Unfolding Time
Chapter Four – Summer Rain

A/N: Just a head's up, I haven't gotten around to rereading through to correct any grammar mistakes just yet. I will do that tonight, I just have limited time to get this posted before a long day of work and wanted to get it up at least3

Ochaco felt as though her head were spinning clear off her shoulders as she came to. Her eyes swept the apartment carefully, her stomach sinking in disappointment. As intriguing as it was to see her boyfriend's future self, it wasn't her Katsuki or her time. She was gleeful that Mina managed to make it back, or so she hoped, yet she couldn't exactly dislodge the sickening swirl in the pit of her stomach.

"Katsuki?" she inquired softly, sitting up. A hushed voice echoed through the apartment, much as it had the first time; light spilling into the hallway like a beacon. From her position on the couch, she could make out the explosive hero's voice, his tone strained, almost lonely. Her heart wrenched, filling her curiosity and she soon found herself tiptoeing toward the open door. Katsuki's shadow danced against the wall as he paced, his hand pulling through his spiky locks.

"I don't really know what to do here, Angel," he murmured, sighing heavily. "I know it doesn't make any sense."

Ochaco's body went rigid with a tingly chill. Katsuki was on the phone with her future self.

Shifting and heaving another sigh the blonde finally sat down, the faint squeak of his office chair reverberating in her ears. She didn't quite know why every little thing became so damn intriguing. Slowly she moved her head around the corner to catch a glimpse of him. Dark circles encased his crimson hues, stress and exhaustion evident. His fingers tapped silently against the edge of his desk as he pinched the phone between his ear and shoulder, his gaze focusing on the sleeping figure curled up on the small futon on the far side of the room.

Ochaco had completely forgotten the biggest cause to her fainting and upon seeing the small child she felt panicked. Izuku had a child? It was certainly obvious from the messy head of green curls, those freckles falling across his cheeks like stars. He was so innocent, so endearing, and yet so strange. When she thought of anyone of her friends, she had never imagined what their future would look like, whether they would have families. Perhaps because she didn't place much thought on her own future that the entire concept of glimpsing at it now was so terrifying.

Her lips curled into a soft smile as the boy shifted. She wondered whether or not her and Katsuki had ever talked about children. Hell, for all she knew they did have kids and they just weren't with Katsuki at the moment. Her stomach flipped and roiled with nausea. The idea of being a pro hero and having a family was something she had never merged into a singular thought and now that it roamed within the walls of her mind, she couldn't shake the appeal it had. What kind of family would they have? What kind of mother would she be? Was Katsuki someone who even wanted children?

Katsuki coughed, dragging her attention away from her thoughts. He leaned back in his chair, eyes now focused on the ceiling. "I don't know. Yeah, I know. Angel, I just want you home."

Somehow those words made tears well in her eyes. She could only imagine just how her Katsuki was handling things and more than anything she just wanted to throw her arms around him and never let go.

"Just come home soon," he said softly. "I love you too."

The way those words filtered into the air made Ochaco's heart sing. Somehow this version of Katsuki was so much more refined, his demeanor calmer, more loving. Is this what she could expect from her future?

As Katsuki set the phone down on the desk, he cleared his throat, his gaze lifting to meet Ochaco's. Her cheeks instantly flared red, caught in her embarrassment. She nervously scratched the back of her head as she slowly shuffled into the small office.

"Sorry, didn't mean to eavesdrop," she admitted, giving him a sheepish smile. "I came to and didn't see you, so…"

Katsuki watched her closely for a moment, his expression thoughtful. "How much did you hear?"

Ochaco shrugged, turning to look at the young boy. "Just the tail end of the conversation. I'm going to assume that you were talking to me about this whole situation. Well, your version of me, at least."

"Yeah. It's an…interesting situation."

"Interesting is an understatement," Ochaco stated. "It's not everyday you get to see your future splayed out before you, if this is in fact the future and not just some kind of delusion."

"What do you mean?"

Turning thoughtful, Ochaco made her way further into the office, clicking her tongue softly as she mulled over her thoughts. She came to stop just beside the window and looked out. "How can I really be sure that I actually travelled through time? You said so yourself, you don't have any memory of encountering that boy, right? Doesn't that seem odd?"

Katsuki shrugged. "Yes and no. Quirks that seem straightforward are often not. There's likely something else going on with this Quirk than just simple time travel."

"It just doesn't make much sense." She sighed softly, closing her eyes. "When my version of you came back from the past, he remembered everything happening, yet I don't recall ever meeting him that night, let alone giving him an origami butterfly that I made." When her gaze lifted and locked onto his, she couldn't help but drink in that beautiful color. They were as vibrant as ever.

"I'm sure you'll be able to figure it out. You're resourceful, Ochaco."

"Yeah, well, let's just hope that all this time travel doesn't end up messing something up," she muttered, turning away from the window. "How long was I out anyway?"

"An hour, maybe a bit longer." Katsuki broke his gaze away, inhaling softly. "I was surprised when you fainted, honestly."

Ochaco motioned toward the sleeping child. "Can you blame me? It's kind of an overload of information to learn one of your best friends has a kid."

"In the future," he stated. "It doesn't come to you as that big of a surprise that people you know would have families."

"Do we have a family?" Almost immediately after the words left her mouth she frantically waved her hands and shook her head. "Sorry, forget that! The less I know, the better, right?"

Katsuki pinched the bridge of his nose and exhaled. "Follow me." As he got up, he lightly brushed past her and headed out into the hallway, glancing back. "I don't want to wake Jun. It was difficult to get him to fall asleep again."

"Jun?" Ochaco blinked, letting the name run off her tongue. I wonder who Deku ended up marrying? She followed silently, her lips curling softly as she watched the boy stir in his sleep once more. They entered out into the main room and toward the sliding door leading out onto the balcony. The night air was warm and supple, filled with the smell of the city and rain brimming on the horizon.

As Katsuki cracked the door, he watched as Ochaco leaned against the railing, her auburn eyes sparkling against the backdrop of lights. "I know you don't want to tell me too much about the future, but isn't there anything else you can tell me?"

"I already told you that we were together and that Izuku has a kid," Katsuki stated firmly. "It's too risky to say anything more."

Puffing out her cheeks in frustration, the gravity hero kept her gaze forward. "This whole situation kind of sucks."

"Depends on how you look at it."

Ochaco quirked an eyebrow up, glancing at him from the side as he moved to join her by the railing. "Do you really think things could change?"

"It's possible." He sighed heavily, a calloused hand running through his hair. "I shouldn't be the one to tell you about your future, anyway. Your future self should be the one to decide what you know and don't know, not me."

"I guess that seems fair," Ochaco huffed. "If I were standing in front of my past self, there's a lot I wouldn't want to say."

"Ochaco, you have a good life. Can you trust me when I say that?"

The gravity hero turned to look at him, his crimson hues boring into her like fire. "I trust you, I just don't trust myself. I never really stopped to think about the future or what I would do beyond becoming a pro hero."

"You always did wear your emotions," Katsuki murmured, chuckling. "That doesn't change, by the way. It's still a very prominent trait you possess."

"Is that a good thing?"

"You make it work. There's nothing about you that I would change."

With reddened cheeks, Ochaco could only gawk at him in silence. Her mind was a complete mess. All she could think about was the future, how her life apparently was. Everything seemed so peaceful, so perfect, yet was it really? Was Katsuki being truthful when he said she had a good life?

"How old are you?"

Katsuki blinked, taken off guard. Of all the things he expected her to ask, his age was not one of them, but he suspected that it wasn't that far off from what he believed her array of questions would be. His age would give her exactly what she needed to see just how far she had been flung through time. "Twenty-eight."

"Twenty-eight," she repeated softly. Slowly her honeyed eyes narrowed, her expression warm and thoughtful. "Are you happy Katsuki?"

"I couldn't have asked for a better life, Ochaco."

Exhaling suddenly, she pushed herself from the railing and straightened her back, her arms rising up in a long stretch. "Then I guess it's settled. Maybe the future isn't quite so bad."

"Not sure why you would think it would be."

When she looked at him, her smile widened. "Do you really think that if you were sent into the future and met you're boyfriend's future self who was very vague on details, that you would feel entirely secure?"

"Yeah, yeah… I fucking get it, Angel." Katsuki couldn't help but return her smile. "You just need to have a bit more trust in your 'boyfriends' future self." As he put his fingers up to make air quotes, Ochaco caught sight of the metal band encasing his left ring finger. She hadn't paid much attention before, but now that she saw that simple band, her heart felt as though it had become encased by pure warmth. But as the feeling enveloped her, Ochaco's surroundings began to blur, creating a wave of nausea to fall over her. Her smile faded, her eyes narrowing as she looked around.

"Are you okay?"

"I think I'm about to go back," she said. "Everything is beginning to shift and move."

Katsuki stood straighter, watching her carefully. "Stay safe, Ochaco." His words echoed and floated through her mind as she felt her surroundings melt and suddenly she was plunged into darkness for the briefest moment before the familiar hallway of dorms popped up around her. She breathed heavily, daring herself to lean against the wall when everything finally settled, allowing her stomach to calm itself before she dared to move.

There wasn't any sign of Mina and the primary lights were still off, much to her relief. With luck she hadn't missed out on too much in her own time. She had no doubt that Katsuki would be looking for her and if Mina had come back it was likely he already knew where she had gone.

Now she just had to find him.

Aizawa's hair sprang up the moment his Quirk activated. He watched the small boy carefully, assessing each movement he made as he wept before Katsuki. The explosive blonde was poised for a fight that he already knew wouldn't happen yet it didn't stop him from being completely on guard.

"I didn't mean to send her through time again," Shingo sobbed, rubbing his eyes with the backs of his hands. "I…I'm sorry!"

Katsuki's crimson hues narrowed, his fist clenching and sparking. "Can you bring her back?"

Shingo raised his head to look at the older boy and sniffled as he shook his head. "I don't know how. My Quirk eventually wears off and everyone I send through time returns."

"Damnit. How long does it take to wear off?"

"I don't know!"

This kid knew absolutely nothing helpful about his Quirk. Though despite not knowing the exact amount of time, he at least knew that Ochaco would return. This kid better fucking pray Ochaco comes back soon.

Katsuki slowly approached the boy and knelt down, eyeing him carefully. With Aizawa's erasure active, there wasn't a chance the boy could send him hurling through time. "Oi, why are you always around us? Every time we fucking see you you're around Ochaco."

Shingo sniffled again, the sound wet and unpleasant. "That girl…she…she's like my sister."

"Hah…?"

"She's warm and happy, just like how my sister used to be."

"Used to be?" Aizawa inquired. His eyes had progressively become more bloodshot as the seconds passed.

"She got sick and…and…" Shingo's voice trailed, though it was quite clear that his sister was no longer among the living. "She was my best friend."

"And what of your mother?"

A fresh wave of tears welled up in Shingo's eyes and he had managed to blubber something incoherent that neither of the men could quite understand.

"Bakugou, wait for Uraraka to return. I'll handle the boy for now," Aizawa stated.

As much as Katsuki wanted to stay and demand answers, he also wanted to make sure he was there when Ochaco returned. Begrudgingly he rushed down the pathway toward the dorms, his crimson hues glancing over at the boy and narrowing before he disappeared from sight from the curving pathway.

More than anything Ochaco wanted to sleep as she leaned up against the wall, her normally bright eyes heavy with exhaustion and stress. Katsuki hadn't been in his dorm, though she somewhat suspected as much with her being gone. Still, even with the sinking suspicion, it still gave her an opportunity to knock on Kirishima's door and happily discover that Mina did in fact make it back safely and learn about what had transpired here during her time in the future.

"Ochaco, are you sure you don't want me to wait with you?" Mina had inquired, biting her lower lip. "It's really no trouble."

The gravity hero simply waved her hand dismissively. "It'll be fine. Kirishima texted Katsuki, so I'm sure that he'll be here in no time. Besides, with how tired I am I might just end up zonking out before he even gets here."

"Not in…a million…fucking years," Katsuki spat, breathless. Sweat beaded down his face as he stood leaned up against the wall, looking more exhausted than anyone there.

Mina cupped her hand over her mouth to stifle a giggle, unlike Kirishima who simply stood there smirking. "That was fast, Bakugou. Kirishima literally just texted you a couple of minutes ago. Did you run here?"

"Damn straight I did." As the blonde straightened up, his breath beginning to return, he ignored the hysterics of the duo and made a straight shot for Ochaco and pulled her into his arms. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, just really tired," Ochaco murmured, her lips curling into a sleepy smile. "Is everything okay on this end?"

Katsuki glanced at Kirishima and Mina, his eyes narrowing in annoyance as the two simply gawked at them. "Yeah, let's just go somewhere less crowded to talk," he said pointedly. He gently ushered the gravity hero toward his dorm, unlocking the door and motioning her in, ignoring Mina's fit of giggles. They had been dating for a while now, so why the acid hero still became so giddy seeing them together remained a mystery.

"G'night, Ochaco!" Mina called, right as the door slid shut. Ochaco had called back, unsure if her voice had carried through, but at that moment she didn't care. She was just happy to be at home in her own time with her own Katsuki. She flopped onto the bed with a hefty sigh, her eyes beginning to close as she inhaled the spiced scent of the blanket.

"So, how was future me?" Katsuki inquired, falling beside her and snaking his arm around her waist. He watched her carefully, his lips tugging into an involuntary smirk at her childlike demeanor she seemed to take on in her tired state of mind.

Ochaco opened one eye to peek at him. "You still cuss a lot," she mumbled, her throat vibrating with a small giggle. "Not surprising though. Outside of how you acted, your future self didn't tell me much."

"Really?"

"Yeah, really." She twisted herself so that she now faced him, curling into his embrace further. "You were worried about me knowing too much about the future, like knowing would somehow change things."

"Tch."

Ochaco smirked suddenly, her eyes fixated on his pout. "I did find out a few things though that were a bit intriguing."

"Like me being the Number One Hero?" he asked, hopeful.

"Sadly, I didn't find that out," she said, sticking her tongue out. "In the future you call Deku by his first name and that you babysit his son."

Katsuki's eyes widened, his expression bewildered. "No fucking way. Not a chance in hell do I become some fucking babysitter."

Shrugging, she nuzzled his neck and sighed. "I don't know the exact circumstances, but Deku's son was there and you were watching him."

"Fucking nerd," he muttered, yet his tone was flat, without malice, tinged with amusement as the thought ran through his mind. "Well, while you were in the future, that boy showed up again."

"What happened?"

"Luckily Aizawa was there, so no one got flung through time. The kid said you reminded him of his sister. Guess that's why he's been around so much," he said, sinking his nose into her hair. It smelled like her shampoo, but slightly different, like it had picked up another scent. It wasn't bad by any means, but he couldn't help wonder if it was a scent that laced his future home.

"Is the kid still with Aizawa?"

"As far as I know. I left to come find you, which I should probably tell him that you did manage to make it back, but that can just wait till morning."

Ochaco gnawed on her lower lip as her fingers curled into the fabric of his shirt. "Do you think he'll be okay? Did you find out anything more about him?"

"Aizawa can handle a brat," Katsuki said. "He does just fine with Eri. The only thing of use we found out was his name, Shingo Einosuke."

"I wonder where he first saw me that reminded him of his sister," she mused softly against him, her breath cascading down her boyfriends collarbone, making him shift closer to her in response. But as Katsuki mulled around in his mind, Ochaco slowly tilted her chin up, her honeyed eyes glowing in the soft light of the room as she became lost in her own thoughts. "Hey, Katsuki…"

"Yeah, Angel?"

"You haven't asked me whether or not you and I are still together in the future."

"Why would I need fucking to ask that?"

Frowning, Ochaco glared up at him. "You don't want to know whether or not we're still together in the future?"

It was Katsuki's time to smirk, his crimson hues lacing with mischief. "Ochaco, I don't need to ask because I already know that we're still together in the future." He lightly pressed his lips to the top of her forehead. "There's nothing in this world that is going to make me leave your side."

"Katsuki, I love you…"

"I love you too, Angel. Now sleep, okay? You're fucking exhausted. We can talk about it more in the morning."

Morning came in a rush and it was when the first specks of sunlight filtered through the window that Ochaco realized how royally screwed she was. Despite the sheer exhaustion assaulting every fiber of her being, sleep eluded her in each passing second of the clock until eventually she had slipped free of Katsuki's embrace and turned on the laptop he kept on his desk. She thought maybe if she did a bit of research about time Quirk's, that maybe it would help her understand a bit better and feel somewhat at ease.

What was worse, was Katsuki now shifted on the bed, annoyance sprinkled over his face as he reached for his alarm clock to shut it off. In his reach toward it, his eyes shot open, realizing he was alone in the bed. When his gaze shifted up to where she sat in the desk, taking note of the circles beneath her eyes having gotten darker, he glared.

"Angel, did you sleep at all?"

Ochaco rubbed the pad of her index finger as she avoided eye contact. "Yeah, I just couldn't seem to fall asleep."

Sighing, Katsuki swung his legs over the side of the bed and stood slowly, stretching each limb carefully to shake away the tiredness. When he felt his muscles loosen enough to walk comfortably, he approached Ochaco from behind and pulled her into an embrace while his lips and nose nuzzled lovingly at her neck. "Why didn't you wake me up?" he mumbled. "I could have stayed up with you or helped you become so damn exhausted that you wouldn't have a choice but to pass out."

Ochaco's cheeks lit up pink at his words and leaned into him. "There wasn't a point in having us both be dead tired," she stated.

"Well, since you look like something straight out of a damn zombie movie, stay here for the day and rest."

"What about class...?"

"Fuck class." Katsuki spun her around in the chair so that she faced him, his crimson hues locking onto her honeyed ones. "You're more important. You're stressed, exhausted, and looking at you being like this is making me fucking nervous." When his hand reached up to cup her cheek, his thumb lightly tracing the darkness beneath her eyes, she leaned into him and sighed. "Please, Angel, just stay in my room today and get some damn rest."

"I'll try," she relented. "No guarantees."

"There better be guarantees. If you're not asleep by the time I come to check on you during lunch, I'm skipping the rest of my classes and wearing out every bit of fucking energy you have left, got it?"

"Now you're just tempting me."

The explosive blonde's mouth upturned, his mischievous smirk returning from last night. "As if you're so innocent."

Ochaco couldn't help but laugh, even if it wasn't as jovial as usual. "Go to class, already. I promise I will stay here and sleep."

"Good girl," he whispered and nipped at her ear before pulling away to get ready.

Soon after Katsuki left, Ochaco slumped down on the bed and stared blankly at the ceiling. She was heavily torn between just closing her eyes and trying to lose herself to a dreamless sleep or to get a snack knowing that her stomach would be waking her shortly to remind her of her hunger. After a moment of internal debate, she decided to get up to eat first.

"Katsuki is going to kill me," she muttered, scratching the back of her head. He would be returning to the dorms at lunchtime to check on her and she knew he would keep his word about skipping class if she wasn't asleep. Unfortunately it felt as though the second her mind and body began to lull off, something dark and nagging would lurch from the back of her mind and cause a hit of adrenaline to race through her, staving off rest.

So now her only solution was to eat something and hope that maybe a mini food coma would be the answer to her current problem.

The empty halls of the dorms were eerily reminiscent to when she had her accident during her first year, yet the only difference now was Katsuki wasn't skipping class waiting to see her. A smile tugged at her lips. They had come a long way since they began high school and she sometimes forgot just how long a road they already travelled and how much more they still had to go. Her peek into the future had assured her of that.

Ochaco's reverie was cut short when she got off the elevator and made her way to the kitchen, stopping short when she saw a small figure huddled up on one of the kitchen chairs. She immediately recognized the figure as the boy and her stomach flipped uncomfortably.

She kept herself at a distance, lingering on the kitchen's entryway and cleared her throat to garner his attention. When those startling cobalt eyes looked up, her throat hitched. His eyes were red and puffy from crying, his cheeks flushed a light pink. Swallowing her anxiety down, Ochaco offered him a smile. "Your name is Shingo, right?"

He nodded, but remained quiet and unmoving.

He doesn't look so well. Is he sick? she inquired mentally. "Are you okay?"

This time Shingo shook his head no.

"You should be with Aizawa, shouldn't you?"

"Slipping away has always been easy," Shingo finally said. He ducked his head against his knees. "I wanted to tell you I was sorry."

"Well, as much as I appreciate that, you shouldn't be wandering around the halls," she chided. "You've caused quite a bit of trouble."

"I know. I didn't mean to."

Ochaco relented and moved forward. She couldn't be entirely certain that his Quirk had a particular proximity, but it wasn't like she was super far from him anyway. If he did decide to use his Quirk, it might not matter where she stood. She came over and sat beside him, her hand reaching out and pressing against his forehead. "Just as I thought, you're running a bit of a fever." Frowning, she begins to get up from her seat, stopping when the boy reaches up for her hand.

"Where are you going?" he asks weakly, those blue eyes becoming large with panic. "Please don't leave."

Ochaco placed her palm over his hand and smiled, careful to keep one finger up to avoid activating her Quirk. "It's okay, I'm just going to get Aizawa. If you're running a fever we need to get you some medicine."

"Just stay here, big sister!"

Shingo's words caught Ochaco off guard, remembering what Katsuki said about her reminding the boy of his sister. Her auburn hair fell over her eyes as her stomach wavered uneasily, the floor beneath her beginning to shift. When she lifted her gaze back up to him, she gave his hand a squeeze. "It's okay, Shingo. I'm not going anywhere, okay? You need to relax, you're starting to activate your Quirk."

"I can't control it!" he cried, lunging forward. His tiny arms wrapped around her as tears welled in his panic stricken eyes and he clung to Ochaco tightly. "I'm so sorry! Please don't be bad at me, big sister!"

Damnit, not again! The walls melted and merged, falling to the floor in a sickly design until Ochaco and Shingo's vision was obscured by darkness. Trying hard to ease the growing nausea, the gravity hero squeezed her eyes shut until she felt solid ground beneath her feet once more. To her surprise, she found herself back inside a rather familiar apartment.

"Shingo, are you okay?" she asked softly after regaining her composure. The boy was slumped against her, unmoving; his cheeks flushed a deeper color. When Ochaco raised her hand to his forehead again, she bit her lower lip. His fever had spiked drastically, likely from the use of his Quirk. "This isn't good…" Her gaze swept the darkened apartment, finding no trace of light coming from the hallway or hushed voices like the first time. "Katsuki, are you home?" she called, hopeful for a response. She didn't have the slightest idea what to do about Shingo's fever.

She picked the boy up easily in her arms, cradling him close as she brought him to the couch and placed him down gently. Silence crept through the air around her and she felt herself becoming slightly panicked. There was no telling if Shingo had brought them to when she had met Katsuki's future self. For all she knew it could be months or years prior to having met him.

However, as she made her way past the kitchen and toward the hallway, her attention fell to three coffee mugs sitting on the counter, left exactly where they had been placed when her and Mina came through the first time. That was too much to be a coincidence, right? Maybe that was a bit of a stretch, but it was the only thing she could see that tied her to any sense of a timeline.

She peeked her head into Katsuki's office, finding the lights off and the room empty. Moving on, she found herself stopping in front of the bedroom door, her hand hesitating on the handle. What if he was home but just sleeping? Swallowing hard, she forced herself to open the door, letting it swing wide, revealing the large bedroom, which disappointedly was empty too.

"Damnit! Why couldn't he be here?" Ochaco muttered. Katsuki watched Izuku's son, so it was likely he had some kind of idea of what to do when a young child had a fever, right?

Ochaco returned to the living room where she had left Shingo and sunk down on the couch beside him. On the back of the couch was the familiar blanket she had seen the first time and quickly she grabbed it and bundled it around the boy's small figure. He was out cold.

Her entire body felt weighted and her mind was becoming more sluggish with each passing second. At this rate she felt that the mixture of exhaustion and panic running through her would start to make her delirious. Hell, maybe she was hallucinating right now or having a very vivid dream?

With a soft sigh, Ochaco scooped the boy up and brought him in close to her, her vision becoming hazy. It was all too much to handle in that moment. Her body knew this very well and had begun to shut itself down, forcing the gravity hero to slip into an uncomfortable and dreamless sleep while she held the sleeping boy close to her.

Why didn't I just stay in bed? she thought grudgingly before becoming completely taken over by sleep.

When Ochaco woke, she couldn't help but jump in surprise as two sets of eyes stared her down, one a striking crimson, the other the color of honey and chocolate. It took her a moment to realize that the woman standing before Katsuki was in fact…herself. The woman smiled down at her, idly flipping her long auburn locks over her shoulder.

"You've been asleep for awhile now," the older Ochaco stated softly. "I saw you start to stir awake a few minutes ago." Katsuki shifted from his place near the kitchen, his arms crossed over his chest as he stared suspiciously at the younger gravity hero.

Rubbing her eyes of sleep, Ochaco glanced down to see Shingo still curled up beside her. Her palm pressed against his forehead, relieved to feel the heat from his fever had dissipated significantly. "I'm sorry to intrude on you again," she murmured.

The older heroes exchanged looks before the gravity hero looked back on her younger self. "What do you mean again?"

Ochaco froze, blinking in confusion. Maybe she had arrived before her future self had left for her mission? Rubbing the pads of her fingers, her gaze fell to the floor. "Well, this just became incredibly awkward."

"What exactly is going on?" Katsuki inquired, his eyes narrowing.

"Well, it's a little complicated," Ochaco stated, watching as Shingo stirred slightly. "This boy has a time Quirk, though he can't really control it." She didn't have the faintest idea whether or not they believed her. Katsuki had the first time she had come through, which had been more than a little surprising.

Her older self clicked her tongue, turning thoughtful. "So you were sent from your time?"

"Yeah. I was sent here literally about a day ago," Ochaco stated, laughing nervously. "But I guess me being here now is before I came through, seeing as how Katsuki doesn't remember me being here. He was watching Deku's son and you," she motioned to her older self, "were on a mission or something, so you weren't here."

The adult hero pursed her lips, her auburn gaze lifting to meet her husband's. "Katsuki?"

The blonde shrugged. "Don't look at me. I don't know what the fuck's going on."

"Well, this is quite interesting. We just got back from dropping off Izuku's son after Katsuki got me from the airport."

Ochaco blinked again, her confusion extremely evident. "Airport?"

"Yeah, I got back from my mission earlier. So either this is one hell of a coincidence or something is going on."

How is Katsuki not able to remember? Ochaco felt her stomach churn uneasily. Then again, she didn't exactly remember seeing Katsuki in her past during the festival. In fact she distinctly remembered waiting by the fountain crying her eyes out until her parents finally found her. She had zero recollection of her boyfriend having been there, despite him having come back with an origami butterfly she had evidently given him.

"My head hurts," she muttered, pinching the bridge of her nose. She filled the two in on Shingo's Quirk, what little was known about it, and how her and Katsuki had both managed to leap through time each time Shingo had become overwhelmed or upset.

"This vaguely sounds familiar," Katsuki stated, his eyes narrowing at the boy. "A few years back we ran into some asshole who had a time Quirk. He didn't exactly manage to send us through time, but he managed to slip away by disappearing."

The older Ochaco nodded. "We found out later that he was able to elude capture because of how quickly he could jump to another time. Eventually he was caught."

"Do you think it was Shingo?"

"Hard to say. Anyone who dealt directly with him had more than a few hazy memories."

The pulsing in the young gravity hero's head worsened. This entire situation was becoming beyond confusing to her. "So, correct me if I'm wrong…but what I'm gathering from this whole thing is that you two dealt with someone with a time Quirk, but have fuzzy memories dealing with him so you can't actually confirm what his name is?" Was it even possible that the person they met was actually Shingo's future self? Even so, it didn't exactly explain people's memories becoming obscured. Her and Katsuki had both been sent through time, yet their memories remained perfectly in tact, so why did their future and past selves have absolutely no memory of anything while their present selves did?

"Are you okay?" Katsuki inquired, breaking Ochaco from her thoughts. "You think any harder and you're likely going to pass the fuck out."

"At this rate, I just might. This entire situation is confusing and it's becoming more difficult to piece together."

With a loud, flustered sigh, the older Ochaco held her hands up. "Okay, I think I might know something that will help us," she announced. "We still have the case file at our agency. I never really looked at it again once the guy was caught. I do remember updating the file once he was caught, I just can't actually recall many details right now. But if we get that file, we can actually see if our time Quirk perpetrator is the same as this young boy here—Shingo, you said his name was?"

"Were you two the ones to actually bring him for an arrest?"

"No, Izuku was. He was working with us on the case. He ended up finding him before us and made the arrest."

Ochaco tapped her chin. "Would it be possible to talk to him and see what he remembers?"

"I will," Katsuki stated. "The less you know about the future, the better."

"You know, you said the same thing to me the first time I came here," Ochaco muttered, which stirred up an amused laugh from her older self. "Anyway, you should probably find out what you can quickly. Shingo's Quirk doesn't last long and as I said before he has no control over it."

"Alright, Katsuki if you want to go grab the file and see if you can talk to Izuku, I'll stay here."

Katsuki's brows knitted together, worry straining his features. "The kid can't control his power. What if he activates and somehow pulls you through time."

"Don't worry so much," she assured, smiling. "I'll be alright, I promise."

After watching the display of affection the explosion blonde planted on her future self's lips, Ochaco found herself turning beat red, even after Katsuki had left the apartment to fulfill his duty. Despite it literally being herself, it still felt absolutely awkward to be watching. She forced her gaze toward the bookshelves, becoming quite uncertain about what to say now that she was practically alone with herself.

"I'm surprised you're not asking me a barrage of questions right now. If I was standing before my future self, I would want to know everything."

"Believe me, there's a lot I want to ask, I'm just…" Ochaco trailed off, her eyes becoming dull. "The future scares me, to be honest." Her attention fell back to her older self as she stood and extended her hand out.

"Come with me," she said, smiling. "I think it's better for us to talk while in a setting that's a bit more comfortable."

Ochaco had no idea what that meant exactly, but she figured she was about to find out as she tentatively took her own hand and was led out to the balcony. The sun was peaking out, yet storm clouds were beginning to roll in and the sweet scent of cherry blossoms and rain permeated the air. A wave of calm fell over the gravity hero, finding herself unable to look away from the breathtaking view that was spread out before them.

Her older self pressed her fingertips together and slowly began to lift into the air before turning and extending her hand out to her younger self. "Take my hand. If you think this view is nice, just wait until you're floating above all of it."

"Isn't that risky?" Yet despite her stomach lurching, she took the extended hand and immediately began to float as well.

"We're a lot stronger than we ever gave ourselves credit for when we were in school. Yes, I still get nauseous if I'm in the air for too long or reach my weight limit too quickly, but if I'm just floating, doing nothing, I can float up here for hours if I want."

Ochaco gawked, her eyes widening. "Hours? How? I can barely stay in the air for more than thirty minutes without feeling like I'm going to hurl."

"I don't want to tell you too much, but believe me, limits get pushed and you find it in you to become a truly remarkable hero. The future isn't so glum, so stop worrying already." When the apartment building below them became smaller and smaller, the older gravity hero lifted them up into the sky until the entire city was laid out before them like a blanket littered with diamonds. Sunlight caught windowpanes, bouncing lights off as the sun began to sink into the horizon just below the clouds coming in with the promise of rain.

Ochaco couldn't help but gasp. She had never floated herself this high before, yet here her future self was doing it so effortlessly, managing to float both of them without much strain. "This is…amazing."

"Isn't it? Sometimes I'll just float up here when I need to think or just want to be alone. Looking at the city spread out before me has a way of putting things in perspective."

The low grumble of thunder spread overhead, droplets beginning to fall. Ochaco held her free hand out, mesmerized by the slight chill eliciting around her body, her lungs filling with the sweetness of summer rain. When the water fell harder around them, neither seemed to care. The pour of rain over the city molded the scenery into something entirely different and the young gravity hero could see the appeal of spending hours just floating, despite becoming soaked by the weather. It was as though every doubt, every trace of anxiety fell away from her and lifted her spirits to an entirely new height.

They spent the next hour in content silence, lost in their own thoughts until a distinct call broke them out of their meditative state. The two Ochaco's turned themselves in the air, their eyes falling to the apartment where they could barely make out Katsuki's figure.

"I guess it's time to head back inside," the older hero murmured with a soft laugh. "Katsuki is going to be mad and go on about how reckless it is to be floating in the rain."

"Most likely," Ochaco agreed, offering up her own laugh. "It's worth it though." As they floated back down toward the building, she took one last longing gaze at the city. "You weren't wrong about this view putting things into perspective."

When their feet hit solid ground, Katsuki was standing in the doorway, fuming, his fists sparking. "What the hell are you two doing? It's fucking raining!"

The future Ochaco bounded over to him, wrapping her arms around him and pulling herself up to kiss him on the cheek. "We're aware," she sang before sticking her tongue out at him.

"Ack! Ochaco, you're getting me wet! Stop it!" he hissed, trying to peel his rain soaked wife from him. "You're insufferable."

"Ha, you wish. Insufferable or not, I'm still one of the greatest things in your life." She poked his cheek, grinning widely.

The younger Ochaco couldn't help but watch the two, her heart fluttering. They were heroes, adults, and still very much in love. It was the image of perfection, of soft reassurance that maybe she worried for nothing. But as the scene unfolded around her, her gaze fell to Shingo looking out the window at them, his expression soft and sad, undoubtedly reeling from his own troubles in life, whatever they may be.

"Shingo, are you alright?" Ochaco asked as she moved toward the door and peeked her head inside the apartment. She was careful to stay just outside as to avoid tracking water in, unlike her older self who trotted past her and across the living room, ignoring Katsuki's chastising about getting the carpet wet.

When the boy's eyes lit up at the sound of her voice, she couldn't help but see those cobalt eyes rim with tears. Carefully she moved toward him, extending her hand to him. Immediately he reached for her, but just as their hands met, the room began to spin in an all too familiar fashion.

"Shingo, are you taking us back to our time?" Ochaco inquired, her head tilting. Everything felt different this time. Her stomach didn't churn, her body felt weightless and tingled. "I thought you couldn't control your Quirk?"

"I can't, when I'm stressed," he corrected.

"Are you two okay?" Katsuki called, noticing the strange display unfolding in his living room.

"Stay back," Ochaco warned. "If you get too close you might get pulled through time with us."

The older gravity hero emerged from the hallway, a towel draped over her shoulders. "You're going back?" Her auburn eyes lit up as she raced to the kitchen table, her hand nabbing onto a thick folder. "Take this!" she said, tossing it toward her younger self, who clumsily caught it. "I hope it helps!"

"Thank you," Ochaco whispered, just as her future fell from her sight. Within moments, the familiar kitchen of the dorms filled in around them and she found herself standing there alone with only the folder in her hands. Shingo was nowhere in sight. Even the warmth from his small hand had disappeared from her palm.

"Ochaco?"

Whirling in surprise, the gravity hero yelped, hugging the folder tightly against her chest. "Katsuki, you scared me! Don't sneak up on me."

The explosive blonde quirked an eyebrow up, his crimson hues looking her up and down. "Why the fuck are you soaking wet?" He was entirely unfettered by the fact he had scared his girlfriend and was more concerned by the odd display before him. "What's going on?"

Ochaco scratched her cheek and smiled nervously. "Well, I came into the kitchen to get a snack and, uh…well, Shingo was here."

A spark blasted off from Katsuki's palm. "What?"

"It's okay! Nothing bad happened. I…got sent to the future again," she said softly, averting her eyes. "I got to meet my future self." Before she knew it, Katsuki had crossed the distance between them, his arms flying around her and crushing her to him, his face falling to the crook of her neck. "Katsuki…?"

"I'm going to kill that fucking brat."

Returning his overly protective embrace, Ochaco let her honeyed eyes close as tears welled in her eyes. "I'm sorry for worrying you, but I promise you, everything is alright." As she pushed herself from him, she held up the folder. "Our future selves gave me something that may help us with Shingo."

Katsuki eyed the folder briefly, his hand raising to wipe away the tears mingling with the rain on his girlfriends cheeks. "First, let's get you dried off. You're going to get sick if you stay like this."

As they left to go back to Katsuki's room, neither of them were aware of Shingo standing at the end of the hallway watching them, his own eyes spilling over with tears.

A/N: Wooo, long chapter! Okay, so before any of you throw things at me, I am very well aware that the whole time thing might be confusing to some. Not all the details have been shed on Shingo's power, so it's okay to be confused. After all, Ochaco and Katsuki aren't even entirely sure what's up with his quirk :p

I hope you all enjoyed the chapter! Thank you so much for the support, it warms my heart greatly. I hope everyone is having good holidays! I will try my best to get the next chapter up by New Year's, though I won't make any promises.

On an entirely random note, I will be making a twitter account for my writing soon. A few people have wanted a way to actually be able to talk or get updates about my writing without having to sent dm's so I will probably try and get that up and going if anyone is interested (will post link in profile when it's up and a link with the next chapter whenever I get that up.) If you have a twitter and you want me to follow, gimme them links, I like to support other fellow writers 3