My Hero Academia
It's in the Eye of the Beholder
Credits: It's in the Eye of the Beholder
Written by: ScriptMaster77
My Hero Academia created by Kōhei Horikoshi.
All rights go to Weekly Shōnen Jump/Shueisha
It's the late afternoon in Musutafu as Mina Ashido, still in her school uniform, walks down a quiet suburban street.
Humming to herself, she passes a small convenience store on the street corner. Outside the store is a small gas pump with a car parked next to it. The occupants of the vehicle, four adult men are talking amongst themselves.
Their conversation stops however, when they take notice of Mina's presence.
As Mina continues to walk down the street, the men begin to follow.
She soon becomes aware of them and picks up her pace. The men begin to match her increasing speed.
Mina then crosses the road. Again, they follow her.
One of the men then calls out to her.
Man 1: Hey! Hey kid! We wanna talk to you!
Mina turns back and sees the men are now wearing black hoods with skulls decorated on their faces.
Her eyes widen in panic. Mina begins to sprint away from the men.
She doesn't get far before an aura of yellow energy surrounds her body, holding her in place.
Mina: Hey!
Her confinement is the result of one of the man who called out to her, using his quirk as his hand glows with the same yellow aura. He flicks his wrist, spinning Mina around to face the group.
Man 1: Didn't you hear me kid? Do those horns make you deaf or what?
As fear takes over Mina's body, another man looks at her and recoils in disgust. The others meanwhile just stare at her.
Man 2: Ugh! Look at those eyes, feels like she's staring into my soul!
Man 3: Yeah, and the pink skin. She must be one of those demon types!
Man 4: All she's missing is the tail!
The first man however looks at her with morbid curiosity.
Man 1: Say boys, you see her uniform? Looks like she's a UA student!
The men laugh.
Man 3: You think she's learning to be a hero?
Man 4: Please, I bet she's only there so they could parade her around like some kind of pet.
Man 3: Well, she'd certainly scare villains away, that's for sure!
Man 2: She scares me man, she's hideous!
Petrified, Mina attempts to plead with her tormentors.
Mina: P-please, I don't want any trouble.
The first man pulls Mina in closer towards him. Any sense of emotion he might have, is hidden behind the mask.
Mina: Ahh!
Man 1: Well maybe you should have thought about that before you decided to come out here freak!
Meanwhile, back at the convenience store, Izuku Midoriya exits the shop, carrying a small shopping bag with him.
He begins to murmur to himself.
Izuku: I should let Mom know the store was out of milk. Maybe I can head over to the supermarket instead. I think there was a bus stop around-
The boy looks across the road and sees the situation taking place on the other side. Four masked men holding a girl captive.
Shocked, he begins to head over to intervene. That shock however turns to anger as he soon realises the girl being attacked is Mina.
Across the street, the men continue to laugh as Mina struggles against her confinement.
They suddenly hear someone call them out.
Izuku: Hey!
The men turn around to see Izuku now standing before them, clenching the shopping bag tightly in his hand. They look at him with confusion.
Man 3: The hell do you want kid?
Even Mina is surprised by his presence.
Mina: Midoriya?
Izuku glares at them.
Izuku: Leave her alone!
The man holding Mina scoffs.
Man 1: Oh, you wanna be the knight in shining armour? You know you're supposed to slay the monster not save it, right!?
Izuku begins to charge towards them.
Izuku: You're the only monsters here!
He then throws the shopping bag at the first man.
Surprised, the man catches it, only for Izuku to punch him across the face while he's distracted.
As the man falls to the ground, his quirk deactivates, freeing Mina from the energy field.
The other men soon spring into action. One of them activates his quirk, elongating his nails to the size of daggers. Before he can attack however, Mina punches him in the stomach, making him double over.
Another touches the gravel on the ground, absorbing it into his skin but Izuku breaks through the shielding and knocks him down.
The other then charges at Izuku and gets kicked back in the process. Disoriented, he is then tripped up by Mina.
The first man however, recovers from the ground and uses his quirk to trap Izuku and Mina in place.
The two teens struggle as he pulls the two together. The other men soon pick themselves up and surround them.
Man 1: You know, we would've gone easier on you earlier girly. But now, we're gonna mess you and your friend up real bad.
Suddenly, a flock of red feathers fly down from the sky and swarm around the men. Distracted, the first man releases Izuku and Mina as he fights off the attack.
As the feathers pin the men to the ground, Izuku and Mina look up to see Hawks soaring above them.
The Pro Hero touches down on the ground and shoots the two students a look of concern.
Hawks: Hey, you kids good?
Izuku nods but Mina is more reserved.
Izuku: H-Hawks! Thank you!
Mina: Yeah, thanks.
The hero then looks down at the men as they continue to struggle on the ground.
Hawks: Creature Rejection Clan huh? You guys are pretty rare these days.
He turns back to Mina and Izuku.
Hawks: You two may wanna get out of here now. I'll take care of these guys, don't worry about it.
Sometime later, Izuku and Mina are sitting outside a supermarket, each holding a cold soft drink in their hands.
Mina: I wanna thank you for helping out back there Midoriya, it meant a lot.
Izuku: Don't worry about it. Are you sure you're okay?
Mina shrugs.
Mina: I guess. Figures the day the bus I usually take is cancelled, I come across some guys from the CRC. And being called a freak and a monster made this day so much better.
Izuku frowns.
Izuku: I'm sorry you had to go through that Ashido. Really, I am.
Mina: Yeah. Still, it's not that it's something I'm not used to.
He looks at her curiously.
Izuku: What do you mean by that?
Mina: Let's just say it's not the first time people have said those things to me.
She sighs.
Mina: I wonder if they have a point sometimes. I know I can't help the way I look and I should be proud of who I am. That's why I try to stay so positive and outgoing; to show that there's more to me than just my appearance. Underneath, I'm the same as them. But sometimes it's hard. How can people get to know me when they can't stand to look at me?
Mina then turns to look at Izuku.
Mina: Look at me and tell me I'm not out of place.
At that moment Izuku looks at her. He sees her bright pink skin, as vibrant as she is. He sees the horns atop her head, curved and detailed as though they had sculpted them into shape. He sees eyes that match the golden glow of the setting sun behind her.
Izuku smiles.
Izuku: I think you're beautiful Mina.
The girl is taken aback by his statement.
Mina: You do?
Izuku: I know you are. You're special and unique in ways that can't be described. Your looks are what make you beautiful; they're a part of you. But they don't define you either. You're also kind and compassionate. You help inspire people and you're fun to be around. Everyone who knows you lives a brighter life because of it. Please, don't forget that.
She smiles back at him.
Mina: I won't.
End.
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