The trip to Kiyashi Ward Shopping Mall was something that Mina had been looking forward to since the beginning of the semester. Truthfully, she'd been to the shopping center plenty of times, but this was the first time she had the chance to go with the vast majority of her class - a fact that was not easily missed by anyone. Bakugou had, for all intensive purposes, told them to 'fuck off', so she wasn't too sore that he wasn't present. Todoroki, on the other hand, had something he wanted to do, and kept it rather vague.

"I can get your stuff, if you like?" Yaoyorozu had asked, and the half-and-half user blinked, before smiling faintly, and nodding in appreciation. Mina hadn't missed that exchange, and had her eyes set on the tall girl's form, ready to pounce and get some answers from her Vice President.

Before she could, however, another target walked into her sights, and made her forget all about her plethora of questions.

"You were so cool during your fight, Midoriya!" Kirishima said, pumping his fist. He clasped his hand on the smaller boy's shoulder, causing said boy to laugh nervously, but look at him with an appreciative smile.

The look seemed so pure. "I-it was nothing, Kirishima. Really! Kacchan did a lot of the work... I just kinda picked up where I was needed!"

"That's not true!" Sato said, placing his hand on the boy's other shoulder, albeit, far gentler than Kirishima had, despite his much larger frame. "You really flexed those big guns, there. I think I speak for everyone when I say it was pretty cool watching you work!"

Midoriya blushed a deep red, and rubbed the back of his head. Ashido smiled, seeing that. She wasn't sure what it was: she'd learned his secret only about a week ago, and yet, somehow, she found herself suddenly drawn to him like he was a magnet, and she was the metal. He was captivating, and not in the way she'd ever thought someone would be. He wasn't smooth, or cliché. He wasn't even confident.

He also had no idea he was drawing in her attention, soaking it up like a sponge in water. As far as he knew, she was just as interested in his fight with All Might as anyone else; but, as far as she knew, he was just a mystery she knew nothing about. She knew she felt strongly about him - but it was all admiration. She didn't know him. She'd barely spoken to him. For her to have any sort of crush on him would be... ridiculous, honestly! It would be unfounded! He was cute, but things like that didn't just... spontaneously happen, right?

Or did they? Wasn't that the whole point of a crush? It was irrational - founded on... practically nothing. That's why they were so frustrating.

He kept talking, obviously trying to brush off the compliments. "I-it means a lot to me! But, you guys were just as cool, in my opinion!"

Sato and Kirishima exchanged a grin. "We failed, dude! We didn't even get a hit in!"

"No... but, that doesn't mean you did badly. You really showed your strength... a-and, it's hard going first!"

"It's even harder going against All Might, though," Kaminari said, coming from behind the two melee-fighters, taking an earbud from his ear, in order to catch the conversation better. He grinned at Midoriya's expression. "Dude, just take the compliments - you were super awesome!"

"I-I just... don't feel like I did anything? I didn't beat All Might," Izuku mumbled.

Even though she wanted to face-plant, she didn't want to key in Midoriya - or any of the guys - that she was eavesdropping. Of course he'd feel like he hadn't done anything, since he hadn't actually defeated his favorite hero! Even though he seemed like such a docile person, Mina was beginning to learn that he had as much personal honor as anyone else in the class. Running away from a fight... the final exam had served a darker, more sobering reality to her, and to everyone else. Sometimes, there'd be opponents you couldn't defeat on your own... and you'd have to run.

It wasn't an ideal strategy, but it beat getting murdered, and it did have significantly more benefits than just surviving. Though, for some of her classmates, Ashido knew running was all but an impossibility. Kirishima, for one, would be held by his 'code of manliness', and would have refused to use the exit, even if it were right in front of him. Bakugou was another obvious choice, and it was clear as day that he hadn't wanted to settle for using the gate as their win-condition.

But Midoriya...? She wasn't exactly sure where he stood. Surely, he wanted to use the gate as their escape. But only because it was All Might. Would he have felt okay fighting someone less foreboding? Would he have willingly stood up to another teacher, aimed for incapacitation, and only used the escape route if he had to?

It was just another question she had on the growing list...

"Landing a hit on All Might practically counts as beating him," Sato reasoned, patting Izuku on the back.

"I wouldn't have even touched him, let alone tried to fight him..." Hagekure added, bouncing up to Midoriya. "I would've hid and snuck to the exit!"

For someone invisible, that made the most sense, Mina thought with amusement. Her grin kept growing as she watched Midoriya's flustered state grow more and more with each person that came up to compliment him. There hadn't been a lot of time after the exam to speak, especially since both he and Bakugou were taken to the infirmary with various injuries that needed treatment. And once they were back in class, and Aizawa revealed his practical ruse (again), they'd set off for the Mall, not taking much time to chat idly. Now, though, they were on their own schedule, and everyone needed to swarm the strange strength-enhanced teen.

From the corner of her eye, she spied Kirishima giving her a look, and realizing that her gaze had been locked on the green-haired teenager. With a wide smile, flashing his sharp, white teeth, he waved at her, and called out, "Hey, Ashido, what did you think about Midoriya's fight?"

She blinked; she'd just been outed.

Her heart-rate picked up a touch and she felt a tad bit of warmth spread through her cheeks as Midoriya looked at her with his wide, innocent emerald eyes. Some sort of sensation seemed to course through her when they locked eyes, and for just a second, the rest of the world faded into oblivion, and it was just her, and him, staring at one another.

Then, she cursed, and tried to play it off. "He moved like a champ!"

Of course, this just sent another flush of red across his cheeks, and he looked away awkwardly, to Mina's relief. Someone called for everyone to group up, and the decision was unanimously made for everyone to go shopping for the things they needed, and they'd group up as things went on. This was probably for the best, though Ashido saw mini-groups break out between mutual friends, and they trekked off, excitedly, in a random direction, laughing and smiling.

"Yo, Ashido," Kaminari hollered. "You comin' with us?"

His group consisted of himself, Jirou, Sero, Sato, Kirishima, and, most surprisingly, Yaoyorozu. It was an odd fit, but she smiled; the taller girl had some social anxiety at times, and this was a perfect opportunity for her to break out of her shell a bit more. She went to respond, but in her peripheral vision, she noticed something odd - Uraraka was rushing away on her own... leaving Midoriya all by himself.

Confusion - and a bit of hurt - was on his face, but ultimately, he sighed, and resigned himself to going off on his own. He readjusted his backpack, and began looking around, appearing quite overwhelmed.

Had he ever been to this mall before? It was pretty popular, and for her personally, it had been a regular destination of her's in middle school, but judging by his expression, it was entirely possible he'd only been once or twice, and he'd never learned the layout. Plus, with all the people around, it might have been a bit overwhelming for his skittish nature.

She decided to pity him a bit. "Hey, Midoriya," she called, practically skipping over to him. He blinked and turned toward her.

"A-ah, Ashido!" He greeted. "What's up?"

"Nothin~" She sang. "You're lookin' a bit lost; wanna come with us?"

He didn't seem apprehensive, which Mina took as a very good sign. He hesitated for a second, glancing over at the group she was referring to, before he tightened the straps on his backpack and smiled nervously. "I don't want to intrude..."

"C'monn! You wouldn't be!" She pointed toward the direction of her small group, which picked up on her intentions rather well. Kirishima was clearly beckoning him over, waving enthusiastically, while everyone else was a little more reserved. Kaminari gave him two thumbs up - which looked remarkably similar to when he'd discharged past his limit - and even Yaoyorozu was gesturing for him to come over.

It was all enough, and he smiled. "Okay, thank you for inviting me!"

She was sure a tinge of lilac was touching her cheeks - curse her hormones - but she brushed it off and slung an arm around his shoulders, pulling him forward with her, despite his rapidly reddening face. "It's nothing, dude! You're our friend!"

Friend.

Were they friends? He'd waited for her after she'd fainted - and even walked with her to her train. They'd made a quiet vow to hang out more, and of course, she thought they were friends simply because they'd talked, but... he was an interested individual. She, nor really anyone knew how he ticked, so there was always that subtle chance that he didn't think they were friends. And, surprisingly, she felt her heart sink a little bit at that thought.

Why though? Why was she so upset at the prospect of them not being friends? She had plenty of great friends already; people who'd give her the shirt of their back, if prompted. So why did it feel so... upsetting that he might not consider her a friend?

"Well, when you put it like that..." Midoriya said with an embarrassed smile. And just like that, the heavy feeling was released, and Mina's grin returned in full-force.

Ignoring the fact that she still had her arm around his shoulders - which forced her to raise her arm, as she'd never really noticed that he was just a tad taller than her - she pulled him over to the small group of their classmates, and grinned as they greeted him in their own unique manner. Once all the pleasantries were exchanged, a decision was made to get all the clothing that was needed, along with any random fitness equipment, since Sato, Kirishima, and Midoriya all wanted to get some weights and bracers.

Without further ado, the group began walking, everyone falling into comfortable conversation with one another. Sato, Kirishima, Sero and Kaminari began discussing the implications of their extra training they'd be forced to partake in, while Midoriya found himself talking with the polite Yaoyorozu, a gentle conversation about various things, including the briefest mention of Todoroki, leaving her to follow behind - not that she minded. It gave her a chance to watch all of her friends evenly, although her gaze subconsciously settled on the green-haired teenager.

Before she realized what she was doing, she was staring at him, a small smile touching her lips.

He was changing more than he realized.

His confidence was beginning to pop out in random instances, and while he wasn't a social butterfly like her, he was starting to branch out, and talk to more people than just Uraraka and Iida. He no longer looked overwhelmed in the face of a new conversation, despite the unfamiliarity he might be placed in, and he made active attempts to contribute to conversations if he was included.

Slowly, day-by-day, he was breaking out of the shell he'd entered U.A. in. It was hard to judge how far he'd emerge, since she had no idea what truly put him in such a guarded state before coming to U.A.

Obviously, there was the One-For-All fiasco, and his quirkless status, too. Since he hadn't said anything to her, it was still just a speculation, but it had plenty of foundation behind it. Bakugou's vulgar temperament concerning the timid boy's quirk was even more indication that something had changed, unless he was just being a pretentious ass - which was possible - but something told Ashido that the sandy-haired teenager wasn't that petty.

Jirou non-chatlantly pulled the pink girl to the side, a bit of distance between everyone, and gave her a quizzical look. Ashido blinked, and slowly asked, "what's up?"

"You and Midoriya. What's going on with that?"

She caught on fast.

"What do you mean?" Ashido asked casually, folding her arms behind her head as she walked.

"You know what I mean... i-it's kinda unusual for you to seek out someone... like him." The hearing-jack heroine kept averted her eyes, and Mina realized she was probably fairly nervous to be bringing the topic up. But there must have been some reason for her doing that in the first place, right? And there was a bit of truth to Jirou's words. It wasn't as if it was completely unusual for Mina to find a new person to socialize with - after all, she was the very definition of a social butterfly - but, it was a little strange how she'd randomly sought out one of the more shy people in the class. She couldn't even use the excuse that he was the shyest, because Koda and Todoroki were both quieter on a daily basis.

The only thing that Midoriya really had over them, was his mysterious quirk factor, along with the radical changes in personality. So... she decided to roll with that.

"He's unique; I wanna get to know him! I mean, we're all gonna be heroes anyways, and he seems like he'll be great at it." It wasn't a lie - he probably was going to be a great hero - but it wasn't the truth, either. Bringing up One-For-All... with the nothing she knew about it... it didn't seem like a good idea. Especially considering the fact that she hadn't even spoken to Midoriya about it. If a rumor was kindled, she knew that it would eventually come back to her.

That didn't even consider the implications it could have on the green-haired teenager.

Jirou's gaze narrowed. "So why is your heartbeat picking up...?"

Shit. She'd forgotten about Jirou's magnified hearing.

"Wha-"

"Ashido, if you don't mind my asking," Yaoyorozu cut in, unaware she was saving Mina from the interrogation, curtesy of Jirou. "What kind of fabric is your hero costume made from? I was looking into re-inforcing my own, following some recent events, and I was looking for recommendations."

She sighed, and quickly slid back, slipping between Yaoyorozu and Midoriya, and answered the question with vigor (a weak repayment for Yaoyorozu's timely save), but couldn't miss the look that the hearing heroine gave her, silently promising that they were not yet finished with their discussion.

The rest of the shopping trip went off without a hitch... with the exception of Midoriya getting separated and cornered by a villain.

Ashido found herself cursing and hissing quietly, pacing back and forth as Midoriya was held in a police tent, questioned by the lead investigator of the Villain's Alliance case. She hadn't seen him since he disappeared, but according to Uraraka, he'd looked fairly defiant, even in the face of a very dangerous opponent. The pink girl had smiled at that - he was full of surprises, wasn't he?

"Calm down, jeez, you'd think you were his girlfriend by the way you're acting," Kirishima teased, idly sipping on a drink he'd grabbed from a nearby vendor. Mina scowled at him, but didn't reply. She had every right to be worried! What if that villain knew the connection between Midoriya and One-For-All?!

... It was unlikely, she reasoned. There was practically no reason that any villain would conceivably know about the existence of One-For-All, let alone care about what Midoriya's quirk was. He was strong, but so was Sato, under the right circumstances. They wouldn't know to single him out specifically... it had just been a freak, random occurrence.

From the look and sound of it, it was the same hand-obsessed villain from the USJ; which meant, he was closely watching their class... and probably just waiting to strike. But, yet...

"Aren't you worried at least a bit? I mean; the villain found us. Doesn't that... y'know, scare you?" Mina couldn't trust that no one was scared. They were all still high schoolers!

Kirshima exchanged a look with Kaminari, and shuffled awkwardly in place. "It's not that I'm... not worried... but, we came to U.A. for a reason, remember? We talked about thi-"

"We talked about trying harder - not ignoring signs of danger!" Mina retorted.

"No one was hurt," Kirshima replied, crossing his arms.

"Someone could've been! This guy... he tried to kill All Might! I don't think we should ignore that!"

Kaminari decided this was an ideal time to step in, sliding his body between the feuding parties and putting his hands up in a defensive position. He seemed a bit nervous, but seeing as how no one else from the group was willing to stand up and stop the argument, he decided to bite the bullet.

"Heeeyyyyy now, let's just... calm down?"

From the bench she was sitting on, Jirou sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "What an effort..."

Kirshima didn't push past his friend, but didn't back off, either. He looked at Mina defiantly, though there was an ounce of concern as he stared directly into her eyes. She stared back, just as defiantly. The two refused to budge, and for an instance, it became a game of will - the loser being the one that would back off, first. Finally, Kirishima sighed, and stuffed his hands into his pockets in defeat.

"What's gotten into you? You're not... normally like this."

Half of Mina wanted to snap at him for such an insolent comment. But... the other half of her talked her down.

He was right.

This... this wasn't her. Sure, she'd been all sorts of freaked out during the USJ attack, and she'd admit to everyone that she'd cried during and after All Might's arrival, even shaking senselessly in her costume before he'd arrived. She knew she was training to become a great hero - but she hadn't been prepared to face the end of her life before she'd had a chance to learn what her life even meant! She had goals... aspirations she still wanted to accomplish! She hadn't even had her first kiss, yet!

And yet, she was forced to contemplate her own mortality at the hands of people she'd never heard of... all because they wanted to kill All Might. Yes, she'd been scared.

But this... this wasn't her. Midoriya... he wasn't weak. He wasn't even hurt. Surprised, maybe. But she doubted he was in there, breaking at the seams like a toy that had its stitching ripped off. No, she was losing her wits because... she had no idea what to do.

The stress was eating her alive. The uncertainty. The fact that she was consumed by guilt. Secrets had... always been a little bit rough on her. She was a social person - secrets were just locks to doors that she wanted to go through. Normally, she'd end up blurting the secret out, or she'd confront the person and convince them to be open - if they were comfortable with it. But this...

This wasn't a meager secret.

She couldn't look at Midoriya the same. Sure, she saw his cute smile, radiant eyes, infectious smile... and it all seemed to glow a bit brighter, knowing what she knew now. But she also couldn't accept that every time she looked at him, she might see him for the last time.

All of her thoughts stopped at once.

...For the last time...

That... that was... wrong.

It was correct, but it was wrong. She actually felt a bit of shame creep up on her. She'd been thinking about everything so wrong.

Every time she looked at any of her classmates, whether that be Kaminari, Yaoyorozu, Shoji, even the teachers, there was the same prospect looming over their heads that was looming over Midoriya's - they might not be there tomorrow. Everyone was training to be a hero... everyone was going into a profession that included death as a possible outcome. Midoriya's circumstances were... tragic, at best, but... it wasn't like he was alone.

She'd been fusing over his future, and ignoring their present. Her present.

"A-Ashido?"

She blinked.

"Are you okay...?" Kirishima said, all evidence of his defiant stance having faded away with his growing concern. A pang of guilt slipped through her chest, but she pushed it aside, and smiled sheepishly, rubbing at her arm.

It was time to get back on track. "Yeah. I... you're right." Kirishima blinked; he obviously didn't expect things to go the way they were. "I've been a bit out of it. I think I'm just stressed, but that's no excuse. I'm sorry..."

"I-I mean... it's not all your fault. I guess I should've been a bit more aware of what I was sayin'. That's not very manly of me, is it?" He said, rubbing at the back of his head. Mina almost snorted; his concern with manliness was rather spontaneous, concerning his demeanor in middle school, but ever since she'd seen this change of his, she'd just decided to let him figure it out on his own. No amount of her own involvement was going to fix anything in his life, especially since the two weren't precisely best friends prior to their induction at U.A.

Even so, she appreciated his apology, especially considering he didn't even have to give her one.

"If, you know, you need to talk..." Kirishima trailed off, but his meaning was loud and clear, and Mina couldn't help but smile in appreciation.

She nodded. "Yeah, I hear ya. I just gotta figure some things out."

It was hard to ignore Jirou's pointed gaze, but somehow, she managed to keep her eyes focused on the red-haired teen, and away from the prying eyes of one hearing heroine. As much as she wanted to avoid thinking about it, she had already come to the conclusion that Jirou knew something. What that something was... she didn't know.

But come the training camp, she'd sit the punk-rock girl down and figure it out.

Though it seemed like hours, it was only a handful of minutes that passed before a familiar green-haired classmate emerged from the police tent, looking a little shaken up, but no worse for wear - especially considering his history of injuries. His jade eyes were tired, clouded with multiple emotions, and there were faint bags under his eyes, along with a slight sag in his posture.

In an effort to lighten the mood, Kaminari grinned and offered Midoriya a thumbs up, along with a poorly thought out greeting. "Wow, look at that - everything's intact!"

A few glares caused him to clam up as he put his hands up in defense, while Midoriya blinked in surprise, and sheepishly rubbed his arm, averting his fatigued gaze. Uraraka immediately rushed up to him, but he delicately pushed her away, his eyes not meeting hers. Huh. When had that happened?

Their interactions had always been... warm. Bubbly. Honestly, those two ended up being the talk of the girls more often than not, just because of the presumed connection between them. They were the two most innocent people in the class, fueled by invisible feelings that may - or may not - be hovering around them, gently fueling their awkward, teenage interactions. In the hectic lifestyle that was the heroics course, the encounters they shared - and the stories - were a welcomed change of pace.

But if they weren't talking...?

Mina thought back to earlier, when Uraraka had run off, leaving Midoriya behind without a second thought. Maybe that wasn't quite right... technically, she might not have meant to, but nonetheless, she had definitely left him behind, but there had been no indication of why. Had something happened then? Or did something happen before that? Uraraka hadn't been acting strange when Midoriya and Bakugou were taking their exam... so it had to be very recent.

Uraraka looked like she wanted to say something, but didn't seem bothered by Midoriya's silent request for space, though it had likely been because she's all but jumped up on him. Instead, she bit her tongue and went quiet, allowing others to swamp Midoriya, to his obvious discomfort. He gave them short, quiet replies, obviously trying to avoid sounding impolite.

"L-listen, I... I-I gotta make a call, I'm sorry," Midoriya finally stammered out, cutting out any further questions. No one questioned him any further, and gave him room to head outside. He ducked his head and quietly walked away, his face set in stone, his eyes clouded over as his mind drifted to his thoughts, no doubt about what he'd been exposed to.

And for Mina, as security began to escort the hordes of confused shoppers out of the confines of the mall, she stared at the back of the boy she'd come to learn was leagues deeper than he appeared, and she couldn't help but wonder...

What had he heard...?

Not my proudest chapter. I wasn't super happy with how it came out, but I think it pushes things forward again, and next chapter, we'll be in the Summer Camp Arc, where things can ACTUALLY happen. Expect Ashido and Midoriya to interact, and expect more canon-deviance. Otherwise, there's nothing else to add... sorry if this was a rather boring chapter.

Responses:

evolvelove : Thank you for you support!

TruWarrior : Thanks! She's a bit difficult to write at first, mostly because of her various ways she can be portrayed. She's depicted as rather easy-going and sturdy, but yet, we've seen various instances of her emotional side, so this chapter was an allusion to the multiple times we've seen her kinda "freak out" during the course of the manga. She'll outgrow it, but I think it's something important to include.

32Dog : You are totally right, the second you pointed that out, I went and fixed it. I had no idea I'd done that - good eyes!

BukkakeNoJutsu: I think it's kinda skimmed over when it comes to the impact Midoriya has on his classmates. Plus, a fight against All Might? Shouldn't that have been THE pinnacle of fighting? I dunno, I thought it was worth highlighting in this chapter.

Dragontitan: The romance will be painfully slow, but it'll build gradually.

Jss2141: Here's a bit of look into it. Hopefully it meets expectation!

Guest: YASS, SHOTO!

Cr7Savage: Yeah, the balance is super hard to get, because I don't want to confuse people reading, but yet, I also know too much myself, so I gotta reign everything back in and pace it - which, unfortunately, is not easy, haha. I think with more time, I'll find that correct pacing, but for now, I'll have to keep tweaking things and work on it. As for Bakugou - it's important to remember that Mina worked with him first, and she won't just decide he's a hating scumbag. She might not agree with everything, but she doesn't know everything yet. That being said, I, myself, think people overlook his faults, because he's something fun to change, but there's a balance to find with him, too. Finally, I agree he is strong physically, and yes, working out can prevent shoulder subluxation and dislocation. However, there is another facet to consider. No matter how much you work out, an explosion of the magnitude that Bakugou can produce are easily strong enough to dislocate a shoulder in any directly, especially in an anterior direction. With that considered, there's no doubt of the musculoskeletal adaptations that his body has become accustomed to as he's aged. Working out helps, yes, but there's definitely physiological adaptations that have occurred, too. Thanks for the review :)

Pleaseworkforonce: I'm glad to hear that! I hope to keep it going!

Guest: I actually just got approved for that website, and will likely be posting there in the future, as well!

Guest: Thank you!