meiboukoushi

A/N: I have never been this productive for any fandom before. Wow– This is... amazing, actually. I'd really like to know what y'all think about this, so any bit of feedback will be greatly appreciated.

I'll be back with updates for this and some of my other fics in December. I'm doing a "Write But Don't Post" challenge for NaNoWriMo for my productivity and my mental health.

As always, thanks for reading. See you in December.

"You don't have to be a hero to help people, but what's the good in hiding that Quirk?"

You are eight years old, and the woman before you says she can make you a pro-hero.

Mild AU: The HPSC takes a teleporter under their wing.

You realize five things when you return to Sukari.

One. The sky will always change, but the ocean won't.

Sukari in spring is the same as any other season. The trees are green. The flowers are in bloom. The birds are lively. The cats are still lazy. You think it's postcard perfect, it feels surreal. After two years in the cold, concrete Tokyo, the warmer breeze of Sukari makes you shiver. It is just like you remember, like you've always wanted it to be. It's warm and it's beautiful, and as you drive up the slope towards your home by the sea… you start to cry.

"Hey, we're almost there."

Ms. Yoko strokes your hair as you sniffle and hold back a sob. You're not going to let your parents see you cry. You're not going to make them feel sad. You aren't going to make them feel that this was the wrong decision, that they were wrong, that you were wrong, that you aren't supposed to be–

The fence peeks from the green, and everything is quiet. The house comes up too. It has a new coat of paint, a bright and sunny yellow, but everything else is unchanged. There are wildflowers and patches of blooms in the grounds, and you remember what it felt like to watch the late afternoon sun as you lay on the grass.

Your grandmother is seated on the porch, in a rocking chair you haven't seen before, stroking a cat you think you've seen prowling in the grounds. The scene is strange, but not unfamiliar. You think it looks lifted from a storybook, how it looks so peaceful and beautiful and nice and warm.

Your mother comes out the door, followed by your father, and they're quick to come over and embrace you as soon as you reach them. You hug them back, just as tight and just as happy.

"We missed you, superstar."

You haven't felt this warm in a long time.

"I'm home," the words feel strange to you, "I'm... home."

"Welcome back."

You have nothing more to say, you're feeling too many things.

So you cry.

For the first time in what you think in a long time, you cry loudly, with tears and silent screams. This is the only way you know how to tell them, how to show them– No, you aren't miserable, but you were. Yes, you aren't sad now, but you were. You cry with your eyes closed, hoping you could stay here forever, in a warm place that doesn't change, in the warm place that is your home.

Later that day, you go to the sea, to the shore where you had first met Ms. Yoko. The waves lap at the shore. Seabirds fly overhead. The sand beneath you is cool and smooth. You look up at the sunset colors in the sky and the murky reflection on the water. In the distance, there are boats and faraway ships. It's lifted from your dreams, but not from your imagination.

You lie on the sand and worry little about your clothes or your hair, and close your eyes. You listen to the wind, to the waves, to the sound of Sukari. You realize that though the sky always changes, the ocean will always stay the same.

You wish you could stay here forever.

Two. Your Quick isn't called "Teleportation", it's called "Limitless".

You learn this directly from your grandfather.

"That's rule number one, kiddo."

Rather, from Blue Stream himself. It's a little jarring to see him in the costume, to see him with his hair brushed the same way Blue Stream had, to see him standing with his arms akimbo and the mask on his face. You wonder if he can still see through it. You wonder what the costume feels like, you've never seen it anywhere at home. You wonder where he's kept it, why he still has it.

"This is a momentous event!" Ms. Yoko exclaims at the sight, "Would it be alright for me to take a picture?"

You think it's surprising that it's coming from her and not from anyone else in your family. Your mother and father stand behind her, smiling warily. Your grandmother is nowhere in sight and you think you know why.

"Only for my grandkid," your grandfather replies gruffly, "not for any newspaper, understand?"

"Of course, sir!"

You don't think you've heard Ms. Yoko that excited before. You don't think you've ever seen her act like that before; was she a fan of Blue Stream? Was this one reason why she's your handler? Did she go out of her way to be assigned to you because you're Blue Stream's grandchild? Wouldn't that... Wouldn't that feel a little... bad?

"Smile, Super Star!"

But no, Ms. Yoko wouldn't do that.

Right?

The camera flash is bright, and there's a voice in your head–Ms. Yoko's–that tells you you're going to be even brighter.

"Rule number two, kiddo," Blue Stream continues, "remember that it's your Quirk, not you."

You think your grandfather is saying this on purpose. You think Ms. Yoko was perceptive enough to see how being called the legacy child made you feel. You think Ms. Yoko brought all her notes with her and gave them to your grandfather just for this. You think he's put back on his Blue Stream costume just for this, just for you.

How special, you think, you never thought you'd get to see him wear it.

"And rule number three," Blue Stream clears his throat, "always do the unexpected."

You blink, barely a second, and suddenly you're somewhere else, somewhere far– Where are you? It's dark and it's cold, but you can hear water. You can hear the waves. You can hear the wind. Where are you?

"Welcome to Blue Stream's secret hideout."

Lights come on, Blue Stream is suddenly in front of you, and maybe this is everything you had imagined a pro-hero ought to have. The hideout is a cave, obviously, customized and carved out. You wonder how this is still working, how everything is still intact, how everything looks exactly like it was lifted from those old hero shows and old comic books your father collected.

"From today, we'll be training here."

You don't know what's better, you spending time with your grandpa in this secret hideout, or you getting training directly from the Limitless Hero himself. You think it's both, because Blue Stream is your grandfather and your grandfather is Blue Stream. There's no difference. There's no distinction.

You're definitely going to be Super Star, and Super Star is going to be you.

Three. Ms. Yoko's boyfriend is–

"Ms. Yoko!"

It's a surprise revelation when you shift too fast and shift too far, testing out what Blue Stream has been teaching you the past two weeks. You decided to test it on Ms. Yoko first, she's the clearest picture in your head with her pretty face and smile. You don't shift to your mother or father, and especially not your grandmother, because you'd give them a fright.

Ms. Yoko screams at the sight of you in the guest room. She's on a video call on her tablet, but it wouldn't be a work call, because Ms. Yoko just got out of the shower and is wearing a really nice shirt–

You see Mr. Mera on the video, brushing his teeth, and– Oh.

Oh.

"Hi, Mr. Mera!"

"Hey, miracle kid," he says it like this is something normal.

"How– how did you get here?" Ms. Yoko was quick to end the call–boo.

"Targeted Shifting," you say smugly, "Blue Stream and I have been working on it for two weeks now."

"Oh, that's nice…" she says carefully, but perks up, "No, that's great! That's amazing! It's faster than we thought!"

We?

"How far can you go?"

You haven't really thought about the exact distances. You aren't really sure how far away the hideout is from your house, but you're sure it's going to take more than twenty minutes on foot, maybe ten minutes by car...

"I can go back to Blue Stream."

"Ah," she sounds so amazed, "and how fast?"

"Oh–"

Oh, you haven't timed it.

"I have to do this again."

You shift back and count.

One.

Two.

Three–

You return to Ms. Yoko.

"Four–"

"Amazing!"

Ms. Yoko is clapping and cheering the moment you do. You haven't seen or heard her this excited about you or around you before. This is something new. You're starting to think it's the weather, it's the place. Sukari is endlessly better than Tokyo. The sand is endlessly better than the snow. Everything here is warm and bright and sunny and light. You want to stay here forever.

"So, Ms. Yoko…" you start, sounding cheeky, "are you and Mr. Mera together?"

"That's–" she stammers, "That's– You– Well, that's a rude question for someone your age."

Ms. Yoko huffs. But you aren't fazed.

"Is that why you wanted us to be friends?"

She scratches the back of her head, "Well, yeah, partly. It'll be easier that way too."

She leans down to your level, "When you become a pro-hero, you're gonna need all the friends you can get. Genuine ones. Real ones. Those who won't leave you behind."

You secretly think, in the back and secret parts of your head, that she's talking about Blue Stream.

"I won't," you promise.

"So we have to catch up, kiddo," she smiles, "but given your progress, I think you'll surpass him in no time."

You hold her to that, and Ms. Yoko has never lied.

Four. This age is too early to decide what you're going to be.

In the end, you didn't stay in Sukari for two months. It was six. It was a lot longer than both you and Ms. Yoko expected, but every second of every minute of each day counted. It was worth it. If anything, you didn't want to leave. You didn't want to leave Blue Stream and his secret hideout. You didn't want to leave your mother's embrace and your father's desserts. You didn't want to leave your grandmother and her new cat, your grandfather and his boisterous laugh...

"We'll see you again, kiddo," your grandfather pats you on the head, "you know where Blue Stream's hideout is, don't you?"

You laugh. You don't think you can reach that far. Tokyo's a faraway place. Too far. You were actually surprised Blue Stream's hideout was that close to your house, but then again it was your grandfather who chose this location to build it.

"I can't shift that far, gramps."

"You never know," he chuckles, "nothing's gonna stop my grandchild."

You believe him.

"You take care in Tokyo, dear," your mother embraces you, "we'll come and visit every now and then."

Your father's packed a box of snacks and your favorite food; he tells you, "Don't eat too much junk now."

You laugh even harder. He's packed you nothing but junk food. But it feels nice. It feels loved. You smile at them and they smile back. One final hug before you wave them goodbye.

"Come back a hero, kid!" Your grandfather salutes Blue Stream's signature.

"I will!"

You strike a pose too, Kamen Baika's, and think about creating an entirely new pose just for Super Star. You start thinking of lines too.

But when you return to Tokyo in autumn, it's already cold. You're starting to miss Sukari already. Tokyo is busy, bustling, and you definitely did not miss the noise and the crowds.

The moment you reach the apartment, Ms. Yoko is off and writing reports, compiling data, creating graphs... She is more ecstatic than usual, she is more excited than usual. Normally, Ms. Yoko dreads creating reports and summarizing data. You've seen her slouched over her laptop, her eyeglasses slipping down her nose, her eyes starting to red. But you've never seen her like this, like she actually wants to make a report.

"You know what," she says suddenly, "you can order in whatever you want."

Really?

"You deserve it, Super Star."

"Whatever I want?"

"Yeah," she smiles, "absolutely anything you want, from any restaurant too."

You think that's too good to be true. You look at her with your eyes narrowed.

"You did good in Sukari, better than anyone expected," she says, hoping to get you back, "so you deserve to celebrate."

"Breakfast for dinner?" You ask, already thinking about it.

"Breakfast anytime you want." She nods.

That night, you make a feast of waffles and blueberries, milkshakes, sausages, scrambled eggs, and hashbrowns. You've always wanted to eat at American diners, no matter how heavy and how fried everything is. There's just something about the greasiness and savoriness of it all that appeals to you more than any other food in the world. But not always. Only for special occasions. Only for things that are worth sleeping with a full stomach, a heavy body, and a light head.

The next day, you're called into an office near the top floor. It's a place you haven't been to before. What is this place anyway? You enter a room, similar to the one from the first time you came here with your parents, but this room is bigger. This room is different. There are more people too. Were they the higher-ups Ms. Yoko was talking about? They're all dressed in nice suits, nicer than what Ms. Yoko wears. Maybe they are.

One of them calls you by name. A man. Old, but not as old as your grandfather. He looks… stern. Is he the head of the entire Commission? Of all these people?

He starts talking. About you. About your scores. Your results. Your relation to Blue Stream. That you're the legacy. You don't like what he's saying about you. You feel like he's disapproved.

"This is your chance," he says, "to choose what you want to become."

An astronaut— The idea is still in your head, clear and vivid as ever, but that's not what you say, because there are three folders in front of you and they all have different colors and different names.

"Read them," he says, gesturing to the folders.

The first one reads "Flash: The Lightspeed Hero." Red and yellow. The colors remind you of ketchup and mustard. You don't like the colors very much.

The second one reads "Blink: The Disappearing Hero." Black, white, and gray. You think it looks plain, it looks boring. You don't like the word "disappearing" either.

The third one reads "Starling: The Instant Hero." Green, purple, and blue. You know starlings are birds, were they trying to partner you to Hawks already? As his sidekick? You don't want that. That means it was all a waste. You don't particularly like bird motifs either.

You feel disappointed. Didn't Ms. Yoko tell them about Super Star? Or did she tell them, but they didn't like it? If you don't choose from the three, are they going to kick you out? What if you don't want any of them?

You turn to Ms. Yoko, who is looking at you expectantly. But her expression shifts, she's starting to understand.

"What's wrong, kiddo?" She whispers, "Is there anything you want to say?"

You look around the room, at all their expectant faces and gruff expressions. You look at the man who talked earlier, he's waiting for an answer.

"I…" you start, feeling embarrassed, "I want to pick my name."

Nobody answers. Nobody moves. Did you do something wrong?

The people turn to each other. You turn to Ms. Yoko. She turns to the man and nods.

"Well," he replies, a little surprised, his tone changed too, he's a little friendlier, "what name do you want?"

You turn to Ms. Yoko and she nods firmly, already knowing what you want. Your answer is simple and smart. You've known the answer all your life, maybe.

"Super Star."

Nobody asks. Nobody moves.

The man's eyes widen, he looks surprised. But then he smiles like he… likes it.

"Well," he chuckles, "welcome to the Hero Public Safety Commission, Super Star."

Five. Absolutely nothing is going to stop you.

That's right. You've got a name now, a name you decided on. Super Star is the name you created, the name you chose. It's a lot more special, a lot more personal, you think, it's going to be you and it's going to be yours alone. You feel proud of it, of yourself, and feel like showing off.

A week later, the Commission suggests that you and Hawks start training together. Does that mean you're already at his level? Or is Ms. Yoko just wanting to spend more time with her boyfriend?

You stare at her and Mr. Mera talking over a tablet.

"Super Star," Hawks tests out your name, "it sounds nice."

It makes you feel light and happy. But he's still a little too quiet, you think. Is he really that much better than you? You were never really the jealous kind, but still– His wings and red and bright and pretty, you think, but don't they look a little... small?

"Your wings look like a chicken's," you say curiously–because you are genuinely curious–"they're short, too short for your body, can you even fly?"

It's not a bad question, you think, because his wings do look a little short. From what you've seen on TV, a hawk should have a wingspan twice its body. Or was it a falcon? An eagle?

"I can," he tells you, spreading his wings.

He's getting ready to fly.

"Okay, kids," It's Ms. Yoko who calls both of you, "nothing beats friendly competition, so let's see what you've got."

She wants you two to complete this course. This is room one, and it's a room the size of rooms fourteen and sixteen, you think. It's big and it's brightly lit and it has an obstacle course you definitely haven't tried yet.

"Okay, Hawks," It's Mr. Mera who speaks now, "whenever you're ready."

And it's– It's unfair, isn't it? How easily and how quickly he completes the entire thing. He's done this before, hasn't he? He's done this multiple times and you haven't– And that's unfair, isn't it? Obviously he'd have better results and you'd fall on your face before you know it.

"Wonderful." Ms. Yoko smiles.

Hawks completes the entire course without a sweat, without any sign of difficulty, you're almost in awe. But he catches you staring at him, and he's the one who's quick to look away and hide under his wings like he's scared.

Chicken– is the first word that comes to mind. What's he afraid of? You? Well, yeah! Because, because...

"Super Star," Ms. Yoko calls you.

You look up at her and think her expression's changed, she looks stricter, "I haven't... done this before."

"Then do your best." She nods curtly.

Wha-what? Wasn't she supposed to be on your side?

"But–"

"Whenever you're ready, Super Star," she ignores you, "remember what Blue Stream taught you."

What Blue Stream taught you? There's a lot of things. Many things. About predictions and assumptions. Something about foresight. Another thing about calculating the distance. Something else about the shortest route, the one-hit KO…

Always do the unexpected.

Well, they want you to finish the course, right? And finishing the course means crossing the finish line. It won't matter what route you take or what method you use, as long as you cross that line, you will have completed the course. And that's something unexpected, right?

"Just tell us when," Ms. Yoko nudges you to start.

Your Quick isn't called "Teleportation", it's called "Limitless".

You stand on steady feet and look directly at the end block. You visualize it. You imagine it. You see it with both eyes. You see it with your closed eyes. You aim for it.

"Go–"

You shift the moment right after you say it, to the end block itself, and cross over the finish line with both feet– err, with your entire body–

"Woah!"

You don't crash into Hawks, but you crash into his wings and continue to the floor.

Well... You didn't expect you'd cross the finish line and fall on your face, all in the span of two, maybe three, seconds. You need to work on your balance.

Hawks leans down, worried and sorry, "Are you okay?"

"Super Star!" You hear Ms. Yoko yelling, "You alright?"

"Yeah," you reply right back, choosing to stand up on your own without looking at Hawks, "I'm okay, I– Sorry, Hawks."

Your apology comes out half-hearted, you think. You feel more sorry for yourself. That was embarrassing!

"No, I–" he shakes his head and his wings shake too, "I didn't see you."

So you were that fast?

"Sorry," you repeat, looking at his wings, "is that... okay?"

He nods. You watch the feathers on the platform float back into his wings. That's... cool. You haven't seen any bird that could do that before.

"Are all your feathers like that?"

"Yeah," he says, flapping his wings a little the moment the last feather was back in place, "they're not like normal birds."

You don't really get what he means by that, but the word that comes to mind is...

Wings.

Sometimes you wish you had wings too, and looking at Hawk's, it makes you feel... jealous of something you probably shouldn't be. But he looks away, shy again, or does he really not like you? Did you hurt him that bad? Then again, hawks aren't really the shy kind of birds, are they? And being this close to him and his wings, you're starting to think he isn't really a hawk, but more like a...

"Chicken Wings."

It comes out of your mouth before any other word. "Chicken", because he looks like it. He looks like he's scared of something. Like he's scared of you. Or someone else. You aren't sure. And "Wings", because... well, obviously it's because he has wings.

"I think that fits you more." You smile.

And it's not a bad thing, you think. It's more adorable than anything. It really does fit him, you think, with his bright wings and shy face. You think that'll be more fun too. If you're going to call him Chicken Wings, then he can call you...

"Super Star!" Ms. Yoko calls out, "That's cheating!"

No, it wasn't.

"Get back down here!"

You shift back just as fast.

"Pro-heroes don't cheat, Super Star," she frowns disapprovingly, "what did Blue Stream teach you?"

"Always do the unexpected," you've memorized it by heart, "and catch the enemy by surprise."

In this case, you think, Hawks is your enemy, isn't he? Your rival.

"That's–" Mr. Mera laughs, "Well, you're not wrong..."

"Still!" Ms. Yoko shakes her head, "Pro-heroes don't cheat. You have to complete the course."

"I did," you defend, "I crossed the finish line."

Well, that's what it means to complete it, right?

"Yes, but..." you can tell Ms. Yoko is trying to explain it, "that would make you no different from a villain."

Wh– What? No, you weren't–

"Just because there's an easier way, doesn't mean that's always right," she explains softly, "what if there was someone that needed rescuing? Do you just do straight for the villain?"

You shake your head.

"That's right," she smiles, "pro-heroes look at the bigger picture, they consider their surroundings before their goal. Okay?"

You look at the entire course, at all the obstacles and all the stages. You look at Hawks as he flies back down. You look at the starting line, the finish line, the distance between them.

"Okay," you reply, "sorry, Ms. Yoko."

"Hey, don't apologize!" She chuckles, "What you did was quick thinking, for special situations, but let's learn this from the ground up."

Ms. Yoko starts to walk away, and you think you're supposed to follow her.

"Go on, miracle kid," Mr. Mera smiles at you, "but remember that you weren't wrong. Sometimes it's better to subdue the villains first."

You nod before quickly following after Ms. Yoko.

"See you again, Chicken Wings!"

You give that last goodbye to Hawks, who smiles sheepishly as he waves back, and Mr. Mera, who tilts his head in uncertainty. You make a little promise to yourself, to Super Star, to Blue Stream, to everyone who has trusted, is trusting, and will trust you. You won't let them down. You will never let anyone down.