First Light || BNHA (ON HOLD)

{ 017 }

Keiko gulped a little before sitting down quietly on the chair in front of the desk.

"Is it true?" Edgeshot said, finally making eye contact with his intern.

"Is what true, sir?" The ravenette asked evenly, not backing down as she stared into his exposed eye.

"Is it true that you are the vigilante Ninja?"

Silence.

That was all Edgeshot needed to know the truth.

"Care to explain why I shouldn't turn you in, right here and now?"

C'mon man, I need a good break at least before we talk about this. I literally used up too much of my energy talking to the other guy in my head.

You must answer him, Keiko. Tell him the truth, but do not reveal my identity to him. It would not do us good.

Keiko winced a little as Astran's voice rang in her head, sending needles to her skull.

"Too keep it short, sir," Keiko started, "after what happened three years ago, I noticed the many flaws in the system that held the people I once looked up to. I decided to become the right definition of a hero, no matter how the public views me; a hoax, a villain...

"As long as I know that people are living because of what I have become, I won't stop until you heroes change."

"Why keep it a secret?" Edgeshot asked unexpectedly, catching Keiko off guard.

"I'm sorry?"

"Why do you have to hide yourself from society? I'm sure you're aware that they will find out sooner or later, whether you like it or not. Reveal yourself now... yes, people will hate you, yes, the public will view you as a criminal, but many of us heroes recognize your acts of bravery as something that should be welcome, not fought against.

You're smart enough to know that highly-ranked pro heroes around the country aren't really against you helping them, even if you are going against the law. They could fight and possibly win against the motion of sending you to Tartarus."

Keiko scoffed. "I never had the intention to let other people fight my battles for me just because the public thinks ill of me.

"Besides, I made a lot of enemies. Strong ones, in fact, that have minions scattered around the country. If I reveal myself, I'm putting the people I love at risk; my family, my friends, and maybe even UA. No hero in the world can't stop that from happening."

Edgeshot sat down on his chair, resting his elbows on his desk and lacing his fingers together.

"Do you know why I chose you as my intern?"

Keiko shook her head, not really wanting to talk at the moment.

"When I first saw you in the internship, I immediately knew there was something that wasn't revealed by the school about you. The way you respond, you're calm, and your attacks get more calculated as you gain more information on your opponent as you fight. Even your classmates don't react like that.

"Your quirk also interested me. As you know, I have been... 'obsessed' with tracking down Ninja lately as he - or, she became more active. I viewed her as a criminal, a wannabe that was too afraid to go through the long and rough process of becoming a respected hero. I thought that I could use you to find out the identity of Ninja.

"That opinion changed when I actually met you in person.

"I found that if my suspicions were correct, you were still just a kid, no matter how many times you violated the law. A child, that was forced to mature because someone she cared for was in danger, and she was revealed to the harsh reality: that there is no guarantee that heroes will save you every time you're in danger, no matter how many times their faces appear on the television."