Ashido followed Yaoyorozu excitedly through the airport with Tsu taking off after her. The Everything Hero had two extra tickets from her invitation to the expo event. In a small game of chance, Ashido and Tsu were the pair who got to join her in her V.I.P. trip. In turn, Uraraka and Hagakure were forced to join up with the general attendants. Plans were made to eventually meet up post the reception party, but right now, the trio were looking forward to their portion of the trip.
The airport was filled to the brim with people as the I-Expo and I-Island's festivities were in full swing. Both Heroes and civilians walked across the floor. The occasional Hero had a chance to be surrounded by fans and/or news reporters as they tried to leave. While the civilians were either in a thoughtless rush or were annoyingly slow. Though, despite these obstacles, the students had an easy time navigating to the exit.
Ashido pumped her fists, "Man, this is so awesome!"
Tsu let out a ribbit, "It's really exciting."
Yaoyorozu nodded, clapping her hands together, "Yes, let's make sure our bags have made it to our hotel room, and then we can go exploring."
The Acidic student pumped her fist, "Woohoo!"
The trio blinked when they heard whirl of turbines and the roar of engines. They looked up see someone in a flight suit hooked up to mechanical wings fly overhead. He flew through the air, weaving between archways, bridges, and the sprays of fountains. His flight zoomed over the Yuuei students before taking off into the distance.
Ashido blinked, "Who was that?" Her eyes narrowed as she tried to follow the soaring individual, "Some foreign Hero?"
Yaoyorozu rubbed her chin, "A rather strange quirk…"
Tsu tilted her head, "Was it a quirk at all?"
The ravenette shook her head, "Well, I'm not one to say. Considering Iida's quirk, it is possible to have mechanical-like extensions to one's body."
The pink-haired girl raised a finger, "But that was entirely metal with… like… spinny things." She wasn't sure what they were called.
Yaoyorozu blinked, "If not a Quirk then…" She tilted her head, "Another Quirkless Hero."
Tsu tilted her head, "Someone like Midoriya?"
Ashido smiled, "Whoa, that'd be awesome!" She blinked, "Actually, Jirou said that she got a ticket that brought her here before the commercial opening. Maybe she knows?"
The ravenette nodded as they returned to their trek to their hotel, "Maybe."
The pink-haired girl fished out her phone, "Maybe she can take us on a tour too."
XXX
"All-Might…"
"Young Midoriya."
Melissa stood in between the teacher and his student. It wasn't her intention for the two meet, but rather a happy accident—or an awkward, at least. Midoriya had a question or two for her—only now finding her available to talk. All-Might was her guest who she had just led to her father's workshop. Which was where this awkward encounter occurred.
The blonde blinked and fidgeted; unsure of how to approach the building tension in the air.
The teacher slowly nodded, "I heard about your invitation." He bowed, "Congratulations."
Midoriya blinked before taking a step back to bow as well, "Thank you, All-Might."
Melissa coughed, slipping into the workshop, "I-I'm going to check if my Dad can see you two."
The Quirkless inventor nodded, tucking his hands into his pockets, "Okay."
All-Might laughed, "Of course." The door mechanically slid open and close for the blonde, leaving the teacher and the student to themselves.
The younger looked up at the tower of mass, "How're you feeling?"
He blinked, "Hm." He rubbed the back of his neck, "Right… While Young Midoriya may not know much about One-For-All, he does know of my limit…" He grinned, gesturing to himself, "I am fine. Thank you for worrying."
Midoriya smiled, "No problem." The smile slowly left as they both fell into another bout of silence. The teen scratched the back of his head before he started to teeter on the balls of his feet.
They unknowingly thought in-sync. "This is awkward… How should a teacher and student interact outside of school…?" Their minds internally laughed, deadpanning, "What am I saying…? They 'shouldn't'…"
All-Might's eyes caught the scars that traveled across the younger's hand, "How is your hand?"
The Quirkless inventor blinked, flexing his hand, "Functional." He shrugged before tucking it away, "A few… annoyances, but nothing too inhibiting."
The blond's eyes landed on the scars on the younger's arms, "You've faced a lot, Young Midoriya."
Midoriya rubbed the back of his neck, "Y-Yeah, well…" He joked, "An occupational hazard, I guess."
All-Might shook his head, "You've experienced much. Before even starting your career no less." He crossed his arms, laughing, "Even I didn't see much action until my second year."
The inventor shrugged, "Yeah…" He looked off to the side, "Guess the world's changing."
The One-For-All user thought to himself, "It is hard to tell if it is for better or for worse…" He smiled, "There are young men like you doing something I never dreamed of… But then, the League revealed themselves and attacked Yuuei…" He coughed, "Though, they haven't committed anything since… Perhaps they've been scared off… Or… They're in waiting…" He sighed internally, "I should get into contact with Nighteye… See about that Successor he selected so long ago…" His gaze landed on the student, "Though, I wonder what you would say if I offered it to you, Young Midoriya…" He couldn't help but chuckle, "I have a feeling I know your answer, however…"
Midoriya blinked, looking at the lofty man, "Eh…? He's laughing at something…" He looked off to the side, "Did he think of something funny…?" He peaked over his shoulder, "Or is there something behind me…?" He blinked, tilting his head, "I don't get it…"
All-Might blinked before coughing, "Ah, sorry, Young Midoriya." He smiled, "I just wanted to say that what you've been able to do is extremely admirable. You proved me wrong." "I apologize for not believing in you."
The inventor blinked, rubbing the back of his neck, "Well, back then, I didn't have much to show for it. You were right. Undoubtedly." He smiled brightly, "But, like I said, the world's changing now."
The Pro let out a laugh, "Yes, I suppose so, Young Midoriya."
The metal door slid open and Melissa slipped back in between the two, "Dad's free. He can see you."
Midoriya smiled, "I'll actually just wait here. My question was really for you."
The blonde blinked, "Ah, okay." She held up a finger, "I'll be right back." He waved at her departure before leading All-Might into the workshop.
XXX
Jirou tucked her phone away as she turned to the trio of her friends who were in their Hero costumes. "Yo." She was met with an array of greetings from them. The rocker had met them on a semi-busy corner of one of the islands many streets. She, herself, was in her Hero costume. Though, it was definitely modified since the trio last saw it.
The sleeves of her jacket fit onto her arms like gloves and were gloves; of the fingerless variety. Her palms held circular speakers and her knuckles held some armor. Her shoulders held spikes like those that belong to the punk-rock aesthetic. Her collar was popped, and her lapels were replaced with rectangular speakers that laid on her chest. Overall, the jacket seemed to be enhanced with more tech and armor. Her boots seemed heavier and more armored while the speakers on her footwear seemed upgraded as well. She also had a pair of headphones hung around her neck—colored in blue and peach.
Ashido smiled, "Man, how lucky are you." She jokingly groaned, "You got to come here before all of the people."
Jirou chuckled, "Pretty lucky, I guess."
Tsu tilted her head, "Did you have fun?"
She smiled, "Plenty. Caught a few sights, too."
Yaoyorozu smiled politely, "I hope we're not taking away any of your time."
The rocker waved her off, "Nah, don't worry about it." With the turn of her head, the acidic girl noticed something that swung from her neck; that in which was once hidden behind the locks of her violet hair and her chin. It was a necklace with a violet charm that was in the form of a spiked heart.
The acidic girl leaned forward with her hand on her chin and a smirk on her face, "Eeh? Since when did you start wearing that?"
Jirou frowned with a slight blush on her face, "What's it to you?"
Ashido chuckled, "Eh? That sounds like the response of someone with something to hide."
The rocker crossed her arms, "It's just a necklace. What's so weird about that?"
She crossed her arms, leaning back, "Nothing wrong with that. Your response was a bit strange, though."
Jirou's blush worsened before turning on her heel, "God, what's with the third degree?" She scratched the back of her head, "It's a birthday gift."
Ashido tilted her head; her smile turning into a grin, "From…?"
The rocker sighed before walking off, "Let's just get going."
The acidic girl frowned, "Eeh?"
Yaoyorozu followed after her, bringing her hands together, "Where are we going first?"
Jirou tucked her hands into her pockets, "This museum's the closest one, so we'll start here."
Ashido gave her friend a thumbs-down, "Boo~, boo~." She pouted, "Yao-Momo, Kyoka's keeping her love life a mystery~."
The ravenette giggled, "Now, now."
The rocker internally deadpanned, "What is she…? Your mother…?"
Tsu let out a ribbit, "You've really latched onto this, huh, Mina?"
The acidic girl clenched her fist dramatically, "I'm jealous!"
Jirou's mind was sent spiraling, "Eeh…! That's surprisingly forward…!"
"Man, now I'm just wondering who it is~." Something sparkled in her eye as she raised a brow, "Hey, Kyoka?"
She internally sighed, "What now…?" She looked over her shoulder, "Yeah?"
Ashido smirked, "How were you invited to the I-Expo?"
Jirou shrugged, "Hatsume."
The acidic girl blinked, "Eh? From the Support Course?"
The rocker turned her gaze onward, "She had an extra ticket and offered." She was lucky that the pink-haired girl was trailing behind, so that her lie wasn't made obvious via her expression, "Sorry, Hatsume for dragging you into this… I need to make sure she's on the same page with me later…" "Are you done with your questions?"
Ashido smiled, "Yeah. Let's just have fun!" She picked up her pace, throwing an arm around Jirou's shoulders, "No more romance talk."
Jirou sighed in relief, "Thank god."
XXX
After a requested departure from her father, Midoriya walked alongside Melissa down the sidewalk. The streets were busy and bustling with tourists. The Quirkless Hero wasn't regularly recognized as now that he thought about it most of his public appearances were masked. The occasional fan that they came across was usually younger than him, and their parents didn't seem to register who he was. Though, like others, they eyed his scars warily.
The high of his surprise appearance was dying down alongside the controversy of his enrollment in Yuuei's Hero Course and the incident involving Haruka.
When the two found a quiet place to talk, Midoriya turned to the blonde, "So, you know about the Helios Test, right?"
Melissa laughed, "Yes, of course."
He chuckled in return before continuing, "So, I decided to test Ditzy-"
She blinked, "Ditzy?"
"Oh, uh, the-the drone."
She smiled brightly, "Oh, you've already named him?"
"Yeah." He tucked his hands into his pockets, chuckling, "He smacked me in the face."
She frowned worryingly, "Eh? D-Did we mess up his navigational programming or was there a physical problem?"
"It didn't know what to do in response to a flying docking station." He shook his head, "There wasn't an error. It was more an absence of a scenario."
Melissa nodded, "We didn't program it to respond to that scenario." She sighed, "Sorry. That's on me."
He smiled, "Don't worry about it." He then shrugged, "Gives him personality."
"Right."
They came to a stop at a bench near a store front, taking a seat as Midoriya blinked, "Oh. But, uh… back on topic, I tested Ditzy's satellite-uplink function and when bolstering my connection to Shield Systems." He lowered his voice, "It told me that I was granted access by you, but, well, you weren't there."
She nodded, "Oh, yeah. I programmed VI with limited access to our systems. You're technically using my passcode that's why it accepts you with administrator access, but it is limited."
"Of course. It'd be strange to have full access."
Melissa explained, "It's mostly for possible flights in I-Island's airspace. With all of the commercial flights coming in, we thought it was important to give you access so you can notify the flight tower."
"Oh, okay. I just wanted to make sure."
"Of course."
The two fell into a bout of silence before he let out a breath, "Thank you for everything." He shook his head, "I been blessed with so much." He smiled, "I'll pay your support back. Masami's, David's, Hatsume's, Shinso…" He noted lastly, "Jirou…" with a smile. He rubbed the back of his neck, "Though, I'm not sure how."
Melissa smiled, "That's easy. Become a Pro-Hero."
He blinked, "E-Easy?"
She stumbled with her words, "O-Oh, well…" She laughed, "You know what I mean."
A familiar voice called out to him, "Midori!?"
Midoriya blinked as he stood up, "Hm?" He turned to see a familiar pink-haired classmate, "Ashido?"
She laughed, "Hey! I knew you were here too!"
He turned to the rest of the group, "Asui, Yaoyorozu, I didn't expect to see you here." He then shared a silent and warm smile with Jirou who returned it with a slight blush.
Tsu's voice pulled his attention back to the group, "Call me Tsu, Midoriya."
Midoriya blinked, "A-Ah, sorry."
The acidic girl smiled at the Quirkless blonde, "Hi, I'm Ashido Mina."
She bowed slightly, "I'm Melissa Shield. It's a pleasure to meet you."
Yaoyorozu blinked, "Shield?"
Melissa laughed, "Yes, that one."
Midoriya looked over the group, "How did you guys get here?"
Ashido joked, "Via plane!"
He blinked, "Ah."
Yaoyorozu explained, "My parents are investors in I-Island's projects, so my family was sent tickets."
Tsu nodded, "Ashido and I were lucky enough to go with her."
He smiled, "That's great."
Ashido recalled before turning to him, tilting her head, "Hey, we saw a flying guy with these mechanical wings. Do you know anything about that?"
Midoriya blinked, speaking matter-of-factly, "Ah, you mean Blackhawk?"
Melissa nodded, "Right, she scheduled for a test flight today." She added, "We optimized her systems recently."
Jirou rubbed the back of her neck, "Is that what Hatsume got up to today?"
He shrugged, "Possibly."
Tsu asked, "So, is she a Quirkless Hero too?"
Midoriya rubbed the back of his neck, "Y-Yeah, kinda."
Yaoyorozu tilted her head, "Kind of?"
Melissa nodded, "She hasn't gotten into a Hero academy yet." She tapped her cheek, "If I remember correctly, Hero academies in Europe are post-secondary."
The acidic girl blinked, "Post-secondary?"
The Everything Hero elaborated, "They don't attend Hero lessons until they finished high school. Right?"
The Quirkless blonde nodded, tucking her hands behind her back, "Yes, I believe so."
Ashido smiled, "Another Quirkless Hero!" She threw her hands up, "That's so cool for you!"
Midoriya chuckled, "Thanks." Something in his head teetered, "It shouldn't be about me though…" He blinked, "I…" A resolution had been realized, "I need to make a phone call…"
Melissa clapped her hands together, "Hey, why don't we all keep talking over lunch?" She tilted her head, "There's a nice café nearby." With an array of agreement, the blonde began to lead the group away. The rocker and the Quirkless broccoli slowed their pace to walk alongside each other, sharing a smile.
X|X|X
AN: Howdy everybody! I got my wisdom teeth removed and it sucks. Not really the pain; mostly the food.
This chapter is a pretty simple story beat, mostly following the pace of the movie. Uraraka and Jirou's positions in the movie has been replaced by Ashido and Tsuyu. Reasons? I like 'em. If people are wondering why not keep Uraraka, to simply I just wanted to change things up.
Now, the All-Might and Midoriya interaction. It is mostly the finalization of that relationship. Purely professional; student and teacher not mentor and successor. To simply put, Midoriya has no want to be the next All-Might. Midoriya will be the first Deku. Of course, that doesn't mean All-Might's leaving the story. I have plans for him. Just the end of a thread before I tie it to another.
Real world stuff. I got a job that takes up a lot of my energy. So, it's kinda hard to write. Not saying my monthly schedule is changing, but just saying that chapters may appear towards the end of the month rather than the mid-point.
With that said, thank you for reading and criticize away!
