Outside y/n's bedroom window, light rays were peeking out from the horizon, causing the snow in the distance to look like shining gold. Tomura spent all night laying by y/n's side, keeping a vigilant eye on her. Tomura was well aware of how early Kurogiri woke up. Carefully, he sat up at the edge of her bed and stayed there for a moment longer, parting ways before Kurogiri left his room.

Tomura threw himself on the couch and tried to go to bed. His brain wouldn't let him sleep. Tomura's thoughts kept attacking him with doubt.

Frustrated and tired, Tomura sat up and hunched forward. The blue-haired villain rested his head on his knees, using an arm as a pillow. He let his other arm dangle to his side. Y/n was tossing and turning all night, Tomura was sure she was just as tired as he was. He tried convincing himself that it would be okay to take a short nap.

"You're up early, " a deep voice said in surprise. Tomura lifted his head and looked at Kurogiri before lowering it again. Tomura raised his free arm and flung it over his head. His fingers lightly scratched at the back of his neck. " Or, " he paused; "you haven't slept yet, have you?" 

Tomura let out a groan in response. Although it must look like he was trying to sleep, Tomura's eyes were wide open. Tomura listened to Kurogiri rummage around in the room, and he ground his teeth in frustration.

After several painstaking minutes, Tomura heard Kurogiri's footsteps go along the hardwood floor to another room. Silence filled the room once again. After a bit, Tomura lifted his head. He couldn't get those worries out of his head. Tomura felt like he was handing his project away for other people to play with. He didn't like feeling like this.

"Oh, so you're awake after all, " Kurogiri said from the kitchen door. Tomura narrowed his eyes at him, refusing to answer such an obvious question. "Shall we discuss what's left to do." Tomura didn't want to. He was having a hard time concentrating. Lack of sleep and his discovery shared the blame. 

Even so, Tomura gave Kurogiri clearance to continue. "Dabi and y/n collected nine subjects last night. Himiko and Spinner came back empty-handed. Compress collected three. And Twice found us one. We have twenty-four left. If we send everyone out again, it should take them no more than three days to reach our goal. I thought it would be beneficial to send y/n to Dabi now; they might make use of-"

"No, " Tomura snapped. He didn't expect his temper to burst out as it did. The thought of pairing y/n with Dabi again, especially knowing something Kurogiri didn't, made him stress out even more. In a much calmer, by Tomura's standard, at least, he backtracked. "She's still sleeping."

Kurogiri pulled out a pocket watch y/n gave him. He felt his stomach turn, seeing y/n's gift to Kurogiri. "Still?" Kurogiri asked; "she's usually awake by now. Surely I should go wake her up." Kurogiri turned towards the hallway.

"Stop, " Tomura demanded his voice dripped with rage. He could not allow Kurogiri anywhere near her room. Y/n wasn't sleeping in her usual nighttime attire, due to the injury along her arm. Kurogiri immediately stopped and turned to Tomura. "Wouldn't you think waking her up is detrimental to y/n? She needs to think before using her quirk. If she's tired, her judgment will be off."

Tomura stared down Kurogiri, like a wolf studying its prey, the blue-haired villain refused to break eye contact. He wasn't above killing Kurogiri if he tried to disobey his orders.

"My apologies. You are correct. Y/n's quirk can be a double-edged sword if she's not in top mental condition." Tomura sat up straight and crossed his arms, acting like that was precisely the reason why Kurogiri cannot see y/n yet.

Tomura vigilantly watched Kurogiri's every movement from the couch. Although Kurogiri promised he'd step down and let y/n sleep, Tomura didn't trust him.

He fought through his sleep deprivation and watched for hours. Tomura got a sudden boost of energy as soon as he heard y/n's door close. Tomura reached out for father and carefully placed the disembodied hand on his face.

For the first time in a long time, Tomura didn't immediately shun y/n merely because Kurogiri is awake. He made eye contact with y/n before observing her outfit and demeanor. 

Y/n had her hair pulled back, a strand of h/c hair hovered near her cheek. She was dressed in a f/c sweater and a set of black gloves. Y/n gave him a smile that knotted his lungs. Even though she tried to look happy, Tomura could see the tired expression in her eyes. She was also keeping her injured arm motionless. So she intends to keep it a secret?

Kurogiri emerged from his room. Tomura guessed that he also heard y/n leave her room. "Miss y/n." Tomura watched y/n turn to face Kurogiri. "We want you to accompany Dabi again. Please get ready. You're already behind schedule, thanks to your oversleeping."

Tomura listened to Kurogiri scold y/n. He watched her bow her head and apologized for causing trouble. She flinched as she stood up straight. Tomura dug his nails in his neck as he stood up abruptly. Both y/n and Kurogiri glanced at Tomura.

The blue-haired villain approached the television pressed against the wall. He tapped the screen with a finger. "Before she goes, I have a small task for y/n."

"A task?" Kurogiri echoed; "we're already so far behind."

"It will only take a minute, " Tomura growled. He held his hand out, motioning y/n to come closer.

Y/n gave Tomura an unsure look before glancing up at Kurogiri. She turned to Tomura and slowly approached him. Tomura tapped the television on the small table. He leaned down, so he and y/n were at eye level. He cocked his head to the side. "Can you move this in front of the couch for me?"

"That's it?" Kurogiri asked angrily, Kurogiri's form fluctuated with his temper.

"Shut up!" Tomura raised his voice, causing Kurogiri to hesitate. Tomura looked down at y/n and crossed his arms. "It shouldn't take much effort. It's not that far." Tomura hid an expressively wide smile on his face behind the hand.

Y/n hesitated as she looked over the television, merely looking at it made y/n's arm sting. She knew this appeared to be a random request, but Tomura wasn't random; everything he asks always has a purpose to it. 

Reaching out for the little table hurt. Y/n felt like her wounds were ripping apart as she stretched out her arm. Y/n side-eyed Tomura. "Go on, so Kurogiri can send you out."

He knows. Y/n stepped away from the table and placed her hand on her damaged arm. She turned her head away from Tomura, avoiding meeting his eyes. As usual, Tomura was thirty steps ahead of her. "I don't know how you-"

"Empty bandage wrappers in the bathroom, " Tomura explained, sounding quite smug. 

Y/n swallowed hard. She wasn't in the right mind last night, y/n couldn't believe she let such a small thing skip her mind. Before y/n could defend herself, Kurogiri spoke up. "Come now, let us see the wound."

Y/n removed her glove and showed her hastily bandaged hand to Kurogiri. "Is that all?" Y/n opened her mouth to speak.

"No, I saw that. Don't you dare say what you were going to say," Tomura snapped. Y/n flinched as she immediately closed her mouth.

Y/n exited the room and walked down the hallway. A surge of pain ran up her arm. Y/n recoiled and held her arm, causing even more pain. The process was slow, but she eventually managed to pull the sweater off. Y/n sat on her bed, changing her shirt alone was exhausting. She rubbed the side of her thumb to wipe away her tears. Y/n struggled to her dresser and threw a tank top over her head.

Kurogiri extended his head towards y/n's direction. She watched as he observed her wounds. Y/n guessed that he was judging her shoddy job bandaging up her arm. Blood was beginning to seep to the other side. Y/n didn't think to bring the first aid kit with her to the room.

Kurogiri motioned to the couch. "Sit down. I'll redress your wounds." Y/n nodded and thanked Kurogiri quietly. Y/n kept her head down, her hands folded on her lap. Tomura sat down next to her, right by her wounded arm. The air around him was heavy. Y/n was having a difficult time breathing with his sharpened gaze on her.

The two were left alone together for a while Kurogiri retrieved a first aid kit. Y/n glanced up at Tomura. She could tell he wasn't happy, but y/n couldn't figure out why not. Tomura had opened to her much more lately, but he was still an enigma.

Kurogiri returned with the little white box in his smoke-like hands. Kurogiri glanced over to Tomura. "Do you mind?" he asked. 

Y/n guessed that was the most polite way to ask Tomura to move over Kurogiri could think of. Tomura grumbled as he circled the couch and sat to y/n's right. 

Kurogiri sat down and carefully pulled off the bandages. "Whoever did this got you good, didn't they?" Kurogiri asked in a lighthearted tone. Y/n wondered if Kurogiri was trying to ignore lecturing her earlier.

In the corner of her eye, y/n saw Tomura lean forward a little. "And you wanted her to work with Dabi again today? She keeps coming back hurt every time he's with her, " Tomura snapped.

"Miss y/n came back in perfect condition the first time, " Kurogiri retorted.

Tomura leaned even closer to y/n and pointed to the back of her hand. Y/n had a very faint burn mark from the villain with the acid saliva. It was barely noticeable. "What's this, then?"

Kurogiri took a glance at the mark on y/n's hand before returning to her arm. The shadow-like villain shook his head. "So, miss y/n, where did this wound come from?" 

Y/n hesitated to answer Kurogiri's question. As much as she didn't get along with Dabi, y/n didn't want Tomura to lose his temper at Dabi. Both villains were strong and wielded incredibly destructive quirks. The last thing y/n wanted was to see the two hurt each other. 

Tomura grumbled and stepped out of the room. Y/n watched as he slammed the garage door. It's been a while since Tomura had been genuinely mad at her. Y/n doesn't remember it ever hurting this much.

"I'm sorry if that hurt." Y/n's attention turned to Kurogiri. She hadn't been taking notice of anything Kurogiri had been doing since Tomura's fit. Part of her couldn't help but wonder if he knew how she felt inside right now.

Y/n ignored the thought when she noticed the bottle of disinfectant in his hand. "Ah, no. I didn't even notice."

 "Do you know why he's upset right now?" Kurogiri asked as he cleaned up the couch. Y/n hoped his question was hypothetical, and he was going to give her the answer. She shook her head. "Must be one of his moods then. It'll blow over in a day or two. I suppose with his current attitude, it would be best to keep you here until he calms down."

Y/n thought that she'd feel relieved that she didn't have to put up with Dabi today, but the hurt she felt from seeing Tomura mad at her was too much. "Can I check on him?" y/n asked.

"No, I don't think so. It's best to leave Tomura Shigaraki be." Y/n knew Kurogiri was going to say something like that. Even with Tomura being as distraught as he was, Kurogiri insisted that they stay apart.

"Thank you for understanding. I promise I'll be quick." Y/n left Kurogiri alone while Liar took over his memories, convincing Kurogiri that he gave y/n permission to follow Tomura.

Y/n cracked the door open. She saw something fly to the wall and shatter upon impact. With her good arm, y/n held the little locket she kept strapped around her neck at all times. She didn't want Tomura or Nobuo hurt, but surely the monster could protect her from any flying projectiles.

Y/n opened the door a little bit more. Another ceramic projectile exploded against the door. That confirmed it, Tomura meant to aim at her. Y/n swallowed hard and opened the door more. "Tomura," y/n called out.

"Get out," Tomura growled. Y/n considered informing him that she had not entered the garage, but she held her tongue. Instead, she opened the door a little more and slid inside. "What did I tell you?"

Y/n walked inside, being careful to not step on any of the shards scattered along the top of the concrete. As she walked, y/n kept her head down as if making eye contact with Tomura might set him off again. Y/n sat down on the mattress and finally looked over to Tomura. "I'm just here to check on you. I'll leave in a little bit."

Tomura paced around the garage. Y/n silently watched him. He didn't look like it, but y/n knew he was trying to calm himself down. Y/n decided to sit still and wait. He was bound to ease his mind.

It took nearly half an hour for Tomura to stop pacing. Y/n moved over, silently inviting Tomura to sit next to her. Nobuo defensively curled his body over y/n. She gently pat the monster on the arm. 

Tomura took her nonverbal hint and sat next to her. The villain still gave off an aura of rage, y/n knew to keep her guard up and not to be careless with her word choice. The two sat next to each other in complete silence.

Tomura was the first to break the silence finally. "I thought you don't like Dabi."

"He gets on my nerves, " y/n replied, giving Tomura an indirect answer. Y/n wasn't fond of Dabi, but she didn't hate him. She was well too familiar with Tomura's jealous tendencies. Even so, she didn't think he would be envious of Dabi of all people.

"Then why protect him?" he asked. Y/n knew the answer, but she wasn't sure if her answer would enrage Tomura.

Y/n paused as she thought about how to word her question. Tomura was still very emotional, and y/n knew she had to be careful. "I don't want you two to fight. I can't say I know who'd win."

Y/n could see his red eyes dilate in anger. "Why? If you don't get along with Dabi, why would you be concerned for him."

She fidgeted with her fingers anxiously, as y/n thought about her answer. "It's just the type of person I am, I guess."

"And what if it was Twice instead of Dabi?" His voice was laced with jealousy and suspicion.

Y/n's face lit up, and she smiled at Tomura. "I'd be more concerned for Jin than you, of course." She could tell Tomura didn't appreciate that. Y/n backtracked and explained herself. "I know you'd win a fight between you and Jin, so naturally, I wouldn't worry about you as much."

In an instant, Tomura seemed to relax and let out a raspy chuckle. Y/n felt her heart melt. Tomura rarely laughed as is, and it made her feel warm inside, knowing she was the one who made him laugh.

Y/n flinched and held onto her arm as a jolt of pain ran along her nerves. She tried her best to stifle a pained whine, but to no avail, it slipped past her lips. Tomura's posture stiffened back up. Y/n felt herself feeling faint all of a sudden. She fought her exhaustion, wanting to stay by Tomura's side for a little bit longer.

Tomura changed the subject and asked y/n to tell him how she got injured. Y/n hesitated; she finally got Tomura in a somewhat leveled mood. Y/n didn't want to anger him. Y/n found herself between a rock and a hard spot. She knew she could either stat silent and irritate him or recall the story and upset him that way.

Y/n decided to tell Tomura the story. She wanted something in return. Y/n pointed to her face. "Can I talk to you, though?" She saw Tomura's eyes narrow at her. Y/n wondered if she overstepped. Tomura grumbled and pulled father off his face. Y/n smiled. "Thank you."

Y/n explained what happened. As she told him the story, y/n left specific details out that she knew would outrage Tomura, like the fact that Dabi used y/n as bait to lure out Shimamoto from hiding. Y/n talked about where she got her injuries and how her arm was dislocated. Y/n ended the story with her escape and Dabi killing Shimamoto.

Tomura began clawing at his neck. Y/n watched him helplessly as she worried that he'd rip his way to an artery. Without thinking about it, y/n interlaced her fingers with his and placed the palm of her hands on his neck. Tomura reacted and jerked his hands away. "Are you stupid?!"

Y/n kept her hands planted firmly on his neck. "I trust you wouldn't hurt me."

"I could, on accident, if you keep pulling stunts like that." Tomura sounded frustrated. Y/n apologized as she lightly ran her fingers along his skin, where Tomura was previously scratching.

"What was the lie?" Tomura asked. Y/n held her breath. She didn't want to lie to Tomura. At the same time, she didn't want to tell him.

Y/n thought about the lie. She told Shimamoto that she wasn't worth anything to Tomura. Although it was previously revealed to y/n that Tomura tolerates her, however, y/n knew it was much more than that. Tomura valued her a lot more than everyone else in The League of Villains.

She put on an oblivious front, but y/n was no idiot. Between Tomura's jealous fits, the way he's always watching everything she does, and the fact that Tomura is much friendlier and more patient with y/n. It was apparent Tomura had a small crush. However, she was never able to tell if he knew himself. Y/n never had any intention to pursue Tomura, so she ignored his feelings and hoped they would go away over time.

Y/n swallowed hard. "He was planning to use me as a bargaining token. I told him that you didn't value me as a teammate." Y/n thought that was a good cover-up. She managed to avoid both lying to Tomura and explaining that she was aware of his little secret.

Tomura looked like he was lost in thought. "Smart move." Y/n could feel her face burn up as soon as she heard Tomura's compliment.

"Uhm, thank you." Y/n felt embarrassed at how horrible she was at hiding her feelings. She averted her eyes for a moment and then looked up at the villain.

Y/n remembered the dream she had nearly half a year ago. She felt awful for thinking about finding out how realistic it genuinely was. Even if it was merely a pipe dream, it didn't stop y/n from slowly leaning closer to Tomura's face. Y/n's grip on the sides of his neck tightened the closer she got to his face.

"Ah– ouch," y/n recoiled and held her arm. She was both disappointed and relieved. Y/n had no idea what came over her.

Tomura placed a hand on her shoulder. "You look exhausted. Go to bed. The faster you heal up, the sooner I can put you back in the playfield." Y/n's heart sank as she nodded and stood up. She said her goodbye to Nobuo and went back to bed.

Tomura took a short nap on the couch after he sent y/n to bed. The sun had long set by the time Tomura had woken up. Tomura reached out to the coffee table and dug through the games y/n bought him.

Not too long after he started his game, Tomura heard movement behind him. Tomura turned around to see a pair of e/c eyes anxiously looking at him from the hallway. "You may as well stay in bed. If your wounds keep reopening from you moving around, it'll just take longer to heal."

"I was…" y/n's voice trailed off.

"Spit it out or go to bed, " Tomura demanded.

"I can't really sleep anymore, so I was going to ask if I could watch you play for a little bit." Tomura figured she would be a little restless. He had injured himself more times than he could count, Tomura was all too familiar with the tediousness of waiting to heal.

"Go back to bed." Tomura used a much sterner voice. Y/n immediately turned around and scurried away. Tomura turned back to his game. He found himself unable to concentrate. Tomura groaned. "Fine."

The villain got up off the couch and entered y/n's room. He sat down next to her on the bed. Tomura skinned through the game options and started a new file so y/n wouldn't be lost entirely and asking questions.

Y/n scooted close to Tomura and rested her head on his arm. While he played, Tomura vaguely talked about the game while trying to avoid spoilers. 

He stayed with y/n until the sun came back up. By that time, y/n had long fallen asleep. Tomura saved his game and excited her room before Kurogiri woke up.

Over the next few days, Tomura maintained the same schedule. He'd wake up sometime in the late evening and hear Kurogiri's status reports on both y/n's health and how the recruiting has been going without her. Once the shadow-like villain went to bed, Tomura would go to y/n's room for their nightly secret gaming sessions. 

Tomura would explain what y/n missed after she fell asleep before continuing his game file. He could tell y/n was getting into the game's plot, as she would occasionally theorize with him on what might happen next or what a sequel game could be about if one ever got released.

Y/n would always fall asleep before the sun came up. Tomura would carefully tuck y/n in bed before leaving her room. Then, Tomura would fall asleep, and the cycle would begin again.

Although Tomura snuck into her room at night behind Kurogiri's back to help her boredom while he played his games, sometimes the conversations they had would be off-topic. He watched as y/n cautiously took father from his lap and studied it. Tomura has never allowed anyone to touch his disembodied hands before. The villain vigilantly watched y/n's every movement. He had planned on taking the palm away from her.

"I didn't expect it to feel so leathery, " y/n said as she studied the hand from every angle.

"What did you expect?" Tomura asked. His voice was mixed with both irritation and curiosity.

Y/n let out a hum. "Plastic?" she answered; "or, you know, that stuff they make monster masks out of in horror movies."

"What?" Tomura replied, sounding more confused than anything else. "You know that's a real hand." He watched as y/n anxiously fumbled with the palm, allowing it to slip through her fingers. Tomura caught it and pulled it close to him. "Hey, watch it! I didn't let you look at it, so you can drop it."

"Ah- I-I'm so sorry, " y/n stuttered as she turned to the villain sitting in bed next to her and bowed her head. Y/n flinched and held her arm. "Oww."

"And you reopened your wound? This isn't your night." Tomura calmed himself down and bright back the relaxed atmosphere the room had before. Y/n gave Tomura a quick smile before apologizing again. "I forgive you. Just be more careful next time."

Tomura found himself looking forward to spending his nights with y/n. The two didn't have much in common, but that was to be expected as Tomura disliked a lot. Y/n was beginning to appreciate games a little more each day. On top of that, the two found themselves bonding over mutual dislikes.

The two have relentlessly mocked everything from a stupid movie they had both seen on their own accord at one point that everyone seemed to love to those overly macho guys that practically live at the public gyms. Tomura had never felt more comfortable with another person's company as he did with y/n. The feeling was the most horrific thing he has ever experienced. Even so, Tomura felt at home with the neverending sense of dread and terror.

"It took a few extra days, but all 150 subjects have been collected," Kurogiri informed his young leader.

"And about how long until all the Nomu are ready?" Tomura asked, finally interested in one of Kurogiri's status updates. 

"Three months," Kurogiri replied.

Tomura leaned back into the couch. He was lost in thought for a moment. The Nomu Project took The League nearly a year and a half to complete. In three months, it'll be all over. The blue-haired villain smiled uncontrollably. Just three more months.