A/N: Back after my break and ready to get the story rolling again, happy to know a number of you are enjoying this story as much as I. Got one review.

To Random Guest: I'm happy you find my story so enjoyable, as well as the resident cute-mute. As for her ability to draw out power it still causes a backlash similar to Izuku using over his limit with One For All, only now Consume. Enhance. Replicate isn't trying to devour her. In time she will learn to control her power alongside SIVA (Or Aksis at times).

Enjoy!

Chapter 25 - Our Perfect Starting Line

A full day had passed since the incident at Hosu became the hot topic of media outlets and the death of the Hero Killer, Stain at the hands of the infamous villain, Kovik, still at large. He had silenced the lunatic with a single, fatal blow to the chest. The students were taken to the hospital to be treated immediately, the next day, things got tempered.

The Hosu chief of police had come to reprimand the students for their reckless engagement with the Hero Killer using their Quirks to harm him, of course, when the Chief broke the news that while that would have been the definitive case if the news went public about their involvement if kept under wraps by giving Endeavor the credit and the confirmed report of Stain's death by Kovik, they would go unpunished.

Now, however, the Chief of police held out his thumb to the students proudly and with gratitude. "-I wouldn't want to damage any promising young careers, not for a mistake like this," A wave of relief washed over the trio.

Manual sighed himself, looking rather drained. "Either way we're gonna have to take responsibility for being negligent as supervisors," That brought Iida to stand before his mentor, bowing his head

"I'm sorry I should have listened," That earned a light tap on the head from the hero

"Yeah, you caused us alot of trouble, remember that and don't do it again." Manual huffed with Iida agreeing to his words. And while Izuku was willing to apologize he couldn't meet their gazes, his firmly locked to the fourth patient who had yet to wake up, and of the consequences of her actions weighing heavily on his heart and mind

"Sir?" Their attention drew themselves to Izuku's distraught face. "What about Yuki?"

The Chief folded his arms, overlooking the girl who remained unresponsive in her bed, sleeping soundly. "From the reports and eyewitness, she and Todoroki here engaged Kovik's attackers, saving numerous lives, when she arrived on the scene of the Hero Killer she defended the Pros and her friends and ultimately defeated the villain, even though it was merely a proxy," That was the watered-down version.

"Her actions would come under the same principles as the rest of you, however, these entities she fought were not only seen and recorded by numerous sources but they lacked actual bodies being made of materials that dissolved upon inspecting them, Kovik fell under this category too, therefore, her situation isn't as strict as yours."

There was a weight lifted off their shoulders, with Iida smiling. "She protected us despite the injuries to her own body, to erase what she's done wouldn't feel right," Iida procured the note he had from between his arms, the same she had given him before they parted ways. "If I had heeded her words more carefully, perhaps this situation wouldn't have been so drastic."

"Now, I know it's not fair, you won't be able to enjoy any of the fame and praise you would have received otherwise, but atleast-" The Chief bowed his head at the young students. "-Allow me as the chief of police to thank you."

Shoto looked off to his left with a distant frown. "You know you could have started with that."

None of us knew we'd end up fighting in that back alley or face the terror of almost losing a friend and in the end, no one else would find out. But the implications of that battle would continue to eat at us. Even after our wounds had healed.

*BeepBeepBeepBeepBeep-!*

"Ah... ngh!" Yuki's body almost threw herself out of bed as her body tensed painfully as it underwent a spasm, one that brought the boys over to help keep her steady, Todoroki and Izuku doing most of the work since Iida couldn't move his arms, leaving them to try and keep her steady as she knitted her teeth together, some of her veins glowing red

"What's wrong with her!?" Shoto asked and somewhat demanded as Izuku tried to keep her under control

"Her Quirk - It must be a seizure again!" His brow furrowed with worry. "Please, I thought this was over, did they fail to override the command!?"

The door soon pushed itself open, revealing a middle-aged man with short, combed black hair and a short beard. His eyes light green underneath a pair of rounded glasses. Shoto's eyes widened at the man's kind exterior.

The Doctor smiled, "It's you." Todoroki recognized him from the day Yuki brought him to visit her sister.

He shut the door he made his way to Yuki's side hastily, Iida and Todoroki standing aside for the man to inspect her fit carefully. With a free hand, he placed his index and middle fingers against her forehead, sending forth a soft, blue pulse with a chime, and in mere moments her muscle spasm ceased, heart rate returning to normal for their collective sigh

"My apologies for taking so long the questions I get asked are relentless," He chuckled, stroking the girl's hair gently. "Poor girl's been through so much, I'm surprised she managed to completely rewrite the coding herself, albeit with some negative results..." Now he was murmuring as Izuku would all their eyes drawn to the medical professional

"I'm sorry, what do you mean?" Iida requested, but Izuku jumped in

"I-Is Yuki going to be okay!?" He never left her side, clutching her hand as though she'd slip away from his fingertips

"Rest assured the worst is over, this is merely her body's way of rebuilding the degeneration she's suffered," He adjusted his glasses, sitting down beside the boys. "Now, if you would all kindly sit I will explain all that I know, however," He raised his finger, earnest features creasing. "What I will tell you must not leave this room, the only ones you may discuss this with are myself, the Sky Comet Hero, Recovery Girl, and All Might, do you understand?"

"We do," Iida replied without hesitation. "She tried to reach out to me when I refused to acknowledge my friend's worries, and she also risked her own life for mine when that villain, Kovik attacked, so for that, I will respect her privacy."

The man sighed, relaxing his face. "Very well, thank you," His gaze met Izuku's. "I am aware you know the truth, correct?"

Izuku's gaze softened when he looked to Yuki's, hand squeezing hers, "I do,"

"Okay, allow me to say that my name is Doctor Yoshiharu, a biologist and currently the only specialist in my field with the knowledge of young Yuki's particular condition, one that if became public knowledge may make her life far more controversial," He sighed, and without any delays or miscommunication, he spoke with them straight. "You are all mature young men, so I'll not teeter with the subject, Yuki is, and by technical definition, a Quirkless human being."

While Izuku remained unphased, the others were... noticeably perplexed, shocked even. It was impossible given her powers. Todoroki spoke first, unsure of this revelation. "That's impossible, her Quirk-"

"-Is nanotechnology that has fundamentally bonded with her, SIVA, as you may refer to it as," Yoshiharu cut in with a small chuckle. "It is the first of its kind, no records of its manufacture, completely sentient, and above all else, chose to reside in a young girl left with a shattered life."

Again, shock and any initial speculation fell apart under the truth of his word, and Izuku hadn't spoken, so Iida did, facing his best friend evenly. "How long have you known of this, Midoriya?"

"S-Since the start of school, she told me because... she trusted me," He sighed, feeling as though he betrayed his friend's trust. "Believe me I don't like the idea of hiding away the truth but it was either that or risk losing not just my first, closest friend but... Yuki would have the very thing that gave her a fresh start in life taken from her," Izuku remained grounded on his belief in her, and in his choice, as he stared at them both sternly. "I did it to keep an innocent girl from suffering."

Then Izuku's eyes lit up. "O-oh, and there are two others that know as well, Jiro from our class and her friend, but Yuki told them herself." It was probably best he get that out of the way

"I understand," Todoroki nodded, rubbing his chin. "If word of her power got out I can imagine the kind of outrage people would have, those that would want SIVA, use her, cage her like some animal," That irked him, making his blood boil. "It's a sickening thought but I understand why she kept it hidden, called it a Quirk."

"...But to think that all this time..." Iida whispered, then faced the Doctor. "Doctor Yoshiharu, you said it 'chose' her, what exactly does that imply?"

He shrugged, patting the mask in his hands. "Very simply, it means that while it was a free, independent form of artificial intelligence, it decided to live within Yuki," He motioned to her reformed hand clutched in Izuku's. "The young girl suffered a near inescapable accident. She lost her parents, her sister left in a coma to this very day, and she... well, walking would be an insult," He frowned, patting her shoulder

"Internal bleeding and lacerations, vocal cords were rendered useless. She lost her right eye, hand, and left leg, I can hardly call that, 'living', especially after losing everything," He spoke with great discomfort, when he spoke with that child back then, it very well broke his heart seeing her cry, unable to so much as mutter a letter. "Poor girl couldn't so much as beg for her mother and father anymore... it broke her spirit."

However, while the mood certainly turned sour, his smile remained. "The villain you fought, Kovik is the fanatical person who seems the most likely to have been in contact with SIVA as his abilities seem to stem from SIVA's own adaptive capabilities, and this man, as you know, was the reason for Yuki's loss years ago," Stepping forward, he handed the mask to Izuku's surprised eyes. "She spoke highly of you, so I know I can trust you with this, rest well, you three have done what many young heroes-in-training would deem impossible, so thank you."

The three bowed respectfully as the Doctor left, leaving them to mull over the news, the truth of Yuki and her fundamental power, how it's the very reason she is here with them today. It was a heavy burden, one, much like One For All, was something Izuku had to burden himself with every day, but it would be alot lighter now since two good friends of his now shared in that weight and respected Yuki as a person to uphold it.

"I still have many questions," Iida shut his eyes a moment. "However, this is Yuki's most well-kept secret, the very mention of it would do no good," His eyes met with Izuku's again, and an assuring smile crossed his lips. "I trust you both dearly, as a friend, you have my word I will keep this information top secret."

"As will I," Todoroki complied, but a thought did rummage in his head, primarily involving SIVA's sentience. "Midoriya? Have you ever-"

Scaring the emerald-eyed boy to the floor was Yuki, herself having sat upright for around ten seconds as the three discussed the situation. She hadn't fully woken up yet, rubbing her eyes with a mute yawn while flattening her bedhead. The three continued to observe her as she blinked, flexing out her right hand, inspecting both sides before promptly poking her right eye, the sharp recoil alerting her to the reformed optical nerve as she smacked her lips.

Welcome back | You should be able to move around now | Oh, and your friends are well

Then she noticed the stares she received, then the fact her mask sat between Izuku's hands, his eyes wide with delight, while hers only shrank as her hands fumbled across her face, slipping down comedically to her lap. Her mouth was ajar, then her head sank while holding out a hand for Izuku to hand her the mask, fingers bending back and forth with gusto.

"O-Oh, sorry, here!" He handed her the covering but she stopped mid-placement, realizing that it was already too late, that, and she didn't feel as though she had to wear it around them. Perhaps it was the multitude of events and other life-changing occurrences that brought this up. So, she placed it on her lap, giving them a small, nervous smile

'So, bet you guys have some questions, huh?' She was met with many nods as she let out a heavy sigh, tapping her fingers to the mask. '...First, can I have some water, my throat is still dry with dirt, blood, and other things you won't want to know about'

After procuring the girl a drink and actually seeing her not only drink half of it in seconds but then proceed to dump it onto her face, letting the cool liquid provide some strange relief for her she got to explaining her Quirk. She went through SIVA, her background, Kovik, and the directive, Consume. Enhance. Replicate and how it nearly meant the end that night.

There were questions, many expressions of surprise and sorrow, the realizations of past events since the USJ, and of Jiro's involvement. All of it was slowly and meticulously pieced together, and they all, Shoto and Iida mostly, finally grasped the perplexing nature of their classmate, of the mute behind the mask.

The last note sat before them, 'In the end, SIVA and I managed to rewrite it, and now-' She clicked her reformed fingers, a spark of nanites between the digits. '-We're free'

Shoto put his hand forward, resting it on her shoulder with easy eyes. "I'm glad you're okay," She blinked and rubbed the back of her head with a small, pink blush, keeping a sheepish grin - Then he suddenly started to sweat anxiously, causing her to tilt her head and blink alongside Izuku and Iida. "I am also sorry you guys-" His eyes were downcast with a cold look at his hand. "I feel.. kinda bad."

"About what?" Izuku asked

"Whenever I'm involved someone's hand gets all messed up," He brought it closer to his face, as though his very palm was mocking him. "Is something wrong with me?"

The trio eyes dilated, unable to properly answer his expression as dreaded confusion like a velvet wave swirled around his distraught face. "Am I cursed?" That did it, sending them over the edge as what felt like an eternity since they laughed, Yuki's silent still but her cheeks were puffed out, punching her bed humorously

"T-Todoroki I didn't know you had a sense of humor!?" Izuku replied between fits of laughter, Yuki herself nodding

'I told you when he hits you with one, you feel it XD'

His understanding of misfortune is... perplexing | I suppose one may consider it a curse | Otherwise, I do not quite understand

His expression worsened, "This isn't a joke, I'm like the Hand Crusher or something?" That only made their laughter worse. Yuki practically spitting like Jiro would as she covered her mouth

"Pfft! Hahahaha, 'The Hand Crusher'!" Izuku went up another octave while Iida practically wept tears at the hilarity of the name

Sometime Later...

"Yuki, you were told to stay and rest," Shoto was trying his best not to make it obvious how funny it was to see Yuki crying cartoonishly while tugging on his uniform. She practically begged him not to leave, more so because it was just her and Izuku, all alone, with no one around

"I still want to learn everything I can from him," He continued, picking up his hero case while giving a short nod to Izuku while patting Yuki on the head to push her back onto her bed, the childish pout resting on her face. He leaned down to whisper. "I'll make sure no one comes by to bother you two for a while." He took secretive pride in seeing her face light up like a fire, even her ears turned red furiously

After taking his leave toward the door he added. "Besides, they're saying he defeated the Hero Killer even though it was actually his son that helped out I want to see if there's any shame on his face," With one final look to his friends he eyed Yuki who still trying to minimize her embarrassment. "Yuki, if my father says anything I'll give him a right hook for you."

She held her thumb up while covering her face with a pillow, then twisted it into a middle finger that he held a small smirk at. "Seeya back at school, Midoriya." With that, he shut the door

It was nightfall again, so far, Yuki's results both from SIVA, as Aksis decided to stick with the name, and Dr. Yoshiharu came back green, though he wanted to monitor her longer to ensure that no remnants of the previous command log were left or out of SIVA's control, plus, SIVA worked round the clock to regenerate her more grievous injuries so she was still bandaged up in many places.

Now, she and Izuku were alone as she sat on the bed closest to the window and watched the skyline from afar, the occasional glare of the moon peeking through the clouds. "Yuki, are you okay?" She flinched at his soft tone, again, finding it comforting but her cheeks did dip pink for one, how close he was, and two, for Shoto's words before he left earlier today.

'N-nothing, I was... okay, so, this is gonna sound really abrupt, and stupid, and weird, maybe a little girly, though I am a girl I'm just sayin-' He took the note from her as the words stopped writing themselves, leaving Yuki to tap her fingers together sheepishly

He was anxious all day too, when Yuki left for her check-ups he sat with Todoroki about something that had bothered him since the Sports Festival.

"You like Yuki?" Shoto tried not to make it obvious how unsurprising that was given how both reacted around one another, though Yuki's elaboration on the subject did help clarify a few things. Taking it slow, he continued. "Explain more clearly, Midoriya."

"R-r-right, yeah, um..." He tried to keep his composure but was failing. "I-It's just, Y-Yuki is... amazing," Soon, the words rolled off his tongue without thinking, even though his face was burning. "It's sort of hard to really say, everything about her is amazing, she's strong even without her Quirk, brave enough to face down a villain even when it seems hopeless, she can encourage you even when you don't believe in yourself, and her smile... when I saw it I couldn't stop staring,"

He then rubbed a hand down his face. "I sound like such a creep..."

"I don't think so," Shoto replied evenly. "You obviously care alot about her to notice the things outside of just her figure, atleast, that's what I think." He brought his attention back to Izuku. "You can see the person she is, and when we thought... she was gone you didn't hesitate to keep fighting, you even kept a level head in your emotional state."

That mention brought his eyes back to the mask he held, how her body flew behind them, bloodied and lifeless. His heart was so twisted that he wanted to kill Kovik no matter who or what stood in his way, even if it cost him his life. Then he thought back to how Yuki would feel, about him throwing his life away, and... to what she told him and Jiro back at UA.

'-Kyoka, Izuku, you two are my best friends, so no matter what happens to me. Become the greatest heroes you want to be! For both of us!' "I just... couldn't let go of what she told me, to throw away all she had taught me would be selfish."

Shoto closed his eyes a moment, then chuffed. "I think you'll find the words, Mirdoriya, just... tell her."

Neither really knew what to say, it was embarrassing and a risk neither knew how the other would react. Both had savored this moment, tempting fate to reach the moment they swore they'd reach unbeknownst to the other. The words, how to properly convey their meaning just couldn't come, every idea felt off or not meant the way they intend.

"Yuki-" 'Izuku-'

They stopped, smiling awkwardly for a moment. 'How about we say, slash write, what's on our minds at the same time, yeah?' He nodded almost instantly much to Yuki's surprise but she didn't question it, holding up three fingers, her cheeks dusted red like his own

One finger and they gulped.

Two fingers and doubts were briefly tossed aside. Izuku readied his throat, and Yuki her conjured note.

Three fingers and they hadn't realized how close they were, or how Yuki's left and his right were slowly intertwining.

"Yuki, w-will you go out with me!?"

'Izuku, w-will you go out with me!?'

If anyone compared the two teens to when they faced down villains in the USJ, when they broke bones in the Sports Festival, or when one took on the blood-paralyzing Hero Killer or fought a fanatical machinist while bleeding from half their body to the people awkwardly averting their eyes in a hospital room, you'd be unable to tell how they were the same people.

Both teens soon laughed, Yuki with her silent giggle as both realized something. "We're idiots..."

'Very astute observation my emerald-haired... partner?' Her words brought a flush to his cheeks again while she stuck her tongue out. 'Well, it's either that or... the other word for each of us, i-if you want - I don't really have experience in my tactile arsenal for this'

Izuku considered it, he was no expert himself, neither had any romantic experience, this was more akin to a river, they were just letting the current of events guide them. "...Yuki?" She eyed him softly, her gentle, light blue eyes brighter than any stars. "W-would you like t-to be my... g-girlfriend?"

"Took nearly dying a horrible death for this moment, for this lovable, nervous green bean to say it, was it worth it, you might ask?" Yuki closed her eyes, pressing her lips to his cheek again, even she didn't feel it was right for a real kiss, not yet. This sensation though was enough to push her heart a mile a minute. "Yes, definitely, absolutely."

When she pulled back to see his crimson features and dorky smile, she smiled warmly, eyes gentle. 'Of course I would, you dummy'

He sighed with a deadpan face. "Why do I get insulted after spilling my guts?" That earned a flick to the nose, his eyes flattening. "I hate you sometimes."

She hugged him tightly, holding up her last note that night. 'You know you love it' He'd never say it, but he did more than she may ever know

To Be Continued...

We've reached the end of this arc, and from now on a number of canon elements will change, not drastically at first but you'll see in the future, hopefully. In other news, yay they're together! Both are very experimental about this due to their lack of experience so their affection will be gradual as both take this hazy river toward love together.

Many things are coming next arc, and I can't wait to see where this tale goes next. I hope you enjoyed, appreciate the support, and seeya in the next arc, Plus Ultra! P.S. Enjoy the new preview!

Next Chapter: A New Kind of Perfection

Izuku: All Might! I'm finally back from my internship!

All Might: You went through alot in the Hosu Incident, huh? I'm sorry I wasn't there for you

Yuki: Pfft, you were too scared to visit Torino Sensei anyway

All Might: Irk! I-I was not! I just... had alot of teacher work to handle!

Yuki: Press 'X' for 'Doubt'

Izuku: *Sigh* Next time, A New Kind of Perfection!

Yuki: You got that right, Boyfriend, hehehe, Go Beyond-!

All Three: PLUS ULTRA!

P.S. Yuki can only speak in these previews