The only sound was the slap of shoes on the pavement, harsh breathing rasping from adrenaline fueled lungs, and the echo of distant fighting. If the boy focused he could hear the faint sound of police sirens whirring as they closed in on the scene.

However, he didn't give two shits about any of that, he was two alleys away from his hidden bag. Only two more turns.

Reaching out a hand he caught the corner of a building, launching himself and his charge into a different direction.

One more hard turn and Izuku slid into a crouch before a dumpster. He sat the young girl in his arms on her feet beside him, eyes darting around as he slowed his breathing to listen around them.

Nothing.

Good.

Flinging his hands out, Izuku pulled the duffle bag from under the bags and dumpster. He wasted no time in hauling the bag open. Sat on top of the rest of the things sat clothing, that was all he grabbed before rushing to close the bag again.

"Come here, Eri." He pulled the oversized hoodie over the young girl, hiding her hair beneath the hood along with her horn. Both things that would give them away at a glance. The thing swamped her, drowning her in fabric.

Eri worked the bag he had given her off underneath the hoodie, before putting it back on over the new clothing. Her heart raced as she watched Izuku pull a pair of sweatpants over his shorts and tights, before he threw on a hoodie that matched hers.

Izuku also slung off his tool belt, strapping it back over his hoodie in a bandolier type fashion. Tucking the two knives from their sheathes into his hoodie pocket, he reached out and hauled the duffle bag over his back.

Then he reached out for Eri again, slipping a pair of socks over her bare feet. They, too, were huge on the tiny girl . . . But it was better than nothing especially in the chilled weather. 

A once over of Eri, their surroundings, and his things, then he was scooping her up in his arms, ducking out of the alley and into the late-night crowd of people that filled the streets.

Green eyes flowed over the people around them, taking in street names he had memorized and working through the list of what he needed to do.

Eri's pale face tilted so she could see him, head still tucked into his chest. "Wh-wha-t . . . What n-now?" Her voice was small, quiet, but filled with a hope that she hadn't had before. Not for a long time. 

"Well, Unicorn." He cupped the back of her head, rubbing his thumb over the fabric of her hood. "There's only one place that could be safe enough for people like you and I. One place that can keep us safe and work with the information we have, that won't end up with us separated."

And so, he set off, the money he had tucked away in the duffle enough for the night, and for the trains he would need. 

|--[]--|

All day she had waved off the churning of her stomach as eagerness for the prize waiting for her at the end of the quest. Tonight would show the fruits of her labor, all her hard work paying off. Finally, after years of coaching and guiding, she'd be able to taste the sweet nectar of pale, freckled skin. 

She'd relearn the curves she had only felt through cloth. She'd enjoy that innocent sweetness of green eyes as they hooded over in an expression she'd only seen in dreams and fantasies. 

Every one of her nerves tingled with anticipation. She thought it was just her excitement causing the flipping sensation.

She was wrong.

Oh, how she was wrong.

She had been grinning as Ena held down Overhaul, the man's thrashing doing nothing against her second-in-command's grip. The demon woman had already broken both of his arms, before tying them together, palms facing one another.

That's when she got the message that the Castle had come crumbling down.

One of her mid-level grunts had ran up to her, out of breath, panting and in a panic. "My Queen! Th-the-" His breath caught. "The Ca-castle it-it-it!" He shook like a leaf, slim build hugged by the suit that she made all those working in her kingdom wear. Akane glared, confusion taking over the fog that was her mind. "It blew up!"

"Blew? Up?" The pressure that had been building in her skull, filling her ears with cotton and drying out her mouth, roared at her. Shaking her head, Akane licked her lips before reaching for a packet of blood that sat in the belt around her waist. "Wh-wha-what does . . . What?"

She vaguely felt someone approach her, a familiar voice trying to cut through the stone that had suddenly replaced the fog.

The bag felt warm in her hand, heated from the protective pockets of her belt, and the only thought she could make sense of was about drinking more. Drinking blood always helped her, kept her strong.

As she downed the contents of the pouch the ach in her body only doubled.

A bolt of pain shoot through her limbs, cultivating in her abdomen. Her knees gave out, body falling to the ground.

"MY QUEEN!"

Oh, she knew that voice . . . wait.

What was happening?

She felt herself turned over, hands frantically searching her body for something, though she couldn't guess what. Akane groaned as her vision swam, lights and sounds rushing in and out in a mess of colors and bursts.

Her vision cleared for a moment, and she caught a glimpse of Ena hovering over her. The other woman looking panicked, eyes wide as she yelled out orders to the people standing around. Her wings folded tight to her back, she framed Akane's face with her clawed hands.

Sirens rang out, closing in, a grunt of someone hitting the ground as the weight shifted off of her chest . . .

Then . . .

Nothing.

Black.

|--[]--|

If you asked him what he was expecting when he walked into work that day, he would have told you not much.

Get pissed at the incompetence of some people, scold some others, his friends annoying him, and for his boss to be the annoying cryptid he was.

The usual.

This was not that.

This was not even in the realm of what to expect.

Nowhere in the guideline was he warned about this type of shit.

Goddamn it!

But, here he was, at the ass crack of dawn, staring down at the two huddled forms that had taken up residence of the break room.

How did they get to this point? Well, that was interesting for a whole different reason.

"Okay, Problem Children," He took a deep breath, eyeing his boss that sat beside him before going back to the two others. "Who are you, where did you come from, and why are you here?"