Sweet Cute Green Obsession

by guyNumber23

Love is a very complicated thing. It changes the way one sees the world around itself, and push us past our limits. But there is a thin line between burning love and crazy obsession, and Uraraka Ochako may have crossed it, and not only her. One by one, they all fall in the charms of a certain green-haired teen. Can he take on all that "love"? Rated M for the lots of lemons.

54. The Things I Do For You

The Things I Do For You

On the night they vanished

After watching the conclusion of the fight against that weird blood cult which she had to admit, was kind of interesting, Himiko went back to her room. She had nothing better to do after all, with everyone gone and her leisure options very limited by the white ring around her neck. Aizawa-sensei was down there, but chances are he wouldn't put up with her antics for long before triggering the "behavior correction" function on her collar. Not to worry either, her night was already at an all-time high in terms of happiness. She once again managed to chip away at her precious Izuku's defenses, and she got to savor his delicious blood again on top of that. Soon enough they would be back to their lovely dates, minus the whole cutting thing, she feared. But that could easily be replaced with lots and lots of passionate lovemaking. Oh, how she relished the idea already.

Himiko was lying in her bed, savoring the coppery aftertaste of Midoriya's blood in her mouth while wearing her hero uniform. Using it made her feel more like him, enhanced by having a part of him inside her right now. If only she could have another part of him inside her, it would be perfect. But oh well, all in due time. For now, she would be content with rubbing her hands all over her green, skin-tight hero uniform that looked just like Deku's. In a sense, it was as if he was hugging her entire body in a very intimate manner. She refused to wear anything else under it, after all. But some weird noises came from downstairs, breaking her from her enjoyment. Usually, she wouldn't let these things distract her but the dorms were pretty empty now, so Himiko thought of checking out. Who knows? It could be that Izuku was back already.

She skipped all the way down the stairs with a smile on her face, only to encounter a familiar yet unexpected face at the bottom of the stairs. Well, said face had a severed hand covering it, actually.

"You…" Murmured the young man with his raspy voice.

"Shigi!" Himiko said in her cheerful tone, but she knew this wasn't a good thing to happen.

"Himiko… You spent a lot of time playing house with Midoriya, huh."

"Not as much as I would like, to be honest. You see, they keep me on a short leash." She said, pointing to the collar.

With most of the heroes occupied, U.A. became an easier target, meaning the League would have a higher chance of success rescuing her from the heroes.

"I see. Well, this will make things easier. I get to kill you first, then I get what I came for, game over–"

"What? Kill me? For what, exactly?" Yeah, "rescue" wasn't the word she had in mind since she quite literally betrayed them. Twice.

"For one, your stupid date, which turned into a major pain in the ass. Second, you gave the heroes a lot of info, it's treason then. Lastly, you have been trying to turn into one of those heroes for a while now, so all the more reason for me to turn your neck into a pile of dust." He said, taking one step up the stairs. Toga went one up too.

Maybe Shigaraki would let her go with her extended date with Izuku, but ratting on many unsolved crimes and pointing out a bunch of underground criminal organizations and schemes was far beyond the line of "forgivable". The point is, Shigaraki wasn't that petty to come all this way just to break her pretty neck, that much she knew, meaning there was another reason for them risking coming to the famous hero school. And he did mention there was something of his interest in here. She had to know what, so some stalling would be pretty useful.

"Now, wait just a moment. Who said anything about me being a hero?"

"Isn't that why you're here, and why you have one of those?" Shigaraki pointed at her green hero costume, a facsimile of Deku's, safe for a few details, and more tight fitting.

"Oh, this? It's just so I can mix around. You see, Shigi, I only wanted to get closer to Izuku, but I never planned to be a hero."

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah, why would I? It's so boring! They have to go to school and do homework and tests, and I can't even stab anyone. It's not the easy life I want, you know?" She was being pretty honest there.

"And why should I trust you?"

"Ouch, after everything we have been through, Shigaraki, do you really not trust me?" His unmoving stare was enough of an answer. "Fine. How about this, I'll help you get whatever you came here to get."

"Who told you I came here to get anything? We just came to kill you."

"And risk getting yourself caught? Shigi, please. I know you don't hold me that close to your dried-up, cold heart. I know the place pretty well, whatever it is, I can get it to you faster, so you won't have to worry that much about being cough."

"Or I could just ignore you and do as I want."

"Yeah, you could do that, and get caught when Aizawa-sensei gets free and come after you. Then, the alarms would blare all over the place and you would have a few more pro heroes to deal with, and Kurogiri-kun wouldn't be able to give us an easy escape. Sounds like a plan to me~" She hoped this bait would work on the grumpy young man.

"... I'll take my chances, you can't help me in this anyway."

"Are you sure? Are you really sure? Because I have an idea of what you want…" She took another step back, showing her fanged grin. Himiko racked her brain a lot to try and figure out what could possibly bring Shigaraki here in person. Something important, something powerful that could be integrated into his "units", something… no, someone. Someone currently under much less surveillance and protection because the heroes were busy dealing with random cults and small-fry criminals.

"And that would be…?"

Someone who couldn't defend herself.

"A little girl with gray hair, and a little horn on her forehead. I heard she has a very powerful quirk, but can't quite control it. Now, imagine what would happen if someone else had that quirk. Someone that could control it…"

His deadpan face turned into a grimace.

"Himiko, where's the girl?" He took the bait hook and sink.

"Ah ah ah, slow down there. Shigi, you can't just go up there and take the girl like that. She can't control it, remember? The last thing you want to do is to scare her and be turned into a toddler. Or even worse"

Shigaraki remained silent for a moment. Himiko heard about it from her classmates, Eri's quick was as dangerous as it was powerful, and despite all the progress done, she was still very prone to unleashing it if her emotional state was unstable. An ugly-looking stranger covered in severed hands didn't exactly evoke tranquility and welcomeness.

"She does have a point, Shigaraki," Kurogiri added.

She could always count on Kurogiri to be the voice of reason when times like that came, even if she willfully ignored it sometimes.

"So what? Are you going to tell me she trusts you?"

"She will after I work out a few details–"

"Toga, touch that girl and you'll be dead on the spot," Eraserhead warned her from somewhere she couldn't see. Good thing Himiko bet on his capability to not be dead after suddenly seeing Shigaraki in the dorm's common room.

"Oh, Aizawa-sensei. I thought you were alive, so I didn't show myself. Don't worry, sensei… I'll take good care of Eri-chan~" She said, taking care to not trigger the collar. There was a tingling sensation creeping up on her skin but just her vocal cords would suffice for now. This plan she just made was risky beyond reason, but she always thought reason and common sense were overrated. But just once she really, really wanted Lady Luck to help a girl out in her crazy bet.

"Voice command, Midoriya Izuku. Restriction zero." The collar beeped and unlocked, much to her relief. She was so, so more thankful that Izuku let her suck his blood now, she would need to repay him later.

"Well, we don't have much time. See you soon, sensei~" She said, rushing upstairs as she finished transforming. The good thing about being on the heroes' side is that you get access to a bunch of cool stuff like her costume being able to handle all that goop that drops whenever she transforms. Much easier than having to lose whatever clothes she was using at the time. She wondered for a second if it was Hatsume's idea, or if she had a hand in it at all.

The blondie knew time was of the essence. No matter what they did to stop Eraserhead down there, it wouldn't deter him for long. That man was unstoppable, she swore on that. Reaching Eri's room, she made a sign for the villains to stop, taking a deep breath in and knocking on the door before slowly creeping inside.

"Deku?" She was on her bed, sitting with a big gravure book on her lap, illuminated by a light on the stand next to her. Eri's eyes lit up when she saw "Deku" at the door. "I was already going to sleep, I just wanted to finish reading this book."

"It's fine, Eri-chan, but… well, something happened and we have to go. Can you get up pretty quickly, please?~"

"Is everything alright? Does it have to do with those guys from the TV?"

"Yeah, the other heroes are dealing with them, but I came here to take you somewhere safe."

"What about Aizawa-sensei?"

"He called me to pick you up. Let's go?" 'Deku' said, entering the room with hasty steps and picking up Eri with the blanket. She could hear the fast footsteps climbing the stairs.

"I haven't changed yet, Deku."

"You're fine like this, dead, don't worry."

"Oh, can I take my book with me?" She said, reaching for it on her bed but it escaped her grasp when "Deku" moved away, letting the other figures get inside the room, much to the girl's surprise.

"Eh? Deku, who are those–"

"Don't worry, Eri-chan, this will be really quick. Kurogiri-kun, do the honors, pretty please." 'He' said with a hint of apprehension in "his" voice. Just what was she thinking right now? "Oh, stupid heroes doing stupid hero things…"

Kurogiri opened the portal and they vanished, just in time for her to hear the door being slammed open. "Deku" held Eri tighter, to calm the both of them.

. . .

"... So this is what happened?"

"Yep."

Himiko answered, now sitting on a chair, hands cuffed and chained to the metal table. Standing across the table stood Aisawa, hands shoved into his pockets and showing the same tired face. Midoriya was leaning on a wall in the back, arms crossed and his green eyes glaring daggers at the blondie.

"And the reason why you took Eri with you is…?"

"We'll get there when we get there, you can't rush these types of stories, you know–" She was cut off by Aizawa slamming his hand on the table. She didn't flinch but it was her cue to keep the jokes at a minimum.

"Alright, alright, I'll cut some details. You're missing out, honestly. Where was I?"

"You helped the League in kidnapping Eri-chan. Using my face." Midoriya said from his corner of the interrogation room, arms crossed and emerald green eyes focused on her as if he would fire laser beams at any moment. Oh, how she loved when he looked at her with intense hate. Pretty arousing, in her opinion.

"Oh, right. Well then, after taking Eri-chan on a little trip–"

"Kidnapping. You kidnapped her." He corrected her dryly.

"After technically kidnapping Eri-chan, Kurogiri-kun whisked us away to someplace I didn't know at the time, barely escaping Aizawa's gaze, mind you, and then came the next part of my infallible plan, which I had yet to figure out…"

. . .

"Wow, you have been really busy, Shigi." Said the blondie as she followed the gray-haired man around the large, dark area. There was this thing about him that she noticed, Shigaraki liked to keep his hideouts poorly lit, or perhaps he didn't have the money to pay energy bills.

She also noted the place was pretty crowded with all sorts of people, most likely villains and criminals. Although they looked… more professional than usual. Some of them legit had suits and tablets, like proper businessmen. Others were just like the small fries that broke out with the blood cult, and a few of them had some support gear on them.

"Quite the rowdy bunch, huh?"

"Deku, who are these people?" Eri quietly asked "him", carefully peeking around. Himiko wrapped her in the blanket after crossing the portal to help keep her calmer, but the atmosphere wasn't really conducive to that.

"They're just heroes in training from the reserve. You know, people who couldn't make it to U.A." She just made that up, but it seemed to work well enough. Lucky for her, Eri wasn't a stranger to shady places and menacing-looking people. She instinctively knew not to stand in the way or look them in the eye. Regardless, her uneasiness was visible, and Himiko's would be too if she wasn't so good at faking emotions.

She wasn't stupid to think this would free her neck from Shigaraki's dry hands, which is why she had to take Eri with her. Her quirk was useful, but she wasn't. Still, Himiko knew how to pass as Izuku, and so long as she could keep the girl calm and her quirk under control, she wasn't that disposable. Regardless, the blondie didn't want to stick around for more than absolutely necessary.

Her yellow eyes scanned the place looking for escape routes, but all she could see were ugly people looking shady and equally shady people in fancy suits. She felt like she missed out on a few things, but others remained the same, such as the masked man approaching her in the noisiest way possible.

"HIMIKO! I want to fucking murder you, bitch! WE MISSED YOU SO MUCH!" Twice came running toward her, but stopped in his tracks when he saw the green-haired teen instead of the blondie he was expecting. "WAIT! YOU'RE NOT HIMIKO! YOU'RE THAT FUCKING HERO–"

"Hey, Twice! Nice to see you again!~" Himiko shut him by grabbing his face and pulling him closer, with a wide smile on her face. She then let her emerald-green eyes turn into the original yellow for a moment, followed by a "silence" sign.

"Huh? Ah! YEAH, HELLO TO YOU TOO, TOTALLY FAMILIAR FELLOW HERO! Fuck you in particular!"

"Well, look what the cat dragged in. Didn't think you would bring more than one person, Shigaraki." Another familiar face and this one was full of burn scars.

"Shigaraki, not that I'm not happy to see Toga back but, uh, didn't you say you would, you know…" Spinner placed his fingers on his neck, alluding to the original intention of their great leader. He could relate a lot to her, which made him a little sad, but then again, she left the league without warning and even helped the heroes. She betrayed them just to get close to that green-haired kid, and now she was back, with their target in her arms nonetheless.

"Change of plans. Right now, she is being a useful unit with that passive bonus of keeping the girl under control." Shigaraki stated coldly, walking further ahead. "As soon as I get what I need, both of them will serve me no longer."

The lizard man swallowed dry. Shigaraki had changed a lot since he first met him. There was this feeling of respect but also fear that he had now for the man, but not in the same sense as these weirdos from the Liberation Army. Or, right, now they were the Paranormal Liberation Front. Speaking of which, there came the weird dude with a pointy nose. If he had to be honest, that guy was pretty scary and awe-inspiring on his own, just not as Shigaraki. Then again, after what happened at Deika City…

"Ah! Grand Commander! Good to see you back! I presume your small incursion was successful." Rikiya Yotsubashi, also known as Re-Destro, came in their way. Notably, his left leg and arm were missing and were replaced with mechanical prosthetics. He made a polite bow, then noticed the green-haired teen and the girl in "his" arms.

His face began to contort into a grimace, but he appeared to hold it back somehow.

"Grand Commander, I believe the objectives were… slightly different."

"The results will be achieved anyway, don't worry about it," Shigaraki said nonchalantly, waving a hand.

"And the traitor…?" He said the other part in a lower tone, glancing at Himiko.

"For now, we kinda need her."

"I see! Well then, shall I make accommodations for our guests?" Re-Destro made a gesture with his hands and a few other nameless in fancy suits followed, leading them to some rooms where they could rest.

"Deku" and Eri were led to a room of their own by Re-Destro, who opened the door and let them in.

"If there is anything you need, don't hesitate to ask someone on the staff. They're always around and they're very, very attentive to everything that goes on in this place." The smile on that man's face betrayed the real meaning behind his words, but only Himiko picked up on that, fortunately. "He" nodded with a silent smile as the man slowly closed the door, never breaking eye contact.

"That guy is bad news, but then again, this entire situation is the worst. Is there someone around who doesn't want to personally send me to the afterlife?"

"Deku?" Eri broke her from her inner monologue.

"Yes, Eri-chan?" The little girl had an uneasy look in her eyes and she clung to Himiko tighter as she spoke.

"Are we going to stay here now?"

"Just for a while, dear. I promise we'll be back to UA in no time, okay?" She reassured her, making sure to beam Midoriya's bright smile.

"Okay~"

At least she was calm. The last thing she needed was Eri's quirk going haywire, but she doubted it would last long. This place didn't scream "heroes' secret hideout" at all, quite the opposite. They had to leave this place as soon as possible, wherever that place was.

. . .

"So you used Eri as a bargaining chip to keep yourself alive," Aizawa concluded.

"Alive and safe! Who knows what horrors they would do to her if I wasn't there to protect her?" Himiko said, flashing a fanged, proud grin.

"You don't think you were doing a good thing, do you?" Midoriya asked, still glaring daggers at her, to which the blondie responded with charmed eyes.

"Oh Izuku, if only you could see me. I was like a real hero for a short period, I'm serious."

"I severely doubt that."

"I wouldn't be so sure… I was being you, after all~"

Midoriya took a step forward, gritting his teeth, but Aizawa raised an arm in front of him.

"I will remind you that I'm doing you a favor by allowing you in this room, Midoriya."

He glared at her fiercely again, then softened up with a sigh.

"Yes, sorry, sensei…"

"Well, back to your story. How did you escape, with Eri unscathed nonetheless?"

"I'm glad you asked~"

. . .

"What the fuck have you been doing all that time, you cheating whore?! I STILL LOVE YOU, THOUGH!"

"Shhhh! You're going to wake her up, Twice." Himiko, back in her normal form, covered his mouth to keep him quiet again.

"OH, SORRY. Like a give a flying fuck."

"Twice has a point. What exactly have you been doing with the heroes all that time, Himiko?" Mr. Compress asked. From what she could tell, he didn't want to straight up murder her.

"Oh, you know, this and that~"

"And giving out a lot of information while at it." Dabi followed, glaring at her with his usual uncaring eyes. She didn't feel any killing intent from him, more than usual, that is.

"Well, my stay wasn't for free, so I had to give them something they needed. Can't blame little me for wanting to be alive for a while longer, am I right?~"

"And what's with that hero costume?" Spinner was next, standing in a corner with his arms crossed. "I thought you were against heroes."

"Oh, this? It's just a little thing I did to mess with them, but I'm not gonna lie, it's pretty convenient."

"And it also looks a lot like the costume of that green-haired kid from U.A." Another person joined the little chat, a woman with lilac hair and pale blue skin, green eyes with black scleras, wearing a long dark blue dress with a red jacket over it.

"My name is Kizuki Chitose, but everyone calls me Curious." She said, extending a hand with a wide smile.

"..." Himiko looked at the lilac woman with a suspicious face, then pushed Kizuki's hand back with a finger. "Sure, whatever."

"Hmm, shy much? I've been told you're a very amicable and cheerful person." She tried again the handshake.

"That I am, but only for people I like."

"Ho, and you don't like me?"

"I don't even know you." She answered dryly.

"Well, why don't we change that? Although the truth is that I already know a lot about you." Kizuki took a step ahead and quickly clasped Himiko's hand, pulling the blondie closer. "So let's be friends, right?~"

Something in the way that woman smiled at her with that toothy grin irked Himiko as if she was being taunted, or even worse, teased. She was no fool, this Curious lady had second and third intentions, and she didn't even bother to hide them properly. Such an annoyance.

"No thanks, I'll pass."

"But I insist~"

"But I refuse. Now let go of my hand."

"No, for real, let's be friends~"

The blondie could feel her blood pressure slowly rising. Why was she so damn persistent? Is this… is this how it feels when Himiko teases Izuku, Ochako, and everyone else?

"I suggest you unhand me or else, you won't be able to hold things in the future…" She threatened the lilac lady, but as she moved her free hand to grab a knife out of instinct, she realized she didn't have any. Stupid heroes with their stupid rules, how was she supposed to use her quirk without something to cut people?

"Uuh, such an intense energy. I love it!~ I was hoping to ask you a few questions tonight, but I understand you must feel a little tired. Don't worry, we'll have all the time in the world to make an in-depth interview with you." Curious said, finally letting go of Himiko, still smiling as if she didn't just receive that threat.

"Interview? And since when did I agree on that?"

"I'll let you know, Toga Himiko, I've never let a good story escape in my entire career, and yours is a story worthy of an entire book! Well, see you later, friend~" And with that, Curious went back the way she came from, leaving a rather annoyed and confused Himiko with the rest of the League, or rather, the Vanguard.

"What's with her…? Anyway, are we some kind of army now? And what about all those suited-up guys? These are not mere recruits, are they?" She asked them. Better to get the most information while she can.

"Things kept happening after you backstabbed us so unceremoniously," Dabi began, looking at her with a tired but rather cold glare. "While you were playing doll house with the heroes, we kept working on getting more people on our team."

"That much I know. That stunt you guys pulled at U.A. was quite the show."

"And that was only the beginning, Miss Himeko. After that rather crushing defeat, Shigaraki decided a change of strategy was needed. How did he put it? Quality over quantity. " followed.

"So who are these guys? Another old yakuza?" She asked in a joking tone, but her concern only grew. This meant these weren't just some random thugs all gathered in one place.

"They call themselves the Meta Liberation Army, and they have people everywhere in the industry and media. It's crazy how much you can do when a bunch of rich dudes backs you up. Well, now we go by Paranormal Liberation Front." Spinner added, also staring at Himiko with some doubt in his eyes.

"And I suppose Shigi didn't simply ask them to join, right? It's not his style."

"Yeah, a lot of shit went down while you were gone. We almost died…"

"Does it have to do with that Deika City?" The picture was beginning to form in her head.

"TOGA-CHAN, YOU HAD TO SEE IT! We almost fucking died while you were fucking with those heroes!" Twice jumped in front of her, but she covered his mouth again because of how loud he was. "Oh, right. Sorry."

"To begin with, after our little stunt failed, we lost a noumu, and a part of our forces were arrested. Even that idiot Muscular got caught…" Dabi followed, reminiscing about the events. "After that, we were basically left on our own. No more help from All for One or the doctor, with one exception."

"Wait, seriously? Then how…"

"The doctor was kind enough with us to make one last offer to Shigaraki as the successor of Mister All for One," Compress continued. "It was simple in principle: if Shigaraki could be acknowledged by Gigantomachia, the doctor would also accept him as the de facto successor. That was… much easier said than done."

"Giganto… machia? What's even that?"

"IT'S THAT GIANT BASTARD WHO ALMOST CRUSHED US LIKE BUGS! I thought I was gonna die multiple times. I LOVE THAT MOTHERFUCKER!"

Himiko's memory quickly connected the name and description to the huge figure she spotted as they made their way across the large vault they were in. So they had to get on the good side of that thing?

"Sounds like you guys had a lot of trouble."

"Trouble? HELL NO, WE TOTALLY KICKED HIS GIANT ASS! It took Shigaraki one month fighting that thing."

"A… a month?" Himiko knew Shigaraki was strong, but trying to take on that thing was completely above his league, or so she thought. And then doing that in a month? How did he even do that?

"Yeah. Shigaraki… he's different now, and much stronger," Spinner cut in, giving her a serious look, as if to remind her of the dangerous situation she was in.

"As I said, that was only the beginning. While we fought against that titan, the Meta Liberation Army captured Giran and-"

"I'LL NEVER FORGIVE THOSE BASTARDS! THEY TOOK HIS FINGERS! But we're all in the same team now, so that's okay."

"Right. Turns out they really wanted us out of the picture, so they led us to Deika, where we fought the lot of them."

Himiko couldn't hide her surprise at that statement. As strong as her team was, it was hard to see the League fighting off an army, even if the majority of them were pushovers. This made her wonder how exactly they managed to do that.

"So, you five against an army? How did you pull that off?"

"OF COURSE! BECAUSE I'M JUST THAT AWESOME I-"

"The plan was to throw Machia at them and let him wreak havoc, but it wasn't necessary," Dabi said while covering Twice's mouth. Then, he looked at Himiko deep in the eyes and chuckled lightly. "Our brave leader really upgraded his game."

"Wait, Shigi did that by himself?"

"Credit where it is due, Twice also played an important role there." Compress added, followed by Twice freeing himself from Dabi.

"YES! Thanks to my new technique. YOU FUCKERS OWE ME BIG TIME! BOW DOWN!"

"Heh, sounds like a lot of stuff did happen, you're all different now…"

"Yeah, you can say that. But how about you, Toga?" Spinner asked her, keeping his judgemental glare on the blondie.

"Oh, me? I'm the same lil me, there's nothing different. Although now I'm feeling like having a makeover. I cannot be the only one lagging in the team~" She said in her typical cheerful tone, but a hoarse voice came from behind her, sending a chill down her spine.

"And what makes you think you'll be staying for that long?"

Shigaraki seemed to emerge from the shadow of the corridor. Now that she got the gist of everything that went on while she was away, Himiko sensed even more danger and murderous intent from the man. Notably, he didn't even have his severed hands on.

"This is really bad… if I slip up in here… if anyone slips, they'll be dead for sure." Himiko thought to herself, acting naturally on the outside. "Oh, come on, Shigi. Don't be so mad just because I went on a little date-"

"No, I'm not even mad. It's just that I don't see any more use for you in here, Toga." He cut her short. The way he spoke, so dry and to the point, was definitely something new, and quite bone-chilling too. "So, once we're done with the kid, there will truly be no use for you. Especially in that hero costume." He finished, walking past her. As if by instinct, she took a small step to the side to avoid bumping into his shoulder.

She really needed to get herself and Eri out of there.

. . .

"Is this the part where you tell me what I want to hear?" Aizawa asked her, rubbing his eyes again.

"Ummm, yeah. So after all that we just kept chilling in the bedroom, and some of those pinstripes would come to check on Eri-chan now and then. Meanwhile, I tried to find an exit from that place but I wasn't allowed to wander too far. And what's worse, my time was running out. I did get a good sip from Izuku's sweet, sweet, delicious blood but even that wouldn't last forever." She said the last bit looking at Midoriya and licking her lips, to which he reacted by placing a hand where she bit him.

"And yet, against all the odds you managed to escape with Eri." Aizawa stared down at the blondie. It was very hard to tell when she really meant it and when she was joking, even for him.

"What can I say? I did give my best, plus I didn't come out unscathed. I only allowed myself to faint after I saw Izuku and Ochako-chan, aren't I heroic?~"

"Straight to the point, Toga. How did you get out?"

"Fighting, of course!"

. . .

Eri-chan was starting to get suspicious about their situation, and Himiko didn't have much left of Izuku's blood in her system to keep her transformation. And that's not to mention whatever these guys were doing with the samples they took from the little girl. But this place felt like a maze and she had someone constantly following her around. If at least she could pick off someone isolated, she could change forms and explore further, but these guys were so organized they would quickly notice.

"Damn it, aren't there any openings?"

And to make things worse for the blondie, she had to endure that blue skin woman and her non-stop questions about her past. It didn't matter how many times she refused to answer and told her to eat shit, Curious remained true to her name. Every day she would come and sit with Himiko in a room for at least one hour for these interview sessions, not that the blondie had to answer anything, really. She already knew a lot about her, annoyingly so.

"So, how did it feel when you drank that boy's blood back in high school? Did you get some kind of high from it, or was it pure child curiosity that moved you?"

"... Fuck off"

"Mhmm, that's the thirtieth time you said that to me today. How about we change topics? Enough of your past, tell me about your present." Curious leaned forward, staring at Toga with very eager eyes.

"My… present?"

"Yes, you spent a lot of time with the heroes recently, how was that? Why did you do that?"

"I'll say it again until you get it through your thick skull. I'm not telling you anything." Himiko could feel her blood pressure rising again. Damn, she was so infuriating.

"But you must tell me about it. A villain so deranged like you, turning herself up to the heroes and asking to be enrolled at the Hero Course of U.A. from all places. You must have had a great reason to do that, so tell me, what compelled you to do that? Is it the regret of killing all those people? Betrayal? Did you want to get back at your colleagues from the League?" Curious then smirked, eyes squinting lightly. "Or was it because of Midoriya Izuku?"

The mentioning of his name definitely got Toga's attention.

"... Who?"

"No need to play dumb, Himiko, I did my homework. That student from the Hero Course that you captured, his name is Midoriya Izuku. In fact, it's the face you're using to trick that girl, isn't it? And judging by your choice of costume, should I infer that you two are close to each other?" These weren't questions, they were affirmations. Just how did she know about her and Izuku, Toga asked herself.

"Oh, that. Yeah, it was part of the mission to capture him so you can say we got relatively close to each other."

"Mhmm, in a very intimate way, I suppose~"

"What?"

"Say, didn't you keep him locked in a dark room for days while you slowly cut and bled him? This is your version of a 'date', right? A sick, cruel version of a romantic honeymoon, twisted by your warped view, and all that ties back to your Quirk. How tragic."

"Shut up, what do you even know about it?" Toga was finding it increasingly difficult to act indifferent to that woman.

"Oh, I know a lot. I know that you were meant to capture him and deliver the boy to your League, but you went into hiding with him instead. I know that you have a twisted idea of love that involves drinking the blood of others. And I also know," Curious leaned forward again, showing that sly smirk again. "that cutting him wasn't the only way of torture you used on him. You naughty girl~"

"What did you just say?!" Toga grabbed her by the collar of her jacket, almost headbutting Curious in the process.

"You mentally and sexually abused that kid for days on end, didn't you? I heard you even used the face of his friends while having sex with him, can you confirm that?"

"Shut up, shut up…"

"I guess it couldn't be helped. Someone like you, who's so fixated on blood, couldn't resist seeing him covered in red. You treat your victims like artwork, you enjoy your time making cuts and drawing blood, but Midoriya was different, wasn't he? Was it because he was a hero?"

"Shut up…"

"I have a theory. You wanted to see if you could break a hero's will but ended up falling in love with your craft. Is that correct? But then why torture him for that long? Do you also get off on having sex with people covered in blood–"

"SHUT THE HELL UP! SHUT UP UP OR I'LL FUCKING KILL YOU!" Toga finally reached her limit, grabbing Curious by the neck and pushing her back.

However, the pale-skinned lady didn't even flinch, and her smile never waved. After all, she was finally getting the answers she wanted.

"You don't know anything about me. You think you do but you don't! Don't talk about me and Izuku like you know us or our relationship. You will not disrespect my love for him!"

"Ho, so it is love after all. I thought about it but didn't consider it likely. It's like a reverse case of Stockholm Syndrome–"

"Shut up! You don't know shit! I love Izuku and I want to be like him. We went on our date, it wasn't a "craft" or any of that Stockholm bullshit. If someone dares to throw mud in my love for Izuku… I won't forgive them. Understood?!" She choked Curious harder.

"Ack! Yes, yes! I understand!" Himiko stopped for a second, then slowly released her grip. "~coff~ Yes, I understand now…"

Curious rubbed her neck as Himiko let go of it, still grinning like a mad woman.

"Toga Himiko, you truly are amazing, such a shocking story… Hahahaha, to think your Quirk would make you so twisted! Wonderful!"

Himiko grabbed her throat again, but Curious didn't seem to care about being choked or the death stare coming from those yellow eyes.

"Where does all this… anger come from? Do you really think… the heroes accept your "love"? Actually, tell me… how did they take your… little date with Midoriya, huh?"

"That's none of your fucking business. Ochako-chan is my friend, Mina-chan too, and Tsuyu-chan, and Momo-chan, and everyone! But I don't like you… so stop talking or else I swear I'll kill you."

Curious was almost slipping into unconsciousness when Himiko released her again, letting the woman fall back into the chair. The blondie then walked past her with an uncaring phase and headed to the door while the pale lady coughed and gasped for air.

"~coff coff~ Very interesting, indeed. I would like to see you try, but before that, we'll need more interviews like this. Your honest self… is really fascinating~" The sly smirk on her face never left, which made Himiko even more infuriated as she left the room, slamming the door shut behind her.

She didn't need to hear any of that. Himiko knew the girls would never accept her love for him, but that didn't matter. Nothing that anyone could say mattered to her unless it was Izuku, and even then, she was sure he loved her. Deep down, she was sure, he had some space in his heart just for her. She had to believe in this, or else her feelings would be meaningless.

"I just… want to have a good life, with the things that I like…" She said, looking up at the tall, dark ceiling.

That's it, she's leaving that place tonight.

She couldn't see much of the place but she got an idea of where the exits were. Being under constant surveillance actually came in handy since every time she got near somewhere she wasn't supposed to go, those suited-up idiots would get closer. As for the shifts, there were no breaches but the guards didn't seem that tough. Even unarmed she could take them down, although a blade would make her feel more comfortable. Seriously, not even kitchen knives were allowed, or even forks, she had to eat with a spoon. But the hardest part would be taking Eri with her.

Not exactly taking her, but making sure the girl would not freak out and lose control of her quirk. But that was probably the lesser evil, compared to waiting any longer in here.

So Himiko made her way back to the room where they were staying. Her body morphed again into the green-haired teen whom Eri-chan trusted so much, she could feel the last bits of his blood in her system slowly fading away. What a shame, once they were back in U.A. Himiko would have to ask Izuku for another fill. Who knows? Maybe saving Eri-chan like this would finally convince him to love her. She even dared to think this could change Ochako-chan's heart too. The now greenet gently turned the doorknob and entered the room, showing Midoriya's gentle smile.

"Eri-chan, wake up. It's time for us to–" She halted her tongue, doing her best to not appear surprised.

Standing next to a half asleep Eri was a tall suited-up dude with long black hair that covered his face. What was his name again? Skeptic? He had a group of people in white coats accompanying him, the doctors who were examining Eri for the last few days.

"Ah, I was wondering where you were, Deku. I guess the interview with Curious went much better today, huh." Skeptic said monotonously as he typed away into his notebook.

"Yeah, it went well. Umm, isn't it a little too early for exams?" She asked, slowly closing the door behind her, her eyes never leaving Eri.

"Exam phase is over, we will proceed with the next stage now. That can't wait."

"Oh, I see."

The tension in the room kept increasing with the silence, which was softly broken by the little girl groaning in her drowsy state.

"Deku, is it breakfast time already…?"

"Not yet, Eri-chan, but soon enough we'll be having breakfast, okay?"

"~yawn~ Can we have apple pie…?"

"Yep, as many as you want~"

"Yay.."

"Midoriya's" emerald eyes met Skeptic's under those bangs covering his face. Her time was up, so one way or another, now was the time to leave. She was sure she could take them down by herself, but then what? Pick up Eri and run for it? Should she take the risk and gamble?

"No, not yet. An opportunity will appear. Or so I hope…"

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go with the doctors so we can get those apple pies, Eri-chan~" She said, moving to pick up Eri in her arms, but Skeptic got in her way.

"That won't be necessary. You don't have to accompany her all the time, Deku."

"Oh, but I insist. I'm responsible for Eri-chan after all, and I promised to have breakfast with her."

"Tch, listen here you–"

"Umm, mister?" Eri's soft voice cut him. "Can Deku go with me? Please?" She asked the lanky man, unknowingly making big puppy dog eyes. That wouldn't work on him but he didn't want to risk making the girl upset.

"What a pain," he murmured before turning to "Midoriya" again. "Sure, you can go along."

She picked up Eri-chan in her arms and off they went to what she supposed was the lab. Himiko overheard something about the Doctor working on those Quirk-erasing bullets since Twice didn't manage to replicate the ones they stole from the Eight Precepts. Whatever, her concern now was getting out.

They walked through the poorly lit hallways in silence, except for the sound of footsteps and the light snoring of Eri in her arms. Each step got Himiko closer to the end line where she would be forced to act, but she was still waiting for an opportunity. She could feel Skeptic's eyes drilling holes in her back, as well as the hostility from passersby. Did everyone already know her time was up? Himiko held Eri close to her chest, tensioning her body in anticipation. It had to be now…

But suddenly the opportunity came into view, and it was loud and bipolar as always.

"YO, TOGA-CHAN! I MEAN– FELLOW HERO IN TRAINING! Where are you going, you son of a bitch?!"

Twice, accompanied by , who elbowed him for almost slipping again.

"Jin! We're going to have breakfast, wanna join in?" Himiko quickly stepped ahead, joining the two and pushing them towards this hideout's equivalent of a cafeteria, secretly hoping this light at the end of the tunnel isn't just the train coming at her.

"I'm not hungry at all. BREAKFAST SOUNDS AWESOME."

"Great! Let's go already then!~" She pushed them further, ignoring the complaints from Skeptic in the back.

"I have to say, joining forces with the Meta Liberation Army definitely has its perks. No more struggling with money or food." Said Compress.

"Yeah, only the finest stuff now. THEM BRING THAT FILTHY RICH MAKES ME REALLY MAD, THOUGH!"

While they talked, Himiko looked around for the exit. The moment she saw it, she would make a run for it. Thankfully Twice wasn't loud enough to wake up Eri now, which made things slightly easier.

"~sigh~ I can't wait to see Izuku's face when I show up with Eri-chan back at U.A~"

But then, she bumped into the two men walking ahead of her.

"Huh, what's up?" She looked at them with a confused face.

"If you allow the boldness, miss Toga, I think I know you for long enough to know you're never this excited about breakfast." He said as he turned around but Himiko already took a step back and away from his reach. "Oya? Cautious, aren't we?"

"Well, Atsuhiro-kun, the feeling is mutual." She never truly believed her exit would be that smooth.

"Oi, Compress, what gives? DID YOU EAT SHIT TODAY?"

"I'm afraid our friend here is very divided between us and the heroes, Bubaigawara-kun. Isn't that right, miss Toga?" Compress took another step forward, slowly moving his hand closer and Himiko backed at the same pace.

"I wouldn't say that, I still don't like heroes. It's just that… well, I want to keep living, and I have the impression this won't happen if I keep around. You understand, right?"

"Ah, I see, it makes sense. WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?"

Himiko's eyes were glued on . If she blinked now, there was a great chance she would end up inside a little blue marble, not ideal at all.

"Don't get me wrong, it's nothing personal. I just shifted my goals a little bit."

"What a shame, you always brightened up the mood. I'll miss that."

"THE FUCK IS GOING ON?!"

One blink. extended his hand, at that range, it should be easy to capture her. She ducked and swiftly dealt a kick to his stomach, winding out and sending him to the floor. Perhaps he underestimated how agile she was, or maybe he didn't expect her to improve in the time she was with the heroes. As for Twice, he stood there, looking in confusion.

"What the fuck, Himiko?! THAT WAS A SICK MOVE! DO IT AGAIN!"

Before he could say more, Himiko began her mad dash to escape the place, holding Eri firmly in her arms, and with the masked man after her.

"Oi, Toga-chan! You really betrayed us, you bitch! COME BACK HERE AND APOLOGIZE TO COMPRESS!"

"Sorry, Jin-kun, I can't do that, and I can't stay here." She said, briefly looking behind at him.

"AND WHY IS THAT?!"

"Because… Everyone here wants to kill me!"

Twice slowed to a halt as he let that sink in. In fact, everyone here wanted her dead. But the thing is…

"Of course! Die, you fucking traitor! BUT I LIKE YOU STILL, THOUGHT!" And with that, he resumed running after her.

She ran through the hallways as fast as she could, turning left and right as she conjured the way out from memory. She wasn't sure how far it was but she knew if it was the general direction to the exit. As expected, it wouldn't be completely open and there were her first obstacles, a couple of unremarkable suit-ups standing in her way. They demanded her to stop and drop the kid, with one of them branding bone claws while the other bared large fangs. Without losing momentum, she skidded on the floor and swept them off their feet, then resumed her run.

"Damn, how I wish I had at least a– knife!" Himiko bent backward to avoid a blade aimed at her neck. It sunk into the wall and got stuck, coming from the arm of another suit-up.

"Tch, you guys are really a pain in the ass." She said as she went ahead, but Himiko quickly backtracked and checked the pockets of the guy as he struggled to get free. "Do you have any spare knives?"

He slashed at her with his other arm but missed again, and got a knee to the guts.

"Sheesh, you just had to say no."

After the next turn, it was completely unknown territory for her, and right at that moment, she felt Eri stirring awake.

"Deku… where's breakfast…?" She asked with a yawn.

"Oh, Eri-chan. Don't worry, we'll get there soon enough." 'Midoriya' said, making her way through the hallways.

"... Why are you running?"

"Erm… this is… morning exercise?"

Before Eri had time to say anything, some more shouting came in their direction. More members of the Paranormal Liberation Front rushed to stop Himiko and take Eri.

It was four against one this time. One of them had tentacles for arms, with some kind of weight at the tips. He came swinging those like flails, forcing her to step back. Two guys, one with a bird and another with a dog face, blocked the path behind her while the fourth guy with scales on his face joined the tentacle one. Himiko held the confused girl firmly in her arms, preparing for the fight.

First, tentacles attacked with the weights, hitting the floor as he missed. The two animal heads tried to grab her from behind but she stepped on Dog Face's foot, then elbowed bird head, following with a knee on his sides. Scally Face rushed at her, swiping his claws, but she ducked and slid between his legs, sweeping him off his feet and jumping as dog face tried a tackle. Tentacles swung the weights at her again, missing my mere centimeters, then tried to throw it straight at her. Holding Eri tightly, Himiko sidestepped and grabbed Bird Head by his necktie, pulling him in the way of the weight and knocking him out.

Scally Face got up again and swiped at her, leaving a superficial cut on her arm. She winced but ignored the sting, kicking him in the stomach, then following with a knee to the face, dropping him to the floor. Before she could react, Dog Face jumped at her again but this time he aimed for Eri, taking hold of the little girl. Himiko fought him back but felt something wrap around her wrist. Tentacles pulled her in the opposite direction, forcing her to let go of Eri.

In the next few seconds, Himiko tugged at the tentacle holding her and grabbed the second when it came swinging, using it to wrap around Dog Face's neck. She then gave a stronger tug, pulling tentacles towards her while gaining enough space to hold one of the weights and hit the one holding Eri in the face, one, two, three times, knocking him out. One last pull at the tentacles and she landed a high kick at the villain's chin, taking him out as well.

Taking a moment to breathe, she looked at Eri. The girl was clearly confused but the problematic part was that she looked scared. "Midoriya" quickly kneeled in front of her and gently cupped her cheeks.

"Eri-chan, things will look weird for a little while, but I need you to trust me, alright?" She said, trying to calm down the gray-haired girl.

"Are we in trouble, Deku?"

"Trouble? No no, this is, uh… a surprise test from Aizawa-sensei! And I have to protect you from all those fake villains and escape this place, but it's hard to fight with my hands occupied so here," She said, turning around and offering a piggyback ride. "Hold on to me as tight as you can and don't let go, okay?"

Eri hesitated a moment, looking at the green teen's face, but then she jumped on her back, wrapping her little arms around his neck and holding tight. Just to make sure she wouldn't fall, Himiko grabbed a suit from the unconscious villains and tied it around Eri and herself. Now, to get both of them out of here.

"Deku, can we have breakfast after the test?"

"Of course," She said, copying Midoriya's bright smile as she looked at Eri. "I made a promise, right?~"

Himiko encountered more and more opponents as she made her way through the corridors, fighting them off while taking care to not get Eri hurt, which was quite the challenge. She was unarmed and since she took Midoriya's form, she couldn't be particularly violent, or rather, lethal. Seriously, fighting with so many restrictions was too hard, how did the heroes even put up with not being able to crack a skull or break a neck? She would feel so much more comfortable with at least one blade in her, but she would need to make do without it. Plus, Deku fought with his fists, not knives.

The experience, however, was kinda exhilarating. Fighting off all those villains on her own while protecting Eri, that's definitely something Midoriya would do. Even if it was just for a moment, she was acting like a hero, she had a costume just like his, he had his blood and his face, and even Eri trusted her. Was it fair to say she had fully become him? If yes, then she couldn't be happier. Himiko finally became someone she loves.

But the happiness was short-lived. Just as she stepped into a larger hall, she halted in her tracks as a large crowd stood between her and what she assumed was the exit, a massive stair leading to a heavy metallic door. So far, Himiko didn't have much trouble fighting off those suit-ups and whatever grunts were in her way, most of them were pretty weak and she took advantage of being in a narrow space to take them down one by one. But in an open space like this and with all those people, she had no chance of winning. And to make things worse, someone she had the displeasure of knowing stood in front of them.

"Well, I was wondering when you would finally rebel. You're certainly an interesting person… Toga Himiko." Curious said, her eyes fixated on the green-haired teen in front of her.

"That woman again, what a pain… and what's with all those people, do they really need that much to capture me? Then again, they're not the best on their own, I bet even with that fancy support gear they'll just work as cannon fodder. But I can't lose time and energy here, the exit is…". Her eyes trailed to the exit.

"Fufufufu~ So, let us continue our interview, shall we?" Curious said, pulling out a recorder as her lackeys stepped forward, slowly closing in a circle around Himiko.

"This again? I already told you I have nothing to say!"

"I'll say it once again: in my entire career I have never missed a good story, and yours is to die for, Toga Himiko!"

"Deku, what is she talking about?" Eri asked with a fearful face, clinging to her shoulders as the villains surrounded them.

"Don't worry, Eri-chan, it's just an act. You know how Aizawa-sensei is." Is what she told the girl but the situation was getting worse by the minute.

She couldn't take them all down so Himiko decided to make a run for it. She would punch whoever got in her way and leave this place through the path of least resistance.

Himiko ran at the crowd pushing her way through and throwing punches and kicks all around. She swiftly dodged attempts to grab her from behind, making people trip over themselves to open some space. She was halfway there when Himiko noticed something light up next to her feet and in the next second the ground blew up, launching her and the villains nearby into the air. She instinctively turned around to protect Eri from the bulk of the blast and covered her face, but the sudden explosion made her dizzy.

"What the… hell was that?" As she got up, with Eri still tied to her back, someone tried to sneak up on her but Himiko noticed and quickly put them in an arm lock. The criminal just laughed and right after exploded, sending her back to the floor.

"Argh! Explosion quirk…?" She said, feeling her chest hurt. The costume was pretty resistant to tearing and burning, but it didn't absorb any of the concussive force. More men approached her but Curious made a sign for them to stop.

"No, that's my Quirk, Landmine. It allows me to make anything I touch into a bomb, but that's not important. What really is important here is you, and your story. Now, let me make something clear, Toga Himiko. You can participate in my interview, or I can get the answers from you in other ways. If you want to keep that cute face intact, I advise you to cooperate."

She felt dizzy and winded out, and some of her hair was burnt. Tiredness made her lose focus as she kneeled before the pale-skinned lady. A bunch of goop started to fall from her face, the green locks giving place to unruly blonde hair, emerald eyes turning yellow and cat-like. Meanwhile, Eri clung to her back, watching in confusion as her protector melted away right in front of her.

"Deku?! What's wrong? Are you hurt?!"

"Sorry, Eri-chan, I might have… told you a little lie…" Midoriya's voice gave way to Himiko's, making Eri even more confused.

"You're…"

"Calm down, Eri-chan. I know it looks bad but I'll take us back to U.A. and Izuku, okay?" She desperately tried to reassure the girl but Himiko herself wasn't very confident in her own words.

"Hahahaha, interesting! How long do you pretend to keep this farce?" Curious asked her with a condescending look.

"Farce? I mean it, we'll go back to U.A. Right after I remove all of you from my way…" She said, staggering a bit as she got up.

"That, my dear, is a delusion. What I really mean is for how much longer will you pretend to be a hero?"

"..."

Curious took another step forward, standing right in front of the blondie.

"You're not a normal person, Toga Himiko. You're twisted because of your quirk, I wonder what caused it. Was it the rejection from your parents, or the horrified reactions from your classmates? Or was it a failing from Quirk Counseling in a world where we're told to repress ourselves and our potential?"

"This is wrong… I'm not twisted. I just… want to live a good normal life, and do the things I like. The things I don't like, I want them gone, so at that point, I even understand you guys from the Liberation Army. But… I'm normal, and I just want to become more like the people I love."

Himiko took a fighting stance but before she made any moves, she felt Eri shuffling in the back. The next moment, the little girl jumped from her back and ran away from the blonde.

"Wait, Eri-chan!"

"Don't come! Liar!" The girl shouted, running without aim. Eri didn't notice the floor underneath her expanding and lighting up, but Himiko did.

With an insane dash, she managed to push Eri out of the way but she got hit with another landmine.

"You two, take the girl to the lab. Our interview can't be interrupted now." Curious ordered two random thugs who hastily obeyed and took Eri away. The little girl trashed and kicked around to no avail while Curious loomed over hurting Himiko. She could only watch as the girl panicked, being carried away by strangers to who knows where.

"Eri-chan, calm down! I'm going to save you." She shouted, trying to get up. The explosions really shook her body.

"Hahaha, you insist on this bravado, but acting like a hero won't erase your past. It won't make you a good person, nor will it bring you salvation. Instead of fighting it, like this society has taught you to go against your own Quirk, you should fully embrace it. Now, show me, Toga Himiko. Show me your descent into madness!" Curious shouted with open arms, holding her recorder towards Himiko, still laying on the floor.

The blondie slowly got on her knees, then stood up on shaky legs.

"You want to know me? Fine, I'll tell you…" Her messy bangs cast a shadow over her eyes, the buns untangled, letting her hair fall freely. "Like I always say, I want to live a normal life, with the things I like. When I love someone, I want to become like them, and I love seeing them covered in blood… The things I don't like, I want them gone, that's it."

"Yes, we already went through that. You're a poor thing that never had a chance to fit in this society. It's your nature to be fascinated by blood, but people just don't like when it is out of their bodies. Tragic, isn't it?"

Himiko stood in silence, so Curious continued.

"You say you want to live a "normal" life, but you went out of your way to be a serial killer, you allied with the League of Villains, and you tortured a poor soul for weeks on end. Is this what you call normal?"

"Heh… that was back then. Right now… I'm already living my perfectly normal life." Despite her pitiful state, Himiko's eyes gleamed with intense killing intent.

"It's a great shame, but you can rest assured that your story will inspire millions. You shall become a martyr for our cause, I'll make sure of it."

"To hell with that! I'm happy drinking the blood of those that I love. Nothing against what you guys and Shigi want to do here, but I will not give up on my perfect life." She said with her large Cheshire cat grin. Himiko didn't feel like this in a long while. She dashed forward, aiming at the pale-skinned lady's neck. Himiko would tear her jugular open with her nails if necessary.

"Truly a shame…" Curious then flicked her wrist and a cube construct unfolded and wrapped around her hand. Despite her brave last stand, Himiko wasn't fast enough to dodge a hit on her face, followed by a detonation that sent her flying back.

"Your poor thing, how miserable you are, Toga Himiko." Curious said she approached the blondie on the floor.

Meanwhile, Himiko coughed, struggling to breathe. Her entire body ached, her vision was blurry and she had a droning ringing in her ears, but her mind was still focused. Ignoring the pain and disorientation, she rolled and got back up again. She had a glimpse of the two thugs holding Eri in the back of the large room. It seems they wanted to watch their beloved leader beat the shit out of Himiko, but what surprised the blondie was how Eri also seemed to watch intently. If she was being watched, she had to play the part.

"One last question before I put you out of your misery," Curious raised her fist, aiming at Himiko's face once again. "Did you think even for a single moment… that Midoriya Izuku could love you?"

Time slowed down to a crawl. Is this what they mean by "seeing your entire life pass in front of your eyes" before death? If that was what was going on, she was pretty disappointed. Himiko spent so much time hiding. Hiding her fascination for blood, hiding her crush, hiding from the police, hiding dead bodies, hiding, hiding, hiding. Even her date with Izuku was done in secrecy because she wasn't allowed to have the things she liked, and she despised the world for that. Why must she acquiesce and restrain herself? Himiko thought like that, but then she surrendered herself to the heroes. At first, she just wanted to be near Izuku no matter how, but as time passed and she became friends with everyone– in her view, anyway– something clicked.

Himiko was close to him, and she also made friends with Ochako, Tsuyu, and all the other girls. She got a new cardigan, a cute hero costume that looked just like Izuku's, and she even got to annoy Aizawa-sensei to some extent. Lastly, she finally got to drink Izuku's blood, but this time with his permission. She felt… happy. Himiko never thought the day would come when she felt legit happy with her life. At least without tearing the fabric of society before that, of course. Himiko hopped on Shigaraki's train not because she wanted to destroy the entire world, but because she wanted to live her normal life, and that was a way to achieve it. But turns out there was another way to get there.

Another path opened to Himiko, and the first step in that direction was to get out of this place with Eri, safe and sound. You know, like how the heroes do it. Himiko was an excellent liar, but she couldn't lie to herself and she wasn't a fool either. There was no way in hell Izuku loved her, not for a single second. He might be conflicted at times, but that wasn't love, she knew it. Thing is…

"Yeah, I know. Izuku… could never love me, because this is who I am." Himiko said, standing on wobbly legs, fists raised.

"Then you really are a lost case, to insist on that for so long." Curious was about to bring down the final blow.

"That's why… I have to be more like him~"

As the explosive fist came down, Himiko stepped back, narrowly avoiding the hit. At the same time, her face and body melted away, giving place to Midoriya's identity once again, but it had the wide grin of the blood-sucking villain, and her now emerald green eyes gleamed with killing intent.

"Huh, so you still have some spirit in you. It matters not, this interview is already finished." Curious said, and at the snap of her fingers, her followers jumped at Himiko.

She dodged them surprisingly easily for someone who sustained that much damage. What's more, she didn't even look like she was struggling. On the opposite, Himiko looked insanely psyched, swiftly turning to the offensive. She dealt kicks and punched her way through the crowd, making her way toward the two thugs who were holding Eri. Someone tried to grab onto her back, or probably to act as a living mine, but he was kicked back before the explosion was triggered. Himiko was focused on rescuing Eri, then she would rip the grin from Curious' pale blue face, and then they would get away from this place and go back to U.A.

"O-oi! Don't come any closer!" One of the thugs shouted.

"Stop or the girl gets it!" The other one threatened Eri with a sharp bone protruding from his wrist.

Himiko stopped. She saw Eri quiver in fear and look back at her with those teary eyes, she was calling for her, she was asking Himiko to save her. So in a split second, Himiko wondered:

"What would Izuku do?"

The answer came instinctively, almost as if it wasn't her. She raised her hand and pointed at the villain holding the bone thing against Eri's cheek. Then, a black mass in the form of tendrils erupted from her wrist and stretched forward, faster than the thug could react. It grabbed his face and enveloped his head, so in a desperate attempt to free himself, he let go of the child. Himiko, also surprised with this outcome, did what she thought Izuku would do in a situation like this: she reeled in the tendrils and swung over her head, smashing the thug on the floor with a lot of force, head first. Okay, perhaps it was a little more aggressive than him, but it worked.

Everyone else looked in shock, including Curious. She stood there, perplexed as Himiko began to fight using the tendrils, pulling criminals to her to connect powerful punches and kicks, or straight up using the black mass to suffocate and throw people around.

"It can't be, her Quirk should only allow her to copy the appearance, not the Quirks. Don't tell me… her Quirk evolved just from wanting to be that person more than anything? Or even more cliche, is this the power of her love?"

Himiko fought viciously through the crowd, and the more she used the black tendrils, the more hyped she got into the fight. She has finally done it and quite literally became the person she loved, and she was loving every single second of it. Her emerald eyes spotted the other thug holding Eri and making his way out. Not on her watch. Himiko extended her hand and the black tendrils extended, grabbing the criminal around the chest. Instead of pulling him towards her, Himiko jumped high and reeled in, flying towards him at high speed and connecting her feet to his face, landing with a backflip. She then kneeled and offered a hand to help the little girl up.

"Come, Eri-chan. We'll get out of here, I promise."

Eri hesitated, holding her hand back.

"You're not Deku…"

"I know, but-" She swiftly punched someone behind her. "I'll get both of us back to U.A. and to Izuku. Do you trust me?"

Eri looked at her again.

"No," That stung a bit. "But… you promised, so… I'll go."

With a sigh of relief, Himiko took Eri by the hand and helped her up, then put the girl on her back. Eri held firmly to the hoodie, looking over Himiko's shoulder at the still numerous enemies between the exit.

"Are you sure we can get out?"

"Don't worry, Eri-chan. Just think if Deku could make it." That seemed to give the girl some encouragement as she held a determined albeit scared look on her face.

"I have judged you poorly, Toga Himiko. You're even more surprising than I anticipated!" Curious shouted, and with another snap of her fingers, the mob advanced toward the two girls.

Himiko kept fighting using her newfound ability, fiercely pushing back the criminals. But they didn't stop coming, no matter how strong she punched and how many necks she broke with the black tendrils, they kept coming with no restraints. They were just that crazy and committed to their cause, she supposed. Well, it's not like she didn't have things worthy of dying for, namely the girl holding on to her back.

She was going all out, using the tendrils as whips to keep the mob at a distance, but no matter how psyched she was, her energies were already too low to keep fighting at this rhythm. At some point, someone snuck between her attacks, getting up close to her face. Himiko braced for the explosion, shielding her face and making sure Eri wouldn't get hit, and then came the heat and the shockwave. But much to her surprise, it didn't hurt. Maybe for a second, but then, nothing. In fact, she even felt her body hurting less than before.

"Huh? How did that…?" Himiko glanced at Eri, who shied away.

"I just wanted to help…" She said, timidly.

"Thank you, Eri-chan~ You did great!"

Focusing on the fight again, it became clear that Himiko wouldn't make it through sheer brute force. She has seen Deku fighting before and despite having his appearance and his Quirk on top of that, it clearly wasn't on par with the real deal. She wondered why for a second while scanning her surroundings. The exit, or her best shot at it, was behind a large mob of idealistic fanatics, loyal to a fault to their cause and that crazy blue-skinned chick. And if that wasn't hard enough, she had to make it while protecting Eri, what a challenge.

"Well, if I really make it, then Izuku will have no excuses to hate me any longer, right? I could at least ask for a little reward~" She tried to think positively.

. . .

"So, you were pitched against a mob of villains?" Aizawa asked to make sure he was following.

"Yes."

"You were all alone, aside from Eri?"

"Yeah."

"And you somehow unlocked Midoriya's quirk, and made it out of there safely with Eri, all on your own?"

"Pretty much. Though I wouldn't say completely safe, I got pretty scuffed at the end." She said with a hint of pride in her voice.

Aizawa held a long, unamused stare directed at the blondie, he clearly wasn't buying it but seriously, who would? That was too much of a hurdle for someone at her level. Regardless, the scruffy man decided to entertain her a little further and let her finish. Even if she was making up and enhancing some aspects of that story, the truth might still be lying underneath and he could compare her side of the story with Eri's and deduce what really happened.

"Well then, what happened next?"

"As I was saying, the odds were really against us, but with lots of determination and Eri-chan helping me now and then, we broke through the crowd of suicidal and made it to the exit. ~sigh~ Man, just remembering it makes me feel exhausted, there was so much running and fighting…"

"That's it? And what about your wounds?"

"That blue chick was really persistent, she ended up exploding me around a few times before we got away."

"Eri could have healed you after you two escaped. She supposedly did so during the fight, right?"

"I don't blame her, I lied to her after all. Once we were out of danger, she didn't have any reasons to help me out, plus I think she was just too tired." Himiko explained, shaking her head and raising her cuffed hands.

"And then you crawled your way back to U.A. without being tracked by them?"

"Hey, I did this once, I can do it twice~," She said, sending a wink toward Izuku, who remained with a grimace plastered on his face.

That's what happened, or at least part of it. In reality, Himiko omitted some tiny unimportant facts, such as her having some "inside help" to escape. And for her friend's sake, she decided to eclipse his glory, at least for now.

. . .

Pitched against the wall, the blondie didn't see any other alternatives to punching her way through that crowd. It would be very painful and tiring and it would definitely ruin her outfit, but there was no other choice. Well, Himiko would at least try to get to that reported wannabe and break her little neck while she was at it. Not exactly heroic, but let's say she was in a process. But before the blondie made her brave dash toward the mob, a loud and familiar voice sounded behind her, right when she thought it couldn't get worse.

"HIMIKO! I've finally found you, what a relief! YOU TRAITOROUS BITCH!"

Twice barged into the room and rushed to her, with no signs of nearby. Was he here to capture her and Eri?

The man ran towards her, seemingly ignoring the crowd around them, and once he reached her, Twice surprised the girl by hugging her.

"YOU LOOK HORRIBLE! Are you hurt? WHICH OF THOSE MOTHERFUCKERS DID THAT TO YOU? I'LL BEAT THE SHIT OUT OF THEM!" He shouted while examining her.

"J-Jin-kun?! What… why are you here?" Himiko asked, honestly confused as to why her former colleague would come to check on her of all things. Wasn't he pursuing her as well just a while ago?

"What do you mean? I'm checking on you! LIKE I CARED FOR YOU, YOU IDIOT!"

That didn't really explain things but she didn't have the time to spare an explanation. More of the thugs came in her direction, swinging dangerous objects, and limbs and firing their quirks at her. She moved to counterattack but much to her surprise, Twice got in the way, or rather, Twice clones. While they fought off the aggressors, the original got her attention again.

"Ah, that reminds me, here." He said, giving the blondie a clump of clothes.

"Those are… cardigans?" Himiko thought out loud while receiving the oddly timed gift.

"I got to save some of them before Dabi burned your hideouts. AS IF I CARED! I WAS GOING TO THROW THEM IN THE TRASH MYSELF!"

"Wait… Jin-kun, why would you do that for me?"

"Isn't that obvious? You're my friend. I FUCKING HATE YOU!"

Well, that much she knew already. You could hardly say the League was a place to make friends. Spinner shared a common interest with her and everyone more or less had the same idea as Shigaraki, that this world sucked as it was. Basically, the one thing uniting them was a deep hate for the current order of society. So she wouldn't say she had any friends there, except for Jin, and maybe Giran. And even so, she expected this to be over since she decided to side with the heroes, even if it was just to achieve her selfish goals. So when Jin said that, it really surprised her.

But now was not the time to be awestruck and stand like a statue. For all his willpower, Twice wasn't exactly a good fighter and there was only so much his clones could do to stop the angry crowd coming after her. As they overpowered the clones, turning them to mush, Himiko got into the fight again, now joined by Twice.

"Jin-kun, you know they're after me, right?" She asked before dealing a kick to a thug's head.

"Of course! I'm not stupid, I know they want you dead."

"Then-" She used one black tendril to whip someone off their feet. "Why are you helping me?"

Twice made two clones and sent them to fight in his place, turning to Himiko so he could answer.

"I DON'T CARE ABOUT YOU, YOU FUCKING TRAITOR! You're still my friend, and friends help each other, right?"

"But… Jin-kun, Shigi will get mad at you, won't he?"

"THEN HE CAN GET A STICK UP HIS-"

"Can you mind your language a bit?" She said, pointing to the girl on her back trying to cover her ears while still holding onto her back.

"LIKE I CARE! Ahem- SHIGARAKI BOSS CAN GET BENT! It would be wrong to treat my friends differently, so I'll keep helping him after helping you. That's all!"

She didn't really understand what he meant, but Himiko knew him. Deep down Jin wasn't a bad person. A smile appeared on her face.

"Thanks, Jin-kun," She said, genuinely happy that she was still on good terms with him. Guess all that time she spent with the heroes at U.A. must have affected her a little bit after all. "But still, I don't think just the two of us will make it against them all." She said, throwing another nameless nobody over before their body exploded.

"Yeah, we're totally screwed! SIKE! I'M INVINCIBLE NOW! WATCH!"

Before Himiko could ask what he meant by that, Twice rushed forward and as he went, more and more Twice clones sprouted and made more clones, forming a growing wave of bodies that quickly matched the mob blocking their path.

"SAD MAN'S PARADE!"

The space in the large room was quickly filled up with the clones. Even if they weren't strong individually, the wave of men was pushing them back with sheer numbers. As Himiko watched in a weird feeling of awe, a hand grabbed her by the wrist, tugging the girl along. She was ready to swing at them but it was Twice. Or at least one of the hundred clones so far.

"Let's go, Himiko! I'M LEAVING YOU BEHIND!" He shouted as they made their way through the crowd.

"Wait, Jin. I thought you couldn't make that many clones of yourself."

"Like I said, I'm fucking invincible now! THAT'S MY NEW AWAKENING!"

"Eh? Awakening?" The blondie looked at the masked man with a confused face. Around them, clones pushed and punched out of their way, creating a bubble in that sea of people.

"That's how that pompous CEO called it, pretty cool, right? IT'S LAME AS HELL!" He said, then stopped for a second, pointing to Himiko, who was still using Deku's form. "You got yourself one too, look! YOU WERE USING THAT SHITHEAD BRAT'S QUIRK, RIGHT?!"

Himiko let that sink in for a second. Then, she looked at Twice again.

"When did that happen? When you guys fought the Liberation Army?"

"THAT'S RIGHT! THOSE FUCKERS NEVER HAD A CHANCE! I thought we were all dead, especially Spinner, but then boom! Twice to the rescue!" The masked man boasted.

Himiko stared at him for a moment, with an expression he wasn't used to seeing on her face. She looked uncertain.

"Jin-kun… for real, why are you even helping me?"

"It's the same reason as before, you're my friend."

"But… I'll go back to the heroes after this…"

"Then promise we'll keep being friends. IF YOU GO WITH THOSE SHITHEADS, THEN YOU CAN FUCKING FORGET ME!"

That caught her off guard, but Himiko nodded, also showing a smile.

"Then it's a promise."

Then, explosions broke close to them and before they knew it, the floor bloated and lit up, followed by a blast that threw them aside. This Twice, a clone, turned into the same gray mush, but Himiko wasn't so lucky. At least she was quick enough to spin on her heels to better shield Eri from the flying debris. From the other side of the crater, Curious stepped through the smoke, staring at the blondie turned greenet with crazy eyes.

"Where do you think you're going, Toga Himiko? Our interview is not over~"

"Tch, what a pain…"

"SURPRISE ATTACK-" A Twice clone jumped at Curious but was swiftly dealt with a single blow from the woman, using the boxy device in her hand.

"I must say this ability is scary even when witnessing it a second time, but I don't have time to lose here." She said, focusing on Himiko again.

"Same here, that's why I'm getting out now," Himiko said, but her path was still blocked by a fighting crowd.

"Next question, what was the emotion that triggered your awakening? How did it feel? Were you surprised?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Himiko said, whipping a black tendril at Curious, who dodged it with ease.

Himiko kept lashing with Black Whip, but Curious' devout followers kept entering the way whenever she was about to land a solid hit. What's more, a large fella came down tumbling in her direction, with five or six Twices holding on to him. As he passed at quite a high speed, Himiko was tossed off balance, tripping right into a land mine. The blast launched her up, dizzy and with her vision blurred. Luckily there was a Twice clone to break her fall, making sure Eri wasn't hurt.

"Ouch ouch ouch! I'm tired of being blown around!" She spat in frustration, feeling her body going numb again. She felt that weird sensation of being "reset", courtesy of Eri and her quirk, but the rewind didn't recover all her bruises this time. She was impressed at just how much punishment Deku's body could handle and still move. He was truly an impressive person, as expected from the love of her life. Facing her again, Curious raised her hand with the support gear ready to strike.

"You're a box full of surprises, Toga Himiko. Don't worry, I'll make sure your story is passed on to the next generations, but before that…you must answer my questions!"

Curious brought her fist down on Himiko, only to be stopped by another Twice clone, holding her arm.

"Hey, cut that shit out! YOU CAN'T HIT MY FRIENDS, ONLY I CAN!"

"Tch, Bubaigawara Jin! Your story is not one I'm particularly interested in. Get out of my way!" Curious freed her arm, then made the clone into a landmine, causing it to explode in a splash of gray mass.

"As if I cared for your stupid journalism! The media lies! PLEASE INTERVIEW ME, CURIOUS-SAMA!" Another clone jumped her from behind, restraining her movements.

"You huge idiot! Redestro and Tomura will know of this. This is treason!"

"Sorry, but I gotta help my friends. I'll compensate you later! I KINDA DON'T GIVE A FUCK ABOUT YOU RICH BASTARDS!"

"Oi! Let go of Curious-sama, you bumbling idiot!" Another nameless thug peeled Twice away from Curious, who immediately touched the floor with her hand.

A large incandescent mark appeared on the concrete floor as well as a big swelling and just a few seconds later, it exploded, launching everyone aside except for Curious herself, who had some of her followers acting like a shield to protect her body. As for Himiko, she barely escaped, jumping at the last second to evade the brunt of the blast.

She laid on the floor, slowly getting up on her feet. She no longer felt Eri holding on to her, which caused Himiko a minor freakout before she noticed the girl next to her on the floor, also disoriented.

"Eri-chan, are you hurt- ack!"

Someone pulled her by the hair, and as she turned to see who it was, Curious stood next to the gray-haired girl, with the support gear glove at point-blank distance.

"As I said, you still have answers to give, Toga Himiko. For example," Curious looked at Eri, who just realized the dangerous situation she was in now. "Why do you protect this child? What do you want to achieve by escaping with her instead of on your own? Do you plan to deliver her to the heroes? Is this your attempt at atonement?"

Himiko struggled to pry Curious' firm grasp from her green locks, but it was proving to be very challenging when your entire body stung with light burns and your muscles were already exhausted.

"Answer! Or I won't be responsible for what happens to the girl. She threatened, resting the boxy equipment on Eri's head, much to the girl's terror. A sense of dread crossed the girl's heart, for this soft yet menacing touch on her head brought awful memories back. More than that, she feared what would happen this time, if she was to fall into these villain's hands. So far nothing major has happened, but that was because Deku- no, Himiko, took care of her. So with the little hope she still had in her heart, Eri called for help from the villain who held Deku's form.

It was humble and shy, but Himiko heard it perfectly.

"Please… help, Himiko…!"

A grin appeared on Himiko's face as her yellow eyes focused on the battle again.

"Leave it to me!"

In a quick, fluid move, Himiko twisted Curious' wrist, forcing her to let go of her hair. She then closed the gap, standing face-to-face with the pale woman. Her other hand held onto Curious' arm, pulling it away from Eri and in between them. The reporter reacted by instinct, activating her quirk like that. The glove exploded, hitting both Himiko and Curious at point-blank range and sending them tumbling back in opposite directions. Himiko staggered but stood on her feet. Curious wasn't used to being caught in her landmines so she fell to her knees. Seeing the results, Eri got up from her spot and rushed behind Himiko, who was panting and covered in sweat and soot.

She struggled to steady her breath, feeling her lungs burning. Her everything ached and the ringing in her head just refused to stop.

"~pant pant~ You… This ends… now." As she said that, Himiko used Black Whip to wrap a tendril around the reporter's neck.

Curious struggled in a futile effort to pry her neck free, clawing at the black mass but to no avail. Her green eyes focused on the transformed girl in front of her as she choked, desperately trying to breathe. The tension increased, and Curious began to think Himiko would straight up break her neck like she said she would do before. The pale woman then stretched her hand, trying to use her quirk on the girl, but she was too far, and exploding the floor up would hurt her more than it would Himiko. Frustration and despair rose in her aching chest. Was she really going to die without getting the answers she sought? Curious wondered as she felt her conscience slowly fading, the corners of her vision turning black, and her eyes rolling up.

As for Himiko, she wasn't doing much better herself, being hurt, burned, battered, and exhausted, but her intense stare never left the soon-to-be body of the annoying reporter. She would finally get rid of that pain in the ass, just one more tug on the whip and her neck snaps in two. But before she delivered the killing blow, she felt a tug on her leg. Looking down, she saw a shocked Eri, looking up at her with tearful, terrified eyes.

"Deku… wouldn't do that…" She said in a low voice, not to provoke the ire of the shape-shifting girl.

Those simple, hesitant words were enough to make Himiko halt for a moment, granting Curious a few extra seconds to live. She looked at the pale woman again and at the gray-haired child hugging her leg, then back at Curious and back at Eri. Himiko then clicked her tongue, letting out a long, tired sigh.

"I guess he wouldn't, would he…? Man, being a hero is a pain in the ass- I mean, it's way too difficult." She corrected herself, not wanting to be the bad example everyone would blame, in the event Eri says a swear word or the like.

And as such, she retreated the black whip, allowing Curious to breathe again. The woman gasped desperately, trying to get as much air in each intake, coughing and wheezing in between. She tried to support herself with her hands, but all strength had drained from her limbs, so Curious collapsed on the floor, barely conscious. Her green eyes weakly followed the person who had just bested her, currently holding the small child in her arms.

"Just for the record, the reason why I didn't snap your neck is because Eri asked me not to, and that's not what my Izuku would do either." Himiko then leaned in closer, speaking in a lower, more serious tone that Curious could perfectly hear despite the commotion still going on around them. "You better remember this."

Those details about the fight were omitted.

And with that, Himiko turned around, placing Eri back on her back and securing the girl with the cardigan Twice just gave her. It was dirty, covered in soot, but at least it wasn't burnt or torn to the point it couldn't be used. Then, she dashes towards the exit, or what she supposed was the exit. Please let this be the exit. With one final drop of Izuku's blood in her system, she used the black whip to rope above the fighting crowds, landing high on the stairs. As the finished climbing, her transformation wore off, shedding into that weird goop of always. She was thankful U.A. would also factor this in when issuing a hero costume for her.

Hero… would Izuku see her as one now that all this happened? Would anyone, for that matter? She only cared about his opinion, yes, but after all that time she couldn't deny his classmates and many girlfriends have grown up on her, even if just a tiny bit.

Himiko reached the door, turned the heavy knob, and pushed it, then jumped ahead into the long and dark corridor, hoping for the best. Behind her, the sound of her friend Twice, still fighting, made her feel both guilty and glad he came after her.

With hurting legs and not much energy left, she made her way through the dark until a light appeared at the literal end of the tunnel. Barging through another door, she encountered a few more thugs, but the mix of confusion and surprise made it easy for her to avoid most of them. The girl jumped through a window leading to a forest area. Freedom at last, but the mission was not over yet, it wouldn't end until she made sure Eri was safe and sound back at U.A.

Speaking of the little girl, Himiko asked if she could "reset" her wounds, but Eri reverted to being silent with her, and no rewind either. Oh, so be it, it wasn't the first time she did something like that, and while the adrenaline was pumping through her veins, the pain and fatigue were tolerable. Exiting the forest area, she scanned the streets for another escape route, a manhole that she could lift easily. Once in the humid dark of the sewer system, Himiko allowed herself to hit the brake and take in a deep breath, which she immediately regretted as the stink of the place invaded her lungs. Eri also complained, but the blondie asked her to endure it just for a while longer.

The path forward now was a slow walk on a limping leg until she found where she was to then head back to U.A. This felt kinda nostalgic, reminding her of the first time. Back then Ochako-chan had beaten her to a pulp, but compared to now, Himiko was a whole other person. Initially, she could only think of getting to Izuku, getting more of his blood, teasing him, and having copious amounts of sex with him.

Now, Himiko's first thing on her mind was to get Eri back to safety. Not to impress Izuku. Well, not just to impress Izuku, but because she has grown up to like the girl quite a lot. Why would she not, Eri was such a cute girl. What's more, she wanted to say hello to Ochako and Tsu-chan, she wanted to say to Aizawa-sensei "I lived" after that entire adventure. It was weird, how she longed for a place that was the antithesis of her persona, how she missed the company of people that didn't like her. The endless questions of that annoying woman kept ringing in her throbbing head.

Why was Himiko doing all this again? What was her plan? Did she really believe this act would change Izuku's feelings for her? And did she even want him to change how he felt about her? Himiko knew he had all the reasons to hate her, and at some point, she didn't care about being the target of all that hate. But now, after witnessing the love the other girls got from him, after getting a little bit on his good side and feeling a teensy spark of heat, Himiko wanted that. She wanted to be loved like the other girls, she wanted to be loved for who she was, possibly along with her taste for blood, but at this point that was negotiable.

Himiko wanted to live a normal life and falling in love was part of a normal life, but she wasn't normal. So it made sense that her love wasn't normal either. Being part of a harem, sharing her loved one with many other girls, and even adding a side of hate in the mix, none of that was normal. Yet, it felt right to her.

She thought about those things along the way. On the final stretch, she was barely holding herself up, fighting against her body so it wouldn't collapse just yet. Eri felt tired and was probably overwhelmed by this entire convo, so as she fell asleep, Himiko used her cardigan as a bag, holding the girl close to her chest with one arm. She climbed out of the underground and made her way through the alleys, taking the shadows and quiet places so nobody noticed a young, battered lady carrying a little girl like that. She leaned on the walls for support, U.A. was just around the corner. Just a few more steps and it was mission complete.

"Being a hero… really sucks… heh…" She said to herself as she made the turn and surely, the mighty gates of U.A. stood in front of her, just a couple of steps away. And even closer than that, two very familiar faces appeared, two persons that Himiko held dearly to her heart. She wanted to call them, rush at them and give them a tight hug, but her body had long been over-exerted, and this was the farthest sheer willpower could bring her. At least she made it and they were there to see, so the mission was a success. And with that realization, Himiko finally allowed herself to lose against tiredness, pain, exhaustion, and dizziness. She let out a sigh of relief as her mind slipped away.

"... Finally."

And as her conscience faded to black, she saw a glint or a blur of green, which made her more at peace now that she knew he was here.

End of Chapter