The interior of the bottom-floor training room was almost exactly as Katsuki had expected it to be going off of Daisuke's description. While the space was considered one of the "small" training facilities, it was still the size of a high school gym and much better equipped. Free weights, machines, a boxing ring, training dummies, targets in various setups, sports equipment, and practice weapons were all situated around the room and freely accessible. Several televisions were mounted against the walls in brackets, though they were all blackened so early in the morning. Various panels on the wall also suggested that there were more high-tech elements to the space than simple screens that were not immediately apparent.

Despite the immaculate equipment on offer, though, none of the boys were focused upon any of it. Instead, their attentions were drawn to the lone figure on the other side of the room seemingly dancing around an attack dummy in the shape of a torso atop a weighted pole. As they drew closer, they saw that the supposed dance was something far deadlier- a girl in an old school uniform was darting back and forth as if evading attacks and striking out with a knife held in a reverse grip. Katsuki recognized her by the double buns she kept her messy blonde hair in, but he had absolutely no idea of her name. In his phone, she was simply labeled as Fangs on account of her peculiarly shaped canines that so often flashed when she smiled. Katsuki took note of her agility as she continued to dart about, twisting and leaping freely as she struck out against her target with great speed.

He also took note that each of her strikes landed where important blood vessels would be about the arms and neck. The girl was aiming for nothing but killing blows.

"Toga…?" Mashirao said curiously as he led the group toward the girl.

Himiko Toga did another little twirl, raking the blade of her knife across the mannequin's throat in one final flourish as she turned to face the boys. She had a manic grin on her face as she brought her foot back to the floor and moved her knife back behind herself.

"Mashy!"

"Mashy?" Daisuke repeated with a horrified look as Katsuki clenched his jaw. "Seriously?"

"Hey there!" Mashirao offered the girl with a wave of his bushy-tipped tail, doing his best to ignore the other two boys. "You're up early…"

"I don't get much sleep," Himiko said merrily as she bounded over to the trio. "Clinical insomnia. That's why I've always got bags under my eyes."

"Why do you sound happy about that?" Daisuke asked as he took a step backward, seemingly frightened by the girl. "Actually… why do you sound so happy in general? You're usually more… uh… not like this?"

"Because we're at U.A. University," Himiko explained as she leaned forward toward Daisuke, speaking slowly as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "We made it. All of us made it. Why wouldn't I be happy?"

"Still. Tone it down," Katsuki grumbled. "It's too early for this…"

"Aw, c'mon!" Himiko protested as she brought her knife back in front of herself. "You all obviously came here to train, so let's train! Gotta have high energy in a fight, right?"

"Yeah, about that," Daisuke interjected. "Why do you have a knife? And are we allowed to just… tear things apart down here?"

"There's a pro who can repair inanimate objects with a simple touch," Katsuki reassured. "It was in the welcome packet. Anything we destroy will get taken care of if we put in a work order."

"Uh-huh," Himiko agreed. "Katsuki's right."

Katsuki's lip pulled into a snarl at Himiko's casual use of his given name. He still couldn't remember hers, and "Toga" was already dangerously close to leaving his memory.

"And I've got a knife 'cause I fight with one. It's my support item," Himiko explained as she wobbled the instrument between two fingers.

"Don't support items have to be approved?" Daisuke asked as he looked to Katsuki for confirmation. "You know, so we don't end up accidentally killing someone?"

"In the field, yeah," Katsuki agreed. "Here? She can do whatever the hell she wants."

"I doubt she's gonna use it on any of us," Mashirao reassured with a nervous smile. "Uh, right?"

"'course not!" Himiko answered as she slipped the long, wide weapon into a holster at her side. It appeared to be a serrated combat knife with three notches on the back side of the silver blade. "But any villains stupid enough to mess with us? I know how and where to cut to get results. I took some extra… anatomy courses before college."

Katsuki's scowl deepened as Himiko eyed him up, her gaze lingering on his chest and neck. With a shake of his head, he moved over to a pyramidal rack of free weights and picked up a set of dumbbells.

"Whatever. Just leave us alone unless you need something."

"Aw, I was hoping we could spar!" Himiko whined as she looked over at Daisuke. "You look fun…"

"…spar?" Daisuke asked as he looked to Mashirao for help. "Uh… is that really such a good idea? I mean…"

"I don't see why not," Mashirao offered with a shrug as he brought his tail around to the front to pluck a few stray hairs from its tip. "Although… we'd have to go Quirks-allowed, since mine is built-in and so is yours, to an extent. I don't think either of us are capable of just not using our tails as a counterweight. It's just instinct. Two on two?"

"As long as Katsuki doesn't just blow us to smithereens," Himiko joked as she looked over at the blond boy. "Can you hold it in long enough to let us survive?"

"…I can control my Quirk better than you think," Katsuki snarled as he set the weights down after only a few reps. "Aki- do you actually want to do this? She's fucking annoying, and I wouldn't mind kicking her ass."

Daisuke took a deep breath, weighing his options in his mind. Potential embarrassment was on the line… but so was a chance to prove himself to his inevitable direct competition. In the end, one factor tipped the scales, and as Katsuki approached and cracked his knuckles, Daisuke gave his friend a firm nod.

"…if you've got my back, we can take them."

Mashirao let out a small chuckle as he cracked his tail against the floor mats, resulting in a harsh snap.

"That's the spirit!"

"Ooh, this is gonna be good," Himiko said as she rocked on her heels. "Mashy, gimme some blood! I can pour some alcohol over my knife… or I could just bite ya."

"Neither of those sounds particularly sanitary…" Daisuke pointed out as Mashirao offered his tail. He watched with disgust as Himiko withdrew a small vial of clear liquid from her skirt and rubbed it on the blade. With a quick poke, she drew a bit of scarlet from the extra limb and then brought the knife up to run her tongue along the flat as the liquid ran down it. "That's… kinda…"

"Nasty?" Himiko finished for him as her tone to changed to something far more aggressive and familiar. Her eyes narrowed as she glared at her competition, and her smile turned from cheery to predatory. "Are you scared of me? So many people are. All I need is a taste…"

"Hey, calm down, Toga," Mashirao warned as he gave his tail a small flick. "It's just a friendly spar."

"Yeah… but I've gotta show them I can keep up," Himiko explained as her voice deepened. "I'm just as much a threat as any of you."

The girl sheathed her knife once again as her body began to warp and grow, eventually filling out to become far more muscular. As Himiko continued to grow in stature, she quickly rolled down her skirt and flung off her top, causing Daisuke to avert his eyes and Katsuki to take a step back as he clenched his fists. Her flesh was featureless beneath her clothing as she removed her underwear without a care in the world, looking more akin to a plastic doll than a human as she continued to morph into something else. In just under a minute, Himiko had formed herself into a perfect copy of Mashirao, complete with a matching outfit seemingly formed from within her flesh.

"Holy shit…" Daisuke cursed, looking nervous. "Two of you? I mean, I saw you pull that trick with Amaya, but…"

Himiko cracked her tail against the ground in a mirror of Mashirao's taunt from earlier. Somehow, it sounded almost louder than when he had done it.

"What, not feeling so confident anymore?" Himiko asked, her voice much deeper despite carrying her former playful cadence. "Two tails are better than one, little lizard."

"You still don't stand a chance," Katsuki threatened. Daisuke looked over to find that the other boy's palms were slick with glistening sweat, and the collar of his sleeveless tee was already damp. Katsuki hunched over, sinking down into a fighting pose with clawed hands, and Daisuke summoned up whirling wisps of green wind around his own. "Bring it on!"

The two Mashiraos exchanged a glance before putting their backs together and raising their fists. Himiko lagged a moment behind her partner, locking eyes with Katsuki as she did so. With one final annoyed snort, he charged forward, letting off a controlled explosion into the ground and rocketing himself up into the air.

Mirio awoke with a jolt as he felt a heavy weight come down upon his chest. He struggled to get up off the couch from beneath the blanket, only for the sensation to intensify as though he was being crushed. As his eyes began to focus, he finally managed to identify the source of his entrapment- Dabi was sat firmly atop his chest, lacing up a leather boot and looking downward at the carpet.

"I'm heading out," the charred man said in a bored tone. "Rise and shine."

"Wh-…" Mirio began as he struggled to control his breathing. He wasn't sure what time it was, but he knew for a fact that he hadn't gotten nearly enough sleep. "Where… where are you going…?"

"Out," Dabi repeated as he pulled his laces tight and stood up, turning to face the prone hero. "Doesn't matter. You're staying here with Riz. Time to start making your bullshit up to her."

Mirio finally got his breathing under control as he lifted a hand up to his pounding head. He felt vulnerable under Dabi's gaze, though he did his best not to make it obvious.

"…oh. Right. Sure," Mirio said with an air of uncertainty. "I'll… figure something out. Maybe make breakfast, or go pick something up…"

"That's a start," Dabi agreed. "She likes her eggs scrambled. Don't do anything stupid, and don't leave the apartment. I'll be back in a few hours."

"Hey, before you go… are we cool?" Mirio asked as he propped himself up against the arm of the couch. "Or at least, will we be at some point again? I'm about to lose the few friends I've got going all-in with you guys. I want to be here, Dabi. That won't change no matter how you feel, but it'd be nice to start working on repairing things with you, too. Anything I can do while you're out?"

Dabi ran a hand through his hair, and Mirio noticed that it was wet. Whether from the shower or sweat, he couldn't tell.

"…quickest way out of the shit corner you've backed yourself into is to stop bringing it up, be useful, and not cause problems in the future. I don't have a lot of people I can trust, and even fewer I do. We're basically at zero right now… but given the fact that we were in the negatives when we met, that's a slight improvement. Not impossible, but it won't be easy, either. We'll talk later, and not about this."

"Sure," Mirio replied as Dabi headed for the door. "Good luck with… whatever it is you're doing."

Dabi didn't bother to reply as he headed out the door, allowing it to slam shut behind himself. Mirio let out a sigh and threw off his blanket to head into the kitchen as the sound of a shower running reached him through the wall.

"Rock bottom," Mirio muttered to himself. "Not the first time…"

Author's Note:

Next time- the gym fight.

-RD