Hello. We are back. We'll be exploring some of the other relationships and friendships in our little FBCU (Floaty Boat Cinematic Universe). Maybe that name needs some work.
First, some reviews:
Totem-Mimikyu:
Thank you. I'm also quite surprised by the lack of Nejire stories. Yojimbra does them best though. Hopefully I can have as natural an understanding of the characters as he does, one day.
ChildofWar:
Thank you, I'm very happy with my portrayal of Setsuna and Itsuka. I love their characters and personalities, but they appear so infrequently that I have just that little bit more wiggle room to write them how I want!
Samuel Okine:
I'm glad that people were into the OT3. I was paranoid that people would think it was just another harem story where all the characters do is fuck and fight. Glad to see that IzuBed was canon in the manga recently!
For those of you who have read this all the way through, we'll be addressing Izuku and Setsuna again. Izuku apologising and taking a portion of the blame for what happened wasn't me excusing what Setsuna did. It is, again, more character growth for Izuku and him learning to care for himself as much as others is the next progression.
'' = speech
' = thoughts
'' 'quote' '' = one character quoting another previous line
[][][] = little transition
{}{}{}= flashback begins/ends
Enjoy.
''That was so unbelievably corny.'' Kendo laughed as she pushed the doors to the movie theater open.
''Movies have been around for like 300 years! I'm surprised that there was any kind of originality in an action-romance flick.'' Setsuna still had popcorn leftover, and was happily gorging on it as they headed back to the station.
Her phone buzzed in her pocket and she jumped slightly. ''Itsu, mind checking that text for me?'' Setsuna thrust her hips to the right to give the taller girl easier access to her pocket.
''Passcode still the same?''
''Mhmm.''
There were a few brief seconds of silence as Itsuka typed the code in and opened the message. ''It's from Midoriya. He wants to know if you're still going to the gym with him tonight.''
''Tell him 'yes' and that 'Itsuka is coming too.''' The greenette said nonchalantly.
''Set. I usually see Tetsu on Wednesday's. You know this.''
''Well why dontcha just come to the gym with us? I know that you muscle freaks can't resist a good evening pump session.''
''P-Please don't call it that…'' Kendo sighed. ''Alright. But don't interrupt my reps. Or Tetsu's. He gets antsy.''
''No promises.''
[][][]
''Seeya, bro!'' Tetsutetsu waved Kirishima off as they split down the paths to the dorms.
Kirishima, who was in good spirits as usual, strode into the 3-A dormitories. ''Yo, Jirou?''
The punk girl turned away from Kaminari to face the shark-toothed boy.
''Mina in her room?'' He asked.
''Yup. Been there about 30 minutes.''
''Thanks!'' The redhead ran off to the girl's elevator.
Jirou looked back to Denki, who held one of her guitars in hand as he stared at a composition sheet.
''Are you struggling?'' She asked as she read the notes upside down.
''Not with the playing… just memorising the order.'' He strummed a few times, his left hand's fingers sliding up and down the strings until he inevitably hit a bum note.
''Gah! It's always that one chord!'' He deflated as his hands fell off the instrument. Jirou picked up her own and played the beginning of the song flawlessly. Denki was too jealous to be impressed.
''You're just so talented at this, Kyoka! Makes me feel like shit.'' He said with a pout as he ran his hand through his spiky golden hair.
''You started last week, dude. You're learning a harder song this time. You'll get there.''
Kaminari didn't reply; he simply played the first few chords again, concentrating extra hard.
''Why'd you want to learn an instrument anyway?'' The girl said shyly as she played with her hair.
''I like music. You love music. I love you. It's a simple system.'' He responded absent-mindedly as he plucked the strings a few more times.
Kyoko went bright red as she took in his answer. ''You know, you're way more smooth when you're not trying to be.''
''So I've heard.'' Denki said quickly as his middle finger shifted just in time to let out a perfect sound. He looked up to Jirou, who smiled warmly.
''D-Did I just get that note right?''
''Mhmm. Aced it, dumbass.'' She held a hand up for a high five, which he accepted with passion.
''Hell yeah! Now I just have to get the next…. How many do I still have to be able to play?''
''You need to learn an extra 5 chords. For the intro.'' Jirou said sternly, wanting to demonstrate just how much he'd need to work for.
''Alright.'' Was his short reply.
She was taken aback. No whining? No huffing and puffing?
''As long as you're with me, this won't ever be boring.'' He said as he played the order again, this time nailing the troublesome chord with minimal effort.
Jirou blushed heavily again. ''Touchè.''
[][][]
The elevator dinged as Eijiro stepped onto the 3rd floor. He stepped quietly; for some reason, the girl's dorm always made him feel like he needed to be secretive.
Mina's room sat at the far end. As he slowly edged towards it, Midoriya burst out from Ochako's room and their shoulders bumped.
''O-Oh, sorry, Kirishima!'' Izuku looked up from his phone.
''No worries! You and Ochako have fun at bowling?''
''Yeah! Thanks for pointing the alley out yesterday! I had no idea that Market Street even had that there!''
''Sweet, man! Me and you should go sometime! I am King of the Pins!''
''Sure, we can bring Shoji too! He can bowl in like 4 lanes at once!'' Izuku said in jest.
The two boys shared a laugh before Izuku quickly excused himself and headed for the elevator. Kirishima slinked up the hallway and raised a hand to knock on his girlfriend's door. Only for it to swing open.
''You're late, Kiri.''
''Sorry. I bought you some natto when I was out with Tetsutetsu, though.'' He reached into his messenger bag and retrieved a large jar full of the beans.
''You are forgiven!'' Mina swiped the jar out of his hand and pulled him into the room. She kicked the door shut and stood on her tiptoes to kiss him deeply. Despite his surprise, he eventually leaned down to ease her stretching. After about 20 seconds, they pulled away.
''It a special occasion or somethin'?'' He asked with a raised brow.
''Is it so hard to believe that I simply missed my boyfriend, who I love very dearly?'' Ashido said in a sickly sweet voice. Kirishima quickly studied her room.
''What did you break?'' He deadpanned.
''I, uhh, melted the edges of those weights you let me borrow.'' Mina winced.
''Oh.'' Eijiro walked past her to study the edges of the dumbbells, which lay in a slightly melted heap. ''Yeaahhhh…''
''I dropped it on my toe. I got angry. He deserved it.'' Mina grumbled.
'''He'?'' Kirishima held the dumbbell up to inspect it, only for a few drops of molten metal to splat onto the exercise mat.
''Yup. Damion the Dumbbell.'' Mina said with a goofy grin. ''Damion because it's fucking evil.''
''Pfft. Well I'll just get a single new dumbbell.'' Kirishima said sarcastically.
''You're not mad?'' Mina asked in confusion.
''You think I never dropped a weight on my foot before I could harden myself?'' He asked as he wrapped his arms around her waist.
''I bet you cried like a bitch.'' Mina rested her head against his chest. He jolted her slightly as he chuckled.
''Damn right, I did.''
Eijiro and Mina slowly shuffled in their hug until they ended up falling onto the pinkette's bed. Mina rolled over him and snuggled into his side as Kirishima turned her TV on.
''Y'know, I was thinking of starting an OnlyFans.'' She looked up at him. ''Where I melt dumbbells.''
''You really scared me for a few seconds there.''
The couple sat in content silence as they watched commercials.
''How much would you charge?''
''Ooooh. How much do you think?'' Mina grinned.
''Uhhhh… are your hands in frame when you melt stuff?'' He asked.
''Well, yeah.''
''A good few hundred yen. Weirdos that get off to hands and getting hurt will eat that up.''
''I enjoy how we've made conversation off a stupid joke.'' Mina moved his hand up to her head so he could run his fingers through her hair. "We would torture our kids with puns."
''Imagining our kids. Manly. So manly.'' Eijiro almost shed a tear imagining the fights his kids would get into.
''Imagine us as parents. We could not be trusted.'' Mina giggled.
''No! We'd be great!'' Kirishima pouted. ''I mean it. If I can love my kids as much as I love you, it'll be no sweat.''
Mina suddenly threw a leg over him and straddled him.
''M-Mina!?''
''You think you can say something that romantic to me of all people and not expect this?'' She leaned down until her warm breath tickled his ear.
''I love you too, Eiji.''
[][][]
Momo tried to ignore the light rumbling of the floor above as she exited her room. Did Mina ever tire?
She adjusted her winter coat as she stepped into the elevator. Normally, she'd never wear something so warm in the late spring time, but this was a special occasion.
The doors opened to present the common room, where Shoto watched Kaminari and Jirou play with a puzzled expression. As she caught his eye, he made his way over to her.
''You look immaculate.'' He said rather simply.
''O-oh, thank you.'' She studied his lack of layers closely. He was wearing a simple blue button up shirt with black slacks and smart footwear. ''I must say you look very nice too, Shoto.''
He smiled slightly as he offered her his arm. Yaoyorozu took it gladly and allowed him to lead her to the door.
''Enjoy the date, you two!'' Denki called after them.
''Focus, Pikachu!'' Jirou demanded, but she couldn't keep a straight face.
''Thank you both. Enjoy your lessons!'' Momo returned as they stepped outside.
The sun was low in the sky; incredibly odd for a spring evening. The couple were glad for it. If anything, it would make their time far more atmospheric.
''It's quite the night to be doing this, don't you think?'' Momo asked her fiancé.
''It is. I am honestly shocked it took us so long to even consider this.'' Todoroki said flatly.
They came to reach the U.A Memorial Pond.
''There's no one around, is there?'' Momo asked.
''Not that I can see. Any fish or animals kept in this pond?'' Shoto's right hand hovered above the surface of the water, but the light falling behind the treeline was not helpful for his eyes.
''Not this one.'' The girl squatted down next to him. ''Go ahead.''
In an instant, the body of water was frozen. Shoto stood and looked towards Momo. The ravenette rolled up her sleeve and produced an ice skate. Followed swiftly by three more.
Shoto kicked off his shoes and slipped the skates on, mentally logging just how perfect a fit they were. He gingerly stepped onto their homemade rink and turned to offer Momo a hand.
The two stood, shaking slightly.
''Have you ever skated before?'' Todoroki asked.
''Just once. I was not exactly a natural, I must say.''
The scarred boy smiled. ''Then I'll teach you. Take my hand.''
Yaoyorozu did so, allowing him to lead her along.
''The key is to keep the skate straight and to lean slightly forward.'' Shoto demonstrated. Momo did her best Michael Jackson lean in response. ''Uhh, a bit too far forward.'' He said as he pushed her upright again.
''Should I be pushing off? Or acting as if I'm walking?'' She asked.
''You can push off a few times before you get the momentum to just-'' Shoto scooted forward on the ice, using the first handful of steps to keep his movement constant. ''-stay on your feet.''
Momo gulped, her face showing her skepticism. ''O-Okay. Expect me to faceplant.''
Momo pushed off on the back foot, and slid for a few feet before pushing off again. Shoto skated alongside her, hands ahead of him just in case worse came to worse. After around 2 minutes, Momo gripped the spout at the centre of the pond's fountain to help her ease to a stop.
''I can't believe it! I did it!'' She leapt up slightly as she moved to throw her arms around her fiance, only to lose her footing and slip, sliding across the pond until she came to a stop at the very edge.
She rolled onto her back and stared up at the night sky. It was that odd time of the year where the stars could be seen, despite a slight sunny glow hovering in front of them. She could hear a scraping noise as Shoto came to a stop next to her, also on his back.
''Did you slide next to me just to be cool?'' She asked.
''No comment.'' He said, although he made no effort to hide his happy expression. Momo reached down and grabbed his hand. They both sighed in content as they looked up to the sky again.
''You were right about it being a nice night for this.'' He said as he lightly toasted her right hand with the natural fiery warmth of his left.
''Then let's get back to it; after all, I clearly need to learn how to hug people while on the rink.'' She joked.
Shoto grinned.
[][][]
''Well, at least it isn't hide and seek again.'' Ojiro laughed aloud as Tooru held up a KerPlunk box and entered his room. ''Where'd you even find a game that old anyway?''
Hagakure, despite her invisibility, had obvious tells of emotion that Ojiro, after years of dating her, could pick up on. That being said, the muffled squeaks said more than any tell could.
''Alright, you found it at another yard sale?'' He pulled the tabs of the box as she placed it onto his bed.
''Well yeah, but that's not what I'm excited about!'' The hollow woman announced.
''Oh?'' Was Mashirao's response, his interest piqued.
''Ochako and Izuku are finally, officially dating!''
''Oh.''
''That means we have to get them a gift!'' Hagakure assembled the clear plastic orb and began inserting the straws into it. ''Just like we did for the others!''
''I still think it's weird that you want that rule to stay.'' His tail pushed the box of marbles towards his partner.
''Listen; as the first official couple this class had, we have to get the guys who follow, in our lovey-dovey footsteps, gifts. Just the rules of courtship, Mashi.''
''You mean that 'you' get the gifts. I barely know the boys in our class, let alone the girls.'' Ojiro lamented.
''Well, Midoriya's easy to buy for at least. Hero merch or something geeky.'' Tooru poured the marbles into the top tray and tugged a single straw from the porous plastic. Nothing.
''Ochako likes sweets, I guess?'' Mashirao pulled a straw, the satisfying clink of a marble hitting the bottom of the pot reaching his ears. ''Maybe we could buy her a pastry maker, or something? We're moving into apartments soon, right? Might be a good present.''
''Oooh, good thinking.'' It was Tooru's turn to collect a marble this time.
''We could always get her a giftcard to that fancy crepe shop.'' He suggested.
''If the pastry maker fails, then we rush for that giftcard. We left Mina's one wayyy too late. They ran out of those limited edition leggings before she even reached the store, poor girl.'' Tooru sighed.
One straw to the right hand side slowly slipped out, followed by one on the left. Ojiro perked up. ''You… aren't cheating, are you?''
Tooru squeaked. ''N-No!''
One of the two straws slid back into the plastic. Both members of the young couple sat staring, waiting for the marbles.
''Maybe you should wear gloves when we play these games.''
[][][]
(Hi, me again. Tough subjects coming up. So if you'd rather end this chapter with more cute fluff instead, skip ahead until you see this bold text again.)
''Looks like Boy Wonder isn't quite as close to Tetsu as we thought.'' Setsuna watched Izuku and Tetsutetsu go about their respective routines.
The school gym was enormous. They had the very top range equipment and trainers, as to be expected from such a prestigious school. Luckily, with the end of the year swiftly approaching, not many people were too interested in working out so late in the evening. About halfway into their time slot, they were completely alone on the grey carpeted expanses.
Kendo's eyes darted between the pair. ''To be fair to Midoriya, he's already strong without his quirk. Can you imagine how much he could bench when he's at even 10%?''
''Hmm. It'd be scary to use that in the bedroom, huh?'' The dino girl nudged Kendo with her elbow.
''It's not as if either of us would know.'' Kendo said as she eyed her watch.
"Oh, uh, yeah. You're right." Setsuna averted her eyes. Itsuka narrowed her own.
After a few minutes of spotting, Izuku changed sets and moved to the rowing machines, which sat at the other end of the gym. With Setsuna busy with Tetsutetsu's coaching, Kendo had an opportunity.
"Hi, Midoriya." She said as she sat sideways on the seat of the rowing machine next to the one he was using.
"Hey. What's up?" Izuku briefly pivoted his head to offer a smile before needing to face the reader again.
"I was just wondering; have you and Setsuna ever… messed around?" She tried to phrase the question delicately. Izuku was easily embarrassed and she definitely didn't want to deal with that right now.
"Um, yeah… didn't she tell you why she met with me a little while ago?"
"What do you mean?" Kendo leaned forward as Izuku's speed increased rapidly.
''She didn't tell you?''
''Not a word.''
"What happened wasn't-" He paused, closing his eyes tight. "-it wasn't consensual."
Itsuka frowned, although her eyebrows suggested she felt closer to rage than sympathy.
"What did you do to her?" She seethed.
Izuku's rowing stopped as he turned to face her. He looked as hurt by that comment as he was. Kendo's eyes widened in sudden realisation.
"I'm sorry. You aren't that type of guy, Midoriya." Silence hung over them. "I'm just struggling to accept that Set would do that."
She looked up when she heard Izuku start his exercises again. He was visibly not okay.
"When she met you the other day, was that why? Was that why you hadn't spoken for so long?"
Izuku nodded in response.
"Mido- Izuku. I'm sorry she did that. I really am. I'll talk to her." Kendo made to stand up, only for Izuku to grab her wrist.
"It's fine! We spoke about it. W-We both apologised!" Izuku said frantically as he continued pulling the handle with one hand.
Kendo sat back down again. '"Both?' Izuku, what did you apologise for?"
"I didn't tell her that I didn't want to… do it with her." Izuku seemed genuinely confused as to why his apology was a bad thing. His rowing motions increased and small sparks of turquoise lightning began flickering around his arms.
"Izuku." Kendo reached out and placed a hand above one of his, to stop him from breaking the machine. "Stop that for a second. Talk to me. Please?"
Izuku's face crumpled as several emotions passed over his features. He sighed deeply and let the handle go. He spun on the seat so that he was facing her.
"If this makes you uncomfortable, then you can tell me to just let it go, okay?" Itsuka squeezed the hand that she still had a hold of.
"Okay."
"Did she initiate the sex?" Kendo asked, rubbing a thumb in circles on his palm.
"Yeah, we were just hanging out like we usually did and she… just came onto me. For no reason."
"Hmm. Did you want to do what you did?"
"I didn't want to disappoint her."
Kendo frowned. "But did you want to do it?"
"...No." He squeezed her hand. Kendo adjusted her fingers to get a better hold.
"Did she know that you didn't want to?"
Izuku shook slightly. Kendo mentally winced. That was a horrible question.
"Sorry, that might've been a bit too-"
"Yes. She had to ask me a few times to… do things."
Kendo sat up a bit straighter. "Then that's what matters. She knew and kept going. You aren't at fault, Izuku. You might not feel like a victim… or you might not want to be one… but you are."
"But, I did enjoy parts of it! Like it felt good… and stuff…" He weakly retorted.
"That doesn't matter! You didn't want to, Izuku!" Kendo exclaimed.
Yo! What's wrong!?" Tetsutetsu ran over, Setsuna trailing behind.
"Are you okay, Izuku?" Setsuna asked. Kendo glared at the greenette. And Tokage knew.
"Oh god…" Lizardy suddenly felt very light headed, falling against an elliptical.
"What's wrong?" Tetsutetsu said compassionately as he squatted in front of Kendo and Izuku. The ginger girl looked at Izuku, silently asking if he could learn too.
Izuku bit his lip. Then nodded. Kendo turned to face Tetsutetsu.
"Do you remember what you told me about your sister? With the villain?" She asked softly. The metallic boy nodded, grimacing just a touch.
Kendo raised her eyebrows in a "piece it together" type of way. The silver-haired boy opened his mouth in shock. He looked between Izuku and Setsuna, the latter of which had tears welling in her eyes as she shook like a leaf.
"Who else knows, Midoriya?" Tetsutetsu asked.
"Nejire. I-I told Nejire."
"And she did nothing!?" Kendo huffed. "She was a teacher here!"
"I t-told her just a few days before the Liberation Front attacked. A-and I asked her not to tell anyone."
"Why?" There was no anger or frustration in Tetsutetsu's voice, though Kendo knew that he would be storing it for later.
"I didn't want Setsuna to get in trouble or be arrested or something." Izuku raised his head, water pooling in the corners of his eyes.
"A-And then we won the Villain War. I… I didn't want to ruin what we'd worked for by mentioning it."
Kendo felt immense frustration. But she understood why. She understood that a secret that big coming out could ruin Izuku's image amongst his hero peers, as disgusting as that was. And Setsuna would most definitely have faced punishment, although the severity of which couldn't be certain.
"Did you accept Setsuna's apology?" Kendo asked.
"Yes. I have forgiven her… but it's not a good memory."
His two confidants allowed him to regain his composure as Setsuna walked on shaky legs to fall down next to the 3 of them.
"I-I shouldn't… I shouldn't have let you apologise, Izuku!" She cried as she formed herself into a dogeza. "I'm such a piece of shit!"
"Stop, Setsuna. You already apologised and I already forgave you." Midoriya stared sadly at her back.
The three sat as they allowed Tokage to cry uncontrollably, trying to purge herself of the guilt.
[][][]
(Alrighty. I'm trying to form this so that people can still get a hold on the story without feeling uncomfortable with the subject matter, if it effects them)
About an hour had passed. If not for the streetlights sprinkled around the schools winding paths, they'd be submerged in complete darkness.
The four walked quietly back to their dorms. Izuku walked in front of the bunch.
"You two go ahead, I'll walk Izuku back." Itsuka said. Tetsutetsu nodded before motioning to Setsuna to stay close to him.
The two pairs split where the paths branched off, with Setsuna's sniffling still audible despite the fair distance.
"I want you to be honest with me, Izuku."
"I think I've been plenty honest with you already." Izuku said, clearly tired out from both the exercise and the emotional outbursts.
"Fair. But this is still important." Kendo heard a small hum from him and proceeded.
"Do you think you can still be friends with Setsuna like you were before?"
Izuku came to a halt on the path. He spun to face her. He sighed deeply.
"No."
He pinched the bridge of his nose for a moment as he met her eyes.
"We tried hanging out a few times, just us two. She seemed happy and that she felt things were fine…"
"But you weren't." Kendo finished.
"Y-yeah. I was just uncomfortable. It's fine when there's a group. We can interact just fine. But never in private."
Kendo chewed her cheek.
"Do you think you could do me a favour?"
"Uhhh, sure?"
"Tell Ochako. And tell a teacher. It could be All Might. Maybe Midnight. Even Vlad King."
"But Setsuna-"
"Fuck Setsuna." Kendo hissed. Izuku gasped.
"I love her. She's a very important person to me. But she deserves punishment, Izuku."
"She didn't-"
"Her not speaking to you for a year is not punishment. And you know it."
Izuku breathed out. She was right. Kendo walked closer and pulled him into a hug.
"Listen. Set regrets it. That much is clear." She felt a twinge of embarrassment as she took in the scent of his freshly cut hair. 'Not now, Itsuka.' A voice in the back of her head got her back on track.
"U.A aren't monsters. She can still be a hero. They won't stop her. The public won't know. She just needs to learn that there are consequences for things like this. Real consequences."
Izuku returned the hug. "I'll tell All Might tomorrow. I'd rather this be all be fixed before we graduate."
"Good." Itsuka took a step back, already missing the warmth of his body.
"You need to learn that you are just as important as those around you." She said softly.
"I'm a hero. We make sacrifices."
Itsuka scoffed. "You'd sacrifice portions of your sanity and your own life with that mindset."
"Would you not sacrifice yourself for your friends?" He asked, already knowing the answer.
"Don't try to be smart. That's entirely different from breaking every bone in your body to save a stranger. Or maybe you just don't trust other heroes enough to rely on them." She said, throwing an equal amount right back at him.
He tutted.
"Imagine it this way, Izuku. You could die making a stupid sacrifice today and there could be no one to save hundreds of people tomorrow."
The greenette's face fell. "That's not fair."
Itsuka smiled sadly. "It isn't. But you seemingly wanting to die by trying too hard isn't fair on you."
''I'm done here.'' Izuku growled. It was maybe the first time she'd seen him angry. The next Number One turned on his heels and continued the walk to the dorm.
She hesitated, her lip quivering as she built up the courage to call after him.
''You had best hope that Ochako and Nejire would be fine if you died so young.'' Izuku stopped dead. Kendo gulped.
''L-look, you're strong, Izuku. And y-you have plenty of experience as a hero. You hardly ever get yourself hurt anymore. But you have a bleeding heart. And you'll be Number 1. You'll have so many powerful villains find you. You can't have a bleeding heart when that happens. It'll get you killed.''
He didn't look back to face her. He didn't respond. He simply continued to the dorms, leaving Itsuka alone in the dark of the U.A campus.
[][][]
Ochako looked up at him as he entered the dorms. ''Izuku, are you okay? You were gone a lot longer than usual.'' She leapt off the couch and strode over, cupping his cheek.
''You've been crying.'' Her face warped with concern.
''Oh, uh, I dropped a super heavy dumbbell on my foot. Turns out I am nowhere near Tetsutetsu's capacity yet.'' He laughed dryly.
Ochako clearly didn't believe him, but chose to let it go. ''Okay, should we head up to my room tonight?'' She asked. ''Gives us a chance to go over the party prep earlier tomorrow morning.''
He nodded, allowing her to wrap herself around his arm and drag him towards the elevator.
An hour and a half later and Ochako had fallen asleep. Izuku could sense that he wouldn't sleep a wink. As soon as he felt Uraraka's weight shift off of him when she rolled over, he sat up and shuffled to the edge of the bed. He cradled his head in his hands.
As he pulled his head up again, he felt the tears fall down his cheeks. At some point, his occasional light sniffles must have woken Uraraka up.
''I-Izuku?'' She placed a hand on his shoulder. ''What's wrong?''
He turned to face her, the soft moonlight that crept through the window causing his tears to glisten in the low light. ''I need to tell you something.''
Ochako lifted her hand off and placed it over his. ''Sure. It must be important, hmm?''
He stared at her- or rather past her. His eyes were vacant despite the strain they were under.
''I… I'm scared, Ochako.''
''Of what?'' She whispered to him.
''I'm afraid that you'll hate me if I tell you.'' He buckled slightly, the tears getting stronger and wider.
''Oh, Izuku…'' Ochako threw her arms around him. ''What could you possibly do to make me hate you?''
Izuku couldn't bring himself to raise his arms and wrap them around her in kind. He simply gazed emptily out the window. His lips pursed. And a weight he had held on his shoulders for so long was finally lifted.
Hi. I would appreciate taking a touch more of your time just to read these next few words.
It wasn't until a good friend of mine (Thank you, Mo.) read that exchange in Chapter 8 and told me what he thought that I realised how poorly I had written and shown Izuku's trauma.
Izuku's apology to Setsuna being self-hatred and social awkwardness was supposed to be obvious.
I made it look like victim-blaming. And if I offended anyone or dredged up any awful or traumatic memories with that, I apologise. I wanted to address a serious issue, one that so many people in anime fandoms ignore if it's a part of their series. MHA isn't one of these (despite some parts of MHA Twitter being hideous cesspools where it is sometimes discussed) and I'm glad for that.
Rape, whether the victim is male or female, is horrific. It is one of the worst things a human being can do. And yet so many anime and manga almost fetishise it. Look at Redo of Healer, for example.
Berserk is one of the few manga that actually shows sexual assault for what it is and that it has consequences. Extreme consequences, yes. But consequences nonetheless.
The smut between Izuku and Setsuna in Chapter 7 wasn't supposed to be hot or happy. It was supposed to be awkward and uncomfortable. Many people told me it was, which means I succeeded in demonstrating just how bad sexual assault is, even in an entirely fictional and quite tame example.
For people wondering or annoyed that this is a recurring plot, I'm sorry. I didn't plan on writing this as in depth as this. I fucked up and had to fix it.
I will be referring to this is the future, though not too much. Setsuna will still be in the story, as I have always planned. I do love writing her dialogue and interactions. She will not change too much, but her punishment will alter her slightly. You will see said punishment soon.
The next chapters will be far more upbeat, just like the start of this chapter was. I did warn you all that this would not always be a fun, happy-go-lucky story. I try to keep it that middle ground, tho.
Right. I will see you all later. Goodbye! Leave a review if you'd like!