"You know the plan, girlie?" A tall, heavyset man asked as he glared in my direction. I nodded as he continued, "And do I need to remind you of what will happen should you fail us or try to run?"

I gulped, remembering what happened the last time I'd tried to escape. I hugged myself, covering the scars on my shoulders as I shook my head.

"Good. Now get in there!" He shoved me forward as he yelled at me, and I took a deep breath as I walked toward the jewelry store. This wasn't the life I'd wanted. I'd wanted to be a pro. I wanted to be a hero that others could look up to. Now here I was, forced to be a lowly villain because I had a quirk they wanted to exploit.

As I entered the store, the worker greeted me with a kind smile. I tried to smile back as I browsed the different stones, searching for the valuable ones. When my eyes spotted the diamonds, my heart sank. Why couldn't they have been sold out today?

"Is there anything I can help you find?" the man asked as he approached. I looked up at him, and felt tears form in my eyes. He stared at me questioningly. "Is everything alright? If you can't afford something you like, I can make a tab for-"

"I'm so sorry," I said, then activated my quirk.

Everything froze. The entire world stopped moving as I jumped into action. I swiped the keys to the case, lifted the lid, and took as much of the jewelry as I could hold. Shoving it in my bag, I returned the key and ran out of the store and into the alley as my quirk wore off and everything began to move again. I could hear birds chirping and cars driving down the busy street. I was panting when the villains who had kidnapped me weeks ago approached.

"Well?" asked the same man as before.

I handed over my bag, trying to catch my breath. I'd kept the world frozen for too long, and I was beginning to feel the side effects.

"Did anyone see you?"

I hesitated, but nodded, then braced myself for the beating I knew was coming.

Surprisingly, however, he didn't seem mad this time. "I'll go take care of that. Then we'll go pawn these off and make a fortune."

He handed the bag over to one of his men, then walked back toward the store.

"Handy quirk the boss has, huh, Icy?" asked a lanky man holding the bag as he peered inside.

Icy. The villain name they gave me because of my white hair and gray eyes. I loathed that name.

"Yeah," another goon replied, this one short with a messy black beard. "Being able to erase someone's memories sure is handy for thievin'."

Thieves. That was what we were. That was what I'd been forced to become.

I hadn't wanted that.

I wanted to be a hero.

*

"This is Zara. She'll be joining your class today."

I shook my head, clearing it of the memory. I wasn't in an alleyway, I was in a classroom full of potential super heroes. I wasn't going to screw this up. Not on my first day.

"Mr. Aizawa sir!" a young man with blue hair and glasses quickly raised his hand. "If I may, I thought only a certain amount of students were allowed in the hero program."

The teacher beside me faced him. "You'd be correct, Iida. However, due to special circumstances, the principal and the staff have made this exception." Aizawa turned his attention to the rest of the class. "Now, she's been through a great deal in the last couple of months, so I want you all to treat her nicely." He then turned to me. "Want to say anything?"

I shook my head.

He didn't seem to care. "I haven't been able to get a desk in here for you yet, but there is a chair in the back by Uraraka." He gestured to the back corner of the room, where there was indeed a wooden desk chair. "Please have a seat. We have a lecture today."

I nodded, then lowered my head as I scurried for the chair. As I was about to sit down, I felt someone poke my arm. I looked behind me and saw the girl Aizawa had called Uraraka.

"Hey, pull your chair over here. We can share my desk today," she beamed.

I felt myself relax at her bright smile and nodded, pulling my chair over so I could use her desk to take notes.

"My name is Ochako Uraraka. You can call me whatever name you want," she smiled.

I gave her a small smile back. "Zara."

"That's really pretty. Is it the only name you have?"

I looked away and nodded. "That I can remember, at least. It's a long story."

"Then you can tell me after class if you want. Then I'll try to help you get caught up on what you've missed so far! Maybe I can convince Momo and Iida to help, too!

"I'd appreciate it. Thank you."

"Ladies," Aizawa called from the front.

"Sorry," we both muttered, then looked at each other and smiled before finally starting to take notes.