Mirio sat upon the couch in the low light of the living room of Rizumu's apartment with the top of his tactical suit rolled down around his waist. A steady beat of club music pulsed up through the floor, sounding more like a metronome than a song in its muffled state. The rhythmic bass was subtle enough to be comforting, and Mirio found himself fixating upon it while his mind was otherwise blank. He had no idea what time it was, nor did he have any inclination to check his phone to find out. Simply existing in relative safety was enough for him in the moment, and so, he sat staring at the carpet with no intention of falling asleep.

"…hey."

Mirio quite nearly jumped out of his skin at the sound of Rizumu's voice behind him, soft and tired though it was. He turned his upper body to look at her and found the woman wearing only an overlong shirt that stretched down to just barely cover most of her backside. From the holes in the fabric and general length of the garment, he surmised that it must have been Dabi's, as were the items in the neatly folded pile of clothes in her hands.

"Hey," Mirio replied in a hushed tone. "I figured you two were asleep already. I don't know how long I've been sitting here…"

"About an hour," Rizumu answered as she walked around the couch and sat near the armrest opposite Mirio. The woman set the pile of clothes upon the coffee table, next to a waiting pillow and blanket that had been deposited there previously. She crossed one leg up over the other thigh, her shirt creeping up to reveal more of her thick, heavily tattooed thighs and the side straps of her skimpy undergarments. Mirio looked off to the side to avoid seeing more of her than he should, though not without some difficulty. "Dabi's already out. You're not tired?"

"I'm exhausted," Mirio corrected. "But that doesn't mean I'll be able to sleep…"

"Must be hard finding a comfortable position with those huge balls you have," Rizumu teased with a smirk. "Seriously… you're under enough pressure right now. Why didn't you at least wait until morning to tell him about what you did at the cannery? Overhaul isn't here to snitch and ruin it, and he's not the type to text Dabi, either."

Mirio knew the answer immediately, and he also knew that his companion would likely find it less than impressive.

"…because telling him immediately was the right thing to do," he explained, sounding almost disappointed in himself. With more than a little effort, Mirio forced himself to look over at his host while he continued to speak. "Dabi's… a friend. Keeping that from him even for the night just felt incredibly unfair, given how big of a deal it was. I'd rather he know the ugly truth and be pissed at me now than have him blow up even more over me keeping it hidden for a while. Besides… I felt guilty."

Rizumu gave him a calculating look through the semidarkness, almost as though she was seeing him for the first time. After a few seconds, she cracked her neck to one side and let out a gentle moan before beginning to do a few other stretches.

"…so, you're really not on our side."

"This again?" Mirio asked, his annoyance clear. "Look, I d-"

"Not what I meant," Rizumu interrupted as she interlaced her fingers and cracked them by pushing her palms out toward Mirio. "You're not on any side. You want what's best for everyone, and right now, running with the Shie Hassaikai seems to be the way to make that happen as best as you can. Am I right?"

"Well, when you put it like that…" Mirio considered for a moment, "…then… yeah, I guess I'm not on any side. But that doesn't mean I'm not loyal to the Shie Hassaikai."

Rizumu rolled her eyes, finally propping one arm to settle atop the back of the couch as she let the other fall into her lap.

"Honey… I'm not loyal to them out of anything but necessity due to my bloodline. Dabi isn't loyal to them at all, and if he and I weren't a thing, he wouldn't set foot down in HQ for any reason. Relax. Overhaul might lose his shit if he ever got proof of you not being fully committed, but the two of us? We're not so different form you. The only thing that makes you a "hero" and the two of us "villains" is that we honestly don't care about what's best for everyone- we care about ourselves, our clients, and our friends. We're selfish, in the grand scheme of things. You're generally not. That's all there is to it."

"Is that really all it takes to be labeled as a villain?" Mirio asked as he finally began to relax a bit more into the cushions of the couch. "I think there's gotta be a disregard for people who aren't immediately useful to you. Or… beyond disregard. A willingness to actively hurt them for your own gain. You two don't seem like that."

"That all depends," Rizumu replied. "I'm not going to pretend that we don't screw people over for our benefit. We've both killed before, and they haven't all been members of the Nue. Dabi's done more than I have in that department, but he has his reasons. He could have gone after you tonight. I'm a little surprised he didn't try."

"Yeah," Mirio agreed. "Me too… but I'm glad he didn't. Any idea why he held back?"

"I've got a pretty good idea, yeah," Rizumu let on. "You're the closest thing he's got to an actual friend, other than me."

"…really?" Mirio asked. "But we barely know each other at all, yet."

"Yeah," Rizumu acknowledged, "and that should tell you something about him and his mental state. What he does know about you is enough to keep you around for now, in his mind. It doesn't hurt that I still like you, despite what went down tonight. You've got your foot in the door with him, no matter what he says. Don't let it slip."

"I won't," Mirio said immediately. "I'd like to get closer to him. To both of you. I… don't think you're "villains," you know. Maybe that's naïve of me to say so early, but you don't sound like villains to me at all."

"Maybe that's because no one really listens to them when they're not monologuing in public," Rizumu proposed as she slid her feet down onto the carpet and stood up. "Everyone's more complicated than people tend to give them credit. Who does and doesn't sound like a villain is something I don't think either of us could really say."

Something about the way Rizumu brushed off his attempt at kindness unsettled Mirio greatly, and he made no effort to reply as she nodded toward the small stack of clothing on the nearby table.

"Those are Dabi's, but you can borrow them while you're here. You two are about the same size, and you didn't grab any clothing on the way out of U.A., so… yeah. Reusing that sweat-covered suit for however long you stay with us doesn't sound like a particularly good time."

"Yeah… I'll drop by the university tomorrow and grab some, but these will be good until then. Thanks, Saku."

"…Rizumu's fine," the woman said with a shrug. "Do try to get some sleep. We'll do our best not to wake you."

"Then call me Mirio, I guess. I'll be fine, either way," he replied as he stood up and began to roll off his suit. "Make sure you get sleep, too."

"With my Quirk? Sometimes, sleep is less restful than just staying awake. Night."

Mirio waited until Rizumu was gone before stepping out of his suit entirely to stand upon the carpet in his boxers. He grabbed the blanket and pillow that she had previously left upon the coffee table for him and laid down to settle in on the couch. It was hours before he finally fell into a fitful sleep.

Juzo Honenuki hated sleepovers. He had only attended a few as a child, and each time, he had barely managed to get any sleep at all. Generally, the other party would balk at him keeping his mask on in bed, and then he would cough himself awake later on. On the rare occasion that he wasn't questioned, his anxiety over his mask slipping or being pulled off while he was asleep would keep him awake. That night, it was another matter entirely- though he had slept surprisingly well, it was his bladder of all things that stirred him awake.

At first, he was incredibly confused- he hadn't remembered falling asleep, nor did he know where he was. The dorm room certainly wasn't his own- all of his personal effects were missing, and instead, the walls were plastered with posters of metal bands on every side, black lights, and a few images of famous heroes. Various tubes, bottles, and cases of makeup and perfumes were sitting atop the dressers, and several emptied boxes were lined up against the far wall.

Kyoka Jiro was sleeping soundly in the bed only a few feet before Juzo as he sat with his back leaned up against the frame of its counterpart behind him. The sight of her kickstarted his memory- he had spent hours talking with Kyoka and her roommate as he helped them unpack. He assumed that said roommate would be in the bed behind him, but the weight upon his lower body told him otherwise. As Juzo looked down, the worst-case scenario in his mind became a reality- Amaya Kan's head was planted firmly atop his crotch as she sprawled out on the carpet, applying just enough pressure to be uncomfortably pleasant. One of her arms was slung across his upper thighs, and her breath was barely audible in the otherwise silent room.

Juzo immediately began to panic- not only did he desperately need to make it to the bathroom, but a girl was laying atop him. It was a scenario that he wasn't at all familiar with, and he immediately began to hyperventilate as he considered his options. The need to avoid waking Kyoka only compounded his anxiety, and he quickly realized that getting Amaya off of him without touching her was probably off the table. With a quiet whimper, he held his breath and slowly began to move his arms.

As gingerly as he could, Juzo grabbed Amaya's wrist and began to slowly and carefully lift her arm off of him. Though it took an agonizingly long amount of time, he managed to get the limb down and onto the carpet without incident. Though he did let out a sigh of relief, he knew that the next part wouldn't be nearly as simple. Juzo took a deep breath and slipped a hand down between his pants and the side of Amaya's head. His fingers gently glided through her snow-white hair, cupping her cheek as he began to slowly lift her. Without actively planning to, Juzo paused to look over her features as he held the sleeping girl.

He just about had a heart attack as her dark red eyes opened and she let out a small moan.

Juzo immediately released Amaya's cheek, causing her to unceremoniously headbutt him directly in the crotch. He winced in pain as her forehead collided with his rigid manhood, and for a moment, he thought he might wet himself. Amaya blinked several times as she dragged herself up and out of his lap, her hair in disarray and a small line of dried drool caked around the side of her lip.

"Shit, sorry," Amaya whispered as she put her hand atop Juzo's, both of which were holding his crotch. "We fell asleep…?"

"Apparently," Juzo replied in a hushed tone as he wriggled away from the girl and carefully began to stand up. "Jiro's still out, but I need to go…"

"Do you?" Amaya asked as she rose with him, sounding almost disappointed. "It's not big deal if you st-"

"I have to pee," Juzo admitted as he finally let his hands drop to his side, though the pain still lingered. "Really bad."

"You and me both," Amaya replied as she lifted her arms over her head and interlaced her fingers to stretch. "C'mon. We can talk in the hall."

Juzo nodded, unable to take his eyes off his classmate until he turned and slowly dragged the door open. The two of them crept out into the hallway, leaving the door slightly cracked behind them as they began a leisurely stroll toward the lobby.

"Sorry for, uh… touching you," Juzo offered. "I just didn't see how else I could get up…"

"Pff, don't worry about it," Amaya replied with a wave of her hand before bringing it up to try to fix her hair. "Sorry for headbutting your boner."

Juzo's cheeks flushed beneath his mask, and he was very glad that Amaya couldn't see them.

"Don't worry about it, that was my fault," Juzo said as nonchalantly as he could despite the fact that he was still very much in pain. "I guess… moving was more effort than either of us anticipated."

"Yeah, it was always going to suck," Amaya considered. "Sucked a lot less with you, though. Good thing we'll be hanging out quite a bit."

"I, uh… I hope so," Juzo said honestly as they reached the pair of bathroom doors. "I should really get back to my dorm…"

Amaya rolled her eyes as she put a hand on the door to the girls' bathroom.

"Fine, fine, but I want to talk to you quick. See you on the other side?"

Juzo's eyes widened and he gave the girl a nod before stepping through into the bathroom. He held his breath as he carefully walked past the row of urinals and toward the stalls. Upon finding them all mercifully empty, Juzo stepped inside of the one in the middle and closed the door behind himself before locking it. He unzipped his pants to free himself from the confines of his boxers and found that he was still very much excited.

With a muffled sigh, Juzo reached up and undid the clasp on his mask to allow himself to breathe more easily. He closed his eyes and tired his best to think about something, anything other than Amaya and the feeling of her body against his. Doing so was a herculean effort, but after several unsuccessful attempts over a period of several minutes, he managed to take his mind off of her. As his breathing slowed and his anxiety calmed, his rigidity lessened and eventually deflated entirely. Juzo opened his eyes and went about his business before flushing the toilet, zipping up his pants, and stepping back out of the stall into the empty bathroom.

The sight that awaited him in the mirror above the sinks was one that, had he been anyone else, would have caused him to scream in terror. With the mask hanging off to one side, Juzo's permanent rictus was fully visible. Where lips should have been, there was nothing but gleaming, overlarge teeth in a wide smile. The pink of his gums fused directly into the flesh above and below them, with tiny flakes of jagged skin clinging haphazardly to the edges of his mouth. His appearance was almost skeletal, and his sunken, wide-open eyes did nothing to help the comparison. Juzo thought himself an absolute freak of nature, and given the general reaction to his unmasked appearance, so too did most others. There was no other sight that he hated more in the world than himself, and the longer he looked in the mirror, the more his scowl deepened.

Juzo wrinkled his nose as he tore his eyes away from the mirror and leaned down to wash his hands. Upon cleaning them, he cupped his fingers together to gather a bit of water and rub it into his face. Small flecks of skin from around his teeth came off in the process, and he pulled down a paper towel from the nearby dispenser to clean his hands of them before tossing it into the trash. With an irritated growl, he strapped his mask back on and made his way to the door opposite the one he entered.

Amaya Kan was leaning up against the wall next to Juzo's dormitory door, looking half-asleep with her arms and legs crossed. Upon seeing him, she took a step forward and relaxed her stance, giving her classmate a tired smile.

"Feeling better?"

Not really, Juzo replied in his own mind.

"Yeah," he said aloud with a curt nod. "Sorry for taking so long…"

"Yeah, well, people shit," Amaya said with a shrug of both her shoulders and wings.

"I didn't…" Juzo began, only to think better than to argue. "…yeah."

"Seriously- relax," Amaya commanded as she closed the distance to the slightly taller boy. "You're cool in my books."

Juzo tensed as Amaya lightly looped her arms around his neck.

"You're, uh, you're pretty cool, too," the boy said lamely. "You wanted to talk…?"

"Not exactly," Amaya admitted as she leaned up onto her tiptoes and planted a kiss on Juzo's forehead. "Again- thanks for helping us out. Would've been a huge drag, otherwise."

"H-hopefully it was only a little drag," Juzo tried with a nervous stutter. "Thanks for inviting me to help. I don't really… get out much."

"We can work on that," Amaya offered as she let her arms drop back to her sides and her heels to hit the floor once again. "The only other thing is… you're sure you don't want to come back with me? We could move to the bed instead of the floor. I mean, your lap's pretty comfortable, but…"

"I… can't," Juzo lied. In truth, he wanted nothing more, but it wasn't a matter of what he wanted. "I have to get back."

Juzo's heart sank at Amaya's disappointed expression. It was her turn to let out a sigh as she shook her head.

"I won't pry. Maybe another time, then," Amaya offered.

"Maybe," Juzo agreed as he nervously looked toward his door, trying to think of what he could say to bring up her mood. "Maybe… sometime soon?"

Amaya quirked a brow, her annoyed frown upturning into a playful smirk.

"That'd be nice. See you around, Juzo," Amaya offered as she gave the boy a small wave and turned around to walk down the hall.

"…see you, Amaya!" Juzo said quickly as he returned the wave, though the girl didn't see it.

Regardless, his eyes lingered upon her as she walked. Steadily, they traced lower and lower along her curves until they landed too low for comfort. His cheeks burned once again as Juzo hastily opened the dormitory door and slipped inside.

Author's Note:

Amaya used Skull Bash!

It's Super Effective!

Just to be clear, this chapter is the update for the week of 6/6- I'm just posting it early because it's done, so why the hell not?

-RD