Lightning – My Hero Academia
Chapter 39: Got Your Back
Deku was hanging out in the commons area of the class 2-A dormitory scrolling through his phone when he unexpectedly got a call from Ako. His eyebrows furrowed oddly. Hadn't they just spoken yesterday? Was he hoping to set up that fight he wanted so badly after school? He wasn't really in the mood for that right now.
Deku sighed a little as he sat up and answered Ako's call. He put the phone up to his ear, "Hello?"
"Hey, Midoriya. I need a favor."
"Hey, Ako. Um, listen, if you're looking for that training session, right now's really not a good time. I've got some stuff going on and I need to focus." Deku turned him down politely.
"I'm not calling about that right now. I need to talk to someone in your class. You know that girl with the brown hair and the round face?" Ako asked. Deku's eyebrows furrowed. He knew exactly who Ako was talking about.
"U-Uraraka? Why do you wanna talk to her...?"
"That's her name? Uraraka? Can you find her and tell her I need to speak with her? I'm waiting outside right now." Ako requested.
"You are?" Deku turned his head and looked towards the doors.
"Yeah. Please, Midoriya, this is really important. Like actually really important." Ako insisted. Deku swallowed and nodded, glancing across the room to where Uraraka was sitting. She was in the middle of talking and laughing with her friends Ashido and Yaoyorozu.
"Okay. Just hang tight. Give me a few minutes." Deku said before hanging up.
He stood up from the couch and swallowed again. He clenched his phone tightly in his hand before walking across the common area. He walked up to where the girls were sitting and took a moment to breathe in before calling to her.
"H-Hey, Uraraka?"
"Huh? Oh hey, Deku! What's up?" She asked with a smile.
"There's someone outside that wants to talk to you. Can you come for a minute? He says that it's really important." He brought up to her.
"Oh? Yeah, okay. Who is it?" She asked as she stood up. Deku's eyes drifted to Ashido and Yaoyorozu, who were looking up at him curiously.
"Uh, follow me. I'll explain on the way." Deku gestured for her to follow him. Uraraka nodded and fell in step next to him.
"Okay. I'll be right back!" She waved to her friends before walking away with Deku, "Is something wrong?" She asked, looking up at him with a bit of a worried expression.
"I'm not sure. I guess that's something you'll have to ask Ako when you talk to him." He answered.
"Ako? Who's that?"
"He's a first-year student. He won the tournament at the sports festival this year." Deku explained briefly.
"Oh yeahhh I think Ashido mentioned him before. Why does he want to talk to me?"
"I don't know," Deku answered, looking at her. "But he's waiting right outside for you. He says it's really important." He informed her as they stopped at the front doors. Uraraka's eyebrows furrowed and she nodded.
"Gotcha. Thanks." She said before opening the door and stepping outside.
She walked out onto the front balcony of the dormitory. She looked down the walkway leading up to the steps expecting to see someone there waiting for her. But there seemed to be no one around.
"Your name is Uraraka?" Ako asked. She flinched a little and turned around quickly. Ako was leaning against the wall by the door with his arms folded and one foot against the wall.
"Y-Yeah. My name is Uraraka Ochako. You're Ako?" She asked.
"Tanaka. But Ako's my first name. That's what everyone calls me," He introduced himself, pushing off the wall and walking up to her. "Who are you?"
"I...just told you." She gave him an odd look.
"You sure that's your real name?" He asked her suspiciously, "Because last time I saw your face, it was under a different name."
"A...different name...?"
"Yeah. Himiko Toga." Ako said. As soon as he said the name, Uraraka's eyes widened.
"Oh no...she's back?"
"So you do know her then," Ako realized. "Can we walk over here? I don't wanna talk about this so close to the doors." He requested. Uraraka glanced back briefly before nodding.
"Yeah, sure," She agreed. They walked down the steps and just outside the gates of the 2-A dormitory, hanging out under the lamppost. "What happened? Did she hurt you?"
"Yeah, a little. I got a nice little cut on this cheek here." He answered, brushing his fingers over where the cut had already healed.
"You're lucky. She usually does a lot worse."
"What can you tell me about her?"
"She's a member of the League of Villains. Her quirk lets her change into anyone she wants if she drinks their blood."
"Drinks their...ohh..." Ako groaned in disgust, turning away slightly and rubbing his fingers over his lips, "She tasted my blood. Is that bad?"
"Well, from what I've seen, it really only has a temporary effect. So as long as she didn't save any, you'll be okay." She speculated.
"Okay. Okay that's good...ugh, I'm not gonna get like HIV or something, am I?" He asked.
"What? Why would you get HIV?" Uraraka asked with a confused little laugh.
"Well...she kissed me." He admitted.
"She kissed you?! Why?!" Uraraka asked in surprise.
"I-I don't know! She just came onto me! I thought she was just a fangirl or something." He answered defensively.
"You kiss a lot of girls you never met before, mister?" Uraraka asked, raising an eyebrow at him. This only furthered Ako's embarrassment, making him blush.
"Look, this is a new thing, okay? The point is I need to know how concerned I should be about her." Ako said, steering the conversation back to the matter at hand.
"I don't think you need to worry about her using your blood against you. But if she's interested in you enough to kiss you, that means she'll probably wanna find a way to see you again. This won't be the last time you see her." Uraraka warned him.
"Great..." Ako sighed.
"Yeah...why did you ask for me? Did she transform into me when you were talking to her?" She asked. Then her eyes widened again, "She didn't...kiss you while she was me, did she?" She asked awkwardly.
"What? No! No, she used your face to get away from me. I didn't know about her quirk until I saw her turn into you. That's why I asked for you." Ako explained.
"I see...Ako, have you talked to your teacher about this? Mr. Aizawa still teaches 1-A, doesn't he? I know he can help you." Uraraka suggested. However, Ako shook his head as soon as she started to bring it up.
"No, I can't do that. I need this to stay strictly between us." Ako said. Uraraka's shock was evident in her reaction.
"What? No, you gotta tell someone! She's dangerous, Ako!" She argued.
"I know that! But she's not gonna catch me off guard again. And look, I can't explain how I ran into her without getting some other stuff that I need to keep to myself. Please, Uraraka, this has to stay between us. I'm begging you." Ako pleaded with her earnestly.
Uraraka stared at Ako, pondering her options. Of course, the smartest option undoubtedly was to tell the teachers against Ako's wishes. However, there was no telling what consequences there would be for Ako if she did so. Clearly, there was more to the story that he wasn't telling her.
"Fine..." Uraraka sighed. "But you need to be very careful."
"Oh trust me, I am."
"If you see her again, let me know, okay?" She requested.
"Let you know?" Ako repeated in surprise.
"Mhmm," Uraraka nodded. "I've dealt with her a few times before. Trust me, you're gonna need help dealing with her."
"Okay...so you want my number?" He suggested.
"Yeah, that'll work. You can call me if you need me." She said. The two of them quickly exchanged phone numbers and contact information.
"Gotcha...you're really gonna help me?" Ako asked, still a little in disbelief that she was willingly offering her assistance to him despite not knowing him.
"Yeah! I got your back, Ako! Promise! But you better keep me in the loop, alright? Promise me."
"Yeah yeah, I will." Ako agreed with a nod.
"Good. I'm glad you're alright. Himiko Toga is capable of some terrible things." Uraraka commented with a shake of her head.
"Yeah, it got really close...thanks again, Uraraka. I guess I'll see ya 'round." He said, starting to walk away from her.
"Uh, y-yep. See you around, Ako." She said, waving to him as he walked away. She turned around and started making her way back to the dorm.
Ako spun his phone in circles between his thumb and forefinger. He opened it up with his thumb and took another look at Uraraka's contact information. He glanced over his shoulder, watching her go back inside. He hummed curiously to himself before sliding his phone back into his pocket and going back to his own dorm...
End of The Rebel Arc
