There was a brisk knock at the door to the apartment. Yuri jumped up from the chair she had been sitting in, the ribbon in her ponytail flying behind her. She hurried to the door as fast as her short legs could carry her. She grabbed the doorknob between her two tiny hands and twisted as best as she could.

The door opened to reveal her blue haired friend, a wide smile plastered across his round face. His crimson eyes were wild with excitement. She saw his mother walking up behind him.

"Mama!" she called back into the apartment. "Tenko's here!"

Her mother appeared behind her and grabbed her purse. "Well, let's go then, you two."

They ran to the small park beside their apartment building their mothers chatting and walking beside them. They jumped into the sandbox unceremoniously.

"Look, Tenko!" Yuri said as she held her hand out over the sand. The earth began to bubble up, a small mountain of sand and dirt becoming more and more pronounced. She had a look of tense concentration on her face; her skin was beginning to turn a bright red color. A few drops of sweat seemed to be forming on the bridge of her nose. The mound grew bigger and bigger, until it was as tall as they were. At that point, her hand dropped and she let out a huge breath she'd been holding in. She fell back onto her bottom, huffing and puffing.

"Wow! That's amazing, Yuri!" he exclaimed with a big smile. He pushed a lock of hair back from his forehead. "When did you learn to do that?"

"Just a few days ago. I always feel so tired afterward."

"That's so cool! I wonder when I'll get my quirk. I hope it's something really fun like flying."

"I like it a lot. We can have a lot of fun with it. What if I can make a whole mountain!? And we can climb all the way to the top together!" She fell back into the sand, her arms and legs splayed out like she might make a sand-angel. Tenko fell back beside her, his arms and legs extended the same way.

"So much fun! Can you make it go back down?"

She sat up then. "I haven't tried that yet." She extended her hand back out toward the dirt pile. The same strained look came across her face and he watched as the mound began to crumble in on itself, the earth turning up at the center and falling back in, like a sinkhole. It began to shrink down to nothing, then as a final move, Yuri fanned her hand and a blanket of sand covered over the earth, as if nothing had ever happened.

Tenko looked at his friend, a look of glee on his face. "You're so cool, Yuri!"

"I'm really tired now," she said, her eyelids looking heavy. She laid back down in the sand and turned onto her side toward him, her arm going under her head. She yawned loudly before closing her eyes. A soft snore escaped her throat. Her hand stretched out toward his, their fingertips gently touching.

"Yuri?" Tenko said and tentatively touched her shoulder. "Yuri!" He became more concerned when she didn't answer. He looked back at their mothers and saw them slowly walking toward them.

"Don't worry, Tenko," Yuri's mother said. "Her quirk is so new. She gets so worn out anytime she uses it." She scooped the small child into her arms. "It will get better with practice. But I should probably take her home for the day. She's been needing a nap after she uses her quirk."

He was thoroughly irritated. Irritated, because Toga had attacked Yuri. Irritated, because she had been able to trick him. Irritated, because of his stirred emotions. He should have known it was too good to be true. He'd been too hopeful, and too eager to believe. He'd spent all of his teenage years hungering for her, even after she'd left to go to the hero academy. They'd both changed and lived separate lives, but he'd always kept her picture in his back pocket.

And now he was on his way to her apartment. He felt somewhat responsible for her injury, and he also needed to see for himself that she was alright. Toga could be violent, and sometimes she took more blood than was necessary.

The creature inside his mind was thoroughly pleased at having her address, and even more pleased thinking about Yuri's blood. It had rejoiced at the chance to find where she lived, where she felt most comfortable and at ease, where she'd never suspect any trouble to come her way…

He shoved the monster down inside the box, compartmentalizing the thoughts.

It was dark outside, though not too late. Even with the darkness he had his hoodie pulled up around his face, careful not to be noticed. He turned into the front of the apartment complex, following the directions he'd been given. The elevator dinged as the doors opened onto her floor. He walked down the balcony, counting off the numbers as he went. He turned and knocked on the door.

He waited.

There were no sounds from inside the apartment.

He knocked again. He looked up and down the doors, rechecking the numbers.

Still nothing.

He pounded his fist against the door. "Yuri!"

Maybe she was out? It wasn't too late. He tried the doorknob. Locked. He thought about disintegrating the doorknob, but how would she keep her door locked afterwards? He was about to try picking the lock when he heard footsteps and laughter approaching. He turned his head and saw her walking up, a man walking beside her. His eyesight went red. He wanted to wrap his hands around the man's throat, squeezing and turning him to dust.

"Watch out," the man said, as he grabbed Yuri's wrist and pulled her back. Tomura was sure he was an intimidating figure in the dark, with his black hoodie pulled up high and his dark pants. He realized the light was behind him, casting further shadow on his face. "Do you know this guy?"

Yuri seemed taken aback for a moment too, surprised at seeing him mixed with confusion. "Yes, actually. It's fine." She looked up at the mystery man. "I'll see you sometime?"

"Yea, that would be nice. You're sure you're alright?" The man eyed him up and down, sizing him up.

"Yes, this is just an old friend of mine. We're fine. Good night!" She turned away from the man and pulled a key ring from a small bag she was carrying. Without a word to him, she stepped in front of Tomura and unlocked the door, going inside. He followed behind her, stepping over the threshold and closing the door behind him. She kicked her high heels off inside the opening.

"What are you doing here, Tenko?" she looked agitated.

"I was checking to be sure you were OK. I heard you had a run in with Himiko Toga." He pushed his hood back. He didn't bother removing his shoes. He figured he wouldn't be staying long.

"Is that who it was? I never got a good look, they were so quick. I was very confused, it all happened so quickly."

"Where did she get you?"

"Thigh." He realized she was wearing a little black dress. She lifted the hem over her left thigh and turned a bit, exposing a large bruise on the outer back aspect of her leg.

"I did not tell her to do that."

"Good to know. What exactly was she doing?"

"She can transform into a person by ingesting blood. She has to siphon it out somehow."

"So I guess that was a needle I was stabbed with. I knew it couldn't have been a knife. I hope it was clean."

He shrugged nonchalantly. "You may want to get checked out."

"That's reassuring," she said. She crossed her arms across her chest. They stood in silence for a moment. "My hospitality tells me I should ask you if you would like a drink, but I also don't want to be responsible for housing a criminal."

"Don't worry. I'm on my way out now. It would hurt my street cred if anyone found me hanging around a hero's apartment." He turned and put his hand on the doorknob.

"Well, actually, before you go, wait just a minute." Yuri turned and walked into a room off the hallway. Tenko heard her rummaging through some things. She emerged with a small tube in her hand. "Take this with you." She extended her hand.

He opened his palm and she placed the tube in his hand. "What's this?"

"It's a salve. I know how your skin gets. It looks terribly dry, and I can tell you've been scratching at it. You can apply that everywhere and it will help keep your skin hydrated. It only takes a little bit."

He frowned at her. "No one sees my face."

"I'm seeing it right now."

"Whatever you say, Yuri." There was no use arguing with her. He placed the tube in his pocket and turned to the door. "You should worry less about what I look like and focus more on your surroundings – and not letting people sneak up on you."

"I'm not sure if you're talking about yourself or Toga, but she jumped on me like a coward. I didn't know those were the kinds of people you associated with."

"We're villains, Yuri. We don't play by the rules." With a glance back at her, he opened the door and stepped back out into the night, closing the door behind him. He waited until he heard her footsteps walking to the other side of the door, heard the lock click closed, before starting back down the balcony. It wasn't long before he was able to catch up with the young man that had just left Yuri's apartment. And it wasn't much longer that he had to follow him to know exactly where his own apartment was. One never knew when such information would be valuable.

Her hand lingered on the doorknob as she leaned back against the wall. Why did she feel the urge to run after him? He'd been so close just a few minutes earlier. She'd wanted to reach out and grab his arm, to hold his hand like they used to when they were younger, before his quirk manifested and he could kill her with a single touch.

Before she realized the difference between boys and girls.

He was definitely a man now, and she would have to rearrange her thinking around that. He stood a full head taller than her, his shoulders broader, his face more angular. He'd been chubby and cute when they were children. Sure, he'd gone through an awkward phase when they were young teenagers – she'd gone through one herself, - but he was still her favorite person, with his messy mop of hair and dark clothes. Maybe she had looked at him a little too long when she saw him at track meets, when the sweat was dripping down his neck and his running shorts showed off the lean muscles of his legs.

What 15 year old girl's hormones wouldn't be raging at that?

She wondered what his legs looked like now.

He wasn't sure what was going on. He had been drifting in and out of consciousness for hours, days, weeks – he wasn't really sure of the time. People would come and go, passing by in the white, sterile light. Sometimes it was a nurse or doctor, sometimes it was someone from his neighborhood coming to check on him. His aunt snored gently in the chair by his bed; she rarely left, or not that he noticed.

He was aware of the gloves covering his hands. He couldn't remember how he'd gotten there, but he knew it wasn't good news.

"His whole family?" he'd heard a nurse whispering to the doctor as he drifted in and out of consciousness again.

"Unfortunately, yes," was the response. "It was a mutation with his quirk. Apparently, it manifested so suddenly, he was unable to control it."

"But to go through his whole family – how were they unable to stop him?"

"We're still unclear on exactly how it happened, and he seems to be too shocked to communicate with us right now. He's going to need deep therapy for many years. Maybe he'll be able to form some semblance of a normal life."

People came and went. His aunt wiped a cool washcloth over his face. She held a spoon to his lips, trying to coax him into eating.

"Tenko," a soft, sweet voice said to him one day. He felt warm fingers on his arm, petting gently. He wanted to see her. He tried to crack his eyelids at her. She appeared in his left eye, but his right eye was all black.

"He's opening his eye!" she said. His aunt stood up suddenly from where she'd been reading. "Tenko! It's Yuri! Can you hear me?"

He felt his head nod. She was a little blurry, but her sweet, round face and brunette ponytail were slowly coming into focus. She rubbed his arm again. He began to reach up to his right eye and felt a fabric over it. "You have a patch on your eye. You kinda look like a pirate."

"What happened?" he said, his voice sounding weak. His aunt looked at him, a small child in a big hospital bed, before glancing at Yuri's mother.

"We can talk about that later," she said. "Would you like to eat something? Yuri brought you some cookies she made."

"Well, I really just helped," she said as she hopped onto the bed and sat beside him, her legs hanging off. He saw her mother's eyes dart down to his glove covered hands. "Why do you have these on your hands?" She grabbed the fingertip of the middle finger and began to pull.

"No!" her mother said, grabbing her wrist. "He has to wear those gloves from now on."

"Oh, I just wanted to hold his hand. I always feel safer when my hand is held."

"You can still hold his hand with the gloves on."

Yuri looked at him, disappointed, but complied. He could feel the warmth of her hand through the fabric.

"Is something wrong with me?" he asked her. "I can't remember how I got here."

"Everyone really misses you at school. Do you know when you'll be back?"

"It will be a few weeks," his aunt answered.

"A few weeks?" he said. "But I feel fine, I think. Just a little tired." He looked at Yuri. She seemed so excited to see him, excited at the prospect of them being back together.

"I think that's probably enough of a visit for today," his aunt said then.

"Yes, Yuri," her mother said. "Let's let Tenko rest. He's had a long day."

She looked disappointed but reached out and wrapped her arms around his neck, squeezing him tight.

"I'm glad I got to see you today," she said. "Don't be sick too long so we can be in first grade together!" She let him go and hopped down, promising to return in a few days.

The hot water ran down his head and back as he stood beneath the stream contemplating every aspect of his life to that point. He leaned his head against the shower wall, breathing in the steam and thinking about Yuri. He had been completely shocked the first time he saw her again, having lost touch after she'd left to go to hero academy. Not soon after that, he'd left the home where he'd lived with his aunt, changing trajectories completely.

Despite the deceit, his mind went back to when Toga had approached him, masquerading as Yuri. She'd been so convincing, it was easy to believe it was her, until she'd said his name. Tomura. Yuri wouldn't casually call him that. She might spit it out at him, irritated, like an insult, but she'd still called him by the name he'd always been to her. Tenko.

He rubbed his hands around his neck, pressing down on his shoulders, trying to work out a muscle that was tense. He thought about the man that she'd walked up with. They were obviously on a date and returning to her apartment. What would they have done if he hadn't interrupted? Would she have invited the man in? The image of them together burned in his mind, a deep core of jealousy coiling in his chest.

Just kill him.

But he didn't want her to be upset with him.

Order someone else to do it.

He didn't know the ins and outs of their relationship. What if he'd misunderstood what was happening? Maybe he was someone else, a close friend. He didn't want to break her heart.

This is why she'd never be with you. You're too much of a pussy, second guessing yourself. Women don't know what they want. Their natural instinct is to be with the biggest and strongest, that last man standing. The winner.

He shook his head against the inner monologue, sending water droplets flying. She'd told the man to leave them the other night and the man had left. Sure, he'd seemed let down, but in that moment Yuri had chosen him over the other man.

She had looked amazing in her black dress. When she'd turned to show him where Toga had gotten her with her needle, he'd only imagined what would have happened if he'd lifted her hem just an inch more. He felt the blood rush between his legs as he thought of what would happen if she would accept his advance, if he'd touched the back of her thigh, running his hand up to grab her ass.

His body had sprung to life as he furiously scrubbed soap over his chest and abdomen, grabbing his member in his soapy hands and pumping a few times. He jerked at the feeling. It was the first time in a long while that he'd felt aroused. He rubbed his hands back over the bar of soap before grasping his tool again. He wrapped both of his hands around it, running them up and down the velvety length. His left hand grasped at what was hanging lower, gently cupping and massaging while his right hand continued working, pulling from the base out to the rounded tip. His mind drifted to Yuri in her black dress, her breasts pushed up and out, her long legs smooth and glistening. He pretended it really was her back in the bar with him, her soft hands on him, his hands finally caressing her glowing skin. He could even imagine her in her cheerleader uniform, wondering if she may still have it somewhere. His hips lurched forward as climax snuck up on him, pumping a few more times as his release shot out and was washed down the drain.

He was ready the other day to leave with her. He would have abandoned it all, completely, to start over with her. He knew if asked again, if she pleaded with him to leave together, he would leave without a second thought.

You can have her now. You don't have to leave.

He shook his head against the thought. There was no way.

It doesn't matter if she agrees. You're the fucking leader of the league of villains. There are ways to make her comply. What's one more offense on your rap sheet?

The thought made him feel sick.

There's an empty room… We could tie her up… She could be only for us…

He wanted to think he was a good enough person to hate the idea, but he felt himself getting hard again at the thought of her tied to a bed. Tomura smirked involuntarily.

He turned the water off before wrapping a towel around himself and stepping out of the shower. He ran his hand through the fog on the mirror, eyeing his reflection. He ran a hand through his hair, pushing it back from his face. True, his eyes were tired and the fragile skin around them looked dry, making his wrinkles look more pronounced. His lips, too, seemed dry and cracking. It was a drawback of his quirk – his skin always seemed on the verge of disintegrating away. He tilted his head to the side, looking at his neck, where he tended to claw with anxiety. He picked up the tube of salve and looked at the wrapper before smoothing a small amount of the lotion around his eyes, on his lips, and on his neck. It only takes a little bit. She was obviously concerned about him. Butterflies flitted around his stomach when he came to that conclusion. She also wanted him to look his best, he realized.