Tomura Shigaraki searched the internet for any kind of information on the mysterious Melina Zusa. A name inquiry returned nothing of value. He did learn her first name meant honey in Greek, and her last name meant sweet in the Yiddish language. He was becoming more and more convinced she had given him a fake name. Those little tidbits of useless info left him angry, frustrated, and wanting to punch a hole through the computer monitor.

Eventually, he began a more specific search using her last name along with a single major country. He found a news article from the United States relating the story of a family with the surname Zusa who had burned to death in a house fire seven years ago. They owned a commercial apiary supplying honey to a major manufacturer. So there was a remote possibility Zusa could actually be her last name. That might also explain her fondness for bees. However, the news story did not mention family members by name. No survivors were mentioned either. Public records of the family were inaccessible so there was no way to tell for sure if that was her family. Undaunted, he continued seeking more information.

Shigaraki obsessed and seethed, needing to find out more about the woman. She had appeared out of nowhere, almost too good to be true. Who wouldn't want a person with mind control powers on their team? The heroes possessed at least one. He wanted one of his own. How politely convenient of her to come to his back doorstep and show herself.

As leader of the League of Villains, he did not want to be wrong about his decision to bring her into his organization. He could not afford any more setbacks. At the moment they were keeping all of their movements discreet while they gathered intel, fortified their ranks, and plotted their next move.

His group had recently experienced a string of miserable failures against the heroes, particularly that annoying group of brats from UA High. He had just started to piece things back together since the dismal defeat of All For One ending in his subsequent capture and arrest. The man who had been like a father to him was gone, taken away by All Might. Hate burned hotly inside of Shigaraki, scorching his guts.

Although his hideout had been discovered and raided last time, as the new leader he had opened another undercover bar as a gathering place for his little society. Hiding in plain sight had worked for quite a while before so he decided to try it again. His mistake had been kidnapping that damn loud mouthed kid who had too many fucking friends who cared about him. In the search for their friend, those irritating and far too resourceful brats had located his secret headquarters. He would not make that mistake again. Should he dare to abduct another one of those hero wannabes, he would be sure to take them to a different location, far, far away from his covert meeting grounds.

Shigaraki typed in her address, conducting a search to pinpoint her residence. He had left the job of finding her to Kurogiri last time trusting his judgment in sending her the invitation. Never before had he been interested in recruiting members. In fact, he had solidly rejected Giran's suggestions in the past. However, the additions of Dabi and Himiko Toga had worked out quite well in that they became invaluable members to the organization.

As if delivered by the demons from hell themselves, this woman named Melina Zusa showed up and offered herself and her intriguing quirk that could prove to be incredibly useful to him. How could he allow such an opportunity to slip through his fingers?

On the screen, he followed the street view map to the front door of her apartment building - a five story red brick structure. A knock sounded on his door as he explored the pictures that helpfully provided a layout of each floor and the specific arrangement of every individual apartment.

"Dammit," he cursed under his breath, irritated by the interruption. "What?"

"Sir," Kurogiri said, opening the door slightly. "Melina is here to see you."

"Who?" he barked in annoyance pretending not to recognize the name.

"Our Queen, sir," he returned.

Shigaraki growled like a mad dog. He absolutely abhorred that irksome nickname Kurogiri insisted on the calling the woman. Damned if the name didn't fit her though. Regal, dignified, classy. The living definition of grace under pressure. She vexed him to no end because he could not find a chink in her cool, unflappable facade. She was hiding something, and he needed to find out what it is.

"Sir?" Kurigiri called. "She would like to see you."

Shigaraki expelled a noisy sigh of exasperation. He switched off the monitor so she would not accidentally see what he was doing.

"By all means, show her highness in," he snapped.

Melina entered the room with a tranquil smile lifting the corners of her cherry red lips. Today's blast from the past ensemble was a short sleeved yellow top with black polka dots and a black swing skirt. A small black cap perched jauntily on the side of her head and a veil of black netting covered her eyes. Why in the hell did this woman insist on channeling mid twentieth century fashion icons? She had a way of grabbing his attention whether he wanted to give it to her or not.

"What do you want?" he demanded. He suspiciously eyed the small yellow bag she sat on the corner of his desk. "What is that?"

"A gift," she said, commencing to pull out the items to show him. She sat on his desk what appeared to be a tube of lip balm and a small glass jar of a substance that he would swear was butter.

"What is that?" he repeated.

When she came closer to him, standing on his side of the desk in front of him, Shigaraki pushed his feet against the floor sending his chair rolling back into the wall.

"Would you stop that?" she chided him, her smile flipping upside down into a deep frown. "I'm not going to hurt you."

He hated it when she spoke to him as if he were a child. "Why would I be afraid of you hurting me? That's the least of my worries. You're just too damn close that's all."

"Yeah, I get that you don't want to be touched," she said, opening the jar. "But you can't put this on yourself. Let me help you."

"What is it?" he inquired for the third time because she had yet to tell him.

"It's a moisturizer and lip balm I make myself. It will help your dry skin," she explained. She dipped her fingers into the jar then sat down on the edge of the desk with a dejected sigh. "Will you take that off?"

"No," he replied forcefully.

The stubborn woman reached out to grab the hand like she had before. Shigaraki seized her by the wrist, forcing a startled gasp from her. Her eyes widened, fastening themselves to his face. There it was. For a split second he saw the fearful panic in her eyes before she could mask it. He took extreme care in keeping his pinky finger lifted away from her skin. He didn't want to hurt her. Yet.

"Just one touch, and I could destroy you," he snarled at her menacingly. "Do you believe me?"

"I believe you," Melina stated in a hushed voice, almost a whisper. Her eyes shifted back and forth rapidly between his.

"If I lay my finger down, your flesh that I touch will rot away, crumbling through my fingers like sand. Eventually the necrosis would spread throughout your body, killing you gradually, painfully."

He squeezed her wrist, lowering his little finger closer. He chuckled in sadistic joy when she yelped. Her entire body visibly trembled in front of him. His eyes lowered from her terror stricken eyes to her quivering lips.

"Why are you doing this?" he interrogated her. "Is there poison or something in there?"

He glared at her, allowing the tense silence to stretch between them. Her eyes stubbornly held his despite her fear, issuing a silent plea. A small whimper came from her throat when he squeezed her wrist tighter, the tendons moving under his fingers.

"Can I touch you?" she inquired patiently, a slight warble to her voice. "Let me help you."

"Why do you want to help me?" Why did she care? Their kind wasn't supposed to give a damn about anyone but themselves, and she had definitely given him the impression that she was only out for herself. He needed to know her game, her strategy.

"Because I can. Remove the hand, please, so I can put this on you," she requested, her voice soft and kind. "I'll make this quick. You need something to soothe your skin and promote healing before it gets any worse. That crack on your lip could get infected."

"What do you hope to accomplish?"

"Treating your skin. That has to be painful. Let me help. If I had an ulterior motive it would be to put my products to a real test...to see just how good they actually are. Now, come on." She moved her hand as if to remind him he still held her wrist captive.

"Fine," he exhaled crossly, letting her go. "I can't tell if you're a masochist or just stupid."

"Mmmm, maybe a little of both."

His curiosity as to what she was up to with this little act outstripped his desire to not be in contact with other humans - especially her. Perhaps if he allowed her to think she was manipulating him, he could in turn control her more easily. Besides, his skin had gotten unbelievably uncomfortable; itchy and tight, feeling as if it might split in several places all over his face, not just his lips. Reluctantly he reached up, removing the protective hand from his face; the one he believed shielded him from the world while offering its comforting touch.

This time when she saw his face she smiled instead of gaping at him with a mixture disgust and horror as if she had just seen the face of a nightmarish monster. Her tremulous fingers betrayed her when she reached out toward him. When her fingertips made contact with his cheek, he inhaled forcefully through his teeth making a hissing sound. She jerked her hand back, nearly dropping the container of cream in her other hand.

"Am I that repulsive?" he asked, seeking to push as many of her emotional buttons as he possibly could.

"No. Don't hold my initial reaction against me. You can't expect someone not to be shocked at seeing you for the first time. It's just not fair," she said, carefully massaging the cream into his skin. "In time, after healing has taken place, you might even be cute, Mr. Shigaraki."

"Tch," he clicked his tongue at her, distrustful of her flattery. "Like I give a damn what you think about me."

Shigaraki chewed the inside of his cheek nervously. Although ill at ease to the point of being distraught, he allowed her to continue to administer the cream. He would not keep cowering away from this woman and have her think he was frightened of her.

Her fingers carefully smearing on the cool moisturizer felt good. Her touch was light and tender. The moisturizer soothed his withered skin, relieving the tightness therefore diminishing the annoying itchiness. His eyes watched hers as she concentrated on working the cream into the parched skin of his cheeks. Her irises were the same color as dark amber honey; a deep rich color like brown sugar.

"What's in that?"

"It's a mixture of royal jelly, honey, and beeswax. The same ingredients are in the lip balm as well. Along with a few other things like coconut oil. All natural ingredients. Mother Nature gives us the best gifts. They're good for your skin," Melina assured him.

He detested the flutter in his belly, the fast beating of his heart, in response to her gentleness. It felt good to be touched. As much as he had longed for it as a child, as much as he thought he had learned to live without it as an adult, he reveled in the sensation of her fingertips lightly stroking his cheek. Occasionally panic welled inside of making him want to shout at her to stop, urging him to push her away, goading him to run, but he forced himself to stay still.

"Close your eyes," she ordered him in the most kind way possible.

His fingers clutched the arms of the chair as she rubbed the lotion into the hopelessly shriveled skin around his eyes. What the hell was he doing? Why was he allowing this to go on? She could poke his eyes out, blinding him! His hands clenched so tightly his knuckles began to ache. Her fingers tenderly smoothed on more of the moisturizer.

"Relax. I'm almost done," she murmured. "The royal jelly promotes healing. The honey has antibacterial properties which will prevent infection. The beeswax will offer protection from any further chapping. But you have to use this on a regular basis. You can open your eyes."

"But I can't - " He started to explain.

"I know. Your quirk is in your hands," she cut him off, giving him a sympathetic smile. "Which is why your face and lips looks like this right?"

"Yeah," he answered, staring at her as she rubbed the remainder of the lotion on her fingers into her hands. He was astonished she did not feel the need to run wash her hands or use hand sanitizer. "Aren't you afraid of me?"

"Of course I am," she readily admitted, picking up the small tube. "You could kill me with a single touch. As long as I stay away from your hands and you behave and keep your hands away from me, I'll be okay. Right?"

"Uhm, yeah," he mumbled.

"Don't talk," she commanded him sweetly.

Now she thought she could order him around. This woman needed to learn boundaries. He flinched when she pressed the stick of lip balm to his top lip.

"Sorry," she apologized, taking another careful swipe to cover his lower lip. "So I guess I'll just have to put this on for you next time. If you will let me."

"Are you serious?" he muttered in disbelief. Her kindness made him paranoid. What ulterior motive could she have?

"Sure. Why not?" She shrugged, straightening up to stretch her back. She had been stooped over him for quite a while since he was sitting in the chair. Scraping a hunk of the waxy substance off the top of the stick, she warned him, "This might hurt a little."

Once again, Shigaraki's hands gripped the arms of the chair with crushing force as she applied the balm to the deep split in his lips and face. Due to the rawness of the wound, it burned like fire being rubbed into the gap created in skin from his lip cracking. He closed his eyes, grinding his teeth to avoid making any sound that would give away the pain he was enduring. He refused to show any kind of weakness in front of her.

"There. That should be healed up nicely in a few days. The next time it won't hurt so much," she said, placing both products back in the bag.

"Next time," he mumbled irritably, snatching the bag off his desk and throwing it into the drawer. He quickly picked up the protective hand to put it back on his face.

"I'll be leaving. I'm sure you need time to recover from the whole touchy feely thing," she said, wiggling her fingers.

"Are you coming back tonight?"

"Well, yeah. Why wouldn't I? I have a job to do, right?"

"Yes, of course."

"'Bye for now, Bossman!"

Shigaraki mutely watched her walk out of the door. For several minutes afterward, he stared at the closed door wondering what the hell had just happened. His face tingled. His entire body felt as if he was being poked with a thousand needles giving him a distinct sense of detachment, multiplying the surrealness of the situation. A loud, insistent banging on the door brought him out of his befuddled stupor.

"What the fuck do you want?!" he shouted.

"Kurogiri said you wanted to see me," Dabi announced from the other side of the door.

"I do?" Shigaraki asked himself. Then he had an idea. "I do! Come in, come in."

"So what's up?" Dabi stood on the other side of the desk, shoving his hands deep into his pockets. He looked bored out of his mind as always with his heavy lidded eyes giving the impression he was about to fall asleep on his feet.

"I want you to find out more about this Melina Zusa. I want you to learn all you can about her. Follow her, get close to her. Break into her apartment and go through her shit. Fuck her. Tie her up and torture her. I don't give a damn what you do but find out who she is and what she wants."

"I'd be more than happy to do all of those things to her," he readily agreed with a cruel smirk on his face. "Although... I think she would enjoy some of them."

Shigaraki gave him her address and showed him the plans to her apartment building. Satisfied, smug in his cleverness, he leaned back in his chair to watch Dabi set off on his current mission. Once he knew all of her motives and her plans, he would determine what to do with her. He would make damn sure the punishment fit her plotted transgressions against him. That woman was going to regret the day she decided to fuck with his head.