My Hero Academia: Forging A New Path

by Kuro no okami 23

Aaron Steel spent the majority of his childhood being trained by his monster of a villain father to become his successor but due to Aaron's sheer willpower, he and the remaining members of his family escaped and now live a peaceful life. Not wanting to see anyone suffer as he did Aaron decided to attend UA and train to become a hero, to be the light for all those stuck in the dark.

My Hero Academia: Forging a New Path

Chapter 1: The Man I want to Be

"Again!" a whip snapped against flesh.

"Again!" the whip snapped again.

"Again!" again the whip snapped.

The large hulking form of a man held a long whip in his hand as he loomed over a small young boy who was kneeling on the ground with open slash marks all over his body. The constant use from using his Quirk wore down his small body causing him to break out into cold sweats. The open wounds on his body stung immensely, not just from the sweat seeping from his body but also from the continuous onslaught of whippings the large man rained down on him. But he didn't dare cry out in pain or complain because that would only bring about more pain not just to the boy but to the ones the boy cared about.

"You are stronger than this! You should be able to create a much stronger attack than what you are showing right now! Do it again!" the large man yelled before he whipped the child again. The child gave a small grunt from the impact before he hardened his gaze.

"Yes, father." The small boy said as he rose to one knee. The large man held back and waited for the small boy to attack but he stood ready in case the whip was needed again. The small child gazed upon the open filed that was littered with targets that resembled people, the task his father set upon him was to cause a massive attack that could either cripple or kill the people he was targeting. This was not what he wanted to use his Quirk for, but he had no choice, he needed to do a good job to please his father and keep his loved ones from getting hurt.

The small boy took a deep breath in before he set his gaze upon the human-shaped targets set up away from him. He then formed a fist and willed every bit of strength that he could summon from his Quirk. He then released a mighty roar and slammed his fist down into the concrete below him. A fissure of earth appeared and snaked its way towards the target area, once it reached it the small boy willed the stone around the target area to shoot out towards each target and sent out long pillars of earth that wrapped around the necks of each dummy. The boy willed the pillars to go higher until the dummies were in the air, the boy then held his hand out and squeezed his hands. The dummies hung from the pillars by their necks as if they were real people who had their necks broken. The boy took several deep breathes before rising to his feet but kept his eyes down, ashamed of the actions he took and afraid of what his father might do.

The boy's father grinned sadistically as he kneeled down, "Excellent my boy. Your killer instincts are growing day by day, soon you will be able to use your Quirk to kill mercilessly and without fail. You will be my greatest weapon." He said as he wrapped an arm around the boy's shoulder.

"Of course, father." The boy said. He was still so young but there was one thing that he had that his father didn't, a heart. He was the product of a dangerous villain and pure hearted woman. He had all his father's strengths, but he had his mother's kind heart. He wasn't like his father; he didn't want to cause harm or pain to anyone but to keep the people he loved safe he would play along with the vision his father put on him but when he was ready; he would get their freedom. He would become their hero.

Aaron Steel's eyes shot open as he sat up in his bed. The young 16 year old breathed heavily and his skin was coated with sweat; the nightmare he just had was a memory from a past that he thought he had put behind him but apparently there were some things that he couldn't escape. He had the blood of a villain coursing through his veins, but he was by no means evil. For most of his childhood, Aaron was trained to be his father's weapon and successor; to carry on the legacy of evil that had been placed on him. For eight years of his life Aaron was beaten, tortured, and forced to fight against full grown villains so that he would become a ruthless killing machine just like his father. But he didn't, when Aaron turned eight, he turned the tables on his father; wounding him and crippling him so that he wouldn't hurt Aaron or his loved ones again. He did this by keeping a part of his Quirk a secret and used that to bring his father down and get him and the other villain members of his family arrested. The only member of his father's family he didn't give up to the cops was his uncle Seth, the only good man that was a part of his father's family.

Aaron, his two older sisters, and his mother were then placed in protective custody and moved to a small town in Louisiana where they would live from there on out. The life they had outside of his father's grip wasn't fancy or flashy at all, but it worked for them. They were free and lived happily, Aaron even became a big brother to two young children his mother adopted. Their life was good, and Aaron felt great knowing that the people in his life were safe and happy, his older sisters had already moved out of the house and lived in Japan, living their own lives. Aaron now lived in the tiny town of New Roads, Louisiana with his mother worked as a welder while Aaron and his younger siblings went to school.

"Aaron, are you okay?" Two small voices said from the hallway outside his room. Aaron looked up to see his younger brother and sister standing in the doorway looking at him with concerned looks on their faces. Aaron gave them a small smile, but he felt a little guilty, he must have been talking in his sleep which woke them up. Aaron got up from his bed and made his way over to the two small children. His younger brother Shaun was 7 years old and had dark brown skin with bright golden eyes, shaggy white hair that had black streaks in it, and a set of cat ears poking up from the top of his head. He also had small black streaks all over his body and his incisors were slightly longer than normal. These were all aspects of Shaun's Quirk, White Tiger Soul. A transformation/mutant Quirk that let him turn parts of his body into a white tiger.

Aaron's younger sister Chloe was an adorable little girl a year younger than Shaun with long flowing blue hair and pale skin that seemed to have a slight, light blue hue to it. On her neck was a set of closed gills and there were scale-like scales on her arms, legs, and back while flipper-like skin was in-between her fingers and her toes. There were also small dorsal fins on her forearms and back while her eyes are an electric blue color. These two were adopted by Aaron's mother when they 4 and 3 respectively from the same orphanage and while they were very close, they weren't at all blood related. That is until they became a part of Aaron's family. Their birth families gave them both up when their Quirks manifested, apparently neither of their families were particularly thrilled at the fact that their Quirks were so obvious. They felt like they could hurt the family reputation, so they were given up and spent a year and a half at an orphanage until they were adopted.

Their appearance was vastly different from Aaron's; he stood at 6'1 and weighed in at a solid 201 pounds of muscle. His olive colored skin was decorated with faded scars from his childhood beatings, and he also had an interesting tattoo on both of his biceps. The tattoo was what looked like a magic circle with a tiger on the top, a dolphin on one side, a large oak tree at the base, a sunburst on the other side, and a hammer in the center. Each symbol represented a member of his family. Silver-blue hair sat atop his head that was slightly messy but didn't take away from his obvious handsome looks. But the most stunning thing about Aaron that people would always see first were his eyes, they were a stunning icy, almost metallic blue color that also had a small hint of silver. As Aaron grew older, he was always told that he was an incredibly handsome young man but that would sometimes lead to people giving him more attention than he needed so he would usually keep his eyes covered and wear hoodies that would cover his hair. He was dressed in a simple pair of black shorts with his top bare.

Aaron crouched to meet his younger siblings at eye level and gave them a loving smile, "Hey guys, I'm sorry I didn't mean to wake you up." He said as he placed a gentle hand on top of their heads.

"We heard you talking in your sleep, and you sounded so sad." Chloe said.

"Did you have a nightmare?" Shaun asked.

Aaron nodded, "Yeah I did. A few bad memories from the past." He said. Chloe and Shaun knew all about Aaron's history and who his father was, but they didn't judge him or their mother at all. The Steel family gave them a home when no one else would and they loved them as if they shared blood.

Chloe and Shaun both came near Aaron and wrapped their small arms around his neck in a hug. Aaron smiled and hugged both of his siblings back, it wasn't easy to cope with what had happened to him in the past, but he was blessed to know that he had people who loved him. He loved his siblings and his mother dearly and would do anything to protect them. His protective nature was one of the reasons his siblings would often tell him that he would make a great hero which did appeal to him. After all the Hell that his father put him through as a child, Aaron often thought about becoming a hero to put people like him away. No one, especially children, should ever go through the kind of torture that he did.

But right now, Aaron needed to get his siblings back to bed. He picked his siblings up in his arms and walked back to the room that they shared. He walked into their room and placed them in their respective beds where they laid down.

"Aaron, can you sing that song to us?" Chloe asked. Aaron paused for a second. He wouldn't admit it to anyone, but he was a great singer. Whenever he cooked for his family or tried to help his siblings sleep, he would always sing something. It was a rather fun hobby that he enjoyed doing but he was too reserved to sing for anyone else other than the people he knew. But since he was the reason that his siblings were awake, the least he could do was sing them to sleep.

"Sure guys, I can do that." Aaron nodded as his siblings got underneath their blankets to get comfortable.

I'd heard there was a secret chord
That David played and it pleased the Lord
But you don't really care for music, do you?
Well it goes like this
The fourth, the fifth, the minor fall, the major lift
The baffled king composing Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

Well, your faith was strong but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew ya
She tied you to the kitchen chair
She broke your throne and she cut your hair
And from your lips, she drew the Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

Aaron continued to sing to his siblings as he saw their eyes get heavier and heavier as he sung.

Well baby I've been here before
I've seen this room and I've walked this floor
I used to live alone before I knew ya
And I've seen your flag on the marble arch
And love is not a victory march
It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah.

Well, maybe there's a God above
But all I've ever learned from love
Was how to shoot somebody who outdrew ya
And it's not a cry that you hear at night
It's not somebody who's seen the light
It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

Aaron finished his song, and the room was soon filled with the light snoring of his younger siblings as they drifted off to a deep sleep. Aaron smiled at his siblings he went over to Chloe and pulled the blankets in tighter around her and made sure her beloved stuffed bunny was in her arms which she pulled tight to her body. He gave her a kiss on the head before moving over to Shaun who had already gotten comfortable with his entire body sprawled out over his bed. Aaron gave off a small chuckle before he tucked Shaun's arms and legs back under the blankets and made sure he was comfortable enough and made sure that his favorite plush figure of the pro hero Snipe was in his arms. Aaron made sure his siblings were fast asleep before he quietly crept out of their room and closed the door.

"Being the good big brother Aaron?" a female voice said. Aaron looked at the source and leaning against the wall in the hallway was his mother, Deana. Deana was a lovely woman with an athletic, muscular figure with her long, azure colored hair fell to her shoulders that she kept loose when she slept. Her eyes were a gorgeous shade of silver that closely resembled the silver sheen of Aaron's, and her skin was slightly paler. She was dressed in a tight tank top with some blue silk pajama pants with her feet bare. Deana was a wonderful woman who was unlucky enough to be seduced by Aaron's father and gave birth to Aaron and his two older sisters. Despite living like a prisoner for most of her life while her children were born, her strong spirit never broke, and her kind heart never died. When Aaron's father wasn't around, she would treat her children with all the love and kindness that a mother could offer, always holding them when they were afraid and never let a day go by when she didn't tell them she loved them. Aaron's older sister Autumn and Dawn were deemed "failures" by his father, so he never paid them any attention but didn't want them being used against him, so he kept them prisoner just like his mother.

When Aaron was born, his father spent every day training him to become a ruthless killer by beating him to within an inch of his life and then had a woman with a healing Quirk repair the damage so it could happen all over again the next day. After each session with his father, his mother and sisters would be by his side making sure that he would be well taken care of as he recovered. This was one of the reasons why he never turned into his father, Aaron knew love and kindness from a young age and vowed that he would protect the people he loved and never fall to the side of villainy like his father.

Aaron smiled at his mother, "They were worried about me. Apparently, I was talking in my sleep, and they wanted to check on me. I brought them back here and sang them to sleep."

Deana kissed her son on the cheek before giving him a concerned look, "More nightmares?" she asked. Aaron just nodded. His mother could always tell when he had something on his mind and his nightmares were something that had been a recurring theme most of his life after they escaped his father.

Deana held her eldest son's face in her hands and looked in his eyes, "That part of our life is over now Aaron."

Aaron sighed, "I know Ma but there are some scars that never fade. The pain that man inflicted on us is one thing that will always stay with me. But I made you, Autumn, and Dawn a promise that I will never become like him. I will be a strong man that can protect you and all the others that I love." He said with a fire in her eyes.

Deana smiled once more before she reached up onto her toes and kissed his forehead, "My handsome knight," she said calling him by the childhood nickname she gave him when they escaped, "Try and get some sleep before school okay?" she asked. Aaron nodded before his mother released him and went back to her bedroom. Aaron was about to go back to his as well, but his adrenaline was pumping through his body like electricity that he knew he wasn't going to be able to sleep. He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket, not even realizing he didn't take out before he went to bed and checked the time. It was a little after 5:30 and he normally got up around 6:30 to make breakfast so he decided to blow off some steam and headed down to his workout room located in the family basement.

The workout room was something of a source of pride for Aaron, everything that he had in it was all paid for by Aaron by doing a few odd jobs around his town. Most people were a little surprised by how strong and dedicated Aaron was when it came to work but everyone appreciated the work that he did. By getting a few extra bucks by working around the town allowed Aaron to set up his workout room with everything that he needed, punching bags, free weights, a few pommel horses, wooden practice dummies, and a few different bulls eye targets that he used for long rage attacks with his Quirk. Since the basement was mainly concrete and natural rock, Aaron was able to shape and form it to however he needed it plus he was able to make it so whatever attack he practiced would not be heard by his family. Aaron made his way over to the first punching bag that he saw and did a few stretches before he landed a few strong combos on the bag. He bounced back and forth on the balls of his feet, striking the bag with so much force that the bag swung on the chain giving Aaron a chance to dodge the bag a few times like he was evading an attack.

Aaron worked the punching bag for a few minutes before he moved to the wooden dummy to work on his blocks and forms then over to the pommel horse that he used as bases for flips. One of Aaron's favorite past times was free running, it gave him time to think and was a great way to let off steam, so he tended to practice when he was in the basement. Once Aaron was finished with his physical workouts, he headed over to the target area where the bull eyes were set up. He cracked his neck and stretched out his muscles, he then stomped on the ground and willed a large stone boulder to erupt from the ground. Aaron then punched forward sending the boulder towards the target. The boulder hit the target dead on, Aaron then repeated the process several more times. Sending boulders flying into the targets with different punches, kicks, and chops; after Aaron launched two more boulders that broke apart upon contact with the targets, he then motioned with his hands for all the broken pebbles of the boulders to compress together. He moved his hands around in a circular motion while willing the compressed stones to circle his body before he pushed his fist forward which launched the stones forward until the crashed into one of the larger targets.

Aaron willed for the stones around him to shoot up once more before he condensed them into a rock greave around his right leg. He then slammed his hands down and the stone underneath him launched upward in a column that shot Aaron forward to towards the targets. Aaron spun in the air and once he was near his target he struck out and slammed his stone covered leg into the target. The added strength of the stone combined with Aaron's own natural power made the stone wall that the target was attached to crack from the attack. Aaron smiled before dropped his leg and released the stone covering it, letting sink back down into the concrete that it came from. Aaron then made a second stone column but on a smaller scale that launched him backwards, he repeated this process several more times until he was a fair distance away from his targets before he got near some thin metal sheets. Aaron held his hand out and a piece of one of the metal sheets broke off and flew into Aaron's waiting hand.

He used his Quirk and willed the piece of metal to reshape and take the form a throwing knife. Aaron took hold of his new knife and threw it at the target, hitting it dead on. Aaron smirked at the knife strike and held his hand out so the knife would fly back towards his hand. Aaron spun in place and called forth more pieces of metal to come near him, he reshaped the metal into shuriken throwing stars and threw them at the targets. Each star hitting the center of the target's dead on, Aaron even did a few different flips while he threw his stars. Happy with the job he did with his shuriken, Aaron pulled his hands back and called the metal ninja stars back to him. Once they were back into his hands, Aaron reshaped them until he had a metal baton in each of his hands. Aaron spun the batons in his hands and performed a special kata that he created when the metal part of his Quirk manifested. He would spin, flip, and strike at different angles with both of his batons. Every so often Aaron would combine them into a long bo staff, letting him take his kata into a different direction by giving him an extra reach.

Aaron spun the bo staff around his back, over his head, and even formed a spear head at the end of the staff giving his weapon a more deadly edge. After another spin, Aaron flipped the spear in his hand and hurled it towards a faraway target. The spear struck the target with deadly precision which made him a bit sad. The spear throw was one of the first techniques that his father taught him to complete a perfect kill. Aaron hated his father with a burning passion, but he did teach the young man some very useful combat skills that stayed with him even after his freedom. The fighting skills were probably the only thing that he thanked his father for. After all the terrible things that his father put him through, Aaron was happy that his father was behind bars for good.

Aaron walked over to the target and pulled out the spear which no longer had the spear head but instead a blunt, square piece of metal. Aaron knew that the force he threw his staff at wouldn't kill a person, but it would hurt immensely and knock the wind out of whatever person he would throw it at.

Aaron smirked when he saw the slight indentation the staff left in the target, "You may have given me part of my Quirk, but I am nothing like you." He said as he went back to doing his kata once more.

Aaron Steel

Quirk: Geo Master

Aaron can manipulate stone and metal in any way he can think of from reshaping it, to forming it into weapons, and creating various shapes from either stone or metal. The applications are endless.

MHA

After about an hour of training, Aaron's body now glistened with sweat as all the adrenaline and restlessness that he felt earlier faded away. The workout was a good way for him to feel better and to help him forget about the bad memories from his sleep. He used his Quirk to re-form the basement to how it was before he started training and put everything back in order. He then headed back upstairs and jumped in the shower. After washing all the morning sweat off his body he stepped out, styled his hair into upward spikes, and headed back to his room to get dressed. Aaron threw on a pair of grey cargo pants that were slightly baggy on him with a short sleeve black shirt and a dark blue long sleeve shirt over it all with white sneakers. He went over to his dresser where there were three large pieces of metal resting on the top.

Aaron moved his hands over the metal pieces and morphed it into a liquid-like state that ran over his arms and up his body. Two pieces rested on his wrists that Aaron shifted into metal bracelets that held the same symbol that he had on his biceps while the third piece ran up his body and morphed into a silver chain necklace. Aaron always carried some metal pieces on him in cases of emergency. After grabbing his backpack and a pair of sunglasses, Aaron headed downstairs and set his backpack down by the door so he could grab it as he left. He then headed into the kitchen to start cooking breakfast for his family. He started off by turning on the coffee maker so his mother could have some when she woke up. He then grabbed some ground beef and flavored it with some salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder.

He then whipped up a quick batter made from flour, milk, sugar, eggs, baking powder, and a pinch of salt. Aaron turned on his personal waffle maker and the stove top and waited for them both to get hot. Once they were, Aaron started turning out some waffles and some sausage patties. As they were cooking, Aaron whipped up a simple fruit salad of grapes, watermelon, and cantaloupe and used some of the leftover watermelon to make a nice watermelon lemonade. Aaron hummed a simple tune with a smile on his face as he cooked breakfast, simple moments like this were some of his favorites and reminded him how glad he was not to be under his father's glare anymore.

The smells of the delicious food being cooked wafted throughout the house and up the stairs to the rooms of his mother and siblings. The mouthwatering smells stirred the small children from their sleep. As they woke and stretched the excess sleep from their bodies, both Shaun and Chloe's eyes widened, and their faces grew into large smiles.

"Breakfast by Aaron!" they both shouted in joy before bolting out of their beds and running towards the kitchen. The minute they got their they saw their older brother making the delicious smelling breakfast. The two small children immediately ran into the kitchen and stood by their brother's side, waiting for their own plates of food.

Aaron chuckled, "Well good morning to you too guys. Go and wash your hands first, your breakfasts will be ready in just a minute." He told his siblings. Chloe and Shaun ran out of the kitchen and towards the bathroom that was downstairs so they could wash their hands. Aaron just laughed at his younger siblings' antics as he started to build plates for them and their mother. Aaron loaded up three plates with sausage, waffles, and fruit salad for both him and his siblings. He did the same for his mother but he kept a small cloche over it so he could keep it warm since his mother tended to get up a bit later than everyone else did. Shaun and Chloe soon came back into the kitchen just as Aaron was placing their plates on the kitchen table. Chloe and Shaun quickly climbed onto the empty seats, said a small prayer thanking the Lord above for the food and their family, before they immediately dug into the food Aaron had made them.

"Yummy!" they both said as they continued to eat. Aaron smiled as his siblings enjoyed their meal before he sat down at an empty chair and joined them at the table. He said a small prayer as well before he started eating his own food, he had to admit it was good. A few moments after the Steel siblings began eating, the disheveled form of Deana Steel entered the kitchen with her hair a mess, her pajamas wrinkled, and an annoyed look on her face. Aaron was already up and at the coffee machine that had a hot pot of coffee going. He poured his mother a cup and added just the right amount of cinnamon and pumpkin spice creamer, just the way she like it. He handed the cup to his mother who took it and started to drink it down.

Once the cup was halfway gone, she placed the cup on the counter and sighed in bliss, "Perfect as always Aaron." She said as she sat down at the table where her plate of food was.

Aaron chuckled, "Of course it is. I have to make sure you have the perfect cup every morning or else you'll spend the entire day cursing and throwing things." He said filling up his mother's cup once more.

Deana glared at her oldest boy, "That was one time boy. One time!" she playfully yelled at Aaron as she remembered the one time when she didn't have coffee in the morning and was not in a good mood the entire day. Aaron gave his mother a full cup and sat back down at his seat as he continued eating. The Steel family ate their breakfast in peace before a light knock came at the front door.

"I'll get it!" Shaun said as he got up from his seat to open the door. A few seconds later, Shaun came back into the kitchen with two mor people trailing behind him. The newcomers were both young girls around Aaron's age but were both very beautiful. The first girl was what could be described as a dark skinned beauty. Her skin was the color of caramel with a figure that had curves in all the right places and a generous bust size. Her hair was a shining onyx color while her eyes were a lovely hazel color that seemed to shine gold when the light hit it right. She was dressed in a pair of knee length khaki shorts with a long-sleeved purple shirt that was over a dark red tank top that showed off her naval and heeled, ankle-length black boots. This was Maria Olvera.

The other girl had a more ethereal look to her, but she was no less beautiful than Maria. Her skin was a pale white with a silver sheen to it that sparkled when the light hit it the right way. She had long silver hair that she kept int a braid that hung over her right shoulder. Her eyes were a bright white-blue color that almost seemed to fade into the whites of her pupils. She too had a very curvy figure with a rather large bust that would draw the eye of any man that passed her. She was dressed in a sky blue shirt with white stockings with black heeled shoes. A long white cardigan was over her shoulders while a long-sleeved light blue shirt was underneath it. A silver snowflake necklace was around her neck. This was Lydia Snow. These two were Aaron's best and possibly, only friends that he had in New Roads.

"Lydia, Maria, good morning." Aaron said to his friends.

"Good morning." They both said. Lydia and Maria usually came to Aaron's house in the morning so that all three could walk to school together and drop off the kids at their school as well. It was a nice thing for all of them to do before they all had to get their school days started.

"Good morning girls. Thanks for always coming so early in the morning, the kids really appreciate it." Deana said.

"It's no problem at all Ms. Silver. It's actually a nice change of pace than just walking to school." Maria said.

Lydia nodded, "Plus, walking with Aaron is a great way to start the day." She said with a small giggle. Aaron wasn't blind, he knew that his friends had crushes on him, but he didn't really know how to respond. He wasn't an expert on romance or love, but he did care about the girls dearly and was happy to have them in his life.

Deana giggled, "It's so nice to know that my future daughters-in-laws are so kind to my youngest kids. That just proves that you will be great mothers in the future." She said with a teasing tone.

Aaron groaned, "Mom don't start," he said not noticing the deep blushes that the girls had on their faces, "Shaun, Chloe, go on and get ready for school guys." He told his younger siblings. The two younger Steel's wiped their mouth before heading back up to their rooms to get dressed. Aaron took their plates and washed them off in the sink while his mother continued to eat.

Aaron then turned to Maria and Lydia, "You guys hungry? I can whip you up something really quick if you want?" he asked.

Maria shook her head, "I'm good, mama made us a whole feast for breakfast so I'm pretty full."

Lydia nodded, "Same for me, grandma made some of her famous crepes for breakfast I'm good too."

Aaron nodded and finished up the dishes as his siblings were coming back into the kitchen dressed for school. Shaun dressed in a pair of black jeans, white sneakers, a black collared shirt, and a white vest. Chloe dressed in an adorable aqua blue dress with a white sash around her waist and a few ruffles around the collar with white stockings on her legs and white sandals. They both had their backpacks with and looked ready to go.

"You guys all ready?" Aaron asked his siblings receiving nods from the young children. Aaron, the girls, and his younger siblings all grabbed their respected bags, bid farewell to Deana, and headed out the door. Chloe and Shaun held onto Aaron's hands as they walked down the streets of New Roads towards the kid's school, greeting the various people who lived in the same neighborhood as them. Living in New Roads had been an interesting change for Aaron and his family, they had to adjust quickly to how people acted in their everyday lives as they did their best to forget the Hell they went through when under his father's grip. But after a few days in their new home city things got good for them, no one really knew who they were since they weren't allowed to talk about what had happened in their past nor did they want to. So, they stuck with the story that Protective Custody gave them. They were a single mother and her children who were trying to rebuild their lives after a very difficult divorce. It wasn't totally a lie just a bit of a stretch. But ever since they moved to the tiny Louisiana town their lives had gotten better than they could have ever imagined.

Aaron's older sisters Autumn and Dawn moved out of the house a few years ago and moved to Japan to start their own lives. Dawn was now a sidekick for a popular Pro Hero in the city of Mustafu while Autumn had gotten her master's degree in Education and was now the current Headmistress of one of the most exclusive all-girl's schools in Japan. He was proud of his sisters for doing something great with their lives and even though they didn't live in the same country they still communicated regularly so they were always in contact.

The group soon arrived at New Roads Elementary School where they would drop off Shaun and Chloe.

Aaron knelt to his sibling's height as they turned to him, "Okay guys, I'll be here to pick you up after school, so you guys be good, study hard, and pay attention." He said.

"Yes Aaron!" they both said with smiles on their faces.

Aaron nodded, "Good, now come here and give me hugs." He said as his siblings wrapped their tiny arms around Aaron's neck. He gave Chole a kiss on the cheek and Shaun a kiss on the head before letting them go so they could head into the school where they already met up with their small group of friends. Standing up and watching as his siblings played with their friends, Aaron failed to notice the looks that he was getting from the surrounding moms and from Maria and Lydia.

"You are such a good father Aaron." Lydia said.

Aaron chuckled, "I'm not a father yet Lydia but I am happy to see that my siblings are doing well." He said with a small smile that made some of the older women swoon. Aaron raised an eyebrow at the actions of the women around him but shrugged in indifference. This was something that he had gotten used to so by now he didn't really care. Aaron and his friends continued to walk towards their own school talking amongst themselves before they reached New Roads Middle School. The building itself was large and held multiple classrooms, a large cafeteria, a football field, a music room, a gymnasium, and a weight room. The school's mascot, a roadrunner, was displayed proudly on pretty much any surface that you could find to show school pride as much as they could.

As the trio walked in, the noticed a large crowd with a single person standing in the middle. Then person that the crowd was surrounding was a tall, black skinned man with black dreadlocks falling from his head with the tips being a dark green. The man was dressed in a pair of black pants with solid black boots and a long-sleeved, skin-tight dark green shirt that displayed his muscular chest and abs with streaks of brown studded around the shirt with the image of a mountain in the center of his chest. His hands and forearms were wrapped in brown hand wrappings and were covered by a pair of dark green gauntlets. Draped over his shoulders was a long green, brown, and gold cloak with a hood that was currently down to reveal a youthful looking face with a beard and goatee and a black domino mask covering his eyes. Finishing off the man's look was a golden metal bo staff that he held in his right hand.

Just the mere presence of the man told the trio of friends that this man was a very popular Pro Hero.

"That's Geomancer." Maria gasped out in shock at the sight of the Pro Hero before them.

"What is he doing here?" Lydia asked equally surprised.

Aaron was just as shocked as his friends but for a whole different reason all together. He walked forward into the crowd and gently moved a few of the other students out of the way so he could get closer to the older Pro Hero.

Once he was next to Geomancer, Aaron cleared his throat to get the man's attention. Geomancer turned towards Aaron and a large smile broke out onto his face once he saw the young man.

Aaron smirked, "Geomancer, it's been a long time."

"Aaron Steel, well look at you all grown up." Geomancer laughed as the two clasped hands and hugged each other. This act of friendship caught the entire crowd by surprise, they had no idea what was happening with Aaron and the Pro Hero so the whole exchange made them all very curious.

"What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in NOLA?" Aaron asked the older man.

Geomancer nodded his head, "Normally yes but there was a situation in Grand Isle earlier this morning and they called me in to help. After that I decided to hang around for a bit where your principal asked me if I could stop by and make a small appearance and maybe give a little speech. Figured it was a good way to check in on a small town like this." He said.

"Well, it's good to see you after all this time." Aaron said.

"It certainly has been a long time and I am very pleased to see that you have stuck to your training given the way your body structure is," he said as he placed a strong hand on Aaron's shoulder, "And remember what I said all those years ago, if the day ever comes when you want to train your skills to protect the people, my door is always open." He said getting a nod from Aaron as the two separated.

As Aaron walked towards his first class, Lydia and Maria quickly caught up with him with questions on their mind.

"Um Aaron, what was that and how do you know Geomancer?" Maria asked.

"It looked like you guys were old friends that were reuniting after a long time apart." Lydia added.

Aaron sighed, "Well you guys know about how me and my family arrived in New Roads," he said getting nods from the two girls who knew the truth about Aaron's situation, "Well, when I turned my father, aunt, and grandparents over to the authorities; Geomancer and a few of his sidekicks were the ones that got me and my family into protective custody. We had to stay at his agency for about a month before we moved here, and we sort of bonded. He taught me ways to use my Quirk to help people instead of to destroy and taught me the ways on how to be a good man, not one like my father. I trained with him for a bit while we stayed with him, and he sort of became like a big brother to me." He said smiling as he recalled the times he spent with the older hero.

"Wow, that's really amazing Cal." Maria said.

Aaron nodded, "Yeah, he even said that I had the ability to be a hero and offered me the chance to study under him at his agency."

"Aaron that's incredible," Lydia said with a large smile, "To think that such a popular Pro Hero says that you could be a hero is a great honor!"

Aaron chuckled, "Yeah, me as a hero. Can you imagine that?" he said aloud. Aaron knew that he wanted to help people, he had seen firsthand what the damage that villains could do and the fear they could instill into innocent people. He wanted to be the kind of person that could give people the safety that they needed. Someone who could be the light to those who felt like they were surrounded by darkness. Maybe being a hero was the best way for him to be that kind of person. But for right now, he needed to focus on getting through the school day.

MHA

Th first few classes went by as they did every day, not to terrible but not exactly the most fun thing to do in school. As the day passed, Aaron and the girls met up in the school's cafeteria for lunch. The day was going by well until they all had a rude awakening. Walking into the cafeteria was a guy that was the same age as Aaron, but he held his head high with an air of arrogance as he walked into the cafeteria and scanned over the entire crowd. The boy was tall but not as tall as Aaron with windswept blond hair, bright blue eyes, and a face that made him look like every girl wanted him. He was on the skinny side but had the solid build of a gymnast. He was dressed in a blue polo shirt and a white blazer over it with khaki pants and very shiny shoes. This was Randall Winslow, the son of one of the most prominent Politicians in New Orleans but he came to New Roads Middle School of one reason only. He was flanked by two very large and intimidating bodyguards as he walked through the cafeteria until his eyes landed on Aaron's table and a hungry look appeared in his eyes.

Randall walked over to Aaron's table and sat right next to Lydia and gave her the most charming smile that he could, "Well hello Lydia. It is so good to see you again. I must say, you get more lovely every single day." He said as he reached for her hand to kiss it. Lydia quickly moved her hand away in disgust but kept her head calm.

"Randall, such a shock to see you here. Again. What brings you by?" she asked politely but the obvious distaste for the boy next to her made the entire situation very awkward for everyone.

"Well what other reason do I need other than to see your beautiful face," Randall said as he leaned closer, "Why don't you let me take you out of here for a proper lunch?"

Lydia shook her head, "I must decline Randall, again. I am enjoying the lunch I am having with my friends now."

Randall then looked over at both Aaron and Maria who had been ignored by the rich boy since he entered the room and gave them a look of disgust, "Friends? Honestly, Lydia, a woman of your high standings shouldn't be lowering yourself to the standards of these, plebians." He said with a sneer.

Maria turned livid, "Hey listen cabron, you better watch your mouth while you are here! You have been harassing Lydia from the minute we started school and every time she says no to you keep coming back like a dog with a bone. Take a hint for once man." She said with the entire cafeteria now looking in their direction. This was something that the trio had come to experience for a long time, and it didn't get any less annoying. Lydia came from a very wealthy family who had their hands in one of the biggest import-export businesses in the state. This often made her the target of affection by many of the upper crust boys in Louisiana. Ironically enough, whenever one of them tried to confess their feelings or get a date from her she they would get turned down.

Her feelings for Aaron were evident and a lot of the boys that she rejected had accepted that but not Randall. He had been hounding Lydia for months and wouldn't leave her alone. He would even come to the school and try and get a date from her at any chance he could. The guy thought that just because he was rich, he could get anything he wanted and what he wanted was Lydia.

Randall gave Maria a cold look, "Keep quiet, gutter trash." He said before he turned his attention back to Lydia.

Maria was now on her feet with her fists clenched, she would have decked the fool in the face, but Aaron put a hand on her arm.

"Maria, calm down," he said giving his friend a neutral look making her sit back down before he looked back at Randall, "And you, you've been told before. Lydia isn't interested in you, at all. So, either respect her decision and leave or I'll make you leave." He said giving the rich boy a death glare. No one in the room said a thing, they all knew that when it came to Lydia and Maria Aaron could get very vicious and protective. That was why every guy in the school treated the two girls with nothing but respect or they would feel Aaron's wrath.

Randall gave Aaron a smug look before he leaned forward in his chair, "Listen to me you mongrel. You do not talk to me at all, I don't even want to know that you are even near me. Lydia is mine, I don't care if she doesn't know it yet. I will not allow her to defile herself with a low bred filth like you. I always get what I want." He said.

Aaron gave Randall a smirk, "And I said you need to respect her."

Randal gave off a loud laugh, "Who cares about that? If she's mine, I don't care if she feels respected or not." He said shocking everyone. They all knew how this was going to end and while many of them did want to see what was going to happen, they didn't want to get caught on the wrong side of Aaron's anger.

Aaron smirked once more before he gave Randall a swift kick to the chest and knocked him onto one of the tables behind him. His bodyguards took notice of this and were immediately at Randall's side helping him back to his feet.

"I told you to respect her. This is what you get for insulting the people I care about." Aaron said coldly as Maria and Lydia both blushed at the boy's statement.

Randall got back to his feet but the look on his face was pure anger, "You good for nothing piece of shit," he yelled turning towards his guards, "Take him out!" he yelled. The guards took a fighting stance and were about to rush Aaron, but they were stopped when a large wall of stone erupted from the ground in front of them and cut off their path. All eyes soon turned to the source of the wall and found Geomancer sitting on one of the cafeteria tables with his bo staff slammed against the floor.

"I think that's enough." Geomancer said as he got back to his feet.

Randall immediately ran to the Pro Hero, "Geomancer, thank the lord! You will not believe what that monster did," he yelled pointing at Aaron, "That monster just attacked me out of nowhere because I simply wanted to ask a girl for a date." He said trying to sound convincing.

Geomancer looked at the boy and shook his head, "You can drop the act already son, I saw the whole thing," he said surprising Randall, "You really need to learn how to take no for an answer. If the girl says no, then take it like a man and back off." His words made Randall's face turn red from either embarrassment or from the fact that he got called out by one of the state's most popular heroes.

Randall got flustered before he immediately ran out of the room, "My dad is going to hear about this!" he yelled once more before he ran out. Everyone in the cafeteria laughed at the scene that Randall just put on while Aaron looked towards Geomancer, his old friend and big brother figure gave him a wink and a smile before he headed over and started talking with some of the other teachers.

Aaron immediately turned his attention to Lydia, "Hey Lydia, you, okay?" he asked concerned.

Lydia nodded and gave her friend a smile, "Yeah, I'm okay. Hopefully, this will put Randall off my case for a while."

Maria scoffed, "Hijo de puta, that's guy's attitude really makes me angry." She said as she crossed her arms in annoyance. Lydia went over to try and calm her down but that had little effect. Maria was always someone who had a temper, but she knew how to keep it in check most times.

Aaron went over to both girls and wrapped his arms around their shoulders, getting them to blush once more, "At least everything is taken care now." He said as the girls burrowed themselves into Aaron's chest as they both felt like he was the safest thing in the world to them. Aaron looked over at the large wall of stone that was in front of him and didn't want the large structure to block any of the traffic that was going to be going through the cafeteria, so he tapped the ground and willed the stone to return to normal. After that was done, he smiled as he continued to hold onto his two friends. Ignoring the odd and jealous looks that he was getting from the others in the cafeteria.

MHA

The rest of the day went by rather boring as the incident that happened in the cafeteria was the only interesting thing that happened the entire day. As the day ended, Aaron said his goodbye to Geomancer and headed towards his younger sibling's school. Aaron and the girls talked amongst themselves as they walked and reached the kid's school in no time flat. As the trio reached the entrance of the school, they saw that Shawn and Chloe were already waiting for them along with their teacher. A lovely woman in her early thirties with long brown hair that was tied into a ponytail with warm brown eyes, a nice figure, and dressed in a pair black pants with a white cardigan and a blue shirt underneath. Ms. Kelsey had been the kid's teacher for pretty much the entirety of their school life, and she was a very kind woman.

Aaron became a little worried when he saw Ms. Kelsey talking to Shawn like he was in trouble, "Ms. Kelsey, is everything okay?" Aaron asked as he walked up to his sibling's teacher.

Ms. Kelsey looked back at Aaron with a kind smile, "Hello Aaron, girls. Now, I don't want you to freak out, but Shawn got into a bit of a scrape today." She said causing Shawn to look away in embarrassment.

Aaron was immediately at Shawn's side to look him over, "Shawn what happened? Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?" he asked frantically.

Shawn shook his head, "No, I'm okay." He said quietly but Aaron could tell that he was ashamed because he didn't look his older brother in the eye.

Aaron sighed as Chloe came over and hugged him, "What exactly happened?" he asked.

Chloe looked at Aaron with a sad look, "Please don't be mad at Shawn Aaron. It was my fault what happened." She said.

Aaron stroked his sister's hair to keep her calm, "Easy Chloe, I'm not mad but I need to know what happened."

Shawn nodded and raised his head to look at his brother, "The class was playing outside for recess and me and Chloe were with some of our friends. This boy and a few others came up to us and knocked Chloe down. I went to help her and yelled why did he do that. He said he didn't want some freak siblings hanging around him. Me and Chloe have been used to that for a long time so we didn't really care what he said. But then he yelled at me that a stupid cat shouldn't even be alive or have a dumb fish for a sister or a monster for a brother and I just…" he said as tears began to form in his eyes.

Aaron sighed as he placed a hand on his younger brother's head, "You lost your temper." He said as Shawn nodded his head.

"I pushed him down and we got into a fight." Shawn said.

Ms. Kelsey knelt to the kid's height, "I was able to break it up before anything bad happened and the other boy got a very stern talking to by his parents when they came to pick him up." She said.

"Thank you, Ms. Kelsey," Aaron thanked the teacher before he turned back to his younger brother, "Shawn, I understand why you did what you did. When a person insults your family, your emotions get very high, and you lash out." He said as Shawn nodded.

"I'm not mad about what you did, in fact I am very proud that you defended me and Chloe. But I am a little disappointed. I have always told you that temper can get you into trouble and today you just proved my point. You must learn to keep your cool in those kinds of situations, I know how you feel but you have to remember to keep calm and only use violence as an absolute last resort. Do you understand me?" Aaron spoke to his brother in a stern yet kind voice.

"Yes Aaron." He said quietly. Aaron smiled at his brother and wiped the tears from his face.

"That's a good boy. And always remember, we may not be related by blood, but we are family. You are my siblings, and I am your brother, there is no power in the world that can change that fact. I love both of you, now and forever." He said as Chloe hugged him tighter and Shawn jumped into his arms into a hug. As adopted siblings, Aaron and the kids had gone through a lot of bullying and hazing from other people about how they weren't really siblings or family, but Aaron had always been there to remind his siblings that blood didn't always make family. It was the bonds that they shared and the love they had for each other that made them family.

Maria, Lydia, and Ms. Kelsey were brought to tears at the scene before them, they always knew how sweet Aaron could get when it came to his siblings but the scene that they had just seen just proved that point. Ms. Kelsey excused herself to go back into the school and finish a few things up while Aaron and his siblings got themselves together.

The Steel siblings separated and smiled at each other, "Okay guys, we need to get moving. You do remember what day it is right?" Aaron said. Both Chloe and Shawn's smiles grew even more as they nodded. Aaron stood up and his two siblings took his hands while the girls wiped their eyes from the tears that were forming in their eyes. Aaron gave them both a nod before they all continued their way towards their next destination. Aaron, the girls, and the kids walked down the streets of their hometown until they reached a large, older-looking building with a slightly gothic looking nature but still maintained a very homely looking feel. This was the Star Saint Orphanage, a place that was owned by the local church. This was also the place where Shawn and Chloe spent most of their childhood before they were adopted into the Steel family.

The family would come here every Friday so that they could check on the kids that were still living there and to give them some support whenever they could. The group approached the front gate and pushed it open so they could make their forward. Out on the front lawn were several kids ranging from 5 years old to the oldest being around 9. Most of the kids had mutant Quirks that were obvious in their appearance while others had Quirks that didn't appear obvious, but they were still given up because their parents didn't want them so with Aaron and his friends and family coming here every now and then brought smiles to their faces.

One of the kids looked over and noticed the group coming towards them, "Hey it's Aaron!" he shouted getting everyone's attention.

"It is Aaron!"

"And Shawn and Chloe are with him!"

"And the pretty ladies are too!"

Soon enough all the kids in the field were running towards the group and crowded around them, shouting at them, and pulling their arms to get them to come and play with them. The youngest of the kids climbed up onto Aaron's shoulders to try and hang off him.

"Well, look who it is." A voice said. Aaron and the group looked at the source of the voice to see two people coming towards them. The first was an older man with visible wrinkles on his face but a look of youth and joy in his eyes. He was dressed in black priest robes with golden crosses on his chest and black shoes with a beaded rosary around his neck. The man had grey hair that he kept hanging around his shoulders with a matching mustache and bright blue eyes. This was Father George Macintyre, the owner of the orphanage and one of the main priests for the church. The other person was a younger woman in her twenties with long brown hair that was pulled back into a ponytail, slightly tanned skin, forest green eyes, and a curvy figure with a generous bust. She was wearing a long-sleeved white shirt with a yellow shirt underneath and black pants with brown sandals. She also wore a red apron over it all.

This was Carol Rhodes, the head volunteer who spent most of her time looking after the kids at the orphanage.

"Father George, Carol, always a pleasure to see you both." Aaron said as his siblings went over and hugged Carol.

"Likewise, Aaron." The father said.

"It's actually great that you are here Aaron, I seem to be having some trouble with getting dinner ready. Any chance you could give me a hand?" Carol asked.

Aaron raised an eyebrow, "Did you screw up on purpose because you knew I was coming?" he asked.

"No." Carol said innocently.

Aaron shook his head, "No worries, sure I can help. I'm pretty sure that the kids would enjoy food from someone who actually know how to cook."

"I resent that young man." Carol said as she put her hands on her hips.

"You're like 5 years older than me, don't go doing the whole young man thing."

"I'm 24 in case you forgot." Carol said as she grabbed Aaron's arm and pulled him towards the main building after Aaron put the kids that were on him back on the ground.

"You guys have fun; I'll be right back." Aaron said to the kids as he went inside with Carol.

MHA

Aaron was putting the finishing touches on some chicken and dumplings while Carol put some homemade cornbread into the oven.

"I have to say I really appreciate the help, Aaron." Carol said.

Aaron smiled as he covered the pot his chicken and dumplings were in, "It's no problem at all Carol, I may not be able to do much for the kids so the least I can do is help make some good food." He said.

"You have done more than enough for the kids Aaron, I'm pretty sure that if it wasn't for you this place might have been closed down a long time ago." Carol said coming up next to Aaron.

"You give me too much credit Carol. All I've done is pass along a little bit here and there to keep things afloat. I just wish that I could do more."

Carol chuckled, "Why not become a hero? You already are a hero to most of the kids here anyway."

Aaron shook his head, "I don't know about that but being a hero is something I've thought about for a while now," he said as he looked through a window to look at the kids playing with Lydia and Maria on some of the playground equipment that the orphanage had, "But I don't know if I'd be able to be a good hero."

"The fact that you worry about that means that you can be a great hero. But one of the things you need to worry about is finding out what kind of hero you want to be." Carol said.

Aaron thought for a moment before chuckling, "Since when did you get so wise?"

"Years of experience." Carol said flicking her ponytail.

MHA

After finishing up cooking, Aaron was now chilling with some of the kids who were watching a video of All Might on Aaron's phone.

"What hero is that Aaron?" one of the kids asked.

Aaron looked over at the video, "Oh that's All Might. He's the number one hero in Japan and is known as the Symbol of Peace."

"Symbol of Peace?" One child questioned.

Aaron nodded, "That means that he is able to make people feel safe as soon as they hear him coming. He's the hero to so many people."

"Then that makes you our All Might!" one child said.

Aaron blinked, "Me? Like All Might? What makes you say that?"

"Well, you make us feel safe and you help us when we need it!"

"And you protect us when we feel scared."

"To us, you are our hero!" a lot of the children agreed with that statement. Aaron's heart began to feel warm at the compliments that he was getting from the kids. It made him very happy knowing that the kids that he helped could feel safe when he was around. Maybe this was the kind of hero he wanted to be, one that could show kids and other individuals that there was light at the end of the tunnel.

Aaron chuckled, "Thanks guys, maybe one day I can become a hero."

"That would be awesome!"

"Yeah, you'd be an amazing hero!"

Aaron chuckled at this before he noticed that the sun was going down, "Man, I didn't think it would get this late. Looks like we need to start heading home." He said standing up. He got a few moans of disappointment from a few of the children, but they were quickly silenced by the priest who came out of the main building.

"It does seem like the day is ending, will we see you tomorrow for the street fair?" the priest asked. Every other week the neighborhood put together a street fair showcasing all the different businesses and products that got sold in town and it was also a great way for local businesses to showcase new items. The Steel family always attended the event, and it was a great way to for them to unwind.

Aaron nodded, "Of course sir, we wouldn't miss it for anything." He said.

The Father nodded, "Well we look forward to seeing you there. The kids are planning on doing a little show with their Quirks to help raise some money for the orphanage."

Aaron smiled, "Well then I will definitely be there. We all will right guys?" he said getting nods from his siblings and friends. After saying their goodbyes to the kids and the volunteers, Aaron and his siblings headed home after parting ways with Lydia and Maria. As the young man walked home with his siblings, he failed to notice the dark, stretch limo hiding around the corner of the orphanage with the occupant in the back seat staring at Aaron and the kids through a pair of binoculars.

"Think you can make a fool of me? Well just you wait, you haven't seen anything yet." The occupant said with a dark smile.

MHA

Aaron and his siblings along with the girls and their mother were all together and enjoying their Saturday at the local street fair. The city of New Roads was rather small, so it made sense that the fair was as well yet despite that, the fair that got put on was a lively one. All the restaurants, small businesses, and local artisan shops all provided booth and tables to promote their businesses and to showcase new products. This was a very good way to increase business as well as give the families of New Roads a chance to get out of the house and spend some quality family time. Which was exactly what the Steel family and Aaron's friends were doing.

After enjoying some delicious French Crepes from one of their favorite spots, they decide to head to a small handmade stage where the kids from the orphanage were putting on a wonderful play using their Quirks. It was so enjoyable that Shaun and Chloe ended up getting involved as well by suing their Quirks along with some fun music to create an incredible show for everyone.

"Man, I cannot believe that how accustomed those two have gotten to using their Quirks." Aaron said as he drank from the soda in his hands. His younger siblings were currently dancing along with the other kids making everyone clap and cheer.

"Well of course they are! They have such an incredible big brother to help teach them." Aaron's mother said before she kissed his cheek. Aaron smirked at his mother's affection and compliments. He knew that most guys his age would have been bothered by their mother kissing them in public, but he was fine with it. This was something that could rarely happen during his youth, so he let his mother have these moments before he got to old.

The song the kids were dancing to soon ended and every on the stage bowed with the head Priest and Carol came up next to them. As the show ended, every single person came up and offered some cash that could be used for the orphanage.

"And it looks like the orphanage is going to get some upgrades thanks to the show." Deana said which made Aaron nod. It made him happy to know that the people of New Roads were willing to look out for each other. He looked over to see Lydia and Maria walk up to the donations bin that carol was holding.

"Well hello girls! Did you enjoy the show the kids put on?" She asked the two younger girls.

Maria nodded, "We enjoyed it a lot. In fact, we enjoyed it so much that we both wanted to help out." She said as Lydia nodded. They both reached into their pockets and pulled out checks and placed them in the bin. Carol looked at the checks in her bin and pulled them out, once she opened them up she gasped at the amount that was on them.

"$1,000?! From each of you?! Girls that is way too much."

Lydia shook her head, "Please, don't worry about it. I told my mother and father about it; they were more than happy to donate."

"And I have been saving money alongside my parents and brothers since I was 7. This amount isn't really harming me at all." Maria said crossing her arms.

Carol was so shocked she couldn't move for a few seconds but after she got over her initial shock, she set the bin down and pulled the girls into a tight hug that took the breath out of both.

"Thank you, girls, so much! This is going to help the kids so much." She said.

Lydia gasped, "It's no problem at all Carol." She squeaked out.

"But could you please loosen up just a little bit? Kind of hard to breath." Maria gasped out.

Carol reluctantly let go and wiped her eyes of the tears that were forming in her eyes before she went back over to the priest.

Aaron went over to his friends and hugged them both, "Thank you both for that. I'm sure that the kids are really going to appreciate that." He said.

Maria blushed, "Hey, we are happy to help."

Lydia tucked a strand of hair behind her face, "And besides, we love those kids just as much as you do."

Aaron smiled before his siblings came up to him and gave him hugs. He was so proud of them for helping the kids at the orphanage, since it was not that long ago, they were in that same situation. Aaron smiled at how animated his siblings were and were even talking about doing a show with the other kids again next week. With that out of the way, the girls began to drag Aaron and Shaun all over the entire fair and towards whatever stand or table that had the merest inkling of fashion, clothing, accessories, or anything in between. Even though his mother and Maria could be considered tomboys in a way, they still had their girly sides. So when it came to checking out some new clothes or anything like that, they would jump head first.

"Ahh, Aaron! Why do we have to carry all the bags?" Shaun said as he held three bags on his arms while Aaron held at least 10. The girls were more than happy to see all the different clothing at the fair, so they bought a lot. It was a good thing that all the stands around the fair were relatively cheap so that meant buying a lot. Which also meant that Aaron and Shaun would be carrying all the bags.

Aaron chuckled at his brother, "Because when you go shopping with women, it's the gentlemanly thing to do."

"Carrying shopping bags?" Shaun questioned.

Aaron nodded, "Yep, that's right. The man always carries the bag. Why do you think that mom always has me carry the groceries when we go to the market?"

Shaun blinked, "I just thought that since you cooked you carried the groceries."

Aaron laughed as he adjusted the bags in his arms, "Nope, it's because the man never let's the woman carry the bags. At least that's what mom told me."

"I don't understand girls' big brother." Shaun said with a sigh.

"Neither do I at time baby brother." Aaron said.

"Hey Aaron, what do you think of this?" Lydia said as she held up a crystal blue top with ruffles around the neck area and shoulders.

Aaron smiled, "I think that would suit you very well Lydia." He said. The pale skinned girl smiled while a blush painted her cheeks before she went over to pay for the top. Deana then came over to her two sons.

"Well look what I found boys." She said with a smirk before she held up a black leather jacket with white sleeves that looked to be Shaun's size along with a dark grey leather jacket with a black hood and what looked like a Norse Hammer symbol on the biceps.

"I found these and I just knew that these were for then two of you. Would you like them?" She asked.

"Yes!" both Aaron and Shaun yelled at the top of their lungs.

MHA

As the group continued to walk around the fair, Aaron and his younger brother were now wearing their new jackets which they loved. They both had to admit, their mother had some serious style. They all decided to take a break and grab a bite to eat, luckily one of their favorite Cajun restaurants was showcasing some new menu items so they all chose to partake.

"Okay everyone, here is our new menu item Smothered Redfish. It's a bed of rice with some fried Redfish on top and smothered in our famous crawfish etouffee. Enjoy." The head chef said as he placed the food in front of the group. After a quick prayer, they all dug in. The food was delicious, a little sweet, a little heat, and full of flavor. Just how Cajun cuisine should be.

As the group was eating and talking amongst themselves, the calm air of the fair was disrupted by a loud scream.

Aaron was up on his feet immediately, "That came from the area where the kids are." He said before he took off in a quick run in the direction of scream.

"Aaron, wait!" Deana shouted as she and the rest of the group ran after Aaron and towards the sound of the scream.

Once Aaron arrived back at the area where the kids performed their show, he saw something that made his blood boil. He saw Randall and some more of his flunkeys knocking over the surrounding stands and tables as well as using bats to destroy the stage that the priest put together.

Randall and one of his flunkey's went over to Carol and the priest and pushed them to the ground, "I am not going to ask again, where is he?!" Randall shouted at the priest.

Carol did her best to protect the kids with her body as she gave Randall a stern look, "We don't know. He left a long time ago and we haven't see him since."

Randall groaned, "Fuck, don't you lie to me! I know he is here, he wouldn't dare be caught away from these ugly brats if they had some kind of show going on. Now tell me where he is!" Randall shouted as he smacked Carol across the face. The kids screamed in fear as they saw their caretaker fall to the ground. Father George quickly picked himself up and ran over to Carol's side.

"Why are you doing this? God is surely frowning on you at this moment." The Father said as he cradled Carol to his chest.

Randall let off a loud laugh, he then reached over to one of the kids and grabbed them by the hair, "Does it look like I give a damn right now?! That asshole humiliated me and took my girl away from me! No one treats me like that and I am going to get back at him, no matter what I have to do!" he yelled as he picked the young child into the air by their hair causing them to scream.

Aaron had seen enough, he knew that Randall was here for him and if he wanted him, he was going to get him. Aaron threw his hands down and behind him and summoned a large pillar of stone underneath him to launch him into the air. He flew over several feet and flipped in the air before he landed right in front of Randall but not before using his Quirk to move the Father and Carol back a few inches so he wouldn't land on them.

Randall was taken by surprise by this and before he could react, Aaron landed a powerful front kick to his chest which knocked him back and made him drop the child in his hand. Aaron quickly caught the child in his arms and set her down gently.

"Don't worry little one, I am here now." Aaron said almost channeling the hopeful aura that All Might would have.

"Aaron!" the child shouted before she wrapped her small little arms around him. Aaron gently stroked her hair before he carried her over to where Carol and the other kids were and set her down.

Aaron stood to his full height and looked at Carol and The Father, a light purple bruise forming on the side of Carol's face and the Father looking as if he was out of breath.

Aaron looked down in shame, "I am so sorry guys. I never meant for any of this to happen."

The Father smiled, "Please be at ease Aaron. You cannot help the way others will react to the choices you did, and I know the kind of man you are. You wouldn't get involved with anything that could potentially harm the kids."

Carol smiled but winced in pain, "You must have really pissed this guy off for him to come and mess with us but I know for a fact that whatever you did, you did for a good reason. But now you must protect us. Think you can do that?" she said with a smirk.

Aaron smiled widely, "Leave it to me. Just get the kids to safety." He said as his mother and the rest of the group came over to them.

"Mom, take everyone out of here and get them to a safe distance. Call the police and a nearby hero to report this. I'm going to buy you all as much time as I can."

Maria gave Aaron a crazy look, "Aaron are you insane, you know what can happen if you use your Quirk in public!" she yelled.

She was about to say more until Deana stopped her, "Maria, we need to trust Aaron. He can handle this." She said with a stern, motherly tone in her voice. Everyone froze at the tone she took with Maria and didn't say anything else. They knew that Deana could be very stern when it came to her children, but she also trusted her children more than anything.

Deana looked to her eldest son, "Be safe." She said getting a nod from Aaron. The group quickly moved off to a safer side of the fair area. Aaron took a deep breathe to calm himself before he turned back to where Randall and his crew were. The other members of the crew joined around with Randall who was now back on his feet.

"Looks like you finally showed yourself." Randall said.

Aaron stared him down, "What do you think you are doing Randall? Striking an innocent woman, threatening a child, pushing down a priest? What is the point of all this?!"

"The point?! The Point?! You think that you can humiliate me the way you did and steal my girl?! Hell no, I own everyone and everything in this town and you are going to learn to respect me, or my boys here are going to remodel that pretty boy face of yours!" Randall shouted as the members of his crew began to surround Aaron.

Aaron cracked his neck and looked at the four large men, one had a rhino horn in the center of his forehead, another had multiple arms, and the last two had pointed ears and fangs pointing up from their bottom jaws. The fanged boys were carrying two metal baseball bats.

"Now I am going to give you all one chance. Leave now and none of you will get hurt but if you choose to stay and protect this asshole, then I can promise you will walk out of here with scars and a few broken bones." Aaron said.

Randal scoffed, "Don't listen to him, he's bluffing. Tear him apart!" he yelled.

The first of the fanged boys rushed at Aaron and started swinging his baseball bat to try and knock him out but Aaron has been trained very well by his father even if he didn't want it but the skills that his father "bestowed" on him had given him a lot of skills that he can use in real life situations. Aaron ducked underneath a swing and landed a powerful kick to the first fang boy's which brought him to his knees and then Aaron followed up with a kick to the back of his head knocking him out.

"Arthur!" The other fanged boy yelled as he charged at Aaron the same way his fellow did. The other fang boy tried swinging in an outward arc to strike Aaron's head, but the young man grabbed his wrist and landed an uppercut to the fang boy's jaw which stunned him. Aaron then followed up with an elbow to the face, an uppercut to the jaw, a kick to the knee, and finished with a kick to the side of the head, effectively knocking the second fang boy out.

As Aaron turned back to the rest of Randall's group, the rhino horned boy put his head down and rushed at Aaron, knocking the wind out of him. Rhino wrapped his arms around Aaron and charged towards the wall behind him. Aaron grunted and used his Quirk to dig his feet into the ground beneath him which let him slow down Rhino's charge but didn't stop him. He then used his Quirk to form a metal knuckle duster around his fist and bashed it against Rhino's skull. The attacks seemed to take its toll on Rhino, and he started to slow down, once he slowed down enough, Aaron broke free of Rhino's grip kneed him in the face. Rhino shot back up, stunned from the attack and Aaron followed up with a punch to his solar plexus and then a kick to his stomach which made Rhino bend over. Aaron finished up with a corkscrew kick that knocked Rhino out.

Now it was down to Aaron and the multi-armed Quirk user, but he could see that Randal was now sweating with fear. At least Multi-arm was cautious enough to not charge blindly at Aaron, but Aaron already had a plan on how to deal with him. Soon enough, Multi-arm raised each one of his arms and charged at Aaron like a bull with the intention to smash him into the ground. Aaron stomped the ground pushed his fists and hands forward to conjure up several small boulders in front of him, he then pushed his hands forwards causing the boulders to surge at Multi-arm who, just as Aaron expected, smashed them to pieces. Aaron smirked, and focused on all the broken bits of boulders that were around Multi-arm then made several motions with his hands and formed several stone cuffs that shackled onto the Mutant Quirk users' arms. Immobilizing him from using his many arms.

"What the? I can't move my arms!" he shouted as he tried to shake the cuffs off his arms.

"That's kind of the idea!" Aaron shouted before he launched himself into the air and landed a flying Superman punch to the Mutant's jaw. Knocking him out instantly.

Aaron landed back on the ground and smirked, "Huh, glass jaw. Who'd have thought?" he said as he turned his gaze to Randall who was now sweating bullets. He quickly turned tail and ran away but Aaron wasn't having any of it. He stomped on the ground and made a small mound of stone come out from the ground and tripped Randall, making him fall on his face. Aaron quickly made his way over to Randall and picked him up by the back of his collar. He then summoned two stone walls to keep Randall pined to the spot where he was standing.

"Be grateful that this is all I am putting you through, if I had any less control of myself, I'd be burying you right now." Aaron said coldly as he backed away. Just in time to see the police and Geomancer arrive. Aaron quickly explained the situation to the pro hero who was very understanding about what happened, he didn't even seem to mind that Aaron had used his Quirk but that was a different matter. Right now, he needed to check on his family.

Aaron had made his way over to his family and made sure that they and the kids from the orphanage were okay, luckily there were no major injuries minus the bruises that Carol and the father had and the sore head from the small child that Randall hurt but nothing that no one would recover from. After a little down time to calm everyone's nerves and giving his younger siblings the chance to hold onto him, Aaron was approached by Geomancer.

"I got to say kid, you haver certainly come a long way from the emotionless child that arrived at my agency all those years ago." Geomancer said.

Aaron smirked, "Not the best image I like to be remembered by but I appreciate the message."

Geomancer chuckled and placed a hand on Aaron's shoulder, "I know you are still on the fence about it but from what I just saw you definitely can be a hero." He said before he walked away.

Even though Aaron had heard those words before, after what happened today they reverberated with him even more. When he was fighting Randall and his thugs, the only thing that was on his mind was making sure that everyone around him was safe and protected. He didn't want anyone to get hurt and he wanted to be that shield for those who wanted to feel safe.

"Hey mom, how many people are out there that are like us? Or the kids at the orphanage?" Aaron asked his mother.

Deana looked over to her eldest son with an odd look, "What do you mean Aaron? I honestly couldn't tell you but if I had to guess, I would say a lot."

Aaron nodded, "Yeah, I don't like that," he said standing up getting odd looks from his family and the kids around him, "After everything that we have been through and everything that the kids have suffered through I just can't stop thinking about all the other people out there that have gone through similar situations. Men, women, and children all living in darkness, all feeling as though they have nowhere to go, like the only choice they have is to stay surrounded by darkness. I don't want the good, innocent people around the world to feel like that."

"What are you saying Aaron?" Deana asked her son almost expecting what he was going to say.

Aaron turned back to everyone, "I don't want to be the kind of person that just stands around and waits for someone to come and save me or the kind of person who can't do anything to help someone who needs it. I want to be a light. A light for all those people who are suffering in the darkness. A light that can give people hope for the future. I want to be a hero."

Those six, simple words echoed throughout the entire area, shocking everyone who heard. They all knew that Aaron had the ability to become a hero but not the drive. Today all that changed.

Today, Aaron Steel, the son of one of the most dangerous Villains in America, had chosen to become a hero. His legacy truly begins.