Three days later, it still felt unreal. Some part of Chisaki's mind wanted to believe that everything that had happened had simply been a dream, or maybe a nightmare. Within two days she had had her image of villains and heroes completely overturned, found out her idol was really not who he pretended to be, and accepted an offer to join a group of really nice, cool, human beings who only kinda sorta happened to be villains.

Yeah, it was all just a little bit too crazy to be real(and that's not even mentioning that she almost died), and yet it was real.

The idea of joining a league of villains should have been terrifying or at least off-putting, and yet Chisaki found that it held a sense of adventure and excitement. It was a little rebellion, a secret that someone like Kachaan could never take away from her. It was her little safe space. She hoped that maybe this was proof that she was no longer simply a cowardly, quirkless, middle school girl.

These were the sorts of thoughts that brought an eager smile to her lips as Chisaki sat in her classroom. It was the last period of the day and the teacher had long since ceased his attempts to hold the students' attention, and the students, likewise, had long since forgotten to pretend to be interested.

Bakugo and his friends had started some betting game in the corner of the classroom. Some girls had formed a small huddle by the windows and had begun to whisper amongst themselves. The rest of the students sat interspersed across the classroom, on their phones or napping with their heads on the desks.

By all accounts the whole scene was a blatant violation of the rules and on any other day probably would have meant at least a dozen detention slips, but the teacher was too tired to go through the trouble and the students were all more than content to spend their last period goofing off.

Meanwhile the clock ticked the seconds by, eternity by eternity.

Chisaki watched the timepiece on the wall with her eager green eyes, glancing furtively between its face and that of the teacher at the front of the classroom: she had been attempting to keep up with the notes from his ever-dreary lecture but couldn't help feeling the excitement of release from the stifling classroom. Suddenly something hit her lightly on the back of her head.

She flinched and turned around hesitantly, finding herself face to face with her 'good friend' Bakugo Katsuki, his hand still raised from the throw.

"Oh I'm sorry, Deku," He said with a sneer and a dismissive wave of his hand. "I was hoping to hit the trash can, but I guess that I must have made a mistake. You two look so similar after all." He leaned back, his arms splayed out, palms up. His shoulders twitched in a shrug and he gave her a condescending little smirk, as looked down his nose at her. "Especially since all you ever do is stink up the place and make things hard for other people." His friends snickered around him like sniveling rats and Chisaki felt herself sink into herself, wanting to hide and escape but being completely unable to. "After all, you aren't good for anything except occupying space and wasting oxygen." Katsuki said, his smirk growing with his ego. "Sometimes I pity you. It must feel absolutely horrible to be such a complete waste of space."

Chisaki's eyes burned and her stomach seized. She wanted to cry and yell all at once, but knew that she could do neither of those things.

Instead, she clenched her jaw and turned back around, her face a mask of timid unresponsiveness.

Yeah, some hero your going to turn out to be, "Kachaan".

She thought as she glared down at her notes, trying to hold back tears through anger alone.

I can't believe that we were ever even 'friends'.

Why do I even bother feeling betrayed anymore? After all, it's not like he'll ever see me as anything more than his emotional punching bag.

You know what? Katsuki Bakugo, I hope for the sake of the world that you fail to even get into UA.

If you ever became a hero, I'm pretty sure the world would end.

She gave a sigh and glanced at the clock.

It's just another fifteen minutes. Then you won't have to see him for the rest of the day.

She took a deep breath to try and calm herself.

Just another fifteen excruciating minutes.

Let's go back to thinking about Sensei and the League.

Yeah, the League.

Maybe they will help me change things so that people like Kachaan get punished for what they do.

Punished? Like how? With violence and pain? Death?

She shook her head, banishing the thought.

No! Nope, we are not going there, too dark. Lets change the topic. Yeah…Um, I wonder how Giran's doing?

I mean I didn't get to talk to him that much, but he seemed like a pretty okay guy. He even said that I wasn't creepy when I started ranting on accident. People have been telling me that I look demented for years, now it's so surprising to just see someone who doesn't mind when I rant. Isn't it weird how someone so accepting can be a villain?

Aren't villains supposed to be cruel, vicious, psychopaths?

The ringing of the school bell startled Chisaki out of her thoughts.

She hurried to get ready to leave and shoved her books in her backpack, all the while tracking Kachaan in the corner of her eye. He was still talking with his friends, but she wanted to be out of there before his attention shifted to her.

Today Kachaan seemed to be in the mood for some 'emotional release', and if he got the chance, she would become the vessel for that 'release'.

Yeah, no thanks. She thought at that notion. I'm getting out of here.

She was done packing up so she yanked her bag off of her desk and threw it over her shoulder as she walked towards the door.

She was almost there when Kachaan called her name.

"Hey Deku, where do you think you're going so soon? I thought that we could have a quick little talk."

Chisaki paused for a moment, her first instinct was to freeze and comply, to avoid any conflict. But then she thought about it, she didn't want to just stand there and let her 'old friend' harass her. So, she took a deep breath, set her shoulders, and kept walking.

"Deku?" Kachaan's voice came from behind her in uncharacteristic surprise, before it rang out in rage. "Deku! What the Fuck are you doing?"

She started running.

It occurred to her that, by tomorrow, he might want revenge for her little rebellion, but she dismissed the thought.

So, what, if he blows up at me later! She thought in agitation.

I just want to get out of here and meet up with Kurogiri. This prick can go fuck himself.

"Deku! Where do you think you're going?" He demanded as he charged after her. He was ready to yell a stream of expletives at the girl, but when he got through the door, the hall was empty and Chisaki was nowhere to be seen. "You're really going to regret that you quirkless little SHIT! How dare you walk away from me!" He roared, setting off a string of explosions in the palms of his hands.

Chisaki gave a sigh of dread as she barreled down the stairs, she had just barely managed to duck behind a corner and into the staircase when she had heard him shout; yeah, tomorrow was going to be bad.

She was at the park now sitting on the same bench that she had cried on just a few days before; but instead she was smiling now, not crying.

Today's going to get better. She assured herself.

My mom's at the hospital until tomorrow morning, and I get to hang out with Sensei and his group until nine.

I just can't wait to see them all again!

She was practically dancing in anticipation as she kicked her feet and swaying back and forth on the bench.

Ten minutes later Kurogiri opened his portal behind the shed.

This time Chisaki was ready and she passed through without any difficulties.

"Hello everyone!" She said with a bright smile as she landed in the bar.

Giran and Shigaraki were sitting at the bar, their backs to her at first, and Kurogiri stood behind them, cleaning glasses. Giran turned around immediately, he had a pleasant little smile on his lips and a cigarette in hand. "Hey there Kiddo. How you doin'?"

"I'm doing great." She responded with a wide smile, as she strolled up to the bar.

"I heard that you officially joined." Giran commented as Chisaki took a seat. "Congrats on that one… Sensei insists that you will be a big help." He said with a nod and a sideways grin as he took a drag from his cigarette.

"That sounds like a lot of pressure." Chisaki said with a bubbly laugh. "I'm just excited to be here."

"I'm glad to hear that." Kurogiri said with his smiling eyes. "Can I get you anything to drink?" He asked kindly.

"Can you do iced coffee?"

"Of course." He said with a nod as he began to fuss around the backside of the counter.

Chisaki looked around, momentarily confused. "Are we waiting for anything?"

"Not really." Giran said lethargically, letting out a lungful of smoke, his elbows were propped on the counter around a glass of gin. "Just waiting for Sensei to contact us."

"Contact us?" She asked. "How?"

"Through that TV there." He said, nodding to a TV monitor hanging in a corner, just above where Shigaraki was sitting.

Kurogiri passed Chisaki her iced coffee, and she took it, barely able to acknowledge it over her surprise.

"You mean that we won't be meeting with him in person?" She asked.

"Well of course not." Giran said with a shake of his head. "His health is much too weak to have so many visitors so often."

"But I met with him before…" Chisaki said in disappointment, "Is it not possible to meet him again today?"

Shigaraki gave a snort. "This brat," He murmured from his stool, he was hunched over the bar and glaring at her out of the corner of his eye. "Doesn't even know how lucky she was to see Sensei even once." He said spitefully.

"Shigaraki." Kurogiri hissed in warning. "You are being very rude."

"Rude or not, it's true!" He said with a shrug, his eyes still trained on Chisaki. "You took your time with Sensei for granted. Do you know how long it's been since I've seen Sensei-"

"Shigaraki!" Kurogiri chided more forcefully. "That's enough. Stop venting at Chisaki."

Shigaraki turned his glare to the bartender and opened his mouth to unleash his anger on the man, when the phone rang. Everyone froze.

Kurogiri turned to pick up the phone, shot a scalding look at Shigaraki from over his shoulder.

"Yes Sensei?" He said into the receiver as he turned his back to the bar. His expression changed after a moment of listening, and he nodded his head slowly. "Yes, Sir, I will relay the message to them." Another nod. "Thank you, Sensei." A pause. "Of course… Naturally."

There was a longer pause and Kurogiri slowly put the receiver on its hook. For a second, he cleared his throat nervously, and then turned to face the three keen faces that watched him. They had all been holding their breath.

"So…?" Giran asked slowly. "What did the boss say?"

Kurogiri sighed. "There has been a…change of plans." His eyes flickered towards Chisaki for a moment. "Unfortunately, we won't be able to give you the tour today. Some of our assets have been… 'breached', and the league has been rendered into a state of emergency."

Shigaraki narrowed his eyes. "What is it?" He asked gravely. "What did they hit?"

"I don't think that they necessarily meant to hit anything of ours," Kurogiri said with a frown. "it seems that a group of vagrants have barricaded themselves inside one of our warehouses and are attempting to claim the cargo inside. Unfortunately that warehouse contains a shipment of equipment for the NOMU project and-"

Shigaraki's eyes widened and then narrowed. "That's enough, Kurogiri," He interjected, shooting a glare at Chisaki. "don't say anything more!"

Chisaki looked around in confusion, she had never heard of this 'nomu project' thing, and couldn't make heads or tails of it, but Shigaraki seemed to think that she had some kind of use for this information.

Kurogiri shook his head. "It's okay Shigaraki, she's become part of the League, so it's perfectly fine that she hears about the project."

Shigaraki turned to the bartender in disbelief. "Did Sensei say that?"

Kurogiri nodded his head. "Yes."

Shigaraki turned beat red. "Why? Why would Sensei give this brat such special treatment?"

"I don't think that he is giving her any special treatment at all." The bartender said with a frown, noticing Shigaraki's discomfort. "Regardless of what you think, Sensei has placed you in charge if this little 'rescue operation'. Giran has been charged with the weapons and the gruntwork. I will handle the transportation of the goods, and whatever else you may need me for. Also, since she has no training, Chisaki is to accompany me."

Shigaraki stood abruptly and Chisaki's eyes went wide in astonishment.

"She's coming along?" He exclaimed in outrage.

"I'm coming along?" She said at the same time.

The two froze and locked eyes for a moment, shock passing between them, before Shigaraki scowled and hurriedly sat back down.

"Well, I'm not taking responsibility for her." He grumbled as he turned away.

"That's fine." Kurogiri said with a humorful little smile.

"Psh!" Giran exclaimed, a laugh bursting from his lips. "You two! Oh God! I'm gunna die!"

Chisaki felt her cheeks flush in embarrassment and tried to change the subject. "W-won't I be a burden, since I can't do anything?"

"Oh, don't worry about that, kiddo." Giran said, as he wiped a tear from his eye, still smiling. "I'm sure that Kurogiri will take good care of you."

"Right." The bartender said reassuringly. "You and I shouldn't be in any danger."

Giran stood from his bar stool, taking a final drag from his cigarette and crushing the butt into an ashtray. "Well, I guess that I should go get the details about this little mission. I'll take the liberty of prepping a few firearms too." He had turned around and was just beginning to walk away when he stopped and abruptly, an idea had occurred to him. "Chisaki do you need anything? A costume or any weapons?"

Chisaki was, once again, surprised. "N-no? I-I don't know." She looked at Kurogiri hurriedly. "Do I need anything?"

He cocked his head thoughtfully. "Well, a disguise couldn't hurt. We probably don't have many options though."

"Alright." Giran said with a grin. "I'll see what I can track down then."

"Let's reconvene in twenty." Shigaraki said begrudgingly. "I'm going to go breathe some air not contaminated by naivete and childish overdependence." He shot Chisaki a parting glare of disapproval before disappearing through a doorway, and slamming the door behind him.

With that, both Shigaraki and Giran were gone.

"Does he really hate me that much?" Chisaki said quietly. "I mean, I know that I haven't done anything to prove myself yet, but does he have to be so harsh? Am I really that useless?"

"I wouldn't worry about it too much," Kurogiri said reassuringly as he leaned against the far counter. "Shigaraki doesn't trust people easily, but once he gets used to you he isn't so bad."

Chisaki gave a little humorless laugh. "I don't think that he'll ever get used to me." She paused to take a sip of her coffee, a new thought occurring to her. "W-why do you think he saved me from that sludge villain? I mean, it's not like he had any real reason to save a stranger, right?"

Kurogiri shrugged. "I'm afraid that I don't know the answer. It would be best to ask him yourself, if you ever get the chance."

She gave a sigh of defeat. "Keyword being 'if'."

She finished her drink in silence and watched Kurogiri wash and put away glasses. He didn't look like he was in any hurry, nor as if he were about to go out, fight some dangerous criminals, and reclaim a warehouse.

"I thought that Sensei said that the league was in a state of emergency." Chisaki asked him after a minute. "Isn't everyone acting rather calm?"

Kurogiri gave a chuckle. "This isn't the kind of emergency where there is a need for immediate action, so it seems that we have opted to move with care."

"B-but you aren't moving at all." Chisaki said, biting her lip nervously. "No one is doing anything."

"Don't you go worrying about our pace, Kiddo." Giran said with a smile, as he appeared behind her. He was carrying a cardboard box and when he approached, he set it onto the bar top.

"I brought out all of our spare clothes, most of its old bartender uniforms. I think that this set should fit you." He said as he pulled out a vest top and a red tie. "We could give you this blouse, but all of our pants are too long. I assume that you'll be okay with just wearing your skirt for today." He glanced at Chisaki to assess her response. She nodded emphatically.

She had always dreamt of having a costume and, even if this was a villain costume and not a hero one, the idea of having her very own disguise was still thrilling.

"Good," Giran said, leaning back into the box and pulling something out. "I also found a gas mask. It might work to cover your face until we find a better option." He said as he laid it on the counter.

Chisaki picked up the article and held it with care. Its black plastic looked old and worn on the edges, but the glass lenses were still intact and they were slightly tinted; Chisaki assumed that it would make it harder to recognize her face through them.

"Oh yes, that one." Kurogiri said as he gazed over the bar top and into Chisaki's hands, "That relic may look battered, but it should still work."

Giran gave a snort. "We wouldn't have kept it otherwise."

Chisaki found herself smiling down at the old thing.

"What are you three doing in here?" Shigaraki said coldly from behind them. "This isn't the time to be playing dress up!"

Chisaki went rigid in surprise.

"We were just getting Chisaki something to wear." Kurogiri said calmly.

"Well, you're wasting your time." Shigaraki grumbled in annoyance. "We need to get ready to head out. I've composed a plan of action. Kurogiri, you're going to take us to the observation room on the second floor of the warehouse, that will give us a decent vantage point and access to the security cameras. Giran, I'm assuming that you have your weapons." Giran gave a nod. "Good. You're going to go first and neutralize any threats that may be present. Come back through and notify us when you're done. Then the rest of us will pass through and from there we will reassess the situation and decide what to do next." He said, passing a glance around the group. "Are we all clear?"

Chisaki clutched her mask and bit her lip. "W-what do you want me to do?" She said nervously.

"You will do your best to stay out of the way." He hissed, his eyes narrowed in revulsion. "Know that you are only coming along because Sensei ordered it. If you get weak kneed or break down at the sight of blood, I'm leaving you behind. Now, go change your clothes or whatever it is you need to do. We're leaving in five."

Kurogiri shot Shigaraki a look of disapproval, before turning to Chisaki, "I will show you to a place where you can change." He said kindly.

"Th-thank you." She said, avoiding eye contact, as she picked up the clothes on the counter.

Kurogiri led her to a bathroom in the back of the bar, and waited outside for her to change.

Chisaki dressed hurriedly and got a brief look at herself in the mirror, just as she secured the gas mask over her face. There stood a girl, but you wouldn't know if she was a girl if not for the skirt, who looked shaky, nervous and out of place.

The long sleeves of the blouse had been unreasonably long, so she rolled them up to her biceps, this left a contradictory look to the neat vest and suit idea; especially when paired with her mess of a tie. The only two things that seemed to fit her well were the vest and the mask. Everything else hung limply off her frame, hiding whatever few feminine features she had.

You still look like a wimp. She thought sourly. Well at least you don't look like Chisaki Midoriya. That's a plus…

Well, actually, you only look different-ish…

If someone who really knew you saw that green hair, they would probably be able to recognize you immediately.

Maybe if I carry myself differently, I won't be as easy to recognize…?

Chisaki took a deep breath and set her shoulders. The figure in the mirror unfurled a bit from its stoop, but it was undeniably still Chisaki Midoriya.

That's not that much better. I still look like a shaky disaster…

She thought with a sigh of defeat. Suddenly she felt a rush of groundless courage and shook her head resolutely.

No, you know what? You're going to do this.

Show Shigaraki up and prove him wrong. You're not a useless wimp!

A knock came from the door and Chisaki froze.

"Chisaki are you alright in there?" It was Kurogiri, "You've been in there a while and Shigaraki is starting to get impatient."

"Oh!" She exclaimed in surprise, "I-I'm coming." She was almost startled to find that her voice was slightly muffled and distorted behind the mask. "I was just having s-some trouble with the tie." She lied before thrusting open the door and stepping out into the hall.

"How do I look?" She asked, grinning nervously behind her mask.

Kurogiri admired her costume for a second. "That doesn't look too bad." He said with a nod of approval. "If you don't mind, may I fix that…tie?"

Chisaki smiled awkwardly and stood still as he redid her mess of a knot.

"There," He said standing back. "That looks much better. Let's get back to the bar then." He announced and he began to lead her back the way they had come.

They entered the bar to find Giran leaning against the counter and Shigaraki hunched over on one of the stools; the latter was covered in the dismembered hands that Chisaki vaguely remembered from the first day she had met him.

"What took you two so long?" He snapped as he turned to them.

"I-I'm sorry, I took a long time changing." Chisaki said nervously.

"Whatever," He growled, standing up. "we've already wasted enough time. Kurogiri open your warp gate."

"Yes sir." Kurogiri said, summoning up the black portal.

"Giran." Shigaraki said over his shoulder.

Giran gave a nod, drew his gun, and passed through.

Kurogiri went to stand next to Shigaraki, bending down to whisper something in his ear. Shigaraki in turn made a face of shock, and then shifted to discomfort as Kurogiri spoke.

Chisaki couldn't help but feel awkward as she stood there in the middle of the bar; she always seemed to end up standing uncomfortably in the middle of the bar.

I wonder what he's saying to him. I-is it about me? Should I be worrying about what to do next?

This just started so suddenly. I didn't expect that we would go straight into the battle.

I hope that Giran's doing okay.

Just then, Giran popped back into the bar, emerging from the portal looking no worse for wear.

"All clear." He reported.

"Good." Shigaraki said, standing and walking towards the portal. Just as he was about to step through he paused and turned to Chisaki, not quite meeting her eyes. "Make sure to wait for a minute before you walk through."

"O-ok." She said, stunned as she watched him disappear. "What did he mean by that?" She asked, looking at Kurogiri.

"I am not sure." He said elusively.

What could that mean? Does it have anything to do with what they talked about?

After a moment and the bartender stepped forward. "We should go through."

"O-oh okay." Chisaki said, flustered, dragging her eyes to the wall of shifting black smoke.

What's going to be on the other side? Are there going to be corpses? Giran did take a gun…would we have heard a gunshot if he had used it? No, probably not, I don't think that sound carries through these portals. So, does that mean that Giran could have just killed someone?

If I go through there am I going to see dead bodies? Is there going to be a lot of blood?

NO! Stop psyching yourself out! You're going have to go through there whether you like it or not. It won't be any different than the hero fights. You've seen plenty of gore at those, now you're just going to be a little bit closer to it, that's all it is.

"Chisaki?" Kurogiri asked expectantly from behind her. "You need to walk through." He said gently.

"R-right." She said, taking a deep breath.

She forced one foot in front of the other, bracing herself for the gore.

She shut her eyes tight as she passed through the gate, opening them hesitantly when she felt herself reach the other side.

She shouldn't have been so scared, there was no gore awaiting her; in fact, the room was impeccably tidy, save for some suspicious piles of ash and a fallen chair.

Instead of a mass of blood and corpses, Chisaki was facing a wall of TV monitors, each screen showing footage of what she assumed to be the warehouse. It was the kind of room that security guards used in movies, which Chisaki found almost comically mundane.

Shigaraki and Giran were standing by a door and speaking in hushed tones, no doubt planning their next course of action.

Kurogiri appeared behind her suddenly and quickly closed the portal.

He glanced around, his gaze lingering on the piles of ash longer than Chisaki thought it should have; but he didn't comment on them so she decided not to voice any questions about the oddities.

Shigaraki looked up, gracing their arrival with an impassive glance. "I can see that you two made it just fine. I've been wanting to get to work" He said, a spark lighting in his eyes and a bloodcurdling grin twisting across his lips, "Lets make this entertaining."