Things were quiet over the next couple of weeks. Aside from getting your new costume (which came with the extra padding you requested, as well as a small hook on the back to place your helmet when you weren't using it), nothing new or terribly significant happened; though, your popularity with the locals did grow. It wouldn't have been a stretch to assume that Keigo was at least partially responsible for your new-found fame. You hadn't seen him since your talk about the League, though. Apparently, he'd checked your room while you were out and found nothing of significance. You were grateful for his diligence in the matter, but secretly wished you'd been with him while he was there. For some reason, the thought of him rooting around in your drawers made you uncomfortable. Periodically, you'd think back to the conversation you'd had with him and wondered if it was really such a good idea to have omitted the part about Dabi knowing your childhood relationship with Keigo. On the one hand, he might be able to help you gather intel about the fiery villain. On the other, the news could agitate him, or distract him from his mission to infiltrate the League.

Whatever the case, your choice not to inform Keigo meant that you'd also chosen to investigate Dabi by yourself. There was only one problem: the guy had, once again, dropped off of the face of the Earth. You had no idea who he really was nor how he got his information, and now he was gone. Thanks to Stiller, you now had access to the Commission's databank of known criminals, but not a single bit of information they had on the mysterious villain was any help. You felt stuck, and you hated it. How could this guy invade your space and dig up your personal information, yet leave no trace of himself anywhere? It was frustrating, to say the least, but there wasn't much you could do about it at the moment. It wasn't just Dabi you had to worry about, but the rest of the League of Villains as well. You had to focus on the mission as a whole. Not only that, but you had a day job to do.

Hero work was keeping you busy. With All Might retired, it seemed more small-time criminals were plucking up the courage to cause some mayhem. Thankfully, none of these crooks were difficult to take down, and having the police force there to take them in meant you didn't need to waste time doing it yourself. Stiller was even giving you more space. He would still request daily reports and send you wake-up calls every morning, but after a few days, the message on your watch changed from "Wake up." to "Good morning." Other than that, though, you wouldn't typically hear from him all day. It was a welcome change, but it made you wonder what had him in such a generous mood. At any rate, you felt like you were living a normal life as a hero (despite sleeping in an office building.) You'd begun picking out favorite restaurants and stores, and one of the local bathhouses even considered you a regular now. The best part by far, though, was your growing relationship with the city's denizens. Most of your patrol was spent in the air, but your time on the streets was becoming increasingly dedicated to meeting with fans. It seemed like the longer your list of bagged criminals grew, so, too, did your popularity.

The tranquil atmosphere of the past few weeks had lulled you into an easy routine. With so many arrests being made, it was easy to forget about your own private investigation. Your nights began to fill up with paperwork and reports for both the police department and Stiller. Even with so much work, you felt nothing but serenity in your job.

"Thank you for coming! It's always good to see you." The woman behind the counter gave you a fond farewell as she handed you your bag. You gently took it from her hands.

"Thank you so much! I'll probably be back tomorrow, too." You called as you pushed open the shop's front door.

As usual, you'd spent most of today in the sky. It was a gorgeous day to fly: the air was cool and the sky was clear of any clouds. The crisp afternoon air felt soothing against your face, and you couldn't help but feel a sense of peace. You had only been on the ground for a few minutes to grab some lunch when a girl came up to you excitedly wanting a picture. You happily obliged, bending down to her level and smiling for the camera. You waved goodbye as she and her mother left; however, as you prepared to take off with your food, you were met with a swarm of people.

"(H/N)! Could we get a picture?"

"My cousin saw you take down that villain yesterday. He said you were really cool!"

"Would you mind signing this for us?"

Children and adults alike were drawn to you; some excitedly requested autographs or pictures, while others were content just with the opportunity to meet you. Though you were slowly growing more accustomed to interacting with strangers, today's crowd had you struggling to keep up. Thankfully, your regular practice with socialization meant you weren't feeling as overwhelmed as you had been when you first arrived. Not wanting to disappoint anyone, you did your best to address them all quickly and with as much kindness as possible.

"Yeah, of course!" You said, smiling at someone's camera as a small child excitedly held a marker and paper out for you. You used your quirk to sign an autograph for him and gave a wink right as the camera flashed.

A few minutes later, the crowd had thinned out substantially. Only a few more fans and you'd be able to get back to your patrol and hopefully some down-time to eat. Moments like this made you wish more than ever that you hadn't been sent away. This could be your life: helping out the community and seeing people's smiling faces, knowing you were the reason for their happiness. The concept seemed insane; you weren't used to having so much freedom. It was great and your cheeks would hurt after a day of non-stop smiling.

You posed for another photo, throwing an arm around the boy who stood next to you. As you did, your attention was deferred by a low rumble behind you.

'What the…?'

Your friendly demeanor quickly turned serious, and you turned your head right as the picture was snapped.

"Huh, is everything okay, (H/N)?" The teen beside you asked curiously.

You were quiet for a second, keeping your ears open for any more noise. When nothing came, you returned your attention slowly to the camera. "Oh, yeah! I just thought I heard something is all." You said cheerfully.

The man taking the photo chuckled. "Always on alert. That's what makes you such a good hero."

You smiled gently at him and repositioned yourself for another photo. This time, it was a woman's shriek that distracted you. Her scream was soon accompanied by a few others as they bounded down the street. Another resounding boom came from the direction they ran from.

'Something is definitely wrong.'

You released the boy beside you and spun around to see if you could spot the danger. Behind the tall buildings, a large plume of dust and smoke rose above the rooftops. The crowd around you quickly pulled back as they, too, spotted the dark cloud.

'Shit. What the hell is going on?' You wondered frantically as you pulled your helmet on.

Without another word, you took to the sky, disregarding your food as well as the rest of the people around you, and headed towards those in the most immediate danger.

'It doesn't look very far, maybe only a few blocks.' It took you seconds to reach the area. A clearer view of the damage came into view as you closed in on the scene. Smoke billowed from the midsection of a tall office building. Upon further inspection, you saw that a good chunk of the wall was missing. Large slabs of concrete were plummeting to the ground, rendering the entire street below extremely hazardous. From above, it was easy to spot the danger that those who were frantically exiting the building could not. You sped towards the falling debris to get your quirk in range. You activated your power as you neared and managed to catch all of the potentially life-threatening hunks of rock, quickly discarding them in a neat pile at the corner of the structure as the office workers below made their safe retreat.

Upon looking at the massive hole in the side, you realized that you couldn't make out anything inside the building. Thick black smoke mingled with the rocky-grey dust and heavily obscured your view of anything behind it.

'Was there some kind of explosion? Maybe a gas leak inside?' You wondered as you moved closer.

'Whatever it is, I need to make sure everyone's been evacuated.' You zipped around the side of the building and flew straight into the dense dust cloud. With the help of your helmet's respirator, you were able to breathe just fine as you entered the damaged area. The visibility inside was a bit better, but it was much darker than you expected.

'Shit, the power must've gone out, and all that smoke is keeping any sunlight from coming through.' You squinted as you looked around. Tiny streaks of light crept in through the black-out shades that covered the windows. Desks, computers, papers, and chairs were strewn about the room. It looked like they were all blown away from the initial explosion, but there were no people in sight.

"Hello?" You called out. "Is anyone still in here?" There was no answer. Though you hoped it was because everyone had made it out, the skeptical side of you filled with dread.

'That explosion could have easily knocked someone out. If they're here, I need to get them to safety, but I can't see a damn thing.' You floated over a wall of furniture to a nearby window and gently took hold of the cord. As you tugged on it to release the shade, a whispering, yet panicked voice startled you.

"Wait, no! Don't open the blinds!" The man sounded like he was right next to you. You snapped your head in the direction of the voice, hoping your eyes would adjust enough to see him. His frightened frame gradually came into view: both he and a woman were pressed into the underside of an overturned desk.

"Don't worry, I'm here to help." You told him softly. "But I need to be able to see…" You reached for the curtain once again, but this time, he jumped up and grabbed your arm to stop you.

"No, please! If that thing is still out there, it'll see us; please don't open the blinds!" His pleading was entirely frantic.

"Be quiet! It might hear you." Another terrified voice called from further in the room.

'So there are more people.'

"Hey, calm down, it's alright." You spoke calmly, hoping it might help the man relax. "What 'thing' are you talking about? I didn't see anything when I was outside."

The man's grip on you loosened. "It looked like a monster. It was scaling the outside of the building, and then… i-it just s-slammed it's head into the window and nearly blew everything away at once." You could hear the trembling in his words. A monster? Could it have been a villain? If so, you'd need to apprehend them as soon as possible, but you'd have to help everyone here first. The smoke near the newly-carved out hole behind you was beginning to clear, allowing just a bit of light to shine through. More heads poked out of their hiding spots to get a look at you. You counted about fifteen. Now that you knew more people were hiding amongst the mess, you could make sure everyone was safe.

"Is anyone injured?" You raised your voice so that anyone else in the room would be able to hear.

"Shhh! Please keep your voice down." A woman begged. "We're all fine, but if that thing comes back-"

"Then I'll be here to protect you." You interrupted confidently. "I promise, nothing bad will happen to you while I'm here." It was strange. You'd intended for your words to be reassuring, but this woman, and everyone else in the room, for that matter, looked more horrified than ever. The room dimmed once again as the woman before you stumbled backward onto a flipped desk. She pointed, petrified, at the ruined area behind you, her mouth agape; however, no sound came out. Confused, you spun around.

Massive fleshy, grey wings, where you figured arms should have been, kept the creature suspended in the air as they flapped, beating away the polluted air. Its legs were long and scrawny when compared to its lean torso, and they ended in two large claw-like feet. The thing's brain protruded grotesquely from its head, and its eyes bulged from the exposed organ, looking nowhere in particular.

'I've seen something like this before… It's from the League!'

The nomu let out a gargantuan screech, causing everyone to cower and cover their ears. The creature's wail shook you to your core, but it wasn't fear that built inside of you. It was anger. You'd been working for weeks to find even a crumb of a clue that could help you discern the League's plans; your daily hero work had kept you from being as dedicated to it as you would have liked, and this was beginning to feel like a sort of karmic punishment. Now wasn't the time to be kicking yourself, though. You promised you'd protect these people, and you didn't intend on breaking that vow now. Looking the nomu up and down, you formulated a series of ideas in a matter of seconds.

'Getting everyone out is the top priority. It'd be nothing for me to carry them out through the window, but there's no guarantee that this thing won't give chase. That'd put the people below in danger, too. Using my quirk to get them out could work, but it'd make it more difficult for me to distract this thing on my own. I saw tons of people leaving the building when I arrived; I doubt they were all from the first floor. Even if the power is out, the stairs are always available in an emergency. That's it. I can divert this thing while they get out of the building.'

Without looking away from the nomu, you addressed the workers behind you: "Everyone, head for the stairwell. Don't worry about the monster, just focus on getting yourselves out."

"R-right…" You heard the man from earlier say. The sound of multiple retreating footsteps mingled with those of scared screams. The nomu cocked its head slightly and attempted to situate its too-big frame onto the ledge that the hole had created. Before it had the chance to land, you leapt toward it, swiftly turning to kick it square in the chest. Your powerful hit sent the nomu flying away from the building; however, its outstretched wings allowed it to easily gain its bearings. You zoomed over as quickly as you could and slammed your body into the creature's back. The impact only caused it to falter for a moment. You gripped its shoulders as it continued to rise higher.

'Damn it. This thing is too big to force down with brute strength… and the size of these wings give it too much stability in the air. It may be a risky move, but if I crash it into the ground from this height, I could cause it some serious damage.'

Your arms weren't strong enough to pin its massive wings down. Your quirk, on the other hand, would have no trouble at all. Rather than use more energy to target the thing's entire body, you could simply use your quirk on the only things keeping it in the sky. You wasted no time. Your quirk allowed you to effortlessly seize the nomu's wings and stretch them straight back behind it. With nothing to catch the air underneath, both you and the nomu began to plummet towards the street. The creature screamed as the rushing wind forced its head back. You held on tightly to its shoulders, thankful that the visor on your helmet was doing its job. You braced for impact as you neared the ground. The nomu's chest was the first to hit the asphalt. You shoved your hand onto the back of its head and rammed it into the pavement. Tiny fragments of rock ticked and bounced off of your helmet as the creature beneath you skidded across the road. You felt the muscles on its shoulders relax and its wings flopped limply to the ground.

'Is it… dead?' You wondered as you panted from the exhilaration. You pulled the nomu's head up from the ground. Its face was completely unrecognizable (not that it was a pretty sight, to begin with.) The momentum from the crash coupled with the monumental scraping against the rocky road had left the thing totally mangled. Its jaw, clearly broken, hung loosely with multiple gaps in its mouth from missing teeth. One of its eyes had been pulverized into a jelly-like substance that began to slowly trickle down its brain-covered face in globular chunks. You released its head and turned away as it fell lazily to the ground.

"Ugh… disgusting. Its neck must've broken." Now that the nomu was no longer an immediate threat, you could get a proper look at its body. You hadn't been able to take in the sheer size of the thing before, but you realized as you stood that its head alone was nearly the size of your torso. Its skin-covered wings stretched from one side of the street to the other, and its talon-like feet might have been big enough to pick up a small car.

"Damn, it must've taken some serious tech and manpower to make this thing." You had never talked to Keigo about the nomus. With most of your thoughts focused on Dabi, it had completely slipped your mind. Now that you were face-to-face with one, you secretly wished you'd asked more questions. The one thing you did know was that it was a hybrid built by the League; however, given how fast you'd taken it down, you didn't give it a chance to show off any of its other quirks.

'I should call the police so they can collect it. No doubt there's gonna be a mountain of paperwork now that it's dead.' You groaned and pulled your phone out of your pocket to begin dialing.

"Hello, this is Pro Hero (H/N). I need some police assistance in taking in a detained villain." You spoke when the operator answered.

"No problem." She said calmly. "We'll send assistance right away. What is your location?"

"Right. I'm uh…" You took a glance at your surroundings. Though you'd been patrolling this area for a while now, you were still unfamiliar with street names. "I... uh… where am I?" You continued to look around for some kind of landmark or street sign. This area of the city looked to be a shopping district- a place that'd typically be jumping with activity right about now.

"I'm ah… just outside of Oikawa theater, and uh… wow, where is everybody?" You unconsciously held the phone farther from your ear, keeping your head on a swivel. There was no one in sight.

"Hello? Are you still there? I'm going to need a more precise location." The woman on the other end of the line spoke.

All of the shops' open signs were still on. Even the lights on the theater sign blinked to get the attention of potential passers-by, so where were they? It felt uncomfortably like a ghost town. You listened closely for any sign of life around you. The only thing you could make out was a faint crunching noise. It was coming from the side of one of the buildings; it looked to be a butcher's shop. The operator's voice came through your phone faintly as you cautiously made your way towards the sound.

"(H/N), are you still there? Is everything alright? Do you still need back-up?"

Her questions were soon drowned out by the ever-growing crunching and sloshing of… whatever it was. Carefully, you peered around the corner of the building. Your heart sank at what you saw.

'Is that… another one?!'

Crouching hunched over before you, was another, darker colored nomu. It's blue-grey skin was scarred in many places. Unlike the one lying dead in the road, this one was stocky and muscular, and had arms rather than wings. It had a pig carcass pinned to the ground in front of it- that must've been the source of the crunching noise you'd heard. Seemingly sensing your presence, the nomu turned it's head to face you. Just like all the others you'd seen so far, its brain stuck out of the top of its head. It's jaw, however, was much larger and longer than any of the others you'd seen, and contained two rows of sharp, shark-like teeth from which a few strands of viscera hung loosely. The sight made you sick, but keeping your composure was essential at the moment. You placed your phone in your pocket, ignoring the woman on the other end. The creature slowly turned its massive body towards you and, walking on both its legs and its knuckles, began to trudge towards you. You summoned the knives on the back of your utility belt and held them aloft around your body.

'I should lead it out into the street. It'll be easier to fight if I have more room to move around.' You backed up slowly, never taking your eyes off of the monster in front of you. A long tube of pig intestine that had been caught in the nomu's teeth dropped flimsily to the ground and curled up like a snake at its feet. Despite the thing's grotesque appearance, you were doing well remaining calm.

'Just a little farther. It's strange that this thing hasn't lunged at me yet. Maybe those short legs don't allow for it.'

As the nomu continued to follow you, something else moved in your peripheral. You shifted your eyes in that direction for just a moment, silently praying it wasn't a civilian. Fortunately, or perhaps quite unfortunately, the thing you saw scuttling along the top of the theater sign was not a person, but another monstrous nomu.

'What?!' You instinctively pointed one of your three knives at it, but did you best to keep an eye on the one you'd been leading away.

"Okay, (H/N). This is fine. You got through the first one easy enough, these two should be no… differ...ent…" Your self-motivating words trailed off as your attention was caught by more movement to the left.

"Alright… that may be a problem." It was then that you'd become hyper-aware of the danger far greater than the three creatures that had now set their sights on you. Crawling across the other multi-story shops in the plaza were five more distinct nomus. In your shocked state, only one word came to your mind:

"Shit."