If he kept jumping at every shadow, then someone might become suspicious.
The marble staircase was lined with yet more paintings depicting All for One’s greatest victories in the games. Yoichi kept his eyes averted from Nana Shimura’s death as he started to climb.
Footsteps coming down the hallway made them both freeze. Yoichi hissed, “You find Izuku. I’ll stall whoever this is.” They’d both memorized the route to Izuku’s bedroom, so either could get him alone—and leave alone if it came to that.
Inko paled, but she didn’t argue. “Stay safe,” she murmured, then turned and ran.
Yoichi walked down the staircase with loud, clunking footsteps, covering up the sound of Inko’s retreat.
The stranger rounded the corner. “Tomura, what are you doing here? I removed you from duty.”
Yoichi’s breath hitched. It was his older brother.
Hisashi stopped and took a closer look at the noisy peacekeeper. Not Tomura, at second glance. His hair was paler and he was too tall. Hisashi frowned. “Who are you? Are you new? I don’t think I’ve seen you before.”
Keeping his eyes lowered, the unknown peacekeeper said, “I just started today.” His voice sounded gruff—either he had a cold or he was trying to disguise it. Long, messy hair obscured his face.
Hisashi frowned. This could be true. Several dozen new peacekeepers had been brought in for the party. But something nagged in the back of his mind. He would swear he’d seen this man before. That made his claim to be new more suspicious. Hisashi did not have a good memory for faces, honestly, he didn’t bother to try with mere underlings. The strange familiarity radiating off this man sent alarm bells ringing.
In a swift movement, Hisashi grabbed the man and jerked his chin up, forcing their eyes to meet. Vivid green eyes with white pupils stared back at him. “Little brother?” he whispered.
Yoichi tried to pull away. “I don’t understand what you mean.”
Hisashi dug his fingers in with bruising force. “You’re alive?” he whispered. “But I saw you die, I saw you fall into the river…” There had never been a body. Shock, joy, and fury swirled around inside him. “You let me believe you’d died! How could you do that to me? I know we had our differences, but how could you have been so cruel? I mourned you so hard it nearly killed me!”
Yoichi shoved him away, and in his shock, Hisashi let him. Yoichi laughed, a sound filled with rage. “You don’t get it, do you? Looking at what you’ve been doing to Izuku, you should understand full well why I never wanted to see you again!”
Izuku. Yoichi had called him “Izuku” not “Midoriya” or “the Capital Bunny.” Izuku looked so very much like Hisashi’s little brother that it had saved his life in the games. Before, Hisashi had assumed it had to be a coincidence because he’d never met an Inko Midoriya and his brother had died as a teenager. But now… Hisashi said, “Izuku is your son.”
Yoichi flinched. Then he tried to cover it up. “W-what nonsense are you spewing? It’s bad enough that you want to use that poor, innocent boy as a replacement for me. Now you’ve deluded yourself into imagining him related to us?”
With maniac cheer, Hisashi said, “You still stutter when you’re lying, little brother.”
Yoichi’s face lost all color. The fear in his eyes rapidly warped into something else. A beastlike madness that Hisashi had witnessed on the screen so many years ago. Drawing a knife, Yoichi lunged.
Inko stepped into Izuku's room and cringed. She had never seen such childish decorations. The room was huge, the walls overflowing with stuffed rabbits and pillows. There was a large slide in one corner with a blanket fort constructed beneath it. She looked around for Izuku, but she didn't see him.
"Izuku?" she called softly. "Baby? Where are you?"
Inko started at the bed, checking the covers and underneath the bed. Then she moved to the fort, pulling the many stuffed animals aside to see if he was buried beneath them. She had a sudden surge of panic as she realized that All for One may have taken Izuku somewhere else. Did he know they were coming? Was this a trap?
Inko took a deep breath to steady herself. She looked around the room again and saw a pair of double doors against one wall. She went to them and opened the first set. Bathroom, with a clawed tub and bunny-shaped rug. She returned to the second set of doors and opened them slowly.
This was a closet, larger than her and Izuku's old home before it was destroyed. There was a vanity covered in makeup and racks packed with Capitol clothing. She was about to close the door again when the smallest movement caught her attention.
Inko took another hesitant step into the dark room. She heard a faint rustle of fabric. There, in the corner, she saw a dark shape nestled under the hanging clothing.
"Izuku?" she whispered, heart pounding.
Inko got down onto her eyes and knees and crawled closer. Her eyes adjusted and she saw Izuku, her little boy, her only child, her baby, curled up against the wall. Her breath caught, but she tried to stay calm. Izuku had one of the stuffed bunnies in his lap, hugging it and running his fingers up and down one of its ears. He looked younger. She’d seen it on the TV interviews, but it still came as a shock to face what Capitol had done to him.
Inko gave him her best, comforting smile. "Izu, honey, what are you doing in here?"
Izuku glanced up at her, then his eyes drifted away. " 'S quiet," he said softly. "The lights hurt."
"I'm sorry, baby." Inko sat and slid a little closer. Izuku didn't seem to recognize her. He sounded younger, too. It made her heart twist. "Can you come out for a bit?"
"Is Daddy coming?" Izuku asked in a whisper.
Inko's heart twisted. She knew that when he said Daddy, he wasn’t talking about Yoichi. Not his real father. He was talking about that snake that had taken his from her. Part of her hoped she would run into him here–she wanted more than to gouge out his other eye so he could never look at Izuku again.
"That's right. Your Daddy is here." She forced a smile. "Will you come out?"
Izuku hesitated, drawing back a little. "Daddy's gonna get mad. I'm not supposed to hide here."
"Your Daddy isn't mad," Inko promised.
Izuku shook his head. "I'm supposed to be a good Bunny. Good bunnies don't hide."
The hair on Inko's neck raised, both with fear and disgust. Her emotions were conflicted–joy and relief to see Izuku alive, shock and horror to see him acting like a little child, and pure hot rage at the man who had done this to her family.
"Let's go find your Daddy," Inko said, beckoning him out. "He wants to see you so bad."
Izuku hugged his bunny. "Do I have to dress up? I don't want ears."
"No ears," Inko promised. "Don’t you want to see your Daddy?"
Izuku shuddered a little, but he nodded. "Daddy loves me," he said, almost like a reminder to himself. Then he crawled out and blinked up at Inko. He was wearing a silk shirt with long sleeves, cuffed with ruffles at the sleeves and tucked into a pair of high-waisted, capri-length pants. He cocked his head, brows furrowed with the effort of trying to recognize her. She saw a thick cloud in his eyes like he was still asleep. Unfocused, confused.
Inko couldn't resist any longer. She threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly. Izuku stiffened with surprise and made no move to return the embrace. "Izuku, baby, I missed you so much. I'm so glad you're okay."
"Who are you?" Izuku asked and Inko held back a sob. He didn’t remember her. He didn’t know his own mother. That monster had taken her child from her both physically and mentally.
"I'm someone who loves you very much. Just like your Daddy does." Inko replied, already thinking of how she and Yoichi wouldn't rest until they had helped him heal.
"Daddy loves me," Izuku answered with a nod.
Inko quickly dried her eyes and pulled back. They didn't have time for all of this. There was no point if she let herself get caught. "Come with me. I'm going to take you somewhere safe."
"Safe?" Izuku repeated.
"That's right, baby." Inko was pleased to get a response from him. "Somewhere safe. Come on."
She took his hand and led him out of the closet. She half expected him to wince at the light, but he barely reacted at all. She frowned, leaning forward to look at his pale face. His eyes had gone dark and empty, staring blankly into space.
"Izuku?" She cupped his cheek with her hand, finding it hot and sweaty. "Baby, what's wrong."
"I'm a good Bunny," Izuku answered.
Inko's heart sank. This was bad. There was something very wrong with Izuku and no time to try and fix it. She gave his hand a squeeze and pulled her along with him. She had to get him out of here, had to make it to the rendezvous point before All for One realized something was wrong. She prayed that he hadn’t recognized Yoichi and that he would be waiting for her when she arrived.
After they had only gone a short way, Izuku was panting heavily, thick beads of sweat all over his body. Inko stopped to check on him. "Are you already, Izu?"
"I th-think I need to go see the doctor," Izuku replied, though as he said it a tear slipped down his cheek. "I'm sorry. I'm trying to be good. Don't tell Daddy, please."
"No, no, don't cry. You are a good bunny. You're being such a good bunny." The words made Inko sick, but Izuku seemed to react. His breathing steadied a little and he gave her hand a squeeze. "That's it." Inko cooed softly. "Be a good Bunny and come with Mommy."
Izuku followed dutifully, not looking around, not resisting in any way. Inko followed the carefully planned and memorized route out of the mansion. She stopped at the secluded back entrance, pulling Izuku into a hug and softly petting his hair as she held him to her chest. She kept an anxious eye out for Yoichi. How long should she wait? What if he had been captured? What if Hisashi had recognized him? If she left and he came here looking for them, would her husband risk going back to look for her? She was sure he would.
Izuku was mumbling softly, but she couldn't make out the words. He kept his head tucked into her bosom, hugging her tightly. Sometimes large shudders would pass through his body, but he stayed quiet.
The minutes passed too slowly. She tried to stay calm, humming softly to Izuku. It was the lullaby she'd sung to him when he was little, though she doubted he remembered that.
At last, she decided that she couldn't wait any longer. She had to get Izuku somewhere safe before looking for Yoichi, or this entire operation would be a waste.
"Come on, baby, it's time to go," she said, kissing his hair.
"M-Mommy?" Izuku mumbled, lifting his head a fraction.
Inko's heart stopped. "Izuku?"
Izuku looked up, eyes still dark and foggy. He squinted, confused. "Mom?"
"Yes, baby, yes, that's right! It's me. I'm here. I'm so sorry." She tried not to cry, but the tears came thickly down her cheeks.
Izuku's head dropped again and he rubbed against her as if trying to clear his head. He moaned and looked up again, a hint of pain in his face now. "Mommy?" he asked again. "Why are you here? What are you wearing? Do you work here?"
"It's all right, baby. Everything is going to be okay now," she promised.
"Did I die?" Izuku asked and she was startled to see how relieved he looked. "Can we finally go home now?"
"I'm really here, Izu." Inko choked, cupping his cheek in her hand. "Mommy is here. We're going to take you home, your father and I."
"I knew it." Both Izuku and Inko jumped when a new voice spoke.
Inko pulled Izuku in close and reached for the knife she'd concealed under the frilly maid skirts. She recognized the Peacekeeper that she and Yoichi had "borrowed" a uniform from, hands in pockets, only a few feet away.
"T-Tomura?" Izuku seemed to recognize him too.
"Stay back," Inko warned, keeping herself in front of Izuku like a shield.
Tomura's eyes lingered on the knife for only a moment, but he quickly dismissed it. "You're Izuku's mother. You were alive this whole time. And that other man, he's… never mind." He paused, then nodded to the door. "You can't leave through there. Not with Izuku anyways." He tapped a finger to his neck and Izuku's hand flew up to his collar.
Inko had no idea if she could trust him or not. "How do I get it off?" she growled.
"You need a key," Tomura replied, staring at Izuku.
"Do you have a key?" Izuku asked. "Are you going to help us? Tomura?"
Tomura's hands twitched in his pocket, but he sealed his chapped lips. He was waiting for something, but Inko couldn't see what. But if he came any closer to Izuku, she would gut him. At last, he pulled his hands out and squared his shoulders. Whatever he had been thinking about, he seemed to have come to a decision. She prayed that it was one in their favor.
Yoichi knew he wasn’t his older brother’s equal in battle. His only hope was to take advantage of the element of surprise and finish this in one strike. He threw his entire body forward and aimed his knife at his older brother’s minuscule heart.
Hisashi’s jaw hung open, his eyes wide. But he still reacted, dodging sideways. The knife sliced through empty air.
His only hope was gone, but Yoichi was an endless optimist. He caught his footing, then spun around, circling his brother.
Hisashi licked his lips. In a gentle, almost hypnotic voice, he said, “There’s no need to fight, little brother. I’m curious to know what you’ve been doing all these years.” Even as he spoke, his hand inched toward a radio on his belt.
Yoichi couldn’t let his brother call for reinforcements. He sprang forward.
Of course, Hisashi had anticipated the move. He caught Yoichi’s knife arm with his right hand and punched him in the stomach with the left. Yoichi gasped but grabbed Hisashi’s left hand before he could punch again.
Their muscles strained as they both tried to overpower each other. Yoichi could feel bruises blossoming on his wrist. Hisashi was stronger. Big brother had always been stronger. Yoichi flashed back to memories of the stale basement and the drugs fogging his mind. Even after so many years, he still feared that place.
With a hiss, Hisashi knocked Yoichi down to the floor. As his nails dug in, Yoichi’s grip on the knife faltered. Hisashi yanked away the knife from Yoichi with a triumphant laugh. It was all over.
The smug smile on his brother’s face reminded Yoichi of a million other times his brother had held him down and gloated over him, force-feeding him or dressing him up like a doll. Rage consumed his senses. Yoichi slammed his forehead into Hisashi’s.
Hisashi reeled backward. Yoichi leaped to his feet and ran down the hallway.
A shriek of rage echoed down the corridor. Yoichi’s stomach and head burned with pain, but he knew his brother would be close behind him. As he rounded a corner, Yoichi saw a window. It was locked. Without hesitation, he slammed his fist into it.
Glass shards bit into his hand and drew blood. Yoichi yanked up his shirt and wrapped it around his hand to stop any telltale blood drops. Then, instead of jumping out the window, he ducked into the closest room.
As Hisashi’s footsteps approached, Yoichi didn’t even dare breathe. He knew he’d only lasted so long in their fight because Hisashi had been unarmed. If he was caught now, it would be all over. Please, let him fall for it.
Hisashi was shouting into his radio. His steps stopped. Yoichi heard him go through the window.
The instant his brother was out of sight, Yoichi ran in the other direction, heading for his meeting place with Inko. This place would be swarming with Peacekeepers shortly. Hopefully, Inko had Izuku.
At the sight of Inko and Izuku’s green hair, Yoichi shouted and ran forward. Her eyes shot up, wide and frightened. Too late, he saw the Peacekeeper standing shadowed by a tree. The white-haired man was the same one Yoichi had stolen a uniform from.
Yoichi screeched to a halt. Unarmed and injured, he was in no shape to fight. But the Peacekeeper didn’t immediately attack. Instead, he spoke in a conversational tone. “You’re Izuku’s father, aren’t you?”
The Peacekeeper used his son’s first name in a familiar fashion. Did he perhaps care about Izuku? Could they use that? Yoichi swallowed. “Yes, I am.” A gasp came from Izuku, but Yoichi didn’t dare look at his son. His eyes focused on the armed man. “Please, I just want to leave with my family.”
The Peacekeeper frowned. “Izuku misses you,” he said accusingly.
“I’m sorry. I was separated from Izuku and Inko and couldn’t find them, but now I swear I’ll never leave them again. I had to protect them from All for One.” Since the information was already out, Yoichi took a risk. “All for One is my brother. He imprisoned me, drugged me, and treated me like a toy. Now he’s doing the same thing to Izuku. Can’t you see it’s wrong? If you care about Izuku, then please let us go.” In the distance, Yoichi heard an alarm. They had to move fast.
Tomura’s eyes shifted to Izuku. “What do you want to do?” he asked.
“You’re asking me?” Izuku startled. Then he straightened. His eyes became more focused. “I want to leave with my parents.”
Tomura handed Izuku a key. “This will unlock your collar. If you get caught, don’t tell anyone I gave you this.”
At once, both Inko and Yoichi fell all over themselves thanking Tomura.
“Quiet!” Tomura barked. “Do you want to get caught?”
Yoichi did not point out that Tomura had been the loudest. “No. My apologies.” He could not afford to anger their savoir, not until they were safely away. Behind him, Inko unlocked Izuku’s collar.
“Just make Izuku happy,” Tomura mumbled. “I have to go. You never saw me.” He turned and vanished, his white hair standing out in the night.
They were lucky. The guards Yoichi had knocked out on their way into the compound were still unconscious. And they’d left a car waiting outside.
“What do you mean, you’ve lost him?” Hisashi screamed. In one swift movement, he threw a Peacekeeper through the window.
The man’s scream cut off with a crunch as he landed in the tree below. Perhaps he’d survive, perhaps not, but Hisashi considered this of no importance. A bit of random murder only added to his mystique as the deadly ultimate victor of the Games. He leaned his hands on his desk, taking deep breaths.
Hisashi still had not had time to process that his brother was alive. He’d mourned Yoichi. He’d carried around the missing spot in his heart until he’d learned to live with it. Although he’d never completely stopped feeling the pain, he’d finally reached the point where he could remember happy moments with his younger brother without immediately tearing up or longing to murder someone. He’d filled the missing hole with Izuku. Then Yoichi had reappeared just long enough to vanish again, ripping open his wound.
This was the cruelest betrayal that Yoichi could have committed. Even stabbing Hisashi in the heart would have hurt less than believing that his younger brother was dead.
Yet even through the pain, Hisashi also felt joy. What he’d believed he’d lost forever had returned to him. How infuriating, that Yoichi had been so close and his inept peacekeepers had let his little brother escape. Now it would be much more difficult to find the runaway. The Resistance must have been hiding Yoichi for him to have gone unnoticed so long and penetrated so deeply into the mansion. Hisashi would enjoy crushing them for daring to take his family away from him. Yoichi would need to be punished, but then afterward, they could be a family again, together with Izuku.
Hisashi picked up a paper off his desk. He’d ordered the doctor to run a DNA test on the blood samples he’d previously taken from Izuku. As always, the doctor had worked fast. Izuku was his nephew. Hisashi should have seen it sooner. Izuku resembled Yoichi physically and in personality, and he’d had an odd reaction to seeing Yoichi’s picture. Most of all, only his family had ever aroused that possessive instinct in Hisashi.
Perhaps Hisashi would punish his little brother by taking away his son to keep as his own. After all, Yoichi was clearly not fit to be a father if he ran around with bad influences like the Resistance. Hmm, yes, that sounded like the perfect plan.
Hisashi needed to see Izuku. He needed to hug the bunny and wipe away his tears. Only then could Hisashi calm his rage at losing Yoichi.
From outside his window, the injured Peacekeeper whimpered in pain. Hisashi shouted, “Shut up, or I’ll finish you off myself!” Then he went looking for his bunny.
Hisashi pushed open the door to Izuku’s bedroom, the DNA test in hand. “Bunny, I have exciting news for you—”
His words cut off abruptly. Izuku was gone.
How could this be possible? Hisashi had driven Yoichi off before he’d made it upstairs. Yoichi must have brought along an accomplice. But the collar should have altered Hisashi if Izuku tried to escape the mansion grounds. It would have sent an alarm to his phone immediately. They couldn’t have gotten Izuku’s collar off without inside help. Someone close to Hisashi had betrayed him.
Hisashi threw back his head and screamed.
He’d taken over all of Panem, but he’d lost the most important thing to him—his family. His victory had been poisoned. There was a traitor near him. His family was not safe. The Resistance might take them hostage or get them killed with foolishness. He trembled with rage.
With great effort, Hisashi forced his hands to unclench. This was far from over. He held near-absolute power. The Resistance would be crushed. He’d taken precautions to ensure that he would never lose Izuku as he’d believed he’d lost Yoichi. A little extra surprise that the doctor had helped him implant. Since his younger brother had run away to his presumed death in a fit of foolish defiance, Hisashi had been careful to ensure that Izuku would always return to his side. Soon, Hisashi would know where to find both Izuku and Yoichi.
Sitting on her bed, Inko ran a hand through her son’s curls. Izuku drooled slightly in his slumber. Unconscious, he finally looked peaceful. He’d cried so hard as they’d driven away from the mansion. Inko feared what ordeals her son had been through. She’d believed the games the worst of it…but living in All for One’s grasp might have left even deeper scars.
Yoichi opened the door, his face grim and his lower lip trembling. Her husband looked close to tears himself. Had the meeting with the Resistance leaders not gone well?
Careful not to disturb Izuku, Inko stood up. She kept her voice low. “What’s wrong?”
Yoichi ran his fingers through his hair. “The Resistance can’t decide if they’d prefer to use Izuku as a propaganda tool or hold him for ransom for whatever my bro—All for One will give them. They assured me that they’d never actually give Izuku back.” His shoulders sagged. “I’m not certain I believe them.”
Inko’s hand went to her mouth to muffle a gasp. “What should we do? Should we run?”
“I’ve been debating that,” Yoichi said. “I’ve fought long and hard for the cause, but I’ll give it up if it means keeping Izuku safe.” He cast an affectionate glance at the boy snuggled up in bed. “I’ve grown concerned about the Resistance. The Council seems dominated by those who care more about power than stopping All for One. One of the members said something about how I owed them too much to be permitted to abandon the cause for my family. From the way everyone shushed him, I’ve become suspicious that the Resistance might have deliberately stopped me from finding you and Izuku all those years ago. They gained a loyal agent when I believed you two were dead. I should have never trusted them to help me find you.”
Inko said, “That’s not your fault. It’s theirs.”
Yoichi sagged. “But I doubt we can evade All for One on our own. Without the Resistance’s protection, how could we hide from him?”
Tears filled the corners of Inko’s eyes. She bit her lip to keep them from falling. “Then what can we do?” She felt bitter. Just when she’d believed her family to be safe, she learned that this was only the beginning of her struggle.
Yoichi said, “The Resistance Council doesn’t care about Izuku. They see one boy as nothing compared to the value of their cause. We can only protect Izuku by being useful to them. I convinced them to let Izuku rest for at least a couple of weeks by offering information on All for One’s security system from when we invaded his home. I also told them that I’d serve as bait instead of Izuku.”
Inko straightened. “I’ll offer up my own services to fight and spread propaganda.”
Yoichi said, “In the meantime, I’ll work on gathering money and fake identification in case we need to run. Kenji will help me.”
Inko said, “I believe Torino and Toshinori will help as well.”
“Good idea. But don’t yet tell them that we might leave the Resistance. I don’t want to get them in trouble…or test how far they’d be willing to betray the Resistance to help us.” Yoichi met her eyes. “Trust no one.”
“No one except you and Izuku, of course,” Inko said.
Yoichi cracked a small smile. “Naturally you can trust the two of us.” He took her hands and squeezed them. “We’ll get through this together. As a family.”
Inko rested her head on her shoulder. “At least we’re all together again.” She let herself draw strength from him. At least for now, she would pretend everything would be okay.
Everything around Izuku was dark. He heard the breathing of his mother and father sleeping in a neighboring bed. This room was not familiar. He was no longer in his bedroom in All for One’s Daddy’s mansion.
Upon this realization, something clicked in Izuku’s mind.
Without conscious control, Izuku stood up. He was not home. That meant he needed to find a method of communication to contact Daddy. Then Daddy would take him home. Izuku headed for the desk, looking for a phone or other electronics.
The sound woke up Inko. She sat up and rubbed her eyes. “Baby? Are you looking for the bathroom? It’s down the hall. I’ll show you.”
“Thank you, Mom,” Izuku said. Rubbing his eyes, he shook off his confusion. He did not remember how he’d gotten to the other side of the room from his bed. But he must have been looking for the bathroom like she’d said. He was so sleepy that he’d forgotten.
Inko held out her hand. “Come with me.”
Izuku took his mother’s hand, happy to be safe and finally free, with his family.
