Daichi waded through the crowds, searching for the exit. Today was day 1 of his internship week. So much had happened in his school life in just a few days. One day, he was sitting at a desk in class 1-C, the next, he was in a brand new city to learn from an actual Pro Hero. When he finally entered the city of Funabashi, he pulled out a slip of paper from his pocket. Scribbled on the paper was an address.
"Okay, now all I need to do is find the agency and a guy named Asclepius," Daichi said to no one in particular. He looked at the signposts to get his bearings.
"Excuse me, by any chance, are you Daichi Jinneko?" A voice came from the right.
It was a woman covered head to toe in white curly fur, except for her hands and face. Her hair, which was just as frizzy, reached all the way down to her waist. She had sheep-like ears that drooped in the shape of crescent moons. She was wearing a black tank top and iron kneepads. She also had curled horns, but a right eye, as Daichi had, could tell that they were constructed of metal.
"Yes," he confirmed, then, warily, asked, "Are you Asclepius?"
"No, I'm his sidekick, Bo Peep."
"That title belongs to me," another unknown voice piped in. "Hello, Jinneko. I am Asclepius." It was a man with curly ginger red hair and emerald green eyes. He could see lines on his face. The man wore a sky blue cloak short enough to let his arms be seen but long enough to cover his torso and waist. Underneath the chlamys was red samurai armor. In his hand was a long golden staff with a snake wrapped around it.
"We thought it would be nice to meet you at the train station," Asclepius explained. "Come on, today marks the start of a great milestone in your path to becoming a hero!" He started pushing him in the direction of the agency.
They stopped their trek at a big white building. As the name suggests, there was a large gold medical cross on the front of the building.
"Welcome to Gold Cross." Asclepius walked through the sliding doors. "Where our mission is to help those who can't fight back."
While the building looked like a hospital on the outside, the inside was more like a rainforest. He was half expecting to hear parrots squawking. Giant trees with a thick canopy reached all the way to the ceiling. The sun gave the leaves a vibrant green glow. What sunlight managed to squeeze through the cracks of the leaves was sparse, but enough to light up the building without the assistance of lightbulbs. The native trees were real, while the more exotic species were constructed from wood and plastic. It was also a little humid. But what caught Daichi's attention, though, were the snakes; they were everywhere. Rat and bull snakes were slithering about in glass containers that stretched across each wall. In contrast, more giant snakes like pythons and boa constrictors were coiled around branches.
"I also help raise awareness about snakes." He held his hand out to a giant white and yellow Burmese python coiled around an artificial tree. The python soon wrapped itself around his outreached arm. "For example, this Burmese python here can grow almost twenty feet long."
Asclepius
Quirk: Snake charmer
He can control snakes with his mind. He also has extensive knowledge of medicine, he uses it to his advantage to concoct poisons from snake venom to infect opponents without killing them.
"Would you like to touch him?" Asclepius held out his arm. Daichi's fur prickled at the sight of the creature. He wasn't scared of snakes, but he still had his apprehensions like most people.
Asclepius noticed this. "Don't worry, you're strong enough to fight him off." Daichi reached out with a steady paw. Its scales were smooth, but the body was slightly rough. The snake leaned into the touch. Daichi stared into its unblinking eyes, seeing a tiny reflection looking back.
"Cool, huh?" Bo Peep interjected.
Daichi nodded, a smile slowly stretching on his face.
"Alright, that's enough," he pulled the snake away from him, "we can't spend the whole day petting snakes."
Daichi let out an inaudible whimper.
"How about we get started on some simple patrols?" Asclepius placed the snake back on the tree. "Go get in your hero costume, and we'll get started." Daichi ran off to the bathroom with his case, eyes brighter than a lighthouse and tail bushier than a raccoon's.
His costume consisted of a dark green helmet with holes for his ears, a kevlar vest, trail running shoes, and white elbow-length gloves with pink paw pads. When he unsheathed his claws, steel ones popped out of the gloves.
Asclepius, Bo Peep, and Daichi walked through the streets. Funabashi was like a miniature version of Tokyo, but fewer people were walking without any destination in mind. Daichi's shoulders slumped as he realized the lack of claustrophobia. The temperature was tolerable, but it was still slightly hotter than usual, foreshadowing the inevitable heatwave to come with summer. Fortunately, Daichi's costume was breathable since very little fabric was involved. As they walked, they did random acts of kindness. There was an elderly woman who needed help carrying groceries to her car, they gave some first aid to a boy who fell off his bike, and gave some lost tourists directions. A few times, they were stopped by bystanders asking for autographs or selfies. As the day was nearing its end, Daichi just let his mind wander. I can't believe we've been walking for hours, and my feet haven't gotten sore yet. Hatsume really did a great job, I need to thank her when I get back to class. Going on friendly patrols, helping people, fighting crime, this is the life I want.
"Let's see if you've learned anything from today, do you know why heroes go on patrols?" Asclepius quizzed.
"Yes. It's so people know we are here to protect them. And to be there when people need us the most."
"That's two of the reasons, another reason is to be there right when a crime happens."
As if on cue, a robber with a pink purse ran towards them. Asclepius stretched his staff out on the sidewalk while still holding it. The burglar's foot got caught on the pole, causing him to fall flat on his stomach. The bag was sent flying by the momentum and landed on the road.
"Case in point."
Bo Peep placed her foot on his back, preventing him from getting back up.
"I'll go get it." Daichi ran on the crosswalk.
"Wait, what?" By the time, Asclepius saw what he was doing, Daichi was already halfway down the street.
Daichi picked up the purse. "I got it."
"Get out of the road!" Asclepius yelled.
His left ear picked up on some honking. He turned around to see a truck. Daichi couldn't run, he was planted to the ground as he stared at the vehicle. His body turned ice cold. His heart stopped beating. Daichi squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the feeling of broken bones and leaking blood veins, but the feeling never came. He opened his eyes and saw a white fluffy object. It looked like a cloud had fallen out of the sky. Bo Peep stood there with her arm outstretched like she was throwing a baseball. She was missing the wool on her right arm.
Bo Peep
Quirk: Cotton ball
She can detach the wool on her body and expand it to use as a shield.
Once he realized the danger was over, Daichi wasted no time returning to the sidewalk. His heartbeat started back up again, pumping so hard it felt like it was gonna jump right out of his chest. His whole body shuddered like a mini earthquake.
"Why would you run into oncoming traffic!?" Asclepius chastised the cat.
"I was just trying to grab the purse," Daichi said. His voice came out in gasps, he still had not caught his breath yet.
"And you didn't think to check for any cars!?"
"I didn't know there were any coming."
"Well, you should have checked first!"
The reality of the situation finally set in. Daichi's tail and ear drooped down. "I didn't mean to scare you." Daichi held out the purse. Asclepius gave it back to the owner. Daichi was still staring down at the sidewalk like a kicked puppy. Asclepius just released an irritated sigh at the spectacle.
"Well, next time, look both ways before running into the road."
Daichi was able to look him in the eyes again. The rest of his symptoms didn't stop, though. The cold feeling had yet to go down, and so did the trembling.
"Come on, let's turn this man over to the police, and we'll go back to the agency to finish up for the day."
Daichi followed behind them, tail trailing on the ground. Bo Peep placed a hand on his back. That calmed him down a bit, but he was still shaking.
"Welcome to the real world, kid," Bo Peep said.