Chapter 7

It was supposed to be different. She was going to be a hero. Ochako Uraraka had promised her parents that. Promised her friends that. Promised the world that. People always said she would do great things. Her quirk, Zero Gravity, allowed her to remove the gravitational pull of objects. This couldn't be used on people. Clothes holding people was an entirely different story however.

Her parents ran a construction company. It was nothing major. Didn't really get that much business outside of the odd reconstruction job from villain attacks destroying the local area. It was enough to keep food on the table but it was always clear to Ochako how much her parents were suffering monetarily. As she grew older, she begged them to let her help so many times. She had plans. She could use her quirk to make the heavy materials weightless so they could sell they're cranes for money. That sort of thing. But they refused. So she decided on a different approach. She was going to become a hero. Then, she'd use the money from that to help them.

Then the day came. She was confidant she could do it. She charged forwards into the Hero exam was such vigor. She grabbed a few robots and smashed them into the ground. In the first few minutes, she gained 18 points. She tried to go for more. Then a robot next to her exploded. Others followed nearby. She looked up. Above her, leaping through the air, was the boy she met at the gates, Mikumo Akitani, firing projectiles from his legs into robots on ground level, stopping on a rooftop for a few seconds before leaping forwards and continuing on. Ochako grit her teeth and kept moving.

By the seven minute mark, She was only at 20 points. All the robots around her were quickly being taken out. The boy who interrupted Present Mic's explanations, 7111, sped through the area with his quirk, kicking robots to pieces. A blond boy in a white shirt blasted some away with a shining laser. She wandered into an area only to find them locked down with mushroom spores. She started to panic. She was running out of time.

Then the worst case scenario happened. The 0 pointer rounded the corner. Dust and rubble was flying around her. Before she knew it, she was pinned. She wanted to scream. This wasn't enough. She hadn't done enough. She had to do more. But her arms were pinned in a bad position and she couldn't feel her legs. Then, he appeared again. And Akitani saved her life. Part of her wishes he'd left her die when she heard Present Mic end the exam and she knew she had failed. 20 points.

The confirmation came a week later in the form of a letter. " We apologize but you did not make it into the Hero Course." It read. " However, due to your performance on the written exam, we can offer you a place in UA's General Studies Course. We apologize if this is a disappointment, but due to the results you achieved, we cannot grant you any higher place. We hope to see you at UA in the new school year. Sincerely, Principal Nedzu, UA High School." Ochako crushed the letter in her hand as she huddled up in the corner of her room, tears streaming down her face.

" This wasn't how this was supposed to be." She sobbed. " I'm sorry everyone. I'm a failure."

Three days after what was probably the worst day of her life, Ochako got a text message. Not that it was unusual for her to get them. She got them from friends and family all the time. But it was the sender who was strange.

Akitani: Hey

Akitani: This is the right number right?

Perhaps it shouldn't have been strange at all. They had, after all, traded numbers. She just hadn't expected her saviour to check in so soon. Either way, she texted back.

Uraraka: Yeah. It's the right number.

Uraraka: Hey.

Akitani: Cool. I was worried I'd entered something in wrong.

Akitani: Wanna meet up?

Uraraka: ?

Akitani: It's fine if you don't want to.

Akitani: I just wanted t catch up.

She knew fine well what he meant by catch up. He wanted to know how she did. She could probably guess how he did. He mentioned having around 60 points from robot kills alone. If there were other factors, he probably scored even more. With such a great quirk, he undoubtedly got in. It just made her even more depressed. Even still, she'd been stuck in her room for two days, barely moving. With a resigned sigh, she agreed. Akitani sent an address.

It was a small Cafe a few stops away that Akitani met her at. She'd never been to the place before. She wasn't sure she had the right place until she spotted the boy sitting in a booth, waving her over. " Hey."

" Hey." She said, smiling.

" How've you been? Leg OK?"

" Yep. Recovery Girl works wondered." She laughed nervously.

" That's good to here." Akitani paused. " Are you alright? You seem on edge."

" Yeah well…" She sighed. " You wanted to talk about UA, right?"

" That was part of it, yeah." Akitani frowned. " Didn't go well?"

" I mean… they let me in the General Studies course but…" She looked down at her hands. " It wasn't what I wanted."

" Man. Sorry. I thought you'd get in for sure."

" So. I guess you made it?"

" Yeah." Akitani nodded. " I'll get my class name and location when I get there I figure." This confirmation only made Ochako feel that much worse about herself. Tears filled her eyes.

" I'm such a failure." She muttered, holding her head in her hands.

" Hey."

" It's all my fault. I failed. And now… I don't know what to do."

" Wanna talk about it? I may not look it, but I'm a fantastic listener." Ochako laughed slightly. Then she nodded slightly. She found herself spilling everything to her. Her aspirations. Her family troubles. Her insecurities. Everything. She didn't mean to. She didn't want to burden him with it. But she found, when she started, she couldn't stop. When she finally finished, catching her breath, Akitani simply leaned back in his seat. " I think I get it now. You really want to help your folks, huh."

" Yeah. They mean everything to me. Even if it's a little, I just want to help. And if I became a hero, I could have solved all their financial burdens so easily. But now? I failed them." Akitani thought for a few moments.

" I might know how you could get a lot of money."

" You do?"

" Well, maybe not a lot. It's not hero wages or what have you, but it is something." Akitani shrugged. " It might not be your kind of work though."

" But the pays good though?"

" Yeah. Giran's always bragging about his business and how great it is."

" Giran?"

" A friend of my Uncle, yeah. He's a nice guy. Bit off colour with his jokes, but he's a good man."

" And… you can get me a job with him."

" I can try. Just depends. What are you willing to do to help your folks?" Ochako didn't have to think before answering.

" Anything."

She excused herself after dinner the next evening, claiming she was meeting some friends for a spring break party. Her parents didn't stop her. She figured that they were just happy she was going out again. Ochako took the train and headed to the location Akitani sent her. She arrived in a small bar above a barber shop in Kamino. Strange place. Bit out of the way. Still, it was pretty cozy looking. " Greetings miss." The bartender, a man with a head made entirely of black smoke, asked. " May I help you?"

" Um. I'm… My name is Ochako Uraraka, Sir. A friend of mine said this was the place I could meet a man named Giran."

" Ah yes of course. Mikumo Akitani, correct?" The bartender nodded. " Yes, he told me to expect you. Unfortunately, Giran is running a bit late and Akitani is out right now."

" Really? That's a shame."

" He's running an errand with some of the other residents. He won't be back til later. I can pour you a drink while you wait. On the house."

" Uh. Soda please."

" Coming right up." The man began sorting out Ochako's drink. She looked around the room more carefully. From the back, the echoes of angry shouting could be heard. Kurogiri sighed. " Ignore that. He's an avid gamer with a short temper. I apologize."

" It's fine." Ochako answered quickly. Kurogiri placed Ochako's drink down.

" I apologize again for the wait. If it's not formal, Giran tends to be late."

" It's a bad habit." Ochako turned her head sharply. In the door way stood a man with shifty eyes and a sly smirk with a fluffy scarf slung lazily around his neck, over a dark blue business suit. " So, are you who I'm meeting here, missy?"

" Are you… Giran?"

" That I am. Kagero Okuta, codename Giran. At your service." The man bowed slightly. " So. Ku says your in need of a job, that right?"

" Right."

" Alright then." Giran shoved a hand in his pocket. " I'll need you're name and quirk info first."

" Ochako Uraraka. My Quirk is Zero Gravity." She answered without hesitation. She didn't really trust the man, but she needed the money. She wasn't willing to do absolutely anything, but she trusted Akitani enough to hear what this Giran wanted. " I can make anything I touch with my five fingers weightless."

" Time limited?"

" No. I release it by touching my finger tips together. If it's too heavy or I left it too long, I feel nauseous."

" Hmm. Interesting." The man scratched his scraggly beard. " Alright. Did Ku tell you what my work is?"

" No."

" Trust that kid to leave everything to me." He sighed. " Hmm. Kurogiri. How long has it been since I got here?"

" 2 minutes. 17 seconds."

" Alright. Then I suppose I'll explain quickly. I'm a broker. I sell information and goods to others. Special equipment. Weapons. None of it's very… uh, what's the word…" Giran snapped his fingers twice.

" Legal?" Ochako answered, cautiously.

" Yeah. That's it. I work with both people who want things and people who are willing to sell. I'm a business man." Giran's smirk widened. " But, in the eyes of the law, I'm also a C rank Villain. Or at least I was last I checked." Ochako grit her teeth. A Villain? This was the type of guy who Akitani suggested she work with? Was she willing to go that far? " So, can you work with that? Speak your mind. I won't kill ya for refusing. Just answer in the next…" He looked over to Kurogiri.

" 30 seconds."

" 20 seconds then. Time's money after all." Ochako bit her lip. Could she? Was the money worth working with a Villain? After all, just two weeks ago she had applied for a hero school. She paused. But why had she wanted to be a hero? It hadn't been for a love for the industry. In that case, it had been for the money. Was this really any different? " 10 sec-"

" I'll do it."

" Ho?"

" I'll work for you." Giran smirked.

" Then come on." Ochako looked surprised. " I didn't chose today randomly. I got a meeting in about an hour. I wanna see how you handle yourself. You're quirk'll come in handy. If you wanna finish you're drink, bring it with."

" That's my glass, Giran." Kurogiri said exasperated.

" Oh come on. We'll be back afterwards. Also, I want a drink for the road too. Working with that bird man is always thirsty work." With a sigh, Kurogiri reluctantly poured Giran a shot of whiskey. Giran grinned taking the glass. " You coming, missy?"

" R-Right." Ochako grabbed her drink and ran after him. Giran drove her out to a warehouse a few miles away. He smoked while he drove. Ochako had to open a window to not get suffocated by it. At least he was nice enough to offer her one, but she didn't smoke. Her father, yes, but not her.

" So then." Giran asked when they reached the warehouse. " Show me how you're quirk works." The man motioned to a stack of crates on a wooden pallet. With a nod, Ochako dragged her hands over the crates and the pallet. Giran watched gleefully as they began to float. She begun to feel light headed, but did her best to keep her stomach down. She didn't want to make a bad impression on her first job. " Can you move 'em around at all?"

" Yeah. They're more or less just balloons now. Why?"

" I trust the Shie Hissaikai not to steal my shit, but with heavy stuff like this I tend to have it out waiting for them. Smaller stuff I slide across a table but I can't do that with such big cargo. Sometimes, lesser gangs try to hold me up and steal the stuff. I'm not a tough guy, so they think they can take from me. Idiots forget I sell information, so I always get payback one way or another. Still having a quirk like yours for transactions like this could be quite nice."

" This is dangerous work, huh?"

" Yeah. I trade stuff with Villains and Mafia Gangs City wide. But the pays good. That's what your after, right?" Ochako nodded slightly. " So, parents?"

" Huh?"

" Ha. I've seen all kinds of Villains in my time. All sorts of motives. Some do it for the thrill. Some are forced into it. Some do it cause they think they're doing the right thing. Some do it cause they can't get by any other way. And some do it to support other people. That last one is you right?"

" R-Right. My parents… their business is in danger. I was gonna be a hero. Help them out with the pay y'know. But then UA…" Ochako frowned. " They…"

" Nah. I get it. Sometimes, dreams get crushed by the harshness of reality. Don't worry, missy. We won't let you down like they did." Giran stretched. " What size of clothes do you wear by the way?"

" Size?"

" Well, ya can't meet with a mafia family dressed like that." Giran laughed. " I'll help you suit up. We've got a while before the meet up after all." Ochako nodded. During the set up, Giran asked more about Ochako. In return, he let her ask things about him. Giran was a pretty laid back guy. He seemed to dodge questions about his past, but Ochako didn't pry. He had apparently been in the business for close to 15 years at this point, haven worked his way up from a place close to Ochako was just getting into. He admitted to having a few partners over the years, but preferred to work solo. Apparently, the only reason he accepted to even hear taking her on was because he owed the man taking care of Akitani a few favours.

Ochako walked out into the warehouse with Giran 45 minutes later in a black shirt and long skirt, fingerless gloves, boots and tinted visor to hide her face with. Giran walked on ahead, leaving Ochako next to the merchandize. Three men waited for them. One a man in bird shaped medical mask holding a briefcase. Another was someone in a black plague mask with a long white raincoat. The final was a bald, black eyed man with a medical mask. " Giran."

" Hello there, Chisaki. It's good to see you again." The bird man, Kai, eyed Ochako in a way that made her tense up. She tried not to show her nervousness on the outside however. These three men were members of a Yakuza group known as Shie Hassaikai, one of Giran's better known customers. As a group, they were mostly known for several gang wars that crushed a lot of competition and having a strangle hold on drug and weapon trades in their local area. They were high profile Villains.

" I wasn't aware you had a new assistant."

" That's Singularity. She's just giving me a hand today. That's all."

" Hmm." Chisaki shook his head. " Fine. Do you have the parts we asked for?"

" Surgical equipment and the parts for an MRI machine. Everything you asked for."

" Show me." Giran nodded to Ochako. Using her quirk, she floated one of the boxes over to the gang members. The bald man raised an eyebrow at the quirk but the other two appeared unphased, only moving to investigate the box when the girl released her quirk. Ochako didn't see much of what was inside. Just a few neatly laid out white plastic boxes she assumed from Giran's talk was some of the surgical equipment was requested. Chisaki looked over the contents of one of the boxes carefully. " Hari." He said, closing it.

" Yes, sir?" The man in the White Raincoat said.

" Give him the money." With a nod, the man reached into his coat, pulling a stuffed envelope. " 500,000 yen. As promised."

" Too kind." Giran took the envelope, slipping it into his suit. He nodded at Ochako. She nodded back, moving the rest of the boxes over to the mafia group. " I trust you have ways to move these?"

" Rappa, Hojo and the others can take it from here. You needn't be concerned."

" Then it was a pleasure doing business with you, Chisaki." Giran bowed slightly before walking back across the Warehouse. After he passed her, Ochako followed behind. She got back into his car and watched the Warehouse as they sped off. Ochako finally let herself go, grabbing a platic bag in case she needed it as the nausia from her quirk finally hit her. " Quick and painless. My type of deals." Giran smirked. He glanced over at Ochako. " Doing alright there?"

" I-I'll be fine." Ochako reassured him. " Those guys were…"

" The head of Shie Hassaikai and three of his underlings, yep."

" Three?" Ochako asked, confused. She took off her visor. Giran smirked.

" The two men and the briefcase."

" Huh?"

" You were confused right? How Chisaki had one yet had his man hand me an envelope for payment instead of having the money in that briefcase like all the movies? Well, that's the trap. One of the Shie Hassaikai's Eight Precepts has a quirk that allows him to transfer himself into an object."

" So the briefcase was the fourth man using his quirk?"

" Right. Thing was probably empty. If some thug tried to steal it, they'd be in for a nasty shock." They arrived back outside the bar soon after. Ochako retrieved the plastic bag with her normal clothes in them from the car's boot. " Oh. Here you are by the way. You're cut." Giran handed her a small, white envelope. " I got 500,000 from that transaction. I gave you a fifth. Good enough?" Uraraka choked.

" A-A fifth? But that would be-"

" 100,000 Yen, yes. I also gave you another 50,000 for a first job bonus." Giran shrugged. " You did good. I don't work on any sort of set schedule. I'm just available when I'm needed. I work one deal one week then maybe five deals the next. But, I like you. I'll keep you on. A fifth is the usual rate. I don't always get paid as much and sometimes I get paid more." He gave her a side glance as he turned back to the bar. " As long as your still interested, that is." Ochako nodded enthusiastically.

" T-Thank you, sir." Giran laughed.

" Don't worry about it. Come on. Let's give Kurogiri his stupid glasses back. He probably has a spare room for you to change back as well." Ochako nodded, following him in. When she was in side, she saw him. Sitting at a table with a small group, two boys and two girls, was Mikumo Akitani. He waved over to the two.

" Giran. Uraraka. Hey."

" Hey. Zuku. How's it been?" Giran waved at him. Ochako looked at him confused.

" Zuku?" Akitani flinched at the question.

" Huh? Wait, is she not one of your Blog Buddies?"

" Not yet. We met at UA."

" Ah." Giran scratched the back of his head. " Well, that's awkward." Giran walked back over to the bar. " Welp, you can explain. My jobs done. She did well by the way. I'll keep her on. Thanks for the introduction."

" Glad to hear." Akitani laughed nervously. Ochako looked at him, concerned. " So. You have questions?"

" Some."

" I'll explain. First of all, I'm not actually called Mikumo Akitani. Just to clarify what Giran was saying. It's Izuku Midoriya."

" Izuku?" That name rang a bell for some reason but she didn't know why.

" Yeah. Come on. Sit down. I'll introduce everyone and I'll explain everything." Ochako had a bad feeling about this. Still, she owed him a bit for introducing her to Giran. Sitting down, she decided to let him explain.

With a hefty sigh, Ochako collapsed on the living room sofa. She had just started UA a few days ago and already she wanted to drop out. It was exhausting work. Even worse was that her homeroom teacher was Present Mic. She was going to get a migraine being with him every day. She was distracted from her own issues by a excited conversation coming from her parents room. She got up, confused, and pushed the door open slowly. " Mom? Dad?" Her parents paused, looking up at her. Her mother was crying but grinning from ear to ear. Her father gave her a warm smile. " What's wrong?"

" Nothing is wrong, honey. We just got a really big job offer." He explained. " Remember the news of that destroyed department store from a week back?" Ochako nodded cautiously. " Well, we got an offer to fix it up. The pay out is gonna be massive. Our biggest job in years." Ochako's eyes widened.

" Seriously?"

" Yeah." Her mother nodded, sobbing.

" Don't worry about us, honey. I think we're gonna be fine for a while after this." Ochako was elated. She remembered the news well. A week ago, a local, high profile department near her place was completely smashed up in side. A call sign left behind seemed like it was the work of a group of villains known for destroying buildings, doing it to try and ruin greedy business men. It was a popular place that Ochako herself frequented. Her parents getting hired to fix the place was amazing. The owner was incredibly rich. He'd likely pay twice as much as any usual fix up job for work well done. Maybe more.

But in reality, there wasn't a villain group who attacked it at all. At least, not the one reported. She'd done it. After hearing about her parents money troubles, Izuku came up with the plan and she, Mina and Shoto had executed it, smashing the place to pieces. Ochako slightly regretted it afterwards, but at the time it was amazing fun. And, after all of that, here were the fruits of her vandalism. Her parents getting a well deserved job by a high profile client. If they were lucky, they'd get there name out there. Maybe more high profile clients would hire them.

When Izuku told her everything, he meant everything. His discovery, they're purpose in the bar, his missions in UA. Everything. And she didn't know what to say. He offered her a place with them. She couldn't answer. But he gave her a website. After hearing her parents so happy and knowing she'd helped them- That they'd helped them- she had only one answer now. Who cared about doing a little bit of bad if it helped the people she cared about in such a major way? She opened up Venality, made an account and typed a simple message into the chatroom.

Singularity: I'm in.