I'm having a CRISIS! – Kairi.

One minute later.

What, are you all right? - Shoto

Immediately.

NOO I am not! Gilaf and Devcry had this MASSIVE fight, I mean MASSIVE. Gil just swore heavily at Dev and told him that if he ever saw him again he would gut out his heart! This is a catastrophe! - Kairi

Seven minutes later.

You think the season finale of a TV show is a crisis? - S

Immediately.

Yes, it is! This puts their relationship so far back, I mean they were becoming such good friends and their flirt game was so on! Like, there is no way they weren't secretly thinking about sleeping with each other, especially after Dev called off his engagement. But now this?! Gil is never going to forgive him how is this ever going to get fixed?! (broken heart emoji, sob emoji). - K

Eleven minutes later.

Aside from the fact I was legitimately concerned something serious happened, what exactly happened to make you so beside yourself for your dear Gil? - S

I can't tell you! It's horrible and spoilers! - K

But you're perfectly fine with telling me the season finale ended with Gilaf and Devcry possibly ending their friendship? - S

*Relationship, but yes and it's not my fault you're not caught up! Things are only beginning to blossom between the two of them for you! – K

Last you told me they're just best friends right now even though it's obvious they're into each other. – S

Yes, that's canon enough to be a relationship. They totally love each other and you can't change my mind. But now they may never be together again! – K

Well, my condolences then. – S

Kairi swiped the message away, already spiraling through the outraged comments via social media and liking the ones she wholeheartedly agreed with. It was late into August, so the wind was whipping its howls and slamming torrents of water against the sides of the house. The last two days had been horrendously wet and humid, locking Kairi away in her basement to enjoy nearly endless hours of streaming television. However, the season finale for her current favorite had just dropped that day and she had stayed away from everything electronic – that was, until it had finished.

The credits flashed by while the ending theme played its melody. Kairi hummed along sadly, tapping against her phone aggressively. The scene shifted to the normal commercial break that played before the next show, a medical drama Kairi had little care for. Her fingers hovered over the remote, but the opening lines to the advertisement tickled her ears.

"80% of the world's population has a quirk. This is a statistic we have been parroting since we were young kids, leaving those without quirks feeling isolated and lonely. Children and parents alike are left with deep psychological issues thanks to the rejection of society and their peers because of this. This can cause grief on families. Now, in an ideal world, society would just accept the quirkless for who they are, and this is a future we strive for. However, this is unrealistic in our current times, especially as our once Symbol of Peace is now retired." Black and white images of the once powerful All Might rolled on the screen. Kairi dropped her hand, captivated by the ad's message. "Until we can reach that future of acceptance, how we can assure the quirkless are getting the best treatment? Counseling and medication helps, of course. But what if there was an easier way? What if we could give out quirks?"

"What?" Kairi screeched in shocked disbelief. "How is that possible? It's genes!" Shots of smiling scientists, photogenic and good-looking of course, were shown to be seemingly hard at work in the lab. A digital recreation of a double helix rotated before her eyes as it animated to further illustrate the points of the speaker's words.

"Through advanced science, we have figured out how to imitate a variety of quirks. Through methods of gene splicing and manipulations, scientists have figured out how to manipulate a person's DNA to have quirks. This isn't just for the quirkless either. This is for anyone. Among those who do have quirks, many want to become heroes or use their abilities to help out in more effective ways. But how can that be done when your only quirk is shooting feathers or having pens for fingers? Maybe you feel your quirk is too dangerous and would like a new one. Either way, our top scientists are eager to test out their new technology in giving people quirks. Doctors long ago figured out how to remove quirks for medical emergencies, but let us take that a step further and add, change, or supplement your quirk!" People who were absolutely actors left a non-descript white building with many windows. They demonstrated quirks like shooting lasers from their hands or being able to jump incredibly high – however, these were also noticeable edited. "Currently, only a few samples of quirks are on hand, but our advanced scientists at QuirKey are confident in their abilities to obtain more and soon! All that's missing is you! QuirKey is currently accepting test subjects for quirk initiation. For just a few short appointments, you can expect to be paid well and any minor medical issues you may experience during this time will be taken care of with the best care possible. Be sure to visit our website and ask for more information for this exciting offer in scientific advancement! QuirKey. The Key to Your New Quirk!" More smiling faces faded as the website and phone number were backlit. Kairi wrinkled her nose as disturbance set in. Finally flicking off the TV for fear of what else she may see, fingers flew across the phone's screen again.

I just saw something odd. – K.

Is it more fandom stuff? – S.

No. It was an advert. Have you heard of QuirKey? – K.

I think I saw a few billboards in town for it last week before the typhoon hit. Some new science testing of quirks? – S.

Yes, but it's not like ones done before. It seems different, much darker than other quirk testing facilities you may have heard of. I would go so far as to say diabolical sounding? – K.

Diabolical? What do you mean? - S.

Kairi spent a few minutes searching for the advertisement, finding it quickly. She moved the link into the message thread and waiting a few moments for him to watch it. Several minutes gone, and her phone blipped with his response.

There are several things very concerning about this. – S.

Yeah, it feels uncomfortable and I don't know why. – K.

For starters, it seems strange to advertise test subject openings on an ad on TV. That's not how these studies are typically done. The wording also feels more like an advertisement for a university and not a job opportunity. – S.

Maybe they're trying to reach as many people as possible, and are looking for a younger crowd? -K. Even as she typed the words, they echoed through her uncomfortably.

But why? I don't think it's an accident they aired immediately after a popular TV show during its season finale. Then there's the ethical debate. Also, how much of this is legal? Have you shown it to your dad? What's his opinion on its legality? – S.

I don't know. He's working right now so I can't ask him. – K.

He went to work during a typhoon? – S.

No. He stayed and is using his laptop to access the police database to his work. The guy's dedicated to his job. -K.

I do think this lab is worth a closer look. I am curious about what it's all about. -S. She was tapping away on her search bar, pulling the first page of results. There was the website itself of course, followed by its social media pages. Her search also delivered discussion threads and forums about everything Shoto had just mentioned; legal debates, ethical questions, questions, conversations about whether or not people were going to apply. Ignoring all of these and heading to the source, she followed the links to their official page. Mostly, it featured the details the commercial presented, but the questions went further in depth and gave more informed information. None of the usual scam flags were raised; the website was nicely designed. Sources and information was properly cited. The details explained the process that perhaps was more scientifically sound than the commercial featured, but easier enough for an average high school student to understand. Nails tapped, fingers expanded while Kairi wove over the information. Correct spelling, addresses and references cross-referenced to send back that the information posted was legitimate. Nothing on the website seemed inaccurate. Then what was it about the organization that felt off?

Shoto, I'm not seeing anything that says this is illegal. – K.

Nor am I. Everything seems to be covered well. Then again, there are some very good scams out there. – S.

Maybe it's not actually a scam then? Perhaps it simply is the ethical question that makes this feel uncomfortable. -K.

Was it unethical though? Several times she had begged her father to take her in to cut off her quirk and make her quirkless, but he wouldn't do so. For multiple reasons. It was incredibly rare for those with quirks to request their DNA be spliced to block the quirk to begin with, and then there was the issue with doctors refusing to do so unless it was an extremely dangerous quirk. It was also expensive since it wasn't usually considered a medical necessity. Mr. Hoshino also hadn't wanted to do it to his daughter as it was unheard of to be performed on children and teenagers. There was no telling how development would affect or be affected by such a procedure and with hers as powerful as it was, it may not even work. Would the psychological effects in the end be better or worse for her? That was another question they had tackled with doctors she had seen. In the end, they decided to wait until she was older and see how she felt then. Her feelings on it hadn't changed until recently when she joined Class 2-A. They were making her starting to feel okay for who she was, and she was slowly learning there was some control that could be had over her quirk. It hadn't exploded like it had previous, thanks much to her new friends recognizing and helping to keep her emotions from becoming too out of control. They had learned to respond to her and how to keep their minds sharp against her, while she was growing in learning how to settle her emotions. But if this new experiment could eliminate the struggle of the fight to do that all together...?

Was it truly unethical? If that's what people wanted, was creating synthetic quirks really so wrong? She could still be a hero. Her quirk could not only be eliminated, but changed. She could fight properly like her friends. She could be strong like her friends, like Shoto. Kairi could be the type of hero she longed to be, and people would cower in her presence anymore.

The jolt of her phone electrified her from her thoughts and she looked down to see three spaced messages from Shoto. Her brain had wandered and entirely missed his messages.

Maybe it isn't but the ethical issues still need to be explored. Should quirks be made and should we be allowed to choose them? I can't imagine this technology is cheap. Would that create a divide between classes then and allow high classes to have powerful quirks while those naturally born with quirks might have lesser quirks? That would literally give power to those in power. That's a dangerous world to live in. -S.

I expected some sort of response to that. Isn't in depth conversation about justice implications an enjoyable past time for you? -S.

Kairi, are you simply ignoring me at this point? This seems to be important enough to be explored. Maybe it isn't a scam but I think the legality of it should be investigated more. Can you ask your father to look it over?- S.

Did you get sucked into another show? -S.

Sorry, sorry! Yes, I will have my father check it out and see what his opinion is. I didn't mean to ignore you my mind was just... lost. I don't want to bother him when he's working so I'll wait til he takes a break. It will probably be in about four hours honestly. – K. The hanging light sporadically flickered overhead just as a wall of rain slapped against the window.

Scratch that. It may be sooner if we lose electricity. – K.

How are you going to survive without any electricity to watch your beloved TV shows? (smirking emoji) (laughing emoji) – S.

Excuse me, but I happen to have a lot of reading material too! – K.

What do you read that isn't fanfiction? – S.

Kairi replied to the conversation with a gif of a giraffe flapping its tongue before ignoring any other incoming messages and grabbing the rolled bag of chips on the couch. She ascended the steps that opened up into the living room and then cut to the other side where the kitchen was. Her father was tapping away before lowering the screen as Kairi entered.

"Riri, do you feel like making supper tonight?" he asked, keeping his focus. "I've just reopened this kidnapping case and there's a lot of details to go over tonight."

"Reopened?" Kairi asked, placing the clipped bag of chips into an open cupboard. "What case is this?"

"It wasn't originally mine. It was passed on from another precinct. The kidnapping happened three years ago."

"I'm sorry, Dad but if I remember right... aren't most kidnappings that aren't solved in the first weeks, or even less often, first few months... aren't they usually you know..." The urging silence filled in the word for her. Mr. Hoshino nodded numbly.

"Yes, but people will always hang onto that hope that they are alive, and why would I want to stomp on that? If anything happened to you, I would never stop looking." Her cheeks blossomed pink with her proud smile.

"Thanks, and I get that. But after three years don't you think you could take the night off from work? There's a typhoon right now, do you expect anyone to be committing crime out there right now or even have the energy to do something so nefarious? Besides I mean..." She flipped open the doors to the cupboards revealing mostly jars and flattened bags. "We have shit for groceries and I am not going to the store right now."

"Well, I guess we'll just fend for ourselves tonight." Her pupils flipped to the sky.

"As we've been doing for the last three nights..." she grumbled, a dark mood settling in her pit.

"Come on, Kairi," he said patiently as he drummed over the keys. "I'll cook tomorrow, I promise."

"I'm not mad about that, cooking is relaxing to me. It's just that I have had no time with you since I got back from the beach. I go back to school in a week. I'm proud your work is important to you, but you're pushing yourself a little bit. Come on, relax. This typhoon is the perfect opportunity to just kick back, play a game or watch a movie."

"You haven't been doing enough watching?" he snarked, irritated. Kairi's spine stiffened with her bite.

"Dad. It's a typhoon! What am I supposed to be doing?!"

"Homework?"

"I'm caught up on that! I've done my reading, and you can look through my tablet and notebooks if you want to see the work I've done! I've turned in my essays online and you can look at the receipts!" Mr. Hoshino fell forward and pinched the center of his forehead.

"Kairi, I have work, I can't be sitting here arguing with you! You can't be sitting around doing nothing watching TV all the damn time!"

"I don't, and you know I don't! You know I got caught up in all that shit in the past years because I had no one to hang out with, and nothing to do outside of homework! What was I supposed to do, play tag with myself? Shortest fucking game of tag ever, put it in the world record book!"

"You really need to stop swearing so much too!"

"I don't even swear that much!"

"Look, I have had little sleep, little to eat-"

"Clearly," Kairi snapped harshly, and the bulge in his pupils immediately dropped her stomach. Her tone was incredibly disrespectful, and she knew she screwed up the second the word left her mouth. She was already propped against the counter, head aimed downwards in reverence to him. "I'm sorry! That was impulsive and stupid of me!"

"You know better than to talk to me like that," he told her slowly.

"I know!"

"I am working hard, Kairi. I want to earn us a paycheck, but it isn't just us, it's these families. This man claims his boyfriend has been gone for three years and hasn't been able to have a normal life since he was taken. He is constantly between hoping he is still out there but also knowing that's unlikely and he just wants closure. The man is likely dead, as you implied, but right now what this is about is closure. I am trying to give that, as much peace as I can give. People need peace right now. All Might is no longer around to give them that."

"Where was All Might when he was taken then?" Kairi dared to ask slowly.

"He's still only one person, Kairi. He was never able to be everywhere at once and it wasn't like he was able to prevent crime 100% of the time. It still happened, and sometimes it went unresolved. It's just more frequent now. Look, I know you want to spend time together but I need to cram as much of this as I can. We will spend time together before you go back to school but this is important to me. Please do something productive with your time instead of TV."

"It's not like I've been cooped up watching everything all summer!" She snapped again, the implication in his last commented scraping against her nerves. He flashed her the warning eyes again. "I have been out more often this summer than I have been in the past! I went to the beach with my friends, I went to the mall with Momo and Tsu, Uraraka asked me to get ice cream with her and Iida and Izuku, I went shopping with the girls and Aoyama, I saw a movie with Momo and Aoyama and Shoto, I went to the amusement park with all of them, I have been so active this summer and you have barely even noticed because you've been caught up in all your damn work!"

"Since All Might's retirement, there's been a lot more on my plate!" he yelled, making her bones cringe. "Endeavor does what he can to stop crime, but when All Might was the number one hero, people were more discouraged to commit the crimes in the first place! That may not be his fault, but it's not as if it helps to make my work any easier! Which, by the way, if you're so concerned, why don't you talk to your Todoroki friend to see if he can fix it?!"

"It's not his responsibility!" Kairi screamed, drops sliding off the edges of her eyes. "He's a kid, Endeavor is an adult hero! Besides that, you think there's any sort of relationship between them beyond business!? Endeavor is an asshole, do you know-!"

"I don't want to hear about it!" he threw up his hand, completely dismissing anything she was about to say.

"Fine, then why don't you just burrow around in my mind to know everything I am thinking like all your other criminals?!" The chair squeaked as he kicked it from behind him, heavy boots falling against the floor as he approached and towered over her. Kairi swallowed and straightened her spine, begging her body to make her look taller and more confident than her trembling legs did.

"Because you are not a villain Kairi and you know I don't use it on you unless it's important," he sneered. Though his words were kind, his tone didn't betray how upset he was with her. "I am sorry I haven't spent time with you and maybe I haven't given you credit for how much time you've spent outside the house. Despite your anxieties being out in public, despite how you fair in large crowds, and despite how you've struggled making friends in the past. But that doesn't negate how you interrupted my important work, work that I am doing because I think how I would feel if I lost you like that, and how I would want an officer to handle your case. I am trying to be a hero in my own way, just like you are trying to be a hero in your own way. Maybe there's more paperwork than yours. Maybe there's more glimmer to what you want to do, but what I am doing is still important. I am trying to better these people's lives. If you can't see that is worth all the time in the world, then what are you even doing at that academy, Kairi?" She shivered and while the guilt set in, it didn't completely vanish the quaking rage that still thrummed in her.

"But I should also be worth all the time in the world, Dad?" her voice shuddered. He swallowed tightly. Kairi pressed her hands against her leaking eyes. "All I wanted to come in here for was to tell you about this company I saw an advertisement for, and how something about it seemed off. Since you're all about law and justice right now, I thought maybe you would care to take a look."

"What's it called?"

"QuirKey Laboratories," she spat out, avoiding his eyes. "I'll leave you to your work now." She gestured for him to move and he stepped aside. Without so much as exchanging a look, Kairi shot from the kitchen clamored two steps at a time into her sparse bedroom. Her phone wheeled through her contacts under her direction, habit making her search for her mother's number. Amber eyes fell onto the wall, where the plaster disk that encased the dried pressed iris Shoto had given her on the survival exercise. A hand wiped against her nose as her mind zapped with realization. She didn't need to continue to turn to her mom for every small thing now. She had friends she could vent to. Friends who were more likely to take her side. Friends who would show more care and love than Tabitha ever would. Her finger hovered, then returned to her text messages. Shoto replied in moments that he was unable to speak because his father was about to take him into their training dojo. Chest splitting for a moment before she soothed herself with the reminder her friends had lives too, she went to the next most recent recipient of her messages. With the confirmation that she was indeed free, Kairi made a quick call.

"Hey Momo. Things just got intense with my dad and I and I just... need to talk to someone right now..."