In front of her the thief came to an abrupt stop. His dark clothes made him stand out against the lights of the city. He was heaving and huffing, trying to catch his breath.

Sasaki was a bit impressed by his endurance. She'd been leading him to this very point for the last 10 minutes. They had ran up the dozens of steps leading up the cliff and he had not faltered once.

Mr. Aizawa was still somewhere down in the valley however. They had been searching for a particular thief since the beginning of the internship.

Carlos Angeles was an international thief, specialised in information and data. Just like her he would use the reliance on paper backups to steal important, classified documents.
Her break-in at UA had coincided with a break-in at an office of the Hero Commission. The heroes had come to the conclusion that Carlos had taken on an apprentice.

Sasaki thought that conclusion was stupid. Their motives were clearly different, as were their methods. Carlos would never fight anyone. He either ran or surrendered and escaped later.

The Hero Commission had been getting angsty. Apparently the stolen documents were very important to national security. Sasaki was convinced that they were incriminating rather than important to national security.
Whatever the case they ordered half of the country's underground heroes to find Carlos.

Getting back the files was top priority. What happened to Carlos himself was secondary.

So, when Sasaki had randomly seen him walking out of a cafe she had taken of after him. Of course she didn't immediately start chasing him, but somehow he noticed her even while she was hiding. One thing had led to another and now he was trapped between her and the cliffside.

"Hand over the files or tell me their location and I will let you go," Sasaki started of the negotiation.

"Nice offer, but... Y'see I'm gettin' a lot of money for this. No way am I givin' them to you," he smirked at her, condescension clear on his face.

He thought she was just some idiot hero student. He felt safe enough to act condescending because heroes didn't kill people. Heroes were naive and only attacked in self-defense or if someone was in danger.
It could have worked if it hadn't been Sasaki he was talking to.
But he was talking to Sasaki and she had no qualms about attacking first.

"You either give me the files voluntarily or I will make you."

Sasaki started walking towards him with slow and heavy steps. She missed her trenchcoat. It would have added to her intimidation factor.

Unconsciously Carlos took a step back. His hand brushed nervously over his left breast pocket. Behind him some gravel clattered down the cliff. One step more and he would fall.

Sasaki didn't like the way he was looking over his shoulder now. It could be read as fear. But something told her that it wasn't.

Carlos had been escaping custody through what was thought to be a teleportation quirk. If had been able to teleport himself then he wouldn't be here. So he had an accomplice who could teleport.

There were quiet footsteps on the gravel behind her.
Her eyes met with Carlos'. Something in them must have told him that she wasn't a hero.

She knew what he was doing seconds before he actually jumped. Enough time to jump after him, not enough time to think about that decision.

For a few breathless seconds she felt weightless. Her hands almost brushed the back of his jacket. Just a few milimeters more and she had him.

A jerk went through Sasaki's body.
The scarf wrapped around her legs.
Carlos disappeared in a violent burst of light.

She was left hanging upside down against the cliffside. If Aizawa had reacted just seconds later she'd have captured him. And with him she'd have had the files in his breats pocket.

Why would he stop her just seconds before finishing the mission ?

"What was that? Sasaki what the fuck was that? You just jumped of a cliff. If I hadn't been there you would have died!"

He was shouting. He had been shouting since he pulled her over the cliff. Sasaki had never seen her teacher so angry.

It confused her. It overwhelmed her.
"Do you realize that, Sasaki? You could have died."

She couldn't help it. A snort escaped her. A small laugh followed. It wasn't funny. Not from his perspective but for Sasaki? Being told she was in danger of death was like telling a fish they were in danger of drowning.
She would have continued laughing if it hadn't been for the look on his face.

He wasn't only angry. No, he was concerned. And he was afraid, afraid for her. That sobered Sasaki up quickly. There had never been a person who was afraid for her, who worried about her health.

"This is not funny. Do you think your safety is something to laugh at?" he asked.
His tone matched the one he used when someone was about to be expelled.

Sasaki straigthened. This was serious. Her actions had been stupid. She could have blown her cover.

"What you just did was dangerous, irresoponsible and borderline suicidal! You can't risk your life like that. Your safety is important. Your health matters! Do you understand that? Because I don't think you do."

No Sasaki didn't think she did. Why couldn't he pick one, her health and safety or the mission. It confused her.

In the mafia the mission was always more important than the individuals. Maybe it was cruel, but it was simple. You could follow it easily. There were no conflicting objectives or orders.

"But you said yourself that the priority was getting the files back. That was the mission objective. I could have finished it. I had him. I was so close to finishing this and you stopped me."

She was starting to get angry herself. Shouting at a superior was never a good idea. But Sasaki was angry and confused and tired and she wanted answers.

"Why? Why do you care? I don't understand you. You're just my teacher. You shouldn't care, you don't even know me!" she shouted.

Mr. Aizawa looked taken aback. Whatever he thought she would say wasn't that.

"Of course I care, Problem child," he started in a softer voice.
"It's literally my job to care about you. Your continued safety and well-being is my responsibility. If you die that's on me."

"UA has good lawyers though. Your students dying wouldn't affect you."

The look of absolute disbelief on his face was priceless. If the atmosphere hadn't been so tense and serious she would have taken a picture.

"No, that's not what I mean," he started.
"I don't care about the legal consequences of you dying. I care about your life because you're a child and you're my student."

She froze. No one had ever told her that. She was an adult in the eyes of everyone she knew. Her childhood had ended the moment she joined the mafia, if not the moment she ended up on the streets.

"What?" she choked out.

"You're a child. You're just fifteen. Yes, you're going to be a hero soon but before that you are still just a student. And after that you will still be a human. Human lifes are more important than some files. They're valuable. I care about your safety because you are human, you are my student and you are a child. Your life is infinitely more important than the documents Angeles stole."

Sasaki looked at him. She saw the borderline desperation in his eyes, remembered the shaken look from before and the conviction behind his words and came to the conclusion that he was serious.

"Oh," she whispered.
Tears welled up in her eyes. Her life was important. At least one person thought her life was important just because she was alive.

"Did you- You didn't-," his voice was just as shaky as hers.
He took he step towards her, hands held out like she was a cornered animal.

"No one has ever told you that, am I right?"

"Yeah."

"I have something to ask you. I want you to tell me the truth. Do you care about your health? Do you even want to live?"

She stared at him.
Her brain couldn't come up with an answer. Tears were streaming down her face, Mr. Aizawa's eyes were burrowing into her and she couldn't think.

So she ran. Sasaki took of past him.

In one moment she was on the roof, in the next she was running across the street opposite of the train station.
She didn't remember the way and she didn't remember if he watched her go. She couldn't recall if his eyes has settled on her back like they had done so many times.