Been binging the Big Hero Six series and I love it. Sure, needs to be brushed up in some aspects, but I won't be mean since it is a kid show. If you didn't guess by the fanfiction synopsis, these stories are focused on Karmi and Hiro as a ship. This romance has become a bit of a topic in the fandom, so I'll simply say I like the ship but I don't mind if you disagree, just don't be rude about it, please.

Also, I might be completely wrong in a lot of how I write these two, mostly Karmi. It based off certain headcanons I have, but the show might prove me wrong.

Characters:
Hiro X Karmi

Warning: Light swears, light violence
Disclaimer: I don't own Big Hero 6, sadly!

It was a typical day in San Fransokyo, and by that, I mean another crisis has arisen for Big Hero Six to come and fix. The day did start off normal for a certain young boy. Hiro had awoken early in the morning, roughly eight o'clock, lumbered out of bed to check on Baymax, given the poor bot ran out of battery last night, before heading down to greet his aunt and have breakfast with the gang. They were all planning to watch a ceremony at one of the local companies that were revealing a new invention.

Now, the team didn't often go to these kinds of events. They were satisfied with reading about it online. However, since their past problems involving tech being hijacked, stolen or destroyed, mostly thanks to Obake, they've been trying to keep a better eye on these kinds of open events, hoping to get a step ahead of sinister plans and keep the public safe.

Although they had gone early in the morning, the building and stage were already surrounded by the public, visitors and potential buyers. Wasabi and Honey had no trouble seeing from their position, while Gogo and Fred had decent views, but that left poor Hiro, only being 5'0 feet, unable to see anything once again. He mumbles to himself as he crossed his arms, just happy enough he could hear.

The owner of the company, if Hiro remembered correctly was a man named Tracy Copa, walked up to the edge of the stage, microphone in hand.

"Welcome to Copa Corp, I'm glad so many faces could make it today!" Tracy beamed, grinning unnaturally.

Hiro rolled his eyes to himself. He'd seen businessmen put up eager and grateful facades all the time, he could tell when one was genuine or comfortable with talking to so many people. He drowned out the man's voice for a minute, waiting for him to get to the point and reveal his new invention.

Hiro gazed around, making sure to keep an eye out for anything suspicious. Like Yama hiding in the crowd or Obake's symbol popping up suddenly. His eyes did catch something, but something he wasn't expecting.

Karmi was among the crowd, easily sticking out with her bright orange skirt and canary yellow jumper. She looked just as bored as Hiro did, not even bothering to look at the stage, eyes glued to the ground with a thinking face. Hiro did spot a man and a woman standing with her, and their resemblance to Karmi made Hiro suspect they were her parents, or relatives at least. He figured they brought her along.

Somehow, Karmi senses someone looking at her and lifted her head, looking to the side and made eye contact with Hiro. Their eyes widen before they quickly looked away, not wanting to acknowledge each other. Karmi did glance back at him, curious. He was pulling an expression, pretending he didn't see her. Karmi lightly rolled her eyes, knowing he was faking it.

Hiro kept his gaze plastered forward until he heard Tracy finally talk about the new product. Lifting his head and standing on his toes, he tried to get a good look. Wasabi noticed this and moved to the side for him.

Tracy stepped back a little as his assistant pushed a large trolley carrying the creations. They were robots, of course, called the Octo Octo. Their design seemed to be based on that of an octopus, a round ball with long mechanical tentacles. Their primary function was housework, like dusting and vacuuming, especially in those hard to reach places, clean the dishes, hang the laundry and so on. But, Tracy also added, they could be used for security, able to wrap around the attacker or bugler, squeeze tight and shock them while sending out a signal to the police.

Hiro thought the designs were interesting, but they felt a bit too similar to the Buddy-Guards made by Keri, though more on the housemaid side of programming. He just hoped they took more time to put in fail safes and remove bugs, unlike Keri.

That's when the day changed from a typical day to a typical superhero day. The blue lights on the Octos sparked, switching to a bright red. The group were first to notice, as it was an all too familiar scene. Tracy and his assistant were next to notice, then the rest of the crowd. One of the Octos dived towards Tracy, who froze in panic. Luckily, his assistant tackled him out of the way, as the Octo flew past and into the crowd.

Everyone began to scream and run for it, but the panic and shock caused a lot of property damage and people tripping over each other. Kids crying as they were separated from their parents by mistake, or screaming civilians yelling at one another to get out of the way.

'Survival of the fittest apparently' Hiro mused in his head.

He quickly became serious and looks to the others. "I'm calling in the suits, but we need to find somewhere hidden…"

Gogo spoke. "Can use one of the alleys."

The made a dash for it, pushing past members in the crowd, the only few who aren't panicked. Hiro clicked two apps on his phone, one that brings the suits to their location, another to signal Baymax, having not brought him. Quickly slipping his phone back into his pocket, he dashed behind the others.

This should have played out the usual way. Get the suits, get the people to safety then get the insane robots. However, Hiro accidentally changed up the plan when he risked looking behind him. They were near the back of the fear-filled crowd, so he saw people who had been trapped by the Octos, some even wrapped up and suffering from their electric shocks. It didn't sit right with Hiro.

But because he wasn't looking forward, he didn't see the Octo moving in front of his path until it was too late. With a loud thud, Hiro smacked into it before stumbling back, nearly falling over. The Octo didn't seem phased, flicking out a tentacle to grab the boy. Yelping, Hiro rolled to the side, narrowly dodging it.

The team finally noticed their youngest member had fallen behind, being stalked by one of the rogue robots.

"Hiro!" Honey called out, ready to dash in to help.

Hiro heard her call and flicked his gaze to them, waving his hand frantically. "Go! I can handle myself!"

Honey was going to yell back in disagreement, but Gogo placed a hand on her shoulder. Going back into the chaos could result in all of them being attacked, meaning no one could save them. They'd have a better chance of saving Hiro once suited up.

Honey looks to Gogo, hurt in her eyes. She knew it was for the best, but that didn't stop her from worrying. "A-alright, just be careful!"

Hiro returned his gaze to the Octo. 'Careful as I can be with walking calamari here…' His brain mumbled to himself.

The group took off, heading to the location where their suits would meet them, along with Baymax. Hiro just had to fend for himself until they could arrive, which was easier said than done.

The Octo pounced over at him, giving him only a second to react. Hiro hops back, nearly tripping over some dents in the ground. It swung a tentacle at him. Hiro dodged again, but it nicked his shoulder. He hissed in pain and quickly placed a hand over it. It didn't break the skin as far as he could tell, just felt more like a harsh slap. He needed to find a way to damage it, destroy it if he could.

His attention was caught by a familiar scream, the owner belonging to someone he saw earlier. He moved his sight, spotting Karmi backed up against a wall, one of the Octos slipping off an unconscious body it had just fried, targeting the girl. Hiro knew he had to help, despite their rocky relationship.

Looking back at the robot locked on him, he brews a plan in his head. Without a second thought, he turned and dashed towards Karmi's attacker. As expected, the Octo followed Hiro, coded to take down its target by all means possible. Hiro nearly ran into the Octo about to lunge at Karmi, but with his heroic skills he's been learning from his work, he slid under it, thankful it was holding its body high enough to slide under. The Octo took a moment to look down, seeing the boy slide under it, coming to a stop on its right side. When it heard more movement, it turned as the other robot, still fixated on Hiro, bolted into it by mistake, causing them to both suffer from dents and cracks, evening breaking one of their lenses.

Hiro knew they'd recover quickly, so he dashed over to Karmi who was lost for words. "Quick, follow me!"

Karmi nodded faintly and followed behind him, eyes wide with confusion and fear, but not willing to disagree with her rival. "What's going on?" She gasped at him.

Hiro narrowed his eyes, but not at her. He was looking out at the rampage of rogue robots. "I think something went wrong in the coding…"

"A simple code error shouldn't cause this much destruction, right?" Karmi questioned. While she wasn't a robotics student, she was smart enough to know there's more to it.

Hiro knew she was right. Obake's name fluttered in the back of his mind, as Hiro knew he would be the first suspect on the list. But he didn't have time to think, nor any evidence, as he heard something explode. Both young teens stopped in their tracks, looking for the location of the sound. At first, they only saw the damages, a hole in the ground with scorch marks. But an Octo nearby provided an answer for what happened. It sparked, twitching as it was frozen in place. It had been overusing energy from shocking so many people, as it was not designed to take out so many. It's tentacles flung about before it exploded, leaving only a few reminds behind.

"That's not good…" Hiro gulped, his body tensing up as he knew this was going to get worse.

Karmi shared a similar look of dread with Hiro, but her attention was caught when an Octo was stalking towards them, electricity already sparking out of it. Her eyes widen with panic, but she reacted quickly.

"Move!" She blurted, blood rushing.

Hiro caught her warming and ran with her, narrowly dodging being shocked by a robotic octopus. But they weren't out of the clear, as the moment it landed it started chasing them, a few others following it. The pair ran alongside the building, looking for means of defence or protection, maybe even an escape if they were lucky.

A small part of their prays was answered, Hiro seeing the door leading into the building. They were sturdy, and Hiro could hack into them to lock the bots out, but they'd have to be quick. Pushing his feet against the ground, be leapt forward and pulls the door open.

"In here!" He called out to Karmi.

Said girl once again didn't argue, immediately rushing in, Hiro following behind and slamming the door shut. He dashed over to the control panel, pulling the front of it off and looked through the wires.

"Karmi, hold the door close." He ordered, focusing on locking the door.

She looked at him with a slack jaw. "You kidding me!? I'm only, like, sixteen, I can't block the door with a bunch of robots-!"

"Just try!" He huffed, patience already thin from being chased around by killer creations.

Karmi bit the inside of her mouth, stepping back to the door. An Octo cracked it open a little before she rammed into it, pushing it back outside and keeping the door shut. However, her body weight wasn't going to be enough with three of those things outside. They already began clawing at the door, trying to shove themselves in.

"A-Arg, how long does it take to hack a door?!" Karmi hollered at him.

"Just give me a moment!" He ranted back. He could generally hack faster, but he wasn't in the most relaxing of situations.

Karmi turned her attention back to the door, sweat beading down her forehead as she put all of her strength into keeping the drones out. Her feet were beginning to slip, and her tense body was getting sore, but adrenaline refused to give in. She looked outside through glass doors, almost gasping as her eyes locked onto one of the Octos. The one that nearly dropped on Hiro was twitching more, spazzing out much like the one that blew up.

"Hiro!" Karmi yelped.

Hiro growled under his breath. "I'm going as fast as I can-!"

Karmi knew she couldn't waste time with this. She had to take a risk. Closing her eyes as she took a sharp breath, she cut off Hiro as she dived towards him, tackling him and sliding across the clean marble ground together. The Octo burst, exploding where it stood. But with the two other Octos near it, they too exploded, tripling the damage. Many of the supports were broken, at the very least cracked. Without them, some of the roof and walls caved in, blocking the entrance and halls to other rooms. Outside light vanished, while the inside light flickered before fading away, nothing powering them anymore.

Hiro's ears were ringing from the blast, it took him a moment to even hear his own breathing. He could smell the dust from the debris, smoke from the broken bots, along with something sweet yet natural…

Shuffling a little, he found he couldn't move. He cracked an eye open, but he could barely see without any source of light. For a moment, he thought he was trapped under some rubble, but it was too soft. It was when he heard a soft groan, he realised it was Karmi on top of him.

"My head…" She mumbled, placing a hand on her forehead.

"...K-Karmi…" Hiro croaked, thankful the darkness was hiding his blushing face.

Karmi's eyes widen, hearing how close his voice was and knowing she was on top of him. She yanked herself off of him, falling into a sitting position. They were both embarrassed and shocked, but glad they didn't see each other like that.

Hiro placed his hands on the ground, pushing himself up to sit. He felts cracks in the ground, along with dust and small bits of rubble. His eyes narrowed as he tried looking around but still couldn't see anything. He looked forward, hearing something, only to be blinded by a bright light, yelping in shock, along with Karmi.

"Ah!" Karmi nearly dropped her phone, having pulled it out to use as a light source.

Hiro frantically rubbed his eyes, blinking a few times harshly before his vision settled. "Give me a warning next time" Hiro complained, finally frowning at the girl.

She gave an unamused look. "I didn't know where you were facing…"

"Still, a warning would have been nice!" He ranted, throwing his arms in the air.

She merely rolled her eyes at him. He was about to comment but thought better of it. Karmi shined her phone around, revealing the damage. Most walls were broken, cracks left in those that were still standing. The last few pillars that were inside the room didn't look like they'd last long, especially with the roof looking like it was about to fall any minute. The door was nowhere to be seen, or even windows and halls. The once fancy lobby was now looking like it fit in an apoplastic movie. The pair seemed to fit in as well. Covered in dust or grime, small tears in their clothes and ragged hair. Well, Karmi's hair looked shaggy and unclean, Hiro's looked mostly the same.

"I don't see a way out…" Karmi whispered as if she was short of breath. Most likely from shock.

"And we can't risk digging our way out...there's barely any support" Hiro added, brain already processing ideas for a way out.

"So, no going near the walls?" Karmi asked, looking down at him.

"No going near the walls" Hiro confirmed.

Karmi frowned, shining the light at him. "Why did you even lead us here in the first place? Now we're trapped."

Hiro glared at her, holding up a hand to shield his eyes from the light. "Excuse me, I was trying to save you."

"And look how that worked out…" She fumed, turning away with the light.

"God, can we not do this right now?" Hiro argued.

Karmi paused, staring at nothing. She groaned to himself and rubs her face. "Alright, alright…"

Hiro was a little surprised at how easily she agreed. Then again, they were trapped and could die. But they were stuck together, and Hiro feared a day like this would happen. Not necessarily trapped under a building that could collapse, but locked in a room together or in an awkward elevator ride. He didn't have a good feeling this would go well.

Karmi turned her phone around, typing on it. "I'll try and see if I can call for help…"

Hiro decided to take his phone out too. "I'll see what I can do…"

With that, they both turned away. Hiro quickly started texting the team, hoping they had their suits and were already beating down the bots. He vaguely tuned in on Karmi's call. She had called the police at one point, but then someone else. He got a few words out of it everytime he keyed in.

"Fine...stuck with a guy...need someone to...no...dad please…" Her tone kept shifting, sometimes sounding professional, then tired, annoyed or even a hint of sadness.

Hiro didn't question, staying out of her business. Instead, he wrote down his situation before sending it off to the group. Since Karmi already called the police, he didn't know what else to do. So while Karmi was still on her call, most likely with her dad, he sat there in silence.

Wasabi fixed on his helmet when his phone beeped. Taking it out, his eyes glanced over the message before he called to the others. "Guys, Hiro sent a message!"

Honey was the first one other, still worried for the boy. "Is he ok?"

Wasabi waited for Fred and Gogo to come over before reading the message. "I need help. Some of the Octos built up too much energy and blew up, trapping Karmi and me inside the building. I don't know how long the roof will hold."

Honey nearly gasped, quickly covering her mouth. Gogo's eyes narrowed, wanting to waste no more time. But Fred spoke.

"Hero and love interest trapped together! I bet there'll be some relationship growth." He nearly giggled.

Gogo scowled at him, slapping him before dashing off.

"Ow!" He yelped in pain, rubbing his face. "You know it's true!" He yelled out at her, flipping his kaiju mask over his face.

"Please be ok, Hiro…" Honey whispered to herself, following after Gogo with the others.

"..."

"..."

"...So...how's the weather?" Hiro quipped awkwardly, thinking about lightening the mood.

Karmi looked at him. "Seriously?"

"Hey, just trying to make light conversation" Hiro defended.

"I'd rather the silence." Karmi huffed, crossing her arms.

"Cause it'd boring, like you." Hiro retorted.

Furrowing her eyebrows, she scoffed. "At least it's more intelligence than what you ever say."

"I'm pretty sure silence can't get a PhD" Hiro smirked, always fond of jokes in arguments.

Karmi didn't seem to have as much joy as he did. "Why do you always have to act like a brat?"

"Well, why do you always have to act like a stuck-up jerk?" Hiro rebuked.

"Because I want you to stop talking to me," Karmi growled, her nose wrinkling up in anger.

"Why? What did I ever do, like seriously? I hi say to you and you get offended." Hiro quizzed her, frustration boiling.

"I want you to leave me alone, that's why. And what you did? For one, you killed my first virus, then ditched. You threw a chair at me along with spraying ketchup on me at lunch. You degraded my writing and stories. You always try to prove you're better than me!" She threw her hands in the arm as she listed off.

Hiro snorted. "I said I was sorry about the virus. The chair and ketchup was an accident. Your fanfictions are cringy, and I'm just expressing my geniuses."

"Oh yes, of courseeee. God, you're the stuck up one." A scowl formed on her face, eyes narrowing.

"How am I stuck up?" Hiro demanded to know. He was ready to listen and debunk her reasonings.

"You wanna know why? Well, first off the moment you come here you already have four close friends and companion, people to help you or look out for you despite not even knowing them for a whole year yet. Second, you always try to one-up people with your intelligence. I get it, you're smart, especially for your age and I'll admit that, but some people can do things you can't, along with not flaunting their talents in people's faces. Third, the teachers like Granville always have their attention on you. What about other students or me? She even gave you a lab despite being a new coming, you didn't work for it! I know it was your brother's lab but just….just…" She stopped herself, holding back her sharp tongue. She could yell at Hiro all she wanted, but she wouldn't go far enough to bring up his brother, so she cut herself off.

Hiro simply stared at her, his expression still on edge, but softened up. He didn't say anything, watching her try and calm herself down. Wrapping her arms around her legs, she pulled herself in, chin resting on her knees.

"...I never got any of that. Sure, people thought it was impressive that I got in at a young age and I could get along with the teachers. But I still had to work hard to get where I was, and I don't even have half of what you have." She admitted, trying to stop herself from stuttering. "I don't get what makes you so special and me pointless."

Hiro grumbled a sigh. He rubs his forehead, seeing what this all about. "Karmi, you're not pointless."

"That's not for you to decide," Karmi mumbled.

Hiro looked back at her, tone shifting quick as he tried thinking of the right words. "What about Liv Amara? She thought you were better than me." He begrudgingly pointed out.

"Ya, and I'm thankful for that. But you always remind me of what I don't have." She sighed. "You act bratty or full of yourself sometimes, I know you even have a bit of an illegal history." She raised a brow at him.

Hiro didn't say anything, rubbing the back of his head as he eyes glanced away.

"And yet people respect you, and you've made so many bonds or friends in nearly a year." Karmi turned her gaze away, breathing softly before whispering. "More than I have my entire life…"

"What was that?" Hiro thought he heard her correctly, but wanted to make sure.

She lifted her head. "How many real friends do you think I've had in my whole life?" She asked, a deadpan expression slapped on her face.

"Ah, I don't know." He rubbed the back of his head again. "Fifteen, fourteen?"

"Two." She corrected him, almost wincing like it hurt to remind herself. "And I haven't seen them in years. Both from kindergarten."

Hiro softly blinked, gazing at her, but not with a look of confusion, but one of understanding. He had a few friends here and there, but that was when he was rather young, and they never lasted long. Once he started going up grades, he stopped bothering making friends.

"The moment you joined SFIT, it felt like you gained everything, while I lost what I had left." Her eyes narrowed but quickly relaxed. She wasn't willing to get angry again.

"I wasn't handed everything. It took work and me giving up on a lot of things." His mind briefly flashes memories of his bot fighting days. They were a part of him, despite how bad they were. "But it was for the better."

"Still. You have friends, knowledge, a lab, respect...and a rival you hate." Karmi mumbled, closing her eyes briefly.

Hiro flicked his head around. "Karmi, I don't hate you."

She sat there in silence, her face darkening. Her mind was dancing his words around. Surely he was lying or giving her pity, almost everyone did. Other students said things about her, all those bullies from high school who left her to be a loner, losing her trust and desire for friendship. They always would end bitterly, wouldn't they? Someone backstabbing her and pushing her down the stairs, leaving her behind. Yes, he had to be lying. It made her wonder why she started opening up suddenly as if she was comfortable enough to tell him.

She shook her head and stood, holding her phone close. "Nevermind, can we go back to silence?"

Right there, Hiro recognised that look, that tone of voice and positioning. Too many times had he been like that around Tadashi everytime he brought up a point or made Hiro look at the truth. Living in a lie felt better than being beaten by the truth. But in reality, the lie was pulling them down somewhere dark, while the truth was smacking sense into them. He had to tell himself that bot fighting was terrible, that he would never get anywhere with it. He had to see that trying to get Baymax to kill Callaghan was wrong. He had to know that no matter what, Tadashi's presence would still be here. But right now, it wasn't him who needed someone like Tadashi, it was Karmi.

Standing too, Hiro stepped over to her. "I know what you've been through."

She didn't say anything, barely reacting to her words. She hoped that if she ignored him, he'd leave her alone.

Hiro bit the inside of his cheek. He wasn't the best with words, like his brother. "I had no one when growing up. All the kids were older than me, picked on me and I always the odd one out." He perked up when she mumbled something. "What?"

"...You had your aunt...and brother." She repeated, slightly louder.

"...What about you? I saw your parents earlier." Hiro questioned.

She breathed out a soft laugh, but one full of sadness, even annoyance. "I don't even know why I had me if I'm honest."

Hiro squinted in confusion, waiting to see if she'd continue. As he hoped, she did.

Holding a weak and false smile on her face, she spoke. "I feel more like their little trophy. Wanting the best from me, all my work to be perfect and excellent. No matter how hard I try, they would always point out a flaw. I know to take criticism, but nothing ever felt satisfying with them. Was always work, work, work for them."

It was starting to make sense. Karmi always wanted to prove her best, seeking approval from almost any adult figure, whether teachers or people like Liv Amara. She barely received it from her parents, and lacking that can make you feel empty, even worthless inside. But Hiro never had that. Tadashi and Aunt Cass always encouraged him, praised him on his work, when not used for something illegal, and would be amazed at what he could do. Trying to imagine what it would be like if those two neglected him, Hiro couldn't even imagine it.

"I love science and biotech. I always have but...sometimes I feel like I'm wasting my time, that I'm not trying hard enough." She turned a bit, eyes still facing away from the boy.

"Granville still approves of you." Hiro noted.

"Ya, but I've seen the way you've both been connecting." Karmi grumbled.

"But she's still your teacher. Honestly, if you want to spend more time with her just talk to her. I have, even when she's not in the mood." Hiro smiled lightly, fondly remembering some moments where he's entered Granville's office when she wasn't expecting anyone.

But Karmi didn't look convinced, eyes still glued to the darkness. That when Hiro decided to reveal something, hoping that it would help in the situation, rather than ruin it.

"When she ah...had us first meet and get you to help me. It was really for me to help you." That caught her attention, but he raised his hands before she could speak. "But not because she wanted me to teach you something with science or keep an eye on you. But rather to help you with social problems. She was worried, Karmi, worried for you. And while I get someone shouldn't force a friendship, sometimes you need a little push."

"She was worried?..." She looked back at him finally.

Hiro nodded, stepping a little closer. "There's nothing wrong with having private time by yourself. But being alone forever isn't healthy." He rubbed a hand through his hair. "Yes, I had Tadashi and Aunt Cass. But that's what helped me get here, what made me turn my path to a better future. You need someone like that as well, even if...it's hard...and you argue with them." Tadashi's voice hummed in the back of his mind. All those times he could have said he was sorry or tell him he loved him, he no longer had the chance. "It's scary to be connected with something. Some days you might be yelling your heads off at one another, disagreeing as you both have different views. But once it settles and you know you care for them, along with them caring for you, it's the best feeling in the world. Something many take for granted…" He took a deep breath. "I lost the closest person I had and shut away from people. I felt like blaming the world, others and myself, afraid to feel that pain again. Maybe not rejection, but loss. I didn't want to risk another bond like that. But that was one of my most stupid thoughts ever. It stopped me from recovering, tearing the wounds even deeper." He placed a hand on her shoulder, causing them both to make eye contact. "Opening up helped, connecting with people again. I didn't have to be friends with Honey lemon, Gogo, Fred and Wasabi. I could have rejected them, thinking it would be better than suffer losing them. But I did, they help ease the pain, listen to me when I need someone to rant to, or even hold me when I can't say or do anything…"

Her eyes were locked on his, brown laying over brown. Never had she ever heard Hiro sound so...mature, honest and heartfelt. The closest she ever got was him comforting her after Trengrove kicked her out, but that was nothing compared to this. But those negative thoughts still lingered, whispering it was all a lie. She stepped back, shuffling past some rubble.

"Why? Even after everything I've said and done, you still try and be my friend." Quavering, she tried steading herself.

"I had a feeling something was going on behind. Trust me, I know what it's like acting shitty around others who are trying to help." Hiro mused.

"My actions are still my own. I still acted horribly to you." She stated, understand what she has done was wrong.

"I know, we can't give excuses for our actions, but owning up to them is a start. Let's not forget, I haven't been the kindest to you. I called you things, judged you and have even...got...kind of...jealous."

That put a small but humble smirk on her face, hearing Hiro admit to jealousy. But that just proved he was right, accepting your actions rather than blaming others.

He gave a light smile back briefly. "Even those comments I said about your stories."

Her smile faulted, eyes looking away again. "No, I get it. I shouldn't be fantasising about those kinds of things...especially since it is with a real person."

"Hey, I've seen fanfiction that was nowhere near as cringy as yours." Hiro chuckled lightly, remembering those days he'd scroll through websites and read stories, finding some unpleasant ones. But bringing up her fanfictions made him question something. "...What is it about-...Captain Cutie...that made you like him so much? You don't know him."

Karmi's face showed she was thinking. She needed the right words to explain without making her sound like a hormonal teen. "The fact that he and his friends are...perfect perfect. Not as in they don't have flaws or could never do wrong. They're powerful people, saving the city daily and deal with damages beyond anything I could imagine, and yet they feel so human." She hugged her phone, dreaming about her experiences with Big hero 6. "I've seen them make mistakes, get into arguments and get put done. Yet they always find a solution and never give up. They use their hearts and brains to find a way out and save everyone, willing to protect people even if they don't know them. They put themselves out there, which make them the bravest people I've ever seen. And with that, deep down...I just felt they would be some of the few people to accept me." Lightly, she placed a hand on her chest. "They work with flaws, willing to take the time to help and always try to see the bigger picture. I figured that'd see past how I act and maybe...like me." A gentle blush crept onto her face. "And Captain Cutie, despite not being the strongest physically, still leads them and finds a way out for them. I know he has a drive pushing him to be great, a drive I admire." Her lips curled up into a soft smile.

Hiro, fixated on her words, felt a light blush on his face too. Thankful the light wasn't pointed at him, he quickly snapped out of it. "Well, you did meet them and share ideas with them."

Her blissful smile faded again. "I know, and that made me so happy. But would it ever be more than a dream?" She looked at him. "I'm just another face in the crowd, another person for them to save."

His eyes looked down. Sometimes it was so hard to have people talk about your alter ego without knowing it was you, because you could never be honest or straight up with them. He lifted his head, looking back at her. "I think you need to have more faith you're a little special to them."

Her eyes gazed over him. She saw no hints of snark or lies, he was genuinely trying to comfort and encourage her. It felt strange, but she liked it."Thanks…"

Hiro felt a warm feeling in his heart. The fact he managed to sit down, talk to her and help her, it was special, something he didn't think he could pull off. He wondered if this was how Tadashi felt when getting Hiro to go to college. "Anytime." She smiled back at her.

But now the two were in silence again, but it wasn't as awkward. Yet Karmi felt she needed to say something, given he had already comforted her.

"Hiro, I'm so-" But she was cut off from something digging.

Flicking around to the source of sound, they saw some of the rubble moving around. Something or someone was digging their way in. Hiro grinned, thinking the team had finally found them and were trying to get them out.

"That must be help!" He beamed, already dashing past Karmi.

She was ready to follow too, but as she shined her phone over to the location, something didn't feel right. Listening to her gut, she called to Hiro. "Wait, I don't think-!" Once again, being cut off.

Instead of help, it was instead the opposite of that. An Octo had dug its way in, having taken time to stabilise a tunnel that wouldn't crush it by the time it reached the two. Hiro only had a moment to react, sliding to a stop but stumbling over broken debris.

Instantly locking onto the boy, he leapt forward and tackled him. He had nowhere to run in time, so he couldn't dodge. The boy and bot slammed onto the ground. Hiro grunted, gasping as he held back a cry of pain. It simply felt like a massive ball of metal was dropped onto him, trapping his arms and legs.

"Hiro!" Karmi cried out.

He struggled under the Octo, trying to wriggle out. It predicted this and wrapped its metal tentacles around him, tightening hard enough so he couldn't move. The poor boy's lungs were being crushed, making he light-headed from a lack of oxygen. But he feared what would happen next, knowing it would shock him into he blacked out. With shaky eyes, he looked straight into its lenses. If this was Obake, then he could almost feel that man's gaze through the camera.

He was ready to accept his fate, tensing up for the torture. But he heard bellowing scream from Karmi. He didn't have time to look at her as the Octo was knocked off by a chunk of a broken piece of the floor. It smashed into the floor, it's light flicking as it struggled to stay online.

Hiro wasn't sure what to believe. That it could be taken down by a piece of marble, or that Karmi managed to chuck that at it. He certainly would remind himself to never piss her off if there were rocks around.

Karmi dashed in, reaching out to Hiro and grabbing his hand. "Come on!" She tugged him to his feet, barely giving him a second to steady himself before dragging him to the tunnel.

It was big enough for them, but it wasn't going to hold for long. Karmi felt tiny chips of the roof drop on her. She tugged on Hiro's hand harder, using her strength to help him move faster. She was the first out of the tunnel, nearly blinded by the sky and street lights. She ignored them and spun around to the tunnel. She heard it rumbling as it started to collapses, so she yanked Hiro out and they both rolled away from the tunnel that fell apart. Seconds later, the room they were stuck in collapsed on itself.

Panting heavily, almost a lost of words, she looked to Hiro. He coughed, waving the dust away. He was fine, just needed a moment to breathe. Karmi's blood was still pumping, adrenaline still kicking body. She was just glad it was over.

An Octo did dive down at them, and they wouldn't have noticed if not for a pink ball smacking into it, sticking it to the wall and bursting into slime. Almost panicked, the teens looked behind them, relaxing once seeing it was Honey Lemon who saved them.

"Hi-!" Honey stopped herself, knowing Karmi was right there. "Are you both alright?" She corrected herself.

"We are now…" Karmi waved.

"Ya, just...give me a minute." Hiro didn't care as he laid down, arms and legs spread out as he finally steadied his breathing.

Karmi simply gave a small smile, glad he was safe. But Fred, once again, ruined the moment.

"Are they holding hands?" He whispered rather loudly.

That's when Karmi and Hiro realised they hadn't let go of each other's hands. Hiro sat back up again, looking down at their hands with Karmi. Both let go at the same time, they yanked their hands back and looked away, but Hiro could faintly hear Fred snickering.

All the drones were destroyed by the time the police and ambulances arrived. The company would surely suffer, but they apologised to the town for what happened. Big Hero 6 was even helpful in explaining that this wasn't their fault.

Hiro had been sitting by an ambulance, having just been looked over. He didn't have anything major, just bruises and cuts, so he didn't need to go to the hospital. Right now, he was waiting for his aunt to come to pick him up. Distracting himself, he doodled in a notebook he borrowed from one of the medics. Fading out all the noises, he nearly didn't see Karmi walking past him.

Glancing up, he saw she seemed to be in the same sat as him, though she had a comfort blanket on her. Her expression seemed quiet, as if something wasn't right.

"Karmi?" He spoke.

She nearly jumped, having not noticed him either. She turned to him, eyes a little wide.

Standing, Hiro wandered over to her. "Hey, so I was-"

"Karmi?" A woman's voice was heard nearby.

Karmi seemed to stiffen and turned away from Hiro, ignoring him. Hiro frowned, a little annoyed that after what they just went through she was back to this. But he soon saw why, not taking it to heart, as her parents rushed to her.

"We've been trying to find you. Why didn't you tell us you were by the ambulances?" Her father questioned, a hint of worry in his voice.

"I just ah...was a little in shock." Karmi stuttered.

Her mother sighed, rubbing a hand in Karmi's hair. She pulled back, showing the layer of dust now on her hand. "Just look at you...come on, need to clean you up."

Karmi sighed to herself, rubbing her arm. "Yes, mum…"

Hiro raised a hand, wanting to say something. But after hearing about what her parents were like, he didn't want to risk anything. However, he did slip something into Karmi's pocket when she wasn't looking, hoping she'd find it later.

Karmi didn't glance back at Hiro. It felt bad to do so, but she didn't need her parents questioning her about him, she wasn't ready for that. His words still needed to settle in too, but she didn't know how long. After all, you can't change yourself in a day.

Karmi ran a towel through her hair, drying it off after her shower. She was now lounging around in her pyjamas, sitting down on her bed. It took her hours to remove all the grime and dust, even finding a few pebbles in her hair.

Placing her towel down, she reached over to her desk for her hairbrush. As she did, her hands hovered past the items she had removed from her pockets from before, as her clothes needed washing. It was her standard items, a phone, pen, extra hair ties and some money. But that's when she noticed an additional item, a folded piece of paper.

Puzzled, she took it and folded it open. At first, she thought it was some notes she scribbled down in class, but she knew this handwriting wasn't hers.

"Hey, I know you might still be on iffy terms with me. But if you ever want to talk...like forget about this whole rivalry thing for a moment, can text or call me anytime.

Hiro~"

At the bottom was a series of numbers. She knew it must have been his phone number. Her light shock was replaced by a smile. It would take time for her to warm up and move on, but she could work with this for now.

She reached over to her phone, adding the number to her contacts.