CHAPTER 12 – Stems of doubt, seeds of love

"I don't know how you always manage to get yourself worse than you are, even now when this should be impossible to achieve."

Naomasa was tired. After a tough shift at work, he had received a call from Tamagawa, informing him that Toshinori and the strange Miss Crawford had been involved in a fight against two young villains from the League. First interrogations had unveiled that the attackers had wanted to get a hold of the girl, but the retired hero had intervened and got himself in a pinch very quickly. If not for a surprise attack from Philae, Naomasa might have been without a best friend by now.

"I... don't really have an explanation for that," Toshinori replied lamely, his head resting heavily against the pillow. "They wanted to harm Philae, and you know me, I couldn't let them do it while I was there watching."

"I understand you're fond of your student," the inspector said carefully, "but don't you think it's counter-productive to get yourself killed, even for her? Remember you have a full class in your charge."

The blonde did not answer. For once, his friend did not know about Philae's past, and even if he was perceptive to people hiding things – call it a professional tic –, he could not know at the moment. The blonde had promised he would not tell without his young student allowing it beforehand.

He sighed.

"I know I'm not a hero anymore, Tsukauchi. But I'd have done it for anyone, y'know."

"I do. It's just that, regarding Midoriya, and now Miss Crawford, you have a very, very soft spot, and it's getting too dangerous for you. You barely know her, I remind you. That's the second time the League tries to approach her, and who knows, maybe she is one of..."

"No," Toshinori cut off immediately. "I'm certain she would never be one of them. Plus, if you need proof, she didn't make any phone call or send any suspicious text. Nedzu keeps tabs on her and noticed nothing of the sort."

"Still, my point remains. She could betray you and break you faster than you realize, even unintentionally. She's unstable, and that's not what you need."

The convalescent huffed in mock annoyance.

"Are you talking about my student, or my choice of fiancée?"

Naomasa rubbed his face. His friend was too kind, and too stubborn at times.

"Sometimes I wonder, since you're married to your job." Okay, he had to admit his jab was cheap. He dropped the sarcasm. "But more seriously, you understand what I mean. We decided to trust her to an extent, giving her the benefit of the doubt, because we actually have no element countering her arguments, and no other trace of her in our files, even in the national archives. We sent a formal enquiry to the American and European offices of census, just to make sure, and we have yet to receive their answers, but I suspect they won't be of any more help. In conclusion, for all we know, she could lie about her identity and we'd be none the wiser."

He pinned any protest from the blonde with a stern gaze. He would not have any excuse just now.

"Don't try to find her excuses. U.A. teachers were supposed to observe her, not put themselves into danger for her, not to mention you shouldn't have let her Quirk show so dramatically. Did you see the state of the building, after we evacuated you? It's a miracle it's still standing! And you're lucky no one was harmed." Seeing the relief sweep across the former hero's face, he nodded. "Yes, everyone was safe, apart from the villains, of course, and it's not thanks to you. I've got a merry time kicking the press out and away from her, now. They're hungry for juicy scandals."

Toshinori looked crestfallen and guilty. He had not wanted that, when he had invited Philae out. Now, it was up to Tsukauchi to clean their mess.

"I know, Tsukauchi, believe me, I really do. But..."

"But what? I'm sorry, Toshi, but for all my understanding, I don't want her to come before your own health and safety, much less those of innocents. She looks sweet and honest, but she told us she was around ninety, came from another world, and she freaking turned a dangerous villain into a pile of discombobulated limbs. It's a miracle he's still alive. And I'm not speaking about the Noumu of last time!"

Toshinori winced at the statement. True, Philae's Quirk was dangerous. True, she had barely left her enemy alive. True, he himself gave her too much credit considering the time he had spent with her. However, he was one to act partly with his gut instinct, and he would trust his first impression. She may be everything Tsukauchi might think of her, but he would not stop believing in her. It was impossible for him to put it into words.

"You already know where I stand," he replied at last. "I believe that despite the Quirk you were born with, despite the past you bear, you can tread down the right path. I saw her try to control her power, and I saw her want to protect me. Do you imagine? She, not controlling her Quirk, trying to protect poor quirkless me? No real villain would do that, now would they?"

He did not let his friend give him an answer to that.

"She swore to me she wanted to make things right with her powers, and for the moment she is, even if she's not totally there yet," he assured calmly, determinedly. "I saw what her Quirk can do to her, and I know what it did in the past. It was not pretty, and I guess you had reports of it at some point. I'm convinced that she only needs confidence, and certainly not reproach, to perfect her skills and become as valuable as any other member of class 1A. I understand what you wanna tell me, and believe me I think the same. Still, I can't just tell her I let her down. I keep to my promises."

He had told her he did not accept her past 'murders', and he would probably never brush them aside like nothing. But he had seen her take a few seconds, before she struck the villain. And she had struck downwards, not into his face, thus minimizing a little the impact her attack could have on the man. It had been intended and planned, more or less, as an attempt to spare him. She had not wanted to kill him. It was progress All Might, for all he thought, had to acknowledge. And he would push her to that direction.

"I know, I know," Naomasa placated, "calm down. Jeez, you get touchy with those things. I'm only worried about you. Your kindness will get you killed, one day, and you can't prevent me from thinking she's a potential risk for you. Her powers, if controlled by the League, could be devastating."

"That's why I have to stay by her side," the former hero stubbornly insisted, "so that they can't get a hold of her and her Quirk. The most threatening thing to her, is herself. I'm not good for much anymore, but I can protect her from herself, to an extent, and you witnessed she's perfectly capable of protecting herself against outer threats, should she need to. The potential and will are here, she just needs adjustments."

All the more because Toshinori had sensed a slight shift in Philae's behaviour as regards her link and powers, even if he could not pinpoint what it was. Again, it was a gut feeling, and he trusted it without asking. Maybe she would tell him later if he had been right or not.

Naomasa sighed, defeated. For now.

"All right, I get it. Though I want to ask her a few questions, alone. I need to interrogate her."

The blonde stiffened. His friend reverted back into a policeman, and when he was like this, there was no softening him. He worried for his student, since he did not know how she would react to a stern and unfriendly inspector bombarding her with delicate questions. Or maybe she would manage like a champ.

He would have liked to be here still. But he had no choice.

"Promise you'll be considerate."

Naomasa gave him a wry smile, which did not reassure him at all.

"I can't make that promise, Toshi. Not when state security is at stake. I'm sorry."

Toshinori had a retort ready, but a knock sounded on his hospital room's door and silenced them.

"Enter!," his friend called out before he could.

The door opened and revealed Philae and Izuku, carrying a large flower bouquet and a paper bag full of fruits. The boy was fidgety, intimidated by the presence of the policeman in the room, afraid of interrupting most probably. Phi, for her part, looked like she regretted coming. She was blushing faintly, and her eyes darted to Naomasa in slight worry.

For once, she had pulled her hair back into a long ponytail. Her face was clear of stray brown locks, and Toshinori got reassured to see she was alert, her eyes shining in the light filtering through the window. Her tiredness was visible, but not that present. She was safe and well, and that was all that mattered.

He also noticed just how young she looked, compared to her indicated age. On that aspect, Tsukauchi was right, it could be suspicious. Wondering how such a thing was possible, he reminded himself he, on the contrary, looked far older than he was. Age and appearance were different things, and if Philae's Quirk reinforced her looking young for her age... Besides, he had witnessed first-hand that she still had the spirit of a young woman the age of Izuku. So, to him, she was perfectly normal, and his policeman of a friend would have to learn to relax.

He only hoped she would remain this well even after Tsukauchi's relentless questioning.

"Are you busy, All Might?," Izuku asked timidly. "The nurses told us you could accept visits, but if we're unwelcome..."

"Not at all," the inspector answered standing up, "I was about to leave. Please take my seat, Midoriya. Miss Crawford, I'd like a word with you, if you don't mind?"

Philae watched him for an instant, before she nodded meekly. The green-haired teen looked between her and Naomasa, worry painted all over his freckled face.

"Is everything alright...?"

"Don't worry, my boy," Toshinori intervened, "Tsukauchi only wants to clear the happenings of the attack, and as Philae is one of the prime witnesses..."

"Oh, right! Sorry to pry."

He stepped away and closer to the blonde's hospital bed, letting Naomasa pass by him and go to Philae. Now in full inspector mode, he motioned her to go before him and followed her, closing the door behind them.

Phi had expected the interrogation. As she was the one who had flattened one villain into a wall, and nearly shredded another to pieces of rotten meat, she knew the police would have a few unpleasant questions for her. Nonetheless, it did not mean that she was prepared for this.

Naomasa, without his reassuring and comprehensive smile, was frightening. He seemed to be able to see right through her, but not in a nice way. He was looking for clues. Trying to pick her apart by the sole power of his gaze. Maybe it was his Quirk?

They got seated in a spare room, away from prying ears and eyes. Alone. And for the last few minutes, Naomasa had only been studying her. When he spoke, he used a flat, sterile, professional tone.

"I believe you know why we're here."

She took in a breath and nodded.

"Yes."

"Good. As you know, we put you under the supervision of the teaching staff at U.A., so that you could integrate into a learning programme fitting your abilities, according to our wish to give you the benefit of the doubt, as well as our need to keep you safe. We trusted you to some extent, because of a lack of information and our belief that we could keep the situation under control."

He paused. Then, he concluded, "We got a half-success on that regard."

So far, she could get where he was going. She waited silently.

"I will be clear with you," the inspector went on, "I don't trust you so much anymore. The interest you raise from the League of Villains oversteps our first intent to keep you as free as possible. We thought that under supervision, they wouldn't try anything. That you'd be able to control your Quirk and shape it into hero material quickly enough to stifle their wish to enrol you. To say it didn't go as planned would be a giant understatement."

Philae gulped slightly, fearing the rest. The policeman put his elbows on his knees and rested his chin on his joined hands, his gaze piercing her as if she was a butterfly under a pin.

"I understood it was Toshinori's idea to take you out on himself, thus exposing both of you, as well as innocent citizens, to immediate danger. This is not unusual for him to disregard his own safety for the sake of others, but I'm surprised by how simple villains had been able to reach you. That may be a mistake on our part, or not. In any case, I can't rule out malicious intent from you, and now I have urgent questions to ask you. You cannot avoid them, and trying to mislead this interrogation may not be in your favour. Whether I consider your answers truthful or not, will determine largely your ability to stay free. Do you understand?"

His distrust hurt, but it was understandable. She had no choice but to comply, and expressed her agreement. He nodded and produced a notebook and pen from his coat pocket.

"Alright. I'll ask short, simple questions, and make them more complex as we progress. First, what's your name?"

"Philae Rosa Helen Crawford."

It had been a long time since she last used her full name, courtesy of Orion when he adopted her, and it sounded strange in her ears. She was too used to hearing others call her Phi.

"Where were you born?"

"I think it was in Orleans, France."

"You think, or you're sure."

"I think."

She could not say more to that. She did not have any birth certificate to prove her point, and Orion had forged one when she became a Crawford.

"Mh." He scribbled something on the side. "When were you born?"

"Again, I think it was around 1930-something."

Dates were tricky with her. And again, without any birth certificate, neither she or the policeman could clarify this further.

Naomasa frowned in disbelief.

"That would make you a nonagenarian. No offence, but you look like a regular teenager to me."

He studied her tanned skin, athletic slender limbs, and fresh complexion devoid of wrinkles and other traces of age. Nothing made her externally different from her classmates at U.A.

She offered him a confused frown.

"I am."

"Care to explain?"

Her face soured into a regretful grimace.

"I don't really know. I remember a lot of things, but there are... blanks. Huge chunks of time I have no memory of."

Sh was so used to them missing, and her relatives never brought them up, so that she did not think about them anymore and tended to make do without them. Now that the inspector pointed out the irregularities of her existence, they came back to her face, in a painful reminder that her childhood had been anything but normal. She was a freak.

"I..." She licked her lips and gathered the strength to explain. "I feel as if I were put on hold for a certain period, then rebooted. I know time passed without me knowing, if only because of the dates, but I have no idea of how it did, and what I did during those periods."

"That hardly explains how your body can be this... preserved," Tsukauchi pressed on.

"I know. As I already told you, magical beings are not so common in my world, so we don't have studies on those strange happenings. Only tales and speculations. I don't think it would be relevant for you to hear old granny tales."

"Try me."

She blinked.

"Oh. Well, the most plausible answer would be that contracting with fantasy creatures, beings that are millennia old, affects us physically. Dragons survive dynasties, and when they create a partnership with a human, the human has to be able to sustain the link for a while longer than a mere century, otherwise it's pointless. So, the magic exchanged between me and the dragons, makes it that my body doesn't age in the same way."

She tried to put it into a logical light. As logical as a story about dragons could be.

"Again, this is only a theory, as I've never really aged like the average man, even if I only created my first bond at the age of six. Mentally six, I mean. And in body, which is weird all things considered. I think it was around 1945 then, and I was technically fifteen, but my body had not shifted."

She got entangled in her explanation, unsure of how she could turn it for the policeman to get it properly.

"Anyway, my biological father also told me once that our blood contained the power in itself, and that bonds only activated further powers. So, I guess I could have lived much longer than a human being, even without the draconic link, if not so long as with it."

Naomasa seemed to follow, as he fired his next question as soon as he finished writing down his last note.

"So, concretely speaking, how long do you think you could live with it, and without it, in average?"

Phi's face scrunched up in concentration.

"I... have no idea. I've never really asked the dragons about it. But Orion, my stepfather, once tested me for diseases, before he adopted me. He said that my cells lived ten to twelve times longer than an average man's. So, if we expand my life expectancy with this ratio, I could safely live about a good thousand years, maybe a thousand and five hundred. Without the link, it should be less, though I don't know how much less."

"That makes an awful lot. But you still have the mind of a teen, even when you're near a hundred years old, am I right?"

This made little sense. Even in their own tales, never had Tsukauchi heard of an ageless being remaining a non-adult in their head. Perhaps it was only folklore, but logic and simple observation wanted that wisdom came with years and experience, so his point still stood. Philae fidgeted.

"Again, I can only speculate. If I remember correctly, I slept for a very long time. And complete periods got wiped out of my memory, if I ever had memories about them at all. When my brother and I got abducted..."

"Hold on. Abducted? By whom? When? Why?"

Now he was lost. Was this the trauma she had mentioned on their first meeting? He needed to know more. This was an essential piece of information if he ever saw one.

"Oh, sorry. I explained things to All Might, but I guess he held up to his promise of not telling anyone..."

He got irritated. Toshinori could protect his student all he wanted, detaining information for the sake of protecting was not right. Tsukauchi would have to talk to his friend later.

"He did. Would you like to enlighten me, then?," he encouraged her, trying to push his anger down.

"Huh, well... yeah, I will." She hesitated a little, then continued. "My brother and I got abducted by the age of four, or five, and we were put into an artificial sleep. I think a few years passed, during which we got transported from our village in Greece, to Japan. When I woke up, we were around 1941 – I saw a calendar on the wall of a staff's resting room, once –, and I was turning four. I think. And even if we didn't sleep, I have a huge blank between the attack on my home, and my being in the lab. The first of a long list."

This got more puzzling by the minute. The inspector's frown deepened.

"So, if I follow you, you were both put into an artificial coma, or something of the sort, brought to a, lab and experimented on. Was it because of your Quirks?"

"To put it simply, yes."

"And to put it not so simply?"

Philae froze, more nervous by the minute. She did not like where this was going.

"I guess we had the potential to become weapons. No, I'm sure we were considered like these. To that regard, any means was good to turn us into these. Our Quirks were components of the weapon, and they needed to be awoken. We underwent genetic experiments, as well as physical testing, mental abuse, the like."

She did not explain further, but Naomasa did not need her to. He hummed pensively.

"I see. So, you didn't have the opportunity to mature according to your age before 1941. What about the fifty plus years after that?"

"I told you. Blanks. When the lab got, er, let's say shut down, it should have been the beginning of 1945. From then on, to 1989, I only have bits and pieces of memories, sensations with no connections whatsoever, and my brother refuses to open on the matter."

"He was there at the time?"

"Yeah... But he wouldn't tell about it, and it's been frustrating me for years. He simply told me I was out for a very, very long time, reduced to an empty shell. When my power violently awoke, my body could not sustain it and got severely damaged, as well as my brain. I fell into a coma until both were perfectly functioning again. I gathered as much. Kai won't tell me how I was, if I was able to do anything on my own or not, but for sure, it marked him enough so that he wants to avoid me knowing too much about it."

"How unfortunate."

The inspector's suspicion made Philae shiver. She felt helpless and accused of lying, even if he did not say it out loud. But she said the truth. She could only continue.

"I'm the first to suffer from it. Apparently, it took me a long time to heal, and to learn how to be human again. Because of that, my body could not develop like it should have, as it was busy surviving and mending itself before anything else. I might even have been clinically dead, but I have no proof of that. I don't know how magic contributed to my miracle healing, nor do I know if Kai did something with his own powers. The only thing I know, is that after that, my brother wouldn't talk about magic. That's all I can tell."

A pause, then, "I know you don't believe me, but... that's all I have. And I'm aware it's not much. I wish things were different, too."

Tsukauchi raised his head from his notes, his eyes bearing into hers. He found no trace of lies. Still, he did not let himself be convinced that easily.

"Speaking of your brother, how did he grow up?," he asked next.

"Kai... He, er, aged... Not in body, or at least, at our speed. So, I'd say he's got the features of a twenty-seven-year-old man. In spirit, he's over sixty, and his mind is sometimes at odds with his body."

Memories, this time, flooded her brain. She could still figure Kai sitting at his desk, a forlorn look on his sharp, but marked features. Years spared him for now, but past trials had taken their toll on him. He looked tired. Old. Weighed by experience and years alike. And yet, he could still laugh and watch her with unbidden, brotherly love. Putting her before himself. Loving her before everyone else. How she wished he could take care of himself, sometimes.

How she missed him...

"On some topics, he's a young man," she eventually spoke up, "but on others, he's acting like a grandpa. You can see in his eyes that he's older than what he looks, and he is, yet he's also according to his exterior age. He plays the piano, listens to operas, discourses on the political situation in South Ethiopia, and he refers to me as 'a kid of these days'. He looks at the world as if he knew everything of it and did not want any of its wonders anymore. He also plays video games, loves kick-boxing matches, board role-playing games, and hard-metal bands. Not to mention his shared passions with Orion. He laughs carelessly, even if those are rarer and rarer, and he often has a veiled gaze when he thinks no one's looking. In one word, he's... torn. And his sickness is weakening his young side and carefree smile, leaving only the old, empty eyes I came to hate."

"I see." Naomasa answered quietly, writing away, his brows furrowed in thought. "And your stepfather, how did he come to adopt you?"

"He did when I was... out. Again, Kai is vague about it, and Orion explains little more. I learned he was the son of one of the primary investors of the lab, Sagittari Crawford Jr., and he wanted to make amends for his progenitor's crimes. He searched for us for eight years, looking for clues of our whereabouts – well, mostly Kai's –, before he found us somewhere near Russia. As he adopted us ten years after his wife's death, I guess it was also a means to appease his mind."

"How old are you, in your opinion?"

"Huh. In mind, you mean?"

"Yes."

"I'm not sure... Orion adopted us in 1990, and according to Kai, it was around then that I began to come about and regain consciousness of myself, and my development actually resumed from that time, so it can be inferred that I'm seventeen, maybe eighteen?"

"We're way past 2007."

"Here, maybe, but not in my world. There, it's 2007."

"Right. And your control over your powers? The first time you fought against a villain, the Noumu, you had enough control to summon a dragon and roast it. The second time, you managed to sprout a tail and produce a screech to knock down two enemies on your own. And yet, I read in reports from Recovery Girl that you had an episode, during which you nearly got killed because you couldn't control your Quirk and used almost all your energy. Why is that, that you're so unstable?"

"... honestly, I didn't know until, well, earlier," she fumbled with words again, insecure, "when I went all-in to defeat the villain."

"Okay, continue."

"I think I already mentioned my powers were connected to my emotions." When Naomasa nodded, she went on. "During both fights, I had a strong urge to protect someone, or at least to knock down the menace. My wish to do something, my feeling of urgency, and maybe panic, echoed with the emotions of the dragons and provoked a chain reaction. It ignited their fighting spirit, and in return they shared their powers with me. My ability to fight is conditioned with the emotions and energy invested into the process, and it's something I can sense, strangely enough. But this was different during training."

"How so?"

"I had no enemy, and I was calm and carefree. As you may guess, the conditions were quite different, and I summoned a tiny dragon to maintain the link open and see how long I could sustain it. It was a test of endurance. Except I had no idea of how much energy I burnt in a peaceful situation, whereas I have a more acute sense of it when I'm fighting. Like when you're near death, your instincts kick in and tell you things you wouldn't be aware of normally. I didn't feel it when my body started to decline, and neither did the dragon, for it was probably too young. In retrospect, it was bound to fail from the start."

"You didn't know about your own Quirk?"

"How could I?" Now she felt desperate and angry. "I only used it like, what, a dozen of times? Not much more, and only for a few minutes. In my world, we tend to hide difference, we don't wear it like a banner in the street. It's unusual to step out of norms, and norms state that you don't have magic. It's impossible for most people. So, I've never trained my Quirk. Not that I wanted to, anyway. See how dangerous it can get."

Tsukauchi hummed and scratched something on his notebook, which began to be covered in scribbles. So, Philae was aware of the danger of her Quirk, and she purposefully avoided using it. That said a lot. But he needed to know some more, before he drew his conclusions.

"If I recap, you told me you had better control over your Quirk when in fighting situation, because of the strong emotions you can feel, as well as adrenaline rush and a better awareness of your own body. In a calmer situation, that control escapes you. Right. What about your brother's disease? Pardon my question, but shouldn't you be sick, too, if you didn't use your Quirk for so long?"

Philae gasped quietly and gulped.

"Theoretically, I should. Unused, my brother's magic backlashes on his body, damaging it faster than it could heal. I have no healing power, so I agree with you that I should be worse than he."

"But you don't. Why?"

"That's tricky. My own guess is that, unconsciously, I accept my condition. More or less. I wish I could be different, and I hate myself sometimes. Nevertheless, I know I was born like this, and I accept that. I don't turn my dragons away, I don't turn my back to my nature. I'm half-magical, and I won't change."

A pause. She sighed.

"But Kai isn't like that. He used to tell me stories about our ancestors, about magic and such. He doesn't anymore. He tolerates magic and fantasies in video games and films, but he can't stand them in reality. He doesn't want me to talk about it, the word 'magic' is forbidden... he associated magic with a curse. We're cursed. The second people noticed Kai's wounds healed faster than usual due to his magic, we were doomed. And in the lab, it got worse. From then on, we got relentlessly tested. My powers hadn't shown yet, so they used Kai's to make him suffer in front of me, hoping I would present something of value."

"So Kai presented before you did."

"Yes. And to him, his inborn ability turned into our downfall. It attracted attention on us, even though the villagers were quite secretive for the most of them. One was enough to sell us out to the invaders. Then, it was the symbol of our torture. Because he was magical, I had to be, too, and as we were young, we were considered breakable, malleable. So they insisted, again and again. And when I presented..."

"Yes?"

"When my powers awoke, my prime bond, the one from which others are created, was with Haliosade, Bearer of the Solar Essence. A king of sorts, for the dragons, or so I think. His power is immense, and it allows me to make contracts with others. My first contact with him, at a time when I needed him most, was based on one term. The pillar on which everything would be built later on. And young as I was, I didn't realize how important it was."

She paused again. Tsukauchi prompted her, even if he felt he already knew the answer.

"What was that term?"

"I... I was so distraught, that I only wished for them all to disappear, so that Kai and I could be free again. And that was just what Heliosade offered me: disappearance of all things. A vow to destroy."

There, she had said it. There was no doubting what had happened, and she knew that the inspector had understood. She only had to finish, now.

"As time went by, I met other dragons and contracted them, but even if no dragon is the same as his peers, the prime term remained unchanged. Until the last fight."

Naomasa took a few seconds to note everything down and digest the information. He could read between the lines, and guess what the girl – woman? – in front of him did not tell him. To be reduced to such a gruesome thing, no matter the age, was unimaginable. If Toshinori knew of this, no wonder he was so moved by his student, whom he actually knew more than you could think. When he spoke again, it was in a calm, softer voice.

"What changed?"

"I changed the prime vow. I refuse to kill and destroy. I... A hero's vow is to protect. Protect peace, protect the innocents, protect society. So, I wanted this to become mine. Ours. Our vow... And it worked. That's why I believe I'll be able to expand my control and train my Quirk properly, now. And to answer your previous question regarding Kai, he's refusing to do what I'm doing. He represses his nature. He contains his magic until it is ready to explode. And it's killing him. But I can't help it, and neither can he. So, I'm trying to find someone to relieve him of his burden. That's the least I can do. I... I hope you'll understand that."

She felt the policeman's gaze on her and refused to look at him again. He was judging her. Evaluating her. Eventually, Naomasa let out a heavy sigh and spoke again.

"You make this really complicated, Miss Crawford. On the one hand, I want to find the crack in your story, to dismember it and uncover how fake you are. It sounds so unrealistic, that I find it hard to admit there is some kind of sense to it. On the other hand, however, I want to believe your story. Toshinori, All Might, decided to trust you, and I've never seen him be wrong about his gut feelings. Most of the time, I go along with them. And you just tried to prove your truthfulness."

Philae felt a tiny spark of hope light up in her.

"I don't deserve All Might's efforts and kindness. However, when I told him this..."

"He brushed your comment off as nonsense," Tsukauchi finished for her. "Typical. He could be killing himself trying to save a kitten on top of a skyscraper, and still have this goofy smile, as if the only thing that mattered was the other, and not him. He's destructing himself. And to be honest, I'm worried you will finish him one day."

She started at that, her eyes as wide as saucers. She, destroying All Might? Would she really be able to do that? That horrified her.

Her reaction was not missed to Naomasa, who stored it in a corner of his mind.

"All Might was great hero, and now he's a very dedicated teacher. But he's too dedicated, and I fear it'll kill him faster than it should. Either he doesn't realize it, or he does and doesn't care. In any case, I need to watch out for him, in his place."

His eyes zeroed to hers, so serious that she felt he might kill her right this instant if she stepped out of place.

"Mark my words, Miss Crawford. I agree to letting him follow his instincts, which have never failed him so far. I wish to believe you will become a great hero, one day, and I want to believe in his ability to train and shape you into just that. However, if you show any sign of betraying him, or harming him in any way, I shall swear that no Quirk will be able to protect you from me. I'll have your head."

His threat hung heavy and ominous in the air, but Philae was not afraid. Her link hummed calmly in tune with her heart, and she held her head up as she levelled a gaze of her own. Her hazel orbs flashed with something Tsukauchi recognized as defiance, fierce determination that accepted no doubt.

"With due respect, inspector," she replied firmly, "I shall swear that if ever I were to harm All Might, voluntarily or not, I'd be the first to offer my head for you to take."

At this, she radiated a maturity Naomasa had never seen until then. She was as serious as he, and his mind felt oddly at peace with that. He nodded.

"Then I only have one question left: are you planning on staying? I understand you're here for a cure to your brother's disease, and you have yet to precise what type of healer you need. Speaking of which, I have a few names already, but I'd like to have some more before we filter them. Apart from that, I'd like to know if you plan on coming back to our world and get you pro license, once your brother is healed."

"O-of course, if you'd have me." Philae flushed. "I know I'm untrained, and my Quirk is mercurial at best, but I really think that being a hero would be the best use of it. It could benefit a lot of people."

"I see. Tell me, when will you be able to travel between worlds again?"

Now that was a question she asked herself regularly. She made a face.

"I wish I knew. I was given a device from a friend, who infused it with the ability to travel through dimensions, but it needs an awful lot of energy, and my stamina has not been at its best since I landed here. It could take months to be at full capacity again. It depends on if I have to use my magic again soon, or not. In any case, Orion has things covered for me, so my absence would be noticed, but not commented on."

"An heiress disappearing from the public sphere is not something I wouldn't comment on."

"When you sell people some excuse, along with a threatening enough persona, believe me, one is not too eager to come after you. Orion is a child in his head, but he's always covered me seriously and without fail. And Kai... well, I think he guesses what I'm doing, and he hasn't the strength to forbid me from doing it anymore..."

She looked so sad, that Tsukauchi decided he had enough for one day. That were acceptable answers, if he accepted the strangeness of it all. The policeman got satisfied for now and stood up to mark the end of the interrogation. Philae understood and followed his gesture, standing up herself, and the pair went to the door. Naomasa stopped just before it, and turned back to her with a small, tentative smile.

"I meant everything I said, but I think I won't have to put my threat into action. You seem to like that doofus, maybe as much as he likes you already."

She needed some time to figure out he was talking about her teacher. When she did, she flustered a little.

"How could I not like a man like him? I promise you I'll try to repay him anything he's doing for me. I'll always be grateful."

Tsukauchi believed that. He nodded and opened the door.

"I'm sure."

Two hours later

Izuku was a sweetheart, but right now, Toshinori died to know what Tsukauchi had concluded about Philae. Truth be told, he feared his friend did not approve of her and her Quirk anymore, and now that she showed progress, he was reluctant to let her go like that.

Is it just me, he suddenly wondered, or is it sounding very wrong, said like this?

He chased the thought away and tried to concentrate on what his protegee was saying. He was really proud of his heir, but he found it hard to focus on him this time. He felt ashame.

Naomasa eventually came back, without Philae, and the boy excused himself to give them some privacy, promising to come back soon. Toshinori smiled and waved at him, internally wondering where his other student could be. His friend did not put her into a cell, did he?

"You have very considerate students," the inspector said when the door closed, eyeing the bouquet that had been put into a vase next to the blonde's bed.

"They are," he confirmed, "I'm glad to have them all."

"So am I. All of them."

No more words were needed. Relieved, Toshinori sighed, which Tsukauchi noticed but did not comment on.

"I'm glad."

"Me too."

"Frankly, I was worried you'd put her to prison."

"Was you?" Naomasa chuckled. "No, I sent her back to U.A., with an escort. I preferred her not to be out too late and that she was back to safety."

"You were right. Thank you."

"She'll come back tomorrow, if you want to know."

The former hero formed an embarrassed smile, and Tsukauchi knew he had guessed right. A devilish idea popped into his mind, and he could not resist.

"A fiancée, huh?"

Surprised, Toshinori blinked owlishly, then huffed.

"Well, you sound just like my mother sometimes."

"I can understand how difficult it must have been for her, having a stubborn son like you."

"Oh, shut it."

The inspector laughed and pushed further.

"You can't blame me for being suspicious. Tamagawa told me you had a nice view in there, before a colleague could give her something to cover herself. Was he right?"

At that, the blonde went beetroot red and wished he could disappear into the mattress. He had waited for his friend to tease him about it, but not like this, and not now.

"Stop it. It wasn't funny. She didn't know."

"What? The greatest hero, All Might, flushes like a virgin in front of a piece of butt? I'm shocked!"

"She's my student, for God's sake!" Toshinori hid his face behind his hands.

"So? She's good-looking, isn't she?"

"I'm not answering that."

"Okay, okay, relax. Not my fault you're so prudish, it's just too tempting."

"Yeah, please refrain from teasing me when it concerns my students."

"Okay, Daddy Might. Don't punch my teeth in."

Tsukauchi watched his friend groan in exasperation, smiling fondly despite himself. Then, he said without thinking, "You really like her, don't you?"

The blonde glanced at him quizzically, not understanding if it was a jab or a real question.

"Well, yes," he finally answered, "I love all my students."

The inspector's smile got sibylline. He only nodded.

"You sure do."

But you don't realize how deep your love can be.

Hello all!

I hoped this chapter was not too confusing. I'm trying to infuse background info between episodes of action and/or fluff, and it's a challenge to have some balance in everything. Here, it was a chapter heavy with background story (bless Naomasa) XD

Concerning Philae's age, it's tricky and I cannot really give definite numbers. In fact, as you may have noticed, she's not sure herself, but she is around 17 in mind, with more maturity on some subjects. She can also cry like a child, because of her past trauma. Kai, for his part is unbalanced in another way, bcause he aged, and that's what is interesting.

As regards Philae's world, again, I take inspiration from different universes to create my own mix. To answer some questions, it may look like Avengers (Tony Stark being a great example of childish man), but nope, it isn't like that. It could be Fairy Tail concerning the magic stuff, and it's true I inspired slightly from Lucy's way of contracting her spirits, but it stops there. Things will get more precise with time, but I can't write a block of information and throw it at your face like that XD

I changed Philae's date of birth in chapter 7, because I just noticed I put 1920 instead of 1930... silly me XD

Anyway, thanks for all your comments, which help me build my story to make it as readable and nice as possible!

Cheers!