Chapter 4

Down the Rabbit Hole

"Uuuh, where am I?" The young rabbit girl asked as her consciousness returned.

She woke up, at first looking at everything to be blurry, but soon her focus returned, and everything looked clearer. Soon, she realized she wasn't alone.

Surrounding her was a bunch of guys in red hoodies and clothes. Even the guard from before was here, and they all had one common thing: a tattoo of a red serpent on their arms or face.

"Well, well, well. It looks like the bunny has finally woken up," one of them snickered.

Usagi tried to get up but soon realized a rope tied her hands on the chair.

"Boss is here!" one of the goons stated.

"The boss?" Usagi repeated.

The men stepped away as someone passed through. The someone was the boss of the Red Serpent Gang.

The "boss" was a tall man with sharp yellow eyes that looked very serpentine, a black goatee for the beard, and mildly physical built for the body. He was wearing a red robe with two red dots in a yellow circle that looked like a snake's eyes on the front, pair of black pants, and three golden rings over each wrist. He also had a brown cane with the head of a cobra snake.

"Ssssooooo, we have our little prisssssoner," hissed the boss.

"Yeah, boss," the door guard said. "She is the strange girl who came in here. She was snooping around the kitchen, where she found the entranceway. I don't think this girl is a normal runaway brat from home to drink at a nightclub, sir."

'So this guy is the boss of the Red Serpent?!' Usagi thought.

"I sssseeeee," the leader said as he took a look at Usagi and then raised an eyebrow. "Hm, you look ssssooo familiar."

'Wait, what? Did he say I look familiar? What does that mean? Could it be that…' So the bunny girl thought until another goon came into the room, looking hurriedly.

"What'ssss wrong?" The leader asked.

"Boss, it's trouble! The heroes and the police just started raiding the nightclub above!" the goon announced, spooking the other goons.

"Say what?!" They all said, except for the boss.

"Ssssilence!" The boss shouted as they all calmed down. "You know the drill, my fellow ssserpentinessss."

'This guy really likes to hiss a lot with letter s,' Usagi pondered.

"Prepare for the battle to ssstall them enough for us to get our goodsss out of here," the boss ordered.

"What about the girl, sir?" one of them asked.

"I will handle her from here. Then, Sssshee will do an exccceeleent hossssstage," he explained.

'He also likes to do it with the letter c!' Usagi looked a bit surprised as she sweat-dropped.

The goons went away, leaving just Usagi and the leader.

"Ssssoo, little girl," the man turned to her. "Who are you, and why are you here?"

'I guess there is no point in lying now that I have caught, and also, I have ssssome questions to ask this guy, anyway!' Usagi decided mentally.

"My name is Pyon-Pyon, and I am an intern, no, a sidekick to Mirko!" She declared.

"Mirko? Ah, I ssssseeee! No wonder you looksssss sssssssoooo familiar," the leader stated. "Well, allow me to introduccccee mysssself. My name is Viper."

"Viper?" Usagi repeated as she thought it sounded too…. Sssimple.

"I have a question for you, Viper! Why did you say I look familiar?" Usagi questioned the man.

"Oh, well, that's sssimple. I remember killing ssssomeone who looksss just like you," Viper answered.

Usagi gasped, and she just froze in shock.

'Wh, what?! He killed someone who looks like me?! So then, is that mean that my, my, my mom is dead?!' Usagi couldn't believe what she was wearing. She felt immense sadness and anger within her, rising up as if it would explode at any moment.

"Who was it?! Who did you…!"

"Pyon-Pyon!" Suddenly, Mirko kicked into the room, which surprised Usagi.

"Mirko!" Usagi was happy to see her idol hero.

"Mirko, what a ssssurprisssssee to ssseeee you!" Viper exclaimed.

"Mirko, I…"

"Don't worry, Pyon-Pyon! I will get you out of here as soon as I beat this slithering fiend's ass!" Mirko declared as she glared at the villain.

However, the villain didn't look afraid or worried. Quite the opposite; he looked joyful for some reason.

"Perfect! Jussst where I want you to be!" His shout surprised Mirko and Usagi when the slithering villain pulled out a remote control and pressed a red button.

Suddenly, the floor beneath them opened up, dropping them below.

"Waaaaaahhhh!" Usagi screamed.

They fell deeper underground and landed in the water.

"Help! Help! I can't swim!" Usagi cried as her face was partially in the water but quickly realized something. "Wait a second…. Holy Carrot! This water is not that too deep but smells funny."

Soon, she realized that the chair she was tied to was destroyed thanks to the fall so that she could loosen herself from the rope.

She looked around and recognized that she was in the sewers.

"Is this the sewer? No wonder it smells so… funky," Usagi commented as she covered her nose. She looked around and found unconscious Mirko.

She gasped. "Mirko, Mirko! Are you alright?"

Mirko regained her senses as she opened her eyes and got up. "Where…. Where are we?"

"We are in the sewer somehow," Usagi explained.

"Where is that slither fiend, Viper?" Mirko asked.

"I have no idea, but let's get out of here now," Usagi stated.

Mirko agreed. "Good idea. Let's go."

They began walking to find the exit. First, though, Usagi wanted to know more about what Viper said. He said that he had killed someone who looked like her. She wondered if the person he mentioned was her birth mother.

'No! It can't be! It has got to be some bluff! I don't believe my mother is dead, but I still wish to hear more about her!' Usagi thought frustratingly.

"Ssssssss…" Mirko and Usagi stopped suddenly as they felt a tense air.

"He's here!" Mirko shouted as she and Usagi stood by on their back.

"I hear him, but where is he?!" Usagi looked around.

They could hear Viper slithering, but there were multiple tunnels and holes around them, and the sounds were echoing through each hole.

"Shhhhaaa!" Viper jumped out of the water. Mirko and Usagi jumped out of the way, but the villain dived into the water.

"He's in the water! Stay far away from it!" Mirko warned Usagi.

"That won't ssstop me!" Viper came out of one of the holes and slashed Mirko's left arm, hurting her as he slithered quickly into another hole.

"Mirko!" Usagi gasped.

"I'm fine, but that slithering bastard! I couldn't figure out where he would come out next!" Mirko fumed as she also felt pain.

Usagi agreed. They didn't know where Viper would pop out of which hole next. Then, she got an idea.

"Mirko! Let's use our ears!" Usagi proposed. "If we use our ears and listen for his sound carefully, we may know where he's going to come out of which hole!"

"Good idea, pipsqueak!" Mirko replied as they stood quietly and used their ears to listen.

They stood quietly and listened for her any noises or sounds. Finally, the villain's eyes glowed from one of the holes and popped out quickly behind Usagi.

However, Usagi jumped up in time and kicked right into his back, stopping him.

"Gaaah!" Viper gasped.

"I got you now!" Usagi exclaimed as she remembered something from her past. 'Good thing I remember to use this move. I remember when Maruto showed me one of the video games he played where the character jumped on an enemy to beat them."

"Get off of me!" Viper cried as he used his tail to twirl around Usagi's hip and threw her to the wall.

"Gah!" Usagi crashed into the wall.

"Usagi!" Mirko shouted before turning her attention to Viper, who looked very angry. "Why you ba…gawh!"

Viper sneered. "Yesss, finally. The poissson is kicking in."

"I…I.." Mirko tried to get back up, but her vision became blurry, and she lay down on her knees.

"When I ssssscraped your arm earlier, I gave it a bit of my poissson to paralyze you. No heroessss can withsssssstand my poissson. Not even that Number 1 Hero, All Might, can ressssissst it," Viper explained as he slithered closer to Mirko.

"Yooouuuu!" Mirko growled.

Usagi slowly got up and shook her head. "Ouuuch."

She saw what was going on. Viper was about to kill Mirko.

"Noooo! Don't kill her!" Usagi shouted.

Viper, grabbing Mirko by her right ear, looked over at Usagi. "And what will you do? You're jussst an intern. You cannot sssave Mirko. No worriessss. I will sssend you to wherever ssshe goes after I finisssh her!"

"Be… Before you do, I want to know one thing!" Viper looked a bit curious when Usagi said that. "What did you mean before? About you killing someone who looks similar to me?"

"Ah, yessss. Well, ssssince you will die, I will explain then," Viper said. "It was 15 yearssss ago…."

-Flashback: 15 Years-

The weather was dark and rainy.

A lone woman in a dark red jacket was running away from something or someone. She held something in her arm; a young baby with rabbit ears wrapped in a pink blanket.

The woman cradled the baby tightly as she kept running. Behind her, several men with red serpent tattoos chased after her.

However, she was stopped by more men who surrounded her.

"There is no place to escape now!" One of the men snickered.

"Please let us leave! You may take me, but don't harm my baby!" The woman pleaded.

Suddenly, the men stepped aside as Viper slithered forward to meet the woman.

"Well, well, well. You sssssure made usssss run through the town," Viper said.

"Viper, you devil! If you had left my husband and me to live peacefully, none of this would happen! He even promised never to tell you and your gang to the police!"

"It doesss not matter! He wasss sssstill a risssk and ssssoo are you!" Viper declared as he staved the woman right into her abdomen.

"Gah!" The woman gasped but cradled her baby.

"Fortunately for you, my poissson isss not an inssstant death, but soon you will feel the effect. So enjoy your lasssst remaining time with your baby, but your baby will die in this cold and rain anyway," Viper stated as he and his men left the scene.

"Nnnooo!" The woman fell to her knee. "I…. I can't…. I can't die like this!"

-Flashback Ends-

"Little did I know that ssssomehow that ssssame baby girl iss alive, ssstanding right in front of me!" Viper exclaimed as he laughed evilly.

"You…. You…!"

"BASTARD!" They stopped and looked at Mirko, who grabbed and gripped Viper's arm.

"What the?!" Viper looked a bit shocked. "Impossssible! You sssshould be fully paralyzed now!"

Usagi was surprised to see that Mirko could still move and fight back.

"So it was you who killed her! I had the feeling, but I never had the proof!" Mirko slowly got as she removed Viper's grip on her ear. "Now that I know, you won't get away with this! I will never ever let you hurt my family ever again!"

Mirko kicked right into Viper's face, but then she quickly mounted onto his head and gripped them tightly with her thighs before twisting her body. Finally, she pulled with all her superhuman leg strength to grip Viper's head and smashed him into the ground.

"LUNA TIJERAS!" Mirko yelled, and her voice echoed through the sewer.

"Aaaaaaahhhhhhh!" Viper screamed painfully as he felt his neck crack, making him unconscious.

"Wow…" Usagi was both terrified and amazed to see what had just happened. Mirko had defeated Viper.

"I heard it over here!" Usagi turned her head to the right, seeing that Crasshopper and some officers had come to the rescue.

"Pyon-Pyon, Mirko-san, are you two alright?" He asked, sweating.

"Crasshopper!" Usagi said as she hugged the sidekick. "I'm glad to see you!"

Crasshopper was a bit surprised to get hugged and blushed a bit. "Umm, well, at least you are OK now. What about Mirko-san?"

Usagi turned back to Mirko and gasped to see Mirko struggling. "Holy Carrot! Mirko!"

Usagi ran over to Mirko's side. "Wake up, Mirko!"

"Quick! Get her to the hospital and arrest the villain!" Crasshopper ordered.

The police officers did just that. They put the struggling Mirko, holding her arm in pain, onto the stretcher while they put Viper onto a different stretcher for the arrested villain.

Later that day, Mirko and Usagi were admitted to the hospital for treatment. Luckily, Usagi had minor injuries, but she decided to stay for Mirko's well-being. Mirko was in the surgery room. It lasted for many hours, but the doctor announced that they had successfully removed all of the venoms inside her body, and she just needed to rest.

-Two Days Later-

Usagi has been at the hospital for the past few days, waiting for Mirko to wake up. But unfortunately, she still hadn't woken up yet. It had been very crazy for the past few days, but now she could reflect on all the things that had happened.

She wanted to know most about her mom and what had happened to her. After hearing what the vile villain, Viper, said, she became more curious. Also, what Mirko shouted during their fight against the slithery villain revealed that she knew something about her mother.

Other than all the stuff she went through, Usagi also saw the news about what was going on in Hosu City with the Hero Killer incident and the arrest of Droid-Cop, a pro hero in Kyoto and the hero who interned one of her classmates. She wondered if her classmates were OK, too. So many things happened around her. For now, though, she needed to pray for Mirko to wake up soon.

While thinking to herself, Mirko's fingers twitched, and her eyes began to move. Usagi noticed it and gasped. "Holy Carrot! Mirko-san, you are awake!"

"Grrr! Geez, you're so loud!" Mirko moaned.

"Oh! Sorry. I didn't mean to shout, but I am just surprised and happy to see you finally awake!" Usagi happily said as tears dropped from her eyes.

Mirko contemplated. "You stayed here until I woke up?"

"Of course! I was so worried about you. I, I thought you would never wake up," Usagi replied as she cried.

"I, I see. Well, no sweat. I am OK now, but I take it that you are here for another reason," Mirko admitted.

Usagi stopped crying and wiped her tears away. "Actually, yes. I… I would like to know about my mom! You do know her, right?"

Mirko stared at her and shortly sighed. "Yes, I do."

"So you do know? So then, why, why did you hide it?" She asked.

"… It's because I made a promise," Mirko revealed.

"A promise?" Usagi repeated.

Mirko nodded as she looked up at the wall. "Your mom, she was my older sister. She was 15 years older than me. She was the kindest and sweetest person I knew."

-Flashback-

"Miiirkoooo!" Someone yelled Mirko's name.

A small girl was sitting alone on the side of the hill near the river. She looked up and saw a person approaching her. This young girl was Mirko, who was only six years old at the time.

The person was a tall, young teenage girl. She stood almost six feet tall, had white rabbit ears with one of them bent down, smooth, light-colored skin, long, straight white hair, light red eyes which were tilted slightly inwards, and long eyelashes.

"Big sis," Young Mirko said.

"I heard that you fought with Mr. Akamatsu's son and his friends again," she stated as he looked upset. "How many times do I have to tell you?"

"They're the ones who started it!" Young Mirko complained.

Her sister sighed and smiled lightly. "Well, it doesn't matter who started it. We should go and apologize."

"Why should I? I ain't gonna apologize to someone who's in the wrong!" Young Mirko retaliated.

"Mirko, you want to be a hero someday, right?" her older sister asked.

Young Mirko looked a bit surprised but grinned. "Why, of course, sis! That's what I always want to be!"

"Well, a true hero always needs to apologize. If you did something bad or made a mistake, you should apologize; that way, you can build trust with others and be accountable for your action. That is what a real hero does. So, let's go apologies to Mr. Akamatsu's son, OK?"

Young Mirko looked at her older sister, shrugging and sighing. "… Fine."

Her older sister smiled. "And don't worry. I will go with you to make sure you do it properly."

Five years later….

Young Mirko, her older sister, and their family were at the train station. Mirko's sister held a carrier's bag and suitcase. They were waiting for the train.

"You be careful, dear," their mother said.

"I will, mom," Mirko's sister stated.

"The city can be exciting but dangerous too. So remember to stay safe," their father affirmed.

"I know, dad," Mirko's sister chuckled. "I will be fine."

"Hey, sis." The sister looked at Mirko, who was now almost ten years old. "If you ever in trouble, I will come and save you anytime!"

She laughed and padded on Mirko's head. "Thank you, Mirko. I will be fine, but if that does happen, I can always count on you."

Almost one year later…

"Hell no!" A man shouted.

"Dad, please! Calm down!" Mirko's sister begged.

"Honey!" The mother shouted as she held her husband down.

Young Mirko was spying and listening to the conversation. In the living room, mom, dad, her sister, and another man were sitting at the table, but the conversation turned into an argument.

"I cannot allow you to get married!" The father shouted.

"But why dad? I love Mr. Tsubomi, and he loves me!" her sister shouted back.

"Please, sir!" The man begged. The man sitting next to Mirko's sister was dark-skinned with rough scars around his face in a black suit and pants. He also had a flower bud on the top of his head.

"I cannot allow you to marry this ruffian! We didn't raise you like this!" The father yelled.

Mirko's sister banged the table. "Well, if you won't accept us, then I will never return to this house again! I will marry Mr. Tsubomi, and we will be a happy couple, whether you accept it or not!"

She and her fiancé stormed out of the home while the father and mother begged them to come back inside. Mirko watched from the window and ran out of the house to chase after her sister and fiancé.

"Hey, sis!" She shouted.

Mirko's older sister and fiancé turned around. "Mirko!" she noticed.

"Sis, are you…. Are you dead serious about all this?" Mirko asked.

Her sister and her fiancé looked at each other and then grinned. "Mirko, sorry for causing such a scene. I know that you were listening and spying on the conversation. But, to tell you the truth, there is a good reason why Mr. Tsubomi and I are getting married even though we only knew each other for almost a year."

"What is it?" Mirko asked.

"You see, I'm," she began as she rubbed her belly. "I'm pregnant."

"Say what?!" Mirko gasped.

Her older sister smiled. "I know. It is pretty 'Holy Carrot,' but it's true. I have a baby inside of me. I want to raise my child in a nice home with a kind husband, so I want to get married soon, even though it may seem too early. I want to make sure my child has a happy life."

"I, I see. That's shocking, sis, but… I trust you, sis," Mirko assured.

"Thank you for being so kind, Mirko. You may be a bit rough, but you are just a very kind girl," her older sister said, padding on Mirko's head.

Mirko blushed. "Cut it out, sis! I am not a kid anymore!"

She chuckled. "This may be our last meeting in person, but I wish you a happy life, Mirko, and I know you will be a great hero like you have always dreamed of being since you were a kid."

-Flashback Ends-

"So… my mom left home, got married, and had me?" Usagi summarized.

Mirko nodded. "That's right. However, right after you were born, the tragedy happened. I later found out about what had happened to her. Your mom… was killed by Viper. That Tsubomi guy was your father, and he was an ex-member of the Red Serpent. I don't know why big sis, ah I mean, your mother saw in him, but she saw him as a kind man she fell in love with, and he cared about her, too."

"No way," Usagi said, looking very sad. "Mom… Dad."

"However, for a while, I didn't know exactly what happened to you, Usagi," Mirko said.

"What do you mean?" Usagi asked.

"It wasn't until I learned about you that I saw your school's Sports Festival event. During the fight match, I was shocked when they announced your full name, and that was when I remembered. I immediately researched and found out who was taking care of you, and I… I met her."

"Wait. Do you mean Sister Koko?" Usagi said.

"Yes," Mirko answered. "She told me the rest of the story about your mother. Exactly how did you put in that orphanage's care, and why."

"Woah, Woah, Woah! Are you saying that Sister Koko knew about my mom?!" Usagi shockingly asked.

"That is something you need to ask her," Mirko said.

Just then, the door to the hospital room opened.

"Oh! Mirko-san, you are awake!" Crashopper gasped.

"Where the hell were you?! I am hungry here!" Mirko shouted.

"Oh, um, sorry, Mirko-san. I was working out the paperwork and finishing the job with the police," Crashopper said sheepishly. "However, I have some good news!"

"Go on," Mirko said.

"Well, all of the Red Serpent members, including their leader, are arrested. But, thanks to our effort, we even managed to stop their operations and other secret hideouts!" Crasshopper announced.

"Holy Carrot! That's amazing!" Usagi surprised.

"Yup, and it's all thanks to you, Usagi, and Mirko-san!" Crashopper praised.

"Oh shucks. I only did what I told, minus the kidnapping part, though," Usagi blushed.

"Also, the doctor said that you will be staying in the hospital for a little bit longer, Mirko-san," the sidekick stated.

"Hell no!" Mirko jumped out of bed. "I am fine! I can go and do my job now!"

Usagi and Crashopper looked shocked. "Mirko-san, please get back into bed! You are not completely healed yet!"

"Holy Carrot!" Usagi gasped.

One week had passed. The internship program had ended for all participating UA students, including Class 1-L members. Usagi went back home. Even though she didn't do much at Mirko's place, she finally knew about the truth, but there was one part she still didn't know.

She decided to head to the place where she knew she could find the answer. So she returned to the orphanage where she lived most of her childhood.

As Usagi walked near the gate, she noticed some children playing outside. One of the kids, who had spiky blond hair and sharp eyes, saw her.

"Hey, look! It's Big Sis Usagi!" He shouted excitedly.

"Wait, Usagi is back!" All the children ran towards Usagi and surrounded.

"Usagi-ne! Welcome back!" The children greeted.

"Hey, guys. How are you all doing?" Usagi said as she padded each of their head.

"Usagi." Usagi looked up to see the person she wanted to see. "Welcome back home. How was your internship?"

"Sister Koko, it's been a while and… I want to talk with you," Usagi said.

Sister Koko looked curious about why Usagi wanted to talk with her.

A little bit later, Usagi and the nun were alone in the garden while the children were occupied with other nuns.

"What is that you want to talk about, Usagi?" Sister Koko kindly asked.

"Sister Koko, I… I heard everything from Mirko during my internship. I interned under her, and she told me. She told me about my mom," Usagi admitted.

Sister Koko looked calm. "I see. So you now know it."

"I want to know what happened. What had happened to my mom, Sister Koko?" Usagi said in a demanding tone.

Sister Koko sighed calmly. "Follow me, Usagi."

Sister Koko brought Usagi to the church inside, where they could talk a little bit more privately.

"Usagi, first off, I didn't mean to keep the secret away from you. However, since you are old enough to know, I think it is about time to know what happened. The time that you came here," Sister Koko began.

-Flashback: 15 years old-

The rain was pouring. A woman in a raincoat, holding her baby in her arm while walking limply as she was injured.

She looked up, dazed but still staying strong with whatever strength she had left. She saw a church and read the sign on their fence that said, "Saint Maria's Orphanage."

She walked limply through the gate to the door. She could feel her consciousness fading away as she did, but she knew she couldn't fall here. She had to pass on for her baby to survive.

She approached the door and pressed the doorbell, and even knocked on the door. "Help! Please! Please help me! I need sanctuary!"

Inside the orphanage house, some nuns noticed. They quickly went over to the door and opened it.

They were shocked to see the injured woman in front of them.

"Oh my!" One of the nuns gasped.

The woman grinned slightly before she collapsed. Two of the nuns caught her before she fell to the ground.

"Quick, sisters! Take his dear, poor woman to the room!" ordered the head nun.

The nuns did what the head nun said. They bought her to another room and petted her on the bed. They also prepared a crib for her baby. However, the nuns already noticed blood dripping down the woman's wound.

"Sister Maria, this woman is gravely injured! We should call the hospital!" One of the nuns stated.

"No!" The woman spoke up as the group of nuns looked over at the dying woman. "Please, no. Don't do that."

"What?! But that's crazy! You're injured very badly!" Another nun exclaimed.

"Wait, Sisters," Sister Maria called out as she kneeled beside the woman. "My dear, why do you not want to call the hospital?"

"Be…Because if you do, my baby won't be safe. My husband… was killed by his boss and his gang. They're, urgh, villains."

Hearing that shocked the nuns even more. Among the nuns was the younger Sister Koko.

"So, please! Please don't call the hospital or the police! I promise you all! Please take care of my baby girl!" the woman demanded.

The sisters looked concerned, but Sister Maria held the dying woman's hands. "Do not worry, dear. Your baby will be safe with us. We will take care of her."

The woman smiled. "Thank…you," she said before taking her last breath.

The sisters watched silently and prayed for the woman.

"Sister Maria, what shall we do next? Is it right for us not to call the police?" one of the sisters asked.

"Sister!" Young Sister Koko shouted. "Haven't you listened to what this dying mother said?! We need to keep her word and protect her child!"

"Sister Koko is right," Sister Maria said as she stood back up and looked over the sleeping baby in her crib. "We must honor this woman's last word and protect this child. I do not know what she went through, but she asked for sanctuary not for herself but for her child. That's our duty, sisters. We shall prepare a final resting place for this dear mother."

"Yes, Sister Maria!" The nuns followed.

-Flashback Ends-

"And this is where your mother lies, Usagi," Sister Koko said as she showed Usagi her mother's gravestone.

"I can't believe I haven't noticed this for a long time since I was here," Usagi said honestly, yet sadly.

"Usagi, I'm very sorry for us, me, not telling you about your mother. If we did, we thought you would be in danger and didn't honor your mother's dying wish," Sister Koko apologized. "I feel ashamed to keep this secret from you for a long, long time."

Usagi nodded. "No, Sister Koko. It's fine. I understand. As sad as I cannot see my mom anymore, I know who she was, and I will cherish her here in my heart."

"Usagi," Sister Koko said.

"Thank you for telling me about my mom. Well, I better get going now," Usagi said as she walked but stopped for a moment. "Hey, Sister Koko."

"What is it, Usagi?" She asked.

"Is it OK if I visit my mom here from time to time?" Usagi asked.

Sister Koko smiled. "Why, of course, Usagi. You can visit her here as many times as you want!"

Usagi smiled warmly. "Thank you so much, Sister Koko!"

-My Hero Academia-

One day later, Usagi returned to Hiroshima. She had the plan to meet with someone at the station.

"Hey, pipsqueak!" Usagi turned around and saw Mirko. She was wearing a more casual look; an unzipped dark leather jacket with a white shirt underneath it, blue jeans that only covered up to her knees, a brown belt with a buckle with a yellow crescent moon symbol in the center, and white high-heel boots, and sunglasses.

"Hi, Mirko-san!" Usagi happily greeted her as she joined her.

"Ready to go?" She asked.

"Yeah, I am," Usagi nodded.

"Then, let's go," she stated as they walked to the bus stop.

The bus soon arrived, and they got on the bus. After that, it drove out of the city and headed to the countryside. Finally, after some hours had passed, Mirko and Usagi got off the bus.

The bus left them, and all Usagi saw was a crop field.

"This way," Mirko stated as she walked, and Usagi followed.

"So this is where my mom used to live," Usagi said as she looked around.

"It is our home. Though, even though it's been a while since I came back here," Mirko admitted. "Our home is right up ahead."

Usagi began to see a big house ahead of them as they walked closer and closer. The first thing she noticed was an old wall and gate. There was also a person sweeping the ground in front of the entrance.

The person noticed Mirko and Usagi.

"Rumi?!" The person gasped.

"Yo, what's up," Mirko said, waving her hand.

"Rumi, long time no see!" said the person. "It's been a while, sis."

The said person was a young woman who looked like Mirko, except her skin tone was lighter. She also had the same long white rabbit ears standing up, bowl-cut white hair, and red eyes.

"Long time no see, sweeper," Mirko smirked as she greeted them. "This here is Usagi."

Usagi greeted the person. "Um, nice to meet you! My name is Usagi. Well, that's my nickname, though."

"Ah! You are Usagi! I am so sorry for not noticing you at first! I just finished sweeping, so please step in, and I will show you to our house!" the woman exclaimed. "By the way, my name is Mimiko Usagiyama. I am Rumi here or Mirko's young sister. One of her siblings."

Mimiko showed them to the front door of the house. When Usagi went through the big gate, she noticed they had a fantastic front yard, but the place was more impressive. It was a huge, traditional Japanese house.

"Holy Carrot! This house is huge!" Usagi gasped.

Mirko smirked. "Yeah. Our house is pretty huge. Wait till you see the rest of the family."

"Mom, Dad. Everyone! Rumi is back home with Usagi!" Mimiko shouted as she entered the house. She even prepared pairs of slippers for Mirko and Usagi.

Usagi switched her shoes and put on the slippers. They walked through the hallway. Usagi couldn't believe that Mirko and her late mother used to live in this house. It felt both surreal and nervous. She wondered what would happen.

Mirko and Usagi were escorted to a traditional Japanese guest room with tables and a sitting cushion. Usagi sat at one side of the table while Mirko sat perpendicularly.

At the other side of the table, two people sat across from Usagi. They both looked somewhere between 50 to 60 years old. One of them was a middle-aged man with black hair with some gray streaks and eyeglasses. His skin tone was light. Next to him was a woman with red eyes, a darker skin tone, and curly short white hair with two white rabbit ears sticking out.

Mimiko put some tea on the table while everyone else stayed silent.

'Holy Carrot! These old folks must be my grandparents! What should I do? What should I say?!' thought Usagi nervously.

Mirko looked between Usagi and her parents as she sighed loudly. "Would anyone here just say something already?!"

"Ah-hem!" The man coughed. "So, Sakura or Usagi, which do you prefer to be called?"

"Oh, um, Usagi is fine, sir," Usagi nervously replied.

The man nodded. "First thing we want to say to you is…."

Suddenly, the man and his wife moved back and bowed to Usagi.

"We're awfully, sincerely sorry!" they shouted.

This surprised Usagi. "Holy Carrot! What's this all about?!"

"Usagi, we're so sorry for what we did to your mother and what happened to her!" the woman vehemently apologized as she cried into a handkerchief.

"We were strongly against your mother's marriage proposal, and we've never properly given her our blessings. We didn't accept that she would want to marry someone she met in the city. Not to mention that the person was part of a criminal gang!" the man admitted. "However, after quite some time, we became worried about her. When Rumi here became older, graduated high school, and became a pro hero, we asked her if she could investigate what happened to our daughter, well, your mother."

"Unfortunately, I couldn't find anything about your mother," Mirko said. "As much as I wanted to find out what happened to her, I couldn't find anything. Anything at all! It frustrated me, and it almost made me give up."

Usagi felt very bad for Mirko and her grandparents. However, even though her grandparents disapproved of her mother's marriage, they still worried about her, which meant they still cared about her.

"I thought I would give up finding her until I saw you," Mirko stated.

"Me?" Usagi asked aloud.

"Yes. When I saw you appeared at the UA Sports Festival, your look reminded me so much of my sister, and it also surprised my parents and the entire family," Mirko explained.

"We were shocked that you looked a lot like your mother," said the lady. "That was when we called Rumi to see if you could find out about you."

"After they called, I did not hesitate to do some investigations. That was when I found out that you were raised at that orphanage where you grew up. So after gathering some information about you, I decided to get you to be my intern," explained Mirko further. "The reason I hired you as my intern is to see you in person and see if you were my sister's kid."

"It was also our part of our request, too," the man admitted, adding that.

"I see," said Usagi quietly, looking seldom.

"The moment I saw you that day at the station, I thought I saw your mother," Mirko admitted as she scratched her face with a bit of blushed expression. "That's when I realized that you are her daughter."

Usagi's tear fell, but she grinned and wiped the tear off her face. "Thank you, Mirko."

She turned to the two couples. "Grandpa, Grandma."

The couple looked up. "I know what you said to my mom back then was hurtful, but I believe that my mom will forgive you guys no matter what happened because that's the kind of person she is, and I forgive you both."

Usagi held hands with her grandparents, feeling their warmth. Her kindness and forgiveness touched her grandparents' hearts, making them tearful yet smiling. Mirko smiled warmly. Later that day, Usagi celebrated with her newfound family, composed of her grandparents, Mirko, Aunt Mimiko, and her husband with two kids, and their siblings and their children.

Usagi couldn't believe how big her real family was, and she felt pleased.

And that's the last chapter for this story, but we are not done yet! There will be an epilogue that goes back to the present time and concludes this story.

I worked so long (maybe too long) on this, but I am so close to the end of the tunnel.

Thank you for reading so far. The epilogue will be out soon during the weekend!