He stood in front of the mansion. It looked different in the rising sun, the shadow that was thrown over him felt like a weighted blanket. His breath came out with a shudder as he waited, and waited, and waited.

It was at the time that they had promised to meet that the door unlocked with a loud click and opened. She stepped out, her weapon wrapped up in a rather obvious bundle at her back, making it look more like a gourd.

As to her, she… was dressed slightly differently. Her usually bare legs under her skirt were hidden by thigh-highs, her hands were under gloves just like his. Around her neck, despite the harsh summer heat, was a scarf that she pulled up slightly to hide her mouth and nose.

She looked at him as if awaiting judgement. She wouldn't get it, though. He stepped up to her, greeting her with a hug and a kiss before taking her hand. It felt like nothing, between those two gloves, and yet there was a certain comfort they could take from that closeness.

They walked together to the train station. They sat next to each other in the train, and they continued the way hand in hand up to U.A. where Aizawa-sensei greeted them with a nod.

"Good morning," he said, his eyes glowing briefly. "It's good to see you back, Yaoyorozu."

"I'm glad to be back, Aizawa-sensei," Momo said, her voice slightly muffled by the scarf. Aizawa said nothing, instead waving them through and noting their names down on a list next to him. They weren't the first ones here, of course, but they also were far from the last. As they walked up to their classroom, they found themselves the targets of a few stares.

What happened to Momo was not a secret, of course. The reporters had become rabid animals as they investigated the circumstances, and while painting him as a hero who saved his girlfriend, they were just as happy to go into gruesome detail on the injuries she had received.

Izuku heard the lawsuit against the biggest publishers was going well. Mrs. Yaoyorozu had a rather shark-like grin on her face as she revealed her actions. Publishing the name of a girl who wasn't of age yet after a brutal villain attack was a big no-no. Especially when said girl is the heiress of such a family.

She would walk with pride one day.

But for now it was fine for her to draw the scarf up a bit further. Izuku squeezed her hand and led her to the classroom, ignoring the usual rowdy shouting from class 1-B. It seemed that Monoma and Bakugou hadn't hit off at all.

It was at the door to the class 1-A that Momo stopped for the first time. Her hand was shaking.

"You can do it," he said. Momo nodded.

"I-I know I can," she said, unable to keep the shaking of her body in check, her voice quivering with untold fears. "But, I don't know, maybe I've come back too soon."

"Nobody will say anything," Izuku promised. "And if they do, I will take care of them myself."

Momo squeezed his hand so tight it almost hurt, and nodded. With trembling fingers, she grabbed the door and opened it.

"It's fine to be scared," Izuku whispered. She stepped in, and all eyes were on her.

They weren't that many eyes, of course. Hiryu Rin, Iida, Tsuyu and Uraraka were there, as were the unusually diligent Kirishima, Mina and Kaminari.

Uraraka and Mina were on Momo before anyone else. While Mina was able to keep her emotions in check, Uraraka was crying openly, her arms wrapped around the taller girl and sobbing into her uniform. Izuku could see Momo relax, her initial worries washing away as she was being comforted by, and was comforting, Uraraka.

Izuku walked to his seat, putting his bag down onto it as Kirishima and Iida approached him as well. Iida gave a short nod, while Kirishima wasn't able to keep his curiosity in check.

"Is she doing alright?" Kirishima asked. Izuku frowned. He wasn't sure how to answer. Yes would be wrong, but no didn't sound right either.

"She will be," he settled on, nodding at the fanged young man. "She's stronger than she gives herself credit for."

His eyes moved from Kirishima to the girls in the back. Tsuyu was shaking as well, tearing up. Izuku realized just how little he knew about the friendships in the class. As the door behind them opened and more people poured in, everyone greeted Momo happily.

It was around the time where Aizawa opened the door and walked in that the class had to sit down again and leave her alone. Izuku noted that the scarf was not quite drawn up as far anymore by the time that the class had started.

The last heroics class before the break. It was not a practical one. Despite the new blades that now sat attached to his bag, Izuku was kind of glad. Something about drawing the swords right now made him uneasy.

Aizawa-sensei stood in front of them, glaring at the once more unruly class.

"The break will start soon, though as you're all doubtlessly aware, U.A. has no real breaks. We are using the lack of classes to our advantage and to prepare you for less urban environments using a class trip."

A few people seemed a bit put off at the lack of a proper break, but most were excited. Class trips, even for training, were something that most people could approve of. Izuku nodded along as Aizawa spoke, crossing his arms.

"As you're also aware, the school has been under scrutiny due to our lax security, and while the dorm room project is still getting the approval and building renovations it needs, there is no use in security on campus if we can't assure your safety off campus as well."

The class murmured. Kirishima didn't. Instead, the young man's hands balled into heavy and hard fists that cracked in response to the words. Izuku understood well enough what he was feeling. Kirishima, more than anyone else, seemed to take Izuku's and Momo's predicament personally. As if it were his failure not to have joined Momo in her fight.

It was with a harsh sigh that Izuku finally understood how Tenko saw him. The self-flagellating behavior of someone who wanted to be blamed for all the things happening in the world could get tiresome. Aizawa continued.

"In an effort to keep the security of the youngest students in our school on a maximum, after there have been multiple incidents in which students of our school have been targeted, we are going to have some third years participate in class trips and heroics classes off-campus."

That made Izuku perk up. He knew that every year people fell out of the heroics course, meaning that those who made it to their final year were no doubt the most impressive. He had also heard whispers about three stand out students who were the top of their year even among those chosen few, though he couldn't remember their names.

"Our usual field trip is into a forest area, but we're considering other options. Prepare for anything, consider this a test," Aizawa finished. Izuku was almost certain that he was just messing with them, or if not messing with them too lazy to actually tell them what to bring. "Of course, we still have too much time left this class, so consider it free studying before lunch."

Aizawa took his things and walked to the door, glancing back towards Izuku and Momo. The two nodded at their teacher, and he nodded back, walking out and closing the door behind him.

It was only seconds afterwards that the class exploded into motion. The people who didn't have as much time to talk to Momo were gathered around her once more, joined by the most surprising face.

"Todoroki-san?" Momo asked, blinking up at the boy. "Is everything alright?"

"You shouldn't hide it," Todoroki said. Izuku stood up quickly, but Kirishima's hand was on his shoulder before he was able to say anything. The class went quiet, though Todoroki didn't seem concerned about that. Momo's own eyes widened, glancing down at the scarf and then back up at Todoroki's own scar. "Especially not with your quirk, you're just holding yourself back."

"A bit hypocritical coming from you, Todoroki-san," Momo said. Izuku could hear the tightness in her voice, and even as Mina was trying to distract with some loud behavior, they kept staring at each other. Todoroki wasn't wrong, and yet he was both the best and the worst person to give this kind of advice.

"It's because I'm a hypocrite that I know how much it hurts," Todoroki said, pushing past Mina as she came up to him. "We can't be what they made us to be. A monster who can look like whoever she wants would love nothing more than to torture you for what you look like. You mustn't let her."

Momo was getting angry.

Or perhaps angry was not quite the proper word for it. She stood up, her hands twitching. Itching to do something that she would no doubt regret later, but once she was standing, almost eye to eye with him, she lifted her fingers up to the scarf and pulled it down, revealing her entire face.

Some girls in the class reacted, even though they tried so hard not to. Izuku could hear the heartbreak and utter fury, as well as the hopelessness of how little they were able to do for her.

And Todoroki didn't flinch at all. His eyes hardened, his fists clenched as he, too, imagined helping rather than standing around as she came to save Izuku.

Their staring contest was interrupted by Iida, asking Todoroki to sit down.

"Get your revenge," Todoroki said, almost gleefully spiteful. "Show her you're more than what she made you."

Izuku saw Momo think about it, and felt worry in his heart.

Perhaps, as much as he wanted to be friends and a positive influence on Todoroki, he underestimated the reverse happening.

He knew that Momo wanted revenge.

Izuku saw her nod.

And he felt worry in his heart.

Izuku woke up on the terrace of an old Japanese styled mansion. It reminded him of those he had sat in before, but something about it was different. The smell in the air felt almost like a hospital. Medicine and disinfectant, as well as the distinct sting of something he couldn't quite place.

In front of him were trees of wisteria, in full bloom as the beautiful flowers that were so poisonous to demons were giving off a soft fragrance.

A woman sat next to him. Her black hair was tied up in a bun behind her head, and what hung loosely had purple highlights reaching towards the tips. A soft smile was on her face, but Izuku could hear something else inside of her. It flowed through her blood like poison.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" she asked. Izuku blinked, looking over the wisteria trees once more. "It's a shame that these trees no longer grow on our soil."

"Shinobu Kocho," Izuku greeted. At this point, he had come to expect it, and checked over the pictures once more. Her smile looked different when she turned her head. Dangerous. "It's an honor to meet you."

"Of course, of course, my reputation precedes me," she said, nodding. "It's also a pleasure to meet you, Kagura-kun."

Izuku bowed in greeting, and she patted the place next to her. He walked up to her seat, a soft pillow waiting for him as he knelt down and sat.

"You are a bit too young to frown like that, aren't you?" Shinobu asked. Izuku pursed his lips, trying to smile back but not finding it in him. She shrugged, sighing in an exaggerated motion. "Ah, the youth of today."

"They say you were the one who perfected the technique of killing demons using nothing but poison," Izuku said. The mother of the demon slayer's medical house, the butterfly mansion, who had taken it over from her sister. "Am I here to find out more about that?"

"Are you still seeking meaning in this lucid dream?" Shinobu asked. Izuku could hear the slight mocking in her tone. "Alas, I imagine that this is just what we've encouraged. Sometimes the image of a flower is just a flower, Kagura-kun."

"And sometimes the flower can mean a million other things," Izuku said, crossing his legs and putting his elbow on his knee, leaning against his palm. "I don't think it's wrong to seek meaning in dreams about the dead."

"I suppose so, but Tokito-kun already told you, not everything needs to be a lesson."

"Isn't that a lesson, too?" Izuku asked, mirroring his own question to the young man from the previous dream. "If there's no meaning to this, maybe there's meaning for you. Are you that desperate to talk to someone?"

He meant it as a joke, but the way her mouth shifted from her smile into a soft frown made him consider apologizing. After a moment of silence, she nodded slowly.

"We are observers, nothing more," Shinobu said. "In the end, our words are just words. Our actions are nothing more than lucid dreams. There's a certain loneliness to not being able to do anything about the pains and sufferings of those we've left behind."

"I'll help them," Izuku said, not a moment of hesitation tying down his tongue. "As is my duty."

"You've already helped him, even when he doesn't deserve it," Shinobu said. "Chizome-kun is… a temperamental man. Unkind, inauspicious, and yet bound on a path that I never had wished for anyone of my children and grandchildren."

It was strange to talk to someone who looked so young about their descendants, but Izuku nodded anyway.

"Chizome," Izuku said. Stain's real name. "I always thought he was a bad person. I still think he's… not good, but I've come to realize that we're all just what our circumstances make us out to be."

"Like Momo Yaoyorzu," Shinobu said. Izuku frowned, nodding. "You worry because she reminds you of Chizome-kun?"

"No," Izuku said, shaking his head. "She's… fearful, and when she tries to suppress that fear she gets angry. Stain is neither angry nor fearful, he's filled with a sense of duty that makes it hard to hate him. He has perhaps a bit too much fun in battle, but that doesn't make him a bad fighter."

"You worry she will become like him, then," Shinobu said, unwilling to let go of the comparison. Izuku's lips were drawn into a thin line.

"I'm worried about her," Izuku said. "She's afraid, and I try to tell her she shouldn't be. And when she loses that fear, I see something in her eyes that makes me feel unhappy. If that is how Stain became how he is, I don't want that for her."

"There's a balance to be struck. Fearful as she is, she needs to prove to herself that she is stronger than the girl who had been destroyed by Himiko Toga. To make herself whole again she will need to glue the bits and pieces that are left together."

"Did he do that?" Izuku asked.

"Chizome-kun's father was a man who took tradition too seriously," Shinobu said. "It was reflected in his teachings, taking the words of his own father to heart to the point that he forgot the purpose of the sword. When Chizome begged his father to become a hero, they fought. Chizome won."

"But he's not a hero," Izuku said, frowning. "A vigilante at best, I suppose old fashioned people wouldn't see much of a difference in that."

"No, he won, but he lost something else in that fight," Shinobu said. "He was a vigilante at first, unable to find foot in the proper… society, if that word would be correct. As I said, I am an observer, I cannot judge the fundamentals on which the current country is built on when the world was so different back then. One day, a villain whom he had caught and delivered to the police broke out of custody and tracked him down."

Izuku felt his blood chill, a shiver running down his spine. He already knew where the story was going to go, and yet he felt the need to listen to it all. "His family?"

"All of them," she said. "He came home to find his father had fought back, the villain was injured, unable to flee, but had succeeded. Chizome's father, his mother, as well as his brothers. They all died that night."

"I imagine he didn't deliver the villain back to the police."

"He did not."

Izuku's fists clenched in his lap.

"He was incredibly angry that night," she said, her hand reaching up to touch on his head. "Remember, Kagura-kun. Being angry doesn't make you wrong, it just makes you angry."

Izuku shook his head. "I don't think losing yourself in anger is right."

"Ahahaha," she said, her sweet smile peeking out behind her hand. "Perhaps so, but please do remember that you, too, have lost yourself in it. It's not about never being angry, it's about doing nothing with that anger you will regret later that is important. Kindness, Izuku, will always beat anger. All the kindness you show her will pay off."

Izuku would remember that anger until the end of days. He frowned when her hand came down to pat his cheek. A loud bell rang and woke him.

Izuku woke up with a start. His phone was ringing, despite it being put on silent for the night. A quick glance at the number revealed the reason. One of the few numbers he had put on alarm to ring no matter what.

"Midoriya speaking," Izuku said after hitting the accept button. The person on the other end was breathing heavily.

"I apologize for calling this late, Kagura," Tenkai said. Izuku frowned, using his self-chosen hero name didn't seem to be Tenkai's thing. Something was going on. "A demon has appeared."

Izuku was out of bed at the second word, fumbling around for his hero uniform as he pulled the swords from his bag. "When and where?"

"It took a bit to get the confirmation, the pattern is reminiscent of the Serpent Demon," Tenkai said. "The demon has last been sighted in Akihabara, picking off the elderly, often those who come with their grandchildren to buy them presents. It eats their livers and leaves them to bleed out in the streets."

"I'll be there," Izuku said, putting on the uniform. "Do you know where it's hiding?"

"Not yet," Tenkai said, sounding frustrated. "If you'd prefer you can stay at home and we can call you once we have it pinned down. I wanted to give you a heads up because you'll be called either way."

"Then it's fine, I'll still be there," Izuku said. "If nothing else I can try to help the investigation. I have good hearing for demons."

"Thank you," Tenkai said, sounding genuine. "You think you can extract some information from it before you kill it?"

"Maybe," Izuku said, frowning. He attached the swords to his hip, opening the window of his room and jumping out into the hot summer air. "Demons love to talk."

Chapter 35, upcoming:

The Liver Demon

Izuku watched as the asphalt was split open by her flail. The scarf had already fallen by the wayside, revealing a grin that made him shiver in discomfort. Her voice was like the howling wind, a loud shout of satisfaction.

"Breath of Stone," Momo announced. "Bladesmith's Prayer!"

From her scars came countless swords as the chain was sliding over her arm, attaching themselves in each of the links. The demon dodged, but the chain bent over and surrounded it, stabbing dozens of blades into its body.

For a moment, the demon looked just like her.

Bleeding from a hundred cuts. Izuku closed his eyes as Momo pulled on the chain, the sun steel carving a path into the afterlife.