The sounds of spoons scraping against bowls rang out in an otherwise quiet room. Ochako and Mina sat beside each other as they enjoyed their breakfast sundaes, still in their pajamas. Aside from an occasional comment on how good the ice cream was, neither one of them had spoken much.

Ochako couldn't decide if this had been all been a good idea or not. It had been fun, yes, but also a little awkward. The two girls had acted as silly and carefree as they normally did when they hung out together, but there was this underlying tension to it all. They were both trying to ignore the clear elephant in the room.

Mina obviously had some thoughts about her friend's state of living. Even if she claimed not to, it was clear from her body language last night that she did. She was not a very subtle person after all.

Ochako knew her place sucked. She knew her food sucked. She knew Mina wasn't as okay with it all as she tried to let on. Who would be?

Both of them clearly wanted to address the subject, yet at the same time they also didn't. Neither wanted to be the one who killed the mood and ruined the fun. And so they just acted like everything was fine, goofing around as always. Unfortunately, that tension had grown overnight, and it was starting to get unbearable. The fact that they were barely talking was a testament to that.

Ochako shut her sighs, sighing. This conversation needed to happen.

"Hey, Mina?" The brunette turned to look at her friend.

"Hm?" The two locked eyes for a moment before Ochako sighed, turning back to her bowl.

"Can… Can you just say it already?"

"Say what?"

"You know what." She heard Mina put her spoon down and sigh. It took a moment for her to speak.

"…I just don't get how you can live like this." Ochako tensed up a bit; she knew her friend was thinking something along these lines, but that didn't make hearing it any easier.

"…I manage," was all she said in response. "It's not so bad, really." A clear lie, and Mina knew it.

"Yes it is!" Mina shouted, now facing her. "Ocha, come on! Be honest with me here! You're clearly not happy-

"Of course I'm not!" Ochako snapped, glaring as she whirled around to face Mina. "What, you think I like not having a bed, or eating like crap, or never going out!?" She shouldn't be yelling like this. There was no reason to get so mad at Mina for talking like this; any rational person would.

"No! That's the point!" Mina exclaimed, not so much angry as just generally upset. "Can… Can you really not do anything to change that?" Ochako shut her eyes, taking a deep breath. This was her first time getting a chance to talk about this all with someone, and she was letting all her frustration get to her.

"No, I can't. Not without hurting my parents." She was a little reluctant to explain the full extent of her situation, but if there was anyone who deserved to know…

"Huh?"

"Well, you know my family's just generally not very well off. And we live too far from U.A. to commute."

"Right, that's why you're even here." Mina knew that much at least.

"We were just barely making ends meet before I came here. And now my parents also have to cover the cost of this apartment and give me enough to live on my own with." Ochako paused, looking down a bit. Her friend stayed quiet. "So I figure I can help them out a bit by living as, well, cheaply as possible. That way they can still have a bit for themselves, you know?"

"…So it's a choice?" Mina was quite surprised by this revelation. Her friend gave a weak smile.

"Yeah. It's… Not easy, but… Mom and dad have given up so much for my sake." She could feel tears coming. "I figure I can do the same for them." Her voice was a bit shaky.

"Ocha…" Mina picked up on things immediately, scooching over to her and embracing her. Ochako hugged her back, sobbing lightly as they held each other. It felt good to tell all this to someone, honestly; it was like a weight had been lifted off her chest that she hadn't even been aware of.

They stayed like that for a few minutes, both girls crying softly as they hugged it out. Ochako found herself quickly calming down, the feeling of her friend's arms around her quite relaxing. She'd always enjoyed Mina's hugs.

"…Thank you," she said as they separated. "I… I really needed that."

"Yep, I've yet to find a problem that can't be solved with enough hugs." They two shared a laugh. "Now, let's finish these before they melt!" Ochako's eyes widened a bit as she looked back at her now partially liquid sundae.

"Oh, shoot, you're right!"

The two began to quickly scarf down the remains of their breakfast. Of course, it wasn't long before one of them cried out in pain.

"Ah! Brain freeze!"

"Everything alright, Mina?"

"Hm?" The girl in question looked up from her dinner at her mom. "Sorry, what?"

Mina had left Ochako's a few hours ago, having spent the morning and most of the afternoon there. A lot had been on her mind since then, and still was. Understanding her friend's situation better simultaneously made things more and less complicated to her head.

Ochako was voluntarily living the way she did. Well, mostly; from what she described, she likely couldn't change things that much. But enough to make a difference, at least. She admitted she didn't like it, but… She still went through with it. All for her parents' sake; a selfless act of love.

Mina found it extremely touching, and a fine example of why Ochako would make a great hero someday. But that didn't change the fact that she was worried for her friend. There was such a thing as too much self-sacrifice, after all.

On top of that, it honestly sounded like the whole situation was tough on the entire Uraraka family, not just Ochako. And that bothered Mina greatly; Ochako was one of the sweetest people she'd ever met, and it sounded like her parents were very much like her. They deserved better than what they were getting, and the pinkette really wanted to help.

"I asked if you were alright, honey," Mrs. Ashido repeated, concern in her voice. "You seem upset about something."

Mina had never been good at hiding her feelings, especially to her parents. She had probably been eating too slow or being too quiet due to thinking about Ochako so much.

"Oh no, I'm fine. Just a little tired." Not totally untrue; she hadn't gotten too much sleep last night. "Just had a bit too much fun I guess!" She forced a smile.

Lying wasn't something Mina enjoyed doing, but she wasn't sure she should tell her family about what Ochako told her. It seemed quite personal.

"Ah." This seemed to satisfy her mother. She then turned her attention elsewhere. "Makoto, sweetie, please. Manners."

"Mwuh?" The younger sibling had seemingly crammed as much food as he could possibly fit into his mouth, to the point his cheeks were bulging. Mina smirked.

"You look like a squirrel, dude." Makoto shot her a look but obviously couldn't say anything as he chewed his meal. He instead made some muffled sounds at her, which only made his sister laugh.

"Smaller bites, kiddo," Mr. Ashido instructed.

The family dinner continued. At one point, Mina felt her phone buzz. Taking a brief second to check it, she grimaced a bit when she saw what it said.

"Talk to us when you're ready, k?" It was from her mom.

She had never been a good liar.

The evening went on. After dinner, Mina went up to her room to think some more. Should she tell her parents? She didn't want to worry them, after all. And Ochako had never explicitly said not to tell anyone. Then again, it seemed self-evident that was meant to stay between them.

She could only tell them a little bit, but they could be as curious and nosy as she was. They WOULD find out the rest.

Groaning, the pink girl flung back onto her bed. So much was on her mind right now, and it was making her head spin. She wanted to help Ochako and her family so much, but she couldn't for the life of her figure out how. Just giving her some money wouldn't help much; it didn't fix the core issue. And there's no way she would agree to it anyway.

Ugh, if only there was some way to just eliminate the apartment from the equation entirely. That'd be the ideal solution, but then where would Ochako stay if-

"Oh my god."

Mina sat up straight, eyes wide as it dawned on her. Her face lit up as she realized there was, in fact, a way to do just that.

Not thinking about the details, the girl bolted out her door and downstairs. She nearly tripped as she slid into the doorway of the living room.

"Mom, dad!" Both her parents – and Makoto – were sitting around the TV as she entered the room. "We gotta talk, like, now!" The two adults looked at one another before muting the TV.

"Hey!" Makoto shouted. "What's the big-

"Makoto, not now," Mrs. Ashido interrupted as Mina walked right in front of the TV, barely able to stand still as she looked at her parents. "What's going on, Mina?"

"Yes, what's gotten into-

"Can Ochako move in with us?" Their daughter blurted out. There was a moment of silence as two stared at her with bewilderment.

"Er, I'm sorry… What?" Mrs. Ashido seemed uncertain she heard correctly.

"You're asking if your friend can…"

"Move in, yes!" Mina nodded vigorously. "See, she's living in a really crappy apartment right now because that's all her parents could afford for her and it's really tough on them so she's living on like nothing right now so she can help them save money and it really really sucks and she's super not happy and I feel super bad and I want to help out…" She paused to take a breath. "And I've been trying to think of what I could do like all day and literally like 30 seconds ago thought 'Hey she could move in with us' and-

"Mina, Mina!" Her mom cut her off, holding up a hand. The pink girl had been talking a mile a minute, making all sorts of erratic gestures as she excitedly the logic behind her request. "Slow down honey, please." Mina took a few deep breaths, realizing she was getting far too worked up.

"…Explain that again, please," Mr. Ashido requested. "Slower."

She obliged the request, going over in more detail the Urarakas' situation and why she felt this was a good solution. It would eliminate the cost of the apartment which would ease Mr. and Mrs. Uraraka's burden while also giving Ochako somewhere nicer to stay. And with her parents saving money, she could afford to spend a little more for herself without feeling so bad about it. It'd be better for all of them!

"I… I see." Mrs. Ashido was still a little taken aback by the request, as was her husband. "That is quite a dilemma they're in."

"Yes, but having her move in…" Mr. Ashido started.

"I know it's a lot to ask, but please!" Mina put her hands together as if to beg. "We can handle it, right? Come on, you guys know her super well already so it wouldn't be weird. She could stay in the guest room! And it's not like she'd be here forever. Just during the school year…" Her mother sighed.

"Mina…"

"If Mina's friend gets to live here, can one of mine too?" Makoto suddenly asked.

"Makoto, I swear to… Not now." His older sibling was not in the mood.

"What? If you get to have a friend move in, I should too!"

"Hey, nobody's moving in anywhere!" Mr. Ashido yelled. Mina's head snapped to him. Had he really just said hat?

"Daddy…" Her voice was soft and sad. "Please, I-

"Dear." Mrs. Ashido rested a hand on the man's shoulder. The two turned to each other. "You heard what she said. Her family's situation seems rather…" Mr. Ashido sighed.

"Yes, I know. It's just a lot to consider…"

"I agree." They were both silent for a moment as they continued to look at one another. A wordless conversation seemed to happen between them before they both turned to their daughter, who eagerly awaited their answer.

"I think both us need a little time to process this, sweetie," Mrs. Ashido finally said.

"But-

"No buts," Mr. Ashido held up a hand. "We aren't saying no. We just want some time to discuss it." Mina wanted to argue, but she kept quiet. They were right, of course; this was a pretty big request, and they should probably make sure they were absolutely okay with it before answering. The fact that they were even considering it was good enough.

"…Alright," she said, nodding once. "Thank you." Makoto looked back and forth at her sister and parents.

"…Soooo does that mean one of my friends could possibly-

"No," all three of the older Ashidos said in unison.

"Aw…"

"That'll be it for today. I'll see you all tomorrow."

Ochako felt relief wash over her as Mr. Aizawa dismissed the class. U.A. was a wonderful place and all, but school was still school at the end of the day. Nobody really liked having to deal with it.

"Well, almost nobody…" She muttered, eyeing Midoriya and Iida.

It had been a pretty standard day for the gravity girl. There had been no special exercises or tests of any sort, just the typical classes and workouts. Honestly, it was sometimes a struggle to focus on it all… Which may have explained her grades.

In terms of class rankings, Ochako was 13th out of 20. Not exactly good, especially considering she hung around most of the smartest students. Still, she was getting by. That's all that really mattered, right? Not like pros were judged on their math skills. Besides, things could be worse. She could be like-

"Hey!" Mina had seemingly appeared out of nowhere. Speak of the devil…

The pinkette was 19th in the class, just above Kaminari. It wasn't the biggest surprise to anyone who knew her; she simply didn't seem to care much about school work, and her attention span wasn't the best. From what Ochako understood, a major cause of her subpar grades was that she just didn't finish her assignments on time, if at all. She also barely took notes, meaning she had next to nothing to study for exams. This was strictly academics, of course; she was one of the top combatants in the class, often excelling at any training exercises. There was a reason she got as far as she did during the Sports Festival.

"Hey Mina." Ochako stood, greeting her. Her friend had been even more anxious than usual today, she had noticed. Even now she had a big grin on her face and was bouncing on the balls of her feet a bit. "What's going on?"

"I have something like, totally awesome to tell you!" Mina exclaimed cheerfully. She looked around at some of the other students as they packed up for the day. "Buuuut I don't want to say it here."

"Oh?" This piqued the brunette's curiosity. Why did she have to say? "Should we go somewhere else?"

"Yeah, come on! Quick, quick!" She seemed quite impatient as she tugged on Ochako's arm.

"Alright, alright. Just a sec…" The shorter girl finished gathering her things before following her energetic friend out the door. As they did, her mind drifted back to yesterday.

She really needed to have that talk. Telling Mina all that stuff about her family felt quite liberating, even if it was all a little embarrassing to admit. But now she didn't have to tiptoe around the subject anymore. At least, not with her.

It helped that Mina was very understanding about it all. She really was a good friend.

The pinkette led her brunette friend outside and a bit off the path. The fact that she wanted this much privacy was making Ochako even more interested. What could this be about?

"Alright, so!" Mina whirled around, clapping her hands together. "First things first… Gotta confess something. Promise you won't be mad?"

"Huh?" Ochako cocked her head. "Uh… Yeah, promise." What could she have possibly done?

"Okay, I may have… Well, no, I definitely wound up telling my parents about all that stuff you told me yesterday." She paused, biting her lower lip as she seemed to wait for her friend's reaction. Ochako was a little shocked by this revelation, and honestly a bit hurt. That was all pretty private stuff, and she wasn't sure she felt okay with Mina just telling people like that.

"Mina…"

"I know, I know. I wouldn't have said anything if it wasn't for a good reason." Good reason? "See, I needed them to know about it so they'd understand why I was asking them to let you move in-Oh, shoot! Getting ahead of myself aren't I?" She slapped her face, shaking her head. Ochako didn't really notice this, though; she had sort of frozen up both physically and mentally.

Did she just hear that right? Mina had asked her parents to do what now?

"I…" She shook her head. "I'm sorry, I don't think I understand." Surely Mina didn't actually mean-

"I'm asking if you want to move in to our place," Mina interrupted, a bright smile on her face. "You know, instead of living in that apartment."

"I… WHAT!?" Ochako felt herself start to lift off the ground as she involuntarily activated her Quirk. "M-M-Move in with you?" Where in the world did that come from?

"Yeah! That way your parents can stop paying for that stupid apartment!" She said it like it was the most obvious thing. "My folks decided they'd be okay with it and everything! You'd stay in the guest room – rent free, obviously – and just live with us during the school year!"

Ochako was stunned by this offer. On one hand, it was… Incredibly generous and kind. But on the other, there was a part of her that didn't feel right about accepting it. She didn't want to be a burden on Mina's family.

"I…" She shook her head. "N-No, I couldn't. That's too much to ask."

"But we're the ones offering! I'm telling you, it's alright!" Mina stepped forward. "Come on, think about it. You'd have like, an actual bed and good food and-

"I said no!" Ochako cut her off, a hint of anger in her voice that caused her friend to flinch.

There was another reason she wasn't sure about this whole thing: Pride. She couldn't help but think this all felt a little demeaning. Like Mina's family thought of hers as a charity case.

"I've told you before, I don't… I don't need help, Mina. I'm getting by just fine." The pink girl was silent for a moment, then sighed.

"I… I know you don't need it. I just..." She looked down. "You're all giving up so much for each other when you shouldn't have to. And like, I know you guys can handle it. You're tough, and I bet your folks are too. But just…" Another sigh. "I just thought this would make things better for everyone."

Ochako turned away, also sighing. She needed to calm down and actually think about this. Mina was right; Ochako's parents were giving up a ton to help her achieve her dream, and she in turn was giving things up to help them back. Neither party wanted the other to be unhappy, but in a way they both were.

"…Your parents are definitely okay with it?" Setting aside her pointless pride, that was really the only thing keeping her from agreeing to this.

"Yes. They spent like, all night discussing it apparently."

God… It really did make everything better, for both her and her parents. Plus, she'd be getting to live with her best friend.

The brunette turned back around, smiling.

"I probably need to talk about it with my parents first, but…" Mina brightened up. "That does sound nice."

"Okay, sure! Talk to your folks and then let me-oof!" She was cut off as Ochako suddenly pulled her into a tight hug.

"Thank you..." She said softly as Mina hugged her back. "I… Really, I don't know what to say."

"Hey, helping people's what heroes do right?" The pink girl giggled. "Besides… You're my friend, Ocha. Friends look out for each other."

The held each other for a little while more.

Mina lied in bed staring at the ceiling. It was late, but she wasn't the least bit tired. Sitting up suddenly, she checked her phone, as if expecting there to be a message.

Nothing.

Sighing loudly, she flopped back down. She'd lost count of how many times she had looked now.

"Come on…" Ochako hadn't gotten back to her yet about her decision. It sounded like she'd be going through with it, but if her parents said no…

She jumped a bit when her ringtone went off. Scrambling over to her nightstand, she answered the device without even checking who it was.

"Hello? Ochako?" She was practically shouting.

"Hey." Oh good, it was her and not some telemarketer. "So, uh, I talked with my parents and well…" She paused; Mina bit her lip, anxious as all hell. "We'll need a little time to deal with the apartment, but we all agree it'd be best if I moved in with you."

"YES!" Mina cheered, literally leaping out of bed as she raised her arms triumphantly. Her phone actually flew out of her hand she was so excited. "Oops!" She managed to catch it before it hit the floor, though it bounced between her hands a few times before she got a grip. "Uh… Sorry about that."

"No problem!" She could hear Ochako holding back laughter on the other side. "But anyway, I'll let you know when we'll be set. Sound good?"

"Yep! Oh man, this is gonna be great! Sleepovers every night!" Mina had to stop herself from actually jumping for joy; she didn't want to wake the whole house up.

"Yeah… Again, really, thank you so much. I… I can't say it enough."

"Aw, it's nothing! Like I said, friends look out for each other, right?"

"Right… Anyway, it's late so I'm gonna get some sleep. Night!"

"Night!"

Mina put her phone back on the nightstand, letting out a content sigh as she lied back down. She squirmed under her covers, giggling like mad. This was really happening!

Knowing that Ochako was getting out of the crummy situation, knowing her whole family would be happier… It just made Mina feel good. The fact that it also meant her best friend was going to be here all the time was just a bonus.

But what a bonus it was! They could go shopping, or do each other's hair, bake cookies together… There was going to be so much to do!

She squealed with delight as she continued to think about all the fun they'd have together. At some point she managed to wear herself out as sleep finally overtook her. There was a smile on her face as she slipped off into dreamland.

Elsewhere, Ochako was also sound asleep. And she was smiling just as much as Mina.

And with that, the story can start to really kick off. How will Ochako adapt to her new life? Find out next time.

And yes, this still totally is a ship story. Just don't want to rush right into it.