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“Hiro,” the 15-year-old looked up at Honey Lemon, who was smiling, “You have someone here who wants to see you.”
Hiro sighed before setting what he was working on down, “Aunt Cass,” he called, “I said I’d be home for Christmas Eve dinn—” Hiro went wide eyed when he saw who was actually there.
“I may be older than you, Hamada, but really?”
“Karmi!” Hiro said, smiling, “What are you doing here? I thought your parents—”
“I convinced them to lessen their overprotections since I turn 18 in a few months,” Karmi smiled, “I also wanted to give you this,” Karmi held out the green and red wrapped present to him, smiling shyly.
“Uh…” Hiro said, rubbing the back of his head before taking it, “Thanks, I didn’t actually…I mean, I didn’t know—”
“I know,” Karmi said, “Can I see what you’re working on?”
“Uh…” Hiro said, trying to remember if he was working on something that could give away that he and his friends were Big Hero 6, “Yeah, it’s really nothing though.”
“Have fun!” Honey called as Karmi and Hiro walked towards Hiro’s lab.
Karmi went into the room while Hiro glared at his smug looking friends. He stuck his tongue out at them before following Karmi into the lab, the door automatically closing behind him. An upgrade Professor Granville had installed in his lab so he could work on Big Hero 6 things without the worry of passersby catching sight of something they shouldn’t. Hiro set Karmi’s gift on his workbench and was about to show Karmi his latest project when “Is this it?” Hiro turned behind him and saw Karmi holding a small silver sphere.
Hiro narrowed his eyes, “No…” he walked over to her, putting his actual work-in-progress in his pocket, and took the device Karmi had, “I’ve never seen this before,” he looked around it.
Karmi blinked and looked at the object from over Hiro’s shoulder, “What is it then?” she asked.
“I don’t—” Hiro cut himself off, paling as he found a very familiar symbol on it, “Obake,” he whispered.
“Who?” Karmi asked, “Hiro? Are you okay?”
Hiro practically threw the sphere through the window, but it missed by inches, hitting the wall instead. Hiro was breathing heavily slightly, “Hiro,” Karmi brought Hiro’s face, so he was looking directly at her, “Can you explain to me what’s wrong?”
Hiro took a deep breath, “Obake…is a genius, like us,” he said, “He…he went insane. Professor Granville blames herself for his fall. He…” Hiro relaxed as Karmi took his hand in silent comfort. Hiro took a shaky breath, “He…made me see Tadashi,” Karmi squeezed Hiro’s hand, “He…messed with Baymax’s programming. Made…he kidnapped me,” Karmi went wide eyed, “Back during my first semester. When Big Hero 6 stopped the giant star.”
“Oh my god,” Karmi whispered, “You were in there?”
“No,” Hiro assured, “Globby turned good and broke me out. However…I almost lost Baymax. Tadashi’s chip and all. He’s obsessed with me…or my brain, if I’m being precise. I managed to create the energy amplifier that he needed to create that…damn star.”
“That wasn’t your fault,” Karmi said.
“No, it was,” Hiro stated firmly, “Professor Granville told me not to create it. I did so anyway,” Hiro took a deep breath, “I’m just…still not overall he did. I thought he was dead.”
Karmi looked at where she found the sphere and found a Christmas card. She hesitantly took it, “Um…Hiro,” she said, showing him the card.
Hiro took the card and hesitantly opened it. Karmi put her hand on Hiro’s arm as she read the card as well, “Enjoy your Christmas gift?” Hiro read out loud, confusion in his voice, “Christmas gift?”
Suddenly, the sphere opened up, emitting blue electrical energy. Hiro paled, “Run!” Hiro yelled, pushing Karmi towards the door, “We have to get out of here!”
Karmi didn’t have to be told twice, but both teens were being pulled back the second the door was opened. Karmi grabbed onto the door frame with one hand, wrapping her arm around it while the other hand had a death grip on Hiro’s hand. Hiro looked back, panicked. A blue portal had appeared, “Hiro! Karmi!” GoGo, Honey, Wasabi, and Fred ran towards the lab.
Karmi was barely holding onto the doorframe as the pull from the portal got stronger. And Hiro’s hand was slipping! “GoGo!” Hiro yelled, “Grab Karmi and go!”
“We’re not leaving you!” Honey yelled just as Professor Granville ran over.
“What’s going on here?” the Dean of Students yelled.
“Obake!” Hiro yelled just before Karmi’s hand slipped and both teens went flying towards the portal, “Ah!”
“Hiro!” the teen’s friends yelled just before both went through the portal.
The portal disappeared just as the two teens went through. Leaving only the silver sphere. Honey had her mouth and nose covered with her hands, tears threatening to fall. GoGo, however, was pissed. She stormed into the lab and picked up the Christmas card on the floor before reading it. She crushed it seconds later, “Obake,” she growled.
Hiro and Karmi yelped as they came through the other side of the portal, then realized they were relatively high in the air, “Fuuuuuuah!” Hiro and Karmi screamed as they fell.
Hiro quickly dug through his hoodie pockets than his pants’ pockets until he found a bracelet. He slapped it on his wrist before grabbing Karmi and pulling her to him, “This should protect us,” he said over the rushing wind around them, “But I haven’t tested it yet! This could hurt!”
“If we live!” Karmi said, “I’ll call it a success!”
Both looked down as the ground fast approached. Both braced themselves just as a purple electrical field surrounded them. The ground was just inches from them. Karmi yelped as they bounced before the bracelet short-circuited and the field around them fell. Luckily, they were only a few feet in the air, “Ow!” Hiro and Karmi yelped.
Hiro groaned, pushing himself up from his stomach, “Anything broken?” he asked.
Kamri sat up from her back, rubbing her head, “No,” she said, “Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” Hiro said before looking at his invention, “At least it worked.”
“Thank god,” Karmi said before looking around, “Are we…in the park down the block from the Institute?”
Hiro looked around before narrowing his eyes, “Yes…” he said slowly before standing up, “But that can’t be all,” he helped Karmi up, “Obake wouldn’t just make a teleportation device. He likes over the top plots. To show off his brilliance.”
“And destroy San Fransokyo,” Karmi stated, “That star was going to completely wipe out everything.”
Hiro nodded absently, “Let’s get back to my lab,” he said, “I need to look at that sphere closer.”
Karmi nodded and the two began their walk back to SFIT. Karmi noticed a bruise starting to form on Hiro’s forehead, “Are you sure you’re okay?” Karmi reached to touch the bruise.
Hiro grabbed her hand before it could touch the bruise, “I’m fine,” he said before smiling, “I got worse from roughhousing with Tadashi.”
Karmi relaxed and nodded. Hiro put the hood of his hoodie up over his head as a cold breeze blew past them. Karmi shivered, “I left my jacket at Honey’s Station,” she said.
Hiro looked up, “We’re almost there,” he said as the building in question came into sight before grabbing her hand, “Come on,” the two began running.
Once inside the heated building, Karmi sighed in relief, “Hey,” Hiro said, causing Karmi to look at him, “Stay with the others, okay? I don’t want Obake taking you to try and get to me.”
Karmi bit her lip before sighing, “Alright,” she said, “I’m sure everyone is panicked.”
Hiro nodded before continuing to walk as Karmi stopped at another room. Karmi walked into the room and blinked when no one was inside. That was…odd, “Hello?” she called.
Karmi looked around. Things were…different, but she couldn’t quite place it. And where was her jacket? Karmi moved her hair from her face, just now realizing that she lost her hair tie during the life-or-death fall. She huffed before moving over to Wasabi’s Station, where a newspaper was framed. Was that always there? Karmi tilted her head as she tried to read the headline from behind the yellow line and the glare from the glass. Her eyes suddenly widened and her hand flew to her mouth, backing away slowly, “Karmi?” the girl turned in shock to see GoGo, Honey, Wasabi, and Fred standing there, “What are you doing here?” Honey finished.
“I-I,” Karmi couldn’t remember how to form words.
GoGo popped her gum, “If you’re looking for Hamada,” she said, “He was just heading for his lab.”
Karmi paled, “Oh no, no, no,” Karmi pushed herself through the group of older teens, “No, no, no,” skidded at the door, almost falling, “Wait!” she yelled at the student about to enter a lab.
“Karmi?” the student said as his ID scanned and opened the door, “Are you okay?”
Something shattered from inside the lab, causing the student to turn in shock, only to jump away from the door, “Shit,” Karmi said.
“Tadashi?” Honey came out of the other room, “Is everything alright?”
Like a bat out of hell, Hiro scrambled out of the lab, all but yanked Karmi by the wrist, and bolted for the front doors. Karmi, of course, yelped but ran after Hiro. The Nerd Gang stood in the doorway in shock; GoGo’s gum even fell out of her mouth, “Was that…” Fred trailed off as everyone slowly looked at Tadashi.
His face suddenly contorted into one of pure rage, “Suit up,” he stated, “No one poses as my little brother or kidnaps Karmi.”
Everyone nodded and ran back into the room while Tadashi all but stormed into his lab.
Hiro and Karmi were panting as they arrived back in the park. Hiro looked around with fear before rubbing his eyes roughly, backing up into a tree, “Hiro!” Karmi grabbed his wrists, pulling his hands away from his eyes, “Hiro…stop.”
Hiro shook his head, “Ta-Tadashi’s dead,” he whispered, “O-Obake’s messing with me again. I-I need—” he slid down the tree and covered his face.
Karmi carefully bent down to Hiro, “Hiro,” she said softly, “Can you hear me? Nod if you can,” Hiro nodded slowly, “Okay…then I need you to listen to what I have to say,” Hiro nodded again, hands not leaving his face, “I think that sphere sent us into an AU.”
“AU?” Hiro finally looked up at Karmi, “What’s that?”
“Really?” Karmi deadpanned, “You read fanfiction and don’t know what AU means?”
“I don’t read fanfiction!” Hiro snapped, “…Just yours.”
Karmi sighed softly, “AU stands for Alternate Universe,” she said, “I think that sphere sent us to one.”
“What?” Hiro blinked, “What makes you say that?”
“Because…that building named after your brother is named after you, Hiro,” Hiro went wide eyed, “You died at the Showcase that night, not Tadashi.”
“No, no, no,” Hiro gripped his hair, “I-I can’t—” the two teens turned as familiar suits arrived, and Hiro began to breathe quickly.
Except there were only five heroes, and one hero’s suit was different. Instead of purple and red, the out of place hero was white and red, “Big Hero 6?” Karmi asked, confused.
“Uh…Big Hero 5,” Fred said, “Did you hit your head?”
“Who are you?” Tadashi snapped, stepping forward, “And why did you kidnap Karmi?”
Hiro began to actually hyperventilate, “Wait!” Karmi stood between the heroes and Hiro, “Just…wait. I can explain what happen—” Karmi turned as Hiro curled into himself, holding his head, “Oh no,” Karmi ran over to Hiro, but paused in touching him, “Hiro?” she said, “Can you hear me?”
“I-I can’t—” Hiro hiccupped.
“That’s not Hiro Hamada!” Tadashi exclaimed, “Karmi, get away—”
“This is Hiro!” Karmi snapped, “We’re from an Alternate Universe!”
The five heroes went wide eyed. Karmi patted around herself before groaning, “A…Alternate Universe?” Tadashi said, shocked.
Karmi groaned, “Yes,” she said, annoyed, “In our Universe, it was Tadashi Hamada that died in the Showcase Fire,” the heroes went wide eyed, “Hiro has been mentally tortured with seeing his dead brother before! Hiro, Hiro,” Karmi said, “Can you hear me?” she was still terrified to touch him.
Karmi jumped as the white superhero bent down to the two, facing Hiro. He seemed to hesitate before speaking in fluent Japanese. Karmi went wide eyed when Hiro stopped shaking but didn’t move from his position. The biotech genius went wide eyed even more as the hero removed his helmet, revealing Tadashi, “…Hiro?” his voice cracked as it shook.
Hiro hesitantly looked up, tears in his eyes, and they had obviously been falling. The 15-year-old looked over at Karmi, “You…see him too?” his voice shook.
“Yes,” Karmi said softly, gently putting a hand on Hiro’s shoulder, “We’re in another Universe, Hiro. This Tadashi is here…and apparently a superhero?”
“A-are you sure?” Hiro almost whimpered, “I-I can’t—” Hiro cut himself off as a white armored hand came to his arm.
“…I’m here, Otouto,” Tadashi whispered, “…You’re here…” Tadashi had tears fall himself.
Hiro’s tears fell faster, and he hiccupped before pouncing on his brother, “Nii-san!” he cried into his neck.
Tadashi hugged Hiro tightly but was still unconsciously mindful of the fact that he was in his armor, “Oh my god,” Tadashi whispered, running a hand through Hiro’s hair, “It really is you.”
Hiro hiccupped again and all but choked his older brother. Karmi jumped as she felt a hand on her shoulder. Looking up, she saw Honey Lemon in full armor, tears falling and smiling.
“Wait, wait, wait,” Karmi waved her hands when everyone was back in the lab, and everyone removed their helmets, “You’re all…but that means,” Karmi pointed at Hiro, who paled when Karmi glared at him.
“Whoops! Look at the time!” Hiro said and quickly ran around the room while Karmi chased after him.
“You motherfucker!” Karmi exclaimed, “Don’t you run! You little piece of—you knew, and you just—stop running!”
“I like living, thank you!” Hiro yelled before yelping as Karmi gained speed.
“You stole my ideas!” Karmi yelled.
“You liked that I made them actually work!” Hiro shouted.
“That was before—ack!” Karmi was suddenly pulled back.
“Okay,” Tadashi’s voice was firm, “That’s enough.”
Karmi gave Tadashi a look while Hiro was breathing heavily, “I don’t know what relationship we have in this Universe,” she deadpanned, “But it obviously isn’t there in my Universe. Whatever that usually does to me, doesn’t work.”
Tadashi sighed and rubbed his eyes, “Both of you…just sit down,” he said, “And tell us what happened.”
Hiro sat in Wasabi’s rolling chair while Karmi sighed and plopped down in Honey’s regular wooden chair, “Okay,” Tadashi said, “Now, how did you two come to be here?”
“Obake,” Hiro stated as if it explained everything.
“Afraid we haven’t had that villain yet,” Fred said.
“And you probably won’t,” Hiro stated, “At least…not like I do,” he held himself.
“Hiro?” Tadashi whispered, concerned.
Hiro shook his head and looked over at Karmi. Karmi sighed, “I only know what Hiro told me,” she said, “And it’s not everything because I didn’t know till three minutes ago that he was a part of Big Hero. All I know is that Obake is a genius, like Hiro and I. He basically tried to create a star—”
“Like Lenore Shimamoto did and created the great catastrophe?” Honey was shocked.
“Yes,” Hiro said without emotion, “He succeeded because of me.”
“What?” Tadashi was shocked, “Hiro, no, that’s not—”
“I created the energy amplifier,” Hiro snapped, looking away, “It was because I didn’t listen to Professor Granville that…” he closed his eyes tightly, tears threatening to fall.
Karmi was about to stand up and comfort him, but Tadashi was already bent down to his little brother, “Hiro…” he said, “Hiro, look at me, please,” Hiro looked at his brother, with tear-filled eyes, “You are…incredibly brilliant. You are going to create things. Amazing things. Things that will help millions. But for every good thing someone creates, someone will find an evil use for it. Did you create the energy amplifier to destroy the city?”
“No…” Hiro said softly, “I did it to prove Professor Granville wrong.”
Tadashi gave his brother a familiar look that Hiro wasn’t aware he missed so much, “While not morally sound,” he deadpanned, “You didn’t create it to destroy the city; therefore, it is not your fault.”
“But if I had just listened to—”
“Hiro,” Tadashi said, “You’re a genius, but you’re still a kid. If someone tells you not to do something, you’re going to do it. How many times did I tell you not to go bot-fighting, yet you did so anyway?”
“…A lot,” Hiro admitted.
“The correct answer is 32,” Tadashi deadpanned before sighing and poking Hiro in the center of his forehead, “You’re going to make mistakes, Hiro, but the more you learn from them, the better you’ll come out to be. What your inventions get used for is not your fault. Only your intention is what matters.”
Hiro hugged Tadashi tightly, “…I miss you,” he whispered.
Tadashi hugged Hiro tightly, “Me too,” he whispered before pulling Hiro back, “But we need to get you both back to your Universe. We don’t know the repercussions this could have,” he stood up and looked back to Karmi, “What else should we know about this Obake?”
“Um…genius… he went insane basically,” Karmi said, trying to recall where she was, “Professor Granville blames herself for his fall,” Karmi pressed her lips together and looked at Hiro for permission. Hiro nodded and gripped his chair, “He…made Hiro see Tadashi,” everyone went wide eyed, “He…messed with Baymax’s programing and…he kidnapped Hiro…and forced him to watch the creation of the star…”
“He’s obsessed with me,” Hiro finished, “He believes I’m just like him.”
“You aren’t,” Tadashi said, “And Obake better hope he never meets us because I may not be able to control myself,” he took a deep breath, “How did you get here?”
“A silver sphere,” Karmi stated, “It was made by Obake. It came with a Christmas card. Telling Hiro to enjoy his Christmas gift.”
Hiro’s head snapped up before glaring, “Motherfucker,” he said.
“Language,” Tadashi said, “Figure something out?”
Hiro huffed and jumped out of his chair, “Yeah,” he said, “But I don’t want to go into it.”
“Okay,” Tadashi said, “So how do we get you back.”
Hiro was silent for a few minutes, “It could go either of two ways,” he stated, crossing his arms, “It’s on a time limit, and we’ll return after a few hours or so. Or…he sent me here for a specific reason because I would get in his way of whatever he has planned in my Universe.”
“Okay…” Wasabi said, “Which one is the most likely?”
Hiro shook his head, “I don’t know,” he admitted, “Either or has a rather high possibility.”
“Do you think you could figure out how to create another sphere?” GoGo asked.
Hiro shook his head, “I don’t know,” he admitted, “I didn’t really get a good look at the sphere. As soon as I saw that Obake made it, I threw it.”
“Can’t really blame you on that one,” Honey admitted.
“Did it activate after you threw it?” Tadashi asked.
Hiro was silent for a long while, “No,” he said, “It was only after I read the card out loud that it activated and basically sucked us in.”
“So…we’re leaning more towards a time limit?” Wasabi asked.
“I don’t know!” Hiro exclaimed, “Obake is always like four steps ahead. He knows our every move and plans for it!”
Tadashi wrapped Hiro in a tight hug, “Hiro, it’s alright,” he said, “We’ll figure this out. Just remember. He may have run circles around you, but you defeated him. You saved the city,” Tadashi pulled away and looked at him, smiling, “While I’m honestly not over the moon about you putting yourself in danger, I am incredibly proud of you.”
Hiro smiled softly and nodded, “I…needed to hear that,” he said, “I really did. I thought you’d yell at me for being reckless and stupid.”
“I think that would be a little hypocritical in this situation,” Tadashi chuckled, “You haven’t been hurt too badly, right?”
“No,” Hiro smiled, “I think the worst thing that’s happened to me physically is a broken leg, but that’s because I was sick and refused to stay in bed. I also don’t understand why Aunt Cass took me to a doctor twice when we had Baymax.”
Tadashi chuckled, “She worries,” he stated.
“Yeah, I know,” Hiro said, “But…hypothetical question…” Tadashi raised an eyebrow, “How mad would you be if I took Baymax and put him in armor and taught him karate?”
Tadashi deadpanned, “Really?” he asked.
Hiro shrugged, “Healthcare is still his main function,” he said, “…Rather annoying when the bad guy says 'ow' though.”
Tadashi sighed while his friends were trying to hold in their laughs, “Well,” he said, “If I can’t be there to help your reckless ass out of situations, at least something I coded is.”
Hiro laughed nervously, “Yeah…” he said, “Where is Baymax here?”
“Mass-produced,” Tadashi smiled, “I do still have the original, though.”
Hiro nodded before pressing his lips together, “Aunt Cass?” he asked.
Tadashi bit his lip slightly, “She…tries to hide how much she’s hurt,” he said, “Sometimes there are spells where I need to open the café, but…overall, she’s alright. Same old Aunt Cass.”
Hiro nodded, “Same,” he said, “She’s…mostly focused on me, which gets a little difficult when trying to hide a secret identity.”
“You haven’t told her?” Tadashi asked.
“Uh…no?” Hiro said, “She would just try to stop me.”
Tadashi opened his mouth but then closed it, pinched the bridge of his nose, and sighed, “Do I want to know how some cases went in your Universe?” he gave his little brother a look.
“Uhhhhh,” Hiro's mind immediately went to the bot-fighting case, “Nope!” he said quickly, hands going behind his back.
Tadashi narrowed his eyes at Hiro, who looked nervous. He finally just shook his head, “I don’t want to know,” he said, “I really don’t.”
“Good, because I really don’t want to try and explain myself,” Hiro deadpanned, “Though, I now know which side of the family my thrill of doing something illegal comes from,” he walked away.
“What?!” Tadashi exclaimed.
Hiro chuckled. He’s missed teasing his brother.
“I thought we agreed we weren’t going to tell Aunt Cass,” Hiro was nervous as they came closer to the Lucky Cat Café.
Karmi looked at the two brothers, “Technically, we never discussed it,” Tadashi said, “It was an unspoken thing, but if this is a timed thing, it’s obviously not going away before midnight. And if it’s not, then you two need somewhere to sleep,” Tadashi sighed before stopping just before the café, “Look, just…let me try to explain things, alright? Karmi, come with me. She’s gotten used to you showing up randomly.”
Karmi nodded before looking at Hiro, who nodded. Tadashi and Karmi walked into the café while Hiro leaned against the building’s wall with his hood up. No need to have the entire world knowing Hiro Hamada is suddenly alive. After a few minutes, Tadashi came out and gestured for him to come in. Tadashi stopped him slightly before he entered, “I couldn’t…well tell her without her disbelieving me,” he said softly, “So…brace yourself.”
“Great,” Hiro sighed before following Tadashi inside.
Aunt Case was in the kitchen grabbing more plates, “I’ll be just a second,” she said, “Why don’t you kids start setting the tab—” Aunt Cass finally turned to Hiro, Tadashi, and Karmi.
Hiro carefully took off his hood. Cass was frozen, “Hey…Aunt Cass,” Hiro said.
Cass dropped the plate she’d been holding, and it completely shattered. Hiro bit his lip, “Aunt Cass,” Tadashi said slowly, “Remember what I told you. They’re from another Universe. They can’t stay.”
“I-I understand that,” Cass said, “I just…” Cass was hugging Hiro so fast that everyone was a little concerned at how she moved that fast, “My baby…” she choked up.
Hiro relaxed and hugged his aunt back. After several minutes, the four were around the table, and Tadashi and Hiro were explaining all they knew of the situation. Cass shuddered, “Tadashi if you ever find this Universe’s Obake, punch him extra hard for me,” she stated.
“Yes, ma’am,” Tadashi said before taking a sip of his drink.
“This is amazing!” Karmi said, “What is this again?”
“Oh, just something I threw together with my leftover butterfish,” Cass stated.
“Never thought I’d actually like something with butterfish in it,” Karmi stated.
“Now, Hiro,” Cass said, “Why haven’t you told me of your heroing in your Universe?”
Hiro put a forkful of fish in his mouth, looking away from his aunt. Cass seemed to understand, “Hiro,” she said, “Let me tell you exactly what would happen,” Hiro looked at his aunt, “First of all, you’d be grounded,” Hiro winced, “But not for saving the city. For lying to me. We had a better relationship than that, right?”
“Well…yeah, we do,” Hiro said, “I just…didn’t want to worry you.”
“And you think I don’t worry when you up and disappear when giant battles are going on around the city, and I don’t know where you are?” Cass asked.
Hiro winced, “Okay…fair point,” he said.
Cass nodded, “Now, after you are thoroughly grounded,” she stated, “We will have the same conversation Tadashi and I had when he told me after he and his friends decided this wasn’t a one-time thing. But I wouldn’t stop you, Hiro.”
Hiro shifted in his seat, “I still can’t believe I was that stupid,” Karmi stated, “You were literally in my face, and I took a picture!”
Hiro couldn’t help but snicker. Tadashi looked at the two and poked at his mashed potatoes, “Probably a good thing I’m not alive in your Universe,” he stated, “Your children would be a pain in the butt to babysit.” he smirked when both Hiro and Karmi blushed brightly. “Probably will be discovering time travel at a year and a half.”
“Nii-san!” Hiro all but screeched before proceeding to smack his laughing brother while yelling in Japanese.
Karmi was practically screaming into her hands as her face only grew redder. Cass chuckled, “Boys! Boys! Hiro! That’s enough!” Cass said.
Hiro plopped back down in his chair and covered his still red face with his hands, “Baka!” Hiro exclaimed.
“Alright,” Cass said firmly, “Everyone finish eating. I want as much time as I can with Hiro.”
“Same,” Tadashi said, pulling his brother into a one-arm hug, “I know it probably wasn’t for moral reasons or for whatever other evil intentions…but this is the best Christmas gift we could have received.”
Hiro leaned into Tadashi and nodded, “…Same,” he said softly, “I—” Hiro and Karmi suddenly fell out of their chairs in unison, curled around themselves in pain as they began to flicker in and out of visibility.
“Hiro! Karmi!” Cass ran for Hiro while Tadashi bent down to Karmi.
The flickering stopped, and Hiro and Karmi were panting, “…ow,” Hiro said before he and Karmi both passed out.
Hiro groaned before opening his eyes slowly. Cass was hovering over him, “Hiro,” she said, smiling sadly.
“Aunt Cass?” Hiro sat up slightly, “Wh-where am I?”
“Still the other Universe, honey,” Cass said, cupping his cheek gently, “But now we know that we have to get you two back. Time limit or not.”
Hiro nodded, holding his head, “Karmi?” he asked.
“In my room with Tadashi,” Cass stated, “We, ah, got rid of your bed a while ago.”
Hiro chuckled, “I practically threw a tantrum anytime you tried to do that with Tadashi’s bed,” he said before shaking his head, “Right, okay. Need to figure out how to get back.”
However, when Hiro stood up, he fell back down, “Who put the Earth on super-speed?” he held his head, groaning.
“Hold on,” Cass said, “We can figure this out,” she stood up, “I’ll be right back,” both heard vomiting coming from down the hall, “Oh dear.”
Hiro suddenly put a hand over his mouth, “A-aunt Cass,” he said.
Cass looked around the room frantically before grabbing a box on Tadashi’s desk and dumping the papers and pencils out, and all but shoving it in her nephew’s hands just as he lost whatever food remained in his stomach. Tadashi poked his head in, “So, Aunt Cass…about your flower pot…” he said.
Both Cass and Tadashi winced as both teens continued to vomit, “I’m…going to start up Baymax to watch over them while I attempt to figure out how to send them home,” Tadashi said.
Hiro panted lightly as he paused in his vomiting, “I can…help,” he said.
“You can’t even get out of bed,” Tadashi said firmly, “And I’m not risking you moving around or overexerting yourself and speeding up whatever this process is.”
Hiro groaned, “Obake doesn’t want me dead,” he said firmly, yet shakily, “Whatever this is…it shouldn’t kill us.”
“You don’t know that,” Tadashi said, “You said yourself, Hiro. Obake is insane. Who knows how his brain is after you defeated him?”
Hiro couldn’t retort because he felt a great pain in his side. Tadashi came over and pushed Hiro to lie down on the bed, “Me and the guys will figure this out, Hiro,” he said softly, “We’re not going to lose you a second time.”
Hiro groaned, “I…I don’t trust…” he fell back against the pillows.
“I know you don’t trust Obake,” Tadashi said, “But you can barely move, Hiro. If we need your help, we’ll come up, deal?”
Hiro looked at Tadashi before sighing and nodding. Tadashi stood up, “We’ll figure this out, Hiro, I promise,” he said, “But just in case this is still just a time limit,” he ran his hand through Hiro’s hair, “I love you. Just remember that.”
Hiro smiled sadly and grabbed Tadashi’s hand, “I love you too,” he said, “I never said that enough when you were alive.”
“Same,” Tadashi smiled, “And like I said,” he squeezed Hiro’s hand, “I’m incredibly proud of you.”
Hiro hummed, “I still say Obake doesn’t want me dead,” he said.
“Even if that’s true,” Tadashi said, slowly letting his hand slip from Hiro’s, but fingers still just touching, “He probably doesn’t know this is what would happen.”
“Oh, not to worry,” Hiro shot up, foggy head forgotten while Tadashi stood in front of Hiro, “I did.”
“Obake,” Hiro said, fear slipping into his voice slightly.
“Yes,” Obake said, “Quite unfortunate that you seemed to have brought your little girlfriend, Hiro,” Obake yanked Karmi by her hair.
“Karmi!” Tadashi and Hiro yelled.
“What do you want?” Hiro snapped, “Why did you send us here?”
“Honestly, Hiro,” Obake said, “I expected more from you,” Karmi yelped as her hair was pulled again, “But then again, perhaps it’s a good thing you brought this distraction.”
“Let Karmi go,” Tadashi said firmly.
“Very well,” Obake did so, and Karmi all but ran to Tadashi and Hiro.
Tadashi hugged her tightly before pushing her to Hiro, “What do you want?” Tadashi asked, “Why are you in this Universe?”
“Bold of you to assume this isn’t my Universe,” Obake smiled.
“What?” Hiro and Tadashi asked in unison, shock written on their faces.
“Hmm, yes,” Obake said, “You see, I tried to begin the brilliance of Lenore Shimamoto in this Universe. I, however, ran into a small hiccup.”
“The energy amplifier,” Hiro glared.
“Yes,” Obake smiled, “I could not figure it out for the life of me. Then…I read a fascinating article,” his smile turned smug, “About a boy genius that died far too soon.”
Tadashi unconsciously put an arm in front of the young teens, “So you invented Dimensional Traveling,” Tadashi glared.
“Wasn’t that hard,” Obake stated, “Krei did most of the work for me. And to find that in the New Dimension that Hiro’s voice of reason died instead of him…bonus.”
Tadashi and Hiro glared, “Why did you send Karmi and I here?” Hiro snapped, “We’re fading from existence!”
“Well, that’s your own fault,” Obake said, annoyed, “I had the Quantum Resistor set to your DNA, Hiro. Had it just been you that went through, you would have been a part of this Universe, no issues.”
Everyone was frozen, “Wh-what?” Hiro asked, “Why would you do that?!”
“I did say it was a Christmas Present, yes?” Obake said before shrugging, “Oh well, got Granville out of her office.”
Hiro paled, “The ampl—” both he and Karmi began flickering in and out of existence.
“Yes,” Obake said, “Too bad you had to go and ruin yourself, Hiro, we could have worked well together,” suddenly a frying pan came up from behind Obake and took off his head, revealing that the Obake in the room was a robot.
The robot’s body fell to the ground revealing a panting Cass, “A robot? Seriously?” Cass yelled.
Hiro and Karmi were panting, holding their sides, “Have to…” Hiro fell towards the pillows, “Counteract the…”
Tadashi bent down to Hiro, “Don’t overexert yourself,” he said, “I’ll bring you a tablet, alright? Figure out what you need to, create blueprints, and I’ll build it.” Cass helped Karmi to the pillows of the bed, “We’ll figure out how to send you back after we do this,” Tadashi pushed his brother back down as he rose to protest, “Hiro,” he said firmly before resting his forehead on his, “I can’t lose you twice…”
Hiro relaxed, falling back against the pillows, “Alright…” he said softly.
Tadashi smiled sadly, “Don’t move, I mean it,” he said, “I’ll be right back,” he hurried down the stairs.
Hiro was drawing on the tablet while Karmi was weakly leaning against him, watched him work. “That’s a bad combination,” she said softly, pointing to a part, “If it happens to go off with the amplifier, the combination of elements could cause 3rd or worse degree burns on people.”
Hiro looked at Karmi before nodding and deleting what he had and trying a new combination of elements. When Karmi didn’t protest this time, Hiro continued to work, “How are you not exhausted?” Karmi asked, “I feel like I can barely move.”
“Trust me,” Hiro said, “I do, but I can’t let Obake do this again. Not with Tadashi here.”
Karmi put a hand on the wrist that was drawing, “None of this is your fault,” she said, “You know that, right?”
Hiro pressed his lips together, “It certainly feels like it,” he said.
Karmi squeezed Hiro’s wrist as tight as she could before helping Hiro with the device. Tadashi walked in and saw the two of them talking in what seemed like a language he only knew a bit of. He smiled slightly as he walked over, “How’re you doing, Hiro?” he asked.
Hiro hummed, “Think I almost have it,” he said, “I just need to—” the tablet nearly fell to the ground as Hiro and Karmi curled into themselves as they began to flicker in and out again.
Tadashi grabbed the tablet before it crashed to the ground. Once Hiro and Karmi started panting, flickering done, for now, Tadashi leapt forward, “Are you two alright?” he asked.
“F-fine,” Hiro groaned before looking at Karmi, who was unconscious, “F-fuck,” he fought off his own need to consume to the darkness.
“Hiro,” Tadashi said gently, “You’ve done most of the work; I can figure out the rest. Rest. Please.”
“I-I need-I need to—” Hiro promptly fell back against the pillows, unconscious.
Tadashi ran a hand through Hiro’s hair before kissing his forehead. He stared at Hiro for a long while before finally leaving the bedroom.
Hiro’s eyes opened to find himself in complete darkness. He turned weakly towards the window and found it dark. Hiro made a noise and slowly sat up. He looked beside him and saw Karmi sound asleep. Hiro gently shook Karmi, “Karmi,” he said softly.
“I would let the girl sleep if I were you,” Hiro stiffened and turned to the open door quickly, “Hello Hiro.”
“Obake,” Hiro said, shocked, “How did you—”
“Is that really all that important, Hiro,” Obake walked forward.
Hiro backed away as far as he could, “What do you want?” he snapped.
Obake held up a syringe, “To end your pain, of course,” he stated, “Make you stop fading in and out of existence.”
Hiro glared, “No,” he said firmly.
“Hiro?” Karmi whispered, waking up slowly, “Are you doing upgrades again?”
“Come now, Hiro,” Karmi’s head snapped up quickly, “Don’t you want to be with your brother again?”
“Of course I do,” Hiro snapped, “But that’s not my Tadashi. My Tadashi died trying to do the right thing,” he glared at Obake, “And I will never be like you.”
Obake hummed before energy surrounded him, and he crashed to the ground, revealing it was a robot, once again. The syringe shattered, and the liquid now completely useless. Hiro and Karmi looked up to see a panting and fully armored Tadashi, “Hiro! Karmi!” he said and ran up to them just as the teens cried out in pain as they flickered once again, “I knew we should’ve figured this out first! We have to get you two out of here. Supervillains are popping up all over the café!”
Hiro panted and looked over at Karmi, who looked ready to be sick again, “Take Karmi…out of this,” he gasped.
“We aren’t leaving you,” Tadashi snapped.
Hiro growled lowly, “She shouldn’t even be involved in this!” he yelled, “Just get her out of here!”
“You’re an idiot if you think I’m leaving you,” Karmi hissed, still green-faced slightly.
“Hiro, we aren’t—ah!” Hiro and Karmi went wide eyed as electricity surrounded Tadashi, and he fell to the ground revealing either Obake or another Obake-robot.
“Tadashi!” Hiro yelled before glaring, “Leave him alone!”
“Why?” Obake asked, “I thought he wasn’t your Tadashi?” it was revealed to be a robot when Obake’s arm extended and pinned Tadashi to a wall by his neck—helmet flying off who knows where in the dark.
Hiro growled lowly again, “What the hell do you want from me?!” he yelled.
“Oh, don’t be so dramatic, Hiro,” Obake said as Tadashi choked loudly, trying to get in air, “All I want to do is show you all the possibilities you’re missing by following restrictions.”
“They aren’t restrictions!” Hiro snapped, “They are rules that keep others safe!”
“What are a few insignificant lives?” Obake asked, “Look, I’ll even be nice,” Tadashi was dropped and gasped for air, “See?” he held up another syringe full of liquid, “Now, hold still,” he walked towards Hiro and Karmi.
Hiro glared and pressed the metal bracelet on his wrist, causing the electric field that saved him and Karmi when they first arrived to surround them once again. Obake raised an eyebrow, “You’re very sloppy, Hiro, something we’ll need to fix,” he said. “You realize this invention uses up your own energy,” Tadashi’s head snapped up to his little brother in shock, “And hard enough impacts can cause physical bodily harm,” Karmi’s breathing hitched.
“But it keeps you out,” Hiro snapped, “I want nothing to do with you!”
Obake hummed, “We’ll see how you feel in a few minutes,” he said, looking at Hiro’s hand with the bracelet as it began to completely fade from existence.
“Hiro!” Tadashi yelled before he was wrapped up entirely by the robotic arm, “Please! Stop!”
Hiro glared at Obake, “I’d rather die than give him another way to destroy the city,” he hissed.
“Nobel,” Obake stated as Tadashi struggled against his bonds.
A blue portal appeared as Hiro’s hand flickered. GoGo ran through it in full armor, “GoGo!” Tadashi yelled.
GoGo turned in shock, “Tadashi?” she asked, shocked.
“Impressive,” Obake stated, “You actually managed to recreate my Quantum Resistor.”
Tadashi looked at Hiro and Karmi, “GoGo! Get them back to their Universe!” he yelled, “Obake is our problem!”
“But—”
“Take care of Hiro!” Tadashi yelled, “That’s all I would ever want you to do! Go! Please! Hiro’s dying.”
GoGo shook herself from her shock and sped over to the teens just as Hiro fell unconscious. Tadashi broke free with a giant energy blast. GoGo protected Hiro, now in her arms, and Karmi with her body before turning to Tadashi, who was now surrounded by electricity, and his face was a level of rage GoGo had never seen, “Destroy the sphere!” Tadashi yelled before sending a magnetic pulse at the robot, causing it to not only short circuit but completely blow up, “Don’t let Hiro come back!” he yelled before running downstairs.
GoGo nodded to herself before speeding back through the portal with both teens.
Hiro opened his eyes again. This time, however, he was blinded by a bright light shining in his face. He winced and shielded his eyes as they adjusted. He looked around and found GoGo and Honey leaning against each other under a window, sound asleep. Wasabi was in a chair by the window with his head thrown back, and Fred spread out in his lap with his head and legs over the arms of the chair. Both of them were also asleep. Hiro rubbed his face before sitting up slowly, “Hiro?” the teenager turned beside him.
“Aunt Cass?” Hiro whispered before falling as his arms gave way, “Ugh.”
GoGo, Honey, Wasabi, and Fred all jumped awake, “Hiro!” they all rush over.
Hiro groaned, “Seeing how I’m still in existence,” he said, “Am I safe to assume I’m back in the right Universe?”
“Yes,” Cass said, tears in her eyes, “It was close. The doctors were using Baymax so much I was afraid his battery was going to die.”
Hiro hummed, closing his eyes before they shot open, and he sat up, “Karmi!” he said.
“Hey, hey, shh,” Cass and Wasabi gently laid Hiro back down, “Karmi is fine,” Cass said, cupping Hiro’s cheek, “She seemed to stabilize almost as soon as GoGo brought you two back. She was unconscious for a few hours, but she was fine. It was you we were all worried about.”
Hiro relaxed, “She…explained?” he asked.
“Yes,” Cass said, “And you are…so grounded, but after you’re out of the hospital, we need to talk.”
“Yeah…” Hiro said, eyes drooping, “You said we would…” Hiro fell back asleep.
“I’ll call Karmi,” Honey said, “Let her know that he’s woken up.”
“Thank you,” Cass said.
Three days passed before Hiro was allowed to leave the hospital. He was still rather tired, and he still had to force himself to move at times, but overall, he was better. Hiro walked into the café with Cass. Cass kissed the back of his head, “We’ll talk tomorrow,” she said, “Go upstairs and rest, alright?”
Hiro nodded and slowly climbed the stairs to his room. As he entered his room, he took off his hoodie and threw it on the bed. Hiro was about to collapse onto the bed when something flew out of the pocket. Hiro blinked and carefully picked up the flash drive. What? Hiro sat on the bed and grabbed his laptop. He plugged in the flash drive and waited as it downloaded. He blinked in confusion when a video popped up to be played. Hesitantly, Hiro hit play, and he forgot how to breathe until he breathed out, “Tadashi…”
Tadashi rubbed his neck, “Hey, Hiro,” he said, “I don’t even know if this is even going to work when you get back to your Universe, but I still wanted to make it. Obviously, you are forbidden from even thinking of creating what Obake did to visit this Universe,” Hiro laughed breathlessly, smiling, “I don’t really know what to say, so I’m just going to reiterate what I told you before. You’re nothing like Obake. You’ve made your mistakes, but you’re a good kid. You’re incredibly brilliant, and I actually feel sorry for my Universe because they’ll never see just what you can do for them. I’m proud of you, Hiro, but please don’t be reckless. Use that brain of yours. It’s the best superpower you can have,” Hiro wiped his eyes, “Merry Christmas. I love you, little brother,” Tadashi smiled, “I always will, no matter whether or not you’re in heaven or another Universe,” the video ended there.
Hiro hiccupped slightly but was smiling, “Love you too, Nii-san,” he whispered before closing his laptop and taking the flash drive out.
Tadashi all but face-planted into his pillow. Obake got away, but he and his team would get him. That much, they all promised. Tadashi sighed and turned to his side, but blinked as his fingers brushed over something under his pillow. Tadashi sat up, pulling out the tablet from his pillow. Tadashi sighed. Right, Hiro had been working on it. Tadashi unlocked the device. No doubt Hiro probably started working on something else, and he refused to have another one of his little brother’s creations be used for evil. It’s already happened twice.
The SFIT student blinked as he realized the device looked different. He looked in the upper corner and saw a video titled ‘Watch me.’ Curious, Tadashi opened the video and hit play. His heart jumped into his throat when he saw Hiro leaning against his headboard, “Hi Tadashi,” Hiro said softly, his eyes glancing to his right, “I, uh, upgraded your tablet. Again,” Tadashi chuckled lightly, “I, uh, really don’t know what I’m doing. I guess…I just wanted to let you know that I’m fine. I still…well, miss you, obviously, but GoGo, Honey, Wasabi, and Fred are great. They each are a part of you that I need. GoGo makes me use my brain, Honey encourages me to be positive and look at other possibilities, Wasabi keeps me from doing something too reckless—because let’s both be honest, saving the city every day requires some recklessness,” Tadashi chuckled again, “And Fred…well, that one should be obvious,” they both unknowingly laughed in unison, “I guess I just wanted you to know that…I’m taken care of, and not just by Baymax. Also, never underestimate Obake. If it seems like you won, always assume it was all a part of his plan,” Hiro sighed, “You always called me brilliant, Tadashi, but you are too. Anything I could create, you could too. Sure, it will take longer,” Tadashi laughed as Hiro smirked, “But you can do it. I know you can. Just…skip the energy amplifier. No one needs that much power for anything.”
“Hiro?” Hiro went wide eyed, and Tadashi snorted as Karmi came into the video, looking tired, “What are you doing?”
“Upgrades!” Hiro squeaked, and Tadashi laughed, “Go back to sleep!” he weakly pushed Karmi’s head to try and get it out of the video.
Karmi huffed before lying back down. Hiro waited a few seconds before looking back up at the camera, “I love you, Nii-san,” he whispered, “Merry Christmas,” the video ended.
Tadashi wiped his eyes quickly before staring at the video. He held down on the video and pressed the rename selection. He smiled at the video now named ‘Inspiration,’ “Love you too, little brother,” he whispered.
Hiro slowly awoke from his nap. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. He looked on his side table when he spotted bright color out of the corner of his eye. It was Karmi’s Christmas present to him. Carefully, Hiro took the gift and put it in his lap. It was relatively small in size, but a note taped to it, unlike the last time he saw it. Hiro took the note and opened it:
Hiro, I don’t know if this will actually mean anything anymore, thanks to our little adventure, but I hope you still like it. Also, your secret’s safe with me. Only your aunt was present when I explained what happened to your friends and Professor Granville. My number is the same. Don’t be a stranger. ~Karmi
Hiro smiled slightly before setting the note down and began to unwrap the present. He blinked at the necklace jewelry box in front of him. What? Did Karmi peg him as someone that wore jewelry? Confused, Hiro opened the box and found a silver chain necklace with a silver rectangle pendant. Hiro picked it up. It wasn’t…awful, he’d give Karmi that. However, he noticed something on the side. A button? Hiro pressed the button and went wide eyed when the pendent opened. A…locket? Hesitantly, Hiro opened the pendant, and his heart jumped into his throat. Inside was a picture of him and Tadashi’s roughhousing.
Hiro closed the pendant, tears threatening to fall. He put the locket on before reaching for his phone. He pressed on Karmi’s number before putting the phone to his ear, “Hello?” Karmi’s voice on the other end said.
“Karmi?” Hiro said, noticing the annoyance in her voice, “Uh…bad time?”
“Hiro!” Karmi said, “No, I’m sorry. I just…got into an argument with my dad and used my phone as an excuse to walk away. I didn’t look to see who was calling.”
“About me?” Hiro asked, sadness coming into his voice, “I’m sorry, Karmi. I really shouldn’t be—”
“Don’t you dare!” Karmi snapped, “Hiro, you about died to keep me safe. Multiple times. Not to mention how times you risked yourself to keep the city safe,” she sighed. “My dad will get over himself if he wants to continue talking to me because I’m not stopping being your friend just because your giant brain attracts the wrong kinds of people. You can’t help that.”
Hiro hummed and ran his fingers along the pendent of the locket, “Thanks…for the locket,” he said, “I love it. I really do.”
Karmi breathed out a sigh of relief, “I’m glad,” she said, “I wasn’t sure how you’d take it since you well…saw him.”
Hiro hummed again, “I really love it,” he said, “But where’d you get the picture?”
“Your aunt,” Karmi giggled, “She has a catering email. I just used that to ask her for a picture.”
“Ah,” Hiro said, smiling, “Of course,” Hiro heard a soft voice call Karmi down for dinner, “I better let you go. No doubt Aunt Cass will be coming up here to tell me the same thing.”
“Yeah, okay,” Karmi said, “Don’t be a stranger, okay? I don’t want to hear on the news that you got hurt doing something stupid.”
Hiro snorted, “That’s kind of an everyday thing,” he said.
“For a genius,” Karmi deadpanned, “You miss the point a lot.”
Hiro sighed, smiling, “Go eat,” he said, “I’ll talk to you later. I promise.”
Karmi sighed, “Alright, bye Hiro,” she said.
“Bye, Karmi,” he said before the call ended.
Hiro turned as the door opened, “Oh, good, you’re up,” Cass smiled, “Come down to eat.”
“Coming,” Hiro put the locket box and ripped paper on the side table before standing up and putting his phone in his pocket.
Tadashi was working on something in his lab at school. Three knocks sounded on his door. He smiled slightly, “Come in, Karmi,” he called.
Said teenager walked in, “Hey Tadashi,” she said, “Merry late Christmas.”
Tadashi smiled but continued working on what he was messing with, “What are you working on?” Karmi asked from over his shoulder.
“Something for you,” Tadashi admitted, “Did the others explain what happened over Christmas?”
“Yeah,” Karmi said, “Your brother from another Universe showed up. Are you doing okay?”
“Yeah,” Tadashi looked over at her and smiled, “I think it was the final puzzle piece that I needed to finally move on.”
Karmi nodded before tilting her head, “Is that a necklace?” she asked.
Tadashi put his tools down and held up the gold heart-shaped locket, “Sort of,” he said before gesturing for Karmi to turn around.
Karmi did so and moved her hair. Tadashi put the necklace on her, “When Hiro came, he also brought his Universe’s Karmi,” Karmi went wide eyed. “It reminded me of something incredibly important,” once the necklace was clasped, Karmi slowly turned to Tadashi, “I lost Hiro because I wasn’t fast enough. I don’t want to make the same mistake with you. Professor Granville seems to have accomplished something that I didn’t think was possible.”
“What’s that?” Karmi asked.
Tadashi stood up and hugged Karmi close, “That I would have two genius little siblings,” Karmi stiffened before relaxing and hugging Tadashi back, “And I don’t want to lose you like I did Hiro,” he looked down at Karmi as he pulled away.
Karmi looked at the necklace, “You made me a tracking device?” Karmi chuckled.
“I put them on Hiro, I’ll put them on you,” Tadashi said seriously, “Be glad I’m telling you about this one. Don’t make me have to sew them in your clothes like I did with Hiro,” he held up the heart-shaped pendant, “You don’t take this off, are we understood?”
Karmi snorted but soon sighed as Tadashi’s serious face never even flinched, “Alright, alright,” Karmi said, “Sheesh. It’s not like I go looking for trouble like your brother did.”
Tadashi sighed, “Let’s just say something went down in those two days,” he said, “And I just want to make sure you’re safe. Alright?”
Karmi hummed, “Alright,” she said, “Whatever you say, Tadashi. I need to get going. I’ll see you after the winter break.”
“Alright,” Tadashi said, “Behave.”
Karmi rolled her eyes but smiled and waved as she left the lab. Tadashi waited a few minutes before pulling out his phone and tapping a somewhat familiar app. He stared at the moving green dot for a few seconds before closing the app. Call him overprotective, but Obake had no qualms about what he did to Hiro. He wasn’t risking him or any other villain using Karmi against them.