Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Daddy!”

The man turned to the kid.

“We’re not done playing.” The little girl continued, sorrow on her face.

Her dad sighed and crouched down to be on the same eye level with her. He stroked her hair and smiled encouragingly. This seemed to cheer the girl up for a moment, though she soon turned sad again.

“You have to go?”

“I have to. This is a very important meeting, the boss is counting on me.”

“But we’re playing now, it’s important too. Why doesn’t he understand?”

The man sighed. It was an incredibly trivial and incredibly difficult question at the same time.

“He does understand, but this is a special situation. These investors are also very busy with very important things, this was the only time when all of them could come at once.”

“Ivystores?”

“People I’m meeting with.”

“But it’s after work.”

“It happens sometimes.”

“But it’s stupid.”

“World usually is stupid, Lisa. I'll be back as soon as I can, I promise. And then we'll finish playing, what do you say? And maybe mom will join?”

The girl looked up and smiled slightly. But a second later, she frowned again, as if considering something. She looked down at the tiny lion plushie she was holding in her hand and squeezed it tighter before holding it out to her dad.

“Rico will take care of you.”

He smiled slightly. It was his daughter's favorite toy, the fact that she wanted to lend it to him meant a lot. He carefully took the stuffed animal.

“And I will take care of Rico.”

The man stood up and put the plushie animal in his tuxedo pocket. Then he went to the mirror, smoothed his clothes and straightened his blue tie. And soon everything was spotless. Exactly as it should be.

He turned towards the girl, proud of himself.

“How do I look?”

“Like a smart dad who’s going to stupid meeting.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

“Oh! I know! I’ll have my own meeting! My plushies will. And they will be talking about really important things until you’ll be back.”

“Will you give me a report later?”

“So we could compare which was cooler?”

“Exactly.”

“I’m in!”

He smiled and ruffled his daughter's hair again. Out of the corner of his eye, he also noticed his wife, who was standing in the door, watching them with curiosity. When they exchanged glances, she approached the girl and lifted her into her arms. Lisa didn’t protest.

“And I'll make sure this meeting doesn't turn into any kind of rebellion.” His wife stated humorously, then turned to him once more. “Stay safe out there, okay?”

He nodded.

A minute later he was outside, walking down the sidewalk toward the tram stop. He had a few blocks to cross, but a quick glance at his watch calmed him down a bit. There was more than enough time, so barring an emergency, he'd be there exactly when he had to. There didn’t seem to be much traffic in the area either, since most of the neighborhood was at some cultural event, so the tram shouldn’t be late. In fact, there was no traffic at all.

He could hear birds singing from time to time, he could hear his own footsteps, and if he focused hard enough, he could probably even hear his watch ticking. No cars, no bikes, no shouting, no people. It was so quiet.

Too quiet.

Now he could probably hear his own heart beating as well.

“Relax. You’re overdramatic.”

Everything was fine. Only about four blocks left, nothing major. He was in no danger. It was a normal evening, and people on normal evenings are going where they had to go and coming home safely. No need to worry.

And then he saw something white in the corner of his eye.

He carefully turned his head and unfortunately he wasn't imagining things. On the other side stood a figure, leaning against a wall, their head turned towards him. A figure with an outfit far from casual. Without looking at them, he slowly turned his head forward again, not wanting to attract the stranger's attention. Although he probably did it anyway. Apart from that guy, he was the only person here.

That didn’t sound well.

The man took a deep breath, trying not to speed up his pace. Panicking wouldn't help him now. He had to get to the tram as quickly as possible. It was a good thing there was a shortcut between the streets. He didn't use it often, because it wasn't the safest place possible, but if there was a shortest route to the tram stop, it was this one. He'd be safe there. And other people would be there as well. Hopefully.

Or maybe he panicked too much? Maybe it was some kind of artist in disguise? Maybe some street performance? Some kind of prank? A really cruel prank? New hero? New hero, who likes to stalk people when they’re all alone and there is no danger to threaten them? Or just a regular guy who liked dressing up?

Or maybe it was a supervillain, because normal people in strange costumes didn’t happen in San Fransokyo.

“Don’t panic.” He whispered to himself. “You’re overdramatic.”

The villains had things against the heroes, against the police, against other influential or wealthy people, and against Krei (they all seemed to have a bone to pick with him), but not against ordinary, insignificant civilians. That person must have been waiting for someone. Maybe Big Hero 6 would show up there in a moment and start fighting, and he simply left home at the worst possible moment. If so, then he should get to the tram stop even faster.

He turned into a narrow street. And just a few seconds later, a chill ran down his spine. The villain had a bone to pick with the civilian.

He tried to go around him, but instead entered a dead end.

The villain blocked his path.

“Leaving so quickly?”

He turned to the criminal. And he realized it was a woman, or at least that's what the voice with the odd accent said. Actually, upon closer inspection, the posture pointed at that too. Not the face, since it was covered with something like a motorcycle helmet, but way stranger. Rest of her costume was strange as well. Black and white patterns, swirls, all kinds of geometric shapes. It was confusing. Hypnotizing.

He looked away immediately. This apparently amused her, because he heard her chuckle.

“You think you can escape? How childish.”

The man blinked. His family. His daughter. He had promised them he would come home. And now he didn't even know if that would happen. He didn't know anything.

“What do you want?”

“That’s a grand question. Unfortunately I can’t answer.”

Has he ever gotten under the skin of villains without even knowing it?

“Why? Why are you following me? Why did you chase me here?”

“You chased here yourself.”

“I don’t have money. I have nothing you could want.”

“You’re wrong.”

“What?”

He blinked, still not looking at her.

“Just a random man with a random life. You’re useless. For now.”

His breathing quickened, and if he hadn't heard his heartbeat before, it was now difficult to hear anything else. The villain was in front of him, behind him there was nothing but a wall, and he probably couldn't count on Big Hero 6. He didn't think they even knew she existed. Usually all the bad guys were shown on TV so people knew who to protect themselves from. He'd never seen her before.

He tried to run forward and push her, but she pushed him instead. She was stronger than he thought and pinned him to the wall.

He didn't stand a chance.

“Who are you?”

“You can call me Raito. Wanna know why I’m telling you this?”

“Why?”

“Because you won’t remember it anyway.”

Faster than he could see, she pulled out something resembling a flashlight and shined it right into his eyes. He managed to put his hand on the pocket where he kept Rico. And then there was only darkness.

Chapter Text

A little bit to the left. Then a little to the right. Carefully press against the wall to make the gap smaller and be sure it’s stable. And… there it was.

Perfect.

Hiro took a deep breath, smiled slightly and sat up in bed, looking at his handiwork. Tadashi’s degree certificate, framed, was finally hanging in its proper place. It involved taking down Hiro’s favorite robot clock, but he was willing to do it. He could find a smaller one and hang it somewhere else visible (if there was any in this mess) and he would still know what time it was. Tadashi was more important.

It had been a few days since Hiro had received his brother’s degree certificate, but it had only been that day that he had found the energy to frame it and hang it up. Trina, Buddy Guardians, the Robot Revolution, it had all been exhausting. But not as exhausting as the several-minute speech he had to give. He wanted to give.

The boy lowered his head and reached for the cap lying next to him. He turned it over in his hands a few times until he finally began to stare at the symbol.

“You deserved that, big brother.”

He closed his eyes and all he could hear was the slight creak of his bed boards. Well, at least until the all too familiar sound of actuators reached his ears too.

“Your stress level is elevated.”

“I’ll be fine, Baymax.”

“Your behavior indicates that you still have not recovered mentally from recent events.”

“Maybe I haven’t.”

“Do you want to talk about this?”

Did he? He wasn’t sure. On one hand, he just wanted to hit his bed, but on the other… he probably needed to talk about it with someone. After all, just because they had defeated Trina and everything had more or less gone back to status quo didn’t mean everyone was suddenly safe. They still had a lot of problems to deal with. They still had to make the world a better place.

“I just…really want to follow Tadashi’s leads.”

“Is following Tadashi’s leads improving your well-being?”

Hiro blinked.

“What? Why are you asking?”

“You seem tense when you say that. It is the opposite of well-being.”

“Of course I’m tense, everything’s changing, my friends graduated and the crazy noodle bot is loose on the streets.” The boy replied, more angrily than he intended to. “We have no idea what he’s planning in this noodle brain of his. And… that speech… I hope I didn’t mess anything up. I really wanted this to be perfect.”

“This was an excellent speech. I do not feel emotions, but everything you said was true. Also the gestures and facial expressions of Aunt Cass and your friends indicated that for them, this speech was perfect.”

Hiro smiled slightly. That was enough for him.

“Thanks Baymax.”

“Tadashi would be proud of you.”

“Now, that improves my well-being.”

“I suggest you look for Noodle Burger Boy tomorrow and now go to sleep. Rest helps to improve mental condition.”

The boy sighed, stood up, and hung his brother's cap back on the desk lamp. Well, he wouldn’t catch the crazy robot this tired anyway, so he could listen to Baymax.

He turned the lamp off.

_-_-_

Hiro went downstairs feeling much better than the day before. No one was keeping him awake and he was able to get a good sleep, as long as the smells from Aunt Cass’ café didn't start to reach him. All the bruises he'd gotten from fighting Trina had also mostly healed, so the pain had stopped bothering him so much. It was a good way to start the day.

Until he heard Bluff Dunder’s voice. He looked at the TV.

“…has not shown any signs of life for three days, so the police have released his image. On the day he disappeared, Mr. Kaneda was wearing a black suit and blue tie. Anyone who has seen the missing man is asked to report to the police station immediately.”

The boy focused on the photo. It was of a man in his thirties, maybe a little older, with black hair and brown eyes. Nothing special, no very distinctive features, maybe except a mole by his nose. Easy to mistake for other people. But… Hiro shouldn’t really focus on this. He wasn’t the one who should be looking for him, even though he really wanted to. Big Hero 6 couldn’t help everyone, it wasn’t their area of expertise. It was the area of the police. They had to do their things as well.

“This is the second person who has gone missing this week.” The presenter continued. “And now, let’s go back to the interesting things. Part eighteen of ‘Food I Don’t Care For’.”

Hiro rolled his eyes. Bluff Dunder will always be Bluff Dunder.

He greeted his aunt and walked over to one of the tables, a breakfast plate in his hand. But just as he was about to sit, he saw someone he recognized. Megan was sitting next to the window, staring at the TV and she was clearly lost in thoughts. Maybe he could disturb her a little?

He walked up to her and waved his hand in front of her face.

“Earth to Megan. Over!”

It worked. She looked at him and brightened up a little.

“Hiro! Hi.”

“So…” He placed the plate on the table and sat down across from her. “Long… morning?”

“Yeah, you can say so.”

“What happened?”

“Really? I thought you'd be the first to know.”

“About what?”

Megan pointed to the TV, where Bluff Dunder was currently holding the cauliflower.

“Missing people?”

Hiro sighed.

“We live in a city of five million. People are missing and will be missing.”

“But not in this way.”

The boy frowned.

“What do you mean?”

“I've read about this guy.” She pulled out her phone, opened it to an article, and showed it to Hiro. “He has a family that misses him, he has a stable life. There's no reason for him to disappear. Same with the other three.”

“What if it’s just the surface? Maybe his loving family isn’t as loving as we think it is.”

“Maybe, but something’s wrong, I can feel it. They’re not the typical cases. And I can’t believe you’re not moved by it!”

Hiro sighed. In the meantime, Mochi apparently decided to rub himself against his legs. He meowed and looked at Hiro, but the boy turned to Megan.

“I can’t help everyone. Besides, that’s the police’s job.”

“Yeah, but can’t you scan for them?”

“If I could, I would! But I first need to scan these people to be able to find them. Without scans I can do nothing. And I’m not going to stalk random guys with Baymax until I scan all five million of citizens, it’s impossible! I’d run out of life. And I don’t think everyone would want this.”

“Who would want what?”

They both jumped in their chairs and looked toward the interior of the café. Aunt Cass stood next to them, a pot of tea in her hand, and a confused look in her eyes.

Hiro needed an excuse, immediately. But Mochi, who made himself known again, this time at the worst possible moment, wasn't being very helpful.

Or wait. Mochi.

“A cat!” The boy shouted. “We talked about this new… experiment, you know, which was running, about how much having a cat improves well-being… But we don’t think everyone would want a cat. Unfortunately.”

“Yeah, my dad’s allergic to them.” Megan played along.

Aunt Cass sighed.

“Poor Diego. Well, his loss. And thanks for saying that, I’ll be keeping Mochi out of him. This could be the reason why he started sneezing so badly last time. Anyway, tea?”

They nodded, and after a moment their cups were filled. Aunt Cass moved onto the other tables, but not before letting out a little squeal at the sight of them together. Hiro pretended he didn’t hear that.

“And you?” He asked Megan. “Are you allergic to cats?”

“Luckily, no. It’s only my dad.”

“That’s good.”

Hiro put Mochi on his lap, and the cat finally calmed down.

Megan sighed.

“You may have a point about scanning people. Sorry I got at you so much.”

“I’m fine.”

“I just really feel something’s wrong. More wrong than usual. And these guys’ families? They need help. These guys need help. I need to figure out what’s happening.”

“Isn’t that too big?”

“It is big, that’s the point.” Megan raised her voice a little, but after a moment she calmed down. She also lowered her head. “They kicked me out of the newspaper club.”

Hiro blinked.

“What? When?”

“Right before the end of the school year.” She murmured. “I promised them something big, but I didn't deliver it. So they kicked me out. I didn't want to tell you and worry you, because you were busy with the whole being-a-fugitive thing.”

Hiro looked down at the cat, not feeling particularly proud of himself. This ‘something big’ was revealing their identities and while logically keeping that a secret was more important than Megan's club, it didn't change the fact that he still didn't feel good about it. After all, it was very important to her.

“I’m sorry, Megan.”

“It was my mistake, really. I was so obsessed about it, I didn’t think that this could put you and your friends in danger. I deserved that. But I also want them to accept me again.”

“Are they worth it?”

“What?”

“If they kicked you out just because you didn’t give them what they wanted…are they worth it?”

“They were the only guys who accepted me. Being new at school and the chief’s daughter at the same time don’t make you popular. People think that if they make one wrong move, the next day they’ll have all the force on their backs. And my dad usually proves them right.”

“He cares about you.”

“Yeah, but it’s sometimes so annoying. Besides, it's just the club leader who doesn't really like me. The rest of them are cool.”

“That changes things.”

“It does. If I could solve these disappearances, or at least one of them, even Ellie would have to admit I can be useful for them. And if not... these people deserve it anyway. They're not criminals or anything, they just disappeared.”

“Do you really think it’s safe? If they didn’t disappear on their own, you can mess with someone you don’t want to.”

“Yeah, I know. But I have to try. Even if I wouldn’t release it by my name.”

Hiro sighed. Megan was Megan, and her stubbornness was almost comparable to his own. He wouldn't be able to stop her. But at least he could help her and make sure she didn't get into any trouble.

“I’m more into chasing villains than missing people, but…”

“But?”

“But if you need any help, you can count on me.”

Megan smiled.

“Thanks. And… how about you? Sorry I’m asking now, I should’ve done it earlier.”

Hiro waved his hand and drank some tea.

“I’m better. Well, we still have Noodle Burger Boy to catch. We tried yesterday and the day before, but… he disappeared just like these people. Though… I have one more idea I haven’t tried yet, maybe it’ll give us some clues.”

“Sounds exciting.”

“I wish. But… I really could use some help from Super Sleuth Megan Cruz, if you wanna come.”

The girl immediately brightened up.

“To your secret base?”

“To our secret base.”

“Are you kidding?! Of course I wanna come!”

“Cool. But I need to eat my breakfast first if I don’t want Baymax to start lecturing me again about the importance of eating all my meals during the day.”

“Yeah, I almost forgot lectures are the ultimate torture for you.”

“Hey! Not all of them!”

They both started laughing. And then Megan moved suddenly, as if remembering something.

“I’d almost forgotten, I have a message from my dad. The court decided, the prison management is going to dismantle Trina. And… turn her off, I guess? Like, for good.”

Hiro sighed and started to eat. His mood suddenly darkened.

“You don’t seem happy.” Megan stated.

“It’s the best they can do.”

“You still don’t seem happy.”

“I don’t have to. I know she kidnapped you, I know this was scary, I was scared too, but I’m not obligated to be happy when somebody dies. Even if it’s a villain.”

Maybe he said it a bit harshly, but he really meant it. Trina had done a lot of wrong things, but most of it was due to Obake's influence. Hiro still wasn't sure if everything she had said back when they had seemed to be friends was because she had been programmed to, or if she had come to those conclusions on her own and truly believed them, if a robot could believe anything. But she seemed to be able to. She seemed to have emotions. She seemed to act on her feelings, to have them, to genuinely grieve Obake's death, to want to honor his memory because she wanted to, not because she had been programmed to. Was she programmed for anything at all?

Her body was robotic, but the way she analyzed things was so very human. Maybe if she weren't so hell-bent on her father, Hiro could influence her somehow.

“She’s… a robot.” Megan said, snapping him out of his thoughts. “She was never alive anyway.”

“She’s way more advanced than Baymax. Maybe I could… but I don’t have her code. And even if I had it, it isn’t morally the best thing to do. She probably wasn’t programmed to go down that path, she chose it herself. Forcing her to do anything, wiping her memory or something... it’s messed up, but it doesn't seem right to me.”

“She’s not human.”

“It’s more complicated.”

“You’re sorry for her.”

“She’s dangerous. It’s the best they can do. But… I can’t help it.”

“You two had a history.”

He smiled slightly.

“You really are Super Sleuth Megan Cruz, aren’t you? We had. She tricked me by forming some twisted kind of friendship with me and pretending she liked me. But now I think maybe she really did. Anyway, now she hates me, so it’s the past. Your tea is getting cold.”

“Yours too.”

“Yeah. Mine too.”

Hiro shook his head and tried to focus on the positives. He and his friends had saved the city, they had finally earned Chief Cruz's respect, and even though there was still a lot of work to do, they could at least breathe and enjoy a normal life for a while. Those were good things. Aunt Cass, Megan, the rest of his friends, they were all safe and sound.

He smiled and continued his meal.

Chapter Text

They entered the conference room. Basemax screens were activated, and the largest one displayed blue, hexagonal eyes, the same as those of their other robots. Megan looked around, still amazed.

“Okay, I know I was here already, but still. This is so cool.”

“Thanks.” Another voice replied. “It’s nice to hear that from someone who isn’t Fred. Or the rest of them.”

The teenagers turned to the man. On one of the six chairs, probably Hiro's, the handyman was sitting. Only, he had no tools in his hand, but what he did have was a huge sandwich, wrapped in greasy paper. A few crumbs were laying on his work apron. Not to mention the usual stain.

“Hi Roddy.” Hiro waved.

“Hi kid. So, bringing the reporter again? What this time, a documentary?”

The boy looked at Megan, who gave Roddy the hairy eyeball.

“Actually, searching for Noodle Burger Boy.” He replied.

“Oh, this guy. He gives me creeps. Who came up with the idea of ​​a bot supervillain, looking like a mascot? Back in the days they at least looked normal. Well, more or less. Supersonic Sue was always creepy, even when she was younger.”

“I don’t know how she was when she was younger, but I have to agree she is creepy now.”

“Yeah, right? Anyway, I’m on my way to finish your room. Or should I say lab? I have no idea what this stuff you wanted is for, but I know it’s almost in place. I just need to put in place this sandwich as well and I can go back to work.”

“You’ve got more rooms in here?” Megan asked.

“It’s a secret base, kid! Secret bases have a lot of rooms.”

“Yeah, whatever.” Megan turned to Hiro and made puppy dog ​​eyes. “Can I see the rest of them?”

“Can we focus on the crazy noodle mascot first?”

“Fine. But later, sightseeing.”

“Deal.”

They shook hands. Hiro walked over to the table and sat in one of the chairs. He pressed a button, and a holographic monitor appeared in front of him. Soon Megan was sitting next, staring at the screen.

“Basemax, review the city's surveillance footage from the last four days and find all that show Noodle Burger Boy. Arrange them in chronological order, fix his way of moving and pinpoint him, if possible. And… if you could find some other villains as well, it would be nice.”

“Noted. However, the command you gave me will use up all my computing power. The rest of my services will be disabled for a few dozen minutes.”

“Rest of services?” The girl asked.

“Indeed.” The AI answered. “These are scanning for villains and crimes, operating SimMax, eavesdropping on a pol—”

“Politicians!” Hiro interrupted. “We want to make sure that politicians aren’t villains.”

Megan looked at him skeptically.

“That's the poorest excuse you've ever given me.”

“Yeah, I have to agree with her, kid.” Roddy added. “My late aunt was better at this, and she couldn't speak!”

He scratched the back of his head and laughed awkwardly.

“Let’s go back to the topic, can we?” He looked up, trying to make eye contact with their AI assistant, even though it wasn’t physically possible. “Anyway, I understand the risk, Basemax. You can start.”

“Procedure has been initiated.”

Roddy left the conference room, and a pie chart appeared on the main wall screen. After a few seconds, it dawned on Hiro that the whole process might take a bit longer than he thought. But why was he surprised? After all, Basemax had thousands of recordings to review, each a few minutes long, so it could be tens of thousands of hours. She had a lot of computing power, but it could be a bit too much to analyze, even for her. He really should have installed this additional RAM.

But just as he started thinking about how to solve this problem structurally, in the server room, Megan spoke up again.

“How do you even have access to city surveillance anyway? Is it legal?”

“I won’t answer that question.”

The girl sighed.

“I shouldn't be surprised, should I? A hero who breaks the law?” She elbowed him in the arm, smiling slightly.

“It’s for a good reason.”

“Couldn’t you just ask?”

“Asking requires documents. Documents require identity. And time. Breaking in is faster.”

“And way more risky.”

“I can live with that.” He smiled mischievously.

“You seem to like living with that.”

Did he? He was simply doing what was necessary. If he wanted to make sure his team was safe and not being tracked by the authorities, he had to make sure of that himself. If he wanted to keep the people of the city safe, he needed first-hand information about what was going on. Basemax scanners were powerful, but they couldn't catch every crime. Despite the weaker technology, the police were still better informed. And Hiro was well-informed about the police. The fact that he was basically breaking the law by doing it didn't really bother him. As long as it saved lives, he was willing to take the risk.

And maybe Megan was right. In fact, for as long as he could remember, he had never been very law-abiding. He’d never wanted to hurt anyone directly (and non-directly too, though it happened), but he’d also been cool with things like taking part in bot fights or breaking into places. Maybe he actually liked the risk a little too much.

He awoke when Basemax announced the procedure was complete. And when he saw the final frame, showing the mascot opening a very specific hatch, he awoke even more.

“Oh no.”

“What’s that?” Megan asked.

“It looks like Noodle Burger Boy just discovered the old subway tunnels.”

“How bad is that?”

“Basemax, overlay these tunnels on the city.”

A map of the entire city appeared on the main wall screen and a second later, red lines were drawn across it. A huge, dense web of red lines.

“Most of them lasted the Great Catastrophe.” Hiro explained. “Some have collapsed, some are still in use, but hatches are practically everywhere in the city.”

“Which means he can get in anywhere without being spotted.”

“Exactly.”

Megan sighed heavily and leaned back in her chair.

“Oh no.”

_-_-_

Hiro entered the room and sat. Baymax stayed downstairs again, helping Aunt Cass, and Megan returned home, of course after he showed her around the rest of the headquarters. They also tried to find more information about the missing people with the help of Basemax, but there were no recordings that would give them leads. In fact, these missing guys weren't on any recordings in the past few days. So either they were extremely unlucky to move in places where there were no cameras, or Megan was right and someone was actually behind it. And Hiro didn’t know what to think about it anymore.

But missing people weren’t his main problem.

The search for Noodle Burger Boy they had been doing so intensively lately had turned out to be a complete waste of time. They wouldn't have found him anyway. In fact, even without the mascot knowing about the tunnels, they were doomed to failure from the very beginning. Finding one villain in a huge city without the ability to scan for him? Not very possible.

They could only wait. But for what? What could Noodle Burger Boy plan? What was he capable of without Obake and Trina's guidance? What could he possibly want? Hiro couldn't find the answers to these questions. Even the concept of revenge seemed too advanced for the robot’s noodle burger brain. But he was clearly planning something. Otherwise he wouldn’t be hiding so much. He wouldn’t be using subway tunnels.

Noodle Burger Boy was dangerous. He was all that was left of Obake, besides Trina, and Obake was an extreme threat. They couldn't let him run around San Fransokyo, because who knew what else was in his chip?

They couldn’t, yet they had no choice. And Hiro hated that.

“Waiting. Why does it always have to be waiting?”

The boy sighed.

Well, at least he could do something in the meantime. After all, Noodle Burger Boy wasn't the only villain whose footage Basemax found, but since Hiro was too busy with the robot, he asked the AI ​​to upload it to his computer. Now he turned it on.

He found the file, opened it, and a player appeared on his screen. The length indicated that it was a compilation of at least several recordings.

“Well, let’s get this over with.”

Hiro pressed play.

For the first few seconds, nothing happened, but Hiro already identified the place. It was one of the streets bordering Good Luck Alley. And then someone ran around the corner. The boy immediately perked up. He could recognize that mop of black and blue hair everywhere.

“Momakase?”

She probably didn’t do anything bad right then, since she was in her civilian outfit, not the supervillain one. The only thing that was different was that she had her hair down. And a sheath on her back.

But right after her, several Buddy Guardians ran around the corner too. Hiro tensed a bit.

“So we weren't the only ones Cruz wanted to catch that day.”

Did the Chief succeed? After all, the Buddy Guardians were able to defeat Big Hero 6. Did Momakase stand a chance against them? Or was she sitting in a cell now?

He focused on watching.

One of the robots shot an electric net, but she realized it and threw a knife. This caused the net to open faster and block the path of another robot. For...half a second. She used this half a second to stop and throw another knife at the first Guardian’s main sensor. This must have fried a few components, because it started moving slower.

“Of course.” Hiro murmured. “It wasn't protected by titanium, the sensors wouldn’t work.”

Momakase drew her katana, and the robots circled her. And unfortunately there were more than two of them, though she didn't seem to mind. Even with the average quality of the recording, Hiro could see her crazy grin.

Several robots attacked at once, but she was able to dodge their blows. This caused two Guardians to knock themselves out for a few seconds. Momakase took advantage of the confusion again and jumped at one of them, cutting it in half.

Hiro blinked.

“Graphene. Of course. Why didn’t we think about graphene?”

Probably because it was hard to solve problems under the stress and Hiro had assumed from the beginning that the Guardians were made out of reinforced titanium, since Wasabi’s blades couldn’t cut them. And probably the most important reason—they didn't have time to deal with Momakase. Momakase didn't seem to have much time either.

Hiro pulled his knees up onto the chair and continued watching.

Momakase was dodging, jumping at the robots, knocking them off balance, and cutting them, sometimes taking them down on the first try, sometimes piece by piece. And soon, before Hiro knew it, he was focused more on her movements than on the fight itself. She was moving fast, faster than his brain could register, but after a moment he began to notice a pattern. Dodge, attack, allow throw, dodge, attack while reloading. Fall back when the opponent has a speed advantage, strike when he slows down for a moment.

He continued to watch, and began to notice more details. The way she held her sword, the position of hands during attack and defense, the movement of legs, the posture. He had never had the opportunity to analyze her fighting style well. He noticed some things, but every time before, he somehow had been more concerned with saving his life—whether from Momakase herself or Yama's thugs. Now it was a different story.

He leaned closer to the monitor.

Her fighting style wasn’t unpredictable. She was analyzing her opponent, looking for weaknesses, predicting moves and hitting before these moves could even start. She was more observant than Hiro thought. Though how she was able to do so much thinking so fast was still a mystery for the boy. Probably years of training had something to do with it.

He snapped out of his thoughts when one of the robots actually hit Momakase. It threw her back a few dozen feet, and if she hadn't reacted quickly, the next net would have pinned her to the ground instead of landing sliced ​​up behind her.

She stood up and said something. Whatever it was, it caused all of them—that were more or less intact—to be prepared to attack.

And then they all suddenly stopped.

Hiro blinked. Momakase seemed to be surprised as well, as she stood in her place and didn’t immediately run to attack. Even though that was exactly what she should do at that moment, her curiosity was clearly stronger.

“Trina’s call.” The boy whispered.

As the robots restarted, one of them walked towards her. It extended its hand, probably proposing something. Hiro didn't need an audio to know that this was about joining the Robot Revolution.

The answer was quick. Guardian’s hand fell to the ground, severed.

Hiro smiled slightly and continued to smile even as the situation worsened and all the robots attacked her again. Something had changed. Something that had stopped Momakase from joining other supervillains whenever she could.

The woman continued to fight them until only three remained, and Hiro calmed down. She had a chance. She would win this.

But he didn’t predict—and neither did Momakase, apparently—the terrified people running down the street, right into the remaining robots. The crowd attracted their attention, and since they were already under Trina’s influence, the Guardians began attacking civilians. Chaos ensued. One man barely escaped the electric grid, another wasn’t so lucky and was pinned to the wall by it. Somewhere across the street, the third Guardian shot out an arm and grabbed a random passerby who hadn’t gotten away in time. That didn't seem to deter people, though. They were still trying their luck to get past the robots, seemingly unable to get back because of the heatwave.

Among the people, there were also kids. But the Guardians had no sentiments—one of them aimed at a little girl and shot a net at her. Only it did not reach there, because the knife changed its trajectory.

Hiro smiled wider.

Momakase dealt with the robot that tried to kill her and apparently decided to deal with the others as well. She jumped at it, knocked it off balance, and then cut it in half. After this only one remained, and it shot both arms at her. Momakase was able to dodge it.

People began to disperse, the heatwave apparently wearing off. The fact that Momakase had the robots’ attention back certainly helped. Except for one unfortunate soul who ran into a trash can, fell over with it, and distracted the woman.

That had its price.

This time the robot grabbed her and pulled towards itself. She couldn't move her arms, and the Guardian must have squeezed her harder because she let go of the blade. Still, Momakase didn't seem to give up, as she tried to reach for something on her hip. The quality of the recording wasn't the best, but Hiro could still make out what was happening. The guard heated up the laser because it glowed brighter, and Momakase finally pulled out another knife. She dropped it handle-side down, then kicked the handle with her knee. The blade got stuck in the main sensor. The laser missed her. But she needed more than that to win.

And she actually had it. A black spot with a green chip appeared on the horizon, which after a moment jumped onto the robot and swapped the programming. Momakase watched in shock as the Guardian rebooted, then set her down and extended its hand. Once again, Hiro didn't need to hear anything to know that this time it was offering medical attention.

Momakase frowned, reached for her katana, and cut it in half.

Hiro gulped.

“Well… fair enough.”

She pulled her knife out of the sensor, sheathed it, and jumped over the remains of the robot. The entire street looked like a battlefield, but the place where Hiro himself had fought didn't look much better. In fact, it might have looked worse, considering Megamax.

Momakase gathered her weapon and cut through the net that held one of the men who tried to escape earlier. He ran from her with his mouth open, clearly screaming. And clearly not looking ahead, because he had barely taken two steps before he had hit the lamppost. The woman was watching this comedy for a moment, and Hiro could bet she rolled her eyes.

Then she walked toward Good Luck Alley and probably went back to her hideout. There were no cameras in that area to catch it though.

The recording ended, but for the next few minutes Hiro sat motionless.

Something had changed.

He leaned back against the chair. Momakase had actually helped these people. She didn't have to protect that child, she didn't have to refocus the robots' attention, she didn't have to free that man. She could have simply escaped once the robots had focused on the civilians. She didn’t. Maybe she just liked fighting that much, or maybe…

Hiro sighed. Momakase was crazy, dangerous, arrogant, selfish, mocking and unpredictable. But she wasn’t completely bad. That actually cheered him up, compared to the whole Noodle Burger Boy thing.

Until his phone vibrated and Hiro opened the messenger.

Krei:

Get me a macchiato on your way, intern

Because I assume you’re on your way, right?

Hiro groaned and stood from the chair, only to fall face down on the bed instead.

Chapter Text

TeenGenius:

hows it goin?

SuperSleuth:

it’s not going

that’s the problem

TeenGenius:

no clues?

SuperSleuth:

NOT EVEN A TINEST ONE

TeenGenius:

woah

its serious

youre usin caps

SuperSleuth:

ugh.

my dad can actually have some

but he changed password in his laptop

TeenGenius:

not your birthday anymore?

SuperSleuth:

no

sth longer

but you’re in hacking

could you deal with it?

TeenGenius:

breakin into chiefs comp?

im in

and ofc I can deal with it

hope he wont make it easy

SuperSleuth:

showoff

TeenGenius:

but I mean, I dont have to, right

SuperSleuth:

if not my dad’s comp, we can eavesdrop a politicians

in your secret base

works for me as well

there could be more in the database than my dad knows

but my dad could know sth they don’t too

so both

TeenGenius:

I shouldve shut up

SuperSleuth:

you should

so when can we meet?

TeenGenius:

tomorrows good?

SuperSleuth:

tomorrow’s good

_-_-_

Hiro closed the messenger and began to scroll through the latest news on the missing people. There wasn't much information, the police hadn't come up with anything yet. Or at least they had decided not to share it. Well, he could do something about the latter, he had access to their network after all, but Fred's couch, full of his friends, wasn't exactly the best place to do it. But maybe he could let Basemax know so she could dig around without him for now? He had nothing better to do anyway. Fred refused to explain anything until the team was complete.

Hiro had barely finished typing when the door opened. The boy turned and saw Go Go, who was looking at Fred.

“So, why did you call us?”

“Isn’t that obvious?”

“No.”

Fred jumped over the couch and stood in front of everyone, gesturing to all of them.

“We've been fighting a bunch of supervillains and crazy robots lately, and we're all heroic, but sometimes we have to do something normal! Like watching a movie. Which is great, because Kentucky Kaiju 8 is coming out soon, and I managed to buy a tape of the movie before it even came out. There it is!”

Hiro looked up as Fred pulled a flash drive from behind his back and started waving it around, clearly a little too excited about this. Everyone else raised their eyebrows in surprise, maybe except Go Go, whose face was stoic as always. Well, almost. Hiro could see a reproach there.

“Really? A movie?” she asked. “Is this the super important thing you called us for?”

The boy reached for the phone again and opened their group chat. After a moment of scrolling he found a message that read:

Fredzilla:

Team meeting, 14 pm, tomorrow, my room.

ITS AN EMERGENCYYY

Yeah, he knew what Go Go was getting at.  

“Yes, a movie.” Fred replied. “Do you have something against movies?”

“No, but I do have something against invitations which sound like the world is burning. You could have just said so.”

“And you wouldn’t have come, since you’re all very busy lately.”

“Well, looking for a job usually takes some time.” Wasabi stated.

“It really does.” Honey Lemon added.

“I know, but most of the things we've been doing together lately is superhero stuff. And I love this, but… I miss the times when we were doing normal stuff too.”

Go Go sighed.

“Fred, it was less than a month ago that we last did something unrelated to being heroes. We’re not done doing normal things.”

“But we’re done with a lot of things! Because, you know, next year you won't be going to SFIT anymore, it'll just be me and Hiro.”

Hiro blinked and paused for a moment at what his friend had said. He didn't like to think about it. About how he would be alone at SFIT next year.

“That doesn't mean we're not a team anymore.” Go Go replied.

“But it does mean spending less time together!”

“That's what happens when you become an adult.”

“Change is an inevitable part of growing up.” Baymax chimed in. “Not all change is bad.”

Suddenly Mini-Max jumped out of nowhere and landed on Fred's shoulder, then not so gently tilted his head.

“Exactly, fearless hero! We'll get through this together, and if not, you can always count on my mini-maximum rocket fist to deal with the changes literally. Who should I punch first?” The small robot slammed his fist into his open palm.

Fred carefully caught Mini-Max and placed him on the couch.

“I don’t think punching changes or people is a good way to deal with problems…but thanks for your support, Mini-Max.”

“You’re welcome!”

Hiro watched as Fred let out a heavy breath and then sat on the table, not making eye contact with anyone.

“I know we’re still friends, but… it was so nice having you all in the lab, watching what you do, planning revenge on SFAI together, just simply spending time in there. And that won't happen again. I just already miss it.”

“We’ll miss it too, Freddy.” Honey Lemon smiled weakly.

Everyone frowned, and the room fell silent. It seemed that no one—even Fred, who was usually the most talkative—was going to break it, preferring to take a few minutes to reminisce about the past. The past that would never come back. Hiro really wanted to think about anything else right now and not analyze the future that awaited them.

Even Go Go lowered her gaze and sighed heavily.

“Fine. A movie.”

“YES!”

“We need to fix that mood. But only this one. Then I’ll go to search for a crazy noodle mascot, since I have some free time. Anyone want to join?”

“I can.” Wasabi volunteered. “The sooner we find him, the sooner my nightmares about him will end. And trust me, you don't want to know the details.”

Fred raised his hand.

“No Fred, you don’t want to know the details either.”

“Actually I was going to ask if searching for him isn’t kinda pointless, since Hiro discovered he knows about subway tunnels.”

Baymax raised his finger.

“We still can increase our database about where he is not.”

“We’ll check the tunnels.” Go Go stated.

“And what if you meet him?”

“It’s just Noodle Burger Boy. Not the worst villain we’ve fought.”

“Classic.”

Suddenly everyone, including Fred, who was in total shock, turned to the door. Mr. Frederickson was leaning against the doorframe, arms folded, obviously listening to them for some time, discreet enough that no one noticed him.

“Dad!”

“Hi, son. Talking about villains during rest time? Chill out a bit, kids. Not everything is in your control, and not everything will be. So let it go for a while and enjoy this movie.”

“We let go of Trina and it ended up with a Robot Revolution.” Go Go replied.

“It's not like you could have found her anyway.”

The skater had no arguments with that.

“Don't beat yourself up like that, revolutions happen and will happen, not everything can be predicted. So get some rest, kids, that's also necessary. Sometimes even more so. And I really mean it. Once I was so obsessed about finding Dark Volt, I was searching day and night, and in the end I was so tired I couldn’t even fight him when he finally showed up! There's no point in overdoing it in either direction.”

“Mr. Frederickson is right.” Baymax added. “Rest is essential for maintaining proper brain condition and reaction speed.”

“This guy speaks well, you should listen to him.”

Hiro saw Go Go and Wasabi exchange glances, clearly pondering Mr. Frederickson's words. But Fred didn't give them much time to think. He walked over to his dad.

“What are you doing here?”

“Long story, son. Our company has almost completed the design of our newest freighter, the one I told you about. But like always, there are complications. And they require my presence.”

“So you won’t stay for long?”

Mr. Frederickson's smile faded a little. He looked at his son, then at the rest of his friends, and sighed, struggling with his thoughts for a moment. Then he perked up again, and patted Fred on the shoulder. Hiro smiled slightly at the gesture.

“Y’all know what? The freighter won’t run away, but this moment can. So if you have nothing against the old man sitting around for a while… Is there one more place to watch this movie with you?”

_-_-_

They didn't watch the movie. They ended up all sitting around Mr. Frederickson, listening about his adventures, fights, and sometimes even superhero habits. In Hiro's opinion, it was even better than the movie. He sat on the other end of the couch and pulled his legs up, staring at Fred’s father and for the first time in a while feeling like a kid. Not even like a teenager. Just a normal, regular kid, who wasn’t going to university but was listening to the stories.

He had long forgotten what it felt like.

“…and then I said,” Mr. Frederickson continued “’You should’ve eaten your oatmeal while it was still warm’.”

Fred jumped on the spot.

“Did it confuse her?”

“More than I thought! Because she actually ate the cold oatmeal for breakfast and I didn’t know about it. For the next few minutes Supersonic Sue thought I had time-related superpowers!”

The group laughed, and even Go Go lifted the corners of her lips for a moment. Then Mini-Max joined in, laughing more manically than gleefully. It didn't seem to bother anyone much though. Only Mr. Frederickson looked at him worriedly, but quickly perked up and continued with the story.

“Anyway, when she finally realized that I had no control over time, she got overconfident and, let’s just say, the reversed hammer always gets the job done.”

Fred leaned against the couch.

“I wish I could do the reversed hammer thing.”

“And I wish I could do the super jump thing.”

“You do?”

“Everyone has their strengths, son. You have yours, I have mine. And that's okay. You don’t need to be me, you just need to be you. You are and this works.”

Mr. Frederickson put his hand on Fred's shoulder, and his son smiled. Hiro watched the picture with a strange feeling he couldn't name. Yet he remained silent, just like the others, until Go Go finally broke it, surprising everyone with her question.

“Actually…why did you quit?”

The rest of the team looked at her.

“I mean,” the girl continued “The old newspapers say nothing about it, you just disappeared without a known reason. Why?”

Wasabi blinked. Hiro blinked too. Even Mini-Max and Baymax blinked. But Fred, instead of blinking, took a deep breath.

“You were reading newspapers about superheroes?!”

“I can do it. Sometimes. I’m just curious.”

After everyone had absorbed this information, and Fred had refrained from bombarding Go Go with questions, everyone turned to Mr. Frederickson. The man smiled weakly and leaned back against the couch.

“There was…an accident.”

“An accident?”

“Well, an accident, a defeat, all in once. Too much at once.”

“Someone defeated you?” Fred couldn’t believe it.

“I’m still a human. I may have my strength, I may have some gadgets, I may have skills, but I’m not unbeatable. No one is.”

“What happened?” Go Go asked.

“A kid happened.”

Wasabi raised his hands up.

“Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. What?”

“I learned two lessons that day. The first is to never underestimate your opponent, no matter how defenseless they may seem. I caught her committing a crime. I wasn't sure what to do with her since she was really young and I didn't really want to throw her in jail. If there's one thing jails can do well, it's perpetuating criminals in a criminal lifestyle. So I just tried to stop her.”

“She didn’t give up?”

“Didn’t even plan to. We went into battle, and I quickly realized that she actually knew what she was doing. She could fight, she could fend off my attacks, and she was faster than me. I could have stopped her if I hadn't been so arrogant at the time and if it had crossed my mind that a hero could also lose. I didn't take it seriously. And the weather wasn't working in my favor, because it was raining and slippery.”

“Yeah, fighting in the rain is terrible.” Wasabi flinched.

“Especially on the roof.” Mr. Fredericson continued. “She tripped me and I slid. I think she planned for me to hit the railing and pass out, but she didn't calculate it right. Instead of railing, I landed on the sidewalk. The next thing I remember was waking up in the hospital. Two legs broken, spine miraculously intact. There was also some internal bleeding, the doctors said that if I hadn't been to the hospital quickly, I would’ve been pushing up the daisies.”

The man laughed, although he didn't seem to feel like laughing.

“To this day I am not sure who called that ambulance. The streets were empty.”

Hiro frowned, considering something.

“Could she do that?” He asked.

“It’s possible. I never asked. But she wasn’t the killing type. Well, at least not yet. Anyway, Fred was four at the time, and my wife said she didn't agree to him growing up without a father. That was the second lesson I learned then. There are more important things than being a superhero. Helping people is necessary, and I still do it, though sometimes in different ways. But when it's at the cost of the people closest to me, it's not worth it. Well, the fact that most of the dangerous villains were already defeated, helped a bit with that decision.”

“That’s not what I expected.” Wasabi whispered.

“Classic! But not everything ends in glorious battles. It wasn’t Baron von Steamer. It wasn’t even Dark Volt. It was just a random girl. Life can be tricky sometimes.”

The man laughed, then stopped, as if reconsidering what he had just said. After a moment, Hiro could tell the older hero was having some kind of epiphany.

“Maybe that’s exactly what I need.”

“About what?” Go Go asked.

“Business matters. Gonna talk to Heatcliff, but maybe not yet. What about you telling me some stories, huh? These old ears might still catch something.”

Fred immediately perked up, stood and began to report on the last fight with Trina.

Chapter Text

Heathcliff has done a lot of things in his career as a butler. He's looked after Fred, he's watched his Kaiju mech destroy the city, he's signed up for illegal racing to help Big Hero 6 take down the organizers, he's even protected his protégé from his own mother, who's posing as a supervillain to test him. Not to mention all the things he's done before.

He was still a little surprised, though, when Mr. Frederickson asked him to do this.

Now Heathcliff stood before the large door, which was ironically the back entrance to the building—and knocked on it.

After a few seconds, the door opened and a man stood in the doorway. He had eastern facial features, he was dressed in blue and black traditional clothes, and the scar that crossed his eyebrow and cheek indicated that he had some combat experience. This was someone Heathcliff probably wouldn't want to mess with.

The butler cleared his throat and straightened his tie.

“Good evening, sir.” He bowed. “I was looking to speak with the owner of this restaurant.”

The employee raised his eyebrows, obviously surprised by the intruder's behavior. He didn’t comment on it though.

“You’re speaking with him.”

“Forgive me, please, I expressed myself badly. I would like to speak with the one who is not listed in the documents. I am here on business.”

“Wait a moment.”

The man disappeared inside and closed the door. It might have been several minutes before he reappeared. He sized Heathcliff up, then nodded slightly.

“Come inside. There you’ll talk to the owner.”

“Thank you, sir.”

Heathcliff followed the employee, who wordlessly led him through a strange arena, a narrow corridor, and a flight of stairs, finally inviting him into the office and closing the door behind him. Fortunately, Heathcliff did not hear the lock turning.

“So, let’s talk about this business of yours.”

He turned toward the voice. The woman stood with her back to him, looking at the arena through a thin paper window. But not for long, because she soon walked over to the desk and looked him in the eye. He decided this was a good time to start talking.

“Thank you for inviting me here, ma’am. My employer needs urgent help and is counting on your support. He is also willing to pay.”

She frowned, and looked at him suspiciously.

“Employer? And who is your employer?”

“Mr. Frederick Frederickson the Third, ma’am.”

Her eyes suddenly widened. She walked over to him, but Heathcliff remained where he was, his face stoic.

“Is this some kind of a trap?”

“Why did you arrive at that conclusion, if I may ask?”

She frowned again.

“I’m not a fool. I know who he is. And I know he would not cooperate with someone of my profession.”

“Mr. Frederickson is willing to bury a hatchet. I can assure you that this is not a trap.”

“And what does he want from me?”

“He was in possession of valuable documents that were stolen from him. He managed to obtain their location, but he does not have the skills to recover them. Unfortunately, I do not know more. To discuss the details you will have to meet with Mr. Frederickson, ma’am.”

She hummed.

“And how much is he willing to pay?”

Heathcliff pulled a slip of paper from his jacket’s pocket and handed it to her. She read it but seemed neither surprised nor satisfied—or at least she didn’t show it. She actually seemed to be thinking though, probably whether it was worth taking the risk.

Finally, she nodded.

“Fine. When?”

“As soon as you can, ma’am. Tomorrow morning will be too late.”

“Tell him, I’ll be there at midnight.”

The butler bowed gratefully, then left the room and found his own way out. It had gone much better than he had expected, but that didn't mean that there would be no setbacks. He could be certain of one thing though.

It was going to be a long night.

_-_-_

Hiro walked up the stairs to the first floor and looked toward the kitchen. Aunt Cass was busy at the counter and he could smell the dinner she cooked. He could also hear Baymax's footsteps, which caught his relative's attention.

“There you are. Come here, both of you, or it’s gonna get cold.”

Baymax raised his finger.

“I am a robot. I do not eat. I can, however, replenish my water supply.”

“Well, go ahead.”

Hiro watched the entire process, including Baymax's amusing attempts to squeeze through the narrow gap between the counter and the refrigerator to get to the inner part of the kitchen—and the sink that was located there. That still hadn’t distracted him enough to forget what had been nagging at him for the past few hours. Ever since he’d realized how much he’d learned about Mr. Frederickson today.

And how ignorant he was about something else.

“Aunt Cass?”

“Yes, Hiro?”

He took a deep breath. It was now or never.

“What were my parents like?”

Aunt Cass blinked, her hand stopped in midair.

“Are you okay? Did something happen?”

“Nothing, just… Fred’s dad arrived, you know? They were both so happy, he was telling stories and I realized… I know nothing about mine.” He sighed and lowered his voice to a whisper. “Because it was never important to me.”

“Oh, Hiro.”

The woman put down the knife and before Hiro knew it he was hugged tightly. He hugged her back, pressing his face against her shirt. It wasn't like no one had ever told him about them. They had. Aunt Cass, Tadashi. Especially Tadashi. Hiro had just never cared enough to really listen. Partly because he didn’t want to know much about the people whose deaths had made Tadashi cry at night for over a year and had unintentionally caused his older brother so much pain, and partly because…Hiro was just ignorant. And he didn’t feel good about it.

“You were three, it doesn’t mean you’re bad or something, you were just too young to remember, too young to really get close to them. I don’t blame you, no one does. At least you didn’t have to suffer as much as…”

“You and Tadashi did.” Hiro finished, moving away from his aunt.

Cass smiled weakly.

“I don’t know much about Tomeo.” She admitted after a while. “He was quite mysterious.”

“Why?”

“I’m not sure. Maybe it’s because of his character, maybe it’s something else. He was really attached to his family tradition. Well, most of times.”

Hiro frowned. He knew that his father’s family had come from Japan to San Fransokyo when Tomeo was still a teenager. And the boy vaguely remembered Tadashi saying that his parents had hidden their relationship from grandparents, for maybe... years? He wasn’t sure. Whatever the tradition was, it was pretty strict.

“What was it?”

“I don’t know much, it had something to do with cooking, they passed it down from generation to generation. With some family rules and a noble ancestry, if I remember correctly.”

Hiro raised his eyebrow.

“They were in possession of something important, some… heirloom.” Aunt Cass added. “Anyway, they lost it. Maddie actually told me that by accident, it was a huge shame to them. I probably shouldn’t run it with you, but... I don’t think it really matters now.”

“What was that heirloom?”

“I don’t know. She didn’t tell me that.”

Cass walked over to the counter and leaned against it, still looking at Hiro.

“His previous last name was Takachiho, but when he got married, for some reason he took ours.”

“That’s… not normal, isn’t it?”

“As far as I know, family name was very important for him, so no, it’s not.”

“What happened?”

“I’m not sure, and… to be honest, I don't think I want to get into it. He had his honor, he had his rules and he really cared for my sister and for you, guys, but… there was something he didn’t tell. But he's been through a lot, maybe I don't even blame him.”

“Through a lot?”

“His family died. Ironically, in a fire.”

Hiro blinked. In a fire? His grandparents died in a fire? Like Tadashi recently? Was history just repeating itself that much?

“What happened?”

“Gas explosion. He wasn’t in the building at the moment. That’s why he survived.”

Hiro clenched his fists and took a deep breath. Why was he only finding out now? Sure, he had never asked before, if his grandparents were dead then they were dead, but the knowledge that they had died in a fire seemed important enough to share, whether she was asked or not. And if so... why didn’t it happen?

“Why didn’t you tell me that earlier?”

Cass looked at him sadly, obviously feeling guilty. The boy unclenched his fists.

“I’m sorry Hiro. Your parents didn’t want you to know. Tadashi was probably unaware of this either. He also never asked.”

“He was just saying we don’t have grandparents. They all died? The entire family?”

He had a vague memory that his father wasn’t their only child. What happened to the others?

“Officially, yes.”

“And unofficially?”

“One of his siblings survived, but they had a huge quarrel later. I don't know what their motive was, but it was probably to disgrace the family and I think that’s why no one ever mentioned the survivor. I wasn't supposed to know that either, but Maddie complained that it took him months to recover. He really loved that sibling. Anyway, Maddie never mentioned them afterward, like they were dead, so maybe something happened in the meantime and they really were.”

“You never tried to find out?”

“Those were their private matters, this was Tomeo’s family, not mine. And I had my own problems to deal with. Besides...sometimes it's better not to know answers to some questions. Your father's family is one big mystery. But I don't think it's worth solving. We have everything we need, and we especially don’t need any trouble.”

“Do you think…”

“I don’t. But… there was something fishy. I can’t explain that, it’s just my feelings.”

“Could Tomeo be involved in something?”

“I don't want to make accusations, Hiro.”

The boy sighed, sat, and took a few deep breaths. He was grateful that Baymax had decided not to interfere, but to observe the situation. Because truth be told, Hiro had no idea what to think about it. That his father, who until now had been just a parent in his head, nonexistent, but almost perfect—that's how Tadashi had always described him, so Hiro believed it—might actually have some flaws. And serious flaws at that, because being mysterious, hiding a surviving family member and then pretending they’re dead usually didn't mean anything good. Changing his name as if he was running away from someone? Even more. And why didn't he want them to know about the fire? Not to mention Aunt Cass's hunches, because even if they were just hunches, they usually came true. But he was the one who wanted to know more about his parents, didn't he? He was the one who asked.

He should have never asked.

And while he had been a little upset at his aunt for never telling him, he was starting to understand it now. He would rather stay in his comfortable bubble than know that his family had some movie-worthy secrets. Because now it was haunting him.

“I'm sorry.” Aunt Cass said after a while. “I should have told you all this earlier, but... you're quite stubborn, you know? And curious. I didn't want you to get into any trouble. But... I trust you're mature enough to make a wise decision.”

“You won't stop me if I try to find out more about it?”

Not that he planned. He wasn’t even sure what to do now.

She sighed.

“It’s your family, Hiro. If you want to, you have the right to. But I want you to be sure, you’re not obligated to do it. You don’t have to know what your father was involved in to know who you are. And I will always love you for who you are.”

Hiro snuggled up to his aunt once again, although this time for longer. His mind was still a mess, but her presence helped calm him down a bit.

“Thank you, aunt Cass.”

Their dinner got cold.

_-_-_

Hiro closed the door and all he could hear was Baymax pacing, though not for long, because soon he started to hear his own footsteps as well. It was easier for him to think when he was moving. And he had a lot to think about.

“My scan indicates your hormone levels are elevated. You are nervous.”

“Seriously? I didn’t notice.”

“I do not understand. You are usually aware of your emotional state. Downloading data about the problem. Suggested course of action is therapy. We can start now.”

“It was sarcasm, Baymax. Download data about sarcasm.”

“Downloading. According to the data people are more willing to use sarcasm when their emotions are high. That matches my scan. Your emotions are high. Do you want to share what is bothering you?”

“You were there. You heard it.”

“Your father went through a traumatic experience. How could his traumatic experiences have an impact on your emotions?”

“It’s not…it’s not his experiences Baymax, it’s… I don’t know what it is.”

“Your emotions increased when aunt Cass mentioned fire. You have traumatic memories related to fire.”

Hiro grabbed his hair.

“It’s not about Tadashi, not about fire. It’s just too many revelations at once. I think.”

“Does this cause you stress because some of your father's behaviors go beyond the accepted patterns of society?”

“Yeah. It does.”

“Why?”

“Because…I don't know what I was thinking, I didn't know him, I shouldn't have expected him to be perfect even if everyone else said so.”

“Your expectations have been disappointed.”

“But…I shouldn’t have them.”

“People develop expectations, especially when they are children. It is a natural thing.”

“But I’m not a kid anymore. And my dad… he wasn’t bad. He cared about Tadashi, he tried to teach him a lot, they really had a bond. He wasn’t bad. So why do I feel like he was? My mind’s just so messed up.”

“You have learned things that have a huge impact on your emotions. Some of your reactions may be hard for you to understand.”

“And for you, Baymax?”

“I am not able to feel human emotions.”

“But you can analyze them. Understand them.”

“Every behavior and reaction has a cause. Something you have believed in for a long time has been shaken. This causes confusion. I suggest rest.”

“I don’t think I’ll be able to do it, buddy. Not now.”

“Then I suggest taking deep breaths instead.”

Hiro looked at Baymax and then listened to him. It helped him calm down a bit, but it didn't take away all the confusion that was in his head. Not to mention that his father wasn't all Hiro had on his mind. The fact that he'd be practically alone next year wasn’t really helpful. The fact that his friends were looking for work and Hiro wasn't even sure if being heroes was important enough for them to stay in the city, didn't reassure him either. Breathing? He couldn’t deal with this just by breathing. He needed something else. Something to occupy his mind much more effectively.

“Baymax?”

“Yes, Hiro?”

“What do you say about night patrol?”

“Are you sure night patrol is a good idea in your condition?”

“I need to clean up my mind. Do something else.”

“Running away does not solve problems.”

He wasn’t running away. Was he?

“But it can make them smaller enough to be solved.”

“Solving these kinds of problems usually requires time.”

“If it requires time anyway, why not spend some of that time on night patrol?”

Perhaps that got Baymax's processors going, because he took a moment to process what Hiro had said. Then he tilted his head.

“Do you want to join your friends in search of Noodle Burger Boy?”

“No. Just a normal, regular flight.”

“I understand.”

“So, what do you say?”

Baymax blinked and the logo of the summoned Skymax appeared on his belly.

“Flying makes me a better healthcare companion.”

Hiro smiled and summoned his own Skymax as well.

Chapter Text

Go Go frowned and looked back. About a second later, Fred landed there, carrying Wasabi on his back. Wasabi, on the other hand, quickly went down and moved a safe distance away from his friend. Go Go had a guess as to why. She could smell garlic from a mile away.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” Fred became irritated.

“You’re slowing us down.” She answered.

“Or maybe it’s you, who is too fast, huh?”

“Sure. And it was me who left my suit in the garage, even though a garage is the last place our suits should be.”

“It's not my fault Hiro didn't install a tracker!”

“Hiro did install a tracker. And it's your fault it didn't work.”

“My fault?”

“You were the one who insisted Roddy install impenetrable walls.”

“Excuse me, but these days everyone has garages with scan jamming systems! Heathcliff explained it to me. It makes it harder to steal vehicles.”

“Yes, because everyone would want to steal a vehicle from a dingy factory where no one would think there's a garage there.”

Fred raised one of his claws, but before he could say anything, Wasabi cleared his throat and stepped between them.

“Could we please move on to the searching part?”

“Sure, but just for your information,” Fred chimed in, “the bad guys don't usually show up until midnight anyway. Backed up by research and a lot of comics. So I basically did us a favor, because it’s almost midnight. Now we can move on to the searching part.”

Go Go rolled her eyes and looked around. She walked to the middle of the street, thankfully rarely used, and activated the display on her helmet's visor. A picture appeared before her eyes, the center of which was a hatch with a clawed logo. The exact same hatch that lay beneath her feet.

“Okay, this is it.” She said. “It’s from Hiro’s photo. We’re going in.”

“Yeah! Fredzilla time!”

Before anyone could react, Fred lifted the hatch and jumped in. And before anyone could follow him down, they heard a loud 'ow'.

“We really need to cure him of it.” Wasabi stated.

“Yup.”

“I’m fine!”

Go Go sighed, hooked her discs onto her back, and climbed down the ladder like a civilized human being. Wasabi joined her, and soon they were both down, Go Go turning on the flashlight in her helmet and leading the way.

“So how do we find him?” Wasabi asked.

“The answer is simple.” Fred whispered, waving his hands in front of his friend. “He'll find us.”

“Stuck in a tight space with a crazy robot that can cut you in half with a laser? The first one is scary, but the second one is even scarier! You know what, I’ll pass.”

“We may also find some clues.” Go Go added.

Fred scratched his head. Or rather, his costume.

“Yeah, he leaves condiments everywhere, remember? I'm sure there's ketchup, mustard, or pickles in here somewhere. Honestly, I'm surprised he can fit that much in, but oh well, villains usually defy the laws of physics. Too bad heroes can't.”

Wasabi stopped.

“What did you just say?”

“That heroes can’t defy the laws of physics?”

“No, earlier. That Noodle Burger Boy can fit that much in. What if he can’t?”

Go Go turned to the boys and raised her eyebrows. She knew what Wasabi was driving at.

“He has to replenish his supplies somewhere.” She finished.

“Exactly! If we knew the place, we could find him faster.”

“Basemax,” Go Go called their AI “plot all the subway hatches on the city map, as well as all the Noodle Burger locations and factories.”

“Analyzing.” They heard a voice in their helmets. “I’m sending a map.”

A plan full of dots in two colors appeared before their eyes. Usually the points were far apart, but there was one place where they almost overlapped.

“There.”

Go Go enlarged the space and sent a screenshot to the boys.

“That’s where we’re going.”

_-_-_

Hiro tilted slightly to the right and Baymax responded by changing flight direction. The boy looked down but the city was as quiet as ever. Nothing happened during the last half hour and this night patrol turned out to be more annoying than helpful in clearing his thoughts. Literally the only emergency they encountered involved pulling a panicked cat down from a tree. Very mind-cleaning.

They lowered the flight. Baymax was about to cross Good Luck Alley and if there was any place where something bad could happen, it would be this area.

Hiro zoomed in on his screen and started to watch the alleys. All he could see was a few guys fighting each other, other few guys sleeping on the pavement and another guy, who definitely ate, drank or sniffed some bad stuff, because he was wandering around and arguing with a dumpster. The boy didn’t want to know more.

And then he noticed one thing. A circle, brightly lit, with a lot of people standing around.

“A fight?” He asked himself.

Old habits came back to haunt him. For a moment he thought about leaving, but eventually he came to the conclusion that the city was quiet anyway. He could stop for a while and watch from a distance. There was nothing bad about it, right?

He turned Baymax around and activated silent mode. They landed on the roof of a building right next to the arena. People were too busy yelling and cheering to notice them. The boy jumped off the robot and walked to the edge. Someone smart had put a barrier there.

Baymax shifted.

“Hiro. Are you sure watching bot fights is a good idea?”

“What bad can happen? It’s not like I’m the one fighting.”

“People with addictions may feel a stronger urge to relapse when they observe others doing the same thing. Especially under strong emotions.”

“I’m not addicted, Baymax.”

“Your reactions while participating in fights last time indicated otherwise.”

“Well… these were just reactions. That doesn’t mean I’m addicted. I’ll be fine.”

“If you say so.”

Hiro frowned. He wasn’t hooked, was he? After all that happened last time he promised his friends to never do it again. And he was going to keep the promise. Yet from time to time the thoughts of trying again would come up. To take a chance and go all in. It was risky, it was illegal and it could end up very badly if he decided to double-cross someone he shouldn’t mess with. Not to mention how furious aunt Cass would be if she found out about it. But maybe that was the reason. He missed that excitement.

Well, maybe he was addicted.

Hiro sighed and tried to think about his friends. About aunt Cass. Even about Mochi. He couldn’t betray their trust. He couldn’t go back. But at least he could watch a little. He had Baymax by his side, superhero suit on him and no Megabot around. This excluded participation.

The boy zoomed in on the view again. Another fight was about to begin. There was a guy Hiro knew who had a dinosaur-shaped bot with a cutting disc instead of a head. But he didn’t recognize the other fighter. She must have been new, because her lizard bot wasn't scratched up yet. It wasn't well built either. Too long, too easy to catch and pin down, even if fast. Unlike Trina's bot, it didn't look like it could dismember itself.

The gong was struck, the fight began.

The girl’s bot seemed to be very agile, but she made a mistake by revealing this trait right away. That could be her biggest advantage and now her opponent knew about it. His bot was slow, so he wouldn’t be as much threat to her if she didn’t go full speed. It was strong though, and its operator had some experience.

The girl tried to use her bot’s agility and confuse opponent but he apparently predicted her strategy and waited. Soon she made one wrong move. The more experienced player raised his machine’s leg and pinned the lizard by the tail.

“Knew it!” Hiro whispered.

The saw blade was activated. However, the stuck bot left its part and continued running.

“Leaving the tail? Right. Real-life lizards can do this. Well, maybe she has a chance.”

“This bot is a good replica.” Baymax stated. “Excluding that real-life lizards do not have laser eyes”.

“See? You’re getting it.”

The man’s bot left the part and started chasing its opponent. Hiro narrowed his eyes and set his view to the max level.

“You see this, Baymax?”

“I do not know what you mean.”

“The servo in its left leg is loose, not working smoothly. If she hits there, she'll win.”

The girl apparently noticed it as well. She lured her opponent to the place where the tail lay, and then it turned out this part was more than just a distraction. The tail wrapped around the bot’s both legs, causing it to fall, and then the girl used her lizard’s laser eyes to hit the servo. One of the machine’s legs fell off. That was it. It didn’t take long until the processor was destroyed, bared the man from controlling his bot. He screamed and slammed the remote into the ground.

Hiro smiled slightly. She was good.

“Did TV become too boring?”

He recognized this voice immediately and tensed a little. He turned to the woman, knowing that standing backwards to someone who can throw knives with a great precision may not be the wisest idea. One click and his view returned to normal scale.

“I don’t watch TV. Well, maybe besides news.”

Baymax turned around too.

“My cameras detected Momakase. I will call the team.”

“No, Baymax. Not yet.”

“I will not call the team.”

Momakase smirked.

“You’re hiding me from your sad friends? That’s cute.”

“Hiding? No. Just don’t want to make any hasty decisions.”

They had worked together recently and cooperated surprisingly well, but he didn't know if they were back to status quo or not. She could have good traits, she could actually help people, but she was still a wild card. She could just as easily be neutral towards him as want to fight him. But he needed to be alone with her to figure that out. Especially that after what happened recently she seemed a bit more open with him—with him, not with the rest of his friends.

Besides, he had a few questions. One of them came to his mind the moment he saw her. Why was she wearing the flexible display suit he’d given her recently?

He might’ve actually know the answer. And he didn’t like it.

“What are you doing here?”

“I could ask you the same thing.”

“I asked you first.”

“Can’t I just go outside and enjoy fresh air?”

“Everyone else? Sure. You? No.”

“You hurt my feelings.”

“You have any?”

He might’ve actually regretted that. But surprisingly, he didn’t. She just smiled evilly, knowing he played her game and didn't really think so. In a way, Hiro felt relieved.

“So? Why did the genius boy end up in Good Luck Alley?”

“Night patrol?”

Momakase walked to the railing and took a peek down. Then she looked at him mockingly.

“That’s surely something you need to patrol.”

Hiro groaned in irritation. He really should have pressed her and found out where she was going (probably to steal something) instead of having a casual discussion like they weren't on opposing sides. He should stop her.

“Need to clean up my mind a little.” He said instead. “But there’s no cleaning stuff around.”

“Let me guess. No villains to fight with? Little boy, already addicted to defeating bad guys, who doesn’t know what to do, when they’re not around? That’s sad to watch.”

“Great sushi chef, addicted to stealing? That’s even sadder.”

“You’ve got me here.”

She smiled slightly, then looked down again. The next fight was about to begin, the participants started to set up bots, and the girl went to the second round. And yet Hiro couldn't focus on it anymore.

“Too much on your head?”

It took him a few seconds to process what she asked.

“Don’t act like you care.”

“Oh, but I do.”

“No. You want me to think like this, so it would be harder for me to chase you.”

And it worked. It really worked. Their last collaboration had messed with his head more than he thought. He had gotten to see a different side of her that wasn't so... nasty. She could be honest with him. She had some honor. She didn't treat him like he was her slave, and even if she blackmailed him, he could actually understand it. It wasn't like he loved asking others for help.

They both had memories they wanted to hold on to at all costs. Somehow they started to respect each other. And then she helped his team. Chasing her after that? Well, he would if he had to. But now it would be harder, so he preferred not.

Until then she was just a villain. Now she has become more human.

“Well,” Momakase started after a while “if I have you by my side, the rest of your team won’t be a problem. You’d take care of them instead of me. Unfortunately that’s not in my best interest.”

“Why?”

“My life would become too boring.”

This actually made some sense. Perhaps he got an answer to one of the questions that was troubling him.

“That’s why you didn’t reveal our identities.”

“We had a deal. You fulfilled it. So did I.”

“But… you didn’t need to.”

“Excuse me?”

“I mean… these were just words. And you are a villain. We are your enemies. You could just tell them everything even if I did what you asked, and you would be free. No superheroes around, no threats. You could do whatever you want.”

“I could.”

“You tried to kill us multiple times. You wanted revenge. What changed?”

“Guess I’ve got over it.”

Hiro was about to comment it but he noticed she was still thinking. That wasn’t all she wanted to say. And he wasn’t going to push her. Well, not this time, at least.

“It’s nothing personal.” She continued after a few seconds. “It never was. I was just too blinded to see it. These are professional matters and nothing else. I’m a thief, you’re heroes. It’s my job to steal and it’s your job to catch me. That’s all. Besides, as I said, you’re quite the challenge.”

“Thanks.”

It didn’t sound like she was going to quit, but it was… something. A beginning.

“Well, anything interesting down there?”

Hiro blinked.

“You serious?”

“Why not?”

He sighed. He could pretend for a while before he would probably have to stop her.

“She created a nice bot. I’m pretty impressed. Didn’t see her here before, she has some good ideas.”

“Guess you could make them better.”

Hiro gave her a glare.

“What?” Momakase continued. “I know you were in bot fights.”

“Obake told you.”

“Actually, he just helped me connect the dots. I’ve heard of you myself. I wasn’t too interested, because it’s not my game, but I heard. You upset Yama.” She noted with some kind of approval.

“Yeah, I did.” Hiro said arrogantly.

“I wish to see you down there, I never watched any of your fights. Well, not live.”

“And you never will.” He replied more sharply. “I’m done with this.”

“Sure. That’s why you watch bot fights instead of patrolling the city.”

Hiro heard Baymax's actuators moving. Oh no.

“Reminding addicts about addictive factors does not help them stay away from addiction.”

“I’m not—” The boy screamed in a slightly too high-pitched tone, but after a moment he regained control of himself. “Well. Thank you, Baymax, you’re very helpful.” He added sarcastically.

“You are welcome.”

Hiro looked back at Momakase just to find her barely holding back laughter. Yes, that was predictable.

“As you said, TV was too boring.” He concluded.

“Your robot doesn’t have the best sense of timing, does it?”

“Can we just pretend this never happened?”

“No.”

“Great.”

He leaned against the railing and looked down again, avoiding eye contact with her. They had been standing there long enough, he had made an idiot of himself, and still had no idea what she was planning. The conversation wasn't all that bad, but the longer he waited, the harder it would be to ask that question. And it already was hard.

“So, what are you planning?”

“I have to plan something?”

“You have a display suit on you. This isn’t a typical walking outfit.”

“I’m not a typical person either.”

“Yeah, you’re surely not.”

Or maybe he should just leave? Maybe he didn't need to know? But she was obviously planning something and he already was aware of that. Everything would be easier if they just didn’t meet. But now? He couldn’t let innocent people suffer.

“Just… whatever you’re gonna do, don’t hurt anyone. Please.”

“You’re letting me go?”

“I don’t have the energy for this today. Besides, it’s not like I can beat you.”

Baymax raised his finger again.

“Should I call the team?”

“No, we’re… going home, Baymax. It’s enough for today.”

Hiro turned towards Baymax and prepared his magnets. He will regret this, won’t he?

“Nothing bad.”

He stopped.

“What?”

“I mean, I won’t do anything bad.” She replied, obviously with slightly wounded pride. “Well, at least anything very bad. They probably deserve it.”

“Who?”

“I don’t know. I was going for further instructions and then saw you. Relax, if I had planned something worse I wouldn't have gotten in your way tonight.”

“That’s a relief.” Hiro answered sarcastically.

“It is, isn’t it? Anyway, if you need to know, your friend’s father hired me this time.”

Hiro almost choked. There was only one person who met the criteria and could afford it. And that person had been at odds with supervillains for years.

“Wait. You mean Mr. Frederickson?”

“If that’s how you want to call him, yes.”

He looked at her and tried to find any trace of a lie. He didn’t.

“You don’t believe me.”

“Sorry, but Mr. Frederickson with all his… law-obedience… doesn’t seem like someone who could hire you.”

Unless… it was a trap. But he retired years ago, what could he have against Momakase now? It didn’t make any sense. Also because Mr. Frederickson wasn’t the type of person who likes to set traps. Even for villains. What happened then?

“If that’s any comfort,” Momakase stated after a while, “I was as surprised as you are. He lost something and need me to get it back. I don’t know much though. If you still have doubts, you can go with me.”

He thought for a while.

“No.”

“No?”

“I mean I’m not gonna jump on roofs this time. But… I can take you on Baymax.”

“Are you sure this is a good idea, Hiro?” Robot asked.

“No. But it’s better than breaking my spine.”

“I meant going with Momakase.”

“I’ll be fine. You too, Baymax. I need to know what’s happening.” Hiro jumped on the robot and then turned to her. “So? You’re going or not?”

She looked at him from under her brows, then rolled her eyes. Eventually, she climbed in next to him and grabbed one of the robot's wings.

“Baymax? Let’s go.”

Chapter Text

Momakase didn’t seem to be afraid of heights. She was a bit more excited than usual and she'd look down from time to time. She tried to hide it too.

“Nice view, huh?”

“Shut up.”

Hiro smiled slightly, then he leaned a little to the left, correcting the course. Baymax responded even though the weight was distributed differently now. They should be there in one minute. The journey could have been much faster, but he preferred not to lose his passenger. She didn’t have magnets to hold onto the armor.

Soon Baymax landed in Fredericksons’ garden. They got off the robot, and went to the door. Momakase, like a normal person she wasn’t, rang the bell.

The resident showed up about half a minute later. He glared at them.

“You bring a company, I see.” The man said to Momakase but he looked at Hiro in surprise. “Hi again, kid. Didn’t expect you with her.”

“You’re not the only one, Mr. Frederickson.”

The thief hummed.

“Can we get down to business?”

“Direct as always, I like it. Come in, we won’t talk outside.”

They came in. Hiro wanted to warn Fred’s father about inviting her to this house, but he bit his tongue. Mr. Frederickson probably knew what he was doing. And even if not, it didn’t really matter, because she’d been here once before.

The man invited them into his office and approached the desk. Momakase stood on the opposite end.

“So, here we go. A little backstory is that I’ve had a conference about new plans for the extremely advanced freighter. With my employees, one of whom I clearly shouldn't have trusted. Things got worse and he sold original blueprints to a competitor with some electronic copies. They have a meeting with officials tomorrow, if the plans are signed off, they’ll produce these ships as their own. I need you to get them back and delete all copies.”

“I see.”

Mr. Fredricskon reached under his desk and pulled out a small, square device. Hiro recognized it. It was a holographic display.

“Company’s name is ShipDev.” The man continued.

“Very creative.” Momakase sneered.

A map showed up.

“They’re located here, near Night Market Square. Took up the entire building.” He zoomed in on the view. “The more important someone’s office is, the higher they place it. You'll be doing a lot of sightseeing.”

“How about their security?”

Hiro frowned, but curiosity got the better of him. He walked closer, standing next to Momakase and took off his helmet. Mr. Frederickson began to contemplate a bit.

“Honestly I don’t know much. They are very well secured. Or at least they claim so.”

“Nothing?”

“They signed a contract with Krei Tech recently.”

“It’s probably about Buddy Guards.” Hiro cut in. They both looked at him. “What? I’m his intern. I know what sells best. And… what’s least deadly for customers.”

“They are no challenge for my blades.”

“Well, about that,” Mr. Frederickson sighed. “We will talk later.”

“Anything else?”

“Only security cameras placement. And model.”

The hologram display changed only to show hundreds of tiny dots spread throughout the building. A camera of some sort was displayed next to it. It even had a company logo on it. This was somehow familiar for Hiro.

“Wait, are these from Osec?”

Momakase turned towards him.

“Osec?”

“Yeah, security tech company. With security so high that I’m impressed they’re still in the business. They’ve got holes so old and no one patched them yet. But… I guess that’s good now.”

“Didn’t know you’re in security tech.”

Hiro waved his hand.

“Had to fight it for the past few months. Learned a bit.”

“That explains a lot.”

“Right? But I’m still surprised. They claimed to be so secure but they’re using the worst trash ever. Even Yama tried harder. And he’s Yama!”

“And he’s paranoid now. Less secure? Better for us.”

Wait. Us?

“I didn’t say I’m going.”

“You did now.”

“Very funny.”

“Well, we’re helping your friend’s father. What’s bad about it?”

Hiro hated it, but she was right. Someone stole the plans that rightfully belonged to Mr. Frederickson. He was the victim. Even though Momakase was about to do something very illegal, she wasn’t really a bad guy in this scenario. The dishonest worker was.

“Nothing.”

“So?”

He frowned.

“Why do you want me in? It’s kinda your business. You’ve always worked alone. Well… in heists at least.”

“I was gonna ask the same question, kid.” Mr. Frederickson cut in.

Momakase glared at the man. Since he raised his hands in surrender, she turned back to Hiro.

“You heard what he said. Some of the documents are stored virtually. You would find them faster than I would.”

“Can’t you hack?”

“I can. Basics. But as I said, you’re faster.”

“Yeah, ‘cause that’s the main reason why you’re taking me with you.”

“You doubt my words?”

“Sorry, but you’re not the most reliable one.”

“Well, we agree about this. So? What’s your decision?”

Hiro sighed. They cooperated really well last time. Working with her was something different than with his friends. She was focused, not allowing herself to be distracted and not distracting him either. He kind of liked that. Besides, Mr. Frederickson really deserved to get these blueprints back. How bad could this end? He probably wouldn’t get caught by his friends, ‘cause they were busy with something else, not to mention, underground. He also wouldn’t be recognized unless some surveillance footage ended up in Megan’s hands. It should be fine. Right?

He could also become more attached to Momakase. Chasing her was already hard enough, he didn't need any internal moral conflicts added to it. But… it could probably work both ways, right? Maybe if she liked him more, she’d be less eager to commit crimes? Hiro doubted it actually, but he at least could try.

Besides, he had to clear his mind anyway. Focus on something else. Something big. Bigger than revelations about his father, bigger than the fear of being left alone. Something that could make him feel emotions stronger than all of this. Heist could meet the criteria.

“I’m in.”

Mr. Frederickson looked at him with some kind of concern.

“If the team is up, I’ve got one more requirement. You have to do this as stealthily as possible. No traces. No stuff cut into pieces. Are we clear about that, Momakase?”

She didn’t like it. Yet she agreed.

“We are.”

“Are you sure you won’t get into trouble for this, Mr. Frederickson?” Hiro asked.

“Nah.” The man waved his hand. “If they want to sue me, they’d have to admit that they stole it first! Besides, they will have no proof. Well, I hope so. I would go for more legal options, but as I said, there’s no time for this. The project must go on.“

“No proof?” Momakase repeated. “What about cameras, then? Destroy or let them record?”

“They need to be unaware as long as possible.” Mr. Frederickson scratched his beard. “Both of these solutions will wake them up, I suppose.”

“So we need something else.”

Hiro frowned.

“I may have an idea.”

“Share then.”

“Back in our… fugitive days I created a protocol for Basemax.”

“Basemax?”

“Our AI. Helps us detect crimes. She also has access to the city’s entire monitoring system. I programmed her so she could loop the footage as we fought in the streets. She had our locations, predicted our moves and disabled cameras before we could get there so it was harder for Chief Cruz to find us. We were invisible.”

“Very clever.”

“Yeah, it was. The Osec cameras’ software is buggy, I think it will be easy for her to hook into it. We could use the same strategy. But…”

“But?”

“Only I have access to it. We won’t be able to separate.”

“I can't guarantee this. There’s no other solution?”

“Well… there is.”

“Go on.”

Hiro sighed. If his friends found out he was going to do this, he'd be banned from making decisions for the next few years. He couldn't just give her access to their AI. Or could he? He didn't have to give her high-level permissions like his team had, just the basics would be enough. That should work.

“I’d need your communicator and goggles. I have to synchronize them with Basemax, so she could have your location and still work if we split up.”

“Location, huh?”

She definitely didn't like this idea.

“I’ll… delete it later.”

“You will?”

“I’m gonna regret that, won’t I?”

“Probably.”

“Anyway, we need it now. You will be connected to Basemax too, it works on both sides. She will warn you and you can ask her for threats. Just… I have to mark you as a guest so you don’t have access to any secret data.”

“You predict consequences. Very well. Will it take long?”

“Few minutes. May I?”

She gave him her stuff. Hiro turned on his phone, opened one of the apps and began typing commands. He smiled slightly when it got linked. Yet his smile quickly faded. Synchronizing equipment that was created by someone else and didn’t have typical software construction was a bit harder than he expected, but after a few minutes the connection was established. He granted access permissions to the new user and—just to be sure—tested it himself.

He heard the sound of Basemax starting, then gave equipment back to Momakase.

“Say ‘authorization’, so she could recognize your voice.”

The woman grumbled at first, but eventually said it. This started the process, some of which they could hear because Hiro increased volume in Momakase’s earpiece. She wasn’t happy about it. Yet she didn’t turn it down either.

“Authorization complete.” Basemax announced. “Hello, BH6-9.”

Mr. Frederickson had to hold back the urge to laugh. Momakase, on the other hand, had to hold back the urge to hit him. Then she glared at Hiro.

“BH6-9? Really?”

“It won’t last long, so why do you bother anyway? She has default settings to name new users like this. I’m BH6-1.”

“Yes, I guessed. Who are these two before me then?”

“It’s a secret.”

“Shouldn’t say it like that. Now I want to know even more.”

“Do we have time for this?”

“You’re lucky we don’t. Yet.”

She turned down her communication device and began testing out commands. In the meantime Hiro ordered Basemax to hack into ShipDev’s surveillance and map all the cameras. He had to bypass the basic protocol a bit, because it was made to crack into devices which belong to the city, not to the private investors but that was when his admin privileges came in handy. As Hiro expected, it didn’t last long. Soon AI confirmed to be ready.

“Everything’s set.”

“Incredible. You’re really wasting your talents.”

“Guess I’m not the only one.”

Momakase looked at him with a bit of surprise. Then she smiled slightly.

“Nice try. Let’s go, shall we?”

“Yeah, I just… won’t come like this. Need to suit up differently.”

“Yes, that would be wise.”

He summoned Skymax, ordering it to take his flexible display suit. Robot arrived a few minutes later and Hiro went outside to change his clothes. He didn’t feel as safe in this suit as in his regular armor—mostly because of lack of metal plates and no protection—but this was way lighter, so he could be faster, more quiet and not waste as much energy. Not good for his fighting strategy but useful for heists.

Hiro sighed and went back to the mansion, trying not to think much about it. He won’t do anything bad this time. Actually, he also didn’t do anything very bad last time. Family swords? He could have been forced to steal (regain?) something way worse than that.

He entered the room.

“I’m ready.”

Baymax stood next to him, still in his armor, with one finger raised.

“Hiro, I have concerns. I will list them now. Body injury, fall from height, betrayal, getting caught, being sent to jail, enraging aunt Cass…”

“It’s… it’s enough, Baymax. I know what I’m doing. Besides, it’s not like I can’t get into that trouble while being a superhero. Well… some of that trouble at least.”

“Being a superhero is not illegal now. Being a burglar is.”

“Yeah, right.”

“It is not safe. Or good.”

“We’re gonna steal back something that was already stolen before and bring it back to its rightful owner. It is good.”

“But it is still illegal. I do not understand.”

“I’ll explain it later. Or not.”

“I will set a reminder. What would you want me to do now?”

“You’re staying here, Baymax. Maybe Mr. Frederickson… well, gonna need your help with something.”

“Mr. Frederickson is in excellent health despite his age.”

“Something different than healthcare?”

“But I will not be able to protect you.”

“I’ll be fine, buddy. No supervillains this time.”

Baymax turned towards Momakase.

“This is not correct.”

“Well, no other supervillains. But really, you need to stay. Everybody knows you, if they see you with us that would create one giant mess. I won’t give Chief Cruz any more reason to come after the team again.”

“I understand.”

“Great.” Momakase grunted. “Are you two done now?”

Hiro smiled slightly.

“I guess so.”

She nodded. Then she turned back to Mr. Frederickson.

“When can I expect to be paid?”

“After the job. But… I can give you half now if you want.”

“After sounds good.”

“Really?” Hiro raised an eyebrow.

“It’s not like he’ll trick me. His superhero-ness won’t let him do that.”

The boy froze.

“You know.”

“Of course I do. I’m the one who sent him into retirement.”

Hiro blinked a few times. The story Mr. Frederickson had been telling a few hours ago. The girl he had fought on the rooftop who had defeated him. She wasn't some random girl. It was Momakase. Not that Hiro was especially surprised, but...fighting Boss Awesome? How crazy she really was?

Not to mention she actually won.

“Actually,” Mr. Frederickson raised his finger, “my wife is the one who sent me into retirement. You...well, helped her a bit. And speaking of tricks I expect you to give me the blueprints instead of selling them on the black market.”

“You’ll get them. You are no threat.”

“Now I don’t know if you’re trying to offend me or give me a compliment.”

“Consider it as you want to.”                                    

She ran out of the room, and Hiro groaned softly. It looked like he might have to jump across rooftops after all.

Chapter Text

Fred looked around. To call this place a wreck would be a definite understatement. The lamps were smashed, the sofas were broken, pieces of chipboard and foam were strewn everywhere, and the tabletops had been torn off their frames—one tabletop had even been nailed to the ceiling and was hanging there, though Fred had no idea how Noodle Burger Boy had managed that. Or why gravity hadn’t kicked in yet.

Oh, and the walls were smeared with mustard and ketchup, but he was already used to that.

He walked over to the rest of his friends, who were talking to the manager of the fast food restaurant. The police were still bustling around somewhere, and Fred caught a glimpse of Chief Cruz out of the corner of his eye, but he wasn't too concerned. What he was concerned about was that another Noodle Burger had been damaged.

“Look!” Wasabi shouted, pointing to a spot on the tablet screen held by the manager. A tablet on which surveillance footage was being viewed. “He came in here exactly at midnight.”

Fred put his hands on his hips.

“Told ya.”

He glanced at the internal displays, one of them showing the time. And apparently he wasn't the only one.

“He couldn't have gotten far in thirty minutes.” Go Go stated.

“Actually yes, he could.” Wasabi straightened her out. “Telescopic arms, remember?”

“But telescopic arms aren’t as useful underground. Come on, we don’t have much time.”

Fred shrugged and jumped toward the hatch, but before he could get inside, something tugged at his tail. Instead of finding himself in a subway tunnel, he found himself uncomfortably close to the road. He groaned, rolled onto his back, and noticed Go Go above him.

“We’re going first, Fred. And this time, you’re using the ladder.”

“I have a super jump for a reason!”

“You also have a few new bruises today. No super-jumping in a subway.”

Fred groaned and rolled his eyes, though Go Go couldn't see it anyway.

“Fine.”

The other two came inside, and Fred toddled toward the hatch. But just as he was about to enter, his sensors flickered. He frowned and looked around, his gaze settling on one of the roofs across from him. Either he was imagining it, or a shadow had just moved there.

“Fred! Come on!”

He snapped out of it and went down, using the ladder.

_-_-_

Hiro had to jump across rooftops. He fell several times, could have killed himself even more times, probably had a dozen or so bruises and used a lot of his sonic gauntlets’ battery. But he didn’t break any bones. Or maybe he just couldn’t feel them anymore.

Why did he leave Baymax? The robot could have given them a lift at least part of the way. But he hadn't thought of that before, so now he had to pay.

Hiro jumped off the roof and cushioned his fall with sonic waves. He finally managed to catch up with Momakase. She was standing in front of the building they were supposed to sneak into, observing it.

“I’m impressed you kept up.”

“Yeah. Me too.”

Hiro leaned back on his knees and took a few deep breaths.

“What now?” He asked.

“Back entrance. Can you keep up again or do you need a few more seconds?”

“I’m fine. We can go.”

So they went. Hiro turned on invisible mode on their suits, but surprisingly it only worked on his own. Momakase joined soon, clicking a button on her costume. A button he didn’t put there. It looked like she had made some adjustments, but honestly, Hiro wasn’t shocked much. There was no other way if she planned on using the suit. And whatever kind of problems it could create in the future, now it would be better for them to remain independent from each other.

Hiro activated the thermal imaging in his goggles. They sneaked into a side street and hid behind one of the dumpsters. The rear exit was quite small but monitored.

“Basemax, how are the cameras?”

“I have received your location. Cameras are looped in a thirty-feet radius. However, they are not equipped with thermal imaging.”

“Better safe than sorry. Keep looping even if we have our invisibility on.”

“I do not detect when your invisibility is ‘on’.”

“But you have our location and access to the cameras. When you can locate us, but can’t see us, we have invisibility on. Besides, can you detect when there are other people on our way?”

“I confirm.”

“Good. You can turn off looping then. It would be weird if they suddenly disappeared.”

“Saving new settings. There is still one problem though.”

“What, Basemax?”

“I am unable to locate BH6-9 correctly. Something is messing up my sensors.”

Hiro probably even knew what. He turned to the woman.

“Are you still using your scan jammer?”

She growled, but reached for the bracelet on her hand. Hiro gestured for her to hold back. She listened.

“Basemax, is scanning for Momakase running?”

“I confirm.”

“Turn it off.”

“Scanning for Momakase has been disabled.”

“And for her graphene blades.”

“Scanning for Momakase’s graphene blades has been disabled.”

“Send it as new settings to Baymax.”

“New settings have been sent.”

He wasn’t sure if searching was still working, but it looked like someone turned it on again. It was a good thing that he thought about it. If he hadn't, Basemax would have immediately sent an alert to the rest of the team. An alert with their exact location. He didn’t really want to explain himself again. Especially about this.

Momakase turned off her scan jammer.

“I received an update.” Basemax announced. “BH6-9 location readings are clear now.”

“Sweet.” Hiro smiled.

They walked to the door. The boy took a deep breath, while Momakase reached out for the pick. Hiro started to watch closely. He couldn't see her face, but her movements were firm, without a shadow of a doubt. She was focused and despite usually dealing with locks by cutting them, she was equally familiar with the more ‘traditional’ way. A few seconds later the entrance was open.

She didn’t really need graphene, did she?

He snapped out of his thoughts and focused again. Momakase gestured for him to follow her. After a few moments of sneaking around, watching the area and trying not to set off the alarm, they found a technical staircase. Momakase seemed to have a great time there, jumping over the rails, but Hiro had no such skills, so he was left with the traditional way up. Soon he had enough, so he tried to make it easier by using sonic waves. After a dozen or so floors and a lot of wall-hitting, he finally got the hang of it.

But then, of course, they had to stop. They came out on one of the top floors and walked through the hallway until they came to a bend. Momakase ordered Hiro to wait while she carefully peered over the edge. But curiosity got the better of him, so he joined her instead of listening.

A patch of heat hovered in the air. They quickly hid.

“Buddy Guards.” Hiro whispered. “Good thing Krei hasn't solved their overheating problem yet.”

“Can they scan for intruders?” Momakase asked.

“No, they only attack when they see them. Or hear.”

“Too easy.”

“Did I mention they have thermovision too?”

They were equipped with the same flexible display technology as Hiro and Momakase, and Krei figured that having only the location data of the other robots would be insufficient to achieve the desired cooperation. A surprisingly cautious idea for Krei. And problematic for them.

“Well, less easy.” Momakase stated. “Any weaknesses?”

“A lot. If it comes to destruction.”

“And if it comes to leaving no traces?”

“Let’s say I suggest not getting in their way.”

“Can’t your Basemax do anything about them?”

“Krei really improved their soft, it would take hours to hack in, even for her.”

Momakase nodded.

“There are few offices on this side, let’s check them first.”

They turned around only to find themselves face to face with another Buddy Guard. The robot triggered a loud alarm.

“Great.” Hiro sighed.

_-_-_

The alarm had caught the attention of the second Buddy Guard, so they now stood between two robots that were trying to stun them. Hiro dodged a bola thrown at him and narrowly avoided a laser beam coming from another Guard.

He needed to think fast. Sadly, the security system wasn’t really helpful in doing that.

Another Buddy Guard fired a bola at him, while the first one tried to burn them with a laser. Hiro dodged, which resulted in the laser hitting the projectile. He opened his eyes wider and stopped for a moment. It looked like the robot’s cooperation wasn’t as good as Krei claimed it was. Now he just had to figure out how to use it without destroying the bots in the process.

He should also stay alert, because that second of distraction cost him a bola that hit him in the chest.

It wasn’t good.

He narrowly avoided another shot, but that state probably wouldn't last long, as the rope was really restricting his movement. Luckily Momakase drew their attention to herself. She dodged for a moment, clearly waiting for something, and when the Guards began to levitate in front of each other, with her in between, Hiro finally realized what she was planning. When both bots were about to tie her up, she dropped down and shoved Hiro as well.

Buddy Guards knocked themselves out.

Hiro recognized the restart procedure had begun. Meanwhile, Momakase cut the ropes that had entangled him, throwing them away. He stood up and looked around. This place was now a mess.

“And… that’s all for leaving no trace.”

“Really?” Hiro could hear a smile in the woman’s voice. “I thought they encountered an internal error.”

He smiled slightly too.

“Krei’s stuff is bad, but not that bad.”

“We’ll see what the news says tomorrow.”

Hiro took the cut ropes, folded it, and put them away in his suit. The bola’s destruction could hardly be explained by an “internal error.”

No sooner had he finished than several more Buddy Guards came flying around the bend, probably summoned earlier by the previous two. If they hadn't been such a dense pool of heat, perhaps Hiro could have counted them. But he didn't need an exact number to know that they didn't stand a chance without a fight.

He could have taken them down with sonic waves, but that would have caused damage visible on inspection. He also didn't have any portable EMPs with him, and finding the server room to manually disable the bots wouldn’t work either, since it would be logged. There was no way out. Either they leave traces or lose.

Yet Momakase didn’t seem to be preparing. She seemed to be thinking.

“Basemax!” She called out. “Find the nearest guard. Human guard.”

Hiro frowned. Guard? What was she planning to do with the guard? Weren't Krei's robots enough of a problem?

“But—”

“Trust me.”

He sighed. He did trust her last time and didn't really regret that. He could do it again. Besides, it’s not like they had time to argue.

“Searching.” Basemax announced. “I found a match.”

“Lead us there.”

Basemax led them to the next floor, where the alarm of the bots chasing them alerted the guard. They heard his shouting, and after a few corners they could even see him. Momakase quietly ran up to the man and stood right behind him. And suddenly Hiro understood. While dodging another bola, he did the same.

“What the—”

The guard was confused and tried to avoid the bolas aimed at him. But there were too many attacks from too many sides, and the man clearly couldn't take it anymore.

“Deactivation!”

Attacks stopped.

“Voice recognized.” One of the Buddy Guards said. “Deactivation procedure initialized.”

After a few seconds, all the robots slowly fell to the ground. The guard dusted himself off. Then he walked over to them.

“Krei Tech.” He murmured. “Can they do anything other than garbage?”

The guard kicked one of the robots. This released a laser beam that bounced off the walls several times before almost hitting his shoe.

Hiro smiled widely at the irony of the situation. It was somehow satisfying, and the adrenaline that was running through his veins made it even more crazy. He wasn't allowed to think about it for long though. Momakase was already heading toward another corridor, and the boy needed to keep up with her. This required carefulness, because the guard, besides being momentarily tired, was still a threat, and Hiro hadn't trained himself in the technique of silent moving. Perhaps he should start.

They went through several more corridors. Along the way, they came across more Buddy Guards, but they were all lying on the ground, deactivated. The command the guard had called out must have affected the robots throughout the entire building.

Finally they were at a safe distance.

“That was pretty clever.” Hiro whispered, his breathing still a bit irregular.

“Yes, it was.”

He could bet she was smiling again. He didn’t blame her.

“There was a human guard here.” Momakase continued. “Below there were only robots.”

Hiro frowned. He had an idea what she was driving at.

“They’re keeping something important here.” The boy finished.

“Exactly.”

They picked a few locks, searched a few offices, and stuck themselves to the wall a few times as a guard walked by. But the only important documents they came across were accounting-related. Hiro didn't know much about it, but not all of them seemed entirely credible to him. Eventually they were left with one room, equipped with a card reader and no regular lock.

The room which—according to Basemax—the guard passed by most often.

“Not a very smart move.” Momakase whispered.

Hiro nodded. Why put so much effort if there is something with no value inside? This would be smart if it was intended to confuse thieves, but from someone who had used Osec cameras, Hiro didn't expect such clever solutions. That meant ShipDev had given them blueprints on a silver platter. Well, almost.

Unfortunately, the guard had already cleaned up the mess with the robots, put them all away in the corner, and although he was now busy with some paperwork, he was a bit more focused on guarding than before.

“I calculated the average frequency of his rounds.” Basemax announced. “Once he turns the right corner, you will have a minute and a half to get inside.”

“Thanks, Basemax.”

Soon the guard turned the right corner. They quickly moved to the door, and Hiro already had an idea. He turned to Momakase.

“May I borrow one of your knives?”

She gave him one.

He turned off his thermovision, carefully inserted the knife between the reader and the wall, trying not to cut either. The gap was thin, but the graphene was thinner, so he managed it eventually. He hit the handle, and the reader popped out of its latches.

“Now we can have fun.”

He tucked the knife under his arm, smiled arrogantly and swapped two plugs. The door opened. Momakase held it, while Hiro swapped the plugs again and put the reader back on its place. They went inside and quietly closed the door behind them before the guard could return. Luckily, it wasn't glass, and it had a normal handle on the inside.

They turned the light on.

“Basemax, are there any cameras here?” Hiro asked.

“There are no cameras inside this office. I cannot see you.”

“They may have hidden ones, not connected to their system.” Momakase added.

“Well, then they’ll notice the wandering blueprints anyway.”

Hiro turned off his invisibility, and she soon joined him. He returned the knife to her, then sat down at the computer. He was about to start typing commands, but instead he turned to the woman, who was examining the safe. He shouldn't be interested in it, since he'd probably never crack safes, but then again, curiosity got the better of him and he began to watch. Besides, she always dealt with safes by simply cutting them into pieces. He wanted to know how she would manage without her blades.

Hiro stepped closer.

A numeric keypad and an electronic lock. Nothing to indicate how long the password was. But maybe if he would be able to get to the insides, he could—

Momakase removed the lower half of her mask and blew on the keypad. Steam settled on all the numbers except the most frequently touched ones. This left her with four numbers that could be in any combination with any repeatability. That was a challenge.

Unless it wasn’t. She hovered over the keypad, then typed in numbers so quickly he didn't even have time to see what she had clicked.

Light turned green. Safe was opened.

“How did you know that?”

“People are simple. Choosing what is easiest for them to remember. And easiest to type.”

“Social engineering.”

“Exactly. It’s useful everywhere.”

Hiro nodded, then focused on reality again. They still had to deal with the contents of the safe.

There were some personal documents inside, quite a lot of money and, of course, blueprints. She took the plans, carefully rolled them up and hid in her outfit. Then she closed the safe, leaving everything else. Even money.

“Half of the job is done.” The woman stated. “Well, let’s see your skills in action now.”

“As you wish.”

He took off his gloves, because they were definitely too thick for typing, and set them on the desk. Luckily, underneath he had regular, thin ones, so he didn't have to worry about leaving fingerprints. Then the work could begin.

Hiro turned on the computer and, fully aware that Momakase was watching him closely (and learning from what he was doing), he opened a technical profile with administrator privileges, launched a command prompt to explore the other profiles and found a few dozen files that matched the day of the theft. A couple of them actually represented blueprints. They were quickly deleted. But that surely wasn’t all.

Hiro opened the mail from a profile that belonged to some key figure. The correspondence wasn't particularly interesting (several emails to graphic designers to remove Frederickson's signature, several to engineers), but he noticed one thing.

“They’re sending paths to each other. Paths, not files. They’re keeping them on a company drive. All in one place.”

“Stupid move.”

The boy nodded, got to the company drive and pasted the path into file explorer. The location was loaded, and dozens of documents appeared in front of Hiro. He marked them.

“Howdy and goodbye.”

And pressed delete.

He lowered his excitement a bit and checked other mails, but it looked like that was the only place they kept these files. No backups, no other paths. Maybe there was something stored locally on graphic designers’ or engineers’ devices, since they were working on it and could make some copies for their own use, but Hiro didn’t have access to their computers. Yet he did have access to their e-mails… no, sending a virus won’t work. Employees would probably realize something was wrong if they saw their boss sending them a text at 2am.

But are they really paying attention to sending hours? Krei didn’t seem to care.

He leaned against the chair and began to think.

“Maybe that could work.” Hiro murmured.

“Is there any problem?”

“There may be some local copies, but I don’t have access to other devices. Finding them would take too long.”

“I bet you have some faster idea.”

“I do. But it’s kinda… extreme.”

“Share then.”

“I may use his employees to finish the job for us. But I don’t know how careful they are. And if I would do that… well, I don’t know how they named their files, if they even created any copies at all. So I'll have to delete all the latest ones.”

“They’ll surely notice that.”

“Yeah, I know. But they’ll also notice the lack of blueprints. It’s all about tomorrow’s meeting, right? So that they would be surprised. Maybe they won’t connect this attack with blueprints. And… leaving no traces doesn’t mean leaving no traces at all. It means leaving not such traces that could help with recognizing us.”

“You figured it out very quickly.”

“Well, sorry, but I’m not a professional thief.”

“Hm. You’re doing well.”

Hiro sighed. He didn’t need this kind of praise.

“Basemax, write me a virus that will delete all files that were created two days ago and later.”

“This goes against my procedures.”

“Ignore procedures.”

“Procedures had been ignored. Analyzing. Writing complete.”

“Mask it as some important spreadsheet or something.”

“Masking complete.”

“Sent it to…” He checked whose account he was currently on. “Connor Harrids? To DevTech internal post.”

“Sending complete.”

“Great, thanks.”

Hiro received an email, ignored the warning about the possible risks of downloading a file from a sender outside the organization and then started writing reasonably convincing emails both to graphic designers and engineers about nicely presenting this data and checking whether they are consistent. He also put an infected file in there. Once they’ll download it, they’ll lose everything they have worked on for the past few days. It really was a bit final, but he was going in blind, preferring to rather delete too much than too little.

He sent the emails. Then he deleted them in Harrids’ mailbox, as well as the one he received from Basemax. Just to be sure, he also cleared the deleted emails folder.

“Guess that’s all.” The boy whispered.

They collected their stuff, cleaned after themselves and—after making sure that the guard was somewhere else—got out of the office.

Chapter Text

Hiro jumped and turned on sonic waves at the right moment. Maybe his landing wasn’t perfect, but at least he didn't stumble and was able to immediately start running again. He also didn’t fall into a gap between buildings. A gap between sixty-feet-high buildings. It weren’t great parkour skills, but enough to catch up to Momakase without getting killed in the process. He even started to like it, finally being able to find his balance.

And then, Momakase stopped on one of the roofs. He joined her, but something didn’t seem right. She raised her hand in warning and looked around. Hiro tensed.

That wasn’t his team, was it?

He quickly switched to thermal vision, but saw no one. But was it for sure? There was a device that ventilated the building in the middle of the roof, a lot of heat was coming out of it. It messed with his vision. He switched it back to normal and realized one thing. It was too quiet for Big Hero 6. Fred would have exposed them long ago.

That was someone else.

Or maybe Momakase just played with him and going with her was one huge mistake? But that didn’t make sense. If she had wanted to trap him, she wouldn't have put so much time and effort in it. She wouldn’t be honest.

He looked at her and noticed she was staring at the exact same spot as he was.

“Come out.” She snapped.

And somebody really came out. Hiro let out a sigh of relief when he recognized the outfit. It wasn’t a trap. It was just Boss Awesome, who apparently decided to meet them in the middle of the way. And scared them in the process.

Momakase also relaxed a little and lowered her mask.

“Old man decided to air his suit out?” She sneered.

“This old man could still give you a hard time.”

“Let’s get back to business.”

Mr. Frederickson nodded. The woman pulled out the blueprints.

“So, I see you made it.”

“Of course I did. I am the best.”

“Humble like always.” The man took the plans. “How about copies?”

“Deleted.” Hiro interrupted.

He could have added that he had written a virus to make sure that all the files would be wiped out, but he chose to keep quiet about it. After all, the employees would lose the documents unrelated to blueprints they had been working on for the past few days, just because management made one stupid decision. And while management was mostly to blame, that didn't make Hiro feel much better about what he had to do.

“He did a good job.” Momakase stated.

Hiro tried to scratch his hair but only touched his hood instead. So he just smiled shyly, although Mr. Frederickson couldn't see it anyway.

“Great!” The man exclaimed. “Harrids’ not gonna be happy.”

He tucked the plans into his belt, clearly not handling them as carefully as Momakase had earlier. Hiro could see a slight frown on her face, but before she could say anything more, Mr. Frederickson picked up a small briefcase from the ground.

“Here’s your payment.”

The woman took it and looked inside.

“It adds up.”

“So, if everything is done, I’m going home. Tomorrow’s another important meeting, I'd better get some sleep before some employee robs me again. And… I’d be grateful if no one found out about our cooperation.”

“You have my word.” Momakase replied.

“Classic!”

And just like that, Mr. Frederickson—although now actually Boss Awesome—jumped to the next building and disappeared, leaving them alone.

Hiro sighed and lowered his mask. He was tired, both physically and emotionally, but at least his previous problems were no longer so overwhelming, because he simply didn't have the energy to deal with them anymore or even think about them. His sonic gauntlets’ battery was almost dead as well. The best idea would have been to call Baymax, except for one small detail. He'd left his phone at the Fredericksons' in case someone decided to call him in the middle of the action and draw the guards' attention. He was in for a walk.

But… did he really want to go now? Last time he had to, because his friends showed up and then the police had joined in. But today he wasn’t in a hurry.

The boy emerged from his thoughts when somebody lightly touched him.

“Here. Take it.”

Momakase was holding several stacks of bills. He had to blink a few times before he realized what was happening. And he still didn't.

“What?”

“You did half of the job. You get half of the payment.”

“But he paid you.”

“And I’m paying you.”

“I didn’t do it for money.”

“I know. But as I said, that would be fair.”

Hiro took a few steps back.

“No. No, it’s too much. It’s way too much. I can’t take it.”

“Why?”

“That’s… that’s way more than I could get from bot fights. Even from the best tournaments. I don’t want it. Besides, how would I explain this to aunt Cass?”

“The same way you’re explaining being a hero.”

Hiro looked at her skeptically.

“If you are able to hide such a big stuff, you can hide some money as well. You may need it someday. And if someone gives something to you, take it.”

“I don’t feel comfortable about it.”

“Don’t worry. You owe me nothing.”

Hiro frowned. Didn’t he? That was crazy. Even if she claimed it was nothing, he couldn't just ignore it. And he had no idea if she was aware of it or not. Was she doing it on purpose? To make sure she made it as difficult as possible for him to pursue her on a moral level? Was this some kind of bribery? Whatever it was it surely wasn’t nothing.

But it still didn't fit. Momakase wasn't the manipulative type. When she wanted to get rid of someone, she just did it, physically. If she played with her opponent, it was only by giving him a momentary advantage or by mocking him, before the real defeat. No sowing doubts, no manipulation on a deeper level, no very complicated plans. Which meant that this time she was clearly sincere and truly thought this was a fair solution.

“Why are you doing this?”

“I have some standards.”

For everyone? Or just for him? She could keep her word and fulfill the agreement perfectly, but for some reason Mr. Frederickson warned her against cheating. And he knew she had cheated Yama once, or at least that was what the reports he had obtained from the police database showed.

But… Yama was a cheater himself. Hiro wasn’t.

He took the money.

Momakase closed her briefcase and headed for the edge of the roof. But before she could leave, Hiro had an idea.

“Wait!”

She turned around. He'd probably regret this, right?

“I want to make a deal with you.”

“A deal?” She raised an eyebrow. “Well, I’m listening.”

“Can you keep an eye on Good Luck Alley? And let me know if anything serious happens? Like, really serious, not some petty theft, more like Yama and his revenge plots? I mean, it is your world. I can’t really watch it without getting deeper into the Underworld. And my aunt would kill me for that. If, well… some bad guys wouldn’t do it first. In return I’ll keep my team away from you. As long as you won’t do anything really bad.”

Momakase smiled indulgently.

“They’re already away from me.”

Hiro frowned. Actually she was right. And he had nothing else to offer. She wouldn't take the money back.

“But fine.”

He blinked.

“Wait. What?”

“I said fine.”

“Just like that?”

“Just like that.”

“What about your life being interesting?”

“I think cooperation with you can be interesting as well.”

He smiled. That was actually nice.

“Thanks.”

“Just don’t mention that.”

“Right, you have your reputation.”

“See? You’re getting it.”

She ran to the edge, but before she jumped, she turned back to the boy.

“Oh, and kid? I’ve got one thing I’d like to talk with you about. I’ll see you soon.”

Hiro nodded while she saluted, jumped, and disappeared into the shadows. He actually had quite a few questions himself. After tonight, probably even more.

He put his mask and goggles back on, turned on his invisibility and then used the outside staircase to go down. No jumping, no sonic waves. He could return to the Fredericksons’ mansion like a normal person, through the sidewalk.

But before he left, he looked up one more time and smiled slightly, although he honestly didn't know what to think about it all. Maybe besides one thing.

He had just gotten himself into some crazy relation.

_-_-_

Hiro walked through the door and—almost like he was going on autopilot—headed straight for Mr. Frederickson's office. He didn't even remember the exact route he took, but he ended up where he wanted to be, and that was all that mattered. Now all he had to do was change his suit (or not), take Baymax and go home.

Except for one tiny detail. It took him a few seconds to realize that the robot wasn't here. Mr. Frederickson wasn’t either. Hiro picked up his phone from the desk and felt the device vibrate, but the lack of friends preoccupied him more than any notifications.

“Baymax?”

Something creaked. When he turned to look, he saw Mrs. Frederickson, who looked extremely worried. Suddenly he understood, and the adrenaline returned, momentarily waking him up. Something was wrong.

“What happened? Where’s Baymax?”

“Frederick needed his help; he had to get there as soon as he could.”

“Get there? Where? What’s going on?”

Fred's father needed medical attention? How serious was the situation?

“Don’t you know?” The woman responded, obviously surprised. “It happened right after he returned with the blueprints. He decided to help because you couldn’t, there’s a huge breakout in prison.”

Hiro froze and turned on his phone. Seventeen missed calls.

For a few seconds everything stopped.

“Oh no.”

Chapter Text

“Could you please fly straight?!”

Hiro clenched his fingers tighter, and the magnets in his gloves responded by increasing their power. A split second of delay, and instead of flying on Skymax crookedly, he would have been even more crookedly falling toward the city.

He heard a hum from the robot, but it sounded more like a regretful refusal than a promise of improvement. Not that Hiro was surprised. After all, the Skymaxes were not suitable for anyone to fly on them.

He blinked several times to clear his vision. It only made him sleepier, but he had to get there. He had to help his friends. He should’ve gone with them on this search from the very beginning instead of playing the heist game. Momakase would’ve done just as well without him, but he had been stupid enough to agree. He had been stupid enough to leave his phone at Fredericksons’ mansion, stupid enough to forget his display suit’s communicator was synchronized only with Momakase’s. He had been stupid enough to think only about himself and not about the others.

All he had done was let his friends down.

Hiro banked slightly to the right, leveling out his flight. In the meantime, he realized that he hadn't fastened one of his gloves properly, but there was nothing he could do about it at the moment. He was more concerned with not falling. And not only with this, because in the distance, he began to see a heavy trail of smoke. He didn’t need a detailed map of the city to know that it was coming from the prison. After a few seconds, he had a pretty good view.

The entire building was covered in marks. It was as if a laser tornado had swooped in and aimed blindly, destroying everything in its path. And judging by the distance between the laser beams, Hiro could tell for sure who was the owner of it.

“Noodle Burger Boy.”

But why? It didn't make sense, after all, Trina had been decided to be dismantled—

The answer came as they circled the building and Hiro spotted a familiar exoskeleton.

“They didn’t make it in time.”

Guards were lying everywhere, hopefully only unconscious (some of them seemed to be waking up). And at the center of the chaos was a colorful tangle of villains and heroes, each of them moving so fast that Hiro couldn't even tell who had escaped. Not to mention that he wouldn’t have time to do so.

“We’re going down, buddy.”

They headed towards the center of the havoc, but El Fuego's fist had appeared at the worst possible moment, and Hiro lurched backwards. It was a bad move.

Skymax lost his balance, and Hiro wasn't fully aware of what was happening in the meantime. He only knew that the robot flew further, and he himself landed on someone. After a second, he realized that it was Supersonic Sue.

“Hey! Since when you’re throwin’ people, ya freaks?” She yelled.

“Sorry!”

Hiro stood up as quickly as he could, not really wanting to clash with her. She was Go Go’s opponent, not his. And he preferred to keep it that way.

“Don’t sorry!” Go Go yelled at him, clearly not in the mood. “Or at least not her. Where have you been all this time?!”

She clenched her fists, and Hiro stepped back.

“I’m sorry—”

“Where have you been?!”

The boy frowned. Something about her reaction made him not want to explain himself at all. It was too harsh. If he had been less tired and more able to think straight, he might have tried to de-escalate it. But he hadn’t been.

“Busy. I couldn’t come.”

“What was so important? We needed you.”

“I was helping Mr. Frederickson. He needed me too!”

Go Go growled, then took one of the disks from her back and threw it behind him, hitting some villain who, judging by the groans, was probably Stu.

“You promised to be online!” She gave back. “Don't you remember how it ended last time?”

Hiro followed suit. Before the disk could return to her, he shot a magnet in its direction, then activated a coil in between and swung his arm. The disk changed course and hit one of Baron von Steamer's steam-generating device tubes before Hiro could pull it back toward him. The pipe was no longer tight.

“Hey!” The villain apparently noticed this and raised his mechanical arm towards Hiro. “Stay out of my business, millennial! It’s not you who I fight!”

But Baron didn't have time to do anything more, because that second of distraction was enough for him to receive a powerful punch in the face from Boss Awesome himself. He was probably seeing stars now.

“No, it’s not.” The older hero replied and raised a thumbs up towards the boy. “Thanks, kid!”

Hiro nodded, then turned his attention back to Go Go. Where had they ended? Ah, right. The memory of when he had become obsessed with the energy amplifier. And how she thought he had forgotten about it.

“Oh, I do remember!”

“Then what happened?!”

“I’ve got a glitch! Besides, I wanted to be alone for a few minutes. Few minutes, can’t I?!”

Go Go's face seemed to soften for a moment, only to frown a second later. She snatched her disk from Hiro, then threw it at something behind him again. He heard a loud bang as it hit something hard.

“Not in the visor, could ya?” Sue started complaining.

“We’re busy now!” Go Go clenched her fists. “Can’t you see, grandma?!”

“I can’t now, you cracked it! But fine. Take care of your parenting stuff and then go back to fight, Skater Tot. It’s no fun when you’re distracted.”

Go Go groaned before turning her attention back to Hiro. He, on the other hand, decided to end this argument. It had gone on too long already, and the rest of Big Hero 6 (and Boss Awesome) needed their help with fighting others. He noticed Baymax and Honey Lemon clashing with El Fuego, Wasabi trying to deflect Noodle Burger Boy's laser beams, Fred and Mini-Max talking with Supersonic Stu, and Fred’s dad beating Baron von Steamer. Yet still, Hiro was actually surprised that no villain had forcibly interrupted his subtle exchange with Go Go so far.

“I should’ve set up that communicator better,” he said. “But I’m here now. So let’s clean this mess, okay?”

“I agree, Hamada.”

Hiro froze. It wasn’t Go Go. They both turned to the right, only to see Trina next to them. It looked like some villain was going to interrupt them after all.

“Let’s start with you,” his former friend added.

Her face was half human, but the other half was still torn off, revealing the machinery underneath. It wasn't a pleasant sight. But Hiro had more important things to worry about at the moment.

He barely avoided the claws of her exoskeleton. Out of the corner of his eye, he also saw Go Go try to distract her by throwing a disc at her face, but Trina effortlessly caught it mid-air and then crushed it. Pieces of the device fell to the ground as if they were made of thin paper. Hiro took a few steps back.

That disc was made out of titanium. Reinforced titanium.

He prepared his magnets.

Go Go didn't seem concerned though. She made another attempt to distract the android, this time by flying around her on hoverdisc. It didn’t work for long. As soon as Trina realized the trajectory was steady, she reached out and grabbed the disk before the speedster could get her bearings. Half a second later, Go Go was on the ground, along with her equipment and Supersonic Sue she was thrown into. Grandma had clearly been watching from the sidelines until now. Not that the activities of villains other than Trina were Hiro's top priority right now.

“Annoying bug.” She stated, then turned to the boy. “Let’s deal with you now.”

She stretched her arm towards him. Hiro quickly fired a magnet at it, hitting the inside of the makeshift hand, then pitchpoled out of Trina's way. He looked around quickly. Walls everywhere, though some of them were destroyed. He needed metal. Like... a lamppost.

Trina tried to crush the magnet, but it was too small for her clenched fist to do anything. Well, anything other than preventing her claws from opening again. Hiro smirked and fired a second magnet at the lamppost. A coil formed between them, binding Trina to the object.

Until it turned out that she was stronger than the lamppost’s footing.

“O-oh.”

Hiro stepped aside, and it turned out to be a good decision, because half a second later a post hit the spot he was standing in.

“Is something wrong, Hamada? Have your calculations failed? Being tired?”

“You wish.”

Trina swung again, but Hiro turned off the coil and she lost control of the lamppost. He didn't look where the object flew, though considering the scream he heard, it probably hit El Fuego.

His former friend stepped closer and used her other hand to spread the claws of her first, then punched the palm. Dust from the crushed magnet fell to the ground. Hiro swallowed hard. He hadn't had time to replenish his supplies as much as he wanted to. He only had a few magnets left. And he had to use them wisely.

“Oh, are you scared?”

Hiro didn’t answer.

“You should be. You destroyed everything.”

He didn’t. It was Trina who wanted to destroy the city, it was Trina who wanted to kill millions of people. It was Trina who wanted Obake’s legacy to keep living.

Then why did he feel guilty?

“You destroyed home,” she continued, “you destroyed all of father’s plans, you destroyed all of his dreams, you destroyed everything that was left of him. And after all this, you refused to let me keep his legacy.”

“It meant people dying, Trina. I couldn’t let that happen.”

“You couldn’t let that happen?! Father is dead because of you! You couldn't let others die, but you could let him?!”

Hiro took a step back.

“He chose death! Baymax wanted to help him, but he refused. If I was there, I’d have done anything to save him, I swear! But I wasn’t.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“I have a recording.”

“I don’t wanna watch it. It is your fault. If you did what he wanted, he would still be alive.”

But everyone else wouldn’t. When it came to choice, there was no choice. The lives of many were more important than the life of one, and Obake had chosen his own fate himself. So why did Hiro feel so bad about it? It wasn't his fault, right? Right?

He looked down. At some level, it was his fault.

That second of distraction cost him dearly as Trina caught him in her hand and squeezed. He tried to pull away, but he was too weak. And not just physically.

Trina lifted him higher so they were on eye level.

“And you know what’s the worst about all of this?” she continued, “He was always talking about you, about the future he would build with you, about how much you would achieve, about your potential. You, you, you. It was always you. Always! But never me.”

Hiro swallowed.

“I am not responsible for his decisions. It’s not my fault he was obsessed with me!”

“It’s not? And who started to play a hero and put himself into the spotlight?!”

She threw him in a rage, and Hiro had just enough time to spin to a safe position before he hit the concrete. He had to get himself together. He wouldn't beat her if guilt beat him first. He'd have to face that later.

He stood up and turned to face her. If he couldn't pin her down anywhere here, he had to somehow affect her exoskeleton. And he could only count on himself, because in the past few moments Noodle Burger Boy started keeping all the other heroes and villains busy. Coincidence? He didn’t think so.

“I had to bring justice to the one who was responsible for my brother's death,” he answered.

“So you get me.”

“I do.”

If he hadn't been sure before, he now knew what was at stake. And he really didn't want Aunt Cass to mourn her second nephew.

Before Trina could react, Hiro fired another magnet and hit it just above the exoskeleton's knee shield. It was one of the few places that wasn't fully protected, and the magnet, set to maximum power, soon caused the metal parts inside to shift. Trina's leg began to move uncontrollably and she wasn’t happy about this.

“What? Hamada!”

The second magnet went off, in the other knee. The situation repeated. Trina tried to rip the devices off, but instead her hands got stuck too.

Hiro frowned. That wouldn't stop her for long. And it didn't. Trina decided to change her method, pressing her hands harder and crushing the magnets again. It apparently didn't help her much, because even though she got free, her legs were still stuttered and she couldn't walk properly. Her parts didn't snap back into their place.

He’d survive.

“Noodle! I could use your help!”

Or not. The boy heard a disturbingly cheerful, robotic laugh. If he had dodged a second later, he wouldn’t have his arm anymore. He rolled on the ground and lifted his head, but Noodle Burger Boy didn't seem particularly interested in him.

“Time to go, sis!” The mascot exclaimed.

“Not so quick.”

Hiro spotted Boss Awesome next to him and stood up. Fred and Mini-Max soon landed on his right. The boy quickly looked around for the villains they had fought earlier, but they hadn't escaped. Supersonic Sue had clearly given up on Go Go and decided to take it out on Baron von Streamer, and he returned the favor. Stu watched the fight, and Go Go watched Stu. The situation was under control.

Somehow, he felt stronger than before.

“It’s over, Trina.”

“No, it’s not, misters!” Noodle Burger Boy answered instead. “It’s a good thing I have a special order for you! Hee-hee.”

Hiro frowned and watched as the robot opened its head and pulled out some kind of device. Trina clearly didn't expect this either, because she looked surprised.

Noodle pressed a big, red button.

“Order delivered. Enjoy your me-ee-struction!”

“Meestruction?” Fred began to wonder. “Is that a word?”

Hiro frowned as the robot took Trina, shot a hand out onto the distant prison walls, and escaped. The object seemed familiar to him. He ran closer.

“Kid, I wouldn’t…”

Hiro stood next to the object and heard the distinctive beeping. Bunch of cables, some material inside. And then he knew. How could he not recognize it earlier? Noodle Burger Boy had left a bomb. He leaned over it so he could defuse it, but then his eyes landed on the counter.

Ten seconds.

“EVERYONE RUN!”

He took to his legs as well, looking around to make sure everyone would make it. And they did. But that meant he was left behind.

“Skymax! Start the engine! Now!”

A blue glow began to emit from beneath the robot, and Hiro turned the magnets in his gloves to maximum strength. As Skymax lifted off the ground, he jumped and latched onto its back. They managed to fly a few feet before a bang. The robot suddenly turned around, protecting Hiro from the heatwave.

He saw a terrifyingly bright light and felt a huge shockwave even before the heat got to him. His ears began to ring; his sense of balance was disrupted. He even barely noticed when they began to lose altitude, but Skymax must have managed to level off, because they didn't crash. He did notice though when they landed on some rooftop, far enough from the fire. But was it? Hiro still could feel the heat on his skin. Why was it so hot there?

He wasn’t sure. He wasn’t even sure what really happened.

He wasn't sure why dozens of voices suddenly appeared in his head, all shouting some incomprehensible words over each other. Until he felt himself shaking. And saw someone's hands in front of him.

“Hiro! Are you okay?”

So those voices weren't in his head. It was Honey Lemon. And the others. Probably. But if so, why couldn’t he focus on them?

“Scan complete.” He heard Baymax’s voice. “I did not detect any serious injuries. You are, though, in a serious shock. You may not be aware of surroundings and events for a while. I recommend not making any sudden movements. This also applies to those nearby.”

Hiro blinked a few times. He started to see his surroundings. Or rather, focus on them. He tried to walk around and judge the distance from the roof casing.

“I’m fine.” He murmured. “Just need a minute.”

“My scan indicates that your blood oxygen level is very low and you are extremely tired. If you are not careful, you may faint. I recommend sitting down.”

“Yeah, whatever.”

Hiro obeyed though. He took a few deep breaths, blinked a few more times. He began to see lights coming from the skyscrapers. A bright Yaki Taco sign a few buildings over. His friends stood over him, worried. The Skymax that had landed next to him, its front panel charred, its logo nearly invisible. Because of the…fire.

And then it all came back to him. The heist. The breakout. Trina. Noodle Burger Boy. The bomb.

“Explosion!”

He stood up abruptly, but his head immediately started spinning. Someone caught him, looking at the color of the armor, Wasabi.

“Hey, take it easy.”

“But… people!”

“The prison staff were evacuated when we arrived.” Go Go explained. “The other prisoners too.”

“Yeah, and all the villains escaped.” Wasabi added. “Sadly, not only from the fire.”

Baymax raised his finger.

“I confirm. Thanks to your quick reaction there were no victims in the explosion.”

Hiro breathed a sigh of relief. From what his mind was beginning to process, they had a lot of work to do. But at least they were all alive. That was all that mattered now.

“You think you can stand on your own now?” Wasabi asked.

The boy tried, and this time it didn't end with spots before his eyes. He nodded.

“Good. You scared us to death!”

“Your statement is incorrect. You are in good physical condition.” Baymax noticed, and everyone looked at him with pity. “Oh. It was an expression.”

“What Wasabi meant was…” Go Go stated, pointing at Hiro “what got into your head?! You could die!”

The boy lowered his head, not really wanting to answer.

“I could die many times before.”

“But it was never so close.”

“I told you, I’m fine.”

Go Go looked at him skeptically, clearly about to say something, but then her gaze was caught by something else. In the end, she didn't say anything. Hiro sighed and walked over to the roof structure, leaning on it, not even wanting to check what had stopped her. Just in front of him, some distance away, there was smoke and glow. He could hear the sounds of sirens more and more clearly, his senses almost returning to normal.

Perhaps unfortunately, because some kind of argument broke out between Fred and Wasabi, and Hiro heard it all too well.

“How can you be happy that the villains escaped?” Wasabi almost squealed.

“I’m not happy, I’m excited. And not about the villains, about Phase Four. Tonight, it’s officially begun.”

“And didn't Phase Four begin just when Phase Three ended?” Mini-Max interrupted.

“Well, technically yes. But now it’s official!”

“Your words have no sensible logic!”

“Yeah, I have to agree with him.” Wasabi stated.

Hiro rolled his eyes and rested his head on his hands. And perhaps that was the only way he could see the feet approaching. He straightened up, but still didn't look in Fred's father's direction. The older hero stood next, definitely wanting to talk.

“How are you feeling?”

“Like death.” Hiro murmured.

“Classic.”

“I want to be alone.”

He should call his robot and go home. Too bad Baymax was busy helping to resolve the conflict. Although Hiro could tell from the raised voices that he had escalated it again.

“When was the last time you slept, huh?” Boss Awesome asked.

“I already have Baymax to remind me about this.”

“Being defensive, got it. You’re tired. But I just wanted to say one thing. Good job.”

Hiro blinked a few times. It seemed his senses weren't quite back to normal yet.

“What?”

“You did a good job with this.” Boss Awesome pointed at the fire.

“It’s an irony, isn’t it?”

“Why do you think that?”

“I messed up everything. I decided to go with her instead of helping them, she could make it on her own, but I was just… I let them down. I walked up to the bomb like an idiot. I made them worry about me. Again. And you’re saying ‘good job’. Thanks.”

“I meant that, kid.”

“Yeah, sure.”

“I don’t blame you for going with her, you couldn't have predicted this. Besides, you came. You decided to help them after all. And yeah, walking to the bomb was stupid, even I have to admit that, but if you hadn't warned all those people, if you hadn't known how much time we had left, this could have ended a lot worse. Did villains escape? Yes. But they’re alive. We’re alive. That’s what matters. So good job, kid.”

Hiro thought about it for a moment and felt his eyes getting watery. He blinked quickly before it turned into something more serious. And before he knew it, he was hugging the older hero. Mr. Frederickson must not have expected this, because he tensed up a bit, but he quickly got over it and gently patted Hiro's helmet.

“Uhm, yeah. It’s okay, kid.”

The boy took a few steps back.

“I’m sorry, I’m just…”

“Nah, it’s fine.”

“I needed that. Really. Thanks.”

“You need sleep too.”

Hiro smiled slightly and called Baymax. They could resolve the conflict between the rest of the team another day.

Chapter Text

“Okay, so let’s sum this up,” Go Go began.

Hiro tried to stifle a yawn, but failed miserably. He'd slept practically until noon, which was almost never the case, mostly because of Aunt Cass waking him up early. But she hadn't done that this time, and the boy suspected that Baymax had his robotic finger in the pie. He wasn't complaining though. Although he was complaining about his body, which definitely did not want to cooperate.

Hiro ran his finger across the holographic computer screen built into their base's table. He had more pressing matters to worry about now. Like rewinding the footage from his helmet. After his brain finally started working at more or less full speed, he realized that one thing was very off. And he had to find out more.

Oh, and listening to his friends could be useful too.

“The prison board has analyzed the incident and they have a list of escapees.” Go Go continued. “These are some common criminals that are not our priority, but we can help find them. From those we have more interested in are Baron von Steamer, Supersonics, El Fuego, and Trina.”

“Yep, we fought them,” Wasabi pointed out.

Go Go ignored him.

“I’m not sure if we can count Noodle Burger Boy as an escapee, but he's definitely on our catch-list. And there is also worse news.”

“This is already bad news! How can it get any worse?”

“Does this include how the bad guys got their gear back?” Fred cut in with his question. “Because if it was stored in the prison the whole time, man, I'm surprised this hasn't happened sooner. I mean, it’s so obvious.”

“It was stored in the prison the whole time,” Go Go admitted. “They've also recognized this as a problem and are working on it.”

“Better late than never. And Trina?”

“From what I understand, they wanted to examine her more closely. If they had skipped that, she would've been dismantled by now.”

“These guys really don't know what they're doing, do they?”

“Well…”

“Yeah, I have to admit, this is very bad news,” Wasabi admitted. “How can such an important institution be so poorly organized?”

“It’s not the worst news, but it’s the problem too, yeah.”

“Wait. Not the worst news? Then what is the worst news?”

Hiro rewound and the video stopped at a frame of an angry Trina. He quickly moved on, not really wanting to watch her. For a change he could look up and listen to what his friends were saying. His eye was caught by the board on the Basemax main screen. It looked like she was making a list as Go Go listed off the supervillains.

“The worst news is that Di Amara and Chris have also escaped.”

“What? But we didn’t see them!” Wasabi began to panic.

“They must have taken advantage of the confusion at the beginning,” Honey Lemon pointed out. “Instead of going for the equipment, they ran away with nothing before we even showed up.”

Go Go agreed.

“That’s what I was thinking.”

Hiro frowned. That could be a problem.

He looked down, where he finally managed to fast-forward to the part where Noodle Burger Boy opens his head and pulls out a bomb. Now, just a few more seconds ahead... There it was. A close-up of the bomb as he ran up to it. The lighting wasn't the best, but it was enough for him to make out the important details.

Hiro zoomed in on the frame, looking closer.

“So what, we have one of our main villains free,” Fred started to sum it up, “and since her main goal was already accomplished in the past, we don't know what she's planning now, except that she definitely wants some kind of revenge. And it’s not gonna be easy finding her, either,” Fred looked at Basemax and she confirmed, “because she's too smart for that, probably using a jammer or something. Oh, and she knows Hiro's identity.”

“You don’t have to remind me that,” he murmured.

“Did I miss anything?”

“Surprisingly not,” Wasabi stated.

“Fred was correct,” Baymax raised his finger.

“Yeah, that's definitely a good start to Phase Four.”

“It’s a bad start,” Go Go corrected, “but let’s go back to the topic now. The only ones we’ve fought who haven't escaped are Callaghan, Sparkles, and Mel, though I don't know if we can even classify those last two as supervillains.”

“Yeah, let’s stay with just villains,” Fred agreed.

“Are they still villains if they truly want to take responsibility for their actions?” Honey Lemon asked.

“Well, that’s a good philosophical question.”

“Which we don't have time for right now,” Go Go interjected. “Not to mention we still have villains to fight who were free before and we haven’t caught them yet. Hardlight, Sirque and Momakase.”

Hiro woke up at the sound of the last name and looked at the others.

“Are we still counting Momakase?” Surprisingly, Fred was the one who asked instead of him. “I mean, she helped us last time.”

“She did it because she owed Hiro.” Go Go retorted. “She returned a favor. Besides, she's still a villain, and of all the possible villains, she's the least likely to back down. So yes, we’re definitely counting her.”

Well, maybe Hiro had to interfere after all.

“I agree with Fred. She helped us, she’s lying low since then, we can be nice enough and let her be for now. At least until she won’t do anything really bad.”

“Define the difference between ‘bad’ and ‘really bad’.”

“Maybe not today. But for now, we'll leave her alone. We have more important things to worry about.”

Go Go frowned, but eventually gave up with a sight. It seemed that the argument had convinced her. “Fine. For now.”

He nodded and looked at the frame again. An electronic display, dozens of thin cables—he couldn't see too clearly, but they were probably in different colors—a power source, a bunch of explosives, and a section of the circuit board that controlled it all. He couldn't see all of it, and after looking at a few more frames, he figured he wouldn't, but what he could see told him one thing. It was a complicated circuit.

That confirmed his suspicions.

“And could you please pay more attention?” Go Go asked. “We’re trying to figure something out.”

“And I’m trying to focus on our main problem.”

“Do you have something about Di?”

“I’m afraid Di isn’t our main problem now.”

“Wait. What do you mean? I think we all agreed it’s Di.”

“You agreed it’s Di. And that’s what I mean.”

Hiro sent the image to the Basemax main screen. Everyone looked in that direction; their eyes landed on each other, clearly not understanding what was going on. Finally, Go Go decided to break the silence.

“The bomb?”

“No, not the bomb itself.”

“The fact that you almost died because of it?” Fred asked.

“No! I mean, look! Can’t you see? Everything that's there, all those components, the circuit board, the cables, the level of complexity of that bomb. If it was some explosive cocktail, then fine. But this? It’s way beyond his Noodle Burger brain. He wouldn't be able to construct something like that. Not on his own.”

They all looked at each other worriedly. Honey Lemon turned to Hiro.

“Then who?”

“That’s something I need to find out.”

“Hey, maybe one of our villains decided to cause some chaos?” Fred started guessing.

“No. Hardlight is more into games, but he used his own technology for all the threats he created. And he’s not really interested in other villains. Sirque wouldn't be able to do something like that, considering she didn't even want to hurt me when I fought her. Besides, what would she gain by allying with those two? And Momakase was...” busy with something else, he wanted to say, but he bit his tongue, “more into poisons than into bombs. She's not trying to draw attention to herself, and that thing? That’s definitely drawing attention.”

“Okay, you have a point. But hey! What about Obake? What if, you know, he did survive and it was him?”

Hiro closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

“Obake was a manipulator. Using brute force was never his style, not in such a trivial way. He wouldn’t sink so low and build a bomb.”

“Well, yeah, you’re right.”

This was someone else. Someone they had probably never met before, someone they knew nothing about. And yet this someone was planning something, and it was clear that sooner or later they would get in their way, if planting a bomb was any kind of greeting. And something told Hiro that this wasn't just a minor villain.

They looked at each other and Hiro frowned.

“We have a new big player in the game.”

He needed to find out more.

_-_-_

Sadly, he had nothing to work with, so other than the fact that the villain probably knew something about electronics, they still hadn't learned anything about them. Hiro hated it, but all he could do was wait for their next move.

Unless Momakase got lucky, but he couldn't count on that so much.

Not that they has much luck with the villains they knew. Putting them all in one prison apparently had more downsides than just letting them escape at once. They could also talk. And they'd apparently found out somehow that Big Hero 6 have the ability to scan, because now Basemax couldn't find any of them. Someday, Hiro would have to find out where they got their jammers. Still, they set Basemax to scan constantly, in the hopes that one of them might make a mistake and give themselves away.

But they needed an alternative. Scanning was clearly no longer their advantage; they had to find another way to effectively track down the bad guys. And Hiro might already have an idea. A primitive idea, but an idea.

He needed more RAM. And graphics cards, those would come in handy too.

The boy snapped out of it, just as Go Go agreed to go on night patrol with Fred. While Hiro had his doubts that supervillains who had just escaped from prison would immediately start robbing banks the next night, he was aware that there were also villains who weren't super. And they had to be stopped as well.

Their night patrols had become erratic lately anyway, they could try harder, at least for a while.

“Hiro!”

He blinked a few times and looked at Go Go.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, just… about yesterday.”

“Well, I think we all can agree it was a catastrophe.”

The girl sighed, lowered her gaze and turned in the opposite direction, leaning against the table top. This was weird. Go Go rarely took such a position.

“Not about that. You helped someone and I yelled at you for it. I'm sorry. And you have the right to be alone for a while. I shouldn't have snapped at you like that.”

He hadn't expected it, but it was nice. It warmed his heart somehow. And somehow, at the same time, he felt even more guilty, because of all people, he had helped someone who didn't really need help, when others needed him so much more.

“I’m sorry about my communicator device,” he said instead. “I won’t let it broke again.”

“You’d better not.”

They both smiled.

And then the door opened as Roddy walked in, ruining the moment.

“You’re all here! Good.”

Fred didn’t seem to mind though.

“Roddy! My man! How’s my room? Please tell me you've got the slide installed, please tell me you’ve got this!”

“Uhm… no.”

“WHY?!”

Hiro blinked as Fred knelt on the floor, threw his hands up in the air, and began to scream at the volume of a trumpeting elephant. The boy looked around. Others seemed a little surprised. Maybe except Go Go, who groaned.

“Okay Fred, enough.”

“You might want to cut back on his candy,” Roddy pointed out, concerned. “They say kids have fewer outbursts without them. Or you can, you know, get rid of him.”

“We’ll think about that,” Go Go stated, grabbing Fred by the ear and pulling him up.

That quickly woke him up.

“Okay, okay, I’m done,” he finally said. “So, if it’s not about the slide, then what is it about?”

“I got a new assignment.”

A murmur went through everyone around, and Hiro looked down.

“So what, you’re leaving us?”

“What? No! I still have a lot of work to do here. No, I just wanted to say that things are going to be a little slower around here, since I'm going to be split between two jobs from now on. You know, if you’re okay with that.”

“Sure we are,” Hiro answered.

“Good. Because I've already accepted it.”

He should have expected that, actually.

“Well, I'll be gone tomorrow,” Roddy continued. “Secret government labs don't build themselves! Whoops, I probably shouldn't have said it's a secret government lab. Well, you’re not letting the cat out of the bag, are you? Thanks!”

And then he left without even waiting for an answer.

“Seriously, remind me never to tell that guy my secrets,” Wasabi stated.

Hiro nodded. “Uh-huh.”

_-_-_

The bell rang as Hiro opened the door to the café. Baymax waddled after him as he headed for the stairs. He just hoped Krei wouldn't want anything from him today, because he really didn't feel like doing anything anymore. It seemed like even a dozen hours of sleep wasn’t enough after such an exhausting night.

“My scan indicates you are still tense. You should relax now.”

“That’s what I’m gonna do.”

Maybe, for a change from inventions, chases, heists, catching villains and escaping from exploding bombs, he could play a computer game? Like a normal kid?

Like… oh no.

“Megan.”

Maybe he won't be able to play a computer game after all.

“Your heart rate has accelerated.”

“Yes, I’m aware of that.”

Hiro went upstairs and pulled his phone out of his pocket. He immediately dialed a number. He was already late, so he could at least apologize before he went over to her. And he didn't necessarily need this conversation to take place within an earshot of Aunt Cass.

“Hiro!” Megan answered, clearly worried. “Is everything okay? Or wait, I’m an idiot, aren’t I? I heard what happened yesterday, my dad's been walking through the walls, so it’s definitely not okay. How are you?”

“Better. And listen, I’m so sorry I didn’t come earlier, I totally forgot, but I'll just grab a bite and I'll be right over. We'll work on this issue, okay?”

“No, we won’t.”

He didn’t expect this.

“Not today, Hiro. I can wait a while, really, but I wasn't the one fighting a bunch of crazy villains yesterday. I'm sure you have a lot on your mind right now.”

“Yeah, I’m a little tired of this.”

“So, what do you say? You rest today, and next time I'll bug you even more?”

He smiled slightly.

“Works for me.”

“Great.”

“Actually… do you have some free time anyway?”

“I didn't get any further with my investigation, so… Yeah, why?”

Hiro sighed. Maybe he could spend the rest of the day playing video games. Maybe even better, he could do it with a friend. And actually be a normal kid for a few hours.

“Have you heard about Mind Smith?”

Chapter Text

Hiro frowned, looking at the cork board. Or rather, at what hung on it, which wasn't as impressive as he'd expected. A large map, few notes, four photos in the corner, and a red yarn running from each of the photos to a different place on the map. There, in turn, were four areas marked with circles, and another four points, inside those circles.

“That’s all I have,” Megan sighed.

Hiro reached for the cookie and took a bite. It looked like a bad case, but he let his friend continue.

“Literally the only thing they have in common is gender. They’re not related, their ages are different, their goals were different. One was going to a business meeting, another coming back from his cousin's wedding, a third was heading to the theater, and the fourth to a date. They didn't have any serious problems, okay, one had a mortgage, but that's no reason for him to disappear. As far as I know, they had no criminal records either, so they shouldn't have any crooked enemies, but this is where you come in and check it out in the politicians' database.”

He nodded.

“What about work? And school? Maybe they work for the same company or went to the same school? Maybe they know each other?”

“I’ve already checked that. They don’t.”

Hiro smiled.

“You’re good.”

“Too bad it’s not enough.”

“You’ll get there.”

“I hope so. I also marked the places they left from on the map,” she pointed to four pins, “and the places they were supposed to reach,” and to the rest of them. “The areas marked with circles are where they most likely went missing, unless for some reason they decided to go somewhere else than they intended to at first. Then these circles don't make sense.”

“Why would they do that? They had appointments. Let's stick with the circles for now.”

“Eliminate the impossible first, huh?”

“I wouldn’t say it’s impossible, more like so unlikely that it's not worth bothering. We can't check fifty things at once, but we can check a few. And these circles are already big enough. This one is about ten blocks,” he pointed out.

“True, it'll be hard to check them all. Not to mention finding any leads.”

“The police still have nothing?”

“Well, they looked there. But I don’t know more.”

“If they have something, it will be in their database.”

“Yes, we'll check it out in a moment. But I'd still like to go there. Maybe they missed something?”

Hiro frowned. There was no point in arguing with Megan, she was practically as stubborn as he was. But it was still too much work for one teenager. Even for two teenagers! He needed something else, some method of elimination, there had to be one. Was there anything they figured out three days ago that they didn't include here? They only checked the surveillance footage, but it didn't indicate anything beyond possible manipulation.

Wait a moment. Maybe it wasn't exactly the clue he was looking for, but...

“Cameras!”

“What about them?”

“There was nothing on the cameras.”

“Yeah. How is that helpful?”

“They were taken over by someone. I'll check when I get home, maybe there'll be some logs. Or maybe someone's still in the system and I can track them down.”

“Or they can track you down. You’re not legally there, remember?”

“I can be careful. When I want to.”

Megan didn't seem convinced.

“Whatever is the reason for their disappearance, and it's really unlikely that they would do it on their own, they had to get out somehow,” Hiro continued, not really wanting to explain himself. “These guys have been vanishing all over the city, wherever there's a hideout, looping the cameras until you get there won't be worth it. Way too much job if you’re a human. There are more effective escape routes.”

“What do you mean?”

“What do I mean is… well, we don’t know how smart the kidnappers are, but if they are able to hack the surveillance system, we have to assume that they are smart enough. So they probably didn't use any road vehicle because it's easy to spot one unless you change the license plates, tires, paint color, and so on, and in a mass kidnapping that's not worth it. So I think it's best to check places near hatches to the underground or near staircases to the roofs. The bad guys usually move up or down. You can't see them there. If I were to kidnap a guy, I'd take an old subway tunnel, first put some unregistered vehicle in there to make things easier, and then use it to transport him. And there we go. No man, no clues.”

Megan blinked several times, clearly surprised.

“I’m really glad you’re not a villain, ‘cause San Fransokyo would be screwed.”

“Uh, thanks? I know it’s not a real clue, but…”

“No, it’s worth checking. I didn’t try to look at it from this perspective. Thank you.”

She placed a hand on his shoulder, and Hiro smiled slightly.

“We’re gonna need a zoom in on each of these four areas,” he stated. “We need to mark all the hatches.”

“Definitely.”

“But Megan, please don't go in there alone. The bad guys just escaped, and I'm sure some of them know about the tunnels. We can go with you, but don't do it alone.”

“I won’t.”

Hiro sighed. This was perhaps one of the very few times when his arguments actually got through to Megan. She smiled faintly, then left the room without a word. Hiro managed to eat two cookies before she returned, carrying her dad’s laptop under her arm.

“Here. Now you can do your magic, Mr. Teen Genius.”

“Will you give me gloves?”

“What?”

“I'm not leaving fingerprints on this. Your dad would kill me!”

Megan thought for a moment before nodding.

“Fair enough.”

A moment later, he had gloves on and opened the laptop screen. It wasn't the most advanced model, so it took a while to turn it on. But once it was done, the hack went smoothly, as Hiro used the tech profile again to open the proper one. He found the folder with the documents pretty quickly and started looking through them, though it didn't look like Chief Cruz had anything interesting in it. Maybe the mailbox would say something else?

It didn’t. It looked like Cruz simply hadn’t been assigned to this case.

“I’m sorry Megan, there’s nothing here.”

“It’s fine,” she said, even if her tone indicated it wasn’t. “So, eavesdropping on politicians?”

He chuckled. He really didn't expect it to become an inside joke between them.

“Yeah, give me your laptop, I'll try to sync you with Basemax so she can help you search the database. But I'll also need to set a password, just in case... you know, your dad’s curiosity. And maybe…”

“Maybe what?” She asked, while giving him her device.

“How about another round of Mind Smith, once we get this over? I really enjoyed being a normal kid yesterday.”

“Fine. But this time I won’t let you win.”

Hiro snorted. “You wish.”

_-_-_

Megan wouldn't let him win. Mostly because, thanks to Krei, they didn't have time to play at all. Hiro had barely managed to properly sync her computer with the AI ​​when the businessman wrote that he urgently needed him in the office. And there he was, in a white shirt and tie, right in front of Krei's desk, waiting for him to graciously finish talking. Baymax stood next to the boy, sliding a piece of paper across the desk, apparently testing the hovercraft and Krei's patience at the same time, if the man's deadly gaze was any indication.

Hiro wasn't about to intervene.

“You have my word, it is in Krei Tech's full interest to resolve this horrible incident,” the man continued, while trying to pry the paper out from under Baymax's finger. “I will send my team of experts today to investigate the cause of it. They are the best of the best, you can rest assured that your case is in capable hands.”

Hiro frowned. Krei wasn't talking about him, was he?

“Great!” The man exclaimed. “It’s a deal then. Have a nice day!”

Krei hung up and his smile faltered in a split second. At the same time Baymax slid the sheet of paper, and it flew all the way to the edge of the tabletop and landed on the floor with a soft thud. Hiro watched as his friend reached for the second sheet.

Krei's eye twitched.

“Could you please take that robot?!”

Hiro didn't have to, as Krei's scream alone distracted Baymax.

“You seem to be nervous. Would you like a hug?”

Krei’s eye twitched again. The robot turned toward the desk, clearly intending to walk around it and hug Mr. Krei. Luckily Hiro caught his arm before Baymax could move.

“Maybe no hugs today, buddy.”

“But Mr. Krei has high blood pressure. If he gets nervous more often, it will be bad for his health. I suggest finding the cause of his current emotional state.”

The businessman crossed his arms.

“You think?”

“I do not think. I am a robot.”

“And I think Mr. Krei has had enough emotional support for today, buddy.” Hiro smiled awkwardly before standing in front of Krei's desk and pushing Baymax behind him. He also cleared his throat, as if nothing had happened. “So… why did you call me?”

“You're always complaining that you can do more than carry laundry, so here you go! You'll have a field trip.”

So Krei was talking about him.

“A field trip?”

“Well, there was an accident. Have you ever heard of SinkDev?”

Oh. That accident.

“I believe it’s ‘ShipDev’.”

“Yeah, whatever. So you have. Something happened and a whole group of our Buddy Guards out of nowhere, for no reason, went nuts and attacked a staff member. He's fine, but they're still pissed, so I'm sending a whole team of our investigators there, and you go with them. You wanted to learn and do something, here you go.”

“So I have to find out the cause of the accident?”

“What? No! Who told you that?!”

Now Hiro had no idea what was going on.

“You?” The boy replied. “When, you know, you were on the phone?”

“No, no, no, no, no. That was what I wanted him to think. Your job isn't to find the cause, your job is to find proof that it's their fault. That they misconfigured the equipment, that a staff member was carrying something that wasn't allowed, that they poured acid on the robots and their sensors went crazy! Whatever. You’re smart, you’ll figure something out.”

Hiro frowned. If he had any objections to that internship, other than the fact that he had been tricked into working for Krei for a whole year, that he hadn't even been paid, and that he had been made to do the most menial of tasks instead of working on technology, it was the CEO's questionable sense of ethics.

Actually... Hiro had a lot of objections to that internship.

“That’s the opposite of investigation,” he said finally.

“No. That’s how you’re making money.”

“By cheating?”

“It’s not cheating, it’s finding other ways. Faster ways. If you want to run your own business someday, you have to think!”

“I don’t think I want to run a business.”

Baymax was standing behind Hiro, but the boy could still hear his actuators moving.

“Being honest and trustworthy brings more long-term benefits than cheating. I suggest you change your business strategy.”

“You see?” Krei waved his hand. “And that’s why robots aren’t CEOs. Now get out of my office and get ready. Jane will tell you what to take, where to report, what time to leave, and with whom. And so on. I expect results!”

Hiro sighed, turned around, and pulled Baymax toward the door.

“Good luck with that,” he murmured.

“What?”

“Nothing! Just. It’s Judy!”

They left the office, and as the door closed behind them, Hiro leaned against it, closed his eyes and sighed with relief. He wasn't sure what he should do. On one hand, he didn't want to listen to Krei and cheat, but on the other, it would be foolish to say that ShipDev didn't deserve it. ShipDev, in whose building he had been recently in a not-so-legal way — and in which he would now appear again, ironically, investigating a problem he himself had caused.

Fate simply loved to play tricks on him.

“It was so bad?”

Hiro blinked. He expected many things, but not that Go Go and Wasabi would be sitting in the waiting room.

“What are you doing here?”

“We have a business with Krei.”

“I… don’t exactly recommend doing that. Some villains are more honest.”

“We know.” Go Go nodded. “But don’t worry. I have a way to play this out.”

Hiro wanted to ask what exactly they wanted to play out, but Judy, who was sitting at her desk, cleared her throat. That got everyone's attention.

“Hiro, here's your list and all the information for the trip. Have an eye on your robot.” She held out a piece of paper to him, which Hiro took. Then she turned to Go Go and Wasabi. “You, come to the office in a minute.”

The boy waved to his friends and then left with Baymax, while looking at the note.

“Wait, what? Why would I need sunglasses inside a building?!”

Perhaps he should just accept that he would never understand Krei.

_-_-_

If there was one thing Roddy liked best, it was specific assignments. And if there was one thing he theoretically liked least, it was repeating the same specific assignments twice. Although that second thing had never happened. Until now.

He wasn't even sure why he had agreed to this. Or maybe he was. The government official had offered a really good salary.

“Enjoying the view?”

In a different moment, Roddy probably would have turned around to get the situation under control. But he knew that voice. So he just continued to stare out at the bay, half actually admiring the view he had from his safe perch on the cliff, half visualizing the plans he had already sketched out. And the plans were big.

“More like figuring it out in my head.”

“And what did you come up with?”

“Well, you saw the plans.”

The official stood next to him and also began to look at the bay.

“I did. They look promising.”

“Of course they are. But it doesn’t make much difference. I'll have to tear all the junk out of there. And not only junk, everything. It's a wreck, you have to bulldoze it all, build a new foundation, ‘cause the old one stinks on ice, drill deeper. If we’re to expect another tsunami, and who knows what madness will happen in this city, we’ll also need a much more armored structure than we have before. It’s a lot of work, you know.”

“I’m aware of that. Don't worry, we'll provide you with all the equipment you need.”

“Yeah, I don’t worry about that. I'm just surprised they still want to invest in it. Government usually lacks cash.”

“This place has… potential.”

“Well…”

“You still have doubts, I see.”

“Will it be a secret lab again if it has already been destroyed once? You know, wouldn't it be wiser to build it somewhere else?”

“That's exactly what most people would think.”

“But not the government.”

“They know that the darkest place is under the candle. If the lab has already been destroyed once, no one will look for it in the same place.”

Even Roddy had to admit that there was sense in this logic, however twisted wouldn’t it be. In the meantime the official bent down and picked up the briefcase from the ground, which he then handed to Blair. He merely shook it to make sure it wasn't money.

“All the documents are there. Permits, contract, approval of plans. You can start tomorrow. As the project manager, I'll gladly help you if you need anything.”

“Someone I can normally talk to would be nice.”

The official smiled faintly, and Roddy looked at him more closely. The angular face, the same one he remembered, though with a new scar running from top to bottom on the left side. He wasn’t sure he wanted to know what was going on in this more secret part of the government, but he definitely wasn’t going to ask. But one thing he knew for sure.

“It's nice to renew a cooperation, Bob.”

“I am thrilled.”

They shook hands and at the same time the official started smiling disturbingly and half of his face began to glow purple.

“You should really do something about that night light on your face, you know. It's creepy.”

“Yes, I’m aware of that.”

The satisfaction in his voice was enough of an answer.

“You’re not going to do anything about it, are you?”

Bob smiled slightly. “No, I’m not.”

Chapter Text

bike_pirate:

good news guys

we’ve got a job

HL:

We?

OrganizedNerd:

Go Go and me.

HL:

That’s great!

I’m soo happy for you!

OrganizedNerd:

Trust me, you wouldn’t be happy if you were there.

Never.

Again.

TeenGenius:

why

wait

thats why u were at kreitech

bike_pirate:

yep

TeenGenius:

and krei hired u

wouldnt expect that from him

will he pay or not

OrganizedNerd:

He will.

Go Go made sure he will.

We will also be able to go out in case of emergencies.

And the salary is not bad either.

TeenGenius:

im surprised he agreed

that doesnt sound like krei

Fredzilla:

Nah, its pretty normal

sooner or later everyone will bow to the hero code

even Krei

OrganizedNerd:

He didn’t bow to the hero code, he bowed to Go Go.

Literally, she blackmailed him!

bike_pirate:

we saved his ass dozens of times

hiring us won’t make him poorer

not being saved again might

TeenGenius:

woah

you went hard

bike_pirate:

it worked

and we deserved it

btw

HL are you sure you don’t want to join?

I’d convince krei

HL:

Thank you, but I’m fine with my searching now

Besides I don’t think Krei has any chemistry-related projects

And... I can already have some chances?

Somewhere else

Sorry, I can’t say more right now

I'm still not sure if it will work out

TeenGenius:

its fine

youll tell us when youre ready

Fredzilla:

UGHHH

come on!

Fred wanna KNOW

bike_pirate:

fred

privacy.

OrganizedNerd:

You’ll better listen to her.

When Go Go is using dot, you know it’s serious.

Fredzilla:

and you’re ALWAYS using dots

Does it mean it’s always serious?

OrganizedNerd:

No, it means I respect the rules of correct spelling.

Unlike others, who DO NOT respect them.

TeenGenius:

meh

OrganizedNerd:

Yes, especially you.

Seriously Hiro, you could use some punctuation sometimes.

It's hard to tell if you're announcing or asking.

TeenGenius:

well

i could

but i dont have to

OrganizedNerd:

Just because you don’t have to, doesnt mean you shouldn’t.

*doesn’t.

TeenGenius:

and whos misspellin now huh

OrganizedNerd:

My finger slipped!

And I’m not kidding!

What if one day the fate of the world depends on your communicating accuracy, and you forget how to spell it correctly?

TeenGenius:

well but it wont

bike_pirate:

guys

enough

OrganizedNerd:

Okay, I'll let it go this time.

Wish us luck on our first day!

TeenGenius:

you dont need luck

you have gogo

bike_pirate:

well, that’s true

_-_-_

Hiro smiled, put down his phone, and leaned back in the chair.

It will be fine. Everything will be fine.

The trip to ShipDev hadn't gone as badly as he thought it would. Sure, the investigation team has started investigating, an actual investigating, not blaming ShipDev like Krei wanted. But the problem was that they decided to check the footage from the robots themselves, and as it turned out, they were also recording in infrared mode. Apparently, fate was on Hiro’s side this time, because before they could start reviewing, some big shots came in and said that it wouldn't be necessary to continue, because they have already found the error and it was on their side.

Yeah, stealing from Mr. Frederickson was quite a big error.

They had to figure out what was missing and it seemed that keeping it a secret was more important than blaming Krei. Hiro could work with that. Mainly because it resolved any moral dilemmas he might have had during this investigation.

But it wasn't the best thing that happened recently.

His friends have gotten jobs. As much as he sympathized with them having to interact with Krei more often, the terms they’ve negotiated didn't sound bad at all. But that didn't matter. What mattered most was that they wouldn't move. That the city was important enough to them, that being heroes was important enough to them that they’ve even set their jobs around it.

That he was important enough to them.

Hiro barely noticed that he was smiling. Sure, they still had a mountain of problems ahead of them, if the great escape and the mystery guy behind the bomb was any indication, but they would get through it. Because they would be together.

Well, at least in superhero matters. He still wondered if he should tell them what he had learned about his grandparents, but he guessed he had to work through it himself first. An almost entire family had died in tragic circumstances? An heirloom that teasingly reminded him of the mission he had been on once? That there was a relative he knows nothing about and who may still be alive? That was a lot to process. And as much as he wanted to learn more, he didn't have to deal with that now, did he? The mysterious supervillain was more important, and when peace finally came, he could start solving his own mysteries.

Or maybe he was just trying to fool himself. Because peace would never come. Not in a city like San Fransokyo.

He wasn't sure what he actually wanted. It wasn't as bad as it had been at first. The knowledge about family secrets didn't weigh him down as much. Maybe everything that happened that day, the attack and the bomb, was actually necessary for him to recover a bit. To stifle his emotions. To focus on other things. To realize that maybe this wasn't so urgent. After all, Aunt Cass hadn't done anything about it in years, had she? But it was never her family either. It was always Hiro's father's family.

And she gave him a choice.

He sighed. One day he'd start digging deeper. And one day he'd find out what really happened. But not today. This was all still too new to him and he didn't know what to think about it. So he could just leave it at that for now.

_-_-_

Hiro frowned, slid a little deeper into the structure, and clenched his jaw around the wrench. He probably should have thought out the supercomputer's design better, added a bit more intuitive expandability, but looking far into the future was never his strongest skill, so now he had to think things through. Basemax needed these new components, and he definitely needed Basemax's extra processing power.

After about an hour, a few hits to the head from standing up too quickly, and putting paste on himself instead of the necessary parts, the AI's computing power was upgraded.

“Basemax?”

“Yes, Hiro?” she answered, having her sensors also in the server room.

“Can you sync with the new hardware yourself, or do you need help?”

“Analyzing. According to the data I've read, I will be able to handle this myself. However, it will take several restarts to completely synchronize and recalculate the tasks. My functions will be unavailable during this time.”

“Don't worry, the bad guys shouldn't attack in broad daylight.” Knowing his luck, they probably will. “Besides, we still have Baymax,” he added.

Said robot stepped closer. “I will run a crime scan while Basemax is inactive. This will ensure continuity of operations.”

“Thanks, buddy.”

“I understand,” Basemax stated. “Initiating synchronization.”

A loading symbol appeared on the small screen in the corner. Hiro nodded and left the server room, gesturing for Baymax to do the same. They might have completed one task, but that didn't mean they didn't have more to do.

They entered one of the side hallways that housed their rooms. It was a ‘just in case’ idea, but Hiro wasn't complaining. It was nice to have a workroom that wasn't a garage where Aunt Cass could barge in at any moment, nor a university lab where Professor Granville could barge in at any moment—and where he sometimes had to break into just to get anything done. It was just a peaceful, quiet place...unless Roddy, finishing up Fred's room, decided to turn up the music at full volume.

Hiro gave that room a wide berth, and as soon as he entered into his own place, he closed the door. Fortunately, it was soundproof.

He smirked.

“Maybe we should sabotage that speaker, what do you think, buddy?”

“It is inappropriate to interfere with other people's things without permission.”

“Yeah, you’re right.”

The room wasn't big, but it had most of the equipment Hiro would need. There was a desk, a computer, a holographic display with a modeling function, a 3D printer, a cart with a hundred tools, and a few other things he couldn't name but couldn't live without if they weren't there. Oh, and a bed. In the corner, on a steel structure above the desk, with a ladder welded to it, in case he ever had to stay there overnight.

And... maybe because he'd always wanted a bunk bed.

Hiro walked over to the printer and smiled slightly as he saw the almost finished product. Go Go's disk. Trina had destroyed it about three days earlier; she had waited long enough as it was.

Soon he was in another corner of the room, turning on the grinder. One of these days, he really was going to figure out a way to make their gear easier to craft. The fact that the villains often broke it, and Hiro had to fix it even more often (since Fred was just as good in it as the villains) was starting to get annoying.

“Maybe we should start mass production of these? After all, we're in a factory.”

“That might raise suspicions. According to my records, we have never received official permission to operate here in any way.”

“Well, if we had permission, the secret base wouldn't be secret anymore.”

“This is correct.”

“Or you know what, I'll make some spares. At least I'll be done with this for a while.”

“Looking into the future is a good idea.”

He ran the program and arranged more disks on the matrix, then sent them to the printer. Replenishing the material supply and starting the ventilation was also needed. Once that was done, he closed the cover, changed out of his work clothes and picked the last of the paste out of his hair. But before he left, he glanced toward the drawer, the only one with a lock.

That was where he kept the money he had recently received. Maybe he should find a less obvious hiding place, but he didn't have time for that right now. It wasn't that he was afraid anyone would take it from him. He was definitely more afraid of the questions.

Actually, he had his own question now. He didn't think much about it, but at that moment the words Momakase had said recently flashed through his mind.

“What do you want to talk to me about?”

“Hiro, I did not say anything,” Baymax answered instead.

The boy snapped out of his thoughts.

“I’m fine. Just talking to myself. Come on, we should probably go and help Megan with these hatches. At least up there. We're not going down without armor,” Hiro said and at that same moment, his phone vibrated. He pulled it out of his pocket, groaning as soon as he saw the notification.

Krei:

Intern, come early today!

Like now

Now works for me

“Unless Krei has something to say.”

_-_-_

Hiro entered Krei's office, and Baymax followed him. They stood in front of the desk. Krei was on the phone again, which gave the boy some time to think. Krei, although he considered Hiro's time his own, didn't usually call him beforehand without reason. So what could it be? Something with his friends? Was Go Go too aggressive? Honestly, Hiro wouldn't be surprised if it was the latter. Now he just had to figure out a way to get out of this without Krei firing anyone—

“Yes, yes, you have a lot of tasks, but the decision is final,” the businessman stated. “I want all the dirt you have on ShipDev on my desk. Tomorrow!"

Wait. What?

Krei hung up. Hiro barely noticed Krei leaning back in his chair and staring at him more intensively than usual.

“Do you have paste in your hair?”

“He does,” Baymax answered.

Hiro blinked a few times, still stuck on the ShipDev reference. Dirt? Why did he need dirt? Wasn’t that stuff usually used when you wanted to get something from someone? Like blackmailing and other unethical business?

“Didn't they admit it was their fault?” he finally asked.

“What?”

“ShipDev. Why do you need all of that about ShipDev?”

Krei looked down and shook his head.

“Oh, Hiro. You're such a child. An unaware, innocent child. Of course we'll need this for the trial.”

“Trial? They sued Krei Tech?”

That didn’t make any sense.

“What? Of course not. We're suing them!”

That didn’t make any sense either.

“Why?”

“Why? They wasted our time, they wasted our money, and at first they blamed us for everything! The losses and the tarnishing of our good name. That's enough to file a lawsuit. And to sue for compensation!"

Hiro put his hand to his forehead. Of course. Money. If there was any reason Krei would do something so irrational, it was money.

He also wondered if Krei was aware that his company didn't have a good name at all.

Wait. A good name.

If Krei sued ShipDev for defamation, then the recordings would definitely be evidence. Both sides would know that there were thieves in the building. They would know that the thieves were invisible, which until now could only be done using Krei Tech’s technology. Which meant that whoever was responsible for the theft, it was someone with access to their gear. And that wasn't even the worst direction the investigation could go. What if it turned out that ShipDev had stolen Mr. Frederickson's plans? What if it turned out that those were the plans that had been stolen back? What if it turned out that Mr. Frederickson had gone to the less than ethical (although justifiable) lengths to get them back? And became a suspect?

Hiro couldn’t let that happen.

“Do you really think it's worth wasting your time on them? I mean, they're crooks.”

“Sure they are, but it doesn’t matter. They did something and they will pay for this. Literally.”

So that didn't work. He needed another argument. One that Krei would be sensitive to, one that he wouldn’t reject under any circumstances.

Hiro smirked.

“Well, I still think it’s dumb. But if you want to lose more than you can gain…” He shrugged and turned the other way, heading for the door.

Three, two, one…

“Wait! What do you mean?”

Here we go.

“Well, I'm just an inexperienced, innocent child, but if I was the head of a crooked corporation and someone threatened me and I knew I’d lose to them in court, I’d try to drag out the lawsuit for as long as possible. I’d operate normally because no verdict had been handed down yet, I’d be making money, meanwhile the other company's legal department would be scrambling to finally close the case they had to deal with and wasting their time instead of focusing on the real issues. So, Mr. Krei, even if you eventually won the lawsuit and got a compensation, I doubt it would cover the months of attorneys' time and court costs, and even if it did, and even if there was anything left, it’d still be too little to make the fight worth it. It's better to focus on a business strategy that actually makes money. But… I'm just a kid, right? Who’d listen to me?”

He turned to Krei, a smug smile on his face. In the meantime several emotions passed over the businessman's face. First shock, then a frown and a scan of Hiro as if he were some kind of supervillain, finally the strange expression Krei made when he was thinking. Finally, he pressed a button on his desk, without changing his face or even looking in that direction. Hiro heard the sound of a call starting.

“Assistant!” Krei shouted. “Tell the legal department that my final decision is no longer final. We are not suing ShipDev.”

Hiro sighed with relief, though quietly.

“But I still want all the dirt about them. Just in case.”

The boy groaned quietly. Well. It was still a victory, right?

“Of course, Mr. Krei,” Judy's monotonous voice came from the speaker.

Shortly after, the call was disconnected and Krei was left staring at Hiro again. The boy raised an eyebrow, not quite sure what to expect.

“I have to admit, you're learning. I’m impressed.”

Normally Hiro would have even been heartened, but now to Krei, 'you're learning' meant 'you're becoming cunning, manipulative, and you're stopping thinking about others', and Krei actually thought Hiro was becoming that way (well, he could be cunning and manipulative sometimes, but he was definitely thinking about others too, in most cases), so the boy took the praise with a handful of salt. Momakase saying that he was wasting his talents being a hero probably offended him less.

“Besides, we have enough lawsuits as it is,” Krei continued. “It's a pain with the police.”

Hiro raised his eyebrow.

“You sued the police?”

“No. They sued us! We’re not always the ones who are doing this. Usually, yes, but not always.”

“Let me guess. Buddy Guardians?”

“Apparently they don't buy the excuse that Tania was too smart.”

“Trina.”

“What?”

“Never mind.”

Hiro frowned. All this recall of the Robot Revolution had given him something to think about. He had wondered about the technology before, but now he could ask.

“Actually, about Buddy Guardians…”

“Yes?”

“Can I get some of their sensors? They look really advanced and I wonder if I could use them for something.”

“No.”

“Why? You're not paying me anyway!”

“Well, I've made my decision. And is it just me, or was it you who just said we should change our business strategy to one that will actually make us money? Well, I've been talking to some advisors recently, and there's a gap that Krei Tech can fill. Get ready for a new line of home appliances!”

“What does this have to do with sensors?”

“They’ll be used in housewares, obviously. Just like the rest of the Buddy Guardians parts. Recycling!”

It took Hiro a few seconds to process this idea. He knew the police have withdrawn from the Buddy Guardians project and that something would be done with the inactive robots, but he wouldn't have expected it to be this.

“So what you're saying is, to take parts from the deadly robots that nearly destroyed the city and stuff them into… what, microwaves? That sounds completely safe.”

“Microwaves, refrigerators, kettles, and so on, yes. But we’re going to run proper tests this time. No releasing untested equipment!”

“Because of the sues?” Hiro asked dryly.

“Because of way too many sues. Besides, that’s what is called sustainability.”

“That’s what’s called saving money.”

“I can take care of the environment! But yes, mostly that. You’re a quick learner.”

Hiro sighed.

“Fine. Deadly microwaves. Why not? We haven't fought this yet.”

“That’s the spirit!”

The boy rolled his eyes, while Krei straightened his shirt and gave him one of his extremely rare, genuine smiles. “I won’t give you the sensors because of all the bureaucracy stuff, but I can send you the plans, how does that sound?”

Hiro smiled back.

“Well enough. Thanks.”

Krei's facial expression returned to his usual business style before he spoke. “And now, you can go. I’ve got plenty of things on my mind.”

The boy rolled his eyes again before heading towards the door and gesturing for Baymax to follow him. But before they could leave, he remembered something. Actually... he should have asked about that the moment he entered, but the ShipDev matter had somehow become more important.

“Wait. You wanted me to come early today. Why?”

“Did I have a reason?”

Hiro sent him a dry look.

“Oh right, I did! I almost forgot. Well, you wanted it, you got it. You're going to work on some actual tech.”

Part of Hiro guessed that this ‘actual tech’ would be something like fixing a coffee machine, acting like an IT specialist, or putting screws in their places. In other words, nothing really interesting. But the other part of Hiro hoped that the first was wrong and that Krei would actually assign him to something important. And that other part made him smile.

_-_-_

“So, as you already know, we've been doing some solid light research,” Krei began, leading Hiro down the hallway, “and the good news is we're starting to have something.”

“What is the bad news?”

“That I promised results in about a month. By then the technology has to be perfected. And most importantly, it has to work. I have a scientist working on it, but he's pretty slow and he’s having a hard time with this. I know your field isn't optics, but I'm counting on you to help him. I also want reports. Real reports, I have the feeling he's hiding the status of the work from me.”

Hiro nodded.

“I’ll do my best.”

“I am automatically recording interactions with my patients, as well as with the others,” Baymax added. “It can be used as reports.”

Krei blinked a few times.

“I take back everything bad I've ever said about that robot.”

Hiro decided to turn a deaf ear. A moment later they were outside the lab door, and Krei entered without even knocking. The boy followed him and saw a scientist, with messy hair and glasses. Hiro didn't have to know him inside out to be able to tell that he was a bit chaotic. The man flinched and looked at Krei.

“There you are, Ethan!” The businessman greeted.

“Actually, it’s—”

Krei didn't listen and continued talking. “So, like I talked to you yesterday... Wait. Did I talk to you? Never mind.” He pointed at Hiro, “that’s my intern and he'll help you with that solid light technology. You're supposed to work with him.”

“But—”

“No buts! You two will work together until the tech is refined. I'm counting on you to finally get this thing moving, intern. Now, you two, get to work!”

Krei left and closed the door behind him.

Hiro waved sheepishly at Ethan, but the man just glared at him before going back to tinkering with some prototype, mumbling something under his breath. Hiro wasn't entirely sure how to react to that. He was usually pretty good at interacting with people, but he also tended to hang out with people who wanted to interact. Ethan? He probably wasn't one of those people.

He stepped closer.

“Hi. I’m Hiro.”

The scientist didn't even look at him and continued tightening some screws. “Nobody cares.”

Well, that was nice.

“So, uhm. What's it about?” Hiro pointed at the prototype.

“And you're supposed to help me? Figure it out yourself if you're so smart.”

Hiro frowned. Oh, he was so smart. And if Ethan doubted it, he'd prove him wrong. He looked around and gathered up all the notes of calculations he could find, and finally stood in front of the board. It was mostly written on, so he decided not to erase it, but there was a bit of empty space he could use.

He began reviewing the designs and systematically rejected those that had no physical chance of working. In the meantime, he came across a sketch of some kind of... magnifying glass? Well, he should have assumed from the start that Ethan was just weird. Finally, Hiro came across the proper documentation, the sketch depicted a prototype very similar to the one the scientist was currently working on, and the calculations could theoretically match. He looked at it more closely.

The arrangement of the lenses, the concentration of the light, the amount of magnetic field that could stop it, and ultimately, the intensity that could change the properties of the photons so that they behaved like solid particles while still retaining their luminous properties.

There were a lot of cross-outs with that last one. Apparently, Ethan wasn't good at it.

Or was he?

Hiro frowned. He looked at one of the crosswords, which was oddly... different. More scribbled than the others, so that the contents were barely visible. Hiro tried to run a simulation in his head, then looked toward Ethan.

The scientist didn't look. He was still ignoring Hiro just like before. 

The boy quietly turned to the board and copied the calculation with the crossed-out parameter, while trying to remember the theoretically calculated force that would be able to change the properties of photons. And after a few minutes, there it was. The result of the equation matched what he remembered.

Hiro took a deep breath. Ethan had already figured that out. But if so, why did he hide it? Why did he act like someone who was shy, awkward, couldn't stand up for himself, and meet deadlines? What did he want to achieve by doing this? Did he want to spite the company, or to protect something? Or maybe both?

Whatever the reason was, Krei—surprisingly—had a good suspicion. Ethan was indeed hiding something.

But what?

Hiro looked at the sketch of the magnifying glass. What if it wasn't a magnifying glass? What if it was, for example... an eye shield?

He erased his notes from the board and put the papers aside.

There was no evidence. But maybe this one time, admitting that he was actually smart and had figured out the whole thing in a matter of minutes might not have been the best idea. He walked over to Ethan and stood on the other side of the workbench, also leaning over the structure. Up close, it looked a bit more complicated than in the plans.

“You’re blocking the light,” the scientist said, not even looking at Hiro.

“Right. Sorry.”

Hiro shifted. This was truly something different than the two sentences the man had said to Krei.

“So… Ethan, isn’t it?”

“It’s actually Ian.”

Oh. That… wasn’t really surprising.

“Yeah, right. Krei doesn't really have a memory for names.”

“Keep thinking like that, noob.”

Hiro blinked. That was familiar.

“How did you call me?”

“I thought a teenager would know what that means.”

“I thought an adult wouldn’t.”

Eth-Ian looked up from his prototype for the first time, and for a moment he seemed less offended by the world. He looked at Hiro. The boy smiled innocently and tilted his head. Ian definitely didn't buy that, because he snorted.

Why was it that insulting smart suspicious guys always made them respect him?

“I’m not that old,” Ian finally said.

“No, you just saw the dinosaurs.”

“Are you helping or are you going to run out the door?”

“How am I supposed to help if you don't explain how this works? Besides, I really want to finish this internship.”

Ian sighed. That was something.

“Why do you even care? He’s just a stupid NPC.”

“You mean Krei?”

“Who else could I mean? Your robot?”

“I do not belong to any game,” Baymax raised his finger.

“He's just an idiot who thinks everything belongs to him and that he can treat people worse than objects just because he has money. ‘You have to do it by then’,” Ian began to mock. “’I don't care how and I don't care if you die on the way, it has to be by then’. He knows it doesn't work that way and he knows all our names but he disregards them to feel more important.”

Now Hiro began to wonder if he should actually show Krei the Baymax footage. Mainly because Ian... well, had a point.

“Like you.”

“What?”

“When I told you my name, you said that nobody cares. You disregarded me to feel more important because Krei thinks you're nothing.”

Ian frowned.

“So, go and complain to him.”

“I won’t.”

It took Hiro a few seconds to realize that he actually meant it.

Chapter Text

Hiro crept to the corner of the hallway and raised his hand. The others stopped.

He took a deep breath before peeking around and seeing that it was clean. In fact, it was disturbingly clean. Since they'd entered, they hadn't encountered a single Granville’s patrolling robot. Something was wrong, and it wasn't just the break-in the dean had called about. Or maybe she turned them off herself, for some reason? He'd have to ask about that.

They continued in complete silence—surprisingly, even Fred didn't say anything—and the only sound the boy heard was the faint clicking of their armor. Faint, but in this case, not faint enough. Hiro began to miss his display suit.

They approached the door to the main lab. Hiro frowned. The lock have been broken.

“Do you think they’re inside?” Fred whispered.

“We won't know until we check.”

He gently pushed the door open and they all slipped into the dark lab. Turning on the light would give away their presence, but without it they couldn't do anything anyway. Now Hiro missed his display suit even more. It had built-in thermal imaging.

From memory, he walked over to the switch. The lab became bright.

“Hello, Big Hero 6!”

Everyone turned towards Honey Lemon's table. A blond man was sitting there, waving at them, a wide smile on his face.

“Guys?” Wasabi began. “I think we just found Chris.”

Fred scratched his suit. “Honestly, that's surprising. I thought the less sane villains would reveal themselves first, like, you know, the Supersonics; they can't go very long without breaking in somewhere. I didn't expect to find this guy so quickly.”

Hiro clenched his fists. Chris couldn't be alone.

“Where’s Di?”

“She's really busy right now, and she asked not to be disturbed. Cookie?” He pulled a tray of carefully prepared snacks from behind his back.

“Seriously, man,” Fred raised his paw, “where do you get all this? You raid SFIT and, of all things, you take cookies with you?”

“I’m always prepared!”

“Okay, I have to admit, I kinda respect that.”

Hiro frowned. Di have to be somewhere at SFIT. But what did she want? If she was willing to risk her freedom, it must be something important. Not that Hiro have time to think about it; the longer they stayed here, the sooner Di would get what she came for. And he was certain that whatever it was, it wasn't in their best interests.

“Guys, he's just a bait. He's buying her time.”

“I am.”

“Honey, Fred, stay with him, make sure he doesn't run away,” Hiro continued. “Rest of us, we'll split up to cover more ground, we have to find Di. I’ll go with Baymax.”

“And I’ll go with Go Go,” Wasabi added.

After a few seconds, they were in separate hallways, barely hearing Fred ask for a cookie and Honey Lemon saying that might not be the best idea. Hiro took a deep breath and tried to focus. Di had no business being in the lecture halls; she must be looking for someone's office or the lab. He sent Go Go and Wasabi a quick message telling them to check the office area while he headed towards the private labs.

“Could you scan to see if there are other people here, buddy?”

“Scanning. I am not detecting any human life forms.”

“How about inhuman?”

Baymax tilted his head towards Hiro.

“What? She mutated people, she could as well mutate herself.”

“Scanning. There are currently three hundred and seventy-eight spiders, seventy-five ants, forty-seven flies, thirty-three mosquitoes, twelve beetles, four rats and two mice inside the building. I am not detecting any larger life forms.”

Hiro frowned. He didn't need to know all of this.

“Yeah, don’t tell that to Wasabi, he’ll start questioning all of his life choices. Good to know the scanner is accurate though.”

Unfortunately, that meant two things. Either Di had a scan jammer on or she simply wasn't there anymore. He preferred the first option.

He walked down the dimly lit hallway, not really sure what he was looking for. Fred's super-hearing would have been more useful at the moment, but since Fred wasn't here, he had to rely on himself. He didn't hear nor see anything interesting, though. No shadows, closed doors, closed doors, closed doors with a crushed lock, closed doors...

Wait. Back up. A crushed lock? Again?

Hiro frowned and touched the hole. It wasn't made with any weapon, or at least, any typical weapon, if claws can be counted as such.

“Baymax? Remember when I said she could possibly mutate herself?”

“I am a robot. My memory is not deficient like human’s sometimes is.”

“I might’ve jinxed it a bit. That hole in the main lab door? I thought it was made by Chris, since, you know, gorilla and all that stuff. What if it wasn’t? Could you analyze how fresh it is? Did she leave some DNA here?”

“Analyzing.”

Hiro looked around and walked over to the plaque hanging next to the door. Philip Connors. He knew this guy. This didn't make any sense.

“I don't get it, he's an astrophysics major. And she’s biotech. There’s nothing she could possibly want from him.”

“Analysis complete,” Baymax said. “The hole contains epidermal fragments and hair. The DNA partially matches that of Di Amara. The rest does not match any known species. Unfortunately, I am unable to determine the time of the break-in.”

“Don’t worry, that’s already a lot. But… why astrophysics?”

“Maybe she was looking for the right lab?”

“Then all the locks would be crushed; it doesn't make sense.”

He pointed to the rest of the corridor. No other doors were damaged. Unless Phil was secretly some kind of biology buff, that probably meant Di was trying to mislead him somehow. Which meant she might still be here.

Hiro swallowed. He really wasn't looking forward to a possible encounter with a monster.

He went inside anyway.

As Baymax followed him, Hiro turned on the flashlight built into his helmet so as not to attract too much attention. He probably did, but less than if he had turned on the light in the room. Then, ignoring privacy, the boy began examining the contents of the lab. He wouldn't have thought Phil could be so similar to Wasabi. Measuring tools hung neatly on the wall, a space centrifuge model placed on the table, notes neatly stacked in the corner of the desk, no unnecessary things lying around. In other words, everything in its proper place.

“She wasn’t even here.”

“No, I was.”

Hiro's eyes widened, but before he could do anything, the door slammed shut behind him. The sound of creaking metal reached him. He ran forward and braced himself against the door, trying to open it, but it wouldn't budge. Apparently, Di had bent it so that it jammed.

He stepped back.

“Sorry Phil, but… Baymax, rocket fist.”

The door landed on the other side of the corridor.

Hiro jumped onto Baymax, who activated his thrusters and flew in the direction Di had most likely fled in too. Across from them was a broken window.

“We won't fit through the hole Di made,” Baymax reported.

“Then we’ll make it bigger!”

SFIT had to replace the window anyway.

Hiro clung to Baymax to minimize the amount of glass that would fall on him, and they flew outside. The robot hovered in midair, and Hiro looked around for any sign of movement. Or weird creatures. Or even people. Nothing.

“She got away.”

But before he could do anything more—not that there was something more to do—he heard a click in his earpiece.

“Hi, Hiro,” Honey Lemon began. “We have a tiny problem.”

_-_-_

This ‘tiny problem’ turned out to be Honey Lemon and Fred, stuck together in one of her chem balls. There was also a chem purse lying a few feet away, and no sign of Chris, besides the large hole in the roll-down door. Hiro reached for the purse and began to tap into the only formula he remembered that dissolved most of Honey's traps.

A moment later, they were free.

“So, Chris also escaped,” Hiro stated.

Fred got up from the ground and brushed the remaining substance off his costume. “Well, all of a sudden, for no reason, he grew about twice his size and started acting like a monkey! And like a crazy monkey, not like the ones I lead once. How were we supposed to know that?”

Hiro scratched his helmet.

“Sorry guys, I probably should have mentioned earlier that he could turn into a gorilla.”

“You knew?!”

“That was when Karmi kidnapped me. I didn't expect we'd ever fight him again, so I preferred to... leave some parts unsaid. And then I forgot to mention it. I'm sorry.”

Honey Lemon walked up to him and put her hand on his shoulder.

“It’s fine, Hiro.”

“Yeah, Fredzilla could forgive you. Is there anything more you know and you didn’t share?”

“Only what I learned today. Di mutated herself.”

“She did what?!”

Hiro turned towards the entrance, where he saw Go Go and Wasabi. It was the girl who asked that question.

“I don’t know into what, I didn’t even see her. But these crushed locks? It’s her job.”

“Another gorilla?” Honey Lemon asked.

Fred opened his suit and tapped his chin. “No, villains who mutate other people don't usually choose the same animal twice. It’s a Comic Book 101, obviously. But hey, I have an idea! I can call the zoo tomorrow and ask them if someone stole their animals. Or if they've had a break-in. I can search through the Internet too.”

“That’s surprisingly not a bad idea,” Go Go stated.

Hiro frowned. “Yeah, would be great. But it still doesn’t explain what she wanted.” He turned to Wasabi and the speedster, “maybe you discovered something?”

“No,” the girl answered. “Only that she was in Granville's office; the door was damaged.”

“Granville’s office?” He repeated.

What would Di be looking for there? Well, it's not like he could find out the answer to that question without asking the woman herself. But it all had to be connected. Phil's lab and office. What did these places have in common? Hiro tried to concentrate and think like Di for a moment, but he had very few clues. He needed more.

He looked around until his gaze landed on a corner of the room. Cameras. Of course. There were cameras here too!

“I'll have to hack into the SFIT monitoring system, we'll hook it up to Basemax and we'll monitor the institute just like the rest of San Fransokyo. And we'll find out what really happened here.”

Go Go raised her eyebrow. “Hack into? Really?”

“Yeah, why?”

“I'm sure Granville will just give you access if you ask her. Actually, I’d prefer that.”

“I’d prefer that as well.”

Hiro stiffened and quickly turned to face the woman.

“Professor Granville!” He smiled awkwardly. “Didn’t hear you coming.”

“Maybe because I was standing in the doorway for a minute.”

“Yeah, that would explain a lot.”

She approached the boy. “However I appreciate your concern for people’s safety, I do not consider breaking the law as the best way to achieve it. Are we clear about this, Mr. Hamada?”

Hiro looked down and rubbed his arm.

“We are.”

“Good. I will also pretend I didn't hear that you have already hacked into the city surveillance.”

The boy smiled. “Thanks, Professor Granville.”

She nodded and started looking around. “And now, could someone explain to me what happened here? And why is there a hole the size of Baymax in the door?”

“Oh, that?” Fred pointed out. “That was Chris.”

“We'd like to know more, too,” Hiro added, looking at Granville. “We need the footage.”

“I'm afraid the footage won't help you this time. That's why I was in the server room during the break-in. Someone disabled the entire security system. I managed to restore it, but it was too late. It keeps resetting. I'm afraid nothing was recorded.”

Hiro frowned. Disabling the cameras? That sounded familiar. Didn’t those who kidnapped the people also turn cameras off?

“That would explain why we haven't encountered any guard bots,” Wasabi noticed.

“It is the reason indeed,” Granville nodded.

Hiro took off his helmet and began pacing around. They needed to determine the correct order of events. Finally, he stopped, looking at his teacher.

“Go Go said Di also broke into your office, Professor Granville. When did that happen? Was anything missing?”

“That was probably the first place she came into. She took my keycard.”

His eyes widened.

“Keycard! And now everything makes sense.”

“Could you explain?” Fred asked. “So, you know, other people who don't know what you mean—not me, of course—could know what you mean?”

“When I was in the private labs, only one door was damaged. It belonged to the astrophysics major. It didn't make sense, because Di has nothing to do with that. But now it makes sense. She misled us. She wanted us to think she needed something from there, while in the meantime she opened the lab she really wanted with a keycard. Because you can open every door in here with Professor Granville’s keycard.”

“And how do you know that?” Wasabi asked suspiciously.

“He copied my ID,” Granville answered instead, “and added to his own.”

Hiro lowered his head. There was no point in arguing.

“I did.”

“There are logs about who opened each door,” she started explaining, “and I know when I cannot be in two places at once. Next time you do something like this, Mr. Hamada, I suggest you erase the evidence.”

“I will.”

“Wait,” Wasabi waved his hands. “You’re letting him do this?”

“How could I allow something I officially don't even know is happening?” she turned to Hiro with a disturbingly cheerful smile on her face. “Besides, I already have some plans for him for next year.”

And now he was scared.

She sighed and turned to the rest. “You can go home, most of you. I doubt they will attack again tonight, and it's already late. I'll check to see if any door opening logs have lasted. If you can, come back tomorrow so you can check if there’s anything missing. I will also notify the students with private labs to do the same.”

They all nodded and turned to the door. Only Hiro didn't move, sensing that ‘most of you’ meant everyone except him. Apparently, his intuition was correct, because as soon as the others left, Granville approached him.

“Come with me, I will give you access to the security system.”

Hiro brightened up a little and followed her.

“Really? Aren’t you mad?”

“No. I knew from the very beginning.”

“Wait. You did?”

“Yes. I also know that it was you who stole the energy amplifier from my desk in the first place. Before Yama did it.”

Hiro scratched his hair, deeply embarrassed.

“Oh.”

“I will admit, at first I didn't know what to think of you. You had problems with law and you were disobedient. Well, you still are. But when I saw how you dealt with that robot army, a threat you yourself created in some way, I decided to give you a chance. You didn't run away. You didn't blame others. You took responsibility for it. And I respect that.”

“How did you—”

“Let’s just say you’re not the only one who likes having access to cameras. There's one in your lab as well. I turned it off a while ago, though.”

“Thanks?”

“I gave you a chance and I don't regret it. Don’t let that change.”

“I won’t, Professor Granville. Thank you.”

She nodded. “Now, about those privileges… I know you would have done it sooner or later. So since it's going to happen anyway, it better happen under my control.”

Hiro smiled. It was so much better than him having to hack in. Even if it involved some kind of control. Because it meant that, despite what he was, Granville still trusted him. Probably far more than he deserved.

“Does it mean I can also keep the ID?”

Granville sighed.

“As long as you won’t do anything stupid with it.”

Hiro spread his arms and moved towards Granville, but before he could reach her, she stopped him with her hand.

“We can do without hugs.”

Chapter Text

Hiro spent the entire morning searching his lab, but nothing seemed to be missing. Although the fact that it was in complete chaos and he couldn't even remember all the prototypes he kept there probably didn't help determine whether Di had actually stolen anything from him or not. At least the others were more certain they haven’t lost anything. Well, maybe besides Phil. He lost his door. And definitely wasn’t happy about that.

Unfortunately, they also couldn't tell which rooms the villain has gotten into. Sure, Granville said they were keeping logs, but whoever was supporting Di and Chris clearly knew about it too. And they deleted everything.

And that was his main problem. Whom Di was working with. She could have broken in on her own, sure, but she didn't have the skills to hack the security system.

Someone helped her with that.

But who? Could it be the same person behind the kidnappings? After all, someone there also disabled the cameras every time, but how likely was it that the two cases were connected? He should have finally dug into the system and looked for this intruder; it was his only clue. No, stop. It would be better if he didn't immediately connect things that could be not linked at all. What if he imagined this to be true, but the actual truth will turn out to be something else, and he will realize it too late because he's too focused on his own assumptions? He couldn’t let that happen. It would be best to treat these two as separate cases for now.

Even if he felt they weren’t.

And speaking of the second case, it turned out that two more people were missing. That afternoon, he and Megan walked near the hatches where the kidnapped men were likely dragged, but they found nothing useful—maybe besides some ribbon which was lying in a hard to find spot. The only actually interesting thing he learned was that the police had searched the area with tracking dogs. None of them led to the hatches. But neither anywhere else. Whoever has kidnapped these people was well aware of the power of scent and neutralized it.

Megan was definitely right, someone was behind that. But…why?

“Hey!”

Hiro snapped out of his thoughts and looked at Ian. Right. He should be working on solid light technology. Which... the scientist still didn’t explained to him.

“Sorry. What did you say?”

Ian rolled his eyes. “Ring wrench, seven. Now.”

He gave him a wrench. The scientist leaned over the prototype again, forgetting about the world. Hiro included.

The boy frowned. He wasn't entirely sure that guy was Hardlight, but too many things seemed to add up. Ian was working on the same solid-light technology the villain was using. Him rather using the tech for himself, hiding the breakthrough he’d achieved would also make a ton of sense. Not to mention that being treated like garbage by other people can be a great motivation for becoming a supervillain. Thank you, Krei.

Hiro needed to make sure his suspicions were correct. Preferably, without revealing his identity while doing so.

He was going to play with fire, wasn’t he?

“So… you like computer games?”

“Why do you care?”

“Well, you used gamer slang yesterday.”

“Do you have too much HP, so you’re asking me?”

“Now you’re doing it again.”

“If I answer, will you be quiet for the rest of the day?”

Hiro frowned. Actually, Ian wasn't much like Hardlight in terms of personality. Sure, they were both chaotic, but Hardlight was confident, and Ian just wanted to be left alone. Although... people can change a lot under the hood. For now, he had to assume this was just a game, and Hardlight was who Ian really is.

“I will. What’s your favorite game?”

“Mind Smith.”

Checked.

“I like that one too! I always win because I build the coolest weapons,” except maybe that one time he fought Hardlight, but he didn’t say that out loud. “Wanna bet I can beat you?”

“Aren’t we supposed to work?”

“Don’t worry, I won’t tell Krei. He’s not even paying me.”

“What a surprise.”

Hiro gave Ian a look of hurt, which the man didn't catch anyway because he was too busy with the prototype. Now all the boy could do was wait. If Ian took the bait, he'd continue talking. If not, well. Hiro promised to keep quiet. He'd have to try again the next day.

“And what level are you?” Ian finally asked.

There we are.

“Fifty-seven. And you?”

“One hundred.”

Hiro feigned surprise. “That’s… pretty high level.”

“Let me guess, you’re some pro, who’s using the blaster, beat a ton of noobs, and now thinks that he’s smarter than anyone else. Wanna bet I could beat you?” For probably the first time the scientist smiled slightly.

Hiro smiled back. So Ian had a sense of humor. This was more like Hardlight.

“No, thanks. And let me guess, you’re using the sword.”

“When you use a sword, you're either a noob or a champion. It gives you a nice shield, when you put upgrade points into the right thing.”

“Well, I can't afford it yet.”

Actually he could, for some time now, but he always preferred blasters, and that's where he spent most of his virtual currency. Maybe, just maybe, it wasn't one of his best investments. He glanced at Ian and noted in his mind that using a sword checked as well.

“Can’t you?” Ian asked. “At fifty-seven you should have some nice amount of gems.”

“Well…”

“You used it on blasters, didn’t you?”

“I did.” Hiro admitted humbly.

He also mentally noted that Ian was quite smart. Even if he didn't show it.

Meanwhile, the scientist snorted, but he still seemed to be in a much better mood than before. Maybe it was from making fun of Hiro, or maybe it was just from talking about something he liked. Well. Hiro probably already had enough evidence that Ian was Hardlight. Except he still couldn't do anything about it. It still wasn't clear evidence. Not to mention that if Hiro, as a superhero, found Ian as a civilian and accused him of everything he did, he would be giving away his own identity. Because how else would he know the scientist and the supervillain were the same person?

No, he had to lure him out somehow.

Hiro heard Ian sigh. He looked at him, as the man gestured for him to come closer. With nothing else to do, he obeyed.

“See this?” He pointed to one of the prototype elements. “This is the light source. From here, it flows here, to the lenses, which reflect it. They're responsible for the image and are made of a special material that can become opaque anywhere and at any time. There are several of them because they correspond to different wavelengths. The opacity gives the light its proper shape. So, if I turn it on here,” he pressed a button on the side of the prototype and something resembling a glove was projected, “the hologram will activate. Magnetism prevents the photons from escaping further, so they stop here and project the image.”

Hiro looked closer, quite impressed. He knew Ian was still lying to him. He was still hiding that he has gotten much further with this project. But the fact that he finally explained it to Hiro, that he didn't consider him a failure anymore, was quite nice.

“But it’s still not solid,” the boy said.

“It’s not. Theoretically, you have to use the right force to achieve that. I'm just not sure how to get it there. To the hologram, I mean.”

“How about sending it with the light itself? Strong enough that it doesn't work inside the device, but after losing energy, creates just the right amount to harden the light?”

“That way, it will blow the device apart.”

“And the other?”

“How could you increase the energy without the source?”

Hiro frowned and tried to remember Ian's calculations. The answer was there. In that one place, which had been crossed out.

“Photons themselves are energy,” he finally said. “If you force them to vibrate small enough to be invisible to the naked eye, but strong enough to generate energy to harden them... a very detailed magnetic field.”

Ian eyed him.

“That could work. But... there's also another way.”

“Another way?”

“With the right magnetic wavelengths, theoretically, you can concentrate photons from the surroundings and create a hard material at the same time. Or even create photons from the very beginning.”

“I think I've seen this before. That villain on TV did it. How was he? Swiftlight?”

He deliberately misspelled the name to see Ian's reaction. He winced slightly, almost imperceptibly. But he didn't comment on it.

“Probably the same tech,” Ian admitted instead.

“Is that how you found out it’s possible?”

The scientist raised his eyebrow and looked at Hiro with some kind of suspicion.

“By watching him, I mean,” the boy added.

“Maybe.”

Hiro frowned. He was so close, he practically touched this subject. But if he was to continue to dwell on it, Ian would start to suspect something — even more than he has now. After all, what average teenager would be so interested in supervillains? Being obsessed with superheroes was way more common.

But on the other hand... could he be sure there would be another opportunity?

“Maybe?”

The scientist rolled his eyes. “I heard about this concept once, started running simulations and calculations. Theoretically, it's possible. Apparently, practically too.”

“Did he steal your calculations?”

Ian looked at Hiro in surprise. “I… don’t think so.”

“So you think he came up with it on his own?”

“I don’t really care.”

“But it’s the same tech.”

“We’re working on a slightly different kind.”

“Are we?” Hiro raised his eyebrow. “Both are solid light. You said you did the calculations. And then the supervillain with exactly the same solid light skills appeared, isn’t that a bit weird? I’d report that to the police.”

“And what could they do?”

“Then… maybe to Big Hero 6?”

“And what can they do? They can’t even touch him.” Hiro had to admit that Ian was right somehow. “Besides, I don’t think he stole this technology from me.”

“So if he’s not a thief… he must be really good at tech.”

Ian shrugged and adjusted his glasses. “Forget I said that. Not our business. We’re working on a solid hologram projector; his kind of tech doesn’t matter here.”

Hiro clenched his fist on the edge of the table. He was so close. He couldn't just drop the subject. Not now.

“Are other companies working on this too?”

“How should I know? Krei didn't even tell me I'd have to babysit the child.”

“Actually, I’m a teenager.”

“So hard to notice.”

And… they were going off-topic again.

“I just wonder how many scientists there might be in San Fransokyo working on this. You know, maybe Swiftlight just got out of some lab?”

“Maybe. Not our business.”

“It is our business. Aren’t you afraid they might publish it faster than you?”

“This will be Krei's failure, not mine.”

“But we’ll pay for that.”

“I will pay for that. You're his favorite; he’ll fire you at most. Besides, Hardlight could be anyone. He might as well be self-taught.”

Hiro frowned. Hardlight. Ian corrected it to Hardlight. He studied the scientist's reactions more closely. He was calm, as if he hadn’t mentioned his other identity, but at the same time, his irritation was easy to notice. Hiro wasn't sure if he should keep digging or give up. He was almost certain it was Ian, everything pointed to it. But then again, if he struck now, he could get into serious trouble. And it wasn't even about revealing superhero identity, because for now he was safe in that regard—he might not be safe physically.

But then again, Hardlight never actively tried to kill them.

“Anyone, you said.” Hiro took a deep breath; his voice firm. “Y’know, you're strangely calm for someone whose plans might’ve been stolen. And you’re strangely calm for someone who may lose the tech race.”

Ian put down the screwdriver and looked at Hiro. No trace of anger, no trace of surprise, no movement to suggest he was preparing to attack.

“So you think I’m Hardlight.”

“You're strangely calm for someone who's been suspected of being a villain.”

“And that’s all you’ve got?”

“Actually, no. You figured out this tech earlier, but you're hiding it from Krei. I saw the notes, you’ve got it. You're doing it so only one person can use it, and this person is you. Krei doesn't respect you, treats you like someone he can push around, and you can't stand up to him or you'll lose your job. So you decided to become someone people will respect, someone they'll fear. And from what I've seen, Hardlight’s quite obsessed with video games, just like you.”

Ian frowned slightly.

“You’re smarter than I thought.”

“So I’m correct.”

“What do you want?”

Hiro blinked. Of all the possible things Hardlight could have done, why did he ask that question?

“What?”

“In return for keeping quiet. Why else would you bother?”

Did Ian really think Hiro was trying to blackmail him? Well, he wanted to put him in jail, that was obvious, but then again, he couldn't do that now. He couldn't fight him as a superhero until Hardlight threatened the city as a supervillain. And even if Hiro managed to put Ian in jail, there was still solid light technology that had to be completed, or Krei Tech would look even more unreliable than it already was. Hiro might know the tech, but that alone didn't guarantee he could complete the prototype without Ian's help.

Throwing Hardlight in jail would have to wait.

“I don’t want to blackmail you, really. Why did you think I would?”

Ian hummed. “If you don’t, then why did you pick this up? It’s not the smartest thing you could do, and you seem smart.”

That was a good question. A good question he didn’t predict. Because seriously, what reason could he have besides being a superhero and wanting to know the villain's identity?

“I just… like to know the answers, I think.”

“Safe hobby.”

Oh, Ian didn’t even know.

Hiro chuckled. “Something didn't fit from the beginning, and now it does. That’s all. Besides, you said I’m smart. How smart would it be to blackmail a villain? I really want to finish that internship, y’know? Don’t plan to die before.”

“Sure you don’t.”

The boy leaned against the table, trying to look as nonchalant as possible. As if it wasn't terrifying at all that he was in a lab with a supervillain. But... it really wasn't. He knew that world. There were villains way scarier than Ian. And Ian didn't even want to attack. He still didn't reach for any weapons, didn't even try to activate the prototype.

Hiro cleared his throat and reached for a size six box wrench. He held it out towards Ian.

“So, maybe we should finish this prototype so Krei can’t blame us, and can’t figure out what you’re really hiding? He already has some suspicions, let's not give him more.”

Ian glared at him.

He also took the wrench.

Chapter Text

Hiro opened the door to the café and sighed. He hadn’t seen Aunt Cass there, so she was probably upstairs cooking something or cleaning after the customers. Baymax must’ve been with her. The boy wasn't sure he wanted to talk to them now, but he needed to get to his room, and he had to pass them anyway. This, of course, didn’t escape Aunt Cass's notice.

“Hiro!”

She walked up to him and hugged him. He didn't resist.

“Tell me, how was your internship?” She asked as soon as they pulled away. “Krei didn't kick you out of that prestigious project, right? Because if he did—” she clenched her fists; determination appeared on her face, “well, he already didn't give you holidays, one more thing and I swear my fist will meet his face.”

The boy smiled weakly. It sounded tempting somehow.

“No, I’m… I’m still in. No need to meet faces with fists.”

His aunt breathed a sigh of relief. “Good to know.”

“Mr. Krei has a nose wound that is healing,” Baymax announced, stepping closer to them. “Any interference could delay the healing process.”

“Wait.” Hiro blinked. “Krei got hit in the nose?”

“I do not know the circumstances of that incident.”

“Too bad,” Cass muttered. “I'd love to hear it.”

Hiro chuckled lightly. Aunt Cass was definitely not a fan of Krei, but after what the businessman had done to her, he wasn't surprised. Uncle Krei? That sounded awful. Although he still wasn't sure if Uncle Cruz sounded any better.

He snapped out of these thoughts. There were other dilemmas he had to deal with.

“Anyway, it was okay,” Hiro finally said. “We're making... progress. Slowly.”

“I'm so proud of you. And how's your coworker doing, isn't he giving you a hard time?”

Hiro snorted slightly. Considering his coworker was Hardlight who could unleash chaos within the city with just his gauntlet and this crazy light technology, being a little mean in the lab wasn’t even close to hard time.

“It’s fine, Aunt Cass. He’s, well, specific, but I can deal with that. Really. It will only be a month.”

She raised her eyebrow. “So it’s not completely fine.”

The boy sighed. “Let's just say I don't see my future in a corporation. I'll finish this internship and I’m done with this forever.”

“So where do you see yourself?”

Hiro blinked. He never really thought about it.

“I don’t know.”

Cass smiled slightly.

“Don’t worry. You’ll get there.”

_-_-_

Hiro entered the room, after he finished his sandwich. He heard Baymax's footsteps behind him and closed the door as soon as the robot went in as well. Within seconds, Hiro found himself in a chair, trying to shift from side to side. He flicked a pencil in his hand.

“You seem distracted.”

The boy stopped and looked at Baymax. “Really?”

“Shifting your eyes, being unable to find your place, and your elevated stress level indicates distraction and nervousness.”

“I’m fine, Baymax.”

“This is not correct. What worries you?”

Hiro sighed. What worried him?

“I know who Hardlight is.”

“Who is he?”

“Ian. The guy from the solid light technology project.”

“Should I send this data to our villain database?”

Should he? Hiro didn't want to reveal to his friends that if Hardlight didn't attack in the near future and if they didn't defeat him in a fight as superheroes, he'd have to spend a whole month in the company of a supervillain. He already knew their reactions—and he could take care of himself, he wouldn't need rescuing the next day, he could handle this on his own, really. He could make his own decisions. And they could be good.

Or at least he hoped so.

“No. We’re not telling them yet. If they find out, they'll try to get me out of this.”

“Your friends care about you.”

“I know, but I can care about myself. I appreciate what they do, really, but I feel like they sometimes... want to protect me even from things I don’t need to be protected from. I’m not that bad at being a superhero.”

“You are not bad at being a superhero,” Baymax confirmed. “But you are also not a superhero on your internship in Krei Tech.”

“I’m not that bad at being a regular Hiro either. I can protect myself.”

“You can. But according to my observations, everyone stumbles. Also your friends. There is nothing wrong with accepting help.”

He knew. He knew. It was just…

“I need to prove something, Baymax.”

“According to my observations, you do not have to prove anything.”

“To myself. Not to them.”

The robot was silent for a moment. Finally, he moved. “I understand.”

Hiro sighed. He just wasn't sure if he should actually do this. Sure, he had no other choice. If he attacked now, Ian would figure it out. But then again... how was spending a whole month with him supposed to be better? And… not only this.

Hiro understood.

He understood why Hardlight chose this path. He didn't approve of it, but he could imagine what it would lead to if someone who still wanted to fight was treated like a trash. And understanding could lead to a bond. Not that Ian was a master in socialization, but Hiro already noticed that spending time with villains would eventually end with some kind of emotional connection. It already did. After all, in some strange way, they stopped being at each other's throats.

The problem was, Hiro couldn’t let that happen. It wasn't easy anymore, and escalating it would only make things worse. He’d have to be careful. It was enough that he'd started a relationship with Momakase; he didn't need to repeat that.

He took a deep breath and looked at Baymax.

“I'll take you on my internship tomorrow, okay buddy? I need you to watch over me. So I won’t do anything stupid. Well, more stupid than I already did.”

Baymax blinked. “I understand. I will be with you.”

Hiro smiled, and at that moment, a notification sounded from his previously dormant computer. He turned in that direction. A pale blue background appeared on the screen, and in the background—hexagonal eyes.

“I'm detecting suspicious activity around Night Market Square,” Basemax announced.

The boy frowned. “Send it to the others.” Then he looked at Baymax. “Let’s suit up.”

_-_-_

If San Fransokyo had any defining characteristic besides the Torii Bridge, the blend of cultures, and its near-bilingualism, it was the fog that usually appeared after dark. Like that night, for example. Hiro wasn't sure whether to be happy or worried about that. After all it was hard to tell if they would be ones who have the advantage or the villains.

“So, what’s going on?” Go Go asked, standing next to him.

Everyone else was also there, all in their suits—including even Mini-Max— standing on the roof of one of the tenement houses. And then Hiro heard a click in his headphones.

“I don’t detect any life forms behaving suspiciously nearby.” Basemax announced.

Fred scratched his costume. “Wait. Is that a false alarm?”

“Wouldn’t say so,” Go Go answered. “Villains have scan jammers now, they’re undetectable.”

“We need to get closer,” Hiro decided.

While they had a better observation position on the roof, they would probably be able to lure out the villain more quickly on the ground. After a moment, they landed, jumped off, and looked around. No sign of civilians. No sign of police. No sign of the bad guys.

“There’s nothing here,” Wasabi concluded.

Hiro frowned. Basemax's sensors were accurate, and now that she could analyze footage from across the city in real time, there was no room for error. Unless someone had hacked her, but who would know Big Hero 6 were using AI, besides Granville and Momakase? Not that they were great hackers. At least Momakase, he wasn’t so sure about Granville.

“Uhm… guys?”

Everyone turned to Honey Lemon, who was pointing at the road. Or more precisely, at claret circle that was projected onto the road just below her, and moving with her. When Hiro looked down, he realized he was followed by the same thing. He also realized something else.

“That’s Hardlight’s tech.”

But why? Why did Hardlight decide to attack now? It didn’t make any sense. Hiro couldn’t think of any reason Ian would do it—he hadn’t insulted him, nor provoked him. And while the villain might have just struck on a whim, something told Hiro there was more to it than that. Hardlight could be whimsical at times, but he wasn’t an idiot. So... what did he want?

“Yeah, that’s for sure,” Fred agreed, while trying to touch his own.

“I don’t have my own fancy tracker,” Mini-Max noticed. “The cruel villain will pay for disregarding my mighty appearance!”

Meanwhile Wasabi began to shift, “I don’t like it.”

“Yeah, looks like targets,” Go Go noticed. “We should go, before something hits us.”

Hiro was inclined to agree, but the moment he jumped onto Baymax and his target disappeared, orange walls of solid light sprung out around. A platform appeared on the road below them, lifting the team several dozens of feet into the air, and the entire scene transformed into something resembling a very realistic water simulation—except perhaps for the fact that it was orange. And seemed denser. After a moment, something like floes appeared, in various places. Some displayed a number above them.

Oh, and there were also vultures.

Hiro got off Baymax again.

“What’s that supposed to be?” Go Go asked.

As if in response, they heard Hardlight laugh.

“Hello, players!” The villain began. “Enjoying the new map? You better start! FYI, I must admit, it took me a few hours to come up with all of this, but I think it was worth it! Your quest is to find the way out of the zone. Be careful, ‘cause you won’t respawn! GL, newbies!”

Wasabi clinched his fists. “Seriously, what language is he speaking again?”

“It is still English,” Baymax stated.

Hiro sighed. “What he said is, we have only one life, so we better not die. Oh, and GL means ‘good luck’.”

The boy looked around, but even though he had heard Hardlight a moment ago, he couldn't see him anywhere. Apparently, the villain was outside the zone. And apparently, if they wanted to get out there themselves, they'd have to follow the directions. Hiro glanced around. Theoretically, they could jump to floes. Only, the water was starting to feel less and less like water.

“I think it’s some extreme version of ‘the floor is lava’,” Fred began to wonder, “but I don’t think I wanna check it.”

Yeah, that made sense.

“They’re not floes. They’re pieces of stone.”

“Guys!” Go Go groaned. “It doesn’t matter what they are. We need to get out of here and kick his ass. So we’d better start now.”

“No. We need a strategy.”

Everyone turned towards Hiro.

“Jump forward?” Go Go asked.

“I was thinking more about collecting coins.”

“Do I need to remind you that we're trapped by a supervillain? We need to get out of here as quickly as possible. Don't treat this like a real game.”

“This is a real game.”

“No, it’s not.”

“Think about it. Hardlight doesn't want to destroy us outright, he wants a challenge. If he put that cash here, it means we'll need it at some point. He's giving us a fair chance. At least for now. If we ignore this, we'll weaken ourselves.”

“It’s still his game. If he decides our chances are too fair, he’ll change the rules.”

Well, Go Go was right. But that didn’t mean he was wrong.

“He’ll change the rules one way or another. And if he does, we might as well use the advantage he’s given us for now.”

The others nodded and everyone prepared to jump.

How hard could it be?

_-_-_

It turned out to be much harder than they thought when Hiro reached the fourth level and was the only one to pass through the gate.

They lost Baymax in the first round. All because the boy was so focused on getting points that he drifted too far and didn't notice the rocks were slowly sinking under their weight. Baymax caught him and set Hiro down on the platform on the other side, but the vultures managed to drag him down. He ended up in a cage.

In the next level, which looked like a jungle, with platforms, vines, angry monkeys and even angrier snakes on the forest floor, they lost Wasabi and Honey Lemon. Things went downhill pretty quickly. Wasabi’s fear of heights, lots of monkeys attacking, Honey trying to help, and the fact that the platforms seemed to have a limited durability. It was an interesting coincidence that they only learned this so painfully on the second-to-last platform.

And that wasn't even the craziest part.

Because the craziest part was level three. Two platforms, an entrance and an exit—and nothing else. Despite the dragon. They had to choose one of several items they could buy to get to the other side. Go Go and Fred wanted to take the zipline. It was Hiro who insisted on the muzzle. Perhaps if he agreed to their idea, they would get to the other side safely. Sure, it probably wouldn't be without fending off the dragon, but they could all get there. Instead, they tried to steer the thrashing reptile, Hiro barely hanging on by a magnetic lasso wrapped around its leg, all coupled with the belated realization that the dragon could shoot lightning. They survived unscathed, but they had to jump. Mini-Max could only catch Hiro.

Hiro. Instead of Fred. He caught Hiro.

He frowned and pushed the thought aside. The chances of him defeating Hardlight were poor. It was the villain’s game, he could change the rules at any moment. But Hiro’s friends were counting on him. He'd figure out a way.

The boy clenched his fists and went further.

The final realm was… simple. There were no fancy objects, no obstacles, no threats. And no exit. The map consisted of one large, flat platform, the one he now stood on, and something surrounding it on three sides, probably imitating water. Hiro could practically hear the waves. But just because it was quiet here didn't mean it wasn’t dangerous.

Mini-Max was hidden in the fog hanging over the water. Hiro noticed before that Hardlight’s sensors couldn’t detect him—probably because he didn't land on the ground at the beginning. So Hiro asked Mini-Max to stay out of sight. The boy, on the other hand, shot out a magnet, caught it with a coil, and started rotating it. That was something he picked up from Honey Lemon when they were in the jungle realm. A bit more economical than shooting everything that might pose a threat. Especially considering he'd already used up most of his magnets on the monkeys.

He snapped out of his thoughts. This wasn't the time to analyze past obstacles. It was the time for the current situation. And the current situation was quiet. Too quiet.

Apparently, not for long.

“I must admit, I'm disappointed,” Hardlight's voice came out of nowhere. “And you consider yourselves pros? Honestly, I thought more of you would make it to the final round. Only one? It’s just boring!”

Hiro's gaze fell on a hole that suddenly appeared in the middle of the platform. Hardlight soon emerged from it, looking at him. Hiro looked back. On one hand, it was incredibly difficult to imagine the grumpy scientist behind that mask, but on the other, it made a whole lot of sense. This was who Ian really was.

“If you think this is so boring, go ahead,” Hiro waved his hand. “Free the rest of my friends and we’ll see how you like this kind of fight.”

“Tempting. But they’re already out, and the rules say no respawn!”

“That’s your rules.”

“Well, there's nothing you can do about it anyway. But they can watch if you miss them so much!”

That was something. Ian waved his hand, and the wall next to him opened as five cages flew through it. Hiro breathed a sigh of relief when he saw they were still okay. Honey Lemon was clearly surprised that Go Go and Fred ended up trapped as well. Wasabi, on the other hand, was… well, himself.

“Finally!” he shouted. “Please, no more snakes!”

Hardlight snorted. “Be quiet, noobs have no right to speak. Now, where were we...” he looked at Hiro. “Ah, yes. Choose your weapon!”

Hiro took a deep breath as the weapon selection animation appeared before him, similar, but not exactly the same as in Mind Smith. Some weapon shapes Hiro didn't remember, and others he knew weren't there at all. This required him to think even harder than usual.

He reached for the blaster button but hesitated. In the game, this mobile one, he hadn't been able to defeat Hardlight that way. And what did Ian say lastly? That only beginners and champions used a sword? That might have made more sense than Hiro had initially thought. After all, everything that held this game together was in Hardlight’s gauntlet. To get there, Hiro would have to fight up close, not from a distance. The blaster would give him an advantage from afar, but up close it would be as useful as garbage.

He switched to the second board, with the selection of materials. Steel, plastic, glass, some strange alloys, rope, space rock, and... something that caught his eye. He held his hand still.

“Graphene,” he whispered.

Hardlight was able to defeat him with a sword in the game. How likely was it that he could wield it, really wield it well, also in real life? Well, it’s not like Hiro was a master, but he had some knowledge. And he had his observations.

He looked at the amount of money he had left. The material was expensive, yet he could afford it. Hiro glanced at the first board and quickly calculated whether he could also afford the katana. He could. So he dragged the items to the center of the board and spent the remaining money on upgrading his defense.

A holographic weapon generated in front of Hiro. He grabbed it and assumed a stance.

“I’m ready.”

“Are you sure?” Go Go asked.

He wasn’t, but Hardlight didn’t need to know that.

“Seriously?” the villain chuckled. “What fun will be defeating you if you kill yourself first?”

“Wanna bet?”

Hardlight hummed, then fired several beams from his sword. Hiro jumped out of the way to avoid most of them, but he blocked the last one with the flat of his katana. Or rather, he deflected more than blocked.

Hiro smirked. He did the same with the next beam, but much more precisely, aiming right next to Hardlight's gauntlet.

Putting money into defense was definitely a good decision.

Apparently Ian noticed this as well, because he changed strategy and moved forward. Hiro, though genuinely terrified, did the same, not wanting to lose ground to the villain. He raised his sword, bracing for a strike. At the last second, he jumped to the side, avoiding the blow. Hardlight might have not been a master swordsman, but he was definitely stronger.

“Really?” Hardlight laughed. “I thought since you got here you were better than a chicken! Disappointing.”

“I thought you’d change your strategy for a reason other than being afraid of me.”

It worked. Ian struck again. This time, Hiro deflected the blow. It took some energy—actually a surprising amount of it, he didn't expect Ian to be that strong—but the boy managed not to retreat, and that was a success. Although if he wanted to defeat Hardlight, he'd need a plan. If Ian truly had imitated the physics of the materials, how hard would Hiro have to strike to destroy his sword?

He dodged again. And again. And then Hardlight shifted his weight too far onto his right foot, depriving himself of stable support. Hiro attacked.

A small piece of Hardlight's sword was cut off and disappeared with a pixelated effect.

Hiro smirked. This really worked. Fall back when the opponent has a speed advantage, strike when he slows down for a moment. One day he'd have to thank Momakase for that. Or not. She didn't need to know he was trying to imitate her fighting style.

Hardlight, obviously, restored his sword to its previous state. But it took time. Two seconds, during which Hiro could have done a lot. They exchanged more blows, and a plan began to form in the boy’s head. Sadly, Hardlight seemed to be aware of his previous mistake and was paying more attention to his stance, even if he moved a little stiffly. He also struck out stronger. This required Hiro to be more agile, changing positions more often. The boy realized with concern that he wouldn't be able to hold for long. He also suddenly understood why Momakase never wore any kind of armor. It was far too heavy.

Hardlight tried to trip him up and Hiro jumped. He took advantage of the fact that the villain was once again in a less stable stance, and cut again, this time slicing his opponent's sword in half. He readied the magnet and moved his hand towards Hardlight's gauntlet. And then holographic squares appeared and began to surround him.

Right. It was still Hardlight’s game.

“Hey!”

“What’s wrong? Don’t tell me that some holograms could stop you.”

“You never intended to play fair, did you?”

“Where’s the fun in that? I thought you’d understand.”

What was that supposed to mean?

More squares showed up. Hiro tried to get rid of them with a katana, but he couldn't wield it as precisely as he wanted. And when he cut off one of the horns of his own helmet, he realized he had to find another way.

And he had to do it quickly. Because in just a moment, he won't be able to move.

“Maybe I do understand,” he answered.

“What?”

“Mini-Max, now!”

“An NPC?” Hardlight groaned. “Not again.”

Then everything happened quickly. Too quickly. Hardlight lunged toward Hiro, sword still damaged in his hand. Mini-Max fired his rocket fist and hit the villain in the face. The squares momentarily loosened. Hiro swung his katana, not really looking where he was hitting, but knowing he had to defend himself.

He lost his balance and fell to the ground. The squares disappeared, finally allowing him to take a deep breath. He looked straight ahead. And froze.

Half of Hardlight’s gauntlet, severed, lay before him.

“Oh no.”

He didn’t notice when the realm began to crumble. He didn’t notice when his katana vanished. He didn’t notice when the floor disappeared from under his feet and he began to fall. He didn't notice when Baymax caught him. And he didn't notice when he was placed to the ground. All he could think was that he had done something irreversible.

“Hiro!”

Someone shook him. It was Go Go. He turned and looked at her.

“I should’ve chosen the blaster,” he murmured.

“It’s not your fault. You did what had to be done.”

No. It didn’t.

Hiro looked around, but all he could see, besides the lights of the police cars approaching, was Hardlight's gauntlet.

“Where did he go?”

Fred walked over to him, scratching the lid of his suit. “Oh, you know. He disappeared in a burst of light. Something about still having seven lives or whatever.”

Hiro sighed. The police were getting closer (apparently, Hardlight had created some kind of barrier to prevent them from getting through), and Hiro really didn't want to be accused of cutting off a man’s arm. Although he probably would be anyway. If the TV drone hovering nearby was any indication, the entire city has probably just found out what he’d done.

He picked up the gauntlet. And only now did he realize that something was wrong. There was no blood. He looked at the spot where he'd cut it, and suddenly everything fell into place. Including Hardlight’s disappearance in the explosion.

“That was a robot. He wasn’t a real Hardlight.”

“Whaaat?” Fred lowered his hands. “That doesn’t make sense. Seriously, that’s one of the stupidest plot twists I’ve ever seen.”

It made sense. The strange strength, the stiff movements. Now it made sense.

“He was using an avatar, controlling it from the outside,” Hiro explained. “But why? Maybe he knew we’d beat him? Maybe he wanted to collect some information? Or maybe he wanted to be able to focus on something else than just fighting?”

“On what?”

“I don’t know. But I hope it’s not what I think it is.”

What if Hiro wasn't the only one who suspected the enemy’s identity?

A police car pulled up. The boy barely had time to tuck the gauntlet behind his back. A second later, the car stopped, and Chief Cruz got out. Hiro sighed. He really didn't have the energy to talk to him right now.

He felt someone place a hand on his shoulder.

“Go home,” Go Go said. “We’ll take care of this.”

Hiro decided to listen to her and a moment later he was flying on Baymax towards the Lucky Cat Café.

Chapter Text

Hiro turned on the light and, not worrying about Baymax, with his eyes half-closed he threw himself face down on the bed. It was so nice to take off the armor after all this madness, even if his room was strangely cold. Hiro mumbled something into the sheets and clenched his fist around the part of Hardlight’s gauntlet. He should have used his reverse engineering skills to finally figure out the villain's technology—the one he was using in combat, not the one he was working on at Krei Tech—but that was the last thing he had the energy for now.

And he certainly didn't feel like checking the news. If the entire fight with Hardlight have been broadcast live, the media was surely already buzzing about Captain Cutie, who had not-so-cutely severed his opponent's arm. Watching the drama involving himself wasn't exactly pleasant. Nor was listening to yet another paranoid group demanding control over superheroes.

“Long day?”

“Yeah…”

It took him two seconds to realize that he had actually replied to someone. Someone who wasn’t Baymax. The boy yelled and tried to stand up as fast as he could, but only ended up getting tangled in the blanket and falling with it.

He did have a good view of Baymax though. The robot had noticed the intruder in the room, but Hiro's awkward position was clearly his priority right now.

“You fell.”

“Really?”

“On a scale of one to ten, how would you rate your pain?”

“Zero.”

He tried to stand up, but instead got even more tangled in the blanket. He fell again and groaned in pain.

“On a scale…”

“Zero!”

The robot blinked.

“You are upset.”

“I’m fine, Baymax.”

He wasn't quite fine. He had just gotten humiliated in front of one of the most dangerous criminals in San Fransokyo in one of the stupidest ways possible. Eventually, though, he pulled himself together, got untangled from the blanket, and threw it back on the bed, pretending nothing had ever happened.

He also put up Hardlight’s gauntlet, trying to do everything to avoid eye contact with her. Fortunately, Baymax seemed to assume that Hiro was unharmed and turned to the intruder without bringing up the previous situation any further.

“My cameras noticed Momakase in your room. Should I call the team?”

“No, Baymax. No need for that.”

“Should I save this as a new default setting?”

Hiro frowned. Should he?

“No, not yet. Keep asking for now.”

“I will keep asking.”

The boy nodded. “Can you go down and help aunt Cass out a bit? Could bet she’s still cleaning up after the customers.”

“Are you sure?”

Hiro smiled slightly.

“Yeah, I’ll be safe, buddy. Just want to talk to her alone.”

“I understand. I will go down.”

Baymax left the room, closing the door behind him. Well, it looked like Hiro was finally going to get an answer to the question that had been bothering him for days.

Hiro sighed and sat down on the bed, finally looking at Momakase. She was in her usual supervillain outfit, not the one he had made for her. She also had a katana in a sheath slung across her back. He frowned. Was there any time she didn't carry a weapon other than when she was in prison? But on the other hand… he always carried ultra magnets in his pockets too. That probably made them even.

“Could you please not scare me like that? Ever? Again?”

“No.”

She smiled maliciously. Hiro just rolled his eyes, not really wanting to argue with her. He only realized he was still holding the gauntlet, so he threw it behind him, on the blanket. This of course didn't escape Momakase’s notice.

“Tough fight with this Hardlight, huh?”

Oh no.

“You saw it.”

If he had thought he had been humiliated before, it now seemed like nothing.

“You’re not the only one who watches the news. And you were terrible. Unstable posture, legs too close, blade too low. You used too much energy to parry when you could have saved it if you had just raised your sword higher.”

“Are you trying to teach me?”

“No. It's just very satisfying to point out your mistakes.”

“Sure.”

“You weren’t as terrible though. You held your ground. And at least you won.”

“Because I cut off his hand.” He replied, his voice more broken than he would have expected. “I shouldn’t mess with this. With graphene. If he was a human instead of a robot, he would—”

“Have gotten what he deserved.”

“No.”

“No? Isn’t he a threat to the city you’re trying so hard to protect? He knew the risks from the moment he decided to fight. It was his fault he stepped into it in the first place and it would have been his fault if he came out of it incomplete. You were lucky you cut off his hand and not yours. So stop blaming yourself.”

She was right somehow, but he didn’t want to accept it. It was too dark for him. It brought him down to earth too strongly. And it scared him in a way, because he knew she had just told him the brutal truth. But… they were different. She had no problem hurting people, while he didn't want to hurt even the villains. Her rules and perspective didn’t apply in his life, right?

Right?

“This is what you wanted to talk with me about?”

“Actually, no. Catch!”

She threw a small object, which Hiro caught easily.

“What’s this?”

“Flash drive.”

“Yeah, I can see that. What’s on it?”

“Your identities.”

He blinked a few times.

“What?”

“I won’t need this anymore.”

He was inclined to believe that, but it didn't sound like Momakase. It sounded like... she was trying to quit. For some reason, that worried him.

“Are you leaving?”

“No. I suppose it’s hard to believe, but I'm simply not going to blackmail you anymore. And if I’m not, then I guess it should belong to you. Don’t worry, I don’t have any copies.”

Hiro breathed a sigh of relief.

“Thanks? I think.”

“There are also Obake’s plans in there.”

He suddenly tensed.

“Obake’s plans?”

“Everything he worked on. Every program he wrote, every data he obtained, every plan he stole from Krei Tech or made by himself.”

“How did you get them?”

“Stole when I worked with him. I suppose he knew, yet didn’t do anything about it.”

Of course. It sounded like something Momakase could do. But that still didn't explain one thing.

“Why are you giving this to me? Why didn't you sell it on the black market? You’d have made a ton of money on them.”

“Well, that’s true.”

“Then why?”

“He would prefer you to have it. Maybe you can use them in some smart way. I’d like to see that.”

“If by ‘use’ you mean ‘delete’, then I’ll surely do it.”

“Hold on, genius boy. I saw some of these plans. They’re not all bad. And even if they are, I’m sure you’re smart enough to use them in a not-so-fatal way. Obake was deranged but he wasn’t stupid. Maybe you can learn something from him.”

Wait. Learn?

Suddenly several images appeared before his eyes. Dark room with a terrifying green light. Huge screens. Lenore Shimamoto’s plans for a deadly generator. Obake’s smile and the lightness with which he spoke of wiping out an entire city. Baymax's hand that kept Hiro from escaping and saving Aunt Cass. The fear that he would lose everyone he loved. And the very reason Obake wanted to keep him in a place that the catastrophe wouldn't affect. Wanted him to live.

So he could become his apprentice.

Hiro clenched his fists. This wasn't going to happen. It hadn't happened in his lifetime, and Hiro wouldn't let it ever happen after his death.

“I do not want to have anything in common with Obake.”

“You do not want to, but yet you already have.”

“What do you mean?”

“You are both gifted in the same field. So pocket your pride and at least look at it.”

“It’s not about pride.”

“It’s not. It’s about fear, isn’t it?”

He didn’t answer.

“Relax, you won’t kill millions of people just because you take a look at his plans.”

“I don’t expect you to understand.”

“Try me.”

Hiro took a deep breath.

“He almost took everything from me, claimed we were the same… wanted me to learn from him. I’m not gonna do that even if there really is something to learn. There’s no way I’m going to risk becoming like Obake. No way I’m going to do something which could start that.”

“He got to you more than I thought.”

“As I said, I don’t expect you to understand.”

This time Momakase was the one who took a deep breath.

“Let me tell you something, Hiro Hamada.” She replied more sharply. “It’s you who do not understand. Do you think I’m better than the ones who threatened my family? In all of this stupid pep talks people are always saying to be better than your enemies. But in the end? It doesn’t really matter. The only thing that matters is who wins. If that means becoming like them, you’re doing it. If you have any chances, you’re taking them. No matter the cost.”

Hiro frowned. He really didn’t like it. It was far from his comfort zone, not to mention bad. He didn’t want to become like his enemies. He didn't want to resort to such means. He did once. Willingly. Almost becoming a murderer.

Never again.

“Obake’s dead. I don’t need to fight him anymore.”

“Probably. But there are others. Right now you and your sad friends are doing well defeating them. But someday that might not be enough. Someday you might have to take a page from his book. And if you can, you’d better take it.”

He clenched his fist around the flash drive, almost crushing it. But a second later, he let go.

“Why are you telling me this?”

“Because you’re a kid with dreams. I was one too. We both messed with the world we weren’t ready to stand against. You’ll better start to be aware of that before it hits you. And enjoy being a child… until you still can.”

“How old were you?”

He wasn't sure why he’d asked. After all, Mr. Frederickson said she was a kid. But then again, even Wasabi was a kid to him, even though he was in his twenties.

“Fourteen.”

Hiro frowned. It was terribly similar. He was thirteen when he started bot fighting and if it weren’t for his brother and his friends, he could have ended up a lot worse. He could have been in a gang, robbing stores, or doing whatever criminals tend to do. Because bot fights were usually just the beginning.

And when he was fourteen, he became a superhero. Now he had more villains to deal with than he could ever have thought. So she was right. In some way he messed with the world he wasn’t ready to stand against.

But at least… he wasn’t alone.

“And your family…?”

“Dead. All of them. In the fire that someone set.”

Fire. Again. First Tadashi, then his father's family, now Momakase’s. How many people did he know about have lost their lives in the fire?

“I survived only because I was doing some mischief in school and didn’t get back in time,” she continued with some sentiment. “But I should have been there, so they consider me dead as well. In a way, they were right.”

Hiro understood. Perhaps even better than she could’ve thought.

“My brother survived too, but died in an accident later. I don’t know much though, we haven’t been close since he got to know about my new… hobby.”

“You were close before?”

“He’s the one who taught me how to use this.” She pointed at her katana, a small smile on her face. “Despite all of father’s words that women are not allowed to fight with blades.”

He smiled slightly too.

“Sounds like a cool brother.”

“He was. Tried to keep me on the right path…and failed.”

Momakase didn’t seem to be satisfied with the last part. But all of this time she also didn’t seem to regret anything she had done, so she was probably only sorry for his failure. Hiro didn't know what to say, so he remained silent. Until Momakase spoke again.

“You had a brother as well.”

“I had.”

“What was he like?”

Hiro smiled slightly, not really understanding how they had moved from the flash drive topic to their families, not to mention how they were able to talk about it so freely. But they were, and Hiro didn’t want this to end. He stood up and walked over to the desk, his back to her. It still wasn't the smartest thing to do, but... if she wanted to hurt him, she would have done it already.

He reached for the photo of him and his brother.

“He was… responsible. Terribly responsible. Always ran diagnostics tests. Always… knew what’s the right thing to do. It came naturally to him. To me, it didn’t.”

“Sounds familiar. All of this.”

“I wish to be like him.”

He heard her footsteps and, from the corner of his eye, saw her standing next to him.

“You’re doing well just the way you are.”

Hiro looked at her and saw that she was smiling slightly. It was a real smile, not the crazy grin she always showed during a fight. And not the mean one where she made fun of him. This one was really honest.

He smiled back.

And then Momakase saw something behind him, because she suddenly became serious. She frowned and walked over to the wall where several posters and photos were hanging. One of them definitely caught her attention. It showed him, about three years old, being hugged by his parents. One of the very few mementos of them.

She reached out for the photo, but quickly pulled her hand back. Then she glanced back and forth between Hiro and the photo, trying to hide the fact that she was surprised. And... scared?

No, that wasn't possible. Sure, some things overlapped, but that wasn't possible.

“This was your father?”

Suddenly it all started falling into place.

“You knew him.”

“I did.”

“How?”

“Are you sure you want to know?”

Why did she ask that? Did his father do something wrong? Or maybe she knew how Hiro would react if he found out they were... no. That wasn't possible.

“I’m sure,” he replied seriously. “Tadashi didn’t talk about him much, and Aunt Cass knew even less. I was stupid enough not to listen when I could, and now it’s too late. If... if there’s anything you can tell... if I can get any connection to my family... please. I need to know. Even if it means my father wasn’t as good as most people wanted me to think he was.”

“Oh, he was good. You don’t need to worry about that. He wasn’t involved in any crime and you’re not a son of a villain.”

“Then how did you know him?”

Momakase sighed and looked at Hiro with some kind of affection.

“Because your father and my brother are apparently the same person.”

That was possible.

_-_-_

Hiro took a few deep breaths, flipping the flash drive in his hand. Momakase left a few minutes ago, but he was still sitting on his bed, stuck on what she said.

It all checked. It started to check before, even if he didn't want to admit it, and it checked even more now. His father’s family being dead because of a fire. Everything Cass had told him recently, about an important heirloom they lost, about their connection with cooking, and about his dad’s mysterious sibling who was the only other survivor, had a huge argument with him and may have been dead for a long time as well. Momakase’s family swords were that heirloom. She was that sibling.

But then again, how likely was it that he would suddenly discover another relative? How likely was it that it was someone he knew before? And his enemy? How likely was it that something like that could happen in a city with a population of several million? It was just shy of zero. Things like that didn’t happen.

Or did they?

But what if it was a lie? A trick? What if Obake was able to find out all of this stuff about Hiro’s family before he did, and then passed it onto Momakase? What if she was just pretending to play on his feelings? To get closer to him and avoid going back to prison? It didn’t suit her, it wasn’t the way she was behaving, and her surprise at finding out they were family, and everything she said really seemed sincere to Hiro, but what if...

He growled. That didn’t make any sense. Who should he trust?

And suddenly the door to his room opened. Baymax went inside and closed it behind him. He waddled over to Hiro.

“I successfully prevented all kitchen-related injuries. I also learned how to wash dishes.”

He didn’t answer. The robot blinked and tilted his head.

“Your stress level is elevated.”

Hiro frowned, but a thought occurred to him. If there was anyone he could trust with this, it was Baymax. His algorithms prevented him from lying to Hiro, and his data calculations were always accurate and true. Besides, he wanted proof, right? So it was now or never.

“Baymax?”

“Yes, Hiro?”

“Do you still have Momakase’s old scans? From before she started wearing a scan jammer, and got mutated?”

“I confirm.”

“Compare her DNA to mine. For kinship.”

“Separating SMP from the genetic code. Analyzing.”

A pie chart appeared on the screen on Baymax’s belly, slowly progressing. It might have been a minute, but to Hiro it still felt like an eternity.

“Analysis complete.” The robot raised a finger. “You and Momakase share 26.4 percent of your SMP. You are closely related.”

She wasn’t lying.

“Why didn’t you tell me this earlier, Baymax?”

“You did not ask me to compare your DNA with Momakase’s DNA.”

“Right.”

“Should I compare your genetic data with the genetic data of every supervillain we meet in the future?”

“No! No, thanks. Knowing that I’m related to Momakase is enough for now.”

“You are tense.”

“Really?”

“You are also using sarcasm.”

Hiro sighed. Just because he'd just found out he had a supervillain for an aunt didn't mean he had to take it out on Baymax.

“Sorry, buddy. I just... don't really know what to think about all of this. It’s a lot, y’know?”

“Do you want to talk about that?”

“I’m not sure.”

“It is scientifically proven that talking about feelings helps to improve well-being.”

“Maybe not today. I think I need to deal with this alone. And… consult my pillow. Like a few times.”

“I do not think your pillow has any proper therapeutic abilities.”

“I mean sleep, buddy.”

“Oh. A pun. I will add it to my database. I will also talk to you when you are ready.”

Hiro smiled slightly.

“Thanks, Baymax.”

The boy got out of bed and gripped the flash drive he was still holding tighter. What he was about to do probably wasn't the smartest idea. He should stomp on it, burn it, and throw the remains into a volcano or the sea so that no trace of Obake would remain. But somehow he couldn't bring himself to do it.

Maybe Momakase got to him more than he thought.

He walked over to the desk and pulled out the drawer. For a moment Hiro nailed his eyes on the round blue patch, but he quickly snapped out of it. Instead he took out a piece of string, threaded it through the hole in the flash drive casing, then tied it at the end. Eventually he put on his unconventional necklace and tucked under his shirt.

If there was such dangerous information on it, it was better to keep it close.

Chapter Text

The blue creature attacked. The purple one raised its shield and dodged, then fired a beam at the opponent—but missed. The blue one seized the opportunity and breathed fire, instantly depleting the purple one's health bar.

A large “Game Over” message appeared on the screen.

Hiro placed his gamepad on the couch and sighed.

Fred, on the other hand, began jumping around on his side of the furniture. “I can’t believe it. This is the third time in a row. The third time. And I won! I didn't think I could improve so quickly.”

Mini-Max jumped to the ground. “According to my analysis, it wasn't you who improved. It was Hiro's playing level that suddenly plummeted and now it’s even lower than yours. You're not getting any better.”

Fred looked at the little robot. “Thanks. You surely know how to crush dreams.”

“You are welcome!”

Hiro snorted softly, but didn't have the energy to actually laugh. Not that he really cared about the game at that moment. Apparently Fred noticed it too.

“Hey, is everything okay? You’re usually more fierce in this.”

The boy sighed. Was everything okay? He wasn’t sure. In theory, everything was normal. He won three days off from Krei, almost literally won it, because the businessman wasn’t willing to make any concessions just before the prototype's premiere. He managed to figure out a bit about Hardlight's technology, and started working on something that would allow Megan to go underground and not die immediately in case a supervillain happened upon her. He also checked the city's surveillance system for intruders, finding no trace of them, of course. In theory, everything was fine. In practice, he couldn't really concentrate on anything. Everything he did was to distract himself, but that never quite worked.

But what was he supposed to say? That hey, he'd only recently learned about a few family secrets and hadn't even absorbed them yet, and hadn't even decided if he wanted to seek answers, when the answers found him instead? Quite literally? How was Hiro supposed to explain this to Fred when he still didn’t fully understand it himself? When he hadn’t dealt with this on his own?

Not that it would happen quickly.

Fred became more serious and sat down on the couch closer to Hiro.

“You really seem worried about something.”

Hiro sighed.

“What would you do if you found out you’re related to a supervillain?”

Fred blinked a few times, then slowly turned his head towards Hiro, his eyes the size of saucers. Hiro would recognize it anywhere. This was hyperfixation mode. He'd made the mistake by telling Fred about his problem.

“Don’t tell me that you—”

“No! No, I mean—” he needed some excuse, quickly. “I’ve just read a… a book.”

“A book?”

Hiro nodded.

“And since when you’re reading books?”

That was a good question. “Since a few days. I thought I could use some inspiration? You read them and have some pretty good ideas.”

Fred looked him up and down. “Yeah, yeah, that totally makes sense,” he said slowly, then added more energetically, “but man! Being related to a villain? That’s not a common trope. You totally need to tell me the title.”

“I… don’t remember now. Sorry, Fred.”

Fred glared at him again. Hiro was sliding deeper and deeper, wasn't he?

“It’s fine.”

The boy tapped his knee. He'd already started this topic and it would be nice of him to finish it somehow. Besides… maybe in some way he could actually talk about it?

“So… How would you react?”

“Well, that won’t be an objective opinion.”

“Whatever. I just need one.”

“Fine. If I found out that my family member is a supervillain, I would probably be stuck somewhere between super excited and super embarrassed. But that depends on which kind of villain is this. Is that more of a Yama type or maybe Obake type…?”

“Momakase type.”

A mixture of surprise and relief appeared on Fred's face.

“At least not an Aunt Cass type.”

Hiro blinked. “Since when we’re considering Aunt Cass a supervillain?”

“Well, we’re not, but she could be. Man, I wouldn’t be too surprised. I mean, look, she beat Momakase once, when we couldn’t. She’s definitely a threat to be reckoned with, I wouldn't want to get on her bad side.”

In retrospect, even Hiro has to come to the conclusion that his aunt had simply been lucky—but she still could be a threat when she truly wanted to be. Anyway, that wasn't what they were talking about. And Hiro really didn't want the image of Aunt Cass being a supervillain stuck in his head. It was way too scary.

Fortunately, Fred decided to continue. “Actually, why are you asking about all of that?”

“I was, uh… I’ve read the protagonist’s reaction and I’m wondering if it’s… believable.”

“So, how did he react?”

Hiro frowned. He needed to think for a moment.

“He… I guess it hasn’t reached out to him yet. I still haven’t gotten to the part where he really thinks about it. But I also suppose he doesn’t want to do it now? He takes on a lot of work. Being busy, all that stuff. I guess he’s… conflicted.”

“That sounds believable. The writer did a good job.”

“Yeah, probably.”

“Is he planning to tell anyone about this?”

“What? No, I don’t think so,” Hiro scratched his hair. “At least not yet. He probably… thinks he have to deal with it on his own first.”

“Predictable. Maybe one day he’ll realize he doesn’t have to.”

Hiro pulled his knees up onto the couch. “Maybe.”

What if he didn't actually have to deal with this alone? He knew his friends would understand, and no one would judge him. It wasn't like he’d chosen to have Momakase as his relative. But he still hadn't truly come to terms with it. And there was something way out of his comfort zone with telling his friends about things he hadn't yet processed himself. He wanted time, and it seemed he didn't have it.

But... friends didn't necessarily mean team.

He stood up and turned to Fred. “I have to go, but thanks. You helped me a lot.”

“No problem. You totally need to tell me the title when you remember.”

“Yeah, I… I will, Fred. Rematch, in a few days?” he pointed at the screen, a slight smile on his face, “When I’m in better shape?”

“Does that mean you’ll kick my Kaiju’s ass again?”

Hiro smirked. “Always.”

They both laughed.

_-_-_

Hiro took a deep breath and stood in front of the door. Then he knocked. And at about the same moment, he mentally slapped himself in the face. What exactly was he hoping for? It was summer break, there was no way anyone would be inside—

“Come in!”

Unless someone will be inside.

Hiro opened the door. He was greeted by the sight of Granville sitting at a desk covered with a stack of papers. She looked up, her eyebrows rising in surprise.

“Mr. Hamada. What are you doing here? Have you managed to find out what Di wanted?”

“No, it’s… it’s about something else.”

“Something else?”

“Well, I didn't get into any trouble.”

“That’s a surprise.”

Hiro smiled slightly. “Yeah, I know. Anyway… I’d like to talk with you. About something private. Do you have a while?” He gestured to the stacks of documents.

The dean thought for a moment, then pushed the papers to the edge of the desk and set down her pen. She gestured for Hiro to sit in the chair opposite. The boy beamed, closed the door, and sat down.

“Thank you, Professor Granville.”

“What do you want to talk with me about?”

Hiro took a deep breath. It was now or never.

“Do you remember Momakase?”

A grimace appeared on the woman's face.

“It’s hard to forget someone who literally tried to slice you. So yes, I do. I heard she escaped from prison, but you didn’t catch her yet. Is she causing trouble again?”

“In some way, definitely. But it’s… complicated.”

“Well, I'd love to take a break from this bureaucracy anyway. It can drive you crazy. So, I’m listening.”

“Uh, okay,” Hiro started playing with his sleeves. “So… everything started a few weeks ago, I was forced to work with her. She’s not really bad when she doesn’t try to kill us. But then there was this photo of my parents and I asked aunt Cass before, and these bits of history are actually overlap, and then I also asked Baymax to compare scans and the genetic compliance rate was about twenty-six percent—”

“To the point, Mr. Hamada.”

“We’re related. She was my father’s sister.”

He studied her reaction. She seemed surprised, but not enough to really show it. She frowned and began to nod slowly.

“This is unfortunate.”

“Yeah. Kinda.”

“She knows?”

He nodded. “We… figured it out a few days ago.”

“And how do you feel about it?”

Hiro suddenly looked at her. He actually expected a lot of questions, like how he was forced to cooperate with a supervillain or why he was even talking to Momakase in the first place, without trying to throw her into jail. But the fact that, of all the possible questions, Professor Granville had asked how he felt about it was quite nice.

“I’m… not sure,” he replied honestly. “I mean I always thought it was only me, Tadashi and Cass. Now only me and Cass. I didn’t know I had someone else, I thought all of my father’s family was… well, I never really thought about them. And Momakase knew him. Cass never knew much about him and I didn’t pay attention when Tadashi was saying something. But he never said anything like that, either, I think I would pay attention if he did. My dad was quite secretive, even for Tadashi.”

“You want to know him better.”

“I do. And she’s the only one who can tell me that. She’s also… not so deadly lately. I know she’s doing bad things and I know I should chase her, but… I don’t really feel good about it. I think maybe… maybe my dad isn’t the only one I want to know better.”

He lowered his head. And then he realized that was actually true. Sure, if he had to, he would have chased her, but he didn't want to. This strange relationship they'd developed was working. And despite all the uncomfortable things Momakase had said last time, Hiro didn't feel uncomfortable around her. They had a bit in common.

But that didn't change the fact that she was still a villain. And Hiro didn't want to catch her. What superhero doesn't catch villains?

“What kind of hero am I?”

“The one who is learning,” she replied calmly. “Not all of the situations in your life will be easy, Mr. Hamada. Sometimes you will have to make decisions about problems you didn’t expect to show up in the first place. This one is yours and I won’t tell you what to do. But I see you have doubts.”

“Plenty of them, actually.”

“Go ahead.”

“Her father… my grandpa messed with gangsters. He died because of it. And what if my parents’ accident wasn’t really an accident? What if I’m messed up in this more than I thought?”

“Just because your family was messed up in this doesn't mean you are too.”

“But I always thought they… well, I didn't, but now I suddenly find out that people I thought were okay because no one ever said anything bad about them might have actually died because of gangsters, not because of an accident. Not to mention that I have an aunt I didn’t know about before, who is a supervillain. Well, not the worst supervillain, but that’s still… I don't know. A lot.”

“Your worldview has been shaken.”

“How can I unshake it?”

“I’m afraid the only cure is time.”

“Time. Why does it always have to be time?” He leaned against the chair. “I don’t have time.”

“No. What you don’t have is patience.”

“Fine, then I don’t have patience. Not really a difference.”

He needed a solution that would work right then. He'd waited long enough, but it didn't help. If anything, it only made him think about it more and more, and he became even more distracted. He had a lot of questions and not enough answers.

“You have no control over time. But you have control over yourself.”

“How? Don’t you think I tried? I tried not to think about it, I tried to occupy myself with something else, but I can't.”

“You tried to escape,” Granville answered, a bit more sharply.

Hiro looked away. “It usually worked ‘till now.”

“Escaping won't help you. You have to face this. And answer some questions. What bothers you so much about this?”

“Everything?”

“Specifics, Mr. Hamada.”

Hiro sighed. He didn't want to dwell on it for the hundredth time, but maybe this was exactly what he needed? He had no idea, but Granville was asking for a reason, and he trusted her. She seemed to know what she was doing.

“I'm a superhero. A superhero shouldn't be so connected to a supervillain, overall, not to mention by blood. He shouldn't have a relationship with them. And I have. And I think I’ve really started to like her. What is this telling about me?”

Granville frowned and turned toward the safe for a moment, considering something.

“Let me tell you something, Mr. Hamada. We all know what Obake did, don’t we?”

“It’s hard to forget, really.”

“Years have passed since that accident, years since he was actually my student. In this time he became someone completely different and wanted to destroy the city. But in some way I'm still attached to him. That doesn't mean I approve of the things he did, but the bond I formed with him back then is not easily broken after all these years. Even despite his deeds. Does that mean I’m a bad teacher? I don’t know. But I’m doing my best.”

Hiro lowered his gaze.

“Sometimes we don’t have full control over how we feel about others,” Granville continued. “It doesn't necessarily reflect badly on us. It doesn’t mean we’re approving bad deeds. It doesn’t mean we’re defined by them.”

He looked up.

“Besides, I know who you are,” she continued.

Hiro raised an eyebrow. “Who?”

“You are my student.”

“That’s not what I—”

“Didn’t I tell the truth?”

“Yeah, you did, but—”

“Listen to me, Mr. Hamada. You are not defined by the deeds of others, even family. Just as I’m not defined by the deeds of my former student. Just because you’re related to someone does not mean you are like them. We have no influence on who our relatives are, but we do have influence on who we are. Your family might have been involved in something, but it doesn’t define you. Momakase may be a villain and may be a thief but it doesn’t define you either. You are my student. And you are a good kid. The way I think about you will not change, Hiro.”

Hiro took a deep breath. Somehow, Professor Granville's words felt incredibly kind. Maybe this was exactly what he needed. Confirmation that nothing has truly changed in the present. Well, maybe not nothing. A lot has changed.

But not Granville's opinion of him.

“So, you still think I'm irresponsible and getting into trouble?”

“I do.”

They both smiled.

“Thank you, Professor Granville. I really needed that.”

She nodded, and Hiro stood up. But before he could reach the door, the dean's grunt stopped him. She stood next to the desk and spread her arms—and from her expression he could tell that she was still wondering if this was really a good decision.

“Just this once.”

Hiro beamed and ran to her. They hugged.

Chapter Text

Granville was right—Hiro lacked patience. But fortunately, he had plenty of creative ways to fill his time. So, when Megan was late for breakfast at Joe’s Diner, he checked his mailbox. Several emails from her arrived, regarding information she got from the police database. Nothing unusual, but it seemed his suspicions have been confirmed. In about three cases, the trail led to hatches. The police tried to go down, but that's where all the leads stopped.

He also once again began reviewing design for his project, assessing its visual appeal. It looked good, great even, but he was having trouble choosing the right color.

“What are you reading?”

“Megan!”

Hiro immediately turned off his phone. He managed to hide the contents from her, because if she even noticed, she would have screamed with excitement.

The girl giggled. “Sorry. And sorry I’m late, I told dad I’d get here on my own, but he wanted to give me a ride so much, and he had to go to the shop, and then he got stuck in the worst traffic ever.”

He smiled slightly.

“It’s okay. Really.”

Megan took a breath and then sat opposite. She placed her order and turned her attention back to Hiro, more hesitant than before.

“So... what have you been reading?”

“That’s a secret. For now.”

“Great, another mystery for me to solve.”

“Well, you are Super Sleuth Megan Cruz, aren’t you?”

She laughed. Hiro joined her. But somehow, after a few seconds, the atmosphere turned gloomy again. And somehow neither of them wanted to bring up the subject. Eventually, though, Megan seemed to break through.

“I’m sorry about... you know. This article. I really wanted to help.”

He knew what was going on. A few days ago, when he’d cut Hardlight’s hand, the internet erupted in uproar with people who still insisted he wasn’t a robot at all. Somehow they were immune to all the facts and even fragments of the recordings. So Megan had written an article meant to defend Big Hero 6 and encourage people to understand. There were a few who got it, sure. But unfortunately, in most cases, it was just haters who decided to waste their lives writing nonsense online. He didn’t read much of it, but he was aware that it existed.

“That’s not your fault, really. People can be picky about anything.”

Besides, it wasn’t like he really cared. People could be idiots, that’s all, and he had more important things to worry about than letting idiots influence his life. That’s why he never read any news or content related to their group. Well, maybe Karmi’s fanfic was an exception, but no one needed to know that. It was also hard to find haters on the fanfiction archive. There was something about it that effectively deterred them, and to his surprise, it wasn’t the moderation at all.

“I just thought I could change something,” she sighed.

“You can. You can change a lot. It’s just... not everyone you meet wants to change themselves. And the ones who do usually won’t say so.”

“You suggest we disable the comments section.”

He hadn’t thought exactly about this, but it wasn’t a bad idea.

“Maybe?”

“I’ll talk to the admin.”

“How did you even manage to post that article there? You were, y’know, kicked out.”

“I still am. But it was important to me, so I pulled some strings. Ellie yelled at me for it.”

“You’re okay?”

“Yeah. Just my chances of coming back aren’t.”

“Can’t you start your own club?”

“The school’s statute prohibits it. There can’t be two clubs with the same theme, ‘cause they could create unhealthy rivalry and so on.”

“Is there anything about unhealthy leadership in this statute of yours?”

“Sadly no.”

Hiro sighed, then smiled slightly.

“Don’t worry, I’m sure you’ll figure something out.”

“Thanks.”

The silence fell again. But this time, it wasn’t overwhelming. In fact, it was quite pleasant, and neither of them were in a hurry to start talking again. The waiter bringing their orders probably had something to do with it, too.

“So, how’s your investigation going?” Hiro asked eventually.

“It’s not going. Another man went missing tonight.”

Hiro blinked.

“Another one?”

It was strange. Fred had deliberately started patrolling at night, and Go Go had started watching suspicious corners and alleyways, specifically to avoid further incidents like this. Or to catch the perpetrators in the act. And what was the result? Another man had been kidnapped in their own backyard.

Someone was messing with them.

And with each passing moment, Hiro grew more and more doubtful about the randomness of everything that had been happening in San Fransokyo lately.

“Yeah,” Megan said, “he’s sixteenth. And I still don’t even know why. I mean, if these were typical kidnappings, for ransom, they would have put prices on their heads long ago. There would have been some information, anything. But nothing like that happened. If they don’t care about the money, then what do they care about? What’s their goal?”

“That’s… actually a really good question.”

“And I have no idea what the answer might be.”

“Human trafficking?”

Hiro wasn’t proud of his suggestion. But such practices existed, and this explanation would be quite plausible.

“But… why these guys? Wouldn’t they target women more? That doesn’t make any sense either.”

“Yeah, you’re right. I’m glad you are.”

Megan sighed, leaned back against the couch, and ate another piece of scrambled eggs.

“It’s just… weird.”

Hiro had to admit that it was. And anything weird wasn’t usually related to typical criminals. This was something bigger.

“I think it might be a supervillain,” he finally said.

“A supervillain who kidnaps people?”

“Well, Di has done things like that. And believe me, it’s not the weirdest thing I’ve ever seen.”

Actually, the moment he thought about it... Di might’ve been involved. Or rather, she could’ve been, if the kidnappings had started after she escaped from prison. The fact that they had started before complicated his theory a bit.

“Okay, so what’s the weirdest thing you’ve seen?”

He was actually glad she changed the subject.

“I don’t remember all right now, but Momakase stealing cheese, of all things, is probably in the top ten.”

“She did what?”

“Well, she once broke into Fred’s mansion, somehow got into his parents’ biometrically secured refrigerator, and… well, stole cheese.”

Megan blinked.

“Because that makes sense.”

“Told you.”

Megan laughed out loud. Hiro joined her.

“Actually, that made sense,” he explained after a moment. “It was just… complicated. Anyway, sounds funny out of context.”

“You definitely have to tell me the whole story.”

So he did. Their breakfast disappeared as he spoke—faster from Megan’s plate, for obvious reasons. And Hiro recounted everything, about their little investigation, about Granville’s help, about the fight, laughing as if it was the most normal thing in his life. And he was surprised to find that talking about it didn’t actually bother him. That the knowledge she was his aunt—calling her that in his thoughts still felt incredibly strange—didn’t weigh so heavily on him. That he seemed to be starting to accept it.

Despite everything, he left that part out. Just like everything else that had happened recently. There still were things he preferred to keep to himself.

He finished eating and put his plate down, while Megan looked at him curiously. Something told the boy they were going to change the subject again.

“You said you were working on something that would allow me to get down?”

Oh, he knew that was coming.

“I am.”

“So? Any progress? What is it, anyway?”

“Hey, all in good time.”

“That’s not fair.”

It was good to know he wasn’t the only one who lacked patience.

“Actually, I have a project. It’s almost finished. But I won’t say more; it’s supposed to be a surprise.”

“I hate you.”

“That’s a shame, because I wanted to show you something...” Hiro smiled innocently. “But hey, if you hate me, you definitely don’t want to see it.”

“Ugh, you’re such—of course I want to see it!”

He smirked.

“I need your help at our base. Do you have time to come over now?”

“Are you kidding? I always have time for that!”

“Sweet.”

_-_-_

“So… your training room.”

Megan looked around and began to explore, somewhat disappointed. The white simulation room was empty except for the hexagonal eyes projected onto one wall and a rack of various weapons in the corner. Basemax—or rather, Simmax now, but Hiro still preferred to call her by her usual name—tracked their movements.

“Do I want to know why this is here?” she pointed at a rack.

“Actually that’s what I need your help with.”

She raised her eyebrows in surprise, then walked closer and began examining the items there. Most of the weapons weren’t modern at all. There was a prototype sword, sticks, ropes, and a few devices Hiro had once tinkered with, but he’d decided that fighting with them wasn’t his thing. He couldn’t imagine himself firing a laser cannon. There were also disks, a chain, a typical broomstick that Fred has insisted to be added, and a graphene katana Hiro has once managed to retrieve from Momakase.

“What, weapons maintenance?” The girls finally asked.

“No. Fighting with it.”

Megan blinked a few times.

“What?”

“I need you to fight with me.”

“Hardlight must’ve hit you too well.”

Hiro smiled.

“I’m serious. Choose your weapon. The one you feel most comfortable with.”

Megan looked at him like he was crazy. Because he was.

“Why?”

“No reason.”

“This is weird.”

“Well, this isn’t the weirdest thing I’ve ever done.”

Megan sighed, then looked back at the rack.

“Seriously, sparring? You realize I’ve never done this before, right? My dad would give me a two hour talk if I came close to even one of those things.”

“Even to the broom?”

“It’s not funny, Hiro.”

He sighed. Maybe it wasn’t.

“Your dad isn’t here right now. And I won’t tell him. But I need to know what you’re good at. And if you’ve never done this before... we have to find out.”

Megan sighed, then looked at Hiro with some kind of understanding.

“Okay,” she finally said. “Actually… this might be cool.”

Hiro smiled. He watched Megan sort through various weapons, trying to lift them, swing them, testing their weight and how they fit in her hand. Finally, she settled on a broom. It was actually a very safe option to start with.

“And you?”

The boy snapped out of his thoughts. He looked at the rack too, his gaze lingering on the blue blade a little too long.

“You were good, you know?”

Of course Megan noticed it.

“I wasn’t.”

“No, I think you were.”

“I wasn’t. Unstable posture, legs too close, blade too low,” he muttered, not even sure why he still remembered it word for word. “I messed with something I shouldn’t. And there is no way I’m using it now. I can’t handle it, I’d only hurt you. Besides,” he smiled, “graphene isn’t quite of a match for a wooden broom, don’t you think?”

“Then what is a match?”

“I think I’ll stick with my magnets for now.”

“Magnets. For wood.”

“Well. I like a good challenge.”

“Can you fight with your hands, in case you’re not up to this challenge? Wait, why am I even asking? You’re a superhero, of course you can.”

Hiro was about to respond, but the words stuck in his throat. What Megan had said... touched something. And it wasn’t the fact that he couldn’t actually fight with his hands, despite being a superhero.

“Are you okay? I said something wrong, didn’t I?”

He sighed.

“Tadashi used to take me to karate lessons when I was younger. To teach me some discipline, because I’ve always been good at getting into trouble. But I don’t know if I remember anything. I haven’t been there since... since he was gone.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine. Let’s get started, okay?”

She nodded.

“Your job is to hit me. But to hit me,” he smirked, “you have to catch me first.”

_-_-_

Megan was surprisingly good at running. Even now, hours after the fight, he still felt pain on his side. It wasn’t like the kind of pain he’d often received from villains, but it was enough to make him think twice before asking her to hit him next time.

The girl was good with a broom, but she eventually switched to a regular stick, mainly because the brush part was a bit of a hassle. She tried other weapons too, but could never get a shield in time; she was always too slow. Having two ends instead of one definitely made her feel more confident. And that was enough for Hiro. He knew what to work with.

So he started.

He made about twenty sketches and even more calculations, designed the circuits, created the 3D model, and was now sending the parts to the printer. If all would go well, and the device wouldn’t explode after putting it together, maybe they'd actually get down in the next few days.

He'd also finally figured out Hardlight’s technology and used it in that project. And the moment he did, fifty other ideas popped into his head. Hiro wasn't complaining. He wrote them down and even sketched some, forgetting about the entire world. Well, being able to incorporate the destruction of suits into their training without actually destroying them sounded way too exciting. Hiro wasn’t a fan of gear-repairing. And Big Hero 6 would need more challenging, more realistic training, considering everything that was coming up.

That bomb villain wasn’t holding back. And neither could they.

Hiro frowned. What Momakase had recently told him, against his will, stuck in his mind. Would he really have to be willing to do anything to win? To keep people safe? So far, he'd managed to do that without breaking his own morals. But then again, they'd never encountered a villain who would plant a bomb in a public place. Well, there was Obake, who wanted to wipe out an entire city, but it was something different. Obake played with them in some way. With him. He didn't start by planting a bomb. But they? They did. And if they didn't hesitate to start like that... then how bad is the thing they’re gonna do in the end?

There will be no end. Hiro won’t let them get there.

But for that to happen, he had to be ready. Something his group had likely never encountered before was brewing, and Hiro had to ensure the safety not only of the city but also of them. After all, he was responsible for the equipment. But could the equipment, no matter how strong and reliable, protect them from everything? He knew the answer. And he needed something else. Something no villain would strike, because no one would know of its existence until it would be too late. Something no one would expect from him.

“No matter the cost, huh?”

Hiro considered reviewing the plans Momakase had given him, but rejected the idea. He already knew what he needed to do. He was afraid, of course he was, but if it meant protecting his friends, there was no room for hesitation.

He started sketching the watch.

Chapter Text

Ian was strange. Or rather, more strange than usual. Hiro noticed it almost immediately. The suspicious glances, the more careful choice of words, the constant turning to look at him, the sudden interest when almost every time before he'd made it clear Hiro was just a nuisance, not worth paying attention to.

How much has he guessed? The boy wasn't sure. He tried to act as usual, but he put his hands in pockets anyway, ready to use magnets if necessary.

Ian noticed that. He didn't comment on it, though.

“So… we’re almost there,” Hiro finally said, stepping closer to the table.

“I’m almost there.”

“Right. Sorry.”

“It’s fine.”

The conversation was definitely not going well. Even Baymax came closer and was about to say something—probably about proper communication, not making passive-aggressive comments to coworkers, and so on—but Hiro stopped him with a gesture. Still, he was glad the robot was there. Maybe Baymax couldn't defend him in this version, but there was something comforting about his mere presence.

“Will you start the tests today?” Hiro tried again.

“That’s the plan.”

“Should I take notes?”

Ian frowned. One of them would have to take notes, and note-taking was something Hiro definitely didn't enjoy. But he needed to break the ice somehow.

He needed to know how much Ian had guessed.

“You can,” Ian finally answered. “But only what I say.”

“Fair enough.”

And there was silence again. This was getting on Hiro’s nerves more than Karmi had before they got to know each other better. He couldn’t ask directly, because if Ian hadn’t figured it out already, Hiro would reveal his identity in the stupidest way possible. He couldn’t ask indirectly too, because Ian was being particularly tight-lipped today. He couldn’t even bring up the topic of his latest attack, because... wait. He actually could bring it up. After all, Hardlight’s identity wasn’t a secret here anymore.

But before Hiro could say anything, Ian beat him to it.

“You were off work for two days.”

“Private matters.”

“I thought you were chickening out.”

Well, it worked that way too.

“Me?” Hiro snorted. “Please, it would take more than realizing I’m working with a supervillain for me to actually chicken out.”

“Hiro is correct.” Baymax interjected. “His self-preservation instincts are not working properly. According to my analysis, he does not usually feel fear in dangerous situations. This can lead to poor judgment and, consequently, bodily harm.”

Hiro frowned. Maybe taking him wasn’t such a good idea after all.

“Thank you for the extensive explanation, Baymax.”

“Interesting,” Ian murmured.

“What?”

“Your robot.”

Hiro had a feeling Ian wasn’t referring to the robot at all. But then again, Baymax had never talked so much in front of him before, nor had he ever offered his medical knowledge. So, Ian might as well have been honest.

The scientist picked up the prototype and began adjusting the device.

“Yeah, robots are fascinating,” Hiro finally said. “But I think you already know that, considering you used one recently. Y’know, during that fight with Big Hero 6? I saw the broadcast. It wasn’t something I would’ve expected.”

“Let’s say I didn’t want to lose my real arm.”

“You couldn’t have predicted this.”

“Wanna bet?”

Hiro blinked. Ian knew. He placed a strange emphasis on that question, and there could only be one reason why he did it.

“Predicting specific events with high accuracy is impossible,” Baymax noticed, “because the human mind cannot encompass all factors.”

“Yes, yes, I know,” Ian murmured.

“Then I do not understand the point of this discussion.”

“Join the club,” Hiro snorted.

Ian frowned and glared at the boy, but Hiro managed to maintain the same innocent, oblivious expression he was wearing from the very beginning. Even if there wasn’t much point in doing it anymore, since Ian already knew. It obviously irritated him a lot too, because he put the prototype down in a not-so-silent manner, and for the first time in his not-very-long life, Hiro wondered whether he had crossed a line.

He tightened his grip on the magnet.

“You’re pretending to be so smart now, but you were so easy to break,” Ian hissed. “BSoD in the middle of the fight? You’re lucky you have that robot.”

Hiro frowned. Baymax tilted his head.

“What does ‘BSoD’ mean?”

“Blue screen of death, Baymax. But save those questions for later.”

“You were not dead. You also did not have a screen.”

“Later, Baymax.”

So, Ian finally stopped playing. Hiro reached into his pocket with his other hand as well, his demeanor no longer nonchalant.

“I know you’re the purple one.”

Well, at least he wasn’t called Captain Cutie.

“So, we’re even,” Hiro replied.

“I wouldn’t say so.”

He understood. This was where the real game began.

“I wonder what would happen if the whole city knew who you are,” Ian continued. “How safe your friends and family would be. I might stick to wondering if your team stays out of my way though.”

“Blackmailing me, huh?”

“Threatening is not the right way to resolve conflict,” Baymax held up a finger. “I suggest you come to a compromise.”

Hiro snorted and leaned against the wall. He couldn’t panic. If Ian saw that this threat had scared him, he’d push harder. First, for staying out of his way, but later? Who knows what else he’d want, and Hiro couldn’t let himself be controlled by a villain. This happened once, and he was very lucky that Momakase didn’t demand to stop chasing, but to help with the heist. He was very lucky that she had the honor to keep her word.

Ian didn’t.

Hiro couldn’t become a puppet. To ensure that, he had to cut the ground from under Ian’s feet. And he knew how to do it, even if it was incredibly risky.

“Then go on. Tell everyone.”

Ian raised an eyebrow.

“You think the bad guys don’t know who we are?” Hiro continued. “I’ve been a hero for a lot longer than you’ve been a villain. A lot of them found out before you even came up with your costume. Did it help them? Not really, they all went to jail and will end up there again. So go ahead. Tell everyone. It won’t change anything.”

“Oh, I didn’t mean only the bad guys,” Ian smirked. “There is also the media. I wonder how much you would enjoy your life if you were surrounded by paparazzi at every turn.”

It would be terrible.

“Sounds fun,” Hiro shrugged. “I always wanted to be famous.”

“You can pretend you don’t care. But you do.”

“And what makes you think so?”

“You’re not that stupid.”

“Maybe I am.”

“Fine. Then the chaos will be funny to watch.”

“Would you really go to all this trouble even if it wouldn’t do you any good?”

“Definitely.”

Hiro sighed. This will be harder than he thought. It wasn’t a normal reaction, few villains would waste their time on something that wouldn’t benefit them, and they would do so only in case of taking revenge on someone—Ian didn’t seem to have any clear reasons for revenge. So maybe he was just trying to push him. Maybe Hiro wasn’t the only one lying.

“You know what’s weird?” the boy finally asked.

Ian raised an eyebrow.

“What?”

“What you demanded. You want us to stay out of your way. But then again, it was you who attacked first. You challenged us,” Hiro highlighted, then sighed. “You were confident until I figured out who you are. But as soon as you lose your advantage... you’re afraid.”

Ian clenched his fists.

“And you wouldn’t be so mad now if I wasn’t right.”

“You know nothing.”

“I know Krei treats you terribly. I know you’re trying to vent it out. I know you’ve been successful so far, but now you’re not the only one who knows and you’re trying to get out of it.”

“Enough!”

Ian slammed his fist on the table, making the tools jump. Hiro flinched despite his will. Maybe he had gone a bit too far.

“You don’t have to do this,” he added more quietly. “There are other ways.”

“So what, so you can mock me about being afraid of you again?”

“It wouldn’t be fear. It would be common sense.”

“Because you know so much about it.”

Hiro sighed.

“Sorry about that. I know Krei can be terrible, I know he’s a complete idiot, he expected me to participate in his frauds,” the boy admitted. “But he’s not worth making you become a villain because of him. He’s not worth bothering with.”

“It’s not only him. It’s everyone.”

“Is it me too?”

Ian thought for a moment, but finally nodded.

“Yes. You too. That stupid speech of yours convinced me of that.”

“I might have a bad habit of being arrogant when I shouldn’t be,” Hiro admitted. “Anyway. You don’t have to prove anything. You’ve figured out solid light technology, two kinds of it! Two, not one! Completely on your own. You’re good at it. You’re good at many things. You blew me away at Mind Smith, y’know? You don’t have to prove anything.”

“What are you trying to do, touch my heart? Because it won’t work.”

“I’m trying to help you?”

“You’re trying to help yourself.”

Hiro sighed.

“Yeah, that too. But you really don’t have to do all this.”

“I do. And I will. Don’t stay in my way.”

“If I don’t stand in your way, you’ll have no one to challenge with. The whole purpose of you showing up was to challenge us to your virtual game.”

Ian rolled his eyes.

“Don’t get in my way outside the field,” Ian highlighted the last three words. “Does that make more sense?”

“Or else you’ll give out my identity, yeah,” Hiro murmured.

“I’ll give it out anyway, you want to be famous.”

He shouldn’t have said that.

“Fine, I was lying, I don’t want to be famous.”

“Doesn’t matter.”

Hiro sighed. There was only one more option left, which Ian wasn’t aware of—or maybe he was sure that Hiro, being a ‘good guy’, would absolutely not go for it. If so, the scientist has a point, because the boy had no desire to do that.

But he was also wrong, because family and friends were the most important to Hiro.

“You don’t leave me much of a choice, do you?”

“You don’t have any choice.”

“And that’s where you’re wrong.”

Ian looked at him questioningly.

“We’re in a deadlock,” Hiro continued. “You want to be left alone as a civilian, right? But I know who you are. If you tell, I tell. Except that, unlike me, you wouldn’t have the paparazzi to deal with, but the entire police force. And I doubt you’d have much experience running from them.”

The scientist frowned.

“So, what do you propose?”

Hiro reached for his notebook and waved it.

“A compromise. As long as you don’t threaten the city, we won’t chase you as a civilian. Just like you wanted. No one’s revealing secrets, everyone’s happy. What do you say?”

Ian snorted, but didn’t put him down. He didn’t reject that either. He only activated the prototype, and a hologram of a small tabletop appeared in midair. Then the scientist carefully placed the wrench on it. The tool stayed on the tabletop, while the hologram itself wobbled slightly. Ian glanced at the boy, and sighed.

“Write down that the interference in the B-field needs to be eliminated. We have to calibrate this better; some settings have been messed up.”

Hiro took this as an approval.

_-_-_

They’d mastered it enough to make it suitable for demonstration. They still needed a few minor visual tweaks, but still, there was every indication that the prototype would be ready well ahead of schedule — but not because they were rushing things. It was because Ian had been putting it off for a while, but Hiro’s arguments had convinced him to change his mind. Or maybe he just wanted to get rid of Hiro, that was also possible.

It was already dark when they left campus. Neither of them said a word. They just walked, Hiro’s hands still in his pockets, just in case something stupid came to Ian’s mind outside the lab. But nothing like that happened.

They reached the road and were about to split up when Hiro heard the sound of an engine. A car pulled up to the campus.

It looked strange, a lone vehicle in the middle of a parking lot.

Somehow, that bothered Hiro more than any idea Hardlight could come up with right now. He tilted his head slightly and saw that Ian wasn’t thrilled with the sight either. He tightened his grip on the magnet. With his other hand, he gestured for Baymax to remain silent. All they could do was wait.

The car door opened, and a man stepped out. Two attendants, elegantly dressed and wearing glasses, followed him. He was definitely not the same type as Yama, not in personality, not even in appearance, but Hiro could tell immediately that he was into the same thing. He was somehow connected to the underworld. And he was high on the ladder. A yakuza frontman? Hiro would have to ask Momakase. But first of all, he had to feign ignorance so the criminal wouldn’t become overly interested in him. Because the fact that he was at least a bit interested was obvious from the moment he laid eyes on Hiro.

They exchanged glances. Hiro was almost certain the man snorted with dismissiveness, as if for some reason he'd immediately assumed the boy was a loser.

Hiro raised an eyebrow.

The frontman stepped closer and then turned to Ian, who was still a little tense.

“Can I talk to you, sir?”

His voice was sharp, unpleasant. His question wasn't really a question. And yet, Ian seemed unwilling to be drawn into it.

“No. I’m in a hurry.”

“Oh, I’m sure you’ll find time. I have a proposition you’d like to consider.”

This, to Hiro’s concern, broke Ian’s will a little.

“What kind of proposition?”

“One you won’t regret. But we’ll talk in private,” he glanced at Hiro; some certainty in his gaze showed he knew exactly who the boy was. “I’m sure they’re waiting for you at home, boy. For you and that strange robot of yours.”

“Hello. I am—”

“We’ll go now,” Hiro interrupted. “It was nice to meet you, Mr.…?”

“You should go.”

He frowned. And left.

Something was wrong. Something was very wrong. Unethical deals were being made before his eyes, and Hiro could do nothing but keep an eye on Baymax and obediently go his way. These weren't bot fights. This wasn't Yama. Somehow the frontman scared the boy way more. Because the most dangerous people were those who had everything under control. And this one definitely did.

He was too much like Obake.

That's why Hiro listened. That's why he exceptionally didn't want to take a risk. Even if everything inside him screamed to turn around, to start following them, to make sure he didn't have to save Ian from his own stupidity...

Wait. He actually could follow them.

Hiro turned the corner of the dorm. Close enough that he could still watch them, but far enough that they couldn't see him—nor the robot flying low in his direction. He summoned Skymax, switching it to silent mode. Baymax looked at him and tilted his head.

“What are you planning?”

“I need to know what they’re talking about.”

“I do not consider it a good idea. The man’s body language indicated determination. And his assistants have highly developed muscle mass. My simulations of possible outcomes are unfavorable. I do not want you to get hurt.”

“They won’t hurt me if they can’t see me.”

“I will not be able to accompany you there.”

“I can handle it.”

Half a minute later, Skymax arrived and Hiro changed into his display suit. He put on his goggles, then zoomed in and focused on the frontman's face. He pressed a button. The sound of a photo being taken was heard in his earpiece.

“And I’ve got you. Baymax, can you scan this guy?”

“I am unable to scan ‘this guy’. I can only detect him through my visual sensors.”

“Another one with a scan jammer? That’s weird.”

Well, it wasn’t weird among supervillains now, but yakuza? Or other regular villains? Not quite what Hiro expected. But this guy didn’t seem regular either. He seemed like the type that’d get in their way sooner or later.

“Never mind. I’m going closer. Baymax, hold your ground.”

“It is physically impossible for me to hold my ground.”

The boy rolled his eyes.

“It’s just an expression. Stay here.”

“I understood. I will add it to my database.”

Hiro activated his invisibility and ran closer—but not too close; he was aware that his stealth skills were far from perfect. Just enough, so he could hear their conversation, get a sense of what was going on, hear them… exchanging pleasantries before going their separate ways?

Ugh, come on.

Hiro lowered his hands as he watched the frontman and his henchmen get into the car. Ian also walked in his own direction, his expression neither delighted nor frightened. Soon, Hiro was left alone, in front of the campus, knowing absolutely nothing.

Well, there was still good news. He would be seeing Ian the next day. There was little chance the scientist would say anything, but at least Hiro could try.

There was just one small problem.

The next day, Ian didn’t show up for work.

Chapter Text

TeenGenius:

creepy_guy.png

can u recognize him?

think hes somewhere high up in the underground

Momakase:

Never seen him before.

TeenGenius:

are u sure?

Momakase:

Why would I lie to you?

TeenGenius:

idk

just

sths off

maybe they had some changes at the top?

Momakase:

They didn’t.

I’d know if they did

If you're not mistaken, he’s a new player

And if so, he’s not high

Yet

TeenGenius:

could you have an eye on him?

Momakase:

Do you know where to find him?

TeenGenius:

no idea

baymax cant scan for that guy

Momakase:

Well, this can be interesting

I can track people, but finding someone in SF without any clues?

You like pushing boundaries, don’t you?

TeenGenius:

so thats a no

Momakase:

I didn’t say that

But I'm not promising anything

TeenGenius:

thanks

Momakase:

Don’t mention that.

_-_-_

Hiro glanced at his phone, more specifically at his conversation with Momakase, but she hadn't written anything since yesterday's reply. Well, he probably should have expected this. Finding one gangster in the entire city without any leads could take some time. And Momakase definitely had her own business she needed to take care of. Her own, probably not very ethical, business. Hiro took a deep breath and tried not to think about it.

“Hello! Earth to Hiro!”

The boy snapped out of his thoughts and looked at Honey Lemon. Then he looked at his breakfast, which had been fork-milled far more than it should have been.

“Sorry. Was miles away.”

“Are you back now?” Go Go asked.

“Think so.”

Hiro continued eating, and so did his friends, but it created a silence was weighing down on him. Besides, they hadn't had a chance to really talk lately. Sure, they were chatting, he more or less knew what was going on, but it wasn't the same as sitting down with each other and talking in person. Without supervillains trying to set about them.

“How are you doing at work?”

He couldn't help but notice that Wasabi tensed a little.

“You mean when Krei isn't trying to kill us with too much work?” Go Go raised an eyebrow. “There are slip-ups. But it's okay.”

“Slip-ups?”

“Well, it's not my fault that no one respects order there!” Wasabi yelled.

“What happened?”

“Wasabi cleaned-up. Everyone got mad at him.”

“Huh,” Hiro muttered in surprise. “You never touched my lab.”

“Yes. Because your lab, despite having nothing in its place, is also a complete mess in any other way. Seriously, I wouldn't be surprised if some new life forms have already emerged there. And I don't want to get infected, thank you very much.”

The boy looked dryly at him.

“Thanks for your opinion.”

“Anyway, Wasabi organized all the tools,” Go Go explained. “And no one could find anything for most of the day.”

“And now they hate me.”

“I’m sure they don’t,” she tried to smile. “They’re just mad, they’ll get over it. Probably.”

“Comforting really isn't your thing,” Honey noticed.

“It’s not,” Go Go agreed.

“The fact that they seem to know Krei is giving us favors doesn't help either,” Wasabi added. “They’re all jealous. And we can’t just tell them that ‘hey, we’re superheroes, we’re already doing a lot for you’.”

“Yeah, it sucks a bit.”

Honey Lemon started to say something, probably comforting in the right way, but Hiro only nodded slowly. It seemed like all of Krei’s employees were grumpy in some way, not just Ian. And considering the company's ethics, Hiro didn't blame them at all. He just felt bad that it affected his friends as well, even if they weren’t being exploited by Krei as much as the rest of the employees. Apparently, there were too many things in the entire company that needed changing, too many for that to even be possible now.

But just because Hiro had no influence on Krei Tech doesn't mean he had no influence on his friends. There had to be something he could do for them to lighten their mood. Well, especially for Wasabi.

He might have already know what.

“And how about your internship?” Go Go asked. “The solid light project?”

“I had to finish it myself. But everything's going smoothly, so I'll probably be back to carrying coffee and picking up the cow costume from the laundry.”

“Sounds exciting.”

“You don’t even know.”

“Wait…” Honey Lemon interjected. “What happened to your teammate?”

“How was he?” Go Go asked. “Ethan?”

“Ian,” Hiro corrected. “His name’s Ian. And that’s… some shady thing.”

Fred suddenly perked up.

“Yes! Tell us more!”

So he did, he told them everything that happened two nights before. The strange car, the strange guy, his strange look, the strange henchmen, and the strange proposal he hadn't even heard. He also mentioned using a jammer.

“So, some guy who looked like he’d gotten out of the mafia started doing some shady business with a Krei employee,” Fred concluded. “Why a Krei employee?”

“I might know the answer.”

“Is that a shady answer or a normal answer?”

“I’m not sure. I did a little research, and this guy’s new to the underground. But he looked like he knew things. Like he knew who I was.”

“That doesn’t sound good,” Go Go stated.

“I think he might have known who Ian was, too.”

Wasabi blinked.

“Uh... enlighten us, we’re lost. Who’s Ian?”

Hiro took a deep breath. If he told them now, they’d be mad at him for not telling them earlier. But then again, it was probably over anyway. If Ian accepted the frontman's offer, Hiro doubted he’d ever return to Krei Tech. All the hiding to prove Hiro didn’t need protection was pointless now, because there was simply no villain left, he needed to be protected from.

“Hardlight. Ian’s Hardlight.”

“What?” Wasabi raised his voice.

“He was working on solid light technology,” Go Go murmured. “That actually makes sense.”

“Are you sure?” Honey Lemon asked.

“We talked before. He admitted he is.”

“He’s aware that you know, that’s not good.” Go Go looked at Hiro.

The boy frowned and his mind got stuck on her statement. What if Ian agreed to this guy’s proposal because Hiro knew? What if he decided working with another criminal was a good way to protect himself?

“Also, why are you telling us now?” Go Go continued; her eyebrow raised. “If we knew sooner, we could’ve caught him.”

“Well, about that…” he answered slowly. “Krei wanted us to refine the tech. I wasn’t sure if I could do it alone, so I decided to wait with that. I’m sorry.”

“Did Baymax scan him? Maybe he’s not wearing the jammer yet, maybe we still can find him.”

“We can’t.”

“Wait. Why?”

“Let’s say I know why he used the robot that night. He wanted to focus on something else than fighting.”

“And let me guess,” Fred held up a finger, “that something was you.”

“Kind of.”

“So obvious. Also, that’s unfortunate.”

“What’s unfortunate?” Wasabi asked. “Not all of us are comic book nerds!”

Hiro sighed. “He knows who I am.”

“Okay, I agree, that’s unfortunate.”

“Did he threaten you?” Go Go asked.

“He tried. And then we kinda threatened each other? Anyway, it ended up that I’m not chasing his civil self and no one knows anything. But I don’t think he’ll show up any time soon.”

“He could’ve hurt you.”

Hiro sighed. Was there any point in arguing with them?

“I wanted to prove something. That I can take care of myself by myself. But... because of that, Hardlight got away from us again. I’m sorry, guys.”

“We’re a team,” Go Go replied, her voice softer than before. “We don't do this because we think you can't take care of yourself. We do this because it's easier to deal with problems together than alone. Remember that next time.”

Hiro nodded.

“Is there anything else that happened?”

He raised his head, and instantly felt guilty. They still didn't know he was related to Momakase, not to mention they didn’t know about their current not-so-hostile relationship. But he still hasn’t fully come to terms with it, it still hasn’t sunk in. It was better, but it wasn't perfect. She was a criminal, and Hiro didn't know what to think about that, even if he was able to approach it calmly now. But there was also another problem.

Despite that it was better, he wasn't feeling any more ready to tell them. If anything, he was only increasingly afraid. Even if, logically speaking, he had no reason to. Not yet.

They wouldn't be mad at him now, but that might change soon. Because it was too important. The longer he waits, the more it could affect the entire team. They might feel hurt that he didn't tell them something so crucial, might get mad at him for keeping it a secret for so long. For not trusting them enough. It could lead to arguments, poor cooperation, or anything else that might put them in danger. Keeping it a secret wasn't worth the consequences. Even if he wasn't ready.

He’ll never be ready.

Hiro looked at Fred, who was impatiently gnawing on his fork, and saw something between hope and worry on his face. Then he took a deep breath.

“There is something. But I’ll tell you later. At the base, not here.”

Now there was no turning back.

_-_-_

Hiro turned to Go Go, who was floating next to him.

“Thanks for coming here with us.”

“No problem. I have work later today anyway. And… Wasabi really needs this car back.”

They looked down. They could barely see the bottom, but Hiro was sure they were in the same location where Cruz had last set a trap for them. Unfortunately, the spot Chief chose was much deeper than the dock area where the car had recently sunk. Go Go insisted that Hiro doesn’t risk going all the way down, so the entire task of rigging the airbags and lifting the car fell to Baymax. Well, at least finding the car itself wasn’t a problem, since Hiro had equipped the robot’s suit with all the necessary underwater gear.

Hence the need for airbags. Baymax became too heavy to lift the car on his own.

“You think you can handle this, buddy?”

“I confirm. I successfully located the car.”

“Sweet.”

“How badly damaged is it this time?” Go Go asked.

“My sound mapping is not accurate enough to estimate the damage. I will provide a visual feed as soon as I go down.”

“You have permission, buddy.”

So Baymax dove—or rather sank—lower, and Hiro pulled up the seabed map on half of his HUD. Soon, the robot's transmission appeared on the other half. The car surprisingly didn't seem to be in bad shape. Except for where Buddy Guardian had struck, the sheet metal wasn't bent. Unfortunately, the impact itself had caused leaks, so they faced not only repainting but also drying out everything inside the car.

“We’re waterproofing the interior this time, too,” Go Go concluded.

“Uh-huh.”

Well, at least the car wasn't inhabited by a shark. But that didn't mean there weren't any sharks nearby, so they had to be careful. Especially since their main deterrent was now down below. Hiro checked the map and tapped into Baymax's sonar, but it didn't seem like anything large was lurking around.

Unintentionally, his gaze fell on a specific spot. He tensed.

Obake’s base. Or rather, what's left of it.

He was there once. Well, twice. Most recently to find out what happened to him, only to walk away with nothing. No evidence that Obake had survived, no evidence that he had died. It could have just been the jammer still working, or… Well. Nothing was impossible.

But not this. There was no way Obake could survive that.

He didn’t want to survive that.

Hiro took a deep breath. Fragments of Baymax's recording flashed before his eyes. Brain damage, the way Obake said that lack of ethics meant freedom, the removal of the chip, the resignation in the man's voice, the words that they can do great things together, the order for Baymax to go to Hiro. The sound of falling rocks when the robot obeyed and left. If Obake had already given up on himself, why would he suddenly want to fight again? What reason would he have to live? Hiro couldn't answer these questions. And if he couldn't, then Obake must be dead. Because if he was alive, it would mean that it wasn't over yet, that they would meet again, and Hiro would no longer be able to stand next to him and not panic, he wouldn't be able to talk to him without freezing in place for minutes, he wouldn't be able to hold back his fear.

Obake had to be dead.

But somehow that didn’t make Hiro feel better. Because he could do something. Because he could have programmed Baymax to disobey him. Because he was able to save the entire city, but not all the people. Because if he had done more, Granville wouldn't have to grieve and Trina wouldn't have been so mad at him. And maybe… he wouldn't blame himself so much.

Trina was right. Hiro was partially responsible for this. His job was to save people. And he couldn’t save Obake.

Someone shook him. He looked at Go Go.

“Are you okay?”

It took him a few seconds to analyze the question.

“My air’s fine. Just being underwater sometimes reminds me of what happened.”

Go Go nodded and didn’t press further. He was grateful to her for that.

“Baymax is finishing installing the airbags,” she said instead. “I think we can start surfacing. We’ll be needed more in there.”

He agreed, and then they slowly started to swim up. But when they were almost there, their communicators crackled.

“I’ve detected suspicious activity in the port,” Basemax announced. “My scanners have found a group of people in a staff restricted area moving faster and more erratically than a typical employee would. I was unable to gain access to the surveillance, so I suggest you investigate.”

Hiro frowned.

“We will, Basemax. Thanks.”

It could be a little difficult due to the outfits they were currently wearing though. It was good that he at least thought about making the fins removable.

_-_-_

It turned out that Hiro didn’t even have to do that because Basemax sent them their usual suits. They changed and sneaked among the containers, while Baymax continued to pull the car out of the water. Not that Hiro cared much about the car at the moment. There was no risk that Wasabi would see it. After all, checking the port wasn't a big deal, they didn't need the entire team to do it.

They came around the corner and stood in the middle of the empty space between the bins. It was quiet.

“Weird,” he murmured. “This is the place Basemax was talking about. Coordinates match.”

“Are we late?”

Hiro looked up at the crane. If those men wanted to steal something from the port, they had to move it somehow. And the best way was to use a crane. But the hook hung halfway up and wasn’t moving; it hadn't been touched for a long time.

“Look!”                                               

He turned towards Go Go. She pointed to the traces on the ground, the width matching the width of the container.

“Did they drag it along the ground?”

“It looks like they did, but not for long,” she agreed. “The trail ends here.”

“Hey, this looks like a real mystery!”

They both screamed. Go Go threw the disc in reflex. With a dull, metal sound, it hit Fred's helmet straight. The force of the impact sent him to the ground.

“Okay, I got it,” Fred raised a claw. “Scaring Go Go is a bad idea, I won't do it again. But hey, on the other hand, I finally managed to do that!”

Go Go frowned, clearly dissatisfied with this fact.

“What are you doing here?” she asked.

“What am I doing here?” He stood up. “It's my business. And like, really, this port belongs to my father. So, when something gets stolen, I usually get a notification. But it’s sad. My home emergency line apparently works better than ours!”

Hiro sighed.

“Sorry, we just got information that something suspicious was going on here. Wanted to check that. Didn't think anything would be stolen.”

“Yeah, ‘something suspicious’ could mean a lot of things,” Fred murmured. “So, we’re cracking it or what?”

Before they began, Baymax landed next to them, in his regular armor.

“The cargo has been secured,” he announced. “I was able to successfully change equipment.”

“The cargo?” Fred asked. “Did you manage to catch the thieves?”

“I did not.”

“Oh.”

“Okay guys, focus,” Hiro interrupted. “Basemax, are you able to find these thieves?”

“Scanning,” They all heard her voice in their helmets. “I am unable to locate the thieves. Something is blocking my sensors.”

“Ugh,” Fred groaned. “Why has everyone, literally all the villains recently, become so smart and started using jammers? Okay, fine, I have my answer, we’re in Phase Four after all. Hey, Basemax, how about city surveillance?”

“I am unable to find recordings from the last hour in your area.”

Hiro frowned. That was very familiar.

Meanwhile Fred waved his hand.

“Well, that’s not so important. Dad's surveillance is the best secured in the world, there's definitely something preserved from the port.”

Something told Hiro that there was nothing at all. No matter how much he wanted to believe Fred, he was pretty sure those recordings no longer existed.

“But now,” Fred continued, “it's time to find them in the traditional way.”

Much to the dismay of both Hiro and Go Go, Fred took off his helmet and then began sniffing around the ground, looking at the marks and then the gray spots that intersected them. At one point, he picked up a small piece of black material, although Hiro had no idea how he managed to do it with only his imprecise claws. Finally, Fred stood up and looked down at the marks before deciding to say something.

“I know!”

Hiro and Go Go looked at each other, concerned.

“They dragged the container here about fifteen to twenty minutes ago because friction creates heat and the tracks are still warm. Here they loaded it onto the truck, most likely using the winch from the truck itself, because there's no sign of any of the cranes being moved. I'm not sure if the truck was new, though it probably was, as there are no fresh oil stains visible, but the tires were definitely replaced. See that thing?” he raised a piece of black material. “These little stripes are on new tires and wear off over time. The tires were thick, and the trailer had three axles, because here you can see that the wheels overlapped in three lines. And since all three were lowered, whatever was in the container, it was heavy. But how they managed to smuggle the entire truck here is another question...”

Hiro and Go Go looked at each other with even more concern. But Hiro had to admit that Fred’s little investigation was really impressive.

“How do you know all of that?” Go Go finally asked.

Fred just shrugged.

“I spent some time with Ned Ludd recently, he showed me some tricks.”

That… actually explained a lot.

“Uhm, Hiro?”

He blinked and looked at Fred.

“Do you think you could find a truck that is fifteen to twenty minutes away with the description you have?”

Could he?

“Sure. I’m on it.”

He jumped on Baymax and they flew. It took Hiro a moment to realize how excited he was. Whoever was responsible, turned off the cameras. Just like the person who worked with Di, just like the person who kidnapped people. Hiro decided to stop pretending that these were separate issues. They were connected. They had to be. And now he was closer than ever to finally learning more about their mysterious enemy. To get some clues instead of just suspicions.

“If they wanted to escape with a truck as quickly as possible, where would they go?”

“I think the highway,” Fred interjected.

“Highway it is.”

He knew the closest route to the highway, and if the time frame Fred had given was correct, the thieves have definitely already been there. Traffic could have been their ally, but only if they had known about the truck in advance. But... maybe they could still get some information. Maybe something that would give them a clue as to what the thieves' goal was.

“Fred? Do you know what was inside that container?”

“Nope! How should I know?”

And all the superintelligence Fred had shown off just evaporated. Hiro flew over the highway and started watching the passing trucks, trying to concentrate on two things at once.

“You’re Mr. Frederickson’s son. Can't you ask the staff? They'll tell you!”

“Well, they will, but it will take time. These things are cataloged, it will be a while before they figure out exactly which container was stolen.”

“Aren't they sorted somehow? That, you know, those with the same content are next to each other?”

“No! They're sorted by date they were picked up. Imagine having to dig through fifty containers to pull one out instead of taking it from the top because some idiot thought Kaiju figures had to be with Kaiju figures! Waste of time, and money.”

“That… actually makes sense.”

Hiro tried to concentrate more. So far he hasn't spotted anything. Yes, there were trucks, but only a few of them had three-axle trailers. Some were loaded with wood or pipes, there was one with an excavator on it, others were clearly covered with a tarpaulin rather than having a container on them. There was even one transport of animals.

And none of these trailers seemed new. Well, except for one, but it also had a tarp.

“I talked to the employees,” Go Go said suddenly, which would explain why she didn't interrupt their earlier conversation. “They searched the base. We know what was in the stolen container, Hiro. Titanium!”

“Yeah, I forgot Go Go is faster than my dad’s staff.”

But Hiro ignored Fred.

“Titanium? Why would they need titanium?”

“Because gold was way too obvious?”

“It’s not selling bad…” Hiro wondered. “But something feels off.”

“Any ideas why they would need that?” Go Go asked instead. “Or where could they go with it?”

“Dark market?” Fred tried.

“No, you can’t just sell the entire container in the dark market, Fred,” the boy responded. “It’s hard to sell so much stuff and hard to hide it from the police.”

Hiro suddenly froze. Hide.

The container wasn’t transported as a container, it was hidden.

“The tarp. Baymax, we’re going back. Now!”

“Hiro?” Go Go seemed worried. “What’s going on?”

“I had it! It was right under my nose!”

Hiro leaned forward on the robot as it reached full speed over the highway. This new trailer covered with a tarp; they didn’t pass it that long ago. It had to be somewhere. He glanced at the dozens of vehicles until he saw it—a white truck and a trailer with a blue sheet. The boy flew closer, ready to tell Baymax to rip off the tarp, when… something seemed wrong again.

The bodywork was dirty. Rusted.

“No. No, no, no, no, no. I’m not imagining that. The one before was new. I’m sure it was.”

“I confirm,” Baymax said. “These are two different trucks.”

On one hand, he felt relieved. He wasn't crazy. But on the other... Hiro lowered his arms and stared blankly at the logo blowing in the wind along with the untied part of the tarp.

“They switched them. They escaped.”

Chapter Text

Questioning the driver of the substituted truck yielded nothing. It was just a random guy who was paid by someone to show up on the highway in this exact time and place. When Hiro asked to see the conversation, it turned out that the person the driver was talking to didn’t actually exist. And he received the money from an account that, according to Basemax, belonged to some farmer living on the other side of the United States. It was all a fake. People were framed, but they found no trace of the real criminals.

At least he could be almost sure of one thing now. These three events were connected. And Hiro doubted less and less that all the random thieves and kidnappers in San Fransokyo would just suddenly decide to loop the surveillance footage. Even Momakase, who, as she claimed, was the best in the business, didn't bother hiding her 'achievements'—even after her identity was known. It was Hiro who came up with it.

So, what did they have to hide?

He asked Basemax to scan the city for titanium. But apart from a few containers at the port, Sycorax, and Yama's hideout, she found no major quantities. Which meant that the thieves either divided the loot so quickly and actually decided to sell it, or... they decided to put it in a place that Basemax’s scanner couldn't reach. Somehow, the second option seemed much more likely to Hiro. No one would go to such lengths to steal titanium and then simply sell it. Even with this amount it wasn’t profitable enough. And all these preparations? Deleting the footage? Truck swap? That wasn’t plotted to confuse the police. It was prepared specifically for Big Hero 6.

Someone was playing with them and was fully aware of it.

Hiro placed his elbows on the table. It was probably time to combine his investigation with Megan's. He had his observations. And she could look at them from a different angle and maybe get more out of them than he could.

TeenGenius:

i may have sth

some clue

tell u tomorrow

He didn't wait for an answer. He preferred not to check the messages today.

“You are upset.”

Hiro sighed.

“I am.”

“Would you like to talk about it?”

“In a moment. When the rest comes.”

As he said this, he realized that the mysterious villain wasn’t his biggest problem at the moment. His biggest problem was what he promised in the morning.

Hiro really doubted they could forget about it.

Not that he could think for long. Just about a minute later, the door opened and Go Go entered. The others soon joined in. Fred came in last, more hesitant than usual. This reminded Hiro of one thing he needed to make sure of.

“How about the footage, Fred?”

“Yeah, you see... there’s no footage. I don't know how, dad really has the best security, but somehow, they got through it.”

“That’s what I expected.”

He briefly explained to Honey Lemon and Wasabi what just happened that afternoon—except for getting the car out (which was still in Hiro's garage). He also shared his thoughts on the recent attacks and assumptions that they are connected.

“So, you think there's one person behind this.” Go Go touched her chin.

“One person or a group, but they definitely have the same goal.”

“Do you think it's the bomb man?” Honey Lemon asked.

Hiro frowned. Truth be told, he hadn't thought about it, but it wasn't out of the question. Actually, it was quite possible. Only one thing didn’t match. They had recordings of the prison break, while the footage of all the other events was deleted.

“I’m not sure. The footage thing doesn’t match. I wouldn't connect those two incidents yet.”

Honey nodded.

“So, what are we gonna do?” Wasabi asked.

“What we can. We're waiting.”

Hiro hated waiting, but he had no choice. Besides, it wouldn’t be idle waiting.

“I’ll also try to crack this, I'm already working on one thing with Megan. I think we could use her help. We’ll get as much information as we can. We know more with each attack. And eventually our opponent will stumble. They always do.”

“Obake didn’t.”

Everyone looked at Fred.

“What? Sure, we were learning more and more about him, but we didn't really know what he was planning ‘til the end.”

“It won’t happen again,” Hiro clenched his fists. “I won’t let it happen.”

Maybe his voice sounded a little darker and more desperate than usual, if his friends’ worried looks were any indication, but he ignored it. They didn't comment on it out loud as well. Well, not on his tone at least.

“Whatever they’re planning, we’ll stop them.” Go Go decided. “Together.”

The others agreed and Hiro relaxed a bit. He was glad this was important to them. And he was glad they didn't have a problem with him wanting to figure out the villain’s plans largely on his own.

“Hiro?”

He looked up at Honey Lemon.

“You said earlier that you had something to tell us.”

Oh no.

“Was it about Megan?”

Hiro tensed. It was so easy to agree. That would be believable, right? Important enough that maybe he should tell them about it, but not important enough that they would be mad at him for keeping it a secret. He had the right to his own affairs and secrets. They knew it. He could have lied so easily.

He closed his eyes. No. No more running.

“About Momakase.”

Suddenly the room was so quiet that Hiro felt like he could hear ants.

“What did she do this time?” Go Go asked.

“Nothing. We just talked.”

“Yeah, you don’t look like you two just talked,” Wasabi noticed.

“It was… personal.”

“Personal? Momakase and something personal? Her knives show more emotions! Seriously people, in which universe are we living in?”

“Well, she’s been looking for her family’s swords for years,” Honey Lemon countered. “I think she has some emotions after all.”

Hiro sighed while watching their discussion. Somewhere in the back of his mind a thought appeared that he didn't have to mention that Momakase is his aunt. That he could have moved the conversation to another track; he could tell them about the flash drive with their identities. They might think he was just surprised by her behavior and that he considered giving the disk back something personal. Again, it was so easy.

But then Hiro looked at Fred, who had been strangely quiet since the beginning of this part of the conversation. Now he was sitting in his chair, biting the claws of his suit. He acted like he knew. Because maybe he did.

No more running.

They were his friends. They deserved to know. And when he realized this one simple fact, his doubts disappeared.

“So… what were you two talking about?” Go Go brought him out of his thoughts.

Well, they talked about a lot of things, but just because he planned to tell them about their kinship didn't mean he wanted to tell them everything else.

“She saw a picture of my parents.”

“How did that happen?”

“Long story. But… we had a little revelation. She knew my father.”

Everyone looked at him attentively.

“How is that possible?” Wasabi asked. “Wait, was your father involved in sha—”

“She said he wasn’t,” Hiro interrupted. “That ‘I’m not a son of a villain’.”

Well. He was a nephew of a villain instead.

“Then how…” Honey Lemon began to wonder. “Oh, maybe they were friends on opposite sides of the barricade? Back when Momakase wasn’t so crazy? That would be cute.”

“Siblings.”

“Well, that would work too… what?”

“They were siblings,” he replied. “Biological.”

The group froze. It seemed like it took them a few seconds to realize what he had just said. Except maybe Go Go, who revealed her shock pretty quickly, and the fact that she did it at all meant it was a big deal. Finally, Honey Lemon raised her hand to her mouth, and even Wasabi moved.

“Wait…” he murmured. “WHAT?”

Go Go frowned, ignoring the high frequencies.

“But that would mean…”

“That she is my aunt,” Hiro finished slowly. “Yeah.”

“So wait a minute,” Wasabi raised his hands. “This crazy knife lady who tried to kill us at least seven times, poisoned Krei, robbed Fred, kidnapped Karmi, blackmailed you and helped the bad guy almost destroy the entire city, is actually your aunt?!”

That didn't sound good. But it couldn't change the genes anyway.

“Exactly.”

“I can’t imagine it. No offense.”

“Well, a few days ago I’d say ‘join the club’, but… I think I've sort of processed it? But I'm not done yet. And I won’t be for a while.”

“It’s a lot,” Honey Lemon agreed.

Hiro looked up. Of all of them, Go Go was the only one who didn't seem worried or bewildered. She just seemed to be thinking.

“Are you sure?”

“About what?”

“About what she said to you. Are you sure she wasn’t lying? From what we’ve learned, Momakase only cares about herself. She could’ve said that so you wouldn't want to chase her anymore, and so she wouldn't end up in jail again.”

“It crossed my mind. But Baymax compared our SMPs. I’m sure she wasn’t lying.”

“So… what are you gonna do about it?”

What will he do? Well, she probably should have asked what he had already done, but Hiro wasn't going to correct her. He wasn't sure how they would react that they went on a heist together, made a deal, and keep in touch. Would they be surprised? Probably. Mad at him? Maybe.

But Go Go asked about the future. And Hiro was fully aware that even if Momakase seemed a little softer in his presence, she was still unpredictable. She was still a criminal. And there was still a risk that one day she would do something that would break their deal.

What would Hiro do then? Until about two weeks ago, he wouldn't have hesitated. But now?

“I don’t know,” he said finally. “I won’t let her hurt people, that’s for sure.”

That was the only thing he was sure of.

“People can be hurt in other ways than physical. Just because she helped us once doesn’t make her good. We still have to catch her.”

“We don’t.”

“She escaped from prison.”

“We’re not obligated to do that,” Hiro highlighted. “We’re not police.”

“Police can’t handle her.”

“I know.”

“If we won’t do that, she will stay free.”

“I know!”

Go Go frowned and fell silent for a moment.

“So that’s what you want.”

Hiro sighed.

“I want to know my father. I want to know—” he stopped. Then he took a deep breath; his voice more serious, “I lost Tadashi. I lost my parents. I never had the chance to meet my grandparents. I know nothing about my family and I lost them all. I’m not losing anyone else. Not even her. I would chase her if she was actually a soulless monster, but she’s not, she has an honor. Something has changed in her. She can be our ally, or at least, not an enemy. So let me do it in my way.”

Baymax's actuators moved.

“While I do not understand how leaving a villain free is a good thing, I know that Hiro has the situation under control 86.4 percent of the time. I am also starting to understand it is difficult to fight people with whom an emotional bond was established.”

Hiro frowned. Has he established an emotional bond already? Well, he started to like her, but besides that, he couldn’t answer that question—apparently Baymax did it for him. Still, Hiro was grateful for the robot’s input. It was good to know that someone supported his decisions even when he wasn't sure about them.

He heard Wasabi sigh.

“Well, as superheroes we’re supposed to… you know. But as friends…”

“We trust you, Hiro,” Honey Lemon added.

“Fine,” Go Go joined. “I don’t agree with that, but I’ll let it go. Hope you know what you’re doing. And keep an eye on her.”

“I will.”

Hiro breathed a sigh of relief, although there was a feeling in the back of his mind that he had forgotten something. He looked around and his eyes fell on Fred, who had stopped biting his claws and seemed to feel like he could say something this time.

“So… not a book.”

Hiro looked down.

“I’m sorry Fred. I really had to work through this on my own first.”

“Nah, don’t worry, I figured it out. Go Go would start reading comics before you’d start reading novels. It was obvious.”

“Then why didn’t you…?”

“Well, you seemed to feel safe, so I played along.”

Hiro blinked. That was… surprising.

“Thanks. I didn’t expect that.”

“Yeah, me neither. Now, can we finally talk about this, because man, you and Momakase being related? That's so cool. Well, problematic too, but so cool! And hey, that means this family heirloom you stole with her back then? This was also your heirloom from the very beginning, and you didn't even know it! Seriously, how crazy that coincidence was?”

“Great. And we’re witnessing an avalanche,” Go Go murmured.

Hiro laughed loudly.

_-_-_

Somewhere in another part of the city, in a well-secured room, a portal appeared. First, a head emerged. Then, after surveying the area—the rest of the body. The gymnast in a red and white outfit took a deep breath and then pushed a button on her bracelet, attracting small, magnetic spheres to it. The portal closed.

She looked around. Exactly as she remembered from yesterday’s reconnaissance, only without the lights. But she didn’t need them. The trinkets in the display cases reflected the streetlights well enough. Now all she had to do was cut the power to the alarms, and as soon as she did, she pulled out the bag and rubbed her hands together.

“Magnifique.”

Everything was going according to plan. She leaned over the display case and pulled out the wire to open the lock.

“Interesting.”

Sirque froze.

“A portal?” the intruder continued from the shadows; the thief could barely make out the outline of a figure. “This is some way to get inside, that’s for sure.”

She frowned, trying not to show her fear. She remembered the voices of the local superheroes, but this one didn’t fit any of them. A new hero? Or perhaps Sirque should have done more research before arriving in San Fransokyo and learned to recognize the villains as well? Was this an enemy or an ally?

Well, allies wouldn’t exactly hide in the shadows, common sense told her.

“And who are you?” she asked, trying to soften her accent.

“Oh, I’m sure you’ll figure it out soon. But a word of advice? You should have left that city when you still could.”

That didn’t sound friendly at all.

Sirque reached for the bracelet, but before she could even touch it, the intruder twisted her arm. She spun around, trying to fight back, but gymnastics skills weren’t the same as martial arts, and within five seconds she was on the floor. Trying to ignore the pain, she raised her hand. And froze. The bracelet wasn’t there.

This was not good.

She looked up and saw her opponent tossing her bracelet into the air and then precisely pinning it to the wall with a blue knife. The device shorted out, electricity coursing through its casing. Sirque gulped.

This was even worse.

Maybe tonight’s robbery wasn't as good an idea as she thought.

Chapter Text

Hiro opened the door. It wasn’t locked. And once they were inside, no alarm went off. It was strange. But not more strange than what he spotted in the middle of the floor. Hiro turned on his flashlight. Everything was exactly as in the photo he received from an unknown number.

Sirque, tied with a rope, not fully in touch with reality, as if someone had hit her head too hard.

The rest followed him in.

“What happened here?” Honey Lemon asked.

Hiro moved closer, but the cracking sound stopped him. There was a phone under his shoe, looking like someone has already destroyed it. Perhaps it was this unknown number. However, Hiro decided to postpone solving this mystery for later and looked around. None of the display cases were cracked, and none were opened in a normal way either. Nothing seemed to have disappeared. Whoever did this to Sirque, they intervened before she could steal anything.

The only question was... who? And why?

The boy, followed by Baymax, walked up to the thief, while most of the others scattered and began to look around as well.

Hiro knelt down.

“Are you okay? What happened?”

“I suppose you didn't come to free me, did you?” she murmured.

It wasn't exactly the answer he expected.

“Baymax? Could you scan her?”

“Scanning. Apart from a few bruises and skin irritations where the ropes are pressed to the body, I do not detect any injuries. Sirque, however, is in shock. She may be dazed for some time.”

“They seem tight,” Go Go added.

“It makes sense, Sirque’s a gymnast, she could slip out of them,” Hiro noticed. “Whoever did it knew that.”

“Some new hero?”

“Or maybe a villain. She could’ve ruined someone's plans.”

Truth be told, he didn't know. But if they were a hero, why did they let Big Hero 6 know instead of calling the police? And where did they get Hiro's private number? He really hoped this would clear up. More and more people were starting to know his identity and he didn’t like it.

“Honey Lemon?”

She came closer.

“Could you untie her and then catch her in one of your chem balls? I'm sure that'll hurt less than a rope. And I don't think she has the strength to try to escape right now.”

Honey Lemon nodded and she and Go Go got to work. Hiro frowned. If only Sirque was more talkative, they could find out what happened here. Did she not speak because she was tired? Or maybe she wanted to spite them, even though she didn't seem like that type of person? Or maybe it was something more complicated and she preferred not to mention it?

“Hiro?” He heard Wasabi’s voice. “You might wanna see this.”

The boy approached his friend and noticed a familiar object on the wall. Knife. A blue knife piercing a bracelet with magnetic balls.

Hiro pulled it out of the wall and grabbed the bracelet. He raised the blade higher.

“Momakase?”

“Great,” Go Go murmured. “Speak about the devil.”

“Wait,” Honey Lemon stopped untangling the rope for a moment. “Is it her job?”

“So what, she’s playing a hero now?”

Hiro frowned. Sure, she helped a few people during the Robot Revolution, and Hiro was happy with this action, but it didn't automatically mean that Momakase has became selfless. Stopping thieves from stealing? It wasn't in her interest. In fact, she never cared about villains. Why should Sirque be an exception?

“I don’t think so. Not her style.”

“Then why did she do that?” Fred looked at Hiro.

“Why are you asking me?”

“Y’know, she’s your au—”

“Not here!” Hiro took a deep breath. “It makes sense that she was the one who did it. If anyone can keep up with Sirque, it's Momakase, they have similar skills. But Momakase isn’t a hero, for whatever reason she did it, it definitely wasn't altruism.”

“Unless this is the beginning of her redemption arc? Oh, wait, it already began. So, what, a second step?”

“I’d stay with the beginning now.”

“I honestly thought you would insist on the opposite.”

“It’s complicated.”

“Well, you’re kinda right," Fred agreed. "It’s a bit out of character, at least now. I was just throwing out ideas. But hey, if we need something serious, it's time to analyze it in a comic book way.”

“Please, no,” Go Go murmured.

“We know Momakase doesn't care about people, but somehow, she does care about her own profit. So, it must have been related to her interests somehow. We know she's a thief. We know Sirque is a thief too. And we know Momakase likes to be the best. So, what if she gave Sirque to us just to get rid of the competition?”

“That… surprisingly makes sense,” Go Go said. “Can’t believe I said that, but. Good job.”

“Thanks. What do you think about that, Hiro?”

What did he think? That would make sense, sure. If it weren't for one small detail. Their types of ‘work’ were different. Momakase was a thief for hire, and Sirque stole... for what exactly? To get rich? She had just arrived in San Fransokyo and was probably planning to leave soon. They couldn't be rivals because their goals didn't match.

And Momakase didn’t rob jewelers anyway. It was too easy for her.

He’ll have to ask her. But did he really want to tell the others about it?

“That… sounds possible,” Hiro finally said. “But first of all, we need to call the police now. Sirque, would you like to say something before they show up?”

He looked at her, trapped in Honey's chem ball; the ropes lying nearby.

“Apparently perfecting my tech didn't help, did it?”

“You know that’s not what we meant. Did you step on somebody’s toes lastly? Besides ours?”

“Oh, I don't think my activities are much of a nuisance to you.”

Wasabi raised an eyebrow.

“You think?”

“Well, you still robbed the jewelry store,” Fred added, “and don't pretend it wasn't you, this bag speaks for itself.” He raised an item no one saw before. “And if you want to have a chance next time, seriously, it's best not to dye the bag with your color scheme.”

“Fred,” Go Go growled. “Don’t teach the villains.”

“Okay, enough,” Hiro cut in. “Really Sirque, I’d appreciate it if you’d cooperate more.”

“I'm not running away. Isn't that enough?”

This time Hiro was the one who raised an eyebrow.

“Fine,” she gave up. “I haven't messed with anyone. I've never met her before. I don't know why she's mad at me. If she's my rival, she could have told me earlier, I don't like fighting knife-wielding crazy people. I’d do something else.”

“You mean ‘rob something else’.”

“Your words. Not mine.”

Hiro sighed, knowing he wouldn't get more out of her. That... didn't go bad anyway. Most of the villains they encountered would spite them much more. At least Sirque actually cooperated. And Hiro was inclined to believe her words, considering he had seen her pacifist tendencies with his own eyes. She didn't like fighting.

He understood it.

The sound of police sirens appeared and Hiro snapped out of it. He looked at the graphene knife and Sirque's portal technology, a little fried. This was evidence in the case. He should have left it here. He should have, but his eyes flashed to the image of Baymax, the original Baymax, still stuck somewhere in the void. And frying circuits was nothing to Hiro, he was good at fixing and figuring out technology. If Sirque actually perfected it as she said...

Chief Cruz walked in. Hiro hid the items before the policeman even noticed him.

_-_-_

When Hiro entered his room and looked at the clock, it was already well after one. He took Sirque's bracelet out of his pocket and placed it on the desk. Then he sat down. And looked.

Hiro thought he was more confident before, but now he had doubts. Was he really planning to open the portal and fall into the void again? The first time he was there, he lost the original Baymax. And the second time he was there, all he could think about—apart from the fact that he had to get to Sirque—was that he had to hurry, because Krei’s portal was about to explode and they would be trapped there forever—

He had to focus really hard on the task to realize that it probably wasn't going to happen.

Apparently, he will always have unwanted reflex reactions related to the void. Even if the technology was actually perfect. Even if the chaos that reigned in the void was somehow beautiful. It still terrified Hiro.

He took a deep breath. There was one more problem.

What would he do with two Baymaxes? And it wasn't just about where he could hide the other robot, it was about something... he wasn't even sure what.

That Baymax was Tadashi's robot. It was just a construction, now without a personality chip, and what's more, it could be made better. But it belonged to his brother, it was built with Tadashi’s hands, and for that simple reason it was extremely important to Hiro. He had many nice memories with that Baymax, but also many hard ones. First flight, attempting murder, rescuing Abigail, stopping Yokai. He went through it all with his brother's work.

But he went through even more with his own.

He built this Baymax himself. Based on his brother's plans, yes, but all the improvements were Hiro's idea. It was Hiro who put him together, it was Hiro who had to deal with bad copies of him, it was Hiro who had to repair him dozens of times after some villain (usually Momakase) beat him up too much. He may not have experienced such groundbreaking moments with this robot as with the original Baymax, but he experienced many more of the everyday ones. This Baymax was his. And Hiro realized with mixed feelings that he couldn't choose between them.

With mixed feelings—because that meant Tadashi's Baymax wasn't in the first place at all.

Which one would he choose? Who would become his companion? Both of them would have the same memory, but somehow the rest of him was important to Hiro as well. And he felt that if he chose his own design, he would betray his brother. Leaving his brother's structure in the void despite being able to reach it wasn’t much better either.

Would Tadashi understand? Hiro knew he would. Yet he didn’t feel good about that anyway. But maybe... just maybe, he should let that old Baymax go? After all they were the same project.

Hiro groaned and then threw himself on the bed.

“Will you tell me what is bothering you?”

The boy raised his head, looking at the robot, his robot, and then fell again.

“You.”

“What did I do wrong?”

“Nothing. Not that you, the other you.”

“I do not understand.”

“Would you like to have your old body back? The one made by Tadashi?”

He heard Baymax blink.

“My old body, even though Tadashi did his best, is equipped with older technology than my current one. I am not sure if I would be able to help people as effectively as I do now.”

“Yeah. I know.”

“Then why did you ask?”

“Sentiment.”

“Oh.”

“I’ve got Sirque’s technology, if I could repair it, maybe... maybe I could get the old you out. But... what would I do with him then?”

“Tadashi wanted me to help people.”

The first few seconds were silent. And then Hiro jumped out of bed. Help. Being a superhero wasn't the only way to help. Baymax was created to be a medical robot. And there was a clinic nearby. Well, it was the one where Dr. Shiela worked—not particularly fond of Baymax—but they could have at least tried.

“I think I have an idea.” He smiled slightly. “But not today. Anyway, I have to take care of some more urgent matters first.”

He even knew which one exactly.

_-_-_

TeenGenius:

thanks for sirque?

Momakase:

Don’t mention that.

TeenGenius:

sorry

not this time

Momakase:

So you miss getting into trouble.

TeenGenius:

know youre joking

but

just wondering why you did it

Momakase:

Keep wondering without me.

TeenGenius:

as u wish

so

youre not hero enough to save some random jeweler

u wouldnt care

also sirques not your rival

youre a thief for hire

shes not

no threat to u, theres no place for rivalry here

you also wouldnt care about her tech or skills

and first of all

youre not robbin jewelers

too easy for u

and if all logical explanations fail there must be something else.

Momakase:

Now I’m impressed

Psychological profiling at such a young age?

TeenGenius:

spending more time with villains than with peers

had to learn it the hard way

so?

Momakase:

Not so random

TeenGenius:

uh

cant keep up

Momakase:

This jeweler

He wasn’t random as you thought he was

He has helped me a few times when I needed some fakes to substitute. He knows his stuff.

In return, I promised to make sure no one touched his business

I’m keeping my word

TeenGenius:

that

that actually…makes so much sense

i also shouldnt ve asked

Momakase:

You shouldn’t.

TeenGenius:

i wont mention it

Momakase:

You better won’t

TeenGenius:

and one more thing

i have something yours

hid it before cruz could notice

Momakase:

You can keep it

Just don’t kill yourself

TeenGenius:

you care

_-_-_

This time even though she read the message, Momakase didn’t answer. But that meant she didn’t deny it either. It was something.

Hiro smiled slightly and placed his phone on the blanket. His gaze went to the graphene knife on his desk. A strange thought crossed his mind. Sure, last time he did anything with graphene, it ended really badly. But then Hiro went for katana, not a knife, not to mention the situation was way more stressful. But now it wasn't, so maybe he wouldn't cut off any of his own body parts? How bad could trying end? He could aim his magnets pretty accurately. The knife couldn't be much harder, could it?

And maybe it would help him clear his mind a little?

Hiro walked over to the desk and picked it up. Now he had a chance to look at it closer. The handle was worn, used a lot (how many people did she attack with this? he probably didn't want to know), but it still felt a little too good in his hand.

But he could try.

He looked around the room and decided that the wall behind Baymax's charger would be a good target to start with. He preventively moved the charger away so that if he missed the wall, it wouldn't get damaged.

“What are you planning to do, Hiro?”

“Something you probably won’t like.”

Tadashi's degree certificate still remained on the wall. However, it was soon removed and carefully placed on the desk—just for a moment, Hiro told himself.

A few seconds later it turned out to be a great idea. The knife spun as it was thrown and hit the wall with its handle instead of its blade. It bounced off and hit the leg of Hiro’s bed before finally coming to rest on the floor.

“Okay. Not so easy.”

“Knives can be dangerous,” Baymax commented. “Especially when thrown.”

Well, that sounded familiar.

“Said you won’t like it. Besides, I’ve got that part.”

Hiro tried to focus, but it was hard. Being watched by Baymax while trying to do a really dangerous thing wasn't as comfortable as he thought it would be.

“Actually… could you go downstairs and observe Aunt Cass's sleep stages? You know, to make sure she's alright.”

“Your rapid speech and awkward smile indicate that you want to kick me out.”

Hiro sighed.

“Sorry Baymax, it’s hard when you’re watching.”

“I understand. I will go and observe Aunt Cass’s sleep stages.” Baymax walked through the door, but before closing it, he looked at Hiro. “Please, be careful.”

“I will.”

He probably won’t.

As soon as Baymax left, Hiro focused again. How was Momakase able to throw the knives straight? He never saw them spin.

He picked it up and tried again, this time throwing it sideways. It had to be the position, not the knife itself. But unfortunately, that position didn’t seem to be the answer.

“Really. How hard could it be?”

He looked at the knife again. He had used knives in the kitchen many times, helping Aunt Cass, but those have never been made of graphene. Graphene was about a thousand times sharper, but also a thousand times lighter. Which meant that the center of gravity was practically in the middle of the handle, not at the base of the blade like in most cases. So, whatever he tried with a regular knife, it wouldn't work with this one.

But... he had never thrown a regular one either.

“Maybe it’s about aerodynamics…?”

Hiro threw it again, harder this time, from above, without manipulating his wrist. This time the knife got stuck in the wall…

“Yes!”

…only to fall to the ground a few seconds later.

“No. Come on!”

He picked it up, and at about that moment his phone vibrated. Hiro groaned, but he walked over to the bed and checked his notifications. And almost immediately froze.

Momakase:

You’re terrible at this, aren’t you?

He really preferred being watched by Baymax.

Hiro clenched his fists and turned off the light. Just as he expected—outside the window, on the roof opposite, was a mop of black and blue hair. He closed the blinds, but not before sticking out his tongue at her.

The phone vibrated again.

Momakase:

So mature

He turned on the light and started typing.

TeenGenius:

like youre better

Momakase:

I never claimed I am

Hiro had to admit, that was fair enough. He also chose to ignore the fact that Momakase had nothing useful to do and decided to spy on him for fun. And apparently covering the windows didn't stop her from bothering him, because she started typing again.

Momakase:

You’re too tense

Try to relax

It’s mostly about the wrist and arm

Position, not strength

So don’t waste energy and don’t move all your body

This wasn't actually what he expected. There was no teasing there, just pure facts and some tips. But why did she decide to share them?

TeenGenius:

youre really trying to teach me

Momakase:

I have nothing better to do now.

TeenGenius:

yeah

i noticed

He put the phone aside and decided to give these tips a try. It wasn't until the fifth time that the knife hit the wall and barely stayed in place, but Hiro didn't actually expend much energy and felt like he could do it for longer. Well, if it weren't for the fact that it was way after midnight and he should’ve been asleep a long time ago, which he just remembered.

But on the other hand... his sleeping pattern has already been turned upside down a long time ago, right?

A dozen minutes later he came to the conclusion that not quite. His concentration was fading more and more, and despite following Momakase's advice, he wasn't hitting the wall as often as he would like. He finally gave up and threw himself on the bed, deciding it wasn't for him—only for something to creak beneath and the bed to tilt at an unnatural angle with a loud noise. Hiro groaned but didn't move.

“Ugh, not that.”

The first time he threw the knife, it hit the foot of the bed. Apparently harder than he expected.

He could only be glad he had closed those blinds earlier.

Chapter Text

“Is covering my eyes really necessary?”

Hiro chuckled and then led Megan down the hall, through the sliding doors, until they stood in front of the table in the conference room.

“You can take it off now.”

“Finally.”

Megan removed the blindfold, then opened her mouth as if she was about to say something. But before she could do so, her eyes landed on the image in front of her. On the table, there was a dark orange armor, similar to Big Hero 6 ones. The helmet had two protrusions, although placed slightly lower than Hiro's, and there were black stripes along the edges of the protective elements.

It took Megan a few seconds to recover from the shock.

“I promised I'd let you go to the subway tunnels. That’s our ticket.”

“Are you kidding?”

“Well, if you don’t like it—”

“Don’t like it? Of course I don’t like it. I love it!”

Megan ran to the table and started touching the pieces. Soon she began to lift them, turn them around, and finally put the helmet on her head.

“How do I look like?”

“Like someone who’s hard to recognize.”

The girl laughed, then took off her helmet and looked at it. She looked at her reflection in the glass, rubbing it with her hand. It was obvious she thought about something for a moment, and then her smile became more sentimental than joyful.

“Good thing my dad doesn’t see this.”

“I won’t tell him.”

She looked at Hiro gratefully.

In the meantime, the boy reached for a small object that was still lying on the table. A tiny, oblong cylinder, in a color scheme similar to the rest of Megan’s armor. The most inconspicuous of all elements; yet it took Hiro the longest to create.

“You might want to check this.”

The girl put down her helmet and grabbed the cylinder. Then she looked at Hiro with a question in her eyes.

“Press the button,” he said. “The middle one.”

Two shafts of orange light emerged from either ends of the cylinder and solidified. The device became about a five-feet stick.

Megan dropped her jaw.

“This. Is. SO GREAT!”

Hiro smiled, as she started swinging her weapon.

“A pocket-sized combat stick, here you go,” he began to explain. “It’s Hardlight’s technology. Held in place by a magnetic field, but as strong as if it were made of reinforced titanium. And see those other two buttons? You can lengthen it with one, shorten with the other. When you press the one in the middle, it goes back to the default length. Well, now default, I can help with the configuration if you don't like it. And if you want, we can also play with the shape later, if, I don’t know, you prefer a spear, for example?”

Megan looked at him, then smiled warmly.

“It’s perfect as it is. Really, thank you. This is so great!”

“Glad you like it.”

She turned her battle stick off.

“So, when are we going?”

“I thought maybe now?” Hiro scratched his head. “You know, during the day? It should be safer. I’ll just change first.”

“Yeah, I think I should, too.”

They did. But before they left the conference room, Megan grabbed his arm.

“Wait. Yesterday you texted me you had some clue.”

He hit his own helmet. How could he forget?

“Yeah…don't take it as certain. But I think these disappearances are somehow related to the recent port theft and SFIT robbery. It's the same cover-up system everywhere. I doubt all the bad guys suddenly figured it out, unless someone started a covering-as-a-service business.”

“Could that happen?”

“I don’t know. Everything can. But honestly? I don’t think so. I’d know if that kind of business showed up.”

Well, technically Momakase would know, but Megan didn’t need to be aware of that.

“So you think it's the same person? That's... finally a serious lead.”

“I don’t think the same person. I just think it’s related.”

“And I’m gonna check that. Besides...”

Hiro looked at Megan. She hesitated.

“What happened?”

“I might have some clue too.”

“That’s great!”

“It would be, if this clue wasn't so stupid. But… I’m sure it’s important, I just don’t know why yet. And… I see no reason why it could be.”

“What’s that?”

“All the missing people? We know they’re men. But they have one more thing in common. Clothes. I don't have my conspiracy board here, but all the descriptions just before the kidnappings mention one thing. Each of them was going to some fancy place and was elegantly dressed in some way. Either a shirt and tie, a vest, or a tux.”

Hiro expected a lot of things. But not this one.

“So the main reason they were kidnapped was… clothing?”

“It’s stupid, I know, but I also know it matters.”

Why would a villain care what their victims wear? Wasn't this about people? If all they wanted was tuxedos, they might as well rob a clothing store. Why did they want them in a full package, with the men? At this point, Hiro couldn't come up with any logical explanation. He wasn't Fred to figure out something illogical either.

“We’ll think about it later. Now let’s deal with the subway.”

_-_-_

They went downstairs to the 39B line and Hiro turned on his flashlight. Megan followed him. It was quiet, the only sound apart from their own breathing was the faint rumble as a car passed somewhere above. Which didn't happen often, because they entered the tunnels in a less busy area so as not to be noticed by passers-by.

“Don’t touch the third rail,” Hiro warned.

“Why?”

“I don’t know if the old tunnels are connected to the catenary... but if they are, touching it means death. Instantly.”

“That sounds serious.”

“It is serious.”

Megan looked at the structure in question and then swallowed. Not two seconds have passed, and she was on the other side of the tunnel, as far from the third rail as possible. At the same time Hiro heard Basemax’s activation sound.

“According to the metro network, old lines, including 39B, have already been disconnected from the power supply.”

“Better safe than sorry.” The boy shrugged.

A dozen or so minutes later Hiro and Megan were at the nearest place of the disappearance. Along the way they didn't encounter any villains, nor stray trains, and the biggest problem they had was occasional rat and dust falling here and there from the ceiling. They also managed to avoid one cave-in. To sum up, it was weirdly normal.

Megan began examining the floor and Hiro looked around. He didn't see anything unusual here. There was a hatch above them, but it was closed and only let in a narrow beam of light, and there were several drawings on the nearby walls that Hiro would prefer to never see. But nothing indicating that this was the site of a kidnapping. No tire marks, no damage, no dust removed from the structural elements—even the rails were dusty and untouched—nothing to indicate a struggle. Which meant there was no struggle at all.

“Do you have anything?” he asked Megan.

“They were here.”

“Who?”

“Police. See this powder?” she pointed to an inch-wide speck of black powder that looked like soot. “They use it to find fingerprints.”

Hiro frowned.

“Waste of time. If they're smart enough to turn off the cameras, they won’t be stupid enough to leave fingerprints.”

Megan was going to answer, but something stopped her.

Clapping. The sound of clapping came from the darkened part of the tunnel.

Hiro turned towards there and his flashlight illuminated the figure. He narrowed his eyes. All he could look at was the motorcycle-like helmet on its head. The rest of the costume consisted of white and black stripes arranged in all kinds of crazy geometric patterns. It hurt to look at them. And was it just Hiro or did they actually move? One turned into another, then swirled, turned back, changed its shape, and then—

He looked away. The pattern on the costume was intentional. And Hiro really regretted that he couldn't switch to infrared in this suit.

The stranger—or rather, the villain—moved. The boy followed them out of the corner of his eye, but once again glanced directly, just for a second, to study the figure. The patterns effectively prevented him from making a precise identification, but it was probably a woman. Hiro assessed the situation. He glanced at Megan, who was standing a little behind him and trying not to look at the outfit. Not terrified, not hypnotized. She waited for him to move.

He pulled out a magnet and closed his hand around it.

“Finally someone who isn’t a complete amadán,” the villain started, her voice distorted. “Peelers and their procedures. Annoying, isn’t it?”

“And who are you?” Hiro asked; his grip tighter.

“Curious, huh?”

“Let’s say I like to know who I’m gonna put in jail. That’s my thing.”

The villain let out something that would probably be a chuckle under normal circumstances, but considering her voice was modulated it resembled more like a terrifying laugh. Hiro grimaced at the sound. If he ever got himself a modulator, he'd have to work hard not to scare away people within a fifty-mile radius.

“Put in jail? I have to admit, you’re confident.”

“And you’re stubborn.”

“Surprised?”

“Enough of games. It’s your job.” He waved his hand. “All of these people.”

“As I said, not a complete amadán.”

Hiro frowned. He also had no idea what that ama-something-word meant, but it was probably related to stupidity. Not that it mattered now.

“Fine. If you don’t want to explain yourself to me, you’ll explain yourself to the police. I’m sure they’d love to know why you did something that could get you a life sentence.”

“If you haven’t noticed, I didn’t demand ransom.”

“I’m sure it won’t matter to the judges when seventeen people are missing.”

“Eighteen. The media’s inaccurate.”

“Where are they?” he raised his voice.

“Oh, in the right hands. You don’t need to worry ‘bout ‘em, dear.”

“Whose hands?”

The villain tilted her head towards him, and Hiro could swear she was either thinking or smiling—though he couldn't see the latter because the glass in her helmet was mirrored. Eventually she snorted, which again sounded terrifying.

“Come and try to find out.”

It was a trap. Probably. But it was also the best clue they had in weeks—the kidnapper herself. So despite Megan’s warnings, Hiro started chasing her when she began running away. And she was good at this. Fast. Agile. Definitely not stupid. Several times she tried to guide him to the third rail. Once he had to jump over a large piece of fallen rubble, not to mention maneuvering between sharp pieces of scrap. Another time he had to shoot a magnet into the pipes so as not to slip on an oil slick and hit the wall centrally, but to make it around the corner. When they finally reached the abandoned subway station, he was a bit tired. Yet, he managed to keep up with her.

She didn’t like it.

“Aren't you persistent?”

“I was born that way.”

He fired the magnets and then activated the coils. They created a net, cutting off the villain’s exit—hopefully only the villain’s. But he didn't see any trap here. She had no help. No drones. No partners. Nowhere to escape. Hiro really has a chance to free these people.

“You’re not getting out of here.”

“That’s what you’re thinking.”

And then she took out her flashlight.

Before he knew it, it was shining right into his eyes. He blinked, trying to get rid of the spots. But then something strange happened. Right in front of him a panicked Megan showed up. But... she didn't have the superpower of teleportation, did she? Where could she have come from? That wasn’t possible.

“Thank goodness, you’re okay!”

Hiro raised an eyebrow. What could be wrong with him? And another question—what happened to their most important clue?

“Where is she? She was here a second ago.”

“A second ago? You were stuck in stasis for about ten minutes, you idiot! I tried to take off your helmet to put it in your face because literally nothing was working, but you have some sort of lock there, I didn't know how to get it off.”

He blinked again and was stuck on one piece of information.

“Ten minutes?”

“Sort of. How long, Basemax?”

“The time between the loss of cognitive function and its reappearance, based on movement data and communication, was twelve minutes and thirty-two seconds.”

“How’s that even possible?” he murmured.

For him it was like a second. He didn't even notice it. It was like tearing up the disc and skipping a few scenes further. This skip caused blankness. He didn’t really know what happened. But he began to guess one thing.

“That's how she kidnapped people. That’s something about her flashlight, she’s putting them to sleep. That's why there were no signs of a struggle.”

“Yes,” Megan agreed. “And you’re extremely lucky you’re not on her list!”

Hiro frowned. Was he?

“I’m not lucky. For some reason she didn’t want to kidnap me.”

“Right, I forgot you don’t wear a tuxedo.”

Hiro couldn't tell if it was a statement of fact or some attempt to deflect his words in anger. And… Megan had every right to be angry.

“I'm sorry. I shouldn't have gone after her alone.”

“You built me ​​this suit for a reason.”

“I know. But she’s a new villain, we didn't even know what she’s able to do.”

“So it's best to test it on yourself?”

“When you say that, it doesn't sound like the best idea.”

“Well, at least you got it.”

Hiro snorted quietly. The effects of the stasis seemed to be starting to get to him, because his feeling of disorientation intensified—ironically, even though now he knew more or less what has happened to him. He tried to focus, though. They were still somewhere in the subway tunnels. They were still vulnerable to attacks from other villains. And above all, it was only now that it began to dawn on him that they finally had a breakthrough. He was right, a supervillain was responsible for the kidnappings. Now they could finally start working, they could go to the base and set up a profile, then search the tunnels with the rest of the team and try to ambush her—

And in that sublime moment, in a not-so-sublime place, Hiro's phone began to vibrate.

“Ugh, what now?”

He shook himself to clear the dark spots from his eyes, then pulled out his phone and squinted to read the message.

Krei:

Intern, there’s an EMERGENCY!

The coffee machine in the kitchen broke down.

If you come and fix it now, you’ll get the rest of the day off!

But seriously, the employees are moaning to me

And Jane’s on vacation, she’s usually taking care of this. I can’t make it all! Being a CEO is tiring enough, let alone taking care of an office

Come quickly

Hiro sighed. He’d just had a confrontation with a villain who, if she wanted, could kidnap him and take him to who knows where. And a second later, Krei calls him to repair the very trivial coffee machine. Life couldn’t be more ironic, could it?

He exchanged knowing glances with Megan.

“Go, I have enough material to work with.”

“Sure. The base is open to you. And about the material, your helmet has a built-in video recorder, you might want to use it.”

Megan grinned. She didn’t even seem angry at him. Hiro chuckled and they walked towards the nearest hatch, but along the way he stopped. He was going for an internship. An internship at a company where there was such a thing as a dress code and where everyone—

“What happened?”

Well, he could break some rules here and there. Why don’t try in Krei Tech as well?

“Nothing,” Hiro murmured and tried to smile. “I’m just… I think I’ll wear a tracksuit this time. I’m a bit fed up with fancy clothes, y’know?”

“Just say it, you don’t want to get kidnapped.”

“I…”

He raised his finger, wanting to argue, because he was a superhero, not some random man. He couldn’t be afraid that some villain would kidnap him just because he wore an elegant shirt. It even sounded hilarious, right? Right? Besides, she only attacked adults and he was far from being one. He was safe. Completely safe. But… he didn’t really feel like he was. Because on the other hand there was that flashlight. And this crazy stasis that sent shivers down his spine just by thinking about it. He wouldn't even know it happened.

Hiro lowered his hand and looked away.

“I don’t want to get kidnapped.”

Maybe he was a little afraid.

_-_-_

Raito entered a bright room that looked more like a laboratory at this point, with a table spread out and dozens of tools right next to a huge console that they had not yet finished programming. Di was standing against the wall, looking bored. And inside, next to the table, stood someone who wasn’t so easy for her to identify. The closest term would probably be something between co-worker and employer.

The helmet almost slipped from her grip. She adjusted it and tucked it under her arm. The man flinched, but didn't turn around.

“Wean’s diggin’ deeper,” she said.

“What did I tell you about speaking clearly?” the man asked calmly.

She rolled her eyes. Always the same song. They both knew he had more important things on his mind, but he always had to pick on something. A sense of power? Maybe. She ignored it because there was no point in pursuing the topic for the fiftieth time.

Instead, she looked at the desk. The yoke that lay there was very familiar.

“Is this my prototype?”

“I’m improving it.”

“Congratulations to you for finding something that could still be improved. I tested it. Works perfectly.”

“It’s not about working.”

“Then about what?”

“Security.”

She raised an eyebrow.

“I’m a hacker, I know how to break into things. I know how to secure them.”

“If you think you know everything and if you think you don't need to improve, you’ll never grow more,” the man turned and looked at her face out of the corner of his eye. “And that’s not why you’re where you are, is it? You’ve learned more than anyone else. Don’t stop.”

Raito frowned. He was right.

Somehow he always was.

She sighed and repeated what she said at the beginning. Clearly. Maybe a bit too clearly, but who could blame her for wanting to upset him? She was the only one who could do it anyway. And not suffer the consequences.

The man hummed.

“And how much does he know?”

“That I’m behind the kidnappings.”

“So he saw you.”

“I knew what I was doing.”

He raised an eyebrow and this time he actually looked into her eyes. But she knew. It was a grand idea and it certainly worked, that wean couldn’t have guessed anything. It confused him, for sure, but she doubted he could figure it out on his own, even if he actually seemed smart. He just didn’t know her enough.

But for the man, there was always some ‘but’, even if unsaid.

“This kid is smarter than he seems,” Di cut in. “I underestimated him once. I won't do it again. If there is any way to destroy him now, it would be best to do it.”

Raito rolled her eyes. Di maybe has her head screwed on the right way sometimes, but she still didn’t understand. They had to work from the shadows. Any fight with the wean at this point would involve the entire Big Hero 6, and each subsequent interaction would give them more and more clues. They couldn’t let these guys get them. Not yet.

Although Raito had to admit Di was right about one thing. The boy was digging. Something should be done about it.

“No, we won’t,” the man said.

“You’re not taking advantage of what you have.”

“He might even be the smartest kid in the world. Even he won't see what's coming. Even he won't be able to stop it.”

“He stopped the star.”

Raito frowned. Well, that was some argument.

“The star created by a madman who was unable to achieve his goal without getting distracted along the way. But I understand your concerns, Diane.”

“I can watch him,” Raito interrupted. “I already did.”

She went to the console and turned on one of the monitors, then ran the program from the part of the system they had managed to put together. A map appeared on the screen, and a flashing point appeared on the map. He stayed in one place for some time.

Lucky Cat Café.

“We know where he lives,” she added, a smirk on her face.

And just then, out of spite, the point started flashing uncontrollably before disappearing. Raito refreshed the map, but the signal was no longer there.

Great. Why did it always have to be moments like this?

“And now the kid knows that we know,” Di added. “We have to find another way. One that he won’t see through in a split second.”

One look from Raito was enough for Di to take a half-step back and realize she had gone too far. Not that this was the first time. Raito figured it out long ago. Taunts, rare and seemingly trivial, but weakening her competences. With the goal of taking her place. Her place, to which she had a very good reason to cling to. And even if she was more of a tool than a person—except for those rare moments when the man treated her like a human being and admire her skills—there was nothing she wouldn’t do to keep it.

Di was aware of that. She was also aware there was no escape from Raito’s technology, that no kind of crazy mutation could stop it and save her. It kept her in check. It kept her afraid, even if she didn’t show that. And Raito had to admit one thing. There was something fascinating about the feeling of power.

She was starting to like it.

“Oh, don’t worry,” she smirked. “I’ll find another way.”

Chapter Text

Hiro sighed, then trudged up the stairs, leaving Baymax with aunt Cass.

He should never have trusted Krei. Easy job? The rest of the day off? Sure, in his dreams. It seemed that Krei had previously tried to repair the coffee machine himself, and that he had used the exact same method as Aunt Cass—brute force. Force Hiro didn't have to explain to him that this kind of solution does not work. Of course, the boy had to spend several hours straightening the delicate elements to get them into place. And of course, the nozzle turned out to be the culprit, which could be easily removed and cleaned without destroying the entire machine.

Hiro had no idea what Krei was doing at SFIT, but he certainly wasn't listening to the lectures. Or maybe such simple information was just not taught there, because everyone concluded that people applying for an engineering degree certificate already had enough basic knowledge to be able to repair a coffee machine on their own.

At least one good thing came out of it. He could focus on work and not on what happened in the subway tunnels. And he definitely wasn't going to change that now. He let the others know, they had already discussed it on the phone, he would rather not come back to it anytime soon. Let Megan connect the dots on her own. Just this once.

He had other things to worry about. He had to implement infrared into his regular suit (which he now carried in a bag on his back and lied to his aunt that they were parts for Wasabi's car). Wasabi's car itself should also be taken care of. And above all, he had his own project to complete. A project that was questionable and for that reason he kept it a secret. But he told himself that just because he was going to do it didn't mean he had to use it.

Well, he hoped so.

He opened the door and went inside—and almost immediately screamed. The bag fell to the ground. The elements made noise. Lots of noise.

That was a mistake.

“Hiro?” Aunt Cass squealed from below. “Is everything okay?”

Was everything okay? He had a thief in his room—which he probably should have expected by this point—looking through parts of his project. But maybe it would be best if aunt Cass didn't find out about this tiny detail. And for that to happen, he had to think fast.

“I’m fine!” He squealed back. “Just saw a spider.”

“Since when are you afraid of spiders?”

“Not afraid. Surprised!”

“Well, if you need any help with getting rid of it…”

“No, not really. I think I can handle this. It’s not like it’s poisonous.”

He heard Baymax move.

“There are more than five hundred species of spiders whose venom is harmful to humans.”

“I… didn’t need to know that.”

“Yeah, me too.” His less deadly relative added. “Alright, big guy, what about washing dishes instead of giving us nightmare material? And if you need anything, Hiro, just say so!”

“I will! Thanks, aunt Cass!”

Hiro kicked the bag, closed the door and leaned against it. Then he sighed with relief. Some parts spilled out, but he ignored it.

“It was close.”

Momakase didn’t answer, just looked at him mockingly. He guessed that his poor attempts to explain himself to aunt Cass must have been some kind of cabaret for her. It didn’t make him feel better.

“I asked you not to scare me anymore.”

“This time I didn’t. You were the one who started to scream.”

Hiro frowned and then realized she was actually right. He smiled slightly.

“Honestly,” Momakase continued, “I’m surprised that she hasn't figured it out yet, given your excellent lying skills. You’ve got more luck than senses.”

“If I had a lot of common sense, I wouldn’t be a superhero.”

“You wouldn’t.”

Momakase smiled slightly, then went back to looking at the pieces of the project, scattered across his desk. Hiro quickly counted the items and none were missing. He didn't really suspect Momakase of stealing anything that belonged to him, but then again, she had stolen from Obake when she was still his ally, so Hiro had every right to have his doubts. She seemed to respect him, but would that make her hold back instincts? Did the fact that they were family mean enough to her that she would actually not trick him in any way? She had been searching for the family blades for most of her life. He saw her then. She had truly cared for her relatives. Did she see him as one of them as well?

She did care about him in some way. She still made fun of him just as much as before, though Hiro could tell it wasn't out of hostility anymore. That was just her way to communicate.

A strange way, but a way.

Hiro came back to reality, when Momakase took one of the parts.

“You like to keep busy, I see. That’s quite big for a watch.”

“And fragile.”

“Relax, if I wasn’t careful I wouldn’t last long in my profession.”

Well, he could believe in that. He stepped closer.

“It’s not a watch. It’s supposed to look like one and some of the functions will actually be similar, but its purpose will be different.”

“You can’t do anything normal, can you?”

“Why should I do things that someone else has done before?”

She smiled slightly.

“What’s that purpose then?”

Hiro frowned. Ironically, if his friends had asked him the same thing, he would have been more likely to answer Momakase than them. And for a rather simple and selfish reason. She wouldn’t try to stop him.

But he didn’t trust her enough yet.

“It’s a secret. Someday I hope I’ll tell you.”

She nodded and placed the piece back on the desk. Hiro also looked in that direction. That was actually one big mess. If Tadashi was here, he would have told him to take it all to the garage, because ‘the room wasn't the right place to invent’. He always strictly followed this rule, as well as a lot of others, and expected the boy to do the same. But... Tadashi was gone, and Hiro didn’t care much about safety and tidiness during work.

He probably should.

He should also ask Momakase why she was here, but somehow a casual discussion really sounded better. Surprisingly he wasn't as curious about what Yama was up to as he had previously thought he would be. Maybe Krei had tired him out too much.

Hiro walked around to the other side of the desk, standing near the window. And then he realized something. He hesitantly lifted the window, and to his irritation, half of the lock fell out, perfectly cut. Exactly as last time.

He looked at her skeptically.

“I’m a thief. Don’t expect me to use the doors.”

This brought to his mind a question he had wanted to ask her some time ago. He may have already known the answer, but he still preferred to hear it from her.

“Actually… why?”

“Why don’t I use doors?”

She was playing with him, he knew that.

“You know what I meant. You’re so good at cooking, could make really great money on that. You actually do. But you’re still stealing. Why?”

“And what do you think?”

“I’m not sure. That’s why I’m asking.”

Momakase sighed and thought for a moment, as if wondering whether to answer at all. Finally, she turned to the boy.

“I’m a chef because that’s what my father taught me. I don’t want his legacy to die.”

Hiro nodded. He understood this too well.

“That’s why I ran that restaurant in the first place.” Momakase continued. “This cuisine may look easy, but you need to be precise. It can be satisfying and helps me focus, but…it’s not really me. It never was.”

He remembered the last time she had mentioned something about her childhood. She had liked to cause mischief at school. And her brother...his father...must have seen her tendencies, since he had tried to keep her on the right path. She has been drawn to this world from the beginning. And she didn’t fight it.

“And being a thief is. Why?”

“Tell me one thing. Why were you in bot fights? For money, or for something else?”

Hiro knew the answer. And it wasn’t money. He got addicted to risk, to excitement, to adrenaline. The fact that he won a lot of cash during his fights was a nice bonus, but it was never a goal in itself. The goal was to shock his opponents, to see their faces when they realized they had no chance against him. It was never fair, because his bot was too advanced, but he loved the satisfaction, the feeling of power he gained, the legend that had grown around him. The fact that he was smarter than them all even if going in there was incredibly stupid in the first place.

So, he couldn’t really blame her. What she was doing was bad and he didn’t approve of it, but he could understand. This was a bigger risk, higher stakes, a harder challenge. She might not have to worry about being hunted by the bandits for tricking them (more like the bandits had to worry about being hunted by her) but she was also risking her freedom far more than he ever had. And as far as Hiro knew… it was exciting. Perhaps if he had become more emotionally involved the last time he was on a heist with her, he would start to like it as well.

Maybe he actually did.

“So I guess you’ve got your answer.”

“Looks like I do.”

Hiro looked down with his feelings mixed. How was it possible that she was able to get to him even if it wasn’t her main goal? He had no idea, but he preferred to change the subject. He should ask about the reason that brought her to his room after all.

But then his bag tipped over and even more parts fell out. He sighed.

“Any problem with the suit?”

Hiro tensed. He didn’t tell his friends about it, and he didn’t plan to work on his projects just to come back to it now. And talk about it again. It was just stupid, and the fear was irrational, next time he could close his eyes before she took out the flashlight, he already knew about that ability, he was ready—

But Momakase didn't.

“Need to add thermal imaging to the HUD. Y’know, if I don’t want to wander around in a display suit.”

“Too bad. You have more advantage in it.”

“I know. But I don’t want people to associate this suit with the leader of Big Hero 6.”

“It’s about expectations, isn’t it? You don’t have to be a hero.”

“I think I’ve already disappointed their expectations by cutting Hardlight’s hand.”

“That’s good.”

“Is it?”

“You’re free.”

Well... it was hard for him to admit it, but she was right. There was a strange freedom in it. It opened up more opportunities. Opportunities which he didn't want to take advantage of, but which now existed.

“It’s not important now,” he finally answered. “The reason is different. Be wary of the villain in a black and white outfit. Mesmerizing patterns. If she shines a flashlight in your eyes, you’ll fall asleep for a few minutes. Won’t even know it.”

“Good to know, I suppose,” the thief hummed. “She did that to you.”

“Is that so obvious?”

Momakase raised an eyebrow.

“Okay, don’t answer that. Anyway, she’s behind the kidnappings.”

“I’m surprised she hasn’t gotten bored yet.”

“Aren’t you bored of stealing?”

“Fair enough. Whatever floats one’s boat, I suppose.”

“I know she’s doing it for a reason, but...I haven't figured this reason out yet. All I know is that she’s not stupid and that she’s probably responsible for a few other incidents in the city. I don’t have any proof, but that’s something.”

“And she let you go.”

Hiro frowned.

“I didn’t say I chased her alone.”

“You did now. Besides, you only brought your own suit.”

He had to admit, Momakase was more observant than he thought.

“I don’t know why she let me go. She looked like she didn't want to fight at all, she was just running away. I thought she was trying to trap me, but…there was no trap. I guess she just used that flashlight so she could escape?”

“And yet you don’t believe in it yourself. If I were you, I’d watch this suit very closely.”

Hiro frowned. He didn't think of it that way. Two seconds later, all the parts were lying loose on the floor. And two minutes later, under one of the edges of the carbon-fiber plates, next to the knee, he found a small, round device. On the body side, in a place where it wouldn't bother him. Hard to notice.

A tracker.

Hiro’s heart beat faster. He could only thank fate for telling Skymax to take his suit to the garage instead of the base. But on the other hand…Aunt Cass.

He broke the device in his hand.

“That wasn’t the wisest move.”

He looked up.

“Now she knows you’re aware.”

“Then I’ll be more careful.”

“Will you?”

Hiro sighed. Maybe he really shouldn't have destroyed it right away, but then again, what was he supposed to do? Leave it in the room? She would have noticed that something was wrong anyway. Always remember about the tracker and not approach the base in this suit? No, he already had enough on his mind. Destruction was the best option. The only question was why did she do it? And how much danger was his aunt in?

Well, he’ll think about it later. Once Momakase goes. Once he finds out why she came at all.

“So, why are you here?”

“Going back to business, aren’t we? Very well. I may have some interesting information.”

“Yama?”

“He’s involved, that’s for sure, but there is someone else.”

Hiro focused. This could actually be interesting.

“Someone else?”

“I don’t know much about these guys, but I’m sure they’re not from yakuza. I know all the yakuza’s leaders in this city, none of them would play into something like this.”

“What were they doing?”

“Mostly talking. With Yama’s thugs. They didn’t seem to be looking for contact with other yakuza’s gangs, but some of them sometimes wander around Good Luck Alley.”

“Why with Yama? He’s not the biggest player. He doesn't have that much influence. He's just... loud and can't hide very well.”

“He’s also stupid and easy to manipulate.”

“Yeah, that’s a good point.”

If that was the main reason these guys signed on with Yama, they probably wanted to double-cross him at some point. But that still didn't explain why they did it at all. Or who they were. Or who was their leader.

Well, about the latter, Hiro has his suspicions.

“What were they talking about?”

“Delivery.”

“Delivery?”

“I didn’t hear much, they went inside. But they wanted some material from Yama. That they couldn’t wait and it was supposed to have already been repackaged. They didn’t say what it exactly was though.”

Hiro frowned. It was some information, but without details it was difficult for him to determine how serious a problem they were facing. Was it something related to battle bots, or was he just producing something for the people who made a deal with him? How dangerous was this thing? Could they have intercepted it?

“Repackaged. Whatever it is, they have to divide it into boxes. And move.”

“Good observation. But when I got to Yama's warehouses, there was nothing there.”

“Then maybe not his warehouses?”

Momakase hummed.

“I tried to follow them. It didn't help. Those who were talking were doing just that. Each of them has their own tasks and sticks only to these tasks. They are coordinated, but they do not interchange.”

“Someone really doesn't want outsiders to know more.”

“Indeed.”

Someone had to be in charge of all this. And since they had taken such precautions, Hiro couldn't pretend that their plans were trivial. It didn't matter whether it was actually a supervillain's business or some mafia activity, he couldn't ignore it.

“Who do these guys work for?”

“That’s what I don’t know yet.”

“Could it be this one from the photo? That I sent to you?”

“I’m not sure. I looked after him, but he never was in Good Luck Alley. I haven't found him yet. And no one I know has ever met him before. He showed up recently.”

“And how recently did these guys show up?”

“A week ago.”

“That would check.”

“It’s likely. Yakuza don’t play circus anyway.”

“You’re saying this like they’re a bunch of idiots.”

“They’re definitely not idiots. But the yakuza cares about their reputation, and them? They looked like some crazy minions, funny and creepy at the same time. Everyone wore goggles.”

Hiro blinked. Of all the things he expected, this was the one he didn't expect the most.

“Don’t look at me like that. I know what I saw.”

“Why would they do that?”

“That’s not a question to me. But I have a picture if you want to take a peak.”

He immediately perked up. A few seconds later, he was holding Momakase's phone in his hands, zooming in on the photo. It showed one of Yama's thugs, and next to him were two men, dressed neatly. Both of them were wearing black goggles, similar to swimming ones. Momakase was right. It indeed looked funny and creepy at the same time.

“I don’t get it.” He murmured. “Why goggles?”

“To protect identity, maybe?”

“But it’s the stupidest way to protect identity! Well, most times.”

It’s not like they themselves didn’t wear goggles during heists. But they at least had a lot of helpful functions in it. The ones these guys are wearing? They didn’t look very helpful, they looked clunky. Though… appearances are deceptive.

Hiro frowned. He actually had an idea.

“Or maybe to protect from someone.”

“The villain you met today,” Momakase completed. “With the light skills.”

“Exactly.”

It would mean that whoever is controlling the goggle guys doesn’t like this girl. Or maybe the girl doesn’t like them. But if she’s a lone wolf, why would she kidnap people? He looked at the goggles again, even though he couldn’t find the answer there. Instead, he found something else.

“The frames are way too thick.”

“Well, I suppose it has nothing to do with fashion.”

Hiro nodded.

“There must be something inside. Some kind of tech, other than just a filter.”

“Any idea what?”

“No. I’m gonna need one.”

He gave her phone back, but after a moment he began to wonder. Goggles alone would tell him what kind of technology they are using, but nothing more. Questions which really matter—what’s their final goal, who they’re working for—would still be unanswered. He was already a few steps behind them; he needed some real knowledge. And the fastest way to get it was from the very source.

“Or actually I’m gonna need the entire guy.”

“Kidnapping villains?” Momakase seemed amused. “That’s not what I expected from you.”

“Me neither. But they have the biggest knowledge.”

“And how would you make them talk, genius boy?”

“I don’t know yet. But I’ll improvise. It always works. Could pretend we wanna join them or something, maybe they’ll buy it.”

“If they let us into their circle, we won’t leave easily. And even if we do, you’d only warn them that something is up. They will be even more careful.”

Hiro sighed. She was right, it was a stupid idea. And it certainly wasn't worth pursuing in the first place. Maybe when they had no other options left? But how many options did they have left? That was probably what he should focus on.

“Do you have some other ideas?”

“Ideas? Sadly, not much. But I have some other contacts I haven’t used yet.”

“So, we can get some information?”

“Maybe. It’s more complicated.”

“Why?”

“I can't start asking everyone, because they'll realize something's up. And if they find out I'm working with someone who doesn't usually get along with criminals, they won't trust me anymore. It's better to keep the source of information than to lose it in such a stupid way.”

Hiro frowned. That made sense. And it reminded him of something.

“I may also have some contacts.”

“You?”

“Bot fighter, remember? I know a few guys, they might not be into real crime stuff, but they might have seen things. And they tend to stick close to Yama, even though they're not his people. So maybe I could question them enough without Yama finding out. And I don’t need to care if they stop trusting me, because I don’t belong there anyway.”

“Don’t you?”

That threw him off stride a bit.

“Well, I’m not going back to fighting.”

“Even if you’re not, don’t burn your bridges so quickly.”

Or maybe burning bridges was exactly what he needed to break away from this world once and for all? But he wasn’t sure if that was what he really wanted. Especially now.

It was just starting to dawn on him that there was another new supervillain in San Fransokyo. Well, there was still the question of whether that leader was actually a supervillain, but if he wasn't a typical criminal and wasn’t part of the yakuza or other mafia, the only category left was supervillain. As if they didn't have enough of them—the mysterious bomb guy, the crazy hypnotist, and now this. And everything indicated that this was not just a random supervillain who stole money or did stuff like this. This was some big guy with, probably, an even bigger plan.

And if this was indeed the man he saw at Krei Tech, it meant he wasn't just recruiting minions. And this seriously worried him. Not because Hardlight could give that man a huge advantage on the battlefield. But because Hardlight might not have been the only one he wanted to recruit.

“That guy in the photo,” Hiro whispered and sat on the corner of the bed. The one of which leg he repaired this morning. “He convinced Hardlight to follow him.”

“So, things get more interesting.”

“If that’s really him… he already has Yama. He has Hardlight. Who will be next?”

He looked at Momakase. At this point, she was his main concern. She had worked with Obake, she had worked with Di, this guy could try to hire her as well. And Hiro really didn't want her working with him. But he also didn't want to force her into anything. To push her around. To behave like those she hated.

Apparently, she noticed his dilemma.

“Don’t worry, I’m tired of working with other villains. I know better than that, they won’t stay for long. And I don’t really want to go back to prison for the fourth time.”

Hiro couldn't help but smile wryly.

“You’re still wanted.”

“The police are too weak to stand against me. Only you and your sad friends can.”

“Being more neutral is just a convenient position for you, isn’t it?”

“You get me. But also, I didn’t know I had a nephew before.”

Hiro didn't expect something so direct. Momakase wasn’t the feelings-show type of person, but this was actually close to feelings. She could say that with a bit of irony, with an arrogant smile on her face, but he knew she really meant it. She did consider him a family. It was important for her. And this was really nice.

He smiled warmly.

“Just don’t—”

“Mention that,” Hiro finished. “Yeah, I think I’ve got that part. Really.”

Momakase smirked before turning to the window, apparently telling him everything that needed to be said.

“Wait. Just…be careful, okay?”

She looked at him with pity.

“And which side of the family do you think you inherited your recklessness from?”

Hiro rolled his eyes; he wasn’t that reckless. But before he could say anything, Momakase opened the window, saluted, and disappeared into the night. The boy sighed and looked at the half of the lock he held in his hand.

He really needed to figure out something which would spare him some welding next time.

Chapter Text

Hiro glanced at his communicator. Nothing. Perhaps Momakase needed time to get the rest of her contacts going. And well, helping Hiro certainly wasn't the only thing on her mind, so it could take even longer.

Patience. He just had to be patient.

He took a deep breath and continued eating his scrambled eggs while playing with his watch. It was the first day he wore it and Hiro still couldn't get used to its weight. Not that he could think about it for long, because at about the same moment Fred sat down next to him, with his own big portion and even bigger curiosity.

“This looks cool!”

“Actually it doesn’t,” Wasabi stated. “I don't mean anything bad, but you're not... you know, the strongest built. This watch is bigger than you. No offence.”

“None taken.”

Hiro was well aware of this. But to accommodate all the features he intended to use—and all the features he didn't intend to use—he needed space. The fact that he looked weird wearing this watch wasn’t the problem. He was already weird.

He choked when Fred almost ripped his arm away.

“What was that for?!”

But his friend didn’t listen.

“Wait, does it have a touchscreen? Why can't I move anything? Did you do it to read fingerprints? No, that's cool. And what's that lever for?”

“We’re not moving that lever!”

Hiro snatched his hand back before Fred could touch anything else. He and the rest of the team looked at Hiro with mild surprise. As did everyone else in the café, who suddenly focused on him. The boy chuckled awkwardly.

“Ah, tech and its instability, am I right?” Hiro leaned over the table. “You have no idea how long it took me to calibrate it,” he added more quietly. “If you violate these settings now, the consequences will be monstrous!”

Go Go raised her eyebrow.

“Now you’re just being overdramatic.”

Hiro almost murdered her with his eyes. This time he really meant every word. But maybe it was best they didn't know that, so he settled with just acting offended. And he succeeded, he stayed this way until Honey Lemon sat down at the table.

“Sorry I'm late, I couldn't come earlier. I had to do something.”

“What was that something?”

“Fred,” Go Go hissed. “Privacy?”

“No, it’s fine,” Honey waved her hand. “Actually, I think I can tell you.”

“Yes!”

“I signed a contract a few days ago, so it's already certain. In fact, it was already certain for some time, but I didn't want to brag without the paper. I'll work at SFIT!”

Hiro blinked. It took him a few seconds to realize what that meant.

“You’re staying there. That’s so great! We’ll be seeing each other!”

“Not that often, but we will.”

Go Go smiled slightly and nudged Honey with her elbow.

“Congratulations. At least one of us will have a normal job.”

“Yeah, but…”

“But?”

“The competition is coming.”

This one sentence was enough to make the atmosphere serious. Indeed. He almost forgot that SFIT organized a competition every year. A competition that was in less than a month. A competition that Hiro had previously won. A competition where Callaghan finally gained the means to become a supervillain. A competition where Tadashi died. Hiro still remembered it all too well. The heat and brightness of the flames that engulfed the hall. The force with which the explosion threw him away. The pain on his skin as he hit the hard concrete. The smell of burning lingered on his brother's cap for a long time. His brother who ran in there instead of waiting for people who had the experience and equipment to do it.

Hiro’s fist tightened, but then he loosened it. He took a deep breath and tried to stop the images flashing before his eyes.

“Granville really didn't want to assign me to this,” Honey continued slowly, “but one of the people who was in charge of the organization couldn’t do it. It's mainly about booths arrangement, I won’t have much on my head, but I’ll have to be there.”

“And we’ll be there with you,” he stated.

“Hiro, you know that you don’t have to—”

“But I want to. It was hard for all of us, not just me. And I won't leave you there.”

Go Go placed her hand on Honey Lemon's shoulder.

“None of us will.”

“When it is necessary to be in a place that triggers memories of trauma,” Baymax stepped closer, and wrapped his arms around her, “the company of friends can reduce stress levels and help cope with negative emotions.”

“Thank you. All of you.”

Hiro smiled and continued eating. No one spoke again but despite the topic they brought up, no one was sad either. It was calm. Comfortable. Hiro could have stayed like that, but unfortunately, they had a job to do. But first…

“I’d almost forget. Wasabi, Roddy said he would be finishing your room today.”

“Really? That’s great!”

“Right? Anyway, most of it is already done, he just needs to drill the last few holes, hang the third shelf and clean up.”

“Wait. Did you say ‘clean up’?”

“Yeah?”

“Like ‘Roddy’ and ‘clean up’ in the same sentence?”

“Yeah?”

“The guy who always wears the dirtiest apron I've ever seen?”

“Hey, the apron is meant to be dirty.”

“Of course you would say something like that. You two can't clean.”

“Excuse me?!” He raised his voice, but then thought better of it. “Or, y’know what, that’s… actually fair enough. But hey, Roddy's not that bad. He cleaned up my room pretty well. When I ran my sleeve across the table, it was just a little dusty, not completely dusty.”

“Your standards are terrible.”

“Or maybe yours are too high?”

“You know what, no. We’re not gonna talk about it for the hundredth time. This will be my room, so I’ll just go and do it myself.”

“Do you want me to come with you?” Honey Lemon suggested. “I have to clean mine too.”

“It will be nice to have someone who respects hygiene for company.”

Hiro raised his eyebrow.

“And I thought we’re not gonna talk about it for the hundredth time.”

Wasabi glared at him, but then gave up and left, saying a quick goodbye. Honey Lemon followed him, but before she went through the door, she turned to Hiro and winked. Everything was going according to plan.

“Clever move,” Go Go said.

Hiro smirked.

“Yeah, I know. I’m good at this.”

“But don’t be so harsh next time. And I know I’m the one saying this, but Wasabi can’t really control it. And he'll never admit it, but he envies you a little.”

“Wait. What? I thought he hates that.”

“He does.”

“Then why?”

“Because you don’t care. We don’t care. He can’t.”

Hiro frowned. In fact, he had never looked at it like that before, it always seemed to him that Wasabi just had a lot of strange habits. And that's it. It was weird, sometimes annoying, but they were friends, they supported each other, so he never focused on it too much. He focused on what was good.

Well, he probably didn't want to know how many more things he missed.

“Uhm,” Fred stammered, reminding Hiro of his presence. “Weren’t we supposed to be finishing fixing Wasabi's car? Or, well, you were supposed, ‘cause I’m...”

“You can’t fix the car,” Go Go finished.

“Hey! I have a lifetime to learn. I can start today!”

“And you'll get bored after a few minutes.”

“Wanna bet?!”

“Ugh. Fine. That’s gonna be interesting.”

Go Go got up and went to the garage, and Fred joined her. But Hiro waited a moment longer, wondering about something.

“Are we not going with them?” Baymax asked.

“Actually… could you stay with Aunt Cass today? Look after her. If she asks, tell her you attract customers and want to help the business.”

“All day?”

“And maybe a few more.”

“I do not understand the sudden change of schedule.”

“Just… I want her to be safe.”

“She is safe.”

Hiro frowned. Not when a new, unknown villain knew where he lived. Not when Hypnogirl—as Fred called her—could attack Cass to hit Hiro. Baymax in this form may not have been the most dangerous opponent. But he still knew martial arts. He still could inform Hiro that something was wrong. Protection from an unarmed robot was better than none.

“The activities you and your friends engage in,” Baymax continued, “have a statistically higher risk of injury than working in a café.”

“Not this time, Baymax.”

Not this time.

_-_-_

Go Go was right. Fred actually became bored quite quickly. But before he did, he helped with replacing the upholstery and screwed the seats down, without damaging them—which was a big thing for someone who can't concentrate for long. The rest of his achievements weren’t so impressive though. He accidentally spilled the screws, almost cut one of Hiro’s prototypes and lost Go Go’s favorite screwdriver. He also smeared himself with grease, although Hiro had no idea where the grease came from, since that wasn’t the most necessary thing for something like upholstery work. Maybe he should just get used to expecting the unexpected from Fred.

To sum up, it really was interesting.

And Wasabi’s joy was worth it all.

The sound of the laughter kept echoing in his head, along with the rest of the improvised party they had thrown. Hiro had a great time, but the best part was still coming home and making sure Aunt Cass was safe.

He didn’t tell anyone. They were so happy, how could he ruin it?

Hiro sighed and began to think. There had to be some way to keep his aunt safe without losing Baymax and without raising her suspicions. The fact that the robots were attracting customers to the café was a good starting point. Now all he had to do was come up with something friendly and dangerous enough at the same time that the customers would love it and that it could pacify some wannabe supervillain if needed. Oh, and it would be nice if this new robot resembled neither Baymax nor Mini-Max. Or at least wouldn’t steal their look.

Well, it seemed like the projects never ended. He had a lot of things on his mind. It's just a pity that he still hasn't really moved on with most of it.

And then his phone vibrated. Maybe he’ll move on with some?

Momakase:

I asked around

But no more, this has already raised suspicion

For now, they think I want to join

TeenGenius:

is that good or bad

Momakase:

It depends on who it reaches, Genius Boy

TeenGenius:

stop callin me like this

please

Momakase:

It’s literally in your nick

But if you prefer Captain Cutie, I can stick to it

He froze. Everything but that.

TeenGenius:

yknow what

gb is fine i love it

lets stay with that

and lets go back to the business

Momakase:

Wise of you

The owner of the pawn shop told me the most

Yama’s people have recently been buying rare earth metals from him

Does that ring a bell?

TeenGenius:

electronic components

some inhouse production

This was important information. Well, maybe it wasn’t telling him anything at the moment because he had no background, but he was sure that the type of electronics would be important in the future. But now the mere fact that they were producing something like this allowed him to narrow his circle a bit. Yama, minions, electronics construction, probably Hardlight. It all had to fall into place. This villain had something to do with technology.

TeenGenius:

thanks

is that all you have

Momakase:

Sadly, yes

And don’t count on more, except from observation

TeenGenius:

its already a lot

so

how about plan B?

Momakase:

I’m busy tonight

The order won’t get done by itself

We can do it tomorrow

TeenGenius:

works for me

Hiro placed his phone on the blanket, deliberately trying to ignore the fact that Momakase had literally told him she was going to steal something. Hiro from three weeks ago would have already been getting ready, but current Hiro wasn't sure what to do. He should react. He knew it. He should have summoned Skymax, summoned the rest of Big Hero 6, ambushed her outside her hideout, and stopped her before she could even reach her destination, whatever that destination was. He should do everything he could to stop another crime.

Instead, he lay down on the bed and tried to sleep.