Miss Joke would have been in a bad position without Shine's help, because she didn't have a thing to wear to go out, and she didn't have the time to go home.

Shine helped her find some clothes, but they were different sizes in every way, and it took some asking around and swapping things with the girls to find an outfit. But at least make-up was easy.

"I don't want to be too over the top though. It'll scare him off," Miss Joke said.

"If he's doing this at all, I doubt he'll back down over wardrobe," Shine said, "By the way, nice work. You've got game...and it was fast."

"Oh, I was kidding-- I don't know what happened," Emi sighed, "I have a feeling it's for questioning."

"Well, now is your chance, then." Shine held up a hand knowingly. "Aizawa is not the most subtle guy. You can outwit him for sure."

"Is that...okay advice?" Jiro asked.

She and all the girls except Momo were all helping. Momo was still recuperating. 

"Oh, all dating involves some kind of game," Shine said, "People don't trust you if you don't."

"Really?" Ochaco said.

"Uh...well, according to the internet," Shine shrugged, "I wouldn't know. Wally just confessed to me without warning."

"But you still got together, right?" Ochaco said.

"Well, after me freaking out for months..." Shine said, "I wouldn't follow my model--but you'll be fine, Emi."

Miss Joke giggled nervously. "I don't even know why I care. I mean, I know what's going to happen..."

"But this is your chance," Mina insisted, "Even if Mr. Aizawa isn't trying to date you, you can still seize the moment! If it's true love, it'll work out."

"I think you watch too many movies, Mina," Tsuyu said.

"No, it's just how love works," Mina argued.

"I always heard you should just be yourself," Tohru said, "but I feel like no one notices me when I do that."

Pause.

"In your case, Tohru, I think that being yourself will work only if you point a sign at it," Shine said.

"Hmm," Tohru contemplated that.

"Now, I see how Ojiro doesn't look at you. Why don't you go out with him?" Shine suggested.

"What? But...but I...I couldn't! I don't even think he knows I'm there half the time," Tohru sputtered.

"Oh, wait, did you just admit to liking him?!" Mina sounded jubilant.

"What? No, I didn't!" Tohru was probably blushing.

"I saw what you did there," Emi winked at Shine, "Ah, you kids are so cute... Wait, none of you are dating? Sheesh, the kids in my class started dating each other two weeks into the semester."

"Well, your school is less insane," Shine said. 

"Wait, who's dating?" Mina asked.

"I don't remember," Emi shrugged, "It changes often for some of them..."

Pause.

"Tohru, you should make a move," Mina resumed.

"No way," Tohru protested.

"Yeah, don't pressure her," Jiro said.

"Oh, you're one to talk!" Mina said.

"I don't think that's how you use that..." Tsuyu said.

Emi and Shine left them to sort this out.

"If you want to get Aizawa to take you seriously," Shine said, "then above all else...just be honest with him."

"What? Are you serious?"

"Yes. Come on, he's not sharp enough to read between the lines, here. Just tell him... You can't possibly embarrass yourself more than you already have."

"Oh, real sensitive," Emi griped.

"I wonder if he's getting advice right now...?" Shine mused.

* * *

"Man, I can't believe you are finally going out with her!" Present Mic blared at Aizawa later.

"Mic, do you have to announce that to the world?" Aizawa said, "And it's not a date. I just felt bad about what happened."

"And you want to ask her about it, right?" Mic said knowingly. "Man, you are just no fun. You wouldn't know romance if it walked up and zapped you with a joy buzzer."

Scowl.

"Well, man, you can't wear your costume," Mic insisted, "You'll hurt her pride. No lady wants to go out with a guy in pajamas."

"What?" Aizawa glared at him.

"You have nicer stuff, right? Like for TV?" Mic said.

"But it's not a date!"

"Yeah, but still...like, at least do 65%." Mic held up a finger. "And you can't just talk about the incident... What if she has PTSD from it or something? You could upset her. Ask her about teaching or something."

"Her theory of education is the last thing I want to hear about..."

"With that attitude, I don't know how you two are even still friends," Mic said.

"Try unfriending Joke sometime. It's impossible."

"You know, real talk, I worry about you," Present Mic said in a normal voice, "Your whole life is just school, hero work, and sleeping. Are you depressed?"

"What?"

"All I'm saying is, you're in a rut, buddy...like, for the last 20 years...and maybe you should...you know...not be?"

"Mic, last I checked, you were single, a teacher, and Pro too," Aizawa said.

"Yeah, man, but I have fun with my life anyway. You don't do anything... Anyway, who says I want to be single? I'm not exactly smooth with the ladies," Mic said.

[Anyone know who Mic would be shipped with? Because I've never had a clue. I don't usually ship annoying and loud.]

Aizawa didn't even want to go there.

* * *

Finally it was time to leave. Emi was kind of nervous still. Aizawa showed up with one of the school's limousines. "Let's just get this over with," he muttered to himself.

"Oh, wow." Emi looked out the door. "A limo and not wearing your costume...65%!"

[Girl Meets World reference, lol.]

"Did Mic text you?" Aizawa was immediately wary.

"Maybe." Emi shrugged. "Well, this should be fun. Where are we going?"

"I didn't really plan it. You can pick... Not a Karaoke bar."

"Awh, you got me," Miss Joke said. Then she waved. "Actually, you didn't. But I hear there's a nice place not too far from here. West knows all the nice restaurants."

So they went to one.

It was a little monotone for Miss Joke's taste, but she was trying to be considerate.

Aizawa seemed bored or else just tired. He stared at the menu in silence.

This not teasing thing was not going to work if he was going to be dull.

"So...what did you really want to talk about?" Emi just got right to the point.

Aizawa looked up. "No one at UA knows why the students were where they were, but the whole thing seems orchestrated. You're the only one Likstar trusts enough to tell stuff to. I want to know what really happened."

I knew it, Emi thought, Well, I really have no right to be disappointed...

She fingered her napkin. "So serious."

"Yes, I take my students' safety seriously."

Emi snorted. "Right."

"What?" Aizawa frowned. "Don't you start with that. Likstar is bad enough... What does she tell you?" 

"Believe me, nothing I didn't already guess," Emi said, "And fyi, Eraser, she tells me you're the only teacher at UA she thinks is a decent person other than All Might-- I don't know if that reflects well on UA, but it's got to be a compliment, right?"

"Consider the source... That woman has been nothing but a headache since she arrived. I don't know why Nezu lets them stay..." Aizawa frowned like he remembered something.

"Could it be he's afraid to let them go? No telling what they might do." Emi took a sip of her water. "Better to keep people close if you can't control them, right?"

"I disagree," Aizawa said.

"Surely you've found their talents useful, though. The kids love them," Emi said.

"Not all of them," Eraser muttered.

"Well, you can't please everyone anyway." Emi tugged her hair. "In all seriousness, Eraser...what are you going to do? We both know they're right about heroes... As far as I can see, they're just braver than us. I'd never dare to say half the stuff Likstar does, but I can't make myself disagree with it. Funny, isn't it? How she puts into words just what you've always thought, deep down."

Aizawa frowned at the table. "Even if she did, it's not wise to create more problems between people."

"Did you ever think maybe the solution could be in there somewhere?" Emi suggested, "Or are you too afraid to think that? Like, what if hero society really needed to change? Would you be a proponent of that change? Or would you hold it back because we're comfortable with it?"

Aizawa looked up finally. "What exactly are you saying?"

"I'm saying...the new generation of heroes isn't going to think like us," Miss Joke said, "I mean, if they do...well...look where it got us. You can see it coming as much as I can... An all out war between people who feel oppressed by quirk control, and those who will try to uphold it... If you ask me, preaching the idea that quirks don't matter as much as character is one that would have saved us decades ago if we'd have latched on to it. There's always been a few naysayers to how quirk obsessed we all are...but they were drowned out by the rest of us. Now, neither of us have a big enough fan base to be blinded by fame. You've never liked that aspect of what we do. Likstar is just someone who says it all out loud, isn't she? There must be a reason you let her hang around your class. Admit it, deep down, you're hoping she'll start them thinking about change."

"That's a lot of assumptions," Aizawa said, "I've never thought that."

"Oh, not consciously," Emi added, "but if I know you...well, you like to stir things up. Surely she reminds you of you in your younger days. I can still remember your lectures about fame and media getting in the way of hero work and how foolish it was for Pros to encourage it." She leaned forward intently. "Where has that man gone, Eraser? It seems to me I haven't heard that in a long time."

Aizawa was surprised she even remembered that. "I was young and inexperienced. I know now that words change nothing. If people don't want to listen, they won't. Better just try to get on with our lives."

"How depressing," Miss Joke said, "I guess typical for you... Wow...I didn't expect to feel sad this early into the night..." she sighed, "I think I prefer the annoyance."

"It's reality," Aizawa said.

Emi pursed her lips. "Words may not change anything without actions. But it could be the actions are already in place, even under your nose, and you're too busy not listening to the words to notice. Haven't you seen a change in some of your students lately?"

"Yes, they are more distracted," Aizawa grumbled.

"So someone made them not take classwork as seriously?" Miss Joke pointed out, "That's good, isn't it? There's more to life than work. More to heroism than rankings too. We're not in the top 20, maybe not even the top 50, so what do we care about applause?"

"Losing focus could be fatal for them at such a time," Aizawa said darkly.

Emi stared at him a moment, then she put down her chopsticks. "Aizawa," she used his actual name, "you cannot control everything... You know, there's something I just figured out about you recently. I always thought you were a hands off the wheel type of guy, not warning your class, and stuff...but I think, actually, you just aren't sure where you're driving, and you're trying whatever road looks like it might work. If your students are not as focused on your teaching as they used to be...it's not going to be the death of them. That's like saying only you have anything of value to teach them... That's pretty arrogant...which is what I've come to expect at this point." She frowned. "UA ruined you."

"What?" Aizawa took that personally, as well as the rest of her speech.

"I mean it, no punchline," Emi said firmly, "I don't know when it happened. It's been so many years now... That Plus Ultra philosophy turned your head at some point. It's like they broke you. I always thought you were mean to your students because you knew, deep down, it was messed up. You expelled them partly to be kind, right? I've never done that...but who else would have need of it? No one can live up to UA's standard without sacrificing something. It's insane. They keep trying to top themselves...well, it was bound to crumble sooner or later. I won't gloat about it. I'm not happy, but there are people who would... All that looking down on other schools, 'thinking farther ahead'...sheesh. Do you really believe that crap? How often do your kids even smile anymore?"

She took a deliberate sip of water to calm herself. "It makes me sad."

Silence.

Emi decided this had gone far enough. "I...wow...I'm not usually the buzz kill...sheesh.... Well, I guess that kind of ruined the evening...sorry... I should just go." She got up real fast. This was a disaster.

"Thanks anyway..." She made a mad dash for the door.

Some people turned to give Aizawa dirty looks, assuming it was his fault.

Aizawa stared at the table for a second, then he muttered, "Where does she think she's going to go without the car? D--- it," and got up and followed her.

* * *

Miss Joke only remembered about the car after she'd made it outside. "Oh...oops... Shoot...do I have enough for train fare?" She pulled out her purse. "Ah! I left my wallet in my costume... Mmm, maybe I can just use an app. How do those work again...?" She wiped her face. "I can't believe I got so worked up... Geez, this is why I should keep these interactions to a minimum and lighthearted. Too many memories come up otherwise... Why am I talking to myself?" She laughed nervously.

"Did you forget we drove here?" Aizawa said from behind her. Emi jumped. "Ah! Don't do that!"

"In the old days, you would have noticed me coming sooner. Being a teacher made you soft." Aizawa said.

"You know, I'll just take a train. I have to go home anyway," Emi said, "No need to worry about it. I just made things really awkward anyway, so a car ride would be even more uncomfortable."

She really should stop saying exactly what she thought when she was nervous...

[Nervous Miss Joke is the cutest thing, though.]

Aizawa sighed. "It's fine. Don't worry about it. Anyway, it's snowing."

Oh...yeah, it was...

"Just get in the car. Likstar can send you home faster than the train will in this weather."

"Well...uh...I guess..." Miss Joke said uneasily.

It was still awkward. The driver had a partition between, so he couldn't hear them, or for the life of her Miss Joke would have started a conversation with him to break the silence.

And after only a couple minutes Aizawa spoke. "Were you serious about all that?"

"Uh...I don't know what came over me," Emi said.

"That's not an answer."

"Well, in the heat of the moment I was, but I'd never say all that normally," Emi tried. Oh, that didn't sound better, did it?

"That's what I thought. And how long have you thought that?"

"Oh...only about the last 8 years or so..."

Silence again.

"That surprised me," Aizawa said, "I didn't think anyone noticed."

Silence, this time shocked silence.

"Well..." Emi was desperate to break the tension. "I have known you the longest probably, so...there's that."

"There'd be nothing I could do about it if it was true," Aizawa said dully, "UA would never allow it. And there's something that's been... But Nezu is probably right... Then again..."

Emi knew Shine's opinion of Nezu...and she partly agreed with it. He was creepy, in her opinion. He tried to be too cute. She knew overdone when she saw it.

"I don't suppose Likstar mentioned anything odd about Nezu to you?" she risked it.

"What? What did she tell you?" Aizawa looked up sharply.

So she had.

"She...told me the school tracks them with their IDs. Is that true?" Miss Joke said.

Pause. "It appears to be..." Aizawa admitted.

Emi thought hard, then she decided to try it. "Listen, this is a secret, okay...? The driver can't hear us, right?"

"No. He's probably listening  to music." Most of the drivers at UA were smart enough to know not to eavesdrop on conversations.

"Likstar told me something that happened today..." Emi said in a low voice, "She was meeting up with Mirko... I guess they are friends now. Makes sense, they are a lot alike in some ways... And a villain showed up while they were talking."

"What? Who?"

"I don't know. She wouldn't tell me who. But she said the villain mentioned being able to track her, and she knew she was wearing her ID... They left without a fight. Maybe they were afraid of Mirko, but isn't that concerning?"

Aizawa looked up. He knocked on the wall. The car stopped. "Get out," he said tightly.

With that tone, Emi didn't dare refuse. They both got out, and Aizawa walked off through the snow down a random enough street.

Once they were a distance away, he stopped under a streetlight. "What else did Likstar say about Nezu?"

Miss Joke looked around. "Well," she was very quiet, "she's never said it outright, but...I got the idea she suspects... Don't kill me, okay? Not my idea, but she seems to suspect he's the mole."

"She does?" Aizawa didn't even sound that surprised, just horrified. "She's never said that to him, has she?"

"No, she not stupid! In fact, what she told me was that she knew if she accused someone at UA of being the mole, she'd get sacked. And it would all be over." Emi grabbed Aizawa's arm for emphasis. "And you can't tell him any of this, got it? In fact...I suspect the LOV would attack you if she got fired."

"What? Why?"

"Because I learned one thing yesterday, Aizawa. It's that the LOV is afraid of those two. They wouldn't keep trying to take them out if they weren't. Duh. But they might not attack them anymore if they think it's not going to work. And if they are scared of them, they will stay away from your kids. They won't risk angering those two...and surely you have realized a long time ago how dangerous they could be if they used those powers against us... We'd be dead if they wanted us dead. They clearly don't. Instead Likstar has risked her life to protect your kids. Her boyfriend has helped her whenever she or they needed it, though I can't say he's as breakable... The point is, I'm not sure UA would be the same at all if they hadn't done that. If they leave...the LOV... I don't know. And there's more enemies all the time. You need them. You know it, don't you?"

Silence.

"So...let me get this straight." Aizawa sounded dreadful in a depressed way. "The LOV is only holding back because they are afraid of them. The students look up to them. And the Principal is possibly...but Nezu would never."

Emi hadn't wanted to believe it either, but hearing it out loud, suddenly her mind went very clear.

"I mean, it's the perfect cover, isn't it?"

"What?"

"No one would suspect him...but somehow, the LOV, always finds you. It's gotten ridiculous at this point."

"We decided there was no mole among the students though. Or the staff."

"Eraser...who decided that?" Emi was afraid of the answer.

Aizawa clearly was too, because it must have been at least two minutes before he answered, and by then she already knew. "Nezu."

Then he kicked the lamp post and swore under his breath. "That just can't be right. There was no reason to suspect anything until last year."

"There was no reason to suspect any of us..." Miss Joke said, "but with his IQ, a long term plan like that... I know it sounds wrong to even think it...but once you stop and look at it...who else has had the most opportunity? The most authority?"

"He's always cooperative with the police..."

"If he knew what happened, then he'd have no reason not to. They'd never trace it to him..." Miss Joke felt kind of sick. "Oh, this is sounding so horror movie now that I say it... I hope it's wrong."

"There has got to be some explanation for it," Aizawa was adamant, "Nezu wouldn't do that... Come on, he likes to have tea parties and talk about teaching philosophy."

Miss Joke frowned. "Okay, I didn't want to believe it either, Eraser, but we both know that's an idiotic reason to say he's a good person. A bad guy could like both those things too."

"Don't tell anyone about it," Aizawa said.

"I wasn't going to tell you." Emi sniffed and then shivered. It was cold. "But then I thought...I don't know, maybe it was time. This is the thing, Eraser-- if Nezu is guilty...there's not a pro around who can help you right now. He could outmaneuver all of us. He has all the dirt on everyone, I'm sure. Probably even All Might himself [you know when she's right, she's right] ... but, you know, he can't control two people, and they've fallen right into your lap."

Aizawa looked up. "You're joking."

Emi drew a deep breath. "If their story is true...maybe they were sent to UA for just this time, huh? I mean, not to get weird about it, but you need people who aren't part of the hero system involved anyway, if you don't want to...you know...lose everything at UA. People even villains don't want to mess with... Aren't they useful?"

"Why are you so adamant about this?" Eraser said.

Emi crossed her arms. "Because from the moment they brought back my student in a fraction of the time any pro would have been able to do it, I knew I was dealing with a...gift, I guess. I just think, sometimes good things line up for a reason... You know, like our agencies being next to each other, me getting to work at Ketsu-butsu, and...other stuff like that. I know, that sounds stupid...but if bad things happen as part of some scheme, why not good things too? Maybe there's two sides to it. You do care about those student, even if you won't admit it, and you can't afford to turn down any option to save them. Just...be open, okay? I might need their help again too. I'd like it to still be available."

Eraser couldn't deny some of that was true...

"You know, you're almost not so bad when you're serious... Pity it's only on rare occasions."

"And you'd not be so bad if you weren't always so grumpy," Emi retorted, "What's your point? Oh, wait, were you just hitting on me?"

"What? No!" Aizawa looked freaked out and angry at the same time. "Why would you even ask?"

"I had to make sure it was real," Miss Joke said, "If I didn't say something like that, you'd think I was a clone."

Aizawa actually smiled wryly. "Probably..."

"Wait, did you just smile...? Oh, wow...I feel all warm and fuzzy," Miss Joke said, "Light has blessed us this day! Shall I bow in gratitude?"

"Stop being ridiculous." Aizawa turned. "Moment over as soon as it began."

"Hmm, you know, sometimes I think you'd be into me if I was less...funny," Emi said.

"You call that humor? And stop it with the teasing. One dig is enough. I am not in a laughing mood."

"Who said it was teasing?" Emi said in a serious voice. Aizawa looked back at her oddly. 

She shrugged. "A wise person recently said to me that a woman doesn't spend that much time teasing a man she's not actually secretly serious about... I thought that was kind of offensive, myself. I mean, don't underestimate my ability to keep a running gag going...but still, there it is."

Silence. Aizawa really had no clue how to respond to that.

Emi shrugged again and threw up her hands. "Well, I guess we'll never know. Real mystery, huh? I figure it's better that way. If either of us took ourselves seriously...someone might get their feelings hurt. Think about what I said though, about them, that is, not just now... I'm going to go home." She pulled out her phone. "I think I know a way." She texted Shine, and not a minute later, a portal opened. 

Emi winked at Aizawa, then went through.

Aizawa just stood there for along time until he remembered the driver was still waiting in the snow...

[There, how was that for a surprising turn of events? Serious and shipping fuel at the same time. I know, I'm talented.]

* * *

"You sure you want to call off the plan?" Compress asked Shigaraki, "I think we could have had it."

"It's a waste of time," Shigaraki said, "It's too late anyway. The Pros already know what happened. Damage is done."

"But I wanted to kill her!" Toga whined, "She's creepy. And that other guy is too. He's really scary! I got death vibes from him."

"From West...the human road runner?" Dabi muttered from where he was sitting, still with a fever. The air in the lair wasn't helping him recover faster. He kept shivering.

"All that aside, it's just no longer a good idea," Shigaraki insisted, "Anyway, we don't destroy our own...or people who help them, I suppose."

"I...agree that was weird," Compress said, "but...they are not villains, you know. I'm not convinced they won't stab us in the back at some point."

"Like we did," Dabi muttered.

"Well, if that happens, we'll kill them then," Shigaraki resolved smugly.

"Okay, but what about bunny girl?" Twice spoke up, "Didn't she see too much? Should we eliminate her?"

"Nah, let Likstar deal with her own problem. That should be entertaining." Shigaraki was really hoping the Pros would get a dose of their own medicine. 

"But she won't kill her," Compress said.

"There are other ways to stop someone from talking. And it cuold be useful to let Likstar gather intel on those idiots if she's going to owe us assistance."

"You think we have the right to demand that?" Dabi sat up, a little too fast, and started coughing.

"Hey, don't strain yourself, man," Twice said.

They all looked at Dabi oddly.

"No, he's right," Spinner said, "Even Stain had rules about things like this. I don't feel, if we owe her a favor like this, it's right to expect more help."

"You should have killed her the first time she showed up," Toga whined.

"You know...that's not... It's not like we asked for any of this," Compress whined.

"Well, be that as it may, Master always said to use people if you can before you just discard them," Shigaraki said, "And I think they could be useful alive. Just look at how those Pros follow what they say. That's bound to help us in the long run if they see it as a priority to keep the law away from us."

"That's...a simultaneously sensible and wildly unrealistic way to look at it," Dabi said.

"We have other problems to worry about anyway, like those liberation groups popping up wanting our support," Shigaraki dismissed it, "I say we just ignore them, and they ignore us, and it's better for everyone. It's a waste of energy to hunt down people who aren't even fighting you."

True, Dabi thought, Why couldn't he just realize that before?

He doubted the LOV would forgive him if they knew that part of the reason it had gotten this far was his own fault. Even if Shigaraki changed his plan, Dabi had still not followed orders. He was still not trustworthy.

But more than that...Likstar had saved his miserable self anyway. Sure, she'd said she would, but he hadn't believed it. Why would she? But...

What made someone do so many kind things after they had every reason to hate you? The book was just adding insult to injury.

It was just a fictional story called The Bronze Bow. Not even an information book.

Shine had scrawled something in the front too: a list of titles, maybe for books, maybe for songs. And a note: Call me if you get in trouble again. Thank you.

Dabi had flung the book across the room when he saw that. Thank you for what? For only almost killing us instead of actually doing it?

Yeah, real man of the year he was. Only people who'd ever done anything for him in his life, and he'd tried to murder them because he was just that twisted and bitter and ready to do anything to achieve his goals.

The LOV had made him into more of a monster than he already was, and he couldn't even blame its members. They were all messed up in their own ways, but they were decent to each other. Even Toga refrained from stabbing people, which was about as nice as she got.

It wasn't their fault. He couldn't claim Shigaraki corrupted him. He was messed up already.

It was the idea of the LOV itself that was making him worse. Putting power into the hands of someone with a grudge and a goal is...well, like handing drugs to an addict.

Dabi knew, deep down, that he'd become as desperate as that. If he didn't have his hatred, he didn't have any reason to exist...and that didn't bother him...or at least, he ignored it if it did...until...

Sheesh, it wasn't even like they were close. Was just a little kindness really all it took to mess with his head? Was he that pathetic?

He slunk away from the meeting room so no one would see him cry blood from all the shame and regret going through his head...anger, too.

[Poor guy...

I'm reminded of Rocket from Guardians of the Galaxy a lot when I write Dabi. As Yondu said to him, "Just a little bit of love makes you realize how empty (or scared?) you are."

You know, I doubt anyone would disagree that even a little kindness to someone who isn't used to it can be powerful, sometimes in a bad way, like for Shigaraki. "A full soul loathes the honeycomb, but to a starving soul any bitter thing is sweet."]