It didn't take long at all for me to find my house. Once I was on the way, each step I took felt as natural as breathing. I chatted with the others about my parents, so giddy I was sure my smile made me look crazy. But I didn't care. I was finally going to see them again.

When I finally stood before the small house, I couldn't hold back my tears anymore. I raced toward the door and tried to open it, but it was locked tight. I shouldn't have been surprised, given what had happened to us, but I felt my heart sink slightly as I knocked hard on the door. "Mom! Dad! It's me!" I called as tears trickled down my cheeks.

I heard movement from inside, and as I backed away from the door, it flew open faster than lightning. As I looked up, I saw my mother staring at me in shock, her eyes quickly filling with tears.

"Oh, Zara!" she cried, running forward and hugging me tightly to her. I held onto her as well, beyond thrilled to be able to touch her again. I'd missed her. I'd missed home.

After a long moment, I forced myself to pull away. "Where's Dad?" I asked her.

"He's working late. I'm going to call him right now, and make you a snack. Oh, I've missed you. I'm so glad you're alright." She paused then, finally looking behind me. "And who have you brought with you, dear?"

I looked behind me to the others, who were smiling and patiently waiting, then turned back to my mom. "These are my classmates." I beamed up at her. "I'm redeeming myself, Mom. I'm going to be a hero."

The number of tears in her eyes doubled, and she reached out and hugged me again. "I know you are. I'm so proud of you."

Mom led me and the others inside, then sat us around the dinner table before rushing off to call my father. It had been so long since I'd sat here, since I'd heard my mother's voice.

"What a nice little house!" Uraraka piped up, pulling me from my thoughts.

"It's... so quaint," Momo added.

I smiled at them both. "I know it's not much, but it's home."

Mom came back into the room then. I hadn't heard her hang up the phone, but at some point she'd managed to slice fruit for us. "This is all I have to offer at the moment, but please, help yourselves." She then turned back to me. "Your father is on his way home right now. How much time do you have before you have to go back to school?"

"I don't care. I'll spend the night here if I have to. I want to see him."

Mom sighed, still smiling. "You just got to school, dear, under very special circumstances. I don't want you getting into trouble. You'll never find the redemption I know you're working so hard for."

I looked down at the ground. "I haven't told them very much yet."

"Naturally. You've known them for two days."

"Um, Zara?"

I glanced over to Uraraka again.

"I'm sorry. I know this isn't what you want to hear, but I think we've pieced together what happened to you."

I stared at them as I felt the color drain from my face. No, they weren't supposed to know. The only ones I was hoping to one day consider my friends, they knew the truth. They were going to turn and run, knowing I was the one thing they all despised most.

Midoriya spoke up, his voice sounding cautious. "You were kidnapped for your quirk, weren't you?"

Tears immediately came to my eyes, and I couldn't hold them back. Mom hugged me tightly to her, trying to console me.

"Please," Mom whispered to them, "please do not think less of her for it. All she ever talked about as a child was growing up to be a hero. Even as I tried to tell her it was very unlikely she would develop a quirk when neither of her parents have one, she still wouldn't give up." She petted my hair soothingly as I hid in her arms. "But when we discovered she had this remarkable gift, we thought it best to hide it until she was old enough to apply to hero courses. But someone found out, and they took her from us."

I could hear the sadness in Mom's voice as she told the story for me, the story I'd so desperately wanted to keep hidden. "We called the police, the heroes. It took months for them to find her, and when they did, it was by pure accident. They were merely trying to disband and arrest a gang of thieves when they found her in their hideout, chained to a wall. She was admitted to a hospital, where they decided it would be easier to wait for her memories to return on their own. I heard that the whole time she was gone, she never let go of her dream to become a hero."

Silence followed as my mother wrapped up the story. It only made me want to cry harder. They were all in shock, taking it in, before they would stand and leave, telling everyone at UA that I was a villain, and making sure I wasn't allowed to go back to school.

"Zara, we had no idea it was that bad. They chained you up?"

I reluctantly nodded. "I tried to run, so they punished me and made sure I couldn't."

I heard sniffling then that wasn't coming from my mom. Turning to face my classmates, I noticed all three of them had tears in their eyes. I gazed at them, confused. "Why are you all crying? You aren't going to go tell everyone?"

Uraraka looked hurt. "Of course not! Why would you even think something like that?"

"It isn't our past to share," Momo agreed. "Besides, it sounds like something you very much want to keep hidden."

"We won't tell anyone," Midoriya added. "Your secret is safe with us."

My eyes welled up with fresh tears. "Thank you. You have no idea how happy this makes me."

They all smiled at me, and I returned it. Months ago, I'd practically given up on ever having friends again, because of what I'd been forced to do. I'd been so sure that if I was ever rescued, I'd be thrown in prison. Now, I have classmates that seem genuinely concerned for me, and are willing to keep my secret. Maybe someday soon, I'll be able to call them my friends.