Sometimes we tend to forget who got the super powers in this wonder duo relationship. Mr. Jonathan “I punch through walls, shoot red hot lasers out of my eyes, and explode like a nuclear bomb when I get super emotional” Lane Kent. XD Oh! And I made another contribution to my #SunshineBoyAU with the introduction of my #DewDropBoyAU Damian! (^v^) Planning to put them together in one whole AU with sort-of an actual plot one day, so look forward to it! Also, a surprise character have come to grace my account for the very first time. Just keep on reading! =D
Like that Vigilantes took the final step in definitively proving that Koichi is the Spider-Man of the HeroAca Universe by having straining to lift up an aeroplane, saving the lives of everyone on board, and the press still cannot agree if he is a hero or a villain. Also he is in a huge amount of debt and mostly beloved by the working class people who hate the establishment.
Like yeah, that’s my boy right there! That’s my little man! I hope he’s doing his best out there in New York City and avoiding the shit show of mainline continuity
Neat how the author made sure to involve both Eraser and Mic in Shirakumo’s accident, everyone gets to feel guilty about it now :) this is not neat I’m crying;; shirakumo what’s going to happen to you I’m so scared
What really shook me in Ch 63 and 64 of Vigilantes is that the last panels where we see Shirakumo alive are… ordinary. Small. Which made it all feel so sudden, almost rushed but not in a bad way? Like, it really encapsulated the tragedy that is an accident.
Snap finger to save the kids.
Get hit in the head.
And then nothing.
It’s done. This character is dead on screen without anyone really realising it until the situation calmed down and we discover the sheet covering his body. That was brutal, that was unfair, and that is why Aizawa is so fucking hard on the 1A kids. He knows accidents happen and no matter how good of a person you are, you’re not immune to them.
Also, that scene with shirakumo reminds me of the first villain attack at UA. The moment when Tsuyu is about to get disintegrated by Shigaraki and Aizawa saves her at the last second. Now I can truly appreciate why this guy was ready to get himself killed if it meant another kid could live.
I honestly don’t know how he would have coped with living through a second Shirakumo but this time with him being in charge
Summary: Just as Koichi is going to turn in for the day, a little girl approaches him about her lost pup. He and Kazuho set out to find the missing pooch, but it turns out that the pup has a nose for trouble!
Hello, everyone! Here is my story for the @vigilantefilesbigbang! I had a great time writing for my favorite dynamic and dorky duo! Also, please check out the artthat my partner made!
Koichi stretched his arms above his head and hummed contentedly as his vertebrae decompressed with a series of satisfying pops. He held the stretch for several moments, allowing his tense muscles to slowly unwind. Vigilante-ing was never easy, but some days were more intense than others; after catching a purse-snatcher, running down a burglar, and rescuing a runaway baby stroller from a near-encounter with a large truck, Koichi was ready to call it a day.
However, duty calls, and it doesn’t have consideration for your plans.
“Mr. Crawler! Mr. Crawler!”
Koichi turned around with a raised eyebrow to see a little girl running as fast as she could down the sidewalk. She clutched a stack of papers to her chest, the pages bouncing with each desperate swing of her legs. The tip of her right foot caught on the raised edge of the sidewalk, and Koichi narrowly managed to dive in and catch her before she suffered a rough landing. As he straightened her up, he smiled kindly and asked, “Hey, what’s up?”
“Mr. Crawler!” she cried, immediately bursting into tears. Koichi recoiled a little; dealing with sobbing children had never exactly been a skill of his. The tears ran in thick globs down her cheeks as she threw back her head with a wail. “Muh-my puh-puppy has guh-gone muh-missing!” she heaved through the wracking sobs. With a shaking hand, she held out one of the flyers, and Koichi grabbed it to look at it. A picture of a happy Jack Russell terrier was plastered over the page, as big as it could be without making the family’s contact information a pain to read.
“A lost puppy, huh?” Koichi hummed thoughtfully. His aching muscles throbbed in protest, but how could he refuse? Especially when the little girl was clearly so heartbroken over it. “Don’t worry!” he cried and placed his hand atop the girl’s head. She looked at him with watery eyes, biting down on her bottom lip to try and stifle her sobs. “I’ll find him for you. What’s his name?”
“T-Taeko.”
“Okay!” Koichi said with a nod. He stood up, folded up the flyer, and stuck it in his back pocket. “The Crawler is on the case! Don’t worry. I’ll make sure to get your pup home safe and sound!” he reassured the little girl with a big grin and a thumbs-up. Immensely relieved, the child let out a happy giggle and smiled back, looking pretty adorable despite the tears and snot all over her face. She turned around to scamper back to her mother, who took her hand so they could resume posting flyers.
“Now,” Koichi said once the little girl was out of earshot. “This can be a difficult job… That means I need reinforcements!”
Unfortunately for him, reinforcements just meant Pop☆Step.
“Seriously? They were all busy?” Kazuho whined, looking up from the flyer with a dour pout. Koichi was squatting on the ground next to her, rubbing the top of his head while he too sulked. Somehow Soga and his entire gang were busy, leaving his puppy-hunting squad dreadfully understaffed. Kazuho rested a hand on her cocked hip as she frowned at him. “Naruhata isn’t that big, but there are still a million places this dog could be! You’re not seriously considering still looking for it, are you?”
“ButPop, you didn’t see the little girl’s face,” he pouted back. “She was so sad…”
Kazuho rolled her eyes with an exaggerated “Ugh,” but she then looked back down at the flyer.
“Oh, all right. It’s not like I have anything better to do today,” she shrugged, then handed the flyer back to Koichi. He folded it back up and put it in his pocket, and Kazuho continued, “So where do you want to start?”
“I was thinking we start at their home address and work our way outwards.”
It was as good a plan as any, and so they made the short commute to the quaint apartment complex where the girl and her family lived. They started by making rounds of the building, carefully inspecting the alleyways and dumpsters, which were filled with all sorts of things that a curious puppy would want to plunder in. They found a scraggly stray cat, a colony of roaches, and an alarmingly big sewer rat, but no Jack Russell terrier.
As they were standing in front of the apartment complex wondering which direction to proceed in, Koichi caught movement out of the corners of his eyes. He turned, blinked, then pulled out the flyer. He looked at the picture, then back up, then back at the picture again.
Surely it couldn’t be thateasy.
But it was unmistakable—just down the street, with his leg hiked up so he could relieve himself on a fire hydrant, was Taeko the dog.
“Pop! Pop! Objective sighted!” Koichi cried, flinging the flyer to the wind and zooming for the pup. Kazuho exclaimed in surprise behind him and instinctively caught the flyer, then ran after him with shouts for him to wait. Completely oblivious to the two vigilantes charging at him, Taeko shook himself after he was done whizzing and set off in a happy little prance, slipping through a hole in the nearby chain-link fence. Koichi slammed into it with a groan, wrapping his fingers around the thin metal, and prepared to climb after it.
That’s when he realized that the puppy had blissfully wandered into a live construction yard.
“What is this? An episode of Looney Tunes?” Kazuho cried when she reached the fence.
“Look, slapstick comedy or not, we still have a mission!” Koichi asserted, then began to scale the chain-link fence. He straddled the top, cupping his hands to his mouth to bellow “Taeko!” across the construction yard.
Taeko’s ears perked up, his head tilted to the side at the sound of his name. His tail wagged as he looked around. Either he was just dumb, or he was pretending not to see Koichi; either way, he went back on his merry way, disappearing around some stacks of iron rebar.
“Ugh, this is ridiculous,” Koichi huffed, hiking his leg over the fence so he could begin climbing down. Kazuho sniffed, then used her Quirk to hop over the fence, landing daintily beneath Koichi. Koichi was trying to go fast so the dog didn’t get too far away, and of course this was a colossal mistake. His sole slipped on the metal, slipping right out from under him. Since he was still unbalanced on top of the fence, he just fell backward. Luckily, the hem of his jeans caught in the pointed fabric at the top. His back flopped against the fence, his face just level with Kazuho’s.
“Good grief,” she huffed while he gave her an embarrassed grin. “You just couldn’t help it, could ya? Ya had to go with the ‘hanging-from-the-chain-link-fence’ trope.”
“Look, Pop, I’m not in charge here,” Koichi pouted. He hoped that whatever cosmic being was currently in charge of their fate would lighten up a little, though. Everybody loved a comedy of errors, but did they have to be this on the nose?
Koichi heaved a sigh, then curled his body up to try tugging the fabric loose. As his core burned with sharp pain, he made a mental note to start working on his abs. He immediately began to sweat from the strain, causing his already shaky fingers to fumble uselessly around the denim. He managed to grab a hold of it, and after a few swift tugs, a loud riiiiiiiip! filled the air.
For a second, Koichi felt accomplished. Then he realized that he was suspended in the air with nothing to hold him up.
He let out a shrill shriek as he went plummeting to the ground. He landed in a heap at Kazuho’s feet. She looked down at him in pity, her hands on her hips and her lips pursed.
“Anything else? Would you like an anvil, too?”
“Pop, please, don’t encourage the cruel writer of our misery,” Koichi groaned. Maybe he should just make himself comfortable here. If he channeled his inner fire hydrant, would Taeko be compelled to meander back to come take a whizz on him? It certainly seemed better than venturing into the construction yard and finding out whatever fresh hell awaited them.
Then he recalled the little girl’s sobbing face, her cheeks shining with tears. Ugh, I have to get up, he convinced himself. He rolled over with a loud groan, then slowly pushed himself to his feet. He brushed the dust and dirt off his clothes, took a deep breath, and then looked at Kazuho.
“Ready?”
“Ready, but you’re going first,” she said with a gesture of her hand. He laughed, but part of him felt a little betrayed by the fact that she was willing to sacrifice him for the entertainment of this cruel cosmic deity hellbent on citing every comedy trope in the book for this mission. He clasped his hands together in prayer as he walked, looked up at the sky through the shell of the half-constructed building, and mouthed, “Please have mercy.”
“Hey! There he is!”
Koichi wildly looked around, scanning their hustling and bustling surroundings for their runaway pooch. A flash of brown-and-white brought him to the edge of the building—just in time to see Taeko sit down on a piece of rebar and begin vigorously licking his crotch. All fine and dandy, except that rebar was now being lifted by a crane to the top of the building.
“Okay, I’m seriously starting to think that we’re trapped in a cartoon or something,” Koichi groaned.
“Stop whining and get after him!” Kazuho ordered, shoving him forward before taking off in a sprint towards the rising pooch. Koichi rolled his eyes, then ran after her. They both stopped underneath the rebar, not quite sure what to do. If the crane stopped, the rebar could shudder, dislodging the puppy from his perch. The best thing to do was to try to get up to the top of the construction site and grab him off the rebar, Koichi decided. So he activated his Quirk and went zipping up the huge piece of metal spearing into the sky.
It didn’t take long for Koichi to catch up and match speed with the rising rebar. Taeko tilted his head and wagged his tail at him.
“Don’t worry, Taeko! I’m gonna get you! Just stay there!” Koichi cried back at him. The rebar slowly stopped rising, coming to rest beside the top floor of the construction. Taeko turned his head to look at the piece of scaffolding beside him. He then looked back at Koichi, who gave him the sternest warning glare that he could muster. Then, with a happy bark, the dog jumped off and went scampering across the scaffolding.
“You have got to be kidding me!” Koichi shouted. His aggravation temporarily made him lose control of his Quirk. He yelped as he slipped down a few feet, instinctually wrapping all of his limbs around it like a koala. It was then that Kazuho came hopping up, landing on the scaffolding. He gave her a sheepish grin as she pouted at him.
“Youtotally owe me dinner for this.”
The two hurried across the scaffolding. It was the width of two people, but strewn with construction supplies and very bemused construction workers. They seemed oblivious to the Jack Russell moseying along and weaving between their legs and were thus very confused by the two teenagers running through their construction site. One fellow with a very big wrench and very big muscles stepped in front of them to stop them. Koichi frantically pointed over his shoulder, and when he turned to look, Koichi and Kazuho slipped around them to resume their frantic chase of the puppy.
“We’re sorry! Please direct all complaints to the author!” Koichi shouted over his shoulder as he dashed away.
As he went up, Taeko went down, blissfully riding a crane elevator to the bottom of the construction site. Koichi peered down and nearly had a heart attack when he saw the pup walking through a verifiable minefield—whirring saws, jerking jackhammers, slamming sledgehammers. Despite the sparks and bits of metal and rock raining down around him, the dog pressed on and emerged from the carnage without a scratch.
“We’re not going to get through there unscathed, are we, Pop?” Koichi asked, then swallowed thickly. She patted him on the shoulder.
“I will. You won’t.” And she leaped away, using her Quirk to give her a safe descent to the edge of the work field. Koichi sighed, then did the sign of the cross over his chest. Here goes nothing.
“Okay, so, a missing toenail, metal in my arm, and sawdust lung really aren’t that bad compared to what could have happened,” he wheezed to Kazuho as he dragged himself across the ground, flopping in front of her. She had her fists pushed into her hips as she leaned down over him, her lips pursed in faux pity.
“You just haaaaaad to take a job right as we were done for the day,” she tutted. Koichi just groaned as she grabbed him by the hood of his jacket to haul him to his feet. “Come on, the puppy went into the fish market.” She jabbed her thumb over her shoulder. Koichi peered around her, and his heart swelled with so much relief that it almost burst when he realized that the fencing on that side hadn’t been completed yet. It immediately renewed his vigor, so he set off in a sprint with a cheerful, “Come on, Pop!” She rolled her eyes, then ran after him into the fish market.
The fish market was a maze of stalls, customers, and boxes full of dead fish chilling on ice. They walked up to the closest vendor, a petite old woman hacking off fish heads with a cleaver nearly as big as her. The cleaver made thick chopping sounds as it whacked into the wooden box she was using as a cutting board.
The old woman finally stopped whacking at the fish carcasses to look at him with droopy eyes. Wordlessly, she pointed the business end of the cleaver across the street. Koichi and Kazuho turned around to see another fish stall; the boxes were empty, and the plastic draping the entrance of the small shack behind it was flapping in the fishy wind.
“Thank you!” the two teenagers chirped simultaneously. They immediately sprang for the shack, oblivious to the old woman humming thoughtfully behind them.
“Taeko?!” Koichi exclaimed breathlessly as he charged into the shack. The strips of plastic draping clung to his shoulders as he stood there, panting heavily. The little puppy was sitting in the middle of the room with his wagging tail repeatedly thumping against the dirty wooden floor, and he let out a happy bark. Koichi nearly fainted with relief. He opened his mouth to call him over, but the words died in his throat as someone gruffly cleared their throat.
Koichi slowly trailed his gaze upwards. Behind Taeko sat a group of men at a card table. On the table were stacks of yen bills and a plastic-wrapped block of white powder.
You have got to be joking, Koichi thought, casting a judgmental look at the ceiling. There was a hole in the wood, giving him a perfect patch of clear blue sky to shake his fist angrily at. I’m a good noodle! Do I really deserve this?!
The drug dealers certainly didn’t care that Koichi was a good noodle, either.
Koichi tackled Kazuho to the ground as soon as they moved. The small shack rang with gunshots and scraping chairs and Taeko’s confused barks. Koichi and Kazuho used their Quirks to jump around the small building, rocketing around like the ricocheting bullets to subdue the criminals one by one. Taeko just remained where he was sitting the entire time despite the bodies falling to the ground around him, barking in encouragement.
Koichi landed in front of the final thug and gave him a swift chop to the solar plexus. The man’s eyes rolled into the back of his head, but despite the fact that he was clearly unconscious, he remained standing. Koichi poked him in the middle of his chest, and then the man slowly tipped backward. He landed flat on his back with a tremendous thonk! Taeko hopped up on the man’s chest, growling into his face before sitting on his pecs and giving a doggy smile to Koichi.
“Aw, don’t give me those puppy-dog eyes,” Koichi sighed. Taeko whined and flattened his ears to his head as Kocihi waggled a stern finger at him. “Do you have any idea what kind of trouble you’ve put us through?”
“Don’t scold him, Koichi,” Kazuho said. She scooped Taeko up into her arms, and the puppy immediately responded by enthusiastically covering her face in affectionate licks. As she tried to avoid his eager tongue, Kazuho giggled, “He’s so cute! He’s just a curious little boy who wanted to have an adventure, huh?”
“Come on! You’ve been griping this whole time!” Koichi cried. He slammed his hands to either side of his head, dangerously close to pulling his black hairs out of his head. However, he decided that baldness was not the reward he desired for this mission; with a heavy sigh, he just deflated, back hunched over to let his shoulders droop and arms dangling in front of him. “Whatever… Let’s just go return the dog so we can finallygo home.”
“Taeko!” the little girl exclaimed with delight as soon as she opened the door to her apartment. Taeko sprang from Kazuho’s arms and straight into his owner’s. If he had been vigorous in showing Kazuho his affection, he was downright manic with the little girl, coating every inch of her face that he could with slobber. The little girl’s giggles were high-pitched and screechy with unbridled happiness, but it was a sound that filled Koichi’s heart to the brim with joy.
“Thank you so much!” the little girl smiled at him when the puppy had finally settled down. He was nearly limp in her arms, eyes drooping as he struggled to fight off impending sleep. It was no wonder that he was exhausted, after the chase he’d led the two vigilantes on. “Please wait here! We’ll get your reward!”
“Oh, that’s not necessary!” Koichi interjected quickly as the mother moved to pull her wallet out of her purse. “I’ve gotten all the reward I need with your smile,” he told the little girl. She shyly hugged the puppy, who cuddled further into her chest. “Just keep a closer eye on him from now on, okay?” he told her while reaching out to ruffle her hair. “That puppy has had an adventure of a lifetime today!”
“Thanks again!” the little girl trilled as they took their leave, waving at them from her doorstep. Koichi and Kazuho walked down the steps to the sidewalk, where they both heaved simultaneous sighs and allowed the exhaustion to finally show. As both of them slumped down into a sitting position on the stoop, they looked at one another through the corners of their eyes.
“So… You mentioned something about dinner.”
“I’mstarving,” Kazuho agreed. She tilted her head to the side, then smiled slightly. “I know I said I would make you pay, but… that turned out to be kinda fun. I guess I’ll let you off the hook this time.”
“Wow, thanks,” Koichi laughed sarcastically. Kazuho elbowed him in his arm, making him laugh again. Both of their bellies rumbled with the desire for food, but they both lingered on the curb for a moment. They tilted back their heads to look at the sky, watching it flood gold with the setting sun.
Sure, sometimes vigilante-ing was hard… but it was alwaysworth it.
