The weapons had their own bag. Izuku had told Momo about the possible demon presence on their class trip and she had taken it about as well as he expected. Though her lips said that it was fine, and she trusted him to take care of it, he could hear her heartbeat announce a stressful thought.

It was fine, though.

He held her hand on the way to the school. It was a quiet morning, and despite the presence of her parents in the front of the expensive looking car there was not much talking going on. Momo was leaning against him, still overdressed for the weather, but more comfortable than ever.

When they arrived at the gates of U.A., it was to the presence of five pro heroes blocking the road. Aizawa-sensei stood at their front, his eyes glowing for a moment before waving them in.

The fact that Izuku and Momo stepped out of the large car together did not go unnoticed. The one jeering whistle from Mina aside, though, nobody approached as Momo's parents stepped out as well, unlocking the trunk.

"It'll be good to get out of the stuffy city for once," Mrs. Yaoyorozu said, watching as Izuku pulled out all the bags. Two for each of them, one with their clothes and essentials and two smaller bags where their weapons were hidden.

Though small was relative. Momo's own weapon was still massive, and she lifted it with one arm, taking it off his shoulder with an appreciative nod.

"I imagine so," Izuku said. "But I don't think it'll be a vacation."

"I'm sure it'll be quiet enough," Mr. Yaoyorzu said. He pursed his lips."Unforeseen circumstances aside."

Izuku wasn't sure if a demon was that unforeseen. At this point he would have to expect that a quiet week was too much to ask for, and an easy enemy was a much easier prayer to pray.

"Have fun, dear," Mrs. Yaoyorozu said, hugging her daughter. Momo nodded into her mother's hug, and the woman let go, moving on to Izuku. "You too, Izuku. Keep her safe."

Izuku nodded, and Mrs. Yaoyorozu's iron grip ended up around him before he could say another word. He could see Mr. Yaoyorozu say goodbye to his daughter as well. "I will."

"I know you will, I just want to remind you," Mrs. Yaoyorozu said. "You're a good man, Izuku. You've shown that time and time again. Keep her safe, and keep yourself safe for her sake."

Izuku's fist clenched at his side as he nodded once more. The woman let go of him, smiling widely. With a pat on his back from her husband, he walked into the gate, Momo at his side.

There were two busses instead of one, and a few students who towered over the others. Third years, Izuku realized. Faces he would call familiar, people he had no doubt seen on the campus before and perhaps even before then, during the sports festivals of the years before he became a student.

"Good morning," Izuku said, greeting his class. 1-B stood near their own teacher, Vlad King. Aizawa-sensei was unfortunately busy with the screening of arriving students, which meant that Midnight was taking care of class 1-A. She looked down at her list and marked off their names.

"Good morning, buddy," Kirishima said, walking up to him and throwing his arm around his shoulders. "Are you ready for vacation?"

"I wish," Izuku said, looking towards class 1-B. A familiar face was among the crowd. Though he was still as tall and imposing as he used to be, something about his features had softened. His fists were no longer clenched, he wasn't leaning against anything, and he looked almost at ease even as Monoma was trying to taunt him about something.

Katsuki Bakugou just wasn't the same without largely unnecessary cursing and arrogant rises to taunts. Their eyes met, but rather than glare and scowl, the young man gave him a nod.

Izuku nodded back.

"You think something will happen?" Kirishima said. Izuku blinked, concerned about the serious tone of voice. Pursing his lips, Izuku raised his own arm over Kirishima's shoulder.

"I wish I could say no," Izuku admitted. He already knew one thing that would happen, but if someone knew enough about U.A.'s mostly secret class trip plans, which were not even told to the students, there was no guarantee that nothing else was going to hit them.

"Well," Kirishima said, a soft chuckle escaping his throat. "I suppose whatever comes, we'll have the little town samurai on our trip, huh?"

"And me!" a voice behind them said. They turned around, letting go of each other, their gaze following a broad chest until they met a rather plain face. A blond, blue eyed, and very tall third year who smiled at them. "Good morning. Do you have everything packed up and ready to go?"

"Yes," Izuku said, nodding. "You're… Togata-senpai, right?"

Izuku remembered the name quite well. This boy won the first and second year sports festivals with a massive lead. He had a nickname in the school that Izuku couldn't quite remember.

"That's right!" The upperclassman's booming voice was accompanied by a bright smile. "And you're Izuku Midoriya. You've made quite a name for yourself, little samurai."

"Ahaha, yes," Izuku said, trying to laugh it off. The fact that his name had spread wasn't a surprise, but that his upperclassmen would take notice was not something he had considered before. "It's kind of embarrassing, I don't feel like I deserved all that attention."

"Well, you probably didn't until you fought that girl on top of USJ," Togata-senpai said, giving him a thumbs up. "Never fear the short-lived fame, Midoriya-kun. All publicity is good publicity for a hero aspirant."

"I'll keep that in mind," Izuku said, nodding. Kirishima laughed at Togata's antics, the young man nodding up as well.

"Any tips for people to stand out, then?" Kirishima asked. Togata smiled, nodding.

"Fight hard, and fight loud," Togata said. Izuku couldn't help but smile at the advice. Togata embodied it already. Though he looked rather plain, besides his stature, he certainly held a presence that made Izuku think of pro heroes he had met. If he would compare it to someone, he would say that Mirio might be even better than some of the pros that he had worked with so far.

Aizawa-sensei approached with the rest of the staff. "We're going to take the bus to the airport. I expect you to be on your best behavior, understood?"

"Yes!" the class shouted together. Something felt off. Like the air was becoming much heavier. Izuku noted Togata's harsh stare towards the bus and then out towards the gates.

A book couldn't be judged by its cover. The glare the third year was putting on was enough to put Izuku on edge.

Izuku's fist was wrapped up by Momo's hand, who led him into the bus and towards their seats.

Today was a bit hectic. Eri was unsure just how important it was to move from the home that she had gotten used to over the past months. While Nezuko was calm and collected as always, Inko in contrast was almost comically frantic. She ran around as if she was afraid of missing anything she wanted to pack, despite the nice men in suits helping out wherever they could. Two trucks were filled to the brim with most of their clothes and furniture.

"People who hate Izuku will try to hurt us," Nezuko said, unconcerned and unamused by the thought. Eri nodded, though she didn't understand.

"Why would anyone hate Izuku-nii?" Eri asked. Nezuko's eyes shifted from her to Inko, who had ended up sitting on the TV stand after the TV had been removed, looking through a picture book.

"There's some people who will hate him for being associated with me," Nezuko said. "I'm quite old, as you may know. And the longer you live, the more people you will meet who do not like you."

"That's sad," Eri said, her shoulders sagging. She knew, of course, because she was the target of such discontent, but it was still something she wished were different. "Why can't people just get along?"

"It is a sad truth," Nezuko began. "That sometimes people simply cannot align their personalities. The one thing that I had to learn when growing up was that you cannot become friends with everyone, and that it is not your fault. Not everyone has to be your friend, and you do not have to be friendly to everyone."

"Izuku-nii tries to be friendly," Eri said. "He smiles, even when he's sad. And he laughs to make me laugh."

Nezuko's hand came up to Eri's hair, brushing a few strands over the horn that became visible when she looked down. Eri looked up again, frowning.

"It's because heroes are there to make people smile," Nezuko said, smiling down at the girl. It was a soft and comforting smile, one that Eri had rarely seen but always admired. "He's a hero, isn't he?"

"Yes," Eri said, nodding. To her, he was the greatest hero. They stepped out of the house, Inko following after them with the album in hand. Eri could see tears in her eyes, but said nothing.

Of course, peace could not hold long.

Eri knew something was wrong from the get go. It was that strange sense of imminent danger that she had learned from her years as a lab rat. The dread of knowing exactly when that door would open and it was not one of her caretakers but Overhaul. Perhaps it was the way he walked, perhaps it was the smell of antiseptics that was always surrounding him, or perhaps it was that presence of malicious intent.

She was certainly going to assume it was the latter here. Eri turned around to find a man standing but two steps away from her. He was masked, not in the way villains were but close enough. He wore a well fitting suit, though it did not look gaudy or expensive. The mask hid everything above his mouth, revealing only a dirty grin of clean teeth.

She blinked and he was in front of her, like the monster from a horror movie. His fingers were nearly touching her face. Nezuko moved in the corner of her vision, her blue blade flashing and cutting down-

It sounded like a broken clock. Shattering glass, ticking seconds that stretched on longer and longer. Eri could feel the breath in her throat hitch as the air froze as well. It was cold. It was miserable. It felt like she was under water.

The man had lost an arm. It was the first thing she had noticed. Nezuko's sword had cut true, but something was off. The wind was gone, so why was she freezing? Shivering, she took a step back.

"Let me introduce myself properly," the man said, bowing, his functional arm parallel to the ground. "I am known as All For One."

"I know who you are," Eri said, scowling. "A bad man."

"Say, child," he said, completely unconcerned about his missing limb. Eri, too, looked up in defiance rather than fear. She had seen worse. She had felt worse. "I've come to make an offer you would no doubt regret if you were to refuse."

She would not be cowed by the likes of him. By the likes of Overhaul. Not as long as Nezuko kept the world safe for her. She glanced over at the still woman, who looked frozen as if someone had hit the pause button on a TV show's recording. Her hair did not move in the slight breeze, her sword, which had stopped the second the limb was sliced through, hung in the air in a forceful motion that did not complete.

Nezuko could not count the time until the world would be safe.

"An offer you can't refuse isn't an offer," Eri said, her red eyes narrowing. "It's blackmail."

"It's a choice between making it easy for yourself and making it hard," the man said, shrugging. No blood spurted from the wound, the chopped off arm floating under Nezuko's blade. "You're wondering what I did to her, correct? It's a rather powerful quirk, though it comes with a significant drawback. Blood is traded for time. It's a trick that will work once, the next time she will certainly aim for my neck."

"Then I'll just wait until she wakes up," Eri said. The man chuckled.

"Then until that happens, let me make my case."

Eri glared, but as much as she glared she knew that this man was dangerous. He was no doubt faster than her, he was unconcerned about injuries, and he was just plain scary.

"Your quirk, I can trade it for something else," he said. Eri flinched. The man could see or feel her falter, and continued. "I know you consider it a curse, it inflicts so much pain and can kill at the slightest moment of inattention. I am your salvation."

"It's not a curse," Eri said, repeating Nezuko's own words. "It's just my quirk, and I can learn how to control it."

"And if you don't?" he asked. "Or rather, if you do, but when it's too late? Inko Midoriya, reduced to nothing. Izuku Midoriya, gone to dust. Nezuko Kamado, destroyed."

Eri flinched again, this time taking a step back as she raised one hand to her horn. "I don't believe you. You're a villain."

"And your quirk is a villain's quirk," he said so smoothly she was inclined to believe him. "You want to be like that little samurai, don't you? A hero who saves children in need. Do you think they would let you be one with a quirk like that? One mistake, and all the people you saved are gone."

She saw flashes of what he described. Things she had done to people in an accident. Things that her blood was being used for.

"Of course, I could just take it," All For One said. Eri shook her head.

"But you won't?" she asked. She wasn't used to people like him taking no for an answer, and she imagined if she said no he would simply do as he threatened. Despite that, he was talking, which meant that he had another angle.

Adults always had another angle. Even people like Uncle Yu who were nice to her and brought her sweets and toys.

"You could call me a friend to children," the man lied with a textbook smile. It almost looked honest. Eri frowned, shaking her head. "I believe in the good mind of children to make decisions that are good for them, to guide them instead of choosing a set path for them."

Eri took another step back. She could run. It would not help, but she could run. It would be defiance, but a part of her did not want to defy, because the words resonated in her like a sickening quake. A quiver in her bones.

"So what do you say, cursed child," All For One said, his arm once more reaching out. Eri could have ran. She really could have. "A quirk for a quirk. A curse for a blessing."

She reached back.

The plane was massive. Momo looked down. The trip itself wouldn't take long, they were traveling to Japanese islands, after all, and while a ship might have been more comfortable it was simply easier and faster to do so through air travel.

"I'll be back in a bit," Momo said, patting Izuku on the shoulder. He nodded, glancing over to where her gaze was falling before nodding once more.

"Don't make him blow the plane out of the air," Izuku said softly. Momo laughed. Jirou, who was always willing to eavesdrop on an interesting conversation, started to cough, making Momo smile towards her.

Todoroki sat in the very back. A corner seat, near the window, which he had been staring out of for that flight. When Momo approached, he turned around, his steel-like gaze softening slightly. "Hello."

"Hey," Momo said, sitting down next to him. "I didn't have any time to talk to you in private recently, I thought this might be a good time. Am I bothering you?"

"No," Todoroki said, shaking his head. "I'm not… unwilling to reach out to the class more, but taking the first step is hard. I'm thankful for Midoriya's help, still."

"You should tell him that yourself," Momo said, nodding. "But that wasn't why I was here, I wanted to talk to you about your advice when I came back to school."

"Did it help?" Todoroki asked. She could feel the tremors in his hands. The itch on his skin at the scar.

"No," Momo said, shaking her head. Todoroki frowned, looking away again. "I'm not saying it doesn't work, but I've found it doesn't work for me. I… fought someone like Himiko Toga. And I lost myself in that fight."

"Lost yourself?" Todoroki asked. He would not ask about it, of course. She knew he wouldn't.

"I went crazy," Momo said, for the lack of a better word. "I ended up forgetting my enemy was a person, and I went too far. In the end, I felt less like I had accomplished anything and more like Himiko Toga had turned me into someone like her."

"And the purpose of this conversation is?" he asked, narrowing his eyes as he turned back to her. "Telling me that I shouldn't become like my father? Because I'm not, I've sworn to myself I would never become like him."

"You are better than him, of course," Momo said. "There's no doubt about that. What I'm trying to tell you is that you shouldn't let him define who you are."

"Easier said than done." Todoroki's voice was bitter, but he was not shaking in anger or disapproval. "Even if he was gone, I would still be Endeavor's son. You don't know what he did to our family."

"I don't," Momo said, nodding. "And I won't pretend to know that I do."

"You're just as noisy as your boyfriend," Todoroki said. The way he said it was like blowing off steam. He was not shutting her down, rather than trying to calm himself to actually listen. It was an improvement, she reckoned, considering the description that Izuku had given her about their talks. "I've been trying to improve myself, and I keep trying. I'm talking with more people, I try to use that quirk sometimes, but it's hard."

She knew it was. Not from the way his body shook, or his voice quivered as he said it, but from her own experience with that kind of anger.

"I can't make anyone in my family happy," Todoroki said, his teeth clenched. "I can't even make myself happy."

"You don't need to make anyone else happy," Momo said, frowning. "Todoroki-kun, can you do me a favor?"

"Hm?" Todoroki said, meeting her eyes.

"You're a good person," she said. "And I would hate to lose a good hero to something like this. Because of what happened to me, I'm… going to counselling with Recovery Girl. I haven't told anyone besides Izuku."

Todoroki nodded. "We know."

"I know that it's not much of a secret," Momo said quickly, her fists clenching in her lap. "But that's not the point. I want you to go to that counselling as well. If you want I can come with you, too."

"I don't think much of… shrinks," Todoroki said, using a word that he no doubt learned from someone else. Endeavor, Momo wondered. If anyone, it would be him. "I'm not crazy, I'm angry."

"I'm not crazy either," Momo said. "I hope," she added after a few seconds of thought. "But it's not about being crazy or not. It's about finding peace with something you know that hurts you."

"I'll think about it," Todoroki said. The tone of his voice was nonetheless still dismissive.

"Please do," Momo said. Her hand glowed for a moment, red beads in a chain coming out and touching onto her other palm. She handed it over. "When you do, give this back to me."

Todoroki's frown deepened. He seemed hesitant to accept it. She pushed it into his hand and closed his fingers over it, a bit too forceful until she heard his knuckles make a small noise. He didn't react to it, instead focusing on her face as she glared at him.

"I will know if you lie to me," Momo said. "And if you do, I'll talk to all of our teachers about why they're ignoring an obviously abused student."

Todoroki's frown washed off his face and became a desperate plight not to. When Momo's glare sharpened, he nodded.

"I take it back," Todoroki said, his voice soft. "I'd take another beating by your boyfriend over a talk with you."

Chapter 40, upcoming:

The Princess of Blood

"Kurogiri~" Himiko sing-sang a name. Black portals appeared under the monsters. He already knew where they would end up. Izuku had his phone in his hand and Aizawa speed-dialed before the monsters were halfway sunken into the black sludge.

"Island wide villain attack," Izuku announced into the phone. He heard Aizawa curse before he put the phone away.

Minutes later an alarm went through the entire island. Himiko looked satisfied. She wanted the alarm. She wanted the panic. Attacking under the cover of the night, hurting people when they're too tired to fight back, that wasn't her style.

She wanted people to be wide awake and suffering.