It was a complete accident that Amy met Rei.

She'd been attacked by a violent ghoul, usually it wouldn't been much of an issue (because of what she was who she was before she died she was strong and powerful but not powerful enough) but she wasn't paying attention. She got hurt, and hid in the first house she could get into.

And that's how she met Rei.

The poor woman, married off to a monster. Amy sees the tension and fear cloaking the air and stays with the sighted woman. She stays, and watches as it all gets worse.

It hurts to watch a family fall like this. It hurts to watch Rei struggling to keep herself together it reminded her of how she was when she was alive (alone and scared and barely holding together everyone she ever loves just leaves her and dies and it's ALL HER FAULT) it hurts to watch but Amy stays anyway.

There'd been several times she was tempt to tell her why she couldn't urn corporeal like other ghosts, despite being so powerful, there's been many times she'd open her mouth and wanted to tell Rei how she died (and left her sister behind how could she how could she how could she have lost the fight why did she do this now she's alone and it HURTS) Many times she was tempted to tell Rei what her name really is (she is Amy Amythest with the y and e in the wrong place she is Amy Amy Amy Ayla is dead she is dead she died and it hurt) But she can't do it. Rei's suffering enough. She don't need to know about what she went through.

And her children.

Fuyumi is lovely. Amy wasn't there when she was born but the first time she laid eyes on the kind kind girl she was instantly enthralled. What a lovely little girl, so kind, so caring (like her like her before life killed the kindness before life killed her innocence before everything was gone and all was left was sad and hurt and empty) and Amy loved her. Too bad she wasn't sighted.

Natsuo is a clever young boy. Pranks and fun and games, Amy'd hide in the corner of his room and prank him back sometimes. Rei would always scold her for it but it was fun. She missed prancking people (she missed breathing she missed her heart beating she missed being able to feel warm and feel cold she missed being ALIVE) and it reminded her of some old friends.

Then there's Shouto.

Shouto, so young, hurting and alone and isolated (almost like her like her when she was alive young and isolated and neglected and hated people dies around her and it's all her fault all her fault all her fault now she died and the tragedy continues all her fault) and it hurts to see him like this.

Amy cried when Rei passed her sight on. Amy cried when Rei passed it onto Shouto and she couldn't see her anymore (Why why why do you have to leave me don't leave me I've already lost my sister my mentor my fiancé my parents my classmates my friends my family I have NOTHING don't leave me too) But when Shouto looks up and sees her her heart breaks.

How can someone so young look so broken?

(Of course they can of course they can you were just as broken when you were his age maybe even more even more you were broken shattered and gone hurt hurt hurt hurts so much to live but it hurts so much more to die like this)

So she tried to help. And follows Shouto into training.

It wasn't training.

It's a one sided beat down. Amy was horrified. Her mentor was cruel but she loved her, her mentor was strict but still let her rest. Her mentor was unforgiving but she cares. But Todoroki Enji is none of those. He is cruel and he doesn't love, he is strict and doesn't let him rest, he is unforgiving and uncaring.

So Amy tries to help. She can't be empathetic. Life had took that away from her. She can't be kind anymore because life was cruel, so cruel that she lost her kindness. So Amy does the only thing she could.

She trains him.

She makes sure he could dodge the man's blows, she heals him afterwards. She makes sure he could outrun the man and helps him climb onto his feet. She tries to help.

(Like her mentor did like she did trying to help those cursed like her trying to help those born like her but she fails she failed and she watched them die)

But there's only so much Amy could do.

She couldn't do a thing when Rei lost it. She couldn't do anything aside from healing him but it still scarred. She tried her best and Shouto still closed off. He refused to use his fire and Amy never got to tell him how beautiful it really is. How life is cruel and unfair and it killed her, and Shouto needs his fire.

She watched helplessly as he grew up, healing him as he does.

Amy (Ayla) is dead, and there's only so much she could do.

Despite never telling her, Shouto is grateful for Amy. She was there to heal him after every training section, she always listened and tried her best to lighten the mood. She was always there and always trying to help. Amy tries her best to help him keep his memories of mother, but Shouto...

Shouto could never do anything to help her.

It's clear as day that Amy hurts. She hurts much more than he does, she hurts like the hole in her face and his scar cannot compare. He don't know much, but Amy hurts and there's nothing Shouto can do.

He pities the girl sometimes. She looks like she's eighteen. Eighteen and dead. Her hands are cold like stone and her eye lacks life. Sometimes when she think Shouto wasn't watching she cries. She'd cry so bitterly like she is breaking apart. He remembers that about two years ago, in the middle of teaching him how to heal large cuts she'd froze, and a trail of silent tears and another of blood had rolled down her face. She disappeared on the spot and didn't return untill late that night, still crying and when she thought Shouto was asleep, she'd sobbed and wailed. Crying so hard that her voice'd cracked and broke and shattered.

Whatever killed her, it'd hurt her so much that three hundred years after her death, she's still hurting.

It was a mindless question, really, they're walking home from school one day, it's spring and the sakuras are blooming.

It reaches him as a little more than a whisper.

"How'd sakuras smell like again?"

"Huh?" Shouto turns to face his mentor, who blinks and smiles softly, bitterly.

"Just wondering."

"...You can't smell?" He asks.

Amy stares blankly into the distance, lost and hurting and bitter. "Shouto," She chuckles, "I don't even remember how it feels to breath."

Her voice cracks towards the end, and it turns into a faint whisper, like she was just realizing this herself. The look on her face was heartbreaking. Something so trivial, something he took for granted and she'd completely forgotten. Shouto stared at her in shock, and gulped.

"They generally are scentless." He spoke quietly. "Sometimes a very faint sweet scent, maybe. The pollens are a pain though."

Amy stares at him, surprised, before she smiles.

"Thank you, Shouto." She gently runs a hand through his hair and pets it, "Thank you."

He also remember the day he ran into a ghoul.

Violent ghouls are common, but strong ones are hard to find. The one he'd encountered was old, skinny but clearly powerful. He was in a back alley and there was no one around, so Shouto threw up a shield.

And the ghoul crushed it effortlessly.

It leapt for him and Shouto dodged. It twisted around, dislodging it's own joints and breaking it's bones as it hits a wall and crawls for him, Amy wasn't around. She'd wandered off for one moment and this happened. He barely got away from the old ghoul's claws and it screeched. The sound was ear piercing and horrible, like screeching tires and nails on glass. He stumbles, and the ghoul was on him.

It smelled like rotten flesh. Shouto gasped for breath as it began to strangle him. He didn't bother using his quirk, ghouls are immune to them. He wandered for a brief second whether he's going to die, then Amy was here.

She's crashed into the ghoul with impressive speed, throwing it off him and into a wall. She didn't even stop, no room for it to recover as she instantly activated the runes on her arms, which glowed and several rune circles exploded from her fingertips, a pulsing blue cracking with power. The ghoul reacted nearly as fast.

But not fast enough. Because Amy was already attacking and whips of electricity shot from her fingertips, restranting the ghost as the two rune circles turned into discs which trapped the creature within an instant. It flashed a bright white glow and the ghoul was little more then ash and a small, faint whimpy form, which faded from existence.

The whole fight took less than two seconds. Practiced, fluid and smooth. No words were spoken, no time spent thinking of what spells to be used, no plans. Just instincts.

She turned towards Shouto then, and silently healed the bruises on his neck.

"...Amy?"

"Yes?"

"How... how can you fight like that?" He asked as she helped him onto his feet, "You didn't even stop, you just..."

"..." She was silent. " The life I had, Shouto." She spoke softly, " I couldn't afford to stop, I couldn't afford to fail or to lose, I can't."

"...Why?"

She laughs quietly.

"Well..." She smiles sadly, "let's just say that every time I failed, I watched someone die. And when I failed about three hundred years ago..." He voice weavers, "I died."

She was silent afterwards, and Shouto don't blame her.

It was also about two years ago when Amy's curse wore off, and she was able to turn corporeal. She turned corporeal once to save a kid from a car, and there's the other time to just... hang out with him.

She'd put on a glamour to mimic how she looked like when she was alive, hiding the patch of burnt skin, empty socket, broken bones and torn tissues, and Amy was beautiful. Slanted eyes and fair features, icy blond hair framing a slim face. Slender limbs, tall and elegant.

But her chest wouldn't rise or fall, her hands are as cold as ice, and every time someone walks past, she'd look at them with a soft, longing gaze, and Shouto knows what she wants.

"Amy, are you alright?"

"...Call me Ayla." She says faintly.

"Hum?"

"If I'm corporeal, call me Ayla." She smiles sadly down at him, "It was my name before I died." She explained when he didn't responde, "I'd like to feel alive every once in a while."

Amy is hurting, and Shouto wishes he could do more to help.

Did I focus too much on Ayla/Amy? I think I did. But she's kinda important later on so... meh. Thoughts? I'm gonna write about thought of the ghosts and companion (Izuku and Yoroi, Akemi and Tenki) soon.Comment replies will be in a complete different chapter.