Rebirth and Blood

His back popped as old springs whined at his rise from the dark red fabric of the sofa. There was a slight throbbing in his head which he knew were the tellings of a hangover, if only a lesser one and his body was covered by a thin red blanket that was cast off in his attempt to sit up. Where was he? This wasn't his apartment or his mother's, the walls surrounding him that made up the room itself were not quite dilapidated, but close enough to suggest a far cheaper place then any of them would want.

Sections of drywall rotted away from age, exposing the boards underneath the white paint that in of itself was ancient. Lights were absent from the place, yet he guessed that was due more to it being...early afternoon?(He hoped) with the sun providing the needed illumination. Overhead a few tiny slots for light bulbs dotted the ceiling, but again were turned off. To his direct left was a balcony which had purple curtains pulled to either side to allow the sun in.

Along the walls were pictures of people he didn't recognize. One in a black and grey mask, one that looked like a magician with a maybe African type mask, one that looked horrifically burned and one of a giant mutant lizard. There might have been more, yet he didn't really give enough of a care to keep looking with his head aching as it was. Taking a hand into his pocket he pulled out his phone. Well, it was Saturday so at least he had the day off. 

That was one question answered but where exactly was he? The sound of sizzling oil coming from a square cutout further in the living room clarified some of it. He recalled a small amount of what happened, the parts with the bar, the note and the walk. After that...he wasn't so sure. He met a girl? At the bridge when he...oh. Now it was coming back piece by piece.

He rubbed the side of his neck, feeling the abrasive slit of a scab already formed in his slumber. The drink had certainly erased most of his inhibitions, but not to the point of erasing last night. His hands rested on his knees as the idea of what to do next tried to come around, Izuku wasn't scared so much as disappointed with himself. All that anger and for what? Copper suddenly lingered in the air, seeking out from the kitchen to the rest of the apartment and cutting off his inner monologue. Standing up from his makeshift bed, the grey carpet crinkled audibly under his feet as he approached the kitchenette. 

Poking his head around the corner, he was greeted by two yellow feline eyes which regarded him indifferently while a pan of eggs cooked on the gas stove. It was the same woman he had met last night...Himiko, if he remembered correctly. She was dressed in a plain white dress and sports shorts, her short blonde hair was unkempt. The soft tone of her voice carried over to him, still catching him off guard with how worn out she appeared.

"You sleep alright?"

Izuku blinked at her, not quite sure what to say in his filthy work clothes which still had the slight smell of booze and body odor about him. Habitually his fingers tapped the corner to vent out some of the emotion.

"Yeah. Hey, so just to ask…did I really try to jump off a bridge or did I dream that part?"

She flipped one of the eggs, watching it fry into a nice brown.

"Not really, you were going to but then you and I got to talking which became an argument and then you asked to spend the night here. All that happened next was you drunkenly wishing me goodnight and falling back first into my sofa the second you got in the door."

He kept tapping the corner, suddenly more embarrassed then he likely should have been.

"Oh...sorry about that."

She shrugged, slipping the eggs onto a plate and starting to cook some strips of bacon afterwards.

"No skin off my nose, if I had an issue with it, I'd just thrown you out the door."

He eyed the bacon hungrily as both the headache and his stomach demanded something greasy to ease the suffering.

"You uh, mind if I have some of that?"

She drained some of the grease out into a plastic cup, setting the strips which had turned a wonderful shade of brown.

"You gonna pay me for it? I ain't exactly running a charity over here."

Izuku fumbled for his wallet, finding to his annoyance only his debit card inside. 

"Sorry, I just have plastic. Maybe I can treat you to lunch?"

"How about we deal with another currency, I give you food and you give me information."

He raised an eyebrow at the girl who began setting out a second plate.

"What would you possibly want to know that I could tell you?"

The plate was forced into his hands as she turned the corner and gestured to the cheap wooden table a few feet away.

"Tell me what the hell made you want to jump off that bridge, and be specific about it. Not just this whole "My life sucks boo hoo" shit or "Oh I'm quirkless woe is me" excuse. There has to be a real reason you wanted to take your own life that goes deeper and I wanna know."

Taking a seat across from the woman he relaxed a small bit as he watched her retreat to the fridge, mentally shrugging as he did so.

"Aside from the alcohol? Like I vaguely recall saying, my life sucks. It has since I was five. My dad ran off on my mom and me, ended up dying in a bar fight when I was sixteen in New York while we barely had enough to survive. Nobody thought I'd amount to anything, hell All Might himself told me my dreams were unrealistic after he saved me from a villain. So far it's just been this soul crushing grind while others get the high life, they get to help while I'm cast aside so much that nobody even wants my help."

A tall thermos was put to the side as Himiko took out a massive jug of red liquid which had the smell of iron or copper and poured it in a pan over the stovetop.

"So that's it? You just wanna quit life because your daddy left you and some old guy who nobody heard shit about for years told you, you can't punch some idiots in the face since you're just a normal dude? That's a stupid fucking reason if I'm being honest."

A thermal needle was in her hands, sticking into the pan until it read 37 degrees celsius. From a lower drawer came a funnel which let her pour whatever it was inside the thermos.

"No, if I'm seeing anything right now, you either don't understand your trauma or you're not talking about it. Let me guess somebody beat you until you stopped dreaming, am I right?"

He flinched at what he heard. Thankfully she had her attention more drawn to her concoction then him. Lifting a piece of bacon into his mouth he chewed while trying to think of something to shoot back with.

"Maybe, maybe not. I'm in a shitty mood alright? Look….I."

He raised a hand over his face, washing the rest of the sleep away while wanting nothing more than the conversation to go anywhere else.

"I apologize if I'm being rude, let's just change the subject. Like for instance, what the heck do you have in that cup?"

At last she moved to the table, reclaiming her seat and bitting away at her food.

"It's blood. Pig's blood to be specific."

Izuku blinked, unsure he really heard that. Then he felt a grin crawl over him, interest at last.

"Well you're just full of surprises. For your quirk right?"

She nodded, taking a sip in the process which stained her sharp teeth a ghoulish red.

"Yep and if you ask anything more about that then your ass is gone, understand?"

He chuckled, finding this to be highly amusing for what it was.

"Loud and clear, though let me ask this, you open your home to anyone with a sob story?"

Again she downed some eggs with blood, eyeing him curiously.

"No and you seem to be taking this rather well. Most people get scared after I tell them that and those that don't...let's just say they tend to be even more fucked in the head then me."

He devoured another strip of pork product and pursed his lips, unsure if he was going too far.

"Can I ask or…"

"Turns out when you have a blood quirk and most of the mental and sexual hang ups that come with it, people with issues tend to flock around you a lot. I've learned it's better to keep insane people out then bring that trouble into your life for company, trust me on that."

"Does that also include you since you pulled a knife on me last night?" He thought to himself as he ate more of the breakfast. This was turning out better than he hoped, whatever he hoped. Last night he guessed he just wanted something interesting to distract from his troubles and he definitely got one, but there was so much more to ask, hell at this point he wouldn't mind knowing everything about this girl, if only because she was a novelty in his mundane, boring world. She was a person with actual stories which weren't the same "I went to college, met my spouse and partied a bit" type bullshit he heard every day since turning eighteen. Here was someone with life experience that went beyond just living by the script everyone else did. Oh, the things she could tell him. Hell, maybe he could make a book about her life and market it as some kind of moralistic self help novel. 

Maybe they'd both get rich off it and help people at the same time. That was an idea, but the more he studied the bags under her eyes, the more he realized this woman probably wanted nothing to do with the spotlight of society. Still he couldn't imagine living in a dump like this and being content. Though, he never did a stint in Tartarus so she's likely to have gotten her fill of change and danger for one lifetime. Questions, questions and more questions. Which one to start with? 

Himiko wiped away the excess blood around her lips, licking her fangs with her tongue to clean them of the stain while she eyed him once again. It was critical and judgemental, looking upon him like he was a guilty child who was set to do more bad.

"So Greentop, do you have any other business today?" 

Izuku noted the expression and cringed a little inside. He was a grown man, who was she to regard him like that?

"Not of the official variety, why?"

She took both of the now empty plates, setting them in the sink to soak while the tint of her mood remained. 

"Because there's no sense in having you walk out that door if you're still not over whatever is in your head. It would be the death of me if I turned on the news and saw the headline "Dumbass found splattered off the Kongu Bridge". Which is why we're spending today putting a plan together for you so you don't see that as the best option, ok?"

He squinted at the girl who now firmly annoyed moved herself to the couch and pointed to a half chewed recliner, expecting him to just comply.

"Again, why the fuck do you care? I'm just some random stranger to you, hell I could be a murderer for all you know."

"You're not a murderer, not even the shitty half-wits who don't put thought into it. You remind me a lot of myself before I turned things around and maybe I want to do a little bit of good to make up for all the horrible shit I did, is that so bad?" 

He narrowed his own gaze at her, not exactly buying her reasoning.

"No, but you said it yourself, you aren't running a charity here so what do you get out of it?"

She rolled her eyes at the man, tossing a throw pillow to the recliner to her right.

"Maybe I'm fucking lonely and you seem like the first decent person who I haven scared off yet. Or maybe I wanna get another favor from you, or maybe I wanna....you get the damn point, now shut up and sit down before I make you."

He stood up from the table, his height and muscle adding to the heft of his bulk. Making his host seem puny in comparison. He was beginning to get actually angry now, not that he'd ever hurt a woman of course.

"You think you can? I'd like to see you-"

There came a flash of something moving from her direction and behind him came a loud *Thunk* and flecks of drywall dust. Turning his head he saw a pocket knife no larger than his palm embedded in the wall with pinpoint accuracy. Next came the flick of another blade as Himiko danced the weapon between her fingers with an ungodly ease.

"Care to see where this one goes next? Or do you wanna listen to the person who brought you to safety?"

Reaching out to the drywall, Izuku pulled the knife from where it impacted. He felt the surprising weight of the thing, all metal construction with a smooth single edge that ended in a drop point tip. Still it was cheaply made if the "China" label on the side was anything to go on. Turning back to the girl, he closed the knife after a few attempts and stuffed it inside his pocket.

"You know, I find it alarming how many times I need to point out that holding me at blade point is counter productive to everything you're trying to do."

"It gets your attention though, now sit before I get pissed."

If this was not being pissed, he'd hate to see her when she's actually angry. Taking the best he could get at the moment, along with a small inkling of actual fear if he tried to run out the door Izuku made himself comfortable on the poorly maintained recliner while his possibly homicide host continued to work the knife around her hand. She said nothing for a time, just watching him squirm under her digression, then putting the tool away she continued, leaning back into the sofa in the meantime.

"Alright, let's start off big and then go small. What's one thing you wanted to do for the longest time? It doesn't need to be realistic or moral, just speak your mind."

He shrugged, crushing the throw pillow under his legs and musing on the question.

"I guess...be a hero, or maybe some kind of somebody, you know? I think the best way to put it is that for the longest time I wanted to be someone else since I'm lacking in what they have and I wanna do good, if that makes sense."

The girl clicked her tongue habitually, playing with a strand of hair to avoid eye contact.

"Believe me, I know exactly what you mean and I also know trying to be somebody you're not, even if you admire or think you love them will only end up killing you inside, even if you wear their skin for months on end."

"You mean that metaphorically right?"

He asked with an uptick in his fear, hoping this wasn't about to become some Silence of the Lambs knock off. Himiko shrugged, not really phased by his reaction.

"Yes and no, like I said my quirk works off blood and I'll leave it at that. Anyway, you have some semblance of a goal which is better than most people. Have you made any attempts to become licensed? The government can't deny you admission into the trials since that would be genetic discrimation and end in a lawsuit. What about auditioning as a sidekick, that takes even less time and paperwork. All you need is the guy's approval and a stamp over your ID and then you can at least manage paperwork. Or if you can't or don't wanna go through all that, what about just doing it off the books? Have you tried any of that?"

Izuku shifted his view off to the side and chuckled nervously.

"Not...really. I kinda gave up after UA rejected my admittance letter."

Yellow eyes stabbed into him harshly, observing all the parts about him that were flawed and visible at the moment, burning worse than if he had actually been stabbed.

"So you're a coward then?"

He sat up, ready to raise an argument.

"I am not a coward!"

The blonde didn't move an inch, remaining relaxed and unbidden by him.

"You are right about that, you're a lazy coward. Anybody who wants something as bad as you claim to would work day and night to earn it. You just expected the position to fall into your lap without having to pay a price, sorry to say champ, but life doesn't work that way. You gotta suffer to get somewhere and being a hero is one of the hardest paths to take, assuming you don't just pretend to be one for fame or some other bullshit."

He raised his voice a bit, starting to feel her get to a nerve he didn't know was there.

"All Might himself-"

"Is nothing but a ruined old man. Yeah he did good, nobody denies that, but he didn't determine how your life would be. All you're doing is blaming some dying corpse of a man who likely can't even eat anymore, stop playing the victim and take some responsibility. There are thousands of street level heroes who don't even have a combative quirk and they're dying for help. And hell, if you really wanted to be a part of the hero field, then you could have moved to the USA. They let anybody become a hero over there so long as they aren't insane and they get to use guns, that would even out your quirkless issue real fast. I mean, fucking Sugar Rush was putting ads in the paper because he needed help since his agency is overwhelmed by street stupidy." 

She narrowed her eyes on his arms, noting how thin they were.

"Have you ever built any muscle? Done any martial arts, gone to a first aid course? Anything that might make you slightly more marketable to people in that line of work?"

If Izuku had the ability to either turn invisible or teleport away from this situation he would in a heartbeat.

"N-No, I just do a little cardio to pass the time between shifts."

"You are totally pathetic, you know that? You have no criminal record, your body is in near perfect shape, you apparently have enough money to blow on vodka without a second thought and despite this, you still wanted to give up. Not just on your dreams, but on fucking living. I don't have that and you won't see me getting all resentful about it."

At once he shot up out of the chair like a rocket, slamming his feet on the cheaply carpeted floor and feeling part of his face go red.

"Well what the fuck should I do about it then!?"

Like a viper, Himiko sat up, her arm whipping out around the air in a short semi circle that ended part way after his face. An ear shattering slap echoed off the walls, bouncing around until total silence came.

"You stop complaining, you stop blaming others for your own misfortune regardless of it being their fault or not and you stop wasting time with meaningless bullshit. Then, you start to get stronger mentally, physically and spiritually. Afterwards, you call up every tom, dick, harry and sally in a cape and ask for a job even if it's just mopping floors. You prove yourself by acting like a hero should, making connections in the industry and then maybe you get what you want. If that fails then put on a mask and go punch a mugger in the teeth. It's your life, you go live it regardless of what happened in your past or what you think will happen in the future because you are going to be dead one day."

She knotted a piece of his grey suit, tugging him close with a slight psychosis.

"Do you understand me? One day you'll be nothing but ash or worm food and the only thing which will matter is how you spent your time on this earth. No more getting up ever again and the only thing left in your eyes will be blankness as your very being is snuffed out. So stop being a pussy and do it before it's too late!"

The first thing to register was the stinging pain that throbbed worse than his nearly forgotten headache. The second was her words and the third was the urgency in her tone. Placing a hand over the clearly red spot on his skin, he asked again.

"Then how do I get there?"

She said nothing once more, this time rising from her sofa and retreating into the only other room in the apartment. The sounds of rustling came loudly about the place until Himiko returned with two rods of polished hardwood in either hand.

"You train by putting your heart and soul into your actions and making your body driven by your soul and your soul driven by your heart."

"And I'm to achieve this with two sticks?"

She moved fast, too fast for his eyes to follow and the next thing he felt was a tap under his Adam's apple. Cherry redwood threatened to block his windpipe if she so much as twitched her hand.

"Escrima sticks, and yes for now."

Kneeling down she rolled the wooden batons to her guest and took up a stance akin to a statue with her legs touching like she was standing at attention.

"Right now, I want you to try to hit me with them. It'll help out your endurance and your start to get used to moving explosively."

Izuku scooped up the pieces of wood, keeping his host in sight he loosely held them with no clue on how to properly use them. Despite the obvious danger of the woman, he still held up hands in surrender.

"Look, I'm down for...whatever this is, but I'm not about to hit a lady. Muchless one such as yourself after you let me into your home."

An open palm slapped across his face, striking the same spot raw. Izuku yelped out of pain as much as surprise from how fast she was.

"Come on now, don't quit! This is the first step and tell you what if you can touch me with one of those then we're done for today."

"You're not asking me to hit you as hard as I can, right?"

"You should worry about yourself and let me worry about myself. Now hit me!"

Her words bounced around his head, keeping him from outright saying no and trying to leave. Well, he came here to experience new things and this was new. Plus she had made more than a few decent points, maybe she knew more than he did. Clenching his hands around the weapons he raised one over his head and brought it down, only to hit empty air as Himiko sidestepped the attack effortlessly. Then he tried again, this time swinging both at the same time. It ended as the first attempt did. Third, fourth, fifth, sixth, tenth, twentieth, fiftieth, each resulting in failure while Himiko taunted him like a child, making him soon rage at the repeated stifling of his adjective. There was little pattern or forethought to what he did, no skill or tactic, simply hit the target with a stick.

Yet his humiliation would climax when the blonde stepped towards him as he moved to swing down. Using the momentum of his attack, Himiko stretched out a leg that he was too clumsy to avoid, tripping face first onto the carpet.

"As I've said before, you're pathetic. Just a stupid boy who wasted his dreams."

She squatted with a smile that almost made him as uneasy as that "Wearing their skin" comment. 

"But you have potential, lots of it."

A finger lightly poked him in the nose, bringing her close to his body. Quickly he wrapped a hand around her ankle, making sure to hold on tight as he dragged her to the ground. Himiko fell hard, yet for all his weight and strength advantage as he tried to get on top of her he received a knee to the belly that both hurt and kept him partly off her. Thankfully he didn't need to pin her. One of his Escrima sticks touched her outstretched leg, ending the session at last.

Though it ended in pain when she launched him back to the floor with both legs, making him groan when he slammed against the carpet again. She stared at him, amazed that he actually won if even by her own fuck up. The smile grew as she got to her feet, offering him her hand in the process. 

"Even more than I first thought. Not bad for your first time sparring, alright we're done for today. You can head home and we'll start tomorrow. Tonight, I want you to just test yourself physically. Push-ups, sit-ups, squats, that kinda thing."

Izuku repressed a shutter of pain from his muscles already worn sore by this little bit. Standing was easier, yet there was also a hint of...remorse? At her telling him to leave.

"Hey, not to push it or anything, but you mind if I stick around a while longer? I got the day off so there isn't much for me to do."

Her smile faded, reverting back into the tired visage of a woman aged far beyond her years.

"You might, but I don't. Gossip columns don't write themselves and then I got to sort through pictures of celebrity dickheads and costumed freaks in an hour. Besides, you do have something important to get done. Calling up this Sugar Rush guy for a job."

He grimaced at how radically her expression changed. Meekly he pulled out his phone and tried to appear more confident then he was.

"Do you mind if we swap numbers?"

The former villainess found her own device buried somewhere in the couch cushions and laid it out on the dining table with the screen turned to her contacts.

"Do what you have to. Just...hit me up after eight P.M. and we'll plan out from there. Till then, get your ass in gear and start doing things or you'll start seeing a lot more of me and you won't like that, capiche?"

"Yes ma'am." He said with a mock salute that didn't lessen the scowl on her face. Once that was done and their numbers traded, Izuku found himself out of her door with a pair of wood clubs in a bag, a knife in his pocket and a none too gentle reason to go down the path before him.

Cringing at what happened in the last couple of hours as noon rolled around, Izuku decided that he may as well do it since there wasn't anything else he could see that may turn things around for the better. With a silent nod of thanks towards her apartment, he began to return home in order to prepare for what would come next.