They ended up waiting a bit longer to give the nomu more time to come toward them.

Mirko wasn't satisfied with that and left the roof to go hunt them down herself. Which the LOV thought was stupid.

Hawks went off to do the same thing.

The LOV just sat there, waiting.

Wally went off to make sure the kids regrouped without any more incidents, and Shine just sat and took out a First Aid kit to patch up minor injuries with.

"You holding up okay?" she asked the LOV.

They shrugged.

Shigaraki did not look okay.

"Something up, Tomura?" Shine asked more directly.

He just glanced at her sideways in that weird haunted way he had. He always looked so erratic, kind of like Medea did.

Medea was hugging her knees, though, and not doing much. She still looked pissed off.

"This has been one of the top worst days of my life," Shigaraki said, very petulantly.

"You don't say..." Shine said dryly. 

"Yes! And it's all thanks to that Lethe kid!" Shigaraki said.

Shine snorted.

"What's that, do you not believe that?" Shigaraki was much faster to notice these nonverbal signals than he'd been in the past. Perhaps the LOV had taught him something.

"I'm sure we can blame Lethe for some of this, but do you mean you really have not had any second thoughts today at all about what led up to this?" Shine said.

"You mean I never should have let him join the LOV," Shigaraki sniffed.

"Is that all?" Shine said.

"What more is there? Do you think this is my fault!?" Shigaraki snapped.

"Did I say it was your fault?" Shine's tone was neutral.

"No, but you're trying to get at it, aren't you?" Shigaraki suspected.

"Why would I blame you?" Shine said, "Seems more like you expect me to... I wonder why that is..." She shrugged. "Who knows?"

"I don't think I have any blame for this," Shigaraki said, "And why should I feel bad anyway? Just a bunch of worthless people... This is why the world is no safer because of heroes."

Monoma looked at him oddly. But was too afraid to say anything.

"It's a good deal more dangerous because of villains," Shine commented in a rather flat voice for her, "I don't know that a hero's job has ever been to really make the world safe...just to make some people in it safer, when they can. I think you have it backwards, Tomura Shigaraki. We on the heroes side (whether we hold the title or not) are not out to make people safe. I can't speak for the Pros here...but it's...because certain things are worth saving. It's not that we ignore the risks of living, but that we think living is worthwhile, and life is precious and worth preserving as much as we can."

She looked up at the sky, about the only thing that was peaceful in their line of sight right now. "I remember I went through a time of questioning why I was alive, after what I was put through. I don't know what it was-- it was like I wondered if suffering was a sign that living just wasn't worth it... What do we live for if not to escape pain? But life is not escaping pain...just like courage is not the absence of fear, but where something stronger than fear overcomes it. And Love casts out fear...and Hope is stronger than despair. And when all that began to sink into me, I thought it was shallow to look at life the way I did. There are bigger things than being comfortable and safe in life. And you don't save people's lives so they can be safe, but so they can live them to the fullest. They ought to get that chance as much as anyone else, and someone almost dying is what pushes them to reconsider what's important."

She looked back at Shigaraki. "I agree, people should not be complacent, but perhaps that is all you see because it is all you look for. If you looked a little harder you might see many people are inspired to live a little better if someone saves their life, especially at high risk. Perhaps the truth is just that someone who was not saved does not understand what it is like to have been saved."

Shigaraki hissed. "That's something to rub in? That's sick, Likstar."

"Am I the sick one?" Shine leaned on her hand. "I'm not the one who claims to enjoy hurting people. I actually get satisfaction out of making their lives better. I'm sure that is annoying to you, isn't it? Because you don't get it, and you never have...not for a long time. But really, ruining lives gets so old, from what I've heard from my other villain friends--ex villain, I should say. There's only so many ways to destroy something, and it's always just destroyed-- nothing more you can do with it. But building and creating is infinite. You never really can run out of ideas there."

She nodded at Monoma. "In the end, it's just more fulfilling to do good than evil. Call it selfish of heroes, or just good people in general, but we've just tired of the emptiness of the other route."

"Didn't you claim that there is no such thing as good people?" Shigaraki said unpleasantly, "Are you a hypocrite now?"

"There is none righteous...no one does good," [Romans 3:10, 12] Shine quoted, "That's true, but there are good people. Good being an operative word here. Good compared to the alternative. Like a good apple is better than a rotten apple, but a good apple is not perfect either. And it may be good for one thing and not another. Like cider is made from otherwise not edible apples. A good ball player might just be one who tries and shows up to practice, not one who actually has talent. Depends on what you mean by it. The Lord seems to define good men as ones who show up and do their best, whether they succeed always or not. And fortunately He blesses even those efforts."

Medea gave her a look like she was insane.

"I knew it would come back to that sooner or later," Spinner grumbled. 

"I can only explain the universe to you the way I myself understand it," Shine said, "If you want lies and humanism and false optimism, go to a guru or a philosopher on the internet, not me. I could wonder aloud why you always try to trip me up if you don't expect me to have an answer to you. But I've run into it so much, I forget how odd it is now. People like you always just like to poke the bear. You should be glad that I don't bite, most of the time. You've noticed the pros have a bit more claws and teeth to them."

Compress made a huffy noise as if to agree.

"I did like what you say about saving people," Silk spoke up, "Not everyone deserves to be judged so harshly...but I see that this philosophy has no place in the LOV." She smiled wryly. "What are civilians but stepping stones to victory?"

"Isn't that what Bakugo said at the festival?" Monoma finally ventured a remark, but the look the LOV gave him made him wish he hadn't.

"It is," Shine said, "so in the end, not all heroes and villains are really so different. Bakugo only said what most heroes secretly think. Midnight, Eraserhead, Mt. Lady, I've heard them all...and it's a nice thought, really, that you should put yourself first in order to serve people more later...nice, but contradictory to what my master taught. He said those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted and 'the last shall be first, and the first last'." She chuckled. "Not the easiest thing to believe, is it? Much easier to think that you have to sacrifice other people in order to win."

"And don't you?" Mirko had rejoined them unnoticed somehow. "They're all running here, by the way. Crushed one on the way."

She tilted her head. "Not everyone can win, Likstar. That's not real life."

"But you see, in real life, this is not what we're talking about," Shine said, "And forgive me, but this is where I find you heroes so annoying."

Mirko didn't even react at this point, but Monoma looked miffed.

"And villains too," Shine added, to their chagrin.

"Hey, leave us out of this," Shigaraki said, "We didn't say anything about it."

"But you do sacrifice people to make a point," Shine said, "When you released the nomu on Hosu city to punish Stain--yes, I know that is what must have happened--you didn't care who they killed as long as he was one of them."

"What?" Spinner gave Shigaraki an aghast look.

"You can't prove that!" Shigaraki said, nervously.

"Well, even if you had a different reason, it wouldn't matter." Shine decided not to push the issue. Spinner might lose it if she did.

And luckily, he seemed to accept it. Probably he did not want to have to question this again.

"Because whatever it was, it was still callous. And you've never claimed to be out to help the weak and helpless, after all," Shine said, "And our Lord told us that it is only helping them that you really have any real righteousness... I told the hero kids this a while ago, I remember, that if you only help people who are your equals, who can give you something in return, it's nothing. Even villains do that, and so you do. And so you should, but it's not any real goodness to do that. Nor is it a revolutionary ideology, as you seem to think it is. It is what man has always done, and always will do until he's made to see any different. Going to the least of the people, the ones who really can never repay you, that is the only way to be like God...because that is all any of us are to God. He doesn't need us. He doesn't have any use for us that He could not do himself. 

"I notice people around here are not comfortable with the idea of not being useful. But being useful...it's laughable, when we're talking about God--or even the world as whole. We all know the world would hardly notice if we weren't here. You can matter not at all to the world but matter more than the world to one single person. That is true worth." She smiled peacefully. "That is what God has given us. You can't beat that... You wonder why I have no use for your philosophy and ideals? There you have it. You can't top what I already have...and so all I can do is give you things. I can't take anything from you. All I care about is love, and that's not something one can demand from anyone else. I wish you were all so free."

"And this is from the woman who relies on her partner so much." Mirko was a little snide. But obviously this made her uncomfortable.

Shine gave her a fierce look. "Did you not hear a word I just said? Wally and I both have had to work on our own, and we don't work together because we have to. We need each other, sure, but that need is a choice. A lot of needs are a choice, after all. But you have to be dependent on something in this world, and what you give that kind of trust is important. Yes, I rely on him. I want to. I think it's worth it. And fyi, I don't need you to think I'm cool, or strong, or successful, or anything, because I'd rather have someone care about me because they want to, and they have that choice, than have someone think I'm a hot shot over stupid stuff that will not matter ten years from now.-- No offense, I don't mean that I think hard work is worth nothing, but it's all just vanity and grasping at the wind, as Solomon said [Ecclesiastes, if you want to know], and it's passing. Sure, it's good, for what it is, but we were talking about eternal value."

Mirko's face was priceless... She clearly had no clue what Shine meant by that.

The LOV exchanged uneasy glances.

Monoma felt safer talking to Shine than them. "I'll give you this, Miss Likstar, when you get talking like that, I almost feel like you know what you're saying."

Shine laughed. "Thanks, Monoma. I'll take that to heart."

"That was really rude." Spinner glared at Monoma. "And she's your teacher? UA is really sucky at its job."

"I meant it as a good thing." Monoma edged farther away from him.

Medea laughed suddenly. "You're such a prick... I like you. You can't make anyone like you even if you try, can you?"

"What?" Monoma said.

Mirko snickered. "I wouldn't have taken that, Likstar, but whatever."

"And I asked for your opinion on my teaching style when?" Shine retorted.

"Oh, yes, please, shut her up." Compress waved dramatically. "She's been nothing but snark since we met. Your choice of friends makes no sense to me, Likstar."

"And why should you care, Compress? Last I checked my opinion meant nothing to you. If I happen to like rude, snarky, belligerent people, then it only means I'm more tolerant of your antics anyway. Isn't that in your favor?" Shine was savage.

"All right, knock it off," Shigaraki grumbled. He was not in the mood for this.

"Well, you have to admit, it's funny," Shine said, gesturing at all of them, "All of you have insulted me, threatened me, or accused me of various things. Some of you have even smacked me around, yet here we all are... Either I like abuse, or I just think some things are more important than personal comfort, and wasn't that what we are talking about? What's important to you, Shigaraki?"

"I don't want to talk to you anymore." Shigaraki turned away.

"I got too close, huh?" Shine said dryly.

"Shut up!"

"Fine... Oh, look...right on time." She got up and looked over the edge. "I swear, I could feel the evil from here."

The nomu were clawing at the base of the building.

"Why haven't they just leveled it yet?" Mirko wondered, making a disgusted face at them.

"I put a barrier around it before Hawks brought us up here," Shine said smugly. "Thought I should buy us some time...and I think I see the rest of the heroes coming. It'll be really hectic in a moment here. If anyone has any final words, they should say them. This will be dangerous."

"Can I go home?" Monoma asked her.

"If you want to go home," Shine said, "but 1-A will be down there."

Hawks had flown Kendo to a hospital already to get her hands fixed up after the nomu had hurt them pretty badly.

"That's not fair," Monoma griped.

"I won't make you stay here if you're afraid. I mean, you are not really nomu-level," Shine said, "but you would be good backup for anyone else...so it's up to you."

"You're not going to chicken out now," Medea said to him, with a weird smirk, "This is the fun part."

"I'm not sure we have ever had the same idea of fun," Monoma said nervously, "Perhaps I could just back up one of the pros--"

"Getting tired of waiting." Mirko almost jumped back to the ground. 

Shine yanked her back. "Are you crazy? Let them close in on them first. If you go back down there you'll rile those creatures up more than they already are. Let's see... I only count...9? Wow, a lot went down... Three of them are big ones-- they must have evaded everyone else. 6 small ones. Short work for all of us, you would think."

"Miss Likstar, I got shot with some drug that blocked my quirk," Monoma said suddenly.

Everyone turned to him. 

"I just realized I haven't used it since. I hardly had time to think about it... I relied on reflexes, but..."

"Oh, no problem," Medea said, "You can just have the gun. Silk?"

Silk held it up. "Is he trained for gun?"

"Uh, before you just hand the teenager a gun, maybe I can fix it?" Shine said, "Or actually, I think maybe someone else could give it a shot. My protegees need training in this area anyway."

"You can undo drugs now?" Spinner said.

"Honey, I can pretty much do whatever is needed, because it's not me, and God has no limits," Shine said, "But if if bothers you, don't watch."

"Well, perhaps God doesn't care about Monoma's quirk," Spinner said snidely. 

Shine gave him such a look, he backed up. "I'd watch that snide tongue of yours, Spinner. When you dare God to do something, He usually will take you up on it. Especially if you question His concern for His creations. I think you probably just sealed it."

"You make no sense to me," Compress said.

"If that means they have those drug thingies here--" Mirko had one leg on the edge of the building "--then I think we have a bigger problem. They could shoot any of us with those. Are they permanent?"

"I don't think they would be, or they'd have used it already," Shine said. She frowned. "But we still need to warn them. Where's Hawks when you need him?"

The whole building shook.

"I think they broke my barrier..." Shine said.

The wall Mirko was leaning on suddenly broke from the impact, and she almost plunged over the edge. Shigaraki grabbed her... He was closest.

Everyone was stunned.

Most of all Shigaraki. He let go at once, and she fell on her face.

Shine fixed it by smacking Mirko hard. "Why did you do that? You idiot!"

[Design by Onerose. Original template to original creator.]

Mirko felt better after that, because that she could handle. "Well, someone didn't design that wall properly! And your stupid barrier gave way!"

"You probably pushed it too hard! You really can't hold back!" Shine said.

The awkwardness was forgotten.

"I think we're going to have company up here," Medea said, "Those nomu things are climbing the wall now."

"Well, here goes..." Mirko pushed Shine out of her vicinity and flexed.

* * *

On the streets of the city the heroes had had quite a time getting way from the nomu and leading them back to the center. Even with Wally and Hawks swooping in to snatch people out of danger just when it got bad, it was still hard. They couldn't just rush them away completely-- they had to keep the monsters on their trail.

Aizawa was fed up with it, and he had only found Jiro and Kaminari. He'd at least gotten them safely to a police blockade.

Miss Joke had helped and been surprisingly tolerable-- not one flirtatious quip.

Actually it was weird. "Are you feeling okay?" he asked.

"Yeah, why?" She brushed her hair back in confusion.

"You haven't said one annoying, embarrassing remark."

"Oh, that. I was trying to be considerate." Miss Joke put her fingers to her cheeks and smiled. "It's this new thing I've heard it's nice to do for your friends... Wait, you're not saying you miss it, are you?"

"Heck no!" Aizawa exclaimed, "It's just unnatural. But I'll take that over the alternative any day."

"You're so mean, Eraser." Miss Joke pouted. "Guess it was too much to hope you'd ease up just a little if I did."

"Is that your goal?"

"Not exactly, but turnabout is fair play, isn't it?"

"I'm not really into fair," Aizawa said flatly.

"Apparently you'd rather argue with me than talk about your students," Miss Joke said, "so I take it you're worried."

"Of course I'm not worried!"

"How would you not be worried? I'm just thankful that mine are nowhere near here. They were interning in different cities. Though I'm sure they'd be here if they could be." She shook her head. She patted his shoulder. "But don't worry so much, Eraser. They're tough kids. I'm sure they'll take care of each other. I hate to admit it, but your class this year around really is special, and if you ever repeat that to anyone, I'll deny I said it, just warning you."

"Thanks, Joke," Aizawa sighed, "That actually does help, slightly... At least, if you're serious."

"I'm totally serious. Do I look like I'm kidding?"

"You always look like you're kidding."

"It's the outfit," Miss Joke sighed, "But on another note...wasn't there a nomu chasing us? Where did it go?"

They looked back. "Maybe it sniffed out a different prey, one higher on its priority list..." Aizawa said.

Hawks had confirmed for them the LOV were targets.

"Can it think that much?" Miss Joke said.

"I don't know..." Aizawa said.

They got their answer to that a few minutes later when the nomu reappeared, but it was chasing Camie and Bakugo, who were on a motorcycle and had another nomu after them already.

"So Bakugo is a higher priority than you..." Miss Joke slapped Aizawa lightly in the back. "That's gotta wound your ego."

"No, it's more concerning that kid would be a higher priority than me," Aizawa said.

"Predators always pick on the weak..." Miss Joke said, "But if it comes to that, Bakugo could probably give you a run for your money, and I'm sure he could challenge me...and Camie is no one to underestimate... What is wrong with that one?" She pointed at the one closest to the kids. It was distorted... It was hard to say just where it began and ended.

Aizawa even felt unnerved, and not much fazed him. "Something happened to that thing..."

"It's not fire, I'd say. It's more like...it twisted...like from inside..." Miss Joke made a face. "How is it even still running?"

It barely was. It kept tripping, and it would lash out at whatever tripped it, but then it always got up and went back after the kids.

"Bakugo!" Camie yelled over the motor, "I think I'm going to have nightmares about that thing chasing me for months after this. This is like some sick video game where you can't lose that one bad guy no matter how much you shoot it."

"Well, we're almost there," Bakugo said, "I can see the LOV up there." He pointed.

"Yeah, but, Baku, there's another one on our left..." Camie said.

And that nomu was a little smarter apparently. The first one seemed to have no cognitive power left, but the new one picked up a light post and swung it right into their path.

Camie screamed as the bike went off the ground and they both got thrown. Bakugo was able to catch himself with his quirk, partly. He tried to go toward Camie, but it was much too fast.

But a scarf came out and grabbed her before she hit the pavement.

Aizawa reeled her in, and Miss Joke helped catch her.

"Miss Joke?! Hey!" Camie said, "And Mr. A, thanks."

"Call me Eraserhead. We're on the job, and never call me Mr. A ever gain," Aizawa said coolly.

"Right, 'course..." Camie said.

"Are you okay?" Miss Joke asked.

"Uh, less okay than if that was not coming right for us!" Camie pointed.

Both nomu were stumbling toward them.

"Can we outrun those?" Miss Joke asked nervously.

"No...not all of us," Aizawa said.

Bakugo came running and got in the monster's path. "Hey, eat this!" He blasted them.

"That stupid kid!" Aizawa said.

"He's just like you!" Miss Joke said. 

"Baku!" Camie yelled, "Get away from them! For real!"

She blew out a cloud of smoke and obscured all of them. The nomu did seem confused for a second.

Aizawa reeled Bakugo in. "Don't take on those things alone. Come on."

They all began to run for it.

The nomu followed his voice, though, and ran much faster than them...like wildcats.

Miss Joke and Camie were lagging behind more, since they had no tools or powers that made them faster.

One of the nomu shot out its tongue like a frog or snake's.

"Could it always do that?" Miss Joke asked.

"Idk, it didn't before!" Camie yelled.

The tongue nicked at their feet, and Miss Joke shoved Camie aside barely in time, as it lashed around her foot. 

"Ahh!" she screamed as it yanked her back.

"Joke!" Aizawa yelled.

"Smile Lady!" Bakugo said.

Miss Joke kicked wildly at the nomu as it tried to...swallow her whole? That was new, but it's jaw was expanded like a python.

"Ew, ew, ew... I'm not dying like this!" She kicked its jaw. It wasn't much deterred by it.

"Joke!" Aizawa tossed her his scarf. "Grab on."

"I'd love to Eraser, but my hands are a little busy..." She was trying to keep the jaws from closing on her.

Aizawa managed to slip the scarf around her anyway, but the other nomu registered it as a threat and grabbed hold of the scarf.

Aizawa was surprised. "What the--?"

The nomu yanked him forward by the scarf before he really understood what was happening.

He struggled to push it off himself.

Bakugo pulled Camie up off the ground. "We gotta do something," he said.

"Uh, what? Blast them?" Camie said, "You'll hit the teachers too!"

"Use your smoke!"

"It won't matter if they're touching what they see, Baku..." Camie whimpered, "We need someone else. Where's Hawks?" She sent up a big smoke flare towards the sky.

Aizawa writhed as the nomu reeled him in.

"Eraser--" Miss Joke was straining really hard. "--I have an idea... Just toss more of that this way, and let the beast have it."

"What?" 

"Just do it!" she yelled.

Aizawa did it.

Miss Joke somehow managed to use one hand to slip the scarf around the nomu, even as she was still struggling to hold it off with her free hand and both feet.

"Don't get eaten. Don't get eaten..." she was saying to herself.

The other one yanked Aizawa closer to it. He kicked at it and tossed the other end of the scarf around it before slipping out of it finally himself.

Miss Joke gave one last ditch effort and kicked off of the nomu, breaking loose into the air. The nomus both snatched at the scarf then, trying to reach her as she tucked and rolled to the ground.

Aizawa grabbed the middle and yanked the two monsters together. Miss Joke stumbled away from them before they could recover. Aizawa then tossed the middle of the scarf over a lamp post and ran for it, grabbing Miss Joke on the way. 

The nomu ran after them and both tripped.

Bakugo blasted the monsters as hard as he could, making a crater in the street.

"Release!" he yelled at them, "Gosh dang it! Die already!"

That really shouldn't have worked, the others thought, but the nomu went limp suddenly.

"Bro..." Camie gaped. "What was that...?"

"Something Ponytail tried earlier. Guess it worked..." Bakugo said.

"Uh...I have several questions," Miss Joke said, "One, how did he do that? Two, what just happened?... And three, why are you holding my hand?"

Aizawa let go of her. "It was just to drag you away. Knock it off."

"Yeah, I know." Miss Joke shot him a sly smile. "Gotcha."

Aizawa sighed.

* * *

"Only 7 now," Shine said, as the nomu reached the roof, "Nobody screw this up."