The Red-Light district was a good friend of mine in my early years of being Midnight. Which is why I was at one of their swankiest strip clubs. That night was the night to take down the ones that ran the district and terrorized so many women and men that they turned to deals with them to keep the lights on.

The name of their leader was codenamed as 'Prospero.' Prospero was a slender unassuming guy who would 'sponsor' a club and then do whatever he wanted to the women in it.

Because who would care if a few women died during paid time, am I right?

The club, Masque, agreed to the sting op. All I needed to do was play the crowd and load up on alcohol to make my scent particularly potent. The burning lights bake my skin as I danced to Abracadabra.

Sweat builds on me but so does my scent, softly spreading through the building like the gentle sway of leaves through the breeze. Their hungry eyes ogled me like they'd never seen a woman before. I grew out my hair and it flows around me like a royal purple halo. Every eye was on me and I focus on the constant heavy bass and wondering if Prospero is enjoying himself.

Every knee was bowed and every tongue was lolling out of their mouths drooling out calls of how sexy I was. The other entertainers and workers kept things going like a well-oiled machine. Slowly every single person was asleep, and the workers bailed. All I wanted was to make them all go to sleep like I had countless times before. Like I've always done. But then there was Prospero, who I beckoned into a private room.

This is it. I remember this as clear as day. The cushy room and the slender man known as Prospero sitting down waiting for me to dance for him. Initially I thought I could arrest him and be done with it.

Then it happens, in moments he's in front of me. Some kind of speed quirk and his punch blitzes right for my face. Even if I tried to dodge the hits still kept coming. All his men were asleep, but he fights like a rabid animal. I'm on the floor, hands scrambling to grab at him but his hand clenches my throat like a vice. Then there's that sharp carving pain and the knife slides between my ribs. Agony burns through me and something else does too.

Pouring out of my wound is a thick, acrid red gas. Twisting around him as his knife drops and his limbs go slack. He stands and I scramble backward. The adrenaline keeping the pain down and I stand up. Prospero stands there motionless as I grit my teeth, taking up the knife and giving it to him. With one thought coursing through my head like the most potent venom. I see him turn the knife...

THUNK.

THUNK.

THUNK.

Slowly and almost torture-like, Prospero follows my thought to 'Die.' To the letter. Thudding the blade over and over into himself, carving out his life and I can't help but watch as tears and shock knit on his face. The Red Death only controls the muscular system. The thing is he didn't *want* me to kill him. Just that it followed my thought. Prospero's body slumps down and all I can do is stare. He bleeds on the floor and I lurch my way out into-

Our bedroom?

Oh, I was sleeping.

My hand brushes against the brutal tear between my ribs and I see my husband sleeping soundly like always. His chest rising and falling, his warmth still a little warmer than usual, and his hair steadily becoming more whiter than it already was, swallowing up the red. Right back to our regularly scheduled new life, Mrs. Kayama. There's some part of me that enjoys the quiet moments. The pre-dawn light streaming through the window and the soft sound of the traffic keeps the memory of that night at Masque far away.

In fact it keeps more than the Masque away. The noise is a constant comfort as well as the kitty padding his way over to curl between me and Koyurei. I pet Sushi just to stop thinking for a bit. In fact there're a lot of ways I do that. I just let the morning drag by. The apathetic drag just pulls me along like a puppet on sagging strings. Koyurei wakes up and smiles as he leans against me in front of the mirror, gently tracing the tear with his rough fingers. He drifts near my ear.

"Good morning, Nemuri." he purrs and I can't help but close my eyes and bask in his cheery body heat. His warm, soft lips trail kisses down my neck and settle near my shoulder. His burning blue eyes seem to glow with the fire he uses and I shiver at how he gently lifts me onto the counter.

He looks at me and moves back, "Nemuri, are you sure you're okay?" he asks, "You've been spacey."

"You've been spacey too." I counter with a smile, "Takes one to know one." I try to rebound back into the bright, happy Nemuri that won't concern her husband with hero drama because he's not a hero anymore.

"You're deflecting." he states, "I know it as well as I breathe." he pulls me back down despite our height difference and even though we were about to be in the throes of my other method to stop thinking-

He kisses me on the lips and pulls back, "Tell me what's wrong, please?" his voice is so earnest, goddammit stop being so cute! I sigh and move towards the door.

"It's just about something that happened a while back." I brush my hand against the side. The scar he's touching now.

"Was it what happened at The Masque?" he asks, "Trust me, I get it." He smiles and grabs my shoulders. All I can think about is how... nonchalant he is about it. Well, maybe he's gone through the same thing? There's no way he hasn't.

"Have you ever done that before? Killed someone I mean." Of course I have to go for the one version of the question where I have to *clarify* it. Nice going, Nemuri. He gets his weird look on his face and then gets sober.

"Well, when it comes to having a fire quirk, and an ice quirk, yeah." he says, "I can't stop thinking about the people I didn't end up saving, or those who've died." He smiles sadly, "My first one was my brother, Touya."

He brightens, "But I know that we're gonna be okay, right? Oh shit!" he checked the time, "You're gonna be late, Nemuri!" he hugs me and kisses me so breathless that I can't even think about what he said.

He gives me one of my white costumes and gently shoves me into our room, "Go go go!" I can't help but let out a giggle at how much he wants me to succeed. But here I am on my motorcycle and riding back to the high school I graduated from. God knows I need all the help I can get. When I get to the school I see a bunch of other teachers walking in from their journeys from home and it reminds me of how different things were back then for me. My stomach churns from how nervous I am but by the time I get into the Teacher's lounge I see an old friend.

Mic whirls around in his chair, "NEMURIIIIIIII-CHANNNNNNNNNNN!" he screams and everyone covers their ears. Myself included. He darts in for a hug and squeezes me tight.

"There's our girl!" he exclaims, "How's married life treatin' ya?" I pat his back and pull away from him.

"It's good. My husband's a real sweetheart." I smile and set my stuff down at my side of the wide desk-tables. In fact there's some really familiar faces. Vlad King, or Sekijiro Kan, sits on the side next to me and looks over with his red eyes and bearded face.

"Hey there, Midnight!" he greets with a slight smile, "Pleasure to be workin' with you this year." his face has a rugged-looking x-shaped scar on his right cheek going from his jaw to the lower part of his eye and the other part arcs a little closer to his ear and eye as well.

Forty-six years old and after running a long career of combat and rescues ends up wanting to teach. He's honestly at least one of the heroes that knew his time was coming to an end. Everyone settles in and all I can think about is how lucky he must've been.

"Likewise, Kan."

"Hah! Always straight to business! I like it." he grins and looks over at the photos I'm sticking to my divider of my family and Sushi... and Koyurei. The thought of a baby crosses my mind for just a moment. Imagining all these people being fictive aunts, uncles, and other relatives.

That's when I see her. Uwabami. Her blond hair ends in slight green and her flawless skin has some raised scales on it. Her golden eyes lock with mine and she walks over almost perfectly. She smiles and I stand up.

"Nemuri." she says, brushing her cheeks against mine, "How've you been, dear?" her voice is lightly accented because her mother's side of the family is from Greece. She smiles and inspects me rather closely, her three snakes hiss and greet me.

Me and Uwabami used to be close and I can't help but blush a little at how intently she's studying me. She looks at the photo of Koyurei and I at our wedding and tuts softly.

"Those Todorokis..." she hisses a little. I try to keep down my anger but before I can launch into a tirade I see Cementoss come in with Ectoplasm not far behind. Flanking a rather tired-looking Aizawa in an armored suit and his goggles rest on his forehead.

"Why if it isn't Eraserhead." Uwabami whisks her way over and I wave at my friend. He smirks a little and nods, talking to Uwabami as well. Thirteen and him go off to talk in private at some point but today was just to get familiar with the layout of the school.

Principal Nezu wheels his way into the Teacher's room and smiles at everyone, "Good morning, my intrepid teachers and staff! This year at UA is going to be one of the most ambitious yet, considering-" then he gets cut off by a blast of air and a massive muscular man blowing by him with the words...

"I AM HERE, FASHIONABLY LA- Gaaahhhaaak!" in a burst of smoke, skidded in friction lines, and a burst of blood we all find out that All Might is... skinny. Like skin-and-bone skinny. So skinny you could probably blow him over with a strong wind.

He wipes the blood away with a tissue and rises to his full height, "S-sorry. I was late." he bows, "I'm Yagi Toshinori. All Might. Tell nobody about this, okay?" his eyes are sunken blue dots but his voice is low and kind-sounding. But there's this slight rattle in every breath he takes.

Everyone was ready to cart him off to the infirmary after the initial shock and rattle the nurse but said nurse comes in looking up at him rather angrily, "Yagi, don't overdo it!" she snaps. Recovery Girl stands there and ducks her way in.

"Anywho... time for the grand tour!" Nezu exclaims. We all follow him out but All Might- Yagi. He falls into step next to me. He smiles and nudges me a little.

"Congrats on your marriage, Kayama." he says, "Here. A little something." he hands me a small box and all I can do is stare at him blankly.

"How did you find out?" I ask.

"Endeavor had a whole fit. Considering that he and I butt heads sometimes I figured giving you a gift would be my condolences for... well, that." he looks away and then back down at me, "Also I'm looking forward to working with you all."

That being said, there's just this big question as to why he's here. Wouldn't that put some of the kids in danger? Basically putting a target on our backs telling villains to come and get us? Or maybe Nezu's so confident in having All Might on staff that he could handle any threat that comes our way?

Regardless, I pity whoever has the balls to try. All I can think about as we go through the grand tour is just how lucky I am to get out of that situation. Out of the heroism and the idea that I could just keep going and not care about myself.

Yet here I am, doing this because I don't want to care about myself and instead influence and help the next generation to not be like me. To not just count the days until the next time I'm going to be in the hospital, a crowd's little doll they can play with, or killing someone because they're about to kill me. I get to inspire hope and real growth in this world and it's better than I could ever imagine. The others all have their own goals but mine is to just make the next generation just a bit better than the last one.

I get to my classroom and work on setting things up for the semester. There's twenty seats, a huge door, and a nice view of the outside lawn with its tracks, courts, and other things to help these little heroes let off some steam. Of course everything was cleaned by the now second years but these first years could be a handful and a half. Just as I'm about to join back up with the others...

A call comes in.

It's Koyurei.

"Hey, honey!" I greet, hearing him on the other end almost out of breath?

"Hey...! I might be back in... in the saddle." he breathes, "Just... a bad situation, couldn't let it go. Outta practice."

"Koyurei, what are you talking about? Do you need me to come help?" I hear his breath pause but he's struggling to get it back.

"Nemuri, if I don't make it, I love you!" that idiot makes my blood boil, "I gotta go."

"Koyurei, stay on the line! I'll, I'll get my colleagues, we'll-"

The line disconnects and I break into a full-on sprint. We fought so hard to get away from being heroes, from the pasts that brought us together, and now something's got my husband going right back to it.

The others all see me running and check their phones, I check mine as I mount my motorbike. Live news coverage has the headline...

Return of the Volcano Thieves? Who is their new leader?

The anchor's in a chopper overlooking the charred, broken battlefield, and covered in smoke and ash. She coughs and the chopper tries to fly above it. But down there...

There's small form just barely standing, blue flames hopefully trying to stay alight but it's clear he's almost down. I gun it before the others can catch up. What has my husband gotten himself into? Regardless...

I'm coming to help, Koyurei! I gun it and speed off towards the place where he is. Little did I know that someone was already en-route. All I can think about is how we keep getting dragged back in... and I'm sick of it!