Chapter 19 - Empath It Is
A/N: Hey everyone, Hemza here again, so we passed 2,000 on Fanfiction. I feel like we're running out of words to express our profound gratitude to each and every one of you for reading this fic (not typically a great sign for someone doing writing, but hey). From the moment Darian and I sat down coming up with the ideas that formed our original concept for Affinity, we knew we wanted to share our story and had always hoped it would do well, but we still find ourselves flabbergasted as our numbers keep passing different milestones. One of us is usually checking in on traffic stats for all 3 sites we post on and it usually results in incoherent caps-locked messages about how crazy all this is. Anyhow, once again and as always, thank you from the bottoms of our hearts for just checking this out, it really means so much to us and keeps us motivated to keep writing! Enjoy the extra chapter!
Emiko woke the next morning with a crick in her neck that hadn't been there yesterday and muscle soreness in places she didn't even know she had muscles. As her eyes opened, she was nearly blinded by the sun streaming through the windows, alerting her that it was early morning.
"Morning sleeping beauty," Kyouka smiled, nudging Emiko's shoulder with her slippered foot. "It's time to get up and ready. Aizawa is taking roll call in 20."
Emiko only grumbled in response, wishing she could throw her head back under the pillow holding her head up.
Ugh. If I ever thought I was a morning person… I am not.
Slowly, she stood up and stretched her arms up and over her head. The scar on her side stretched, forcing a hiss of pain from between clenched teeth. She stepped out of the futon pile in the middle of the room, slipping into an outfit that would allow for versatility in training.
She slipped out the door behind Momo, smiling softly up at her friend. Kyouka settled into step beside them, a wicked grin on her lips.
"So, Emi."
"So, Kyouka."
"Care to fill your dear friends in on where you were last night?"
Shit.
"Uhhhh. What do you mean?"
"Well, both Kyouka and I are light sleepers, and we woke up when you slipped out of our bunk last night." Momo whispered conspiratorially, wrapping her arm around Emiko's shoulders.
"Yeah, and - get this! Later, Momo got a text from none other than Mr. Fire and Ice himself, asking her to help him bring you inside!"
What the fuck?
"Uuuuuuhhhhh."
Okay, fuck. How am I getting out of this?
"Why didn't you tell us you guys were dating?!" Kyouka whisper screamed, tugging on the loose fabric of Emiko's shorts.
"First off - you're gonna pull my pants down if you don't stop that." She scowled, yanking the loose fabric out of Kyouka's grabby hands. "Second, WHAT?!"
A few of their classmates turned to stare back at the group of girls, wiggling their eyebrows suggestively.
"What on earth would make you think we're in a relationship? He and I barely speak enough to be considered friends - and sure, he's handsome and really nice and he listens when I talk about stuff, but…"
"You think he's handsome?" Momo winked, bumping their hips together. Though, since Momo was so much taller it ended up just being her hip bumping against Emiko's side.
"Literally everyone in our class thinks he is handsome, Yaoyorozu. You included! In fact, if I didn't know you both as well as I do, I'd almost assume you guys were dating!" She stepped out of her embrace, pointing a finger accusatorily at her friends.
"Shoto and I are friends, and we train together. There's no inkling of a relationship or anything romantic going on between the pair of us, and the fact that you really and honestly think I wouldn't tell you about it, just to have HIM text one of you for help?"
She squinted her eyes, "I'm quite frankly offended. As if I would ever be able to keep something like that a secret from either of you."
She almost felt guilty saying that, because she knew she was keeping much darker, heavier secrets from her friends. Secrets that she knew would break their hearts and further feed into the worry they all felt when she was training, sparring against her other classmates.
"Good Morning, everyone. I trust you all slept well." Aizawa's monotonous voice broke through the din, and Emiko turned to face him quickly, attempting to hide the yawn threatening to burst from her lungs. He gazed out over the students gathering around the large tables, noting with a soft roll of his eyes those select few who were staring down at the breakfast on offer.
"Since it looks like you're all here, I'll cut the chit chat for now. Eat your breakfast, we'll start training in an hour."
Without another word, he slipped from the room amidst cheers and laughter. She couldn't help but smile at the rising tide of joy around her. If nothing else, her classmates loved to eat. Shaking her head slightly, she slipped into a seat just beside Momo and Kyouka, glad for their presence on either side of her.
Her eyes trailed around the room slightly, ears tuned out to the noise around her. All around her, people lingered. They moved and ate and talked and laughed, none of them calling attention to her distracted staring.
"So, you're really not gonna tell us what happened last night, Emi?" Kyouka sighed, shovelling a forkful of food into her mouth.
"Nothing happened. I needed to catch my breath, and Shoto was out on a walk before bed. I promise - there's no juicy story to tell."
Though technically the truth, Emiko wished that she could tell them exactly what was going through her mind. That maybe, just maybe, Shoto was someone she trusted enough to see all of the scary, rough edges. That she cared so much about him, that every time he was around it felt like her skin was humming.
She wanted to tell everyone that he was infuriating in the most intimate way. That he'd saved her life, and now it was his. Each beat of her heart was a gift, something wrapped up in a neat little package and tucked away in some tiny cupboard in her chest, just waiting for him to unlock it. She wanted to tell them that not a single day went by where the mental image of him sitting in her kitchen listening to music with her aunt didn't invade her thoughts.
Her heart wanted to scream out that he felt like autumn and spring and everything good in the world. That he was safe and comfortable and easy, a soft place to land after an incredibly long and difficult day. That for whatever reason, Shoto was one of the few people she trusted with her life. Long before he had saved her in that dingy alley she had known it. Had known that she would follow him anywhere - into whatever battle was being fought.
But, she didn't. Instead, Emiko let out a soft sigh and shook her head.
Momo only looked at her from beneath her lashes, smirking softly.
—-
By the time they'd finished breakfast, most of her classmates were ready for a midmorning nap. They stood clustered in a group, chattering anxiously amongst themselves.
"What do you think we're going to be working on?" Kaminari whispered, his fear palpable.
"It's a fucking training camp, Dunce Face!" Katsuki hollered, "We're gonna work on making our quirks stronger!"
Emiko only laughed softly, folding her arms over her chest. The sun was hammering down, and she wanted to strip off the thin long sleeved shirt covering her arms. Perspiration already clung to the back of her neck, turning her hair into a wildly curly mess as she piled it on top of her head.
"I have formulated a training plan for each of you, today. We'll be working alongside 1B today, and some of you will be partnered with Vlad King." Aizawa droned, gesturing to the group of exhausted looking students trudging towards them. He rattled off some names, gesturing for each group of students to gather together. Some were paired up with members of the pussycats, some grouped with other classmates, and even more were gathered into groups surrounding Vlad King.
"That just leaves you, Komatsu."
She nodded her head slightly, trying to fight back the bitter feeling in her chest.
"I'm sure you're wondering why I didn't send you off with your classmates-"
"Actually, I'm not." Emiko interrupted, struggling to keep her tone polite. "It's because this is quirk training, so there isn't any point in pairing me up in a combat situation."
"I don't appreciate being interrupted, but you're right." Aizawa responded, raising an eyebrow at the interruption. " In terms of quirk training, there isn't much point in training you in combat. Though, I don't think you should never learn. I know you're skilled in hand to hand combat, Komatsu. You're probably better at it than some pros, admittedly."
The words of praise from her teacher, someone she'd looked up to for what felt like her entire life lifted the irritation, left her feeling light on her feet.
"But we have to figure out a way to better weaponize that quirk of yours, Komatsu. It's got potential, and so do you. We've just gotta work on it, okay?" He rested a hand against her shoulder lightly, turning her to face Mandalay.
"Mandalay is going to help you figure out the best way to use your quirk in combat, today. Treat her as you would treat any of your other teachers."
Without another word, Aizawa ducked his head slightly and walked towards the group of students that was anxiously awaiting him.
"Good Morning, Ms. Komatsu," Mandalay smiled brightly, bowing her head in a delicate nod. "Or would you rather I call you by your hero name? I believe it's Empath, no?"
Emiko returned the smile, following suit with a bow of her own.
"Empath or Emiko is fine, Mandalay."
"Empath it is, then."
Pride and joy swirled in her, hearing her hero name come from the mouth of someone so well respected in the community of hero work. Hearing it made it all seem a little more real - like her dream was inching ever closer to being completed.
As if, Miko. tch, silly girl. You'll never be a hero.
"Right, Empath. Care to fill me in on your quirk and what it can do?" Mandalay spoke, folding her legs underneath herself as she settled onto the hard packed dirt underfoot.
"Ah- well," she paused, following suit again and folding her legs in front of her, resting her palms face up. The sun on the still healing scars felt nice, though she didn't miss the slightest widening of Mandalay's eyes and the concern that flashed through them. "My quirk is named Sentiment."
"It allows me to feel and manipulate emotions, and -"
"Kid, I don't want the clinical rundown of your quirk. Aizawa provided that when he asked me to train you. What I want to know is how it works, how it feels, that kind of thing. The more I understand, the better we can figure out ways of helping you grow."
Emiko nodded, tucking her chin against her chest. "Sentiment is like… when I use it, it feels like I'm pulling on a thread, I guess? But the thread is being pulled from the other end, sometimes, and it can be a lot of work to gain control. Like, for example. Mineta, the small one?"
Mandalay nodded, a soft grin playing on her lips, swinging her eyes over to the student in question, who was tearing the purple balls free from the top of his head.
"His thread offers almost no resistance, because he doesn't guard his emotions, or he's just… really stupid." She tried to hide the chuckle bubbling in her chest and failed. " Katsuki, though, or Shoto - either of them are incredibly difficult to influence. They both have absolute control over their emotions and do their best to hide them from me."
She leaves out the part where she can't feel Shoto's emotions at all, out of fear that Mandalay will think he just… doesn't have any.
"I see!" Mandalay clapped her hands, gesturing for Emiko to continue.
"It's easier to use it if I'm only focused on it, too. Fighting and using it is kind of tough, but I've adapted. Um, if I focus hard enough I have a move I can use… It's called Echo Chamber."
"Oh, interesting! How does it work?"
Emiko couldn't see it from her perspective, but she was talking more animatedly than she had in weeks. Her hands were moving about excitedly, swirling around in the air as she explained the ins and outs of her quirk to Mandalay. Her hair was blown back by the breeze, revealing the blush covering her cheeks and bridge of her nose.
She looked happy - happier than anyone had ever seen her. A sight that would be treasured by those closest to her in the coming weeks, the sight of a lovely, laughing Empath.
