Author note: Just an FYI, the first section may be a little upsetting, especially if you don't like second-hand embarrassment.

I was still rattled from my surprise visitor when Detective Tsukauchi came by later. I was hoping Eraser was right, and I could avoid showing everyone the worst of what I'd done.

An orderly brought a wheelchair, and pushed me to the projection room, which was smaller than the one in the jail. There were nine people in two rows of chairs facing us. I spotted Principal Nezu and Eraser, and that only made me more nervous.

The mind reader was a different person this time. I motioned her closer and lowered my voice. "Um, so I was told that you can skip over certain memories."

"I'm allowed to make exceptions at my discretion. Was there something in particular?"

"Just private things." I decided to fib, just a little. "To get the villains to trust me."

She was nodding. "I understand." She leaned in, whispering. "It's far more common than you might guess."

When she brought her fingers to my head, I closed my eyes and tried to relax.

"Let's start with the school trip," she suggested. "When the League of Villains arrived."

I remembered my little speech to the kids, and their hurt expressions. I did my best to skip past my awkward goodbye with Eraser. We jumped back in when I walked outside to face the villains. It replayed in my mind as clear as a movie. I could hear bits of conversation as the people in the room reacted to my memories, even some words of appreciation for my prioritizing the students' safety. I heard the principal call me brave.

We replayed my first few days at the warehouse, learning who everyone was. I heard a few gasps when Dabi shoved me against the wall, but mercifully, the mind reader jumped ahead. Everyone got to watch as I became sick from the quirk-repressing collar. I knew they were experiencing the sights and sounds, but I was glad that smell and taste were not included. When Dabi cleaned me up, I chose to let it play out. It would be good for them to see him as a person, not just a villain.

The mind reader sped through me playing cards with one of the guards during downtime, and slowed to normal speed again for Shigaraki's odd attempt to bond with me.

Next was Dabi straddling me on the bed. I flinched, and the mind reader shushed me softly. We skipped ahead a little, but not far enough. They saw him cuff my arms above my head. I heard people mutter nervously.

My cheeks flushed warm. "Please," I begged, wanting to shrink and disappear.

The mind reader pressed her fingers harder against my skull. "Stop fighting me."

"I'm not," I insisted.

We skipped ahead further. Everyone got to see Dabi take off his shirt, and I heard murmurs of shock and embarrassment. I was red with shame.

"That's quite enough," the detective commanded.

The mind reader let go of me. I let my chin fall to my chest. My skin was hot and my hands shook.

A few people tossed biting remarks at the mind reader. Someone suggested that we quit for the day.

I couldn't bear to look at any of them, but even more than that, I couldn't let this memory be the one they were left with. "No," I insisted, "I can do this." There was some muttering and disagreement, but the detective let me decide. "I just want to get it over with," I told him.

The mind reader crouched down, eye-to-eye. "We'll start fresh on a different day. Sound good?" I nodded weakly, and she raised her fingers back into place.

We picked up where Toga came to hang in my room. I played every word of our conversation. I wanted them to understand how young and impressionable she was, and how much potential she held. They watched us spying outside the school, and again I wondered what Eraser had told the students.

Mercifully, we were able to skip the rest of my intimate time with Dabi.

We continued at my first outing with the League. Everyone saw me use my quirk on the man at the cafe. I was grateful they could not hear my thoughts of how badly I wanted to end him. The room was dead silent. They saw me warn Shigaraki, and I realized how bad it made me look.

Once we were portaled back, and I ran off while the man was tortured, I pulled back out of the mind reader's grasp. She nodded, and we skipped ahead.

When the fake Aizawa appeared, everyone was confused. I hadn't been easily fooled; Toga had done a remarkable job at becoming him.

We saw the mangled bodies of Toga and Dabi. Everyone witnessed my struggle over whether to leave or stay. For a moment, I wondered if this might actually make me look worse, but it was too late to stop now. They saw me panic after finding Shigaraki's stray hand on the floor.

I heard some murmurs as the ploy was revealed, and I shuddered at the sight of Aizawa's body melting. A few people gasped as Toga viciously stabbed her copy to death. As Dabi spoke of their boss, the room was hushed.

Then I pulled away for good; I would not go any further. Someone wheeled me back to my room, while the others stayed to discuss my fate without me.

Shortly after, the nurses informed me that my blood pressure was high. I found it almost laughable, considering everything I'd been through. The doctor prescribed something to bring it down, plus a sedative to take the edge off my nerves. I was grateful for the drugs, and soon enough the trembling subsided.

Later, when the detective came in, I could barely lift my head to look at him. "What's the verdict?" I asked groggily.

"Verdict? It wasn't a trial."

"Might as well be. What'd they decide?"

He stepped closer. "You weren't under suspicion here, Miss D'Ancanto. This was just a debriefing from your mission; which you handled brilliantly, we all agree."

Mission? Did they think I was sent there on purpose, like some hero?

He noticed my confusion. "I'm serious, you aren't in any trouble. As soon as the doctors sign your release, you can leave."

"Leave?" It wasn't making sense. I'd been getting cozy with some of the most dangerous villains in the country, and now they would just let me go?

Principal Nezu joined us. "We're all very much looking forward to your return. The students will be thrilled to have you back."

I smiled. He was always so earnest. "Thank you." I could hardly believe he still wanted me around his students after what he'd just seen, but I wasn't going to question it.

The detective offered me his hand. "Miss D'Ancanto, it's been an honor." I stared at his hand for a second. He must have forgotten.

Eraser spoke up from the doorway. "I've got it."

I shook the detective's hand.

After Tsukauchi left, Nezu climbed up to stand on the end of my bed, clasping his paws together. "Well, Marie, your community service is almost complete."

"No, that can't be right. I was there for less than a month!"

"Plus your time investigating the League for us. Including that, you only have a few weeks remaining."

My heart dropped. I felt like I had barely begun.

Nezu smiled. "After which, I was hoping you would sign on to work full time."

"What?" I shook my head in confusion. "But I'm not even a real teacher!"

"Maybe not, but I can grant you a temporary certification. I would love to have you teach foreign languages. You're perfect for it."

The sedatives were making it hard to conceal my emotions. "Why are you being so good to me? There must be better people for the job."

He paused. "Marie, I could help but notice how you developed a soft spot for the girl, Toga."

"I thought I could help her."

"Yes, she may be a sadistic killer, but you see the scared, hurting child underneath. Qualifications mean little when it comes to reaching young people. They need someone who understands their struggles, and can lead them by example. That is what I look for in a teacher."

My eyes were welling up.

"I hope you will give my offer some consideration." With that, Nezu excused himself from the room. I dabbed at my eyes.

Eraser gazed toward the windows. "Don't feel like you have to rush back to work right away. You should allow yourself time to recover. No one will think any less of you."

"I don't like sitting idle."

"The school also has mental health services. I'm told it can help."

"I'm fine," I said softly. "Please just drop it."

His voice was gentle. "Would you like me to leave?"

"No," I sighed in frustration. I couldn't have him feeling sorry for me. "Dabi didn't force me. It was my idea."

"That's not what I was referring to." I stared at him, afraid to speak. He turned to face me. "Did they make you kill that man?"

My body went cold. I had been so careful to leave that part out. But if Eraser had figured it out…

"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone. I just want to make sure you're alright."

"No, I'm not alright." The words spilled out before I could think. "Aizawa, you know my track record. You know I haven't always been on the good side. How can you possibly trust me?"

"Because I was there when you chose to save those kids …at any cost."

"What about Toga? I couldn't save her."

"But you connected with her; you made her feel seen, understood. That's a start."

"It's not enough."

Eraser chuckled, and I looked up at him sharply. He shook his head in amusement. "Careful, you're starting to sound like the pros. Marie, you're only one person. Give it time."

"You're being way too nice about this."

"And you're being too hard on yourself."

"Of course I am. Why is everyone acting like I'm some hero? I'm a mess! They shouldn't have me working with kids, that's insane!"

"You're a hero because of the choices you make. You put others before yourself. You make sacrifices for the greater good. Marie, those kids will never forget what you did for them." Eraser was silent for a moment as I blinked back tears. Then he cleared his throat. "Speaking of heroes..."

"Huh?" I sat up a little straighter.

"We called in some favors and got you a provisional hero license. You can patrol and rescue under the supervision of a fully licensed pro hero. If you want to, that is."

"Licensed heroes? I'm not following."

"It means that you can legally use your quirk outside of the school, to help the public. The teachers were all eager to vouch for you, myself included."

I found myself smiling again. "Thank you."

"Also, you didn't hear this from me, but Midnight and Mic had a bit of a scuffle over who gets to be your sponsor. We'll have to decide that later."

After two more days of crappy food and tedious physical therapy, I was discharged from the hospital. As I was packing up, a middle-aged woman showed up. Her badge identified her as a hospital volunteer. I narrowed my eyes as she pushed in an empty wheelchair. "Is that necessary?"

"Maybe not, but it is protocol." She gave me an apologetic smile as she parked the wheelchair by the bed. She was a short, heavy woman with silver streaks in her black hair. "Just pretend you're a celebrity, and I'm your chauffeur." I had to smile at that. "No rush, dear. The brakes are on, so go ahead and have a seat whenever you're ready."

"Thanks, I shouldn't be long."

She left while I finished gathering my things. I took the gift bag from Midnight and hung it from one of the wheelchair handles. I had tucked the music player from Present Mic in the bottom of the bag. I also had a white drawstring bag containing the clothes I had arrived in. I hadn't looked inside it yet. I wasn't quite ready to deal with that.

I took one last glance around the room, then carefully sat in the wheelchair. "Ma'am? I'm ready." I pulled my gloves on as I waited.

She came back in and released the brakes on the chair, then steered me towards the door. "Here we go!" She wheeled me out the door and down the hallway. After a few turns, I realized that I would not have found my way out, partially since I'd been unconscious when I'd arrived.

"I'm glad you know your way around," I told her. "This place is like a maze!"

"Sure is. That makes it easier to lose them."

I didn't understand. "I'm sorry, what?"

"You know, when they come after us!" She leaned close to my ear. "It's me, silly!"

I whipped my head around to look at the woman. Did I know her? She looked about fifty, with olive skin, and graying hair. I could not place her.

She giggled at my reaction. "Rogue, it's me, Toga!"

I faced forward again, gripping the arm rests of the wheelchair. "What's going on?"

"Did you think we would forget about you? Sorry I couldn't get here sooner; Tomura wanted to make sure you could still be trusted, blah, blah, blah. But now you get to come with us!"

My heart was racing. Was it really this simple? How long would it take until someone noticed I was gone?

"You're gonna love the new place. Those stupid heroes will ever find us." Toga wheeled me up to a set of sliding glass doors. The area was almost empty; this was clearly not the main entrance. The doors slid open. We went through, then she wheeled me down the sidewalk.

I wondered why they hadn't just portaled me away. "Where's Kurogiri?"

"Who knows? But it's fine, we have a car."

Part of me was eager to go with her, believing I could turn things around for them. Another part of me didn't want to change them. Especially Dabi. That part of me was difficult to ignore. I could definitely be a baddie again; I was damn good at it before.

Yet another part of me worried about the students. I wondered how much it would hurt them if I left again, especially the kids that had circled around my bed and brought me back. I had only just started to get to know this class.

Toga flipped the brakes on the chair and came around to face me. "Ready?" I was frozen with indecision.

She walked up to a car that was parked along the curb. Chunks of her body, or more accurately, the hospital volunteer's body, were dropping to the ground in wet globs. She reached into the backseat, then pulled out a thin robe and draped it around herself. In the front seat, I could see a dark-haired man at the wheel, and my heart skipped a beat.

Toga faced me again. "Hurry up, we don't have all day!" She grabbed my arms and pulled me to my feet. I stood, frozen in place. Her expression grew more serious. "Rogue?"

I touched her rosy cheek with my gloved hand. "I missed you."

"What kind of drugs did they give you?" She grinned. "I missed you too, now come on!" She took my hands and walked backwards, leading me towards the car. Then she noticed something over my shoulder, and squinted her eyes. "Crap, we gotta go." She held the car door open, waiting for me to climb in.

I glanced back. A few uniformed officers were running out the doors towards us. Eraser was with them.

I turned back to Toga, and her expression had gone cold. She slid into the back seat, then leaned over to look up at me. "Are you coming?" I saw my leather bag on the floor.

The sound of running feet came closer. "Stop right there," called one of the officers.

Toga watched me, her face unreadable.

I felt tears spill from my eyes. "I'll see you again soon," I told her, and pushed the door shut. As the car peeled away, I caught a glimpse of Dabi's blue eyes in the rearview mirror.

Author note: I rewrote this chapter so many times. The memory projection scene was originally a lot more graphic, but I scaled it back quite a bit. Originally, the mind reader was able to project directly into the minds of the audience, instead of onto a screen, but it was waaay too traumatic. So you can thank my beta readers for suggesting that I make the entire scene less upsetting in general. During the last part, I honestly did not know what Rogue was going to decide, right up until she said goodbye. I made myself cry. Next chapter is the end! If anyone wants the bonus scene just ask. It's the hot tub foursome that would have happened if the League of Villains hadn't shown up.