AN: Thanks for reading and leaving a review everyone!

"Himi, wake up!"

Himiko's eyes snapped open to the concerned face of Inko staring down at her.

"Wh-what happened?" Himiko asked, feeling her heart racing.

"You were whimpering and begging for them to stop," Inko explained.

Himiko bit down on her lip and nodded, knowing what the woman was saying. She was dreaming that she was a hero. Until she ran into someone who called her a monster because of her quirk. The next thing she knew, the confident hero was gone, replaced by a six-year-old girl, and the civilian had transformed into her parents, standing in her doorway before they slammed it shut. She could hear the insults on the other side of the door, as she desperately clawed and scratched at the door, seeking release.

"Thanks," Himiko said softly.

"Will you be ok?"

"I think so," Himiko pushed herself up to a sitting position. "Usually it goes away when I fall asleep again."

Inko began gently stroking the girl's hair, and Himiko felt herself leaning into the woman's touch. "As long as you're sure."

"I am," Himiko nodded.

The two sat in silence for a few minutes, Himiko melting into the woman's side until a yawn escaped her lips.

"Ready to go back to bed?"

"Yeah." Himiko separated from the woman and crawled back under the covers. As she heard Inko open the door she called out again. "Mama Inko?"

"What is it, Himi?"

"Do you think I can be a hero?"

Do you think people will accept a monster?

"Of course you can. And I'll keep reminding you, as long as it takes."

Himiko smiled as she pulled a plush tightly to her chest. "Thanks."

"Goodnight Himi."

"Goodnight."

Mom.

Two days later, Himiko was sitting in their living room, waiting for Sekijiro Kan to arrive. Ever since the trial, the hero had stuck to his promise and visited her every few weeks. Himiko always looked forward to the visit - she knew it was selfish, but she liked the knowledge that people were willing to go out of their way to check up on her. It was such a completely different feeling compared to what she was used to, she just wanted to hold onto it and never let go.

This week was different though - she wanted to talk to Kan about high school entrance exams. Specifically, UA's entrance exam.

She knew it was Izuku's influence, but over time she began to admit he was right. With her quirk, she could become a great hero - just like him. A hero who wasn't ashamed of her quirk. Someone that those with blood-based quirks could look up to.

If she was able to keep one other person from suffering the way she did, it would all be worth it.

When she heard the knock at the door, Himiko bolted from her spot, running to the door and practically ripping it open. "Hey, Kan!"

"Hello little Himiko," Kan looked down at the girl and gave her a wide smile. "You're certainly in a cheerful mood today!"

"Yep! I've got big news to share!" Himiko felt herself vibrating. She couldn't decide if it was from nervousness, excitement, or some combination of both. "When school starts up again we've got to submit our final choices for high school entrance exams." A smile split Himiko's face. "I've decided I'm going to apply to hero schools. I want to become a Hero!"

"Oho? Here I thought you were just humoring me when you kept asking about my latest missions," Kan replied with a toothy grin.

"At first I was," Himiko admitted, her blush deepening. "For a while I thought I was just going to coast along into some nice office job somewhere and keep my head down. But I started to realize that that was my parents talking. It also just sounds so boring." Himiko frowned. "And then Izuku and I got to talking. I keep thinking about what he meant to me. And I can't help but think that if there's even one more blood-based hero out there, then maybe someone else won't have to deal with-" Himiko looked down at the floor, unable to face the hero "-the same problems I did."

Kan gave the girl a gentle smile as he placed an arm on her shoulder. "You've been thinking about this a lot, haven't you?" As he watched she nodded her head before she looked up at him. "I believe you're right. You can be a fine hero with your quirk! Your ability to shapeshift is a rare and special one, after all, and it would be a shame if you simply ignored it."

A smile returned to her face as she nodded enthusiastically. "Exactly! My birth parents - they kept wanting me to hide who I am, but why should I? I - if I can use my quirk to help people, it would show them - show everyone! - that my quirk isn't a curse."

Kan gave her shoulder a tight squeeze. "I'm proud of you, little Himiko. I see you've put a lot of thought into this decision."

"Thanks!" Himiko beamed before she began blushing again. "And um, that means I only have seven months to prepare. So I was wondering… would you help me with training? School has some basic athletic programs we can sign up for, but I want something more. And perhapssomeweaponstrainingaswell?" She blurted out the last part.

Kan sat there and mentally parsed out what she was asking. "Not many heroes use weapons, but it makes sense, given the non-combat nature of your quirk."

Himiko breathed a sigh of relief. "Exactly! While sneaking up on bad guys and punching them sounds fun, I've seen enough hero fights to know that's not enough. Besides, if I want to use my quirk to disorient people in a fight, I'd need some way to draw blood, and that's hard with my fists!" Himiko giggled.

"Why don't we go talk about this in the other room?"

"Sure thing!"

Himiko led Kan to their living room where Inko had already set out a pot of tea and some cups. The two sat down on the couch and Himiko continued. "I was thinking maybe something small and easily concealable, like knives?"

Kan thought about it and nodded. "That does sound like a reasonable start. They aren't as flashy as some weapons, but it fits your quirk." He placed his thumb and index finger on his chin. "Unfortunately, weapons aren't something I typically use, thanks to my blood constructs. I know a few heroes who use weapons alongside their quirks. I'll have to get in touch with them and see if they have any advice for you."

"Yay!" Himiko threw her arms up in the air. "And what about other training?"

Kan let out a bellowing laugh. "I think we can change these meetings into training sessions if you'd like. I'll warn you though - I'll be leaving you with homework."

"That's ok!" Himiko insisted.

Himiko began asking Kan a seemingly endless series of questions, trying to figure out how she could begin proper training and how to prepare for exams. She already felt like she was catching up, but if she was aiming for a school as prestigious as UA, that wasn't enough. She needed to be better, for her sake, and Izuku's.

The two were so engrossed in their conversation that they didn't notice Izuku until he cleared his throat, catching both of their attention as he stood next to the coffee table. "Um, Mr. Vlad King sir? Since you are going to train Himiko I was wondering-" He swallowed the lump in his throat. "C-can I be trained as well? I know I've got another year to go before my entrance exams b-but I want to be a hero as well!"

Kan examined Izuku, surprised by the shift in his demeanor. In the past, he always came off as easily intimidated and as nothing more than an enthusiastic fanboy. But now something felt different - the young man in front of him was filled with a determination he hadn't seen before.

"I believe I can help you as well," Kan said thoughtfully. "Why don't you sit down and join us?"

Izuku smiled sheepishly and looked at Himiko. "Do you mind if I join you?"

Himiko looked almost offended by the question as she slid over to make room. "Of course not! We both want the same thing!"

We both want to make the world a better place for people like us.

When Himiko returned to school for the second semester, the school immediately began to work with the remaining undecided students to help them finalize their choice of high school. While Himiko had made her decision over the summer, most of her friends were still undecided. So naturally, their topic at lunch was dominated by the talk about which high school they were going to apply to.

"So did anyone get anything out of this morning's lecture on careers?" Himiko's raven-haired friend Tsuru asked.

"I actually did! I haven't really thought much about what I wanted to do yet," Sakura admitted.

"Of course you haven't," Tsuru replied, much to Sakura's indignation. "At least you have general studies to kick the can even further down the road."

"Hey, that's not fair! Just because I'm indecisive!" Sakura complained. "Besides, after this morning I was actually thinking of getting into a business track! My math scores are great, so I could be an accountant!"

"Like some company would trust you with those numbers."

"Says you! Just you wait!"

Tsuru smiled at the pouting face of her friend before she turned toward Atsuko and Himiko. "What about you two?"

Himiko looked at her friend as she slowly chewed her food before swallowing it. "I thought it was obvious that I'm applying to Hero schools."

"Right, you're trying to get into UA, aren't you?"

"Yep! And I'll do it, too!"

Seemingly satisfied, Tsuru turned toward Atsuko, looking at the blue-haired girl expectantly.

Atsuko set her chopsticks on top of her bento box and looked at Himiko. "I think I'm going to try applying for the Hero track somewhere."

"What?" Tsuru seemed confused by her answer. "That's not what you were telling us last semester."

"Don't tell me Himiko's gotten to you!" Sakura exclaimed.

Atsuko smiled and shook her head at her friends. "I've always planned on entering a field where I could help people. Like maybe I could become a social worker or a therapist?" She looked at Himiko. "And it's true that I don't have the temperament to become a hero who stands in the spotlight and fights villains daily the way All Might or Endeavor do. However, as Himiko likes to remind us, there's plenty of other roles for Heroes to play."

Himiko felt her face split into a grin as she nodded in agreement. "Like my plan to become an underground hero, where my quirk will be super useful!"

"Yes," Atsuko smiled at her friend. "Just like that. I've been doing some research into the different 'roles' that heroes have, and I've become intrigued by the idea of being a support hero. Someone who doesn't engage in villains directly, but instead lends aid where needed - protecting the civilians and helping them evacuate, coordinating other heroes, and only fighting when I absolutely have to."

"That actually sounds kind of cool," Tsuru had a thoughtful look on her face. "And that would fit you. No offense, but I don't see you ever ending up in a straight-up brawl the way Endeavor does."

"I can't see myself doing that either," Atsuko giggled. "But my quirk is perfect for helping keep civilians safe from villains, and I could take to the sky to watch the fight from the air, where I'd be relatively safe from harm."

"Well, when you become famous heroes I'll be cheering you two on from the sidelines!" Sakura said.

"I hope I don't become too famous," Himiko gave her friends a predatory look. "If I'm in the news, that means I screwed up!"

"Hey! You know what I mean!" Sakura sputtered. "Even underground heroes have to have their fans, right?"

Himiko put her index finger to her lips as she thought about it. Of course, she immediately thought about Izuku and his many hero forums, where he was constantly seeking out news about any and all heroic activity. She couldn't help but laugh as she imagined a room full of him, each happily muttering away about some new quirk or fight.

"Yeah, they have their fans too."

As Himiko was walking to the train station with Atsuko, she couldn't help but think over their conversation from lunch.

She wants to be a hero too!

The thought made her smile. Her best friend wanted to be a hero! That means they could team up in the future, and keep working together!

However, the more she thought about it, the more she realized she was missing an important piece of information.

"Hey Atsuko," Himiko stopped walking and turned toward her friend. "Where are you applying to high school?"

"I'm not really sure yet. Maybe Kenbutsu or Isamu? They're both close by and have decent reputations."

"Why aren't you applying to UA?" Himiko asked, unable to keep the disappointment out of her voice.

"UA? seriously? The school with the 0.5 percent acceptance rate? What makes you think I'd even stand a chance of getting in?"

Himiko practically growled, unable to keep the annoyance off her face. "You'd stand a better chance than me! You're smart and you've got an amazing quirk. What makes you think you wouldn't stand a chance?" Himiko paused and took a breath, mentally counting to ten before opening her eyes and looking at her friend. "Besides, wouldn't it be great if we both got in together?"

Silence filled the air between the girls as Atsuko thought it over. "Do you really think we could both get in?"

"Of course we can!" Himiko began grinning at her friend. "We've just gotta pass the entrance exam, obviously."

Atsuko laughed. "I guess that's true. Unlike you, I don't have an in with one of the teachers though." She let silence fill the air again as she thought about the question, before looking Himiko in the eyes. "Are you serious about wanting to go to high school with me?"

Himiko nodded reflexively. "Yeah, I am."

I'm serious about going to UA with you.

"And you have an in with a teacher, too!" A grin spread across Himiko's face. "I just have to tell Kan-sensei that you want to practice with us too!"

A light blush dusted Atsuko's cheeks at her friend's offer. "Do you really think he'd do that?"

"Mhm!" Himiko nodded vigorously. "How about it? Let's both apply to UA! If you're really worried, we can apply to another school too? Then if we don't make it into UA, we can still go to school together somewhere else!"

Although I'm going to make sure that doesn't happen.

Atsuko gasped. She knew Himiko could have her serious moments, but they were few and far between. She gave her friend a soft smile. "Deal."

After talking it over with Kan, Atsuko was quickly pulled into Himiko's routine, where she would meet up with the hero one week, and then spend the next couple of weeks doing training on her own. On the weekends when they aren't meeting Kan, the three students would meet up in a local park for training. Himiko and Atsuko would practice whatever assignment Kan left them with, while Izuku practiced his latest martial arts lessons.

Meanwhile, during the rest of the week, Izuku and Himiko experimented with her quirk, trying to test its limits. While her quirk counselor had helped her grow comfortable with the idea of using her quirk, there was still so much about her quirk that she didn't know, and that information could mean the difference between life and death in the future.

This week, rather than focusing on her quirk, the pair was working on another skill Himiko had developed along the way.

"Are you ready for this Himi?" Izuku asked as he sat down on the couch and flipped the notebook to a blank page.

"No," Himiko said. "But you're gonna make me do it anyway."

Izuku frowned. "Himi-"

"I know," Himiko sighed dramatically as she plopped herself down on the couch next to Izuku. "This analysis stuff is so boring though!"

"But you sure like using your disappearing trick to sneak up on people."

"True!" Himiko grinned. "But using it and talking about it are two different things!"

"I know, I just… I was kind of hoping I could figure out how to use it myself."

Himiko sighed as she saw Izuku's face. She hated it whenever he got like this - he looked like a kicked puppy, and it wasn't very cute. Reaching out, she ruffled his messy hair. "Fine, you win. What do you want to know?"

Izuku perked up and smiled at her before he turned to his notebook. "Well, for starters, how do you use it?"

Himiko put an index finger to her lips as she thought about it, before shrugging. "I dunno. I just sort of hold my breath and wish I could disappear, and it works!"

Izuku tapped the pencil to his lip as he thought about it before turning to her. "When did you discover it?"

"I-" Himiko swallowed as she felt her blush spread. "-two years ago. When I was a first year, there was a fight that broke out between Saito and another student. I commented about how pretty Saito looked when his lip was split open and blood was running down his chin, and my friends looked pretty horrified. Remembering what my parents said I just sort of wished I could disappear and I did?"

Putting his pencil down, Izuku pulled the blonde-haired girl into a hug, which she gladly returned. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize it was tied to - that."

"It's ok," Himiko said. "I know you don't mean it!"

"Mhm," Izuku pulled away and looked at the girl. "Are you ok if we keep going?" He waited until she nodded her head in confirmation before he retrieved his pencil. "Ok, and then what happened after that?"

"Once I figured out what happened, I just ran away and hid in the bathroom for a while. A few weeks later I just wanted to escape my friends and tried it again. It worked, and I was able to slip away without them noticing!"

"And after that?"

"I started using it a lot at home," Himiko admitted. "When I didn't want my- the Togas to notice me. When I needed to just disappear. When I couldn't wear the mask anymore."

Izuku once again paused, the pencil hovering just over the paper. "And now you use it when you want to play pranks on people."

"Yep!" Himiko said as she pressed into Izuku's side. She felt the green-haired boy relax under her as he resumed writing, and she peered over his shoulder to watch him work.

"...some combination of controlled breathing and a desire to not be seen. I wonder if it's related to your secondary mutations or if it's something that can be learned through training-"

"Why don't you try it?" Himiko asked.

"Try it?"

"Mhm!" Himiko stood up and practically dragged Izuku up with her. "Analysis is boring anyway! I'll just show you how I do it and then you can try!"

"O-ok," Izuku said as he tossed his pencil onto his notebook.

The two lost track of the time as Izuku tried to duplicate the girl's disappearing trick, trying over and over in an attempt to escape Himiko's notice.

"Anything this time?" Izuku asked hesitantly after a few seconds.

Himiko jumped and whirled around to face him, a grin on her face. "I think you did it!"

"I did?"

"It was only for a moment, but I lost track of you!" Himiko looked excited. "That means you can be sneaky too!"

"There you are Himiko!" Tsuru called from the couch.

"What took you so long?" Sakura asked.

"I missed my train," Himiko admitted as she pulled off her shoes before entering Atsuko's apartment.

"It's ok Himiko, it's still early," Atsuko assured her friend. "Besides, tomorrow's Sunday, so we can stay up late!"

"Yeah! We can watch all the scary movies tonight!"

Himiko shook her head. Out of all of her friends, Sakura was the last one she would've expected to stay in and watch movies instead of going to a party on Halloween. But she was the most insistent that they make a movie night out of it instead.

Not that Himiko minded. The idea of wearing a costume and hiding who she was didn't feel good, even if it was supposed to be for fun. So when she agreed with Sakura's plan, the other two girls quickly conceded.

"So what kind of movies did you find?" Atsuko asked as she rejoined her friends.

"These!" Sakura held up a small stack of movies.

"The Crimson Demon trilogy?" Tsuru asked curiously.

"Yep!" Sakura bobbed her head vigorously. "My brother said they're good and scary!"

Himiko reached out and snatched the first movie from her friend's hands. On the cover, she saw a group of high schoolers standing in front of a creepy-looking house, while a pair of red eyes were glowing menacingly in the background. Flipping it over she read the description.

"An angry spirit who kills their victim by manipulating their blood," Himiko bit her lip. "This sounds terrible."

"Exactly!" Sakura said. "It's gonna be so bad, it's good!"

Himiko rolled her eyes and tossed the case back to her friend. "If you say so."

Himiko always knew when blood was fake in movies. Ever since she was a little kid, she could tell - a side effect of her quirk.

But before now, she hadn't really watched movies where it mattered. Sure, Izuku's hero shows had heroes covered in what, to her, looked like ketchup or jelly, but she had gotten used to that being the reality for her.

The Crimson Demon, on the other hand, was all about being bloody.

The first twenty minutes of the movie started pretty typically. A group of teenagers heard legends of a demon haunting the abandoned house at the edge of town, and in a show of bravado decided to stay the night there.

One of the guys was exploring the basement, looking for interesting trinkets that he could steal, when he came across an antique vase. Opening it, he discovered it was filled with dried red paste - what Himiko could only assume was blood. Creeped out, he threw the vase on the ground, smashing it before running back to his friends.

As the girls watched, the paste on the floor began to liquefy, and the ghostly form of the titular Crimson Demon appeared.

For the next ten minutes, they watched the tension rising as the Demon began stalking the students until it finally moved in to claim its first kill. All of the girls leaned forward as the spirit entered the body of a girl who, to Himiko, began coughing up jelly. Moments later she saw red water running off the girl's fingers until her hands exploded into fountains of red kool-aid.

The scene was so absurd, that Himiko burst out laughing.

All three of her friends jumped, Sakura going so far as to fall off the couch as they looked at her friend in horror.

"Himiko, what the hell?"

"What is wrong with you?"

The movie was forgotten as the three girls stared at Himiko, whose face slowly transformed into one of horror under their judgemental glares. "I- I couldn't help it." Himiko waved her hands frantically toward the screen. "It- the whole thing was just so fake and bad!"

This is it. Himiko thought to herself as she stared at her friends, her vision blurring as she felt the tears welling up. Seven months of work, gone in seconds. My parents were right after all…

Atsuko spoke up, pulling her back to reality. "It's your quirk, isn't it?"

"Huh?" Himiko asked.

Atsuko pointed to the television, where the friends were panicking as they stood around a pool of kool-aid. "That doesn't look like blood to you, does it?"

Himiko bit her lip and shook her head. "N-no."

"What does it look like?"

"A puddle of k-kool-aid."

"Kool-aid, seriously?"

"That doesn't look real to you?"

Himiko bit her lip, feeling her fangs pierce the soft skin and draw blood. Another sign that she wasn't normal.

Mine as well rip the bandaid off now.

She shook her head. "No, it looks super fake."

Frowning in concern, Atsuko grabbed the remote and rewound the movie to the previous scene. As she restarted the movie, Himiko realized the girl was screaming. "And what does this look like to you?"

"L-like kool-aid is coming out of her hands. Almost… almost like a fountain." Himiko said softly before she looked down at her lap.

"That's… not what we're seeing," Sakura said quietly.

"I can see how that'd be funny," Tsuru said as she examined the screen before she turned back toward Himiko and bowed her head. "I'm sorry I yelled at you."

"Huh?"

"Me too," Sakura bowed her head. "I just- you scared me! Even more than the movie did!"

"Well, you two wanted to be scared," Atsuko said playfully. "It looks like we have our own personal special effects to scare us."

"You don't… hate me?" Himiko asked in confusion.

"Why would we hate you?" Sakura asked.

"You were all- just now-"

"Himi," Atsuko gently set her hand on her friend's shoulder and stared into her eyes. "Sure you scared us, but we were more startled than anything!"

"You can't help it that the movie looks that way!" Tsuru added.

"It's ok! Really!"

Himiko felt her eyes tearing up again, as she lunged forward to pull her friends into a hug. "You guys are the best!"

A few minutes later, the four rearranged themselves on the couch before restarting the movie. As they continued to watch the movie, Himiko couldn't help but laugh at each death, each serious scene completely ruined by the way she perceived the fake blood.

By the end of the night, she decided that she really enjoyed these types of movies.