PUPPET // KATSUKI BAKUGO [1]

Chapter 59 // One Step Closer

You came to your senses when gloved fingers tapped your cold cheek. You opened your eyes, blinking slowly as you tried to comprehend your surroundings.

"There's my wonderful creation," a voice said, which belonged to the man that stood in front of you.

You noted how he seemed to be lower than you, which caused you to look around for an answer or any answer for that matter.

You were standing on a square platform that was about a foot off the ground. There were tubes and wires connected to your body all over, but they didn't serve you any pain. They simply felt a bit odd.

Your body was cold, and you assumed that was only because you were wearing close to nothing. The only clothing that covered your body was a pair of black compression shorts, and a matching compression shirt that was slightly too short snd showed about two inches of your midsection.

You observed your body. Your skin was oddly smooth, and your biceps were toned to the maximum, which also applied to your stomach and legs. Your muscles seemed a bit extreme for a female, but you didn't know if it was strange for you considering you can't seem to remember anything that happened before you woke up minutes ago.

"Mimic, she's conscious. Disconnect the wires," the man in front of you said before a small creature scurried into your vision and began to work on setting you free.

"Look at me," the man continued, his voice all but hostile. "I am Kai Chisaki. I am your creator. You listen to any and every word that leaves my mouth and my mouth only. Do not take orders from anyone else. Understood?"

You felt a reluctance deep down inside you, but your brain was working in the opposite direction. You nodded before the tiny sliver of sanity you had left could stop you.

"Good," Chisaki commented. "Would you like to step down?" He extended a hand as he took a step away and folded his other arm behind his back.

You found yourself setting your hand in his before you could even think otherwise and allowed him to help you step off the platform you had been standing on for god knows how long.

"Chisaki," you said, your voice a bit deeper than you imagined it would be.

You didn't speak in a tone that sounded like you were addressing him. You were simply stating his name, repeating it like a mantra.

"Yes, that's my name," the man stated.

"My name," you replied. "What is my name?"

"Mhm," Chisaki hummed. "What do you want it to be?"

You thought for a moment. Did you not already have a name? If so, how were you supposed to pick one. You didn't know what you looked like. How could you pick one that would fit you?

"You choose," you stated, and Chisaki raised a brow.

"Alright," he eventually said before leaning close to your face as if to observe it. "How about...Era? Is very close to the name of someone else who's dear to me."

"Era..." you repeated. It sounded like a decent enough name. You trusted him to give you a good name. "Alright."

"Great," Chisaki responded, but, before he could speak any further, someone knocked on the closed door of the room.

"Boss," a masculine voice said. "Eri ran off again."

"Eh, she won't get far," Chisaki replied, loud enough for the mystery man to hear threw the door. "You can go."

Footsteps could be heard fading away as Chisaki turned back to you, saying, "I need to take care of an...issue. Mimic here," he gestured toward the small being that freed you, "will help you learn, tame, and use your quirks in the meantime. I hope you're a quick learner because I'm expecting guests soon."

Chisaki then left without another word, leaving you alone with this tiny creature he referred to as Mimic.

"Okay," Mimic began, "let's begin, shall we?"

¥¥¥

Bakugo tapped the sharpie in his hand against his cheek as he stared at the evidence board he had made the day prior as soon as Aizawa returned with the evidence. He didn't have much, but he had a start.

1. Belongings Found: [L/N]'s phone
2. Main Suspect: Overhaul
3. Possible Suspects: The League of Villains
4. [L/N]'s Main Enemies: The League of Villains
5. Recent Events: Overhaul broke into Gym Gamma the night [L/N] and Todoroki were there
6. Other Information: unnamed witness saw someone matching Overhaul's description speaking with a hooded figure a few blocks down from Gym Gamma post breaking in

That was all he had, and now he was forced to draw any conclusion he could until he was given any more evidence.

Bakugo grabbed two sticky notes, placed them a few inches apart from each other using thumbtacks, and wrote "Overhaul" on one and "LOV" on the other. He then linked them together with a piece of red string before writing a logical conclusion another sticky note.

Overhaul could've possibly been working for/or with the League as he had no probable reason to kidnap [L/N] on his own. Not only would this cover the League's tracks, but it would pose a distraction and stray police in the wrong direction when searching.

Bakugo then stepped back to observe the board in full view again, and his eyes drifted over to your phone, which was contained in a ziplock bag and pinned to the cork board.

He unpinned the bag from the board, opened it up, and pulled your phone out. There was no point in trying to keep anyone from touching it. Both him and Aizawa had already contaminated it the previous night after you were taken.

Bakugo unlocked your phone with the code you had trusted him with and began to skim through it. He didn't expect to find anything out of the ordinary, but you never know when something may pop out of nowhere.

He ended up clicking on your camera roll at some point and found himself scrolling through a bunch of photos the two of you had taken together over the course of your relationship whether that be before the two of you started dating or after.

He compared his expression in photos before the relationship started and after, and he realized how much more happy he seemed after the two of you started dating.

To spare himself from anymore sadness, Bakugo moved to put your phone back in the bag, but then he caught a glimpse of your recent photos. There was an odd one out; a blurry picture of something as your most recent photo.

Bakugo couldn't help himself as his curiosity got the best of him. He clicked on the photo, and his eyes widened as it fully expanded and revealed what it was.

The photo was clearly taken from a lower perspective, and, from how blurry it was, the picture was most likely accidentally taken as your phone fell from your pocket.

It was you, eyesclosed and head lolled to the side as if you had just been knocked out. Your body was in the process of falling to the right, and, over your shoulder, another figure could be seen. It may have been blurry, but it was clear who it was. With brown hair, gold eyes, and a beak-like mask, there was no doubt that your kidnapper was Overhaul.

Bakugo quickly scribbled down the information on the board before rushing downstairs to Aizawa's office, which he barged into without even knocking.

"Bakugo," Aizawa acknowledged with a startled exhale. "What's so urgent that you had to barge in here like that?"

"It was Overhaul," Bakugo rushed out as he tossed his teacher your still unlocked phone, which had the photo on display. Aizawa caught glimpse of the photo and abruptly stood, staring at the phone in shock.

"Why didn't we check this sooner?" he rhetorically asked before looking up at Bakugo. "Nice job, Bakugo. I'm gonna take this to the station so they can file it."

Bakugo stepped aside as Aizawa rushed past him with his keys and your phone in hand, and the boy couldn't help but smile slightly.

They were one step closer to finding you.

[EDITED]