Jirou could have easily reported Rakugaki to the authorities. She had a pristine description of the girl's face, even the teeth, plus a good idea on how her Quirk works after being on the receiving end of its power.

Yet she didn't.

She kept her mouth shut tight like a closed lid.

And to her surprise, Rakugaki stuck with her end of the deal, too. The factory had been wiped clean in just a day. Jirou took time out of her own to investigate, seeing the bland concrete walls up close. The springtime painting was long gone. She may never see something as beautiful again.

It pains her so.

Jirou doesn't even need to uphold her end. All it takes is a few simple questions, and the graffiti is gone forever.

…

That… annoys her.

Yaoyorozu had screamed that same day Jirou met Rakugaki. When Jirou returned, Yaoyorozu and other classmates got an eyeful of her clothes shining bright with red and yellow, mixing into orange, paint. It completely obliterated the punkish style.

Though now, Yaoyorozu is humming sweet melodies in the kitchen. Her best friend sits at the counter, watching her cereal stir with the spoon. Rakugaki remains in her head, and that weird accent of hers is still fresh in her mind, talking nonsense while all she can do is listen.

"...rou? Jirou?"

"H-huh?" she stutters. "What happened?"

Yaoyorozu blinks, her face transformed into worry. "...Would you prefer Bleu Blossom, Caramel Nougat, or Darjeeling Quince?" She holds up three separate containers of tea.

"Oh. Um… the caramel one. It sounds sweet."

Yaoyorozu nods and packages the other two away. Removing a tea bag, she plops it into a steaming cup of water. She promptly hands it to Jirou. "Your morning beverage, mistress!"

"Haha. Thanks, Yaomomo."

The rich girl watches her best friend sip the blend, her face twisting into the discovery of it indeed being sweet.

"It's good! It's juicy. I feel like I'm drinking dessert."

Yaoyorozu sips her own cup of tea. Silence rings among the room, only the clanks of cups on the counter being the only noise. Strange, for a dormitory of twenty.

"Jirou, are you okay?"

…

"Huh?"

It was completely out of the blue.

"Are… are you okay, I said," Yaoyorozu keeps her gaze to the floor. "I'm sorry for asking… it's just you've been so distant lately. You zone off more than usual and don't hear what I say sometimes. Such as right now, over tea."

"Oh…"

Shoot, had she been more obvious than she thought?

"I'm okay, Yaomomo. I've just been thinking a lot, that's all. Thank you for checking on me."

"What have you been thinking about?"

Graffiti.

"Just school… and training. I need to improve my Quirk a little bit more in order to do a certain move."

"Mmm, I see. I can understand your struggles. But please don't overwork yourself, okay?"

"Okay. Thanks."

She grins. "Anytime."

The conversation over, Yaoyorozu carries her cup with her to the elevator. "I will be in my room if you need me."

"'Kay."

…

…

"W-wait, Yaomomo…"

Just barely stopping herself, Yaoyorozu peeks back into the kitchen.

Sighing, stuttering, Jirou mutters out, "This is a hypothetical question, but… what if… what if there was something you really, really liked, but knew you couldn't keep it? What would you do? Like something you… really, really liked."

Yaoyorozu hums. She enters the room and sets down her cup, head tilting in thought. "Something I like? Such as what?"

"Anything. Something that you really want to look at a second time."

"'Look at'? So it is an object?"

"Not… necessarily… but whatever! What would you do?"

"Hmm… why wouldn't I be able to keep this thing I really like?"

"...Because it's…" Jirou quiets down to the smallest of whispers, "...illegal."

She can feel Yaoyorozu's stare on her while she merely sticks her eyes to the floor like glue.

Then she sits next to her. "Well, let's see… if I had something I really liked, I'd go after it again. When something makes me happy, the natural response is to want it, am I correct?"

Bashfully, Jirou nods.

"But if the thing I like is illegal, like you said, I'd avoid it. No matter what. Even if it crushes you to pieces doing so, it's always best to stay away from trouble."

"B-but… what if… if I stay away, what if I never see it again?"

"That's part of remaining distant. To escape something, you must truly let go. Or, for a second option, do as we are now. Talk. You can talk to me, Jirou. I'm concerned for you… what is this thing you are so attached to?"

Jirou turns, meeting the fretful eyes of her best friend.

"Heh…" she chuckles. A smile spreads. "Just some art."

Without even letting Yaoyorozu answer, Jirou hops out of her chair and makes a beeline for the door. Her friend's shocked expression goes unnoticed.

"Where are you going?!"

"Gonna let go. You've helped me a lot just now, Yaomomo. I'll pay you back with some boba or something."

"Huh? W-wait, I don't need—" the door to Heights Alliance shuts behind Jirou. In just a regular t-shirt and shorts, she jogs down the sidewalk in her sandals straight for the nearest abandoned building.

She arrives in a matter of minutes. It's an old supermarket that went out of business years ago. Jirou remembers shopping here as a little girl, yet coming back now gets her heart racing. Panting, gasping for air, Jirou makes a full trip around the building, yelling out for who she's searching for.

And speak of the devil.

Up there on the roof, in all her glory, is Rakugaki.

"Ya came back. Whaddya want?"

Jirou's eyes brighten with joy unlike any other. Exuberantly, she clenches her fists and yells out the first thing that comes to her head.

"Yo!"