…Perhaps

Poruka watched as her mother walked throught the door, closing it softly and glancing every which way. Obvious signs of guilt and paranoia.

While she wishes she could say she dramatically spun around in a chair to confront her, they didn't own any chairs that swiveled, so instead she tapped her fingers on the dining room table with an expectant look on her face and her lips pursed to the side.

"Hey mom, what's up?" She asked innocently, though it still startled her mother.

The mousy woman looked over, her good eye wide, "Ruka… what are you doing up, dear?"

"Had a bad feeling, couldn't sleep." Poruka stated matter of factly, still tapping her fingers, the sound of her pointed nails against hardwood making a pleasantly repetitive noise like hard rain against glass, "Though, I'm curious why you were out so late?"

"I had a late shift at the hospital, that's all, sorry if you missed me." Her mother smiled sheepishly, though the brunette noticed her fiddling with the hem of one of her sleeves.

Poruka sighed, "You left your hospital tags at home, mom, besides you're not in scrubs." She dangled the tags with her mother's identifier and department listed on them.

Something was wrong. While her mother wasn't the best liar, she could still fool Poruka from time to time and even when she failed still came close. This time, however, her lie was so blatantly obvious and unplanned.

The older woman sighed, "You're too smart for your own good, you know that?"

"So I've heard," Poruka blinked at her mother, not breaking eye contact, "Still, I'd like an answer."

"I visited that underground hero… Eraserhead, was it? Apparently, the absence of Dabi is a 'case' now, too." Her mother replied, hanging her purse on a nearby coathanger, "So I gave him the drawing and what we know. He'd like you talk with you, too, tomorrow."

The Genie girl furrowed her eyebrows in minor irritation, "Didn't think to ask me, first?"

"I don't have to ask your permission to do anything." Her mother responded firmly, "This is very dangerous, what you've done, Poruka. Do you understand me? I will do what needs to be done in case something happens, so we at least have somebody in the know who could possibly assist us. It is my duty as your mother to protect you, first and foremost. Are we clear?"

The brunette pursed her lips into a thin line, studying her mother's gaze. Her green-blue eyes held a tenacious intensity, indicating her mother was worried. Very worried.

Poruka softened her Heian-like eyebrows, "Crystal. I'm sorry for worrying you, mom."

"You should be, it's not good for my skin." Her mother rolled her eyes as she strolled to sit across from Poruka, who chuckled at the comment.

"So, what time did Eraserhead want to see me?" Poruka asked, starting to finally feel sleepy from her day.

Her mother smiled, brushing her thumb on her daughter's cheek lovingly, "Don't worry about it, I'll let you know tomorrow. Just make sure to bring Hawks and Dabi's figurines, okay?"

"Okay," Poruka smiled back, leaning into the soft touch.

___________________________________

Shota watched as the wisteria-skinned girl sat down in the metal interrogation chair looking rather… bemused.

"Am I wanted criminal or something?" She joked nervously, fiddling with her nails as her hands rested on the table.

The black-haired man raised an eyebrow, "I don't know, are you?"

Her soft laughing halted as she looked at him wide-eyed like a toddler caught stealing cookies from the cookie jar, "I mean, I don't think I am…"

"Well, I don't think you are either and let's hope it stays that way." He said breaking eye contact as he slid his case files from the side to in front of him, flipping through them before pulling out a thinner file with her name on it.

"Your mother told me you used your quirk to give yourself more minor quirk-like abilities. Can you share with me these abilities?"

Poruka blinked at the older man as she chose her words, "...I can change my appearance to that of somebody I've granted a wish for. When I grant reality-altering wishes I get these glass figurines that represent who that person was; their heart. When I wish to turn into that person I can sort of… wear their heart like a thin disguise, so to speak."

"I can also use a person's heart like a looking-glass. It gives me a bird's eye view of what they're currently doing with the 'new life' I granted them. It brings me some form of comfort to know that I brought them joy as I'd hoped to." She said, avoiding eye contact as she picked at dead skin around her nails.

Shota took a few offhanded notes. Poruka hadn't given him any more details than her mother had, which is good as their near-identical statements provides them with leverage.

"What happens if one of these figurines were to break?" He asked, flicking his eyes up from the paper he'd been taking notes on.

Her movements froze briefly before slowing to a start again, "I-... I don't know."

He raised an eyebrow at her, "You don't know?"

"No, I don't. If the figurine were to break I can no longer look through it, meaning I have no way of knowing what happened to the person on the other end. Gluing them back together doesn't work, either. Things that are easy to break… tend to be hard to fix." She shook her head.

"Mm," Shota hummed as he took notes, "Did you bring Dabi's figurine like I'd asked?"

Poruka nodded slowly, "I did."

"Can you tell me what he's doing right now?" Shota asked, barely sparing her a glance.

Wordlessly, she fumbled her hand through her pocket before slowly pulling out a sparkling glass-like blue phoenix figurine. She lifted it up to her left eye, glancing through it briefly before it slipped out of her hand.

"Shit!" She hissed, floundering to grab a hold of it with both hands as it continued to tumble, catching it just before it hit the floor. With a sigh of relief she shakily pulled it up to her chest taking deep breaths.

"What did you see?" Shota asked, his interest piqued.

She opened her eyes to stare at him dumbstruck, "Adult things."

"Adult things?"

"Yes. He was doing adult things." Poruka nodded, eyes wide and lips pursed in fight, flight, freeze.

It took him a moment before the words sunk in, "Dare I ask with whom?"

The brunette continued to look at him like he'd grown a second head, "I do not wish to disclose that information at this time." she whispered softly, her voice quick and somewhat squeaky.

"Need I remind you, you're under every obligation in this room to answer me with the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?" He reminded sternly.

Poruka gulped, "It was a pro-hero."

"Specifics, please?"

"It was one of the top ten heroes." She re-stated, her nostrils flared.

Shota sighed in exasperation, "Hero name, Amano-san."

She looked down defeatedly, "It was…" she mumbled the name.

"Who?"

"It was H…" Poruka mumbled again.

"I'm going to need you to speak louder."

With a deep breath, holding it briefly, she yelled, "It was Hawks!"

Shota stared at her momentarily, "Like- the currently missing Hawks or…?"

"The ladder."

The man only nodded his head to the side slowly before jotting this new information down.

"Also, about the currently missing Hawks, that was you, wasn't it?"

Freezing in place, the teenager groaned, "...Perhaps."