AN: Thanks for the comments and reviews everyone!
fencer29 - You'll have to wait and see about Stain's target :)
Amit Barabi - yes, Inko is basically using Izuku as a go-between for her and Nana. She just discovered that she has some way to talk to her dead mother, you can bet she's gonna lean on that fact! And yes, by this point their injuries are fully healed. I'm not going all-in on realistic injuries where there are long term effects, but I'm also not making it as easy as 'recovery girl kisses Izuku, and suddenly he's fine after 3 broken limbs'
After spending too much time in her bedroom picking an outfit for the day, Himiko finally emerged from her bedroom.
"Last night, the hero Catalyst died from a Trigger overdose after being attacked by a mysterious assailant…"
As she stepped into the living room, she saw Izuku sitting on the couch, a notebook on the table in front of him as he furiously typed away on his phone. By the expression on his face, Himiko was sure he was talking to Ochako about some future thing. She made a note to ask him about it later, but for now, she had much more exciting things on her mind.
Today was the second time she would be meeting Emily in person!
At first, she felt strange texting the American girl, but after a short while, they texted each other regularly. And then, on her birthday, she finally worked up the nerve to call the girl. She was surprised when Emily picked up immediately and she ended up talking with her for nearly half an hour. Ever since then, they talked on the phone daily, the future UA student keeping her up to date as her family prepared to move to Japan.
Even though everyone expected her to follow in her parent's footsteps and become a support student, she was in the fortunate position that her parents' quirks combined gave her a powerful offensive quirk. Because of that, she wanted to forge her own path and use that power to become a hero instead.
When she found out her parents were moving to Japan, she took the opportunity and applied to hero schools. Thanks to a house cleaning involving a dozen students of 1-A being expelled, they were rebuilding the class, and Emily was able to secure a seat at UA.
As Himiko talked to Emily more, she discovered that the girl was even more stubborn than she realized and was extremely proud of her accomplishments. It's no wonder - she was extremely smart and driven, to a fault.
It wasn't all bad though. Despite the girl's other qualities, Himiko discovered how easily she can fluster the American. She would stutter and become incoherent before trying to quickly change the conversation. It was so cute, and Himiko couldn't help but look forward to spending time with her, where she'll be in a position to tease her properly.
After quickly tearing through her breakfast, Himiko rushed to the train station to meet her. Once she got there, she checked her messages, only to discover that Emily had just now gotten on the train. With a groan, Himiko began to pace impatiently as she waited for her arrival.
Eventually, the train arrived, and Himiko scanned the crowds for the blonde girl. With her height and appearance, she stood out among the passengers, and Himiko spotted her easily. She was dressed in a form-fitting sky-blue shirt, one that matched the pale blue of her eyes, and a simple pair of black pants. She appeared nervous and uncertain as she stepped off the train, the expression a stark contrast to the girl's normal demeanor.
Himiko knew the solution to that. Instead of waving, she charged at the girl, only announcing her presence as she approached. "Emily!"
"Himiko-" Emily only got out her name until the other girl crashed into her and wrapped her in a hug.
"Welcome to Mustafu!" Himiko welcomed with a fanged grin. When she saw the girl's cheeks turning pink she frowned, wondering if she overstepped some boundary. "What's wrong?"
"It's nothing!" Emily said quickly as she stepped back. "I'm just a little tired is all! I can't adjust to the time difference in two days!"
Himiko's eyes narrowed as she easily saw through the excuse. "You don't have anything to be nervous about! I promise I won't bite-" She flashed her fangs. "-much." Emily made a strangled noise as Himiko laughed. "Feeling better now?"
Once she recovered, Emily gave Himiko an annoyed glare. "Let's just get going."
"Sure!" Without asking, Himiko grabbed her wrist and started pulling her along. Her companion stumbled for a single step before catching herself and following in lockstep alongside her. "I can't wait to show you all the places I've told you about!"
"Yeah, that'll be nice! It's really lucky that I ran into you on I-Island huh?"
"Yep! Now I can return the favor!"
The pair quickly exited the station. Himiko walked toward a nearby shopping district where her favorite cafe was located. They had the best selection of drinks in the city for people with specialized dietary requirements; there were several delicious drinks on their menu that contained animal blood, so she took every chance she could to support them.
When they arrived and Emily looked at the menu, her eyes went wide. "Where do I even begin?"
Himiko laughed at the other girl's plight and pointed to one side of the menu. "You probably want to focus on those, unless you want something more exotic in your drink."
"What do you normally get?"
"A Sanguine Cocktail." Himiko pointed to another segment of the menu. "The blood perfectly enhances the fruit flavors in the beverage."
Emily's eyes went wide. "I think I'll stick to something that doesn't require a refined palette."
As Emily examined the menu, Himiko felt the same warmth that she felt on I-Island. Emily didn't make any judgemental comments about her need for blood, she simply accepted it as a part of who she was.
Himiko couldn't help but wonder what would have happened if she ran into Emily in Izuku and Ochako's past timelines. Would she have tried to help her?
Secretly, Himiko hoped the answer would be yes.
Shaking her head to clear away her dark thoughts, Himiko watched Emily step up to the counter and order her drink; she followed suit. Once the pair collected their drinks, they found a quiet table and sat down. Thanks to the summer break, the cafe was mostly empty, and they had plenty of privacy.
Once seated, Emily opened her backpack and fished something out of it. She placed Himiko's present on the table and slid it across to the other girl. "Happy Birthday!"
Himiko took the gift and carefully unwrapped the package, revealing a boxed set of an American cartoon, stylized after the Japanese animation she so loved. "How did you-"
"You were complaining about being unable to buy it," Emily interrupted. "Because the import costs made it so expensive. Thanks to the treaties in place on I-Island, I don't have to deal with those pesky taxes."
"I did?" Himiko quickly grabbed her phone and started scrolling back through their text messages. "I only mentioned that once!"
"Yeah well!" Emily crossed her arms and looked away, trying to hide the fact that her neck was turning pink. "I had no idea what to get you otherwise!"
Himiko's blush spread at the thoughtful nature of her companion. Despite claiming otherwise, she actually put a surprising amount of thought into the gift. "Thank you!"
"It's nothing!" Emily insisted. "I'd do it for all of my friends."
Not that I have many friends to begin with, Emily thought bitterly.
"You should come over and watch it with me!"
"What?" Emily looked surprised that the other girl would invite her over so quickly.
"Normally I make Izu watch everything with me. I'm sure he'd appreciate the break," Himiko explained. "And you can meet my mom! Her cooking is amazing! Maybe you'll even get a chance to meet Al- Yagi too!"
"But I have to get ready for school next week!" Emily's face turned red. "After all, it's UA! And even though I-Island's academy is world-renowned, I'm still a semester behind! I need to hit the ground running if I want to take the top spot and show them I deserve to be there!"
"Speaking of UA…" Himiko began with a nervous smile. She had intentionally kept this particular piece of news to herself, deciding to surprise the other girl when she finally arrived in Mustafu. "I've decided I'm going there as well!"
"Wait, hold up. I thought you were always planning on going to UA? Your brother and friends were all trying to get into UA already, right? Weren't you going to try joining them as a general studies student until you figured out what you wanted to do?"
"That was the plan," Himiko admitted. "But things have changed. I'm going to try applying for the Hero track, just like Izu is!" Emily stared dumbfounded, so Himiko continued. "There's too many people out there who associate quirks with the idea of being a hero or a villain. After everything I've been through I-" She took a deep breath. "-want to show people that it's the person behind the quirk, not the quirk, that's important."
To show the Togas, to show Izu, to show Ocha that I'm not a monster.
"Take Endeavor for example. People associate his strong quirk with being a hero because it's bright, it's powerful. But what if he didn't want to be a hero? What if he wanted to be a villain? Who could stop him! Fire is scary and destructive! It's that heroic drive that makes him a hero, not his quirk! I want to show that to people. I know people don't find blood as cute or as fascinating as I do," Himiko said with a hint of sadness in her voice. She knew part of her obsession was tied to her quirk, but another part was tied to her parents' treatment of her. "But that doesn't make me a villain! It's like you said, my quirk is a part of me. And- and I want to show people that I can be a hero too!"
To prevent the next little girl with a blood quirk from being called a monster.
When she finished talking, she saw stars in Emily's eyes as she was staring at her, her mouth slightly open. In an instant, she recovered and began standing up, slamming her hand into the table. "That's- If that's how you feel, then I'm going to help!"
"Huh?"
"Starting right now, I'm going to make sure you're going to get into UA. Then we can learn to be heroes together!"
As Himiko stared at the other girl, her eyes grew wide as she just realized what she signed up for.
"What about this?" Ochako asked as she pointed to a poster of a galaxy.
"Do you think Eri would like that?" Izuku wondered.
"She liked it when I got her one last time since she can't see the stars in the night sky. Too much light."
Izuku thought about it for a moment, nodded in agreement, and then offered her the basket. As he watched, Ochako grabbed a rolled-up poster from the rack and added it to the basket, where it joined the various posters and party supplies they had already picked out. She looked at him with a smile on her face, and he couldn't help but return it.
Eri was due to be released from the hospital later that afternoon. With the blessing of Emi and Aizawa, although Aizawa would never admit it out loud, Izuku and Ochako were allowed to arrange a small welcoming party for her. They invited all of their friends who had never met the little girl. Himiko invited Emily as well.
So here they were: standing in the middle of a department store picking up the supplies until their trip to Aizawa's home. Neither of them had been there before, and in fact they were more than a little intimidated by the idea of visiting. Fortunately, Emi also lived there, and her bright personality put them at ease, and made them more comfortable visiting the home.
"Think we need anything else?" Ochako asked as she peered into the basket, checking their supplies. They didn't have any food - Emi promised she would take care of that - but they appeared to have everything else they would need.
"I was thinking of picking up an All Might poster as well?" Izuku said sheepishly.
"Of course, you would," Ochako giggled.
"He did play a large part in her rescue, after all."
"You're right." Ochako put her finger to her lip as she thought about it. "Maybe one that's less… pronounced? You know how Aizawa feels about him, after all."
"Mhm." Izuku nodded as he guided Ochako to the hero section. With a familiarity borne of frequent visits, Izuku slipped down the aisle to where the posters were and pulled one out of the bins without even having to check the design. "That should be everything."
"Great!"
As they walked to the register, Izuku couldn't help but steal glances at his companion. It sounded silly in his head, but he found enjoyment in doing even the simplest things with Ochako. Even a task as menial as shopping went by quickly when she was with him.
His train of thought was broken by the cashier as they walked up to the register, and with an embarrassed laugh he put the basket on the counter. After they paid for everything, the pair exited the department store and trekked to Aizawa's home.
As they neared a park, Ochako checked her phone and saw that they were actually early. Putting her phone away, she nudged Izuku on the shoulder. "Mind if we take a detour?"
Izuku glanced at the park's entrance and then back at Ochako. "Not at all."
Ochako gave him a warm smile as they walked into the park, slowing down to a casual stroll despite the protests of his phone. "Next week, school starts up again, and we won't have as much time for ourselves. I want to enjoy it while we can!"
"I hadn't thought of that," Izuku confessed. "Training will pick up too."
Ochako grinned. "I can't wait to help you learn how to use Float though!"
"That will be fun! We'll have to completely adjust our combo style though since we won't have to plan around you using your quirk on me."
Ochako rolled her eyes playfully. "Oh no, I won't have to worry about my partner when I release my quirk, how terrible." She bumped his shoulder with her own. "It does mean I can be lazy though and let you carry me instead of having to use my cables and Galactic Shroud to get around."
"Of course." Izuku gave her a soft smile. "I don't mind." His face suddenly lit up. "Maybe we can use it as propulsion for something you've used your quirk on!"
"Hey, no quirk analysis! We've got plenty of time for that later." She sighed as the topic reminded her they still had two more semesters of middle school left. "I'm not looking forward to classes though. I barely survived the last semester already!"
"You were third in our class though?"
"Exactly!" Ochako pouted. "You and Jiro are both so smart. You make it look so easy! Even with everything I know, I still had to work really hard to keep up with you two!"
"I'm not sure Nezu would care if your grades slipped."
Ochako laughed. "Right, and I'm All For One. I'm already expecting him to put us through something even crazier than normal for our entrance exam."
"I don't think he would be that mean." Izuku tried to reassure her, but he wasn't sure if he was trying to convince her or himself. "Whatever it is, I'm sure we'll figure it out! We've already done it once, after all!"
"Mhm." Ochako's smile returned as she bobbed her head. "You're right!"
"Besides, I think we'll be more than ready just from trying to help Shizu get into UA."
"True!" Ochako chuckled. "If we can help her get into UA, we can do anything!"
They shifted to a lighter topic of conversation, talking about everything and nothing at the same time as they simply enjoyed each other's company. As they walked. Ochako couldn't help but wonder when it became so easy to talk to Izuku. During her time at UA, she was always nervous - wondering if it was ok to just be a normal teenager while trying to become Japan's next Symbol of Peace. It's what ultimately led to her trying to bury her feelings.
She didn't feel any of that nervous energy with Izuku. There was a certain sense of rightness, an unspoken take all the time you need, between them, and she was grateful for it.
After what felt like no time at all, they reached the other end of the park, exiting back out onto the streets of Mustafu and continuing toward their final destination.
Finally, they arrived at the apartment. Izuku knocked on the door anxiously. It opened, revealing the smiling face of Emi Fukukado.
"Just on time! Shota is at the hospital going through the discharge process now!" She ushered the pair inside and closed the door behind them. "This little girl means a lot to you, huh?"
Ochako nodded. "Hearing about her situation, we just had to do something!"
"Must suck having to rescue her twice, huh?" Both kids froze in place and turned toward Emi, who broke out in laughter. "Got ya!"
"W-how did you find out?" Izuku asked nervously.
"Call it a lucky guess!" Emi grinned. "Also Shota told me."
"O-oh."
"Don't worry, your secret's safe with me!" Emi said, giving the pair an exaggerated thumbs up. "I thought something was strange about how much you two cared about the little girl. But it makes sense. I have to ask though, are there any more kids you plan on saving?"
Izuku and Ochako looked at each other and laughed tensely. Both thought about Tomura Shigaraki, or more specifically Tenko Shimura. "No! At least, nobody you can help with."
"If you say so," she replied as she crossed her arms. "Just - don't do anything reckless, ok?"
"Now you're starting to sound like Kayama," Izuku remarked, rubbing the back of his head.
"Just because you two have all this stuff going on doesn't mean you have to shoulder the weight of the world, you know?" Emi wistfully sighed, thinking of Shota's own issues with Oboro. "It's just like us and Eri - Sho and I know we can't take care of her by ourselves. Our lives just aren't suited for having a kiddo. But with everyone's help, we'll figure it out!"
"You're right," Ochako softly said. Her eyes darted to Izuku. "It's something we've both been working on."
"Y-yeah," Izuku agreed. "We've gotten much better in the last six months!"
"Good!" Emi smiled as she clapped her hands together. Maybe she was worrying over them for nothing. "Now then, no more serious talk. We have a party to prepare for!"