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“Release!” Ochako pressed her fingers together and sent the villain hurtling to the ground. In a well-practiced manoeuvre, she grabbed their arm as they fell and twisted it behind them.
But before she could subdue them fully, a blade flashed in their grip. Ochako’s breath hitched and her stomach clenched. Her scar pulsed with some phantom pain, some ingrained response she could never quite suppress. She twisted harder, putting more pressure until the villain cried out and the knife clattered to the ground.
“Villain… apprehended,” she gasped out.
Still, she didn’t let go until two police officers came to haul the villain away. They practically had to drag her off first. By that time she had managed to quell the shaking in her arms and get her breathing back under control, replacing a wide-eyed stare with a more resolute mask. She even summoned a smile at the civilian she’d saved. She was a hero. She had to smile for them.
A crowd had gathered as she went through the motions of post-capture bureaucracy. Occasionally, she would remember to smile and relax, to show that nothing was wrong, but her stomach remained tight. The thought of that knife getting so close made her nauseous.
Once, she had cut herself whilst cooking. She had stared, transfixed by the sight of red welling up across the clean line and dripping down her fingers. It wasn’t something so simple as fear - it was a mess of half-formulated ideas and feelings, one that she refused to unpick.
She had thrown away all her knives after that.
Aside from that, she hadn’t suffered a single cut, not even during hero work. A complete victory each time. A convenient excuse.
Really, she just wouldn’t let anyone else have the honour.
“Uravity?”
Ochako blinked at the police officer, who looked back at her with just as much confusion.
“Unless there’s anything else, we can take it from here,” the officer said.
“Oh. Right.” Ochako nodded, then followed it up with a smile. Then, she moved to the crowd.
She loved speaking with the children. Most of them looked up at her with wide, adoring faces, but she sought out the ones who hung back. The ones with some strange quirk, uncertain if they were fit to even talk to a hero. When their uncertainty broke, when their lips tugged at the corners, those were the smiles that she valued most. Each one washed away just a little more guilt, like waves lapping against some harsh, black rock. Alongside quirk counselling, it was enough to make her believe she was making a difference.
“Okay, you all need to be on your way. Don’t you have school starting soon?” Ochako said, crouched in front of the children.
“But talking to a hero is better!” replied one of the bolder ones.
“Hmm… but wouldn’t it be better to be good and become a hero yourself? After all, us heroes need all the help -”
A gleam of golden eyes. A familiar smile.
Ochako turned to the vision in the corner of her eye. But this time it didn’t fade. A woman about her age met her gaze - unremarkable in every way. It could have been any young professional on their way to work stopping to catch a glimpse of a hero, only this one had those golden eyes and that hypnotic smile. The incessant sounds of children' s questions faded as Ochako got to her feet, staring, unbelieving. The woman’s smile faltered then and she touched her face, uncertain. It was enough to distort her unremarkable features. It was like they were melting.
The woman covered her face and ran.
“Wait,” Ochako breathed, her chest too weak for anything else. She felt dizzy. The shape of the woman was already disappearing.
Fading into a blurry image, just like that day five years ago.
“Wait!” Fire ignited through Ochako’s body as she ran, shouldering through the crowd. She pounded down the pavement, taking a sharp turn into the alleyway she’d seen the woman duck into. But she was still one corner ahead, and remained so despite Ochako chasing with reckless abandon. Always one step ahead. Always out of reach.
Then, blinding light as Ochako emerged onto a wide, open street. People turned to look at the hero who had just burst out from a dusty alley, but none of them had that same beautiful smile. With the thronging crowds, it would be impossible to find now.
“Himi -” Ochako cut herself off. Invoking her name would be too much, might wake the restless memories she had spent so long putting behind her.
She turned back to the alley, heart pounding and breath coming in short bursts. It took far longer than it should have to calm herself down, and by that point her cheeks burned crimson. A phantom, nothing more. Probably just a villain who she’d mistook for someone else, and her hesitant reaction had let them get away. She shook her head, willing the memory to leave her.
A flash of colour on the grey pavement caught her eye. A small blotch of red, vibrant despite the busy surroundings. Ochako crouched down and touched a finger to it in fascination. It came away wet.
Blood.
“I’m sorry, Uravity. But really, there’s no matches.”
“Are you sure? I mean… couldn’t you check again? This is the national database, right?” Ochako said, leaning over the counter to look at the screen.
The hospital clerk, a young woman with tired eyes, hesitated before letting Ochako look. “Yes. If we had a match for the blood you brought in, it would have flagged it. But there was so little that you brought in, and if it was contaminated… where did you say you found it again?”
“How could it come back with nothing? Even if it wasn’t a match then at least I’d know…”
“It’s likely whoever it is just hasn’t had a blood test since the war,” the clerk said. Ochako looked at them sharply. The clerk shrugged. “Th-the database is still being rebuilt. This person’s data might have been destroyed with one of the hospitals during the war, back when the records weren’t centralised. But again, it could just be that there wasn’t enough for the test, or it was contaminated, I-I just don’t know.”
Ochako pulled back from the counter, mouth twisted in thought. Despite all reason, traitorous hope blazed in her chest. It hadn’t been a negative result. That murky conclusion was a blanket in which she could comfort herself.
“Oh! I know! Could you look up someone in the database? To see if their records were destroyed?” she said, leaning back over the counter.
“I… shouldn’t,” the clerk said after a moment’s hesitation. “I shouldn’t have even run this test without an official request but you were so insistent…”
“Please? It’s important. I need to save someone!”
“I… I’m sorry. I can’t just look up people’s information like that. Not without an official hero agency request with police backing.” A beep came from the clerk’s pager. “Ah, I really have to go. I’m sorry, Uravity, I really am. Just come back with an official request, okay?”
Ochako nodded, hiding her disappointment with a smile. As she watched the clerk go, the light caught her tired eyes. At that angle, they almost seemed golden.
Ochako watched, heart pounding as the doors clicked shut behind the clerk. Then she forced herself to turn around and leave the building before she could call out.
“It really has been ages since we’ve caught up like this, hasn’t it?” Izuku said, smiling in that easy way from across the table.
Between Izuku’s work commitments and Ochako’s near-constant emergency callouts, the best they had been able to do was meeting in the UA cafeteria at lunchtime. It was the first time Ochako had been back in years, and the rows of tables brought a sense of nostalgia rather than the stabbing pain of other recollections. Despite everything, it had hardly changed. The biggest change was Izuku, now dressed in a suit rather than an ill-fitting uniform, and looked up to by the students who passed their table.
“Mm. It has. I’m sorry I’ve been too busy to come and visit, but even with the villain emergence rates down…” Ochako shrugged.
“I know. I’ve seen how busy you are. But it’s thanks to you that I have some students interested in quirk counselling.” Izuku gestured at a table of students who quickly looked away as he pointed at them. “So all I can say is keep at it. It matters.”
“Really? That’s great! I wasn’t sure but… I’m glad it’s working.” Ochako smiled, unforced this time.
Izuku smiled as well, a more wistful thing. Ochako averted her gaze. Any of her old classmates would be able to connect the dots as to why she had campaigned for the expansion of quirk counselling for young children, but none had said anything. Yet. Not since that night atop the cliff. The way Izuku smiled was as close as anyone had come, and with just as much earnestness as he’d looked at her back then.
“You didn’t come for just a catch-up though, did you?” Izuku asked.
Ochako hesitated. “No… I’m sorry. But I didn’t know who else to ask.”
“It’s okay. Heroes help each other, right? So, tell me.”
Ochako folded her hands into her lap and bit her lip. “After the war… you spoke to Spinner, didn’t you? About Shigaraki. Did you talk about the rest of the League of Villains? Did you tell him what happened to them?”
“Only a little. He already knew most of it from the news. I only really told him about Shigaraki’s final words.”
“Right. But you must have looked into them, right? What happened to the other members of the League of Villains, I mean. Do you know what happened to… I know she was right there with me but… Himi -” Ochako couldn’t get the name out once again. She had to swallow the lump in her throat.
“I’m sorry, Uraraka. I don’t know where she’s buried, if that’s what you’re asking,” Izuku said, gentle with each word. “Records of burials, or even who died, are murky from that time. Record-keeping was last on everyone’s minds. That’s to say nothing of how remote the Gunga site was - the primary operation was to airlift people like you to the nearest hospital. I… don’t know what happened to those they left behind.
Ochako nodded. Despite knowing Izuku could see through it, she still managed a smile. “I thought so. But I thought if anyone would know, it might be you.”
“I’m just sorry I don’t know anymore.” Izuku paused. “Have you already talked to Pixie-Bob?”
Ochako looked up with a frown. “Pixie-Bob?”
“Ryuko Tsuchikawa. From the Wild, Wild Pussycats. She was the one who went with you to the hospital, wasn’t she?”
The airlift to the hospital was a hazy memory to Ochako. All she remembered was the pain in her belly, a miasma of grief, and watching a distant battle take place against All for One. But beyond that, a face swam into view. “I’d almost forgotten… I haven't even seen her since.”
“Really? She’s here today, you know.”
Ochako got up so quickly that her chair clattered onto the floor. “She is? Now? Can we go and see her?”
Izuku flinched back, a bewildered expression on his face along with half of the cafeteria. “S-sure. She’s here about the annual training camp but I’m sure she’d be happy to see you?”
Under Ochako’s insistence, they left there and then. It took all of her will to not look back as the nape of her neck prickled, like someone was watching her.
“Himiko Toga? I’ve no idea.”
Ochako took the words like a punch to the gut. Still, she managed to nod as if she’d been expecting it. Perhaps even hoping for it. She felt nauseous.
“Don’t get me wrong, I remember her being there - I had to pull her off you and remove those needles.” Ryuko paused to take a sip of coffee. The jovial tone had bled from her voice, and she spoke with that same assuredness of a hero. “But I was more focussed on getting you to a hospital rather than worrying about a villain’s body.”
“I thought so. And thank you. For saving me.” Ochako balled her hands into fists in her lap. “Do you know… so she was definitely dead?”
“Someone checked. There was no pulse. Villain or not, we saved everyone who was still breathing. Don’t worry, Uraraka. I only know half of what you went through fighting that villain, but it’s over now.”
Ochako nodded. Even she couldn’t understand what had happened, not really. Too much had been left unspoken. Her eyes drifted from the small cafe table to find anything that might distract her from her own collapsing reasoning. Of course she was dead. She’d seen it with her own eyes.
Two tables over, someone was watching her. A woman about her age with a faint smile. Ochako met their gaze and held it. “You said you saved everyone. What… happened to the bodies?”
Ryuko made a sound between discomfort and a sigh. “You’re really asking the difficult questions today, huh? It’s not great but… most of them were buried there on site. I’m not the only hero with a quirk that can turn the earth over.”
The smile of the woman two tables over slipped as Ochako refused to look away. “That’s… a sad end. I wish she could have had a proper burial.”
“You do? You’re a better person than me. Himiko Toga really did a number on us. Lots of heroes were found crushed under all those clones.”
“I know. I can’t excuse what she did.” Ochako examined the lines on the face of the woman two tables over. It looked as if her features were slipping. “But I think she would have liked to be remembered somewhere. Without judgement.”
“You new generations of heroes really are a mystery to me.” Ryuko paused. “It might not be what you’re looking for, but Gunga has been turned into a memorial park. Kind of like an unmarked graveyard. I haven’t been back myself, but I hear it’s nice. Maybe that’s enough?”
Ochako managed to bring her gaze back to Ryuko. The older hero had that expression synonymous with reaching out a helping hand. “Thanks, Ryuko. I’m sorry for bothering you like this, it’s just…”
Ryuko smiled. “Don’t be. You saved my life that day too, you know? This is the least I can do.”
Ochako glanced away again, just in time to see the other woman leaving her table. With a start, she got to her feet.
“Uraraka?” Ryuko said, half-rising herself.
Ignoring her, Ochako rushed over to the woman and caught her just before she could leave the cafe. “Excuse me! Um… who are you?”
The woman froze with Ochako’s hand on her shoulder. Hunched over, it was as if she were trying to hide her face. Ochako pressed closer. The sight of that smile had become a hazy memory. She wanted to see it more than anything - no - needed to see it, if only for a moment, even if Himiko couldn’t show herself so openly -
The woman looked back at her with a confused, bordering on scared expression. “Miyu?” she offered. It sounded like an apology. “I'm sorry for staring, I-I just wanted to ask for a picture but you looked busy…”
Lead weight settled in Ochako’s stomach. It was the opposite of her quirk, she was being dragged down by the weight of it all collapsing. “Himiko? It’s - it’s you, isn't it?”
The woman smiled in confusion. It wasn’t the same. “Who?”
Ochako let go and stumbled away. There was a roaring in her ears. Ryuko took her place, smoothing over the situation even if she didn’t - couldn’t - understand.
All Ochako could do was run away.
Gunga was unrecognisable.
The battlefield had turned into a vast, open plain dotted with flowers, bordered on all sides by dense forest. Sharp earthen peaks, the remnants of vast quirk usage, broke the landscape, though even those were covered by mats of moss and lichens that softened the memory. Well-maintained paths traced the landscape, allowing curious and somber onlookers to gaze upon memorials and information plaques, all telling a story being washed away by time.
The only reminder that stood strong were the remnants of the mountain villa, former headquarters of the Paranormal Liberation Front. Still half-buried in cement and detritus, the structure stood dark and empty, looming over the otherwise idyllic scene. Tall fences kept onlookers far away, but that didn’t stop groups from pausing to stare, then hurry along as if there might still be something in there.
Ochako shielded her eyes from the sun and took a drink of water, eyes tracking over all of it. She’d spent the day walking over every inch of the site, hoping she might recognise something, but it had changed too much. Each distinctive ridge gave her pause, but it was just a fantasy.
She hadn’t cared for the landscape during the war. She’d only had eyes for Himiko.
On a small hill not far from the villa, she settled in the grass and laid back. The sight of the sky and knowing where she was sent a stabbing pain through her stomach. A bubbling nausea followed. Through stubbornness alone did she manage to stay still, taking in long, deep breaths.
Himiko Toga was dead. As reassuring as delusion was, refusing to face that truth would only hurt more in the long run. Coming to Gunga had been as much a way to remind herself of that as much as a pilgrimage.
“Sorry, Himiko. I guess I wasn’t as strong as you thought.” Saying her name reduced the pain in her scar to a dull ache. Ochako could almost feel Himiko there, pressed against her again. Only this time her body was warm and she was truly alone. “But I’ll make good use of the blood you gave me. I promise.” Slowly, she closed her eyes.
In the distance, a scream.
Ochako sat bolt upright, instincts taking over. Over by the villa, a crowd had formed. Some of the fencing had collapsed. Fearing the worst, Ochako scrambled to her feet and ran over to be met with the sight of a sinkhole leading into an unknowable darkness. An entire wall of the villa dangled perilously over it.
“Get away from the edge!” she called out, pulling onlookers away until they started doing it themselves. “Is everyone okay? Is anyone hurt?”
“My daughter!” A man stood at the edge, refusing to move away. “She’s in there!”
Ochako’s stomach lurched. She ran over to stand next to him, but with the villa blocking the lingering dregs of sunset, she couldn’t make out anything in the gloom. “Don’t worry. It’s okay.” She summoned a confident smile and pressed her fingertips together, becoming weightless. “I’m here. I’ll definitely save her.”
The man blinked in confusion, then seemed to register her for the first time. “You’re… Uravity. Please, hurry!”
Ochako nodded, then pulled herself to the edge and down into the darkness. Thankfully, it wasn’t as total as it first seemed. In fact, she could even see where water had eroded the already weak ground, creating the gaping sinkhole. Not far beyond that, a small shape lay on a slip of rock.
“Hey. Are you okay? Can I help you get out?” Ochako said, gentle as she floated towards them.
The girl lifted a dirty face cut by tearstreaks with a fearful expression, but that faded as Ochako alighted next to them. “You’re… flying?”
“Mhm. Do you want to try?” Ochako cradled her a moment, checking for injuries, but there was nothing too serious. Just a few scrapes and bruises. Impressive, considering how far she’d fallen. “Don’t worry. You’ll be back up safe before you know it.”
The girl nodded, then gasped in fear or delight as Ochako made her float. Not for the first time, Ochako wished she was wearing her hero costume. The rescue would have already been over if had her wires and air jets.
Off to one side, the wall suddenly sagged and collapsed. Ochako only just managed to push them away in time. “It’s okay. I’ve got you, okay?” she said with a smile, even as her own heart pounded.
The water leaking through the cracks in the earth came harder and faster. A dolourous rumble built in the rocks around them. Ochako tried to push them up faster, but it took time to avoid the shifting walls.
“I need you to listen closely, okay?” she said as she pulled the girl away from another sagging wall. “I’m going to make you fly up, and your dad will be up there to grab you. So I need you to make yourself nice and small so you fly better. Can you do that for me?”
The girl stared at her with a pale face and wide eyes, but still nodded, resolute. “But… will you be okay?”
“I’ll be fine. I just need to get you up there first. Ready?” Ochako tilted them in mid-air until the girl was above her. “One… two… three!” With a push, she sent the girl floating upwards and herself floating down. Just as she’d hoped, the girl cleared the edge of the sinkhole, and she touched her fingertips together to ensure she floated down safely. Judging by the distant cries of relief, her aim had been perfect.
Now without an extra body to contend with, she flung herself up the sinkhole. But the walls had become a sludgy mess. Each touch just slowed her down.
“Uravity! Look out!” A shadow loomed above.
Ochako looked up just in time to see the wall of the villa collapsing down into the sinkhole.
She flung her hands up, activating zero gravity as the rubble tumbled towards her. But even as she made it weightless and spread it as far as she could, it drove her down into the darkness. Mud sloughed from the walls, creating a further wave of chaos to deal with. Ochako cried out in terror. Her quirk was useless if she was buried under the weight of the earth itself.
Then, cool, damp air prickled at the nape of her neck. The torrent of debris had pushed her into a wide open space. Even as rocks pummelled her body, she gritted her teeth and splayed her fingers, once again spreading her quirk at the tidal wave before her.
Even with zero gravity, hitting the ground hurt. Her head smashed against rock. Then came the wave of weightless earth, cloying and sticky, half-burying her. Blind and out of breath, she only just managed to dig herself out and collapse to the ground, her quirk deactivating as she retched. Another load of rubble peppered her from above, but that was the least of her worries. Her vision swam. Warmth seeped through her clothes. She choked back a sob. Blood. A lot of it.
When the sound of rumbling earth and the ringing in her ears had faded somewhat, she managed to get to her feet. It was almost pitch black, but there was just enough light to make out a huge open area, like an arena. It even had a stage, though it was half-buried under rubble. “The villain’s meeting place…” Ochako murmured, just about summoning the memory from a briefing before the war.
The hole where she’d fallen from was mostly plugged. Even from this distance, she could tell there would be no getting out that way. The walls had slumped inwards, creating a barrier of earth that wasn’t distinct enough to target with her quirk.
“Hello? Can anyone hear me?” Ochako called out. The strain in her voice made her wince. “Call for help! I’m going to try and find a way out!” she added into the silence. She could only hope the girl and the other onlookers were safe.
Within a dozen steps, she realised just how hurt she was. Every step sent pain thundering through her body. Keeping a straight line was near-enough impossible. Even after she had found a wall and used it for support, progress was slow. Blood flowed from the countless cuts she’d sustained, marking her trail if she could bring herself to look. Her hands shook, then went cold. Panic rose at a steady pace. She collapsed once, then twice, then couldn’t get up again. A deeper darkness pressed at the edges of her vision, serenading her into its embrace. Her eyes drifted shut.
“Giving up here, Ochako?”
Any voice would have shocked her. That voice in particular made her dizzy.
“Come on. This way.”
“Who…” Ochako picked herself up and peered into the darkness. A shape disappeared into a door she’d somehow missed. “Hi - Himiko?”
“Maybe. Come and find out,” came that lilting tone, more distant now.
Adrenaline fuelled Ochako’s battered body as she stumbled to the door and chased that shape down the next corridor. It was always one corner ahead, never visible for long enough to make out. “Himiko, wait! I saw… I thought you…”
“Died? Who knows? Maybe I’m just a figment of your imagination. Ah, that would be so cute. You can’t stop thinking of me, can you, Ochako?”
“Please. Just - just let me see you. Just once. I know you can’t show your face and that’s why you - you’ve been following me, haven’t you? Please, just tell me it’s you and -”
“I knew you were desperate, but I didn’t think you’d beg like this. Though, honestly, it’s cute.”
“Wh - why are you doing this?” Ochako reached out to the darkness. “Come back, please -”
“Don’t you remember? I can’t let you catch me -”
“Never! But still -”
“And I want to live as I please. You helped me do that. Like a good hero. I shouldn’t even be doing this but… I just can’t leave you alone. Especially down here.”
“That’s… not fair.” Ochako leaned against a railing as her stomach tightened in pain. They had finally made it to a stairwell, but each step was proving more difficult than the last. “What about me?”
The shadow paused on the landing ahead.
“Why do you get what you want and I don’t? That’s not fair. I’ve wanted to see you every day since then. I wanted to talk to you. I wanted to listen to you. I… want to see your smile again.”
“Ochako…” The shadow looked as if she might take one step towards her. Then, it disappeared around the corner. “You’re bleeding too much. Come on, you need to hurry.”
“Himiko, no! Wait!” Anger, sudden and warm, gave her enough strength to push up the stairs. Her own heartbeat thundered in her head. Each breath was a ragged gasp. “Please! Don’t leave me again!”
“You’re nearly there. Just keep going.”
“I’ll find you! I’ll never stop looking! I could recognise you anywhere! Just come back and we can -”
“You’re more stubborn than I remember, Ochako.” Himiko’s voice was sad. “You're strange, but you're still a hero. You know what I've done. Heroes shouldn’t -”
“To hell with that!” Ochako shouted, heat burning in her cheeks. “It doesn’t matter to me! I don’t care what you did! I’ll save enough people to offset it! I’ll protect you! I just want to see you smile again! So please, don’t run away from me! I… I… “ Ochako choked on the words, her throat closing up. The pain was worse than any of her injuries. Tears spilled down her cheeks as she pressed doggedly onwards, chasing a shadow.
Then, the hallway ended. Ochako stumbled against the rocks in confusion. It was brighter here, light filtered in from some unknown source. And in that clarity, she could see she was alone.
“I’ve really missed you, Ochako.” Himiko’s voice came from above, at the top of a crumbling wall. Ochako scrambled towards it, climbing the perilous slope. “And you’re being really selfish right now.” A pause. “It’s nice.”
“I don’t care. I just… want to see you again. So please… don’t leave me.” Light shone through a narrow crack at the top of the wall. Ochako reached for it, but her arm trembled. So close to the end, her body had nothing left to give. For the first time, she could see how bloodied she really was. Her vision went dark.
A soft hand grabbed hers and pulled her into the light.
“It’s okay. You’re safe now.” Warm arms wrapped around her body, unbothered by the blood, perhaps drawn to it. Her head was in someone’s lap, but the blinding light hid their face from view. “Everything will be okay, Ochako. You can rest now”
“Don’t… leave…” Ochako whispered as darkness smothered her vision.
“I promise.” The shadow pressed their forehead against Ochako’s. “So wait for me.”
Darkness swallowed Ochako before she could respond.
“...ravity. Uravity? Can you hear me?”
“Where…”
“Don’t worry. You’re on your way to hospital. Just sit tight.”
“Where… is she?...”
“The girl? She’s safe, don’t worry -”
“Himiko…”
“Himiko? The girl’s name is Aki. There wasn’t anyone else down there.”
“She… pulled me out…”
“Uravity, you dragged yourself out. No-one else was there. Don’t worry. Everyone’s safe.”
Tears burned in Ochako’s eyes as darkness drowned her once more.
The anniversary of the end of the war had become a mixture of celebration, grieving, and hope for the future. Public spaces across the country were swamped by crowds - not least to catch a glimpse of pro heroes.
For the heroes themselves, it was a chance to reconnect after another busy year of work. A single night to catch up on everything that everyone had been up to, make promises to catch-up more in the next year, then get ready for the inevitable rush that followed the celebrations.
Ochako had hoped the atmosphere might distract her, but instead had found it overwhelming. Being fresh out of hospital was a good excuse, but it wasn’t foolproof. When she’d announced that she’d needed some air, Tsuyu had taken one look at her and simply nodded, shielding her from the inevitable questions and allowing her to slip out unnoticed. Having such a good friend brought as much guilt as it did relief. Ochako leaned against the railing of the riverside path and sighed, looking out over the dark water. On the other bank, crowds gathered to watch distant fireworks and displays. Here, aside from the faint chatter of a Class 1-A reunion and a few civilians hurrying home, it was quiet.
“Excuse me?”
Ochako glanced over her shoulder, seeing a woman about her age. She was dressed in a fashionable if not forgettable outfit, a skirt, black top and denim jacket, as if trying to impress without drawing too much attention. Her hands fidgeted nervously with a lock of messy brown hair, almost the same shade as Ochako’s. Though she didn’t meet Ochako’s gaze, her honey-gold eyes were obvious in the low light.
“I… you saved me once. So, I thought I’d come and say thank you.” She met Ochako’s gaze with cheeks turning crimson. “B - but if this is weird and you want me to go, I’ll -”
“No.” Ochako swallowed the lump in her throat and smiled. “I remember. I’m glad you came back.” She offered a hand. “Maybe we can talk? I’m free all night.”
The woman smiled, and it was the cutest smile in the world.