∞༺♛༻✧
AND IN TEN YEARS TIME,
THERE I WILL BE.

A week passed by slower than any of them would have preferred. At least, way slower than they were used to. This first year seemed to be going on forever, after all, but this particular week was an eternity.

It didn't help that the girls had no damn clue what was going on. It was nice to know some secrets, of course, like Mirio's new promotion, but besides that it seemed as if they were out of the loop. They had no idea what their classmates were whispering about them in between classes. Well, they could guess. They knew for a fact that Bakugo wouldn't stop groveling about how a bunch of stupid extras got more action that weekend than him (when Elly had overheard this on Wednesday she stomped on his toes).

It was more about outside of school. They had no idea the fate of that villain. They didn't particularly care for him (Midoriya was against murder, but if he ever saw that man again...), but it would've been great to know whether he was roaming free or not.

And most importantly, there was no news on July. She was their favorite hero ever and she hadn't shown herself after the incident. Not a single other villain. That was good, they weren't complaining, but it was a drag. Not knowing was a drag.

Thankfully it was Saturday, and they could have all the time in the world to breathe in the fresh air as they walked home from school. Aizawa didn't enjoy the idea of any of his students walking around without hero supervision, yet they didn't worry. They trusted him to come up with a solution.

"How's Midoriya doing?" Chayse hummed. She was tired of the silence this week. She wouldn't be surprised if the adrenaline from that last weekend was still pumping in her bloodstream.

Elly raised an eyebrow and shrugged. "Fine, I'd guess. Kacchan hasn't left my side recently." Grey couldn't help snorting. "What?"

"He's acting like a protective little dog over you. As if he didn't hurt you more than any villain could."

"That was back in middle school, I'm over it."

"Is he? I think he still feels bad about it."

"Is Midoriya the jealous type?" Chayse asked in a desperate attempt to change the subject. Katsuki was her friend before either of the girls were and she still had a shred of loyalty left for him. She didn't enjoy negative conversations about him. Elly shook her head.

"No." She paused with a sigh. "But, we haven't... we haven't been talking as much since that night. He still wishes me a good night and good morning every day but I think our arguments got to him."

"Men are complicated," Grey offered. She had a complicated boyfriend herself, after all. "Just talk to him. Ask him if he's okay, really."

"I'll call him tonight. Thanks, guys."

The silence afterward was awkward which was pretty rare for them. The silence wasn't rare, on second thought. The three girls often met their wit's end when it came to social interactions but they loved being with each other, so instead of avoiding one another they would simply sit in a welcoming silence. The awkwardness wasn't welcome.

Maybe they felt stupid for discussing relationship problems like this, after all that had happened so far that school year and all that they knew was coming. The League of Villains wouldn't care if Izuku and Elly were on good terms. It was a startling realization that none of them wanted to admit.

∞༺♛༻✧
Grey lived the closest to school and therefore was always the first to wave her goodbyes to the two others. She was preparing herself for an awkward goodbye when she spotted the rising structure of her apartment building. As she opened her mouth to wish them a good Sunday, the sound of a throat clearing echoed out from the alleyway they stood beside.

It rattled their eardrums and a nearby aluminum trashcan so the person immediately resorted to quietly pst'ing at them, which wasn't much more discrete.

The trio stood stock still, staring into the darkness of the alley in confusion. They couldn't see anyone, and they had come to learn that alleyways didn't harbor good news (they shivered at the thought of that night with Stain).

The stranger seemed to gasp in shock as, in a complete uniform manner, the three girls turned and continued to walk without so much as a blink.

"Wait! It's me, we gotta talk!"

It didn't take much more for them to scramble back, stumbling over one another as they shoved their way through the alleyway.

"What are you doing here?!"

"We thought you were dead!"

"You remembered us!"

July seemed overwhelmed by the shouts of the teenage girls before her, but it was too late to run now. They had backed her into the far corner of the alley, and while she could simply jump up and fly off, she didn't think it was a good idea to blast them away with the force of it. So instead she chuckled nervously and sent them the most heroic smile she could muster.

"It took me a while to track you girls down! I unfortunately don't have connections to UA like most heroes in the area."

"Track us down?" Grey might've frowned at the wording, but all she could think of at the moment was how her brother was going to be totally jealous once she told him about this.

"Of course! I didn't get the chance to properly thank you ladies for what happened last weekend. I wouldn't have been able to take that troublemaker down without your help!"

Chayse immediately snorted at the words, Elly and Grey quickly following with their own laughter. July frowned down on the giggling trio.

"What's funny?"

Once again in sync, the girls seemingly no longer found anything amusing and their laughter ceased. They missed the way that July watched their synchronization with admiration.

"You're not joking?" Elly's voice almost came out as a whimper.

"Of course not!" A childish look of offense fell over July's features, as if the girls' concerns were out of the realm of questions. "I truly owe my victory to you three!"

It finally settled in their minds what was going on.

July, the Summer Month hero-- their favorite hero ever-- was standing here in front of them, thanking them. Thanking them! They didn't really understand why still, but they could feel their faces pale at the utter and insane amount of veneration that fell over them.

"What did we even do to you?" Chayse managed to stutter out, though her brain still seemed to be lagging. July only laughed at the miswording.

"How much homework do you girls have tonight?"

Elly, Grey, and Chayse glanced at one another. They felt the weight of their textbooks in their bags.

"None at all."

∞༺♛༻✧
The cafe that July had led the three girls to was a place she didn't have to worry about people recognizing her. According to her, a 'friend if you can call her that' ran the locally owned business and because of a favor, would lock the doors for July whenever she asked.

"I don't know what his quirk's called, but it's cool as fuck." Grey raised an eyebrow. She had never thought about July swearing, but then again she supposed she wasn't technically a PG-rated hero like All Might. The Summer Month hero, noticing the look of the teens in the booth across from her, smiled shakily. "His villainy was, of course, not cool."

"What... what was his quirk?" Elly offered, glancing down to the hero's fiddling thumbs.

"Well," she seemed to perk up, "his quirk is that quirks don't affect him! There are exceptions, of course--"

"Are you kidding me?" Elly was dumbfounded. So that's why her paint had simply bounced off of him that night. Nonetheless, that was a cool quirk. Didn't mean she would admit it out loud.

"No! He can also spread this effect to inanimate objects. Simplified explanation, I know, but--"

"The doors," Grey mumbled. The girls didn't care about the small twitch of annoyance that befell their idol upon being interrupted once again; the puzzle pieces clicking in their minds seemed of more importance.

The three glanced to one another in understanding but refused to speak as the owner approached them with a tray of drinks. July cleared her throat to fill the silence, nodding as her friend (the woman only glared back so were they truly friends?) set down the glasses.

As soon as she was gone, the conversation started back up.

"So what's your quirk then?" Elly started. Caught off guard, July choked on her water. Chayse simply watched curiously as she inhaled her lemonade.

"W-Well, it's a bit complicated--"

"You said you couldn't have won without us," Grey recalled. "That implies your quirk was weakened by his quirk, doesn't it?"

July sighs but gifts them with a reluctant nod. It's not that she's embarrassed by her shortcomings. She's not that type of person. It was just that time was catching up to her.

"Can I ask for your zodiac signs?"

"Zodiac... sign?"

"You know your-- nevermind. When is each of your birthdays?"

"July 9th," the three mumbled without hesitation.

"Cancers. That's what I thought."

"What'd you just call us?" Chayse spluttered. Her face reddened with anger.

"Cancer is your zodiac sign! I'm glad I was right, or this whole situation would have been awkward!" They stared at her blankly. "Ah... okay, well, everyone knew what their zodiac sign was before quirks appeared. I guess its popularity died out because who cares if you're a Taurus if you can shoot lasers from your eyes?"

"That doesn't explain what they are."

"That's for another day. All you need to know now is that your sign is determined by your birthday. July 9th. Cancers."

"And your quirk?" Chayse got back on topic as she chewed her straw. A sigh. July hated monologues.

"Zodiac Strength. I draw on the energy of those who share my astrological sign. My power is at its peak during Cancer season which is why I tend to only do work in July. These past few years my quirk's capabilities have been diminishing for reasons I'm not yet sure of, and that villain's quirk hasn't done me any good either. I'm assuming he was able to completely block my Zodiac Strength for a brief moment and why that first punch seemed so... normal. I was lucky that so many Cancers were concentrated at the scene."

The girls were dumbfounded, to say the least. It felt wrong to know all of this. Why were they being trusted with secrets that they knew no one else knows (they had scoured enough forums and watched enough fan videos and no one had mentioned or even theorized anything like this).

"So dramatic, July," the owner huffed from her place behind the counter, chin placed boredly in her palm.

"I'm just answering their questions!" July insisted. "Say something, guys, you're embarrassing me!"

"Oh, er-- that's why your hero name is July then?" Elly didn't know what else to say but cringed at the look of confusion that fell over her favorite's face.

"Hero name? Oh no, was I supposed to choose one?"

"Oh my God."

"Why are you telling us this?" Grey's fists clenched as she blurted out the question, the hem of her skirt balled tightly between her knuckles. Elly and Chayse glanced at one another, knowing full well that their friend was starting to panic. Hell, they didn't feel right themselves either, but freaking out wouldn't do the youngest any good. So instead they leaned inwards and offered Grey the familiar touch of their shoulders. "Why us?"

July only smiled brightly, every sparkling tooth in her mouth on full display and the wrinkles around her eyes prominent. "Well, I said you're Cancers, did I not? So am I! Since you girls have such a strong connection, bonds between Cancers unbreakable no matter what lurks in the dark, it gives me strength whether you mean to or not!" She chuckled. "In all honesty, I wanted to check up on you. To make sure that this villain hadn't torn you apart. I'm gonna need this friendship in the coming years, I have a few more things I wish to do before I retire!"

Her message was ominous yet it was something the girls knew they couldn't focus on. All heroes retired, and they should only be grateful that July hadn't been retired forcefully throughout her many battles.

"Need... this friendship?" A quivering breath was released. "Need us?"

"No hero can make it without a support system," July nodded. "My time will be coming to an end before the decade is over, and would I be human if I wasn't scared of that? So I'm trying to expand my support system to extend my time. Call it selfish... I understand, but... there's others I have to help."

"So..." Grey's fingers twitched. "Our bond as Cancer's gives you strength so you want to keep us around so you can keep doing hero work?"

"Well it sounds more manipulative than intended when you say it like that." July scratched at her neck. Elly could have sworn a redness blossomed on her cheekbones. "You guys can say no of course! I bet attending the top hero school has you busy, huh?"

"What would we even do?" Chayse questioned nervously. Her lemonade was gone, and the thought of doing even more exercise than what Aizawa already assigned made her want to run to the bathroom.

"I guess every great hero needs their pupil!" July noted. Shota and Hitoshi came to Grey's mind and Izuku and Toshinori to Elly's. "I'll outshine those lazy men and have three! As for what we'll do... uh..."

The owner scoffed, and seemingly fed up, walked off into the kitchen.

"We could figure that out later?" July suggested. "I don't wanna get too ahead of myself--"

"Ahead of yourself?" Elly seemed offended, causing the hero to shift in her seat. "Ahead of yourself? You think we're gonna say no?"

The Summer Month hero's eyes widened. She was shocked, and the way her breath caught in her throat was a telltale sign of that. She glanced to Chayse and Grey, to perhaps catch a flash of their thoughts on the situation, but they only stared back at her expectantly. Expectantly, and with a glimmer of young excitement in their eyes.

Of course the three girls would be on the same page without a word.

"Yes? I mean-- you're saying yes?"

The girls nodded simultaneously, without hesitation, and without fear. They seemed calm on the surface. Rational. But in the end, they were still little girls. They were children, and as children they excitedly grabbed one another's hands under the table and out of sight. July was their hero in more ways than one, and as children this was their best dream come true.

"This is... Well, I don't know what to say. I didn't think I'd get this far." The girls watched July as she stood from her booth. This far?! Was this all a last second idea? The hero bowed deeply, her head nearly smacking the sharp edge of the diner table. "Thank you, truly!"

The girls stayed seated, holding back the urge to shield their eyes from the fluorescent lights as July looked down on them with an inexplicable admiration. Was this what it was like for the boys in their class who seemed to have the world on their side? Was this what it was like to feel worthy of their power?

"You girls are going to rule this world."

And the next chapter began.

∞༺♛༻✧ A/N
if this were to be a full story, this would have only been the beginning to a whole lot more. july would become their "mentor", and learn a ton more about her. well, first of all, shes not a licensed hero, but instead a vigilante. she makes the government so much money though (not having to pay actual heroes to do work for a whole month) that they just let her be. the cafe and its owner would also play a big part, the cafe being the base of operations for our cancers.

but the ending is open ended. i also tried to not explain how july looks in this book because i like the idea of ppl seeing themself in her. the only for sure thing is that shes older (a bit younger than all might), tall, and muscular

and with that, i end.