Chapter 3

No, no, no,no…This cannot be happening.

Tadashi is dead.

Hiro saw it, he mourned for his brother.

But Tadashi is standing right in front of you, isn't he?

Could he be dreaming? The metallic tang inside his mouth and the throbbing pain coursing through his leg said otherwise.

Maybe time-travelling? He felt like laughing at the thought. Time travelling goes beyond the bounds of possibility. Hiro knew that to a fault.

All the theories and potential risks of entering the timeline were drilled inside his head with the aid of Gogo and Wasabi. Even though they were specialized in their respective branch of physics, both shared vast knowledge of the mechanism behind time and space.

If one were to enter the past, paradox would be bound to occur. No one knew how this paradox worked, only acknowledged that the consequences would be devastating.

Hiro had tried his hands on constructing such device once. The test run forced him to abandon the project in the middle of fine-tuning.

However, that impossibility was staring at him straight in the face and he found himself unable to controvert.

Inside the room, Tadashi had already turned off the the light, yelling out a goodnight for good measure to the blanket-cocooned Hiro, the one that was lying on the small bed, scowling good naturedly at his brother loud voice.

He slowly backed away, realization dawning his features. He had, as crazy as it sounded, traveled back in time.

x.X.x

Running away has never been Hiro's style. He would rather stay and struggle to get down to the bottom of everything, be it a midnight project or a hero situation, it just did not go well with him to give up. Tadashi did not nickname him knucklehead for no reasons after all.

Yet, he was fleeing.

He was flying at top speed desultorily, wishing nothing more than to stay away from the reality. Wind rushed past him, roaring beside his ears, deafened every thought in his head. Anguish built up inside him, embodied tears welling up behind his eyelids, albeit refused to fall.

The magnificent buildings of SFIT came into view quite suddenly after what seemed to be hours. He made no move to slow down until the tip of his board came in contact with the window. Everything that followed played in his mind as if putting in slow motion. Glass fragments exploded inwards around him like in an artistic photo shoot, clattered to the ground cacophonous, covering his hair in a thin layer of glimmering speckle.

He dazedly stepped off the board, the severe injury completely fled his head. The sound of metal hit the floor and ice shatter upon impact pierced the silence that had just returned, and the next thing Hiro knew, he had collapsed on the cold floor as his brain registered the pain shooting through his leg, all the while gasping for air, strings of curses subconsciously left his mouth. He held no memory of uttering any "Ow" but when the stinging ache had subsided to a more bearable throb, he looked up only to see Baymax's puffy hands directly in front of him , already setting out for work. (Somewhere deep inside his mind, where logic still occupied a better half, he scathingly remark of how well the plan had gone: running away from Tadashi only to end up breaking into his lab; however, as of now, he paid that rational thoughts no mind).

A washcloth reeked of the pungent smell of disinfectant entered his line of sight, carefully cleaning all the gashes and cuts on his face. Hiro could not help flinching back as the cold material made contact with the open wounds, sending a series of stinging pain up his brain. Baymax attempted to be more gentle but he was getting used to that anyway, the pain was nothing more than the feeling of an ant crawling on his skin.

As Baymax was sticking a large quantity of band aids on his cheeks and placing an ice pack on the bump around his right temple, Hiro took the time to steady his racing heartbeats and hyperactive brain. Now that the adrenaline had left his system coupled with the painkillers Baymax gave him to deal with the broken leg, he was downright exhausted. He let his gaze, slightly unfocused, roam around the lab, taking in each and everything. The room looked exactly the way it had been before he moved in, when it was still Tadashi's. There was no trashcan crammed with crumpled sketches, no blueprints pinned haphazardly on the wall, obscuring an extensive number of star-shaped scorch marks, no coffee cups occupying any free space on the table that had not been covered in paper and photos; photos of him and his friends and Aunt Cass and Tadashi. And more noticeably, the baseball cap hung loosely on the table lamp had disappeared as well, probably it was on Tadashi's bedside table at the moment.

Everything conveyed the impression of reality, too genuine in existence to be some sick joke of illusion crafted from his high-strung mind.

Hiro idly noted that Baymax had started to work on his broken leg, which was now spread out on a chair while he himself was sitting on another (when did he move from the floor to a chair again?). Painstakingly unrolling a wad of sterilized bandage, Baymax digilently wrapped it around his leg once, and then twice, securing the bone in its place. No one said anything, only the hissing sound accompanying the robot's every movement could be heard.

He should have been panic, hastily devised a plan to get back in his own time and whatever else his dread-induced mind could bring forth. Still and all, he did none of those

This was the first time in nearly two years he had felt so at ease. Acceptance and peace filled his heart and soul, every muscles in his body relaxed to the point he thought his arms and legs were made of jelly.

Maybe this was a second chance for him to rewrite the history, to change everything for the better. He might not be the one to experience the outcome of this absurd act but his past self and everyone else would definitely have this privilege.

Jealousy was something he had foregone a long time ago, others' benefits had always been put in front of his; and this time was no exception.

Sound of walking footsteps, muffled by the closed door, reached his ears. Hiro turned around just in time to see the door pull wide open.

And came face to face with someone he least expected.

Robert Callaghan had been having a relatively pleasant day without any paperwork piling on top of his work desk and an unexpected meeting with an interesting boy a few hours ago just boosted the day to something mildly wonderful.

Tadashi's kid brother really sparked his interest. The kid was a prodigy, comprehending the Law of Robotics was one thing but applying the theory into reality was a different matter, and the magnetic bearing servers to boost! Together with his older brother, they were bound to revolutionize the world.

The fascination openly shown in the boy's eyes was something he had experienced and knew too well. After all he had been on the receiving end of that look enough time to assimilate its esoteric message.

A wistful smile tugged at his lips. Oh how he missed Abigail, his everything in this life since his wife's demise.

He reminisced all the mischief his little girl cooked up for her father whenever he had a bad day and the day she joyfully declared her love for science by participating in street bot fighting. That took him some coaxing and bribing for the girl to drop the wild streak and focus on studying. A little bit older, Abigail learnt to put her intelligence into good use, devoting her life to science by entering SFIT. Graduation day came quickly, and before he knew it, Abigail was off starting her own life and setting a name for herself as Krei Tech top pilot. No words could describe just how proud he was of his little girl, now a successful woman. All he wanted Abigail to remember was that no matter what happened he would always love her till the end of time.

The accident stole all of that away from him. It left a hole in his heart that could never be healed, no matter how empathic his colleagues and students tried to be, they would never understand the pain.

He blamed Krei for everything; the man had to pay for his mistake. Authority was of no use in this case. They proclaimed Abigail's demise as a necessary sacrifice in the name of science, the thought made his blood boil every time he recalled. If high up agent was of little help, he would have to take matter in his own hands. How he would accomplish this ambition, he still had not had a solid plan.

His life had not been the same ever since. He buried himself under mountains after mountains of work, often assigned his students with a hefty amount of work so he had something served as distraction. He rarely came home either. The few time that he did, it looked more like an abandoned haunted mansion with cobwebs covering every inch of ceiling than a cozy home. Normally he would just overwork himself until he dropped off right in his office so he could skipped the part where he had to actually get home.

Tonight was no difference. All camera system had been turned off so he would not have to worry about someone hacking in the system and finding out that he stayed at school after working hours on daily basis and foolishly coming up to him to confront him of the problem the next day. Thief was something as a bizarre occurrence in San Fransokyo with the city's nocturnally thoroughgoing police patrol , even more so in SFIT, where was rumored to be rigged with hidden advanced contraptions, one-wrong-move-and-you-find-yourself-transported-to-jail kind of machines. So no human guards were needed. And Callaghan was contented with that decision.

Just right after he finished that kind of thought, the sound of breaking glass reverberated down the deserted corridor. Without any hesitation, he sprinted towards the source, which seemingly originated from the students' lab wing.

x.X.x

Tadashi's lab was the only room with lights on. Really, this person needed to have his brain checked sometime soon, no thief in their right mind would turn on the lights while performing bad deeds. Still Callaghan was thankful for his stupidity, it made his job much more easier.

He silenced his footfalls when the elevator door slid open soundlessly, approaching the room with caution. He mentally cringed back when he unconsciously brought his foot down too hard on the tiled floor, creating a clacking sound that echoed down the hallway, undoubtedly notified whoever inside the room of his presence.

Well, no point in hiding now. Metaphorically threw the caution out of the window, he made a beeline for the lab and pulled the handle down, eyes staring straight ahead for any danger.

The sight that greeted him could possibly be listed as one of weirdest scenes he had ever perceived.

There was Baymax, Tadashi's robotic nurse, hovering over what he deemed a small boy clad in some type of indigo jumpsuit, meticulously wrapping white cloth around his leg. Callaghan's eyebrows rose in curiosity, wondering what on earth Tadashi's kid brother, Hiro, was doing inside his older sibling's lab at the ungodly hour of the night.

On second thought, this was not Hiro. The boy sitting across from him seemed a tad bit taller with somewhat shorter and less messy mop of black hair, though he still bore some eerie semblances to Hiro, especially those round brown orbs. He did a double take when he became aware of the emotions this kid's eyes were telling him. Wariness lurked beneath those eyes, but unmistakably it was the same look he knew so well whenever he saw himself in the mirror, the look of someone that had been through hell and back, of someone that was subjected to the unfathomable volume of mental agony. Callaghan felt for the boy, no one that young should have that look marring permanently on their features.

He was about to voice his concern when the boy decided to pay his full attention to the puffy hands that were tying ,though with little success, a ribbon around his leg.

"Aren't you supposed to be at home?" The boy's voice gave away none of his emotions, just an even tone many people would consider downright disrespectful.

Callaghan did not mind it, though, at least the boy was willing to talk "I believe that should be me to ask that question. Did it occur to you that you are the one to trespass on the institute's property?" He replied in kind.

A faint scowl presented itself on the boy's face for a brief second before vanishing completely, leaving behind only a blank mask of face. Silence descended once more on the room. Callaghan was not known a tolerant professor when it came to assignments deadline for nothing, he had more than enough patience to spend.

After ten minutes of struggling, Baymax had succeeded in creating a useful knot to secure the bandage, albeit a rather simple double knot. He observed as the boy wiggled his toes to get the feeling back, all the while stopping Baymax's persistent attempt to scoop him up for whatever reason the robot believed helpful.

At the tenth fail attempt, the kid was clearly annoyed beyond belief and his voice, clear and demanding cut through the stillness for the second time "I'm satisfied with my care Baymax. Thank you"

The robot halted mid-bending, straightened up and blinked at the kid for some kind of confirmation before making his way to the red pod and deflated himself.

The wind suddenly picked up, rushed inside the room through the glassless window in a cool late summer sweep, salty scent from the sea carried inside circulated around the confined lab. The waxing gibbous moon hung low on the western horizon, a sickly yellow hue reflecting off the lake's surface. San Fransokyo was never a city known for star-gazing, with giant commercial advertisements flashing colorful blinding lights 24/7, so it really came as no surprise to the older man when he could only spotted Venus blinking dimly on the cloudless night sky.

And for the third and probably the last time that night the boy would ever initiated a conversation, he spoke in a serious tone "Professor, do you mind if I ask you something?"

He was curious to what the kid had in mind "Please ask away".

"Do you believe in time-travelling?"

AN: Merry Christmas everyone c: . Wish you all have a wonderful holiday.

I am deadly tired, this is the first time I've actually pulled an all-nighter, and it seriously taking a toll on my health, I can feel eye bags forming.

To my lovelies~~

sherlywherlylock: Thank you :). It really makes my day. Sorry for taking like 2 weeks (?) to update, finals were hectic. But now that all the tests are over hopefully I will have more time to focus on writing.

BrokenWings2602: I know right! I mean for every fandom there are time travel stories and I super love them! Different authors have a different take of what will and will not happen and it is just so exciting to read them. Thank you for the support.

ZoeBreaky: Thanks for the love. Here is the next installment, hope you'll enjoy c;

snowflakeangel21: Aww, thank you so much 3. I hope I did a mildly good job for the part you like

Golden feathers Edward: Where is the fun to make him avoid his past self? *wink* I love the chaos that would ensue! ;)

untamabledragon144: Thank you for your detailed critics. I did reread the previous chapter, and I have to say it was quite an illogical part. But I have this theory in mind that would probably, well, answer your question, somewhat. Let just say that Hiro is used to getting injury. I mean he did spend 18 months fighting off bad guys and criminals, right? And he might not be the one to directly involve in the fly, but still, things can go out of hand often than not. A fall from Baymax's back could easily resulted in dislocated shoulders, twisted ankles and wrists. So getting these wounds on daily basis could really build up his pain resistance, and Hiro is never one to complain in my opinion... So there you have it, a Hiro acting calmly when his leg was broken. I am open for any suggestion and refutation, so feel free to express your opinion on not only this but also every aspect that you are still not satisfied with my writing. Your critic really helps me learn my mistake, thanks a bunch c:

P/S: A huge thanks to everyone who follow and favorite. I love you guys so much! Please point out any mistakes you can find, any incomprehensible sentences, any typos and so on. Like I said, all-nighter with no caffeine really did not help my already stinky writing. Enjoy!