Izuku was huddled in the corner of the bar, playing on the beat up PlayStation and CRT tv precariously wedged in the corner of the wall. Normally, Tomura would be using it, but he was patiently waiting in an adjacent bar stool, staring impatiently at the door. Both of them were wearing their villain costumes, Tomura's hands clutched along his upper body, and Izuku's black hoodie with that thin black veil blocking his face from the world.

Truth be told, both of them were antsy. It hadn't been long after Stain's defeat and subsequent arrest. They had only received the call earlier that Giran would be dropping off two new potential recruits. Giran himself had said that the draw of villains to the League would be inevitable as Stain's message reached a wider audience, and Izuku was more than inclined to agree. While the older villain didn't treat the broker with much respect or significance, Izuku made it a point to watch him closely. Despite his almost complete aversion to any sort of money or reward, he was incredibly sharp. They had spoken only a few brief times before, but there was an unspoken acknowledgement of the natural ability to analyze and pick apart the situations that unfolded around them.

So when Giran stuck his head through the front door of the bar, the first thing the hooded boy did was switch the game's difficulty to easy. He needed to pay attention, but it may prove useful to act as if he was busy with the game.

Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw two figures enter behind the broker. The first one was just about his age, though the smile she carried was too saccharine. Just glancing at her, that sickly sweet smile carried a putrid aura behind it, as if there was some rot waiting to burst out from under her façade. The second one was even more off-putting. His body was covered in purple burns, with what appeared to be skin grafts placed haphazardly around his face, crudely stapled into a ghoulish grin. Despite the look on his face, he seemed rather nonchalant about... well, everything. Izuku briefly wondered how this man managed to make it to the bar without getting caught.

The two newcomers acted like they didn't know the other was there. Simultaneously, the scarred man said "Seeing you in the flesh... wow, you look creepy as hell," while the girl in the cardigan excitedly squealed "You're a buddy with Stainy, right?!"

Tomura instinctively brought his hand up to his neck. Izuku knew this was starting to go south.

"The two archetypes I hate the most, and they're both here together."

He points to the girl. "A whiny little brat."

His finger moves over to the man. "And some asshole who doesn't understand what respect means."

Kurogiri raised his hand, shaking his head. "Now, now, Tomura, at least hear them out. They came all this way, and we all know that if they are recommended by Giran then they must be worth something."

Giran chimed in, "I don't care what happens to them, just as long as I get my service fee. But I agree, you may as well let them introduce themselves."

Almost immediately, the girl chimed in. "I'm Himiko Toga! I want to have an easier life! I want to be Stainy! I want to kill Stainy! So please let me join, Tomura!"

Giran added, "Heard of those serial blood draining murders? That's her handiwork."

Shigaraki responded, "Did that make any sense to anyone? It sounded like crazy talk." He turned his head over to the other male in front of him. "Who's this guy?"

The broker spoke up once more. "Well, he hasn't exactly caused anything of note so far, but he's really taken the captured Hero Killer's philosophy to heart!"

The man glanced over to Toga, nonchalantly asking, "You're going to let someone like her join? Does this group even have a rallying cause to begin with?"

Tomura raised his hand. "Slow down there. Even that crazy girl over there managed to give us her name. You're an adult, aren't you?"

The burned man flicked his eyes over to the villain covered in hands. "Right now, I'm going by Dabi."

The decay villain began scratching his neck in irritation. "I don't give a damn about what edgy nickname you chose for yourself. What is your name?"

"I'll tell you when I feel like it. In any case, I'm here only because I want to fulfill the Hero Killer's will."

"Stain this... Stain that... these people lack any originality, Kurogiri... This won't do." He rushed forward, both hands extended fully. "You're no good!"

Almost immediately, Dabi and Toga met his advance, fully expecting to strike the childish villain. However, they were all frozen in stupor as they realized their hands were not where they should have been. Kurogiri had opened a multitude of small warp gates, with all parties' hands shoved through one of them. Toga saw her hand was roughly ten feet away from her, knife embedded into the ground. Dabi saw his arm up over his head. Tomura's hands had been transported in a similar fashion.

"I would prefer you keep my bar clean." Kurogiri calmly spoke. "If any of you insist on fighting, I will have to sever your limbs using my warp gates."

Everyone withdrew. Kurogiri looked around before continuing. "Now, we definitely have both the need and opportunity to-"

His voice died when he glanced over to where Izuku was sitting. The seat was now empty, the controller neatly placed on the counter. The villain was nowhere to be found.

"Tomura, please call off Rogue."

"Why?"

"You know why."

He sighed. "You heard the man, Rogue. Stand down."

Immediately, Izuku reappeared in front of the two new League of Villain applicants. He had serrated knives pressed against both of their throats, something they had not been able to feel until just now. Rogue lowered the blades, looking back and forth between the two people. They were unable to read the expression on the boy's covered face. However, his voice was more than enough to convey his emotions.

"I don't care if he started the fight. You don't lay a hand on my brother. Even Stain learned that lesson the hard way."

Giran raised an eyebrow, then laughed. "You mean that time he came to me with the shit beaten out of him? That was you?"

Rogue nodded.

"You really are something else, Kid!"

Dabi blinked slowly, taking this new information in. "Your name is Rogue? A bit lame, isn't it?"

Tomura tensed up, but Izuku was quick to respond. "It was Tomura's suggestion. It's his favorite character class." He stated wistfully. "And any name my big bro comes up with is the best name."

Dabi didn't respond. Toga hadn't said anything but stared at Izuku in a way that made him feel uncomfortable. She looked like a snake who just found a nice, plump mouse. Perhaps threatening her with a knife wasn't the best idea...

He shook his head. Whatever this crazy girl was thinking was irrelevant. She wasn't Tomura, and therefore she didn't matter.

Speaking of Tomura, he had enough of this conversation. Without any sort of farewell, he immediately left through the front door. No one attempted to follow.

Giran was the first to speak. "He's too young of mind for this."

Kurogiri interjected. "It may seem so, but he is still a budding villain. While he was raised by us, his circumstances didn't quite leave him with the convictions that some of our... other members have."

Izuku winced.

The mist villain continued. "Still, the fact that he didn't say anything before he left means he is seriously thinking this over."

Himiko let out a sigh. "Woah! I thought I was actually going to get killed!"

Dabi stared after the door. "...Creepy motherfucker."

Rogue cleared his throat, gaining the other guy's attention. He was still brandishing his knife.

"Oh come on, you have to admit he is a little strange."

After a moment, Izuku put the knives back into his holsters on his belt.

Kurogiri spoke up. "It will likely take a few days before Shigaraki makes his decision on you guys. You don't need to stay here if you don't wish to."

Dabi sat down in one of the booths. "Actually, before I go, I'd like to talk to "lil' Bro" over here."

Toga's eyes lit up as she bounded to an adjacent booth. Izuku sat opposite to them both.

"So, 'Rogue.' Why do you get to keep your name a secret?"

"I'm working with heroes right now. The fewer people who know my name, the better."

Dabi nodded. "What do you do here?"

"I gather information. I'm part of the group responsible for the security breach at Yuuei. I was the guy who got inside and got the details on the USJ that let us invade."

"So that was you."

Izuku nodded. "On top of that, I tend to covertly take care of targets who inconvenience the League."

Dabi couldn't tell if that was a threat or not. Toga continued for him as he processed this thought.

"You seem really good with knives! What's your favorite place to hit them?

"Depends on how much I hate them."

"So if you hate them a lot, you hit more vital spots?"

"What? No! The more I hate them, the longer I let them live!"

The light in Himiko's eyes shone brightly. "Careful there, Rogue! I'm starting to want to be you."

Izuku did his best to suppress a shiver.

Dabi finally spoke up once more. "Final question before I go: What do you expect to come out of this for you?"

The hooded villain tilted his head. "I don't get it."

"What ideals are you aiming for? What does the end of the line look like for you?"

"I..." Izuku paused. "I want a world where my big brother would have never been abandoned by the heroes who swore to protect him. If my plan that I've been forming takes off, then not only will the hero society be rid of all the fake heroes who are obsessed with nothing but fame and fortune, but the bystanders will be forced to look at one another and acknowledge each other. They are just as guilty as the heroes who left him to die. They walked past, waiting for a hero who never came. With my plan, they'll have no other choice to help their fellow neighbor."

Dabi stared blankly. "That's not's Stain's ideals."

"I know. I changed them to make them my own ideals."

Dabi stared at him, before smirking slightly. "You're just as weird as your big brother. Unless crazy girl over here has something to say, I'm out."

They left not long after that, leaving just Kurogiri and Izuku in the bar.

"That could have gone better." Midoriya stated.

"Quite." The black misted man responded. "But it seems Shigaraki is finally learning to manage his own resources. It won't be long before he becomes even more infamous than Sensei."

When the green-haired boy heard the bartender say this, the only thing he felt was pride blooming in his chest. Tomura was becoming more and more a better villain, and Izuku was happy to do anything to help facilitate that growth even further.

A/N: Hey guys! It's a little shorter than usual, but I promise the next one will be quite long, so stay tuned.

And as always, thanks for your support and comments!