blastedass | ⚔️ Synflux Inbox

Injured but recovering.

[Mentally as well as physically and emotionally.]

We won.

[If "winning" is able to have the positive connotation...]

['We won' is simultaneously the most stressful thing to ever hear. The most two sided story of someone like Todoroki. The return message also comes slowly. Deleted letters that he reassessed, and finally sent in the only way he can think to ask.]

And the other side?

[How indeed to answer that. The simplest answer is easy, but so much more resides in the question Bakugo can't answer with the simplest answer. He knows the parts Todoroki wants to know most, the parts even more important to him than the rest...]

Most of them are recovering.

Toya's alive. [He lets it go silent for a bit, giving his friend a minute or two for the relief and panic, answer and question, to settle in.] Endeavor's alive.

But Shigaraki, Himiko, and All for One died.

[The first message comes in and 'most' has his heart in his throat. Bakugo is right to give him a bit between those answers. Shoto has to sit himself down in his chair at home just to reconcile the definitive answer that he hadn't had to cause such damage to his brother that there was no saving him. Something that he had worried heavily about, something he had tried so desperately not to let happen, but something he knew might be a reality.

He can feel guilty later he hadn't been worried about his father. And feel guil-- Shigaraki? Dead?

That was Izuku's to handle, but he wouldn't have killed him. Further he can't imagine someone killing anyone in that fight from their side. Not anymore even if it's a reality.]

Who killed All for One? Endeavor?

[Out of everything in the war, Bakugo knows it's Toya who would be front and center in Shoto's mind. Despite everything the bastard did, he was still Shoto's brother, someone the other boy wanted so badly to get to know. Whether he'll be able to after all that happened... Bakugo can't tell him that. There's a chance. At least.

Were they able to save Toya? ... He doesn't know that either. He's pretty sure Izuku and Ochako both had the same questions about the villains they tried to reach and save.]

He did himself in. He used a copy of that little girl's Rewind Quirk and ran out of time. It took everyone to run out the stupid clock.

And thus, after I spoke with the affected goddess, I took it upon myself to befriend this troubled youth named Bakugo. [Yes, Taryon is saying it out loud, and yes, he is narrating into a voice-to-text program. It's going to be part of his biography, and it has to paint him as someone more heroic than some guy walking over to a teammate's dorm room with several books tucked under his arm. Friendship Quest is a serious deal.] I made my way to his quarters with an offering in my hands, confident that I could win him over as I have done countless times before.

Alright, end dictation... [He turns off his microphone and knocks on the door, preparing his best encouraging smile for the opening.]

Twenty-eight... twenty-nine... fuck... thirty-! [Metal springs, sweat-soaked rubber clatters to the ground, and he drops to his knees with a rushed breath. Maybe doing thirty reps of that thing wasn't a good idea. His fingers scream at him, he hasn't even worked his arm and it's roaring protests, but all the pain reinforces reality he's got feeling in his arm! His muscles work, even as they recover, and best of all, his decision to say "FUCK YOU!" to amputation was the right one all along! HA! FUCK YOU, DOCTORS!!

... But damn, he knew physical therapy was gonna be a pain in the ass.

... aaaand someone has to choose now of all time to knock. Bakugo glares up at the door before pushing himself to his feet. A few seconds later, said door pulls open, revealing a sweat-streaked face and a towel swirled around his shoulders like an impromptu cape.]

What?! [Oh wait, he recognizes this guy. The bookworm with the crazy mustache.]

[There's some shouting from inside, a few thumps, but nothing particularly alarming. Alright, so violent noises from a teenager's bedroom probably...or possibly it shouldn't be normal, but that's how things sometimes are. It reminds Taryon of his younger sister when her workout routine was interrupted, and she visibly held back the hurt to punch her brother in the stomach before he alerted her that Mother wanted to see her.

Maybe he should have thought this through. But what's another beatdown?

There's no sense of recognition in Taryon's eyes as his mouth widens into a grin. Bakugo is just another Outsider who has been here for a while - whether he arrived in November or knew Taryon before he died makes no different.

He holds up a thick novel first: The Mountain Range of Gold, Part I: The Coterie of the Crown.] Hello! [He projects his voice a bit too loudly for a casual greeting.] A little bird told me that you had an interest in literature. Now, the library we have here is fine, but it's missing a lot in the physical book department. I figured that you might like something...meatier, perhaps? It's from my own world - you'll find no other copy like it here!

[He's trying.]

[Luckily there's not going to be a beatdown... yet. Depends on how things go. Bakugo might shout at people for interrupting him, but it'd have to be a flagrant interruption to earn an explosion to the face. Besides, he could use a break before he goes overboard on the PT. Taryon saved him from getting yelled at by his friends.

He's only seen the guy from across the room or en passe while the Outsiders were grouping somewhere, so he's not surprised there's no recognition in the other man's eyes. At least not personal interaction.

The hell is he grinning at? ... He blinks when a book's hoisted to his face. Then twitches his head back. Too loud, dammit! Suddenly this is extremely awkward. EVEN MORE SO WITH A "BIRD" COMMENT!!]

Haa?! What the hell? Are you some kind of solicitor?

[He leans back at the forceful response.] No, no! Well - [Regaining his smile, he lowers the book.] If a reccomandation counts...then, yes. But I'm not going to just anyone, you see. I wanted to talk to someone who'd apprciate a gift like this.

[Even if it's his own copy from home. The only one in existence on this plane.]

So...are you interested in borrowing it?

[Suspicious? Not in the negative way. More curious as to why the hell this suddenly came up. The only thing he can think of as far as recent events is the argument with Ereshkigal and the damage done to the base. If this crap's going off the former, that's personal and annoying. Is she going around telling people he likes to read or something?! Especially after she kicked all that shit off by finding him in the library and verbally expressing surprise he COULD read! (Okay, so that's not what she said, but the implication was there, dammit!)

And this guy's talking about gifting. Specifically for him.]

You came to me instead of Know-it-All?

[Ratio likes books even more.]

Who?

[Taryon had his own nicknames for everyone, and Know-it-All isn't one of them. Sure, he's the antagonistic neighbor who was rather curt when Taryon returned to life...although he is apparently a Doctor of Something.]

Well, I came to you because I was told that you were a reader, and no one else was.

[His smile fades. He may have underestimated the difficulty rating of the mission he gave himself. Ereshkigal told Taryon that Bakugo liked to read, so it made sense that he'd try to bond with him and hopefully calm the fires after the argument.]

Ratio, dammit!

[He knows everyone's names; he simply chooses not to use them. Most of the time. It always irritates him when people can't figure the damn identity and force him to say the real name for their slow-ass brains!]

Haa?! A lot of people read! You've never gone into the library all this time?

[That said, he reaches out and with a quick-but-smooth swipe, retrieves the tome from Taryon's stack. It swivels between his fingers via a cocked wrist and Bakugo scans over the cover.]

This is volume 1. Where's the rest?

[It's true, despite that of course he was worried for his friends, for his teachers, for the other heroes putting their lives on the line he wanted to know about his brother. His family. At least Bakugo has taken the worry off his heart that he had killed him, or rather forced him to kill himself.

Reading what happened to All for One is almost cathartic in itself.]

Normally not my take on it, but I can't say that I'm sad to read it. I can't say I'm unhappy to know it. I don't like anyone dying, but I can't say he didn't do it to himself by his own hand.

Ah- Well, I would, but we're...I mean, we're not that close.

[Even Taryon senses there's some tension between him and Dr. Ratio, and he's not going to risk frustrating each other. Besides, would the good doctor be even interested in a dense and complex fantasy novel?]

Look, I...I'm certain we have other readers, but you seemed the type that will enjoy this. I loved it when I was your age. [Because he's that kind of nerd.] I'll give you the second and third parts if you liked this one. I know, there's some fair criticism about how long it is and how detail the author includes, but I swear it's really good. You'll never be able to guess how the plot develops!

[Unless Bakugo has watched Lord of the Rings]

[He's not surprise Shoto shows little remorse for the villain who haunted all their dreams while growing up. All for One, the most dangerous man who ever lived. As much as Bakugo would want to take all the credit for a victory, this s one he'll refuse as "his alone" until the end of time. He never could have stopped All for One on his own.

All he did was buy out the last few minutes on the clock. It wasn't like he had any connection to the villain. Not like Izuku to Shigaraki, Ochako to Himiko, or Shoto to Toya.

He was simply the final boss.]

Aa. He gambled and he lost.

You didn't even know me.

[And Taryon still approached him. How the hell is that any "better" than someone he knows?

Bakugo wonders if this means Taryon's part of that big clusterfuck argument schism between Ratio and Godzilla and all that surrounds it. Not his business. He's never picked a side because he doesn't fucking care.

Whatever Taryon's issue is with the man, he should be mature enough to deal with it.]

Bring the other volumes later. I'm not gonna be stuck chasing you down when I finish.

[He was always the kid who had the comics during his youth; friends came to him to borrow or read the latest and greatest. That desire for the "complete" entertainment remains. He's a perfectionist who likes his own schedule.]