My Mistborn Academia
By ReaderWarrior
I do not own Mistborn or MHA.
Rage You Darn Students!
Beta'd by: [N/A - All mistakes are my own]
As always, please comment! It honestly makes my day to read your thoughts and opinions.
Reviews:
Miranda - Thank you for your kind words. I struggle with that the most, so your compliment really helps with my self-trust.
Dragonrider314 - I'm glad you like them! Characterization is my most difficult… skill. Aizawa already feels for Vin, as he does for all his students, but even All Might commented about his liking of the Mistborn. Please don't worry about offering ideas as even if I decide against them, they do give me other ideas I might use in the future.
For the first time in a long time, Vin felt comfortable.
It wasn't that she wasn't living in comfort these last few weeks, but this strange new world was just too… off-putting to her liking. The technology, the society, and most definitely the people were all completely different from what she was used to. Especially the people.
However, she did what she could. She focused on training herself and was grateful for the school's allowance in their exercising areas as well as whatever tools she would need to focus on her Allomancy.
But this puts all the others to shame.
As she stepped into the street of Ground Beta, Vin felt her hero outfit fall around her shoulders as she tossed it on. Unlike her classmates, Vin's container only held a few items. She scoffed at Iida who began donning what appeared to be a suit of armor while she attached a belt which was specifically designed to hold vials of metals and metal discs she could use for steel-pushing and iron-pulling.
Vin also chuckled at Todoroki. His costume consisted of icicles covering up the right side of his body. The costume wrapped around his entire body, but the left side was completely untouched.
As she watched, Vin also slid a vest around her bosom, wherein hid different daggers she could use. On the back of the black fabric, was an embroidered blue and gold symbol of a scroll and a spear; the crest of Keep Venture. Elend's crest.
My crest.
The last item in her case was the largest and what she was most looking forward to when she had initially asked about her outfit. Vin reached in and tenderly rubbed the fabric, feeling the cool cloth in her hands.
"You okay?" Hagakure asked, placing a hand on Vin's shoulder. The Mistborn jumped slightly but made no move to remove it. "Everyone's heading out."
Vin nodded and whispered a reply. "Yes. I just… I never thought I would be here." Without him. Or anyone.
Hagakure smiled. "Me neither. But being a hero is your dream, right? So let's be heroes!"
No it's not, Vin thought as she gripped the cloth. This isn't my dream. He was my dream.
But I guess this will have to do.
"Fine," Vin commented as she turned to follow her friend.
Thankfully, no one could see her blush, Hagakure felt… well, naked in her hero outfit. She was used to it, however, but that didn't mean she didn't feel any less exposed. Especially since all she was wearing was a pair of blue boots and gloves. That probably didn't help.
But she was more worried about Vin than anything, something she was now growing used to in the limited time she had known her. After getting her hero costume, the strange girl's attitude dipped greatly.
Especially when she got her cape-thing.
The doors to Ground Beta opened quickly when all the members of Class 1-A finished changing into their costumes. As the gates opened, revealing the city-scape of the zone, They all stepped forward towards All Might.
The number one Hero turned with a large smile, facing the class members as they presented themselves. To her left, Vin tossed the article of clothing around her shoulders.
From top to bottom, it appeared to be a simple cloak. It consisted of a grey garment with a simple hood. However, as one looked further down, it became more interesting and unique. The cape was consistent with dozens, if not hundreds, of strips of differently-shaded grey strands. All of which fell around her feet unevenly.
"Amazing!" All Might declared with a loud booming voice. "You all look swell!"
The class of students quickly dissolves into chit-chatter as they all begin to compliment each other's costumes. Momo joined Vin and Hagakure while Midoriya was talking with Uraraka and Iida.
"I love your cape!" Hagakure complimented Vin as she seemed to sink into it. The girl nodded in thanks before looking at Momo and blushing softly.
"Isn't that a little scandalous?" Vin asked.
Momo shook her head. "A lot of Pro-Heroes have outfits which show a lot of their figures. In her early days, the R-Rated Hero, Midnight, barely hid any skin at all." However, she does blush slightly and shifts her weight to her other leg. "But.. is it too much?"
Waving her arms, Hagakure is the first to respond. "No! You look very cute in your costume!" Momo gives a small sigh of relief. "At least you aren't almost completely naked."
"You're naked?" Vin askes with a frown, a small blush begins to form around her cheeks.
"Who's naked?!" Iida interjects, his arm cutting the air between the two groups of three. "According to the U.A dress code: section 14, subsection Delta, and paragraph 16, students are not allowed to show any skin past the elbows, knees, or neck!"
"I d-d-d-don't think that applies to our hero unif-f-f-forms," Midoriya stutters behind him.
Hagakure smiles at the boy. He's like a puppy! she thinks. "Actually, that only applies to our school uniforms, not our hero ones."
"I see!" Iida answers. "I shall have to recheck the handbook in case there are other items of understanding I have missed."
Uraraka quickly jumps between them and Iida. "Sorry, we're all a little excited for our first Hero class."
"Why?" Vin asks.
The pink-cheeked girl turns towards Vin, as does everyone else. "What do you mean?"
"Why are you excited?"
Frowning, Uraraka answers saying, "because we're taking our first steps to be heroes. Who wouldn't be excited?"
"A-a-also," Midoriya stutters, "All Might is here."
Vin gives him a quick glance. "Is that why your costume looks like that?"
"W-w-w-w-w-what do you mean?"
Pointing to his mask and bodysuit, Vin points at the two small appendages poking out from the top of his head. "Your ears look like his," she barely holds back a snarl, "hair. And your mask looks like that stupid grin of his."
Now that she mentions it, he does kinda look like a scrawny green- Wait.
"Stupid!?" The five members of class 1-A all shout (yes, even Iida and Momo).
"His smile is a symbol!" Hagakure exclaims. "It provides hope for all who see it!"
Midoriya nods frantically. "He's saved hundreds of people with that smile! He has no fear! He's a hero!"
"It's fake. That's all it is," Vin responds. "Just another fake smile proclaiming to help."
Before Vin could be berated further for her comments bordering upon heresy, All Might clapped his hands and drew everyone's attention to himself.
"Alright, everyone! Now it's time for the combat training!"
Everyone quickly gathered around the number one Hero, standing in the middle of a street between two buildings. In front of All Might were three boxes, one labeled 'Villains' while the other was labeled 'Heroes', with the last being unmarked.
"Sir!" Iida begins, raising one of his hands. "This is the same battle center we used in the entrance exam. Are we going to be taking part in Urban Battles again?
All Might gives a loud laugh. "No!" He declares as he raises two fingers. "We're going to move forward two steps with an indoor battle trial!"
Two steps away from what? Vin thought.
"Most of the time," All Might explains, "fighting villains takes place outside. But if you look at the total numbers, atrocious villains statistically appear indoors at a higher rate. Imprisonment, house arrest, background deals, the black market- In this society filled with heroes, truly intelligent villains lurk within the shadows!
"For this test, you all will be split into teams of two, heroes and villains, and take part in 2-on-2 indoor battles!"
On the opposite end of the line, Vin notices Tsuyu tilt her head out of the corner of her eye and raise a finger to her mouth. "Without basic training, ribbit?" she asks.
"This is basic training!" He answers with a raised fist. "However, this time there will not be robots to destroy. Instead, you shall spar with each other in a truly heroic scenario!"
Momo raises her hand. "How will wins and losses be determined or scored?"
"Can I just blow them away?" Bakugou mumbles, his face shrouded in darkness.
"Will we be allowed to pick our teammates?" Vin asks. "Or, at least, our opponents?"
Uraraka grips her hands in worry. "Will the punishment for losing be an expulsion like Mr. Aizawa's class?"
"How shall we be split up?" Iida inquires with a half-raised hand.
"Doesn't this cape sparkle like moi?"
Eye-twitching and fist clenched, All Might exclaims, "I will answer all of your questions if you give me a moment!" When everyone calms down, the number one Hero coughs into his fist and pulls out a small booklet. "Ahem!"
A script? Really?
"The situation is that the 'Villains' have hidden a nuclear bomb or weapon located within their secret lair. The 'Heroes' must stop them and their nefarious scheme, disposing of the bomb any way they can think. They must either capture the villains or take back the weapon within an allotted time. Meanwhile, their opponents must protect the device for the whole time or catch the heroes."
The Pro-Hero holds up a small roll of tape. "This is capture tape. All the 'Heroes' need to do is wrap this around the 'Villains' arm or leg (or vice versa) to signify they are out of the test. The time limit is 15 minutes. If the 'Heroes' cannot capture all of the 'Villains' or the bomb within the allotted time, they lose."
Sero scratches the back of his helmet. "Sounds very American."
Ignoring him, All Might grabs the unmarked box and holds it out in front of him. "Teams will first be determined by drawing lots! Then we shall have a lottery to determine opponents."
"They're being decided so half-haphazardly?" Iida asked.
Surprisingly, Midoriya answers first. "Pro-Heroes are often forced to create makeshift teams with other Heroes they may not know so well, or from other agencies. Maybe that's why?"
"I see," Iida mutters. "They are already teaching us such senior skills." He quickly bows to All Might. "I apologize for my rudeness!"
All Might twirls around and raises a fist into the air. "It's fine!" he declares. "Let's do this!"
One by one, the twenty members of class 1-A all reach into the box and pull out a slip of paper. Some of the members were excited, while others felt they had less-than-satisfactory luck.
Team A - Midoriya and Uraraka
Team B - Todoroki and Shoji
Team C - Vin and Momo
Team D - Bakugou and Iida
Team E - Ashido and Aoyama
Team F - Koda and Sato
Team G - Jiro and Kaminari
Team H - Asui and Tokoyami
Team I - Hagakura and Ojiro
Team J - Kirishima and Sero
"Wow!" Uraraka exclaims. "It must be fate! I'm counting on you!" In response, all Midoriya could do was look down. Even with his face covered, it was obvious to Vin he was blushing.
Bakugou, on the other hand, had his hands raised towards his partner. "If you get in my way," he scowled, "I'll blast ya till all that's left are your glasses!"
"I do not think that is the best way to communicate with your fellow classmate or partner," Iida scolds. However, he does seem to take a slight step back.
Vin was thankful for a familiar face, especially one whose Quirk was the most useful for her Allomancy. Also, a part of her thinks, it allows me to watch Midoriya's Quirk from afar. I can find out more about it.
Momo seemed reluctant, though. Unlike earlier that day, or even moments ago, she kept avoiding Vin's gaze and seemed to watch her out of the corner of her eye.
More of the students began to get acquainted with their new partners for the next few moments as All Might wheeled over the remaining two boxes. He quickly reaches into each of them at the same time before pulling out the first two team numbers.
"The first two teams are…" With a flourish Vin recognized from the most idiotic scammers from Luthadel, All Might swung his hands into the air and raised two lettered balls. "A for the 'Heroes' and D for the 'Villains'!"
The jaws of Bakugou and Midoriya fell open. However, the blonde pyro's shocked expression quickly formed into a dark, evil smirk. Midoriya's, on the other hand, was one of true fear.
Something inside of Vin made her want to protect him.
"Everyone else," All Might declared, "will follow me as we head into the monitoring building. Teams A and D, please head inside and wait for further instructions."
"Yessir!" The class acknowledged as they began to follow the Hero, minus Midoriya and Bakugou. Vin looked back and watched as Bakugou glared at Midoriya, whose hand shook in obvious fear.
Feeling sympathetic, Vin reached inside of herself and began to burn brass. Stoking the flame within her, she mentally reached across to the green-haired boy and soothed his anxieties and fears. Then, to top it off, she burned zinc and rioted his determination.
Then a bit of his anger.
With a defiant glare, Midoriya turned to Bakugo. The latter's eyes widened in shock, earning a small grin from Vin.
Battle 1 - Team A vs Team D
Inside the surveillance room, where a large screen covered the furthermost wall, live feeds displayed footage of teams A and B inside the fight zone. All Might grabbed a small microphone off of the counter in front of him and tapped it.
"Yes, students! It is I, All Might on the speakers!" On the field, he noticed Ms. Uraraka and young Midoriya clutching their ears out front at the entrance. "Sorry. Ahem, now, the 'Villains' have had five minutes to prepare the stage, allowing them to set up their plans. The 'Heroes' may now begin!"
With a press of a button, the sound of an air horn blares around them, announcing the beginning of the match. "Now," he declares, "let us start the indoor person-to-person combat training!"
Vin's eyes squint as she watches Midoriya and Uraraka circle the building before entering the building through a window.
Smart, she thinks, however, it would have been smarter to enter at a higher level.
"Take notes," All Might whispers to the students in the room, turning away from the microphone. "Use this time to create your own strategies. I shall grade you all strictly." He then presses a device into his ear before turning back to the screens.
On them, the 'Heroes' make their way deeper into the building. At corners, they would stop and peer down them, keeping close to the edges.
"So who are we betting on?" A voice whispers. Kaminari.
Sero whispers back, saying, "dude, I'm pretty sure Bakugou is going to blast them to pieces."
"Sero!" Ashido scolds with a hiss. "That's rude!"
"Then you think the 'Heroes' are going to win?" He counters.
"Uh, no. But I think Uraraka might trick them up."
Vin frowns. They've completely discounted Midoriya. They have already forgotten how powerful his Quirk was.
"Oh no!" Hagakure exclaims, one of her gloves pointing at a screen. "Look out!"
Midoriya and Uraraka have barely any time to react as Bakugou blasts his way around the corner they are walking towards. He raises one of his hands and turns towards Midoriya, his hand sparking, and lets out a loud howl. Reacting quickly, the green-haired boy grabs Uraraka's shoulders and pushes her out of the way. As they do, Bakugou smashes into the wall, sending a plume of smoke and rubble everywhere.
With the smoke still clearing, Midoriya leaps back to his feet, but with half of his mask gone. Most likely burned away from Bakugou's attack. The boy rises to his feet as the 'Villian' swipes his hand through the smoke, dissipating it.
"An ambush from the start!" All Might exclaims
Kirishima smashes his hands together. "Bakugou!" he grumbles, "that's cheating! Not manly at all!"
Being honorable has nothing to do with battle, Vin thinks. If your enemies won't show mercy, you should respond in kind.
Pulling out a clipboard and writing tool, All might remarks saying, "a surprise attack is a strategy. They are in the middle of a real battle now."
"But Midoriya avoided it!" Ashido compliments.
Sero's eyes slant beneath his helmet. "Weren't you just saying he was a goner a minute ago?" he mumbles.
Midoriya comments upon something as Bakugou leaps back towards him. Raising his left arm, Bakugou prepares to summon an explosion. However, the green-suited 'hero' dashes forward just as quickly. Midoriya grabs Bakugou's outstretched arm and gauntlet and pivots on his heel before pulling Bakugou over his shoulder, slamming him into the ground.
He read his moves?!
Vin's shock is echoed by the rest of the class, who all watch as Bakugou is knocked onto his back, spit flying out of his open mouth.
Satou's jaw drops. "Holy-"
"Shit," Kaminari finishes.
Yelling something unheard to the viewers, Midoriya rises from his attack and pulls himself into a fighting stance. While his eyes do begin to water, a look of resolve sparks within them on the feed. Hesitantly, Vin steps towards the wall closest to the exercise building and leans against it, placing her ear to it. Then, she burns tin for the first time in a while, thankful the only light in the room was from the screens.
Already, it grew to a harsh degree, causing Vin to squint her eyes. The breaths of her classmates becAme loud, even All Might's note-taking scribbling echoes as if someone were scratching the inside of her ear. But she was able to hear Midoriya's voice as she focused.
"You always lead with a big right swing," Midoriya's voice whispers. "I've seen you do it so many times. I wrote an analysis on all of the heroes I thought were amazing in my notebook. The same notebook you blew up and threw away! I'm not going to be the 'Deku' that is 'useless'! My 'Deku' means 'you can do it'!"
Vin's eyes go wide. How long? She thought. How long has he been persecuted? How long has this koloss been abusing him?
How long would I have not noticed it?
"Deku…," Bakugou snarls as he rises, "how dare you? Why are you standing there?! This is what I hate about you! You piss me off!" Small explosives pop in his hands as he glares daggers at Midoriya.
Suddenly, he placed one of his gloved hands to his ears. A moment passes before he growls and pulls a device out of his ear and smashes it underfoot with a growl. "Damn Four-eyes."
On the cameras, they could see Iida's armored form shaking in anger.
"What was that?" Jiro asked, pointing at the pile of broken pieces. Vin winced, her voice booming thanks to her highly sensitive hearing. As All Might answered, she snuffed the tin in hopes to keep herself from having any damage from his boisterous voice.
"The occupants of this trial are all given a pair of wireless communication devices," he explains, pointing to one in his own ear. "You can bring that plus the floor plan of the building."
Ojiro frowns. "But the 'Heroes' don't know where the bomb is, right?"
"Yes."
"Then aren't they at a disadvantage then?"
All Might turns to his students and offers a broad smile. "Heroes should be able to turn the tables on whatever predicaments they shall find themselves in."
It's not like someone is just going to publicly state where the weapon will be located if they actually plan to use it. Vin thinks. Unless it's a trap.
"Ah!" Aoyama gasps loudly. "Monsieur Bakugou is on the move!"
Everyone turns back to the screens in time to see Bakugou launch himself forward. His Quirk pushing himself forward. Midoriya lets out a yell before raising his arms in a block. Luckily, Bakugou's kick lands directly where Midoriya expected it to, resulting in the green-hooded boy beginning to wrap the capture tape around Bakugou's leg.
As Uraraka runs away, Bakugou raises his right hand and reaches for Midoriya's head. Again, almost as if he was burning atium, Midoriya predicts this and ducks before running to the side. Bakugou's attack explodes the area of the wall where Midoriya was once standing, leaving him empty-handed once again.
"Most impressive," Tokoyami applauds.
"And he's not even using his Quirk," Sero adds. "Even while going toe-to-toe with the guy who finished first in the entrance again!"
Once again, Vin is reminded of Midoriya's Quirk or lack of one as it seems to be. From what I can tell, Quirk's are similar to a limb. It grows with its user. Why is it Midoriya's destroys his body?
And what is One for All?
Midoriya slowly stands back up, his breath ragged as Bakugou once again clears away the smoke with the swipe of his hand. As soon as he has a clear target, the violent teen crouches and puts his hands behind his back.
He's going to rush again.
Having the same thought, Midoriya dashed down one of the hallways. As he flees, Bakugou screams something loudly before running after him. The two quickly begin to traverse the maze-like interior, with Midoriya quickly losing his opponent.
Vin once again burns tin as Bakugou continues to yell in the center of a crossroads.
"You've got a new flashy Quirk there, don't you?!" Bakugou yells, causing Vin to frown at his words. "Try and get me with it! It won't do shit, 'cause I'm better than you!" Sparks fizzle into being in his hands as he charges at a door, knocking it down with an explosion.
"Hey," a voice booms in Vin's ear. Hagakure's. Keeping herself from flinching, Vin extinguishes tin and turns to her invisible friend. "What do you think is going on?"
"He's completely forgetting the goal and is only focusing on Midoriya," Vin analyzes. Use this, she mentally offers towards him.
Hagakure nods, or at least Vin thinks she does, and places one of her hands on her chin. "Ah ok. So all Midoriya has to do is set a trap, right?"
"Yes."
Back on the screens, Midoriya crouches around a corner while Bakugou continues to knock down doors. Iida is still guarding the bomb, tapping his finger in irritation, while Uraraka is slowly making her way towards its location. In fact, she was peering around the corner and was already watching the target.
Iida suddenly turns. Out of the corner of his eye, Vin guesses, he must have noticed her pink helmet. Uraraka takes a hesitant step back as Iida points at her before waving his hands at the floor.
"What's he doing?" Hagakure asks.
Studying the screen, as well as the others displaying the same floor, Vin says, "he got rid of anything Uraraka could use her Quirk on."
"Smart," Momo compliments. "And with his Quirk, he will have the upper hand."
"But Midoriya is directly below them. If Midoriya can cause the floor's structural integrity to collapse, he can leave an opening for Uraraka to surprise Iida." Vin points at the map to the side depicting the player's locations.
Hagakure nods before stifling a shriek. "He's found him!"
Midoriya jumps from his corner, holding the capture tape in his hands, as Bakugou steps up behind him. One of his gauntlets pulses red for a moment as he raises it, commenting something to the boy.
Burning tin, she hears him ask, "why won't you use your Quirk? Are you trying to say you can beat me without even having to use it?" A dark grin breaks out on Bakugou's face. "Are you underestimating me, Deku?"
"I'm not scared of you anymore!" Midoriya yells back. His body shakes as he pulls taunt the tape in his hands.
Bakugou's smile twitches, falling into a scowl before returning to his normal wolfish grin. "With all your stalking," he begins, "you probably can guess what these are, huh? My Quirk, Explosion, let's me secrete nitroglycerin-like sweat from the palms of my hands and make it explode." He then grabs one of his gauntlet's attachments and pulls it back, revealing a pin. "If they made this the way I told them to, then these gauntlets will store the nitroglycerin in them and-"
Vin didn't hear the rest. She snuffed tin and flared pewter. Without taking time to pause and explain, she dashed for the door.
"Don't tell me," she hears All Might mumble in shock under his breath before reaching to grab the microphone. "Young Bakugou, STOP! Are you trying to kill him?!"
Slamming through the door, Vin makes a mad dash for the closest window. She drops a small metallic disk from her belt to the ground and steel-pushes off of it, launching herself forward.
Faster! She thinks. Faster!
Reaching for one of her knives, she flares steel and iron, grabbing onto the blue lines and heaves herself into the air. With a twirl of her cloak, she tosses her daggers into the exercise building's window. Glass shatters around her as she flies through the frame. Thankfully, the flooring was made entirely of metal sheeting, probably to keep damage to a minimum. With grace she normally only reserved for balls and other social gatherings, she steel-pushed and iron-pulled her way through the corridors.
Zane did this, Vin remembered, using both steel and iron to Push and Pull at the same time, creating the mirage of flight or levitation. Now, with tin, she hears the sound of Bakugou's rough gloves scraping against the smooth pin in his armor. Left!
An orangish-red light begins to spark in front of her as she turns the last corner, stopping right behind Midoriya who raised his arms to block.
"-DIE!" was the last thing she heard before the sound of Bakugou's explosion rang in her ears. With a final flare of steel, she Pushed on the floor behind her and launched herself at Midoriya. Then, with one last second of time, she tossed a knife at Bakugou.
Hagakure's jaw dropped. One moment, this was a simple training exercise, then Vin was gone and Bakugou was nuking the arena! Oh God, please let them be okay!
The rest of the class shared her worry. Even from here, the shaking of Bakugou's explosion could be felt.
"This is supposed to be a class!" Kirishima screams.
Momo clasps her hands together, "are they okay?"
"Young Midoriya!" All Might yells into the microphone, "Lady Vin! Are you okay?"
Smoke covered the screen, hiding the three students from Vin. Above them, however, Uraraka and Iida were still recovering. Bakugou's attack caused the entire structure to shake and tremble. A large plume of fire and smoke rose out the window and through a hole in the ground in the corner.
Using the attack to her advantage, Uraraka rushes forward as Iida struggles to stand. She slaps a hand across her own stomach and a pink glow spreads across her body for a moment. With a leap, Uraraka floats up and towards the bomb.
Iida realizes her plan quickly, however, and runs back to the bomb. It must have been made out of paper-mache because he easily lifts it and begins to carry it to the other side of the room. Uraraka sails past it and lands against the furthermost wall before pressing her palms together and dropping back to the ground.
"I see something!" Jiro exclaims as the smoke depicting the lower level begins to thin.
Bakugou scowls as he marches towards Deku. He was confident enough his blast shouldn't have killed the brat. Hopefully, he was at least scarred enough to run away crying. However, Bakugou wasn't expecting her to show up.
It's that bitch again! he growled. Who the fuck is she?! And why is she helping that useless Deku?!
As the smoke begins to clear, he sees something grey shimmer in a corner. He smirks and blasts himself forward, kicking at the figure. Hands pop out of the smoke, grabbing his legs as he flies towards her. Bakugou quickly blasts himself upward and around, trying to encircle Vin.
She expects this and sends a back kick straight into his stomach, skidding him backward a few yards.
"Hey, Majo! [1]" Bakugou yells, "This is between me and Deku! If you beg for mercy I might just let you off easy later!"
The smoke clears completely, revealing Vin crouched in front of Deku as he hides beneath her ripped cape. She doesn't answer. Instead, she reaches into her belt and pulls out a pair of knives which she holds outwards.
"I've killed many koloss and oppressors. You're nothing compared to them," she growls in return, anger flashing in her eyes.
Bakugou takes a step back in fear.
Wait. Fear? FROM HER?!
Howling, Bakugou raises his other grenade-shaped gauntlet. It had to be full by now. Without hesitating, he pulls it back and slides his finger into the pin.
"BAKUGOU, STOP!" All Might's voice roars, the speakers around them crackling to life. "If you use that attack again, you shall be immediately disqualified! I will stop the fight and your team will lose."
"Huh?!"
"To attack on such a grandiose scale inside of a building this size is inviting destruction of the stronghold you are tasked with protecting! That's a foolish plan for both heroes AND villains. If you push this, you shall lose points for it!"
Even All Might is protecting him?! Deku. Deku! DEKU!
The transmitted voice clears its voice and turns its attention to Vin. "As for you, Lady Vin, you must return back to the surveillance room post-haste. If not, your team shall be disqualified as well. While it is admirable to protect a friend, this is not your fight. I do not know how you knew to come to young Midoriya's aid, but that is a discussion for another time."
Vin glares at the speakers but says nothing. After a few seconds, she sheaths her weapons, to Bakugou's dismay, and turns back to Deku. By now, he's standing back up and holding her cape in his arms.
"Why would you do that?" he asks as she takes it back, tossing the cloth around her shoulders
Vin frowned and cocked her head. "Why wouldn't I?" She then turns back to Bakugou and marches up in front of him.
"Get going," he snaps. "You're next on my list anyway."
Reaching for his now-full gauntlet, she pulls out a dagger.
When did she- Bakugou raises the container and realizes all the sweat it had held had been dripping out. HOW DARE YOU?! Before he could blast her face until it was charred, she leaped out of the building and into the air.
Momo breathes a sigh of relief when she sees Vin leave. At least she is okay.
Up in the front, All Might once again raises the microphone to his mouth. "Gentlemen, you may now proceed," he orders.
"What. The hell. Was that?" Young Sero gasps.
"She was so fast," Young Hagakure mumbles. "And she didn't hesitate when Bakugou attacked."
Young Tokoyami nods. "And most admirably, she was able to hold back his assault without using her Quirk."
No. She did, Momo thinks. Somehow, Vin's Allomancy was used. She did say that the metals she swallowed gave her different abilities. Perhaps one of them was danger sense? Or flight? Superspeed?
I have so many questions.
However, before she could ponder on them more, the door slammed open and Vin stormed it.
"Hey," Hagakure starts, "what happened?"
Vin doesn't answer. Instead, she walks up to All Might and grabs him by the hem of his shirt.
"He was going to kill him," she growls, pulling the smiling man to her level. "And you weren't going to do anything?!"
Stuttering, All Might rubs the back of his head. "Now, now, I-"
"Am I wrong?"
"Well…"
"Am. I. WRONG?"
The number one Hero looks down at his books, his smile still remaining tight on his face even if it seems to quiver for a moment. "No. But I have faith in Young Midoriya. I have faith in all of my students to take the most heroic action."
Vin glares into the hero's eyes. She lets go of his suit before marching back to her corner of the wall. "There is nothing heroic about that boy," she mumbles.
Silence falls around the room. Did she really just threaten the world's number one Hero? And without even a care for what that might mean for her enrollment at UA.
My Lord, Momo thinks, who is this girl?
Kirishima was the first to open his mouth. "Holy shit."
"Yeah man," Kirishima responds. "That was."
Shaking his head, Kirishima points to the screen. "No, not her, well, yeah that was crazy, but I was talking about that!"
Back in the battle area, Midoriya was being blasted at every angle from Bakugou. The blonde was leaping and blasting all around the halfway, moving at unpredictable patterns to keep his attacks from being blocked. Midoriya couldn't even dodge.
For the first time since they enrolled, Todoroki opened his mouth. "Most impressive. While it seems he is not the type to think or act rationally, his attacks are just the opposite."
Vin winced as Midoriya received another blast to the back. "Exactly. He uses his explosions to propel himself in any direction he wishes."
"Not only that, but Bakugou is also able to utilize his Quirk as a smokescreen when he changes course," Todoroki agrees.
Nodding, Momo does a few quick calculations in her head. "Being able to land a blow while resisting the inertia of his lateral turns means he must have an exact control over his explosions and is able to adjust them within a second of thought."
"Yes, he does have talent, even if he's a bit crude," Aoyama summarizes, his armor starting to rattle in fear.
Grabbing Midoriya's arm, Bakugou uses his other hand to spark multiple explosions in rapid succession, using the momentum to swing Midoriya around the room and into the ground with a puff of dirt.
As he bounces up, spittle flies from Midoriya's mouth before he lands on his back.
Hagakure's gloved hands reach up, probably to cover her mouth as she gasps. "This is horrible!"
Scrambling, Midoriya begins to crawl away from Bakugou.
"That's not very manly," Kirishima critiques. "He doesn't seem to have a choice. But why is he only doing it now?"
Bakugou stomps after Midoriya. His green and tattered form now stands in front of a window. As Bakugou grew closer, Midoriya began to cry, shouting something at the blonde. All of a sudden, both rushed forward and raised their fists.
Bakugou's palm glowed orange as heat began to roll off of it while Midoriya's sleeve burst into shreds. As the two teens charge towards each other, above them, Uraraka grabs a hold of a cement pillar.
Much to Momo's dismay, she forgot that there were two other students involved in this exercise.
Before Bakugou and Midoriya could collide, Midoriya raised his fist and punched it into the air. Wind blanketed the entire building as a gust, no, hurricane began to soar upwards. The ground above them exploded as the gale continued to flow, smashing through all the floors. Rocks, stone, metal, and cement flew in every direction.
Uraraka must have been expecting this, having prepared for the attack, she wasn't knocked off her feet like Iida was. Then, in a flash of pink, the pillar she was holding broke away from the ground and, with a swing from Uraraka, smashed all the free-falling rubble towards the armored 'Villain'.
Reacting out of impulse, Iida raised his arms to protect his face. As he did, Uraraka leaped over the chasm and activated her Quirk on herself once more. Before Iida could do anything to stop it, Uraraka wrapped herself around the bomb and successfully completed her team's mission.
Slacked jaws and silent gasps filled the surveillance room as All Might raised the microphone to his lips.
"Hero team WINS!"
"..."
"What the heck?!" Kariminari yells, "the winners are on the ground and the losers have barely a scratch on them!" To prove his point, Midoriya fell to the ground while Iida was helping Uraraka stand as she covered her mouth. "How is that a victory?!"
"They lost the battle, but won the war," Tokoyami explained, nodding his head.
"This is supposed to be training, though," Asui critiques.
All Might held his hand up, signaling for the class to be silent as he turned back to the screens. "Health services will be arriving shortly. Stay where you are until I come to get you. If anyone tries to continue the battle, they will be punished accordingly." The Pro-Hero turns and starts walking out the door, pausing only to nod to Vin. You come with me."
Two small robots lifted a half-conscious Midoriya onto a stretcher. "Take to the Nurse's Office," one orders.
"I know," the other snaps as they begin to roll out the door. However, as they passed All Might and Vin, he held out a shaking hand and reached for Vin. Hesitantly, she stepped forward.
"... Thank you."
Vin paused for a moment, then gave a small smile before grabbing his hand and shaking it comfortingly. "Of course." His eyes fluttered closed with that and his hand went limp.
"Work to do!" The droids beeped as they raced away.
Standing up, Vin avoids All Might's look. "Will he be okay?" she asks.
"Undoubtedly," he responds. "Young Midoriya is a gifted student. I am sure this will not be the last time he will be injured." The Pro-Hero turns back to the Mistborn. "Now, I want you to explain to me why you thought it was necessary for you to interrupt my class."
Vin frowned. "Necessary? I would think a student attempting to burn one of my friends alive is absolutely calling for me to assist them."
A single eyebrow raises on All Might's face. Friend? "I see. But be careful, Lady Vin. While I do believe yourself to be one of noble heart, as well as willing to help your classmates, do not think me so foolish that I cannot recognize a murderous aura. I've fought many villains over the years and you certainly carry the same sense of danger of the more dangerous scoundrels I have faced. What you have been forced to do to survive is tragic, but that does not mean you can take your anger out on those who do not know what they are doing."
"Villains?" Vin chuckled. "I've killed a god. Don't talk to me like I'm a child. Whatever blood you have on your hands is nothing compared to what I am willing to do to protect those I care about. And he," she snarled, pointing at Young Bakugou down the hall, "was fully aware of what he was doing. You know that as well as I, hero."
Yes, he sighed, I do. "But I know when to let my students learn and grow themselves. If I spent every exercise hovering over these heroes-in-training, keeping them safe from attacks and pointing out every detail, it is likely they shall not learn what they need to in order to become the best they can be. They must fly on their own merit."
"That doesn't mean you have to toss the bird in a furnace as it begins to learn."
All Might shakes his head. This is going nowhere. Scratching his head, he says, "then I suppose it will be best if you head back now. I shall accompany Young Bakugou while you escort Young Iida and Uraraka."
"... Fine," Vin mutters as she turns and begins walking towards the door. "But if he attempts that again, I won't stop."
"If he attempts it again, I will stop the lad."
With her exit, All Might walks down to Bakugou and places a hand on his shoulder. The boy hasn't moved since the round ended, still holding his hand in front of him mid-strike. His breath was ragged and his eyes wide. If he didn't know better, All Might would have thought he was having an anxiety attack.
"Come back, Young Bakugou," he offers, clasping his shoulder. "It is time for us to review your match results. Whether you win, lose, or draw, it is important to look back and learn from the experiences you have just gained."
"What happened down here?" Iida asked, still supporting Uraraka.
Vin shrugged, still annoyed at All Might's apparent uncaring attitude for Bakugou's behavior. "Midoriya's Quirk."
"Wow," Uraraka breathed. "He told me he had a plan, but I didn't think Midoriya could do this."
Iida nods. "It would have been foolish if he spoke it out loud, possibly warning Bakugou of his plans." The three make their way down the exercise building and march across the street. Inside of the surveillance building, the rest of class 1-A was silent, casting glances at Vin.
Nothing new, she thinks as she helps rest Uraraka onto a chair. A few minutes later and All Might, accompanied by Bakuou, join them. The blonde's face was still frozen in shock. He didn't even react to Vin as they stepped inside.
Once Bakugou was standing next to Uraraka and Iida, All Might pressed a button on the monitor and the text changed to read 'Battle 1 Review'.
"Now, let us congratulate the MVP of this battle," All Might declares, images of each of the contestants showing up on the screen. "Young Iida, you were truly the most valuable contestant in this trial."
"Me?" Iida gasps, his jaw dropping. "But Bakugou and I lost to Midoriya and Uraraka."
"Yes, you did. Who would like to explain this choice?"
Momo raised her hand as Vin opened her mouth. "He did the most amount of work for his team."
All Might smiled. "Care to elaborate, Lady Vin?"
She shrugged.
"If I may," Momo interrupted, "I think I can provide a reasonable response. It is because Iida was the most adaptable one in the context of this training exercise. Even from a viewer, it was obvious Bakugou was acting on his own to settle a personal grudge he had. It was foolish of him to not communicate with his teammate and, as you said, to launch an attack in his own 'base'.
"In the same way, this applies to Midoriya as well. However, he did communicate with his teammate regarding his attack. But considering the damage done to his own body, his plan was also rash and hastily. However, it is admirable Midoriya was able to come up with a plan while being subjugated to so many attacks.
"Uraraka let her guard down mid-battle and exposed herself. If she had been more careful, it is likely she could have snuck past her opponent and won the match before Midoriya was attacked. Her final attack was too reckless as well. If we continued to portray the bomb as a nuclear device, then it would have been dangerous for her to fire projectiles at it and risk the device going off.
"On the other hand, Iida prepared the best he could for the 'Heroes' locating the bomb. He assumed there would be a battle focusing on the area around the device and was able to remove all possible weapons that could be used against him. Even though he was late to react to Uraraka's final attack, that is probably related to his inexperience with this scenario.
"The 'hero' team only won because they took advantage of the fact this was training. Others," she nodded to Vin," knew this to not be true and even Bakugou was treating this as a real fight. They focused too much on the 'spirit' of the rules, they forgot to immerse themselves in the fact this could truly be life-or-death."
"..." The entire class, All Might included, stood in silence and shock at Momo's perfect analysis. Even Vin was surprised to see such attention to detail regarding not only the actions of the trial's participants but also their mentality.
Holding up a finger, All Might tried to regain composure. "Well," he mumbled, "Young Iida could also learn to relax a bit more as well as not trying to method-act as much as he did."
Method act?
"But that is correct. I should expect no less from one of the students who was recommended for this program.
Momo nods. "We should always start with basics to continuously evolve our concepts of learning. Otherwise, we will not become Pro-Heroes."
Like Allomancy, Vin thinks, or even Quirks, you need to build from the bottom in order to reach the highest spires. You cannot learn to steel-push through the sky if you don't understand the angle, momentum, or weight you are throwing against.
Rolling out the boxes from earlier, All Might reaches inside of both. "All right everyone, let's change locations and start the second match. Tackle this training while thinking about what we just covered. Become the best heroes you can be." With a roar of excitement, the Pro-Hero pulls out two more balls.
"Team B for the 'Heroes' and team I for the 'Villains'!" On the screen, the images of Shouji and Todoroki flash underneath team B while Ojiro's and Hagakure's appear under team I. All Might smiled as he handed each of the four students their earpieces and the two sets of capture tools. "Good luck!"
Hagakure turned to Vin. "Here I go!"
The Mistborn offered a small smile. "Good luck."
"Any tips you think I could use?" Hagakure asked as she placed the communicator in her ear. Strangely, it didn't turn invisible and appeared to float in the air along with her gloves and boots.
Pausing, Vin turned to study her friend's opponents. "Stay away from Shouji, he's stronger than you and can probably catch you with his appendages. As for Todoroki… Get in close as quickly as you can. Be quick and exact. If he uses his Quirk on you dead-on, you won't survive." And I'm not supposed to help.
"Thanks!" Hagakure smiled before running out to join her teammate.
Round 2 - Team I vs Team B
As the 'Villains' set up their area of battle, Vin takes a moment to study Todoroki. The only time she saw him use his Quirk was during Aizawa's class. He used his Quirk to either freeze the area around him or summon bursts of flames. Although, for some reason unknown to her, he elected to hide his fiery half, covering it in a costume of ice.
Is he limiting himself? Or can he not control the flames as well as the ice?
Before she could ponder on this more, All Might returned to the room and grabbed the microphone. "Now," he yelled, "let's start the second indoor person-to-person combat training match!"
The air-horn blasts and the time begins. Instantly, both teams move into action. Hagakure begins to remove the bits of clothing she has on her body, while Todoroki and Shouji confidently stroll up to the building.
Shocked, Vin watches as the limbs of the masked giant morph the tips into new appendages. Three ears suddenly appear along with a new mouth.
It's almost as if he is able to focus his body for surveillance. A Tineye and a Thug.
Shouji whispers something to Todoroki as he passes him, most likely the locations of the 'hero' team's footsteps. The white and red-haired student comments something back and waits for Shouji to exit the building. Then, he raises his right hand and places it against the wall.
Ice spreads rapidly from him, freezing the entire building in seconds. Even in the surveillance room, the rest of the class started to shiver from the sudden drop in temperature.
Lord Ruler!
Before he could react, Ojiro can feel its effects as the ice covers the floor and grabs his ankles. The tailed man struggles for a moment, trying to pry his feet from the icy chains.
Todoroki marches into the room. Watching Ojiro struggle, he tells him something which causes the tailed-man to surrender. Then, just as Todoroki was going to place a hand on the bomb, All Might grabbed the microphone.
"Young Shouji has been captured!"
What?!
Vin snapped her head to another one of the screens. As he said, Shouji now had a strand of tape wrapped around one of his many appendages. Even he was shocked as he looked down to see it. Barely, just barely, Vin could make out a small black hovering dot on the screen.
However, her victory was short-lived. Ignoring the loss of his teammate, Todoroki placed a hand on the bomb.
"Hero team WINS!"
Luckily, Todoroki was kind enough to use the other half of his Quirk to melt the ice off of the surrounding area, freeing Ojiro and heating up the less-clothed students in the surveillance area. Communicating with All Might, the four quickly made their way back inside to join their classmates (Hagakure joined up after grabbing her costume) and stood at attention against the back wall.
"Now!" All Might began as the screen changed to emphasize this was the review of the second battle. "Who do you think deserves the MVP?"
Surprisingly, Hagakure raised her hand. "I think it should go to Todoroki!"
"And why is that?" the Pro-Hero asked.
"Because he pretty much did everything. He froze the building, which was freezing, by the way, and won the game."
"Yes, indeed he did. However, let us not forget his teammate was able to discern the location of their opponents. And Young Todoroki took preventive measures to ensure the bomb nor his teammate were damaged. On top of that, he did weaken the enemy."
Todoroki's face didn't change as he was complimented. In fact, he seemed almost bored. But he did utter a barely-audible "thanks" when the review was over.
"As expected of someone who got in through recommendations," Asuyu whispers as the group disperses.
Vin hesitantly placed a hand on Hagakaure's shoulder. "You did well." Even without tin, Vin could see the smile on her face matching All Might's. Then, without pause, Hagakure wrapped her arms around Vin's neck.
"Thank you."
Round 3 - Team H vs Team J
The rest of the fights seemed to blur and quicken. While it was interesting for Vin to watch and study the Quirks of her teammates, nothing was as surprising or gripping as the fights involving Midoriya or Todoroki.
For instance, the 'Heroes' of team J (Tokoyami and Tsuyu) were able to completely dominate the 'Villains' (Sero and Kirishima). While the two boys did their best to set up their base defensively with tape covering the room to ensnare and entrap anyone who touched it, their physical attacks were not able to compete with Tsuyu's speed and agility nor the intangibility of Todoroki's Black Shadow.
Which, surprisingly, won MVP.
Round 4 - Team E vs Team F
This was the first round the villains won. With Aoyama and Ashida attacking, Satou and Kouda resorted to a frontal assault to defend the bomb. Due to his costume, Aoyama was easily found within the darkness of the halls.
Coordinated by Kouda's Quirk, dozens of rodents converged upon him and nibbled away at Aoyama's cape and feet. His Naval Laser shot sporadically as he panicked.
With Aoyama out of commission, the mission fell sorely on Ashida's shoulders. Sadly, she was unsuccessful. After devouring a pack of sugar, Ashida's muscles grew and he barreled after her. She was able to dodge at first, using her Quirk to slide along the halls, but was soon found to be not as quick as he was.
"Who do you all think was MVP for this battle?" All Might pondered aloud.
Surprisingly, it was Sero who was first to answer. "Well, I think it's Kouda. He was able to attack at a distance without having to leave the bomb."
A blush rose over Kouda's stone-like face and he shuffled on his feet. "... thank you," he whispered in a tone Vin could barely hear.
Nodding, All Might agrees. "Yes, indeed! What an excellent analysis Young Sero!"
"Can you say that again?" Sero asked, pulling out his phone. "I kinda want that as my ringtone."
"Anyways," the Pro-Hero continued, ignoring the student's comment, "it is time we move on to the final match. While I am aware there are only two teams left, we still have to decide who shall be the 'Heroes' and who shall fall under the role of 'Villains'. With that," he snapped his fingers and a coin appeared on screen, "we shall decide this with a simple coin flip."
"Heads!" Kaminari yelled, pounding his fist into the air, earning an eye roll from both Vin and Jiro.
All Might presses a button and the programmed coin flies up to the top of the screen before falling back down. Rattling, it shakes and quivers before settling down on one face.
"Heads wins!" All Might declares. "What side would you wish to play, Team G?"
Raising an eyebrow, Jiro points to the hero-labeled box. "We'll be 'Heroes'.
"Then that shall make us the 'Villains'," Momo nods.
Round 5 - Team G vs Team C
"I think this room will work."
Vin nods and sets down the practically weightless device. She didn't even have to burn pewter to carry it around the building or up the stairs. The room they picked was smaller than others, barely having enough room for the bomb to fit vertically, but had thicker walls.
Without so much as a grunt, Vin placed the bomb in the corner. "Is this good?"
Momo nods and looks at the two exits before creating a small roll of measuring tape. She quickly measures the length of the doorways before pocketing it.
"Okay," Momo begins. "I think our best bet is for me to focus on defense while you act as a guard. I'm going to create barriers for the doors, that should stop Team G as neither of them has the explosive power to destroy them."
Vin nods, smart. "Then I will pick them off myself?"
"Yes. Can you handle it?"
Again, the Mistborn nods. "Yes. But I may need something in return."
"What do you need?" Momo frowns as she turns away, spreading her top slightly whilst she begins to produce a metal stockade.
"Metals. Hopefully in small beads, as pure as you can make them."
"What kind do you need? You mentioned this earlier, but we got interrupted by the bell."
The list comes to Vin easily. "Pewter, tin, steel, iron, copper, bronze, zinc, brass, and duralumin." Atium would be useful too, but it doesn't exist here, though.
"Understood." Momo pauses after she finishes with her current creation before turning to Vin and holding out her hand. Vin's own hand raises as she watches small metallic beads fall into her palm.
"Thanks." Vin pockets the metals into different pockets before turning and heading out, only to be stopped by Momo's hand grabbing her own.
"I... I think I know now."
Puzzled, Vin turns back to her now-frowning teammate. "Know what?"
"What you said earlier, about All Might's smile. You said it was fake, right?"
"Yes?"
Momo swallows. "Well, I also saw your smile, yesterday, when we tried to apologize to you about our actions in the bathroom."
"I told you-"
"I thought it looked familiar," Momo interrupts. "I recognized that smile. It wasn't until earlier that I figured it out." She looks up, staring at Vin dead in the eye. "It's the same smile I wore whenever I had to go to an event for my parents. I remember practicing that smile in the mirror because I needed to show everyone I was happy even when I wasn't. It wasn't a smile for me, it was a smile for them.
"It's the same smile you see on All Might, isn't it?"
"..." Vin stared back and looked inside Momo's eyes. She could see joy, hope, and worry hidden within. Worry? For me? "Why are you asking this?"
"Because I don't think you'll talk about this if you weren't given the chance. You'd run away. But you need to talk about this with someone. It's not healthy to hide your emotions away, especially if you forget what it is like to actually smile or have fun. I don't know why you don't smile, but I know there are those who are here for you."
"I-... I already have," Vin mumbles.
"Hagakure," she lists, "me, Mina, Uraraka, Midoriya, and even Iida are here for you no matter what. Whatever your problems may be, we are here for you. I'm sure whatever it is that happened to you, we can help."
Vin couldn't even attempt to hold back a chuckle. "Help? You have no idea what I need help with."
Before Momo could rebuttal, the horn blared and initiated the start of the round. Prep time was over.
Now it was time to fight.
Pulling her hand out of Momo's, Vin responds saying, "I'll protect you. You protect the bomb." But as she reached the doorway, Vin stopped and looked back. "Thank you. I'm just… not ready. But thank you."
Vin swallowed another vial of metals. Steel, iron, pewter, copper, and bronze burst to light within her automatically. She'd been trained to have these metals almost always burning. Most likely, she wouldn't need to Riot or Soothe her opponents, though it was comforting to have it just in case.
Closing her eyes, the Mistborn knelt down to the ground and burned tin. With it, her senses were inflamed enough she could easily hear Momo sliding more metal plates inside. Even further away, she could make out the soft footsteps of a male and female.
"So what's her Quirk again?"
"I don't know for sure. She said that swallowing different metals will give her different powers," Jiro's voice answered.
Bottom floor, Southwest entrance. They're making their way to the staircase on the North wall.
Suddenly, the sounds of footsteps stopped. "Is this good?" Kaminari asked.
"Yeah," Jiro responded. "This'll work." A soft ding, almost like the sound of a small hammer on a slab of metals, then reverberates into the building around Vin.
She said her Quirk was Earphone Jack, Vin remembers. And her earlobes resembled that mechanical tool Yamada uses for his music. Can she use her Quirk to enhance her hearing like tin? But doesn't Yamada use the tool for broadcasting sound, not receiving it? Maybe she can use them as 'speakers'.
Vin shivers. Speakers were horrible, even without tin. Yamada's excessive use of them was one of the many reasons she had grown to dislike the man. But, in either case, it would be safer for Vin to quickly capture both members of team G before they could use their Quirks in ways she wouldn't expect.
Palming a few coins in her hands, Vin starts making her way to the window. She flares pewter and leaps forward, smashing it through the window and tossing the metallic discs to the ground. With a burst of steel, she Pushes against it. Her descent halts as her weight is tossed back up at her and she crouches as she lands on the ground.
Her mistcloak unfurls around her as she does, its strands floating softly around her feet. Now outside, Vin quickly dashes to the southwest entrance and smashes through the door. She flares tin as the door closes behind her and quickly locates her opponents.
"WHAT WAS THAT?" Kaminari's voice echoes through the floor.
The sound of boots scraping across the floor cuts through Vin's ears. Most likely, with her sudden outburst, the two 'Heroes' were dropping into their own creative stances. This was quickly overshadowed by the sound of something crackling. A yellow light bursts forth from the hall, making Vin wince as she extinguishes tin.
The yellow-ish light shines brighter as a bolt of energy strikes its way towards her. Vin quickly dives to the side and tosses a knife to the ground where she was standing. The bolt of lightning dives away from her, striking the metal blade and dispersing the strike into the ground.
"Do you think that worked?" Jiro's voice asked.
"Uh, yeah," Kaminari scoffed in return. "I blasted whatever it was!"
"What was it then?"
Bootsteps begin making their way back towards Vin as she stands back up. What the hell was that? She thinks, still feeling the energy in the air. A glance down at her dagger shows the weapon now flickering yellow after absorbing the attack.
Lightning, Vin realizes. Such a phenomenon was rare on Scadrial. However, there were some accounts of 'heat strikes' visible from the Terris Mountains Sazed commented upon a few times. Moves as fast as an eye-blink and hits with a force stronger than a rampaging koloss. Thankfully, it seemed metals pulled the bolt towards them.
That might be useful.
Before she could ponder on this more, the sounds of movement grew closer. Vin quickly flared pewter and jumped to her feet. Without hesitation, she palms another dagger in her hand while tossing down a new coin. With a Push, as well as pewter, she launches herself into battle.
Jiro is the first to react as Vin turns the corner. The Mutant-Quirk user ducks quickly and pulls on Kaminari's jacket, making him tumble enough to avoid a strike from Vin's dagger.
"Oh, shit!" Kaminari yells as a few strands of his hair fall to the ground. "That was close!"
"It's not over yet!" Jiro exclaims as her earlobes extend as long as her body and fall next to her boots. As Vin turns around, with the aid of her Pulling and Pushing off of the steel rivets in the walls, she notices the strange appendages plugged into them.
What the-
BABUMP!
A wall of sound greets Vin as she flies back at her opponents. The attack takes her by surprise and sends her crashing to the ground, clutching her ears. Thankfully, she wasn't burning tin.
But that still stung! Vin turned back to Jiro, a tint of rage in her eyes. She quickly pulled out another dagger and tossed it at her feet. Jiro had no time to react as the knife quickly embedded itself in the speakers attached to her boats. Yelping, Jiro fell back on her rump, worried Vin's attack might have impaled her foot.
Suddenly, Kaminari got to his feet and made a tossing motion with his hands. "Don't forget about me!" Once more, lightning sprung forth from his fingertips and shot its way at Vin.
The Mistborn lept to the side, narrowly avoiding it again. But during the commotion, she grabbed the capture tape from her pocket and quickly wrapped a strand around two more daggers. Then, Vin burned brass and began to target Kaminari's emotions.
She Soothed his anger then his fear, making him feel as if he had, in his mind, easily won the fight. Switching to zinc, Vin also Rioted Kaminari's pride.
"Ha!" He yelled, making a pose at the unmoving Vin. "That'll show you! One strike of my lightning and you're too shocked to fight back!"
"What are you doing?" Jiro frowned, pulling the knife from her boot. She hesitantly put some weight on her foot before walking up to her teammate. "How much voltage did you use?"
Smirking, Kaminari flexed his arms. "Not that much. She must be a lightweight."
Vin pounced without warning. As they were distracted with Kaminari's apparent 'victory'. Vin kept herself as still as possible, even as she swallowed an extra vial of metals. Then, with a flare of steel, she tossed her knives to either side of her opponents. Without wanting to risk a longer fight, Vin also dared use duralumin.
The enhancement of this metal made her Push accelerate almost as quickly as Kaminari's lightning. The knives sharply rush past them. However, with the cord now attached to the two weapons, they quickly swing around Vin's opponents.
Jiro and Kaminari had little time to react as the knives, and tape, wrap themselves around the two 'Heroes'. They shortly found themselves bound together, falling to the ground in joint confusion. A moment later and All Might's voice began to boom in their ears.
"Both members of team G have been captured! Team C wins!"
Hagakure, like most of her classmates, had her jaw on the ground. What they witnessed with Vin was nothing short of amazement. Her speed, tenacity, quick thinking, and Quirk were completely mind-blowing. The way she moved, flying through the air like some sort of manga character or one of the old, comic-book heroes, it was just. Wow. Holy cow it's like she is already a Pro.
"Did you see that?" Satou asked, his large lips forming a large 'O'.
Iida nodded, slowly and rigidly. "Y-yes, that was quite… fascinating." No one ignored the stutter from whom they all believed to be one of the most confident students in the class.
Even Shoto's eyes widened during the live feed.
Why is she so good?! Hagakaure questioned mentally.
All four members of teams C and G were quickly joined up with the rest of the class. However, this time they decided to regroup outside, as this was the final test. Hagakure quickly ran forward and jumped onto Vin's back.
"That. Was. AWESOME!" She yelled before pulling Momo into a group hug. "You two were great! Momo was on defense and Vin was on offense! So smart!"
Momo and Vin both held back blushes and the latter quickly broke free of the huddle, nodding in gratitude.
"Excellent!" All Might boomed. "Just excellent! What a wonderful display of power! I dare say we already know who is to be crowned MVP for this round. Lady Vin, you performed dangerously close to a realistic portrayal of a skirmish between heroes and villains." He made a waving motion to the rest of the class. "Who would like to say what Vin's smartest decision was?"
"She kicked their buts!" Hagakure yelled, raising a fist and resulting in a group laugh.
"Duuude," Sero whispered, leaning down to Kaminari as the laughter subsided, "you got beat in like 10 seconds."
"I'd like to see you do better," he jokes back.
All Might hushed the class for a few moments to restore order. "Yes, yes, she did fight incredibly well. However, I believe there can be a better analysis than 'she fights good'."
Ojiro raised his tail. "I think that Vin utilizing both her Quirk and the capture-tape was smart. She was able to combine both aspects of this challenge, Quirk-usage and apprehension of the opposing team, into one attack and gain control of the situation almost immediately."
"And," Tsuyu ribbits, "she provided enough time for Momo to create a sizable defensive zone around the bomb."
"Exactly!" All Might roars. "However! That does not mean team G's plans were not important enough to mention. Young Jiro's plan to use her Quirk to locate the bomb was strategic, as was the plan to have Young Kaminari electrify the room so his teammate could grab the weapon." He turns, facing the entire class, and raises his arms.
"You all will become exceptional heroes!" The Pro-Hero declares. "There were no major injuries other than Young Midoriya and yet no one truly held back! You all took this seriously and provided an exceptional example of your first day of training.
Tsuyu raises her hands and interrupts. "After our class with Mr. Aizawa… it's kind of anticlimactic." The entire class, minus a few more stoic exceptions, nodded in agreement.
"Honest lessons will be available in time," All Might responds. "Now, I am going to share the results and review with Young Midoriya. Change and return to the classroom!" With a burst of wind, he bolted away, leaving only a cloud of dust where he once stood.
"..."
"He's so cool!" Kirishima cheered.
Wonder why he's in such a hurry, though, Hagakure ponders as the class begins to disperse. Maybe he has plans after school? … That's it! She quickly bounded back up to Vin and Momo.
"Hey, what are you guys doing tonight?"
Momo frowns before pulling out a small pocket-agenda from her belt. "Nothing I believe. My parent's meeting with the Minister of State for Economic and Fiscal Policy got moved to next week, so I am available all day. Why?"
… Am I allowed to talk to her without needing a pre-scheduled meeting? "Well… I was thinking maybe we can all go out tonight. Maybe have dinner, have some fun?"
Eyes sparkling, Momo grabs one of Hagakure's gloved hands. "Really?!"
Hagakure gulps, "yeah?"
"Absolutely!"
"Great!" The invisible girl smiles. She then turns to Vin, doing her best puppy-dog eyes. "What about you?"
Vin hesitates for more than a few seconds, looking between Hagakure and Momo, as well as Uraraka and Jiro who had overheard the question and stopped to listen in. "I really don't think-"
"Please?" Hagakure begged. "Pretty please? I'll pay!"
"..."
"Pleeeeease?" This time, everyone joins in, giving equal amounts of puppy-dog-ness.
"Fine."
"Yay!"
[1] Majo means 'witch' (I believe). I thought this could work as Bakugou's slang term for Vin. Let me know if you think yay or nay in the comments/reviews!
Sorry for the long wait, everyone. If you've been reading my other stories you'll know I've been moving and only recently got settled in (still have trouble with that). Not to mention I was unable to get in touch with my Editor, because of my new time/schedule.
This is probably one of my longest chapters ever. 23 pages of Mistborn Academia! Wooo! I really hope you all enjoyed this, it took a lot out of me for some reason.
We have still been unable to meet our goal of being the #1 Mistborn Fanfic. First is still being held by Slavok's Beautiful Destroyer with a difference of 132 Favorites and 224 Follows. C'mon guys! We can do it! Spread the word! Spam the 17th shard! It is possible!
Also, and I know I say it every chapter (like twice), please please please comment. It really makes my day reading new comments. Even if you're reading this a week from the post-date, don't be afraid to post what your favorite part was. Not only do your comments bring me the energy to continue writing, but they also help fuel my creative imagination for new unique ideas.
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