Chapter Text
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Morioh Exclusion Zone Monitor A-12 | (GMT+9) 2243-03-14 07:32:00
Sensors: LEY LINE (MRU), CPM(Geiger), TEMP(°C)
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
TIME LEY LINE CPM TEMP STATUS
07:32:00 12.12 18 22.4 OK
07:32:05 12.13 19 22.4 OK
07:32:10 12.14 20 22.5 OK
07:32:15 13.16 23 22.5 OK
07:32:20 13.19 28 22.5 OK
07:32:25 17.27 30 22.6 NOTICE: rising ley line energy
07:32:30 19.45 32 22.6 NOTICE: rising ley line energy
07:32:35 22.98 36 22.7 WARN: approaching threshold
07:32:40 30.62 38 22.7 WARN: high ley line energy
07:32:45 32.11 34 22.8 ALARM: LEY LINE HIGH
07:32:50 32.34 37 22.8 ALARM: LEY LINE HIGH
07:32:55 40.28 36 22.9 ALARM: LEY LINE HIGH
07:33:00 30.02 32 22.9 WARN: high ley line energy
07:33:05 22.76 28 22.9 WARN: approaching threshold
07:33:10 19.42 23 22.8 NOTICE: decreasing ley line energy
07:33:15 17.09 19 22.8 NOTICE: decreasing ley line energy
07:33:20 13.84 14 22.8 OK
07:33:25 13.63 16 22.7 OK
07:33:30 13.48 24 22.7 OK
07:33:35 13.46 30 22.7 OK
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Daily output from the anomaly maintains normal fluctuation levels consistent with the past hundred years.
==========================VI==========================
[U.A. High School, April 24th, 2243]
“Alright, settle down,” Eraserhead ordered in his usual bored tone. “The Sports Festival is happening next week. If you plan on participating, we do recommend that you come up with a fake name. This isn’t required, and is simply a security measure to hide your identities.” It was a practice dating back to the first U.A. sports festival to protect hero students, back in the days when villains had tracked down and killed the families of several students. Nowadays, secret identities were only used by about 60% of pro heroes; the rest were simply public figures. With how safe Japan was compared to the past, and with all the protections in place for the relatives of high-ranked pros, some chose to abandon that extra layer of security.
Momo glanced down at her form. As heiress to the Yaoyorozu fortune, she’d been paraded around several public events by her parents. Her identity could be found with a simple reverse image search. There wasn’t really any point in coming up with a pseudonym.
==VI==
Shoto was in a similar bind, with the Todoroki name being a rather famous one. He would’ve considered his mother’s side of the family, but considering the Himura family’s tarnished name… that would be a terrible idea.
He did not want to be known simply for his father’s impressive history. Granted, it was going to be completely obvious when he used his fire. He’d made great progress in controlling both sides in the past few days.
The scar on his face itched, a reminder of the fear that once tied him down.
Never again. His weakness had almost cost him and his classmates their lives. The festival would be a chance to show everyone, especially his family, that he had overcome it.
He would choose something simple, his first name only. Shoto. Since it meant “burn and freeze”, people who dug deeper would assume it was a play on his quirk rather than his real name.
Sometimes it was hard being so smart.
==VI==
"Did you come up with a pseudonym for the sports festival yet?" Izuku asked, having brought his paper over to her desk.
"Yeah," Haylee flipped her paper around.
Tenziro Nadia
"Ten…" He looked up at her. "Really?" Izuku deadpanned.
"Listen, smartass, it doesn't have to be super creative. I'd like to see you come up with something better. You wear t-shirts that say 't-shirt' on them." She crossed her arms smugly.
"Oh yeah?" Izuju scribbled a name down on his page and slid it across her desk.
Akatani Mikumo
Haylee bit her lip. "Shit, that's good..."
“Hey, the first name is good.” Izuku complimented. “What was the inspiration behind that?”
Haylee hesitated. “It's… just someone who was important to me. Don’t worry about it.”
“Alright.” Izuku nodded. “Are you going to change the family name to something less derivative?”
“It’s not derivative, it's clever!”
==VI==
Katsuki glanced over at the two losers, arguing over something as stupid as a name. Morons. He was going to use a fake name, because he wasn’t an idiot. Nobody knew All Might’s real name and that didn’t stop him from being the best, and he’d seen people harass Endeavor because his name was public knowledge, like half the Top Ten were. He was gonna be anonymous like All Might, Hawks, Mirko, and Wash.
==VI==
Inosuke had never been one to think things through like disguises too thoroughly. Granted, he’d only gone undercover once in the Red Light District, crossdressing as Inoko.
It wasn’t his fault he could pull it off, after all, the great Lord Inosuke could crossdress far better than Tanjiro and Zenitsu!
Unfortunately, the Sports Festival wasn’t a crossdressing competition (but if it were, he would win).
Did he want to come up with a name? Not really. Using his real name was the best bet, because he wasn’t allowed to use his boar mask for the festival since it was part of his hero costume. Maybe someone would recognize him. If nobody did, it would at least give his reputation a boost.
==VI==
Toru fidgeted in her seat. The Sports Festival wasn’t something she had seriously considered before she discovered what her quirk was truly capable of. After all, invisibility could only carry her so far in an event, which to her knowledge, usually ended with some sort of combat.
Invisibility wouldn’t have stood a chance against most of her classmates. But now, she had Prismatic Battery, her
true
quirk. Sure, her control over it wasn’t great yet, but it was more than enough to get her through.
This is what she wanted, right? To be more visible?
==VI==
The Iida family was well known for their long lineage of heroes, from his great-grandfather to his brother Tensei. Naturally, they were publicly known, his brother being well respected for his work with poorer communities and taking in those with spotty records as sidekicks.
If he were to follow in his family’s footsteps, he needed to prove he could live up to the Iida family name. That was the reason he took the normal entrance exam, rather than the Recommendation one. During the USJ, he’d been taken out of the fight almost instantly. Against a seasoned villain, he was lucky her pistol hadn’t permanently damaged his leg.
A part of him felt that, had he been a bit faster and was able to leave the facility, his classmates wouldn’t have gotten as hurt as they did.
This would be his chance to make it up to them, and to show off that new move he’d been working on.
He hoped Tensei would be proud when he saw it!
==VI==
Lumine stared at her Sports Festival registration form.
Over a year ago, she’d imagined being there with her brother, maybe even facing off in the finals- the fated clash between brother and sister. Seeing who the strongest twin was.
It stung, being here without him. They were supposed to be here together. Probably not in the same class… but together.
Aether was out there, somewhere. She wasn’t sure how she knew, it was just a gut feeling. People always said they had that “twin sixth sense”, and she could just… feel it.
She couldn’t do anything to find him, and even if the police gave up searching, she wouldn’t.
‘
We will be reunited… I’m sure of it.’
==VI==
Neito had once resigned himself to being in the background. His quirk was only useful with the assistance of others. Despite his competitive nature, he’d always preferred being out of sight. But the Sports Festival was his opportunity to shine. To prove how strong he’d become.
==VI==
Hitoshi rolled his eyes at the filled out form. Of course he would put a surname. He wanted to be an underground hero, and all the attention being known by the general public would make hiding his quirk from villains would be difficult.
All that mattered to him was getting into the hero course. All those arrogant bastards couldn’t stop him- hell, they’d probably already forgotten about the random Gen-ed student who challenged them, seeing him as a non-threat.
Whatever, it wasn’t as if he needed to be liked to be in the hero course, as those two asshole students with their pissy attitudes in 1-A proved. Their opinion didn’t matter, only the approval of the teachers.
==VI==
[Group Chat - Class 1-B]
{5/25/2243}
IMPACT FONT: Holy shit
IMPACT FONT: class 1-a is intense
NiceToMeetShroom: Fukidashi, you’re one of the strongest in the class.
BackInBlack: No, he’s right.
==VI==
Earlier that day…
[U.A. High School, April 25th, 2243]
Aside from a few exceptions, most of Class 1-A and Class 1-B had yet to be acquainted. It was a pattern that had pervaded most of Shota’s tenure at U.A. as both student and hero. At least for the first year students, and especially this early in the school year.
That brought him back… back before three extroverts forcibly befriended him. Eugh… Why couldn’t everyone be more professional like Kurose and Ishiyama? Not that he would trade Nemuri and Hizashi in for silence, but still.
1-A was already at the training grounds, awaiting their sister class’s arrival (Because Kan liked to make dramatic entrances). Usually the two hero classes didn’t start training together in earnest until the end of the year. They were simply getting a head start, considering all that happened as of late.
Would it make it easier for the two classes to learn about each other’s quirks and fighting styles right before the sports festival? Oh, absolutely. But if the second years could handle the U.A. crush at the license exams, then these kids could suck it up for three days of joint training. Besides, if they were smart they wouldn’t show their whole hands to the competition, or work up some new moves in the few days before the festival.
It would certainly make the Joint Battle Trial on Thursday interesting.
Kan’s class arrived right on time, all twenty-two students and both teachers funneling through the doors to the training ground.
“Alright,” Sekijiro stepped to the forefront, accompanied by Natah. “Greetings, I’m Kan Sekijiro, also known as Vlad King, class 1-B’s homeroom teacher.” He stated gruffly.
“And I am Lotus, 1-B’s assistant teacher.” Natah bowed politely. “A pleasure to make your acquaintance, 1-A. You may call me Tau Natah.”
Sekijiro stood before the assembled classes. “Today we will be conducting the first joint training between your classes.” He slapped Shota on the shoulder, pulling him closer. “This is Eraserhead, 1-A’s homeroom teacher, who didn’t want to introduce himself.”
Shota rolled his eyes, then yanked Sekijiro’s arm off of his shoulder. “Our classrooms are right next to each other. They should know who I am right now.” He pointed to Ordan. “That over there is my assistant teacher, Bone Beast.”
“Hey, why don’t I get to introduce myself!” The cloaked man yelled.
“Suffer.”
Ordan grumbled to himself, then faced 1-B. “Just call me Karris-sensei.” He waved to the assembled students.
Shota stepped forward, taking over. “Your goal is to prepare for the Joint Battle Trial in two day’s time, as well as the Sports Festival at the beginning of May. This is an opportunity to forge connections with the other Hero course students in your grade, so don’t waste it. In addition to your homeroom teachers, Midnight and Cementoss will also be present. If you need assistance with your combat training or quirks, simply ask us. There are fourty-four of you, and there isn’t enough time for us to do one-on-one sessions with you all. However, if there is something we believe we can aid you in, we will seek you out.”
There were no questions about his statement, which was good. The students immediately broke off into groups for training.
Natah’s eyes fell upon Hagakure. She wasted no time and approached the girl before she wandered off. “Hagakure, nice to see you again.”
“Oh, Ms… I mean, Tau-sensei.” Toru gulped. She’d only seen Haylee’s mom briefly during her birthday party, as the adults mainly let the kids do their own thing. She’d actually forgotten that Ms. Tau was also a teacher at U.A. For some reason, she felt intimidated by the plainly dressed hero before her. Unlike the other teachers, Ms. Tau was wearing a simple business suit rather than a costume. Her stare was plain, possibly a bit cold but with a hint of warmth that she could almost call… motherly?
“Ordan told me you were having difficulties with your quirk. I believe that I could be of some assistance to you, even though our quirks don’t function the same.” Natah lay her palm flat, letting swirls of Tau energy shimmer across her skin. “Specifically with flight and energy projection.”
Toru nodded. “I’ve gotten a handle on turning myself invisible and visible again, but I can’t laser blasts yet.”
“But you can fly.”
“I can…” Toru stared at her hands. “But I’m not very good at it. I can only do it in short bursts and can’t control it very well.” A look of embarrassment crept across her face. “And uh, Karris-sensei had to climb up to the ceiling and save me.”
Natah’s head tilted up toward the surprisingly high ceiling of the gym, wondering for a moment how Ordan managed to get up to the roof. “I see. So I’m assuming your issue is maintaining the constant output of your quirk to maintain flight?”
Toru blinked. “Uh… yeah, I guess. I don’t really fly, more like… bounce up and down like a yo-yo.”
Natah nodded. “Rapid bursts of propulsion then. Tell me, does it feel like you are… picking yourself up with your quirk, or grabbing yourself and lifting?”
Toru raised a finger to answer before lowering it just as quickly. How she flew wasn’t something she’d thought about, as she was more concerned with, well, actually flying in the first place. Could she get in the air? Sure, she could throw herself up there no problem. The issue was that once she was airborne, she couldn’t control it and was more preoccupied with not splattering herself all over the gym floor.
“I think… that I’m picking myself up?” Toru finally decided. “Midoriya said that I had a rainbow glow during the USJ attack, and my quirk works on my whole body?” If it were just her feet, she probably would feel the recoil… which was what her past few attempts had felt like.
Which meant she wasn’t using her quirk the same way as the USJ. What she was doing now was like what she’d seen Bakugo do once- blasting herself into the air. Back in the USJ, it had been effortless levitation, albeit only for a few seconds before passing out.
“Would you like a demonstration?” Natah asked.
Toru blinked. “Oh, yes, please!”
Natah nodded, then took a step back. “Very well.” The woman flicked her hand, and before Toru’s eyes, Tau-sensei’s entire body shimmered. Her flesh and suit morphed into an armored bodysuit and headpiece, which sported a visor.
Toru had to forcibly grab her jaw and close it to prevent it from dropping to the floor. “Woah…”
She knew that Haylee wasn’t Natah’s biological daughter, but damn, their quirks were both… crazy, but awesome.
Natah rose into the air, a faint violet aura surrounding her body. “Now, let us begin.”
==VI==
Itsuka followed after Lumine, who had immediately bolted toward her girlfriend as soon as their teachers were done with introductions. As one of the three people in 1-B who knew the two were dating, she was itching to meet the girl who had caught her classmate’s eye.
And spar with her, because apparently she was, to quote Lumine, “A wicked strong martial artist.”
Lumine, of course, was completely over the moon to finally be in class with Haylee. While she didn’t want to distract anyone from training, she really wanted to see her girlfriend’s hero costume (and show hers off as well).
Izuku and Haylee were about to start sparring when Luminee burst into the open area Cementoss had created. “Haylee!”
Haylee stopped mid-stretch. “Oh, hi.” She said without flair. Her eyes flickered to the ginger-haired girl accompanying her girlfriend.
“Kendo Itsuka,” She introduced herself. “And uh, I know about the two of you.” She mouthed to avoid anyone who might be in earshot. Both girls glanced at Lumine, who had gone silent. The blonde was wiggling her hips back and forth with an expression of awe and a noticeable blush.
‘
Oh my god!!!`
Lumine squealed mentally. Haylee looked… really good. Her costume was sleek with minimal protrusions. Despite its padding, it was still mostly skintight. Not enough to be revealing, but Haylee had an athletic figure due to abusing her quirk to build muscle, and her hard work showed.
Nice
.
Hey, she agreed to take their relationship slow. That didn’t mean she couldn’t appreciate her girlfriend’s looks. Plus…
“You look so cute!” Lumine squealed.
Haylee’s stoicism dropped immediately as she stammered out a pitiful attempt at a sentence, before crossing her arms and letting out a loud huff. “I’m… I’m not cute. I’m a badass.”
She was pouting, and it was adorable.
“Pfft!” Izuku snickered, earning him a kick to the shin from Haylee. “Ow!”
“Pussy. That was nothing.” Haylee rolled her eyes. “I hit you way harder than that during training.”
“That’s not the point!” Izuku replied in exasperation. “Oh, and hello again, Kendo.” He bowed quickly, finally recognizing the other girl’s presence.
“Oh yeah…” Haylee’s forehead scrunched up. “You’re… 1-B’s class rep, right?” Kendo nodded. Well, that would explain how Izuku knew her.
“Midoriya,” Itsuka replied with a curt nod before allowing her shoulders to relax. “How’s it hanging?”
“Fine, we were just about to spar.” He replied.
“Do you mind if we watch?” She wanted to see what all the hype was about.
“Sure, but you might want to take cover by Cementoss.” Haylee jerked her thumb toward the brick-shaped hero.
“Take cover? What do you…”
==VI==
The training ground trembled, the sound of heavy impacts coming from behind Cementoss’s walls.
"What the hell was that?!" Pony yelped.
"Oh gods, Midoriya and Tenno are going at it again." Denki shuddered.
“What are they doing, ‘shroom?” A shorter girl asked, her face showing a slightly concerned look.
“Oh, that?” Inosuke dodged Kamakiri’s blades and kicked Yaoyorozu’s shield out of the way. “They are just doing some light sparring.
If Shihai’s skin were capable of turning any shade but pitch black, it would’ve paled. “Light?!”
==VI==
Itsuka had decided that Class 1-A was insane. Or, more specifically, Midoriya and Tenno, because there was no other explanation for what she was currently watching.
At least she understood why they wanted her to take cover now, because holy shit.
The floor shook again as Midoriya’s fist sent Haylee back a few meters. The girl had activated her quirk and transformed into a two-meter-tall armored behemoth with a sharp horn.
Again, what the actual fuck. That was her quirk?!
“Isn’t she so cool!” Lumine gushed from behind the barrier.
“Mmmm!” Another voice agreed.
They both jerked to the right, finally noticing that Kodai had joined them at some point, completely undetected.
“Kodai!” Lumine squeaked in surprise. “When did you get here?”
“About forty seconds ago,” Yui replied. Her face was blank, save for her eyes, which sparkled with wonder at the sight of Haylee’s quirk.
“Is this… how they normally train?” Itsuka swallowed the lump in her throat.
Lumine shook her head. “Well, this form is new. She used a different transformation when we were training to get into U.A., or she would just fight us quirkless.
‘
Oh gods, that wasn’t the only thing she could do?!’
Itsuka paled. She was strong, thanks to her training and quirk, but not
that
strong.
Those two were on another level of strength altogether, if this was just them training casually.
Note to self: she would try to stay as far away from them as possible during the Sports Festival unless absolutely necessary.
She still wanted to spar against them, though, just… not like whatever they were doing now.
“I don’t think I could beat her…” Itsuka admitted. “Either of them, honestly.” At least in a battle of quirks. Pure martial arts? She wasn’t sure.
"I could take her." Lumine boasted.
"In a fight, right?" Itsuka sweatdropped as Lumine flashed her a wry grin. "In a fight... right?"
“Oh, no. She would absolutely destroy me.” She replied bluntly. “Haylee’s crazy strong. So is Izuku.”
“I can see that,” Itsuka stated dryly. Another punch from Midoriya was thrown, blasting her hair back with the air pressure.
“Mhmmm…” Yui nodded scarcely.
==VI==
Ordan crossed his arms, watching Hashibira’s group intently with Midnight. It seemed they were focusing on training their combat skills rather than their quirks, which made sense considering they were all fighters who used weapons.
“He’s quite good,” Nemuri noted.
“It makes sense,” Ordan agreed, watching as Hashibira disarmed Yaoyorozu yet again. “The kid has some kind of martial training, as does Yaoyorozu. Hashibira just has her beat in both experience and age.”
Nemuri nodded. “He’s, what, about the age of the third-years?”
“Mhm…”
“I’m assuming there were extenuating circumstances as to why he wasn’t transferred to their course, then.” Nemuri guessed. “Education?”
Ordan nodded. “According to his file, yes. Kid’s really putting his all into it though.”
“By the way,” Nemuri cocked her hip to the side. “How did your after-school combat training go last Friday?”
“Only a few attendees, a few Gen-ed students, and a business course girl looking to learn some self-defense.”
“No hero course students?”
“Not first-years.” Ordan shook his head. “Just a few second-years and one of the third-year powerhouse girls. You call them… the Elite Four, right?”
“Hado?” Nemuri guessed.
“No… the other girl. Kujou.”
==VI==
[U.A High School, April 21st, 2243]
Haylee stared down the girl before her. “Oh, I remember you,” Haylee recalled. “Kujou-senpai, right?” She was the same third-year student who told Lumine and Haylee where to go for classes on their first day.
“Tenno.” She remarked, arms crossed, with a serious expression. She carried herself with near-military discipline, allowing little emotion to escape.
Honestly, mood-kindred for Haylee, at least a few centuries ago.
“Are you here for my dad’s class? I just finished helping set up.” She pointed toward the assembled students who were beginning to practice against the punching bags with Ordan’s guidance.”
“I came to ensure that Karris-sensei’s lessons were up to U.A.’s high standards.” She glared at Haylee, though not maliciously, more like… slight irritation at lack of decorum. “You should refer to your father by his title in a professional setting.”
Haylee scowled right back. “I don’t appreciate you telling me how I get to address my family.”
The two girls stared each other down with matching frowns. Each refused to relent to the other’s words, and the students in the room were too intimidated to intervene. Probably because the intensity of their glares looked like it could microwave a fish in seconds.
Ordan simply walked up and placed a hand on Haylee’s shoulder, a move that would result in most people getting a stink eye.
“Miss Kujou, welcome!” Ordan attempted to defuse the situation with a calming smile. “Have you come to participate?”
Sara immediately recognized she was making a scene, judging by the whispers of the other students. “Apologies, Karris-sensei. I merely stopped by to inspect the training you were giving to my underclassmen. I’d heard that you were quite skilled in quirkless combat.”
‘
Kujou-senpai is so cool, she wants to make sure we are getting quality teaching!`
Was the thought running through the present students’ heads.
Ordan patted Haylee on the shoulder to calm her down. “Kiddo, how about you go and show them some punches while I talk with young Kujou for a minute.”
“Alright.” Haylee huffed.
“Sorry about that, she has a bit of a temper,” Ordan said once Haylee was out of earshot.
“No, I must apologize. I believe I overstepped some boundaries.” Sara bowed sincerely.
Ordan would’ve mistaken her for a soldier rather than a Hero Course student, the way she carried herself. It made sense, considering her father was Kujou Kamaji, the Commissioner of the Tenryou Commission and highest-ranking General in the Japanese military.
“Apology accepted, though I think you might want to tell her that as well.” Ordan pointed to Haylee. “You said you were here about my class?”
“Indeed.” Sara crossed her arms. “Do you have a structured curriculum?”
“Er, no.” Ordan scratched his head. “This is an optional, after-school course. Most of these students don’t have any combat experience so I’m just starting with the basics. I don’t think most of them are aiming for the Heroics program, just, you know, fighting off a mugger on the streets.” Most of them didn’t have combat-oriented quirks, and while self-defense allowed for quirk use when there was no option to escape, some didn’t have that luxury.
“Understandable.” Sara decided, scanning the room with her bright golden eyes. “I assume that the intention for Hero Course students is supplementary training?”
“If they show up for it, that is,” Ordan confirmed.
“I will bring it up during the next Student Council meeting.” Sara declared. “Practical combat is an important part of Heroics, regardless of quirk. The fact that so few students from those courses showed up, especially the First-Year students, is disgraceful.” She knew from her first year that quirkless combat skills among new students was usually lacking. Those who got into U.A. did it through relying on the power of their quirks, or the Recommendation Exam, as she did.
“I’d appreciate that. I think that my… personality may have driven some students away.” That, and 1-A likely heard about his brutality at the USJ.
==VI==
[Gym Gamma, U.A., April 25th, 2243]
Nemuri rolled her eyes and sighed. “Yeah, that sounds like her alright. Kujou is a very… temperamental student.” It made sense, since she came from a military family and likely had a strict upbringing. She also didn’t have a very high opinion of Midnight as a teacher due to her hero persona, and had lectured her to her face for nearly an hour during her first year at U.A.
It was a good thing she was in Vlad’s class during her first year. She probably would’ve killed Shota if he had gone to sleep in front of her.
“Seems like a better fit for Shiketsu if she likes structure so much.” Ordan mused.
“Probably. Principal Nezu said she was here because of her family ties, whatever that means.”
“Is she always that tense? It can’t be healthy.”
Nemuri laughed. “No, actually, she kind of reminds me of your daughter, at least when she’s focused. They have… discipline that not a lot of kids their age possess.”
Ordan turned his gaze away from the students and tilted his head to the side. Nemuri guessed he was raising an eyebrow under his mask. “Really? Are they that similar?”
“Oh, definitely.” Nemuri chuckled. “I’d say eighty percent of the time, she is like, well, what you saw. The other twenty?” She remembered watching Togata and Hado say something to Kujou that made her blush up a storm and then neck-chopping both of them. Was Kujou Sara a girl who made Tensei’s younger brother look tame in terms of structure and policy? Yes. But she was still a teenager.
“Huh…” Ordan’s eyes returned to the sparring teens. “Welp, at least she’s going to try and get more students into my class.”
They watched Yaoyorozu spar for a few more minutes before moving on to watch Bakugo.
“By the way,” Ordan mentioned as they walked. “I wanted to thank you for what you said to Haylee. It really helped her out.”
“It was no problem.” Nemuri blushed and fiddled with one of the cuffs on her outfit. “She’s such a precious girl.”
Ordan smiled. “That she is, when she’s not causing trouble.” He peered past Bakugo and Kirishima towards the area where Haylee and Izuku were training. She had stopped for a water break, with Lumine and two girls from 1-B chatting with her. Seeing her like this made his heart fill with warmth. Just a few years ago, getting Haylee to have a casual chat with anyone was a near-impossible battle.
And how she had a whole group of friends, and a lovely girlfriend.
He couldn’t be prouder of how far she’d come.
==VI==
Once Haylee and Izuku took a break, it was Lumine’s turn to fight Haylee on one half of the arena, while Izuku took Itsuka on the other side. The rules were simple. Martial arts only for Izuku and Itsuka, while Haylee wasn’t allowed to use her transformation.
She agreed, since she already knew how to use her Warframe. Rhino’s durability simply made it the most optimal partner to bear the brunt of Izuku’s One For All-infused blows.
Lumine unsheathed her sword, using her quirk to infuse it with the power of earth. Haylee pulled out a katana, giving it an experimental swing before frowning. “I’m not using this.” She tossed it to the side, instead reaching for her thighs and unsheathing two small knives.
Lumine gave her a quizzical look. “Why not the sword?”
Haylee grumbled something.
“What?”
Haylee blushed and took a few steps forward. “I… I’m not used to using two-handed weapons while not transformed. It's harder.”
“You didn’t have a problem before…” Lumine replied in confusion.
“That was when I was dual-wielding. My… body has changed since then.” She gestured to her chest with an embarrassed frown. “My boobs make it harder to use two-handed weapons.”
Was she glad she was able to grow physically again? Yes. Did puberty suck? Also yes. All the changes to her body pissed her off, and sometimes she was moodier than usual. It wasn’t that her body bothered her. Hell, she mainly used Valkyr with a massive two-handed greatsword for a long time due to its destructive power, but she was used to that body.
Not one that kept changing every few months.
Lumine stuck her sword into the ground, while Izuku and Itsuka began to throw punches. “You can’t just avoid using a weapon because it feels uncomfortable. I can use mine just fine.”
“It’s not… You wouldn’t get it.” Lumine grew up normal; she wasn’t stuck in the same body for what felt like forever. Honestly though, she could fight just fine, she was just irritated.
“I’ll buy you a chocolate bar after school if you behave.” Lumine raised an eyebrow.
“...” Haylee sheathed her knives and grabbed her sword. “You can’t just bribe me with chocolate to get your way.”
“Hey, it worked, didn’t it?” She yanked her sword out of the floor.
“Shut.”
==VI==
“You’re-
huff
- pretty good at this, Midoriya!” Itsuka shoved Izuku’s arm to the side, using the momentum to avoid the blow.
“Thank you!” Izuku unleashed a flurry of quick blows, forcing Itsuka to block with both her arms crossed in front of her torso.
‘
Holy crap, even when he’s not using his quirk, he hits like a truck!’
Lumine and Setsuna weren’t lying about how strong he was, it seemed.
Fighting against Haylee made other people seem slow in comparison, and he’d taken her brutal lessons into heart. Kendo, obviously, was incredibly skilled in karate. Haylee was a master of several different styles of martial arts, which made Kendo’s move slow by comparison.
He remembered Haylee’s advice. Study your opponents moves, read their body. In a fight, you didn’t have the luxury of taking your time learning your opponents fighting style. That was a lesson that Haylee beat into him over the course of several months.
Kendo, being a martial artist herself, also knew this. Midoriya’s moves were simple, but meaningful. Targeted strikes at common weak spots, tactical footwork. He clearly knew his stuff. Due to the training setting, he wasn’t putting full force into the blows, since Itsuka wasn’t Haylee and couldn’t tank his Smashes.
Itsuka sidestepped his next punch and grabbed Izuku’s wrist. She used the momentum of the swing to try and flip him over. He recovered with a handspring, landing on his feet just in time to block a spin-kick.
Izuku tucked his elbows in, blocking the next few punches and landing a lucky counterattack on Itsuka’s gut. She staggered back, wheezing from the blow.
‘
Agh… that was going to bruise.
’ Her face twisted into a feral grin. This was a good fight. He was treating her like a serious opponent.
Izuku noticed the expression on Kendo’s face and realized he was in danger. He pivoted on his heel as she pressed the attack, keeping him on his toes without giving him time to hit back. Eventually, her aggressive attacks got the better of her, allowing Izuku to grab her by the wrist and pin it behind her back before locking her neck in a chokehold with his other arm.
“I give.” Itsuka gasped.
Izuku took a moment to realize what she said, his heartbeat pounding in his head before he let go. His face went scarlet with how close they were.
Both of them were exhausted and covered in sweat, trying to catch their breath. Izuku looked over at the most convenient thing to distract himself, which was Haylee and Lumine’s bout.
Their side of the arena was littered with fragments of stone and ice, scorch marks from Lumine’s fire and lighting, as well as several steaming puddles of water.
Both teens shared a look. Perhaps they got a little too into their sparring match if they missed all of that.
Lumine knew that in terms of skill and power, Haylee had her beat, so she defaulted to the one thing that she knew could stop Haylee outside of her transformation: ranged attacks.
Elementalist, in Izuku’s opinion, was one of the most versatile quirks in terms of its options. While not super powerful, Lumine was essentially a whole team of elemental heroes. With so many options to choose from, enemies never knew what she would pull out next, and she could combine it or infuse elements into her weaponry as well.
It was clearly enough to keep Haylee on her toes with environmental hazards and suppressive fire. She clearly wasn’t going easy on her girlfriend, and Lumine responded in kind.
Haylee Void-dashed into the air, dodging a burst of pressurized water bolts from Lumine. As she neared the ground, a large chunk of rock flew toward her, propelled by a powerful gust of wind. Before it hit, she extended her hand and sliced the approaching boulder in half with a beam of Void from her hand, as she wasn’t strong enough without being transformed to use her sword.
Fragments of rock were scattered toward Izuku and Itsuka, forcing them to activate their quirks to protect themselves. Thinking quickly, they decided wordlessly to move further away from the fight just in case.
Lumine took Haylee’s momentary distraction by the boulder to get in close. Still one-handing her sword, a burst of snowflakes were generated, then blasted toward Haylee. The Tenno’s hood snapped shut to protect her eyes from the encroaching frost.
“Lumine is fighting dirty.” Izuku noted.
Itsuka nodded. “I think she has to, considering how strong Tenno is.”
‘
This will be a long shot… but I want to see how this works. I can’t hold back against her, but I need to save some stuff for the Festival…’
Lumine lunged toward Haylee, locking blades with her amidst the artificial snowstorm.
That was when she sprung her trap, channeling electricity into her sword like two live wires meeting. Haylee’s sword, her own creation mixing the traditional Skana with the craftsmanship of a Japanese katana, was fairly insulated, so the current only caused her limbs to lock up.
Lumine would’ve had the advantage- that is, if Haylee could feel pain. Instead, she fought through the weakened surge, smacked Lumine’s blade to the side, then kicked the blonde in the chestplate, sending her toppling to the ground.
Before Lumine could pull herself up, she found herself staring down the tip of Haylee’s blade.
“That was a neat trick.” Haylee’s mask retracted. “You won’t get most use out of it though.” She sheathed her katana and held out her hand to help Lumine up.
Lumine laughed, grabbing Haylee by the wrist and rising to her feet. “It was worth a shot. It didn’t work as well as I thought it would.”
“Yeah, but still a good idea. Not sure how good it would be unless you are fighting someone with a purely metal weapon though. The handles of normal weapons will probably be insulated, or the gloves if they are smart.” Haylee explained.
“I didn’t think of that…” She flashed Haylee a quick smile. “I guess you’re just built different enough to take it!”
Haylee’s face flushed, her eyes darting away from Lumine for a moment. She placed her hands on her hips triumphantly. “Damn straight. I told you, I’m a badass!”
“An adorable badass.” Lumine teased.
“Buh!” Haylee stammered, cheeks darkening. “I told you I’m not freaking cute!”
==VI==
Combat training ended another hour later, with both classes exhausted and sore. Some of them had grown closer and sparred together, rather than sticking with their usual training partners, which was the goal of the exercise. Teamwork between them would be important.
Haylee stretched as she exited 1-A’s locker room, hair still wet from the shower. Today was a good day. She got to spar with Izuku, Lumine, and finally Kendo near the end.
Lumine was waiting with her, and to her surprise, the black-haired girl from 1-B. Kodai, she guessed. She recalled seeing her stopping by to watch her bout with Izuku and talking to Lumine for a minute before going off somewhere else to train.
“Hey, Haylee.” Lumine waved. “Have you met Kodai?”
“No.” Haylee shook her head as she approached the pair.
“Hello,” Yui waved. She didn’t seem to be very talkative, and Haylee found it hard to read her expression. “Nice to meet you.”
“Nice to meet you too.” Haylee glanced at Lumine, who had a mischievous look in her eyes. Uh oh.
“So… Haylee.” Lumine began. “Kodai here had a request.”
“Mmmm.” Yui bobbed her head once. Her hand reached into her skirt pocket and retrieved her cell phone. She tapped a few buttons, then pulled up a video from her gallery.
On screen, a teenage boy with some high-tech looking belt stood.
“Henshin!” The boy inserted something into his belt and with a vibrant glow, transformed into an armored fighter. He then struck a dramatic pose.
“Huh?” Haylee blinked.
“Can you do that and use your quirk, please?” Lumine asked.
“Uh… why?” Haylee requested, somewhat confused and off put by Lumine’s smile.
“Kodai saw your quirk, and she wanted to know if you could do this.”
“Mmmm!” Yui nodded fervently. Like many in her family, she was somewhat of a fangirl of classical hero media, specifically that like Kamen Rider, Super Sentai, and Ultraman. The latter of which somewhat inspired her costume.
Today was her first time meeting Haylee, but she’d witnessed her quirk in action and it was
awesome.
She could transform! All that was missing was the sequence of blinding light and special effects, plus a dope theme song and she would be just like a Kamen Rider!
Well, a really fleshy one, as her transformation was a bit visceral, but still awesome. She’d practically begged Lumine to ask her friend to do the bit.
“I’m not going to do that.” Haylee crossed her arms with a huff. “It looks cringe.”
Kodai gasped and recoiled like Haylee had just insulted her family’s honor. “Take that back!” She retorted, shocking Lumine with how intently the response from the normally passive girl was.
“But it is! Its so overly dramatic! I’m not some… some… chunuboo-”
“Chuunibyou.” Lumine corrected.
==VI==
Elsewhere, in three separate locations, Shanghai, Fumikage, and Fischl all sneezed.
==VI==
“Chuuni-whatever,” Haylee grumbled. “I’m not doing it.
“Pleeeease!” Lumine clenched her hands together and held them up to her chin, lowering herself to beg.
“Mm!” Kodai mirrored the motion.
“No.” Haylee scoffed, turning her head away and closing her eyes.
“Please please please please please!” Lumine begged.
Haylee’s lip twitched. Her left eye opened slightly. Lumine was staring at her with those big round eyes, slightly welling with (fake) tears with the subtle trembling of her lip.
‘
Cute…’
No! She shouldn’t. She wasn’t some edgy teenager… even if the outfit on the guy in the video was had a cool costume posing like that and shouting out the transformation was so cringe!
She tried to avoid Lumine’s pitiful gaze, because seeing the shorter girl’s trembling eyes on her made Haylee’s willpower waver. Why did her girlfriend have to be so persuasive?
Yui and Lumine kept repositioning themselves in front of Haylee, who responded by rotating her body away from them.
“Ugh…” Haylee clutched her face in her hand. “Fine… I’ll do it-”
“Yay!” Yui and Lumine’s puppy-dog eyes disappeared immediately.
“-once-” Haylee interrupted hastily. “But only because it’s you that asked.” She bit the side of her cheek out of slight frustration, cheeks turning a light shade of crimson out of embarrassment.
“Mm!” Yui started vibrating in place out of excitement.
Haylee took a step back, scanning the nearby hallways to ensure she wouldn’t be seen by anyone else she knew. “Alright, uhm…” Her muscles tensed up. “How do I…” She raised her hands to her hip, then swiped her left palm across her waistline. “H-henshin!” She shouted as quietly as she could. Her legs swept out and she struck a dramatic pose with her arms, slamming her eyes shut out of embarrassment.
Before she could transform, she heard the quiet “
Click!
” of a phone camera.
“Fuckkin saved…” Lumine smirked.
“Lumineeeeeeeee! Delete that now!”
Lumine immediately bolted, leaving Haylee stunned before the blue-haired girl sprinted full speed after her.
“I swear to god if you don’t delete that video-”
Yui wiped a single tear from her eye. ‘
It’s just… so peak.’
==VI==
The school day ended soon after, with Lumine, Izuku, Inosuke, and Haylee all returned home. This specific day had a special meaning to all of them.
==VI==
[Midoriya Family Apartment]
“Thanks mom.” Izuku took the match and lit the incense sticks on the family shrine. He joined his mother for a quick prayer.
‘
Hi dad…’
Izuku thought. ‘
I made it, just like you always believed I would. I know it wasn’t exactly how I wanted to do it, quirkless and all that…”
‘But I got a quirk, from All Might, of all people. You’ve probably been watching us, seeing how we moved on without you. I still miss you every day.
Mom’s dating All Might… I mean Toshinori now.
I know he’s not you, but… I know you would want me and mom to be happy after you were gone. They really like each other, and I’ll admit that its a bit weird having my mentor date mom. Even more so considering it's freaking All Might!’
A slight smile formed on his lips.
‘
I wish you were here though…’
He’d only been six-ish years old when Hisashi died. Given the nature of Hisashi’s work, he wasn’t that present in Inko and Izuku’s life, but he’d managed to make every second that he was back in the country count.
He guessed he was lucky to have good memories of him, however few and far between they were. Izuku couldn’t say he had any bad memories of his father besides his death.
Hisashi never stopped believing Izuku could be a hero. Even when his mom, who he didn’t hold any negative feelings toward, gave up. He got him notebooks to write down about heroes, let him read his Quirk analysis books despite them being far outside of Izuku’s age range (and he still only understood parts of it), and even helped him develop an interest in art.
‘
I’ve made a lot of new friends at U.A. I think that you would like them a lot.’
He smiled contently.
“Especially Haylee. Can you believe it? People from other worlds? If you were here, we could go over all the odds and ends of her quirk. I’m sure you would have a field day going over the scientific implications of interdimensional travel and how she got a quirk despite not being from this universe.
She’s my best friend, and probably the closest thing I’d ever have to a big sister… even if she’s a bit weird.’
Izuku opened his eyes.
‘
I love you, dad.’
==VI==
[Oguro Residence]
One year.
Inosuke had been stuck in the future for one year now.
He threw his shirt onto the floor, piling it onto the slowly growing mound of unwashed clothes and towels, then flopped backwards onto his bed.
‘
What am I doing…’
He was, what, seventeen, eighteen years old now? He wasn’t sure so they just calculated it based on testing.
One year later, and he was no closer to finding a way back home than before. Sure, he was in Japan’s best hero school now, and had people he could count on… but they weren’t the people he longed to reunite with.
It was a shame, because he liked the people here. Rumi was a wicked awesome mentor, old man Iwao, and Soga, too. They took him in, no questions asked. He tried not to be too much of a burden on them, and from time to time, he felt guilty about keeping them in the dark.
Then there was U.A.
He was starting to make friends there, even though several people there reminded him of his friends back in 1914. There was Midoriya, who reminded him of Tanjiro with his determination to never give up and help everyone purely out of the kindness of his heart. Then, Mineta, a cowardly boy who reminded him of Zenitsu. Bakugo was a mix of the elder Shinazugawa and Inosuke himself.
Plus, there were other incredible people like Todoroki, Kirishima, and Tenno. Even class 1-B with Kamakiri, a fellow connoisseur of the bladed arts.
He’d miss them when he got back to his time. Presumably, it would take a few more years, and he’d grow closer to his classmates. It wasn’t like some solution to time travel was just going to fall out of the sky or wash up on the beach somewhere.
His only worry was how old he would be when he got back. What if he were a weak, decrepit old man by the time he found a way home? What if he got back, but was off by a few years? He knew about the conflicts of the early and mid-twentieth centuries that took place in Asia. Something… something that he didn’t even want to consider might have happened to his friends. It didn’t have to be war; he knew that Tanjiro was pretty weak now, plus Giyu and Sanemi only had a few years left to live if the legend about the mark’s curse was correct.
He was glad he’d never manifested a slayer mark; otherwise, he would be running on an even stricter timetable.
There were things he wanted to say to those he knew now and those he loved in the past. Would he even be able to tell them about stuff in the future? Or would he have to keep that locked away in his mind to spare the timeline? Inosuke wasn’t sure. Time travel was confusing, and just thinking about it gave him a raging headache.
‘Tanjiro, Zenitsu, Nezuko… Aoi.’
He would return to them, no matter what it took.
==VI==
[Eikyō Residence]
Lumine sighed, staring at the crumpled-up poster of Aether on her nightstand.
One year, one year since he’d disappeared, and the mom died.
Sometimes, in the early mornings, she would forget they were gone and expect to see them down in the kitchen… but it would just be her father cooking breakfast, with Paimon still fast asleep.
Was she a bad person because she stopped looking for him? Sure, she put posters up every few weeks… but that was it. After all, missing persons and possible kidnappings were for the police and investigation heroes to solve. A teenage girl with no training wouldn’t be able to get anything done, and digging around criminal hotspots was a bad idea for a number of reasons. She didn’t want to get kidnapped or worse.
Dad worked from home so that he could take care of both his children. Since he was a historian, most of his work could be done from his study. Since her little sister was small, she needed constant supervision, especially since her quirk let her fly. Kids her age already had barely any self-preservation instincts, and that was just with two dimensions of movement.
She crushed the paper in her hand and tossed it into the recycling bin by her desk. With a soft thwump, she collapsed back into bed, snuggling up against her cushy blankets. Her eyes blinked shut for a moment as she allowed herself to concentrate.
She could feel him. She couldn’t explain why, but somehow, she could sense that he was alive. Not where, but that he was.
Maybe she was going crazy. He could be anywhere, and her quirk was the manipulation and creation of elements like a fantasy character- not telepathy.
She felt… incomplete without him. As twins, she always felt as if they were closer than normal siblings. After all, they shared a womb together.
Aether would argue that he was the older brother, if only by a few minutes.
Lumine called bullshit, even if that was true.
A part of herself had died that day, alongside her mother. They said time healed all wounds, but it still left scars.
But she had her friends, her father, and her little sister.
And Haylee.
Aether probably would’ve liked her, after giving her the “If you hurt my sister, I’ll kick your ass” speech.
He probably would’ve taken a shine to Izuku as well.
…
“Sigh….”
The police still didn’t know anything about the incident, and to be fair, a lot happened across the country that day. There had been that big storm, and then a large but brief surge of violent crime and mysterious incidents the morning after.
The U.A. Sports Festival was in a few days. It was an event that was publicly broadcast not just to Japan, but also to the world.
Maybe… Aether would see her on screen if she performed well.
And if she got to the finals, she could broadcast her request to find him far and wide.
‘
Whatever I can do to find you… I will, brother.’
==VI==
[Tau Residence]
Haylee ran her hands across the rough statue of the Zariman Ten Zero that stood as a memorial in their backyard. It was roughly cut, forged by Natah’s quirk focused through her fingers.
Honestly, she could’ve sculpted something more detailed herself, but… it was still a good gift.
A monument to everyone from there that she’d lost.
To her parents.
To the rest of the Tenno, people she hadn’t appreciated despite all their attempts at friendship.
Why had she been such a blistering cunt to them? She regretted her mistakes.
Some of them wanted to help her- be friends with her. Others wanted her because she was skilled, despite her hostile attitude to nearly everyone; she was powerful. Not the strongest Tenno, but just… lucky.
She was the one who brought the moon back. She went face-to-face with the Grineer Queens.
She survived, alone, pushing away all but a few who tried to help her- and even then keeping them at arm's length.
Why did it take losing them all for her to change her ways?
“I’m sorry…” She rested her palm on the upper arc of the statue. All the friends she had now… she could’ve had back then, couldn’t she?
If she hadn’t tried to do everything alone, outside of major operations, would it have ended up like this? She had friends now…
She had a girlfriend.
She had a family.
Was she a bad person for being just the slightest bit happy the tragedy of the Origin System led her here? After a year here… she would never want to go back.
That place was hell. The galaxy just kept getting worse and worse, taking more and more away from her every time. It was a wonder she hadn’t lost her mind from the stress. Well, not that her mind was all there to begin with. Some bits were… missing, others she just didn’t want to remember.
She paused, mid-thought, as if expecting to be mocked by the Vestige in her head, but got no response.
It had been quiet for a while now, but she knew it was still there, waiting.
She had no reason to see it now.
Her life had been a constant downward spiral- or more aptly, a swan dive, for years. This past year… it was the happiest she’d been in as long as she could remember. Despite the League of Villains nearly costing her everything… she was content.
She smiled, gazing off into the night sky. The events of the last year started to play in her mind. Washing up on the beach near Izuku, her gradual acceptance of life here… growing to care about him and finally breaking out of her self-imposed shell of isolation. She met Lumine and her friends, gradually opening herself up to more and more people.
She remembered confessing some of her past to Izuku, how he accepted who she was… what- what she was, without hesitation.
But she knew he wouldn’t accept the monster she kept hidden from him if he knew the full breadth of her actions. It was just something he conveniently ignored.
She smacked herself in the face. Now wasn’t the time to mope about.
They had all made it to U.A.
This is what she wanted… right? She told herself yes, but sometimes she wondered in the back of her mind if she was doing it just because Izuku believed in her. How much was genuine drive for heroism, or redemption, and how much was just to help the boy she’d come to see as her little brother succeed in his dreams.
She certainly hadn’t wanted to do anything in the beginning. She wanted to stop fighting.
But fighting was what she was good at.
She let out a sharp breath. It didn’t matter anymore. She was happy, and that was enough for her.