When I came to, I was met by a soft hand running through my hair. It felt nice, and I knew exactly who it belonged to before I managed to flutter an eye open.

“Tamaki...I bet you're a great hugger…” I chuckled tiredly, and the poor boy nearly ran straight through the wall with how fast he jumped from the bed and turned away.

“D..don't s..suddenly wake up a..and say such things, (L/N)..!” He whined; cowering against the bland white plaster. I scooted up to rest against the head of the bed; my body sore, but not badly damaged.

“What happened? I remember running inside a burning building...and...smoke…” I squinted at my sheets as I tried to remember. The memory of charred ginger locks rushed back to me, and my hands flew over my mouth to hold back a gasp. “A..Aika…”

“H..hey...who is Aika..?” Amajiki had returned to my bedside; still red in the face but looking concerned.

“Th..there was a young girl...an eleven year old...I...I knew her...and...I couldn't…” My face was becoming wet, and completely ignoring the boy’s fear of sudden contact, I threw my arms around him and buried my face into his neck. “Th...there was so m..much d..death..!” Surprisingly, only after a few moments of awkward, hovering hands, Amajiki held me close. He patted my back a little stiffly, but the gentle shushing he blew from his lips comforted me more than I could have hoped for in that moment.

“It's..okay...let it out…” He murmured; his eyes shifting to the door as our plump boss ambled in. Fatgum immediately discarded his tray of what would likely be an entire week's worth of cafeteria stock on the nearby bench and toddled over to my bed; Amajiki handing me over so the pro could lift me into his arms like a small, defenseless child.

“My little chickadee! It's alright! You're alright! You gave us a big scare, kiddo…” He rocked me against his rounded chest, and I clung to him as though he were an oversized carnival teddy bear.

“I..c..couldn't s..save anyone..!” I cried; trying to dry my eyes.

I've never felt so useless!

“What matters is that you tried! Heroes can't save everyone...and even though you should have called us, you displayed such bravery! I'm proud to call you my intern!” He placed me gently back down on the bed and went to sit beside me; quickly rethinking his decision as the bed almost catapulted me once he began to put a little weight down. There it was. That smile I had almost forgotten.

“Th..thanks, Gummy…” I sniffled; trying to keep my mouth stretched upwards.

“When you're feeling better, I need to ask you a few questions...then I can relay it to the police.” Fatgum said as he began to fix my hair; an endearing habit he had when it came to his two interns.

“I..I can't remember much…” I started slowly; smile faltering a little. “...Just...blue flames...and...people…” I was trying to push the images out of my mind, and Amajiki placed his hand gingerly over mine.

“I'm...really glad you sent us your location...otherwise…”

“Wait…” I blinked at my upperclassman in confusion. “...I...didn't send anything...I...passed out…”

I basically passed out in the middle of the inferno…didn't I..?

“You sure? We rushed straight there when you texted us...and you were unconscious on the boardwalk…” Fatgum stopped braiding my (H/C) hair and tilted his head; as much as he could without a neck, and I began chewing on the inside of my cheek.

“Wait…”

“Quit trying to play the hero, Tenderfoot…”

“S..someone...saved me…” I whispered, and both heroes shifted closer.

“C..can you remember wh..what they looked like..?” Amajiki asked; trying to keep his stutter under control. Shaking my head, I hummed as I tried to get a clear picture. I remembered the colour purple, but not much else.

“A..all I can really recall is...purple...socks? Or skin? I'm not sure...I was...trying to get Aika out...but...I know it was a man...he said I was...stupid?” The more I thought about my mysterious saviour, the more I thought that he had seemed familiar.

“Well, whoever it was, I hope we can find him...because I'll be sending him one hell of a gift basket for saving my precious little chickadee!” Again, I was wrapped in a tight, squishy hug, and I smiled again; but not without that little thought gnawing at the back of my mind.

I knew that man...but...from where?

----------------------------------------------------

I was released the next day, much to my relief. Not only mine, but the hospital staff as well. They had grown mighty tired of hunting the entire building to track me down when I'd run off to try to make friends with other patients. My parents both tried to insist on taking more time off to pick me up and keep an eye on me, but I managed to convince them that I was fine. All I needed was a little rest. Amajiki took the afternoon off school with special permission to walk me home, as we lived a mere street apart, and we were now strolling down the sidewalk in the warm glow of the setting sun.

“You're quieter than usual, Kiki...what's on your mind?” I asked with a giggle; nudging my senior with my elbow. He flinched, and his dark eyes lifted to scan over the few remaining bandages on my arms. Thanks to a quick visit from Recovery Girl, my burns were mostly taken care of.

“I...don't want you...working alone again…” He murmured with a guilty tone; averting his gaze again.

“Hey, I'm fine! It was dumb of me to rush in like that...but…” I trailed off; sighing as he kicked a loose stone from our path.

“But…” He repeated that word bitterly. “...that's exactly it...you and Mirio...you both just rush in...and...i..it scares me...it's always but I had to...but I had no other choice...but...what about yourself? Y..you could have died…” His dark bangs covered his face as he spoke, and without a second thought I pounced on him with a big, loving hug.

“I'm here, aren't I? Alive and kicking and annoying you till we're old and grey!” I said as I brushed the hair from his quivering forehead. He was visibly sweating, and his bottom lip was captured between chattering teeth.

“I...yo...wh...ah...y..you're not...a..annoying..!” He managed to spit out; trying to hide himself with his ebony hair again. I released him; not wanting to make him too uncomfortable, and grinned.

“Of course I am! It's my job as your kohai! Plus I'm a year ahead of where I should be...so I'm supposed to be a handful, right?” I joked; skipping a few steps ahead and spinning on my heel as my house came into view. “I've got it from here, Kiki. Thanks for being my hero, as always! I'll see you at school tomorrow!~” I gave him a wave and turned to prance away.

“W..wait! Uh…(L..L/N)...” I looked over my shoulder and saw him twiddling his thumbs.

“I keep telling you to call me (Y/N), don't I?” I chuckled; placing a hand on my hip. Normally, whenever Amajiki and I walked home together, I'd spend most of the time in animal form; usually a cat or a squirrel. Something small and cute that kept the anxious third year at ease. He had mentioned a few times that he was far more comfortable talking if I were an animal, but I wasn't in any shape to be transforming.

“I..I know…” He coughed; starting to walk away. “...I...just...uh...t..text me if you need me...i..if you don't feel w..well, that is! S..seeya..!” He began to jog off in an awkward, stiff manner, and I gave him a big wave.

“Bye bye, Ta-ma-ki!~” Even with the distance between us, I could see the glow on the back of his neck.

He's a sweetheart. I'll get that smile out of him yet!

Sighing, I kept my lips turned up as I made my way to my front door. Discarding my bag in the hallway, I began to wish at least one of my parents had stayed home to be with me. My father had even taken our two dogs to the clinic with him. It was the usual, but it was just too quiet; especially after the last few days I had had. Mirio had come to visit me the day before, as had two of the first year students who I had gone to middle school with, but I was sorely missing social contact.

“Yo! Any ghosts haunting this place? If there is...wanna play Pro-Opoly?! I'm so BORED!” I yelled out into the vast emptiness of the house. The only response I received was my faint echo and the hum of the refrigerator. “I'll take that as a no…” I pouted as I sprung up the stairs; two at a time. I took the time to stop by each framed photograph of the wall as I ascended. “Heya, Granny! How's it hangin’, Pops? Get it? Hanging?! I'm such a hoot!” I laughed to myself as I made my way to my room.

Maybe I could call Ei or Miri to hang out..?

Suddenly, as I turned to close my door, something snaked around my mouth and pressed it closed; muffling my loud squeak as I felt something, or someone, press against my back. There was a warm, yet chilling breath upon the nape of my neck as whoever it was leant in close.

“Glad to see you lived…” A dark voice spoke; right against the shell of my ear, and I just stayed perfectly still.

“Mmmfff?” I was startled, sure, but I wasn't scared. I could handle myself in a situation like this, but I was abundantly curious as to who had broken into my room.

“Always so bold...you heroes…” The voice said with an obvious eye roll. “If I take my hand away, you cannot fucking scream...got it?” The hand smelt funny, but not in a bad way. Like a mix of stale cigarette smoke and hot cinnamon.

“Mmhmm!” I nodded once; exhaling slowly as the intruder released my mouth. I turned around and blinked a few times; trying to take in the dark figure.

“Boo.” It was a man. Flyaway ebony hair that looked slightly singed at the tips, and his clothes looked like they had seen better days. His skin was a medley of smooth and seared; no, scarred. Purple met pale, only being interrupted by carefully placed staples, on his hands, chest, jaw and even under his eyes. His eyes, though, were what made my brain click. They looked like carefully polished sapphires; dulled with time, and shaded with lazy hoods. My eyes widened and my jaw almost hit the floor. “I'm still waiting for the terrified scream so I can-”

“CUBBY HOUSE DABI?! IS THAT YOU?!”

***Shorter than I would have hoped...but I want the next part to be a chapter in itself so meh. I thought Pro-opoly was smart xD like instead of buying train stations and streets, you buy pro hero offices and such hahaha...no? Well I thought it was funny :P***