("Underlined text" is supposed to be read as Sign Language. "Italicized text" is used only for Misaki's Dad's quirk. "Bold Text" is used for messages Misaki types out.)

Chapter Four

On My Own


The class started on a new note after a few days had passed.

In the morning, after their homeroom, they would have normal classes that any other high school student would have: Think English, mathematics, or science. It was quite a bore Misaki had always done alright in school once she was given access to even the playing field. It was more of a chore to do normal lessons when they were all sitting in the middle of the biggest hero academy on this side of Tokyo. The afternoons were designated for hero lessons, and that's what most students were on the edge of their seats for.

Misaki took this time to get acclimated to her new surroundings, and existing in a new space that didn't have her best friend in it.

She still couldn't get in touch with Mari. It wasn't for a lack of trying, at least, but no matter how many times she texted or went to visit her apartment, there was seemingly no answer. It was... worrying. Mei had told her not to worry so hard about that, that Mari was probably laying low if she did get into U.A., just to hide it from her Mom. Which made sense when Mei laid it out, but Misaki was still concerned.

She was a worrywart when it came to her friends.

Misaki sat at her desk, writing out the notes from the board as they came to be. Fortunately enough, with her position in the classroom, she was able to have a bit of a back and forth with Koda now and again. He was far more kind than she was when it came to learning, ever positive to her occasional nihilism that sprung up when something didn't click the first time. It was funny at least when he was surprised by her attitude change, and that made that worth it even it was a brief laugh.

A distraction wouldn't always last for very long.

You had to be dedicated to making sure your grades were just good enough to stay in the good flavor of the ranking system. When the classes were done, for the time being, they would head out to lunch to grab a bite before their lessons changed from educational to a practical lesson. When lunch was over and everyone returned to the class that was when hero lessons started.

And today?

All Might was in charge of the lesson. How did she know it was All Might? Because of the sudden rush of wind that entered their classroom and the shocked look on her classmates' faces as they stared at the tall blond man. Everyone was staring at him, unsure of what to do, and that quickly turned into buzzing energy that couldn't be contained. It was intriguing to have a literal God among men in their classroom as their instructor, knocking that surprise off of her face, she sat up straight and waited.

He explained himself, not so casually, that he arrived to give them basic hero training. Today's training was battle training, and that meant they were going to going against one another in a real situation. Real fighting? Finally! Now they were getting down to the nitty-gritty and where she had wanted to be all of this time.

What was even better was that their costumes were finally finished!

Misaki felt rather giddy when the sidewall flipped open to reveal 20 cases just for the class. All that delicate work she had put into crafting her costume, people like the kind of one that Mei wanted to be were the ones that designed all of it. Support users and specialists were important to hero society just as much as heroes were. You couldn't have a great hero without a great costume, and great tools to back them up.

The rest of the students were just as excited as she was, and it was written all over their faces. She had spent a great deal of time trying to piece together her costume so it was functional and pleasing aesthetically.

It was a sleeveless black bodysuit that covered her torso and stopped just above her mid-thigh, with three stars accenting the bottom edge on both sides. A cropped white turtleneck went over it to cover up her neck and made sure it was protected when she went to hurriedly use her quirk, it had a bright star on the back to designate her style. The rest of her legs were covered by thick yellow tights, and her arms were protected by purple warmers that went all the way up to her shoulders where they stopped short of being full sleeves. She had an accessory belt strapped to her hips that would carry everything she needed.

Last but not least, she had the headset that Hatsume had designed for her. It was a sleek silver device that tucked into her ears, like a headset but it wrapped around the back of her head and only vibrates to give her a time limit warning. It also a shooting star carved into one of the sides, it was an homage to her Grandmother... all of the stars were. Her Grandma was a hero once, and she went by the codename Shooting Star.

When they activated their quirks, the only things that people would see were the glimmer of stars that one would see when they felt faint. Before and after they knew what had hit them hard.

Misaki was proud that she had a quirk just as great as the woman that she idolized, and every motif on her uniform was a homage as well as a new adaption to the classic theme that she loved. She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror on the way out and was sufficiently satisfied.

Once they were changed and properly suited up, they all headed for training ground Beta.

All Might was just as pleased with everyone's new looks when they walked through the gates, complimenting them all and nodding his head. He explained to them that the battle training was going to be new and exciting, just the thing to thrust them into what they thought heroism was all about. They would be having two-on-two matchups at a sheer random draw, and they would have to work together either as heroes or villains to pass.

It wasn't going to be like the entrance exam.

Villains weren't just going to be prowling the streets, and that's why they were here in a crowded cityscape setup. They would have to try to keep the damage contained to the building they were located in because the worst of villains were usually trapped away inside layers of protection while the people under them would be in the way.

This exercise was simple.

The villain team would be guarding their detonation device and the heroes would have to try and take them down before the time limit ran out. They would have to secure the other team or take down the weapon to win.

Drawing at lots to make a partnership was easier because heroes often didn't get to choose who they were matched up. At least, if they weren't already a partnership. Hero duos were rare, however, and the rest of the population would be strung with someone whose quirk they may not know well, or mesh well with on a normal occasion.

As a hero, you had to be ready for whatever was thrown your way.

That was the price of the job, after all.

The first matchup was a surprise, indeed. It was Uraraka and Midoriya facing off against Bakugou and Iida. Fate seemed to think that they needed to resolve their issues today. The tension that Bakugou had with Midoriya was going to reach a head sooner rather than later.

Uraraka had a nervous smile on her face but it was obvious she was relieved to be on a team with Midoriya. Misaki looked in her direction with a knowing smirk, and with her rosy cheeks burning up, Uraraka headed out with the boys to the training ground.

The rest of the class would be watching from CCTV along with All Might as he monitored the situation and the time limit.

The villains could speak back and forth with one another if they so chose to leave the room and chase down the heroes. They would have the advantage but it wasn't an unfair one, that was often something that heroes could expect to face out there, so, they had to be prepared for the challenge to know what was waiting in the real world. Time was also of the essence! There were only fifteen minutes for the heroes to rush in and either capture the villains, or diffuse the weapon, or for the villains to capture the heroes and set off their bomb to win the game.

Iida and Bakugou clearly had different plans. Iida wanted to stay put and guard and Bakugou wanted to go out and fight. They had a tiny spat about it and Bakugou left without warning to go and face the heroes on his own. He charged headfirst out of the room and down the stairs the instant he heard the faint sound of the starting gun hit his ears. Iida sighed, in defeat, and stood his ground where he was to make sure he could protect their win.

As for Uraraka and Midoriya, they stayed close at first. They took their time wandering the corners of the building making sure to check every corner and every sound before they made a choice to go in a certain direction; Of course, this safe plan did not last for long as Bakugou found them within a few minutes and sent off a blast with his quick which Midoriya stopped.

Uraraka took the chance to run for the weapon and Bakugou paid her no mind.

It was obvious that he had a score to settle with Midoriya. Misaki knew that he had something against that guy, whether they knew each other from their middle school or if something had happened a long time ago. He meant business because he acted without thinking of what if he hurt another student.

He held his hands up and looked right through Midoriya.

The room around her was incredibly tense.

He was playing that part a little too well in the eyes of the others. Misaki struggled to see what he was saying to Midoriya, the CCTV only provided them with video, but it was fairly blurry from her position in the back of the room. She narrowed her eyes and tried to pick apart every other word as much as she could to figure out what this was about.

He was talking about something that had happened not long ago. Sludge villain, she had caught the word at the last second. No wonder he had happened to seem familiar in a way when she first saw him. She had written it off as nothing but circumstantial but Bakugou was the boy that had gotten caught up in that mess and Midoriya had been there as well if she recalled.

She had been watching the news with her Grandma and Mari at the time and there had been two boys around their age.

That had been them… but that didn't connect all of the pieces. If Midoriya had tried to help… wait, was a part of it? Bakugou wasn't the kind of guy that wanted help from others. He pushed them alone and went in like a lone wolf, not stopping to ask if he could get help.

That would've been a blow to his pride.

Now, he wasn't really dumb enough to try and settle that during a class exercise, was he? Misaki grimaced as Bakugou raised his gauntlet towards Midoriya and held his hand against the trigger. Her answer had been to her before she could even finish the thought.

All Might seemed to know what he was doing as well.

He won't die if it's not a direct hit, she could see Bakugou say as he yanked the trigger back and an explosion enveloped the scene. A huge explosion erupted on the spot with half of the building had been blown to the wind once the dust had settled outside.

Nobody moved and nobody did anything as the smoke covered the entire hall of the building. They waited until either of the boys came out of the smoke; It took a moment but once it cleared, Midoriya was shown to be alright and Bakugou was standing not far away from the scene.

He was chastised for acting that way but the exercise continued as planned.

Everything dissolved from that moment onward.

Bakugou and Midoriya continued to fight on the lower level of the building with Bakugou on the assault and Midoriya on the defense. More of more and the building was destroyed from the bottom up, as Uraraka tangled with Iida on the floor with the bomb. Even as the floor underneath their feet started to get in the way, the kept playing cat and mouse, the four of them.

Midoriya tried to avoid Bakugou, the keyword was "try".

They had their fight, and both boys were getting more and more ragged as the time limit got closer and closer to the buzzer. Inevitably, Midoriya devised a plan to use Uraraka's quirk to benefit them. She used her quirk to send the debris in Iida's way, distracting him long enough to get her hands onto the bomb.

That didn't stop Bakugou from getting Midoriya to use his quirk so much that he wound up hurting both of his arms beyond reason. They were nearly purple to the sight by the time the match was over, and he passed out from the pain right as All Might declared the heroes the winners. Midoriya was taken away to Recovery Girl, and the rest of the students came back to get their scores explained by All Might.

Iida was the showrunner of that battle, he took his job as the villain seriously and played the part down to the letter even if it was a bit comical.

It couldn't be Bakugou because he took his vendetta out on Midoriya when the battle had never been about that. Midoriya hurt himself and put himself out on the line without thinking about anything else, and that got him injured badly. Uraraka put up a really good fight but her last attack was a last-ditch effort that could have caused more harm than good if she didn't plan it out.

Misaki could see that something in Bakugou's expression was different when he brushed past her to stand in the corner of the room. She couldn't identify what it was, but she knew very well that he wanted to be alone. Whatever he was dealing with wasn't something that she understood but she knew very well what it felt like to taste defeat and be sore about it.

All and all, the first round was a heavy one.. not just for the students involved in it firsthand.


"Jeez, they had to match us against a powerhouse, didn't they?"

Just because his dad is a big hero doesn't mean that he's going to be. She thought.

Oijiro and Misaki got acquainted as well as they could on their way to the center of the building where the bomb was located. It was going to be a challenge to communicate to the rest of her classmates when they all didn't know how to do that properly; However, most of the students had started learning nonverbal cues to silently communicate with one another, and that helped a bit.

Start, stop, go, run… only the basic words in JSL.

Hopefully, they would incorporate more at her insistence.

Misaki wasn't a fan of using her voice to speak to others since most of her enunciation was off at times, but it was easier to use it than to not in regards to the able-bodied folks. Often, it would just the soft of sounds, according to what others told her, but she had trained to be able to use her more than just that in the last few years. It took a lot of practice to know what sounds felt like, and how to use them correctly. It was one of the only things that she was a little iffy about. Oijiro was nice enough to say that she was understandable, which made her silently thank her tutor that worked with her since she was fairly young.

It wasn't time to have a communication issue, that was for sure.

Because as soon as they got to the room, that was when All Might said the exercise had begun.

They had to think fast before the heroes showed up.

The two of them were facing off against Todoroki and Shoji, and while she had the smallest inkling of their abilities from their first day of training, she didn't know all of the details to piece things together. Since they were the villains in this situation that meant they had to figure out how they wanted to act.

Did they want to face them head-on, or did they wait here for them to arrive?

His quirk was tail, he had explained to her when they moved. He could use his tail to take down whatever he wanted, and he was well versed in martial arts which benefited them. He had quick reflexes but he could only be so fast against the ice that moved in an instant.

He was fast but there was a chance that Todoroki's reaction time was a lot faster than he was. Now, Misaki could, in theory, move faster than that by activating her quirk but if he froze everything around them then she was in trouble.

How did they beat that?

"What do you think, Hisakawa? Any plans?"

Misaki pursed her lips.

What would the best way to trick them?

They may have been outmatched by the sheer strength they had, but there had to be some kind of opening to outsmart them.

It was clear to her that Oijiro was nervous about Todoroki, he had this imposing aura that could have made anyone uneasy. It was the same kind of energy that Bakugou had except in a quieter, more assured way. Misaki knew that he was the biggest threat as he didn't have to face someone head-on to attack as she and Oijiro did.

If Bakugou preferred to work alone… it was just as likely that Todoroki preferred to be on his own. If they considered that only he would enter the building, or at the very least be the first person to come after them… His ice quirk was a pain, but as long as they had the head-start then it was possible that they could win if she took a tiny field of chance.

Nobody knew everyone else's quirk completely, and that was the advantage here. It was a disadvantage as well, but there was a reason why All Might picked this as one of their first tests. It was realistic to not know what was out in the field awaiting you in the darkness. They all only had a vague awareness of each other's abilities. Most of this class likely assumed she was a speed type, just as Iida Tenya was, and that meant she could bamboozle them.

It was... tricky. But, she had a plan that had to be executed at the last second to give them the win this round. It was going to be a split second to know if the plan was viable. If that was wrong, then they would have to give up.

Misaki shared a look with Oijiro, nodding her head.

"Long shot," she said, looking away from him at the doorway for a moment before looking back at him. "But, got a plan."

On the ground, the heroes approached the building together as the counter began to tick. Shoji leaned in to listen to where the villains were located. Once he had made sure that the two of them were standing on the ground, he looked back over to Todoroki to tell him that they were both together. "They're both on the fourth floor. One is on the north side of the room, the other is not far off in the same room. They're lying in wait for us," he warned. "They want us to come to them."

Todoroki's eyes narrowed down the hall.

"Stay outside. It's going to get frosty in here fast and you'll just be in the way. Our opponents think they can play the defensive game inside but… that means nothing to me." He pressed his hand to the ground and suddenly the entire building was enveloped in ice in an instant. The entire thing, just covered in ice up to the top.

Nearly eight floors just frosted over just like that. Shoji listened to his advice as he could take a hint when it was given, and took a step back as Todoroki began to walk inside the building and head up the villains.

Both and Misaki and Oijiro were startled when the ice began to cover every crack of the ground, there was no time to think, Oijiro used his tail as she had advised him as a backup plan in the case this happened to keep her feet from getting frozen to the concrete. She sighed in relief at having been spared that fate. Misaki looked back at him, grateful that he had sacrificed himself for her sake.

"Thanks," she breathed, the puff of cold air escaping her lips not long after that.

"It's not over," Oijiro warned.

Plan B, they silently agreed.

The foreboding footsteps rang out in Oijiro's ears, and as soon as he thought that their classmate was about to enter the room, he was prepared to warn Misaki so she could activate her quirk.

"Bring it on," Todoroki warned them when he entered the room, catching a brief glimpse at the pair of them, unbothered by their small threat of action. "But you'll just be frozen like your partner if you move. You're no match for my league. Give it up."

Oijiro gave her that nudge, tossing her forward, and Misaki reached up to grasp her hair before Todoroki knew what she was doing. The time came to a shrieking halt all around them in the process, the frozen face of surprise was written all over Todoroki's expression, and Oijiro was just as surprised by how fast she moved.

She landed on the ice with a thud, barely catching her footing and whipping out the cuffs from her belt. She felt cold, however, and when she glanced down she realized that her opponent had almost taken her down. There was frost on her fingertips that indicated that he saw her try to use her quirk, but she moved fast enough that the ice couldn't force properly.

He nearly had her taken down.

The ice that had almost encased her left hand was two inches to the left, just floating there in the air.

Misaki shook her head, amazed. They were very much in a different league but she had to respect that they were almost equally matched when it came to speed. He would have won if she slipped up. Something about his reaction time was a bit off, could he had been impaired by his costume?

No, no that couldn't be it.

She would push that thought to the side for the time being, as she had to wrap this up fast. She held up her capture tape and took care of business. Todoroki was captured just as easy as that, and when the time came alive around them once again, he was shocked that he had been bested by Misaki.

Oijiro was equally shocked behind her, with his mouth opened wide.

"Almost had me there," she told him, honestly. "But, nobody can beat the hand of time."

Villains win, she knew All Might would say.

If Shoji came into the building then he would have been taken down in an instant, and if stayed put where he was that would save him the shame of getting bested by them. The ice that Todoroki had put in the way would have taken a while for anyone to navigate, and there wasn't enough time for him to make his choice, either, so he had to admit defeat as well.

The back of her head was aching but it wasn't so bad that it was going to knock her off her feet… just make her vision blurry for a few minutes. She rubbed the sore spot and smiled over at Oijiro. She told him that she would make sure they had a chance against him, but she had managed to best this beast.

Back in the control room, everyone was shocked that Hisakawa had managed to take down Todoroki when all the odds had stacked against them, ands against her for that matter. His quirk was incredible, and yet this tiny girl had taken him down faster then their eyes could follow.

All Might seemed surprised by it, but that purple hair should have tipped him off when he caught a glimpse of her. "I thought I recognized that motif on her costume but I merely thought it was a homage. Why, Miss Hisakawa is the granddaughter of Shooting Star, a heroine that could move faster than a star in the night sky. " he murmured.

Most of the students didn't know who that was since she such a popular hero way before any of them were born. Shooting Star had been working hard when heroes that All Might idolized were far from his reach, and he was barely the man he was back then compared to now. She had retired from the field piece by piece when she had her children, however, and that was how her name seemed to fade from the spotlight.

"Wow, what the heck!" Kirishima blurted out from All Might's side. He had just been saying how amazed he was at Todoroki's speed, and that he had it beat faster than anyone else but Misaki proved him wrong. "I didn't even see her move!"

"She said she could stop time and all, but I can't believe she could beat him so fast," Uraraka said, awed by her friend.

"So, she stopped time itself and took Todoroki down before he could stop her and get to the weapon to touch it, ribbit." Tsuyu concluded after hearing that explanation.

"That's almost unfair I think," Kaminari said. "Since she can beat someone before they even have a fair shot at beating her back."

Yaoyorozu frowned. It had a display they hadn't expected but it almost hadn't even occurred. If she thought about it, the smallest detail had been eating at the back of her head.

She concluded aloud. "If Oijiro hadn't alerted her to Todoroki they would have lost the match though since she couldn't hear his footsteps herself. She may have an advantage with her quirk but because she can't hear anything, she could have been bested if she wasn't for him."

One moment she was there, about to take defeat with Oijiro, and the next she was behind Todoroki with her hands tightly taking hold of him with capture tape with a grin on her face. If someone looked hard enough they notice that she was breathing a little harder then she had been seconds ago, and the smallest tremble of her feet against the ice ground.

But most of the students didn't note that.

All they saw was a girl that took down one of the students that got in on recommendations.

Bakugou saw the weakness, however, he saw the way that her body was fighting her the same way that it had when she mindlessly put her way in the space for danger to move kids out of the way during the practice exam. He had been clenching his jaw so hard when he saw Todoroki's sheer power in front of him, and it hit him even harder when that girl struck him down.

From the peripheral of his vision, he could see her let Todoroki go free with a smile on her face. They said something to one another, but he didn't care to see what it was. Then, all of that ice that been created began to steam away as though heat came out of nowhere. The entire building that had once been frozen was melted before he even took in a breath.

This guy… he had fire and ice as a quirk.

Great, just great.

This class was filled with strong characters, and it made him feel so angry and confused and... He was too pissed off to think about this. He just had to keep his composure long enough to get out of this class. Circumstantial. Of course, it was circumstantial. She had gotten lucky that day and sheer dumb luck would not lead her to true victory. After all, the only way to victory was with your power and with your two hands, not from anyone else's help.

It was a weakness to let others get in your way and think they had to help you. If people thought you were weak, if you needed the help of others to win something then you didn't win on your own merit.

And what kind of hero was that?


AUTHOR'S NOTE.

Sincerely thank you to all of those who follow, favorite, and kudo, etc. You guys are the reason that I can keep writing what I can!