This Time

Prolouge

The rain was cool as it fell on my upturned face. The drops stuck in my lashes and streams ran down my face, mingling cold fresh water with hot salt water as I cried. It was windy atop the building's spire, but there was no fear of height or worry for safety in my mind as I perched there with my feet dangling over the edge. My suit was water resistant, but my body still felt the chill. I wasn't sure if it was shivers or sobs that shook my body at this point, but I also didn't really care.

Below me the city trudged on, unknowing and unaffected by my heartache. Even if they saw me, they probably wouldn't care anyhow. Vigilantes didn't get the same level of love as the heroes - probably because it was illegal to use your quirk like I did. But what choice did I have? I'd missed my opportunity to be a hero after I'd met him.

All for One.

It had all sounded too perfect - I should have known it was too good to be true. The words that were used to woo me to his cause had held all the promise of power and the ability to make a difference in this corrupt world and like so many - too many - before me, I fell for it. To be fair (as if it's any excuse) I was only fifteen at the time. By the time I really understood what was going on, I was in too deep, and the criminal mastermind wasn't very forgiving with deserters. I served for three years until the fateful, yet little known day when All Might beat the villain. It was the series of events that began with joining All for One and my later escape thanks to the number one hero that led me to where I was now, literally at the edge of my seat atop one of the taller buildings in Musutafu.

I wasn't up here contemplating jumping like any possible observers might guess. Rather, I was turning over and over again the fact that if the information I held was put in the hands of the right people, it could save so many lives... but if the wrong ones caught wind, it would spell disaster. I'd always wanted to be a hero before - to put my life on the line for the lives of others - but the situation I now found myself in was beyond my capabilities. If I went it alone, I might not succeed. Even if I did, then I more than likely would either end up dead or in jail at the conclusion. Hell, if I failed and lived I'd definitely land in the clinker. It was lose-lose either way.

I had some really tough choices to make soon, because in just ten months it would be too late.

____________

A/N:

Hello everyone! I know its been quite a while since my last story, but I'm thrilled to be back again with a new story! This is one I'm very excited about, and I'm actually already more than half done writing the rough draft for it.  MHA has been my new obsession, so buckle up for a good ol' angst and fluff-filled slow burn! My goal is to update weekly (most likely on the weekends), but I'm getting married at the end of May, so as the wedding approaches the updates my get a little more sporadic.

Fair warning, as of posting this initial chapter I'm not up to date on the manga past season four of the anime, so for those of you who do read the manga, if there are any inaccuracies here within that are explained later in the story - please forgive me. I'm trying to keep the story as cannon compliant as possible (up to a certain point, of course), so lets see how this goes! And as always, the MHA universe and characters are not mine. Praises to the wonderful Kōhei Horikoshi!

Take care and happy reading!

Erin