Bonds Chapter 2
My walk to school today was the same as yesterday. I was brimming with excitement; however, I had a bubble of doubt filling my stomach at the prospect of seeing my dad again after so long without physical contact. And like yesterday, my walk from the front entrance to the classroom was uneventful. Once in the room I sat at my desk and prepared myself for a typical high school morning.
Although we are enrolled on the hero track we were still high school students. Therefore, we still had the typical course work. Our morning was spent working through typical English and Mathematics lessons. We also had our Japanese literature class and our history course work. Our hero course work didn't begin until after lunch. We all sat with our bellies full and our bodies vibrating with excitement at the prospect of our first official Hero lesson. I sat at my desk in the middle of the class anxiously waiting for the door to open. It wasn't long until the sound of footsteps approached, and the door was quickly slid open.
"I AM HERE! COMING THROUGH THE DOOR LIKE A HERO." Tears immediately sprung to my face as I caught my first look at my dad in person for the first time in 5 years.
"Papa…" I mutter. I catch Jiro look at me confused before her focus was shifted back to All Might. The class filled with the excited chatter at being in a room with the number 1 hero. All Might grinned as he began to scan the room full of students. He glanced right over me without a reaction before he carried on his introduction. I deflated at the sight of my dad not noticing me. All Might walked to the podium with choppy steps. About halfway there he glanced back at us and then back to the podium. When he arrived he turned to look at us fully and that's when he must have noticed me. He froze, I smiled and waved.
"Emiko!?" He shouted. At his shout the rest of the room turned to look at me and All Might stuttered to cover his mistake. "What unique hair you have!" He smiled, when everyone looked back at him I rolled my eyes.
'So that's where my lame excuses come from' I think to myself with a chuckle.
"Thank you All Might! It's a combination of my mom and my dad's hair colors." I grin at the hero.
"Uh, right!" He collected himself. "Welcome to the most important class at UA High. Think of it as Heroing 101." He propped his fists on his hips as the rest of us stared in rapture. "Here you will learn the basics of being a pro. And what it means to fight in the name of good." He struck a pose and then shifted holding a card the displayed the word Battle.
"Lets get into it! Today we will pull no punches!" He finished.
"Fight training!" I heard Bakugo yell followed by Midoriya's nervous voice. "Real combat? On the first day?"
"Now, one of the keys to being a hero is….looking good." All Might pointed to a wall where shelves were moving with brief cases that had our seat numbers on them.
"These were designed for you based on your quirk registration forms that you submitted before school started. Get yourselves suited up and head to training ground beta!" He finished as he left the room. A large grin covered my face as I rushed to grab my costume case and head to the locker rooms. I was followed by the rest of my class as we all rushed in our excitement.
Seeing the suit I had drawn up completed was a special feeling. And putting it on for the first time was even more amazing. I had requested a material that was breathable and moveable. The main suit consisted of a skin-tight black body suit that had sheer long sleeves. A long half skirt extended from the back of my waist to my ankles. I had an armored waist cinch that was a deep red color that matched the high heeled block boots I had picked. I pulled my hair up into a high ponytail after the main suit was on and I looked at the last three objects in the case. A pair of thigh holsters which were stocked with medical supplies and an emergency combat kit with a collapsible bow staff, as well as a black eye mask that had fiber optic lenses that displayed the weather conditions around me. I eagerly grabbed them and turned around. The other girls were still marveling at their suits as they changed, so I rushed on ahead of them towards field beta. I didn't make it far before a large arm grabbed me and rushed down the hallway. At the quick movement and even quicker stop the bubble of doubt began to build up in me again.
I turned to look straight into the face of my dad who had an emotionless mask on his face. I started to fiddle with my hands as I waited for him to say something. He remained silent as he reached forward and pulled me into a massive hug.
"Emiko! I've missed you so much Pumpkin!" At his words I completely cracked and the bubble of doubt was replaced by an immeasurable feeling of happiness.
"Daddy!" I cried as I clung to his midsection.
"What are you doing here?" He pulls back and puts his hands on my shoulders.
"I told mom I wanted to be a hero and I wanted to see you. She let me take the entrance exam."
"But I didn't see you. During the exam."
"I got Principal Nezu to help me with a special recommendation. I wanted to surprise you." I muttered as I took off my face mask and wiped my eyes. "You're not mad are you? I know you didn't want to have much contact with us for our safety but I really wanted to see you." I looked him dead in the eye as a poof of smoke covered his body.
"D..Dad?" I stutter as the smoke begins to clear and a gaunt looking man is revealed.
"It's still me, this is just what I look like most of the time now. After the fight 5 years ago I was pretty worn out, I can still do some hero work but when I am not working I look like this. That doesn't bother you does it?" A nervous look crossed his face as I hugged him.
"It doesn't matter what you look like dad. I am just glad I get to hug you again." I smile with tears in my eyes. Even in this gaunt form my dad still stood taller than me. I chuckle as I pull back and look at his face. He still wears a nervous expression.
"What's wrong? Are you worried about what mom will think?" I ask. The look grows even worse.
"Well I wasn't before…No I…Need to tell you something." With that said I stood there staring at my dad as my eyes grew wider and wider at his explanation.
"WHAT! You transferred your quirk to another person so they could inherit the responsibility of fighting a villain called All for One? And what do you mean your power is a sacred torch that is passed down generation to generation? And who is the new successor? Why am I only finding out about this now!" I blurt as my dad takes a step back and holds his hands up trying to calm me down.
"Emiko, take a breath. I'll explain everything." He paused before taking a big breath and explaining. "I was born quirkless, my master gave me this power so I could become a hero and help people. But with the power came the responsibility of fighting All for One. The reason I separated from you and your mother was because All for One found out I had a family, he didn't know who you were but eventually he would have been able to track you down, so I cut ties with you both. I needed to keep you safe, that's also why your mother and I didn't tell you about my quirk, you knowing puts you at an even greater risk." He paused again. "Now as for the current wielder. It's young Izuku Midoriya."
"Midoriya!?" I yell.
"Shhhhh!" My dad shushed me as he looked around to make sure no one was watching.
"Is that why he has no control? He still doesn't know how to use it?" I ask in a quieter voice.
"Yes, we were kind of in a rush before school started so he didn't have a lot of time to prepare." My dad explained.
"Does he know about us?" I ask as I look at him.
"I haven't told him, although I suppose now that you guys are classmates there really is no point in keeping it a secret from him." My dad said as I watched his changing facial features.
"Anyway we can explain everything to him later. We have a class to get too. I'll go on ahead and you follow with your classmates." I watched as my dad bulked up into his hero form and turned to rush off. "Oh and Emiko." He looked over his shoulder at me. "Nice costume. Makes you look like a real hero." He smiled and then rushed away with his impressive speed. A giant grin grew across my face as I twirled in happiness. I took a moment to calm down and then I walked back down the hall and ended up meeting up with Bakugo on his walk to ground beta.
"You look like a giant grenade." I say as I match pace with him.
"You got a problem with that extra?!" He yells.
"Nope, it's fitting. With your explosive temperament." I say as I put my mask back on and focus on the walk to the training field. The rest of our class caught up as we were walking in the entrance to the training ground. Just as we were coming into the light I heard my dad's voice.
"They say the clothes make the pros young ladies and gentleman. And behold you are the proof!" He smiled as I looked at all of the different costumes my classmates were wearing.
"Take this to heart! From now on you are all hero's in training!" My dad finished as we made it completely into the light. A large grin covered my face as I looked at my dad and his giant smile.
"This is getting me all ramped up! You look so cool!" He said as my focus shifted to some approaching footsteps. I turned as I saw a person in a green jumpsuit with some familiar looking fabric tufts sticking straight up.
'Is that?' I think as Uraraka greeted him.
"Deku! Cool costume!" She smiled at him as they began a conversation.
'Could he be anymore obvious!?' I thought to myself as I made some quick comparisons between his costume and my dad's appearance. A quick look at my dad told me he thought the same thing.
"Now that you're ready. Let's begin." Before my dad can explain a tall suit of full body armor interrupted him.
"Sir, this is the fake city from our exam. Does this mean we will be conduction urban battles again?"
'Oh, it's Iida.' I thought as my dad answered.
"Not quite, I am moving you two steps ahead. Most of the villain fights you see on the news take place outside in the street however, statistically speaking. Run ins with villains of the worst sort take place in doors. For example, back room deals, home invasions, secret underground layers. The truly intelligent villains stay hidden in the shadows." He explained.
"For this training exercise, you will be split into teams. Villains and Heros. Most of the matches will be two on two with the exception of one team which will be comprised of three members due to the odd number of students." He held up two fingers on one hand. "The best kind of experience is on the job."
My dad is cut off by a series of questions.
"Sir, will you be deciding who will win?"
"How much can we hurt the other team?"
"Do we have to worry about the losers being expelled?"
"Will you be splitting us up based on chance or comparative skill?"
"Isn't this cape dazzling?"
At the barrage of questions my dad was stumped. At the look on his face I chuckled.
"I wasn't finished explaining." He mutters as surprisingly he pulls out script.
'Oh he can't be serious!' I cover my mouth to hide my pretty obvious laughter.
"Listen up. The situation is this. Villains have hidden a nuclear weapon somewhere in their hide out. The hero's must try to foil their plans. To do that, the good guys either have to capture the villains OR retrieve the nuclear bomb. Like wise, the villains succeed if they manage to protect their pay load or capture the hero's" He finished explaining and then picked up a box.
"To decide the teams you will all be drawing lots. Remember one team will have three members."
"Isn't there a better way?" Iida asked and Midoriya answered.
"Think about it. Pro's often have to team up with hero's from other agencies on the spot. So maybe that's the reason we are seeing it here." Iida with the explanation apologizes to All Might for interrupting.
"Excuse my rudeness."
"No sweat, lets draw!" My dad throws a fist in the air as we all line up to draw lots by the end of the drawing the teams were thus:
Team A: Midoriya and Uraraka
Team B: Todoroki and Shoji
Team C: Yaoyorozu, Emiko and Mineta
Team D: Bakugo and Iida
Team E: Aoyama and Ashido
Team F: Sato and Koda
Team G: Jiro and Kaminari
Team H: Tokoyami and Asui
Team I: Ojiro and Hagakure
Team J: Kirishima, and Sero
The first match was team A as the hero's VS. team D as the villain's. After an explosive battle where Midoriya was seriously injured, team A ended up victorious. We headed to a new building for the next match once Midoriya was escorted to Recovery Girl.
The second match was over in a single minute. It was team B as the hero's VS team I as the villain's. The hero's didn't even enter the building. Todoroki just froze the whole building. With that we moved to a new building for the third match.
The third match moved just as quickly with team H as the hero's VS. team J as the villain's. Although team H set some impressive traps they were quickly defeated. We then moved to a new building for the fourth match, my match.
When we got to our building my team were assigned as the villain's with the other team as the hero's.
"I think Momo should stay behind and defend the weapon." I offered as we started strategizing.
"Good idea. I can barricade the door so that it blocks one entrance."
"Good. Mineta and I will head out to confront our opponents and set traps. Mineta, you are in charge of the traps. I will handle the actual combat." With our plan set we got to work. Momo shut and barricaded the door as soon as we left and Mineta headed out to place sticky balls all over the building. Meanwhile I headed down two floors ready to engage in combat.
'Our opponents are Jiro and Kaminari. They will probably use Jiro as a scout so I should use my float ability to keep from making any noise. Kaminari uses lighting so I should keep my distance and use my wind to immobilize him.' I think to myself as I hear the buzzer to start. I wait a minute before I float myself up. It only takes a couple minutes before Kaminari rounds the corner with lighting at the ready. At his appearance I immediately force a large gust of wind at him as I land back on the ground.
"Kaminari just made it to floor 3. No sign of Jiro." I say over the comms.
"Got it, the weapon room is secure. Mineta how are you doing?"
"Uh…I got caught." We hear him say over the comms.
"WHAT?" I screech as I keep my wind at full force.
"But I caught her too!" He quickly explains.
"Well at least you aren't a total idiot." I mumble. I focus back on Kaminari
"I'm sorry Kaminari, but I took a page out of Todoroki's book." I say as I make myself float again and I flood the floor with water before I lower the temperature to freeze him in place.
'Emiko Yagi-ito, quirk: Climate Control. She has the ability to manipulate the temperature and weather within a 50 foot diameter of herself. Watch out or she may just bring forth a massive rain storm!'
With the ground froze and Kaminari stuck I quickly shot out the capture tape and I manage to wrap it around his left arm.
"Kaminari captured" I report over the comms at the same time as All Might announces our victory. I smile as I raise the heat and help warm up Kaminari.
"Sorry Kaminari." I apologize.
"It's okay" His teeth chatter as he starts to warm up. We quickly meet up with the rest of our classmates and All Might congratulates us.
"Jiro, Kaminari, your plan was solid however, you shouldn't have split up. You were both easily captured when alone, you may have stood a greater chance at victory if you had stayed together." He announced before he turned to my team.
"Mineta, Yayorozu, and Emiko. Great job at keeping the Hero's at bay. You had a great plan. Mineta you let your ridiculous obsession with girls get you caught. Work on controlling your urges. Emiko, you had a great plan. You were able to keep your distance from Kaminari and then detain him long enough to capture him while also refraining from damaging the building. Yayorozu your barricade was a thoughtful addition to the strategy. In the event that Jiro and Kaminari made it to the weapon room you could have stalled them long enough to flee. Overall both teams did well. Congratulations." He finished as we moved buildings to start the last match.
When the final match ended my dad made a quick exit to check on Midoriya. With that completed we returned to the locker rooms to change and return to our classroom for the rest of our afternoon classes. Midoriya was absent for the rest of the day. As the last bell chimed I stood and walked to the door.
"Wait! Emiko we are going to wait for Deku." Uraraka called out.
"Okay I'll be back I just need to go to the faculty lounge." I say as I make my way to the teachers lounge to see if I could find my dad. I was bummed to find out that he wasn't there and no one knew where he was. I was walking back towards the classroom and on my way I saw Bakugo walking away from campus with Midoriya chasing after him. They talked for a minute and it looked like Bakugo really wanted to hit Midoriya when my dad showed up.
'There he is.' I think as I pick up my pace to rush out to meet him. I am interrupted by Uraraka and Tsu standing by the window watching the interaction.
"Hey Emiko! You just missed Deku." Uraraka said as she turned to me.
"Yeah, it looks like I did." I mutter as I continue watching All Might and Midoriya talk. I puffed up my cheeks.
'Daaaad! I wanted to talk to you!' I whine to myself as I watch them both walk back towards the school. I sigh as us girls walk back to our classroom.
"Well, I suppose I will head out now." I say as I grab my bag and wave bye to everyone. I walk glumly home as I think about the day.
'I'm glad I got to see dad and he wasn't angry, but I wish I could have talked to him more.' I think as I open my front door and walk into the genkan. I start to take of my shoes but I am nearly knocked over at the sound of my mothers laughter.
'Mom?' I think as I pull my left shoe off and rush towards the living room. I turn the corner and see…
"Uncle Tsukauchi!" I yell as I hug my dads good friend form the police force.
"Heya kiddo! It's good to see you too, but I think you have someone else to greet." He smiles as I pull back with a confused look. I glance towards my mom only to see her sitting by a familiar blonde haired man.
"Dadddddddyyyyyyy!" I cry as I leap at him. "I wanted to talk to you before we left campus! I didn't know you were coming here!" My dad laughed as he hugged me back.
"I'm sorry. I needed to meet up with Tsukauchi so he could bring me here. I wanted to see you're mom." He smiled.
"Your dad will be staying for dinner." Mom adds as she stands to walk towards the kitchen.
"Just dinner?" I ask as a small pout crosses my face.
"Now Emiko, don't pout. It's already a risk to be here I can't risk spending too much time lest one of All for One's minions recognizes me." My dad explained. My pout shifts into a grimace.
"Fine." I mumble as my mother calls from the kitchen.
"Emiko! Go get cleaned up for dinner!"
"Okay mom!" I call back as I rush up to my room to change. Although he can't stay long a smile crosses my face at the thought of having dinner with my dad again after so long. Today turned out to be pretty amazing. While I was changing with a smile on my face and enjoying my night with my parents and uncle Tsukauchi. I was completely unaware of the danger that we would be facing in the next few days.