Disclaimer: I do not own My Hero Academia. All I own are my OCs and original ideas.

Chapter 1

"A Fresh Start"

"Take your seats and quiet down," came the already familiar monotone voice of Class 1-A's homeroom teacher. Aizawa's eyes scanned the students lazily as he entered the classroom and took his place at the podium. Though they were an overly chatty and excitable group of kids, they, fortunately, knew better than to disobey him and instead listened and looked at him expectantly if a bit warily. The Quirk Assessment Test and consequent false threat of expulsion from two days ago was clearly still on their minds seeing as they were all looking at him with varying degrees of mistrust and fear on their faces, but he ignored it and continued on.

"Before you start your classes for the day, there's a bit of news that the principal wanted me to share with you." The students visibly perked up, and he sighed. "Starting tomorrow, a new student will be joining you in the Hero Course."

"A new student?" Ashido repeated.

"It hasn't even been a week, and we're already getting someone new? Why didn't they just start on Monday with the rest of us?" Sero questioned.

"Is it a girl?" Kaminari asked excitedly.

"If it is, she better be hot," Mineta muttered to himself.

"I didn't realize that U.A. accepted students after the start of the school year," Asui commented.

"That's because it doesn't happen often," Aizawa said, closing his eyes tiredly. "We try not to make a habit of taking in new students, but, under special circumstances, it does happen. And this happens to be one of those times." He blinked his eyes open to find nineteen eager, curious faces looking at him, and he let out a long breath, knowing that they wouldn't be able to settle down until they knew more.

"She's a transfer student from Shiketsu High and will be placed in this class since 1-B already has a full twenty students."

"It is a girl!" he heard Kaminari and Mineta whisper happily.

Uraraka raised her hand hesitantly. "Um, Mr. Aizawa, Shiketsu is the popular Hero School in the West, right?"

He nodded in confirmation. "Yes. It's widely known as the one school that equals U.A. in terms of producing top Heroes, and, as such, people tend to think of the schools as rivals." He paused, his eyes sharpening, and they all fell silent once more. "So let me make this clear right now. Just because this student is transferring from Shiketsu does not mean that you are to treat her as someone from a rival school. Once she steps through that door, she will be a student of U.A. just like the rest of you, and I expect you to treat her just you would treat each other. Is that understood?"

"Yes, sir!" the class chorused.

"Good," he muttered, closing his eyes once more and turning to leave the room just as the bell rang for first period. He paused in the doorway and, without turning around, said, "Oh, and one more thing. Don't get too comfortable with your current class rankings. We'll be testing you again in a few weeks to see if your placings still hold or not. And seeing as your new classmate placed first in Shiketsu's Entrance Exam, I imagine it will shake things up a bit here. Think about that during your Hero Training. You may only be First Years, but that doesn't mean that you can afford to take it easy or be complacent. Because someone will always be there to take your place."

And with those words, he left, closing the door behind him, but not before he heard the explosion of noise from inside.

"She placed first in Shiketsu's exam?!"

"Are you kidding me? As if there aren't enough powerhouses in this class already..."

"That means she's just as strong as Todoroki and Bakugo, right?"

"I wonder what her Quirk is..."

"You better watch out, Bakugo, or the new girl might take your coveted spot as number one!"

"SHUT THE HELL UP, YOU IDIOT!"

"Now is not the time for conflict. We must come together and show a welcoming, unified front for our new classmate tomorrow..."

Aizawa shook his head and continued down the hall, wishing a silent good luck to their soon to be new student... though he had a feeling that she would be handle herself just fine.

One Day Earlier

"Forgive me for taking up your time. I know that the beginning of the school year is a busy time for you all, so thank you for meeting with me despite that. I appreciate it."

Principal Nezu smiled softly. "You're welcome. We are always happy to meet with the parents of our students, no matter the time."

Aizawa watched the interaction silently from his place on the couch, and Vlad remained just as quiet on his side of the sofa with Nezu perched lightly between them. His eyes moved from Nezu to look at the woman sitting across from them, wondering not for the first time why he needed to be here. Meetings with parents weren't unheard of, of course. As a teacher- and a rather harsh one at that- he had had his fair share of confrontations, complaints, and concerns from parents. But for once, this particular parent didn't belong to one of his students. No, the auburn haired woman was the mother of one of the kids in Vlad's class. He had no idea why she had called a meeting only two days into the school year or why he had to be present for it, seeing as Nezu had neglected to tell him anything other than that his presence was needed.

The woman, Chiyo Kendo if he was remembering correctly, nodded and took a steadying breath. "I know that I'm more than likely overstepping my bounds here, and I apologize for that... but I'm afraid that I have to do it anyway. I know that U.A. is as prestigious as it is for a reason, and I don't want to undermine that in any way. I'm aware that accepting a new student who didn't even apply here originally isn't something that you usually do- if ever."

Aizawa blinked, momentarily confused. A new student?

"And I completely understand if you don't want to do it now either. I'm not asking you to say yes..." She sighed quietly and looked at them with determination lighting her eyes. "All that I'm asking is that you hear what I have to say and take your time to consider it."

"Who is it that you're looking for us to take in exactly?" Vlad asked gruffly.

"My niece, Rai," she replied. "She's my sister's daughter and just came to live with us yesterday."

"May I ask why she did not apply to U.A. to begin with?" Nezu inquired.

"Of course- though it is a rather lengthy answer. And I ask that what I tell you would stay between us and whatever staff you would deem fit to know."

Nezu nodded. "You have my word."

"Thank you," she murmured. "You see... Rai has asked to go by her mother's and my maiden name of Suzuki; however, her official surname is Sakamoto... which I'm sure you're all familiar with."

Aizawa's eyes narrowed at the name because it was, in fact, one that he and many others knew of.

Ronin Sakamoto, also known as The Canine Hero: Alpha, he thought to himself. He's currently ranked as the No. 29 Pro Hero and resides in Tokyo. He's one of the few Pros who doesn't care to hide his true identity and has always kept his personal and professional lives tied closely together- even going so far as to combine his home and agency into one.

A lot of people had criticized that choice, claiming that he was needlessly putting his family in danger by doing so; however, much to everyone's shock, either due to the amount of Heroes always hanging around the agency or because of the reputation that the agency had, no incidents had ever occurred there.

"Alpha is her father?" Vlad asked, crossing his arms.

Chiyo's jaw tightened, and none of them missed the anger that flashed through her eyes.

"Yes, he is," she said, folding her hands together tightly. "Now, to answer your question, Principal Nezu, about why she never applied to U.A. and why she's here now..." She sighed and shook her head briefly. "This is going to be long-winded, and I apologize in advance. But I feel that it's necessary for you to understand how we got to this point."

Nezu waved his paw in the air. "We have plenty of time, so please, don't worry about that."

She nodded. "Alright then. I should start this out by saying that Rai and her siblings are the result of a Quirk Marriage."

They all blinked, not expecting her to start with that statement.

"You see, Ronin has always been obsessed about continuing his legacy and ensuring that it grows stronger. His goal is to have an 'heir' of sorts that will one day become a Pro and inherit his title of Alpha and that will make the agency even more powerful and well-known. He began searching for someone whose Quirk would match well with his Wolf Quirk... and that's when he stumbled upon our family. My sister, Aiko, and I both inherited our mother's Enhancement Quirk. And just like it sounds, it enhances everything for us- our senses, strength, speed, endurance, durability... things like that. Ronin thought that it would be the perfect match for his own, so he approached our parents with an offer in hand... a large sum of money in exchange for being able to marry Aiko." Her lip curled, and it became clear that it was not mere anger that she felt toward Ronin.

She looks and speaks as if she actually hates the man.

Aizawa knew that Quirk Marriages had been popular during the earlier generations of Quirk users as a way to make new or more powerful Quirks by having children together. For the most part, that practice had been put to a halt, but he wasn't surprised that some people still tried to do it.

"I was fifteen at the time," Chiyo continued, "And Aiko was seventeen, while Ronin was twenty-two. He was a few years into his Pro Hero career and was already making a name for himself. He was young, handsome, popular, and rich... and our parents hated him. They were disgusted that he had just offered them money in exchange for their daughter. They threw him out of the house and told him never to return." At this, a look of pride crossed her face, but it quickly disappeared. "My sister however, had other plans. Our family wasn't rich, you see; we weren't poor, but only because our parents worked hard to ensure that, and even then, money was always a bit of a struggle. And Aiko, more than anything, didn't want that for herself. She wanted to be able to live a comfortable life... so when she turned eighteen, she left home and went straight to Ronin with an offer of her own. She would marry him and have his children if the money he offered our parents went to her instead. He agreed immediately, and, one week later, they were married."

"Our parents were devastated, and they tried so many times to talk sense to her, but she refused to listen to them. Her relationship with us at that point was practically non-existent. But our parents held out hope that once she had children of her own, it would change how she felt and let her understand how they felt." She shook her head and smiled bitterly. "But what they didn't realize was that Aiko didn't have a maternal bone in her body. She had never cared about children, and that didn't change when she had her own. She did it because it was expected of her and that's all. She let nannies raise her children and was so distant from them that she might as well have been a stranger."

Aizawa felt Nezu shift beside him, leaning forward attentively as Chiyo told her story.

"Their first two children were boys, but neither one acquired both Quirks. The eldest had Ronin's Wolf Quirk, and the second Aiko's Enhancement Quirk. So they kept trying, and eventually," her eyes softened briefly, "Aiko gave birth to a little baby girl that had been blessed with both Quirks. And instead of being happy, Ronin was enraged. He wanted a male heir, and was disgusted by the fact that both Quirks had gone to their daughter instead. He's resented Rai from the day she was born and has shunned her her whole life. Especially when, three years later, they had a baby boy that also had both of their Quirks. Ronin was thrilled by this and treated him like a prince. He trains him personally, has trusted Sidekicks of his accompany the boy everywhere... you would never know that he has other children."

"Anyway," she sighed, "Rai was enrolled at Shiketsu High before this. It was where her father and older brothers had all attended, so she applied there also. She could have gotten accepted through a recommendation alone, but Ronin refused to do it. If she wanted to go to a Hero School, she would have to work for it... And so she did. She trained tirelessly, and when the time came, she took Shiketsu's Entrance Exam and placed first. Their first day was last week, and she was set to be there all three years." She pressed her lips together, and Aizawa could have sworn that he saw her hands tremble.

"Her younger brother's birthday was this past weekend, and since he's such a sheltered and protected boy, she wanted to surprise him by sneaking him out of the agency and going to the mall together. But along the way, they were confronted by Villains."

Aizawa and Vlad stiffened, and Chiyo noticed.

"Nothing happened," she assured. "Ronin had caught wind of them sneaking out and arrived in time to apprehend the Villains. No one was hurt, and everything should have been fine after that. But Ronin..." Her voice lowered, anger lacing every word. "That bastard had been looking for any excuse to finally be rid of Rai, and now he had found it because she had put his son, his heir, at risk. He disowned her right then and there. Told her that she was no child of his and that she would no longer have a place in their home... And then he took his son home and left her there on the street."

"You can't be serious..." Vlad muttered incredulously.

"We had no idea that any of that had happened until Rai called us from a payphone. She had had enough money on her to get from Tokyo to Musutafu, but from there she didn't know where we lived. My husband, Itsuki, picked her up and brought her home. Once she told us what had happened, we knew that we would need to get her enrolled in school as quickly as possible, and, well... here we are."

The three staff members sat in stunned silence for several seconds. Of all the things that they were expecting to hear that day, this was definitely not it. For any parent to treat their child that way was despicable, but for it to be a Hero on top of that... someone that was meant to protect others throwing their own daughter out onto the street...

"That is certainly a difficult situation," Nezu said quietly, "I'm sorry that your family has had to go through all of that." He cocked his head slightly. "It sounds like your niece would meet many of our requirements with her placing first in the entrance exam of a school like Shiketsu. That says a lot about her talent and power... what would you say her personality is like?"

Chiyo sweatdropped and when she smiled, it was a touch nervous. "Ah... her personality... well, you're aware of the agency's reputation, yes? It's one where you have to fight to get to the top, and the overall energy there is quite... aggressive. And with Rai being raised in that environment, it's made her a bit wild you could say. She does have a bit of a temper and will happily fight anyone who challenges her... I believe that gave her some trouble during her younger years at school..."

She must have been worried that they would react badly to that, because Chiyo waved her hands quickly. "But she's also an incredibly kind and loyal girl! We didn't get to spend too much time with her over the years, but whenever we did see her, she was always so happy and energetic... but to be honest... I don't know how much of that side of her you would end up seeing. I know that it's only been a couple of days since everything happened, but she's been very... subdued since she got here. Aside from telling us what happened, she hasn't spoken much. Which is understandable considering what happened, but it's just so unlike her that I can't help but worry..."

Rai tipped her head back and let it rest on the wall behind her, her ears twitching. She let out a long breath, staring mindlessly at the ceiling as her focus remained on the room on the other side of the wall.

"...but it's just so unlike her that I can't help but worry..."

Her aunt had said those last words quietly, but, of course, Rai had heard them, just as she had heard every other word and sound that they had uttered. Despite the fact that she knew what her Quirks were, her aunt always seemed to forget that her hearing was even better than her own.

Was telling my whole life story really necessary? As if I need to be reminded of just how sucky it is... I don't like the idea of strangers knowing all of that either but... Her stomach twisted, and she struggled to fight off her rising anxiety. But I have to get into this school. And if Aunt Chiyo thinks that that will help sway them then so be it.

"I imagine that it will take some time for her to come to terms with what happened and to open back up again," she heard the principal say. "It would be hard for anyone, but to experience all of that at such a young age makes it all the more difficult."

"Now then," he continued, his tone much more high pitch and light than she had expected it to be. "You brought her along with you, yes?"

"Yes, she's waiting just outside... in the hall..."

Her ears flicked back at the way her aunt's voice trailed off, and she knew that she had just realized that Rai could hear everything they had said.

"Are you alright?" one of the teachers asked, but she wasn't sure which one. Both men had low, somewhat gruff voices- though one of them sounded much more tired than the other.

"Ah- yes, sorry!" her aunt said hurriedly. "Would you like me to grab her real quick?"

"Yes, please do," the principal said. "She should be here for the end of the meeting."

The couch creaked as her aunt stood up, and as her footsteps got closer to the door, Rai got up quietly from her chair in the hallway and stepped toward the teacher's lounge just as the door opened. Her aunt's youthful face looked down at her, and she grimaced apologetically.

"I'm sorry," she mouthed.

While she wasn't thrilled about a bunch of strangers knowing all about her life, she knew that it was what her aunt thought was best, so she just shrugged and murmured, "It's okay."

Her aunt offered her a small smile before opening the door wider and ushering her inside. Rai walked passed her into the room and let her eyes pass over the three individuals sitting on one of the couches.

The two Pro Heroes turned homeroom teachers were sitting on either side of a small white bearlike creature who was smiling at her pleasantly- Nezu, the principal of U.A. High.

She heard her aunt come up behind her as the principal hopped lightly off of the couch and padded over to her.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Suzuki. I'm Principal Nezu, and these are two of our teachers," he said gesturing behind him, "Eraserhead is the homeroom teacher for Class 1-A, and Vlad King for Class 1-B."

"It's nice to meet you all," she said quietly, bowing slightly.

"You as well," the larger of the two, Vlad King, replied.

Eraserhead, the one that looked as if he were about to fall asleep, simply nodded.

Principal Nezu gestured for them to take a seat at the couch across from him and the teachers. Once she and her aunt were seated, he looked at her with eyes far more intelligent than any human she had ever seen, and it sent a ripple of unease through her, though she made sure to keep it from showing.

"As you both know," he said, nodding toward her and her aunt, "We do not typically accept any new students after the school year has started. Just like Shiketsu, we are strict and rather selective with who we allow to attend our school. All students are either recommended to us from someone of importance, or they pass our rigorous Entrance Exam. Truthfully, we don't like to deviate from that process; however... our job at this school is to train children who wish to someday become Heroes. It's our job to support them, protect them, and help them grow... And I think that if we were to turn you away, we would have failed at that job."

Rai blinked and heard her aunt inhale sharply.

Is he really...

"As far as I'm concerned," Nezu continued, "You have met our qualifications; the fact that you placed first in Shiketsu's Entrance Exam speaks to your talent, and I believe that U.A. will be the perfect place for you to cultivate that talent on your path of becoming a Hero. We would be more than happy to have you as our student."

She was aware of her aunt bowing in her seat and thanking the principal profusely, but she barely heard it.

It can't be that easy... she thought, somewhat stunned. He's letting me in just like that?

After a few moments, she shook off some of her surprise and looked at the principal.

"Thank you very much," she murmured, nodding her head.

"Yes, thank you," her aunt repeated, eyes shining. "You have no idea how much we appreciate this."

Principal Nezu smiled. "You're most welcome. Now, as for which class you will be in- Class 1-B has an even twenty students while 1-A has nineteen at the moment. So I believe that it would make the most sense for you to join Class 1-A. Would you agree?" He asked, turning to Eraserhead.

The Pro closed his eyes and nodded once. "That's fine with me."

"Very good," Principal Nezu hummed. He looked at her aunt. "I'll send a packet home with you with all of the information you'll need and some forms to fill out. We'll probably need a day to sort out the paperwork, so would it be alright if she started school on Thursday?"

"Yes," Chiyo nodded. "That sounds perfect."

"Excellent!" Nezu turned back to her and smiled. "I look forward to having you as our student, Miss Suzuki!"

Aizawa blinked his eyes open and watched as Nezu walked Suzuki and her aunt to the door. Chiyo was speaking animatedly with him, clearly thrilled and relieved at the outcome of the meeting, while Suzuki remained a step behind them, as quiet and calm as when she first came in. He had to admit that he found it a bit hard to imagine the girl being as wild and energetic as her aunt claimed her to be. She had been incredibly composed, borderline unemotional, the whole time. But there were brief instances where her composure seemed to break, and a flash of nerves would shoot across her face or a hard edge would enter her eyes.

The room fell quiet, and he realized with a start that the three of them had left teacher's lounge.

"She's a tiny little thing, isn't she?" Vlad said, standing up from the couch with groan.

Aizawa sighed and stood as well. "She's unassuming, that's for sure."

Vlad nodded. "That'll be to her advantage. No one would expect someone of that size to have such a strong Quirk. I bet she'll whoop the ass of whatever student has the misfortune of going up against her first."

He grunted his agreement and slowly made his way out into the hall.

"Shame about her home life though," Vlad murmured. "It's despicable, what her father did."

"Yes, it is," he said quietly. "But she's in a better environment now, so things should change for the better."

Vlad nodded firmly. "We'll make sure of it."

They had no way of knowing at that moment that things would get much, much worse before they got better.

After saying goodbye to the principal, Rai and her aunt made their way out of U.A. and began walking toward the front gates.

Chiyo's steps were light and happy, and Rai wished desperately that she could feel the same way, but instead a large knot had formed in her stomach, and she felt as if she were about to throw up at any moment.

This is a good thing, she told herself, trying not to let any of her panic show. You needed to get in, and you did. The first step is done. Now all you have to do is focus on your classes, take it one day at a time, and-

Her thoughts were interrupted as Chiyo threw her arm around her shoulders and pulled her tightly into her side. If she felt Rai stiffen at the sudden contact, she ignored it and squeezed her tighter, as if she were trying to physically send all of her emotions to Rai.

"I am so happy for you," Chiyo said softly. "I know that this is going to be a rough transition, but I also know that in the end, this is going to be the best thing for you. Everything is going to be okay, I promise you."

She pressed a kiss on the top of her head, love shining clear as day in her eyes, and Rai's heart clenched painfully in her chest.

She ducked her head and forced the words past the tightness in her throat. "Thank you, Aunt Chiyo."

Her aunt squeezed her shoulders once more. "Anything for you, my sweet girl."

They made their way off of U.A.'s grounds and started toward the train station that would take them back to her aunt and uncle's home.

And all the while, Rai fought back the tears that threatened to spill as guilt settled heavily in her chest.

How... How am I going to get through this?

Author's Note

Once again, here I am with a new story instead of updating the ones I already have! But in my defense, I've been wanting to write this story for quite a while now, and once I saw that Kirishima's birthday was just the other day, I thought to myself "What better way to celebrate his birthday than by writing and posting my Kirishima x OC story?" and that was that.

Anywho, Rai is a precious little bean who deserves so much better than all the pain I put her through, and I'm SO excited to finally share her story and I hope you all love her as much as I do!

(And for those of you who read any of my other stories, I plan on updating TDOTL next as I do have a good chunk of the next chapter already written for it, and then it's my goal to also update Shadow Puppet because I haven't posted a new chapter for it since January *sweatdrops*)

Thank you to everyone who read this chapter, and if you enjoyed it, feel free to give it a follow! And, of course, reviews are always welcome and very much appreciated!

Until next time!

~ Dreamer