A/N: this chapter is very cannon heavy on the Heroes Rising movie and so contains spoilers! It is quite long as I wanted to get it all into one chapter and move on to the first timeskip in the next chapter. Hope you enjoy!

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Trigger warning: violence

My Dear Copycat
Chapter 10
Nabu Island

After Bakugo realised the truth about his misunderstanding regarding May, – a mistake he has not been able to forgive himself for - he took a step back from her, keeping his distance and only interacting with her when necessary, for example during hero training, or on work-study missions. The whole class took notice that he was now behaving himself around her, his once uncontrollable rage and bully attitude towards her has since been replaced by guilt and shame. His poor behaviour had driven her into the arms of another, not that he could blame her. But that didn't stop him from leaving a small gift outside her dorm room door as a belated birthday gift, then again on Christmas morning, and Valentine. He always made sure it was at a time when no one would see. He never acknowledged to her that it was him, and as far as he could tell, she mentioned the gifts to no one. Not even him.

It was now spring, and the class of 1-A had set up a temporary hero agency on Nabu Island. They would stay here until a replacement hero could be found since the previous one had retired – leaving the island without a hero. They were set up in a large square building where they conducted business and took residence. Several of their classmates were out already on jobs or patrolling, keeping an eye out in town and on the beach. It was a rather unsuspecting place, where nothing out of the ordinary happened. There were no villains, there was no crime. The tasks for the heroes were small-time, helping the residents with mundane tasks that Bakugo stayed well clear from. He had better things to do. Bakugo glances over the top of the glossy pages, to see May sat at one of the many tables with numerous computers and phones set upon them. They were doing admin and answering the phones, Kaminari was sent to help with the battery of a farmer's tractor, Iida dashed off to help an elderly lady who threw out her back. Then came a call about a missing kid, Uraraka asked if anyone could go with her, "hard pass…" he grumbled.

"Aw come on!" Uraraka exclaimed.

"Yeah obviously your real busy there Bakugo…" Kirishima turned to stand, "count me in! Let's find this kid!"

"Yeah, and how is your dumb quirk gonna find anything?" Bakugo peered at his friend, the fact that his quirk was very much unsuitable for such tasks dawned on him. So Kirishima opted to stay, and Jiro and Midoriya joined Uraraka instead. Kirishima dropped back down in defeat and a heavy sigh. He was a tank, a hard hitter. There were not many things that happened on this island that warranted his presence. But he was itching to get out there.

As Bakugo bickered with Kirishima about not doing any of the jobs, he stole a peek at May – who was perfectly positioned in his line of sight. She was currently typing away at some paperwork with one hand, while her other was draped over her bulky helmet that waited on the table. "Hey May, are you free? Some hikers have gotten lost in the caves. Are you able to help?" called Momo from a side room, where her workstation was set up. May called back, agreeing to take the job. She climbed out from her chair and stretched. He couldn't stop himself from staring, using the comic as cover. She had gotten a redesign of her costume shortly after the license exam and this one was certainly more practical. It was skin-tight, showing off every curve of her as she stretched, leaving little to the imagination. The fabric was the same shiny grey material but was accented with reflective yellow strips. Her heels were replaced with dark hiking boots. All the cat aspects were gone, and the hood was replaced by a motorbike-style helmet. The helmet had a strip along the top that operated as a light, and it was able to be secured to allow May to breathe underwater and in toxic environments. A fitting costume for a rescue hero. She fitted her helmet on, her face completely hidden behind the tinted glass. He had no idea why, but she wanted to keep her identity hidden and when asked why, she wouldn't answer. It was one of the few things she refused to be open about. So, he had never pursued the topic again – despite often thinking about it.

Kirishima jumped up again, "I can help!"

Copycat laughed as she adjusted the yellow shoulder straps that held on to the cylinder tank made by Mei. "Don't worry Red Riot, I got this…" he looked disappointed as she made her leave, "you never know…another call might come in!" despite the heavy helmet, her voice was not muffled. When asked about it when she first received the costume, she said that it was specifically implemented into the design. As communication is important in disaster situations, and civilians need a strong, clear voice to follow. After receiving the information about the case on her phone, Copycat dashed out without a second thought.

"She's really come a long way huh?" Kirishima tapped his finger on the floor.

Bakugo grunted, "I guess," as he turned the page, ensuring his face was blocked to Kirishima in an attempt to hide his burning cheeks.

"Kirishima! Got one for you!" called Momo.

"On it!" Red Riot prepared himself then, but before he left he quietly spoke to Bakugo again, "you might want to be more discreet with your staring bro…it's pretty obvious."

Hours went by and Bakugo was the only one to not go out on a single job. The sun was setting and the whole class was back and exhausted. Slumped over their chairs. "We've gone plus ultra beyond whats allowed by the Labour Standards Act…" groaned Kaminari.

"Hey, what about fewer small jobs?" came Sero, towards the class reps Iida and Momo.

"No can do! All jobs are equally vital!" retorted Iida.

"It may be true we came here as heroes, but remember we are still just students. We have to work hard and prove ourselves to gain the islander's trust…" finished Momo. The class smiled up at her.

"Hey err does that go for all of us 'cause I know someone who hasn't done anything since we got here…" Mineta smirked, pointing a brave but stupid finger at Bakugo.

"Ugh! Well somebody's gotta stay behind and watch the office moron! What are you gonna do when a villain shows up and all you geniuses are out there doing stupid crap huh?!" he barked, giving a big thumbs down to the little Mineta, who was suddenly in various dark gory visions inside Bakugo's head.

"Aw come on there aren't any villains on this island," came Kirishima. Bakugo huffed, catching a sight of May silently giggling with Mina over the bickering, causing him to blush slightly.

The front door opening came as a welcomed distraction. A number of the islanders had come by with lots of food and drink to say thanks to the heroes and all they have done. The class enjoyed a large impromptu dinner party and got to unwind and ate till they could barely move anymore. "That was delicious!" They called out in unison.

Midoriya slumped back against his chair, a blushed smug look on his face, "Aww wow man I'm so full!" Midoriya, Asui and Shoji discussed the food and the love that went into preparing it.

Bakugo scoffed. "Kacchan of the Bakugos! We're gonna go get cleaned up and hit the sack." Came Kamanari, Kirishima joined him, "washing up and night watch is all yours!"

"WHAT?! WHY ME?!"

"Because you sat around the office all day!" Unable to argue with the truth, Bakugo went rigid as he tried to keep from yelling. One by one his classmates went up, having stacked the dirty plates and bowls in the kitchen. He groaned at the sight of them all, "this is going to take forever!" he growled to himself, getting the hot water running. His ears twitched at the sounds of light footsteps stopping at the kitchen doorway. If only he had just gone out on a couple of stupid jobs, and he wouldn't be left alone doing this and night watch. "Tsk, are you just gonna stand there or are you gonna help?"

There came a familiar small laugh, a sound that he hadn't heard because of him in a while, "serves you right, don't it?" he could hear the smirk in her voice, glaring over his shoulder his eyes softened almost immediately at the sight of May leaning against the doorway. Her damp hair was braided loosely, creating a damp patch on the thin hoodie she wore to stay covered when it was warm out. She had on her pyjama bottoms with the legs tucked into her slipper boots. She must have showered already, he just huffed, he was torn between wanting her to go away, to leave him alone in his shame or having her stay, as he had missed her company. He thought that maybe she would tease him some more before leaving, but instead, she joined him. She picked up the tea towel from the counter, standing beside him and dried the pots he cleaned, stacking them together neatly on the counter ready to be collected. They worked together like this in silence, with only the clinking of the dishes and motion of the soapy water to break the quiet. They each dared to indulge in the occasional side glances when they think the other was not looking. May snuck a peek at his bare toned arms, a weakness of hers. She marvelled at the push and pull movements of the stretching muscles as he cleaned, and his sweet smell of citrus threatened to pull her in further. Tempting her to sway towards some regrettable choices. Ugh, why does he have to be so intoxicating? Too bad, he had his chance, she huffed and was startled by an amused sound from him. Unexpectedly the towel in her hands as they finished up became the most interesting thing in the world. She waited for snarky remarks that never came, instead, he just continued cleaning the sink area now that they were done. But the slight smirk on his teasing lips made her heart race faster and her cheeks glow redder. She feared that he would be able to hear it.

"Thanks for the help…"

"No problem…" her grip tightened on the towel as she bit her lip. She mustered the strength to look up at him, surprised to see he was already facing her, watching her every move like a hungry predator. Her brows furrowed like a fire was lit under her, "don't think that this makes us good. I can be civil with you, but I'm not ready to forgive you yet. You…you really hurt me," her eyes drifted as her strength left her, she couldn't look him in the eye anymore. Even though she was not the guilty party here.

"I know…"

The silence in the room was deafening, but his loud and intrusive thoughts were close to driving him insane. Demanding him to take her pale face his hands and kiss her, to claim her as his own. That she wouldn't protest, that she wants him as much as he wants her. But how can that surely be true? When she seems to be happily taken? But she had wanted him, Mirio was a second choice. He had been her first choice. All he had to do was pull her back, and she would surely be his. Right? He ignored the damning voices. He had already hurt her emotionally time and time again, he couldn't spring this on her now too.

She pulled at her braid nervously, "now this is all done I can rest easy, I'm heading up a-and you got your patrol to do." She left the kitchen first, her tiny hands still gripping tightly to her braid. "Guess I'll catch you later Katsuki," she did not turn to look at him as she left, leaving him there with a heart beating heavy against his chest and echoing in his ears. He watched after her, she had used his first name, she had not done that since that faithful night where he ripped away the relationship they had.

Before heading out on patrol he changed from his loungewear into his hero costume. As much as he hated being lumbered with the patrol, at the start he was grateful for it, as he was able to think without much distraction. But the thoughts of his long-gone friendship with May, and her blossomed relationship with Lemillion haunted his patrol. She was now doing with Mirio, the quirkless-hero, what she should have been doing with him. The dates, the sneaky text messages, secret rendezvous and the soft touches, the kisses and moments of getting carried away. He could have had all of it and much more had he not been a fool! His chaotic thoughts had put him in a sour mood by the time he returned to the building to find Deku training outside where they then discussed One for All.

Days went by virtually the same, the classmates got lumbered with a ton of small tasks from the townsfolk until the island was attacked. A ferry crashed through the breakwater and the dock, capsizing on its side, kicking up a large cloud of thick dust and sand. Moments later all the other ships in the dock were destroyed. Communications went down and then there was an attack at the shopping centre and the beach. The small group of villains did not seem to attack any of the residents, but instead fought with the heroes and made anyway off the island, or ways to communicate with the mainland impossible. They were all trapped here.

The heroes were all split up, Deku went on the hunt for the kids, Mahoro and Katsuma, while Bakugo hunted down the villains. Gleeful for a real challenge. While the bands of heroes fought off the villains, May went to the dock. After hearing of the ferry crash and destruction of the ships, she was sure there would be civilians there that would need help. When May arrived there were already people there helping each other, but they were relieved at the sight of her. A large man with blood dripping down his forehead carried his unconscious friend approached her. "There are still some guys trapped in the boats we can't get too and the boats are filling up with water!"

She nodded as she eyed up the dock, thinking of the best course of action. Several boats had been destroyed and were sinking. Any of them could have people trapped inside, and any of them could have no one and thus would waste valuable time in searching – time that could mean life or death for someone else. An idea came to her, it was risky but she had to try. "I could use the help of anyone uninjured!" A load of fisherman came forward, and she got them all lined up with instructions and chains from the boats. "Okay, are you ready?" she asked them as she removed her dark gloves and boots. They gave her a thumbs up, "excellent…" she adjusted her helmet, she clicked the round button by her ear and the helmet created a vacuum against her suit, making it airtight and thus able to hold out the water. She unclipped the metal cylinder on her back and laid it carefully on the ground before diving into the water. Going from the hot spring air of Nabu Island to the cool water created a shock throughout her body, one that she would need to adjust to quickly. She swam underneath the wrecked boats, some lower than others and some were completely submerged. In order she went below and activated her quirk, or well, she imitated Uraraka's Zero Gravity quirk. She made the ships mostly weightless and gave them a shove from underneath to help them rise through the water.

She had to act fast. Her imitation was not perfect and she knew the fisherman holding the chains of the boats would struggle to keep a hold on them. She succeeded with the last ship and joined it out of the water. Next, she went along and helped the fisherman pull the boats so they hovered -albeit rather slow and wobbly as if they were floating in thick custard. When the boats were in a safe position, she deactivated the zero gravity. A sudden wave of nausea washed over her, and she doubled over. Giving herself a moment while the able-bodied fishermen rushed inside the creaking shipwrecks.

"Hey what's that?!" she heard a voice ring out, she looked up and towards where they were gawking. Over the mountain, she could see the very top of a round Deku. A desperate cry for help echoed through the island and May's felt a pull to go and help. But that was the other side of the island and she was needed here.

"Please…someone help him…" she weakly muttered, she could feel her strength dwindling. It had taken a lot of energy to make the boats light enough to get them out of the water. She feared she would be of no use to Deku, only a hindrance. Seconds later the familiar sound of Bakugo's explosions resonated through her, and for once created a sense of relief. Deku would be okay. If anyone could help save Deku and defeat the villain, it was Katsuki Bakugo.

She couldn't worry about them now, she had to get these people to safety. She had to get the people of the island evacuated and somewhere secure.

Over the next several hours, May led the evacuation and got the heroes and civilians set up in a large manufacturing warehouse that was big enough to provide shelter -if a little cramped- to everyone. She got her classmates split up doing tasks, whether using their quirks or not. Some were handing out supplies, some were cooking in large batches, she got Momo creating much-needed supplies and batteries while Kaminari charged them. She had got the medical team set up in a private room, where they helped the injured civilians and Deku and Bakugo. They had been severely hurt in their fight against the villain, Nine. They were both unconscious, their breaths were shallow and weak. Judging by what some of the others had said, they were both lucky to be alive.

May stayed in the little room, drawing in the excess energy being given off by the two doctors attempting to heal her two friends. She had to help somehow, she had to keep busy. Maybe she could provide medical support to some of the other hurt civilians? She had her back to the two of them, helping a middle-aged woman who had minor injuries on her arms. Shoji and Shoto were also in there helping with supplies and getting the room organised. Uraraka slowly came in with a worrisome expression on her face, just like the rest of them, her usual bright, shining eyes were tarnished by exhaustion and dark circles. "Hey, I bought food. How are Bakugo and Deku doing?"

"They haven't regained consciousness," first came Shoto, then Shoji.

"Not yet, the doctors from the clinic are doing everything they can to heal them."

Uraraka kneeled by the feet of her injured friends, "thank you for all your hard work," and she was joined by May, who placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. May wondered who needed it more, her or Uraraka. May knew of Uraraka's feelings towards Deku, and she wondered if her chest felt as heavy as May's did when she looked at Bakugo.

"I apologise, our powers have helped to close their wounds but that's all we can manage. We can't do anything for their broken bones," came the first doctor that was helping Bakugo, who looked solemn and as exhausted as the heroes did.

"They need to be taken to the hospital on the main island," came the second, that was healing Deku.

May felt like she was in a vice. She hated seeing him like this, you are supposed to be invincible. Please…you need to make it to number one.

"Can I try something?" a small, fragile voice penetrated the room. They all looked to the two children standing in the doorway. It was Mahoro and Katsuma. The little boy, Katsuma, youngest of the two fidgeted with his fingers as he dared to speak out. His protective elder sister, holding guard beside him just as concerned as he was. They were who Deku and Bakugo were protecting. They were what the villains were after. The boy's quirk was Cell Activation. When the doctor gave the okay for him to help, Katsuma ran ahead and began using his quirk on the heroes that saved him. As he used his quirk, May could sense the energy. It was strong, and certainly much more useful than what the doctors were using.

"I'll help him, you guys should see if anyone else needs help. Doctors, please, some civilians are still waiting to be seen." With that everyone left, agreeing with May that their time would be better suited elsewhere.

May watched her friends intently with a darkened gaze and she mustered the last of her strength to draw in the boy's excess energy. Uraraka was the last to leave and gave May a thoughtful squeeze on the arm, "he will be okay, I just know it." Over the next couple of hours, May helped Katsuma with the fallen heroes. Instead of them doing one each, they each had a hand above the chests of both Bakugo and Deku. So, May was providing extra strength and support to help boost Katsuma's quirk effectiveness. Her unconscious friends began to stir just as Mahoro tried to get them to stop for a break. But they had to keep going. They were so close, they could feel it.

Bakugo's eyes were the first to meekly open, "May…?" his voice was raspy and sore. She stroked his sweaty forehead and shushed him. It was too soon to speak. He needed his strength. When he saw her worried smile and felt her fingers lightly push back his hair, he sighed and drifted to sleep. Glad to know that he was in safe hands.

After another hour or so, both heroes were stirring and breathing normally. May thanked the two children, especially Katsuma for their hard work and helping to heal Deku and Bakugo. She had to assure little Katsuma that the two are alright now, and just need to sleep. May left with the kids, in search of something, anything to give her strength whether that be a snack or sleep to help keep her going but she was pulled from her search and into a meeting with her classmates. They were in a room separated from everyone else, as they didn't want the residents to hear anything that could scare them. Iida went over the situation, and they discussed what could have possibly had bought the villains to Nabu Island in the first place. That was when little Katsuma came in and told them why and just to simply hand him over so no one else got hurt because of him. But before anyone could speak, in comes Midoriya to turn that idea down completely, and then comes Bakugo. Both look as good as new.

After sending the kids off to bed, the classmates huddled together to hear out Midoriya's plan. They had a map of the island spread out across the table, and Midoriya had a red marker to help him provide context on the paper to his classmates as he spoke. "We know there are at least three villains here, if we use the castle ruins on the edge of this cliff as our base, that leaves only one route for the villains to reach us." He marked out a beach pathway that connected Nabu Island with the smaller island. "When they approach, we will split them up with a pre-emptive strike. Use the terrain to our advantage."

"Then we blast them to hell!"

"The civilians can hold up in the caves at the side of the cliff. We'll personally guard Katsuma and Mahoro. We should also secure an escape route in case it comes to it."

"How are we going to deal with the villain that has multiple quirks?" asked Shoto.

"I think I know a way we may be able to get an advantage on him…give him a taste of his own medicine-" he paused, everyone waited for him to speak, and their eyes moved to the one person in the room he was looking at. May Hata. "May…do you think you could get close enough to copy his quirk stealing ability? And use it on him?"

She looked shocked, but she wanted to do whatever it took to help and beat the guy. But Bakugo answered first, "no way idiot! That would require him to use that quirk. Who the hell is gonna risk losing their quirk for May to get that energy huh? Nah. Besides, May's been using her quirk all day and likely won't be strong enough by the time this happens. She can help Round Cheeks with a bombardment instead."

"Bakugo…" she whispered, "it's okay really…I can-"

"No-" his sideways glance at her was dark and menacing, and his voice said not to argue with him "…Midoriya, think of something else." I must keep her out of harm's way, he's crazy strong. I'm not sure if I can protect her.

Instead of debating this, Midoriya nodded, raising a hand to pull at his chin thoughtfully. He knew that Bakugo was still invested in the copy hero, even if it was one-sided. He couldn't argue because he felt the same towards Uraraka. As much as he believed in both of them, just as much as he knew Bakugo believed in May's strength, Midoriya just did not want Uraraka to get too close to the multiple-quirk yielding villain either. After a few moments he continued, "in the middle of our fight with him, it looked like he doubled over in pain. Using all those powers one after the other was probably too hard on his body. I bet that's why he trying to steal Katsuma's quirk. He needs to be exhausted…" they continued to plan out their attack, and they got moving straight away to prepare.

They got the civilians moved to the caves and got everything set up ready for the strikes. They waited in line on the cliff edge as the sun began to rise. "We will attack him in waves and make him use his quirks until he's at his limit. Since he can steal powers, we want to avoid close combat if at all possible. Hopefully, that'll be enough for us to defeat him. But even if we can't, we just have to last long enough for help to arrive." Assured Deku.

"That's all this is about," came Shoto.

"No way! We are going to kick the crap outta these losers" Bakugo barked.

As the sun rose higher, they all got into position. Before they knew it the three villains were marching down the beach pathway. The heroes succeeded in splitting up the villains, leaving Nine alone on his path towards the cliff. Next, it was up to Uraraka and Sero, bombarding him with large rocks that Uraraka had waiting in the sky, Sero has used his tape to pull them down, creating a heavy force that should get any villain. But Nine was different. Their attacks were not even slowing him down. They had to retreat to where May and Mineta waited, there were more rocks held up by planks of wood, May helped Uraraka on the trapped rocks to create a huge landslide. Mineta used his purple balls to stick the rocks together as they built up. They didn't have a second to rest before a light exploded from beneath the rocks, the force flung them back, it was so strong that it tore away at the surface of the cliff.

Just like the others, May went flying through the air while getting hit by shattered rocks that smashed the glass of her helmet. Mineta was out cold, Sero, Uraraka and May struggled to get to their feet – May pulled off her helmet and chucked it to the ground, it would prove dangerous now, the risk of broken glass getting in her eyes was too high. Sero went straight to Mineta to carry him as Nine approached, raising his hand as his fingertips glowed purple to shoot his lasers. Aoyama and Momo tried to distract him, or at least to buy enough time for them to get away.

"There's no use. Playtime is over…" the three still conscious braced themselves for his attack as rigid purple lights danced around the white-haired villain as he charged for an attack.

A familiar roaring cry echoed as Bakugo launched down at Nine, belting him with explosions. Nine was still unmoved. He's an impenetrable force! Be careful you jerk! May watched hopelessly as the blonde got close to the quirk-stealing villain.

"You're still alive?" the villain's voice was strange, almost monotone but crackled with the sound of a speaker. May realised then that the apparatus around his neck is probably helping him stay alive, just like All for One, I have to do something…

"Yeah, I guess you should have hit me harder…" Bakugo snarled, a large grin on his face as he looks forward to beating the guy in front of him. You arrogant jerk! He nearly killed you once! This wasn't part of the plan!

Bakugo was then joined by Deku and together they fought Nine. The teamwork they showed surprised her, together at full strength they could surely beat any rival! But no matter what they did, Nine easily defended himself.

May, Uraraka and Sero devised a plan to help them. Even if was just to grant Bakugo and Deku a few seconds to think of their strategy. With Mineta safely hidden behind some rocks, Sero launched his attack first, his tape taking Nine by the arm and pulling his attention off Deku. Sero went in for kick but was flung back, he flew about three hundred yards like a bullet and crashed to the earth. "Sero…" Bakugo watched in dismay as his friend could not get back up again. Then Uraraka and May made their charge, Uraraka went first to make him float but was taken by a metallic blue dragon that launched out of Nine's back. May went in with another angle and used an explosion to distract him but before she could go in for a physical attack a hand wrapped itself around her neck. The two of them were obscured by the smoke and dust, May clawed at his fingers as she tried to breathe.

"You…can use multiple quirks. Cheap copies of your friends…I think I can use a quirk like this…" a glow swirled them as Nine activated his quirk stealing abilities. I'm sorry Bakugo…I know you didn't want me to…but I have to. She could feel her quirk being forced out of her. It was as if her lifeforce was being sucked out, and it set her whole body ablaze. Its burns…she couldn't move, was this because of him? Or fear? I have…to do…something!

Since the first attack, she had been trying to draw in his excess energy. But the strands of the different quirks were confusing and chaotic and she had no idea which one she needed. But being this close, and him using the stealing ability on her right now gave her the knowledge that she needed to steal it. She was able to pluck out the flailing strand of energy and absorb it. Her cut hands left his around her neck and gripped tight on his head. She used his dirty trick against him. She used the debilitating side effects to her advantage, hopefully, it would make him weak enough for Bakugo and Deku to defeat him. A second swirl of energy surrounded him as she attempted to steal his quirk. She didn't know how effective this would be, she probably couldn't steal anything. But she just needed to weaken him…BAM! He flung her away with his superhuman strength. Tearing apart their hold on each other. She waited for her body to hit the ground, not that she had the strength to brace herself. She felt a warmth envelop her, there's that sweet citrusy smell again…the hard ground didn't strike her, but she was placed onto the grass carefully as she fought against herself to stay conscious. "Copycat, wake up! Bastard!" she couldn't respond, the sweet, tempting darkness took her.

When May awoke, the sky was dark with thick, raging thunder clouds that swirled around itself. There was a hot glow from the next upper level of the cliff, the sounds of Bakugo's explosions and Deku's power against Nine's powerful counterattacks rumbled and echoed in her ears. "They're…still fighting…how long…?" she grunted, trying to find the strength to move. Her whole body ached and shook, when she stood her legs protested and threatened to give out. "Come on…they might need my help…the kids…need to…protect the kids," she stumbled towards the cliff, a loud bang broke May from her weakened trance as adrenaline pumped through her veins again. I have to get up there! I'm coming! With no way to scale the rocks, May headed up the nearest path. When she got up to that level she had to hide behind a large rock to shield herself from a deafening shockwave. She tried to peak, Bakugo and Deku were still going. Still fighting. They looked mostly fine though. But where were…the kids! Mahoro and Katsuma were hiding behind a rock, just like she was perhaps two hundred yards from her.

A fiery tornado and strikes of lightning struck the earth, tearing apart the island piece by piece. A strike against the cliff caused rocks to fall above the children so May made a run for it. Not sure what she could do or even if she could get there in time. But she had to try. Shoji reached the children first and used his connected multi-arms to shield the children from the impact. Knocking him out in the process. May reached them seconds later, dodging the falling debris. She skidded to her knees to quickly start getting the rocks off them. It didn't take long, but she kept their heads down and did not let them watch the fight between Bakugo, Deku and Nine. But she watched them, she witnessed every second. At first, she thought it was over, she had to stop herself from intervening again when the blue dragon heads took them. But she had to trust them, they were the strongest in their class. They were All Might's students! Come on…please… tears and blood burning her eyes at the sight, her friends…they could die! Katsuma and Mahoro called out to them in desperation, "Mr Deku! … Bakugo! We believe in you!" May joined them, "please don't give up!"

"There you are…" Nine smirked as he made his approach to them, May's eyes widened. What could she do against him that Bakugo and Deku couldn't? But she at least had to try and buy her friends some time. She stood defiantly in front of Mahoro and Katsuma as they cradled Shoji. She pressed through the button on her wrist, changing the energy stored in the cylinder on her back and with the press of a second button, a puff of Shoto's quirk energy came from the top and she absorbed it all. She used his quirk, as confusing as it was to create an ice wall between Nine and them. The ice was thin and brittle, and already showed signs of melting. Nine shattered it with ease, in mere seconds there was no trace of it. The air was too hot. He was too strong. She was too weak. Her knees wobbled and she leaned against the rock, thrusting her arms out to attack him with a flurry of flames. Suddenly the flames stopped and she collapsed, clinging to the rock as if her life depended on it.

Nine stopped dead in his tracks as the blue dragons that had Bakugo and Deku were destroyed. She could see them, getting up from the ground and she tried hard to hear what they were saying.

"After this…would you still be able to use your power?"

"I don't know, but All Might was able to protect us with its embers. Even after he passed his quirk onto me," Deku clenched his fist as he prepared himself one last time to face their rival.

"What did you do!?" Nine roared, getting weak by the minute despite his recent power-up.

May couldn't believe what she was seeing or hearing, the pink lines that cover Deku's body when he activates his work was now on both of them and they were acting in unison, "with double One for All…we will save everyone! We will beat you and win!"

What happened next was extraordinary. Her eyes were wide in a mix of awe and fear, those two…the energies they are giving off. It was electrifying chaos and order all in one and overwhelmed her senses. It's not possible! They fought together in a way that May never thought possible and before she knew it the thunder clouds dissipated and Nine was defeated.

They were falling through the air now, completely spent. Now that the kids were safe, their bodies had shut down. May sprinted forward at top speed, running up a pile of debris to launch herself into the air. She had no fancy tape like Sero or Black Whip like Deku, but she had quite the handle on Zero Gravity now. She was able to touch both of them using Uraraka's quirk and pulled them down with her. She deactivated the Zero Gravity when they were both close to the ground. Panting heavily she stared at her friends, "you guys did good…" the adrenaline that previously puppeteered her body abandoned her. Causing her to fall back against the ground in a sea of ache and relief.

Before long help had arrived from other heroes and the army. The students of Class 1A and the civilians were going to be fine.

On a nearby island of pink flowers crawled the burnt and beaten Nine, a black gooey vortex swirled into existence and Shigaraki stepped out from it. "I knew you'd survive…you've lived a good life. Don't worry, I'll take over your dream from here."

Shigaraki took slow steps to the broken man, "there can only be one true ruler…" Nine reached out but Shigaraki grabbed his face. Nine thought that was it, that Shigaraki's Decay quirk would be used on him. But instead, Shigaraki pulled out a syringe glistening with a suspicious green liquid and injected it into his neck, "only one…" Rendering Nine in a long-term sedated state, "night night."

Another vortex appeared, this time the vortex was a seething heat of burning oranges and reds like fire, and out stepped the arrogant woman Shigaraki could not stand but knew he needed. The red-headed Succubus. She grinned at him with a large toothy grin that spread too far and sharp teeth too big for any ordinary human mouth. "Excellent, good work on delivering the goods Shigaraki. I think a lot can be learnt from today's gathered data," with a flick of her hand a fiery tentacle jutted from the vortex and grabbed the unconscious Nine, pulling him back through the vortex. "See you soon!" she giggled, waving her fingers at him and she too disappeared through the raging vortex. Leaving him alone on the small island of pink flowers to watch the rescue efforts from afar.

After a few days of tidying up and getting rested and healed, the Class of 1A was on their journey back to the mainland. When they were all waving goodbye, May saw Midoriya and Bakugo on the top deck and took a deep breath. She had to talk to them about what she witnessed. They had to know that she knew their secret. She ran up the steps and once the ferry was far enough away that the two were no longer waving back to Mahoro and Katsuma, she approached them, "I know what you did…" they turned and looked at her, surprised to see her there and confronting them. "Don't worry I don't think anyone else saw. I thought something was going on between you both and All Might, and now I know…"

"Hata…" Midoriya stepped forward, "listen…"

"No, you need to listen now. I know this power is not yours Midoriya. It's not possible. The energy you give off is exactly the same as All Mights. Even identical twins don't have the same quirk energy. And yet, you have All Mights energy and you shared it with Bakugo, sharing this immense power you possess, it shouldn't be possible," she paused, thinking on her next words, and the damage that power had caused to both of their bodies, "it makes sense now why you keep getting hurt Midoriya because your quirk…it's not yours. All the dots are connecting now. But don't worry, your secret is safe with me, I just thought…it was best you knew that I knew."

He gave a sigh of relief and smiled at her, while Bakugo remained unmoved and stoic. Trying to hide his true feelings of this revelation. While he could not remember it happening, Midoriya had filled him in on what happened and why his arms had been broken. "It's called One for All, and you're right, it was passed on to by All Might. It has this immense power, it can tear apart anybody that is not conditioned to use it. That's why I have to be so careful when I use it, I can only use twenty percent of its power, anything higher than that then I'll hurt myself again."

May nodded, "I heard that you always broke your bones when using your quirk in the beginning. I guess it makes sense, our bodies adapt over time to the quirks we possess. Despite this though, you need to be more careful Midoriya, there are those in this world that would stop at nothing to have such power," there was a dark knowing look behind her eyes that made Bakugo question what else she knew. She turned and began to leave but stopped at the door, tapping at the doorframe, "oh and err Midoriya, don't worry…I won't try to imitate your quirk."

With that May left them, closing the door quietly behind herself. She stared down at her hands as she walked the corridor of the ferry, her skin faintly glowed with the pink and orange lines that decorated Midoriya's body when he activated One for All. An agonising pain erupted through her hand and up her arm and she turned it off immediately. She cradled her hands to her chest as she made a beeline for her room. Hoping to use what remnants of Katsuma's quirk she had left to heal her hands.