Once again the trio finds themselves at the forefront of the media, and meddling governmental agencies. It's frustrating. And confusing. Emotions are running high. And Himiko takes a leap of faith.

"...I have absolutely no idea what the hell to do with you three at this point," Aizawa said, staring at the trio blankly. "Is it too much to ask for you to stay off the news for one single day?!"

"It's not like we chose to have Hosu get attacked!" Himiko protested.

Aizawa sighed, holding up his phone to a clip currently playing on repeat. On it, a clearly agitated Himiko was shouting at the other two as she drove a Nomu into the ground. The trio flushed, refusing to meet their teacher's gaze. Aizawa sighed again.

"You're not in trouble. Well, mostly. It's just…you have a lot of attention on you now. A lot. And I know none of you want it."

Izuku paused, looking up at Aizawa. "...you implied we are in some form of trouble."

Aizawa slumped in his chair, letting out an annoyed grunt. "It's…difficult. You were using your Quirks without the express permission of Ingenium. Granted, he said he gave you permission, but the fact you were caught on camera looking for more things to do isn't…great."

"How does any of that make sense? We're hero students, and yeah, I know the students' part is important, but like…were we supposed to just sit there and let people die?" Ochako protested.

"In my opinion? No, of course not. I would rather you not get into fights with these Nomu creatures, and I'd much prefer you were doing basic evacuation procedures as you are still students, as you so aptly admitted, but…it's not my opinion that matters."

"I still don't get it. What's so wrong with us helping?" Himiko groused.

Aizawa worked his jaw. "...alright. What I'm about to tell you, you keep to yourselves for now. It's something we'd normally go over with you in your third or fourth year, depending on how things go, but…it boils down to the fact that as a Hero, your job has some political implication. I personally hate it, but heroes are celebrities, and thus have massive public influence. You should be aware of this, with the impact Toshinori has on the entire world, much less Japan, right?" As the trio nodded along, Aizawa continued. "The thing is, governmental agencies don't appreciate such influence. Specifically, the Commission takes a dim view of these things generally."

"That sounds…fucked up, Sensei," Ochako muttered.

"There is some sense to it. It's not as black and white as it sounds. Heroic influence can be easily used for nefarious purposes if you so choose. And once you add in the fact that Heroes are the only people who get as much training in using their Quirks in combat, and many heroes have exceptionally powerful Quirks, well…a Hero turned Villain is the most dangerous kind of Villain. There needs to be checks on hero power, because it can go to your head."

Izuku was trying very hard not to react to this, but every word their teacher was saying was being played over the image of Shoto's muttered comments about heroic failings and his father. Endeavor was the number two hero, admired by millions of people for his strength and ability to solve cases. He was taciturn and strict, but even that was respected by many people…and yet Izuku was aware of what he had done behind the scenes, and it made them see, somewhat, what their teacher was saying. If someone had kept Endeavor in better check, maybe…but even so, that situation was different from them helping, wasn't it?

"But…all we did was save people? We're not trying to like, influence anyone!" Himiko replied, waving her hands dramatically.

Aizawa shrugged. "It is different, but it undermines the Commission's authority. As first year students you should not have been doing that. The regulations are what they are. Now, you're still not actually in trouble. Ironically, that same influence that they fear is precisely why they can't go after you…it'd be a PR disaster. However, Tensei is a different matter."

"But that's not fair! He was just trying to help!" Izuku shouted, jumping to their feet and slamming their hands on the table before them.

"It won't be more than a slap on the wrist, don't you worry," Aizawa dismissed with a wave of his hand. "We've all gotten censured by the Commission before and it'll happen again. You get used to it when you aren't one of their darlings. Tensei will be fine. He'll get a rude letter, a strongly worded complaint, and some black mark on a dingy record they ignore because he's popular and he's gotten a PR boost thanks to being your mentor. It's just something you have to get used to, in this business. Unless you go underground, but that is increasingly unlikely at this point."

"It's still not fair," Izuku muttered, slumping back into their seat.

"I did tell you the world isn't fair, Midoriya. It's not. As heroes, it's our duty to combat that unfairness, but it is a fight we can never truly win. We're just holding the line."

"Then why bother?" Himiko asked, slumping in her chair as much as Izuku. All she could really feel right now was frustration and a general apathetic annoyance coming across the bond, and she imagined that was pretty well reflected in her own emotions.

Aizawa arched an eyebrow at her. "You know better than to ask that, Himiko. You already know the answer."

"...because someone has to," Ochako sighed, leaning forward and resting her chin on her hands, pouting.

Aizawa gave her a wry grin, patting her on the shoulder once. He leaned back in his chair. "With all that out of the way…be aware the media is going to be focused on you three for a while. Now, as spotlight heroes, that would not normally be a bad thing, but I imagine it's not something you want. So for now, we're calling you back off your internship early…you learned about as much about fighting as you could," he muttered, glaring off to the side as if the wall had personally offended him. He shook his head. "I'll do some extra lessons with you, going over procedures and paperwork while the rest of the class are on their internships, so you still get that experience."

"Okay. I mean…makes sense, I guess," Izuku sighed.

Aizawa looked over at the frustrated cat-quirked teenagers and shrugged again. "It sounds worse than it really is. Like I said, it's an unfortunate side effect of our job, you're just getting exposed to it earlier than any of us would like."

"...how bad did Hosu get?" Izuku dared to ask after a few minutes of silence. They'd been pulled into this side room at Ingenium's agency where their teacher had met them, but it was only after they'd had to spend another hour evacuating the burning building they had spotted. No one had told them exactly what all had gone down, as they hadn't seen any more Nomu but they could easily hear the screams and shouts of fighting in the distance.

Aizawa took a moment to consider. "I'll give it to you straight, as the news is going to break the full report later anyways. Casualties weren't terrible, but, well, the grand total of Nomu released into the city at last count was twenty seven, and they did some serious damage. You three managed to stop six of them, but to be frank, you are far more powerful than most people your age, and more than many other heroes. Toshinori was deployed, but by the time he arrived there were already losses. Endeavor arrived shortly before All Might, and between the two of them they managed to stop most of the Nomu themselves, but…well, it could have gone better."

"O-oh," Izuku said, looking down at the table.

"...you stopped six of them on your own. Do not discount your efforts," Aizawa said with a firm tone, making Izuku look back up at him and meet his steady stare. "A lot of people survived thanks to what you did. Not only stopping those six, but saving the people in the building. No other hero was nearby."

"...but why did they even attack?!" Ochako asked.

Aizawa sighed, rubbing his face. "The police…received another of those 'boxes', like the one at the USJ. We were given a pre-recorded message from someone who called himself 'The Doctor', claiming he was doing more field tests."

"...that's fucked up," Himiko replied, gaping at her teacher.

"Some villains are," Aizawa replied flatly. "Many villains have various reasons for what they do…mental illness, substance abuse, revenge, political motivations, etc, but some villains simply wish to cause harm and watch the world burn. Or in this villain's case, he seems to be some sort of scientist with no ethics whatsoever. That or it's an act. Or perhaps he's trying to make these Nomu as some sort of shock trooper and he intends on selling them. Truthfully, there could be a myriad of motivations," Aizawa shrugged. "Not to make light of it, but while it's rare to find someone so willing to attack in such a high profile way, it happens."

Himiko knew he was right, but she still couldn't stand the thought. It was so…ugh. Seeing the glance Izuku and Ochako shared with her, she knew they felt the same, that same disgusted rage filling their chests and swirling together into one choking, twisted thread.

"For now, don't worry about the attack. I know that's hard to do, but multiple agencies have begun a manhunt into this 'Doctor' and his creations, so for now it's best to leave it up to them. For now, let's get you packed up and back to the dorms."

Himiko flopped over on Ochako's bed, staring at her phone in consternation. As they'd returned to the dorms, Aizawa had handed her a few letters, and explained to her in quiet terms what he'd heard from the detective, leaving her now as confused as she'd ever been. Hadn't…hadn't those friendships been fake? She thought they were…that it was all some sort of act everyone was putting on, that everyone was just using each other for social standing! And yeah, there was some confirmation of that apparently, as only three of the dozen girls had reached out with genuine intentions, but like…that was three more than she'd expected.

She'd of course told Izuku and Ochako about it. She didn't keep these sort of secrets from them, especially not lately with how jumbled up her feelings around them were. It didn't help that Ochako and Izuku had weird feelings about her and the other as well. It was getting harder and harder to keep her feeling separate, to keep theirs away from her own. There were times she was going to say something, but Ochako or Izuku would say it instead and she didn't mind it. It was messing with her head, the connection, because the emotions were so similar sometimes that she couldn't tell them apart. At least, for most things.

This though? This, she knew, was entirely herself. Ochako and Izuku were just worried about her and how she was feeling, which she wasn't even sure what she was feeling. Fear? Guilt? Anticipation? Whatever it was, she didn't quite know, but…she did want to find out. She wasn't going to hide from her old 'friends'. She'd tell them who and what she was, right off the bat, and if they couldn't deal well…then she at least knew how to deal with those who hated her for her Quirk she was not going to get her hopes up about if they accepted her.

"You sure you want us here, Himi?" Ochako asked, sitting on the bed beside her and absently reaching up to scratch her ears.

"Mmmhmm," she hummed back, closing her eyes and arching her back at the sensations. "I um, already texted them and they are ready for me, so…I'm…I'm gonna video call and see what they have to say. So uh…can you stay outta sight unless I ask for you to come in?"

"Of course," Izuku said softly, finally finished with hanging up their clothes in the closet (according to them it was very important to have everything in place, something she found both amusing and adorable).

Himiko nodded absently, taking a deep breath as she looked at her phone. Ochako stopped scratching her ears, sliding back off the bed to leave the area of the shot as Himiko sat back against the headboard. With a deep breath, she hit the call button. It rang once, twice, and then the call connected.

Three heads shoved together, nearly pushing one another out of the way, faces she knew rather well. Rika, brown eyes and short-cut red hair in the center, Mimi, glinting green eyes and blonde hair on the left, and Momoko, dark blue hair and blue eyes on the right, all smiling widely at the camera as they tried to say hi all at once, instantly squabbling as they cut one another off. Himiko couldn't help it, letting out a snort of laughter only to freeze a second later once all three looked at her, confused. She wasn't sure why at first, until she realized…she'd never laughed like that around them, always a prim and proper laugh, one befitting a dignified member of the Toga family, never something so…barbaric as a snort.

"Wow…that scruffy detective wasn't lying. You really are different, huh?" Mimi asked, her characteristic lack of tact in her words.

"Mimi!" Rika said with a gasp, slapping Mimi on the shoulder. She rolled her eyes. "Ignore her, Koko," Himiko had to hold back a wince as she could feel the sudden surge of amusement from both Izuku and Ochako at the nickname, "she's still a total airhead."

"Ignore both of them. We're so glad to see you, Himiko. We were rather worried," Momoko said, her tone soft.

Himiko swallowed. "I…yeah. I um, so your letters said."

There was a brief, awkward pause as Himiko fell silent, not sure what else to say, but the silence was broken by Mimi rolling her eyes. "Okay, nope, none of this awkward stuff. Gonna come out and say it. We heard about your parents and that is so not cool, we're really sorry that that happened to you. Are…are you doing better now? Detective guy didn't tell us much."

"...I'm doing a lot better," Himiko said, a smile flickering across her face, one where her teeth were visible behind her lips. The sudden widening of the eyes of the other girls reminded her of what she was expecting, and she took a deep, bracing breath. "But I um…I have to tell you something. And you probably won't like it, so it's fine if you don't want to talk to me after. My parents lied about my Quirk."

"Yes, so the detective said, but he didn't say what was so bad about your Quirk in the first place? It can't be that bad," Rika said, her eyebrow raised.

Himiko scoffed. "You say that now." She sighed, deciding to just bite the bullet. "My Quirk lets me change into other people, but to do it, I have to drink their blood. Actually, I have to drink blood often, else I um…starve. So…yeah." Her voice trailed off as she spoke, finding it increasingly difficult to meet the gaze of the three girls on the line.

There was another brief moment of silence, before Momoko spoke. "I…I see. Can I ask a question?"

"Sure?"

"Were you lying about being bi, before?"

Himiko blinked, incredibly confused by the question, but decided to go with it. "No…?"

Momoko looked…annoyed, her eyebrows furrowed. "So…you're telling me I had a hot, bisexual, vampire best friend and I never got to make out with her even once?!"

Himiko let out a choked laugh, nearly dropping her phone as Rika immediately shrieked and nearly tackled Momoko out of frame, Mimi laughing like a hyena as the phone shook in her hand. Ochako lost her battle with her own laughter, her merry giggles bubbling up in the background, as Izuku quickly stole one of the pillows off the bed with telekinesis and shoved it into their face to muffle their own laughter.

Mimi tilted her head, her laughter fading as she seemed to hear something. Ignoring the commotion behind her, where Himiko could see flashes of Rika chasing Momoko around what looked like Mimi's bedroom, she spoke up. "You alone?" Mimi asked.

"Um, no. My um…my friends are here too," Himiko said, glancing to the side.

"Oh, are they the cute cat people with you on the news?!"

Himiko could feel the sudden surge of embarrassment that came across the bond, able to tell that both of her best friends were now cherry-red without even looking at them. She thought about it for a moment, before deciding… "Yes. Yes, they are," she said with confidence, enjoying the flustered feeling she could feel from both of them now that she directly called them cute as well.

"Oh, oh, can we see your ears? They looked so cute on the news but we didn't get good angles!" As Mimi asked, her eyes glittering with excitement, Rika and Momoko popped up behind her, making Himiko have to hold back another snort. She'd never realized how funny these three were…she'd spent so much time tamping down her instincts, she hadn't really been able to appreciate their over the top antics, but now? It was like a balm to her soul, and slowly, she was realizing that maybe, just maybe…she did have friends before? She nodded, tilting the camera up enough to reveal the ears, one of them flicking without her meaning to, and she got to watch in real time as Rika had to cover her mouth to avoid letting her hear her high pitched squeal. Mimi and Momoko had no such resistance, both squealing and hopping in place as they babbled compliments about how cute she looked.

After a few minutes, they managed to get themselves under control, and Rika ended up shoving her way forward, stealing the phone from Mimi's hand. "So…how did you end up with cat ears, and two more cat people? Are you guys like, long-lost triplets or something?"

Himiko shook her head no, but smiled a bit at the words. "N-no, um…we're childhood friends but got split up, and uh…it was a weird Quirk accident. It's a long story, really."

The trio of girls before her shared a glance, before they nodded as one. "Well…we got time, if you wanna tell it," Momoko offered.

Himiko paused, thinking it over. As long as she kept One For All secret…the rest of the story would be fine to tell. She turned to look at Izuku and Ochako, her eyes and emotions conveying her question, which she could only appreciate more as both of them immediately walked over to the bed, sliding onto either side of her and appearing in the phone, Izuku's sheepish grin and Ochako's nervous smile visible. "Okay. But um, let me introduce you first…" As Himiko began to introduce her oldest friends to the ones she never realized she had, she felt something she hadn't felt in a long, long time…hope.