It had been a year since the incident with SKILL Corp. Not to say things had been quiet, because they definitely had not, but things had changed somehow. Misaka noticed something was different between her and Kuroko. Sure, the teleporter was still crazed, lusting and jealous, especially when Misaka spent time with Touma. But it seemed Kuroko's attention was more frantic rather than lustful these days.

Either way, Misaka didn't have time to think on that now. She would be moving on to high school; new activities, new school, new... roommate. It should be a good change for her. No having to worry about being photographed or even groped in the shower, or waking to find someone hovering over her or sharing her bed. So why did she feel that knot in her stomach when she thought of moving on? Misaka shook it off as nothing more than nerves. She must have felt the same when she first moved from elementary to middle school, hadn't she?

She walked into her dorm room. Kuroko was already there and was giggling to herself as she was reading a letter. She looked up at her roommate and waved the letter at her.

"It's from Shinobu " she said. Shinobu Mitsuko had taken Febrie and Janie out of Academy City a year before to find someplace that could stabilize their artificial biologies, while also hiding them from people trying to exploit them. Kuroko handed the letter off to Misaka, who sat at her desk and quickly read through it. She smiled at the news of how the two chemicaloids everyone had rescued the year earlier were improving day by day. The researchers at the facility where they were hiding out had managed to greatly reduce the poisons their bodies were generating. While they weren't sure whether the twins would ever grow to maturity, they were growing. Shinobu went on to talk about what was happening with her personally. She reported she had been dating one of the researchers at the facility. They were even talking of marriage. Shinobu thought if she and her boyfriend got married they might just adopt the two girls and try to have some semblance of a normal life with them.

Misaka quietly set the letter on the desk and turned away from Kuroko. The teleporter realized her roommate had turned especially quiet; looking over at her she realized Misaka was crying.

"Onee-sama?" Kuroko walked over to the older girl, placing a hand on her arm. "What happened? What's upsetting you?"

"Kuroko, do you think I'm a selfish person?"

"No, anything but. Why would you even think such a thing? You're one of the most generous people I know."

"I must be, if I'm jealous of Shinobu and the girls becoming a happy little family. I have everything I should need in this city, so why should this even bother me, the big hotshot of Tokiwadai, always happiest when she's showing off her powers?"

Kuroko knelt down by her friend and held her in an embrace around her shoulders. She spoke in the most calm reassuring voice she could manage, "I think I told you this once before, I don't see you as Tokiwadai's Level 5 Railgun, I just see my friend Misaka Mikoto. Somewhat rough perhaps a bit childish, but ultimately kind to her juniors, never arrogant. It was something like that."

"Yeah, and as I remember the last time you told me that you followed it by trying to feel me up."

"I've learned my lesson since then. No, not the lesson that you'd zap me yet again, but that what you needed right then was a shoulder to lean on. So just for now let me be your strength and your comfort, even if you're not looking for my love. Let me be here for you. "

Misaka reached up with one hand and stroked her friend's hair. "Thank you for being my friend. It's just that as a child I only wanted to be a regular kid, growing up at home with mom and dad. But once my ability was recognized the big shots here in Academy City convinced them I would be better off here. So I came here and my childhood went away."

Kuroko nodded in understanding. "I suppose it was like that for me as well. When I came here I was alone and scared too. But I was lucky that a boy in Judgement found me on one of those scary days and helped me through, and gave me the encouragement I needed. That was what sealed my decision to join Judgement, although I had already been planning to. It's given me direction and the chance to protect and save others."

Misaka wiped the last of the tears from her eyes. "You know, I never realized just how much I miss Febrie. It seemed so hard to get her to warm up to me, but once she did it was like she was my kid sister. Like that family I didn't get to have once I came to Academy City." Of course, Misaka was not about to mention her other 'sisters' to Kuroko, at least not yet.

"Hm, 'kid sister'? I think Saten and Uiharu thought of Febrie as their 'daughter'" joked Kuroko. "No, I don't know if that's how they feel about each other, but sometimes they seem like a married couple. Having Febrie around was like having a little family."

The thought of Saten and Uiharu as a couple seemed amusing yet unlikely to Misaka, but it broke her melancholy mood. "Thanks for listening to your foolish roommate, Kuroko. I'm feeling better now so I'm going to get ready for bed."

Kuroko kissed Misaka gently on the forehead, stood up and headed to the bathroom. "Well, since you're feeling better I'll take my shower now." She paused at the door, gave her behind a seductive wiggle and said "you can join me if you like..."

"Perv!" yelled Misaka as she threw a stuffed Gekota at the retreating teleporter. She quickly retrieved it, dusted it off and put it back on her desk.

"Hmmmm... maybe... no, no, wait, what am I thinking?"

Six months later

Misaka was finally unpacking the last of her boxes from her move to the high school dorms. Her schedule had been so busy these first few weeks it had taken this long into the school year to get to them. Her dorm room was nice enough, but it was lacking something, and Misaka couldn't place just what that something was. Her roommate Yokida was a level 3 hydro-kinetic, smart but quiet, at least at her dorm room. Yokida spent a lot of her time with her own circle of friends in some sort of music club, and Misaka had gone to a couple of their gigs.

In the bottom of a box of clothing she found a small bundle wrapped in crepe paper and tied with a pink ribbon. Inside it was a pair of black silk panties with lace trim and sides. Included also was a note "hope you don't mind, I did a little trade; one of your pairs for one of mine. Something to remember me by. K."

"Why that little perv," thought Misaka. She really didn't want to consider what Kuroko was doing with Misaka's pair. She'd have to give Kuroko a piece of her mind the next time she saw her, whenever that was going to be. Well, maybe not, the gesture was sincere enough, even if a bit suggestive. Bringing it up might just turn into an excuse for more lasciviousness. Misaka brushed her fingers along the fabric and found it soft and inviting, much like Kuroko's touch...

"Wait, where did that thought come from? "