I grinned a bit at last, as the press conference wrapped up and my folks started talking.

"I certainly hope they'll get that boy back," said Mom - quietly, like she was hoping I wouldn't hear. "I feel like I'm not gonna feel safe for Ochako really, until he's been retrieved."

I pretended like I didn't hear her. But cause I didn't want to, I left the room and went to my old bedroom.

My family's house is cozy, even if it's small. My room was made out of a spare nook that probably could've been a living room in another house, since the house only had one bedroom and that was my parents'. We tended to watch TV in the kitchen, but one small splurge I'd gotten was a TV in my own room. I'd have a chance to check the news alone for more info about UA here. As scary as all this was, I felt like I had to see - to know as soon as UA got everything back in order.

I texted Tsu to ask if there was any more news. While I waited for her to text back, I started thinking about what the news guys had said. Not about UA being bad guys, but about Bakugou, and how they'd said 'What if they're brainwashing Bakugou, pulling him towards the path of villainy'.

No way Bakugou would actually turn int a bad guy, would he? Sure, he's really rude and difficult sometimes, but he's not an actual BAD guy, bad guy. He'd never join the league of villains. He's one of our class. He's nothing like them -

"You are just like me"

I shuddered, remembering what that villain girl had said to me. I'd been trying not to think about what had happened back in the woods ever since she'd run off, leaving me behind in the clearing. I hadn't wanted to think about it, and I'd been trying to distract myself - to concentrate on the situation at hand, because hey, everyone else needed more than me. But now, in the first moment where there wasn't anything to do, all of a sudden I was thinking about it again.

You've got the same smell as me...you wanna be just like that person, it's only natural. You start dressing like them, but it's not enough. You actually want to become that person.

But that's not true, right? I - I want to be like Deku because he's so cool, but I don't - I don't actually want to become him. I'm not like that, I'm not like her, am I? No - no, she's just crazy, like Tsu said, it's just crazy talk, that's all...

"Beep"

My phone buzzed. I picked up, relieved like crazy at the chance to talk to Tsu.

"Hey Ochako."

"Hey. Any news?"

"Nope. I've been checking, but nothing new yet.

"How are you doing, with all this stuff going on?"

"I dunno. I wish we hadn't all fought before...back at the hospital."

I gulped. I hadn't wanted to talk about this. But what could I say?

"But the Principal said they had plans, right? The Pros probably know exactly what to do. MOst likely they're gonna handle it. We have to trust the Pros, you know? Trust in their judgment. I learned that during my internship."

"Right," I said, not sure what else to say.

"There's really nothing we can do about it," she said, and I wondered if she was trying to convince our friends who weren't here, not even talking to me.

"We haven't got licenses to go fighting villains," she said, and her voice was actually quivering a bit. "We would be breaking the law if we did anything like that...it'd be wrong, don't you think?"

"Wrong..."

"Or hurt," she added. "Those villains are so dangerous. Just one of them cut both of us pretty badly. And they had - Yaoyorozu said they had more of those Noomu things."

I shuddered. "I hope not. All Might could barely handle that one. They probably won't, right?"

She was silent for a moment, then said, "If we went after them and broke the law, it'd be the wrong thing to do...it'd make us the same as the villains. That's true, right?"

You're the same as me.

I jumped again. "I don't...I mean...They probably think that...Tsu, you don't think Bakugou would do like - like that newscaster guy said?"

"That's not what I meant - "

She stopped then. "Ochako, turn to Channel 10!"

We saw from a helicopter eye view of a downtown city area, a camera recording what looked like - "That's All Might! And other pros, like Endeavor and Kamui Woods!" I gasped out.

"They must've found him!" cried Tsu.

And as she spoke, All Might leaped from the ground into a nearby building, punching straight through the wall. The camera was far away, but we could see that he'd barreled into a bar, filled withthe League of Villains and Bakugou himself.

And Kamui woods was jumping up to the hole in the wall to restrain all the villains, including - I recognized her - the blonde girl - And another Pro had knocked out one who was starting a fire - And Edgeshot had knocked out the warp guy!

All Might we could see putting his hand on Bakugou's shoulder and squaring off with the guy who seemed like the leader - a creepy dude with what looked like a severed hand over his face - the leader from the mall, Shigaraki.

The Pros had saved the day, just like always. The camera reports were saying another place had been locked down, and the danger seemed neutralized. Everything was going to work out!

We could see All Might confronting the villains, his big brave silhouette in the big hole in the wall.

The creepy villain leader seemed to be yelling back at him, and had turned to the Warp Gate Guy - but through All Might's arms, we could see Edgeshot zip through him and knock even the Warp Gate guy out!

"The Pros took care of it all!" I said to TSu over teh phone.

But then, I turned and saw the screen once more.

Black sludge was pouring out of nowhere around the villain leader, and from it were emerging giant, misshapen monsters - monsters with their brains showing, and staring creepy eyes, and huge, open jaws…

Nomu. Dozens of them.

And it got worse.

I could only stare and watch in horror as the black sludge stuff camp out of Bakugou's mouth, surrounding him, enveloping him - until he disappeared right from All Might's outstretched arms…