ii.| Copper
— A multipurpose metal of a reddish-orange hue that is soft, malleable, and ductile. Derived from the contracted Latin 'cuprum' meaning 'Cyprian metal'. Because Aphrodite, the goddess of beauty and sexual love, held Cyprus as sacred, she represents copper in myth due to its lustrous beauty.
White—it always hurt her eyes to even see such incandescent color, but there was no way for her not to. It was the color of the bed she used to sleep; a mattress and sheets soaked in antiseptic to such an absurd extent that merely breathing burned her throat and nostrils. It was the color of her little desk; sleek metal befitting her size where a notebook filled to the brim with painstakingly memorized ammunition sizes and shapes rested. Every inch of that tiny space, from all four walls to the ceiling and floor, was tainted the colorless hue that she despised.
Everything except for the small, grey air vent hidden under her bed. Nagi had found it one night, unable to conceive any rest as it was, when she heard the soft whistling of air. At first mistaking it for a dream, the sniffling that drifted softly from the other side convinced her otherwise. That night after all lights went out and the blinding white was gone, she squeezed herself underneath the frame of her bed and reached her fingers through the cold, metal grates.
Her hello came out rough, her throat hoarse and tired from crying and screaming. The sniffling didn't stop. Had they not heard her? Was anybody even there? Maybe it's a ghost, she thought, or maybe her mind had finally given up on her. That was very much possible. But just as possible was the chance of it actually being someone. And if it was, then she refused to ignore what her ears heard with such crystal clear clarity.
A cry for help.
"Hey," she said, voice raspily trying to reach any volume higher than a whisper. It echoed in the narrow chute but nothing came back in reply except for the whistling of passing air. Clearing her throat to make sure she would be heard no matter what, Nagi tried again. "It's...it's alright." It was hard to recall for some reason but she justled her brain enough to recall what she would tell her little brother when he got scared and cried. "I'm...here. I'll be with you through here." Her grown fingernails tapped the metal grate and the clanking they made was soft but audible in the quietness of the room.
The sniffling stopped and got replaced by shuffling that barely reached through the vent before a sweet, quivering voice rose from the other end.
"W-Who...Who are you?"
"My name's Nagi." She relished in the sound of another's voice after having gone so long without it, even a stranger's. But it sounded like another child, though she couldn't be too sure. Nagi pressed her forehead and nose against the grate wanting to hear their voice more, despite how biting the cold air that drifted in through it was. "What's—what about yours?"
Fingers tapped on the other side making that clanking noise echo to her side before their voice came through again.
"I-I'm...Yohsei..."
"Like hell I will."
"Oh, come on, Yori..."
Her groan dragged on under her breath but her frustration was well underwraps as she turned to the couple of customers that entered the diner she worked in. Donning a smile, Nagi recited the welcome spiel she had memorized for months now before escorting them to an open booth.
The establishment wasn't much to brag about—it frankly was the quintessential family restaurant that was a dime a dozen in any city or town. The one redeeming quality about it, she supposed, was that it was American themed; the gimmick kept things different in a way. Food changed from time to time, though the pungent smell of ever-so-slightly burnt beef and boiling oil of fries clung to the kitchen and wafted at times to the front. Their uniforms were tacky to put it nicely and though they weren't flattering or cute at all, they weren't appalling either. The furnishings were local buys from what she knew but they fitted well enough with the theme for what they were worth. Nagi found nothing particularly appealing about them, though. They could call her old fashioned, but she'd take tatami mats and cushion seats over red leather booths that'd seen better days and varnished wooden tables any day.
At least the music's good.
Hustling back to the front where the kitchen window was, she placed the order down and called it through before turning back to Yori who sat drinking away at a strawberry milkshake at the front bar with a sweet smile plastered on their face.
"Help me out here."
"Nuh-uh." Yori slurped the milkshake loudly through their straw annoying Nagi even further. "I may love you and all, but I don't love you enough to dress up in your uniform and let you take a picture of me to show off to the old lady."
"She won't even know it's you though."
"Tables twelve and twenty ready, Chitanko!"
Hurriedly, Nagi pivoted to reply to the cook on the other side before taking the orders to their respective tables. Though business was never too hectic during the weekdays, dinnertime was truly a race to be beat. It had her pouring coffee to some and water to others at every other turn and gave her rest only after a few minutes of making the rounds about her station. She returned to the front of the bar only to be welcomed by Yori pushing their empty glass forward with a smug grin on their face. "Another, please~"
"You say 'no' to a simple request and you have the gall to order me around?"
"It's your job."
"You better be paying with your money," she threatened under her breath but got them another nonetheless. It's their third one already.
"But of course I am." They took the knew shake happily using the old straw to plunge through the new drink. They laid their chin on their hands while staring at Nagi who went about taking orders at the bar. "I'm not that much of a deadbeat."
"I beg to differ."
"Is that how you speak to someone you're pleading a favor from?"
Nagi opted not to reply since she was too busy feigning a smile to her customers and trying not to blow a gasket at the same time to bother. The moment she turned back to them, though, she slammed the check on the counter with a strained smile and a tick on her temple. "Here's your check."
"I didn't ask for it," they teased with a droll stare.
"Too bad, now pay up." She didn't bother sugarcoating her words and instead went on with work.
"Seriously, Nagi, her request isn't that big a deal. All you have to do is take someone's picture. You love taking pictures. What's one more?"
"I don't take pictures of others, dumba—" The children's laughter that drifted to her ears made her rethink her words and she let the word drag on before deciding to omit it altogether. With the sentence that followed, she lowered her voice to keep the clientele and, more importantly, her boss from overhearing her. "Besides, you know I don't like people."
"Yeah, you're social anxiety doesn't allow that, huh?"
"I don't have social anxiety, you idiot," she hissed at them, leaning slightly over the counter of the bar to do so.
Though she had much to say in regards of whose social skills were the most lacking, there wasn't time to do so when the dinner rush came at full throttle. Too busy to pay attention to anything that didn't readily need her, Nagi bustled back and forth between tables, the kitchen and back out again to serve the customers that flooded in. Though she rarely found work tedious, there wasn't any denying that dinner time was the worst. Not so much because of the crowd but because of the children. She swore that kids had this sixth sense that made them act up anytime she came anywhere near them. It made her job unnecessarily difficult—today being no exception seeing as she was currently trying not to be too pissed off at the kid that dumped his whole plate on the floor, food and all.
Yori's snicker reached her ears all the way across the diner and made keeping her composure that much harder. I swear, Yori… Nagi might not be able to strangle the little brat who stared at her—is he smirking?!—while she cleaned and the parents apologized profusely, but she could very well do it to Yori for being a prick and laughing at her expense.
But that'd have to wait.
The hours of her shift seemed to crawl painfully slow, but they ended eventually when a coworker of hers came in from the back to tell her that she'd take care of the rest. Thanking them and letting Yori know it was time to head back home, they said they'd wait for her by the back exit before they parted ways. She headed on to the locker room—thankfully, the only part of the restaurant that heralded the only semblance of normalcy—to change out of her uniform. All the while, though, her mind wandered again to what Yori said about her disinterest in others.
Although she disagreed with the labeling, there wasn't much use denying that she did have a problem communicating with others. She was well aware of how she could be when she allowed herself to speak freely. It was why she often refrained from doing so. The only exceptions to that—if she could call them that—were so few in number that she could literally count them in one hand.
There's Yori. Sometimes Chun-chan. And—
"I think it's bold that you speak your mind like that! It shows you have strong beliefs that won't be swayed, in my opinion."
Thinking of that man made her heave a deep sigh, her face getting somewhat warmer from imagining his charming face and his somewhat baritone voice. I haven't seen him in a while. Not since a couple of months back when she last visited Chun-chan's offices in Hosu. The tips of her ears ignited red at the mere thought of him but she shook the giddiness away and focused on changing instead. That wasn't what she needed to be thinking about right now.
Once done she gave her swift goodbyes to her coworkers before leaving the diner through the backdoor. Standing against a wall in the dingy alleyway was Yori, sharp golden eyes looking up before walking up to her with a grin plastered on their face. They took Nagi's school and camera bag in their hands before walking off to exit the alleyway with Nagi trotting after them.
There was a long stretch of blissful quiet that lasted from the train station to her neighborhood and it helped settle her out of her work mentality and into a much more comfortable one. Once closer to her neighborhood, her body continued walking by itself at feeling somewhat more complacent with the familiar environment. Dagobah beach crossed her sight on their way home and letting herself be taken by it, she sprinted away from Yori's side to chase the setting sun. It didn't take her long to notice something missing before she hurried back to snatch her camera bag from his hand and run back towards the beach. Taking off her shoes and not caring that her socks would get wet, she ran into the rolling waves until the cool water reached her knees and lifted the camera up to her face.
It took a moment to focus and once it did, she let herself take as many as she felt like. Sunsets were always lovely to see for her. The way the crimson, orange, and golden rays shone down felt like the gentlest of touches and the way they reflected against the ocean as it wavered back and forth made them seem like she could almost scoop up that warm light in her hands. A childish instinct bubbled in her and got her to act on that urge, first strapping her camera across her shoulder and pushing it behind her to safeguard it before bending down with cupped hands and submerging them underwater. It was cold for a moment until her hands adjusted to the chilly temperature like her legs had; but that escaped her mind as the light of the setting sun hit the liquid mirror she held in her hands.
Through the red and gold she could make out the vague outline of her face but it was so distorted that it didn't break the illusion. In her hands, she held the sun. Blazing, bright, and real.
"You're gonna get sick if you stay there for long."
"It's okay."
She could deal with sickness. She could deal with pain. But she would never again let anyone take away the world from her. The raw, cruel, and beautiful world they lived in. Moments like these where she could lose her mind to thoughts that came and went but that she never paid attention to were the ones she burnt into her memory the best.
They reminded her that it was real and alive—that she was real and alive—and that meant there was still much more to do for her in this world.
So it's okay to stay here a little longer.
"Nagi."
Nagi took a deep long breath before letting go of her makeshift mirror and dragging herself back to shore and to Yori's side. Their slightly peeved expression made her scrunch her nose and smirk. "What?"
"I hate it when you get near water."
"I know how to swim." Her answer came swift and without a hint of hesitation.
"I don't."
"So if it's you who's phobic, why am I getting in trouble?"
"Because I can't save your sorry ass if you get dragged in," he retorted back more annoyed now and stepped back to walk towards the stairs leading back to the street. Making haste, Nagi took off her wet socks before putting her shoes back on and chasing after Yori.
"But I know how to swim," she repeated making sure they heard her this time. With Yori's silence as their reply, though, Nagi thought best to let that topic die there.
Sometimes Nagi wondered what sort of cruel karmic son-of-a-bitch god would curse her with having to get to school at this ghastly hour. She needed sleep for pete's sake. Now that homework and studying got added to her schedule, it left her with even less time to relax or even sleep for that matter. But she digressed; she'd dug this grave herself and now she'd have to lay on it for the next four days an hour before and after school.
Kill me now and spare me the misery.
The quietness that spread campus-wide was the smallest of blessings out of the crappy situation. It let her peruse the grand glass structures better but she refrained from taking her camera out. Nagi could almost imagine the gasket Aizawa would blow if she were late to detention that she got for being late in the first place. Letting her fingers tap against the case instead, she pushed the urge back and walked straight to her classroom.
It was empty as expected. As it should be. But no, I'm the idiot that's here at seven in the freaking morning. Upset about that as she was, Nagi tossed her bag across the classroom aiming at her desk but it wonderfully missed and slid past it, knocking the one behind hers. Regret hit her almost instantly and she cringe at hearing the screech the metal leg made against the sleek tiled floor. Nagi zigzagged between desks to get to hers and picked her bags from the floor to place both on top of hers. Just as she sat down on her chair to rest, the door slid open and in walked Aizawa.
The mere sight of him meant that her work would start and that itself made her groan. A loud thud resounded in the empty room when she let her face fall flat against her desk. Aizawa didn't pay her any attention for a few minutes and that gave her a false sense of hope that got shattered when he bopped her upside the head with a clipboard.
"...ow…" she groaned, her voice muffled against the smooth surface.
"Follow me."
It was only after she heard him take a few steps that she forced herself to get up and do as she was told. A loud yawn that she didn't bother hiding escaped her and she quickly wiped the tears that pricked at her eyes to scan the way they took to wherever Aizawa was taking her. It wasn't until after a few minutes of walking that Nagi found a sign to read above the set of doors that he walked into.
Staff Room?
Trotting in after him before he closed the door, Nagi excused herself for intruding under her breath before peeking every which way. For some reason it surprised her to see most of the teachers there—preparing themselves for the day most likely. What a drag. No wonder Aizawa was so tired—she'd off herself if she had to be up at this hour or even earlier everyday. Nagi spared a glance to said homeroom teacher only to see him rubbing at his eyes before yawning. The moment she was about to feel bad for the poor guy, he opened a drawer where bunch of nutrition squeeze packs laid haphazardly and took one to slurp away at it.
And there went the last modicum of sympathy I had for you, Eraser.
After a fell gulp of it, Aizawa sat back on his chair and checked the papers on his clipboard while talking to her. "Let's see. You're going to be the first rotation on cleaning duty this week."
"Go me," she drawled, twirling her right arm after lifting it up and spinning her bracelet around her wrist.
"You're also prepping for each class except hero basics unless otherwise specified."
"Oh sure, take away the fun one." Aizawa raised his gaze briefly, an obvious tick starting on his right eye revealing his more than obvious mounting irritation at her which, in response, made her purse her lips and give a tight smile instead.
"And you'll help the other staff if they ask for you during their hours."
Her brow knitted together when nothing else got added to the list after a few moments. "That's it?"
Aizawa raised an eyebrow but it surprisingly didn't change any of his aloofness. "Want more?"
"Not at all!" she called out a little too loud. Apologizing to those there quietly and shoving her hands into the pockets of her blazer, she turned back to Aizawa. "It's just, well..." I imagined his version of 'wasting time' to be more outlandish. Maybe Chun-chan wasn't too off about him being more grounded as a teacher.
"If you're done talking to yourself, we've got class to prepare for." The deadpan comment prepared her a little for the stack of books he passed her way that was tall enough to reach her shoulders.
"Take half, Eraser," she whined. Aizawa blatantly ignored her and simply walked past her.
"On this campus, it'll be sensei to you. And it's detention for a reason, Chitanko, so you're getting no help this time around." He rectified the point quite sternly and stopped only to open the door for her to go first. Sulking somewhat as she went through, Nagi mocked his words under her breath. A considerably harder hit of a clipboard to the back of her head made her groan loudly. "You really need to wrangle that attitude of yours."
"What attitude?" Her annoyance flipped then to a flamboyant sweetness that she emphasized with a smile as she skipped a few steps and arranged the stack of books better against her chest. Might as well have some fun, she thought. "I'm perfectly lovable, dontcha think?"
"You're a perfect pain on my neck if that's what you mean. Especially when you flaunt unnecessarily like that."
Feigning awe, Nagi gasped loudly and superfluously raised her voice in indignation. "I do not flaunt."
"What do you call your bursting in loud as can be from yesterday then?"
Her mouth fell open wanting to retort but when her brain couldn't come up with even a clever comeback, she opted to keep her mouth shut on that one—for about five seconds longer than usual. "Alright, so maybe I'm a little over the top sometimes."
"Any chance you get," he corrected. Finally reaching the classroom, he opened the door for her again and let her go in before following suit. Nagi didn't wait for him before dropping the books on top of the first desk that she came across, the weight shaking the desk beneath them and making metal legs scrape against tile.
"I'm just being extra for the sake of it," Nagi added and leaned her chin on the high pile. Aizawa tapped her shoulder, pointed at the books and then motioned at the rest of the desks. Clicking her tongue but knowing she couldn't complain lest she make things worse, she walked around taking a small pile at a time to distribute them around each. "'Sides, I can stop anytime I want."
"Then stop."
"But that takes all the fun out of things," she cried, smacking one of the books against the desk closest for emphasis. The edge of her lips lifted a bit at noticing how peeved this got him but also reeled back the elation when she realized she'd just proved his point.
"Like I told the rest yesterday, this isn't a place for you to fool around and have fun." Nagi stopped at the end of the row and, with her back still to him, listened attentively to the sudden flatness in his voice. Though he sounded detached, Nagi could tell that the intensity of his words said much more than the way he said them let on. "By coming to Yuuei you've set a clear goal to pursue and accomplishing it in three years will be nothing short of arduous. And you'll have to go beyond each and every obstacle that stands in your way to reach it."
There wasn't a way for Nagi to mistake the genuity of his words; she was aware of what he meant without him needing to say it. Fooling around and having fun wasn't her priority either but she thought that perhaps acting like such would make her just another bland student. Just another loud wallflower, and to be sure, one that would be easily dismissed as too much trouble to bother dealing with. And she was fine with that because it would let her do as she pleased without garnering too much attention. That's the plan at least.
"I'd imagine you're not naive enough to make that mistake."
Nagi tapped the edge of the desk she stood by with the notebook she had yet to place down. "Mistake?"
"To think that being a hero will not push boundaries and force you to move forward. Yuuei's style is to hatch you hero eggs into full-fledged pros that will better the world, after all. There's no time to stand still anymore."
"Of course not, Aizawa-sensei," she replied after a moment and placed the book down on the desk at last before facing him. "I know that." I came here knowing that.
Though her lips parted to say more, Nagi followed his advice for once and thought before speaking. Things were getting a tad bit dicey for her taste as they were. It was hard not to get carried away, truthfully, but she chided herself all the same for not being more wary in front of Aizawa. Much like Chun-chan, he tended to prod without actually asking too much. But Nagi suspected that unlike her dear ole shrink, he wasn't doing it on purpose.
Not all of it anyway.
To get things out of that uncomfortable ballpark, Nagi skipped back to the desk where the rest of the book pile was at and gingerly took another bunch. "Chun-chan says my flamboyance is a defense mechanism. I'm not too worried about it though since she says it could be temporal."
"I doubt it."
"Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence, Era—" This time she wasn't lucky enough to get a clipboard to the head. Instead, a chill down her spine was the only warning she got before it happened. Too slow to react in time, the whack he gave her with the end of his scarf to the back of her head caught her sorely by surprise.
"What did I just tell you?"
The click of her tongue rang loudly and she scowled at him while rubbing at the sore spot. "What about Eraserhead-sensei?"
"No."
"Well fu—"
His eyes turned bright red in a blink of an eye—don't laugh—and his dark hair stood on end along with his scarf. "And you better can it with the cheekiness."
"...yessir."
"Seriously," he groaned with a long sigh too loud not to be gratuitous, "I have enough with one of you."
Though curious about who that might be, she couldn't pinpoint exactly who even if she wanted to. They only had one short day yesterday and not many came forward wanting to be very chummy with her. All things considered, Nagi guessed that she would find out eventually. Smacking one of the desks in the front row once done, a lopsided grin came to her and skipped over to the podium to lean her chin on it.
"What next?"
"These." Aizawa took a page from his clipboard along with a map of the school and passed it over to her.
Nagi tapped the tip of her toes against the tiled floor as she eyed the list through, her expression souring with each subsequent item. Here's the time waster I expected. "You're gonna run me like a mule, huh?"
"I wasn't kidding when I said I'd waste your time," he reiterated as he headed over to the door to leave. "Think of it as a school tour if it bothers you that much." The door slid shut after him and once alone, Nagi couldn't drown the urge to scream any longer and crouched down to bury her face on her skirt to muffle it. Once that was out, she bounced back up and groaned.
Might as well.
It wasn't until ten minutes till homeroom was to start that Nagi was finally making her way back to class with yet another round of papers to hurl at her classmates; a pile less heavy than many of the others she'd carried in the past hour, fortunately. And though she disliked the idea, Nagi had to begrudgingly agree that Aizawa's statement hadn't been too far off. In the past hour of doing nothing but menial tasks, Nagi had roughly sketched in her brain the parts of school she went to. Not only that but prepping for her teachers also came with some perks; getting to meet them was one of them but the one she liked more was knowing what the day's lesson would be, something she appreciated since she sorely hated being taken by surprise.
Despite everything though, the tour was actually quite educational. So far she'd only been to the counseling office and computer room aside from her own classroom but after that hour, she'd been to half of the building's first floor already. For a change and with time to spare, she let herself dawdle and gawk at students that passed her in the halls.
Everybody seemed to be acquainting themselves quite well by the look of things. Some appeared to be schoolmates from middle school while others hitched friendships right away after their first day yesterday. And though overall Nagi tallied herself as highly disinterested in the whole idea, she did admit that the sight of such things made a part of her twist and yearn for it. Yori counted as a friend—they'd surely agree to that too—but she couldn't classify their bond as a simple friendship though. It wasn't anything romantic either. Sure, she cared about them plenty, but Nagi always found it hard to look at them that way. If she had to give it a name, Yori would fall closest to being family. A very annoying and ridiculous one.
That said, there wasn't a name or face that popped up when the word 'friend' came about. It made her wonder if Chun-chan's concern about her being friendless held any real weight.
"As humans, we are social creatures," she had said on the first couple meetings they had almost a year ago. "We yearn contact with others in order to be acknowledged and to piece together our perception of 'self'."
Bunch of bull.
Nagi didn't deny that they were social creatures—it was one of the reasons why she didn't completely dismiss Yori despite his teasing—but that they had to have those interactions to feel complete was something she just couldn't get on board with. But she supposed that things like that wouldn't matter in the end. Regardless of what Yori said, Nagi knew how to build friendships and have those types of connections, but she often found them useless when all was said and done. If nothing else, they served as networks to further one's place in life. She imagined there'd be exceptions to that like there was with everything else. Those who, like Yori, became something closer to family than simple friends; those exceptions were few, though, and in her case, rather rare.
Mostly my choice.
The tolling of the first bell snapped her out of her stupor and cut her dilly dallying short. Not wanting more days added, Nagi rushed through crowded halls and darting students, and found herself throwing aside the door to the classroom drawing all eyes to her. The sudden attention unnerved her for a second—fucking hate people who stare—but it was quickly dissolved by a loud voice that called at her over the rest.
"Chitanko-kun! It's not necessary to apply such force. The door functions well enough to be slid with ease." The tall guy that reprimanded her did so with strange and rigid hand gestures, motioning from the door to her. A jet blue stare behind rectangular glasses held her in place as he motioned against towards her desk. "And please, refrain from your tardiness. It disrupts the whole class."
Not sure how it did when nobody was in their desks and just chatting away. Remember, Nagi. Don't spew whatever comes to your mind. Thinking on her feet for that one, she lifted the pile of paperwork to cover her face a moment before moving it aside to smile at him.
"Sorry, didn't think I pushed it that hard. But I'm here in time and I've got some stuff for everybody."
"Very well," he said—Iida is engine calves. At least, I think so. Iida nodded and sat back on his chair straight as could be.
That hurdled over with, she fully went into the class and closed the door as gently as she could behind her. Some shared friendly smiles with her while the rest deterred their gazes as everybody went ahead to get to their seats before the second bell rung. Nagi started passing stacks to each of the front desks, trying to recall names as she went.
The row closest to the door was the first and out of them, aside from Iida's earlier outburst, only one other perked up in conversation. "Good to see you didn't miss out on homeroom again!" Turquoise eyes spotted a pinkhead like her own but instead of straight long hair, hers was unruly and short. It was her eyes though, the black sclera with large yellow pupils, that Nagi recalled most from her entrance exam weeks ago.
"I'd hate to seeing as I've been here since seven," Nagi retorted with a smile of her own. The girl—Ashido Mina, I think—grimaced at the mere sound of that and Nagi chuckled in agreement.
"C'mon, we thought you'd set another record today, Osoku-chan!" This time it was a boy from the next row that said that when she moved onto them. Nagi had been counting the worksheets under her breath but stopped thumbing through them when she heard him say that. Blond, blond… There's four blonds but Kaminari was the darker one.
"Record?" She shook her head focusing on the other thing that caught her attention instead and her brow knit together in confusion. "Osoku-chan?"
"You know," the black-haired boy who sat a seat in front of her called out. He's easy, odd elbows was Sero. "Since you were so fashionably late yesterday?"
"Ah," Nagi mused as she continued on to the last row after that. "Well, here's to hoping that's the last record I break where that's concerned." Lifting her gaze to the last row, she passed the row's stack to invisible girl—Hagakure's easy to remember too—before a pair of silver eyes met hers. Now done with her work, she filed down that last aisle to head to her seat but stopped briefly next to Yohsei's and gingerly smiled his way. "Morning, Yoh-chan."
"Oh, um, good morning, Nagi-san," he quietly replied and took the papers that were passed to him. Her brow furrowed again finding his skittishness somewhat strange but as she opened her mouth to ask him what was wrong, a familiar chill crawled on her back when Aizawa came into the room.
"If you're done, take a seat, Chitanko. The second bell rung ten seconds ago."
Her mind still on Yohsei, she rapped her knuckles against her thighs and mindlessly answered. "Heard ya loud and clear, Eraser—"
Shit! Too late to stop herself, she instantly knew what would come with half of his name escaping her mouth. Knowing that, instinct took over all at once. Pivoting on her right leg and turning back with her left, Nagi threw out her left hand intent on deviating the scarf. A useless endeavor seeing as it wrapped around her wrist instead, throwing her off enough to slip back and fall against the desks behind her.
An obnoxiously loud 'what the hell!' and a quiet but audible 'are you alright?' came to her ears but Nagi couldn't retort to either when her thoughts scattered to figure out why her Quirk failed to work on the scarf.
It doesn't have titanium alloy anymore, remember? Not after what happened that one time.
A nervous chuckle left her and she muttered 'right' under her breath at recalling that certain incident. The tug on her wrist made her snap out of it and turn to Aizawa who couldn't be anymore irritated if he tried. "Get up and get to your seat. Now."
The lingering shock left her speechless and she nodded to answer. Having that, Aizawa released her wrist leaving Nagi to fall further back against the desks and chair behind her.
"Get the fuck off already!" The loud profanities took her attention this time and behind her she blinked at the two who she stumbled against after that little show. An ash blond with piercing crimson eyes and a freckled plain face with messy green hair; on her way down, she had clung onto the latter's desk for balance and fallen half on the former apparently. Nagi blinked a couple of times before standing straight from the awkward position.
"My bad," she muttered under her breath still a bit dazed.
"It's alright," the plain looking one said with a meekish smile. "Are you okay though?"
Her mouth fell open but the daggers stabbing at the back of her head from Aizawa's glare promised her due comeuppance if she didn't do as she was told. Nagi met at the middle, giving him a mild nod before hurrying to her own seat.
"Midoriya. Bakugou. Straighten your desks."
Nagi kept an eye on the two of them, noting their mannerisms for how differing they were and finding the disparity a little more amusing that it should've been. Where one was quietly dutiful to Aizawa's instruction, the other muttered obscenities under his breath directed at her and obliged all the same. They're Midoriya Izuku and Bakugou Katsuki. Nagi hadn't paid much attention to roll call the day before but she did remember reading all twenty-two names under 'Class 1-A' while working that morning. It's how she recalled the more obvious ones that stuck out like sore thumbs but had to actually rummage her brain for the rest.
Now it was just a matter of connecting faces to names. Well, for what that little humiliating show just now was worth, Nagi could scratch those two off the list.
There hadn't really been any particular expectations in Nagi's mind about what attending the famous Yuuei Academy would be like, but so far, the first half proved lackluster.
Foreign languages and history never gave her any troubles in middle school and were by far the easier subjects. It helped that Present Mic and Midnight were capable enough teachers on their respective fields as well. The fact she could memorize things easily helped a bunch too. That however didn't take away from how mundane they were. The same couldn't be said of Cementoss's and Ectoplasm's classes, though. Especially not when taking into account how much Nagi loathed reading and numbers. Though the latter depended on what the topic was and if she could plug-and-chug at all, literature just completely flew over her head no matter what the question. Even by the time lunch came around and the bell dismissed them, Nagi couldn't help the thoughts that swirled in her head about what she'd have to put extra attention to later on. The growl of her stomach halted her train wreck of thoughts, steering it away from that and towards food.
The sudden buzzing from her pocket startled her out of it just as she was getting up from her seat. Just as she was about to check it, though, footsteps bouncing up to her desk took her by surprise and got her to gaze up at a quartet of her classmates. The two she instantly recognized from before because of how they stood out were Ashido and Hagakure; both stepped forward alongside a bubbly pink-cheeked brunette and a stoic frog-like girl.
Froggy's Asui and the plain, round face was Uraraka, I think. Though a bit perplexed, a corner of Nagi's lips lifted in a half grin as she set her forgotten phone aside. Wasting no time, Ashido perkily announced themselves with a wave of her hand and her pointing back at herself with her thumb. "Hey, Chitanko, wasn't it? Nice to meet ya! I'm Ashido—"
"Mina-san," Nagi completed after interrupting. Introductions were a waste of time, in her opinion, and she dealt with them pretty easily with a nod to each as she read the roll call in her head. "And Asui Tsuyu-san, Hagakure Toru-san, and Uraraka Ochako-san, right?"
Uraraka's eyebrows raised somewhat amazed. "You learned our names that quick?"
"Read them on the roster," Nagi admitted as she rose from her desk and pocketed her phone again. "Did you guys need something?"
"Yeah, actually!" Ashido instantly called out, her eyes vibrant and smile as wide as could be. Again the urge to photograph her because of how her looks piqued Nagi's interest came up but she brushed it aside to listen. "We wanted to invite you to lunch!"
Her eyes went a bit wide and blinked owlishly. "Lunch?"
"Yes." This time Asui replied as she lifted a long finger to her chin and tilted her head slightly to one side. "Mina-chan thought it'd be a good idea for us girls to have lunch together and get to know each other since we're so few compared to the rest of the class."
Thinking back to the roster she'd peeked at in the Staff Room, she tallied up the numbers and quickly compared them. Oh, wow, it's really just seven of us. "I hadn't thought about that before."
This time Uraraka stepped up, cheeks slightly puffed and hands fisted close to her chest. "Right? It's really sad, isn't it?!"
Hagakure's uniform came forward and the soft slam against her desk shocked Nagi a bit. "So we thought it'd be great to, you know, get to know each other if it's just gonna be us girls!"
Though not quite sure how that logic worked exactly, Nagi debated the idea for a second. There wasn't a reason to decline except, well, for that fact that she didn't really like eating around a crowd. She'd gotten used to eating by herself save for the times Yori visited—too many in her opinion. The idea didn't sound too horrible, though. It'd help her acclimate better into the boring wallflower she wanted to be and, if she played her cards right, she could even get that dreaded picture Suzume told her to get. Preferably of Ashido.
Mind made up, Nagi shrugged her shoulders but showed them a broad grin as she shoved her hands into her pockets. "Why the hell not?" She didn't expect them to cheer because she agreed but she scoffed and followed behind them all the same to the cafeteria. Once there, Ashido expertly maneuvered them through the crowd while telling the rest about the two missing girls. Apparently they'd left before Ashido got a chance to ask them.
Racking her brain to find the names connected to the missing faces wasn't hard. Yaoyorozu. Pretty cute. Jirou. Earjacks. Labeling others was fun to do so long as those names stayed in her head where they belonged. Most were temporary, really, till she could recall their names alone. Or not if she really liked her nicknames for them.
Their chatter boiled down to mostly Ashido and Hagakure taking the spotlight with Uraraka and Tsuyu putting their two cents where they wanted. It was a tad bit awkward for Nagi to stand and have nothing good to say. Emphasis on the 'good'—there were plenty of comments that popped at times that she deemed a bit too crude or rude to say in front of girls she barely knew. Their giddiness was pretty infectious, though, and got her to chuckle and smile here and there. Both Hagakure and Ashido were quite easy to be around with how friendly and outgoing they seemed to be. And despite being so talkative, none of them forced her to join if she didn't want to. Something very much appreciated, honestly.
Another round of quick laughter came through just as they neared the front of the line. When Uraraka's time to order came, Nagi's phone vibrated again from inside her pocket and brought back her mind to the texts she'd ignored. Taking it out and inspecting the unlocked screen, the number calling her didn't ring any bells but the name did. Guess it's Ume's turn this time around. But that struck Nagi as strange. Ever since she told them to stop, Yori refrained from texting her during the middle of the day. Her mood soured simply thinking of the many things that could've prompted the call.
A long finger tapping her shoulder made Nagi jump before turning to Asui who pointed towards the counter and the hero/cafeteria cook, Lunch Rush. "You're up, Chitanko-chan."
"Um." Her eyes darted between the vibrating phone in her hand and the busy hero that tapped at the counter hollering for the next person to step up. Hating to ignore her stomach, Nagi groaned and turned to Ashido and Asui still behind her. "I'm gonna have to take a rain check."
Asui and Hagakure seemed indifferent about her sudden excuse—at least one of them did—but that Uraraka's and Ashido's cheerfulness took a nose dive hit Nagi's gut hard. Disappointing others twisted it like that, especially when she caught glimpses of it right on their faces. It urged her to stumble for a better explanation and she raised the phone in her hands still blinking from the texts and calls she kept receiving by the minute. "I really need to get this."
"That's alright," Uraraka replied for them as she and Hagakure stayed a few steps behind to join them. "There's always tomorrow."
"Yeah!" Hagakure added, her tray and plate full of food jumping a bit to her motion. "You take care of your business and find us when you're done. We'll save you a seat!"
One corner of Nagi's lips upturned in thanks and as a silent apology before she took off in a sprint away from the ruckus of the cafeteria. The pang of guilt that twisted her insides stayed with her and only morphed into irritation the further she got from the cafeteria. Even if she hadn't been too keen on the idea of having lunch with them at first, Nagi wouldn't deny that a small part of her was glad they'd invited her. Frankly, it'd been years since she spent any time with anybody at school. Middle school had turned out to be an utter disaster for her after that year she missed out on, and her return hadn't been any easier with how the kids either spread ludicrous rumors about why she'd been gone or ignored her altogether. It hadn't been hard on her mostly because she hadn't cared much back then. Now...well, even when she didn't see much point in making friendships still, Nagi begrudgingly admitted that having other people to talk to aside from an obnoxious know-it-all like Yori would be a pleasant change of pace.
Her phone vibrated for the tenth time then and Nagi unlocked it to find fifteen unread messages and four missed calls brightening up her screen. And just as she was about to read those messages, her phone vibrated with another call. Nagi rolled her eyes and checked around to make sure she was mostly alone before answering and continuing her aimless stride through empty hallways.
"You better be dying," she deadpanned while keeping her eyes on the floor and skipping between tiles to direct her extra energy from being annoyed elsewhere.
"Aw, am I keeping you from eating?"
"Bye."
"—no wait! I'm kidding!"
"And I'm hungry," she retorted, kicking at the imaginary dirt on the tiles and punctuating her words with the hit.
"You ate so much this mor—That's not what I called for!" Nagi raised an eyebrow at their quick and loud enough recant and pulled her phone a few inches away from her ear; damn, their voice rang even without being on speaker. Well, at least now she knew they called for a good reason with how adamant they were being. With that little to go by, Nagi returned the phone to her ear and told them to make it fast.
The shaky chuckle that came through made her dread what they had to say. "I might've busted your computer."
The burst of emotions that came over her stopped her in her tracks. "You what?!"
"I was trying to crack through the code you had here!"
"You were trying—" Baffled and utterly on edge, Nagi covered her face with one hand and groaned into it while attempting to quell her mounting anger. But it was hard. So, so, so hard. "You don't even know how to do that," she hissed, wanting some clearer explanation on how they thought it'd be a good idea to meddle with her precious computer that cost her months of overtime to piece together.
"Well, Ume knows a lot about computers, and I thought I'd give it a shot to make your job less since you're gonna have your plate full with school and all." The reason did extinguish some of the ire but only by a smidge. "And I thought it'd be a piece of cake with how easy you make it look."
That's because I was taught how to hack through complicated systems, you fucking idiot.
That thought stayed sensibly in her head though, and instead Nagi let out a heavy sigh through her nose letting the rest of her exasperation leave with it. "Does it turn on at all?" When they said it did, she thanked whatever god there was for that small blessing. "Leave it as it is for now. I'll try fixing it when I get home." Nagi clicked her tongue once that heart attack was over with still clearly upset at them. "Didn't I tell you the cat hadn't settled fully?"
"Yeah but I thought this wouldn't be much of a problem. You've cracked others overnight before."
Their words made her reconsider what exactly to say to them to make them understand just how not simple this particular job was. Yuuei's system wasn't overly complicated at first glance but that wall that blocked her before was heavily loaded and the least she could do was tread through it with the care it required. Nagi knew exactly the kind of challenge it'd be to bypass the system of a school where not only pro heroes worked but where a highly intelligent pint-sized furball was principal: a real pain in her ass that she couldn't take lightly. Her little Trojan cat got far for its first run through but from what she uncovered the night before from going through the code of the wall that stopped it, it'd need a lot more than just a few pre-coded programs. The firewall was too detailed in programming, and even if she found a way around it, there wouldn't be any telling whether there'd be others like it or even harder waiting further in.
And for the information we want, I'm gonna need to scour every byte of that system.
Brute forcing her way through wouldn't cut it this time. These weren't petty companies or medical facilities that overestimated their security systems. This was an elite school that prided itself in making the heroes of tomorrow, and that took lots of security on their part to keep those heroes-to-be and their information safe. Too many unknowns existed that Nagi needed to account for and even far more security measures that she needed to prepare for as much as humanly possible. Whichever way she decided to approach this problem, there'd no doubt be problems.
Well, every way but one. But frankly, doing that wasn't something she particularly liked. I've ruined enough lives already. I'm not down on possibly tallying another on that list if I can help it.
But there honestly wasn't time to explain that to Yori at the moment. Much less so when she stood smack in the middle of said place. Through a long sigh, she finally rid herself of whatever ill the call brought. "Just...don't touch it anymore. I'll work on figuring out the cat's problem tonight. Now, if that's all you needed from me, can I go eat now?"
"Sure. Still don't understand how you're hungry already though."
"Cause I get hungry, unlike you." But her words dragged on halfway through her sentence when she heard rummaging in the background. "Are you in my apartment?"
"I'm cleaning~"
"Get out, you deadbeat."
Yori completely ignored her warning and instead cheerfully exclaimed over the meowing that came from the other end. "We'll see you at home!"
"Yo—" The deafening click of him hanging up cut her short and left their name hanging from her lips. Another groaned escaped her accompanied this time by her growling stomach. Shit, she wasted a good while arguing with them. There was still some minutes left of lunch but with the crowd Nagi dreaded would still be in the cafeteria, she knew she'd be lucky if she got any food at all.
"Damn it, Yori." Going off on a sprint, she hoped that there would be at least some yakisoba pan left to munch on. No doubt she'd need the carbs for her afternoon classes.
Hero Basic Training—the highlight of the nation's top hero academy that churned out pro heroes like a bakery did fresh bread by the baker's dozen. Countless of students rose every year from the prestigious school and became pro heroes that protect their country and its citizens. Aside from being the prime hallmark of Yuuei, it was Nagi's last hope in redeeming an otherwise horrid day.
But the thought of bread led to her stomach growling rather loudly over the quiet chatter that flitted through the crowded classroom. The bell had yet to ring but with it only being a few minutes from doing so meant that most of her classmates were already there and she just knew that some of them could hear the loud rumbling that came from her. Groaning at hearing it again, she let her face fall forward against the sleek desktop and uselessly wrapped her arms around her abdomen trying to quiet the noise.
"Sounds like someone didn't have enough for lunch." Her head turned up to the right corner where she spotted a spiky redheadsmiling back at her with a somewhat knitted brow. Kirishima was the only redhead.
At first she grumbled not wanting to recall the fiasco that had been lunch. The thought alone that she had just missed the last yakisoba pan was enough bad luck to put her on edge, but that she also forgot her wallet back home turned what had started out as a crappy day into utter dogshit. And although she found enough loose change in her bag to get something from the vending machine, the strawberry yogurt drink she chugged down served only to momentarily soothe over her hunger.
Lifting her chin to face him better, she opened her mouth and meant to get him off her case when another much louder growl interrupted her. Though somewhat humiliated by it and the laughter that came from Kirishima and Sero in front of her, she held her tongue from retorting the words her mind had in stock for them. Instead she plastered her face back on top of her desk to hide the warmth that started climbing up her cheeks.
God, is this really my punishment for being late? If so, I promise I'll wake up early every freaking day if you just...feed...me.
The soft crunching of plastic close to her head perked up her ears and made her look up to find an unopened pan. The plastic wrapped bread disappeared quickly into her grasp but just as she was about to pry it open, her hands stopped long enough to peer over at Kirishima who only grinned from ear to ear.
"It's an extra one I took for later, but it's all yours. Dig in!"
No need to tell her twice. Thanking him under her breath, Nagi popped the bag open and wolfed through half the curry pan within seconds. For a moment, she stopped to briefly savor the simplicity of the fried bread filled with beef curry. There was just something so gratifying about how delicious a meal was when starving. A chortled made her halt to look up at Sero who grinned and placed a bottle of water on her desk.
"Don't choke there, Osoku-chan."
Nagi took another bite of the fried bread before taking a satisfying gulp of the water to swallow it down with. Taking a brief pause, she cleared her throat before sparing a glance to the two of them. "Thanks." That had been all she meant to give them but thought better of it and spoke through a mouthful of curry. "Kirishima and Sero, right?"
"You got it," Kirishima replied and pointed a thumb at himself.
Sero snickered at her manners before pointing out, "And what can we call you aside from Osoku-chan?"
Not that? she wanted to spit out but refrained with a shake of her head and thought up a more decent way to say that. "My name'd be nice."
"Chitanko isn't very cute, though," Sero said.
"Ditto," she managed to mutter through another bite.
"What about Chi?" Kirishima offered with a toothy grin that Nagi found rather dashing in a boyish way.
"Chi?" The picture of a meowing grey and white kitten striped black popped into her head. Not disliking the idea as much as 'Osoku-chan,' she shrugged it off and took another bite of her bread.
"Chi it is," Sero said with small tap to her desk. With a glance to Kirishima, both threw a fist into the air in triumph together. Though lost somewhat at what made them so enthusiastic, she decided to mindlessly join in on the celebration of her new nickname and mildly raised a fist alongside them. Well, better than Osoku-chan.
Thankfully, the first bell rang at that moment and with everyone hurrying to get back to their seats, she found her time to eat in peace...which was about a few seconds before the door swung open with a force strong enough to make the frame shake. Taken unawares and in the middle of a bite, Nagi tried not to choke on the piece in her mouth as All Might strode into their classroom. The chatter came back full blown at the entrance of the No.1 hero and did well to cover up the horrid sound of her coughing to clear her airway. Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes by the time she spared a glance to their Basic Hero Training teacher in all his glory.
He's wearing his silver age costume.
The thought came from somewhere deep in the bank of meaningless facts lodged in her brain as she watched alongside her class as the prominent hero crossed the room. Though a small part of Nagi was quite excited about the idea of the number one hero in their country teaching them, it was smothered quickly by the most jaded part which prompted her to finish her bread in one bite and crumple the leftover plastic in her hands to throw away later.
But by the sound of it, 'later' would come after a long day of faux heroics.
"No time to dally. Today's activity is this!" All Might produced a card with the word 'BATTLE' written in bright bold letters. "Battle training!"
Well, I should be happy it's something I'm good at.
"And for that you'll need these." He pressed a button of the control he had at hand and beside him the walls clicked before slots opened outwards. From what Nagi could see, each slot was numbered with pristine suitcases inside and inside those suitcases, All Might proudly announced, were their costumes. In spite of herself, her heart raced at the idea of finally donning such thing.
There'd be no more hiding or sneaking around for her. From now on, she'd start doing things the right way.
"After you change, come out in ranking order to Ground Beta." Her ears tingled at the blaring and cheerful agreement of her classmates and she shuddered herself expectantly at finally having a worthwhile lesson. The feeling fueled her on as she joined the rest of her classmates in getting their costumes.
This place…
If Nagi was remembering correctly, it was where she'd taken the entrance exam. Or at least one that looked quite similar to it. She supposed that the cityscape was quite a good basic simulation to use for starters. It would certainly benefit her with her Quirk.
"Chi, is that you?"
It took Nagi a moment to recognize that it was her they were calling and turned to find Sero and Kirishima coming her way. Though their costumes were nothing special on their own, she supposed that it gave away quite a lot about their personalities. Kirishima's, despite a tad bit odd according to her, was edgy and not just because of how his headgear made his hair spikier than before. Guess it complimented his jagged teeth too. Sero's was quite the treat though and a tiny burst of the laughter she was trying to keep back betrayed her.
"...tape dispenser."
He burst out in indignation, lifting the dark vizor of his helmet to glare rather peeved at her. "Hey! I'm not saying anything about yours."
"Speaking of which, you seem to be into the simple stuff." Kirishima gestured to her with a fell swoop of his hand.
Realizing he was talking about her costume, Nagi spared a moment to study it closer. During the registry, she hadn't put much of anything in regards to details. In fact, if she recalled correctly, the only thing she specified was for it to have some sort of titanium accessories in bulk that wouldn't hinder her arms too much. Everything concerning the design, she left to them much to Yori's chagrin after having pled day after day to let them design it. Opening the suitcase for the first time to change into what she found inside had been a surprise in of itself. And with trying to figure out how to wear it taking most of her time, Nagi hadn't looked herself in a mirror before leaving the changing room. But looking at herself now, she disagreed with Kirishima.
She wore fitted sleeveless jacket over her brassiere that was cropped short over her stomach. Since it zipped from the side, it crossed over the top of her chest and ended at a high collar. It was an okay color in her opinion; an off shade of white with rose gold accents on the slightly scrunched high collar and the strip that laid over the zipper to hide it. Two black buttons kept the collar up and matched color with the fitted pants cut above the ankles. It impressed her that they were more comfortable than they looked; they felt like leggings, really, and the comfort was welcomed. Over them she wore an overskirt that flounced to her knees; it was light and a darker shade of the rose-gold. What mattered to her, though , was that encrusted on the surface and trimmings were palm-sized titanium shards matching the rose gold color of her jacket making it shimmer in the light. Pure as they were, Nagi found them easy to play around with however she wanted. Aside from the shards, they added anklets, arm cuffs and an extra pair of rose gold titanium accessories to her arsenal. At least they honored her request. Staring down at her feet, she clicked the dirty sneakers together and grimaced at how they clashed with her costume's color scheme. Complaining now would be childish though since she hadn't requested for anything specific to being with.
Simple would be the last word I'd use. And like hell would she be caught with something like this outside of class. Guess her indifference came to bite her on the ass in the end. Good thing they allowed costume changes because she'd definitely be looking into that after today.
"Now then. Shall we begin, my wards?" All Might hollered with much enthusiasm. "It's time for battle training!"
A full body armor raised their hand in front of her and Nagi tilted her head pondering who that could be. "Will we be performing cityscape maneuvers once again?"
Her ears perked at that voice. Straight-Laced Iida. All Might was quick to rebut him. "Nope. You will move onto step two: indoor anti-personnel training."
"Cool," she muttered under her breath with a grin ghosting her lips at the idea of what that could possible entail. Nagi listened intently to All Might's explanation of the exercise while adjusting the added bracelets and arm cuffs on her.
Two on two indoor battles with villain and hero teams. Apparently a concept that wasn't clear enough for some. Questions were thrown left and right by some she recognized and others she didn't. Nagi made a mental note to at least have her classmates down by the end of the day before paying attention to the scenario given to them. It wasn't too far off from the stereotypical western comic stories Nagi read sometimes. It was a race against the clock to capture or protect a nuclear weapon while fighting the opposite team. If heroes captured the villains or secured the weapon, it was a win for them. But if villains captured the heroes or protected the weapon until time ran out, it was their win.
"Your battle partners will be decided by drawing lots!" From goodness knew where, All Might produced a box with 'Lots' written in front. "Now, step up everybody and take yours."
Stuck in the middle of the line that formed, Nagi made an effort to gauge the rest of her class and stood on her tiptoes to look over the ice-covered shoulder of the boy in front of her. As the line moved, Nagi hopped to follow but when she tried moving and looking back at the same time, she tripped a bit and stumbled back. Something hard hit her back and she stepped away before turning to a familiar crimson glare.
"The hell's your problem?" Nagi eyed him and recognized Bakugou's ash blond hair and ever-glaring eyes peeking from underneath his mask. Her eyes swept over his costume, taking in every little detail until she spotted the grenade-like gauntlets strapped to his arms. Must've been what hit me.
"Fucking move already, pink shit."
An eyebrow lifting at that, Nagi showed no other sign of acknowledging his words but did start walking backwards, careful to not bump into the person ahead of her. A lopsided grin slowly formed on her lips at how his face contorted more and more with blatant aggravation from her staring. Like a bomb ticking down the seconds till it exploded. Must've been a short-ass fuse because he went off just a few seconds later when she stopped in front of All Might.
"If ya got something to say, then spit it out, damn it!"
She ignored his yelling and instead turned to stick her hand down the box and pull out a small plastic ball with the letter 'J' on it. Turning back to Bakugou, her lopsided grin became a full-on smirk before her face scrunched up. "Too gaudy."
"What!?"
Laughing as she ran away towards the crowd that had already gotten their letters, she watched over her shoulder as All Might got his attention to get his own. Bakugou did as he was told, sticking his hand in the box and rustling the inside before jerking away his letter without even looking at it. Playing with the little ball in her hands, she skipped over to Ashido who chuckled at the exchange.
"You like picking on others?" she asked with a snicker.
"Only when they're easy to goad." With how easy that had gone, Nagi didn't mind telling her the truth. Yori's rubbing off on me. Kirishima, one of the first ones to get his letter, scoffed at her childishness which made her chuckle even more. There wasn't much time to talk after that since All Might called their attention once everyone finished picking their slots.
"Let's see now who's partnered with who." He called the letters out loud and one by one, her classmates partnered into duos. As that went on, Nagi counted and named each out in her head, cementing their names with their faces.
Midoriya and Uraraka. Todoroki and Shouji. Yaoyorozu and Mineta. Bakugou and Iida. Ashido and Aoyama. Satou and Kouda. Jirou and Kaminari. Asui and Tokoyami. Hagakure and Ojiro. Kirishima and Sero.
That's twenty...which leaves me and—
"And that would leave you two for the last team, Young Chitanko—" He brandished out his arm towards the small, hunched over figure that was Yohsei fumbling in his hero costume at the sudden attention. "—and Young Kisaragi."
Her turquoise eyes met his silver across the crowd and though he tugged at his floppy ears timidly, he nodded at her in acknowledgement. A feral, lopsided grin came to her lips at just how utterly perfect things had turned out.
Oh, we've got this in the bag.
A/N:
Another long one. Thought the lengthy chapter thing would only be for the first chapter but I might be wrong on that one. Anyway, I've got a little less to say this time. Most of my A/Ns are short and to be point aside from giving some thanks where thanks are do.
First to the lovelies who favorited and followed this little big story of mine. You're a great part of the reason I keep writing because it lets me know that someone's interested on hanging on there as this progresses. So thank you to Shiranai Atsune, Procrastinatingismyforte, FarFromTheSun, ALofOfNerdyThings, Aviantei, animegirl3774, Cerin Star, You Are So Wonk, Elizabetch, GlaresThatKill, EdgeColombus, acheneflair, Lavenderstitches, and animefairy299! You all are the greatest lovelies ever
Also a huge thanks to Aviantei! I know you'll always be there to lift my spirits with a review! And I'd love to hear from all you guys too, so don't be shy:)
Well, for now that's really all I have to say. So I hope that you enjoyed this chapter and that you stay tuned for the next one too!
- Evie