Author note: I've loved X-Men since the 1990s, so when I recently started watching MHA with my kid, I was blown away by how similar the 2 worlds are. I had a powerful need for Rogue to meet Aizawa and the others, so imagine my surprise when I couldn't find a single crossover paring anywhere. Obviously that meant I had to write it myself, and here it is! P.S. If you're only here for the smut, it's largely in chapter 6, 8, and 14. You're welcome ;-)

Additional author note October 2023: Over a year later and I finally got a beta reader. Please feel free to tell me if you notice any mistakes. I also love construction criticism!

Here we go again, Marie thought. The bad guys had found her and managed to force her into their scheme. It was almost redundant at this point; she'd been kidnapped by villains so often she thought she should get a punch card.

Marie had come to Japan hoping that no one would recognize her. It had worked, for a while. But the peace never lasted, and the past always caught up with her. Now she was packed in a windowless van with a dozen sweaty criminals, heading towards certain death.

She was fully aware that this little group of punks didn't stand a chance. Here in Japan, the heroes were incredible. They were well funded, well organized, all of the things that the American heroes lacked. Now, thanks to some bad luck, she was going down with these losers.

The van pulled to a stop and they all waited in anticipation. It was quiet outside.

One of the gang leaders had the ability to control other people's actions with a simple command. That meant he could wait from a safe distance while his pawns did the dirty work. Earlier, back at the hideout, he had shown Marie a photo of her target. It was a blurry image of a man crouched at the edge of a tall building, dressed all in black except for the scarf looped around his shoulders.

Since she was given her orders, there was no way to refuse or try to escape. Her job was to take down the target. All she had to do was touch his skin to drain his power. That was Marie's special gift, the reason why villains always sought her out. No one ever cared what Marie wanted, only how they could use her ability for their own benefit. If she ever tried to forget about it, a glance in the mirror would quickly remind her. She had a streak of pure white at the top of her brown hair, a memento of the first time she'd been used by the bad guys.

Not that she had any sympathy for her target; but maybe that didn't matter. Marie knew that even if she was able to complete her task, there was no way she was getting away. Since moving to Japan she had often watched television coverage of the huge battles that regularly went down. It made the fights back home look like recess. Marie hoped that her death would be quick, at least.

With a shout, the van doors opened, and the criminals spilled out.

Soon it was just as chaotic and terrifying as she had expected. Deformed monsters raged as helicopters circled overhead, trying to follow the scene. Marie spotted her target, thankfully a short distance from the worst of it. The man was perched on a small outcrop of rocks, the perfect vantage point for the fight. Marie sprinted across the battlefield in his direction.

He didn't even appear to be part of the fight, he was only watching. Marie wasn't sure what her purpose was in going after him. Maybe these villains were dumber than she realized. It would have been more productive to send her after one of the big guys; although she wasn't complaining.

The ruckus of the battle helped muffle her approach, which was needed, as Marie was sorely out of practice.

Now she was just a few yards away, and the man's back was still to her. He had shaggy black hair, and he was looking out at the fight before him with intense concentration. Marie looked for a place she could touch him before he noticed her. Of course this would be the one hero who didn't opt for a revealing costume. The only bare skin she could see was his hands.

When she was just a few steps away, the noise suddenly died down just as her boot crunched on some dry leaves. The man whipped around. His eyes were hidden behind striped yellow goggles. Marie's body was held in place. She looked down to see the man's scarf wrapped tightly around her body. Apparently this wasn't a normal scarf.

Despite being caught, her orders did not change, and Marie kept reaching for the man. "Stop right there," he commanded, his voice low and threatening.

Marie knew it was useless, but her body was still trying to follow the command. "I'm sorry," she called out, still straining to reach him. "They're making me do this."

He stared at her for a second. "Someone is controlling you?"

"Yes," she pleaded. "I can't stop it."

The scarf fell away, and without thinking, Marie stumbled the last few steps forward and reached for him. As her hand made contact with his, she braced for the rush of energy as she drained his ability. Nothing happened.

She gaped up at him. "How are you doing that?"

"Did you accomplish what they asked of you?"

Marie nodded stupidly. "I think so."

"Good, then go," he said, turning his back to her.

He had let her complete the task, so she could go free. Utterly brilliant. Marie was more than happy to leave, but her legs did not cooperate. Instead, she found herself reaching for the man again. He turned to face her, the long scarf twisting and winding around her. As she touched him again, she felt a spark, just a fraction of what would normally happen when she rew power from someone. Then it stopped.

Marie hoped the man wouldn't lose patience and kill her. "It's not letting me quit."

He nodded curtly. "Then I'll have to incapacitate you. I am sorry."

Then Marie was flying through the air. She landed with a thud, and her vision faded to black.

The police found her just as she was starting to regain consciousness. "Don't move," one of them called as they rushed forward. They both appeared normal enough, no obvious abilities. That could be disastrous. When Marie touched someone with no special powers, it simply sucked the life from them.

If the officers grabbed her and it hurt them, things could turn ugly fast; Marie knew this from experience. She backed away as they approached, scrambling in the pile of dry leaves where she had fallen. "It's not safe to touch me," she shouted. They hesitated, studying her. "Please, I don't want to hurt you," she begged. Marie would feel pretty silly if she survived the battle only to be killed now.

"It's alright, miss," one of them said. "These cuffs will block your quirk. I'm going to approach you and put them on."

Marie nodded, shocked they were actually listening instead of resorting to violence; very different from back home. "Just don't touch my skin.

"Understood. No sudden movements." The officer moved forward cautiously, while his partner kept his weapon aimed at her. Marie stayed crouched on the ground, holding as still as she could. The officer cuffed one wrist, then pulled her arms behind her back and cuffed her hands together. She felt his fingers brush the back of her hand as he let go, but nothing happened.

The other officer approached, holstering his weapon. "Any more of your buddies up here?"

"I'm not with those guys."

He laughed as his partner pulled Marie to her feet. "Of course not! We've never heard that line before." The two of them walked her toward the open area where the battle had gone down, then sat her on the ground with many others who were also cuffed. Marie recognized some of the criminals who had come in the van with her.

Marie felt like she sat there for hours as the police and heroes did the work of sorting everything out. Most of the villains were eventually hauled away. A young woman in an EMT uniform approached Marie. "Are you hurt?" She reached out, and Marie jerked away from her touch before she remembered how the cuffs worked. The woman offered Marie a smile. "I just want to check you for injuries, you have some blood there."

"Sorry, I'm just a little jumpy."

"I would be too. What a day!"

Marie wondered why the EMT was being so kind, when for all appearances Marie was just another criminal.

"Look up here," the woman said, shining a flashlight into Marie's eyes. "Hmm. I think you may have a concussion. I'd like to get you to the medic station and take a better look."

The EMT got an officer to lift Marie to her feet and walk her to another area. It was a makeshift hospital, and Marie recognized some of the people on the cots as villains. She was surprised that so many were still alive. The officials were going above and beyond to help a bunch of criminals. Weird.

After another EMT checked Marie over, she was left sitting on a cot. She briefly thought about running for it, but her hands were still cuffed behind her back, and the entire area was heavily patrolled. She was scoping the place out when I saw him again. The man; her target. He saw her, too.

As he approached, Marie tried to shrink herself down, hoping that maybe he was coming this way for some other reason. He stopped beside her cot, an officer at his side. "This one," the man said, meaning Marie.

She looked from him, to the officer, afraid to speak.

The man crouched in front of the cot. The yellow goggles now hung loose around his neck, and he had a scar under one eye. "Tell him what you told me." His eyes were intense as he stared at her.

Marie's mouth felt dry. "I didn't want to be part of this. They forced me to help them. The leader, he has a way to control people." The words sounded ridiculous, even to her. She waited for the two men to laugh in her face.

"Got it," the officer said, snapping his notebook shut. "I'll be sure to pass this information along."

"I appreciate that," the man said flatly.

"Of course, Eraser, sir."

As the officer hurried away, the other man, Eraser, was still crouched before Marie. "Thank you," he finally said.

"For what?"

He shrugged. "Being honest. It's refreshing."

"I'm just grateful you didn't kill me."

"Why would I kill you? You're not a threat."

Marie felt herself bristle. "Well, not at the moment," she griped.

His gaze was on her again. "Really?"

Marie regretted her sarcasm. "I just meant I can handle myself."

"Then why didn't you defend yourself against me?"

"Because you weren't hurting anyone."

"I gave you a concussion. Why didn't you fight back?" His stare bore into her.

"They sent me after you for some particular reason. I didn't want their plan to work."

He was quiet for a moment. "You were prepared to sacrifice yourself for the greater good?"

Marie snorted. "When you put it like that, it sounds all noble and shit. I couldn't let those idiots win because of me."

"Interesting. What's your name?"

"Marie," she told him. With that, he was gone.

She spent that night in the medical ward of the local jail. They didn't consider her dangerous, so she was under minimal security, cuffed to the bed with a guard at the door. In the morning, they ran some scans and cleared her of any serious damage. She was moved to a cell, which thankfully, she didn't have to share.

After lunch, a man in a suit came to talk. "You must be Marie," he said. He was a tall, thin guy with a pleasant face. "I'm Detective Tsukauchi. I think we might be able to help one another."

He explained his offer in simple enough terms. Marie ought to be heading to prison for her involvement in the attack, but the police had a way to confirm her side of the story. They had someone who could read your memories and project them to show others. The detective told Marie that if she cooperated, and her information helped the police catch the villain leader, they might be able to work out a plea deal.

Marie had little choice but to agree, and the next day she found herself cuffed to a metal chair before a room full of strangers, with a mind reader staring into her eyes. "As long as you don't resist, this shouldn't hurt," he told her, and pressed his fingertips into her temples. The memories flickered across the screen like a movie, and only gave her a slight headache. It must have been enough, because afterwards, the detective smiled cheerfully and told Marie that he'd be in touch.

Almost a full week passed at the jail before Marie was paged to a meeting room. An officer cuffed her to the table, and left her alone to wait. When the door finally opened again, to her surprise, it was not the detective. It was Eraser, along with, as Marie could not believe, a large hamster in a suit? Marie openly stared as the two sat down across from her.

Eraser broke the awkward silence. "We've met before, but I never introduced myself properly. I'm Eraserhead." Marie waited for him to offer his hand, knowing that she wore the special cuffs, but he did not. "I'd like you to meet Nezu." He gestured at his companion.

The hamster held out his little paw, and Marie shook it. He smiled at her, then he spoke. "Marie, isn't it? A pleasure to finally meet you." Marie's mouth hung open.

Eraser ignored her reaction. "We are here about your plea deal. Since you helped Tsukauchi with his investigation, they were able to grant you community service. How does that sound?"

Marie sat up a straighter. "Sounds great. Better than prison." She waited for more, but Eraser looked at Nezu.

Nezu looked up at her, innocently. "You haven't lived in Japan for very long, have you?"

Marie's breath caught in her throat. The oversized gerbil knew . "That's right," she said softly.

"It seems you've been all over the world: India, Brazil, Scotland..." His tone was mild, almost sweet. "Marie, what are you running from?" Brutal, she thought. He might appear cuddly, but he got right to the heart of the matter.

She took a deep breath. "I'm tired of people using me. I just want to be left alone."

Nezu smiled. "I understand, dear. Probably more than you'll ever know."

Eraser jumped in again. "You're from the United States originally."

Marie nodded, feeling thoroughly shaken.

He pulled out a brown folder and laid it on the table. "You've been affiliated with villain groups before. These reports go back decades." Her full legal name was printed across the folder in bold letters: Anna Marie D'Ancanto.

There it was. They had everything. "What do you want?"

Nezu held up his paw. "I'd like to invite you to work for me. Given your history, I think you're the perfect fit."

Marie wondered who the hell these guys were. Spies? Assassins? They knew all about her, so what kind of business could they possibly want her for? This might end up worse than being yanked around by villains.

After a moment, she let out a shaky breath and looked up at them. "What kind of work is it?"

Eraser let out a tired sigh. "Teaching high school."