Salt of the earth
Chapter two: gathers no moss
Makoto groaned lightly as Senpu jumped on her. Eventually hearing a chuckle from her doorway "If you don't get up you will miss breakfast and be late to school" the blond stretched in bed a moment "wait….and?" his fading chuckle was enough for her to realize what he meant and she lept from the bed "no no no!" she rushed to throw on her uniform and grabbed her bag as she quickly made her way to the door for her shoes "don't forget these" she looked up to her dad and grinned, in one hand he had her energy drinks for training, in the other an iced coffee. "you're the best!" As she took the drinks she hugged her father "have a good day dear" she waved and took off for the train station, sighing as she narrowly made her train. It was clear she would be standing for this trip, she lazily sipped her coffee drink as her other hand held one of the supports. By the time she had gotten to the stop nearest the school she had fully woken up, eyes now full of energy and determination.
She played with the dyed bit of hair while she walked, a habit of hers to tug on the strands as she thought. As she spotted Present Mic she laughed softly, his eyes were covered but she could tell he hadn't gotten much sleep that night. "Mic!" he perked up as she jogged to him "more trouble then you thought huh?" he nodded as they walked into the school "nothing I couldn't handle! We have a new case to investigate tonight" her eyes sparked at the thought "you had to tell me before class!" his grin showed it was on purpose and she gently punched his arm as she ran ahead "that's unfair Mic!"
She enjoyed the friendly manner she had with the pro, he was not just her teacher or her boss but they had a friendship. They had met under poor circumstances when she was a child but he had done a lot for her hero career, including putting her in as a recommendation and endorsing her sports festival during her first year. A part of her believed it was because he felt guilty, but it was easy to ignore.
Her classes were easy enough to follow in the morning, only a single test and the rest was note writing. She scribbled in the margins of most of her notebooks and thought of things she wanted to work on for the festival. It wasn't as big a deal as the first years sports festival, but it was one of the last chances to show off for any agencies looking for young blood. She wanted it more to use her skills in a real fight that wasn't quite as serious. Her eyes lit up as the bell rang for lunch, she gathered her things and with a grin handed a note to Cementoss "oh you are participating this year as well? Aren't you a bit busy?" a cheeky grin was what the man was met with as he nodded "get going Konton" her grin grew at his mild frustration.
She eagerly made her way to the cafeteria, smiling as she spotted the big three "Hey guys!" the group looked to her as she wandered over "oh hey Konton!" the two energetic ones spoke in unison as Tamaki gave a small wave. "lets have lunch together today, I could really use some inspiration." The group nodded and gathered their food sitting at one of the larger stables with a few other third years. "so what are we working on?" Makoto smiled "I want to show off something new at the festival" Hado grinned "oh you mean the one that's hosting students from all over japan?" Nodding with a grin Makoto was about to go into her plan when a ruckus sounded from another part of the cafeteria. They couldn't see who it was but the blond girls eyes narrowed at the shouting "I'm telling you she was an angel or something!" she rolled her eyes "sounds like one of the first years had a wet dream" she grumbled at the interruption to their conversation, and now the lunch room was so full of chatter and laughter from the outburst that she could barely hear herself think. With a sigh she ate her food, she would have to talk with them about it another time.
As they finished their food and lunch came to an end she bid her farewells to the big three and took the fastest path through the halls and to the training ground. While walking she practiced some stretches, loosening her arms and shoulders. Determination danced in the crystal of her eyes as she made sure the energy drinks were still in her bag, as well as an extra snack she had gotten during lunch. An odd feeling nagging at her as she walked but she brushed it off focusing on the task at hand.
Meanwhile as the lunch bell rang kirishima was still talking with his classmates about the girl "really guys, I'm telling you" "I don't know" kirishima looked to kaminari "sounds like a dream to me dude" the group teased him until his eyes caught sight of something going down the halls in front of him "hey its her!" he wasn't sure how she got there, or even if it really was her, but that blue strand of hair was enough for him to go on. He grinned seeing she was going in the same direction he had to and attempted to call out for her. By the time he had pushed past everyone to get where he thought he had seen her the girl was gone. "so uh,,,where is she?" he gave a half glare to the group "maybe I was wrong…lets get to class." Grudgingly he followed his friends as they teased him, but he had been sure he saw her. Then again the red head couldn't be entirely sure it was her, he was barely able to tell it was a girl, and the lights had obstructed his vision. But he did remember the blue strip of hair and the drink she had given him.
During class he found it hard to focus, he had to find her to prove to his friends he wasn't dreaming. He thought of a few ways he could try to see her again, each one making him feel more like a creep. By the time the bell rang to let them out for the day he was more then eager for his evening training. He needed it to clear his head after all the embarrassment.
That evening Makoto looked over the paperwork, pulling her hair into a bun as she did so. She was already tired from training but she had told Mic she would handle this case. She rolled her eyes and made sure her costume was on right and looked good. Nodding pleased she moved to leave the office, smiling as she opened the door to another sidekick "oh uhm.." "what can I do for you?" he rubbed the back of his head "Present Mic asked me to join you tonight" crystal eyes rolled but she nodded "don't slow me down then, lets go I have a plan for this" she closed her door and left the building, the man following obediently.
The man was named Isamu and he was a few inches taller than her, as well she knew he was at least two years her senior. He was a kind man with a chimera styled quirk, giving him large brown wings and a lions tail. His hair shaggy and bright orange, and blue green eyes that shined when he was happy but faded to dull shades as his mood dropped. She didn't mind his company, and they had worked together a few times before, but this time it was because her honorary uncle thought she needed protecting.
"come on, this way Taka" he nodded and walked beside her, the sun was only starting to set as their patrol began. With little thought the blond pulled the man into a café "lets get coffee" he gave her a confused look "but.." her shoulders dropped "we need to stay awake, the person was seen in this area but normally at a late time" he nodded "I guess so" she smiled "think of it as recon?" this got more understanding from him. They both picked a drink and moved to sit outside on the patio, able to see clearly everyone that walked by as they enjoyed their drinks looking more like an eccentric couple then a pair of heroes. As it grew dark Makoto made a few mental notes of people matching the general description of the person they were looking for. She knew that chances were slim of this person actually being a danger, but it had worried a few people in the area and it needed to be handled. she stood with a lazy look "come on Taka, we should head to the park" he nodded and they walked side by side, each keeping an eye for anything suspicious. As the wind picked up the girl shivered lightly trying to decide if she would switch to her winter uniform soon. Her eyes darted to her partner as a wing spread itself behind her. The feathers brushed her gently as they walked, keeping the wind off her "thank you.." nodding Isamu gave a typical goofy grin "cant have you freezing on me"
They shared a small laugh and she moved herself to be a little closer to him, his wing curling in closer and providing more warmth. Her eyes moved back in line of the park, already scanning the area for anyone standing out. They walked along one of the paths that circled the main park, and the girl nearly gagged at all the couples they had passed. "so what exactly do we know about this person?" she looked up to Isamu a moment before glancing around them. He had waited till they were out of earshot of anyone. "well…they have been spotted several nights a week, often here. For the most part his oddest behavior is being out here doing laps far later then most would come out" she paused a moment to make sure they were still alone "a few people have made mention of hearing grunting from alleyways in the area but its unsure if he is connected." The man nodded as he listened "so its probably just someone getting out some frustration." "more then likely, but I'm not brushing this under the table till I'm sure" the girl rubbed her neck softly "I don't know how long you will be helping me, but I intend to come out every night and stay until at least midnight until I find him"
Isamu wasn't at all comfortable with the idea of that, and his eyes scanned her face as she looked over the park "don't you have school? And a tournament?" she shrugged looking a little dejected but keeping her posture firm "as long as I show up to class it will be ok. And I can take a few easy days then make up for it later." The chimera couldn't help smiling at the determination in her eyes "I have a duty to be a great hero, that means I must be willing to push myself so that each job gets done correctly" as her crystal eyes moved up to him he let out a laugh "there's no arguing with a Konton I hear" his next glance down to the girl was met with a satisfied smirk "you hear correctly."
Once they had walked the park a couple of times Makoto insisted on moving further away from town. If this was trouble her gut told her it would be hidden in the shadows. The pair walked together as unassuming as they could, eyes ever scanning everything around them. They had spent a couple of hours checking the old dirt paths that led around things like the river and a few known criminal hang outs. She hated that they found nothing but a part of her was also glad. It was even more likely the mystery man was harmless if he stayed within the town and away from the troubled areas. A small yawn was all it took for Isamu to give the girl a look "we should give up for the night" she shook her head and grabbed his wrist "lets go back to town, one more round at least" the man let her drag him along, thoughts of how stubborn she was as she spoke "we cant give up this early. The sooner we find whoever it is the better. Besides I'm not that tired" he could see her fight back another yawn and couldn't help smirking to himself. Despite his skill and ranking, she was still just a sixteen year old girl with grand ambitions.
Of course he had let her have her way, and they walked the town for the next hour. She glanced in every open store, gave a friendly wave to everyone on the street and focused on every alley they passed. There was nothing to show for the night aside from the ache in their feet. He patted the girls head "lets go Terra, we did our rounds" she looked at him stubbornly but he shook his head "you said one more, come on its almost one in the morning" dropping her shoulders she started towards the agency "alright Taka, you win this time" When they returned to the agency they saw Present Mic, the girl gave her report while filling out some paper work then parted ways from the men. Quickly changing her eyes moved to the information on the mystery man, giving a heavy sigh as she shook her head and started the walk home. Her hands were stuck deep in her pockets and she walked with her head low. Makoto glared at the ground tiredly as she made her way down the familiar path. She didn't find any leads towards completing her goal and she knew it was likely she would pass out during class.
Once home she took care of Senpu, being cautious not to wake her father. She scratched a few things on her schedules and flopped onto the bed "Senpu….cuddle" the dog crawled up the bed and nuzzled up to her giving her kisses as she held him "I'm going to ask Hizashi if I can bring you on some of these patrols. You've got a good nose" the dog seemingly sneezed in response making her smiled into his fur "good night boy"