Izuku repressed a shudder as his body reformed on the warp pad above Kakariko, the evening sun a welcome relief to the bone-numbing cold heat of teleportation. Beside him, Ashido gasped sharply before clutching her stomach. It was a little hard to tell, but her normally pink skin had a bit of a greenish tint to it. Izuku could sympathize; he was pretty sure his face had been as green as his hair the first time he'd experienced Sheikah teleportation.

Link, as always, didn't look sick at all. Izuku felt a prick of envy as he watched him tap away at the Slate, but quickly pushed it away. Maybe it was a side effect from dying, but he had noticed that most things didn't seem to faze Link. Like everything else, he just took teleportation into stride.

"Blegh, that's awful!" Ashido exclaimed. "You guys said you did that regularly?"

"Not regularly, but often enough that I'm used to the effects," Link said.

"What is wrong with you?"

"Far more than you realize, less than you think." Link nodded to himself and looked up. "Looks like I'm good to go back for the others. I'll charge the Slate while at the tower, just to be safe, but we should be all right."

"G-go for it, then," Izuku said. "Ashido and I can hang out here. I've actually been wondering where the path leads, so I might explore that while we wait."

"Sounds like a plan. I'll return shortly, so don't wander too far."

With that, Link stepped back and tapped on the Slate. Instantly, he rose slightly into the air. The blue light of Sheikah technology covered him, forming a shell that quickly transformed into tendrils of energy that streaked away toward Hateno tower.

Izuku watched them go before pulling out his notebook. 'Looks like the energy streams travel relatively slowly. We didn't notice it when warping to and from the Plateau tower because our destination was close to our start. It should take a few minutes of travel to get to and from Hateno from Kakariko.'

Ashido's quiet laughter broke him from his thoughts, and he looked up from his notebook. "What?"

"Just you, Midori," she said, still chuckling. "We're on another planet with no clue how to get home, and you're still taking notes on everything."

"I-it's just interesting is all. W-we might be here for a while; if we d-don't understand how things work, life'll be a lot harder for us."

Her laughter faded into a grin. "I never said it was a bad thing! Like, I think it's cool that you can do that. My brain doesn't brain that way, so I've always been super impressed with how you analyze things."

Izuku flushed, but let himself smile. "Y-yeah, well, you're pretty cool too, you know. You're always so outgoing! I wish I was as good with people as you are."

"You wanna know the secret? Just relax!"

He rolled his eyes, and Ashido waggled her fingers at him. "Seriously, just relax and be yourself. People think they have to have, like, this persona to be friends with others. Keeping up one of those is work though; it's much easier to just be cool. Honestly, you need less help than you think."

"Wh-what, really?"

"Yeah! The whole class—well, maybe not Bakugo, but he can be kind of a tool sometimes—but the rest of the class really looks up to you. You have this energy whenever you talk about heroes and hero work that's so contagious the rest of us can't help but be fired up by it. And, like, not just the big hero work! I know I wasn't the only one who saw how you worked with Kota. That was really cool."

Ashido flushed a little and looked down. "So yeah, I think that you're doing all right."

Izuku flushed too. Definitely because it was nice hearing someone say nice things about him and definitely not because the one saying the nice things was a pretty girl. He cleared his throat and kicked at the grass before speaking. "Th-thanks. D-do you want to go check out the path? We can leave a note for the others in case they arrive before we get back."

That got Ashido to perk up again. "Yeah, let's go! Just up there, right?"

"Yup. Let me just leave them a note…"

Izuku tore a sheet from the back of his notebook and hastily scrawled a note to All Might explaining where he and Ashido had gone and promising to meet them back at Impa's when they were done exploring. That done, he pinned it to the ground near the warp pad with a rock before hurrying to catch up to Ashido, who was bouncing in place further up the path.

Despite its initial appearances, the rest of the hike was easy. Or at least, that's the way it felt to Izuku. At the top of the cliff, the path forked. The left fork gently ran down further into the mountain, while the right path led over a small bridge into a forest clearing. Izuku looked between the two. "Left?"

"Totally left," Ashido agreed. "The right path looks boring, and I swear I saw lights or something the other way."

The two started down the path and were quickly surrounded by trees. Maybe it was the quiet, but he still felt awkward from the earlier conversation. He cleared his throat again, and he felt Ashido's eyes shift to him. "So, Ashido, I know I've asked some of the others, but I don't think I've asked you. W-why do you want to be a hero?"

Ashido tilted her head and tapped at the corner of her mouth. "This is gonna sound super corny, but… I dunno, because I like helping people? Like, I hate bullies, and what are villains but super bad bullies? I wanna help people feel happy, y'know?"

Izuku nodded his head vigorously. "Exactly! That's kind of like why I want to be a hero! I want to give people hope, like All Might does."

"I can totally see you doing that, too." A flash of realization crossed her face, and she started grinning again. "Wait, is that why your hero costume has that super big smile?"

"Y-yeah. I'm kind of an All Might fanboy…"

"I getcha. All Might's super cool, what with him being the Symbol of Peace and all. Though from what he was saying, he might not be for too much longer," Ashido said, her grin slipping.

A small sense of gloom settled over Izuku. "He's not doing too great. I th-think that our generation of heroes is going to have to step up a lot sooner than we were expecting."

Ashido snorted. "Assuming that we can get back. If we can't, then at least the stinky League of Villains and the Big Bad can't hurt anyone else."

Izuku shivered and nodded, remembering the overwhelming sense of malevolence that All For One had exuded. 'Yeah, maybe it's better if we can stop him here, where he can't steal any other quirks.'

The two were quiet until the path leveled out, and Izuku pulled up short as the trees parted to reveal a clearing. It was a fairly normal clearing. There were some flowers he didn't recognize and some kind of purple bugs flitting about. Honestly, were it not for the giant plant bulb in the center of the clearing, Izuku would have called his curiosity sated.

The plant was massive, easily the side of a small house. Its green petals were each covered in a row of thorns several meters in length, and there were several—Izuku rubbed his eyes to make sure, and yes—what looked like giant, glowing orange mushrooms leading up to the front of the bulb.

Ashido was the first to break the silence. "Okay, that is both one of the weirdest and coolest things I've seen," she said.

Izuku nodded. "Y-yeah, it's pretty cool. I wonder what it looks like when it's in bloom?"

"Dunno. Probably something super pretty." Ashido was quiet for a moment before another smile stole across her face. "Hey, those mushrooms look pretty climbable, right?"

'What? I guess they do.' Izuku's eyes widened in realization. "They look like a ramp."

"Right? Well, if there's a ramp, then it obviously needs to be climbed."

Ashido didn't wait for Izuku to respond and bounced over to the mushrooms. Izuku followed her footsteps and realized that she was bouncing around to avoid the shallow puddles that surrounded the bud. He stopped, teetered on the edge of one such puddle, before spotting a way across and leaping to the other side to join Ashido.

Together, the two climbed the ramp. Ashido's smile stretched into a grin as she reached out and placed a hand on the bulb. "First! I claim this giant flower in the name of—woah!"

Whssst…

The bulb shuddered beneath Ashido's hand, letting out a sound that was almost like a sigh. Izuku eyed the bulb apprehensively, but before he could say anything, a deep woman's voice spoke.

"Girl… and Boy… sweet children… won't you listen to my tale?"

The hair on the back of his neck standing on end, Izuku frantically waved at Ashido to step back from the freaky flower. Ashido, for her part, seemed a little concerned, but she ignored Izuku and answered, "Um, sure, I guess. What are you?"

The flower sighed again. "I am the Great Fairy Cotera. This place was once a beautiful spring, but as time passed, fewer and fewer travelers stopped to offer me rupees. As a result, my powers have abandoned me and the spring has dried up. I am nearly powerless now, so I beg your help. I need rupees to become whole again."

Ashido looked back at Izuku with wide eyes, and he in turn looked back up at the plant—erm, at the great fairy. "I mean, how would rupees restore your powers? Aren't they just money?"

"Oh, they are much more than that, sweet boy…" Cotera laughed, sending another shiver down Izuku's spine. "Rupees gather small bits of spiritual energy from those they come in contact with. We great fairies can draw the power from those rupees. Please, all I need are a hundred rupees. Once my power has returned, I can help you do great things, children."

The petals of the bulb parted slightly, and a hand larger than Izuku's torso poked out. "Now, if you have the rupees, hand them over to me. Quickly!"

Eyes wide, Izuku looked back at Ashido. "I-I only have about twenty."

"I think that'll be enough." Ashido was already rummaging in her travel sack and grunted in satisfaction as she withdrew a small bag. "Beedle paid me for my help on his ship. I think I have… yes! I have a few reds here. If you want to hand her yours, I'll give her these."

Izuku did as directed and placed his mix into the fairy's outstretched hand, followed quickly by Ashido's reds. The great fairy snatched her hand back within the confines of her bulb, and Ashido and Izuku jerked away as the entire plant began to shudder and quake. "Aaah…" the fairy moaned, "the power… it's overflowing!"

WSSHT!

Lavender mist spewed from the top of the bulb as the entire flower opened, rushing over the two friends and causing them to begin coughing violently. 'Did we just get tricked?' Izuku thought wildly. 'Is this Malice? It doesn't hurt. Actually, I feel… better?' And it was true. Though he was coughing, Izuku felt better than he had in days, like he could run for miles or fight a hundred villains without stopping.

Eventually, the fog settled enough for the two of them to stop coughing, and when he could see, Izuku wished he had a camera. The beams of fading sunlight and the tendrils of mist perfectly framed the flower that had bloomed in front of them. Giant pink petals covered in green and glimmering gold growths had folded out to catch the light. More lavender mist streamed off the spring in the center of the flower, which was bubbling cheerfully. Shimmering golden lights rose from the depths of the pond before twinkling out of existence.

Izuku rubbed his eyes, sure that if they stretched any wider they would pop out of his head. "Woah."

"Woah," Ashido agreed.

As they watched, the waters began to roil more furiously before surging upwards. Izuku physically tried not to widen his eyes as the water receded just as quickly to reveal a giant woman. 'She must be as large as Mt. Lady! As impressive as her size was, his attention was diverted to the rest of her, and he could feel his face quickly heating to a boiling point.

The fairy was clad in a gemstone two-piece, leaving very little to the imagination. From the choker connected to the top a thin chain to the strands of gemstones that ran down and disappeared into the depths of the pool, every article of clothing seemed to emphasize how Great the Great Fairy was.

He quickly jerked his eyes down and tried to slow his breathing. 'Relax, Izuku! She's a fairy; that's like a Western kami. They have different rules than we do! Besides, it's probably more comfortable to wear since she lives in a spring.' How that made sense, he didn't know, but he was doing everything in his power to not think about it.

Beside him, Ashido seemed to be having a similar reaction. She had stuffed her hands into her mouth and was shaking slightly, though she seemed to be watching him instead of the fairy. When she saw him looking at her, she doubled over and clutched her stomach, giggling hysterically.

"Wh-what?"

"I-I've—Huahahahahaha—I've never s-seen—hahaha—seen someone actually look bamboozled before, hahahaha! I wish I had a camera; if only—haha—you could see your face, Midori! Hahahaha!"

Somehow, that made him flush even harder. "Y-you're not embarrassed?"

"Nope!" Ashido took a couple of deep breaths in an effort to steady herself, and while the laughter subsided, her speech was still punctuated with occasional giggles. "She's wearing more than we do in onsens, haha. What's there to be embarrassed about?"

Izuku opened his mouth, but words failed him. He was saved the need to respond by the great fairy's tinkling laughter.

"I see that I have flustered you. My apologies, but it's just such a feeling! That first breath of fresh air after an eternity of decay! Thanks to you sweet children, I have returned to my former glory. And as they say, one good turn deserves another."

"Yeah, you mentioned helping us do great things. What d'you mean? What can you do, Miss Cotera?" Ashido asked.

"A great many things! But for you, I believe that one of my simpler gifts would work best. I can enhance your clothing, provided that you have the materials for it."

"Enhance our clothing?" Izuku perked up and pulled his notebook out, pushing his embarrassment aside. "What do you mean? You make them fancier?"

"Not at all! I can use my powers to imbue clothing with the elements of the provided materials." Cotera lazily circled a giant finger in Ashido's direction. "That cloak, for example. If you were to bring me some bokoblin parts—fangs, horns—and some amber, I could extract their essence to make the cloak more durable and protective."

Izuku's eyes went wide, and he looked up from his scribbling. "That's amazing! Can you do it with any sort of clothing? Is that the only kind of enhancement that you can do? Is there a limit to your powers? What do rupees have to do with it? How does—"

"Slow down there, Midori. It might be rude to ask a kami so many questions," Ashido laughed.

"Ha! You've a bright mind, boy. I don't mind inquisitiveness." Cotera flicked her fingers and was suddenly holding a red rupee. "Every living thing has a magic to them. Rupees act as a container for that magic. Each time a mortal handles one, a little of her innate magic is stored within the rupee. We Great Fairies can then use that power within our fiefs.

"As I said, I can enhance your clothing, though only a little at the moment. I suspect that my sisters have fallen into the same squalid state you found me in. Were you to aid them, I'm sure that they would be grateful and help you even as I."

She flicked her fingers again, and the rupee disappeared. "Now, do you have any clothing or armor that you wish enhanced?"

Izuku glanced over at Ashido, who shrugged. He shook his head, and she turned back to Cotera. "Nah, I think we're okay for now," she said. "We don't have any icky monster bits. Can we take you up on that in the future? Or one of our friends? He's a Champion, apparently, so having strong armor is probably, like, super important for him."

"Of course! I would be happy to render you and yours aid. For now though, I must leave you, children. I find myself with much work to do to restore my domain to its proper glory. See you later!"

With her parting words, Cotera threw her arms up into the air and dove back beneath the surface of the spring. Izuku braced himself, but the Great Fairy vanished with hardly a splash. As the surface stilled, the golden lights resumed their twinkling above the water's surface.

"Well, that was wild," Ashido finally said. She grinned toothilly and nudged Izuku. "So you like giant, curvy girls, 'eh Midori?"

Izuku felt like his face had just sprouted a fiery beard to rival Endeavor's. "I-I-I—n-not g-g-giant, b-b-b-but—"

"But curvy?" Ashido's grin softened. "Aw Midori, I'm just teasing ya. That was pretty neat of her to offer to help us out. What do you think about her powers?"

Whether she had meant to change topics so abruptly or was just being her usual bouncy self, Izuku didn't know, but he was extremely grateful for it. He took a few deep breaths and let her steer him back away from the fountain. "W-w-well, it s-sounds like she's got a lot of power. Actually, th-the way it works seems a lot like how Yaomomo's quirk works, except they need magic proteins instead of food proteins. I also think that you were right when you said that she's a kami, or at least, pretty close to being right. She mentioned that she had a domain that she watched over; maybe she's the guardian spirit of Kakariko? There's definitely some kind of symbiotic relationship there. We should ask Impa. Actually, we should probably tell her about Cotera and make sure that they keep her stocked…"

He took another deep breath and shook his head. "Sorry, almost lost myself there. Anyway, if we get the chance, I wanna ask her about the other Great Fairies. She mentioned her sisters, but are there others? Where are they?"

Ashido tapped her chin. "I dunno. Maybe they're all in the same position as she was? I mean, from what Erim told me, most people were wiped out a hundred years ago, so there weren't that many people left to take offerings to the springs."

"Yeah, that makes sense." Izuku looked back at the spring. Losing the numbers that Link had hinted at… it made way too much sense. He shivered and turned his back on the hauntingly beautiful spring. "We should probably head down to Impa's and meet up with the others."

"Ah, yes, The Great Fairy." Impa nodded and leaned forward on her stack of pillows. Izuku and Ashido had arrived at Impa's right after the others, and Izuku wasted no time explaining what they had found. Impa, for her part, didn't seem all that surprised.

"Cotera has watched over Kakariko for centuries. Usually, she is quite good at letting us know when she is in need. Since we hadn't heard from her since the Age of Burning Fields, I had assumed that she had perished protecting us during the calamity. I see now I have erred. Paya, would you help me set up a pilgrimage later?"

"Y-yes, of course, Grandmother."

"Thank you. It would be wise of you all to take her up on her offer. Now, dear Link, I take it you were successful in Hateno?"

"Yes… and no. I have the camera rune, but I don't recognize any of the pictures that the princess took." Link's face creased as he blew out a breath. "So I have no way of finding these places."

"I think you're better off than you realize," Impa said. "I have been told that there is a traveling painter at the inn. With any luck, he may be able to further guide you to your lost memories."

Link sighed, and Izuku couldn't blame him. It was like one of those obnoxious fetch quests that big MMOs liked to spring on you. Except this time, the reward was his memories. Izuku snorted at the idea; there were certainly some similarities between the past couple of weeks and a game, he had to admit. Another glance at Link showed that he was still glowering at the prospect. 'I think it's time to change the subject.'

"M-Miss Impa, it might be a good idea to plan out how to approach the Divine Beasts, and in which order. Purah said you might have some ideas?"

"Wait," Ashido cut in, "what are these Divine Beasts? You guys and Purah mentioned 'em, but nobody really explained."

"Oh, well, put simply, the Divine Beasts…"

'Thank you, Impa.' Izuku hid his embarrassment at having forgotten to explain such a large detail by pulling out his notebook and jotting down some quick notes on what the elder was saying. He knew he already had some, but he had recorded them after the fact, and his memory was sketchy. This time, he was able to get down much more, along with some thoughts he had on how to handle each of the Divine Beasts. He still had a lot of questions, some of which Ashido and Yaoyorozu asked, but they were all the kind that Impa had said would need to be directed at the races directly involved.

Though if he were being honest with himself, that wasn't the only reason he wanted to meet the other races. The idea that this world had other sentient species besides humanity was incredible. Yeah, there were people with mutation quirks who looked like they could be from a fantasy world, but they were still human. What would another sapient, sentient species—actual, real life aliens—be like? Izuku couldn't wait to find out.

Eventually, Impa finished her "summary" and settled back on her stack of cushions. For a moment, the room fell quiet while the girls digested what the elder had said. "If I understand you, Miss Impa," Yaoyorozu started, "these Divine Beasts are basically super weapons that your ancestors created?"

"And the bad guys have 'em now, so we need to take 'em back?" Ashido added.

"You have it. Now, to take back the Divine Beasts will be no easy task. It will be dangerous, challenging, and time-consuming. Link, I know you feel the urgency of one racing to save his beloved, but I must reiterate again that throwing yourself against the Calamity without their aid would be utter foolishness. The Princess, Hylia bless her, has held out for this long. She will need to hold out a little longer."

Link stiffened and had to visibly force himself to relax. "She will, but I'd rather she didn't have to. We need to take care of the Divine Beasts; where are they, and where should we start?"

Impa smiled sadly. "Ever focused, eh Brave One? Paya, could you bring over the map? Yagi, if you would be so kind as to set out a table for her."

"Yes, Grandmother…"

"As you wish, ma'am. Here?"

"Yes, there will be fine. Spread that out over the table, Paya dear."

Izuku studied the map as it unfolded. It was beautifully colored and painstakingly detailed, clearly both a work of art and a functional tool. He recognized the central sections immediately, as they more or less lined up with those on the Sheikah Slate, though significantly less detailed. There were the roads leading from the Plateau up to Kakariko and Hateno, as well as other settlements, most of which had had a line dashed through their names.

He took that in a moment before focusing on other portions of the map. It seemed to be divided into regions, the same as on the Slate. The Faron region to the south seemed to be entirely wooded, while the Lanayru region just north of Kakariko was covered in wetlands and mountains. He also noticed that there were several more stables marked all across Hyrule. 'I wonder if they all have small villages like the Dueling Peaks Stable had?'

However, there were portions of the map that weren't particularly clear. To the southwest, the Gerudo Desert lacked any defining features other than a marker for an Oasis and Gerudo Town. Likewise, the Hebra mountains to the northwest were basically a mass of cliffs and valleys, with one peak in particular, Hebra Peak, marked as a test site.

"This is incredible," Link muttered, tracing a hand along the path they had traveled.

"It is," Impa agreed, "though it is but parchment and ink. Your Slate's map, Link, will have far more information once functionality is restored to each of the regions' Guidance Towers. For now though, it is enough."

She reached behind her and extracted a long, wooden cane that she used to tap on the map. "Now, see here. The Zora and Divine Beast Vah Ruta are just to our north, up in the Lanayru province. Notice the Zora's Domain? It is a small kingdom in and of itself. As it is so close, I would recommend starting there."

"I see it," Yaoyorozu said, leaning over Izuku to peer down at the map. "You said that each of the other races were in charge of one of these weapons. Would it be reasonable, then, to find the Gorons in Goron city, up near Eldin Volcano? And the Rito in Rito Village, to the west?"

Impa laughed. "Aye. Those who settled the region—or perhaps some Hylian ruler in the age of myth—were not terribly imaginative in his naming schemes. Still, it makes finding them much easier. Were I you, I would recommend traveling in a circle. Start with the Zora as they're the closest, then work around toward the west."

"That looks like it would make the most sense," Link said. "It would simplify things."

"You're right, but, like, how long would it take to travel that?" Ashido asked. "I've only traveled by boat up to now, so I totally don't know what the right distances are."

"Hmmm…"

Impa leaned back and stared thoughtfully at the map. Izuku traced the distances with his eyes, following roads and cutting across fields and rivers. If it took two days to reach Hateno from here, and three days from the Plateau to the Dueling Peaks—probably closer to two, but dealing with monsters had eaten some time—then it should take about… three days to get to Zora's Domain?

The elder's response a few minutes later confirmed his rough sketch. "Roughly three or four weeks of travel time following the roads, maybe a bit less if you were to take a more direct route. Following the road, Zora's Domain is about three days from here."

"We'll want to cut time wherever we can," Izuku said, slowly looking up at the knight. "That means teleporting."

Link scowled. "I'd prefer if we could avoid it, but I agree. Teleporting back to the Plateau once we've finished helping the Gorons would cut down on almost a week of travel. Same with when we finish with the Rito and Gerudo. Darkness, we might be able to cut travel time in half when all's said and done."

"Which would be good, as we have no way of knowing how long wresting control of each Divine Beast will take," Yaoyorozu said.

"And we have to keep an eye out for the Yiga," Izuku added. "They've tried to get you once; I don't think they'll stop there."

"Yes, he has a point." Impa fixed Link with a look that could have stopped a Nomu. "But you cannot let that stop you. You are wise to their tactics and know they will try again. Be wary, and they will be as smoke in the wind."

Link nodded. "I think we have a plan. Unless any of you have anything else to add?"

Izuku glanced around the room before focusing on All Might, who seemed to be lost in thought. "All Might, what do you think?"

The skeletal man shook himself before looking around the room. "The only concern I have is that our League of Villains might rear their heads and cause problems during your journey, but we don't know where they might be. If our theory about why we each awakened where we did is accurate, then they very well might be trapped in the Castle amidst the machines. No, it's a good plan. However, I think I may stay here in Kakariko."

"Wh-what?"

"Seriously?"

"You can't be serious, All Might!"

He raised a hand, cutting off their objections. "I understand your concerns, but I have been thinking about it since our arrival in Hateno. I'm not in my prime anymore, and with my injuries, I have a hard time keeping up with you kids. From what I have seen and heard, much of Hyrule is mountainous, terrain that we know I cannot traverse easily. Going with you would only slow you down, even if we bought or caught horses since I don't know if I could ride.

"Instead, I will stay here. We've found half of you kids already and know that more are on their way. I'll wait here for them and work with Impa to begin readying forces for an assault on the Castle. Besides, I'm afraid that my time in my muscle form is growing more limited. Too much more use, and I may not have enough juice left for confronting All for One. It's your turn now."

Izuku felt dumbfounded, and it must have shown because All Might looked at him and laughed so deeply he began to cough up blood. "Don't be so surprised, Young Midoriya! Assaulting a castle filled with machines and the League by yourselves would be suicide. The more we have by your side, the easier the fight will go." He glanced at the group again and smiled. "You don't look all that surprised, Young Link."

Feeling more and more blindsided, Izuku turned to look at his friend, who slowly shook his head. "No. It's what I would do if I were in your position. Nor will you hear me complaining; any help you and Impa can muster will be appreciated."

"As much as I don't like it, I can see the logic behind it." Yaoyorozu drew out the end of her sentence, as if she were still thinking it over. She noticeably perked up after she finished speaking and quickly added, "But with the Slate, if we do end up needing you, we can come back and get you."

Relief washed over Izuku, and he nodded. "Y-yeah! And that'll let us pick up any of the others who stop here. That way, you don't have to worry about your ti—your limit."

"It's settled then," Impa said. "You four will stay the night. It is too late for you to travel now, and you need the rest. In the morning, I will have someone help outfit you. We don't have any horses here, but if you were to stop by the Wetland Stable tomorrow, you should be able to acquire some."

"Which would further speed us up." Link leaned back from the map and nodded at Yaoyorozu and Ashido. "All right, so we have our plan of attack. I want to know more about what you two can do, but we can talk on the road. So now, I guess there's only one question left.

"What's for dinner? I'm starving."

After dinner, Izuku wandered outside. The sun had dipped below the horizon, though it wasn't quite dark enough for stars yet. Below, Kakariko bustled with the frenzy of night time ritual. Shops were closed, fields were checked, animals were locked away, and guards were changed. Slowly, the town quieted.

If only Izuku's thoughts would do the same. He still wasn't happy with All Might's decision. For years, All Might had been the greatest hero in the world. He'd saved so many people and had inspired countless others, Izuku included. A world where he wasn't zooming around saving people with his trademark smile hardly seemed real. And yet, the day had come. Intellectually, he had known it would. All Might only had remnants of One for All; frankly, it was incredible that he was able to use it at all. That knowledge couldn't prepare him for the blow of All Might admitting defeat though. It wasn't a real defeat, but it felt like one all the same.

'"Now it's your turn."'

He scrubbed his suddenly damp eyes. Those words had been addressed to him, and he knew it. "Dammit, I'm not ready yet."

"Not ready for what?"

Izuku jumped as Ashido slid up next to him. He hadn't heard her come out after him and drew a quick breath. "Oh, hey Ashido. Where're the others?"

Ashido rolled her eyes. "All Might's talking logistics with Impa, and Link and Yaomomo are still eating. I think they might have started an eating contest? I dunno, they were staring each other down. Anyway, what're you not ready for?"

"F-for All Might to step down. He's been around for so long, you know?"

"Yeah he has." Ashido leaned against the railing. "He's been saving people for as long as I can remember. You gotta level with me though: how long have you known?"

"Wh-what d-do you mean?"

"When he first explained to us, you obviously weren't surprised. You knew, just like you seemed to know that All Might's powers were dwindling. You started to say something, but cut yourself off. I might be dumb sometimes, but even I can put those together."

Izuku hesitated. How much to tell her? "W-well, I guess you've got a point. I've known since before I started at UA, back in middle school."

"Seriously?" Ashido swung around one one foot to face him directly. "What'dya mean, since middle school? How'd you find out?"

He hesitated again as he searched for the right words. After a few moments, he sighed. "I—it's not my favorite thing to talk about. It was a bad day. You remember that day when All Might caught the slime villain?"

Ashido tapped her lip. "Yeah, I think so. Didn't he, like, throw a punch strong enough that it changed the weather?"

"Yeah he did! It was really helpful, too, because the rain helped put out all the fires—" Izuku took a deep breath and forced his brain to change course. "—N-no, that's not important. What wasn't in the interview is that he actually caught the villain twice. You see, the villain was running away…"

Slowly, Izuku explained what had paradoxically been the worst and best day of his life in a long time. He stopped a couple of times to work out how to phrase things to avoid spilling secrets, but the telling became easier the longer he talked. He even pulled out the burnt copy of Hero Analysis for the Future to show her All Might's signature.

For her part, Ashido remained quiet. She asked an occasional question and made noises of appreciation when he showed her the signature, but otherwise just listened. That also made it easier for Izuku to tell the story. The valley became truly dark as he talked, leaving the two standing in flickering lantern light.

"…And then he came in and punched the slime villain. Kacchan and I escaped, and that was it."

Ashido nodded and leaned back, but didn't say anything. Izuku absently noted how the lamp's light flickered in her eyes, warming their black depths, but before he could really begin processing the thought, Ashido finally spoke.

"So he was hurt years ago… and he's been doing hero work this entire time without a stomach? I think I would have gotten tired of smoothies or whatever a while ago."

"I think he can eat solids?" Izuku scratched his head. "You know, I don't know if I've actually seen him eat food. Yeah, we've had meals together, especially after coming here, but I've never paid attention."

"Well, there's homework for you for later." Ashido paused, then frowned. "There's a couple of things with what you told me that, like, don't click though. Why were you walking home that way, Midori? You said that the only reason you ran into the slime villain was because you took a route you'd never taken before."

Izuku's brain flatlined. "I-I—w-well, you see, I w-was avoiding Ka—someone that had been mean t-to me at school. I d-didn't want to deal with him anymore that day, so—"

"It was Bakugo, wasn't it."

Ashido held up a hand, cutting Izuku's stammered reply short. "You don't have to answer. I know you two went to the same middle school, and it's super obvious that Bakugo hates you for some reason. Well, maybe not 'hate'—loathes, maybe—but you get the idea. He's such a yappy blowhard, I totally wouldn't put it past him to be an asshole, since, well, he is one."

Her response caught him by surprise. "A-aren't you guys friends?"

"I mean, yeah, but that doesn't change that he's an asshole. I think he'll mellow eventually—he's buddies with Kirishima already, even if he won't actually admit it—but that road's a long one."

She hesitated again. "You know, you're pretty cool, too, Midori."

"M-me?"

"You." She smiled and started ticking her fingers. "You know all this stuff about quirks that can help people be better heroes, and we all see how hard you train. You're trapped in another world, and rather than worry about yourself or how you'll get home, you're supporting a guy who seems like he needs it. You're wicked smart, and you care about others, and it shows. People know you're there to help. Honestly, how could I not think you're cool?"

Izuku flushed. "Y-yeah, well, you're cool, too! You always have this big grin on your face, an-and you have this super awesome quirk that lets you do all sorts of cool stuff like melting barriers and skating around, an-an-and you're pretty, an-an-an-and you're really good at making friends and helping people feel comfortable, an—"

"Woah, wait, back up for a moment. You think I'm pretty?"

Izuku bluescreened, frantically playing back what he had said in his head. 'Did I say that? Oh God, I did. I mean, she is pretty, but I didn't mean to say that—"

Ashido's giggles cut off his internal monologue, and his blush grew as he realized what she was laughing at. "Damn my mutters."

"I think they're cute, haha."

"Y-you do?"

Her giggles finally subsided as she wiped her eyes. "They make you you. Don't change just 'cause others think it's weird."

For the second time that day, he felt like he had spouted Endeavor's beard, his face was so warm. "Th-th-thanks," he managed to get out before forcing himself to look up at the night sky. Anywhere but at the girl who he thought—and he made sure his mouth wasn't moving this time—was pretty. After a few moments, he felt Ashido shift and lean against the railing beside him.

"You think it's up there?"

"What?" Izuku glanced at Ashido, who was also staring up at the sky.

"Earth. You think that it's up there somewhere? I can't decide if we're just on a different planet or if we've been, like, isekai'd into another world. 'Cause that'd be kinda cool, but…"

He understood. "B-but that would mean we c-can't go home."

She nodded. "Yeah. Don't get me wrong; Hyrule's pretty cool, but… I miss my parents."

Did her voice just tremble? "I miss my mom, too," Izuku said, taking another deep breath. "I-I try not to think about it too much, to be honest. I don't want to flood the village."

Ashido's chuckle was much more watery this time. "Y-yeah, I don't think these people need more water."

He chuckled. "No, they don't. B-but it's okay. I think we'll make it back. W-we got here through some weird mix of All Might's and Kurogiri's quirks, right? Maybe we just need to get them together again to get back home. We'll see everyone again."

Izuku stiffened as Ashido leaned over and gave him a quick hug. "Thanks, Midori," she mumbled, pulling back. "I know things'll work out, but sometimes it just gets to you, ya know? For a while, I didn't know if I would see any of you again, so I had to work through everything myself."

Hesitantly, Izuku patted her back. "I-I meant what I said before. I d-don't think I could have done what you guys did, keeping going on my own. You're pretty tough, but that doesn't mean you have to keep it all in. If-if you want to talk, I-I'll listen."

She was quiet for a moment. After a few seconds, she said, "Thanks. And the same goes for you. If you wanna talk—about any of this crazy stuff or about whatever happened to you back home—I'm here for ya."

"Th-thanks, Ashido."

"Hey, it's what friends're for." She fidgeted, glancing back at him, her lips twitching. "Though would I be a terrible friend if I said I kinda just wanna watch the stars with you for a bit? We can talk more later."

Izuku chuckled quietly and settled in beside her as the first stars winked into existence. "I'd like that."