Chapter 35 Cause of Death: UNKNOWN

Chapter Summary: Touya and Hawks come to a startling conclusion.

AN: This chapter is proofread by the lovely Elielephant. Go check out her works! She draws amazing digital art for her fics on AO3!

WARNING: There is a short, 1-paragraph, graphic autopsy procedure near the end of the chapter. It began with "The thought of..." and ended on "HUH?" Feel free to skip it if it might make you uncomfortable.

"Dabi-kun!"

Touya jolted, almost spilling his coke when his internet alias was called. He had been spacing out for the past ten minutes, and their little offline gathering had only gone on for about ten minutes. Partying, socializing, anything that had to do with interacting with lots of people just wasn't his thing.

"What?" He grumbled as he carefully set down his drink.

"It's your turn," Magne said with a smile. Sitting directly across from Touya, she was a large woman with musculine features and broad shoulders. She was the one who organized the meetup, gathering nearly a dozen people at the large round table reserved just for them at a Chinese Restaurant. On the lazy Susan was someone's phone, now pointed directly at him.

"My turn to do what?"

Someone snickered and Touya sent them a seething glare.

"Your reason for joining the Endeavor hateclub."

Touya looked down at his glass of coke. He was the only one who refused alcohol. He was old enough to drink, but he hated the taste, plus letting alcohol influence his mind and cause him to lose control of his body was plain idiocy. His reputation wasn't the only thing on the line if he fucked up and got caught on film. Considering the kind of assholes that existed on the internet, they'd for sure reveal every single detail of him they could find, including his relationship to Fuyumi. And he'd kill himself before he would let his mistake destroy her career.

"Why would anyone not join this hateclub?" Touya sneered, leaning back in his chair and crossing his legs under the table. "Violent, cruel, and selfish... Aside from saving people 'cause that's his fucking job, when had he ever acted like a hero? A hero inspires, motivates, gives us dreams and hope. All Endeavor knows how to do is use others for his own benefits with a complete disregard to their feelings and desires. No one in their right mind would think of him as their idol."

"Well said! I can't agree more!" Magne clapped and everyone else followed. She then motioned for Touya to spin the lazy Susan to choose the next participant.

With a sigh, Touya placed two fingers on the rotating piece of circular glass and lazily spun it. The entire time, he felt Magne eyes following his every move, though he couldn't confirm his suspicion due to the dark shades she wore.

Touya, just like everyone else, went by his online alias in this offline gathering. Due to his prominent hair color, he even dyed it black to erase any chance of people suspecting his relationship to Endeavor.

He was careful of what he said, how he acted, both online and offline. There shouldn't be any reason anyone would suspect his identity, no reason for Magne to look at him like a snake watching its prey.

As if this was a complaint party, accusations were thrown, rumors were discussed, and fantasies of Endeavor in numerous state of distress or humiliation were shared. Touya himself didn't mind listening on the sidelines as that failure of a hero was the topic of ridicule, but he didn't come to this offline gathering for this level of 'hate'. He wanted more action and less words, more ideas and less complaints.

He alone wasn't powerful enough to do something about Endeavor's absolute control over his family, so he had hoped that these like-minded individuals could provide him with some ideas and strength. Surprise, surprise. Turned out they were all conceited and ignorant fools who bad-mouthed others to make themselves feel better. How naive, to be satisfied with merely complaining and then hating Endeavor for continue being the way he was.

The pendant light hanging off of the ceiling gave everything a dim, yellowish hue, creating a dark and ominous atmosphere that completely contrasted this supposedly jubilant event. Cigarette smoke clouded above the table, obscuring the faces, its suffocating stench mixed amongst the mephitic wafts of alcohol.

Disgusting. If not for the free lunch Touya would have left as soon as he stepped a foot into this shithole.

Although the food had started to carry a noxious stench, too. Guess it was about time to leave. He was getting nowhere with these fools.

It was mid-afternoon when he stepped out of the restaurant. Touya leaned against the wall by the entrance, watching cars on the street zoom by and pedestrians rush past him. Everyone seemed to be in a hurry, moving at a pace too fast to be comfortable.

But wasn't that just life?

Years flew by in the blink of an eye. It felt like yesterday when Fuyumi stood up for Shouto and volunteered to be that bastard's tool, or masterpiece, as he would call it. And before he knew it, before anyone knew it, she had obtained her hero license and rose on the hero rankings.

The 100s, the top 25s, and now the top 10s, securing the Number 10's spot. She climbed her way up much too fast for a 22-year-old, so fast some assholes had been making crude jokes about how Hawks was like the shinkansen and anyone who rode him was well on their merry way to the top.

Everything happened too fast for his liking. Life happened too fast. Now, they were all separated. Fuyumi was a pro hero and didn't have time for anything else if she aimed to surpass All Might of all people (what a fucking joke). Natsuo was wasting his life away in college in another city and apparently he even got a girlfriend. Shouto was attending UA and living at home. Once a family, now broken into pieces. Touya wanted them together, wanted things to go back to the way they were before. He wasn't a people person, but family was different. He missed the times they spent in each other's company.

Touya raised an eyebrow when three police cars in a row sped off into the distance, blasting sirens along the way.

A rapid, upbeat electronic ringtone pulled away his attention. Touya took out his phone and checked the caller ID. It was Shouto.

"Sup."

"Nii-san, where are you?"

"I'm with my friends in Hosu. Why?"

"You have friends?" Shouto's voice sounded so innocently curious Touya couldn't even get mad if he wanted to.

"Yes I have friends, you turd." Clicking his tongue, Touya reluctantly admitted. "It's an online gathering."

"Oh…" For a few seconds, Shouto just breathed softly, then he said in a hushed tone, "Are you sure they don't have any ulterior motives for hanging out with you?" The emphasis on 'you' was quite offensive, to say the least. "People on the internet are always hiding their true identity. You can't be too careful about who you hang out with. Are you safe? Are you sure－"

Touya felt his eyes twitch in annoyance.

"Well, aren't you in a chatty mood. You won the sports festival or something? What are you calling me for?"

"Nothing... Just want to check up on you."

Without even saying a courteous goodbye, Shouto hang up.

The nerve of that kid.

"Dabi-kun."

Touya jerked around so fast he nearly gave himself a whiplash. Magne stood with her hands in her pockets, shoulder-length red hair swaying back and forth in the breeze.

With a build like hers, Touya was surprised she managed to sneak up on him. Either she was good at keeping quiet, or he was just not paying attention to his surroundings.

Touya cleared his throat. "You don't seem drunk."

"I've always been fairly good with alcohol." Magne grinned.

"Hm."

"I heard you mentioning the sports festival. Do you have any siblings in UA?"

"Why do you want to know?" Touya crossed his arms, feeling a little defensive.

"Ah~ I'm just curious~" Magne said in a sickly sweet and dismissive tone, her thick lips curling into an easy smile that did nothing to soothe his nerves. She obviously wanted something from him, if her sudden curiosity in his personal life when she had rarely spoken a word to him on the internet wasn't an obvious enough hint. But what exactly were her intentions for talking with him?

Everyone wanted something when they strike a conversation.

Touya wouldn't flatter himself to think she was interested in him, so it must be something else.

Did she find out his relationship to Endeavor?

Or was it his conversation with Shouto that caught her attention?

If so, what part?

"Anyway, enough with the small talks." Magne suddenly lost her smiles, her voice taking a deeper tone. She took a small, yet threatening, step towards Touya, who had his back against the wall. Now that they were both standing and face to face, Touya noticed Magne was a few centimeters taller than he was. Having to look up at her made her demeanor even more pressuring.

Touya flexed his hands, feeling the warmth of his fire brushing against his palms.

He didn't want to have to resort to using his quirk. Not because he was against the idea of hurting people with it, but rather he didn't want any attention on him. The more people that knew his connection to Fuyumi, the higher the chance of him becoming her weakness. And he would never live it down if a villain were to use him to get to her.

But that also didn't mean Touya would just let someone trample all over him.

If Shouto was right and Magne indeed had an ulterior motive and intended to act on it, he wouldn't hesitate to burn her alive.

Here it comes.

"Have you heard of Stain?"

Touya blinked.

"Stain?" He asked, more out of confusion for the sudden topic change than anything else.

"Yes, Hero Killer Stain." Magne nodded, an enthusiastic grin playing on her lips as she explained. "Although the media depicted him as a villain, to me and many others he is in fact a hero! He seeks out those 'false heroes' and eradicates them because they don't deserve the title of a 'hero.'"

As someone who spent all day on the internet, of course Touya had heard of the man and his deeds. Although Stain was only active around Hosu City, news of his kills had spread all over the internet faster than any celebrity affairs had managed.

Admittedly, Touya was a little fascinated at first by the villain, but his method of eradicating the false heroes made him a threat. He was the Hero Killer, the enemy of all heroes. He may claim he only killed false heroes, but who knew if he wouldn't start slaughtering innocent heroes (Yumi to be specific) one day?

Any existential danger to Fuyumi is an enemy of Touya's. And he had no qualms about seeing the villain get what he deserved for being a threat to his sister.

"And?" Touya lifted his chin, eyeing the woman with a cold glare. "What's that got to do with me?"

Hands resting on her hips, Magne leaned in close, so close Touya smelled the foul stench of alcohol on her breath, and whispered, "Everything."

The close proximity was unnerving, but Touya stood his ground. He observed the woman closely, staring directly at the dark shades that covered her eyes. He had no clue why she approached him, but he sensed something was off. There was something about her aura that didn't match her intimidating pose.

He wondered if she was testing him, trying to see how to get under his skin, using her methods to provoke him. She wanted to make him uncomfortable, see him flinch, and cower under her pressure. But if she thought she could scare him this easily, she had another thing coming.

Touya shoved his hands in his pockets and raised a brow at her, eyeing her in disappointment, as if asking "is this all you've got?"

The glare across her sunglasses lightened just enough when she moved her head slightly to the right, and Touya saw her winking at him.

"You know, after hearing everyone's reasons for joining, yours was the most relatable to me." Magne backed up to a more reasonable distance and rested her weight on her right foot.

"You genuinely hate him. I don't know your reasons, but your words hit me the hardest," Magne said softly, placing a hand over her heart and bowing her head slightly. "There are way too many people in this world who don't deserve to be heroes. They don't understand what it means to be a hero. Just saving people isn't enough."

Touya narrowed his eyes.

Just where is she going with this?

"Stain understands that and is willing to bring about the change with his own hands. He is out there, fighting for his ideals and ridding the world of false heroes who don't deserve the appreciation they received. How can you hate Endeavor, a false hero, and not support Stain? Don't you agree?"

She chose him because she thought he was just like her. It wouldn't hurt to go along with her and see what she'd do next.

"Who said I don't support him?"

Magne cracked a wide, toothy grin.

"Perfect! Recently a friend of mine invited me to a group of people who all supports Stain. You can even call it a Stain fanclub, although we don't operate like a traditional fanclub. We're all there as his backbone, to provide support when he is in need. He represents us and is fighting for our ideal, so this is the least we can do. And now, I would like to extend an invitation to you as well. You deserve to be there."

"I'm not a fan of fanclubs."

"Ohhh trust me, you'll end up loving it," Magne cooed, swaying her hips.

Touya clicked his tongue in annoyance. He hated when people make assumptions of him without even knowing him fully.

"...I'll think about it."

"Shoot me a message when you've decided to join."

Magne dipped her head lightly and walked back into the restaurant with a sway in her hips. Loud chatters could be heard momentarily before the door closed.

Touya stayed outside for a moment more to rethink the conversation before he returned inside. Seeing the others still drunk off their asses, he made sure to catch Magne's eyes when he left the gathering.

Before he could do anything else, his phone rang once again showing Shouto's caller ID. Immediately when he picked up, Shouto's uncharacteristically demanding voice cut through the air like his ice shards.

"Nii-san, you're in Hosu right? I need you to go find neechan immediately. I think she's in danger. Hawks is already searching for her. I've tried calling her but I couldn't get a hold of her."

"Explain."

Shouto relayed the situation to him in a rushed string of words. He sounded so panicked, so unlike him to be this concerned about their sister's well-being. As a hero, she had been through a few incidents and all of them knew that she was more than capable of defending herself. They should have known. So why was Shouto so worried? What made it so different this time?

"Nii-san, I've never seen father look so horrified. I know nee-san is strong, but... What if something happened? I don't want to regret later that I haven't done anything when I could have."

"I'll find her."

"Thank y－"

Touya ended the call with a wicked grin. He knew he was immature for wanting to get back at an underage kid, but he really didn't have time to waste if the situation truly was as drastic as Shouto made it seem. He tried not to imagine Fuyumi in numerous dangerous situations while locating Hawks' name on his contact list.

The howling sound of wind was the first thing he heard when the Number 3 hero answered the call. Occasionally there was a whooshing noise, like a large fan stirring up the wind. Somewhere in the distance was the familiar sound of police sirens, droning repetitively under the layers of wind.

When Hawks spoke, the optimistic tone he used sounded too forced to be genuine.

"Hey Touya-chan! I'm a little busy right now so can I call you back later?"

"Where are you?" A horrible feeling gripped his chest and Touya subconsciously clutched the fabric on the inside of his pocket.

"Just doing my job, patrolling Hosu right now."

"Did you make any progress with your search?"

"Eh?" A pause. "What are you talking about, Touya-chan?"

"Don't play dumb with me. I know you're looking for Fuyumi. Tell me, what areas have you searched already?"

"Ahaha, so Shouto-kun told you as well, huh?" Hawks' strained laughter suddenly died off as the flapping increased its pace, cutting through the howling wind like a throwing card whizzing through the air. Other sound began to mix in with the police sirens—

Wait.

Police sirens?

Something clicked in his mind and Touya dove into the road, forcefully stopping a taxi by standing in its way. The taxi driver began yelling at him but stopped and gulped visibly when Touya slammed a hand on the top of the driver's window and leaned in.

"Less than ten minutes ago a few police cars drove by. Do you know where they went?"

The old man whimpered in fear.

"Y-Yes."

"Take me over there."

"Y-Yes sir."

Touya sat down onto the backseat roughly and ordered the old man to begin driving with a single glare through the rear mirror.

"T-Touya..."

"Is it Fuyumi?"

The moment of hesitation was all the fuel he needed.

The fire sparked deep within the pits of his gut, roaring into an inferno that made his skin crawl with heat. He leaned forward and grabbed the driver's seat, his nails digging into the worn leather. There was an audible gulp, and beads of sweat dripped down the old man's cheek.

"Drive faster," Touya growled, his tone low like a feral animal as his fingernails clawed through the leather of the driver's seat like blades. The car immediately picked up speed, the engine roaring as the street outside blurred together.

Hawks didn't say a thing while Touya put on his seatbelt. He could hear rapid breathing and some murmuring too quiet and too far for him to make out what the pro hero was saying.

"Hawks?"

"I-I'll call you later."

"Wait!"

Their connection ended abruptly, cutting off on Hawks' end.

Touya brutally clicked his phone shut and shoved it in his pocket. His body fell forward like a puppet without the strings and he would have hit his head against the back of the headrest if not for the seatbelt supporting him. With fingers grasping his dyed black hair furiously, he let out a dragged out, shuddering breath.

Fuyumi was strong. That went without saying. She may be stupid and couldn't take care of herself and always put others' needs before herself, but she wouldn't be stupid enough to get herself k－

No! Stop that train of thoughts, Touya! You know that's not going to happen! No fucking way!

She couldn't be dead. She must have been hurt badly, enough to concern even Endeavor, but not dead. No, no way in hell.

Too occupied to track the time, Touya only realized they were at their destination when the blinding blue and red light of multiple police car shone through the front mirror of the taxi and right into his eyes, causing him to wince and block out the light with his hand.

The driver seemed to be saying something, but Touya wasn't paying attention to him. He jumped out of the car, not even bothering to shut the door as he manhandled his way through the crowd that had gathered, ducked under the barricade tape, wove around the police car and then－

N-No...

No way...

This can't be real...

"Fuyumi...?" His voice came out small and weak, on the verge of breaking.

A hand grabbed his shoulders and he jerked it off, stumbling towards the body and dropping down to his knees.

"Fuyumi...?"

His hands hovered hesitantly above her, trembling like autumn leaves right before they fell, lifeless and withered away.

She looked so serene, and Touya was willing to let himself believe for a moment that she was merely sleeping, that this was just a dream, a nightmare created by Endeavor to mess with him.

His eyes wandered to the gashing wound on her abdomen and he bit back a gasp. The cut spanned straight across, almost too straight, cutting through her fireproof hero suit. Disgust coiled in his stomach and his throat closed off, his entire body shuddering violently in repulsion. He didn't even realize he was biting his lips until the pain registered.

"I'm sorry."

Touya flinched when Hawks' voice whispered behind him and he didn't move to acknowledge his presence. He remained in his position, fingers clawing into his dark blue jeans and eyes falling onto her face, pointedly not looking at her wound. He wasn't shy of blood and gore, but this was his sister's. This was her blood staining his jeans, her flesh ripped open, her body cold upon his touch. This was wrong.

Red. Red. Red was everywhere.

Her blood, her wound, her pale lips, her hair.

Endeavor's color.

Touya had never hated one color so damn much.

"I should have stayed with her during patrol. I shouldn't have left her alone." Gone was the flippant tone in Hawks' voice. He had always wished it would happen; the hero was too carefree for his liking, but he didn't want it to happen like this. Not like this. "I'm so sorry, Touya."

"Don't apologize," Touya spat out through gritted teeth. "Don't talk about her as if she were a fragile girl who can't do anything on her own. She's worked hard, harder than anyone, and I was there to see it all. Unlike many other female heroes who charmed their way up the hero rankings, Fuyumi made her way to the Number 10 spot with sheer determination and effort. So just because she's... she's… It doesn't mean that she's weak and you have to protect her."

"You're right… But..." Hawks trailed off. "It doesn't change that I'm still to blame here... I… I knew Hero Killer Stain is active in Hosu, yet I didn't－"

"Wait- What did you just say?" Touya shot up from the ground, the movement startling Hawks whose limp wings suddenly stretched out.

"Um... Stain is active... in Hosu?" Hawks raised his hands in a surrendering pose, glassy gold eyes meeting sharp frosty blue.

"Are you saying... Stain killed her?"

Hawks nodded, lips drawn in a thin line and a serious look on his face as he glanced away. His wings started to droop once again. "We're waiting for the Medical Examiner to come investigate the body, but when you take everything into account, Stain is the only possible suspect. He's already killed multiple strong and capable professional heroes, he's always lurking around in Hosu, plus his signature weapon is a katana with an uneven edge. And that—" He pointed at the laceration with a gloved finger. "－is a Katana wound. The cut was too irregular to be from a normal katana."

Touya followed his finger－

And immediately clenched his eyes shut, his fingers curling into tight fists in his pockets.

What exactly had Fuyumi done to deserve the same treatment as the other 'false' heroes? She couldn't be more of a 'true' hero, especially when compared to the likes of Endeavor.

Touya yearned to know, his fingers itching to wring the answer out of that bastard himself. But to do so, he would have to catch Stain f－

Hold on.

"What the－"

His gaze landed on Fuyumi's pale neck, exposed under the collar of her suit. He reached out tentatively and was just about to touch the skin when a shrill, high-pitched voice shook him to the core.

"DON'T TOUCH MY BODY!"

A tall and lanky woman sprinted over and slammed her clipboard on his head, nearly causing him to faceplant onto the body.

"WHO THE HELL ARE YOU!?" She screamed into his ears. Before Touya could even retort (or slam the clipboard back onto her horseface), she rounded on Hawks. "AND YOU, HAWKS! YOU KNOW UNAUTHORIZED PERSONS ARE NOT ALLOWED IN THE CRIME SCENE, LET ALONE TOUCH MY BODY!"

"M-My bad…" Known for his speed, Hawks pulled up Touya by his arm and dragged him out of sight.

"The hell is her problem!?" Touya peaked around the police car they were hiding behind and snarled when he saw the woman lay her hands on his sister.

"Ahaha, that's Ms. Lee, the M.E. of HPD. She's just very...austere when it comes to her job. Follow her rules and you won't be yelled at."

"Sounds like a bitch to me."

Hawks chuckled without any humor in his voice. Raw pain flickered across his eyes as he took in the scene one last time before he withdrew his gaze. "Come on, let's get you out of here before she finds you and yells at us both again." His hands trembled slightly when he wrapped his arm around Touya's shoulders (which he shrugged off) to usher him off of the crime scene.

Hawks was a good liar, but even he couldn't control his body to this extent. It was those moments of vulnerabilities that allowed Touya to see him as less of a hero and more of a guy who truly cared about Fuyumi. He'd always felt a tad bit jealous of the blonde for stealing his sister away from him. He knew Hawks could make her happy and there was nothing more he wished for her. But he'd always been afraid of Hawks letting him down, letting Fuyumi down. He needed proof that Hawks cared; he needed to be convinced that Hawks deserved his trust.

"Wait－"

"Later, alright? Later."

A glance around showed the officers and some of the bystanders in the crowd eyeing him strangely, probably wondering who the hell he was and what he had to do with Hawks and Yumi.

This wasn't good.

He may have a good enough disguise to fool those who didn't know him, but anyone who knew basic googling could find childhood pictures of him and his siblings with Endeavor and would be able to put two and two together. And if he wanted to sustain his peaceful life up to now, he'd have to limit his media exposure.

"Listen, Hawks." Touya leaned in close and whispered, "Something isn't right about this. I don't doubt Stain is the murderer, but there's gotta be something else going on."

"You're being too skeptical, Touya-chan~" Hawks' smile was fake, forced, feigning reassurance. His wings stirred restlessly on his back, the red plumes curling ever so slightly at the tips.

"I'm sure you know— that necklace she always wears— that was a birthday present from me back when we were kids. She's always worn it ever since. If you check her pictures you'd see her wearing it on every single one of them. But guess what I saw back there?" Touya jerked his chin at the body. "It wasn't there," he hissed. "She would never take it off, so where did it go? Did Stain take it? What does he want with some cheap, poorly-made childish necklace?"

"You don't think－"

Blue met gold and both flashed with realization.

"Someone else was there besides Stain and took the necklace."

Hosu Police Department
Medical Examiner's Office
7:45 PM

The temperature in her office was a little too cold for her liking, but Lee wasn't here to be comfortable. She was here to figure out the cause of death for the pretty little body currently lying on the examination table.

Yes, the cause of death, you heard it right.

But wasn't the killer Stain? You might ask.

That was just an assumption made by untrained ordinary people with no knowledge in forensics.

Lee, with her twenty years of experience in the forensics field, easily noticed the oddities at the crime scene.

First of all, the girl's expression was too peaceful for someone who was murdered.

Secondly, there were no signs of struggling from what her trained eyes had assessed.

And thirdly, the pool of blood was way too little for someone who died from an exsanguination.

Corpses wouldn't bleed, because their blood circulation had already been cut off.

For a living being to lose this little blood and die of 'apparent blood loss', there had to be other factors that ceased—or slowed down— blood circulation prior to that wound on the abdomen.

And if Lee could find out what those other factors were, she'd discover the real cause of death.

Lee put her microcassette recorder into a small ziplock bag and turned it on.

Click.

"Forensic examination by Mu Lee. It is now seven forty-five pm at HPD Medical Examiner's Office. Room is approximately sixteen-degrees celsius.

"The deceased is received wearing outdoor clothing including non-slip boots, socks, gloves, flame-resistant jacket and trousers. Accompanying the body is a fanny pouch containing a wallet, phone, and a portable charger. A wristwatch is present on the left wrist."

Lee paused the recording and proceeded to strip the body bare. She shone a UV light at the body, looking for evidence not easily visible to the naked eye on the body's surface. Unsurprisingly, she found none.

That means the killer is either someone she is familiar with, or she is threatened into not struggling.

Next, she took samples of the hair and nails and took an X-ray scan of the body.

Click.

"The body is that of a well-developed, well-nourished, Japanese female adult appearing the stated age of 22 years. The hair color is white with red streaks and it reaches down to the shoulders. Early rigor mortis is present. Postmortem lividity has settled in the back of the body.

"The head is normocephalic. There are contact lenses in the eyes. Eyes are gray in color. The irides are discolored by decompositional changes. The pupils are equal in diameter. There are no conjunctival petechiae. The nose is normal. Teeth are present. Oral hygiene is good. The ears are pierced.

"There are no nevi or tattoos. The extremities are symmetrical and there are no significant deforming injuries. There is no significant increase in the anteroposterior diameter of the chest. The abdomen is distended slightly by gas. There is an 11 and one-fourth inches laceration horizontally across the abdomen."

Click.

Lee pulled up another body and aligned it adjacent to the current one. The male body was a victim of that Hero Killer a few days ago. It had a laceration diagonally across its back, made by the Hero Killer's signature katana. She held up a magnifying glass to inspect the cut.

The Hero Killer's katana is worn and partially damaged, causing the laceration to have an uneven edge. But… the laceration on the girl's body seems too evenly uneven. There's almost a pattern to it. It's too perfect, too artificial.

Lee set down the magnifying glass and picked up the recorder.

Click.

"Laceration has an uneven edge. Upon further investigation, it does not match the laceration made by the Hero Killer's katana."

Click.

She pushed the male body away and returned to the girl's body.

To prepare for the internal examination, Lee called in a diener to assist her with cleaning and measuring the body.

Click.

"The body length is 63 inches and the body weight is 115 pounds."

Click.

On a sanitized tray beside the table, she had prepared all the equipment she'd need for the autopsy.

The thought of having a beautiful body to dissect brought a glint of hunger into her eyes. Licking her lips, Lee placed a block under the upper back, which caused the chest to protrude outward and the arms and neck to fall back, allowing her maximum exposure to the trunk. She then pressed a scalpel into the top of the right shoulder and ran it around the breasts, then did the same on the other side. Both incisions met at the sternum. Just as she was about to cut it down vertically to the pubic bone to form a Y-shaped incision, the flesh beneath her hand softened.

"HUH?"

One second the body was made of flesh and bones. The next second, it had melted into what looked like mud.

"OH MY!"

If it hadn't happened right in front of her eyes, Lee wouldn't have believed it.

Her body! Her beautiful body! Now a pile of mud!

Click.

"THE BODY— THE BODY JUST— IT MELTED! THE BODY MELTED! I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING! IT JUST HAPPENED WITHOUT WARNING—"

That guy!

That guy must have touched my body and did something to it!

Wholehearted on her belief, Lee stumbled out of her office, screaming at the top of her lungs.

"SOMEONE GET ME THE NUMBER TO HAWKS' AGENCY! I'M GONNA FIND THAT LITTLE BASTARD WHO DID THIS TO MY BODY!"

AN: Forensics is such a fun topic :3

I referred to Gotham 1x09 (Edward Nygma ^^) and a free autopsy report example I found online for the medical examination portion.

Touya(not yet)Dabi is such a pain to write. The first try I made him speak and behave too much like Shouto (too aloof), and when I tried to make him more of an asshole, he turned out like Bakugo (too much of an asshole), on the 3rd try I finally (sort of) got him down by making him act like a less villainous Dabi and a more violent Shouto lol

Next chapter we get Izuku vs Stain. And shit goes down (even further, it's all Izuku's fault).