Ochaco was coloring when the news came.

She had an array of crayons at her disposal as she drew pictures of space while her parents conversed. All three Urarakas were in their study spending quiet family time together. While Ochaco colored, her parents discussed an upcoming meeting for that week. The youngest of the family paid little mind, more than content to continue her scraggly drawings of the solar systems.

She had just finished drawing Jupiter when their butler had come in with an announcement; their long-awaited guests had arrived.

Ochaco bolted up from her comfy spot on the floor. She was already out the doorway before her mother and father could properly react.

The five-year-old was grinning as she ran through the halls of her home. The colorful tapestries blurred together in brilliant yellows and greens as she sprinted down to the main entrance, doing her best not to trip over the skirts of her dress.

"Slow down, Ochaco!" her father called out after her. "You don't want to trip and fall, do you?"

"Oh, she's alright, Kenta. Let her get some energy out while she can," the warm voice of her mother followed.

The voices of her parents grew more and more distant as Ochaco neared her destination with excitement. She knew that one of the guests arriving was her best friend.

The ornately carved front door was finally in view, and Ochaco beamed when she noticed another family of three nearby.

There was a woman and man both dressed in formal attire, each sporting a gleaming brooch in the shape of a crest on their clothes. Ochaco knew the man and woman to be Hisashi and Inko Midoriya, dear friends of the Uraraka family. But while she was happy to see her family friends, they were not who Ochaco was so excited to see.

Next to the couple was a boy with bright green eyes and hair to match. Like his father, he was dressed in a formal coat with the same brooch his parents wore. The boy's face lit up when his green eyes met Ochaco's.

"Ocha!" he grinned, running to give his best friend a hug. "I've missed you so much!"

"Hi, Izuku! I've missed you too," Ochaco giggled as she returned the tight embrace.

Izuku pulled away from the hug and grabbed something from his pants pocket.

"I got you a present!" he announced, pulling out a slightly crumpled pink flower. "Mom said that we're supposed to bring gifts when we visit the other islands and I know you like pretty rocks- we don't have any at my house -but I found this pink flower and your favorite color is pink! I hope you like it, Ocha!"

Ochaco tentatively took the flower from Izuku's hands. It was indeed her favorite color, and the petals were super soft to touch.

"It's so pretty, Izu!" she exclaimed, bringing the greenette into another hug. "Thank you so much!"

It was then that her mother and father had finally caught up and went to properly greet their other guests.

"Hisashi, Inko, wonderful to see you again," her mother said, giving Inko her own hug. "I can see Ochaco has already greeted you all."

"For the most part, though I believe she was more excited to see Izuku," Inko chuckled, looking at the two children chatting about anything under the sun.

"That's to be expected, they haven't seen each other for nearly a month now," Hisashi chimed in. "But while it is great to see you Okira, we should probably begin preparations for the council meetings next week-"

"Mommy, can me and Izuku go play in my room?" Ochaco interrupted with a small tilt to her head.

"Of course, just make sure you're listening when we call you both for dinner."

"Okay! C'mon Izuku!"

Wasting no time, the young Uraraka grabbed her friend's hand as they began the journey to her room. The two children laughed as they told one another stories during their month apart. Ochaco got to hear a wonderful tale about Izuku finding a turtle out on the beach, while she told about her own adventure walking up a mountain with her mom.

The two continued to walk and Ochaco caught sight of her bedroom door in sight. Giggling, she tapped her fingers against Izuku's shoulder, a soft pink glow emitting from the touch.

"Tag, you're it!"

"Wha- Ocha, no fair! That's cheating!" her now floating friend exclaimed.

Ochaco only laughed harder as she sprinted towards the door. Right as she was about to reach her destination, she felt a hand touch her shoulder.

"Huh?"

She turned around to see Izuku floating upside down behind her

"Gotcha!" he declared, a smug smile on his face.

Ochaco stared in bewilderment, before pouting slightly. "How'd you tag me?"

"I swam in the air… I think. There's no water so I don't think it's actually swimming, but it was kind of like it."

"Oh, well do you wanna play something else now?"

"Sure!" Izuku grinned. "We should play dragons!"

"Yeah! Release!"

With a thump, the green-haired boy fell safely onto the ground with a laugh.

The two children then went to play their favorite game with happiness in their hearts.

Ochaco woke up with a tired yawn.

Fond feelings of tenderness stirred her heart as she remembered her dream. Well, not exactly a dream, a memory.

It was different from the vivid dreams she would sometimes have; she knew those were false upon waking up. It was different. It was real. She could remember everything that had happened, and there was something in her gut that told her it was all true.

If she concentrated, Ochaco could almost smell the flower Izuku had gotten her.

The thought earned a giggle from the brunette. She and Izuku had been best friends for a while it seemed. Ochaco had always mused that the two of them were a little closer than they ought to be at times, but had chalked it up to them just naturally 'clicking'. She was glad to have another reason to be close to the greenette.

Neither of them would have all the pieces of their lives until the end of the week, but if the memories were starting with tender moments between friends, Ochaco found she didn't mind.

Brown eyes drifted to her alarm clock and she grimaced when she realized it was still the middle of the night. Ochaco figured she should try to go back to sleep, but with all the excitement of getting a memory back, she knew she would still be up for a while.

'Maybe I should try and grab some warm milk, that usually helps me relax a little.'

Most of her classmates were fairly heavy sleepers, besides people like Jirou and Shoji, who had more sensitive hearing. But it was well into the evening and she probably wouldn't wake anyone up if she just went down to the kitchen for a quick drink… hopefully.

Knowing how cold it could get downstairs, Ochaco quickly threw a hoodie over her sleepwear before creeping out of her dorm room and towards her destination.

The silence was jarring as she walked through Heights Alliance. The usual chatter, laughter, and occasional yelling that filled the building were all silent as everyone was asleep, but it was somehow still peaceful.

Ochaco took the elevator down to the first floor and prayed there was still milk in the fridge.

When she was little and had nightmares, her father would always heat up a glass of milk for her and tell her a story. He said it was a good way to calm the nerves after something scary, or to just get sleepy again.

Images of late nights spent with her dad as they would laugh and talk flitted through her mind. Something in her heart warmed, and she mused that those particular memories were real.

Either way, Ochaco hoped some warm milk would help put her back to sleep.

As she neared the kitchen, there was a soft glow illuminating from one of the kitchen lights, the faint sound of rushing water filling her ears.

Ochaco figured that Tokoyami might have been also up. Dark Shadow had a tendency to be a bit of a night owl. s the brunette was about to enter the kitchen, however, she saw a familiar mop of green hair.

There stood Izuku Midoriya, clad in All Might-themed pajamas and guzzling down a glass of water.

"Izuku?" Ochaco quietly called out.

Green eyes snapped to her own and Ochaco couldn't help but notice how bright those emerald eyes shone.

"Ocha?" he questioned, concern written on his face, "What are you doing down here so late? Oh no! Did I wake you up?"

"No, you didn't. I was actually coming down here to grab a warm drink to try and make me sleepy again."

"Oh. Did you have a nightmare?"

Ochaco shook her head fondly, endeared at Izuku's concern. "The opposite actually. I think some of my memories came back tonight, and now I can't get back to sleep.

"That makes two of us then," Izuku chuckled. "What memories did you get?"

"It was just one, but it was me and you as kids. Both of our parents were there too. I think they were having a meeting of some kind, but you and I wanted to go and play tag. I think we're both connected a bit deeper than we thought."

Ochaco noted that Izuku didn't look too surprised at the news. He actually looked fairly calm about it.

"Yeah… I got some of my memories back too," Izuku smiled. "They were more like fragments of different events, but I remember you being involved in one of them."

"Does one of your memories have anything to do with why you're so sweaty?" Ochaco asked, gesturing to the droplets that had formed on his forehead.

Izuku awkwardly chuckled before nodding. "All the fragments were about parts of my quirk. I guess whoever changed our memories didn't want me to remember I had it."

Something new about his quirk? It was entirely possible considering how many new abilities came with his current quirk. In fact, last time the two had trained together Izuku had been trying to master his new 'Black Whip' move.

"Does your quirk have to do with heat, and that's why you're sweatin' so much?" Ochaco asked.

Izuku's grin only grew. "Yep! Did you, um- Did you want to see it?"

"Yes!"

"Okay, you might want to stand back a little. I don't want you to get burned ."

Ochaco did as told and watched as Izuku held his hands out in front of him.

Within seconds, small flames appeared on both of the greenette's palms, making the dimly lit kitchen glow a little brighter.

Ochaco could only stare in amazement as Izuku quickly stopped the flames as fast as he made them.

"It's weird to think I ever forgot about it in the first place," Izuku started, taking a seat at one of the tables. "But since my memories came back, it feels like I never lost this part of my quirk. It was like waking up from a dream. It all seems real until I actually wake up, and then everything sinks again. I think the memory you were in was one of the first times I had used it. We were pretty little and were playing some game outside, and this bully with an ice quirk froze your shoes to the ground so you couldn't move. I think I used my quirk to unfreeze you, but it switched to a different event after that."

Of course he did. Izuku seemed to have a heroic heart since he was little.

"Looks like you've always been saving me, huh?" Ochaco spoke warmly as she took a seat next to Izuku. "You're pretty incredible."

While she was more than capable of taking care of herself, it felt nice to know that he was there for her. And Ochaco was determined to be there for him as well.

"I think you have it confused," Izuku said, eyes shining with admiration. "You're the incredible one. You're always doing your best in training, at everything you do and no matter what you're up against, you don't back down. I think you're amazing, Ochaco."

Said girl felt her cheeks heating up. "Izuku…"

Warm thoughts bubbled up in her heart. How many times was this boy going to make her feel special that day? After everything that happened on the rooftop, Ochaco knew she was smitten, but she had always believed it to be one-sided. His words made a small glimmer of hope shine through though as they continued to talk.

The conversation steered more into what they could remember from their dreams/memories.

Ochaco recalled that her family seemed to be better off than she thought. From what she knew before, Ochaco's family had always been in the construction business and while they didn't struggle immensely, they still weren't on the wealthy side of things. They clearly didn't work in construction as previously thought, especially considering what she could remember about their home.

"Do you think we should tell them what happened?" she piped up, worry creasing her brows. "I mean, there's a good chance their memories could be affected too if what we know is true."

Izuku scrunched up his face in concentration and drummed his fingers along the table.

"I want to, but at the same time I want to make sure we know everything about the quirk and Tanaka. My mom already worries about me a lot, and this would just add more fuel to the fire. But as soon as we figure out most of the facts we should. I don't want to keep anyone in the dark about this, but we just don't know everything going on."

Ochaco admitted that he had a point. As much as she wanted to call her parents, they still needed more information before they could do anything else.

"We should talk to Mr. Aizawa about this tomorrow. He'd know the best way to go about this," she announced, fatigue starting to creep in.

"Good idea." Izuku yawned.

Before any more could be said, the freckled teen had perked up from his spot at the table and went to the fridge.

"You said you were down here for some warm milk right? I'll make it for you since I've been keeping you down here."

"Oh no, it's really no trouble-"

But Izuku had already poured the milk into two cups and put both drinks in the microwave.

"You really didn't have to do that, you know," Ochaco mumbled, walking to stand next to him in the kitchen. "I could've done it."

There was a soft beeping from the microwave, and Izuku went to take the drinks out.

"I know, but I wanted to do something for you," Izuku said, handing her a cup. "It's a little hot, but it should be enough to get you tired again."

Ochaco gingerly took the glass and took a sip. The taste of warm milk was incredibly soothing, after the day she had. Though the company also helped. So much had happened in so little time Ochaco nearly forgot all the memory madness had happened that day.

"Thank you," she mumbled into her milk.

"You're welcome," Izuku answered, taking a sip from his own glass.

Both teens gulped down their drinks after a few moments. Ochaco had to admit that she did indeed feel a bit sleepier.

"Well, we should probably head back to bed," Izuku yawned, looking toward the elevator doors.

"Right."

Ochaco glanced at her friend, prepared to say good night when she realized he had milk still on his upper lip.

She couldn't help but let out a small giggle.

"What's so funny?"

The question only served to make her laugh harder.

"Ocha, come on. This isn't fair," Izuku pouted.

"You have a bit of a milk mustache," she said pointing at his face.

"Huh?" he gleaned down at his lips before smirking. "Oh! I'm so glad you've finally noticed, I've been trying to grow this out for ages now, and it looks like it finally came in!"

Ochaco snorted and shook her head.

"I don't know," she teased, "I think you need to try and grow a beard instead. The mustache is not doing it for you."

Izuku placed a hand over his heart in mock offense. "How dare you! I've worked years to get it to look this nice!"

"Nope. Still doesn't work."

"Well, I don't think it's fair of you to criticize my glorious milk mustache when yours is worse than mine."

"What?"

Ochaco put a finger to her upper lip only to find she did indeed have a mustache as well.

"Hmm," she grinned, "I actually think mine is much better."

Izuku narrowed his eyes playfully. "Nuh, uh"

"Yes, it is!"

"No way!"

"Yes way!"

Both teens delved into a fit of giggles before Izuku checked the time on his phone and grimaced.

"We really should try and get some sleep. I know we have quirk training tomorrow and I don't think it would do well for either of us to be really tired for that," the greenette explained, moving to put their cups in the sink.

"I guess you're right."

After cleaning up in the kitchen and wiping their lips clean of any milk, the two of them made their way to the elevator.

As they walked, Ochaco couldn't help but relish the moments she got to spend with Izuku. Everything that was said in the hospital room, to the rooftop, and even to the two of them teasing each other in the middle of the night; all of it was spent in good company.

"When Todoroki finds out about my quirk, do you think he's going to ask if I'm his long-lost brother or cousin?" Izuku joked as they boarded the elevator.

Ochaco snorted. "Definitely. Though I still don't think he's ever going to let go of the idea that All Might is your dad."

"True, I think he even roped Kaminari into that whole theory too."

A beat.

"Thank you for everything." She smiled tiredly at Izuku. "I appreciate it, both for now and on the rooftop."

"Of course, I like spending time with you, Ochaco. But uh..."

"Hmm?"

She shifted her gaze directly to Izuku and was taken aback by how serious he had become. Izuku's eyes were darting between her and the floor, but they decidedly set upon her. Suddenly vulnerable eyes pierced into her own.

"Izuku?"

"I… Ochaco I-"

Ding.

The elevator had reached the second floor.

Neither had made a move to leave.

"Well, I guess this is goodnight. Are we still on for tomorrow night?" Ochaco asked quietly.

Izuku nodded. "Definitely. Goodnight, Ocha."

The green-haired boy softly took Ochaco's hand in his own and placed a chaste kiss against her knuckles, an action that sent tingles down her spine.

Ochaco could only smile and laugh. "Goodnight, Izu."

It wasn't until Izuku was already out of the elevator and Ochaco was already in her room that she realized what had just transpired.

Did he just-? Did she just-?

Ochaco glanced at her hand where her crush had kissed it mere minutes before, cheeks turning a brilliant shade of red.

On the second floor of the dorms, Izuku was a similar shade.

The morning came and went and before Ochaco knew it, she was already dressed in her school uniform and walking through the classroom doors with Tsuyu.

Both girls were talking about when their next work-study session with Ryukyu would be when Ochaco felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Good morning, Ochaco! Did you sleep alright?"

The brunette turned to see Ashido smirking at her, eyes ablaze with mischief.

"Um, yes. Why do you ask?"

Truthfully, Ochaco had slept decently when she actually managed to get some

The giggle that escaped her pink friend did little to ease Ochaco's nerves.

"Oh nothing," Ashido tittered. "Just that a little birdy told me you left your dorm room in the middle of the night and didn't come back until even later. It wouldn't have to anything with Midoriya would it?"

Heat immediately flushed to Ochaco's cheeks and she frantically waved her arms around. "It's nothing like that? Ashido! I was just going to get a drink and then he was already in the kitchen and- Wait. How did you know?"

"Well, Shouji has pretty sensitive hearing, and I may have overheard something about you not getting back until late. Then Aoyama was talking about getting woken up by Midoriya muttering a lot last night, and I simply put two and two together. So, what were the two of you up to? A late-night romantic rendezvous?"

Ochaco was grateful that they were the only three in the classroom, but luckily the conversation got interrupted by Iida and Midoriya walking in, followed by the rest of class 1-A. Both boys were chatting away about how their morning run went and ways to further improve their speed.

Iida was correcting the other boy.

"While I think that would greatly improve your speed, you're actually losing mobility that way."

"That's true. Do you think-"

"Midoriya!" Ashido cheered with a Cheshire grin, already closing in on her next target. "We were just-"

"That's enough of that. All of you take your seats," Mr. Aizawa called out suddenly.

Her scruffy-looking teacher was on the floor in his signature yellow sleeping bag. Ochaco hadn't noticed he was even there.

Through the shuffling of her classmates getting to their seats, Ochaco caught Izuku's gaze as they passed each other to get to their seats.

The freckled teen looked like he was about to say something, but was caught off by their teacher once again.

"We have a busy day ahead of us and I'd like to get started." Dark eyes scanned over the classroom of hero-hopefuls. "This week will be a bit different than what you're all used to. Besides your normal classes, your hero lessons will be directed at personal improvement and teamwork. Some of the other teachers will be joining us for lessons and will give you more insight into what we're doing.

"Today we'll be focusing on quirk improvement and teamwork. You all will be making and practicing combo moves with your classmates as well as perfecting your own. More will be explained at Gym Gamma. So go get changed into your hero costumes and head straight there."

The class eagerly went to go get changed, endless chatter forming about the potential for their upcoming training.

"Ooh! I'm so excited!" Hagakure cheered as they headed to the girls changing room. "I hope I get to work on some fun moves with you girls! Me and Aoyama came up with a few during our work studies, but I want to see what else my light refraction is good for!"

Momo and Jirou quickly chimed in with their own wishes for the exercise and Ochaco felt a weight lift off of her shoulders.

After everything that happened the day prior, it looked like she was going to have a fairly normal day.

"Ooh! What if we get paired up together Yaomomo? I'm sure we could do something cool with my acid and your creations"

A fond smile crept onto Ochaco's face.

Well, as normal as it could get when it came to UA.