CHAPTER 13: FEISTY WARRIOR

She had looked both ways down the hallway, trying to get even a glimpse at the sender of the package. Her heart rose again. Could he have infiltrated the school grounds? He wouldn't. Would he? Part of her wanted to analyze the brown box before even touching it, but at the same time, she didn't want to give anyone the chance to witness the scene. So Momo resolved in opening her door and delicately pushing the box in with the side of her foot. It was heavy, and as she pushed it, the weight of the content wobbled. Was this a trap? Instinctively she pushed the package in and closed the door, leaving her outside her room. If it was some kind of dangerous device, it would be best to leave it inside and alone until she knew more about this.

A confused Yaoyorozu went downstairs to see if she could gather more information. It was around 9 pm, so everyone was taking the time to unwind and relax from classes and training.

"Yaomomo! Want to join the tournament?" Mina called her once the tall figure of Momo appeared in the living room. "Denki finally installed his video game console and we're having a Smash Bro's tournament," the pink-skinned girl explained. "Care to kick some digital ass?"

As appealing as it sounded, she chose to mingle around. Apparently, Bakugo was the one giving the ass-kicking.

"NONE OF Y'ALL EXTRAS CAN BEAT ME!" the muscular blond exclaimed when he bit Kaminari. "WHO'S NEXT?" Bakugo was now all riled up looking around for the next contestant. "BIRD DUDE"

"I'm done for the day, maybe next time," Tokoyami replied.

"Ts! Coward," Bakugo answered.

"I want to give it a shot!" Bakugo glanced at the one daring him to a match.

"Don't be stupid, I'll crush you round face" he menaced, looking back at the screen. The brunette sat on the floor beside him and grabbed the player 2 controller.

"I want to be the pink one!" she brushed his argument off.

"YOU SERIOUSLY THINK YOU CAN BEAT ME CHOOSING KIRBY? TAKE THIS SERIOUSLY, FLOATY" he screamed back, half annoyed, half amused. Some of their friends stood around and watched the match, others were talking and some having dinner.

Momo walked over towards Denki and Mineta. "Hey guys, did you see anyone come in today that wasn't a student?" they both denied it. So did Iida, Tsu, and Sato. Neither Tokoyami nor Todoroki seemed to have noticed anything odd this afternoon. Since all the others left out had also been at training after school, it seemed pointless to keep investigating. Maybe she was crazy, maybe someone from the dorms was giving her something back they had borrowed...or maybe someone had infiltrated in some other way. She went to the restrooms to splash some water on her face and decided to return to her room.

Once inside her alcove, Momo analyzed the place. Nothing seemed out of place. And even if someone had broken in, why bother leaving the package outside? She brushed these ideas away and gathered enough courage to open the box.

It was around 11 pm when Koji and Sato were leaving the restrooms, to find Mr. Aizawa by the kitchen, waiting for his water to boil for some tea.

"Evening Mr. Aizawa," Sato greeted his homeroom teacher, who turned on his back to face them. His tired eyes left out a glimpse of surprise.

"Isn't it late for hitting the showers?" the grown man asked. Not that he was interested in engaging in small talk, but knowing that the mountain of paperwork by his computer was waiting for him to come back from his break, stalling for some minutes couldn't hurt. Anything that could keep his mind away from his last training session would do.

"We had late night training, apparently Koji worked with some night critters," Sato answered, to which Koji confirmed by nodding excitedly. Aizawa answered with half a tired smile. His silent student then looked at someone behind him and waved his hand.

"Evening everyone," a feminine distinguished voice said behind him. His nerves were automatically put on a low flame just like his water kettle.

"What you got there, Yao?" Sato asked.

"Oh Uhm, this uhm… this is a…" Momo started nervously, she wasn't expecting to be people around the kitchen that late at night. Koji left out a weak, yet excited gasp.

"Betta Splendens!" he said pointing at what Momo was holding. She stepped into the dim kitchen lights, where everyone's vision on what she was holding was now clear. Momo's milky hands were holding a round crystal bowl which contained an elegant betta fish; all its body and flowy fins were a hypnotizing pearly white color, except for a vibrant red stain beside its right eye. The exquisite creature almost slowly danced in the water, observing the human figures in front of them.

"Rad fish! When did you get it?" Sato asked. Momo gave a glance at where Mr. Aizawa was standing, only to find a black mane hiding behind a pantry door, looking for some tea bags for his hot water.

"I uh...I bought it." she quickly replied, to which Sato raised a questioning brow.

"Nice pick! She's really happy to be with you!" Koji pointed out, binding his back to get a better glance at the animal. "She likes her new fishbowl."

"I'm glad" Momo answered relieved. "I created it but didn't know if it would be good enough." She lifted it to her eye level. The tiny fish followed her gaze and touched the glass with its forehead. "I know nothing about fish yet. Would you mind telling me later what I can do to take better care of her?" Momo asked Koji.

"Yes! I'll tell you everything you need to know." her friend replied. Aizawa raised an eyebrow too, for never had he seen Koji so conversational before.

"I came downstairs to fill the bowl with more water." she reached out to the sink, trying not to glance at her professor. Koji followed her and opened the faucet.

"Good thinking. These fishes are quite picky about their surroundings. They demand a lot from their owners."

Mr. Aizawa let out a sigh with humor and scorn. "Seems like she's going to be a handful."

Momo felt the heat creeping up her neck to her ears. "Surely I didn't pick her because of that."

"This one's quite a catch. Did you know these fish are known for their feisty tempers?" Koji added closing the faucet. Momo turned around with the fishbowl in her hands, facing the other two in the kitchen.

Mr. Aizawa quietly drank from his mug, resting his lower back on the edge of the counter.

"Really?" Momo asked no one in particular.

"Yeah! They can even be trained. Other fish often find them friendly, but make no mistake in thinking they won't fight back when the situation demands it." Koji mentioned. Momo's cheeks revealed a light rosy tone. From behind a mug, charcoal eyes were looking at her, hiding a discreet half-smile.

"I love it. It's wonderful," she answered Koji without breaking eye contact with the tall man dressed in black. A slow nod from him passed unnoticed by almost everyone.

"Try not to stay up late." Mr. Aizawa said to the three students, heading to the stairs with the warm tea in one hand, while the other one rested casually in his pocket.

"Night Mr. A," Sato answered.

"Did you know the betta fish is also known as 'Beautiful Warrior'?" Koji said, still hypnotized by the veil-like tail of Momo's new pet, but was suddenly distracted by the hollow cough of Mr. Aizawa, who seemed to have choked a little on his tea.

I hope you have a great day and that you enjoy this small chapter. Thank you as always for your reviews! Love -LB