"…so I just… drop it on the ground?" Mirio asked in disbelief. The engine of Rizumu's car died down, bringing total quiet to the parking garage once again. "It's that simple?"

"Eh, not so much drop as slam," Dabi instructed from the passenger seat as he brought a cigarette up to his lips. "It's gotta hit with some force, or the ball won't revert to its original form."

"Slam?" Mirio asked, his cheeks going pale. "What if it… breaks? What would happen to Tamaki…?"

"What, you don't trust me?" Dabi asked pointedly as he gave Mirio an unblinking stare. "Do you really think I'm that much of an asshole?"

Mirio wasn't sure what to say.

"He's not lying," Rizumu confirmed as she leaned over. "You'll do fine, and we'll wait here for you. Do whatever it is you need to get done inside."

Something about the way that the woman said she would wait for him called into question whether or not even that statement was true. Mirio hadn't even considered the notion that they could just drive away and cut him off from the Shie Hassaikai before. Suddenly, he was no longer sure whether slamming Mr. Compress' marble or leaving Dabi and Rizumu in the parking garage was such a good idea. For a moment, he considered throwing Tamaki to the ground right then and there, but he knew that such a thing would be risky for everyone involved. He needed Tamaki alone, and he had to be certain that he wasn't being followed.

"…thanks," Mirio said, his voice full of suspicion. "I mean that- thanks for everything, you two. I'll make it as quick as I can."

Dabi's only reply was a dismissive wave of his free hand as he took another drag of his cigarette. Mirio turned and ran for the small wall at the edge of the garage before planting a hand along the concrete barrier and vaulting it. He landed in the grass just outside the massive structure and began to sprint for the giant glass towers of U.A. University. As he ran, he took out his phone and began to text while occasionally glancing up to make sure his path remained unobstructed.

Nejire, you up?

Mirio leapt a small hedge and continued to run, his boots clapping against the cobblestone path as he made his way for the right frontal tower.

I couldn't sleep if I tried, the reply came back. Where are you? Are you and Tama safe?

We're fine, Mirio reassured. Meet me in the workshops underneath the southeast tower.

On my way.

Mirio slowed to a light jog as he made it up to the front doors of the massive structure. He took his student I.D. from his wallet and swiped it through the reader beside the door, causing the lock to disengage with a weighty click. Mirio grabbed the handle and looked over his shoulder in all directions before pulling the door open, leaping through the crack, and slamming it shut behind himself. The entrance lobby was totally devoid of life and light, and so, Mirio began to make his way toward the row of elevators across from the doors as he scrolled to his contacts and initiated a call.

"Come on…" Mirio said softly as he stepped into the elevator. "Pick up. I know you guys made it…"

"About damned time!" Rumi Usagiyama's voice echoed through the phone. "We didn't want to call in case you were in some fucked situation with the Yakuza." The woman's voice suddenly sounded father away, as if she was yelling away from the receiver. "Mirio's alive! You owe me 2,500 yen!"

"…Hawks bet against me?" Mirio asked as the elevator began to descend. "Seriously?"

"Don't take it personally. We like to keep things interesting," Rumi explained. "You all got out okay?"

"…ish," Mirio replied as he began to pace the floor of the descending platform. "Things are complicated. We should meet up tomorrow and figure out our next steps. I just called to make sure you two are still alive. Apparently that smoke guy that appeared in the parking lot is the head of the Nue. He goes by Kurogiri, and everyone at the compound seemed afraid of him."

"Kurogiri?" Rumi asked. "We'll look into it with Fat, see what we can dig up. Get some sleep."

"Yeah. Yeah, I will," Mirio reassured, knowing perfectly well that he would be doing no such thing. "Talk soon."

Mirio ended the call just as the elevator reached its destination. Predictably, he was met with a sealed blast door painted with a sign that said AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY in giant red letters on a white background. Mirio took a deep breath and plucked the marble containing his friend from his pocket before kneeling down and carefully placing it in front of the entranceway. He watched for a moment to make sure that Tamaki didn't roll off into the darkness before standing tall once again and cracking his neck.

"Don't move. I'll be right back."

Mirio leapt forward into the door, his body and custom suit phasing straight through the heavy steel. He rematerialized on the other side of the barrier and searched for a button, finding a giant red gaudy half-sphere inlaid on the wall to his left. Without a second thought, he clapped his palm to the button and took a step back as red, rotating lights flickered to life and the doors slowly began to open. Not wanting to take any unnecessary risks, Mirio slipped back through the steel to retrieve Tamaki, finding the marble exactly where he had left it as the elevator began to crawl back up to the surface.

"…that's either a very good or very bad sign," Mirio muttered to his friend. "Gotta make this quick…"

Mirio turned sideways and hopped through the widening gap in the blast doors to make is his way back into the lab. His phone vibrated once again, and he hurriedly took it out to see another message from Nejire.

Just got on the elevator. On my way down.

Mirio put his phone back into his pocket without bothering to reply. He knew he needed to find what he'd come for before Nejire reached him, and he had only a few minutes at most in which to do so. The lights of the workshop flickered on as the doors finally receded, and Mirio began to frantically search the shelves of various support items, equipment, and armor. Luckily, the boy found what he needed on a nearby shelf- a pair of high-tech goggles with an attached strap was sitting alone, ripe for the taking. Mirio pulled them down and quickly affixed them to his face as he closed his eyes. Upon opening them again, he saw exactly what he was hoping for.

Everything in the workshop had turned a dull blue or purple. The shelves, doors, and tables were all darkened, and upon looking up, Mirio saw clumps of yellow, orange, and red around where the lights had turned on. He did a quick spin around himself, checking for any other warm colors within the workshop and finding only a small, concentrated circle of red and orange held in his hand where Tamaki rested.

Mirio let out a sigh of relief as he walked toward the elevator, waiting for it to finish its descent. He tilted the goggles up onto his forehead while he waited, knowing that there was no other way into the workshop. After what felt like hours, the elevator reached the bottom of the shaft, carrying only Nejire Hado.

"Don't move," Mirio ordered as he held out a hand.

"What?" Nejire asked, looking suddenly worried. "Is something wrong? Where's Tama?"

"He'll be here soon, and… we're about to find out," Mirio answered as he lowered the goggles over his eyes once again. Nejire appeared before him as a smear of green, yellow, orange, and red, with nothing else giving off heat around her. "Alright, we're alone."

"Of course we're alone," Nejire said hesitantly. "Why wouldn't we be? Are those… infrared?"

"Yeah," Mirio answered as he took the goggles off and let them hang around his neck. "I think I'm being followed. Shie Hassaikai agent, or maybe even one of the Nue. I don't know. Hold on a second."

Without warning, Mirio lifted the sphere up. He held his breath as he spiked it into the ground, mentally resolving to exact revenge on his colleagues within the Shie Hassaikai if anything went wrong. A brilliant flash of light briefly pulsed outward from the point of impact, and then, Tamaki was slumped over on his hands and knees against the floor of the workshop.

"W-where…?" Tamaki asked, seemingly in a daze. The boy was knocked onto his rear as Nejire kneeled down and tackled him into a hug, which he hesitantly returned. "Hado? But…"

"We're safe," Mirio interrupted as he watched the display with a twinge of annoyance. "We're at the underground warehouse beneath U.A., and Dabi and Dreamgirl are waiting for me outside in a car. No other Shie Hassaikai are around."

"You brought them here?" Nejire asked as she broke the hug. "But…"

"I had to get out of there somehow," Mirio justified. "And there was someone, or something following me out of the compound. I needed a car and Dreamgirl had one, so I just…"

"…it's alright," Tamaki said as he pressed his palms into his eyes. "We're all alive, and we're out of their clutches at the moment. Are Hawks and Mirko okay?"

"Yeah," Mirio answered as he began to pace once again. "Fat Gum's also apparently fine, since Mirko said she'd talk to him tonight. Listen- if I'm really being tailed, we cannot talk about anything important or related to those three. It could get us or them killed. I'll fill you both in on everything that happened tonight, and then… I'm going to need you both to go to Fat's agency tomorrow and figure out a plan. I can't be involved until I know where I stand with the Shie Hassaikai, and I've got a less obvious version of these things that I can engage at any time."

Nejire offered Tamaki a hand and helped pull him to his feet as she watched Mirio lift the infrared goggles.

"Do you have something in mind?"

"I've got an idea or two," Mirio confirmed. "I'll talk to Power Loader and see if he can put something together in short order so we can start planning again… and maybe even start misdirecting whoever it is that's after me. Tonight, though, I'm headed back to Dreamgirl's club. I'm staying with her and Dabi."

"Mirio…" Nejire began, her voice full of concern, "Just… tell them something came up, and you're staying home with us. We miss you, and you won't be safe there."

"Safer there than here," Mirio countered as he finally stopped pacing. "For all of us. The way things are going… I might not be at U.A. much longer. This Yakuza work might have to become a permanent thing in order to find out what we need to know and stay alive."

There was a long, uncomfortable silence as Tamaki and Nejire merely stared at their friend. Tamaki eventually cleared his throat and was the first to speak.

"…the seeds of me doubting the pros have been visibly planted in front of several members of the Shie Hassaikai," the boy said slowly. "If you leave U.A., then… I'm coming with you."

"And I'll be right behind him," Nejire added without hesitation. "You're not doing this alone. You can push us away to keep us safe for a few days, but permanently? No. We're a team, and we chose to get involved in this together. If you walk, we all walk."

Mirio had known that the statement was coming, and yet, anticipation had done nothing to mitigate the pit in his stomach. He felt nothing but guilt as he looked over the pair, taking note of the fact that they were still holding hands.

"…we can figure that out later. For now, just grab a pair of these goggles for each of you and let me fill you in on what happened tonight. You'll need to give the pros the details tomorrow."

"Can do," Nejire reassured as she and Tamaki walked toward the nearest set of shelves. "You can always count on us, Mirio. Just don't make the mistake of thinking you can count on the Shie Hassaikai, no matter how friendly they seem. The two people waiting outside are not your friends."

"Yeah," Mirio agreed as he watched Nejire pull down a pair of goggles for herself. Despite his immediate reply, somehow, he couldn't help but feel like he wasn't being entirely honest. "Yeah, I know. They're villains. I can't trust them…"

Author's Note:

Soon, 1-A will retake the focus now that Mirio's story is more or less fully set up.

-RD