Hero Academia: Dual Survivor (Short Story) Part 1
The Pairs:
Standing in front of the Class, Aiwaza told everyone of the new required Class that UA had started. A Wilderness Survival Class that would be conducted in the United States. Upstate New York to be precise. After he laid out the specifics which included a week of learning from a Survivalist. He informed them that at the completion the Students would be paired off and transported deep into the Woods. Taking them to the Nearby Airport and within 2 days they were in the United States to begin their new Class. After the week, he wrote down each of their names and placed them into a bowl. Mixing them and began to announce the Pairings. Some were not too enthused with who they were paired with, but Aiwaza did not care.
Sitting at his desk, Izuku Midoriya listened with complete attention as Aiwaza read of the names. When Katsuki Bakugo was paired with Minoru Mineta, he let out a sigh of relief. Though he somewhat pitied Mineta. He was hoping to be paired with Tenya Iida, Shoto Todoroki or even Ochaco Uraraka. Aiwaza continued to read off names and soon there was only a few left. After a few more names were called, Izuku began to sweat. Tenya and Ochaco were paired, Shoto and Kyoka Jiro were paired. He slumped with relief when Momo Yaororozu was paired with Toru Hagakure. He was worried that he would make a complete ass out of himself being around the extremely well endowed beautiful girl. Then he heard his name and he stiffened. Hearing his partner he felt lightheaded. The next most beautiful girl in class, Mina Ashido. He looked over at her and she smiled sweetly at him, giving him a little wave. Aiwaza finished and then smiled broadly. "Oh by the way. I have some very specific rules that all of you will follow to the letter. The first and most important one is that...no one will use their Quirks during their time out there. Also there will be Drones flying about to monitor your progress and to make sure that you are not in any real time peril. Also you will know about where the other pairs will be, there will be no contact or communication with the others. Now I will be handing out what you need to accomplish within the week that you are in the Wilderness, to pass or fail this course. Failure will result in you retaking not only the Class but redoing the week in the Field." He declared and then pointed over at the Backpacks. "In each of these Backpacks is the bare minimal that you will be allowed to have. Inside you will find...One Wool Blanket, one 5 by 5 foot Tarp, two hundred feet of Para Cord,one Buck Knife, One Canteen full of Water and one Flashlight. Now each of you can add in some undergarments and Toiletries. After I and Midnight make sure that you are not trying to smuggle anything that is not required equipment. That is all you get." He told them and motioned for them to get their packs. On the Second Helicopter, Izuku nervously glanced over at Mina who once again smiled broadly. Three hours later above the Forest, Aiwaza pointed to him and Mina. "This is where we drop you two off...Good luck." The Pilot landed, Izuku and Mina got out and then the Helicopter rose and left them. They could hear it land again several miles away, depositing Momo and Toru. The First Helicopter had the rest of their class with Nemuri Kayama doing exactly the same thing. Dropping off Pairs of Students.
Day One:
Glancing about Mina Ahsido grimaced. "Well first thing first. We better find a decent place to set up camp." She declared and looked over at Izuku. Who was adjusting his Cold Weather Coat and then slung his Backpack on his back. "Wow it is cold out here." She said shivering slightly. He did not respond at all and that was beginning to annoy her. Dropping her Backpack onto the ground she glared at him. "Listen Midoriya! I know I am not the one you want to do this with. Your expression then made that abundantly clear when Aiwaza paired us together." She said angrily and a bit hurt. Izuku swallowed and shook his head.
"Sorry...about that...no I...I...well I did not mean...it is just that..." Izuku tried to explain but Mina made him extremely uncomfortable. Mainly due to how much he liked her. He had a serious crush on her and now that he was forced to be alone with her it was really hard on him to be able to speak at all to her.
"Come on spit it out already. I know we don't hang out or anything like that. But we are classmates and somewhat friends right?" Mina said with aggravation. Oh she knew that Izuku Midoriya was shy, that every Girl in Class knew that. But also every Girl in Class and a couple in Class 1-B thought that he was extremely cute. Even she did. So much so that after hearing that she was being paired with Izuku and in the few moments that she had to gather her things. She had asked Ochaco if it was alright if she tried to spark some type of thing between her and the Green Haired Boy. Ochaco gave her the go ahead.
"Yes..I guess we are." Izuku said still not quite looking at her. Mina waited crossing her arms in front of her.
"Well then what is it?" Mina asked and Izuku blushed. Breathing in and out several times.
"It is...well I...was hoping to be paired with someone...that I...am not afraid of." Izuku finally said and Mina chuckled, shaking her head.
"You are afraid of me. Little ole me." Mina said as she placed her right hand on her chest and Izuku nodded. "Oh come on Izuku...I may look...well like this. But I am just plain old Mina Ashido. How can you be afraid of me?" She asked and he closed his eyes and exhaled sharply. Lowering his head.
"I am not afraid of you that way." Izuku said barely audibly and Mina was now thoroughly confused. Deciding to be honest so that perhaps she would understand and they could just get this exercise done without him feeling more like a complete idiot. "I...I...like you Ashido." He whispered and Mina leaned closer. A small smile began to form. She waved her hand gesturing for him to continue. He swallowed again visibly and began to pale. "I sort of...have a crush on you." He began to wonder if it was smart to tell her that. Though after she laughed at that and shot him down. He suspected that they could get down to getting this exercise over with.
"Really? You do? Awesome dude. Though I do have to wonder why? I mean most have it for you know Momo Yaoyorozu. You got to know she is really stacked and way prettier then me." Mina said and Izuku still could not completely look at her. He shook his head.
"I..I..do not think so...you are...well I think...you are prettier then she is." Izuku blurted out and Mina smiled.
"That is so...sweet. Oh man...okay then, you have a crush on me. That is, like I said awesome." Mina declared still smiling broadly completely tempted to do the Happy Dance. "What a time for you to admit it. I mean we can't even, you know go out on a date yet. But we can after we dominate this exercise." Izuku stared at her in shock.
"Wait...you are not upset...or even...I am confused on what is happening." Izuku said as he realized that she intended for them to go out on a date. Mina chuckled.
"Of course I am not upset Izuku. No that does not sound right...and I am not going to keep calling you Midoriya. How about Izzy? Will that be alright if I call you Izzy?" Mina asked and Izuku shrugged. "Good. You call me Mina then. I have to wonder what is there to be confused about. You like me and have a crush on me. That is great...that also means we need to go on a date." With an exhale she glanced about. "Until then, we better get going. Find a good place to set up camp and all that. Now as I remember, our best choice is to head downward and hope to come across a Stream or River." She told him and Izuku nodded with approval. With her in the lead, they headed downhill. Or what felt like downward. After about an hour, Mina noticed that Izuku was not really paying attention, so she decided to tease him a little. "You better stop staring at my ass. Otherwise you might trip and fall." She said and Izuku began to pale, then he blushed and almost tripped on a tree root.
"No I was...I wasn't staring at..." Izuku stammered uncontrollably and Mina started to laugh.
"Oh come on Izzy...I was only teasing you. For a bit you seemed to have zoned out. Although I would not mind if you did look at my ass. I believe it is spectacular. Don't you think so?" Mina asked, cocking her hips back and forth. Izuku coughed and began to sweat. "Well isn't it?"
"Yes." Izuku hissed feeling a little faint. Mina smiled and gestured towards the direction that they were going.
"Good answer. Now you might want to pay attention. We should do as that Dude that taught the class suggested. You know pick up stuff we might need while we hike." Mina said and Izuku blushed again. Realizing that he was not really paying attention as they were hiking downward. If he had, he would have noticed the Dry Yellow Birch Bark to his left. The Instructor had told them that the Birch Bark was more flammable then paper. Perfect for helping to start a fire. Reaching over he began to pull hand fulls of the Bark off and stuffed them in his pockets of his Coat. Meanwhile Mina did the same. With their pockets filled they continued on.
"Sorry about earlier...I was...well I was..thinking of why we would need to know about survival here of all places." Izuku said and Mina thought about it as well.
"You know you are right. This makes no sense. This weather and place is nothing like anywhere back home. So why are we here in the deep woods of New York. Trudging along and freezing our asses off." Mina said back and Izuku shook his head. "Maybe we should ask Mister Aiwaza about this after we pass this sucker." Moving onward and downward, Izuku stopped and pointed to a small clearing.
"Hey that looks...what does that look like to you?" Izuku asked and Mina stared at where he was pointing. There among the trees was what looked like a bunch of long poles with a dark canvas top on them. Walking down to it, they got close enough to see that it was a man made structure of a sorts. Inside was some type of Metal Cylinder and a bunch of plastic buckets. All were wrapped in plastic. Mina started lightly slapping his shoulder with her left hand.
"Hey..Hey..Hey...I know what this is...I used to watch this series on TV...it was called Moonshiners. This is a Moonshine Still." Mina said excitingly, pointing at the Cylinder and the Buckets. "I bet there is a stream or river nearby." Then she watched in curiosity as Izuku pulled the Canvas off the roof. "What are you doing?" She asked.
"This Canvas is a resource. I bet it would make a great roof to whatever shelter we build." Izuku replied and Mina smiled. Picking up two of the Plastic Buckets. Hoisting them shoulder high.
"Bet these will come in handy too." Mina commented. Then they spent the next few minutes searching to see if they could find anything else they could use. After finding nothing usable, only about a dozen fishhooks. "Crap. I was almost hoping that these idiots left a box of matches or a lighter." Using some of the rope that was attached to the Canvas, they rolled it up and tied it. Izuku picked it up and Mina carried the two buckets. Moving on, they found a slow flowing small river a hundred yards from the Moonshiner Setup. "So which way do you think we should go?" She asked her companion and he shrugged. Looking upstream and then down.
"No idea." Izuku said and Mina exhaled sharply. She smiled.
"I know lets do even or odds. Even we go up and Odds we go down." Mina stated and Izuku stared at her in confusion. "Okay it is simple. You know about Rock, Paper, Scissors right. It is almost the same. We count out three and we each hold out fingers. We add them together and if it is even then we go upstream and odd we go down. Does that sound good to you?" She asked after explaining the game. Izuku shrugged. They each slapped their right hand in their left palm three times and then flashed out fingers. "Okay I have three and you have two out. That equals five. We go downstream." Picking back up the Buckets, Mina started to follow the River downstream. Six miles and about 3 PM, they found a good place for them to call home for the next 6 days. It was about a forty foot clearing and was about sixty feet from the River. "I think this is about the best we can find...So what do you think?" She asked him and Izuku nodded.
"Yes it seems perfect. Nice and flat." Izuku replied and dropped the rolled up Canvas. Then took of his Backpack. "What do you think we should do first? Shelter or Fire." He asked and Mina looked upwards, then frowned and she dropped her Backpack.
"I bet this place rains a lot. Rain mixed with snow. So we need both." Mina stated and glanced about. They did not have a lot of time before it got dark. "I think we got about 3 maybe 4 hours before it gets dark. For tonight lets make a temporary shelter and then focus on fire." She suggested and Izuku agreed. Walking over to two trees, that were about fifteen feet apart. Picking a long wooded branch and wedged it between to notches. From one tree to another. Mina watched him with confusion, until he spread out the Canvas over the branch and began to use rocks to hold down the edges. Forming a tent. She instantly understood. Walking over to some pine branches, she snapped them off and began to lay them inside the temporary tent on the ground. With the shelter done, Izuku began searching around for the pieces for a Bowdrill Fire Starter Set. Thankfully it had not rained in a few days, so everything he needed was dry. Spreading out his Tarp, he sat and went to work on making the Bowdrill. Then notched the two pieces and within a minute had the Bowdrill done. Mina did not ask as she began to collect firewood.
"Now the hard part." Izuku muttered as he placed his feet on the bottom part, with his left he held the top portion and with his right began to spin the drill part.
"If you got this...I will set up the inside of the Tent." Mina said, removing her own Tarp and laid it on top of the Pine Branches. Then her Blanket. Deciding that tonight and from now on, they would be sleeping next to each other. Not telling him that she intended that they more then just lye next to each other. What she wanted to do was cuddle. While she was setting up the inside, she began to smell the distinctive hint of smoke. Coming out she watched him as he blew an ember into a small flame and after getting a fire going. He exhaled in relief. "Good job Izzy." She smiled, he stacked a good amount of wood on the fire.
"Are you...hungry?" Izuku asked and Mina nodded enthusiastically. "I bet that river has...what did the Instructor call them...Trot?" Mina shook her head.
"No I think they are called Trout. Problem though, it is way too cold to hand fish." Mina told him and he removed the Para Cord. Cutting about a six foot section from his supply and removed the strands from inside the Green Thin Rope. She watched him again confused. He smiled and began to tie one end to the Green Outer Casing. Finally he attached six of the Fishhooks to the white strains at the other end. The last step he searched around and found a bunch of Tree Grubs. Spearing them onto the Hooks. "What is that thing?" She asked and he smiled at her.
"In one of the Books they gave us...it had something called a Fishing Trap Line." Izuku replied and then Mina shrugged. Following him to the River as he stung it across a cut off that was about five feet wide. Letting the Baited Hooks dangle into the water. "We leave this for a couple of hours and maybe we will have some fish." He said and after tying the two ends, he and Mina went back to camp. Where he added more wood to the fire. Mina went to the one side of the Tent and pushed more Pine Branches into the ground about a four feet from the entrance. After she was done, she laid some wood in between the entrance and the Pine Barrier. This time Izuku looked at her with confusion. She stood.
"We get the fire going here and the Pine Barrier will reflect heat back inside. Should make the inside a lot warmer." Mina told him, pointing at first the Barrier then at where the Fire would be and then inside the Tent. She sat down next to him on the Tarp and let the glow and heat of the fire warm her. "Phew...I am beat." She commented leaning against Izuku and closed her eyes. He stiffened as she placed her head on his left shoulder. "Hmmm I could go to sleep right here..." Mina said smiling. Her stomach rumbled.
"I better go check the Trap Line...Maybe we caught something." Izuku did not move until, Mina exhaled and moved to stop leaning on him. He stood and left, coming back a few minutes later holding two almost foot long Fish in his hands. "Want to get a couple of Green Sticks, while I clean them." He said and Mina nodded. In moments both Fish were cooking over the Fire. Eating them after they were cooked. After a few bites, Mina brandished her Fish.
"You know what this could use?" Mina asked as Izuku looked over at her. "Ketchup." She said answering her own question and Izuku chuckled totally agreeing with her. The Trout was good, but kind of bland tasting. "I hope we are not stuck on eating Fish for the next six days." She said biting into the fish again.
"I could go set some snares...maybe get a Rabbit." Izuku offered and grimaced, shaking her head.
"No way am I eating a cute little bunny rabbit! Or any other poor defenseless cute animal. So I guess Fish is going to be it." Mina stated wrinkling her nose and Izuku smiled broadly. He himself could not actually bring himself into killing a Rabbit.
"If it was warmer...I probably could find a Snake." Izuku said with a mischievous smile and Mina gasped shaking her head furiously.
"No fucking way am I eating a Snake! I hate Snakes! They are so...yeeeeeeuck!" Mina shivered and shuddered at the thought of a Snake. Not even imagining seeing one, let alone eating one. Then she saw Izuku's expression and she scowled slightly. Then laughed.
"Oh you can tease...that was really good one." Mina said with a huge smile. She nudged him with her shoulder and went back to eating her Fish. They finished and tossed the Bones into the Fire. "Okay we ate...want to talk a bit?" She suggested and Izuku shrugged. Then he pointed to the center of the clearing.
"I think our best choice is to build a Tee-Pee. We can wrap the Canvas around some Poles and it should keep us warm and dry." Izuku told her and Mina shook her head.
"No...well yes that should be alright. But I wanted to talk about other things other then...this." Mina said sternly, gesturing about as she looked back at him. "So...how long have you had this Crush on me?" She asked with a small smile. He paled and his face began to redden.
"Almost...from day that we met." Izuku whispered and Mina giggled, leaning against him again. Reaching down with her right hand, she took his right wrist and put his arm over her shoulders. He resisted slightly and then swallowed feeling her wrap her left arm around his back. Taking hold of her left hand with her right hand and gave him a small sideways hug. 'Uhm...Mina." He gasped and she smiled up at him.
"What...this feels good...nice and warm. Also I want to cuddle with you a little." Mina exhaled slowly. "Oh I guess I should tell you...I sort of had a crush on you too. Also I am not the only one." That floored Izuku as he stared down at her in shock. She giggled again. "Momo, Toru and even Kyoka all like you. Hell half of our girl chats revolve around talking about you." This seemed to really confuse Izuku. He could not believe that any of the Girls in class would even tolerate him, let alone like him. In Normal School, the Girls barely acknowledged his existence. But at the UA, not only was the Prettiest Girl seemed interested in dating him...but the others in Class were interested him as well.
"That is hard to fathom...I mean, well the Girls in my previous School all treated me like I was...well I was different. Me not having my Quirk yet." Izuku said and Mina giggled and gave him another gentle hug.
"Those girls were fucking idiots. Me and the others think you are the greatest. Perfect boyfriend material." Mina told him and Izuku started to breath harder. "What? That is why I want to date you Izzy...I want you as my Boyfriend." She declared and Izuku felt faint. "I do not know about you, but I am so tired right now I can barely keep my eyes open. I think we should hit the hay and get some sleep." She stated and Izuku nodded. Though he was still feeling a little light headed. Amazed that Mina Ashido liked him and wanted to be a couple. After a few minutes more, Mina released him and he grabbed a burning branch from the fire. Walking to the tent, he stopped long enough to start the other fire that would heat the inside of the Tent. While Mina slipped under the top blanket. Holding up one side for him to join her. He stared at her wide eyed. "What we need to share body heat." She told him and he reluctantly joined her. Unprepared for her to move partially on top of him, putting her left arm over him and placing her head on the left side of his chest. "Put your arms around me." She ordered and he slowly did. "Oh and to relay your concerns...yes this is cuddling." She stated and he could not help but smile. What Mina really wanted to do other then cuddle, was to kiss him. But she knew that she would have to be patient, otherwise she would completely scare him off. Then Izuku began to chuckle. "What?" She asked and he shook his head, still smiling and laughing.
"Oh I was just thinking...You know Kacchan and Mineta are a pair in this. I was just thinking that maybe they have to..." Izuku gestured to how Mina was pressed against him. She started to laugh.
"That is so funny to think about. That Bakugo has to cuddle with Mineta tonight. Oh my god..." Mina laughed harder thinking about the hostile Explosive Quirker hugging the little pervert to stay warm. The two continued to laugh at the thought. She smiled up at him and felt an overwhelming attraction to Izuku. "You are so mine now." She thought, closing her eyes and gave him a small left arm hug. Pressing herself more firmly against him.
To be continued
