The fish monster collapsed onto the wooden bench, the worn tan boards creaking and bending. She exhaled used air through her nose, grinning as her body began to recover expended stamina. In a bid to regain spent strength as expeditiously as possible, she plastered her arms across the bench and slumped, the back of her head tilted over its receding edge. Closing her eyes, she absorbed the sounds of autumn: the tapping of dead leaves kissing worn pavement and the dry rustle of branches swaying in the chill breeze. Undyne took in as much of the crisp air as her lungs could handle. There were few things she knew of that felt better than a runner's high, and she wasn't about to let that euphoric sensation evaporate so easily. A few moments of relaxation on this random park bench, and she would resume her trek at breakneck pace.

It was only about a week ago she'd discovered a deficiency in her training regimen, one that she'd believed would be compensated for by intense sparring sessions. Simply repeating combat drills was enough to maintain her current physical abilities, but she'd found that sticking so close to a routine had caused her development to plateau. Observing her little brother's feroicity to grow stronger over the past few months made it difficult to avoid self-reflection. She chuckled at fresh memories of Izuku fighting so hard against his own weakness. He'd even been willing to subjugate himself to a couple of her own training sessions. Despite his determination, neither of them had been able to benefit much from those particular endeavors. Their gap in both power and expertise was as undeniable as it was irritating.

As the date of the entrance exam fell to within the current month, the subtle gnaw of anxiety within her belly had exploded into a fire of determination laced with fear. She knew, objectively, that a bit of nervousness regarding the event was healthy, but that knowledge did little to abate the dread clouding her soul. She'd punched herself several times after coming to the realization that she could've been doing much more to become competitive. Despite the praise that both her family and acquaintances were quick to shower her with, the image of an average sized fish being taken from a pond and hurled into an ocean kept creeping into her mind. She'd spent far more time than she liked to admit reading up on the abilities and proficiencies of current U.A. students. On one occasion, she'd been careless enough to leave her bedroom door ajar, such that one pesky green haired idiot couldn't help but peek in on her unusually studious activities. Undyne was beyond positive that her little brother would never let go of that small victory.

Some schools, she'd found, focused solely on Quirk power development; others were finely tuned towards mastering the intricacies of one's abilities. U.A. was a different beast altogether. They weren't in the business of creating sidekicks or rent-a-cops. Both the students and teachers of the Academy graduated heroes, and accepted nothing less. Perfection was the standard, excellence the minimum, and average an unknown concept. Undyne clenched her fist as her mind barraged her with accusations. How could she have been so blind, so certain that modest proficiency in combat alone would secure her a spot among the best? She'd taken the easy road by merely doing what she'd always done and calling it enough. Now the fear of reaping what she'd sown had grown like a parasite in her gut.

She shook her head and opened her eyes. Wallowing in self-pity would only waste what little precious training time remained. She'd resolved to improve her endurance as much as a month allowed, and every second not spent in training had the potential to become moments regret. As she rose to her feet, her eyes were drawn to a familiar mop of dark green locks advancing towards her from down the concrete path. His heavy breathing and strained groans were audible from a distance. His strained, sweaty face was accompanied by what appeared to be a small kitchen appliance hefted over his shoulder. What quickly took over Undyne's attention, however, was the thin outline of a man with golden locks keeping pace on an electric scooter.

Those sunken, tired blue eyes and his lanky, hunched frame were immediately familiar to her, and she felt her heart rate increase despite having not resumed her exercise. Approaching her now, unbeknownst to the few bystanders on the path, was the hero most everyone in Japan revered. A smile couldn't help but explode across Undyne's face as moved towards him. Questions flooded her brain and burst from her lips before she could stop them,

"Hey, All-" She slapped her hands onto her mouth, the realization of what she'd almost done crashing into her mind like a bowling ball. Glaring at the concrete pavement below, she felt the perplexed glares of nearby onlookers pierce her soul. A nauesiating swirl of fear and dread mixed in her gut. As Undyne struggled to regain her composure, she overheard the pro hero and her brother speak in comically loud whispers,

"Young Midoriya, didin't you insist that she'd be busy with combat training at this early hour?"

"That's what I thought, but now she's here, and she's seen us, and she almost called you out-"

"Calm down, my boy. I've been saving a special move just for situations like this."

"Really? What-"

"DETROIT RUN-AWAY!"

As Undyne stood with her mouth agape, the frail man took her brother by the wrist and plopped him on the back of his scooter. Revving the vehicle's electric engines, All-Might began to scoot away as quickly as their combined weight would allow. They had barely moved a few feet before Izuku gingerly hopped off the device and stood with his back to his fleeing mentor, giving his older sister an apologetic stare.

"My sister isn't an idiot. The gig's up. I just hope we both walk away from this with our arms attached." Izuku scratched the back of his head with his free hand, sweat pouring down his face. All-Might scooted to a halt and walked back to Izuku, the both of them taking in a deep breath as Undyne advanced. She was upon them in less than a second, the confusion on her face mingled with frustration. Crossing her arms across her chest, the blue scaled fish monster raised an eyebrow at the due before saying,

"As much as I'd like to shout for all the world to hear, I think it might be better if we go somewhere more private to discuss..."

Undyne gestured at the two sulking men as she finished, "...this."

"IZUKU!"

The trio found themselves under comfortable shade, provided by the thick surrounding foliage. Having retreated deeper into to park's trail, Undyne felt much more free to express herself to her brother and the hero standing awkwardly to his side.

"Undyne, I can explain-" Izuku began, to be promptly cut off by his raging sister.

"Oh, I think I've got this figured out already. You've been training with All-Might in secret..."

The pro hero in question seemed unusually keen on staring at the gravel path beneath his feet, while Izuku looked ready to go back on his word and run as fast as his squat legs would carry him. Undyne clenched her fist as she continued, her eyes darkened.

"...without inviting me!"

Izuku and All-Might blinked simultaneously.

"You've been acting all suspicious for the past few months, but I never would've thought that All-Might himself would be willing to give you some one-on-one training. You must've made a real impression on him!" Any of Undyne's prior frustration had been replaced by ravenous excitement as she bounced around the path. All-Might gawked at the girl for a few moments before he laughed through the awkwardness, saying,

"Ah yes, it appears that this young lady has successfully called my bluff! This strapping lad here made such an impression on me that I just had to honor his request for additional training. After all, crime has been on the decline in Tokyo, and what better way for a pro hero, such as myself, to spend his free time but passing his knowledge down to the next generation!"

Izuku looked away as he quietly added, "Sorry for keeping this from you, Undyne. I only just started training with him last week. I didn't want to make a bigger deal out of it than it is."

Undyne harrumphed, but smiled at her little brother, nonetheless. She thought it strange that he wouldn't smile back. Instead, he kept his wide emerald eyes locked on the ground, glistening sweat dripping from his chin. It had to be the surprise of all this, right? All-Might, training Izuku... even if only for a day or two, it must've been a dream come true. The one thing that he's always wanted.

"He's so cool..."

Undyne felt the smile on her face fade away.

"Do you think..."

She looked All-Might square in the eyes, her crimson irises burning into his. The pro hero straightened while an emotion Undyne never would've imagined on the hero flashed across his face for a moment. Guilt? Could it have been?

"I'd say it's a pretty big deal, Izuku. Being trained, not just by a pro hero, but the pro hero... it really must leave an impression on someone. Especially if they themselves want to be a hero, too." She said flatly.

Undyne's heart raced as she kept her gaze locked on All-Might. The pro hero frowned as he stared back.

"Sometimes I wonder what it would be like to be someone with that much influence. For someone to revolve their entire life around you. For someone..."

"Undyne-" Izuku attempted to cut her off, but Undyne paid him no heed.

"I can be..."

"...to want to be like you."

Moments passed like minutes, accompanied only by the rustling autumn leaves above.

"It's more responsibility than I feel qualified to bear." Breaking his gaze, All-Might somberly replied.

"I live that reality. Each and every day, I feel the weight of my title upon my shoulders. The Symbol of Peace, they call me. And I'm just that, a symbol for the weak and innocent to rally around." All-Might clenched his fists as Undyne stared with wide eyes.

"But no pillar stands forever. It's my duty, therefore, to impart my knowledge to those willing to bear the heavy torch of peace into tomorrow. Perhaps I'm mistaken, but to me, the traits that make one strong enough to carry that mantle aren't randomly acquired at birth, but sought after in life."

All-Might placed a calloused hand on Undyne's shoulder as he looked into her eyes with the fire of a man who'd found his purpose. In a whisper, he finished,

"I still believe that he can become a hero. Against all reason, I still believe. Anyone who strives after a cause so noble with such raw determination should be at least afforded the chance, don't you think?"

Mouth agape, Undyne failed to find her words as All-Might removed his hand and backed away. Putting on a smile, he addressed Izuku, but whatever words he said were drowned out by the storm of emotions raging in her soul.

I want to believe...

She clenched her fist and gritted her teeth.

...but what will that cost?