"Toru Hagakure?" Rizumu asked, raising a brow. She was clad in a long, fuzzy black coat and thigh-high boots, nursing a cup of hot coffee in a foam cup between her hands as she looked at Toshinori Yagi. "Toru Hagakure's been dead for years. It was a pretty big event in the underground. You're sure it isn't her sister?"

All Mirio could do was stare blankly at Rizumu. He, Keigo, Toshinori, and Taishiro sat in a circle of chairs around Rumi's bed. The prone hero was the first to speak, verbalizing what everyone else was thinking.

"What the fuck?"

"She's registered at U.A. as Toru, yes," Toshinori said, shifting uncomfortably as he maintained his muscle form with great effort despite being malnourished and stressed. "If what you're saying is true… but we ran background checks on all of the students and came up with nothing of the sort."

"Then run one on her sister, Himitsu," Rizumu suggested. "I haven't bothered, but I wouldn't be surprised if a bait and switch was pulled. Would be a convenient way to hide a double agent at U.A. University and collect whatever information Arowana wants about you. Would make a hell of a lot of sense, really."

"…Himitsu Hagakure," Keigo recited as he looked at the screen of his phone. "Died six years ago in a structural collapse in a derelict building. Survived by her parents, and… grandfather, who lives outside of Japan, no name given. No mention of a sister at all..."

Rizumu let out a snort, rolling her eyes as she took a sip of her coffee.

"Typical of the Shie Hassaikai. Wouldn't be surprised if Himitsu has no birth records, either. She's always been… difficult to talk to, or even find. Spends all of her time naked and wandering the underground, eavesdropping and reporting back to Arowana. Been that way for years. Sounds like now, she's in your university doing god knows what. You're right to be suspicious of this 'Toru' student. I mean, there's always the possibility that they're totally unrelated, but that Quirk? That name? There's no way…"

"Again I ask- what the fuck?" Rumi echoed. "So… 'Toru' isn't Toru, and as far as the world knows, there is no Toru? Or there's a fake background, I guess? This was all planned out as far back as the girl's death?"

"Probably," Rizumu answered with a shrug. "Seems like Arowana's style. He's always a few steps ahead, so playing with official records to create the perfect spy falls right into his usual pattern."

"Meanwhile, you're just sharing this with us out of the goodness of your heart," Taishiro chimed in. "You're Yakuza. None of this seems right, or even believable. Why should we trust you at all?"

"Because you just gave me a bunch of sensitive information, and I'm Yakuza by birth only," Rizumu emphasized, clenching her cup a bit tighter. "I want nothing to do with their internal politics and scheming. I believe in some of what the Shie Hassaikai does, sure, and my establishment rakes in cash for them… but my club is neutral ground. My will is my own. I'm 'safe' because I'm pretty much the equivalent of a princess. Himitsu's my estranged younger cousin, and my parents are both… out of the picture. I'm protected out of obligation… but I don't have to protect the organization when I don't want to. Especially when I have muscle like all of you to watch over me."

"I know I'm in hot water right now with all of you," Mirio began as all eyes fixated on him, "but it seems like the truth based on everything I've seen. Saku cares exclusively about Dabi and her club… and hopefully me."

"You're on the list," Rizumu confirmed before taking another sip. "As much as I'd like to take you off it sometimes. You do right by Dabi, even when he doesn't want it. You've done a lot of difficult things for me. I'll do the same for you."

"Right," Mirio continued with a nod. "And Toru… Himitsu… Hagakure has been acting suspiciously. We picked up on that even without Saku's help. I think we should take her at her word, especially considering the plan before all of this information came to light. What we just learned only heightens the odds that we'll succeed on getting me back into Arowana's good graces."

"And that plan would be?" Rizumu asked. "Do you need me involved? Are you bringing your friend to try to get him inside?"

Mirio hesitated a moment, narrowing his eyes as he returned her gaze.

"…no. Stay with Dabi. I think… I think I've actually got to do this on my own, now…"

"I don't know, maybe I'm just… acting crazy. Maybe I'm totally wrong, and this is a stupid idea. I just feel like… I don't know if I can keep doing all of this. There's so much going on, and my focus really isn't on school right now. I don't know if I can handle both at once…"

"Well, whatever you decide… I'll support you. You are… you've always been… u-um…"

She wasn't making it easy… and it was something he was grateful for. He needed to say it aloud and commit. Her strategy had worked before and pushed him into doing things he would never have dreamed, and they had all worked out. It would be no different- it was her way of telling him it would all be okay ahead of time, and he knew he could trust her.

"…a-a very important… I think, what I'm saying is, I want to support you. Closely. As… more than friends."

"Even if I go through with this? You know what it means, right? You won't be the only one seeing me at my most vulnerable, and there may be times that things get…"

"I don't care," he said confidently. "I… really don't care. You need this in order to feel like you're contributing. I've… always needed you. If you're going to make a big change, then I… I will, too. I'll be here, o-or… wherever for you to come home to. Just please, don't rush into things. See how this goes before making the decision whether or not to stay."

"I'll probably stay," she said sullenly, rolling atop him and planting her palms on the mattress on either side of his shoulders. "I don't want to ruin what's left of our reputation…"

"T-the only person's opinion that matters is yours," he said, feeling nervous upon seeing the look in her eyes. "I never liked the sponsorships, the fighting for our attention… I only want yours."

"And you'll have it. Still… I don't want to rush things…"

"…yes, you do," he said confidently as he watched her look off to the side. "I-I… I'll try. For you. You need me right now, don't you?"

"…it might help," she admitted, looking guilty as her eyes snapped back to his. "Something unexpected and good would be nice, given everything that's gone on. I promised you, though, that we could take this slow and move at your pace…"

"And I promised you that I would start moving out of my comfort zone…" he insisted as he shakily put a hand up on her shoulder.

"You've already done that. You've been doing so much, you risked your life to maintain the façade…"

"I did what I h-had to do. And… now, I… I'm doing what I want to do, even if it's… please be patient with me…"

He leaned up, and their lips connected. Soon afterwards, the rest of their bodies did as well.

Tamaki's ear twitched as he slowly opened an eye. He was momentarily confused, hearing the sound of falling water nearby and feeling something wet near his thigh. In his sleep-addled state, separating the two phenomena took a moment… and then the memories came rushing back, filling in the space of what had happened after the part that had replayed in his dreams.

There had been noises from both of them he had never heard before. Sensations entirely unfamiliar, and pleasure so intense that it was almost painful. Everything had been so much messier than Tamaki had expected… and he had reacted far better than he would have anticipated. The frivolous unpleasantries didn't matter when he had Nejire in ecstasy and he was breathless, himself. It felt like both agonizing years and fleeting minutes, and they had both fallen asleep rather quickly thereafter.

He couldn't wait to do it again.

The sound of the shower abruptly stopped, and Tamaki sat straight up in bed while instinctively pulling his leg away from the faintly damp patch. He realized immediately that he was entirely without his usual pajamas, and that Nejire's clothes were still upon the floor. His were also strewn somewhere about the room, though he didn't particularly care about rushing to get dressed. Not anymore.

Not after what they had done together the previous night. Not after she had seen all of him.

Quite suddenly, the memory of Mirio's situation leapt to the forefront of his mind. Tamaki reached for his phone on the bedside table and illuminated the screen, seeing that the time was almost 11:30 in the morning. Panic seized his chest as he realized that they had overslept by far too long, and the feeling only intensified as Nejire entered the room wearing nothing but a towel around her waist and another enclosing her hair.

"Tama," Nejire said softly as her face lit up with a grin. "How are you feeling?"

Tamaki blushed hard, thinking back to the faces she had made the night before. The expressions he had drawn from her.

"I-I… better than I have in a long time, but…"

"Mirio," Nejire finished for him as she approached and sat upon the foot of the bed. "Mirio needs us."

"He does," Tamaki agreed, grateful that the rumpled blanket was hiding his lower body as Nejire crawled toward him. "W-we can't… waste any more time here…"

"I wouldn't call any of this a waste," Nejire said as she once again climbed atop Tamaki and he laid back into the pillows.

"I-I didn't mean…"

"I know you didn't. Just… take a moment to wake up and pull yourself together, at least?" Nejire requested before dipping down and locking Tamaki into a kiss. "Slow down a moment. We need to be at our best going back to the hospital."

"We… we probably never should have left," Tamaki said anxiously. "I don't know how Togata convinced us…"

"Because he's looking out for us. He saw that we were both exhausted," Nejire answered as she tucked a strand of hair back behind her ear. "He's a good guy."

"The best," Tamaki said as he tried to ignore the sensation of Nejire's weight atop his lower body.

"…second place," Nejire said with a smile. "We'll get to his side soon enough. If there was an emergency, he would've called by now."

"Maybe," Tamaki acknowledged as he furrowed his brows. "Still, it's late, and… um, h-have you given any more thought to your… plan?"

"I think I'm gonna go for it," Nejire answered. "As long as you'll be okay, knowing what I'm going to have to do."

"I'll be fine," Tamaki reassured as he closed his eyes. "It's… just a job, right?"

"Right," Nejire agreed before unwrapping her towel and laying herself atop Tamaki's chest. "It's best if all three of us get involved in the Shie Hassaikai, and I can't exactly just join up directly without causing a lot of suspicion. Even this will probably raise some eyebrows…"

"I think it depends on… h-how closely the organization monitors the club," Tamaki considered as he tried to keep his eyes on Nejire's face. "F-from the sounds of it, Saku is left mostly independent… H-Hado we can't…"

"We could…" Nejire tried, well aware of which of Tamaki's parts her stomach was pressing against. "But I guess we should at least call and check in first."

"Y-yes," Tamaki agreed. "Please call."

Nejire heaved a sigh as she dismounted Tamaki and grabbed her phone from its place next to his. With a few quick presses of the screen, she put the device on speakerphone and held it out in her palm.

"Nejire?"

"Mirio?" the girl answered. "Sorry, we just woke up. It was… a long night. We didn't get much sleep."

Tamaki looked away from the phone, though he knew Mirio couldn't see his tinted cheeks.

"Yeah, me neither. I'm glad you guys at least got to have a bed, though. I'm on my way to the Hassaikai main base now."

"What?" Tamaki asked, his ears twitching upward. "I was supposed t-"

"No, no, it's… best if you don't," Mirio advised. "Both of you, the goggles? Wear them if you leave the room. Hagakure definitely isn't who she says she is. We've got enemies on all sides, but I'm working on fixing that problem."

"Mirio, what are you doing?" Nejire asked, her voice getting panicky. "Don't do anything insane without us backing you up."

"Little late for that. I need you to trust me."

"We do, but…" Tamaki started. "…please just… keep us in the loop. Promise us that you are safe."

"I'm safe. Are you two headed to the hospital?"

"Soon," Nejire replied. "Can you send me Saku's number? I want to talk to her about something."

"Sure. What's up?"

"Well…" Nejire said, hesitatingly slightly. "I'm going undercover, too. As a stripper…"

Author's Note:

Lots going on, and the school year starting soon…

-RD