Phoenix

Hitoshi Shinso was well aware this was out of character.

He was well aware this would simply fuel the rumors that had been circling about them. Yet, the second the news hit his ears, he realized he was also well aware that he just simply didn't care.

His classmates watched bewildered as he rushed through the common room, slamming the door behind him before they could say anything to stop him.

It had happened. The… thing… him and Olivia had hoped would remain just a nightmare of a bad memory, had almost fulfilled its purpose. By bringing them to this college to work on fixing the aftermath of the incident, he had instead put not only Olivia, but also Mashirao in the path of the very problem they were all still trying to heal from.

Hitsohi pulled his coat tighter around him and looked down to the bus floor, letting his hat hide his face. Olivia had gone to great, unspeakable lengths to keep them both out of the press after the incident. It wasn't the press that made him twitch though. As the bus hit a pothole, Hitoshi had reached into his pocket and closed his hand around his taser, before his thoughts caught up to him. He released his white knuckled grip on the thing, and let out a tired sigh. After being taken like that… Nowhere felt safe anymore.

Hitoshi glanced up as his stop neared, fingers twitching at the idea of walking alone in the dark. It wasn't a long walk, but he knew better than anyone -except perhaps Olivia and Mashirao- that it didn't have to be for something to happen.

He had ended up selling his Hosu apartment when he moved to UA. He knew he wasn't able to look at the door the same way after the purple mist had appeared. It took him a week to even go near the place, and when he did, Mashirao had surprised him by coming with.

Hitoshi hadn't had people he called friends before that point in his life. All too scared of him using his quirk, or declaring him as a villain before they bothered getting to know him. So when he first went missing, it wasn't reported until his parents called to check in two days after.

Hitoshi later found out from Olivia that Mashirao had thrown himself into their investigation, not leaving the station except when forced to. So it shouldn't have surprised him when the guy seemed as determined as Olivia to situate himself in Hitoshi's life. Mashirao seemed to consider everything something he should have prevented, probably a result of his protector upbringing. But this time… Hitoshi looked up at the hospital and gulped. This time, the blame was his own.

He pushed open the door, relieved to be safe inside, but dreading what he might see. He paused at reception, not sure what name to give the woman at the counter. Luckily, at that moment, the Chief of Police was walking out of the elevator across the building. Hitoshi positioned himself so that they would cross paths, and the man didn't look very surprised to see him. Perhaps Olivia, Hitoshi, and hospitals had become connected in the man's mind. It wouldn't surprise Hitoshi if they had.

"Shinso." Tsuragamae greeted him tiredly. "I'm assuming you're here to see…" He paused as if to remember which name he was supposed to be using, and Hitoshi related. "Olivia?"

"Correct, sir." Hitoshi bowed slightly. "I was hoping you knew which room she was in"

"She is in 2-34, woof. We just got done questioning her about today's events. Visiting hours are over soon, so you should get a move on." The Chief suggested. Hitoshi nodded in response, thanking him, before heading toward the elevator the Chief had come out of.

As the doors closed, Hitoshi let his head fall against the wall behind him. How was it fair for a group to go through so much in such a short amount of time? If it weren't for Olivia being taken first, he would've blamed himself for cursing the trio with his bad luck.

In a world filled with such great powers… The consequences seemed to be even greater, leaving no one untouched.

The elevator opened on the second floor and Hitoshi put his hands in his pockets, pulling his hat down as he walked towards the correct room. When he found it without a guard outside, he frowned disapprovingly. It's not like she was almost offed or anything… He thought sarcastically. Not like the two main villains had got away… Hitoshi had heard the rumors, he wasn't stupid. Yet, apparently, the hospital staff was. He sighed, knowing there wasn't much he could do unless he wanted to illegally use his quirk. Not fancying the extra insomnia he'd get from how long he'd have to use it to accomplish his goal, he instead knocked gently on the door.

"Olive?" He spoke, hating the slight tremor in his voice. He didn't want to see her looking like she did during their capture. He hadn't considered this before coming to see her, hadn't considered how tight it would make his chest feel, or the memories this would bring back.

He almost started walking away in an attempt to bring his breathing back to normal, when he heard a chirper, "Come in Hitoshi! I'm fine, so stop overreacting."

Hitsohi let a breath of annoyance, and maybe relief, pass through his lips as he pushed open the door. Of course she'd be sober, it's not like they'd let her drink at the hospital. His eyes fell on her as he walked inside, going through his mental checklist. Her ears weren't bleeding, her skin wasn't bruised or raw, and she wasn't grimy or pale either. He finally let himself breath in all the way, feeling his muscles relax as he did, and wondered how long he had been holding his breath for.

Olivia patiently waited as he ran over her injuries. One of her arms was covered pretty heavily in bandages, but that seemed to be it.

"They already healed my head wound, apparently." Olivia added to his mental report. "I still had alcohol in my system after the fight, obviously, so apparently I was losing blood a little faster than they prefered." She grinned at this, finding humor in it. He could tell she was trying to lighten the mood, and he stared emotionlessly at her until she sighed, dropping the act.

"I saw it."

He winced, taking a seat in the chair next to her bed. He didn't trust his legs to stand when it came to… that.

"It was the first one, with the shock absorption and health regeneration quirks." Olivia continued, twirling her hair around her fingers in her trademark nervous manner. He didn't speak, knowing that not only did he not have to when near her, but also unsure if he even could.

"It… it almost killed All Might. It could've killed All Might…" Olivia sucked in a breath shakily, seeing things he never would. "It would have been our fault… How can we even justify becoming heroes after almost being responsible for that?"

It wasn't an easy question with an easy answer, and she knew that as well as he did.

Yet, Hitoshi tried anyway, wanting to reassure himself as much as he did her. "It wasn't our fault, Star." He started, saying her real name tiredly. "We were the victims as much as the people they took those quirks from. It wasn't you that found the people. It wasn't me that brought them. It was someone else, with a powerful quirk and a twisted soul. And, you know what? That's exactly the reason we deserve to be heroes the most. Because we were the victims. We were the ones that needed saving, and we owe it to the people who suffered from the abuse of our quirks. We owe it to the heroes who risked their lives to save us. We owe it to ourselves to ensure that something as fucked up as what happened to us and those innocent civilians, never happens to anyone again." Hitoshi's voice bleed with more emotion than he preferred, but didn't waiver. He had known ever since he was a kid what he wanted to be when he grew up. He'd be damned if he let some sick freak with a vendetta take that away from him.

Olivia blinked a few times, and moved her eyes away from his, but not in time to hide the water he saw in them. Her hand instinctively reached near her ear, and Hitoshi knew she was unconsciously feeling the scars there.

"I'm so sorry I brought us all to UA. It was my dream and my idea, and yet when the same evil came back, I wasn't… I couldn't be there." Hitoshi said bitterly.

If only he had asked Mashirao to train him before the test and not after. If only he knew how biased the test would be and trained instead of just applying to General Education as a backup. If only he could've found a way to transfer into one of the hero classes and been there with them, keeping his friends safe. All it would've taken was one response from the villain…

Olivia shook her head at him, probably listening in. "Just like we know Mashirao had nothing to do with our incident, you know you had nothing to do with this one. I didn't come to UA blindly following you and Mashirao. I came because… you were right, I needed help. And I'm staying because you're still right. We owe it to everyone not to let something like that ever happen again. I know you'll find a way to become a hero, Hitsohi. I've never met anyone who deserves it more."

Hitoshi allowed a smile to grace his lips at that, letting the words wash over him. Olivia really did know the right things to say. Maybe it was due to her quirk, or maybe it was due to their friendship, but he was thankful for it regardless.

"Except Midoriya, now that I think about it. I suppose he's pretty high on the list too." Olivia suddenly added, thinking.

Hitoshi half heartedly glared at her, taking back every nice thing he had just thought. Apparently not even a head wound could change her annoyingness. He shook his head, wondering how she ended up as one of his closest friends.

Olivia, probably eavesdropping again, smiled radiantly back. And as he returned it with a small one of his own, he knew that with her and Mashirao at his side, they would be able to get through anything. He would continue training with Mashirao, and wait for an opportunity to prove to the school they made a mistake. He would work until he was transferred to the hero course, and once he was... he would be one step closer to becoming a true hero.