Reporters and Recruitment

Estelle stood with her class in the common room with Mr Aizawa at the front. She was only there at Mr Aizawa's request and found herself bored at his explanation. She figured it was because society had no idea she was doing part-time hero work. Estelle remained in the back row between Bakugo and Tokoyami.

"A newspaper?" The class questioned.

The class debated amongst themselves. There was a peculiar feeling in the air that Estelle could not pinpoint. She supposed that the students might have been happy for the publicity. Estelle only wished they weren't there for an inside scoop on the alien in their class. Her reflections were interrupted by Mineta's perverted words. Her aura turned dark as she glared the speckle of annoyance down. She was forced out of her temporary irritation by an elbow nudge from the blonde next to her.

"If she likes sticky balls, I'll give her an all-access pass!"

"That's enough. I expect you all to be on your best behaviour today," Mr Aizawa interrupted as he enclosed his student in his capture weapon. Estelle observed the scene with satisfaction.

"Don't worry on my account, Mr Aizawa", Another voice rang out as a new male walked into the room. "I wanna get a feel for what dorm life is really like, so there's no need for them to act any differently than normal."

Estelle eyed the man being a smartass with her teacher before he turned to introduce himself. "Hello everyone, my name is Taneo Tokuda. I'm looking forward to learning more about you all."

"Nice to meet you" The class bowed.

Estelle pretty much dismissed everyone else after that. Why did she need to be here for this? Though she couldn't help but notice the sly reporters look towards Mr Aizawa and had a funny feeling that he had other plans.

Estelle ate her breakfast with a frown as the reporter flashed around the room with his camera. She grimaced at the man when the flash hit her directly in the eyes and held back her remark. She couldn't make herself look bad to this world. It would make her job much harder. Her irritation was relieved when Bakugo blew up at the camera himself, which made the reporter fall on his ass in surprise and fear.

Estelle laughed at that, which caused the blonde to glare at her a few seats down, which she pointedly disregarded. Her emotions flowed back within her body as soon as the camera flashed towards her once again.

"Fabulous darling, you should smile more."

Estelle just glowered at him, causing those around her to sweatdrop.

"Hey Estelle."

"Huh, yeah?" Estelle replied.

"Why don't we have a little chat?"

The class watched in curiosity as Estelle followed the reporter into a separate room. They narrowed their eyes at the man. Why would he need to speak to Estelle if the newspaper was about dorm life?

Estelle stood in front of Tokuda with a frown until he finally spoke. "So, you're the one from another world?"

"That would be me, yes."

"I wanted to ask off the record. Why did the Commission let you go so easily? I would imagine that they would have been very reluctant. The whole world feels uneasy knowing that other life exists and they can be more powerful than the quirks we hold."

"The Commission allowed me to go once they reviewed my memories."

"Yes, but why? What was there for them to trust you so easily?" The reporter prodded, the journalism in him coming to the surface.

"That is none of your concern."

"I see; I would have imagined that it was due to more of your kind coming through?"

"Hmm. You are smart."

"So, what will you do?"

"I will deal with it and return to my world. It would be like I never existed."

"What a tragedy that would be."

Estelle glanced at him in bewilderment. Tokuda only gave a hidden smile before he continued, aware he had gotten her full attention.

"The class clearly seems to be fond of you. I could tell just by calling your name. This world is facing dark times now that All Might has retired. The world is now looking at you in hope. I wish to keep that hope alive with you and Midoriya. We will lose that if you go."

"With all due respect. But I have already had the world look to me for safety. I have done my time, and I have no need to stay any longer than needed."

"Have you ever wondered why they did? With your words, I can see you hold a weary heart. But we need all the help we can get. Just reflect on my words, you don't need to make any decisions now, but I just wanted you to be conscious that this world needs you. You've already helped your own by the sounds of it."

Without any further response, the reporter made his leave. He headed towards the opposite end of the building where All Might and Midoriya stood. Estelle lamented to herself as she took a seat on the staircase.

Plopping her head onto her hands, Estelle gazed out into the sky with a frown. 'Why? Why does it have to be me again? Haven't I done enough? Do I not get the chance to live out my days in peace?'

"Hey Estelle, come inside for dinner!"

"Coming."

Estelle sat in thoughtful silence whilst she dug into her meal. Her thoughts were still swirling around in her mind as she pondered over the reporter's words. The chatter around her was loud and energetic. Estelle wished she had their liveliness.

"Hey, um, Estelle?"

Looking up towards the sound, Estelle gazed at Kirishima with a hum of acknowledgement.

"What did the reporter want?"

Estelle furrowed her brows, looking down towards her meal. "Ah, it was nothing. He just wanted to let me know that the world is looking at me in some misguided hope, and he wanted to see if I was leaving anytime soon."

"Huh, really?"

"Yeah."

"Well. What did you say?"

The majority of the class leaned over to listen in. From Shinsou's words the other day, it seemed like Estelle's plan was to leave when the bridge had been fixed, but she had not said a word about it yet to the rest of them. They all held some hope that it was wrong and that she wasn't, but it was challenging to fool themselves when they knew how Estelle was. She placed more effort into putting them at a distance than anything else. They tried not to feel hurt by it, but in some way, they are. Still, they refuse to give up. There was still plenty of time and hope to get Estelle to join them fully.

Estelle felt the same uncomfortable feeling she experienced the last time she was asked. Thankfully, she was interrupted again. This time by Ochako, who was followed by Izuku.

"All Might has brought us some goodies!"

"Awesome!" The class chimed back. Estelle loosened as the students rushed over to the bag full of meat buns. She escaped for the second time. Thank goodness.

Estelle prepared to leave since the reporter had disappeared early, which meant she could go back to normal. Placing her hero costume on, Estelle made her way to the exit of the dorms. The class was mingling in the living room when she was leaving.

Her eyes widened when she saw a male standing by the door holding a box. Looking up at her teacher, Estelle raised a question. "Mr Aizawa? How may I help you?"

"I should be asking you that. Never mind that- I got you something."

Lifting a brow, Estelle took the box tentatively and opened the lid. Her raised brows furrowed as she looked down at its contents. Mr Aizawa sighed at the look on her face. "You have no idea what this is, do you?"

Estelle just shook her head as she pinched the sturdy plastic out of the box. It looked like it would be placed on the ear, but she didn't understand why.

"It's an earpiece. It connects to your phone at all times, so you can communicate with anyone. I know you have to stop a lot in the air, and you tend to miss out on calls because you're in combat. It just makes things easier. Plus, you can listen to music."

Estelle observed the earpiece whilst she listened to him speak. She was bewildered by it, but honestly - she should have expected that something like this existed. Estelle could also tell that the device wasn't cheap. It seemed futuristic. Estelle's heart flipped as she stared down at it.

"You didn't have to do this for me."

Mr Aizawa gazed down at her blankly, but internally he knew he had a soft spot for the girl. He realised that giving something practical would be the best way. She didn't seem like the type to accept something that held little use. He hoped that showing he cared somehow would help Estelle open up to the class more. Mr Aizawa patted her head in answer and moved to leave. He stopped briefly when he heard Estelle mutter a thank you.

"It's a gift. Take it."

"You know, I haven't had many gifts in my life. I'll treasure it. Thank you."

Mr Aizawa cursed himself as his heart heated and dropped to the pit of his stomach all at the same time. He didn't answer as he strolled away. Estelle held a small smile as she turned on the device. Realising that she didn't know how to operate the equipment, Estelle turned to Izuku for help. Estelle walked further into the room and took a seat by the green-haired male.

"Hey, Izuku, can you show me how to work this?"

"Huh?! Yeah, sure!" Izuku exclaimed with a beaming smile.

Estelle watched with focused attention as Izuku showed her the diverse ways she could use the device.

"Okay, I've set it up, so put it in your ear. Good, now when you want to answer a call, you just double-tap. Like that! Yeah! You're a master!" Izuky carried on as Estelle followed his instructions. When she was comfortable enough, Estelle thanked Izuku and headed towards the exit.

"Bye, Estelle!" Various classmates chimed on her way out. They slumped slightly when they heard no response. It was only until they saw Estelle's hand wave lazily in acknowledgement that they brightened up. The door clicked shut when she left.

"Did you see that?! She didn't ignore us this time!"

Estelle landed in one of the woods around Japan with a frown. She had a strange feeling when she was in the air. It was like she was being watched again. The situation confused her. When she had dealt with Ryah, the weight immediately lifted off her shoulders. The fact that it was back only made Estelle wary.

Her questions were answered when she heard a branch snap through the trees. Swivelling to where the noise occurred, Estelle spoke up loudly. "Come out! I know you're there."

Estelle watched as a shadow of a skinny male loomed over the bushes and moved towards her. She readied herself for a fight but froze in stupefaction at the person standing in front of her. It was a young adult with brown hair and tired eyes. The most obvious and prominent feature was his mask. It was a large and colourful beak.

"Hello Estelle, I am Overhaul. I'm from the group known as the Shie Hassaikai. I was fascinated when I saw your battle during Kamino Ward. Imagine my surprise when one of my men had noticed that you come here frequently."

"And what do you want?"

"I want you to join me."

"Why?"

"The day I saw All Might's retirement. I saw a gem on the sidelines. The way you mercilessly killed your opponent as you were on death door, I just knew that you would fit right by my side. A powerful queen for the taking. I want you."

"It depends on what your goal is", Estelle responded, pointedly overlooking the change in atmosphere. His gaze surrounded her like a predator trying to catch prey, but Estelle had played this game before. No matter how alluring, it was always a trap for control. Estelle could be clueless about many things, especially in this new world. One of the things that stayed the same was the lust that drove people. Money, power and women, just to name a few.

"My goal. My goal is to rid the sickness from this society. Quirks are unclean, and they need to be fixed. I will be the one to do it and bring the Yakuza to its former glory. I will rule."

Estelle deadpanned at the villain before her. "Did you actually see what I did at Kamino Ward? I took down a bad guy. Am I not part of society's sickness?"

"No, no-no. You, my dear, are far from sick. You're abilities don't come from the same place as our disgusting quirks. You are clean. And who's to say your opponent was the bad guy? You could easily be pulling the wool over people's eyes. It would be a skilful move, one that I can see someone so powerful doing. The Yakuza has a place for you at my side," Overhaul concluded as he stepped into her vicinity. Estelle hated the lack of space but kept her mouth shut. His beak was pointed towards her neck as his fiery eyes trailed over every inch of Estelle's face.

Strangely, the close proximity made Estelle feel bizarre. It was like being on edge with anticipation. Usually, when she was looked at like that, Estelle would be grossed out. Thinking about it now, it was usually men too old for her.

"Hm. Prey tell. How would you remove this sickness from people? Genocide?"

"I cannot tell you until you agree. Though I will admit that killing everyone is not how we'll do it. So, will you join me?"

The woods permeated with silence as Estelle reviewed the conversation. Honestly, if she had the time or reason, she probably would have said yes and taken him down from the inside. Her life was frenzied at the moment, dealing with the bridge and spirits that would not calm. She would leave the heroes to it unless they needed her.

"Unfortunately, I will have to decline. I have other commitments that take up my time. Maybe when that's all over, I'll think about it."

"Hm. Fair enough. The door remains open for you, my queen. Have a wonderful day."

"You too."

Estelle trudged back into the UA dorms. Tiredness settled in her bones like weights. Though she was happy about the use of Mr Aizawa's gift. She found communication was so much easier. She even found it humorous to answer amidst battles.

"Hello, this is the dragon hero Ryuko. There has been some spirit activity- Wait! Is this a bad time?"

"No, of course -CLASH- not. Report."

"Uh, okay? Well, there has been some-"

BANG

ROAR

THWOP

"Carry on, I'm listening."

"Uh. I'll just call you back in a few minutes."

CLICK.

"Pfft. Amature."

Yeah, Estelle found it laughable.

As she made her way to the kitchen for her meal, Estelle was taken aback by the students clambering over each other. When her eyes found the plates of treats Sato had made, the realisation set in.

'Ah, it's sugartime.'

Forcing all of the students back with her air bending. The class slid away from the treats slowly with their fists raised, smashing into the invisible wall Estelle created. She gave a mischievous smirk to those watching and slowly moved her hand down towards the sweets. The frantic thrumming of the student's fists loudened as Estelle lifted a piece up to her mouth. Grabbing a few more, Estelle dropped the wall. The students stumbled from the abrupt change and immediately moved to dive back to the plates.

"Enough! Single file line, or I'm stabbing you all. You're too noisy."

The class sweatdropped as they shuffled into a line in front of Estelle. The female sighed, exasperated at the teens as they looked at her expectantly.

'Are they seriously making me do this?' She contested herself as she grabbed plates and handed them out. As each student stepped forward, they all said their own words of thanks.

"Thank you!"

Grumble.

"Tch. Whatever."

Grumble. Grumble.

"We should have soba soon."

Grumble.

"Thanks, bestie!"

Grumble. Grumble.

And on it went.

Thankfully, when everyone relaxed with their own portion, Estelle moved to the kitchen as she had previously planned. She was stopped once again by Yaorozou. The girl had her meal in one hand and a cup of tea in the other. "No point leaving now! Eat here with us!"

Grumble. Grumble.

Yaoyorozu sweatdropped at the response before handing her the food. The pair walked back to the couch with the rest of the class, and Estelle dug in. She was starving, it was apparent as she ate ravenously and relaxed to the taste of tea.

"How was your patrol?!"

"Fine, I got invited to join a cult."

"What!? How do you even know what that is?!"

"Google."