Joe's Note: Just like the first time I was working with this chapter, I got to the end and tried to move on... only to realize that I was doing more telling than showing. And I abhor that. So I went back yet again and instead of Carol's conversation with All Might taking a single chapter followed by some flashbacks in the following Izuku-heavy chapter... I reworked it so it took two whole chapters, with her encounter with Izuku being pushed back until Chapter 5. Which is one hell of a decompression given that originally her talk with All Might encompassed a meager half of Chapter 2. At any rate... a bit more exposition and world building now, with Carol's encounter with Izuku on tap for the next chapter. Enjoy.
Dedications & Thanks: To Nicholas, Howard, Jade, Alexander, Tibor, Alonsis2, Daniel, Clark, Adrien, erlking, ridillin, Haematite, Charles, Jacky, Edward, Andrew, Roofcrawler, Wil, PbookR, Samuel, Mikey, Beverly, Daniel, Charles, Crygon20, Subtle, Christopher, Stephen, Fablesrogue, Morgan, Joseph, Jason, RileyWestfall, bloodylord, Marc, Ziryo, Chris, George, Koby, William, Devin, JJbelle, David, Gavin, TheTenthAncestor, Lookshy, Mauday, John, Roman, Warren, and Jess for sponsoring me on , and making it easier for me to spend more of my time writing.

"Because no offense, but I'd really like to get out of this police station sometime today."

"If you insist. The reason why I couldn't intervene directly today against the sludge villain is that as I mentioned before, my power... my ability to be a hero... is slowly fading." All Might raised one frail, bony arm and made a fist, his arm surging with bulging muscle for a scant few seconds before reverting to its emaciated form. "My failing body simply can't handle the strain that my quirk puts on it for any longer than three hours a day anymore."

Finally dismissing the hologram that had provided her with information on All Might, Carol made a fist and grinned as she looked from her hand to All Might and back. "I guess it's a good thing that I was there to invite your 'sludge villain' to the gun show then, huh?"

"Indeed. Getting back to the subject at hand, though? My quirk 'One For All' isn't like most others; as I just mentioned, it can be passed from person to person. A sacred torch of power and responsibility, a light against the darkness of villainy." All Might sat up a bit straighter, puffing up in pride before letting out a raspy cough that brought new blood to the corners of his mouth. "For the last few years, I've been searching for a successor to pass my power on to so they can continue the good fight in my name. Today, I found that person: Midoriya Izuku, the green-haired boy that you kept from attacking the sludge villain. But listening to you talk to the police chief just now... I've come to the realization that while Midoriya should be the inheritor of my power, he doesn't necessarily need to be my successor. That he should be free to grow and develop into whatever kind of hero he wants to be, not necessarily the next Symbol of Peace... unless that's what he chooses, of course."

Carol let out a bored sigh as she motioned for him to keep talking. While this was all very fascinating on one level, it was still none of her problem... and she had enough problems of her own to deal with at the moment that she wasn't looking to take on someone else's. "Still not sure why any of this is my business or my problem. If we could please wrap this up, I still need to deal with my legal problems and see what the police decide to do with a teenage alien with a penchant for punching villains their heroes can't handle. Oh, and hopefully get some food soon. I haven't eaten since before I arrived... err, touched down here on Earth."

Letting out another exasperated sigh, All Might reached up to wipe away the new blood seeping from the corner of his mouth before gesturing from himself to Carol. "Fine then, since you're so impatient, I'll make this simple. I want to take you as my sidekick. With your attitude, your powers, your conviction... I think you could grow into the Symbol of Peace that Japan will need after I pass One For All on to Midoriya. Either as a surrogate until Midoriya is ready to step into the role, or in his stead if he chooses not to. Not to mention that you'll make a formidable partner for Midoriya in his fight against any villains that try to take advantage of my retirement. And so if you're willing to let me take you under my wing, I'll use my influence to make your current legal problems disappear."

Well then. While she'd never seen herself as the type to be anyone's sidekick, Carol was willing to consider making an exception if it meant she could get back out there and save people without being dragged in by the police every time. And if the man's terms weren't too onerous. Because if he thought that she was going to be the Wonder Boy to his Captain Sunshine, he damn well better have another think coming. "For the record, I'm not just in trouble with the law, I'm also homeless with literally just this one outfit to my name."

All Might snorted before waving dismissively. "Being the number one hero for many years running pays remarkably well. I can set you up with an apartment in Musutafu and a reasonable allowance for personal spending."

This deal was getting sweeter by the minute, Carol mused as she nodded agreeably. Kinda like being a sugar baby, except she was being paid to punch stuff instead of... yeah. Then she paused, eyes narrowing at the blond. "I'm not being Lady All Might or Lady Might or anything like that."

Doing his best to look innocent, All Might raised one hand. "I was going to suggest Miss Might."

"No." Carol furrowed her brow in thought; when she'd first pondered the matter earlier upon imagining ending up on the country's hero rankings, she'd thought that the subject of a superhero name would be a far more distant concern. Evidently not. "I was a..." She trailed off; given that she was claiming to be fourteen, she couldn't really reference her years of military service, now could she? "My mentor was a captain in the Kree Starforce, and she said I had what it took to follow in her footsteps. Maybe Captain... Captain Mar-Vell?"

All Might nodded approving before raising one finger as he adopted a thoughtful face. "Would you settle for Captain Marvel? It rolls off the tongue a bit easier." After a moment's consideration, Carol nodded in accedence; did Japanese even have a method for writing hyphenated words? Presumably some sort of loan punctuation to cover stuff they adopted from other languages that did use a hyphen, but- "Now then, since I'm going to need to contact the National Quirk Registry as part of establishing your new identity, let's talk a bit more about you. Specifically, what can you do? Obviously you can fire some sort of blast, fly, and have tremendous strength... I have no idea how we're going to try and convince people that's all one quirk..."

Another topic that Carol had idly pondered for a presumably distant point in the future when it might be important. Evidently, the future was now for this one, too. "I noticed when I was looking at heroes' profiles that most quirks are listed as a word or a short phrase. Gigantification. One For All. Hellflame. Foldabody. So I was thinking maybe... Blue Blood. Thanks to the alien blood flowing through my veins, I'm blessed with incredible power."

Offering her a thumbs up, All Might dug a pen out of somewhere and scribbled that down on the page in front of him. "The Alien Envoy Heroine: Captain Marvel. Quirk: Blue Blood. I like it. We can definitely sell it. I dare say that you'll be the envy of all your classmates when you start your first year of high school with a hero name and a provisional hero license already under your belt."

"Yeah, they'll definitely..." Trailing off, Carol's mouth worked soundlessly for a few seconds as she stared at All Might in disbelief. Finally, she managed to regain her composure. "Wait, do what now?"

All Might studied her uncertainly. "A provisional hero license. It's the first step toward becoming a professional hero and the best that I can hope to offer you given that you don't have literally any of the training or preliminary certifications that one would need to even attempt the full hero licensure exams-"

Waving her hand vehemently, Carol cut him off. "No, not that. My first year of high school? This deal of yours involves me going to school?"

"Well yes. What kind of responsible adult guardian would I be if I didn't insist on you bettering yourself by furthering your education? And it's not as if I'd ask you to enroll in... Delaya Junior High, I believe is the school closest to where I live? Or at least its the one whose students find me most often for autographs when I'm coming and going from my apartment." Shaking himself, All Might raised his fist and tapped it against his chest lightly. "No, I'll allow you to spend the next ten months or so establishing yourself here on Earth and familiarizing yourself with our language and culture, and then you'll follow in the proud tradition of most of this country's most notable heroes - myself included - and attend U.A. High School. I can use my influence and connections to get you admitted through the recommendations system, which means you won't have to sit the entrance exam like Midoriya. Which reminds me, I need to start working on a plan to get him ready to inherit my quirk before the upcoming exam..."

Carol let out a faint snort at that. "Knowing you, Mister American Smashes, it'll be along the lines of the 'All-American Workout Plan' or something."

After pondering that for a moment, All Might pumped his fist in the air. "I've got it! I'll call it the 'Aim to Pass: American Dream Plan'! Thanks, Carol!"

Watching as All Might scribbled that down on a different piece of paper, Carol snickered softly. Or at least that's what she assumed he was writing, given that she couldn't read Japanese and her cowl was having a hard time translating from this angle. Then the reality of what they were discussing reasserted itself and she groaned softly. "I'm really going to have to go to school as part of becoming your Symbol of Peace? I can't just fly around all day helping people? I mean, isn't that what a hero does?"

"A true hero has to know many things, including both when and how to act. Attending U.A. will help teach you these things and many more." Looking up from the paper in front of him, All Might brought a finger up to tap against his temple. "They'll also help you refine your superheroic persona. Like today, you didn't even announce your moves properly, you just blasted the sludge villain and then used that powerful clap to disperse him. Do you even know why that was the wrong thing to do?"

That rung another put upon sigh out of Carol. "I have absolutely no idea but I have the feeling that you're going to tell me?"

The answer brought All Might up short, and he sat there with an open mouth for several seconds before correcting her. "It's all about restoring the confidence of the innocent populace, you see. By announcing your attacks the way I do with my various smashes, they know what you're doing to help them. Every time I clench my butt cheeks and bellow 'Detroit Smash', people know that help is arriving in the form of a single downward curving punch of justice. And that everything is alright because I-"

"-am here. Yeah, I saw online that was your catchphrase. I'm assuming that you're going to expect me to say it whenever I show up to save the day, what with you wanting me to be your second coming and all." Carol rested her elbows on her knees and planted her chin in her hand, drumming the tips of her fingers against her cheekbones as she thought. "Fine, but I'm going to use Japanese place names. You're Japanese and use American cities and states for your attacks; I look American enough so me doing the opposite will be... appropriate? Possibly ironic? I'm terrible at telling what actually is and isn't ironic. I blame Alanis Morissette. We can start by calling my photon blast a 'Tokyo Smash'... you know, because both are full of light? And then I'll make it up as I go along from there."

Another thumbs up from All Might, and then he went back to scribbling stuff down on the spread of papers arrayed in front of him. "I'm glad that I inspired you. Influenced you? Whatever. Now I have one last question before I go talk to Fukuda about having you released into my company. How do you feel... about ramen? There's an excellent little shop about two blocks away and I'd love to stop there for dinner..."