Unless you count the times I was at the infirmary at U.A, it had been a while since I had last stepped foot into a hospital. This was partly because I was pretty healthy and never had to worry about anything. That didn't mean I don't remember the last time I had been in a hospital, and the thought of it was somewhat concerning.

That was because the last time I was here, Ollie broke his right arm.

It was about two years ago. Ollie was just starting school and was playing with the other kids on the playground. He didn't have a Quirk like a majority of his classmates, but he tried to show off by going on the monkey bars. Some kid who was just learning how to fly accidentally crashed into him, causing him to land really hard into the concrete ground. He was rushed into the hospital to get a cast.

By the time it was done, I remembered Mom and Peter were barely home. Ollie thought it was part of his punishment for breaking his arm, but I knew differently. I knew because it was on one of those nights that I went through the mail and found a bill from the hospital. Our parents' insurance didn't pay for anything, causing them to take extra shifts to pay for the medical expenses. No matter how hard they worked, it wasn't enough. At least, it wasn't enough to continue treatment to receive physical therapy that he should've gotten. Luckily, Ollie was left handed like me, so he was able to take it easy after the cast came off.

Seeing how drowned they were in medical bills worried me. I tried my best to stay safe, so I wouldn't worry them. I ate somewhat healthy, so I wouldn't get sick. I stayed away from those who were sick, so I wouldn't catch what they had. I did everything in my power not to get hurt, so my parents wouldn't have to go through that again.

Being here in the hospital wasn't helping.

"Tami, relax. Dr. Oba is one of the best doctors in all of Japan. He's going to figure out what's wrong and fix it in no time," Hatsuko Yamamoto promised.

Her words didn't help as I sat on the edge of the examination table, tapping my fingers on my knees. She was the only one to come with me being that Raiden Yamamoto and his other sister had to go to school. Their parents had work, or at least that was what I was told even though I didn't even see their dad that morning.

I turned to look at Hatsuko, who sat on one of the chairs that was pushed against the wall. She had returned into her hero suit, complete with the purple mask that went over her eyes.

After realizing I wasn't going to talk, the young woman looked up at some of the posters that were in the room to keep herself entertained. I just didn't really know what I could talk about. Even if I did, I was afraid I'd just embarrass myself in front of her even more. After all, I had already embarrassed myself in front of her way too many times in the past few hours. If I tried to make conversation, I knew I'd just humiliate myself even more.

While I didn't want to talk, Hatsuko didn't give up.

"So, after this is over, we can pick up some ice cream before I take you back home. How does that sound?" she asked.

Instead of answering, I just nodded my head, turning my head to look at the cabinets in front of me. A nurse was in here not too long ago, taking a couple of blood and saliva samples for some testing. I wasn't sure what the results were going to be, but whatever they were, I knew they weren't going to be great.

"Do you have a favorite ice cream place? I'll pay for it, don't worry. It'll be my treat," Hatsuko offered.

Not wanting to make the decision, I just shook my head. Honestly, I didn't have a preference when it came to ice cream. Even if I did, I wouldn't have been able to think about it much. All I could really think about was those test results.

What would happen if I could never change into anyone ever again? All that hard work my mom put in just for us all to come to Japan, and for me to have a better chance at being a hero, would all be for nothing. I didn't want to disappoint her, even if I never wanted to be a hero. After all, she only wanted what was best for me.

Now, I blew it. It was all my fault.

At least I might get kicked out of U.A, but this wasn't how I wanted it to go.

"Do you at least have a favorite ice cream flavor?" Hatsuko asked before the door opened beside her.

We turned our heads to see Dr. Oba return with a clipboard in his hands. He smiled as he looked at Hatsuko.

"You know, Power Girl, if you asked me, I personally prefer chocolate," Dr. Oba answered before he looked at me. "You must be Tami Smith. It's good to finally meet you."

I watched as the man reached out his hand for me to shake. My hand peeled off my knee to shake his as I looked up into his eyes to try to figure out how he would've known me. He clearly wasn't related to the Yamamoto's at all. His skin was pretty pale, and his hair was a bright orange which seemed strange for a doctor to have.

My eyes widened when I realized why he would've heard of me. "Y-y-you're Kaito Oba's dad, aren't you?"

The man chuckled as he pulled his hand away and pulled out a pen from the pocket of his white lab coat. "That I am! Wish we would've met under different circumstances, but at least I finally get to meet the girl my son's been dating."

A sigh escaped my lips as I looked back down at my knees. As I did, I noticed Hatsuko Yamamoto looking a bit confused. I didn't say anything about it. Instead, I just thought about what he said. Wish we would've met under different circumstances.

"So, I take it that my Quirk is gone for good?" I asked.

"Just the opposite," Dr. Oba explained. I snapped my head to look at him, surprised yet confused as to what he meant.

The doctor went over towards the cabinet and pulled out a stool that was beside it. He moved it in front of me and sat on it, looking me in the eyes. His eyes were the exact shade as his son.

"That's good news, right?" Hatsuko asked.

Dr. Oba nodded his head. "See, your Quirk, Biochange, allows you to change into another person by changing the DNA in your system into the exact one of the person you envision. After doing this, it takes a while for your body's chemistry to change back into yours, hence why you need a break after each change; otherwise, you'll wear yourself out to the point that you can't move."

I nodded my head, understanding what he was saying. This wasn't the first time someone had to explain this to me. While it was easier just to say that I needed a clear image of someone in order to use my Quirk, it was a bit more complicated than that. Then again, that was just what I needed to know. My body would do the rest automatically without me having to think about it.

"According to your last blood sample, the last living being you turned into wasn't human. Have you ever tried changing into an animal before?" Dr. Oba asked.

My lips pressed together as I looked down at my legs. I was glad I was no longer in that oversized sweatshirt anymore, exchanging it for a pair of jeans that was a size too big and a plain brown t-shirt. It was the exact same color as that rat I had to turn into in order to escape.

It was a long shot for it to work, but it did. What if that was the last thing I could ever change into? Would there forever be rat DNA inside of me, preventing me to turn into anyone else? I didn't want to think about that.

In all honesty, I didn't even want to admit that was what I had to turn into. If Dr. Oba was anything like his son—or maybe it would be the fact that Kaito might take after his dad—he'd ask questions as to what happened. I wasn't ready for that, not yet.

Luckily, I didn't have to answer.

"She turned into a rat the other night. Smart thinking on her part as it helped her escape a group of villains. I think it was the first time she had ever turned into something other than a human being, right Tami?" Hatsuko answered for me.

Once again, I nodded my head, not wanting to really talk about that quite yet.

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. What matters is that you're back, and within a few days, you should be able to go back to your hero classes as normal. After all, you should be able to use your Quirk later tonight as the rat DNA that took up a fourth of your sample. My guess is that unlike turning into people, where you need to rest for ten minutes, turning into animals means you'd have to rest for a day. Not a horrible drawback, but just something to be aware of when you use it in your training to become one of the next Pro Heroes," Dr. Oba explained further.

I nodded my head, and relaxed. Everything was going to be fine. There was no need for me to worry about what was going to happen. All I needed to do was wait until late tonight, or better yet, tomorrow, and I could go back to using my Quirk.

But...I could change into more than just people. I should've realized this when I turned into a rat last night, but it didn't hit me until now. My Quirk was more than just turning into other people; it included animals as well.

"Thank you so much, Dr. Oba, for the check-up," I heard Hatsuko say.

"Of course! I'm just happy to help. I assume I should just tell the people at the front desk to put this on your tab?" Dr. Oba asked.

My eyes widened as I looked up at Dr. Oba then to Hatsuko. The hero didn't even notice as she closed her eyes, smiled, and tilted her head to the side. "That would be wonderful! I'll make sure I get them all paid off tomorrow."

Dr. Oba laughed. "Oh, I don't worry. You're probably one of the most responsible heroes out there. Have a good day."

I turned my head to look at Dr. Oba as he walked out of the room, leaving Hatsuko and I alone once again. Once the door shut, I saw her stand up stretching her arms out.

"Think we probably should go before the next patient gets sent back here," Hatsuko announced as she looked at me, smiling. "Have you thought about what kind of ice cream you wanted?"

Instead of answering, I just whispered. "Your tab?"

Hatsuko dropped her arms and tilted her head as she knitted her eyebrows together. "Yeah, my tab. I know most heroes don't do it, but I don't like it when people have to worry about medical expenses after a traumatic event, so I take care of it. After all, I have more than enough money to do that, so you don't have to worry about it. Just let me treat you to some ice cream, tell me all about your time at U.A, or whatever you feel comfortable talking about, and we'll call it even."

Even? That seemed far from even. I mean, she was paying for this hospital visit to make sure I was okay. If I had broken an arm, or had to take medication to get my Quirk back, or something that would've been much more money, that would've been a lot. I was grateful that I didn't have to worry Mom or Peter about it and that I didn't have to worry about any other additional costs, but a doctor's visit was still expensive. Wasn't it?

I didn't comment on it. Instead, I just looked at her, wondering how she was even Raiden Yamamoto's sister. Sure, he had been nice to me since I'd gotten back, but I think that was just because he was shocked. Once he would get used to me being back, I was certain he would return to his old self.

"What is it?" Hatsuko asked before I pushed myself off the examination table, feeling the paper crinkle under my touch.

"Nothing," I told her. "You're just, you're just a lot nicer than Raiden. It—it shocks me."

"Really?" Hatsuko asked, "How so?"

I walked by her side as we walked out of the room, following her out of the hospital. As we did, I kept my voice low so no one would hear and hung my head down, avoiding wondering eyes.

"Well, it's just when I first met Raiden, it was during our exam. He, uh, he nearly tore Kaito and me to shreds. Then, there was the time we were paired up together, and he threatened that if we didn't do well, he'd..." I trailed off, trying to remember what he'd even do. To be honest, I forgot.

Hatsuko stayed silent as we walked, but it was the time I trailed off that I realized I had just said some pretty nasty things about Raiden in front of his sister. After all she did for me—not killing me as a rat, taking me to her home, lending me some clothes, taking me to the hospital, paying for my hospital bills—this wasn't how I should've talked about him. It was rude.

Realizing it, my eyes widened as I hid my face in my hands. "Sorry. I shouldn't have said that. He's your brother, and he's not totally mean. It's just most of the time—wait, no, that's still really rude wasn't it? I'm sorry. I really need to stop talking. He can be nice. Honestly! It's just—"

"My brother gets competitive," Hatsuko finished. "No, I get it."

"Competitive?" I asked, peaking my head out from my hands as she opened the front doors to the hospital to let me out.

She smiled and nodded her head. "If you'd like, I'll explain it all over ice cream. I think I know just the place to go."

Author's Note:

Good news, Tami will be fine. It'll just be a while before she can use her Quirk, but at least she found out something new about her own Quirk!

But it seems like Raiden's older sister is more worried about ice cream, so I want to know what is your favorite flavor of ice cream?

Character Spotlight: Kaito
Quirk: Light
Likes: chocolate dorayaki

Song: Inconsolable from Violet Evergarden