Hello crazy, beautiful world! The scribe has arrived! I had a blast writing this chapter up and you will soon see why!

As for me, my life has been getting a bit crazy. Got a second job, a new hero came out in For Honor and a new map for Hunt Showdown.

Reviews: Engineer4Ever: Hope you enjoy the reveal!

HEREITCOMESHEREITCOMESHEREITCOMES!

Borderlands is owned by Gearbox and 2KGames and My Hero Academia is owned by Kohei Horikoshi and Funimation. Please support the official release.

Please rate and review!

"This means someone is talking."

'This means someone is thinking to themselves.'

This means it's a flashback.

*This means it's a sound effect!*

{This means I'm speaking in a different language!}

Angel in a Gilded Cage


For almost the last decade, Angel had been the human equivalent of an online database. Her job had been to constantly be searching the internet across the far reaches of the globe, cataloguing anything of note for him. Market trends, criminal activity, corporate secrets and most importantly, everything in the world of heroics. Everything including, but not limited to quirk registries, private records and yes, agencies. She would sweep across national archives, both open to the public and confidential, combing through thousands of files. It was this previous knowledge that helped her keep such high grades in Hero Logistics and Law.

And thus was her conundrum. She had never heard of this "Double Tap" agency that had shown up on her internship list or at least she didn't think so. She was going through her memory, trying to remember if she had ever read the name somewhere, but she was coming up empty and it was oddly frustrating.

"You... okay Angel-chan? You're looking at your rice pretty intensely." Uraraka's voice chimed in.

She blinked and looked up from her plate to see everyone at her table, curious and worried eyes pointed at her. Midoriya, Iida and Uraraka waited for her response along with Todoroki, who held a bundle of noodles halfway to his mouth. The latter had wordlessly joined them for lunch and much to her glee, none of her friends had questioned it, instead welcoming the loner of class 1-A.

The one that would have made the occasion all the sweeter would have been Shinso joining as well, but he had apologized to her in the hall, saying that something had come up. He assured her that it was something important and not antagonistic like last time.

"O-Oh! Um, no I'm okay. Just thinking about what agency I'm going with." She shook her head and started eating her lukewarm rice.

"W-Well you did have that big stack of papers, so you must have a lot of options to go through." Midoriya said through a mouthful of pork.

"I'm guessing the decision is feeling pretty daunting for you. A lot of high ranking agencies would want you to join them after that performance at the Festival." Iida added promptly..

"I mean…sure, I haven't figured that part out yet, but it's not only that." She struggled to explain. "Have… have you guys ever heard of an agency called Double Tap Major Crime Investigations?"

They all stopped and glanced at each other.

"Double...Tap?" Uraraka rolled the unfamiliar name off her tongue.

"Hm. Can't say that I have." Iida muttered, holding his chin in thought.

"Major crimes…" Midoriya murmured with a serious expression. "...that means they investigate serious stuff like homicide, kidnapping, robbery and drug trafficking. Is that really the kind of internship you want, Angel-chan?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. It's just that it was the only name on the list that I've never heard of. It's been bothering me because I don't want to leave out any opportunities."

"Have you looked them up?" Uraraka asked.

"Not yet. Haven't had a chance."

"Hold on, almost got it." Midoriya said, typing on his phone. A few seconds later, he frowned. "Huh… zero results. That's… weird."

Everyone went silent at the news, the lack of information only inflaming everyone's intrigue.

"I think I've heard of them."

All their heads snapped to Todoroki in surprise.

"Really?" Angel questioned, getting a nod.

"Yes. It was a couple years ago I think. My father came home grumbling to himself about some "infuriating incompetents" that he had to work with, so, safe to say that he didn't have a good opinion of them. But then again, who says that's a bad thing?" He answered bitterly and returned to his noodles, Uraraka and Iida giving him a confused look at the animosity to his own parent.

"As reassuring as that is…" Angel cleared her throat. "That still doesn't tell us much."

"Maybe you should ask Aizawa-sensei? He might know." Uraraka suggested.

"Hm…Yeah, that's not a bad idea." Angel hummed and went back to eating, the mystery put off for now.


It was the end of the day. Students were leaving their classes and heading for the exits, with one exception.

Angel held the form with the offending name tightly, standing at the door of the teacher's lounge.

'Hopefully he hasn't left yet.' She fretted.

With her usual sort of nervous energy, she raised an arm and lightly knocked on the door. A couple seconds later, it opened to reveal Cementoss who looked at her in surprise.

"Ah, Hodunk-san. What an unexpected pleasure." He greeted her with a gentle smile. "How may I help you?"

"U-Um, is Aizawa-sensei there? I need to talk to him about something." She politely requested.

"Aizawa? Yes, he's here. Let me ask if he's free." The concrete hero turned back. "Aizawa? Do you have a moment? Hodunk is here to see you."

"Send her in." Her teacher's tired voice called out and Cementoss beckoned her inside. She stepped past him and took in the sights. Off to the side was a small coffee lounge with couches and on the other was a long row of desks with computers. On the far side she saw her homeroom teacher at his terminal, typing away amidst numerous piles of papers.

He turned in his revolving chair as she approached.

"Well? What is it?" He asked impatiently, his head propped on his fist showing how tired he was.

"I-I-ah… I was looking through my internship requests earlier, but I failed to recognize a name and I couldn't find anything on the internet."

"What's the name?" He sighed, rubbing his temple.

"D-Double Tap Major Crime Investigations."

His eyes immediately widened and Angel was taken aback at how quickly her teacher's stoic mask shattered. Astonishment was a weird emotion on his face.

He reached out and she handed him the form. She watched his expression shift from skepticism to utter disbelief as he presumably found the listing.

"I-I take it you know them?" She stuttered, a little fearful of his unusual reaction.

"Yeah, I know them. I've worked with them before." He grumbled, handing the sheet back. "They're an underground hero agency that deals with the more "dark" crime cases, the ones that are too dangerous for police to handle. The sort that doesn't usually make it to the morning news. They prefer it that way, makes it easier to do their job."

"So they would be investigating villains like the Hero Killer?"

"No, they focus on things like busting gangs or crime syndicates, delicate stuff that can slip away from heroes with a spotlight following them around. It's why they've never sent us any requests for interns or work studies, or at least that's what I thought."

"Wait, they've never taken any interns from Yūei?!" She started, suddenly feeling very conscious. This supposedly super covert agency, so covert that they avoid the press in order to catch their quarries, wanted her?! It filled her with awe, but mostly concern.

"Not to my knowledge, no. I always figured that they thought a student trainee would slow them down. Guess you proved me wrong."

"So… should… should I go with them?" She wondered, making him grunt.

"In my personal opinion… I'd say that for reasons that I won't disclose, an internship at Double Tap would be an invaluable experience, for you specifically."

She blinked, pointing at herself. "M-Me? Why me?"

He shook his head. "Again, I won't disclose anything, Double Tap needs their ambiguity. If you want answers, you'd have to accept the internship, which will probably include a confidentiality agreement."

She anxiously thumbed the edge of the paper. "So… you're saying they're my best option."

"But, from a professional opinion, I strongly recommend against it."

"W-What?!" She sputtered. "Why?! What happened to it being an invaluable experience?"

"I meant that. Working for Double Tap would greatly help your development. At the same time though, I wouldn't go for it. They have a bad habit of toeing the line of the law, oftentimes flaunting a disregard for professional hero regulations. Not to mention, the members of the team can be a bit…" He glowered to himself. "Difficult."

Angel rubbed her head. "Let me get this straight. You're telling me that this agency would be my best choice out of the thousands of offers I received, yet you warn me against it? That doesn't make any sense!"

"Just telling it like it is. You have two days to think about it. If that's all you're asking, be on your way." He waved her off and returned to his work.

Angel quietly left the teacher's lounge, conflicting thoughts dancing around her head. On the one hand, a once in a lifetime opportunity to learn from a secretive pro agency that would benefit her greatly. On the other hand, they were supposedly a bunch of foolhardy renegades, one wrong move away from being branded vigilantes.

Normally she would determine that the risk would outweigh the possible boons thanks to Aizawa's warning. But as she kept thinking about it, the closer she got to a strange train of thought.

A group of clandestine, reckless radicals who pushed the limits of the law to do the right thing? That described the Raiders to a T and if she could work with and even grow to care for said radicals, who's to say she couldn't handle these ones?

And with that reasoning, she continued to consider the possibility. It would not be until the next day that she would make her decision.


A few days later, the class of young heroes found themselves at the train station. They congregated at the lobby after purchasing their tickets, all the while bystanders took notice of them due to the festival or their school uniforms.

"Last minute check. Does everyone have their costumes?" Aizawa called out to the gathered teens.

"Yes sir!" They all answered, everyone held their costume cases aloft.

"Quiet down. Make sure not to lose them and to be on your best behaviour at your internships. Now get going, I'm not driving anyone if they miss their train." He dismissed them.

Finally set loose, the class began to disperse, chatting excitedly and looking forward to the experience ahead of them.

With one noticeable exception.

"T-There's so many." Angel swallowed nervously, drenched in a cold sweat. "I-I've never taken a train so far away b-by myself b-before! There's w-way more people than on the ride home!"

"Take a deep breath Angel-chan!" Uraraka rubbed comforting circles on her back as she breathed heavily.

"J-Just try to get a window seat by yourself if you can! You can listen to some music or sleep for a while to keep your mind off it!" Midoriya attempted to calm her down.

Yes, it had been a while, but Angel's fear of large crowds had finally reared its ugly head again. Despite getting used to the number of people in the cafeteria and the audience from the festival, being enclosed in a smaller space under the same circumstances was another thing entirely.

She continued to breathe deeply, reducing her hammering heart rate. If she was going to survive the hours long journey to Osaka for her internship, she needed to make sure she wasn't going to pass out on the way.

After another few minutes, she reckoned that she was feeling as ready as ever.

"Okay… okay… I think… I think I can do this." She straightened her back, shifting her heavy overnight bag on her shoulders. She gave her friends a grateful look. "Thanks again you guys, don't know what I'd do without you."

They smiled at her for a moment before their faces shifted to concern as they looked past her. She turned to follow their gaze to see Iida silently distancing himself, starting to walk to his train with nary a goodbye.

Over the last week, they had all noticed and felt a shift in Iida's behavior. Despite his assurances to the contrary, he had been a lot quieter as of late and they had all come to a conclusion why.

His brother Tensei and the Hero Killer.

They all glanced at each other, as if asking amongst themselves if they should do anything. In the end, it looked like Midoriya mustered up his courage first.

"Iida-kun," He called out, making the tall boy turn back. "I know it must be difficult to talk about… but… if you need any help or even just someone to talk to, call on us please." He requested, Uraraka nodding along.

"Iida-kun…" Angel started. "I… just..."

Promise us you won't do something you'll regret, that you won't come back changed, is what she wanted to say, but the words caught in her throat.

"...just… promise us you'll keep yourself safe." She pleaded quietly.

He stared at them for a moment, then gave a small smile.

"Of course." He told them and left without another word, leaving his three companions full of conflicting emotions.


It was ironic, really. Any other day Angel would be thankful for something to distract her from the sheer volume of people surrounding her on the train ride to Osaka.

Now, she'd rather be on the floor again, gasping for air if she could have a reason to not be worried about her friend. That he might go down an all too familiar path.

The hours crawled by and she was finally given a reprieve from her distress when she saw the rapidly approaching city in the distance.

She couldn't help but say: "Wow…" gasping at the huge metropolis. It was like a concrete contradiction of values. First there were shining skyscrapers, built so tall it was like they were trying to scratch the the same time however, she could see the former royal palaces in the distance surrounded by walls and parks, icons of treasured history standing amongst the pillars of modern society.

She hadn't had the chance to sightsee with Moxxi, as they had been focusing on getting her ready for the Yūei entrance exam and the school had kept her busy ever since. A shame really, as she could definitely see herself going on a trip with her guardian and/or friends someday.

Her wondrous mood did sour however when the train arrived at the station and she was immediately bombarded by crashing waves of white noise, the likes of which she had never felt before! Millions of voices from millions of machines, whispered and screamed in her head, from the cell phones in pedestrian's pockets to the electrical grid feeding the numerous giant buildings towering over her. It only took a minute for her to get a headache.

Thankfully, she had a useful, if temporary solution by chewing on a piece of gum. She found that not unlike someone suffering from rising or falling air pressure, it made the sound bearable.

She kept chewing the entirety of the taxi trip to the agency address that the school provided her. She gazed out the window, taking in the sights of the glass monoliths overhead. She expected for the taxi to pull over at any second and she would enter one of these buildings, ones that befitted an apparently prolific hero agency.

But they kept driving. The skyscrapers were left behind and replaced with more modest office buildings.

They kept driving and she started to get confused. They began to pass through suburbs and residential complexes, the buildings growing old and rough as they went.

They kept driving and then finally, the taxi pulled over and she climbed out. Her face was twisted into a stumped grimace at her destination, a seedy looking, rundown apartment building. The brick walls were cracked and crumbling, vandalized with graffiti. The paint from the door was chipped and decorated with dents. Empty bottles and cigarette butts littered the sidewalk.

She pulled the internship form out of her pocket and glanced at the street sign, then the address on the building. She didn't want to believe it, but they matched.

'You're kidding me. This is a hero agency? There's got to be some mistake.' She thought to herself.

But with no alternatives or explanations, she only had one option. Go inside and see for herself.

She paid the taxi driver and he pulled away from the curb. Steeling her resolve, she lifted her costume case, walked up the short steps to the entrance and pulled it open.

The inside was a dark hallway with no windows, the interior barely illuminated by some dim light fixtures. It smelled like dust and second hand smoke. On the right side was a metal door with an absurd amount of heavy looking locks on it with a closed eye slot. The landlord's home perhaps? Further down were the resident's mailboxes and two staircases, one on either side of an elevator. A sign on the doors read "Out of order".

Stepping inside, she glanced around, but saw no one.

'Better ask for directions I guess.' She decided and turned to the extremely secure door from before. Seeing no doorbell, she gave a quick knock.

*SHUNK!* Almost instantly, the small, eye level window opened and an ungodly stench assaulted her nose! She covered her face with her sleeve as she coughed. Did something die in there?!

"Whatchu want?!" A loud, irritated voice yelled and she could just see the face of an ugly man. He was caucaisan with a giant band-aid stretched across his crooked nose, matching his gnarled, yellow teeth. Heck, even his green eyes had uneven pupils.

"I-I, uh, sorry to intrude, but is this the Double Tap Major Crime Investigation agency?" She asked, her eyes burning the stench was so vile.

The man fixed her with an annoyed glare. "Does this look like a damn hero agency to you?! Naw, you want the deadbeats down in the basement! While you're down there, tell them that Earl wants the rent by Thursday or they're out on the street!" He ordered.

"O-Okay, thanks!"

"Yeah, whateva! Stay gone!" He spat and slammed the slot closed.

The doubts Angel had before returned with a vengeance.

'Is the universe trying to give me a sign?' She wondered as she walked down the hall towards the stairs, wiping away the tears in her eyes. 'Seriously, was he fermenting onions in pig's blood?!'

She turned down onto the right staircase, each step creaking ominously under her feet. At the bottom was another hallway, pipes and wires lining the walls and ceilings. At the end was another door similar to "Earl's", but with a sane number of locks.

Stepping up to it, she rubbed her fingers anxiously. This had better be it, she didn't know how much longer she could handle this place.

Once again, she rapped her knuckles on the cold metal, the sound echoing down the hall. No one answered immediately this time.

She waited for a little, then knocked again. This time, she heard a set of heavy footsteps on the other side, followed by a thump as something was set against the door. A couple more footfalls and the door slot opened.

Peering out was another man clearly not of Japanese descent. His skin was tan and his head's shape was square and solid, reminding her of Brick. He seemed to be just as versed in violence as he was, with a scar on his left cheek and his right temple as well as a bandaid across the bridge of his nose(what's with these people today?). His hair was spiked up into a sort of mohawk that ran down his head into long sideburns which merged with the thick, bushy beard on his chin, all of it a dark navy blue. Multiple silver rings hung off his ears which glittered in the light as he studied her with his brown eyes.

"Yeah, who is it?" He asked, his voice so deep it sounded like he was gargling gravel. Angel recognized his Mexican accent thanks to all of the time she spent with Mordecai.

"Um… is this the Double Tap Major Crime Investigations agency? I'm Hodunk Angel, here from Yūei for my internship." She stated fearfully.

His eyes lit up in recognition.

"Oh! Yeah! Right! You were coming today weren't you? I didn't recognize you, you were way smaller on tv, like way smaller!" He said, making a squishing movement with his fingers.

He shut the slot and a series of thuds echoed on the other side followed by a clank and the door opened. Angel angled her eyes up a little, expecting to be met with a giant the likes of Brick judging by his face, only to be met with nothing.

"Hey, down here."

She blinked and looked down. Standing before her with his hands on his hips was a man more than a foot shorter than her. Immediately, the image of a fantasy dwarf came to mind with his small stature, but also his squat, muscular physique. He wore a ratty orange and white shirt and an equally torn pair of jeans, held up by a belt with a jolly roger buckle. He had blue tattoos in the shape of a ring of bullets curling around both biceps and a star on his neck. His brow was raised as he tapped a boot impatiently.

"Oh-Oh sorry, I didn't mean to… I mean… sorry?" She apologized, bowing profusely.

"Eh." He waved her off. "Don't worry about it, I'm used to it. The name's Salvador Romero, but just call me Sal, don't care about that honorific stuff." The man greeted, holding out his meaty hand. She gingerly took it, trying not to hiss as it was shaken in his tight grip.

"Come on in." He beckoned, letting her in and closing the door behind her. He walked in front and started leading her down another, thankfully illuminated hall, passing the folded stepladder she assumed he had used for the door slot. As they did so, Angel noticed a light jingling, taking a second to figure it out.

'Is he wearing spurs?'

A quick glance down revealed yes, yes he was.

In any case, she was slightly relieved that she had evidently found the agency, but her immediate surroundings and Salvador's appearance didn't exactly strike her as "professional heroic". Hopefully the inner sanctum would instill her with some confidence, like it was all a front for the real operation.

They stepped into the room and her hopes deflated.

"Welcome to the workplace! This is where the party lives!" Salvador announced proudly.

It was a messy basement apartment, the wide and open room split into three sections, the air faint with the smell of beer and cigarette smoke. To the right were a couple desks with a pair of computers and numerous unkempt piles of papers as well as a round dining table with four seats. There was another hallway off to the side. After that across the room was the kitchen, the sink full of dirty dishes. Finally on the left was a carpeted area with two easy chairs and a worn out couch facing a widescreen tv.

Angel jumped at the sound of a loud snore coming from a man sleeping on said couch, empty beer cans littering the ground around him. He was barefoot and wearing puke green, military cargo pants and a white, stained tank top. A pair of dog tags and a diamond wedding ring on a loop laid on his chest as it rhythmically rose and fell. What appeared to be a… gravure magazine was draped on his face, the pages fluttering when he exhaled.

"This is an undercover hero agency?" She said out loud.

"Hey, it works, don't it? What bad guy would think an agency's down here?" Salvador protested as he neared the couch. "Hey, soldier-boy! Get off your ass, the intern's here!" He snapped his fingers over the sleeping man, but he continued to slumber.

The dwarf grumbled, but his scowl quickly faded into a wicked sneer. He stomped over to the kitchen and retrieved a brown paper bag from the trash. Putting it to his mouth, he blew into it until it was full of air and brought it near the other man's head.

Angel's eyes widened as she took a step away from the couch and plugged her ears.

With great pleasure in his eyes, Salvador punched the bag.

*POW!*

"AAAGH!" The man screamed, flailing around and crashing to the floor! "PERIMETER BREACH! POSITION COMPROMISED!" He yelled at the top of his lungs, scrambling to his feet and whirling around the room with crazed green eyes, brandishing a beer can like a grenade.

He was caucasian and had a handsome face, in a sort of roguish way. He had a square jaw darkened by a five o'clock shadow and crossed by a sliver of a scar that accompanied the one on his brow. His hair was brown and cut in a very military crew cut. He had a fit body, likely from military training, Angel guessed.

"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Salvador rolled on the floor, howling with laughter.

The other man quickly caught on to what happened, glaring angrily at the dwarf. "Sal, you midget bastard! I'm going to beat your ass you piece of…" He trailed off when he finally noticed the teenage girl standing there, looking very bewildered at him.

"Ah… well this is awkward." He scratched his head before fixing his hair a little and dusted himself off. "So you're the intern, Angel Hodunk right? The name's Briggs, Axton Briggs." He greeted, holding out a hand.

"I-It's an honor to meet you sir!" She replied, trying to be venerable to the supposed pro hero in his disheveled state.

"Hey, don't need to be so uptight kid. We're not exactly the most, heh, formal agency." He chuckled.

He could say that again. Angel was beginning to get more skeptical about what she could learn here. Had Aizawa sent her here as a prank? She could see how he would consider these people "difficult", as he put it. These two men were already as chaotic as the Raiders and she'd hazard a guess that there were more.

"Anyway, we'll chat later once everybody's here. Sal!" Axton barked at his companion who was still laughing.

"Hahaha, oh ho! Ha… what?" He answered, catching his breath.

"Have you seen Zee?"

"You know that cryptic bastard. Always doing his own thing." Salvador scoffed.

Angel opened her mouth to ask who was this "Zee" they spoke of, but then-

"I am here." A soft, synthetic voice interjected, right behind her!

"EEEK!" She shrieked, almost jumping out of her skin! Spinning around, she craned her head up to see a tall, lithe being dressed in a black and grey body suit, stretchy microfiber padding underneath light, aerodynamic armor plating. They resembled a ninja crossed with a stunt biker, especially with the streamlined helmet, the visor a polished black that concealed the wearer's identity.

The figure tilted their head towards Angel, and inexplicably a red image of a question mark flickered in front of their face.

At the moment however, Angel could barely process any of this out of pure shock at the being that had just appeared out of thin air. Heart pounding, she stumbled back in an attempt to make some distance from the sudden arrival.

Unfortunately, she failed to notice where she was going.

Her back slammed against the dining table, making her yelp as her arm swung up and her costume case slipped from her grasp! It flew through the air, end over end as it hurtled directly toward her!

"Eeep!" She whimpered, bracing herself for the incoming pain.

*VWWUM!* The air rippled, sending vibrations through her body!

At the unfamiliar noise and the fact that she had yet to feel the metal case hit her, Angel cracked an eye open and gasped.

Floating not an inch from her face was her case, suspended in an orb of lapis blue energy! The sphere hummed in a low pitch, sending goosebumps along her skin.

There was something else though. Something about the glow was overwhelmingly familiar.

"What the heck is all the racket?" An exasperated female voice muttered as the case gently lowered itself onto the dining table, where the energy dissipated. The thump of boots drew the attention of the two men and ninja behind her and Angel turned just in time to see a fourth individual enter from the hallway.

Stepping out into the light was a beautiful, young woman, her gait proud and graceful. She was caucasian as well, with healthy, sun kissed skin. Her face was flawless and symmetrical, with high cheekbones and neatly trimmed eyebrows, the only outlier being a pair of beauty marks under one of her silver eyes. Her hair was a shimmering shade of blue, shining in the light as they ran down all the way just below her chest like two straight rivers. They matched the color of her lips. A mutation from her quirk, or just lipstick Angel wondered.

Her attire consisted of a black and silver, long sleeved leotard underneath a matching pair of pants. Draped over her it all was a cloak that shared the other article's color scheme plus a yellow interior, the hood back from the owner's head at the moment.

The new arrival studied the scene before her and let out an aggravated sigh.

"Seriously? I try to meditate for five minutes and things are falling apart." She said, walking past Angel to plant herself in front of her three colleagues.

"Axton!" The taller man flinched. "You knew that the intern was coming today, yet here you are, not dressed and reeking of beer. What do you have to say for yourself?"

"I'm sorry ma'am!" He snapped into a salute, out of a fear that only military training could instill.

Salvador snickered off to the side only to visibly sweat when the woman turned to him. "Don't think I forgot about you, buster! You were smoking inside again, weren't you?"

Angel watched, bewildered at the sight of a stout, brawny man looking down at his boots like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar. "Maybe." He muttered.

"And you!" The woman pointed at the thin ninja… person. "Where were you today? I've been looking all over for you!"

"At the train station… studying our new intern… followed her back here." They answered in an odd way, sounding like a haiku. Angel however, fretted at the fact that this assassin looking individual had been following her since she had arrived in the city.

"Ugh, we've been over this. You can't stalk people without a warrant. We get in enough hot water without the police getting calls about people freaking out, thinking they're getting tailed." The woman scolded, the taller figure lowering their head a little and what looked like a sad emoticon flashed over his visor.

The woman sighed and turned back to Angel, who had just been standing awkwardly through the whole thing. Immediately, her frown turned to a warm and excited smile.

"Sorry about all that, I swear, I'm the only one that can act somewhat professional around here. The name's Maya and you must be Angel Hodunk." She greeted.

Angel nodded cautiously, a bit wary for a couple reasons. The first was how she just witnessed her reprimand her three co-workers. The second and more significantly, the strange sensations she was feeling in the presence of this woman. Like there was something about her that resonated deep within her chest and it was growing the more she studied her.

"Um, hello." She replied, bowing respectfully. "Y-Yes, I'm Hodunk Angel from Yūei, class 1-A."

"Good to meet you." The newly dubbed Maya nodded. "It looks like you've already met Axton and Salvador over here. The tall, dark and mysterious one's name is Zer0. Don't worry, he doesn't bite." She promised.

A heart emoticon appeared over his head, as if trying to assuage her fears.

"I-It's nice to meet you all." Angel said. "If… I'm not overstepping… can I ask why you picked me of all people? I was told the school had never received an internship request from you before, so I'm just wondering why I'm so, I don't know, special?"

Maya raised a brow. "Well, it was a couple of things really. You looked like you have a good head on your shoulders and you fought pretty well during the Sport Festival and we kinda need someone of your… talents for something that we're working on." She explained, taking a couple steps forward.

"But the main reason? It's a little hard to explain. There's something about you that I was really curious about and I wanted to make sure."

Angel tilted her head and blinked. "Make sure of what?" She asked slowly.

Maya pursed her lips in consideration then gave a small nod. "I think it'd just be better if I showed you." She answered in a peculiar tone.

Angel automatically started to ponder on what she meant, but when the older woman brought her left arm out from within her cloak, that train of thought came to a screeching stop.

Unlike her right arm, Maya's left was sleeveless. More importantly however, emblazoned across her light skin were trails of kaleidoscopic, blue markings. The same markings that Angel saw on her own body everyday for most of her life.

Her mouth hung open in shock as the odd feeling returned in full force, like static was building all over her. She vaguely recalled a similar sensation back when Lilith demonstrated her abilities for the first time. The only other person that she thought was just like her.

'It... can't be.'

Any miniscule doubts she had evaporated when Maya's markings began to glow, glistening with a cyan light.

Angel held up her own hand, just barely registering that her own markings had come to life on their own, their white radiance shimmering, as if trying to meet their counterpart.

Maya's lips curled into a joyous grin. She held out her hand, palm outstretched like she was asking for a high five.

In an almost dreamlike trance, Angel slowly reached out. She inched closer and closer until finally, the tips of her luminescent fingers rested against Maya's. The glow from both hands briefly flared and a feeling of pure joy coursed through her nerves. Tiny motes of white and blue light intertwined, orbiting around the joined hands. The sight took Angel's breath away, her entire being filled with euphoric wonder.

Her eyes met with Maya's and the older woman's smile widened.

"Welcome to the team… Siren Sister."