Sweet are the uses of adversity. - William Shakespeare
BREAK LOGIC
I regret not remembering much about our first meeting. I remember the terror with ease. I can't get it out of my head! Mrs. Tanaka... She reached out to me in concern to that scared, injured little girl. She touched my hand then didn't exist anymore. That feeling of guilt and fear sometimes wells up in me. In a twisted way, I like the feeling. I know I'm still human if I feel disgusted about killing her or when I killed my birth father. Why did both have to smile when they died?
I recall "I don't fear you". I'm glad for that memory. Father has felt many things towards me over the years, but fear was never one of them. I did enough fearing for the both of us. I clung to Eraser Head all the way to U.A. It was night, so only a few guards should've been on campus. That didn't stop Principal Nezu or Recovery Girl from rushing.
I was a very undocumented person. The Yakuza got a hold of me without the law knowing, so my original identity is either listed as "missing" or "dead". Not sure which. I never bothered to check. The select staff at A.U. kept my case undocumented.
Recovery Girl relied on her nurse's office and healing power to help me. I'm certain I was healthier in that moment than I been for the entirety of my captivity. Even so, she did everything while I clung onto Aizawa's left arm. He sat next to me stoically, sometimes patting me on the head. He only used his power once on me, and that was when I revealed my fear of shots. From all the scaring on my arms and legs, they concluded the several dozen small, circular scars were from needles of some kind. I feel sorta bad about not talking about it to them. I did a few years later, but I still don't like shots. My illogical fear can be rationalized by my abuse, so Father doesn't mind.
I found Principal Nezu to be a pleasant experience for my little self. I never expected empathy from an animal, but he too was a victim of vicious human experimentation. He told me the same thing, and those words got me to trust the animal with the most powerful intelligence Quirk recorded. It also helped that I had a little bunny doll back in captivity, and my little self decided he was actually a fluffy bunny. To this day, I will swear Nezu is truly a mutant bunny in one of my few instances of genuine humor. Until he tells me his bloody species, he'll incur my mischievous wrath.
I learned this years later, but Nezu and Aizawa decided my fate as I was pulling his supposedly bunny ears with my free hand. I kept my other hand latched onto my savior. Due to the erratic but potentially powerful nature of my Quirk, U.A. adopted an official but tight-lipped new educational program. They never enrolled others. Oh well. For me, it just meant I was under school jurisdiction and I got to stay with the hero who I first called Aizawa.
Poor Nezu spent almost two days straight jumping through legal loopholes and calling in favors just to ensure my undisclosed safety. By comparison, he can do a textbook worth's of calculus in a few minutes, all while lecturing one of his teachers about balancing hero work and teaching.
BREAK LOGIC
Mina Ashido liked dancing, being happy, and making friends. Her eyes darted across the classroom to the four students already in class. She arrived thirty minutes early, an absolute rarity for the girl, in order to make friends before any of this wonderful adventure begins. She suppressed a squeal at the sheer amazing magnitude of the situation. Somehow, she managed to get accepted into U.A. high school! It's, like, the coolest high school in the world!
She even all but flunked the academic test.
Her eyes, black except for the yellow irises, first observed a tall student. He had glasses, so she concluded he must've been very smart. He had his hair cut short and not a single strand stood out. He also seemed to be taller than most Japanese men; however, her vision focused most on his rigid posture. She decided he came from a well-to-do family and considered "fun" to be an unholy concept worthy of chastisement. In other words, she'll become his friend later. It'll be fine, right?
The next one was a blonde with traces of European ancestry. Her weirdo detection went off as he practically lusted after his own reflection in his hand mirror. She'll become his friend soon because weird people created lots of fun so far.
Then, a student with odd hair sat in the back. On his right, white; on the left, crimson. His nasty scar on the left side suggested a less than stellar upbringing, but he had the same posture as the rigid bespectacled boy. An interesting story lied in his past, but his frigid aurora screamed that he didn't feel like talking. While she had a happy go lucky personality, Mina knew when people didn't want to talk and had crap they needed to deal with.
Lastly, she saw an apprehensive girl, like a performer about to enter her stage. Her muscles tensed a lot. Her gloves and leggings also obscured any skin below the neck, an act of hiding herself probably. Her pretty red eyes stared back at Mina; however, two things stood out the most. The girl was friggen tall, most likely a head taller than Mina when she stood. Second, she had a cute little horn above her right eye.
"Horn buddies!" Mina lept for joy and drew the attention of the students present. Even the frigid boy in the back stared at her if lobsters crawled outa her ears, but she didn't mind the stares. Instead of normal skin, she had pink fur over her entire body and poofy pink hair. Outa that hair were two bendy and cute horns.
"Pardon?" Her future horn buddy replied in a blank tone. The fact that she tensed even more suggested Mina might've overplayed her hand.
She bounded in front of the girl's desk and gave a genuine smile, which could be said about all her smiles. "I'm Mina Ashido! Wanna be friends and horn buddies?" She extended her hand to solidify to offer.
The girl eyed the hand in mistrust. "Define 'horn buddies' if you may." Her language gave the impression of formalism, but she held herself differently than the rich kids. Militaristic maybe?
"I have horns!"
She narrowed her eyes. "You do, and I have one likewise. What are you insinuating?"
Oh crud, this could be going a lot better. "No no no!" She waived her hands around to further that point. "It's just something we already have in common, and I was hoping…" She scratched the back of her head and grinned bashfully. "Well, I made it up on the spot. It seemed like a good idea at the time."
The girl nodded her head with a jerk. She stood, which proved Mina's thoughts about her height, and offered her hand. "Eri Aizawa." Mina grabbed it and shook. The girl tensed again.
Mina let go before she scared the girl but grinned from her accomplishment. She made a new friend. "Let's trade phone numbers! Give me yours, and I'll text you mine."
Eri frowned. "I can't do that." Darn it! She pushed too hard and made her friend uncomfortable. "I only use a home phone."
At that moment, Mina concluded she made a friend with a girl who had few friends. What kinda girl wouldn't text unless they had no one to text? Texting was awesome!
Little did the pinkette know, she was Eri's first friend.
BREAK LOGIC
"A Quirk Assessment Test?!" Over a dozen students said the exact same phrase within the same moment. It was illogical.
A brunette by the name of Uraraka clarified the class statement. "What about the entrance ceremony? The orientation?" Though naïve, Aizawa saw a genuine earnest nature within this student. Considering her sufficient scores in the placement tests and her weight-related Quirk, he considered her a strong candidate for a future hero. Though, he wished she was in his last year's class. Unlike every other student, he wouldn't have kicked her out, and being a homeroom teacher for just one student would provide plenty of time for teaching… and sleeping.
Aizawa suppressed a yawn.
"If you're going to become a hero, you don't have time for such leisurely events." As always, his voice carried disinterest. "U.A.'s selling point is how unrestricted its school traditions are." He watched his students for their reactions. "That's also how the teachers run their classes."
Principal Nezu firmly entrenched himself in the Constructivist ideology of teaching. He wanted the students to have opportunities to form their own ideas and learn in ways besides lecturing. Aizawa agreed. A hero needed to be themselves, not a spoon-fed dolt who merely memorized lectures. That also meant he had an excuse to push his students to their limits and beyond.
Aizawa's ideology and actions came with a side effect. Nezu always sent him the more eclectic students for the hero course while Kan received the less peculiar cases.
"You kids have been doing these since junior high, right?" He held up his phone. It showed different tests. It also gave the more situationally aware students an opportunity to prepare themselves. "Physical fitness tests didn't allow for Quirk usage. It's irrational." He focused on a troublesome student. "Bakugo, you finished at the top of the practical exam, right?" To be precise, he scored highest since the hero Best Jeanist, now the forth-ranked hero in Japan. His intelligence also suggested a genius intellect.
Bakugo nodded.
"In junior high, what was your best result for the softball throw?" Aizawa already knew the information, but he wanted the other students to hear the number. Laws did not allow a teacher to say that information, but the student himself could.
"Sixty-seven meters." He answered to the point. Rational.
"Then, try doing it with your Quirk." He handed his student a softball made by U.A.'s technology division. It connected with his phone to give instantaneous results for distance. It saved time. Logical. "You can do whatever you want, as long as you stay in the circle. Hurry up. Give it all you've got."
Bakugo stretched his right arm. He wound up, then he threw the ball. He used his Quirk Explosion to boost the distance. The ball traveled as if it was a rocket; however, what the boy said drew Eraser Head's attention. "DIE!"
The student's records suggested the boy had aggression problems, most likely stemming from his Quirk. The mind and body adapted to whatever power a person possessed, and sweating nitroglycerin from your hands would alter one's mental state. Bakugo grew up with explosions. He saw them like one would see throwing a punch. Dangerous, but not nearly with the same destructive potential massive explosions actually incurred.
Aizawa glanced at Eri. The girl stood opposite of Tokoyami, a boy with the head of a crow. He predicted correctly that she would associate his face with the mask of the Yakuza man who hurt her, even on a subconscious level.
He narrowed his eyes and concluded he will be far less lenient with Bakugo than normal. While he held professionalism in high regard, the man was a father before a teacher or hero. He won't let Eri be hurt by any of her classmates, consequences be damned.
BREAK LOGIC
Eri Aizawa pulled at her gym shirt, uncomfortable with how it left her arms exposed. She took every precaution available for the safety of others, but wearing a modified shirt without explanation would arouse too many questions.
Her father finished explaining the necessity of knowing one's limits, an idea she followed whole-heartedly. The other students seemed to think more about Bakugo's distance, 750 meters, or how fun using Quirks would be in the case of Mina, her… friend.
"Fun?" Father's attitude silenced the talking students. "You have three years to become a hero. Will you have an attitude like that the whole time?" He smiled which Eri knew as a precursor to terror. "All right. Whoever comes in last place after all eight tests will be judged to have no potential and expelled." A lie. "We are free to do what we want with our students. Welcome to U.A.'s hero course!"
Father wanted the students to have the proper motivation. Based off their displayed potential and attitudes, he could expel anywhere from all to none of them. Eri clenched her fists. She will give her all.
The smiley girl Uraraka noted how expulsion wasn't fair, so Father gave examples how hero work wasn't fair. It motivated the other students, but Eri thought about the future tests instead. She knew what her scores should approximate since she trained with her Quirk from 4:30 to 6:30 every morning. While it won't give her distinct advantage, she could use it for creating disadvantages in others.
While she could not wear her watch, she long possessed the ability to count seconds like mental metronome. By noting the exact moments where the weaker students felt the most tired during the tests, she could exhaust them before they take another one. She'd ensure herself a placement above last.
Who to target? Hagakure seemed like a good option, but the fact that the so far ditzy girl entered the hero course meant she had a high score in the practical exam. Doing so with a Quirk that made her permanently invisible, a rather harsh side effect, meant she either had extreme physical prowess or a creative mind. Not a good target.
Midoriya scored only rescue points during the practical which suggested his Quirk might not help him here. Add onto the fact that he acted somewhat reminiscent to her after her first years free from torture meant he either had a weak constitution or suffered from bullying. She planned to target him for the time being.
She will target Mineta. The boy stood only up to her hips and took that opportunity to stare in perversion. He also lusted after the other girls' busts and hips. His short stature and ugly personality meant she will ensure his downfall.
Lastly, she decided to target Kaminari. He mentioned his electric-based Quirk before class started, and he also seemed to stare at the girls too much, albeit with more tact that the dwarven pervert. His Quirk sounded unlikely to help him. The same could be said for Jiro, but Eri liked that girl's stoic personality. Maybe she too could be a… friend?
Eri shook her head. She shelved emotions and fun for later. They have a 50-meter dash to complete as their first test. What would Father say if she didn't pay attention for the class's first major display of Quirks? Additionally, her targets will be physically tired the moment the finish the sprint, so she should memorize all three of their times to use against them.
Midoriya was her first target to run, and he didn't use his Quirk. Eri nodded in satisfaction. He showed his exertion at the end of the run, so Eri started her first time for the boy to use later. Stop watches could break, but her mind won't.
Kaminari refrained from using his Quirk too, but he finished ahead of Midoriya. Mineta placed the balls on his head onto his feet and bounced the distance. Eri had no understanding exactly how that Quirk worked, but the pervert kept himself from physical exertion; therefore, she didn't bother counting up from his finish time. His continuous use of his balls also added to her mental picture as him being an unredeemable pervert.
When it was her turn to sprint, Eri sprinted like a normal person. She could've used her Quirk for a feedback loop but doing so held repercussions. She had better opportunities for Rewind, and her athleticism and long legs placed her ahead of all who ran without their Quirk and even two who did.
The class next went through a grip strength test which favored male and physically powerful students. Eri had a high grip strength since she used her hands most often for her Quirk. She placed higher than expected for the test, but a student named Momo Yaoyorozu placed third by creating a clamp. Other girls cheered for their compatriot. A Creation Quirk of that caliber was unprecedented and choosing to use it for heroics showed either naivety or a strong moral compass.
Midoriya, Kaminari, and especially Mineta struggled. She beat all three much to her amusement.
She fared on the lower side for the standing long jump, but so did Midoriya and Kaminari. Mineta used his balls as a spring which irked Eri to no end. He hadn't broken a sweat yet, so she had no use for memorizing a time for him.
It took immeasurable control to not scream in frustration when Mineta bounced from side to side during the side step test. Was his only power bouncing off balls that, for lack of a scientific explanation behind the process, magically reappear after he plucks them off his head like a never ending giving tree? Kaminari and Midoriya did worse than her. If trends continue, sabotage won't be necessary.
Uraraka impressed Eri with her ball throw. With a mere toss, it drifted towards the atmosphere due to her Zero Gravity Quirk. The girl all but cemented a score higher than Eri's self-designated adversaries with a score of Infinity. In other words, first automatically.
To the surprise of just the dimmest few in the class, Mineta bounced the provided ball off his hair balls. Since he apparently won't become physically exerted during any of these tests, Eri brainstormed other methods of crushing him, but thought of nothing that could remain hidden. Kaminari demonstrated a good natural and boosted the power with a small electrical burst.
Eri threw the ball. While the distance had the potential to impress normal high school girls, she scored the forth lowest score in this category much to her chagrin. She cursed the female's disadvantage of upper body strength and ignored that the two highest scorers shared her gender.
The last student to throw was Midoriya. As he prepared himself to throw, Iida and Bakugo argued over the boy's power. The former felt impressed by what the green-haired boy accomplished during the entrance exam. Word spread quickly about the all-time rescue point achiever. The latter believed Midoriya had no Quirk at all.
What? Is Bakugo stupid?!
However, when Midoriya threw the ball, Bakugo's prediction all but proved itself correct. The ball landed 46 meters away, though Eri focused more on Father. His eyes gave a soothing red glow, one that the girl associated with safety. Everyone else seemed terrified. It didn't help that his hair lost all sense of gravity when Father activated his Quirk. To this day, that aspect remained unsolved.
"That entrance exam was definitely not rational enough." Father's capture tape unwrapped itself from his neck and twilled around like snakes. "Even a kid like you was accepted." Midoriya won't be attending any more classes, right?
"You erased my Quirk," the boy said in fear. "Those goggles… You're Eraser Head!" The students mumbled to themselves and tried to remember her father.
"From what I can tell, you can't control your Quirk, can you?" Eri's fist clenched at his words. "Do you intend to become incapacitated again and have someone save you? How long until you kill a civilian or even a villain?"
"Th-that's not my intention!"
Father's capture tape wrapped around the boy and pulls him close. "Whatever your intention." He glared into the boy's eyes. "Uncontrolled Quirks will hurt others. Did you know over a thousand deaths occurred last year through uninhibited Quirks? Look at your classmates, Midoriya." The boy obliged. "All of them spent years of pain and sweat to achieve an above-average level of proficiency. Prove to me you can control your Quirk. Prove you can become a hero." His scarf unwrapped from the student. "I've returned your Quirk. You have two tries."
Midoriya walked back into the throwing circle, fear and turmoil apparent. Father gave an ultimatum where neither solution benefits her peer. Either he will use his power and show a lack of control, or he won't use it and thereby fail using his Quirk. Most of the students grasped the gravitas of the situation except for Mineta and Uraraka. The former seemed too preoccupied with ogling Yaoyorozu's impressive bust. The latter watched Midoriya in earnest anticipation. Did she know something others didn't?
The green-haired boy threw the ball, and it launched like a missile much akin to Bakugo's. The class gasped while Father raised an eyebrow. Midoriya faced his peers with a determined grimace and clenched his throwing-hand into a fist. His index finger looked broken… Oh, that was how he did it.
"Teacher!" His voice carried conviction. "I can still move!"
Eri sighed and decided not to target the boy. Unlike her, he appeared untrained to control his work, and despite its self-destructive nature he may yet become a hero. She decided forcing him to fail as hypocritical; nevertheless, this new situation presented an opportunity to increase her worth in the eyes of others.
"Teacher?" She raised her hand. "Requesting permission to use my Quirk on student Midoriya."
Father opened his mouth to respond but wrapped his capture tape around Bakugo instead. The delinquent determined that the best course of action was to yell at Deku and charge in an aggressive manner. For what reasons, Eri didn't know; however, she classified it under the umbrella category of "peculiar men things".
Since Bakugo seemed incredulous about how what appeared as a mere scarf restrained him, Father cleared his throat. "These are capture weapons made of carbon fiber woven together with metal fiber made of a special alloy." Eri used the same material in her undergarments. "Don't make me keep on using my Quirk over and over. I have dry eye." And with that, he deactivated his Quirk and released Bakugo. Midoriya slinked away from the explosive boy. "And you're permitted to use your Quirk to heal Midoriya."
"Eh?" said the entire class, most notably Midoriya.
Without pause, Eri strode up to her peer and tapped his right hand, though any part of his body would've sufficed. That instant, his broken and swollen finger reverted to its normal state. "I heal," she explained. The less information the others knew about her true Quirk, the better.
"I feel great! Thank you, um…" He wanted a name. Eri didn't give one.
The next two tests went by without trouble. She pared with Mina to hold the girl's feet for the sit ups and vice versa. Both girls managed to surprise the other with their abdominal prowess. To make matter even better, Mineta failed in pairing with a girl and doing more than two sit ups. It also happened to be the first time to boy exercised.
Eri finished second for the seated toe touch. Father stressed the need for strength and flexibility as a teacher, so she strove to achieve both. Only Mina beat her, and their progress spurred an idea. If they were friends, friends did things with each other. Since Mina and she were friends, it would be logical if they partook in leisurely activities. Since Mina already displayed superb physical abilities, maybe she would accept an invitation to exercise together?
Before they started the final test, the long-distance run, Eri had another question to ask from her friend. "Mina?" Eri took a deep breathe, released it, and repeated the process.
"Yup!" The girl drifted closer and closer to Eri as the tests went along. For the previous two, they were together for its entirety. "You ready! My Quirk'll be great for this, like ice skating!" Despite her jovial nature, Mina showed a creative mind with the ways she used acid, somehow secreted from her body.
"When we're done, I may require a shoulder to lean on." She breathed more, ensuring a high oxygen content in her blood.
"Oh?" she teased. A sly grin emerged. "Not much of a runner?"
Eri shook her head. "No, but the application of my Quirk for this test will prove taxing."
Mina tried to reply, but Aizawa droned a "Start", so the class took off running the three-kilometer. This was her last opportunity to effect Kaminari or Mineta, but she concluded her score shall rest above at least five other students. A few students took the lead. Iida's Quirk was suited best for running, Bakugo propelled himself with explosions, Yaoyorozu built herself a bicycle, and both Mina and Todoroki skated using acid and ice respectively.
Eri ran at a full sprint, yet she did not breathe. Instead, she counted to 6 at 60 bpm over and over. Every time she reset the measure, she used her Quirk on herself. Technically, she could decrease the number to half a second, but it taxed her even more. Even so, she had no need to breathe more oxygen, since she brought her body back to the moment the race began. It also meant her body didn't tire.
Stopping will hurt.
While a few of the students ran ahead of her on the first kilometer, she passed all besides the top five by the second. She had no need to pace herself. Why bother? She never could forgive herself if she couldn't sprint for six seconds. Neither would father. On the third kilometer, she trailed behind Mina and lapped half of the other students.
As requested, Mina stayed next to the finish line after she passed it and waited for Eri. When the tall girl finished, she strode to her friend without the feintest trace of exhaustion. She said, "Stay away from my face, else I may bleed or vomit on you." She draped her arm over Mina's shoulder. The pinkette scrunched her face in confusion.
Eri ended the six-second cycle.
Her stomach twisted, and she spat out bile. She tasted iron from her bleeding nose but hardly noticed. A jackhammer pounded her cranium, and she broke out into a cold sweat.
"The Hell?!" Mina shifted her footing to better accommodate Eri's weight. "Techer! I'm taking Eri to the nurse!"
"Denied," he deadpanned.
Mina's muscles tensed. "She's bleeding everywhere! She could be-"
His glare silenced the girl. "I am aware of her Quirk's effects if used repeatedly. Did Eri ask you for medical assistance?"
Eri spit vomit and blood onto the ground. Mina held back her own gag reflex. "That's not normal!" She pointed to the ground with her free hand. Tears, spit, bile, and blood intermingled into an unsettling but familiar smelling goo.
"As with Midoriya, if your peer can't withstand the effects of her Quirk, then she is unfit for field heroics." He turned away from the duo and focused on the race. Eri smiled at her father's tough love and gave a thumbs up as a sign of encouragement.
"Damn." Mina's tone shifts from frustration to empathy. "Can you make it to that bench? We can sit there until the others are done."
Eri nodded.
"And holy smokes, girl! I thought Midoriya had a harmful power, but-" Mina paused as Eri dry heaved. Maybe she should've waited eight seconds for every reset. Mina's disposition would have improved. "Does that only happen to you, or everyone you heal?"
Eri took a calming breath. "Just me. To simplify, I healed myself every six seconds, but the aftershock proves irritating." She hacked. "This effect does not occur when done to others." She wipes the blood and snot from her nose with her bare arm. "I'm fine now. If in a combat situation, I could have continued to fight, albeit with less efficiency."
Mina put a hand on Eri's shoulder. The girl's back eyes held a concern deeper than the ocean. "You need to take better care of yourself, else someone will hurt you on the battlefield."
"Thou hast not half that power to do me harm as I have to be hurt." Seeing Mina's confusion, the girl clarified, "It's a quote in English. To paraphrase, it'll be hard to actually hurt me, let alone kill me."
"Oi!" Even though he stood some distance away, Bakugo listened into the girl's conversation. He didn't have much to do after finishing second. "Stop quoting damned Othello! Emelia died, moron!" He crossed his arms and turned away in a huff.
"What?" Mina looked back and forth from Eri to Bakugo.
Eri spit out the remaining and unsavory bile in her mouth. "Fascinating. I didn't expect there to be another fan of Shakespeare, especially him."
"Oh!" Mina nodded quickly. "We read one of his plays in middle school, though I just read the synopsis online. He was France's best poet, right?"
Eri stared at the girl with her mouth agape. A French poet? If that's true, Father hated cats and slept ten hours a day.
She shook her head and noticed most of the finished students congregating around their teacher. Eri stood without help and walked with Mina to the others. While she has time before the slowest runners finish, Eri wanted to prove that her Quirk didn't debilitate her.
Nobody said a word until Mineta and Midoriya stumbled to the other students. As they placed last in the run, all eyes focused on their teacher. He pulled out his phone, the same device he used to track their totals. "Okay, I'll quickly tell you the results," he droned. "The total is simply the marks you got on each test. It's a waste of time to tell you verbally, so I'll just show you the results."
He held up the phone. Eri placed tenth, one behind Mina. To her glee, Mineta placed last instead of Midoriya who was one ahead. The perverted dwarf screamed in anguish and mumbled about all the breasts he won't get to touch, though he spoke in a crasser manner.
"By the way, I was lying about the expulsion." Damn it! Eri allowed herself to mentally curse due to her immense frustration. Father had the perfect opportunity to eliminate Mineta, but he elected not to. Their teacher smirked. "It was a rational deception to bring out the best in your Quirks!"
Most of the class still stood in shock. Yaoyorozu, on the other hand, put her hands on her hips and spoke, "Of course that was a lie." Her tone didn't carry arrogance. She most likely intended to be helpful, but it still gave a bad impression. "It should've been obvious if you just thought it through."
Eri raised her hand. Father nodded for her to speak. How unhappy will this make him? "Actually, you're right that Teacher lied, but you are wrong in the way he lied, classmate Yaoyorozu." The curvaceous girl raised an eyebrow. "Last year, Teacher expelled his entire class on the first day."
"How did you know this?" Yaoyorozu asked. Again, Eri decided the girl wasn't being distrustful or arrogant. She merely felt curiosity.
"I am acquainted with a third-year student. The expulsion is known to most of the school populace." No one pressed on that student's identity, though Togata wouldn't have minded more people to talk with.
"If that's all, go back to class and read the handouts on your desks. They contain information on your curriculum." Thus, their teacher left the class in one of the more peculiar ways to start a school year.
Eri grabbed Mina's arm. "Can I ask you one more favor?"
BREAK LOGIC
Aizawa rubbed his eyes after staring so long at the pile of papers scattered on the kitchen counter. On it were the students' history. Two came from hero families. One came from the thirteenth richest family in Japan. One developed his Quirk in the last year. Another lived just above the poverty level. Another lived in France. Four dealt with criminals at some point. Four. Too high a number. Four had Quirks that hurt themselves. Three had hard to control Quirks. Several students had some form of major stress or mental problems. One had been invisible for just over a decade.
Eri was also his daughter.
He sighed. After observing the students for over an hour, he could add more details and problems to each of their profiles.
He lived in the prototype for the U.A. dorms, though it served more as an excuse to have Eri live on campus. It had ten dorm rooms on the first floor with only two occupied. It had a male and a female bathroom and a communal kitchen. While the high school had plans to have dorms built for students next year, he and Eri will gladly make do with this peace and quiet.
The front door unlocked then opened. Another benefit of having a dorm to oneself was locking doors at will. "I'm home." His daughter stepped through and relocked the door.
"How was your first day?" He wore his hero costume. He would waste time by changing out of the gear after class only to reapply it for his nightly patrol.
"I made attempts to speak with the students with general success." Eri blushed; Aizawa raised his eyebrows. For the past two years, only the machinations of Ms. Joke and Midnight made that reaction. "A student made friends with me. We exercised together. She asked for my phone number, but I…" She shifted her weight onto a different foot. "I had none to give. Her name is Mina Ashido."
He smiled. Of all the students to befriend Eri, Mina may prove the best from a logical perspective. She displayed an outgoing personality. By being a mutant type, her values would lean towards accepting others due to mutant discrimination. Her low grades meant Eri had ample opportunity to held said friend. Their friendship could become very symbiotic.
"Good." He took an object out of his pocket and handed it to his daughter. "It's yours."
Eri cradled the cell phone in her hands before she said, "Thank you." Her smile reminded him of a day that passed years ago.
Eraser Head watched as the girl pressed into his side. She gripped his arm with all her feeble might. Her stomach grumbled.
"Sorry!" She tensed and closed her eyes. Aizawa's blood boiled from those implications.
In a calm voice he said, "You did nothing wrong. The Fluffy Bunny will return shorty, and he promised sandwiches." Why she decided that Nezu was a fully bunny… he had no idea, but the girl warmed to the principal within minutes. Likewise, the animal hero grew attached to her.
He leaned back into the couch to show outward relaxation. The girl needed to calm. Nezu's office had nothing scary besides numerous awards in math, science, and teaching psychology; however, the girl trusted nothing. That didn't mean she trusted no one.
She looked up at him with pleading, red eyes. "Mister Aizawa, when will you leave me?" And she needed to trust him, a firm foundation for rebuilding her life.
"Your going to be staying with me from now on, Eri." He and Nezu decided that helped her the most. He had the only Quirk that could counteract hers.
"Promise?" Her lips quivered.
Aizawa reached his hand over her head. She closed her eyes in fear. He patted her head. "Yeah, I promise." She let go of his arm and clutched his hand and forced it to stay on her head. Tears cascaded from her eyes.
Then, she smiled.
Aizawa reached his hand over her head. His daughter closed her eyes in anticipation. He patted her head.
In that moment they weren't teacher and student, savior and saved, or hero and civilian. They were father and daughter.
