#spencer sterling // mr. vice guy

[nicosbrainrot]

pirate AU isn't dead until I say it's dead (also I refused to let this die in my drafts) so here's a little fic about how ikuto ended up a part of haru's crew, featuring hoshizawa by @tano-hoshiz-1y & jimin by @art-is-drawing as well as a short appearance by spencer by @jetsam-kisa (sorry claire)

There was a bustling commotion through the tavern, it wasn't yet at its busiest hour but there were certainly a good few people inside making a fair amount of noise. A rather inconspicuous young man walked into the building, not nearly as loud and boisterous as the rest of the patrons, and took a seat at the far end of the bar where there were less people.

He pulled out a tattered notebook and a pen, placing it on the bar as the barkeeper made his way over to him.

"You want your usual?" he asked in his tired, somewhat scratchy voice. 

"Yes, please." Ikuto responded politely, looking up at him with a soft smile.

His face was buried in the book, attempting to copy a drawing of what seemed like a flower from a loose page into his notebook. The barkeeper placed the glass of his usual beverage on the countertop, earning another quiet "thank you" from him as he continued transferring information.

"What're you workin' on there?" the barkeeper asked, picking up a glass one of the other patrons had left and turning to rinse it out.

Ikuto looked up from his notebook, taking a moment to snap out of his concentration before the question registered. "Oh, you won't believe it. I received a letter from a merfolk, in response to one of the notes I left." he said, somewhat calmly but obviously trying to contain his excitement.

Hoshizawa chuckled. "You're right, I don't believe it." he said with a smirk on his face.

"What do you mean?" Ikuto questioned. "Don't tell me you're one of those people who doesn't believe in merfolk." he said, subconsciously reaching his hand up to his neck, where the faint beginning of undeveloped gills could be seen if you looked closely.

"Oh, no, I just don't believe they'd talk to you." he teased, that smug grin still on his face.

Ikuto's expression shifted from confusion to mild annoyance, a slight blush dusting his cheeks as he waved his hand dismissively in the air before returning to his notebook. "They told me about the flower I'm looking for." he said after a moment, not looking up from his book, a more serious tone in his voice. "The one I need for my friend."

This caught Hoshizawa's attention, his playful expression falling to a more serious one as he looked over at the young man, hunched over in concentration. He had told them a bit about the situation, his friend was ill and the doctors didn't know what to do, but this plant, that may or may not really exist, might be a cure. He thought it was foolish to place such hope in something you couldn't be sure of, but he also admired it in a way, and really there weren't that many options left for him in this situation. They almost felt pity for him, but it wasn't a helpless kind of desperation, he was determined, he had drive. It would have been impressive if he didn't think he was so naive.

As the bartender was lost in thought and Ikuto was preoccupied with his note taking, a particularly noticeable half-mer made their way into the tavern, catching Hoshizawa's attention. He let out a sigh, knowing this usually spelled trouble.

This new patron slammed their palm on the countertop, making a point to announce their presence. "Barkeep, gimme the strongest shit you've got!"

"Are we doing this again, Jimin?" he asked quietly as he reached up for the expensive bottle of hard liquor he had on the top shelf. 

"You know I can drink anyone in this building under the table, no problem." they gloated, almost performatively.

"You wanna bet on that?" asked an obviously already intoxicated man from across the bar, his pink hair falling in his face as he leaned back in his chair.

"You're on, old man!" they shouted, pointing in his direction.

Ikuto looked over at all the commotion and was very surprised to see the person standing adjacent to him at the bar. They were very tall with a lizard-like tail and large areas where their human skin faded to green scales. It was obvious that they were some kind of merfolk, but also distinctly very human, this was a half-mer for sure, something Ikuto hadn't seen in a while. He wanted to say something to them, however not only did they seem preoccupied, but the partially drunk man was already making his way across the bar for what seemed to be a drinking contest. 

The bartender just sighed as he poured the drink into two glasses. They already knew what was going to happen, and although he wasn't a huge fan of it he did make a decent profit from the whole ordeal so he'd allow it. Plus, it was amusing to watch.

He walked back over towards Ikuto, who was watching as the two threw back glass after glass of liquor, partially fascinated but mostly distraught, and caught the man's attention. "So, what did this merfolk tell you?" he asked, still keeping an eye on the two drinkers.

Ikuto looked back over at him, refocusing his attention on the information in front of him. "They drew me this picture of what the plant looks like." he said, turning the image on the paper so that the barkeeper could see it. "It's slightly different from the one in the book I had seen, the leaves are more pointed and the petals are longer. I'm assuming this is the more accurate depiction, seeing that this is coming from someone who actually lives in the ocean, which means I have a better idea of what I'm looking for." 

Hoshizawa leaned over the bar, his tall figure looming over the shorter man as he looked down at the drawing in front of him. This caused Ikuto to tense up a bit, almost holding his breath as the barkeeper leaned over him, until he pulled back to his normal position behind the counter. 

Ikuto quickly shook off the feeling and tried to resume his train of thought. "They mentioned that it's a deep sea plant," he said, pointing to the words on the page. "Which I had read somewhere before but wasn't certain about, and now I can be sure." He let out a sigh. "Sure that I need more money for diving gear." he said to himself, holding his head in his hands.

Just then there was a thud as the sleazy drunk from earlier hit the floor. He laughed to himself, slurred, almost incomprehensible speech leaving his mouth as he tried to stand back up. Hoshizawa had been watching closely this whole time, and, not even counting whatever he'd had before this whole ordeal, Spencer had taken enough shots to black out a horse. He certainly had a tolerance, but that was enough to knock anyone to the ground. Anyone, of course, except Jimin. Being half poisonous sea snake, they were immune to the effects of alcohol, and so here they were, left standing victorious after, like they claimed they could, literally drinking the man under the table.

The man hit his head on the bottom of the bar as he attempted to lift himself up, barely making it back into his seat, and as soon as his head hit the countertop he was out cold, laying sprawled across the bar. Jimin took this opportunity to snatch the coin pouch secured on his hip. His crew was still in the tavern at a nearby table, but frankly, they didn't care much about him getting robbed. They were just there to make sure he didn't die, and honestly, he could afford it. 

Jimin counted out the coins and placed the amount owed for the drinks on the counter, then pocketed the rest. Hoshizawa picked up the coins, slightly shaking his head in silent disapproval. He didn't like the ruckus and the stealing, but he also didn't care much for Spencer, as he usually caused more of a mess the longer he was around, so having him passed out was actually a slight improvement.

As the barkeeper tidied up after the little fiasco, Jimin leaned against the bar, looking in Ikuto's direction. "I heard you need a bit of extra cash." they said, implying that they had a solution to his problem.

Ikuto looked up at them in surprise. "I, uh, I'm not interested in stealing." he muttered, trying to be polite, but also really not wanting to get roped into any trouble.

"Oh, no, no. This is just something I do for fun." they said, pointing to the passed out man behind them. "I'm part of a crew, was actually gonna ask if you'd be interested in joining."

Ikuto raised a brow at this, glancing over to his friend on the other side of the counter to see what he thought of the proposition, to which they just shrugged and continued working. Ikuto looked up at the tall half-mer in front of him, a bit intimidated, but considering the offer. "What exactly do you do?" he asked, skeptical.

"Our captain used to be a member of the royal navy, so he knows all their routes." Jimin started, earning an intrigued look from Ikuto. "We catch some of the ships that're transporting the more… problematic cargo. If there're any innocents we free 'em, and if there's any money, well- we do a little stealing, but that's just a symptom of it." they said with a dismissive shrug. 

Ikuto's brow furrowed as he thought about this. "So…you target navy ships?" he asked, earning a nod and "mhm" from Jimin. "What exactly do you mean by 'problematic cargo'?"

"The royal navy definitely isn't as trustworthy as they'd like you to believe." they stated, coldly. "I could introduce you to the captain so you can discuss it in more detail, but I gotta know if you're interested." They leaned on the countertop of the bar nonchalantly, waiting for a reply.

Ikuto thought this over for a moment. At first he was under the impression that this was just another thieving pirate crew, but perhaps it was a bit deeper than that? It seemed as though they had a real goal, a cause, seemingly something they couldn't discuss in public. He was intrigued, to say the least. "Alright, I'll consider joining this crew." he said, standing up and extending an arm for a handshake.

Jimin quickly grabbed his hand in theirs and shook it adamantly, a deep crocodile-like purr emanating from their throat. "Great! We're in need of some more crew members!" 

Ikuto's expression faltered for a moment as he looked up at the partially green skinned half-mer grinning at him, questioning for a moment what he had gotten himself into, but he didn't have much time to think before Jimin was heading out the door. 

"Let's go!" they shouted, patting him on the back and turning to leave.

"W-we're going now?" he asked, quickly scooping up his notebook and papers off the counter.

"Yeah, what? You want me to wait around for you until you're ready?" Jimin asked sarcastically.

"No I- I guess now is as good a time as any." he said, frantically pulling out a few coins to leave what was owed on the table. "Thanks, I'll see you later barkeep." he said to the tavern keeper before taking off after Jimin.

Hoshizawa just chuckled as he watched the man run off. They looked down and shook their head at the sight of his drink, barely touched.

Jimin kept walking, hearing hurried footsteps behind them before he caught up. "So," they started. "You ever been part of a crew before?" 

"Um- no, I haven't." Ikuto responded, catching his breath. "Is that a problem?" he asked, slight concern in his tone.

"Only if you can't handle yourself." they stated. "Name's Jimin by the way, if you didn't catch that."

"Ikuto." He gave his name to his potential new crewmate, taking note to remember theirs.

They walked for a moment before Jimin piped up with a question. "By the way, how are you with small kids?"

[jetsam-kisa]

“c’mon kid, don’t be like that 😎🥺☔! ya know I have a soft spot for people like you~ 😜✨💖”

“Please drop dead, sir.”

So my excuse for introducing Mr. Vice Guy was to give Jetsam an arch-nemesis to face when he’s a pro asdfghjkl

My basic thoughts are that Jetsam would probably intern at Spencer’s office at some point in his life, and initially there was an odd kinship that formed around them (they’re both people who are secretly very overwhelmed with daily life and who don’t have healthy coping mechanisms for dealing with negative feelings of any kind).

Spencer thinks Jetsam is a pitiable kid and kind of sees bits of himself in him. For all his nerves, Jetsam could be a pretty decent apprentice if given the proper reason and training. After a particular night of working late and strange understanding between them, Spencer tests the waters and reveals small bits of his real business to Jetsam, who is immediately horrified and rejects everything being potentially offered to him (namely, an easy ride to a stable hero career and amazing publicity ).

They have a tense, secretive arch enemies relationship, because Jetsam realizes that Spencer is absolutely wiling to hurt countless people with his quirk (more than he already does) should Jetsam tell anyone anything. But on the other hand, Spencer isn’t convinced that he can’t corrupt Jetsam to his side, so he keeps him around for both amusement and to prove a point

Jetsam still remembers their odd familiarity though, and secretly hopes he can find a way to turn Mr. Sterling’s life around…

[jetsam-kisa]

Here’s my own little Villain OC because I wanted to be indulgent lmaoo

Name: Spencer Sterling

Villain Name: Mr. Vice Guy

Quirk: Indulgence - if he ingests DNA of someone, then any harmful effects on his body are transferred to the other person while the DNA is in his system

Please send in asks about him/to him if you want!

Much more info under the cut!

More on his quirk, Indulgence: Basically if he ingests any amount of someone's DNA (blood, sweat, skin, hair, etc) then any harm that comes to his body is transferred to the other. However, he can still feel the effects of things that happen to him. Wounds still hurt, toxins have their effects (he can get high and drunk, just not overdose or even get hungover), etc. If he has more than one person's DNA in him, then the harm is spread evenly between however many people there are.

Spencer is the owner of one of the top, most influential PR companies in the world. By day he's cleaning up public blunders and helping the images of heroes around the world! However, by night he is a prominent underground villain who takes bribes and other forms of payment to tank and/or bolster the reputations of certain heroes. 

He absolutely adores the partying life style and how his quirk can allow him to do whatever he wants to his body consequence free. He spends most of his nights drinking and taking uppers excessively. One of the forms of contractual payment you can offer are regular doses of your DNA to further fuel his lifestyle. Your health might seriously suffer though.

An absolute hedonist to his very core. He keeps a steady supply of DNA to ingest on his person so he never risks being vulnerable

He has soft spots for certain clients under his wing, but he is still cut throat and will step on whoever he has to in order to afford his highly expensive tastes and way of living. 

He is fully convinced he will never die

[jetsam-kisa]

“Ya know sweetheart, this almost makes up for you gettin’ me arrested at last month's Halloween Masquerave~ 💖😘💃🕺”

“Glad to hear it, Mr. Sterling~”

Lmao @kamiart and I were talking about how Vanity and Mr. Vice Guy would actually get along very well, but because Vanity is dating a hero she'd secretly try to get him arrested 😭

Luckily Spencer isn't one to hold grudges (usually) so they're back to hanging out again in a couple weeks