✿ ✿ ✿

Tamiko was running down the streets at full speed, almost crashing into a few people along the way. She remembered exactly where they were.

The cafe was located in the middle of the city, exactly where the calamity was taking place, just a few streets apart. Her legs were begging her to stop but she continued on, hands grabbing at the air to push her faster to no avail. She was so close she could already smell the smoke and see the crowd ahead. Just as she was about to reach the crowd, a strong gust of wind blinded her and pushed her back, some of the people in the crowd falling back as well.

Once it cleared Tamiko picked herself up, her hair now looking like a bird's nest she pushed her way through the crowd until she reached the front.

She froze as she saw Izuku.

He was being scolded by a prohero, hands shaking as he held his head down. Katsuki was a bit further away, a blanket over his shoulders. A pro hero seemed to be talking to him, though Bakugou wasn't paying attention to the older muscular man, he instead payed more attention to the ground below him.

No signs of injuries were shown on their bodies.

Sure, they looked shaken up a bit, but they were all in one piece.

They were okay.

Tamiko felt her knees finally give out.

She collided into the ground alarming one of the proheros at the scene.

"Young lady are you alright!" The prohero's loud remark alerted the other pro heroes, including Bakugou and Izuku.

"They're alright thank god," She gasped with relief, her palms holding her self up.

Bakugou noticed her shaking figure, but quickly turned back around once Tamiko looked up at him. He grunted and faced the floor once again.

Why the hell was she here.

He began to hear loud running footsteps skidding past him, a flash of green visible to the corner of his eye.

He glanced without turning his head at where Izuku was heading.

He saw the small freckled boy kneel down the distraught girl. Immediately once the girl noticed who was in front of her, she wrapped her arm around his neck pulling Izuku in. He could see Izuku place his tear stained face against Tamiko's neck, new tears forming in the boys eyes wetting Tamiko's uniform.

"Do you know them?"

For the first time Bakugou looked up at the prohero next to him. He gripped his hands against the blanket around him, sinking further into it until the bottom half of his face was covered. He glanced back down at the ground, his eyes focusing on the small debris and dirt in front of him.

" No......I don't"

✿ ✿ ✿

"Are you sure you're alright?"

Tamiko sternly questioned Izuku.

He had never been in such a situation like this one, Tamiko already thought watching it from afar was frightening, but actually being in that situation yourself must have been traumatic. However, once Izuku gave her a nervous, yet reassuring smile and a two thumbs up, she couldn't help herself from smiling at his funny gestures.

"Alright, I trust you, but who is that man waiting for you in the back, he seems suspicious," Izuku turned his head at where she was pointing. There waiting by a street light was All Might's scrawny figure, however Izuku couldn't let Tamiko know about his secret. They've been friends for so long it seemed strange to keep things from her, it felt almost wrong.                                       Just as Tamiko was about to start walking towards the man, Izuku went in front of her blocking her way.

"He's just a friend of my mom's! He just wants to catch up a bit since it's been a while since he's visited us!" It wasn't the best lie, but hopefully it worked.

Tamiko looked at the man once again, then back at Izuku.

"Alright, but make sure to get those cuts and scrapes checked and disinfected ya hear me" he shook his head reassuringly and waved goodbye as he began to walk towards the scrawny man. Tamiko waved back, still feeling a bit overwhelmed from today's events, she began to head back to the café, remembering the mess she left behind. Wondering if Mr. Cold and crudy would still be there. She prayed nothing happened to the cats while unattended.

As she walked, she noticed from the corner of her eye Bakugou still crouched down, sitting on the curve. Was he gonna get picked up?

Her question was answered.

A lanky, black haired boy coming from the far distance was nearing Bakugou. His middle school uniform identical to theirs, with the exception of a few buttons undone here and there.

Ah.

There he was.

The boy that everyone knew in Aldera Junior High, second to Bakugou.

Tanuki Daichi.

As if everyone wasn't already deterred from Bakugou's short temperedness, his buddy buddy relationship with Tanuki cemented it. The lingering smell of cigarettes in the class, missing belongings of fellow classmates, loud ruckus in the hallways.

That's all thanks to Tanuki.

Tamiko knew of that boy's reputation. She would see him and three other boys in her class, including Bakugou, steal snacks from the convenience store.                                                              Smoke cigarettes in the allay next to the school.                                                    Sneaking valuables from other students desks and lockers.                       It was a daily routine for them.                                                                                      They all seemed to enjoy it, yet to Tamiko, Bakugou always seemed....out of it. Other then bullying Izuku, which Bakugou genuinely enjoyed, the stealing, smoking, skipping class, all of that seemed to bore him. 

At first when Tamiko saw Tanuki befriend Bakugou, she couldn't believe it. Bakugou never cared to make friends in school, so why would he start to hang around Tanuki. Well, Tamiko soon realized the dynamic of their relationship and the toxicity that came with it. It began with Tanuki approaching Bakugou, acting as if he truly admired the spiky haired boy's quirk and abilities. He would always repeat how amazing he is and Bakugou being the egotistical type soon let him hang around him and the other three boys despite at first ignoring him. From there Tanuki began to slowly influence the group, suggesting the others to smoke a cigarette at first. Tamiko remembered that day clearly.

"Hey, look what I found in my dad's stash!" 

 Tamiko was cleaning the chalk board erasers outside and immediately when she heard Tanuki's voice, she stopped smacking the board erasers together and stood in silence listening on to their conversation.

She noticed Bakugou and the other boys peer over to look at Tanuki's palm in which there laid a half empty pack of squares.

"How'd you get your hands on his stuff, what if your dad gets angry," one of the boys awkwardly spoke.

"It's no big deal, he has a lot more back home," Tanuki reassured the boys, then shifted his gaze to Bakugou.

"What if we tried one, I've always been curious about the feeling of smoking one," Tanuki kept his gaze on Bakugou, the other boys looked at each other then to Bakugou as well.

"What do you think Bakugou?"

...

"That's dumb"

Tamiko let out a sigh of relief. Of course Bakugou wouldn't be influenced so easily, she knew he was a smart boy.

Yet he still took it.

With one swoop of Tanuki's arm over his shoulder and reassurance that he was number one so one measly cigarette would be nothing to him, Bakugou took a cigarette from the box. The others followed after. From then on it was as if anything that Tanuki wanted to do the others would follow. Of course Bakugou never was the type to follow others and Tamiko knew that.                 

 So did Tanuki.                                                                                                                    His conniving self always made sure to make it seem as though Bakugou had most of the say in anything and made it his upmost priority to complement his "amazing" quirk every single day to feed his ever growing ego. It made Tamiko sick every time she would hear him. 

"Your gonna be number one, no doubt about it"

"Your always the best at everything"

"No one can beat you"

"There's nothing the number one cant do"

It made her sick because she didn't know how to stop it. He was too far in and she couldn't do anything. What could she do? Given her relationship with Bakugou, she would make things worse if she intervened. He would ignore her the same way he always has been since that day.

That day.

...

Tamiko shook her head, trying to clear her mind from the past. She had to focus on the present. Right now she had to return to the café and make sure all the cats were safe. Before leaving she gave Bakugou and Tanuki a quick glance, and of course there they were walking away, Tanuki's arm around Bakugou's shoulder.
Both with a cigarette in hand.

✿ ✿ ✿

As Tamiko entered the café, she braced herself for the mess she was prepared to see, yet once the chimes rang and she was inside, everything seemed to be in order. All the cats were sound asleep, a few prowling around quietly in the cats sleeping room and everything was put away, organized and locked to Tamiko's surprise. The only possible explanation was that the boy with the scar from earlier organized and finished everything for her. She remembered his cold glare and rude words from earlier in the day.
A change of heart?
Megumi was right, but what did she do for him to warm up to her? Well it didn't really matter since she probably wasn't going to see him anytime soon. She doesn't work on the days he visits the café so who knows when they'll meet again.

Why was that so disappointing?                                                                                    Tamiko reached for the keys that were neatly placed on the cash register counter. Before she grabbed them, she noticed a sticky note next to the keys. It read,

"I have no context as to why you left so urgently, but It seemed like you were going to be busy for a while, so I took care of things here."

Even his notes are aloof Tamiko thought. It strangely brought a smile to her face.
Nevertheless she reached for the keys, tucking the sticky note into her pocket. Exiting the cafe with everything in order, she Locked the door behind her jingling the keys in her hands after giving the cats one last look through the glass windows.

✿ ✿ ✿

"Are you sure your alright Tamiko?"

Tamiko's aunt's and mother were sitting around the kitchen table, each with a cup of tea in hand. She was explaining the events that happened earlier in the day to them. Their busy prohero lives always had them outside of the house almost twenty four seven, so Tamiko would always catch them up on her daily shenanigans. Except today was different.

"Im alright Aunt Akari, it's just Izuku I'm worried about," the girl stated worriedly as she dipped the teabag in the hot water of her mug, "He said he was alright, and he did only have a few scratches here and there, but what if..." she sighed and closed her eyes, " I dont know, I'm just worried for him, what he did was so reckless and I wouldn't have been able to live with my self if things had turned out differently."

Akari patted her back grabbing the girls attention.

"It was out of your control Tamiko darling, what's important is that he is hear now, still with us."

"Yes, and he fought heroically in order to save young bakugou's life," Yua began, "Even without a quirk, and no clear plan, he risked it all to save a friend, a true hero in the making."

"I beg to differ!" Tamiko's mother interrupted Yua's mini speech, she shook her head in disbelief and continued, "You are right Tamiko, that was insanely reckless, that poor quirkiness boy could have ended up in critical condition or even worse! never act without a clear plan, you will just put yourself and others in danger," she shook her head taking a sip of her tea.

"What about that rowdy boy?" Tamiko's attention was back on her aunt Akari, "He was the one at the center of the attack, is he alright?

Tamiko furrowed her eyebrows and glanced down at her mug of tea. She gave a short "yeah", eyes never leaving the mug. The three woman looked at eachother not knowing what to say. They knew of the falling out Tamiko and Izuku had with him, it was  clearly evident with the way Tamiko would act when they would bring the spiky haired boy up in conversations.

Tamiko's mother was the one who broke the silence.

"He's not hanging out with that kid anymore is he?"

Tamiko's eyes shot up to her, mug shaking in her hand slightly. Of course he's still hanging out with him, why wouldn't he still be with his annoying groupie. She sighed for the hundredth time today, laying her head on the table exhaustedly.
Yua brushed a few locks of the girl's hair back,
"Mabye it would be best if you went to bed Tamiko, you have had a long day so you should rest up"

"Yeah, Yua has a point there Tamiko darling," her mother smiled warmly as she continued, "So go ahead and relax in your room, we wont ask anymore questions." Hearing that, Tamiko stood up from her chair and slowly walked up to her room, replying with a small 'thank you' she left upstairs without saying another word.

Opening the door to her room, she saw her bed, the pastel colors now dark heavy hues from the night sky. Falling flat on her bed she immediately dozed off, hopefully getting rid of the hollow feeling in her chest and the newfound fears from today's events.