Here comes Chapter 3! Sorry this chapter took longer than I thought. I started a new job and it's taking up much of my time and energy. But I promise to update as regularly as possible! Also, I have created a poll that will impact the next chapter or so, so please vote!
~Snowy
Chapter 3: First Day of Class
The sound of an alarm clock jerked Sophia from her sleep, reaching around frantically to turn it off. For a moment, she wasn't sure where she was. At first, nothing seemed familiar to her. But then she recognized the uniform hanging on the back of the chair in front of the desk.
Right. I'm at U.A. She thought as she flung back her covers and climbed out of bed.
Sophia quickly changed into her uniform, gazing at her reflection in the mirror with a smile. Her dream had actually come true. She was going to become a hero. Turning away from the mirror, she grabbed her bookbag off the desk, finding it already filled with her books. She felt lucky to have met such generous people, but she also felt uncertain. There was no way she could live here and attend class for free; that was crazy. She decided to talk to the Principal after class to see if there was a way for her to earn her keep.
A knock on the door startled her from her thoughts. Quietly, she went over to it and cracked it open to find Uraraka standing outside.
"Good morning!" She said cheerfully, though looking a bit bashful. "I...uh...I just wanted to see if you wanted some breakfast before class...N-not to be pushy or anything!"
"I'd be happy to join you," Sophia said, smiling timidly.
"Awesome!" Uraraka chimed. "The kitchen is this way!"
Urakaka lead Sophia down the stairs to the main floor and toward the kitchen, Momo and Ashido joining them on the way. The scent of bacon caught Sophia by surprise, making her stomach growl loudly. Momo and Urakaka laughed, making Sophia blush fiercely. She hadn't eaten much the night before. In the kitchen, Bakugo was yelling at Shoto as he cooked the eggs, but Shoto just ignored him.
"Hello, Sophia," Shoto said, bringing over the platter of scrambled eggs and setting it next to the tray of toast. "Did you sleep well?"
"I...um..." Sophia stammered, trying not to stare. His eyes always seemed to amaze her, being two different colors and all. "I slept very well..."
"Hurry up and eat!" Bakugo snapped, dropping the plate of bacon on the table.
"Don't mind him," Shoto said, sitting down at the table before putting food on his plate. "He's more bark than anything."
"What did you say, Icy Hot?!" Bakugo shouted, sparks flying from his hands.
"Do you have to be so loud?" Jiro asked sleepily as she came into the kitchen.
Sophia smiled as she dug into her breakfast, watching the group laugh and talk with each other. They were all so close that she felt a bit out of place.
It must be nice to have so many friends. Sophia thought. I wish I could do something for them to repay their kindness. They welcomed me so warmly, even though I'm a stranger.
"Are you all right, Sophia?" Uraraka asked, snapping Sophia from her thoughts. "You have such a serious look on your face!"
"O-oh um...well...I was just wondering where Midoriya is," Sophia replied.
"That useless nerd is probably up in his room studying," Bakugo huffed irritably.
"Don't worry," Shoto said. "He'll join us before we head to class."
Sure enough, Midoriya met them at the front door, and they all headed to class together. Sophia's classes were uneventful for the most part, though she was behind in her hero-related classes. She sat out of quirk training and move development at the request of Aizawa and Cementoss. They gave her the option of working on her schoolwork, but she chose to stay and watch the other students.
I can learn from them! Sophia thought as she watched her classmates split into groups. She watched as Bakugo use his quirk to create small explosions from his palms to fly around the gym. Shoto used his ice to slide around quickly. She watched in awe at the sheer variety of quirks. A couple times she had to stop herself from wanting to join in.
"We'll start your quirk testing after this," Mr. Aizawa said as he came up beside her.
Sophia nodded slowly as she folded her arms anxiously. She didn't really know too much about her quirk beyond healing. The temple had not let her experiment with her quirk once she discovered she could heal.
"Mr. Aizawa?" Midoriya asked as he walked up, adjusting his glove. "Is it okay if I help with her testing instead of Yaoyorozu?"
"I don't see why not," Mr. Aizawa said thoughtfully.
Midoriya smiled as he looked at Sophia, who was looking at least a little relieved.
Once training was over, Mr. Aizawa gave Sophia a set of gym clothes and instructed her to go change while Cementoss cleared the arena. After she changed into her new clothes, she was approached by a researcher. They took her vitals and measured her height and weight before measuring her wings.
"Ouch!" She yelped as the researcher plucked a feather.
When Sophia jerked her wing, she sent three feathers flying that embedded themselves in the wall with a thud. Midoriya and Aizawa glanced at each other in surprise. Aizawa instructed Midoriya to get some paper targets from the supply closet and had them set up at varying distances away from Sophia. The researcher had her flap her wings to try and hit the targets with her feathers. With each flap of her wings, she was able to shoot 3 to 5 feathers per wing, but her aim needed work. The researcher examined the feathers and found that they were razor sharp and hard.
"Shield yourself with your wings," Mr. Aizawa said, producing a throwing knife.
"Mr. Aizawa!" Midoriya interrupted, looking horrified as he ran between her and his teacher. "What if you hurt her?"
"That's why we have Recovery Girl," Mr. Aizawa said blankly, staring at Midoriya. "I would appreciate it if you didn't interrupt."
"It's okay," Sophia said, looking at her feet. "I've had worse done to me. Besides, he's only trying to help."
At the moment Sophia had said that, Shoto had walked in and had overheard her. His heart sank when he heard that she'd been through worse, though he kept quiet as he came to stand beside Midoriya. They exchanged glances, both bothered by what she'd said. Sophia folded her wings around her, tucking herself behind them. Mr. Aizawa threw the knife at Sophia, and to everyone's surprise, bounced harmlessly off her wings and clattered to the floor. Sophia peeked out from behind her wings, gazing at Mr. Aizawa in surprise.
"I...had no idea I could use my wings as offense and defense..." she mumbled shyly. Midoriya began muttering about her quirk in the corner.
"Let's try a few more things," the researcher suggested.
Over the next few hours, the research and Mr. Aizawa had Sophia try a number of different things ranging from flying to controlling in animate objects. She managed to create small sparks around her hands, similar to Bakugo's quirk, but Midoriya realized the mechanism was different, and it took much more energy to do so. Nothing truly extraordinary happened until the researcher had Sophia focus on her surroundings. She closed her eyes, slowing her breathing as she reached out with her energy, sensing the life around her. Beneath the concrete of the building, she could sense bugs crawling around and the roots of plants as they searched for water. She called to the plants with her energy, beckoning them upward.
A startled yell snapped Sophia out of her meditation. She opened her eyes, meeting the gazes of a shocked Midoriya and Todoroki. Between them a tree had sprung up through the cement of the gym floor, wrapping Mr. Aizawa by the ankles in the thin, but sturdy branches of a young willow tree that stood about 10 feet tall. For a moment the three of them watched as Mr. Aizawa tried his best to free his ankles from the grip of the whip-like branches. They didn't budge.
"Are you able to let me down?" Mr. Aizawa said, a touch of bitterness in his voice.
Midoriya and Shoto had turned around to hide their snorts of laughter as Sophia sprang to her feet.
"I-I'm sorry sir!" She gasped, putting her hand on the tree. "Uh...I'm not sure I make the tree set you don't gently...it may just drop you..."
"I can help with that," Shoto said coolly, though he was still fighting back the urge to laugh.
Sophia watched in awe as he carefully made a crude ice slide under Mr. Aizawa. He nodded, signaling that it was safe to let Mr. Aizawa down. Sophia closed her eyes and took a deep breath before willing the tree to release Mr. Aizawa. The branch uncurled from his ankles and he slid harmlessly to the ground.
"That was amazing!" Midoriya said, his eyes lit up with excitement. "You can heal and control plants?"
"That's pretty impressive," Shoto agreed quietly.
"W-well..." Sophia stuttered, looking down bashfully, "I don't know if I necessarily control plants...It's more like they just...respond to me."
Sophia swayed unsteadily for a moment, holding her head. Shoto put his hands on her shoulders to steady her, looking slightly worried.
"Are you all right?" He asked as he held her up.
"Y-yes," she said. "I just need to get out into the sun...and maybe have a glass of juice."
"I'll get it!" Midoriya said, heading towards the cafeteria while Shoto and Mr. Aizawa helped Sophia outside.
Sophia sat down in the grass, sighing with content as the sunlight warmed her skin. Shoto sat down beside her, gazing up at the sky as Mr. Aizawa and the researcher came out of the gym. The researcher was scribbling down notes in his notebook as he observed Sophia. Now that she was in the sun, she looked less pale than she had when she'd summoned the tree. Once Midoriya had returned with a glass of grape juice, Sophia's color returned to normal after taking a few sips.
"Does that always happen when you control plants?" Midoriya asked with curious excitement.
"Mmm..." Sophia hummed thoughtfully. "Not always. It depends on the size of the plant." She stretched out her hand over the grass, making small plants sprout from the ground, which soon grew buds and bloomed into small white flowers. "Little plants don't really affect me much. If I tried to make a whole field of flowers, it would affect me like the tree did."
"Did the shrine know?" Mr. Aizawa asked.
"No," Sophia said, hiding a smile. "They just thought I was good with plants. I never really made plants grow in front of any one. The last thing I wanted was to be used for something else. Besides, they might not have let me tend the garden behind the shrine if they knew. It was one of the few times I had a scrap of freedom."
"I'm sorry," Midoriya said, looking embarrassed.
"No, it's okay," Sophia said with a smile.
"It's interesting, though," Shoto said quietly. "You can heal and control plants."
"Can you control other living things?" the researcher asked abruptly.
Sophia thought about it for a moment. "No, I don't believe so. The way I heal people is the same way I can control plants as you put it. But people and animals are far more complicated than plants."
"That must be why it takes so much out of you," Midoriya mused aloud. "It's like you're controlling the very compounds that make us living beings."
"If that's the case," Mr. Aizawa said. "it's likely that you can do more."
"Yes," the researcher said, finishing up his notes, "I'll be back tomorrow to do more tests."
"It is almost dinner time," Midoriya said. "I bet you're hungry!"
Sophia nodded bashfully, taking Shoto's hand when he offered it to her to help her up. He and Midoriya led Sophia to the cafeteria, where Lunch Rush had already made dinner for the three of them.
"Thank you," Sophia said, bowing to him politely.
"You're welcome!" he said with a smile. "Midoriya asked if I could make dinner for you three since you were doing quirk testing."
"Oh, but...I don't have any money," Sophia replied, looking down.
"I already took care of it," Midoriya said as he took a seat, motioning for her to sit down
"Th-thank you!" Sophia said, fighting back tears. "Everyone is so kind to me...I don't know how to repay you."
"You don't have to," Shoto said, smiling as he picked up his chopsticks to dig into his soba. "It's just who we are."
Sophia nodded as she picked up her chopstick and took a bite of her yakisoba. Midoriya and Shoto both stifled a laugh when they heard Sophia audibly sigh contentedly at the meal. She blushed fiercely and looked away shyly, but she was too hungry to stay embarrassed for long. They spoke about their classes and the sheer volume of homework they had to do that night, though they secretly felt bad for Sophia since she had to catch up to them, too.
"Can you tell me where the Principal's Office is?" Sophia asked once they were finished eating. "I need to speak with him."
Shoto and Midoriya glanced at each other nervously, but they gave her the directions to the principal's office. Sophia gathered her things and thanked them, bidding the two of them farewell before heading off in the direction of the Principal's office.
Once she arrived, she tapped on the door lightly. A few quiet moments passed, and a blonde haired skeleton of a man opened the door.
"Y-you're All Might!" Sophia stammered, bowing hastily.
"Yes, I am," he said, rubbing the back of his head bashfully. "Are you here to see the Principal?"
"Y-yes, sir," She said, smiling. "I want to talk to him about my tuition."
"Did Mr. Aizawa not tell you?" came the small voice of the Principal.
All Might opened the door wider, allowing her to enter the office. The Principal was smiling as he sipped tea on the couch, motioning for her to come in. Sophia bowed politely as she stepped into the office while All Might closed the door behind her.
"Please, sit," He said as he got up to fetch another cup for Sophia. "Join us for some tea."
"O-oh," she stammered bashfully, taking a seat on the opposite side of the table. "Thank you."
Principal Nezu poured her some tea, before sitting down again, All Might joining him.
"How do you like it here?" All Might said, smiling at Sophia.
"Everyone is so nice to me," Sophia said in a soft tone, looking down at her tea. "But I'm so far behind everyone else..."
"That's to be expected," Principal Nezu said sagely. "You've lived a very sheltered life up until now. I'm also very certain that you have personal issues to deal with, such as learning to trust others."
"Yes..." Sophia muttered quietly. "I'm not used to such...kindness."
"I can assure you that everyone in the school is trustworthy," All Might said. "But that's not why you came here, right? Nezu, did no one tell Sophia about her tuition and room and boarding?"
"Oh, that's right," the Principal said. "I must have forgotten to tell Aizawa to tell you. Miss Castello, you do not need to worry about paying for your schooling and dorm. Due to your unique circumstances, U.A. is covering all of your education free of charge."
"I appreciate that," Sophia said, bowing her head. "But it doesn't feel right. I need to do something to earn my keep."
"But you already have enough work on your plate," All Might said in surprise. "You should focus on catching up to your peers."
"Please," she begged. "There must be something. Anything!"
"Hmm..." the Principal sighed. "Would you settle for something part time? Say...cleaning the common area of the dorm on Sundays?"
"Yes!" Sophia said excitedly, her eyes lighting up.
"Then it's settled!" he replied, smiling.
Sophia nodded gratefully, happy that she could do something to earn her right to stay. She quickly finished her tea before heading to the door, but All Might stopped her before she could leave.
"Before you go," he said, holding the handle of the door. "Endeavor and I will be taking you back to the hospital for a check-up with Dr. Ujiko next weekend."
"Oh, okay," Sophia replied as he opened the door. "What time will we be going?"
Meanwhile, in an unknown location, a man covered in white hands sat at a bar, toying with a glass of ice water as the man behind the counter went to turn on the television. After a few seconds of silence, an eerie voice spoke.
"Tomura," the voice said cooly. "I have received word from the good doctor that he's found someone with a rather unique quirk."
"What's so special about it?" he replied, not looking at the television.
"I'm glad you asked," came another voice. "Based on the small amount of experimenting I've done, I've found that the owner of this quirk has quite a unique mutation. They're able to heal any living thing without consequence to the one being healed."
"That doesn't sound all that special to me," he sighed. "Don't bother me with the details, Doctor."
"Perhaps you should hear what he has to say, Shigaraki," the man behind the counter said calmly.
"Thank you, Kurogiri," the first voice said. "Tomura, this quirk is entirely unique and will be very useful to you."
"Fine," Shigaraki said, still not convinced. "Continue."
"The quirk itself may not sound very special on the surface," the doctor continued. "But what if I told you that this quirk likely works by manipulating organic compounds? Given the right circumstances and training, it's entirely possible that this quirk would physically be able to control any living thing on the planet."
"You can't be serious," Shigaraki said, mildly surprised. "No one would be able to handle that kind of burden."
"True," the other voice said smoothly, "but think of the implications on the medical community. Surely, you've heard the rumors about the miracle healer in Hassaki Village."
"Nothing more than rumors," Shigaraki shrugged. "I've tried looking into it, but we couldn't get close enough to the shrine to find out."
"And for good reason," the doctor continued. "Her blood."
"Her blood?" he asked skeptically.
"You heard me," the doctor said. "Her blood has some very unique properties."
"And those are...?"
"I'm afraid I don't know for sure," the doctor relented. "The amount of blood I was able to gather was not enough to run all of my tests. What I have deduced, however, is that her blood can take on different qualities."
"But I take it you don't know exactly how far her blood can be manipulated," Shigaraki guessed. "And you want us to get more blood for you?"
"Not at all," came the other voice. "The doctor can get more blood very easily. No, Tomura, I want you to get her."
"It won't be so easy," the doctor continued. "U.A. has taken her in after the Safety Commission had heroes remove her from the shrine."
"U.A. has increased their security," Shigaraki snapped. "It'll be impossible to get to her."
"Calm yourself, Shigaraki," Kurogiri said patiently. "Internships will be resuming in a few months. That is when we'll have our opportunity."
Phew! Finally finished this chapter! How'd you like the cliffhanger? Okay, so I guess it wasn't MUCH of a cliffhanger, but I hope you enjoyed this chapter nonetheless! Anyway, don't forget to check out the poll that is listed on my profile! And leave a review, it's really does help! Thanks!