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The disappearance of [____] Amachi on regional television prompted the station to take an unprepared break seconds later.

The color bar signal and distorted screening automatically moved the audience to a rather boring informercial about a personal blender.

Several of the students' parents who were watching the broadcast tried to contact their kids and teachers; demanding to know if anybody was hurt or worse; killed.

In the meantime, Present Mic announced the remaining students on the arena to head back to the cafeteria and wait there until further notice. When Hagakure heard this, she ran towards Ashido and Yaoyorozu to seek comfort from her friends.

Todoroki and Bakugo were both stock-still; one of them trying to understand what may have gone wrong, the other blaming it all on himself. "I shouldn't of allowed her to use her quirk...I told her it was a bad idea..."

Katsuki was in no position to yell at him or at anyone else for that matter; the color of his skin was drained from his face. He was in a derealized state of mind, it was the first time he had ever felt it.

'Is this really happening? Is this real? What the fuck is this feeling?'

"I should had been stricter....I should of listened to her better, she struggled to open the last two portals." Shoto made a fist with his left hand; still standing as opposed to the blond, who was on his knees, watching the arena look emptier by the second. "...She even smiled at us. She smiled before leaving us behind. I wonder if she knew what was going to happen to her and that was a farewell."

'It's the last time I'll ever see her smile.' An intrusive thought right then, entered the brain of Katsuki the more he listened to Todoroki's mumbling. 'What if I go with her, where she is right now? If she's dead, then I can be dead too.'

That's when it was all more clear than it used to be. Over the course of at least one week, [____] had become someone important to him, and it frightened someone like Bakugo to the core.

He knew his feelings had to get sorted out. So he snapped out of it by his own strong volition, he got up and locked eyes with Shoto, who was still mumbling unnecessary sad things regarding [____]'s 'last' words. "...She's not fully gone, you idiot. She can't be..."

"Bakugo." He was surprised to see how normal the ash-blond guy in his class was reacting to everything. "..How can you be sure after what you just saw?"

"I'm not.." Katsuki was quick to reply, but sluggardly to leave him behind. "It's just better to believe she's alive right now, than to be a fucktard like you and mourn her just because we can't see her."

Although he was just doing the same exact thing at first, he wanted so desperately to surmise that the girl they both liked was safe and sound; maybe somewhere else in Japan— Maybe in another country.

Anywhere in the world; and she was currently in the middle of being found by strangers who were figuring out how to contact her friends and family without scaring her off.

Idiosyncratic beliefs that kept his mind at ease; anything to make the heart-pulsing sound in his ears go away to the point of no return.

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"What are you speaking other than madness?!" Snipe was the only teacher courageous enough to stand up from his seat after listening to Kumiko's words, moments after the terrible occurrence. "We can't continue with this test—! One of our students is missing!

She's your granddaughter for godsake, and you want us, all, to act as if nothing is going on and get the students back on TV?!!"

"Lady, what is wrong with you?" Midnight added on to his comments. "Aren't you afraid of the worst becoming a reality?"

"My dear, I've known pain greater than losing a loved one to death." The white-haired woman proudly assured it as if it was a good thing, the rest of the staff kept their words to themselves as she took one sip of her bitter tea and placed the cup on a silver tray Hideaki was holding. "Let me re-explain everything properly, once more for those who didn't quite listened first, yes?"

Kaito was kneeling on one knee, next to [____]'s grandmother and her designated chair on the small conference room the teachers had put together as soon as they calmed the students and the media down for a while.

His right hand was placed closed to his chest and his left palm held a thin but strong tray with a half-full tea kettle and Kumiko's small ceramic cup; he was told by the woman to maintain that position and keep quiet until she required him to do something for her or speak on her behalf.

"As I mentioned before; I know my granddaughter is alive and well. I thank you all for worrying about her, but isn't the image of U.A remaining proper worth a lot more than just a small melee?

My apologies if my strawberry brought on some bad attention to her teachers and peers with this little incident of hers...But I believe with a little time we will come to understand that I am 99.9% correct on this matter.

Principal Nezu, and the rest of U.A's righteous staff; I sure hope your students aren't taught to drop important school work and subjects whenever times get tough, do they?

I may not sound very empathetic to you all, I know. However, I am speaking to you from the bottom of my heart when I ask that you continue the testing, with or without my strawberry, for the sake of U.A and their hero course."

The staff looked over to Principal Nezu, who was sipping on the same tea Kumiko offered to him, just from another cup. They awaited for his reply, "You may be correct, Kumiko...Though, I doubt my students would like to get back on tv after witnessing your granddaughter vanish with their own eyes.

Keeping that in mind, it would be smart if we decide to postpone the rest of this testing period until the investigation regarding your granddaughter is complete. That is what I have to say to your offer."

Kumiko's unfazed expression turned into a death stare with the small, furry white mammal. "...It's about time the kiddos get an update on this, isn't it?"

"You are right." The principal took one last, long sip of tea and then asked the rest of the staff to leave the room and tend to their worried students, just to have a private conversation with [____]'s grandmother.

"Please, convince me otherwise." When they were the only two authorities left in the room, Nezu smiled cutely and wiggled the cup on his paw to Kaito, urging him to pour more tea. "Kumiko, we are not enemies... You know I respect and thank you for endorsing U.A with part of your fortune; even after your daughter, Himeko, left the hero program so soon."

"Let's not speak of the lost cause that is my daughter; I can't tell you the headaches I'll receive if I even dare to look back on her mistakes." The grandmother of [____] took a moment to mentally stabilize herself once more before continuing; "...There is a compromise we can settle on, isn't there? Otherwise we wouldn't be having this discussion. Our main concerns— let's properly address them, first."

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"Any news?" Mina asked Sero as he was the only guy in her friend group who taped his cell phone on his calf, under his hero suit before the exam started.

The rest of the students in 1-A figured they would be safer in their lockers; unfortunately teachers didn't allow them to get their things before moving them back to the cafeteria area; where the sponsor talk had happened moments earlier.

It wasn't against the rules, per-say, to bring your cell phone out to the arena. It was just something that any person with a working brain wouldn't do; they wouldn't risk breaking their phones during combat. Sero, however, was able to protect his phone's screen by wrapping it around his lower leg a good amount of times just in case of an emergency.

He basically waxed his leg hair right off to grab his phone when he heard the news of the lockdown and were left unattended for a good amount of time. "It's all the same," he scrolled past articles that were still updating by the minute. "The police and detectives are out in the arena; but I don't think they can file a 'missing person' report so soon and with small evidence that this wasn't caused by [____]'s own will."

"You're saying they think Amacchan wanted to escape and not come back?" Midoriya bit his lips together after asking, then looked deep in thought as Uraraka chimed in.

"What sort of financial troubles can [____] have that would make her want to run away?!"

"I don't think it has anything to do with money or debts..." Sero tried to smile, but it came out very faint. "She's doesn't seem like the kind to just run away from problems like those, either...If it was that."

"Then family issues?" Mina nudged Izuku, who was too busy mumbling theories of his own regarding [____]'s fascinating lifestyle and frightening but pretty quirk. "Midoriya, does she fight with her parents often or something?"

"Eh?? No...Amacchan never argued with her family, as far as I've known...I never heard her talk badly about anyone related to her, also..." His voice trailed off as he noticed his other childhood friend, standing by the entrance door of the cafeteria by himself.

Katsuki's back was leaned against the textured eggshell-colored wall. With his arms crossed and eyes closed, he took in a big whiff of air through his nose as silently as possible. Izuku could tell he needed someone to confide his feelings with; he just didn't think it would be a bright idea to offer his shoulder to cry on.

"Ouu, I feel so terrible..." Mina mewled once. She proceeded to shake her hands to relieve some anxiety and put on pause her need to cry. "She said to me that she was having trouble with her quirk. She knew it all along, and because I didn't pay much attention to that, she overworked herself..."

Sero locked his cell phone after replying to a text from his father, ensuring him that he was fine and things were looking not worse than what the media was posting. "I feel the same way, Ashido. If anyone deserves to get blamed for this it has to be me.

I was aware that she kept struggling to dodge my attacks out there. I felt bad that I kept hoping she'd just give up so I wouldn't have to push her to a limit. I'm sure others who saw the fight are gonna end up saying I'm partly at fault for her lack of energy...I can read the headlines now..."

Mina felt like rubbing Sero's shoulders when she saw him cover his face with his hands and move his upper body more forward to rest his elbows on his lap as he was already sitting with his friends. It was obvious he was sobbing; but no one had the rude mind to point it out.

"I'm gonna cry, you guys..." Ashido warned Midoriya and Ochako in between sniffs. "I don't want to hear that she's hurt, somewhere far within our reach! She's my friend! I want her back safe and sound!"

Uraraka hadn't known the new girl as well as the three people she was with; therefore she didn't feel bad enough to cry randomly; but she was pretty sad and scared to wonder what could happen next. She hugged two of Bakugo's friends to show her support and then listened to Deku ask himself one more question.

"Amacchan...Where could you be?"

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'Cold...'

The first thing [____] could think of was how mystifyingly cold the creepy corridor she ended up walking in felt like.

It was strange; she didn't remember getting out of her portal at any point but to be fair, she couldn't remember much since she first got there. There was no type of worries in her mind other than the unexplainable feeling that she needed to be elsewhere, just not sure where.

She had been idly walking through the same pathway for about three or four minutes, now. She didn't think about looking back, but from both sides of the aisle she counted how many doors she had passed by so far without paying close attention to them. Thirteen doors, each side.

'Twenty six...' She added them up in her head, for some reason, and then stopped at the end of the corridor; where the last door stood in front of her. "Twenty seven..."

It called out to her; so she opened it.

She found a person, twelve inches or so taller than her, standing in the middle of the room holding on to a 32 oz copper bucket from the handle on one hand, and a wooden hake paintbrush with the other.

They were wearing a dark olive green suede jacket, with the hood on.

[____] felt like this was all a dream, and she was sleepwalking. Who this person may be didn't matter to her, she imagined they were going to turn around and then she'd wake up before figuring it out.

However, when she saw that the person didn't turn to her at all and instead took a step back and dropped the paint brush onto the ground so he could use both hands to splash the bucket of liquid all over the wall in front of him; [____]'s eyes widened.

Red paint splattered back on the person's clothes and [____]'s feet. She took it upon herself to inspect the outcome of this person's outrage so she walked closer to the victimized wall. "...A painting?"

'It's so wonderful...'

A fall theme; with burnt orange leaves on oak trees, red ones on the tips, yellow on the inside. A cascade of green hues on the bottom of the wall to symbolize the grass and its minor details.

The sky was dark blue; with the tiniest white and cream dots to mimic the stars as the naked eye would do it. [____] inspected the red gush of fresh paint a little more; there was more to the painting that this person was trying to cover up. Even then, she thought it was amazing.

"You did this?" She asked softly, not moving from her stance while the tall person ignored her question and bent down a little to reach for the haku brush. "You can understand me, can't you? Do you speak Japanese? Do you know where we are? What are all these doors, and where do they lead us? ...Do you speak English?"

When she asked that with a thick accent; the stranger had no choice but to remove his hoodie and meet face to face with the short girl. [____] first acknowledged his spiky, strawberry blond hair that was swept up in one part of his hairline, exposing a bit of his forehead.

Then she trailed her view down to his well-trimmed eyebrows. He had paint marks across his face, nothing close to his burgundy-colored eyes or his lips though.

'This guy is so pretty...Come to think of it, he looks oddly familiar.'

[____] blinked a couple of times, admiring his talent, if he was indeed the person who first painted the entire wall before ruining half of it and then he let out a short sigh. Placing the first few centimeters of the end of his paint brush into his mouth.

While he bit on the wooden stick, he raised an eyebrow at [____]. "What ar'ya staring at? ...Mom?"

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[an; so to clear things up you're not dead lol I ain't ever gonna kill u off hunny ur beautiful and cute and essential in this mha world <3

You entered a portal and didn't come out ; Will this take longer than it should? I love writing but I'm ready to get this character development starting so frankly this is gonna be fast don't worry eheheh

Are you guys mad that I did this? I hope not bc I did it for a reason it's all gonna come together like a delicious pb and j sandwich so I hope u guys don't leave me pls don't go I'll update faster ahahahah *is actually crying cus my life sucks rn hehehehehdbdbdb*

Sorry for mistakes idc for them anymore I just wanna write lol]