Hello my wonderful readers! Here is Chapter 14! it's a biggie! It details the quirk apprehension test as well as Minami interacting with her best friend! :D Please read and enjoy! Let me know what you guys think!
Minami stood there with the rest of her class in her UA gym uniform, pulling a bit at the fabric as she felt her anxiety building. She glanced nervously at Mina who stood next to her.
"How do you think he's going to test us?" Minami asked, feeling antsy.
Mina just looked back at her and shrugged her shoulders before responding, "Beats me…"
This just seems really weird, why can't we go and join the other students for the opening ceremony? Minami thought, feeling a bit annoyed.
Seeing Aizawa finally emerge outside, he began explaining how UA is known for its freestyle education system.
So he thinks it means he can do whatever he wants? Minami thought, rolling her eyes as he continued to speak.
Suddenly, a high pitched voice came through asking a question.
"But what about the entrance ceremony? Or guidance sessions?" Minami turned and saw the girl with brown hair and bangs speaking, recognizing her to be the girl that Izuku had rescued.
Aizawa scoffed at her concern, "No time to waste on stuff like that if you want to become heroes…" The girl abruptly quieted down at his response, not wanting to push the issue any farther.
Aizawa listed off the tests they would be performing; seated toe touches, the 50 meter dash, side-to-side steps, and more. He explained how this time they would be using their quirks to achieve the best results possible. He then went on to complain about the department of education not being rational by prohibiting the use of quirks to calculate the national average for these tests amongst school children.
He sure knows how to criticize other ways of doing things when it doesn't completely conform to his own viewpoints… Minami thought to herself, not particularly impressed with the shadowy pro hero at that moment.
Aizawa turned and spoke to Bakugo, asking him what his best soft ball throw was in junior high.
"67 meters…" the volatile boy answered calmly for once.
"Great…now try to see how far you can throw the ball by using your quirk…" Aizawa told him as he directed him to a chalk circle before tossing him a softball.
Bakugo winded up his pitch before releasing it with a large explosive BOOM!
"Die!" the boy screamed.
Die? This kid doesn't seem completely right in the head… Minami thought, her eyebrow raising at Bakugo's choice of words.
Aizawa held a calculator like device in his hands, which beeped several times before giving him a result. Holding it up, the class could see 705.2 meters. The others around Minami started chattering amongst eachother, impressed with Bakugo's power, and excited to try their own luck with the tests to see what they could do with the aid of their quirks.
I'll admit, that dick Bakugo has a really impressive quirk. Why is it the asshole kids who always have the best powers? Minami thought a bit annoyed that Bakugo had done so well.
"It's important for us to know our limits…" Aizawa hummed as he looked at the distance calculator in his hand.
"That's the first rational step to figuring out what kind of heroes you'll all be. But you're all hoping to become heroes after three years here, and you think it'll be all fun and games?" Aizawa snorted to himself.
"Right. The one with the lowest score across all the events will be judged as hopeless, and will be expelled."
Minami felt herself straighten at the word "expel." Understandably, she could hear the others around her murmuring, concerned about this revelation.
Expel?! Has he lost his fucking mind? How is this fair? Minami thought to herself. She glanced at Aizawa in disbelief, seeing him grinning almost manically at the announcement.
What the hell is wrong with this teacher?! He has no empathy! Is he some kind of sociopath teacher? Minami heard a soft whimpering from behind her and turned to see Izuku muttering to himself with a terrified look on his face.
Minami grabbed him closer to her, whispering in his ear, "It'll be ok Izu, just do your best, I don't think he can really expel us…" Minami trailed off, not even entirely sure in her response to him.
Izuku forced a strained smile to his face before clapping her on her shoulder in thanks, nodding. "I hope so Min-chan," he said softly.
"But that's totally unfair!" the soft voice of the petite brown haired girl shouted out shrilly at Aizawa's announcement.
Yes! Thank you! I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks this is total bullshit! Minami took some comfort in the fact it seemed the rest of the students were in agreement with her.
"I'd say Japan is full of unfair things, and heroes are the ones who correct all that unfairness. So if you were hoping to spend your evenings hanging out at McDonalds, I'm sorry to tell you that for the next three years UA will run you through the ringer." Aizawa answered seriously.
Hanging out at McDonalds? Is that was Japanese kids do? Minami thought to herself a bit confused as the rest of the teens around her grumbled about this new revelation.
"Enough." The voice of Aizawa shushed all the murmuring and complaining amongst the students.
"The demonstration is over, so bring it!" Aizawa commanded to the students. The students all moved at once, scrambling to the first station, the 50 meter dash.
Dad, just what kind of crazy school did you go to?! Minami thought to herself as she got in line with the rest of the students to begin the quirk assessment.
Minami wiped the bit of sweat from her brow, finishing up the softball throw. She grinned as Aizawa recorded her throwing distance.
"630.3 Meters" Aizawa announced.
Good! That should put me in the middle of the pack for these scores, keeping me safe from being expelled. Minami smiled to herself as she skipped back to join the rest of the students who had already performed the task. Mina held up her hand giving her a high five. A few of the other students like Kirishima and Tenya giving her a thumbs up or happy smiles at her performance.
"Wow! Your quirk is really neat!" Minami turned and saw the brown haired girl smiling up at her. Minami smiled back happily, thanking her.
"Thanks! Your quirk is really cool too! It would be perfect for incapacitating a villain! It's so unique! I've never seen anything like it." Minami replied whole heartedly.
"You really think so? I hope I can use it to become a great hero" the girl smiled with a determined expression.
She seems really nice, I don't remember her name though, Minami smiled back.
"By the way, I'm Minami Yagi, It's really nice to meet you! What's your name?"
"Oh I remember your name from earlier! I wouldn't forget the daughter of All Might's secretary!" the small girl giggled before continuing,
Minami winced a bit inwardly at her response. That's fine and all, but I hope I'm not just thought of as the daughter of All Might's secretary…
"I'm Ochaco Uraraka, and I'm so excited to be friends!" the petite girl smiled brightly as she clapped her hands together.
Minami felt a warm feeling go through her the welcoming faces she had personally experienced so far.
I've never been so welcomed before by my classmates; this just feels more natural. Maybe the people in Japan are nicer? Minami pondered to herself, before hearing Bakugo grumble something obscene in the back of the group of students, causing Minami to wrinkle up her nose and roll her eyes a bit as she stared straight ahead.
Well, maybe most people in Japan are nicer anyways… She thought to herself, before she saw Izuku step forward into the chalk circle with his softball. She perked up a bit, intently watching him.
Come on Izuku, use that strength of yours to whip that ball out of here! Minami thought to herself hopeful as she watched him.
She noticed a determined look crossed his face before he wound up a pitch, and….
PLOP!
She watched the ball land and roll forward a bit with a stunned look on her face.
Only 46 meters? She thought in shock. But how? Minami glanced back over and saw their teacher's hair and white scarves floating around him, his blood shot eyes wide and unblinking.
"eep!" she straightened at the intimidating sight, and took a step back, not expecting to see Aizawa looking so scary.
"I erased your quirk. That ridiculous entrance exam…I saw how you can't control your quirk, you'd just be incapacitated again. Were you hoping someone would step in to help afterwards?" The shadowy hero explained with a disgusted tone to his voice as he stepped toward Izuku.
Around her, Minami could hear the students murmuring something about how Aizawa is the erasure hero, Eraser Head.
So…He erases quirks? That's actually pretty cool, but why is he being so mean to Izuku?! I mean we came here to learn to use our quirks better to be heroes; he earned his place like everyone else! Minami thought to herself, simultaneously impressed with her teacher's quirk, as well as offended with his rude personality.
"No! it's not like that-ugh!" Izuku yelped.
Minami gasped as she watched Aizawa's wraps coil around Midoriya, squeezing him tightly as he attempted to explain himself.
"Whatever you were planning, it would have inconvenienced those around you…" Aizawa interrupted Izuku.
"Way back when, a certain hot-blooded hero saved over a thousand people during a disaster. He made himself a legend. But you… You've got the same reckless streak, but you're totally useless after saving just a single person!" Aizawa spat with disdain as he thought about the pro hero he didn't particularly care for.
Minami growled to herself as she picked up quickly that Aizawa was criticizing both Izuku and All Might by comparing Izuku to him.
How dare he…. Minami thought to herself as she ground her teeth and clenched her fists.
"Why is that so bad? I think it's an admirable quality!" Minami shouted.
Minami felt her mouth moving before she could stop herself. Deep anger filled her, and she found she couldn't control herself as the distasteful man in front of her berated the two people she cared about most in this world. She could hear the soft gasps and "ohhhs" around her, most of the other students scared for her at that moment.
"Heh! What a fucking dumbass for defending useless Deku!" she could faintly hear Bakugo criticize her from the back of the group of students.
"Minami, what are you doing?!" Mina whispered furiously to her in her ear.
Minami didn't answer her as she focused on the angry look passing across their teacher's face.
"Come here, Yagi," Aizawa sneered at her as he released Izuku, feeling his own temper rising at a first year challenging him.
Swallowing her fear, Minami held her head high as she approached Aizawa, coming to stop next to Izuku. Aizawa glowered down at her for a moment, before moving faster than Minami could keep track. He snatched her up by the front of her shirt, balling the fabric in his fist as he hoisted her close to him, the toes of her shoes barely skimming the ground.
Minami barely reacted, forcing herself to retain her poker face as she went toe-to-toe with Aizawa. The dark hero huffed, irritated at his failure to outwardly startle her, before speaking.
This is nothing, I used to get way worse back in Oklahoma…This douche is going to have to do a lot more than this to rattle me… Minami thought, confident with herself.
"I won't have you questioning my teaching methods…Don't like it? Then drop out for all I care. But you will do as I say and you will follow my direction, no exceptions. You're not a hero yet, you can't save your classmates from the decisions I make…" Aizawa told the girl with a clipped tone. Minami continued to stare down her homeroom teacher unblinkingly.
"But challenge me again, and it'll be the last thing you do here at UA; I don't care who your father is," Aizawa glared at her.
The students around them were all frozen in shock at the confrontation, no one wanting to make a peep. Minami knew her classmates assumed that Aizawa was referring to her father, Toshinori Yagi, the secretary of All Might, wouldn't even be able to save her in the event Aizawa decided to expel her. But between her and Aizawa, and perhaps Izuku as well, she knew he really meant that not even her father, All Might, would be able to stop him from punishing her, which made his comment even more a jab.
Minami wasn't sure if he was bluffing with that statement, but she wasn't sure how far she wanted to push it this early on in her high school career without knowing more either. At that moment, she broke off the stare by looking away, wordlessly admitting defeat for the time being. Aizawa smirked softly in victory before releasing his grip, dropping her to the ground.
"Oofh!" Minami fell to the hard ground, glancing up to glare at Aizawa for his treatment before looking away from his hardened stare once more.
Mina ran forward and grabbed Minami's bicep, pulling her up to her feet before practically dragging her back to the group of students, bowing multiple times to Aizawa in apology for her friend's behavior.
"She's clearly not thinking straight Aizawa-sensei, please forgive her, she's not in the right state of mind," Mina explained on behalf of her friend, hoping that she wouldn't be expelled.
Aizawa rolled his eyes at Mina's groveling, waiving her away with his hand before turning his focus back on Izuku once more, handing him the softball again.
Minami watched as Izuku stood there muttering to himself quietly as he looked down at the softball. She watched in anticipation when she saw Izuku gather himself up again as he began winding up. She could hear a slight buzzing as he activated his quirk.
Come on Izuku, think of something! If anyone can think of how to get out of this, it's you! Minami cheered internally.
Izuku swung his arm forward and threw the ball. Everyone present watched in wonder as the ball sailed away, fading out of sight from a super powered throw.
Minami looked on in awe, seeing Izuku wield OFA for the first time in person. She squinted against the strong breeze that blew into her and the other students' faces after Izuku's throw, which was created as a result of the backflow of power from Izuku's quirk.
Wow, that's OFA? And that's probably just a small taste! I wonder what he did so he wasn't completely incapacitated. Minami thought,feeling just how powerful the quirk was from the small display.
Minami couldn't help the huge grin that spread across her face as Izuku turned and clenched his fist. Looking back at Aizawa, he confirmed that he could still move.
Aizawa's face split into an eerie grin as he exclaimed "This kid!" clearly impressed with Izuku's quick thinking.
Suddenly, Minami felt other people push into her as Bakugo barreled through the group of students. He leaped forward with his explosive quirk, heading right for Izuku as he demanded Izuku explain himself.
Minami stared on horrified, until she saw Aizawa easily restrain him with his capture scarves. Minami cringed in embarrassment for Bakugo as he screamed in fury for not being able to reach Izuku.
"Knock it off kid! I'm getting dry eye over here!" Aizawa snarled at Bakugo, who finally relented.
Izuku quickly scuttled away from Bakugo and back to the safety of the group of students.
"Are you ok Izu?" Minami fretted as she glanced down to the hand he was cradling, noticing his index finger was bruised and a bit crooked. Izuku nodded softly, still a bit shaken up. Minami and Ochaco glanced at eachother with a worried look on their faces.
"Alright class! Come on, we have a few more tests to perform!" Aizawa called over his shoulder as he moved onto the next station. The rest of the students obediently followed him.
So that's how he did it! He only used his index finger to propel the ball…Smart! Minami thought to herself as she walked forward.
Soon, the tests were completed, and based on Aizawa's calculations, Minami found herself at number 12 in the class just based on the quirk apprehension tests.
Not bad, She thought a bit disappointed, but if I want to be one of the best like Papa, I have a long way to go…
The class gathered around Aizawa as school finished up for the day. Realizing that Izuku was number 21 in the class, Minami glanced over at him with sympathy before Aizawa spoke.
"As you all know, the one with the lowest score was to be expelled today. Well, I was lying about expelling someone!" Aizawa grinned at the shocked faces of all the students. "That was a rational deception! Meant to bring out the best in all of you!"
Minami stared at Aizawa, her mouth agape. Around her, she could hear many students cry out in shock at his announcement.
"Well of course it was a lie! Didn't take much to figure that out!" Minami glanced at the new feminine voice, and saw it belonged to the dark haired girl who sat behind her in class. She found herself a bit turned off by the way she rolled her eyes in disbelief that no one else figured out Aizawa was lying except her.
Well who would have thought he would blatantly lie to us?! I guess we know better now… Minami thought sourly to herself before she felt another shoulder bump against hers.
She looked and saw the smiling face of Mina, and felt her spirits pick up again.
"Hey! Want to sleep over at my house tonight? Then we can review our school subjects for school tomorrow." She grinned as she raised her eyebrows, tilting her head forward, intent on getting Minami to agree.
"A sleepover?" Minami asked softly, "I'd love to have a sleepover!" she exclaimed more loudly, feeling excitement buzz through her as she smiled widely.
"Cool! Just text me later today and let me know what time you're coming over! I gotta go, my mom's here now, bye!" Mina responded as she looked at her buzzing phone, jogging away as the rest of the class slowly dispersed around her to go home with the school day ending.
Looking over at Izuku, she saw Aizawa giving him a note to go to the nurse's office to get his finger fixed by Recovery Girl.
A sleepover! I'll just have to convince dad. Minami thought hopeful to herself as she began approaching Izuku to walk with him to Recovery Girl's office.
"Pleaaassseee Papa?" Minami begged Yagi. Yagi sighed and tried to look away from her doe eyes.
"My girl, it's a school night, maybe this weekend…" Toshi tried to reason with the girl. Determined, Minami rounded the sofa her father was sitting on and got onto the couch, sitting on her knees right next to her father. Yagi eyed her warily.
"But Mina said she wanted to review our school subjects together for tomorrow. Aizawa-sensei's quirk apprehension test today really shook a lot of people up. I promise we'll go to bed on time, and I won't even ask to have a sleepover again during a school night." Toshi looked at her skeptically.
Minami fiddled with her uniform tie as she spoke "it's just that, I haven't had a sleepover since I was in Oklahoma with Tracie, and I haven't even spoken to her in over 6 months, I guess I can't really count us friends anymore at this point. I just thought it'd be nice to have a girls' night again…" Minami trailed off, looking gloomy.
Toshi sighed to himself as he heard her plight, Well, I do remember reading it's good to show trust in your child to help them gain independence and build confidence…
Yagi took a few more seconds to himself before deciding reluctantly, "Fine…but you must text me when you get there, and promise me that you'll go to bed early, and get to school on time tomorrow. We're going to have a big day in the heroics course!"
Minami grinned happily and wrapped her arms around Yagi's thin neck, planting several small kisses on his cheek, "Thank you thank you!" Toshi nodded, still feeling uneasy about his decision.
"Yes, yes, now go pack a few things. Make sure you have all your books you need for tomorrow, along with some overnight clothes, your tooth brush, your-"
"Got it!" Minami yelled over her shoulder as she skipped to her room to change into some civilian clothes, as well as pack her extra school uniform into her backpack, along with her various toiletries she would need.
A few minutes later she came out prepared for her night with Mina. She saw Yagi had turned on the news on their big screen and was currently on his laptop monitoring any incoming reports of villain activity.
"Planning on going out for the night to do hero work?" Yagi jumped slightly at the sound of her voice, so wrapped up in what he was doing.
Turning around from where he was on the couch, he responded, "Yes little Minami, since you're going to be with your friend I figured I'd take the opportunity to do some night time patrolling, especially since I haven't used up my 3 hours yet today." Seeing her standing there with her backpack on her back, he got up off the couch and approached her.
"It looks like you're all set then, you should get going before the sun sets, I don't want you wandering around outside when it's dark." Yagi explained, still having a nagging feeling in his gut that this was a bad idea despite trying to be rational about it.
Minami nodded happily, "Yes Papa, I'll leave now so I can get to Mina's soon. Taking the metro will only take me about twenty minutes to get there." The girl slipped on her shoes and stepped forward to wrap her arms around Yagi's torso in a hug. Toshi kept his grip on the girl, reluctant to release her, until he felt her pull away.
"Bye dad! I'll see you tomorrow at school!" she waived as she walked out of the apartment, shutting the door behind her.
Toshi stared at the door for a bit, the feeling of worry returning to gnaw at his insides, until he heard his phone go off with a text message, snapping him out of his thoughts.
That's probably Naomasa with more information about the drug ring again. Sighing, Yagi shook off the negative feelings before returning to the sofa to continue following leads on villain activity.
Stepping up to the small home, Minami eagerly rang the doorbell. Soon, a woman with pink skin just like Mina's answered the door, a welcoming smile gracing her face.
"Ah you must be Minami! Welcome to our humble home love!"
Minami smiled and bowed before stepping through the doorway, the door closing behind her.
"It's nice to meet you mam! Thank you for letting me stay the night!" Hearing happy-paced footsteps coming into the entryway, Minami looked and saw Mina rush over. Upon seeing each other, both girls started jumping up and down, squealing, and ran over to hug each other while continuing their celebration. Mina's mother just laughed and shook her head, remembering her own days of sleepovers before walking back to the living room.
Releasing her hold, Mina snatched Minami's hand and practically dragged her down the hallway after she slipped off her shoes by the front door.
Opening the door to her room, Mina spread her arms, "Tada! Isn't it cute?!" Minami was almost blinded by the hot pink color and animal print covering almost every inch of her room. The flashiness made Minami's own light lavender and beige room seem very plain in comparison.
This room definitely fits Mina's personality…Minami thought to herself as she scratched her eyes, adjusting to the bright colors.
"Super cute!" Minami agreed, excited to begin her sleepover. Plopping herself down on the pink fuzzy shag rug in the center of Mina's room, Minami proceeded to pull out her school books.
"Did you want to start reviewing our modern literature readings for tomorrow? Or math?" Mina just looked at Minami with an unimpressed and bored look on her face. Minami looked at her confused.
"What? Did you want to review modern hero art history instead?" Minami held up the thick book in her hand.
"I want to paint our nails! And talk about our class's boys!" Mina explained, knocking the book out of Minami's hand before sitting down next to her on the rug.
Minami giggled at Mina, "Well, I want to too! But I told my dad that we were going to review our subjects, so let's do it for at least a little while, then we can gossip!"
Mina whined dramatically, before accepting a school book that Minami pushed into her hands. Silence passed for nearly 20 minutes as Mina sat fidgeting the whole time, before she snapped. Whining again, she slammed her book shut.
"Ok! Good enough!" Mina grinned as she tossed her text book aside. When Minami looked at her apprehensively, Mina snatched the book from her hands and shoved it into her backpack with the rest of her school supplies.
Minami laughed and shrugged her shoulders, Well, its fine just this once…I can always make up for it later, but I only get one chance to make a good first impression, and I want to have a best friend for at least the rest of my high school career…better make it count!
Minami leaned forward towards Mina, "So what do you want to do first?!" Mina grinned, before hopping up and turning on her J-pop play list on her phone, then leaning over and grabbing a few things off her vanity. She danced her way back down to the floor, showing off her natural rhythm.
Minami could hear the tinkling of glass bottles in Mina's clenched hands before she opened them,
"Nails!" Mina grinned gleefully. "What color do you want?"
Minami looked closely, and saw mostly varying shades of pink. She hummed as she tried to make a decision. Mina decided to help.
"I have Precious Posy, Strawberry Margarita….Ohh! You should try Toying with Trouble!" Mina grinned as she held up the electric pink bottle of nail polish. "It would totally compliment your complexion!"
"Ok!" Minami smiled as she took the bottle, looking at it closer. Man this shit is bright! My nails might glow in the dark with this color! Minami laughed to herself before she opened the bottle and started applying the color on her thumb nail on her left hand.
Silence passed for a few minutes as the heavy scent of nail polish filled the room, each girl concentrated on the task at hand, before Mina spoke.
"So, what boys do you like in the class so far? Some of them are pretty cute!" Mina gushed with her brush strokes.
"I guess I hadn't really thought about it just yet," Minami shrugged, "Though maybe some of them are cute,"
Mina glanced up at Minami from her work with a shocked look on her face, "What do you mean maybe? Are you crazy?! Of course there are cute boys in our class!" Minami giggled at her outraged expression.
"Ok well who's cute in our class then?" Minami grinned, challenging Mina to back up her statement.
Mina sat in contemplation for a moment before releasing a tirade of multiple thoughts all strung together, "Tenya is tall and handsome, but seems really strict, and Kirishima seems really muscular! Bakugou is really hot! But he's totally an asshole! Shoji looks really strong! Kaminari is like a total goof! And Aoyoma seems really fancy, though I'm not sure he's my type. But Todoroki…" Mina paused for a moment, and Minami swore she would have seen hearts in Mina's eyes if they were in a cartoon, "Todoroki is absolutely delicious, and the best looking boy in our entire class!"
"How did you make all those determinations from just one day?! You barely know them!" Minami giggled at Mina's explanation.
Though I definitely agree with her about Todoroki…. Minami could feel her own heart beat accelerate thinking about him.
"It's a gift," Mina grinned, before she continued, "Midoriya seems really sweet too! Like a puppy dog!"
Minami grimaced when Mina listed Izuku on her hot boys list. Mina laughed at the sour face Minami made, and suddenly lit up as she realized why Minami didn't think Izuku was attractive.
"Oh! That's right, you look at Midoriya like a brother right? Since your families are close?"
Minami nodded her affirmation, "Yeah, I don't think I'll ever see him like that, he's like the big brother I never had." Minami trailed off as she dabbed at her finger to wipe away some polish that had gotten on her skin.
"Well, tell me this then," suddenly, Mina's voice grew hushed, "Have you ever done it?" Mina whispered, her eye brows waggled as she asked her question.
"Done what?" Minami asked naively as she blew on her nails, helping them dry.
" YOU know! IT!" Mina scoffed and rolled her eyes as she emphasized her words, trying to get Minami to understand what she was asking.
Minami realized what Mina was talking about with a flush to her cheeks, nearly smudging her drying nails at the question.
Man, she really gets up and personal! Minami thought to herself flustered before responding.
"….No….Have you" Minami spoke tentatively.
"Well…No…" Mina replied with a cheeky grin, her own blush gracing her cheeks. "But have you seen a boy naked before?!" Mina countered.
"No…" Minami replied, feeling very small at that moment,
Am I supposed to know what a boy looks like naked by now? Minami questioned herself, feeling a bit confused.
"Well, I have!" Mina grinned proudly as she waived her hands around, attempting to dry her damp nails.
"How? When?!" Minami questioned, her eyes narrowing suspiciously.
"Over the summer I went to our local beach a lot, and hung out with some cool high school boys. One time they played a prank on one of their friends and pantsed him, I saw everything!" Mina gushed.
Minami startled a bit at her statement, Boys do that kinda thing to each other as a joke? That sucks… Minami thought to herself.
"That doesn't count! It's not like he wanted to show you!" Minami laughed before urging Mina to continue.
"Sure it does! Naked is naked! Right?!" Mina smirked.
Mina suddenly got shifty eyed as she glanced around her room before speaking once more. "Their stuff is weird looking! It just kinda hangs there!" She whispered. Minami sputtered a laugh at her hushed statement, shaking her head.
"You're so stupid, Mina" Minami giggled.
This girl is kinda crazy…I like it! Minami thought to herself, amused.
"What?! It's true!" Mina grinned, unashamed, before glancing down at her nails. Mina scrutinized them for a few moments before making a decision, "Looks like our nails are dry, wanna go get some ice cream? I'm famished!"
Minami's stomach growled at the thought of food.
"Yeah! Ice cream sounds amazing right now!" Minami quickly stood up and followed Mina out of her bedroom. Passing the living room, Minami saw Mina's mother watching something on TV. At glance, it looked like a popular Japanese soap opera.
"Mama! Minami and I are going out for ice cream, we'll be back later!" Mina called to her mother.
Passing through, Minami could hear Mina's mother respond at a distance.
"That's fine sweetie…" she said a bit zombified, completely engrossed in her TV show.
Arriving at the front door, Minami glanced at Mina with an incredulous look on her face as they slipped their shoes on.
"You're sure your mom won't care if we go out at night?" Minami questioned, her father's own words from earlier echoing in her mind…I don't want you wandering around outside when it's dark…
"Yeah of course! My mom lets me do whatever I want!" Mina confidently explained, certain she wouldn't be in trouble.
Well, this one time won't hurt, I just won't mention it to Dad… Minami thought to herself as she trailed Mina outside, breathing in the cool night-time air.
The two girls sat on a bench near the ice cream stand which was currently overwhelmed with business, consuming their treats happily as they people watched.
"Look at that girl's outfit! Isn't it cute?!" Mina exclaimed, discretely pointing at an older teen who was in line to get ice cream.
Minami nodded, taking another lick of her chocolate ice cream. Glancing across the street, a suspicious looking character caught Minami's eye. Minami watched as he stood unwavering, wearing a long trench coat that went nearly to his feet. The collar was popped, masking most of his face. Minami felt a shiver go down her spine as their eyes met briefly, before the large man turned to greet a middle aged man who approached him. To her, the second man looked to have seen better days.
Mina elbowed Minami in the ribs slightly,
"Look, Minami-chan, do you see that creepy guy across the street?" Mina whispered in her ear. Minami nodded softly as both girls watched a quick exchange occur between the two men. The trench coat man then turned sharply and began walking away, heading towards a dark alley.
Dumping the last of her ice cream into the trash that was next to the bench, Mina grabbed Minami by her wrist, dragging her away from the bench. Minami crammed the last bit of her ice cream cone into her mouth, crunching on it as Mina continued to pull her until they stood nearby where the mysterious man stood just moments before.
"Wait Mina! What the hell are you doing?" Minami choked out as she realized where Mina was dragging them.
"I heard about a local criminal ring involving drugs, but the police and heroes haven't been able to pin point where their head quarters are. I bet that weirdo is a part of it. If we follow him, we can alert the police to their location and-"
"No, Mina! we can't! we're not supposed to use our quirks against other people! And we're not trained-
"We wouldn't use our quirks! We would just follow them to see where they are set up, then once we know where they are we'd call the police," Mina reasoned quietly. "Just think, we could be a step ahead of the rest of our class with real hero experience! And it would look super impressive!"
Minami stopped to think about what Mina said,
Well….I bet Papa would be really proud of me if I helped to bring down a crime ring so early on….
Swallowing her fear, Minami reluctantly nodded to Mina.
"Good! If we hurry we can still find him!" Mina took off at a jog, with Minami following her. The friendly commotion of the ice cream stand faded behind them; Minami longed to return to it as she felt her heart hammering in her chest.
Approaching the dark alleyway where the man had vanished, Mina wasted no time penetrating the darkness. Minami's feet skid to a halt as she stared at the dark space, all her instincts telling her not to enter it. She felt the hair on her neck stand straight up at the danger it whispered.
Within seconds of stopping, she could see Mina's face reappear at the opening of the alleyway; her figure waiving her in.
Taking a deep breath, Minami forced down her fear, pushing her feet to move once more into the darkened space.
Heroes don't get scared…Heroes don't get scared….Heroes don't get scared, Minami chanted internally as she quietly followed after Mina, weaving in between the old buildings in the inky darkness.
Suddenly, Mina stopped; Minami running into her back. Mina turned and looked at Minami with an annoyed look on her face, shushing her.
"Look…" she softly spoke to Minami and pointed. Glancing up ahead, the two girls could see the figure from earlier duck into an abandoned building.
"Come on!" she softly urged, grabbing Minami by the wrist once more, taking her towards the building that the man had vanished into. Looking on the side of the outer wall, Mina saw a rusted old fire escape ladder. Climbing it, she got up to the second story and hopped onto a landing, waiving Minami up to join her.
Minami lifted her shaking hand, pulling herself up the ladder, scaling it until she got to the second story. She glanced over the rickety wood floorboards of the landing with a distrusting expression, before tentatively placing one foot on it, then the other.
Both girls got on their hands and knees to remain unseen, crawling a ways to peek through a broken out window where they heard voices coming from within.
Minami observed three men in what appeared to be an abandoned warehouse, surrounded by quite a few wooden crates.
"Did you get the cash boss?" a smaller man playing with a lighter questioned as he lit the cigarette dangling from his mouth.
Shrugging off the large trench coat, both girls got a clear view of the large man's 4 long tentacles for arms as reached into his pocket, and pulled out a wad of cash that was held together with a rubber band.
"Yeah, that son of a bitch owed us good, but he paid me off. I gave him a little complimentary hit as a token of our appreciation. It ain't as potent as a normal hit, but he won't know that." The tentacle man grinned as he patted one of the crates surrounding them, and the other two thugs chuckled.
They must be talking about drugs…There must be thousands of dollars worth of drugs in those crates! Minami thought to herself from where she watched them.
"So what's our next stop?" the third man asked as he relaxed up against one of the crates.
"Don't know, we're having a harder time avoiding those God damn heroes and cops. I'll have to sleep on it, then in the morning we can get out of here, I have a feeling the cops are getting wise to us…" the largest thug explained.
A loud cracking sound echoed through the warehouse.
"What the fuck was that?" one of the villains questioned, on edge.
With horror, Minami realized it came from beneath her and Mina. A second loud crack resonated again. Looking down, Minami saw the thin feeble floor boards buckling and cracking beneath their knees, her eyes widened and she softly whimpered at the sight, not knowing what to do. Both girls looked at each other, silent panic going through their eyes as the floorboards gave away, and they tumbled down into the warehouse. Both girls screeched as they fell into a pile of debris that had been beneath them.
Hacking and coughing, the girls clawed their way back to the surface of the rubble pile, rubbing the dirt from their eyes. Minami moaned as she massaged the side of her head, not sure what her temple had smacked on the way down.
Maybe they didn't hear us… Minami thought hopeful as she blinked, trying to clear her blurred vision.
"Well well well, what do we have here? Looks like we have some eavesdroppers boys." A deep voice sounded.
"Yeah! We should teach them a lesson!" another male voice said.
Minami gasped as her vision cleared. Looking up, she saw the three figures of the thugs they had been watching standing before her and Mina.
Looking over at Mina, she noticed tears in her eyes, a terrified look on her face.
"We should punish them! Show 'em what happens when you decide to get involved in shit you don't belong in!" the shorter thug grinned, flicking his lighter on and off faster now as he became more excited, a predatory glint in his eye.
No…we need to get away…But how… Wait I know! Minami thought to herself as she got an idea.
"Mina! Close your eyes!" Minami shouted, pinching her own eyes shut as she stretched her arms forward. Splaying her fingers, her palms exuded a hot white blinding light.
The cries of the thugs filled the warehouse as Minami finished her defensive attack, effectively blinding them for the moment. She grabbed Mina's wrist, making a dash for the only opening she could see on the other side of the large room.
"My fuckin eyes! Get those little shits!" the biggest thug screamed in agony.
Breath pumped into her lungs as Minami ran as fast as her legs could carry her with Mina in tow. Mina's scream grabbed her attention, and both girls were jerked back harshly. Turning, Minami could see one of the thug's arms had stretched well over 20 feet to latch onto Mina, effectively stopping them.
Mina spun and splashed a large amount of acid onto the man's arms and hands; his high pitched shout told both girls the acid had done its job. With the man's grip loosened, Mina broke away and the girls continued their escape.
Running through the doorway and turning down the hall, both girls panted as they ran.
"We need to get the hell out of here, help me find the nearest exit!" Minami gasped to Mina. Mina nodded, as they turned another corner and abruptly stopped, seeing a figure at the end of the hallway, grinning manically.
"Eat fire!" the man shouted as he lit his lighter and blew on the small flame. A huge flamethrower was created from his flammable breath, and blew towards them. Minami's eyes widened and she grabbed Mina.
"Watch out!" Minami screamed, leaping backwards down the corridor they just came from. Both girls screamed in terror as the fire blew past them, just barely missing them. Minami looked down at her shirt which had become singed, crying out in shock as she patted out the small flame she could feel slightly searing her stomach.
Turning and running back the other way, Minami stopped as she saw a vacant room with a broken window that both of them could fit through. Grabbing Mina's arm, Minami dashed into the empty room, breaking out the remaining bits of glass in the window with an energy blast. She turned to Mina.
"Let's get out through here! Hurry!" nodding, Mina grabbed the windowsill and hoisted herself up and through the open space, landing on the other side.
Reaching up to pull herself through, Minami heard footsteps. As she was halfway through the window, she peered over shoulder and saw the enraged face of the thug with tentacle arms standing in the doorway.
"YOU BITCH!" he roared as rushed her.
Fuck! Minami thought panicked as she pushed herself the rest of the way out of the window, falling to the ground just below.
Mina grabbed Minami's arms and pulled her up. Both girls shrieked as the thug's tentacle arms came rushing through the window, reaching aggressively to grab the two girls.
"Let's get out of here!" Mina cried terrified to Minami, and both girls raced down the alleyway. Turning the corner, they stopped, frozen with disbelief. They came face to face with the side of another building; a dead end, with no way to climb up or below. A flickering street light hung just above them.
"No!" Mina cried out in disbelief, despair evident in the tone of her voice.
Hearing the sounds of heavy steps scraping against the alleyway ground, Minami heard dark chuckling.
Both girls turned around, and gasped at the proximity of all three thugs, realizing they were trapped.
"Looks like we finally caught up to you girls. Party's over, now you're gonna get it…" The man with the tentacle arms grinned. The other two thugs around him laughed, anticipating finally apprehending the two girls. They began moving in leisurely, savoring the moment.
I'm going to die…this is how I die…. Minami thought to herself in anguish.
Mina fearfully crouched behind Minami, her normally bold personality failing. Minami bared her teeth in determination with a falsified grin, remembering what her father always told her when she was nervous or worried.
Just remember little Minami, whenever you feel afraid or nervous, just to smile to trick the fear inside you!
She forced herself to stand tall and pushed her quirk forward until she could feel it pulsating throughout her entire body, her form glowing blue with crackling energy. Her energy made a slight wind tunnel in the alleyway, kicking up some of the garbage and debris that lay there with them. Despite her shaking knees, Minami made two balls of energy in either hand ready to go, trying to make herself look as intimidating as possible.
If I'm going to die, I'm going down fighting… Minami thought as she tried to harden herself for the possibility. Papa…I'm so sorry….
"Fuck you guys! I'll blow away every one of you!" Minami growled out, her eyes glowing with determination.
"Oh oh!? What was that you little bitch? Say it again!" The tentacled man laughed at the absurdity of what she said.
"Fuck you!" Minami shouted
FWOOM!
She shot out both energy blasts at the thugs, her anxiety causing her to miss, and both blasts landed behind the men, who laughed obnoxiously. The echo of the blasts reverberated off the walls of the surrounding buildings loudly.
"Is that all you've got?! Come on! Try it again sweetheart! I bet you can't stand up to my flammable breath!" the man with the lighter pursed his lips and made kissing noises. Minami grimaced as she felt her nerves getting out of control.
Suddenly the ground slightly shook as a large figure landed behind the three thugs; a booming deep voice intercepting the standoff.
"Fear not citizens! For I am here!"
Behind her, Minami could hear Mina choke out a relieved sound at the voice.
Am I dreaming? Is this real? Minami thought as she held her breath, looking for the figure of her father in his hero form in the darkness behind the three villains standing in front of her. The terrified faces of the thugs told her this was not a dream.
Both of All Might's hands landed on the shoulders of the ringleader thug, his jolly face appearing over his head in the darkness as he stepped forward, reminding them all that while the tentacled man was large, hardly anyone else was physically more imposing than All Might. Minami wanted to break down into tears at the welcomed sight. She could hear Mina doing just that behind her, sobbing in relief.
Minami could see All Might's smile drop as he finally got a good look at the two victims; she and Mina. A slight dumbfounded expression crossed his face briefly, not expecting to see two UA students, let alone his daughter and her friend. He stared but for a moment before reforming a characteristic smile on his face, albeit a much angrier looking smile, that masked what he was really feeling at that moment.
All Might turned and with no further words of bravado or reassurance like he normally would say, he began punching the daylights out of the thugs who were currently trying to escape, his face and actions holding a much more serious and angry tone than he usually exhibited. The thugs screamed and shouted in dismay at All Might's beating.
Minami winced slightly at the merciless thrashing her father was giving the thugs, the crooks having no idea they were getting an extra harsh beating due to almost harming All Might's daughter.
Looking at the other end of the alleyway behind the chaos in front of her, Minami could see the main road in the distance which held the flashing lights of several police cars.
Having knocked out two of the three criminals easily, All Might held the one remaining conscious thug by the throat while he whistled and waived the police officers back, signaling them to come and take away the captured villains.
As the police officers approached, Minami could hear the jingling of their cuffs and their walkies going off amongst them, confirming the criminals capture. All Might nodded to them as they handcuffed the criminals and took them away. She could hear one of the police officers question him about taking the victims in for questioning as well, but All Might deflected, convincing them that he would take care of it, and that there was plenty of evidence on hand to successfully prosecute the villains without having to get innocent minors involved.
Soon the police officers vanished, taking the three thugs with them, and the only sound left was Mina's quiet crying. All Might turned to regard the girls seriously, folding his massive arms over his muscular chest. There was no cheerful smile on his face, no reassuring quip for them. His glowing blue eyes bore into Minami, the anger and disappointment very much apparent in them. Minami felt the negative energy from his electric stare drill into her very being; making a shiver of fear go down her spine as she broke the stare and looked down at her shoes, unsure what she could say to try to save herself from punishment at that point.
I'm in so much trouble….Minami thought nervously, knowing there was no way out this time. But, I guess it's better than being captured by those villains, she thought reluctantly as she glanced back up into the very angry face of her father once more.
Alright guys! Mina and Minami really screwed up! Lucky Dadmight was there to save the day! Thanks again for all your support! :D please leave some good reviews! I love hearing about you guys enjoying the story!