Dante was strolling calmly through the city, his steps light but his senses were sharp as always. It had been a while since he'd last visited his first homeless home, the rooftop he used to call home before he had met that strange group of people. He wasn't sure exactly why he was heading there. Maybe for some nostalgia, or maybe it was just curiosity.
When he finally climbed up to the rooftop, the wind hit his face instantly and the old view of the city stretched out before him. The nostalgic hum of traffic, the occasional siren and the smell of the streets, it all felt the same as the day he left it.
But something wasn't the same, there was something… or rather, someone else.
A man sat on the edge, scarf wrapped loosely around his neck, hair still a mess, eyes half open as if he hadn't slept in years.
Well it was Aizawa of course, maybe he had something with this rooftop. Since this is where Dante had met him too.
Dante blinked, but Aizawa had already noticed him.
"…Oh? Those eyes are hard to forget. You're still alive it seems, and not doing too bad."
Dante sighed, walking closer. "Nice to see you again too."
Aizawa eyed him, scanning his form. Taller, way more muscular, clearly stronger than before. "You've changed a lot in the last few years."
"You haven't," Dante spat back, leaning against the railing.
Aizawa let out a quiet, tired chuckle. "Guess I haven't."
For a while, they just sat there, looking over the city. It was strange, they had first met in this exact spot when Dante was trying to kill himself. He never even expected to run into him again, but something about seeing him now… it felt oddly normal.
Eventually, Aizawa spoke again. "So, what have you been up to?"
Dante shrugged. "Training. Fighting. Trying to live. Pushing forward with no clear direction."
Aizawa just hummed in response. "Figured as much."
Silence lingered before Dante spoke again, his tone casual. "I've been thinking about U.A., thought I'd tell you since you're a hero after all."
That actually made Aizawa raise an eyebrow. "U.A.? The hero school?"
Dante nodded. "Yeah."
Aizawa gave him a long, unreadable look before a sudden laugh escaped him.
Dante frowned. "What's so funny?"
"You," Aizawa said, shaking his head. "You've spent your years on the streets right? No formal education? No middle school, barely any elementary school… and now you're interested in U.A.? You do know it's compulsory to have at least 9 years in education to attend high school in Japan right? And you've been underground fighting yeah? And you want to become a hero…"
Dante scoffed. "Didn't say I want to be a hero or anything, or even go to school for that matter."
Aizawa smirked. "Then why?"
Dante was quiet for a moment. "…Villains are strong yeah? Well I just wanna fight strong people."
Aizawa sighed. "Well of course you do." He stretched slightly, then glanced over at Dante. "You know, I actually work as a teacher there."
Dante blinked. "Wait, for real?"
Aizawa nodded. "If you ever actually wanted to apply… I could vouch for you, you know. You seem competent enough, and that's only if you pass the written exam. Plus, I'd need to see what you're capable of, but if you've made it this far on fighting alone, I think your combat capabilities should be more than adequate."
Dante snorted. "The written exam is going to be an easy full marks. I don't need a hero's recommendation."
"Not a recommendation," Aizawa corrected. "Just a chance, you know?"
Dante glanced at him. He wasn't sure what to say to that.
For a moment he just looked back over the city again, letting the wind fill the silence.
Then, with a sigh, he pushed off the railing. "I… I'll think about it, okay?"
Aizawa smirked. "You do that."
And with that, Dante made his way back down to the alleys.
…
…
A few days had passed since Dante had spoken to Aizawa, but he hadn't given U.A. much thought at all. There wasn't a point in his eyes. He had his life, his routine. Training and fighting, over and over. But… then again, was that really what he wanted? It felt strange to Dante, but it was as if he wanted more even though he had painstakingly trained to be where he is now.
For now, he was just walking around.
The streets were familiar, he'd walked them over a hundred times before. People greeted him as he passed. Some with a nod, others with a quick "Good evening!" It was strange to think about how much had changed.
After another couple of minutes, he stopped by a food stall, and the owner grinned when spotting him.
"Heya kid, you want the usual?"
"Yeah, please." Dante said, handing over some cash. A second later, a large steaming skewer of grilled meat was in his hand. He took a bite, savouring the taste.
"You're lookin' restless, kid. You doing okay?" The owner commented.
Dante just shrugged. "Just wandering around I guess, nothing exciting."
The man chuckled. "Must be nice, having the time to just relax."
Dante didn't respond, then quickly thanked the man before heading off.
He kept walking for hours, drifting from street to street. He stopped at a random convenience store, not the old man's, just another one to grab a drink. The cashier seemed to recognise him, but instead of causing trouble and robbing the place like the first time he was here years ago, he just paid and left.
He ended up near a park, near the same place he had beat up Bakugo all those years ago, just sitting there on a bench as children played behind him. Then, a stray cat wandered up to him, rubbing against his leg.
Dante leaned down, scratching behind its ear. "Hey little guy. You hungry?"
The cat meowed, and he tore off a small piece of his food, placing it on the ground for the cat. The cat sniffed, then started eating away.
He leaned back on the bench, letting the world move around him.
No fights. No training. No responsibilities. Just… existing.
Despite finally being free, not bound by any chains… Dante felt…
Bored?
It was like he wanted something to happen, like something was missing.
Dante got back on his feet, just letting his body move wherever, just waiting for something to happen. The city was the exact same as earlier, people chatting etc etc…
He ended up in what seemed to be a shopping district? Where the sidewalks were packed full with students heading home. Groups of people in uniforms, some younger, some around his age, all laughing and talking. He felt a pain in his chest, yeah, he was able to live his life… but in neither of his lives was he able to enjoy his teenage years or well school life in general.
But to be fair, in this life, he was partly to blame. Either way, just looking at the people, he could easily determine which ones were the classic "delinquent" type just by how they carried themselves, shoulders squared, hands shoved into pockets and just overall trying way to hard to look tough.
This was probably from hanging around with real delinquents for a long few years…
He just stood there and watched the passing crowds, and the thought of U.A. hit him again, that's a school yeah? He still had time to enjoy school life…
It was weird though. Seeing kids his age, kids who had gone to school all normal, lived regular lives. If things were different, he would be even be able to like them? Would he be walking around with friends, complaining about homework? Probably not…
"Tch. Dumb thought."
He shook it off and kept walking.
But in the distance, he noticed something…
There was a huge crowd up ahead. People were gathered, some murmuring, some pointing and some crying.
"What's this? Is something happening?" Dante mumbled to himself as he slowly dragged himself forward.
His curiosity got the better of him as he got closer, quickly weaving through the growing sea of people. When he got closer, he saw what was grabbing everyone's attention.
There sure was a lot of heroes.
A whole lot of em.
Standing near a row of burning buildings, their flashy outfits were unmistakable. The flashing lights of police cars bathed ste street in red and blue behind them. Smoke billowed from the alley, thick and dark smoke was covering the sky, it almost felt like night time.
Dante's eyes narrowed. "The hell's going on?"
But then his eyes caught something, he saw it. A giant mass of dark green sludge, trashing violently in the middle of the street with a teenage boy in its grasp, he was wearing a school uniform and well…
The boy was clearly enraged, explosions were coming out of his body every other second.
Obviously, Dante recognised this hothead almost immediately, it was Bakugo Katsuki from his elementary school.
The heroes were struggling to contain the situation, claiming their quirks weren't suited for this.
But Dante already knew what they were dealing with.
Well, not what they were dealing with.
It was who.
And well, that who…
It was Dante's Father, the Sludge Villain.