Hell's Empress (books 1-4)

 This was just one of those days.

 Nothing triggered it, exactly. No one said anything.

 You just felt really, really bad. Like a massive boulder was laying on your chest, crushing you with its weight.

 You had so many plans for today too! So many things you wanted to get done. But...no. Not now. Not today.

-----

 It was about midday when you woke up and crawled out of bed. An hour later, you finally found Chisaki wandering around the place. You stopped in front of him with the deadest look and held your arms out on either side of you.

 "Shoot me."

 The young man fell a step back. "Excuse me?"

 "I'll be fine. Trust me..." Gaze dropping, "I'm testing something." It was the one thing on your checklist you could actually summon the energy to try today.

 After a few moments of hesitancy, Kai drew a pistol from inside his coat and aimed it at your left arm.

Pow!

 A prick of pain zapped through you, but it just as quickly vanished. You drew your arm back to examine the spot that for a moment was filled with pain. There was a hole on both sides of the bandage in your arm, but your flesh was completely fine. Impressive.. not even a scar remained.

 Kai leaned into his next few steps headed your way. "I.. I'm sure I hit it. Why-?"

 "It was just a theory, but since I technically have two regeneration quirks now, I thought that by stacking them -- using both at the same time -- it would double the speed. .. It did. Thanks for having a little faith in me."

 The brunette's eyes were wide, jaw hanging slack under the cloth mask. "That's... incredible.." He breathed. You looked up at him with suspicion. It was pretty much never that he complimented anyone's quirks, even yours.

 "Thanks?"

 "I think it would do you a little good to focus more on combat training." Standing a little taller. He still lacked that frilly coat and bird mask you associated him with, but that didn't change the fact that he was him. Still the to-be ruthless killer. "Maybe then, you can rise up the ranks a little more."

 "And why would I want to do that?" Despite the wariness crawling through your skin, you spoke your mind anyway. "I already have what I need. A place to sleep, food to eat, a source of income... I'm perfectly comfortable where I am." Not to mention, you weren't looking to get involved in pointless gang violence and killings.

 Chisaki hummed irritatedly. "I guess you make a fair point... You aren't driven by greed nor virtue. ..Which kind of makes it hard to peg your motives."

 You rose your hands a little. "I'm only here for the necessities. This place is better than an orphanage, at least. Don't really want to get adopted anyways... So, how about.. we simply choose to let the other be? Not too hard, right? I won't cause any trouble for you as long as you don't cause any trouble for me."

 But this wasn't good enough for Kai, you could tell that. He didn't just want you as a semi-ally. He wanted to know you would fight for his cause. You and your impressive quirk were far too useful for him to simply let slip past him. However..he didn't exactly have a way to force your allyship either...

 Kai bowed his head and turned to walk off. "Guess that will do for now... Would you be willing to do favors for cash in the meantime?"

 You shrugged. "Depends on the task I guess."

 "Alright.." The young man wandered off.

 That finally done with, you headed outside the Shie Hassaikai base and transformed into a cat.

----------

 Aizawa was thoughtful enough to start leaving his kitchen window cracked open enough so that you could pry your way through any time you wanted. You arrived at his place pretty late in the day. Somewhere around five or six in the afternoon. Unlike usual, as you slipped in, the night owl of a man was very mobile; pacing around his apartment wearing his hero costume. From what you could tell, he wasn't preparing to leave. Just thinking about something intently.

 You meowed after a while of watching the pacing man, snatching his attention at once. He kind of tilted his head and made a small "hm" sound back. Wasn't much of a talker, even to his pets.

 On the kitchen countertop, a plate of steaming food sat cooking beside the pan it was just cooked in. Your stomach growled loudly. It was only now that you realized you hadn't eaten all day. You snuck over to the plate, occasionally glancing at the master of the house to ensure he didn't spot you. Once close enough, you stole a chunk of chicken off of the top and dropped with it to the ground to consume it.

 "A-ay!" Too late already, the young hero shuffled your way. He draped a clean towel over his plate but didn't care to steal the chicken from you. "So that's it.." The man growled. "You're just a picky eater." He watched you with a frown. You had to stop to cough and gag since you were scarfing your food down a little too quickly. "And yet you're starving?" As you at last finished that piece, Aizawa pulled out an extra bowl and scooped some of his rice, vegetables, and chicken into it. You jumped up back on the counter and purred loudly as he scooted the bowl your way. You didn't discriminate against the rice and veggies. It was all pretty good, after all. "Hm.." Aizawa pulled out a fork and ate the rest of what was on his plate beside you. You purred almost the whole time.

 The two of you finished at about the same time. Aizawa rinsed out both of your dishes and put them away, then returned to pacing around in the living room. You dropped from the counter and skipped up to the couch. On the wall was a tack board he'd started a few days ago about the case he had accepted. It was about you, unfortunately. Though you REALLY wanted to have a good long look at it to see where you were making mistakes and how to evade these guys better in the future, the hero would no doubt be even more suspicious if he caught you staring at it. So you decided to wait for him to go to the bathroom for your chance to have a look at it today. You hopped up onto the couch and "murr"ed at the man's tabby cat, who already lay curled up on there. She had forcibly grown more accustomed to your presence. So much so that now you squeezed into her mix of limbs and fluff to snuggle with her. The tabby growled a little at you, but otherwise was too tired to move or push you away. So you got a temporary snuggle buddy.

 "Hhhh... I'm overcomplicating this.." Aizawa stopped and stared across the room at his board for a moment. He dropped into the sofa across from you and rubbed his face tiredly. "I've gotta be missing something... But what?" Your eyes slit open just enough to watch the man as he thought. It was when his eyes landed on you with intention that yours drew wider.

---------------

 "Listen, Eraserhead," The detective with short black hair and a tan trench coat laid his palms on the table in the moderately lit room. "I know you're trying to give us as much information as possible, but unfortunately we don't have the time to listen to the finer details." The worn out hero leaned back in his designated metal chair, eyes wandering around the mostly empty room set aside for questioning witnesses and such. All Might, in all his muscular glory, stood in a far corner by the door under an encompassing shadow around the edges of the room. His arms were crossed, watching and listening intently as the younger hero prepared his response thoughtfully.

 "...That's the thing, though." The dark haired hero began to explain. "If we skip the finer details, I am afraid we will miss what was really going on.."

-----

 You see, I had my suspicions the moment that cat first arrived. First of all, she didn't act like a normal cat. And when she did, it was always through mimicking the cat I already have. On top of that, she refused to eat cat food no matter how hungry she was. And I'd just like to emphasize just how thin she was too. No doubt the poor thing was starving half the time.

 Anyways.. Even with all of this in consideration, I didn't want to jump to conclusions without any evidence.

 But as I sat in that sofa, rubbing my face, "I've gotta be missing something... But what?" it all suddenly clicked into place. I suddenly looked at my board from a whole new angle.

 This whole time, we have been preparing for a mastermind of a foe. We have looked at each one of these clues as mere pieces playing a part in a much bigger game, however I believe strongly that looking at it from that angle was what was holding us back.

 No, I don't believe these were small steps in a big plan at all... Rather, I came to the realization that these were merely the emotionally driven acts of a mislead child. That and that alone.

 It was through this perspective that I was finally able to piece everything together.

 Bakugo Katsuki's quirk being stolen was likely for no other reason than to teach the kid a lesson. The other quirk thefts could have been simply from the girl testing and practicing with her new quirk. And I've got a feeling that the death of her mother was merely an act of self defense. No, I don't think there was a game-plan to any of her moves at all... Because at the end of the day, she's just a child.

 I sat up in my chair as I glanced back and forth between the cat and the board on the wall behind her. It all clicked perfectly into place. The vanishing of that famous guy's cat transformation quirk, the stunning crystal blue eyes every witness mentioned, and the bizarre fact that it was the very same night that guy's cat quirk was stolen that I just so happened to have a new visitor. No, suddenly the idea that my own cat may just be the target all along wasn't such a strange one.

 The moment I glared down at the fluffy animal with intensity, it seemed to know exactly what was on my mind. The cat scurried up the couch and jumped behind it the moment before I could activate my quirk. I stood at once. If anything, her sudden actions only proved my suspicion. Simply knowing what my quirk was and how it worked was already an uncomfortable amount of information for a complete stranger to have.

 "Alright, the ruse is up. Come quietly and your sentence will be lessened." Suddenly, sniffling broke from behind the couch. And though it sounded mournful and innocent, I didn't dare get any closer. This was, after all, someone believed to be the devil spawn of the the king of the underworld himself. I didn't want to risk finding out what all she could do first hand. "What's wrong? Cat got your tongue?" I wasn't even trying to make a joke there.

 "Please..." Pleaded the small voice of a little girl. "I don't want to hurt you.. I don't want to hurt anyone!" This only got me more on guard than before. The simple fact that she knew she could end me if she wanted to was what really unsettled me. This little girl who couldn't have been any older than thirteen.

 I gritted my teeth. "Why are you here?" It was a genius plot, honestly, especially for a little girl her age. Turn into a cat to spy on one of the key players trying to find her. If this was the case then she had some real experience.

 "...You wouldn't understand..." The little girl murmured. It was around this time that I began to loosen my hero scarf, using the sound of her voice as a good aim for my target.

 "..Uhuh? And how so?" I wound my arms back, capture weapon in hands.

 "Today hasn't been an easy day for me.. Pleeease! I ju-ust want somewhere safe to stay!" The girl's emotions were so raw, unfiltered, full of pain.

 ...It was here that I regret to admit..I made the wrong call...

 "If you really aren't a threat, then come out here at once!" I was in the mood to talk to a villain... Not a child. "Surrender now, or face an even longer sentence in prison!"

 I forgot to acknowledge that this villain might just be struggling more than anything else.

 ...And that I was her only remaining hope.

...

Crack!

 Behind the couch, cracks and snaps shot out from the floor. The sound of something dropping away followed. I jumped into action and whipped out my capture weapons to seize the child, but they caught nothing but air. Rounding the couch in a second, my eyes landed on a horrifying sight. A hole had torn completely through my floor. It wasn't like a typical break or puncture point either. The materials had completely disintegrated! And, peering down through the hole, I saw nothing but the room of my neighbor underneath. I cursed under my breath and dropped through the hole, but by then there was no chance of following her. The nearest exit, a window, had already been disintegrated. Though I followed, filling the following hours with my search, I never did find her.

-----

 Aizawa's chin rose, eyes again met with the lamplight. "I fear I may have blown the only chance we had catching her... Sorry." He was genuinely apologetic, guilt clear in his dark eyes.

 "Hhh, don't be. I'll bet most heroes would react the same way after discovering a villain had been living rent free in their house for some time." The detective had sympathy. He then turned to peer over his shoulder. "Anything you want to add, All Might?"

 The silent hero pushed himself from the wall by his hips and ambled into the light with his arms still crossed. "If the girl really isn't All For One in disguise... then I agree that we should definitely change our approach to how we handle this case in the future..." The number one hero thoughtfully rubbed his chin. "In fact, it might be in our best interest to bring her to our side.. You said she was thin, right? Sounds like she had nowhere to go and likely very little to eat. Perhaps a run-away. So, maybe stalking a hero was her silent cry for help."

 "Which, I...squandered..." Pouting again, Eraserhead sighed dryly while staring down the table in front of him.

 "Unfortunately, mistakes are just a part of being a hero." Landing his large hand on Aizawa's shoulder, All Might smiled empathetically down at the younger one. "If she ever does return, simply apologize and build a relationship from there and earn her trust."

 "Sad to say, but you're probably the closest we've ever gotten to All For One in decades," the detective added. "So, you trying to rekindle whatever bond you had might be our only chance."

 Aizawa wasn't quite sure if he was up for the task.

 Or if she would ever come back.

--------------

 "D#mmit-D#mmit-D#MMIT!!" Hitting your knee, you sat partially curled with your back pressing firmly against the brick wall of some random building. Your heart was pounding, tears spilling from your eyes.

 That was your LAST chance! Your last hope at living somewhat of a normal life after what happened with your mom!

 And judging by how quick he was to demonize you, no doubt the other heroes would do the same! After all, even your own mother tried to kill you, having no hope in you not turning into a monster like your father!

 Images of that fateful night fled back into your mind. The terror, pain -- both physically and emotionally -- and can't forget the utter shock and horror upon realizing you had just killed her! Such were unavoidable memories; ones you could never hope to escape any longer!

 You clutched your burning head and scraped your shoes against the pavement as your cries of agony tore through the alley. You panted frantically, suffering from a full blown panic attack right there and then!

 There was nowhere to go. Nobody to run to. No place to call home.

 No heroes would help you. No nice villains either. At least not anyone without a clue of your past life. No one new, whom you had yet to change...for the better or worse.

 No...none of them. No one at all.

 In your eyes, you had nothing but enemies. ... And maybe it was better that way.

 Maybe this was a blessing in disguise. Or, maybe you deserved it.

 Whatever the case, your desire to live out a normal childhood was beyond hopeless.

 You were truly alone here...

...

 Well, not entirely... You still had the Yakuza to run to. Might not be much of the family you wanted, but something was better than nothing.

 You knew one thing for sure, at least.

 You wouldn't let yourself get so close to a hero ever again!

 Not if they were only going to treat you like your father.