It had been a long twenty-four hours for Hitomi Kanzaki. Sure, a world full of super-powerful heroes and villains would always have at least a hint of unpredictability to it. However, for someone whose job it was to consul and psychoanalyze heroes from a chair, things rarely got this chaotic and emotionally draining.

Hitomi had spent years telling heroes that accidents or deaths, that is, people they couldn't save, wasn't their fault. That they did their best and no one, including themselves, could fault them for that. Now, sitting in a chair next to the comatose Terra, all Hitomi could think about was how this was her fault. When Terra first arrived in this world, she had shared something with Hitomi and the counselor had decided to keep it secret. There was a procedure in place for a reason. When Hitomi did her arrival interviews with new lighters, she was supposed to report everything she saw and discussed with them. Everything. But she didn't. Not with Terra.

Terra had begged her not to share the other, lost part of herself, and Hitomi had agreed. Torn by the pain in the other woman's eyes, Hitomi had judged that it was better, just this once, to not follow protocol for the sake of someone in pain and confusion. Doing so meant that Hitomi had allowed this girl to go out and train to be a hero, to expose herself to the possibility of becoming an esper again, even if Terra herself had not believed it was possible.

They had gotten so very lucky at the mall. Things could have been so much worse. At least, that's what Hitomi tried to tell herself. Every time she looked over at Terra though, such delusions would melt away. This poor girl had come to her lost and afraid, ignorant of so much and when Terra needed a friend, someone to trust in, Hitomi gave in and agreed to keep secrets. Now Terra and many others had paid the price. This was very much her fault.

She wanted to stay, to watch over Terra until she awoke. Hitomi felt she owed at least that much to the green-haired girl. The brunette counselor also felt she should be the one to tell Terra what happened and the consequences. It wasn't to be however, duty called. Overnight, UA's two first year hero classes, 1-A and 1-B, had been attacked and Principal Nezu had asked that she visit the students and offer her services. The commission agreed and as soon as her replacement to keep watch arrived, she would be off.

A few more moments of watching Terra was all Hitomi had before the shark-toothed Shinra stepped into the room, a confident grin on his face. Hitomi turned, having heard him enter and tried her best to force a smile as she spoke "Hello Shinra, are you feeling better?"

The black-haired young man's smile widened as he pointed to himself with his thumb "You bet! That Recovery Girl fixed me right up!"

Hitomi giggled a bit despite herself, Shinra's enthusiasm having a certain infectious quality to it. Standing up and walking over to the former Fireforce member, Hitomi's smile grew genuine and warm "Thank you, Shinra. I'm so glad you're better and thank you for watching over Terra while I'm out."

The older woman's praise combined with that smile gave Shinra pause as he bashfully looked away "Ah, don't worry about it, Kanzaki-san. You know I'd do anything to help out. What kind of hero would I be if I didn't, right?"

Stepping back and picking up her bag, Hitomi nodded "Yes, I know but still, it means a lot to me all the same. You'll call if anything changes, right?"

Recovering his bluster, Shinra flashed a thumbs up as he declared "Of course!" Just as quickly though, Shinra's expression turned to that of apprehension before adding, "Still, why is it you have to be the one to go? I'm sure there is someone closer who they could send?"

Hitomi had walked past the young man by this point and turned to answer, a wistful look on her face "I don't just work with the lighters Shinra. I've worked closely with UA for a long time now and I'm more familiar with these students than anyone they could send who is closer. Besides, if there is anything I can do to help, I will. Now, watch over Terra until I get back. Thanks again Shinra."

As Hitomi left, Shinra thought back to how depressed she looked when he had first stepped into the room. The brunette seemed like a completely different person as she left, radiating the warmth and confidence that she was known for among the lighters and students of UA. Shinra was sure that if their situations were reversed and they were in his world, Hitomi would have made a wonderful holy sister.

(X)

Meanwhile, in a dilapidated part of Kamino Ward in Yokohama, stood an old-looking unmarked building. Hidden within was a bar currently serving as the hideout for a lanky young man with an unkept mop of light blue hair, wearing a simple black t-shirt and black pants. Oddly though, he also wore a dismembered hand over his face, covering his red eyes and shriveled, perpetually cracked lips. Those lips wore a sadistic grin just now as the man looked at his prize.

Sitting unconscious, tied up and his mouth bound, was a teenaged boy with spiky, dirty blonde hair. The winner of the first-year division of UA's yearly sports festival, Katsuki Bakugo was arrogant, openly disdainful of those beneath him and showed to the world a degree of anger rare for any aspiring hero, let alone one from the top school in the country. Such traits had been very enticing to the lanky young man who sought to discredit a society so heavily dependent on heroes to keep the peace.

Indeed, Tomura Shigaraki had a great hatred for the world, so much so that discrediting society was little more than the first step in destroying it for him. A world of chaos where he was free to murder any who displeased him was his fondest wish, a sentiment fostered by the man on the other end of a blank TV screen that Tomura was currently speaking to. "Master, our attack is all over the news! It's as if your latest experiment didn't even happen. Is that why you summoned more yesterday, because you knew our mission would drown attention out?"

The voice on the other end was deep, confident but calm "That was a factor, yes, Tomura. It never hurts to keep the other side guessing. Even with media coverage moving on to the next shiny object as a matter of course, inducing another dimensional pull adds a degree of confusion to the proceedings. I also wanted to have more pieces on the board and with any luck, one of those pieces may finally fall our way."

It was surprising for Tomura to hear his master leaving anything to chance. After all, he was the great mastermind of the underworld, nothing ever seemed to escape his notice and nothing was left unaccounted for. Tomura expressed his concern , saying "Master, you mean you don't know whats going to happen when those otherworldly losers show up each time?"

The only other person in the bar, literal dark mist in humanoid form wearing a white dress shirt/black tie combo and a grey vest along with black pants and a metal brace clamped around his "neck" and glowing yellow eyes stood behind the bar, cleaning shot glasses. At Tomura's question, the mist spoke, gently admonitive in tone "Shigaraki-san, you shouldn't question the master like that, it's quite rude."

Under the large pale hand over his face, Tomura narrowed his eyes as his head turned sharply in the mist's direction "Quiet, Kurogiri! Don't ruin my good mood!"

The building tension vanished when hardy laughter could be heard from the monitor "No, no, it's all right Kurogiri, it is a fair question, after all. Even I cannot know everything, most certainly not what may come from other worlds. That is part of what has made this little experiment so interesting. Just as you are attempting to recruit this young man, I, too, am ever hopeful one of these 'lighters' are enlightened enough to see things as we do."

The humanoid mist raised an eye higher than the other in a questioning manner as he asked, "And do you think you've found any among all the ones you pulled this time?"

Sounding contemplative, the monitor answered back "There have been ones in the past that I had hopes for only to have them dashed when they sided with the heroes. It has, to this point, been very disappointing. It would seem most of these four already seem to be the same."

Tomura picked up on his master's answer "Most? Does that mean one of those fools could be a party member?"

"As I said Tomura, I am unsure. I can tell you there was a mass escape attempt at Musutafu police headquarters where they stayed last night." The voice coyly replied.

"And you had nothing to do with it, Master?" Kurogiri asked.

"I did not. My sources haven't been able to confirm or deny if there is a connection but for the first time in years, I am excited to see if this experiment will bear more fruit than a simple distraction and calling card." Though there continued to be no image on the screen, both conscious occupants of the bar knew that the voice on the other end was smiling, a fact they relished.

(X)

"You can count on me, Sanada-san!" Michiru had said but as their guide left, Hina again looked them over, and it seemed clear she found her new housemates wanting.

"You, racoon, your Japanese?" the telekinetic girl contemptuously asked, crossing her arms.

Her fur bristling at the tone she was being addressed with, Michiru shot back "Hey, I have a name that you were just told!" Then stomping her foot, she added "And I'm a tanuki! Not a racoon!"

"Sure, whatever red panada, just answer the question." Hina coolly answered, clear unfazed by Michiru's indignation. Mob had begun to fidget nervously to the side as things seemed to escalate.

Grinding her teeth, Michiru took a moment to take a deep breath, deciding that having a fight the moment she'd stepped into her new home for the time being may not be the best way to start off. Slightly calmer, she finally said "Yes, I am but I'm the only one. I'll do my best to help the others, like I told Sanada-san."

Rolling her eyes as she turned to head back up the stairs, Hina said, dismissively "Well obviously you other three aren't, just look at you! Even heroes wouldn't be caught dead in such weird outfits."

Zelgadis, standing behind Michiru, frowned and narrowed his eyes but said nothing, refusing to raise to the bait while Emeralda self-consciously began glancing down at her modified uniform. Xellos, though, felt the need to chime in , saying playfully, "You may think my attire odd, Yoshifumi-san but where I am from, I am considered quite stylish!"

As Xellos beamed, Michiru turned and glanced up at Zelgadis for confirmation, only to be met by the chimera shaking his head slowly in disagreement, to which the tanuki girl let out a light giggle.

Starting to ascend the staircase, Hina called back "Be that as it may, you look like a fool now. Hopefully when Kanzaki-sensei gets back she can take you all shopping. For now, follow me. I'll take you to the rooms me and Mob had to endure being worked on all morning."

Doing as instructed, the four newest lighters followed behind Hina and Mob, who had sheepishly fallen in line behind her. Once they got to the top of the landing, what Michiru saw reminded her of a hotel hallway as the corridor extended for hundreds of feet, a red carpet covering the floor and stylish floral wallpaper lined the sides. Only one side of the hall had doors however, a dozen to be exact. With so many rooms, a question came to Zelgadis, who asked as they began walking forward "Just how many of you live here anyway?"

It was the timid looking young man who answered, surprising the new arrivals "Oh, um, right now there are four of us. Eight now that you're here. Hina was saying that would make the most in the house at once since it was built."

Michiru raised an eyebrow "Oh, and how would Hina know that?"

Annoyed at the question, Hina signed as she answered "Because, civet, I've lived here longer than anyone, a full seven years. So, when I say call me senpai, I mean it."

Leaning in, Xellos whispered to Michiru "Whats a senpai, Kagemori-san?"

Turning her head to whisper back, Michiru answered "Don't worry about it, I'll tell you later."

Finally, after passing six doors, Hina stopped and rose her arm to her side, gesturing at the next four doors "These next four rooms are yours, I don't care who takes which one, they're all the same. Your key card will be in the room, don't lose it!"

Michiru raised an eyebrow "Wait, that's it? Is there anything else we should know?"

Already turned to head back downstairs, the dark blue-haired telekinetic turned her head back to answer, her annoyance now clear on her face "Sanada-sensei asked me to show you to your rooms so I did. You can handle the rest, right squirrel?"

Michiru took a step forward with barely contained anger at yet another insult but held her tongue. Hina took her silence as ascent and resumed heading back before she added "Theres's food downstairs if you're hungry but try to be quiet about it. With Shinra still at the hospital, I intend to enjoy the peace and quiet as long as I can."

Mob had stayed behind, bowing to his new housemates "It's been a pleasure to meet you all, I hope we can get along. I'll be making dinner later, does anyone not like anything in particular?"

Glancing at each other, none of the four newest residents of the house had anything to say so Michiru turned back to the young man and warmly responded "I'm sure anything you make will be just fine, thank you Kageyama-san."

A smile spread across the plain boy's face as he excitedly nodded "Thank you. That's very kind of you to say." He began to turn to leave before he stopped himself and faced the group again "Oh and please just call me Mob, if that's ok?"

"Sure, Mob it is, and you can call me Michiru if you want, ok Mob?"

"Sure, I'd like that, thank you Michiru, I'll see you all later! I hope you like your rooms!" the young psychic responded, waving as he left to go downstairs as well.

"Well, I guess I'll take this one. Emeralda, why don't you take the one beside me and you two decide who has to walk the furthest." Michiru said pointing to Zelgadis and Xellos.

The chimera left little for discussion, quicky saying "Oh the mazuku is definitely at the end."

"Now now, Mr. Zelgadis, no reason to be mean just because I can teleport." Xellos retorted with a pout.

A grumble was all the purple-haired mazuku got in response as they each moved to their respective doors. As Michiru opened hers she called out "If any of you have any questions, just ask, ok!"

The others nodded and the tanuki girl smiled and proceeded to open the door to her room, which was marked with a gold-colored metal "7" on an otherwise cherry colored wood finish. What greeted her on the other side was, relative to the single room she had been living in at the beastman co-op, nothing short of opulent. The space was fully furnished with a very comfortable looking full sized western style bed, with wooden headboard and footboards again in the same dark cherry color as the door. The bed was pressed in the back right corner of the room, directly across from it to her right was a door leading to a bathroom, in between was a window with tasteful blue curtains and a lacy edge. A mini fridge sat on the right wall along with a bookshelf that stood almost as tall as the ceiling and a large dresser. Finally, a desk set against the wall just to her left and in front of the bed.

Flipping the switch to her left turned on the light and activated the fan at the center of the ceiling. Michiru was in awe as she looked around. The room was bigger and better than her own that she grew up in and certainly better than most living in small apartments in Tokyo she had seen on TV. Considering she had spent the last night in a jail cell, Michiru couldn't imagine a better turn of luck if she tried.

Moving to sit on her new bed, which already had sheets, pillows and a comforter, Michiru was again surprised by how bouncy and soft it felt. This…was too much. How could this school afford this kind housing, especially for some random people who literally just appeared from the sky? Glancing down at her cloths, Michiru wondered if they were going to provide uniforms too, since none of them had money. There were just so many questions about this place. It seemed almost too good to be true, honestly.

Just as Michiru was thinking of checking out the view from the window, Xellos appeared at her door, a worried frown on his face "Kagemori-san, something is wrong with my room, it won't liiight uuup" he said, drawing his request out in a whine.

Her shoulders slumping as her features scrunched up in disbelief, Michiru seemed to drag herself off the bed as she spoke "Um, ok. We can fix that. Seriously, you couldn't find the light switch? Didn't we already talk about electricity and all that?"

"Well, yes, Kagemori-san but talking about it and using it yourself are two different things." Xellos responded, looking about the room. "I see you don't have one of those computers they had at the police headquarters either…a shame. Are computers things only they have?"

Stepping past the confused mazuku, Michiru said "If its anything like my world, computers are pretty common, at least in Japan. I'm sure we can ask Sanada-san about getting you one."

The two moved past Emeralda's room, the door of which was closed as Xellos thanked the tanuki girl "That's a wonderful idea! I very much hope you're right."

As they passed Zelgadis' room though, the door was still open and an dim, slightly pulsating light was emanating from it. Peering in as the two stepped into the entry, the Chimera could be seen peering under the bed on three limbs, a ball of light floating in his right hand. Stopping, Michiru leaning in and flipped the switch beside the door, lighting up the room. Startled, Zelgadis jumped, banging his head on the bed's frame as he called out "What the hell!"

Michiru simply shook her head and returned to walking to the next room. Xellos though felt the need to poke at his fellow otherworlder, "Watch out for those monsters under the bed, Mr. Zelgadis!"

"I will murder you!" came the enraged chimera's response

Satisfied, a giant grin on his face, Xellos stepped a bit faster to catch up with Michiru as they entered his room. Michiru stood just inside the door, a sour look on her face having heard the exchange behind her a moment ago. Xellos stood across from her, a look of eager anticipation on his face. As unceremoniously as possible, the tanuki girl raised her hand, flipped the switch on the wall down and the light/fan combo came on. "There, that's it, that's all there is to it. You think you can handle that or do I need to draw a diagram." Michiru drawled.

"No, that won't be necessary, Kagemori-san, thank you. I do have one more question though before you go. It's about this 'key card' that Yoshifumi-san spoke of?" Xellos said, raising said card in front of him.

With a serious question she didn't have an exact answer to, Michiru's tone lost the sarcasm it had just had as she answered "Oh, yeah, that surprised me a bit too. I figured we would just have keys if we hand anything at all. A lot of houses don't even have locks on their interior doors. I didn't see a slot on the doors, but it looks like there is a circle just beside the handle. I think you just have to press the card against it to get in."

Tilting his head slightly, Xellos seemed to mull that over "Interesting. I am continuously fascinated by the technology of this world. I have so very much to learn. Well thank you Kagemori-san, I won't take up any more of your time, for now anyway!"

Inwardly glad to be free of the overly enthusiastic man, Michiru stepped out and headed back to her own room, noting that Zelgadis' door was also now closed. Probably for the best, she thought. Back in her room, the tanuki girl threw herself on the bed and stretched out, her arms resting behind her head as she starred at the ceiling.

Truly by herself for the first time since this whole madness started, the young woman's thoughts again turned to home. All the questions that had flooded her the night before came back as she pictured her friends and family in her mind. Turning her head to look the room over again, the thought occurred to her that as nice as this space was, it wasn't hers. This…world wasn't hers and she had no business in it. Sitting up, bringing her knees up her face, Michiru began to wonder if there even was a place for her or if some unknowable and spiteful god found pleasure in continuously taking her home from her. With no other distraction, the anger, the frustration, the loneliness finally became too much as tears welled up and Michiru began sobbing, doing all she could to keep the sounds of her mourning from being heard by her neighbor, unsure of just how thick the walls of this house were.

(X)

The hospital that the first-year students had been taken to was, luckily for Hitomi, only about halfway between where the attack happened up in the mountains and Musutafu. That meant with good traffic it only took her an hour to get there. She had been told there had been injuries but how many and to what extent she didn't know until she arrived.

As it turned out, things could have been worse. No one had had life-threatening wounds though a number were still unconscious from a poison gas, head trauma for one and in one nasty case, severe damage to the limbs. Hitomi knew that last student was one Izuku Midoriya. All Might had spoken highly of him and he had a quirk that was much too strong for his body, causing damage when he used it as often as not.

Izuku was still unconscious, but Hitomi knew that even if he was awake, she would have found him putting on a brave face and unwilling to talk. Being a psychiatrist for heroes was often much harder than with the average person. Heroes by and large were self-sacrificing and eager to help. Talking about, or even admitting to having issues was often seen as an admission of failure. Who could help others who couldn't help themselves, after all. Often heroes would just grin and bare it, internalizing the pain or waiting until they were alone to break down. Teenagers were often worse, in the mist of trying to prove themselves worthy to join the ranks of their idols while still not even sure what their own feelings were.

Often times, it was a win to just get one to talk. Burn out among heroes, especially young ones not used to the rigors of the job or suffering great failure was common, if tragically under reported.

Wasting no time, Hitomi went to work visiting as many of the students present and able to be spoken to as she could. As expected, most said they were fine and didn't need her services. The 1-B students appeared more shaken, on the whole compared to the 1-A kids, who had the experience of having been attacked earlier in the year. Even so, many 1-A students showed clear signs of post traumatic stress as well as worry for their missing classmate. These included the red-haired young man, Eijiro Kirishima and the class representative, Tenya Iida. Fumikage Tokoyami, the raven-headed student was clearly troubled about something but he, too, would not elaborate. With any luck, once there was time for the formal report to be written, she could come back around and try again with more information about the attack.

Hitomi was packing up her tablet when a nurse informed her one more student had awoken. Not expecting anything new from this last victim, Hitomi thanked the nurse and headed to the room. The young woman, Momo Yaoyorozu, looked exhausted, likely a combination of the last night and Recovery Girl's quirk.

When Hitomi entered, the young vice representative was struggling to keep herself sitting up. The young woaman's long black hair, which was normally kept pinned against the back of her head, was unbound and flowing down her back which gave her a more disheveled look. With a measured degree of concern, Hitomi spoke, trying to draw the girl's attention to herself "Hello Yaoyorozu-san, how are you feeling?"

Momo's eyes began to focus as she turned her head to look at her guest. A long moment of silence followed and Hitomi began to wonder whether she should try again or just excuse herself from the clearly still ailing young woman. Before the counselor could come to a decision, Momo spoke, her tone hushed and groggy "Are...are you from UA? I…have something I have to tell All Might."

Stepping closer, concern evident on her face, Hitomi had to fight not to reach out and try to assist the girl in front of her as she answered "Yes, you may not remember me Yaoyorozu-san, but I am a counselor UA contracts. Whatever it is, I can pass it on to All Might, I promise."

By this point, the nurse who had told Hitomi about Momo waking up stepped in, concern also on her face, though she said nothing. Momo seemed to notice this and appeared to grow apprehensive, her answer now even softer than before "I know how to track those who perpetrated this attack. But…please have him come here, I'll explain the rest to him in person, please…"

Finishing her statement, Momo collapsed onto her back, breathing heavily. Hitomi stepped back as the nurse rushed over, telling the counselor she would have to come back later, if not tomorrow if she wanted to speak to her again. Nodding and telling the nurse she understood and thanking her, Hitomi took her leave, heading out of the hospital as quickly as she could. She had a phone call to make.

(X)

When Jun returned to the Lighters house having gotten an update on Terra from Shinra he found Mob starting to make dinner while Hina sat in front of the TV, a very unhappy look on her face as Xellos sat beside her looking like a very excited child watching their favorite show. The silver-haired ex-hero's arrival brought the pair's attention to him and when Xellos saw Jun was carrying his staff, leapt up and bounded toward him. Jun did take notice of just how relieved Hina looked to be free of the mazuku's oppressive presence.

"Is that my staff, Sanada-san? Oh, and Zelgadis-san's sword too? How considerate of you! Shall I bring it up to him?" Xellos inquired as he moved to take his staff before Jun could offer it.

Frowning slightly at the very forward purple-haired mazuku, Jun turned to his left to avoid having the staff yanked from his hand. "Patience, Metalleum-san. Yes, I will give you back your staff but I wanted to ask a favor of you and your fellow new arrivals."

Nearly having fallen over in his missed attempt to get his staff back, Xellos pouted as he heard out Jun, before returning to his normal happy mask as he listened. When Jun was finished, Xellos again asked if he could head back up and get others, which Jun agreed. Xellos wasted no time making his way up the stairs, cape billowing as he ascended.

With Xellos out of earshot, Hina glanced over at her long-time teacher and asked with a half smile, "Going to test them, huh sensei?"

Nodding, the silver-haired older man turned to look at the telekinetic "Indeed. Reading about abilities is one thing, I need to see them in person. You'll help me, won't you?"

Dramatically rolling her eyes in time with her head, Hina drawled out "Do I haaave to? Can't Mob do it?"

Glancing over at Mob cutting vegetables, a bright pink apron over his uniform, Jun responded, his voice gentle but firm "Yes, Mob is quite capable, but he is clearly busy. Besides, neither of you got to go to the dojo today with the attack last night so you could use a little exercise, mental or otherwise."

Mulling it over for a moment, Hina seemed to accept Jun's logic, crossing her arms to show she still would rather be doing something else as she answered "Fine. I'll help. Whats up with that attack by the way, it's been all over the news. Is it true those villains got away with that hot-headed jackass?" Just as she said it, Hina regretted the insult to a fellow UA student, even if it was true. The telekinetic saw Jun's narrowed eyes and the clear disappointment on his features. It only took a moment for Hina to look away ashamed before contritely adding, "I'm sorry, Sanada-sensei."

Letting out a sigh, Jun let his response carry some of the disappoint on his face "Perhaps you are sorry and perhaps you are right about him but you need to control your impulses, Hina-chan. That goes for what you say just as much as anything else, you know that."

The dark blue-haired young woman nodded, saying nothing, allowing for Jun to continue "Now about your question…from everything I know, it is pretty bad. They did capture Bakugo-san and injure many. Kanzaki-san was sent to talk to the first years."

Having the news confirmed for her, Hina looked back up at her teacher, a question forming in her mind. Jun seemed to sense it, answering before the telekinetic could speak, "No, I don't know how much this relates to yesterday. The attackers claimed to be part of the League of Villains which we know has All-for-One's backing. Whether or not yesterday was meant to throw us off leading up to last night or a signal of something bigger to come, is anyone's guess."

That wasn't the answer Hina had been hoping for, inwardly holding out hope that maybe there would be a clue in all of this that might lead to getting home. That hope having been dashed, the telekinetic opted for dismissal "Hmph, well, it's not like it matters much to me, I'm perfectly happy here!"

The facade cracked as the dark blue-haired girl twitched at the sound of Xellos' obnoxious laughter coming down the stairs once again "As promised, here they are, Sanada-san!"

Sure enough, behind Xellos came his three fellow lighters, none of them looking especially excited to have been dragged from their rooms. Zelgadis though perked up when he saw his sword in Jun's right hand, stepping past the mazuku once he got to the base of the stairs and exclaiming "I can't believe it, for once you actually told the truth, Xellos."

Looking as if someone had just kicked his puppy, Xellos feigned as much indignation as he could "Such a rude thing to say, and here I just wanted to help, Mr. Zelgadis!"

Zelgadis began to turn and face his tormentor, a low growl emanating from him just as Jun placed a hand on his shoulder in an effort to diffuse things, and said "Please, not now, I have a few things I wanted to show you all before you ate. You four think you're up to it?"

Turning back to face the former hero, Zelgadis and the other three nodded, though Jun couldn't help but notice the decided absence of enthusiasm from Michiru, whose eyes looked more than a little bloodshot. Making sure to take note of that, the silver-haired man turned to Emeralda "I'd like to take you on a little tour of the rest of the house and I was hoping you might show off some of your talents, but first, Kasim-san, I procured some materials you may find useful from the main campus. Here." With that, Jun handed the surprised looking greenette a box he had be keeping under the same arm he carried the sword with.

The box was a simple looking rectangular affair, the top of which came off to reveal an assortment of pencils, as well as ink pens, and colored pencils. Emeralda's amber eyes lit up at the sight and for the first time since arriving, the quiet young woman broke out into a large, warm smile.

Looking a bit embarrassed by the response, Jun felt the need to say "It's not much, I know. There are far better supplies we can get you but it was the best I could throw together on short notice."

Closing the box and clutching it to her chest, Emeralda shook her head, fighting back tears "No…this is wonderful. Where I am from, such supplies are very rare. This was very, very kind of you, Sanada-san."

Nodding in acknowledgment of Emeralda's words, Jun added "It was the least I could do, think nothing of it. Now, if you'll follow me, everyone?"

Leading the group, Jun took the four newest additions of the house to the other wing of the building, Hina trailing several feet behind the group. Entering first through an unassuming door on the far side of the common area, it led down a hallway that turned at a ninety-degree angle and continued, widening considerably. Fifty feet down the hall was a pair of large doors that caught the eye of the four lighters. However, it was the large door on the left wall halfway to the others that Jun took the group.

Sliding the door open, Jun stepped inside and quickly moved to the side, allowing everyone behind him to fill into the room and get a good look around. To Michiru's eyes the room appeared to be a really fancy looking classroom, though much more like a college one than a high school. Instead of rows of desks, there were levels of seating in ascending height with a single continuous desk running the length of each level. A bit confused, Michiru turned to Jun, who had been content to let the group take in the space and asked "Why is there a classroom here? I thought the school was that weird glass building we passed?"

A knowing smile passed over the silver-haired man's face as he answered "Remember that the world at large doesn't know you are from other worlds. If I was going to teach you about this one, the safest thing to do would be to keep those lessons as separate from the rest of UA and the world as possible."

That caused Zelgadis to raise an eyebrow before he spoke up as well "You mean to keep us separate from the rest of the student body? Then what the hell is even the point of us being at a school we're kept separate from?"

Raising his hand to stroke his face as if thinking, a gesture that made Emeralda think of her tutor, Dr. Uzuki, Jun answered the chimera "That is a fair point, Greywards-san. The truth is you are only here for instruction on this world. Whatever additional education you seek that UA can offer, however, would take place on the main campus. By that I mean that if you so choose and have passed an entrance exam, you could take classes in the hero course and become a licensed pro. Given your lack of knowledge of our written language though, it may take a while before you could specialize like that."

The rock encrusted sorcerer-swordsmen narrowed his eyes as Jun walked over to the rather large desk at the front of the room and said "That's assuming I would even want to be one of your…heroes." That last word was almost spat, more than a little distain in the chimera's voice.

Jun chuckled at that, pulling open a drawer and pulling out several books as he replied "Be that as it may, you will want to do something with yourself, yes? Mob for example isn't training to be a hero, he wants to be an accountant. Whatever you decide, you'll be starting here." As Jun finished, he tossed several of books to the blue-skinned young man, who caught them, a bit surprised.

"What are these?" Zelgadis asked, actually curious.

"Introductions to Japanese. Since you already speak it, it won't be as hard to pick up writing it, at least relative to someone starting from scratch, though I would suggest you write your written language first to help the transition. All three of you will."

Nodding, Emeralda softy volunteered "I have already begun to memorize characters and believe I've begun to make some helpful associations but thank you, Sanada-san."

Bowing his head slighting Jun corrected "Sensei. You should start referring to me as Sanada-sensei, a term we use for teacher."

After another nod from the amber-eyed young woman, Xellos blurt out "I know several languages already, this should be easy!"

"Only one way to find out, Metallium-san. I look forward to seeing your progress." With Xellos beaming with confidence, Jun turned to Michiru, who looked a bit left out in the proceedings "Kagemori-san?"

Caught off guard being addressed, Michiru responded meeker than the others were used to "Y-yes, Sanada-san?"

"Sanada-sensei and I am sorry. I have brought gifts for the others and gave them somewhere to start but I feel I have neglected you. In fact, there is something I need you to do for me that is very important." The tanuki girl's confused look was all Jun needed to continue "I need you to help them start to learn the language. You have a great advantage already being from Japan, albeit a different one and I think it would help if someone they knew could help them out. What do you say?"

Instantly, the odd funk that Michiru had settled into since Jun's return melted away as a determined glint shown in her eye as she smiled "You can count on me, Sanada-sensei, I even have some experience teaching kids how to read! I'll do my best!"

Inwardly satisfied, Jun returned the girl's enthusiastic response with a small smile of his own "Thank you Kagemori-san, I know you will. Now, on to what will likely prove to be more exciting affairs."

Leading once more, Jun took the group back into the hallway and down to the large double doors. As before, he stepped in first and to the side to let the others come in. As they entered, Jun took the opportunity to read their faces. Although Zelgadis did look pretty surprised by the space, it was Michiru who lit up like a light bulb. The tanuki girl's eyes glittered in excitement, her mouth agape in surprised anticipation of all she saw before her, her modest fangs plainly visible. Emeralda looked around with interest but was otherwise unchanged while Xellos was unreadable, no change in his expression whatsoever. Hina had slid in behind the group and leaned again the wall, her arms crossed.

The group found themselves in a large gymnasium with all sorts of equipment and tools as well as targets, dummies, punching bags and pretty much anything else one could think of to train. One portion of the floor was lined with padding where another had finished wood one usually found in gyms plus a set of basketball hoops on either end. Another portion seemed to be simple concrete and it was here that large storage lockers lined one wall.

Waving his free hand for emphasis while the other held the door, Jun spoke with the welcoming authority of a practiced tour guide "This is the training hall. There are many spread across the UA campus and you are welcome to use any of them, just as all UA students can. This one though is for you to use any time, day or night and for those lighters with abilities that don't really fit nicely into this world's definition of 'quirks' and still practice without drawing attention from the outside world. Other students or guests can only be here with my approval, remember that."

Ever studious and attentive, Zelgadis picked up on the qualifier in Jun's explanation, and asked "What do you mean by abilities that don't fit? From what I've gathered so far, there almost seems to be no end to the variation of these 'quirks' of yours?"

With everyone fully inside the training hall, Jun let go of the door and again stepped in front of the others, taking a moment to wave his hand in front of the star-struck Michiru, who may or not have blinked since she stepped inside the gym. Snapping out of her daze, the tanuki girl had the good grace to look embarrassed.

With everyone's eyes now firmly on him, Jun answered with practiced ease "Though there are indeed a wide variety of quirks in the world, with few exceptions, each quirk has a singular characteristic. One can control fire or shrink things or they can fly. Perhaps they have the characteristics of a given animal. Some have physical characteristics that are out of the norm but don't directly affect their quirk. One student in the first years has the head of a crow but his quirk is that he manifests a shadow being from his body. Dual or fusion quirks are very rare so if a lighter happens to have disparate abilities we can't easily explain with a quirk then that lighter will need to hold back from using one or more of their skills."

"This has happened before. Otherwise, you would not have such a policy." Emeralda pointed out, stating it as fact instead of a question.

Jun nodded as he said "Indeed, Kasim-san. One of our lighters has an involuntary shape-shifting ability that in no way meshed with his impressive combat skills. We had to ask him to refrain from using those unique combat techniques in public, something he was less than happy about."

Zelgadis mulled over the former hero's explanation, seeming to accept it without comment. When it was clear that was as far as the subject was going to go, Jun motioned for the group to follow him as they began touring the hall. As they walked Jun took note of the formally entranced young woman and stepped over to ask her "Is it all too much or did something in particular catch your eye?"

Michiru almost hopped as she walked, she was so excited "Basketball! I can't believe I'm going to have my own basketball court here!"

Tilting his head, Jun quickly replied "Basketball? Is that a game you play in your world? Here we play bouceball. Do you also have to kick the ball into the hoop in basketball?"

The tanuki girl looked mortified as her eyes bulged out of her head. That quickly turned to frustrated indignation when Jun waved his hand, a guilty smile on his face "Sorry, Kagemori-san, a bad joke. I'm told my sense of humor can be a bit mean-spirited. It is indeed basketball we play here, and odds are its not much different than yours back home."

Michiru didn't think her new teacher's joke was very funny and neither did Emeralda or Zelgadis by appearances. Xellos thought it was hilarious though and kept laughing through at least a couple of the explanations Jun gave for other aspects of the hall as they walked, much to the group's annoyance.

Finally having come to the back portion of the hall with the concrete floor, Jun pointed to the large lockers lining the walls "And here you'll find a wide assortment of weapons and the like to either practice with or against. There are also robots that can serve as opponents. They aren't as good as the real thing, but they are better than nothing."

That last term confused the blue-skinned chimera, calling out "What, exactly is a robot? I haven't heard that term yet."

Glancing away as he thought how to word his answer, Jun replied "You mentioned you are part rock golem in your paperwork, yes? Robots are kind of like golems, soulless automatons that do as we design them."

Zelgadis nodded, seeming to understand "I think I get it…also, why are you backing away?"

It was true, Jun had been slowly putting some distance between himself and the group as the exchange took place. Having been discovered, the former hero picked up his pace but remained calm as he answered "Ah, that would be because Hina tends to have a hard time holding back…"

Moments later, several punching bags came crashing into the space the group had just been standing, the four of them dodging out of the way just in time, scattering in different directions. Wide-eyed but still calm and on one knee, Michiru called out to their new teacher, now a safe distance away "Sanada-sensei, whats going on?"

Zelgadis called out as well, though he sounded far less happy about the sudden attack "Yeah, what the hell is the meaning of this!"

Jun bowed in apology before calling out his response "My apologies, a bad habit I picked up from another teacher! I haven't had a chance to see and gauge your abilities and surprises are a good way to see how one handles and responses to pressure! I promise Hina won't push you too hard!"

"Damnit! Didn't he just say that girl had a hard time holding back!" Zelgadis asked to no one in particular as he unsheathed his sword, tossing the books Jun had given him to the ground. It was just in time for the swordsman to step into one of the punching bags that had risen and flown at him, sword at the ready. The cut was swift and clean, ripping the bag in two, though the cloud of dust got in the chimera's face, blinding him.

Michiru, mean time, had also had a punching bag hurling toward her. As it was about to hit her, for the first time since becoming a beastman, instead of morphing her limbs, the tanuki girl's torso swelled and hardened into a turtle shell, not unlike the hero they had seen yesterday, though not as large. A good thing to because her cloths were straining at the change. Leaning into the bag, it impacted with Michiru's new carapace and ricocheted sideways into the ground. Without missing a beat, Michiru belted a battle cry as her torso shrank back and she raised her fist high. Her arm expanded into a massive gorilla fist and she smashed down, crushing the sandbag. Her enlarged fist kept the sand from escaping in a cloud as it just had with Zelgadis, having pressed it into the ground.

Being near Zelgadis, Michiru was able to see what happened to the chimera and while he struggled to see his surroundings, two more bags came hurling toward him. Acting quickly, having shrunk her other arm back to normal, Michiru threw out her other arm, which began to narrow and extend much like rope, wrapping itself around Zelgadis' torso. With a hard yank, Michiru was able to pull the blinded sorcerer-swordsman out of the way just in time. Landing with a thud in front of her, Michiru's arm retracted back to normal as she asked, "You ok, Zel?"

"Peachy" came the chimera's dry response as he struggled to get the dust out of his eyes. "Thanks, by the way."

Meanwhile, Emeralda had managed to deflect the first bag thrust at her, having shifted her arms into a single large shield. Unfortunately for her, Xellos' means of avoiding a hit was to simply teleport a short distance away, causing the bag meant for him to continue forward, right into the tan-skinned girl's back, knocking her off her feet. Rolling onto her back, the greenette could see the bag that hit her and the one she had deflected had both risen and were fast approaching her. At the last moment, she rolled hard as the two bags hit the ground she had just occupied. Using her momentum as she rolled, Emeralda pushed herself up onto her feet just as the bags began moving toward her again. Spinning in a circle, the tails of her scarf spinning about her, Emeralda shifted her hair into a massive hammer that came around just as the bags came near, smashing them both hard as she came around. Both punching bags beelined straight into the opposite wall of the training hall, each exploding into a cloud on impact.

Having finally regained some of his sight, Zelgadis decided not to swing his sword so close to Michiru as the final two bags were fast approaching. Instead, he held out his hands as though to shoot a bow and arrow, calling out "Freeze Arrow!" In quick succession, two arrows of ice formed from his hands and shot forward. Each impacted a punching bag, freezing them instantly.

Unfortunately, since their momentum was that of Hina's telekinesis, all Zelgadis managed to do was make the projectiles colder and harder. With mere moments to spare, the chimera placed both hands out, palms open and called out "Bomb Di Wind!" A massive blast of air burst from his hands and for a moment, the magical air held even against the Hina's power, keeping the bags suspended in mid air. Finally, the wind won out and the last bags went flying back, arching backwards and shattering on impact with the ground.

(X)

"Yes, thank you Kanzaki-san. The detective and I will go to visit young Yaoyorozu as soon as we get word that she is awake tomorrow. Thank you so much for passing her message along. Goodbye." The number one hero ended his call with the counselor sent to check on the first-year students attacked the night before. Turning, All Might regarded Detective Tsukauchi, who had been beside him listening to the call.

Nodding, the detective spoke what he was thinking "If your student does have a way of tracking the attackers, at worst it'll confirm the intel that Gargoyle and Shadow Rider gave us. At best…"

"At best, they'll lead us to wherever those Nomu are being created or to my old nemesis himself!" All Might declared, pumping his fist, his face chiseled with determination.

The decidedly calmer Naomasa pulled out his own phone and started scrolling through his contacts. As he looked, the detective brought those goals back to earth "One way or the other, we're going to need at least enough heroes for one raid team, possibly two. We have the element of surprise and I think we can strengthen that advantage if UA agrees to my idea about their upcoming press conference."

Shrinking down to his weakened form, All Might gave his old friend a half smile "I have no doubt that Principal Nezu will agree to your plan, you don't have to worry about that."

"Good" Naomasa said, taking mental notes of who would be nearby enough for this operation before adding "I have several heavy hitters in mind, but do you have any suggestions of who should be in on this, All Might?"

Without hesitation, the greatest hero of them all answered "I do! I can think of nothing more fitting than if the two who brought us that intel being apart of this. Not just because they helped make it possible, but because this is what they've been striving for."

Pausing in his thoughts, Naomasa looked up from his phone, concern on his face "Are you sure? You don't think they may be emotionally comprised?"

"They're trained heroes! I have every confidence they will do what is right and professional in the moment. Please, I think it is only right." The skeletal blonde pleaded.

The detective seemed to mull it over for a moment before nodding firmly "Alight, they're in. Go ahead and call them while I finalize the list."

Chuckling, All Might pulled out his phone again "Well, its still too early to call one but I'm sure Shadow Rider can pass along the message."

With that, the number one hero found the contact and hit call.

(X)

Breathing heavily from the adrenaline, Zelgadis glanced about, seeing that all the punching bags were down. His guard still up, he called out "Everyone ok?"

"Yep!" Michiru replied.

Emeralda calmly answered "Yes."

Xellos appeared beside the chimera, leaning in sideways to touch shoulder to shoulder "I'm great too, Mr. Zelgadis!

Stepping back quickly to cause the annoying mazuku to lose his balance and fall sideways, Zelgadis called out "What the hell was that!? I thought you were here to help us?"

Still some distance away, Jun answered as apologetically as calling out from the other side of gym would allow "Indeed! But I can't help you if I don't know about you! As to what that was, the answer is, round 1!"

Michiru's eyes widened when Jun finished that sentence and she looked over to Hina, still near the doors they had entered. Even as far away as she was, the tanuki girl could pick up the smile spread across the telekinetic' s face. Suddenly, the lockers lining the wall near the group flung open, revealing a wide assortment of weapons from broadswords to katana, knives to spears and even simple bats with nails in them.

"Brace yourselves, everyone!" was all Michiru could get out before the various weapons came flying at them.

Emeralda shifted one forearm into a blade and the other into a rounded shield while Zelgadis brought his sword up to defend himself. Michiru shifted her arms into that of a bear, and with a yell and even more sparking, the claws on her new paws expanded and sharpened to a foot long each. Xellos just stood there, seemingly unfazed by anything going on.

As the weapons approached, some veered off to either side. As weapons began making contact with their targets, Zelgadis realized as he deflected a sword and two smaller knives that the other weapons were spinning around them in a circle, most likely to keep them in place. Before he could think of a way out though he sensed something behind him and managed to turn and knock away a blade that he realized had been meant for Xellos, who had just reappeared to the opposite side of him.

Michiru and Emeralda meanwhile had backed up against each other and were doing their best to deflect the weapons down and way so as to avoid anyone else getting hit on a bounce. Unlike before with the massive sandbags, it was all they could do to avoid being hit. Worse, after being deflected, the various tools of death would simply rise and return to circling with the rest.

Starting to worry that there was no end in sight, Michiru called out "Any bright ideas anyone?" as she caught a broadsword in between her claws. With a quick flick of her wrist, she was able to snap the blade in two. Before she could celebrate even that small victory however, the two halves of the sword simply flew back into the circle, effectively now two weapons instead of one. "Seriously?! Come ON!" the tanuki girl wailed impudently.

After dodging another weapon, a glaive this time, meant for Xellos again, the rock-encrusted swordsmen called out "Everyone on me!"

In just a few moments, the others had gathered on the chimera, who sheathed his sword, held out his hands and called out "Windy Shield!" A moment later a translucent bubble-shaped barrier suddenly formed around the four of them, just in time for several blades to slam into it, each clanging and bouncing off.

Sighing in relief Michiru smiled up at Zelgadis, who kept his hands up "Thanks, Zel! How long can you keep that up?"

Without looking at the tanuki girl, Zelgadis answered "Depends on how much pressure is applied. Right now, long enough to come up with a plan. Any ideas?"

"Can't you use that wind spell like before?" Michiru asked.

"It's not omni-directional, besides, I don't know how effective it'll be against more aerodynamic objects like these. I have other spells that would do the trick but they may well take the building down along with the weapons."

After that there were several moments of silence, punctuated by the increasing sound of metal clanging against the barrier. With no one else offering a suggestion, Emeralda glanced at the other three, expecting one of them to speak up and offer a plan. When no one did, she frowned slightly, knowing she was going to have to speak. When she did, it was just one word, "Hina."

"Hina? What about her, Emeralda?" Michiru asked, a bit confused.

"Ah, going for the head, Kasim-san?" Xellos asked, finally deciding to contribute something to this whole exercise.

"A light going off in her head, Michiru clarified "You think we need to go after Hina-san to stop the blades?"

"Ah yes" Zelgadis added, his voice sounding more strained with the increasing pressure from more hits to his barrier, "I had started thinking along those same lines, Kasim-san. We'll need to get at her before she can bring those weapons to bare though."

"I could fly! Look, she's left the area above us open! If this is a test, that may be our opening!" Michiru suggested, pumping her fist for emphasis.

Inwardly surprised everyone ran with her barely expressed idea, Emeralda still maintained her emotionless expression as she pointed out an even better idea "Metallium-san, could just teleport over and knock her out." It was so obvious and simple and delivered with so little enthusiasm that it took the wind right out of Michiru's sails.

Waving the tan girl's suggestion off, Xellos was dismissive while still sounding excited "I could, I suppose, but that wouldn't be much fun, would it? I'd love to see Kagemori-san's plan!"

Michiru just starred dumbly at her purple-haired compatriot. If you looked closely, you could see Emeralda's eyes narrow ever so slightly in annoyance. Zelgadis mean time was starting to struggle more, adding as he raised his voice "Whatever you do, do it sooner rather than later, I can't hold this forever!"

"Right. Emeralda, is there any way you could give me a boast" Michiru asked, not even bothering to look at the continuously useless mazuku.

Pursing her lips as she thought for a moment, Emeralda nodded then proceeded to lay on the ground. Raising an eyebrow, Michiru was about to ask when the greenette raised her arms as they shifted into two coiled springs. "Will this do, Michiru?"

A nervous smile crossed the tanuki girl's lips "Yeah, I think I can make that work but this shield will have to come down for me to jump, right Zel?"

"It…gaah…it will. But at least so far, Hina hasn't shown she can change the weapons direction quickly, I think we can dodge if we time it right." Zelgadis answered, having a harder and harder time maintaining the barrier.

Pointing to himself, Xellos asked with a pout "What about me? What should I do?"

With venom in her voice, Michiru quickly answered "Take care of yourself. You seem pretty good at that."

Whether the mazuku was actually hurt by the retort or not, no one could tell but he made a show of it, slumping his shoulders and turning away.

Wasting no time to worry about Xellos' feelings, Michiru locked eyes with Emeralda and Zelgadis "Ready?" Her question was met with two firm nods "Alright, lets do this!" Her legs shifting into those of a kangaroo and Michiru leapt up coming down directly on Emeralda's springs. Just as she made contact and began pressing down, Zelgadis broke his spell.

With their protection gone, the weapons pressed forward from all sides. Zelgadis dove forward, hitting the ground and rolling under one side of the swirling weapons. As soon as Michiru shot up, Emeralda began shifting her arms back as she too rolled, bumping into Xellos' legs and grabbing on just as he teleported away, taking her with him unwittingly.

As the others avoided evisceration, Michiru rose like a rocket shifting her body around to hit the ceiling of the hall with her feet. Making contact with the tips of her kangaroo feet, she was able to angle herself toward Hina, who was just realizing what was happening, and pressed hard, shooting toward the telekinetic. As soon as her feet left the ceiling, Michiru changed her body again, this time her arms into wings and feet into talons. The addition of feathers and tucking her wings tight, allowed the tanuki girl to gain even more speed as she cut through the air toward the stunned telekinetic.

As Michiru neared Hina, she shifted her arms into their gorilla form, aiming to knock her assailant out in one shot. Meer inches away from knocking Hina out cold though, the tanuki girl's massive fist instead smashed into an invisible wall of psychic energy, which cracked, before giving way and shattering. This slowed the girl's momentum enough that when Michiru came into contact with Hina's face, it was only enough to stagger her, though Michiru tumbling into her did finally bring her off her feet.

As the tanuki girl motioned to pin the other girl down, she was greeted with a laugh, bringing the Michiru up short. Finally, Hina regained enough composure to speak "Not bad! Even though it was four, ok, three and a quarter, against one, that wasn't bad at all!"

Titling her head like a confused puppy, Michiru asked as she released the other girls' arms "That's it? We won?"

"Woah there, I wouldn't go that far. You just did what you needed to do to end the test, that's all." Then, pointing her finger at Michiru she added "Now get off me." Moving her finger slightly to the left, Michiru suddenly went flying sideways, tumbling in a heap a few feet away.

As Hina got up, rubbing the side of her face Michiru had made contact, Emeralda and Zelgadis came running up to the downed tanuki girl. The greenette reached out, concern all over her normally stoic face "Are you ok, Michiru?"

Rolling over, Michiru groaned, her eyes still shut "Yeah, I feel like a truck just hit me, that's all. Just…let me lay here for a minute and I'll be fine, thank you Emmy."

Looking relieved himself, Zelgadis noted their 'teacher' walking up. At least the guy didn't look pleased with himself. Regardless, the chimera's relief quickly shifted to anger as he grabbed Jun by the front of his shirt and got right in the older man's face as he bellowed "THAT WAS A TEST!? You had her trying to kill us, what the hell is wrong with you!?"

Trying to maintain his composure and only partially succeeding in concealing his guilt, Jun answered "Hina is quite skilled, she never aimed to inflict a mortal blow, I assure you. I am sorry, truly, but it is as I said, the best tests are unexpected ones. Not only do I have a better feel for your abilities, but I also have a sense of how you work with others."

Clearly not convinced, Zelgadis did not let go, and in fact tightened his grip "One wrong or unexpected move and one of us could have died, you realize that, right!? We get ripped away from our worlds, we trust you and you try to kill us! How is that right, how is that FAIR!?"

At that, Jun's own hold on his temper slipped and the normally calm and steady trainer of heroes and displaced souls snapped back "LIFE ISN"T FAIR, ZELGADIS!"

So stunned by the passion and anger in the retort, the sorcerer-swordsmen let go of his grip, his eyes wide. Stepping back and adjusting his shirt as he calmed himself again, Jun continued "I'm sure that sword of yours isn't for show, Greywards-san. Every time you draw it, you go into the unknown, you take a risk that you may not survive the next fight, correct? My job is to help you. It is, in fact, all that matters to me. That doesn't mean I hold your hand because sometimes it's going to be hard. No matter what you do, what you choose, I have to be sure you are ready to face it and before I can do that, I have to know where to start. Now, I do. Again, I am sorry I betrayed your trust and I hope you will forgive me but whether you do or don't, won't change that I will still do my best. For what it's worth, I was very impressed with you."

As Jun spoke, Zelgadis trembled in anger, his face turned to the side, unable to look the silver-haired older man in the face. The rest listened intently, upset but not nearly as enraged as Zelgadis had become.

Finally, when Jun had concluded, the chimera narrowed his eyes as he looked up at Jun, his stare affixed in cold fury before he quickly turned and walked out. As he did, Michiru finally got to her feet, her mood also subdued, but willing to try to lighten the heavy mood that had settled among them, asking "So…anyone think dinner is ready?"

(X)

As the sun neared the edge of the horizon a lone figure walked down the hallway of the top floor of a rather bland looking apartment complex. The figure, clearly a woman to any who had eyes, was clad in a skintight black jumpsuit wrapped in a flowing black cape that came down to behind her knees. In this age of heroes that wasn't an unusual sight. The fact that this woman's head was completely concealed by a black motorcycle helmet with prominent car ears part of its form, however, was quite odd. If one looked closely, a black choker with a black heart in the middle rested on the woman's throat. One might also wonder how she was able to see where she was going with the helmet's shield down as she walked, assuming they weren't distracted by her impressive figure, anyway.

The woman clad in black reached her destination, an apartment door that had several more locks on it than normal and on close inspection, was thicker and heavier than one would expect from such an otherwise unnoteworthy housing complex. Fishing a small set of keys with a key card also attached from a pocket, the woman made her way through the various locks before inputting the code on the keypad attached to the door handle and turning it.

The apartment was spacious though sparsely decorated and furnished. A simple round table with two chairs and a laptop closed sitting on top, a brown three-seat sofa in front of a smallish flatscreen TV and a wall hiding the kitchenette on the other side. There were three other rooms though, one the bathroom, while the other two were certainly meant as bedrooms. It was the closer of these two rooms the woman was interested in, stepping in as the sun was about to set.

Inside, the room was completely bare. No furniture, no pictures on the bare white walls, nothing. Except for the very conspicuous stone statue at the center. The statue depicted a winged humanoid, his arms crossed and wings resting out behind his back and a tail running down to the ground and bent back toward the figure. His head featured two small, rounded horns on the top of his head between which hair flowed between and down to the base of his neck. His ears were long and pointed and his face was elongated about six inches out into a somewhat rounded beak. Despite this, the statue appeared contemplative, as though considering some great question.

Finally, the sun set, and everything changed. The eyes of the statue began to glow white before cracks began forming all over the figure. Then the whole of the stone seemed to writhe and ripple before exploding outward, bits of stone bouncing off the walls and crocheting off the ceiling. The woman didn't seem to mind being pelted with bits of rock, seeming to be impatient for this whole event to be over.

Sure enough, with all the rock gone, the once motionless, lifeless piece of carved rock was now a living, breathing gargoyle, with orange skin, white hair and wearing a leather armored jacket and black pants over his perpetually bent legs.

The dramatic explosion of rock moments earlier was belied by the yawn that followed it from the creature as he scratched the back of his head. Turning, he noticed his guest and asked, his speech accented, hinting at his English-speaking origins "It's a bit early, isn't it Celty? Whats up?"

The black clad Celty took a moment to remove her helmet, revealing no head at all. Instead, a black miasma seemed to be emanating from her neck. Despite the lack of a mouth, a response could be heard, the voice perfectly normal if grave "This is it, Brooklyn. They think that bar we scoped out a couple of weeks ago belongs to All for One and All Might wants us in on the raid to get a UA student back tomorrow night. You ready?"

The gargoyle's eyes narrowed, and his beaked mouth twisted into a predatory grin "I've been ready since the moment that asshole dumped me here."

(X)

With my big event over I had a bit more time to get a larger chapter out this time. That being said, this could have been longer. Not only do I have a set writing schedule, but I also try to keep chapters at a set length. I've had a few stories that have impossibly long chapters that given my schedule, take me days to read. I do wish I could put out a chapter every 2 weeks but barring some drastic change in my life, I can only do so much. I usually aim for 8k per chapter and longer if I get ahead of schedule but you at least expect that.

As always, I hope you enjoyed, please feel free to comment, I would appreciate it. Take care!