Memorabilia
by Sora G. Silverwind

Summary: Keepsakes, snapshots, and memories of a Hero and her biggest fan.

Rating: PG-13, since these kids are (for the most part) older than when I wrote them in Best Fans Forever.

Author's notes: A series of short chapters/stories/etc. serving as some semblance of a sequel to Best Fans Forever. May or may not be in chronological order; really just depends on what I feel like writing.

Disclaimer: Don't own Tiger & Bunny or Tales of Graces, f'naaaaa. Continual apologies for my massive amounts of headcanon and for the existence of Pao-Lin/Hubert.

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Prom

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Pao-Lin paused the game and glanced up at Hubert from her spot on the floor next to his bed, her mouth slightly open with surprise. "Huh? You want me to go to prom with you?"

Hubert managed a weak nod, his gaze fixed firmly on the floor in front of him. At least he wasn't staring in the opposite direction, as he'd been inclined to do before realizing that would look rather suspicious. Though honestly, the question itself was rather suspicious — or at least, he thought it was. It was weirdly fortunate at the moment that Pao-Lin's thoughts didn't naturally run in a romantic sort of direction, because otherwise that look of confusion on her face would probably be a lot more pointed than it was now and then Hubert would definitely be fleeing the premises as quick as his legs could carry him. "Only if it's all right with you. And if you don't, you know, have anything else going on."

"Mmm...I don't think I have anything to do that day. But sometimes stuff comes up at the last minute, even aside from filming episodes, so I'd hate to just up and leave you in the middle of the dance. Anyway, shouldn't you be bringing someone from your school?"

"We're allowed to invite people from other schools." Or people who weren't in school at all, in Pao-Lin's case.

"I see." Her lower lip stuck out slightly in a pout. "I'm going to have to wear a dress, aren't I?"

"W-well...that's what girls usually wear to prom, yeah." Hubert smiled as encouragingly as he could; he'd figured that she'd have an issue with this part of the occasion. "Don't worry — I'm sure Natasha or Blue Rose will help you find something nice."

"But I look terrible in dresses! I'd rather wear a tuxedo or something."

Mentally, Hubert sighed. Pao-Lin would look rather spectacular in a tux, it was true, but...he really wanted to see her in a dress for once. To be fair, he'd seen her wear such things before, but those glimpses — captured in paparazzi photos of Dragon Kid at media events — were few and far in between. And none of them featured her in anything close to typical prom fare, which he was sure she'd look so pretty in. Not that she didn't already look pretty, even just wearing T-shirts and sweatpants or her favorite yellow tracksuit nearly all the time...

But he decided not to press the issue. Her happiness was more important than his.

"I'll check with the teachers and see if it's okay," he said. "I think it should be, though."

She relaxed. "What kind of food are you guys gonna have?"

Yep, he figured she'd be asking about this too. "We're not sure yet; we're still trying to decide on a theme. I think most people are leaning towards something tropical, though, so if that goes through there'll probably be things like fruit and seafood. Maybe even barbecue, though we'd have to figure out how to do it without everyone getting messy. We might get that new Polynesian place on the Gold Stage to cater."

"Whoah, really? Natasha took me a few weeks ago, they were really good!" Pao-Lin nodded excitedly. "Okay! If that's what's gonna be there, I'll definitely go to prom with you!"

Hubert simpered. "But...it's not even official yet..."

"That's okay! I'm sure you'll have something great anyway, since you're the one in charge of prom planning."

He sighed with relief and amusement: relief that she accepted his invitation to be his prom date, and chagrined amusement at her reasoning behind it. "Pao-Lin, I think you're the only girl I know who'd go to a party or a dance just because she heard the food was going to be good."

She flashed him a slightly sheepish grin. "Well, that's usually the only thing I like about formal events and stuff. That, and seeing my friends, if I'm going with the rest of the Heroes or something."

"How many formal events do you go to, anyway? I know there's the end-of-season celebrations for HeroTV..."

"There's usually a couple of charity events I have to go to, though sometimes they want me to wear my Hero costume so I'm more recognizable. My full Hero costume, I mean."

He nodded. "That makes sense. But...I guess otherwise Natasha makes you wear dresses...?"

Pao-Lin grumbled. "She says the sponsors don't like it if I come off too much like a boy. I guess they were kinda okay with it when I was younger, so sometimes I got to wear dress pants and things like that, but since I'm getting older, well...they really want me to be more like a typical girl. More like Blue Rose."

Well. That was...not an entirely unpleasant image. Albeit a strange one, as well. Hubert hummed in thought. "I can understand that, since your sponsors probably just want to make sure you'll be as appealing to as many people as possible. But" — and here he meekly held up a placating hand as Pao-Lin glared at him — "it's definitely not your thing, and they shouldn't be pushing it on you like that when you've done just fine being yourself for the past couple of years. Your fans like you because you're different from Blue Rose."

"Right? If I'm supposed to promote my sponsors, then I need to stand out from all the other Heroes! I can't do that if they try to make me more like Blue Rose." Her shoulders slumped. "You should see some of the costume designs they were thinking of for when I turn sixteen this season. They're all crap, I hate them so much!"

Hubert winced. "Is that what you were upset about the other day?"

She nodded. "They're all so skimpy! How am I supposed to fight like that? I mean, I know Blue Rose has done it for years already, but that doesn't make it any less stupid!" She leaned into the edge of Hubert's bed and stared up at the ceiling with pursed lips. "I wish I worked for Apollon Media instead. Then maybe I'd get a cool mecha suit like Mr. Tiger and Mr. Barnaby. At least Natasha doesn't like the new designs, either."

Not for the first time, Hubert reflected on how hard it was to be a Hero. As if it weren't enough of an ordeal to brave danger on a regular basis, Heroes had to deal with the whims of corporate sponsors who were more interested in the potential advertising than the do-gooding. And that wasn't a problem that could be solved by NEXT powers...unless said NEXT powers had to do with mental manipulation, which was a very questionable way of dealing with the problem. "Really? I thought she'd be happy to get you something, erm, girlier."

"Well, yeah, she wants me to be more 'feminine' and stuff, but she says that the new costumes make me look more like a stripper than a 'young lady'."

Another wince from Hubert. "Wow. They're, uh. That bad, huh?"

"And they want to change my name, too. To 'Dragon Lady' or 'Lady Dragon', or something like that."

He tilted his head. "Those...don't sound too terrible."

"But I'd rather have something that sounds tough, you know? Not that 'Dragon Kid' is a tough-sounding name, or anything." She crossed her arms. "But if they're going to actually change my name, they should give me something cooler."

Hubert rubbed his chin in thought. An upgraded Hero name for Pao-Lin? The thought bordered on blasphemy. She'd just been Dragon Kid to him — and her other fans — for so long. But this dragon couldn't be a kid forever. "I suppose the name would have to incorporate the word 'dragon' somehow, for the sake of consistency." He began running through options in his mind. "What about 'Dragon Storm'?"

Pao-Lin's eyes lit up as she straightened up and looked over at him. "Ooh, I definitely like that! Might be too similar to 'Origami Cyclone', though."

"How about 'Dragon Knight', then? Or 'Dragon Warrior'? Or even 'Dragon Crusher'!"

Blink, blink. "That last one makes me sound like I kill dragons or something. Or like Wild Tiger, since he's 'Crusher of Justice' and all that."

"Ahahaha...sorry. But what about the other two?"

"They're pretty good too, but I really like 'Dragon Storm'. I'll have to ask Natasha about it."

Hubert smiled. "I hope she agrees to let you have it, or something similar to it. But you know...I think it's not just about the name you have. It's what you do with the name that's important, too." He turned a palm outwards. "I mean, 'General Gunblade' is an awesome name, but it's not like I'm doing much with it besides using it as an online handle. So even though 'Lady Dragon' doesn't sound intimidating now, you could make it intimidating."

"I guess you have a point..." Pao-Lin muttered. Her gaze shifted to the floor. "But still...I don't feel like a 'Lady' Dragon, you know?"

Silence.

"...I think you're enough of a lady for it," mumbled Hubert, fidgeting with his hands and feeling himself blush.

"How can I be a lady when I don't even want to wear dresses?" Pao-Lin asked in disbelief.

"Um, well...everyone's unique, right? So...you just have a unique way of being a lady. Or a girl, really. That's all."

Pao-Lin huffed. "I don't think my sponsors see it like that."

Hubert sighed and scratched at the back of his neck. "Sorry...I was just trying to make you feel better." Maybe he should've just kept his mouth shut.

"I know." Her voice was gentle with acceptance. "Thanks." She suddenly turned and draped her upper torso on the edge of the bed, arms flopping onto the mattress. She gazed up at Hubert with innocent eyes. "But really, Hubert, you're more of a girl than I am. Maybe you should wear a dress to prom instead."

He inched away, as though her suggestion was some bug crawling up on his sheets. "I'm not that girly!"

Pao-Lin giggled and rested her head on her shoulder. "It's okay, I'll call Nathan for you. I'm sure he'll help you find something nice!"

"No, that's...!" Hubert grumbled, dismayed at hearing his own words of encouragement being echoed back at him like this. "Look, I don't have a problem with Na — with Fire Emblem wearing whatever he wants to wear, but it's just not me. Just like it's not you."

"Are you sure?" Mischief drew out her last word like a ribbon. "You looked really cute when you had to dress up as the evil queen for that one play."

Oh, god, Hubert had almost forgotten about that. He smacked a palm to his face before gesturing indignantly. "First of all, that was back in second grade, so that doesn't count! Secondly, how do you even know about that?"

"Your mom showed me pictures once while I was waiting for you to come home from school."

Why did his mother always insist on showing off or revealing the most awkward parts of Hubert's life? Did the majority of his eighteen years so far really just consist of embarrassment after embarrassment? Wait, on second thought, he wasn't sure he wanted to hear an answer to that question. "Let's just get back to the game," he grumbled, heaving a deep sigh. "I want to see you finish Kani's storyline before you have to go home."

With one last giggle, Pao-Lin picked up her controller and resumed her gaming.