"He-hey! Alright, I'm not late this time." You heard Keigo's chipper voice call from down the hall. He waved at you and Touya excitedly, lowering his flashlight courteously. It was another night in the classroom for the three friends, and, for once, you'd all managed to arrive at the same time. You gave your feathered friend a broad grin and began to use your quirk to set up your crude stairs. Keigo was the first up, disregarding your handiwork and flapping his wings quickly to get through the small gap between the two floors. Touya followed just behind him, using the stack you'd made to get in. The light of his fire moving in front of the desks cast dark shadows on the wall behind them. As Touya disappeared into the classroom, so, too, did his light, leaving you to feel around in the dark hallway alone. You managed to locate the top of one of the desks, and ran a hand over the smooth wooden surface. You were hesitating.

"I don't need this." You grumbled to yourself. Taking hold of one of the metal bars, you yanked the pile away from the entrance. All at once, the stack of desks came tumbling down. Echoes of bangs and clangs reverberated off the walls in the empty corridor.

"Woah! Yo, Touya- not cool, man. They still gotta…" You heard Keigo's voice immediately begin to protest, but he was quickly cut off.

"It wasn't me, idiot!" Touya snapped. "(Y/N), are you okay?" The white-haired boy called down to you.

You steadied yourself, bending your knees. You squinted as you stared up at the hole in the ceiling; it was difficult to make out in the dim light.

'Here's hoping I don't crash…' You silently joked. With one big leap, you activated your quirk to send you flying through the ceiling. You felt the tension release in your muscles as you managed to keep yourself from knocking into the edge of the entrance. The pride you felt in that moment, however, was fleeting. As soon as your body relaxed, so, too, did your quirk.

"Ah!" The two boys exclaimed as you popped up. Your head and shoulders had just barely made it into the room when you felt your body desceletate.

"Crap!" You swore, feeling the force of gravity pull you back down. Quickly as he could, Touya leaned forward and hooked his arms underneath your shoulders. With a grunt, he began hoisting you up. Once you were able to get your arms onto the floor above, you helped get yourself in. Touya maintained his grip on your arm as you swung your leg over. You panted softly, taking a knee beside your friend.

"You okay?" He asked.

"Pfft, you almost fell back down." Keigo laughed. Apparently, he found the situation amusing.

"You could've helped them up, you know. Aren't you the one with the strong magic feathers?" Touya snapped at the jovial boy. Keigo smiled and shook his head.

"Nah, I knew it'd be fine. Besides, it all worked out, didn't it?" The blonde replied with a wink. Keigo turned around to face the massive hole in the wall that faced the street. The warm summer winds howled outside of the schoolhouse with a force strong enough to rock the scaffolding on the side of the building. Keigo's eyes lit up.

"Woah! It's super windy tonight!" He yelled excitedly as he jogged to the edge of the scaffolding, leaving his two buddies behind.

"Hey, dude!" Touya called out to Keigo, but it was too late. Without any hesitation, the boy opened his red wings and leapt into the gales. Touya lowered and shook his head.

"Don't even bother. He's excited; I say let him have his fun." You said.

"This guy, I swear. You okay, Y/N?" Touya repeated. You nodded, placing your hand over his.

"Yeah. I'm sorry about that, I thought I could make it." You said, disappointment clear in your tone.

"Don't apologize, I'm just glad you didn't fall." Touya said as he helped you to your feet. The two of you headed over to the edge of the wall to look out at the night sky. Outside, Keigo was having heaps of fun riding the strong air currents. His tongue stuck slightly out of his mouth as he concentrated hard on moving around in the harsh winds.

"Hey, guys! Watch this!" Keigo yelled out before beginning a few flashy aerial tricks. You smiled wide as you observed his playful flying. It was amusing. After a few seconds, Keigo turned back towards the building, keeping himself suspended just above the scaffolding.

"(Y/N), c'mon! You gotta try this; it's awesome!" He shouted over the roaring breeze. You gulped. A huge part of you wished you could join in on the fluttery fun, but knowing how little you could control your body in normal conditions, you were certain you'd only fail faster in the treacherous wind. Not to mention the overwhelming sense of terror you'd get when you were anywhere above five feet off the ground.

"Oh- uh… actually, I'm good Kei. I'm just gonna stay here." You even sounded unconfident. Keigo gave you a mischievous look.

"What? You scared?" He teased, sticking his tongue out at you. "You worried you might crash like in training?"

You grumbled. "Ugh- No! I just don't feel like flying around in a windstorm, okay?!" Your defense was lacking, but it was all you could come up with against your quick-witted buddy. Keigo rolled his eyes and chuckled.

"Okay, whatever you say, Crash."

'God, that stupid nickname, again?!' He'd taken to calling you by it for the last few months. First it was just one time during training, then a few more times during a conversation at lunch. Each time, you complained profusely. It wasn't even creative!

"Gr- I told you not to call me that!" You growled. It was too late, though. Once again, Keigo had thrown both caution, and himself, to the wind. You sighed in defeat before Touya placed his hand on your back.

"Ignore him. Come on." He said soothingly. In order to keep from being literally blown away by the sporadic gusts, both you and Touya opted to sit on the floor just inside the crumbled wall. The two of you faced the street, watching as the wind carried leaves and trash through the air. It was clear your winged buddy was much more enthusiastic about the weather. The way Keigo effortlessly glided and somersaulted through the air always wowed you during training, but watching him apply his tactical skills here, just for fun, was somehow extra impressive. You huffed a laugh.

"Man, Kei's a natural." You admitted. "I bet he's gonna be an amazing hero." You had tried hard to hide it, but Touya caught the jealousy that tinted your voice.

"So will you, y'know." He commented, not even bothering to look in Keigo's direction. You lifted a hand to your face to try and hide the faint blush. For reasons you couldn't quite explain, whenever Touya gave you a compliment, you felt positively giddy. You watched Keigo for a little while longer as he practiced banking and leveling out. Man, he was really good. Your mind wandered. What kind of hero would Kei be? What kind of hero would you be?

'Probably nowhere near Keigo or Touya's level.' You figured. It wasn't like your self-esteem was the highest. Self-deprecating thoughts like that usually swayed you into thinking about other topics. What was life going to be like when you didn't live with the commission anymore? You were sure you'd have to find a house- oh, but you'd probably have to get a job or sign with an agency first.

'Ooh! I could open my own agency.' The thought brought a smile to your face,

"Hey, Touya…" You began, looking over at your friend. "What are you gonna do when we graduate?"

Touya raised an eyebrow, confused. "What do you mean? I'm gonna be a hero."

"Well yeah, obviously." You said with a small eye-roll. "But after the program… do you wanna open up your own agency? Oh, I bet you wanna work with your dad, huh?" You looked back out to Keigo, who had now taken to doing front-flips in the air.

"Actually…" Touya started. "I don't plan on graduating."

You snapped your head back towards him. What was he saying?

"Huh? You're… not going to finish the program?" You felt a knot in the pit of your stomach. Did he not want to be a hero anymore? Had Endeavor convinced him to give it up? There were still five years left in the program- you weren't even halfway through. You felt your friends were the only reason you'd gotten this far in the first place. Though you were given support from both sides, it was Touya who'd constantly encourage you. You'd be devastated if he left.

Touya shook his head. "Nope."

Keigo's excited voice called out from beside the building. "Guys, guys! Check this out! Woo!" Once again, Keigo flipped and flapped against the violent gusts before restabilizing. Had he not been literally yelling, there'd have been no way you'd have heard him over the winds. Touya scooted himself closer to you and spoke at a slightly quieter volume.

"Don't tell Keigo." He said, keeping his eyes trained on your fun-loving feathered friend. The wind rushing past his ears at the moment would easily drown out Touya's words. "I've been thinking about it for a while now. See, I only wanted to come here to prove to my old man that I can be strong enough to train with him. That I can control my quirk and become a hero, just like I was always meant to."

You felt an uncomfortable lump in your throat. "You're planning on… leaving?" The tremble in your voice was betraying you. A thick blanket of despair fell over you, but you refused to let it show.

"Oh, it's not like that, (Y/N)." Touya said, rubbing your back. "Just hear me out. I'm sure you'll like my plan." His tone was so comforting. You nodded and sat up straight, making sure to give him your full, undivided attention.

"The winter showcase." He said simply. Your confusion spread itself across your face. Of course, you were familiar with the showcase. Every year since the program began, the Commission would hold an exhibition where each of the program's participants could show off that they'd learned in earnest to their families- a full display of power with almost no limitations. Since your guardian was your overseer, the winter showcase was more of a day off for you and Keigo. Still, for the last three years, you'd gone to Touya's showcase just to support him. There was one thing you didn't understand though.
"I don't think I've ever seen your dad come to the showcase before. Or- any of your family for that matter." You pointed out. Touya nodded.

"That's 'cause I never told them about it. There's no point in trying to show off when I'm still so weak." The corners of his mouth lifted ever so slightly. It was refreshing to see. Touya didn't talk about his father very often, and when he did, his mood always seemed to spiral down. Not this time, though; now, he was smiling.

"But this year is going to be different!" He exclaimed excitedly, still speaking low enough to keep Keigo from hearing. "I've been training extra hard- Mr. Takakage has even pushed up the intensity of some of my quirk training."

It was great to see him so happy, but hearing that he'd be pushing his body's limits was worrying. You, better than most, understood how passionate Touya was about improving. It wasn't uncommon to see his arguing with his overseer about his training regime being "way too easy." Despite his determined nature, you were concerned for his physical safety. You hoped, even if he didn't listen to anyone else, he might take your opinion into consideration.

"I'm happy for you, Touya; I really am, but your quirk… hurts you, doesn't it?"

Touya waved his hand in front of his face nonchalantly. "Ah, it's fine. As long as I hide any burns from the trainers and the overseers, they won't stop me."

You whined softly. "That's not the point I was trying to make…" Could he seriously not tell you were only concerned about his well being?

Touya grinned softly and placed a hand on your shoulder. "Hey, don't worry about it. Trust me, I know my body better than anyone. I can deal with some little burns." He rolled his eyes as he spoke the last sentence. You did your best to return his smile, but you never stopped worrying. You weren't going to press the issue, though. Once Touya had his heart set on something, you knew there would be no talking him out of it. You sighed, giving in to his reassuring words.

"Alright. So you're gonna have your dad come to the showcase this year?" You deduced. Touya nodded.

"Yup. I'm gonna show him that I have what it takes. A-and once he sees what I can do, he'll be so impressed that he'll probably agree to train me himself again! Then that crappy, unappreciative kid brother of mine won't be hogging all of his time." You chuckled at Touya's childish jab at his little brother. Of course, you'd never met any of Touya's family, but, from what you'd heard, this kid was a real pain. Touya continued with a shrug: "Obviously, if I have the number two hero training me, I won't need this place. And in a couple years, I'll go to the best high school for heroes there is."

"You're gonna go to U.A.?!" You weren't sure you'd heard him correctly at first. Touya chuckled at your excited nature.

"Well, yeah. That's where my dad and All Might went. If I'm going to surpass them, that's where I need to go. And once I graduate from there, I'll work at my father's agency- at least until I can start my own." He explained. Now you understood. He had put so much time and thought into this- into his future. Of course you'd be sad once he was gone, but it would be unfair of you to hold him back from his dream simply for the sake of your own feelings. Though your eyes expressed the bitter-sweet emotion you were truly feeling, you mustered up a smile for your friend.

"That's amazing, Touya. You're gonna be an incredible hero, I just know it." You shut your eyes tight and broadened your smile in an attempt to hide the sparkly tears forming on your lashes. "And who knows. We might see each other again as heroes if we-"

"What are you talking about?" He interrupted promptly.

"O-oh. I just meant… y'know if you're n-not too busy with-"

He quickly cut you off again. "You're coming with me."

You blinked. "I- what?" You stammered.

Touya grinned from ear to ear and chuckled at your stunned reaction. "I want you to come to U.A. with me, (Y/N)!" He stated happily. "Obviously, it wouldn't be right away. You'd still have to finish up all of the necessary classes here first, but after that, we can enroll together." You were still in somewhat of a daze. U.A. had been your dream school since you were a child, but your enrollment in the Commission's program was basically just as good in terms of education. With your skills lacking, you weren't sure you'd be able to make the cut, anyway, but Touya sounded so sure that you'd be able to get in.

"I'm sure that entrance exam would be a breeze for you, Touya, but there's no way I'd be able to keep up with all those other kids." You moped.

Touya pouted and gave you a disciplinary stare. "You really need to believe in yourself more. You've got talent, (Y/N); don't doubt that. Plus, your quirk is crazy versatile! Besides…" He leaned back, sticking out his thumb and pointing to himself with it. "We can train together."

"Really?" You asked hopefully.

Touya nodded enthusiastically. "Hell yeah! I already asked Mr. Takakage about it. He said he'll set up a joint training session soon. And not just here, either. Once I'm training with my dad again, you can come over on the weekends and we can train then, too! When my dad sees how strong you are, he'll recommend both of us for the hero course. It's basically a guaranteed in."

You were growing more excited by the minute. Touya's plan was beginning to sound like it might actually work. You just had to win Endeavor's favor.

"Are you sure your dad would be alright with me coming to your house on the weekends? I wouldn't want to interrupt if he's going to be training you." You said. Once again, Touya waved it off.

"It's fine, (Y/N). Relax. The old man has been telling me to make friends at school anyway, and the rest of my family already wants to meet you."

You felt your heart leap into your throat. "They 'already' want to meet me? Touya, do you talk about me and Keigo to your family?"

"No, just you." He said casually.

Another intense wave of heat rushed to your cheeks. It came on so suddenly that you didn't have time to react. It must've looked so obvious.

'At least he's honest.' You thought.

"What about Kei? What's he gonna do if the two of us are gone?" You asked. The thought of leaving your other friend behind with these robotic Commission trainers while you lived it up big at U.A. felt wrong. He was one of your best friends, and, while he was a bit less empathetic, Touya understood that very well. He huffed.

"Eh, Bird Brain can come visit, I guess. I don't think you have to worry about him, though. He's basically the Commission's 'little darling.' Trust me, he's right at home here." Touya ensured.

"Hey, you guys aren't even looking!" The sound of Keigo's voice over the wind made you jump. You swiftly turned your head to face him. He seemed thoroughly displeased with the lack of attention his fancy aerial feats were being given.

"Sorry!" You called out.

"Keep doing what you're doing, bro. We're watching." Touya fibbed expertly. Keigo bought it and returned to his showy performance. This time, you made sure to watch him. After a few minutes of side glances from Keigo, it seemed he finally trusted that you were paying attention. You continued your conversation quietly.

"Alright." You agreed. Touya was probably right. Keigo always did exceedingly well during exams and training. Hell, the President of the Commission had begun overseeing his training alongside his usual overseer. Though you'd miss him while you were gone, you were certain he'd excel. "How are we gonna convince Mrs. Yamamoto to let me leave the program?"

"Let me worry about all the small stuff." Touya whispered.

From your peripheral vision, you noticed him lean in closer to your face. You felt bad pulling your eyes away from Keigo, but you were far more interested in what Touya had to say.

"After we graduate high school, and I start my own agency, I want you to work by my side, okay?" He proposed. You didn't even try to resist the smile that snuck its way onto your face. Working with your best friend and being free of these controlling Commission cretins sounded almost too good to be true. You gave Touya a nod.

"Of course.

Touya moved immediately to take your hand in his, startling you enough to make you flinch. "I'm not gonna leave you alone." He said affirmatively. "Even after school- I'm gonna take you with me. That's a promise."