Girls' Day Out
Fuka sat at the kitchen table, leaning over and drawing a number of new costume addons she wanted. Definitely getting a new air compressor backpack, since Katsuki completely totaled the original one. Nothing was salvageable at all. But at least she knew that the safety features she designed with her parents worked. She can probably build off on them. She decided that not only was she getting earmuffs/headphones to wear, but combine them with her goggles to eliminate the amount of things she needs to put on, and made sure that she could move the goggles up and down still. And she couldn't forget the female sports cup. Not after what happened to Eijiro in his fight against Momo. "Even though I'm a girl, having protection down there is still a good idea..."
"What's going on, little rascal?"
"Oh hey, Hayate," Fuka said, as her oldest brother ruffled her hair. Much like Kana a while ago, it was his turn to go and be with their family because of Fuka's fight with Katsuki. Like the weirdo he can be, he was wearing a muscle shirt with their hero agency's logo on it with almost comically oversized athletic shorts with his hairstyle having large spikes that pointed backwards, with his bangs being pushed up by his 'ninja headband'.
"Just doing some new costume upgrades, since I need to get a new backpack. Glad that the design I worked on with mom and dad worked as planned."
"Yea... say, Fuka, do you really think that-"
"Hayate, please. If getting stabbed in the back by broken glass didn't stop you, getting burned on the back isn't stopping me."
"It's not that, it's that Bakugo kid. Do you really think he deserves to be there? Maybe I could call Principal Nezu, try to pull some strings to make sure-"
"No, not only is that unfair, because it really was an accident, but I'd rather UA keep an eye on him and actually keep him on the straight and narrow, rather than seeing him go and be a villain because he got 'denied' or something. And mom and dad already gave them some reasonable ideas for punishments."
"Alright, alright, good point," Hayate said, shrugging. "Still, it's almost unbelievable that they'd let in a kid like that to UA. Guess that Hiroshi's point about how some terrible people with strong and great Quirks get awarded for them is true."
"Yea..." Fuka sighed, as she went back to drawing some new ideas and improvements. Hiroshi's always mentioned that perspective of his to them all, long before he got Hero. She always thought he was exaggerating, especially since Kenji didn't manage to get into any of the hero schools he applied to, which included UA. But after seeing Katsuki and Shoto, and learning about how... actually horrible of a person Endeavor truly was, she started to understand. She admitted that she admired Katsuki for actually backing up his claims to become a hero with actual work (if not begrudgingly, since she found his aggressiveness detestable), and that it seemed like Shoto, after his fight with Izuku and talks with Hiroshi, was on his way to recovery. Still, to think that there really are some people who don't deserve to be heroes getting to be ones, while someone like Hiroshi would've been passed over because of circumstances out of his control, it was a tough pill to swallow.
But it was a pill that she and their classmates had to take. After all, if they acknowledge the problems it has, they can start to fix them. They're young enough to start leading a change, right?
"By the way, you said your friends were coming here and picking you and Setsuna up for a girls' day out, right? And Hiroshi's gonna go buy new art supplies and do his own thing?" Hayate said. Fuka nodded. Just like before, Mina decided to organize a hang out with them, but this time just girls only. The only ones not going were Tsuyu, who wanted to spend time with her siblings, and Ibara, who already planned to volunteer at a church.
Hayate grabbed an orange and started peeling it. "You need a chaperone or something? I can give you a ride in my van."
"Hayate they're all first year high schoolers, you're too old for them."
"Hey, that's very rude to say! You know I've got a girlfriend my age!"
"Yea, yea, I know," Fuka said with a shit-eating grin. "But really, we'll be okay. And if we need help, I have you and Kana on speed dial, remember? Along with some of your hero acquaintances."
"Alright, if you insist," Hayate said, shrugging. "Just remember that the two of us will be there 'in a flash of wind!' and all that."
"Really, you too?"
"Hey, don't look at me, it's branding. Plus, it's Kana's idea in the first place," Hayate laughed.
"Wow, your place is big, Fuka!" Mina said, as Setsuna and Fuka walked up to meet up with her and the others outside her home. The pink girl had worn a dark purple shirt with tight black capris and black high-top shoes, with a pair of shades on her head. "It's like, the size of three houses!"
"More like two and half, actually," Fuka admitted, scratching her head. While her back has mostly healed, it still stung, so she chose to play it safe and wear looser clothing than normal. She wore a big baggy yellow shirt that covered her bandaged back well enough, slim jeans, and sneakers. "We usually host a lot of parties, and sometimes our relatives stay with us for a couple weeks at a time."
"You think we should hold a get together at your house sometime?" Setsuna suggested, crossing her arms. She was wearing a green crop top with one long sleeve, black jeans, and platform shoes. Like Mina, she had a pair of big yellow shades on her head. "It'd be big enough for both our classes, wouldn't it?"
"Oh! I can also host! My mansion's got plenty of rooms!" Momo said, excitedly. She was dressed in a simple blouse with ruffles and a skirt that matched it. "We could use the ballroom for a party!"
"A ballroom? We certainly don't have that. Closest things to that is the foyer and living room," Fuka said, chuckling as Momo blushed, remembering how different they lived from each other. "But that would be pretty cool! Could practice going to fancy hero parties with your ballroom."
"That would be super cool!" Pony said, lifting her shades up. She was wearing a tie-dyed tank top that showed a bit of her stomach, blue jeans that were fitted for her equine-like legs and tail, and as always, her custom-made shoes for her hooves. "I always wanted to do a ballroom dance like in that Beauty and the Beast movie!"
"Well, that's good and all to think about the future like that, but how about some ideas for today?" Kyoka asked. She chose to wear jeans with some torn holes at the knees, boots, a white tank top with a large diagonal blue stripe across her chest, and a leather jacket.
"Oh, oh! Let's go to the zoo!" Toru said. She kept it simple today, wearing a pink shirt, short jeans, stockings, and pink canvas shoes. "Or a karaoke bar!"
"I-I wanna go to the gardens near the zoo!" Kinoko said, dressed in a brown sweater and a poofy red skirt with white polka dots.
"If we are to peruse the galleries of fauna and flora, I suggest we also go to the gallery of history and art as well," Reiko said, lifting a hand to give her suggestion. She was dressed in a black sleeveless turtleneck sweater with a brown skirt, black thigh high socks, and white tennis shoes.
"Can we go by a candy shop and get some mochi too? Been wanting some mochi," Ochako asked. She wore a black T-shirt with pink shorts and white shoes.
"Mm!" Yui said in agreement. She was dressed in a gray short-sleeved sweater with a red skirt and black stockings and blue shoes.
"Those sound like good ideas," Itsuka said, nodding. She wore a turquoise dress with a big black leather belt around her waist, sneakers, and a green bomber jacket. "Let's do the zoo, gardens, and museums first since they're all close to each other, then a candy shop, and then the karaoke bar. We can probably buy some other snacks at the candy shop too."
The girls all agreed, and went off to the train station.
"Alright girls, what's the plan? Stick together in one group, or go in with smaller ones?" Itsuka said, as they got into the zoo.
"I wanna see the rabbits!" Toru said, as Ochako, Mina, and Kinoko nodded in agreement.
"I'm going to the reptile house!" Setsuna said, almost giddy at the thought of seeing the zoo's reptiles.
"I think the aviary is near there, so I'll join you," Fuka said, shrugging.
"I gotta go see all the African animals!" Pony said.
"And I guess we'll join her," Kyoka said, pointing to herself and Momo.
"I desire to see the majesty of large felines such as lions and tigers," Reiko interjected. "And maybe some bears as well."
"Mm," Yui mumbled, agreeing with her.
"I guess I'll join you two then," Itsuka said shrugging. "Alright, let's meet at around the merry-go-round at the center when we're all done."
"Aaaaw, they're so soft and cute!" Toru awed, watching them hop around.
"They're so many!" Mina said, her eyes sparkling with excitement at seeing the rabbits.
"Look at their little noses!" Ochako added, as she watched a rabbit wiggle its nose around.
"Oh! That one over there is so small!" Kinoko pointed to a rabbit much smaller than the others. "Is that one a baby?"
"Aaaaaaw!" the three collectively went, sparkles in their eyes.
"Check out the big guy over there, Fuka!" Setsuna said, pointing to a crocodile that was resting underneath a big sun lamp. "He's got some chompers on him, huh? Just like me!"
"Yea he does," Fuka said, chuckling. She turned her head slightly, and saw a glass enclosure with a big snake that was staring at them. "Oh wow, look at that guy!"
"Whoa, he's so long and big! I love him!" Setsuna said, going over to the snake. The snake's tongue flicked out of its mouth at her, and she returned the tongue flick. The two went at it as Fuka shook her head and laughed, but also joined her in tongue flicking at the snake.
"Look at all of these antelopes!" Pony said, as a crowd of antelopes had gotten near the barricade and stared at her. "I think they like me!"
"I think they think that you're an antelope, too," Kyoka said, stifling her laughter, Momo also holding back some chuckles.
"What makes you say that?" Pony asked, as the antelopes stared at her horns.
"What magnificent creatures these lions are," Reiko said, watching one of the lions yawn, though one might assume it was roaring silently.
"Mm..." Yui said, as one of the lions rolled over and let the sun warm its stomach.
"Yea, must be real comfortable to be an animal living in a zoo," Itsuka said, as she turned her attention to an enclosure with a tiger that was swimming in a pool of water. "Don't have to worry about too much."
When all the girls were done looking at the animals and met up at the merry-go-round, they went to the botanical gardens nearby, and walked through the trees and flowers that were there. Kinoko's eyes sparkled as she grinned and ran around looking at all of the plants she could.
"Oooooh, these are all so pretty!" she said, excitedly. "It'd only be better if they had some mushrooms, too!"
"Remember not to grow any here, Komori," Itsuka said, laughing. "I don't think the gardeners would appreciate it if they had to clean out mushrooms that didn't belong here."
"I know, but still, this is all so pretty!" Kinoko replied.
"I never knew that Komori could be so energetic and cheerful like that," Fuka said, watching the short girl stare at some roses.
"She's in her element with gardening since her Quirk's Mushroom, right?" Kyoka said.
"Well technically, mushrooms are a different kingdom, and plants are another," Momo pointed out. "But they are sort of similar, I suppose."
The group of girls walked through the museum, browsing through all of the exhibits and artifacts they had.
"Yep, these fossils are still super cool!" Setsuna said, grinning as she and Fuka took some more pictures of themselves posing in front of them. Eventually, they reached the Greco-Roman exhibit the museum had, and they came across the stone ax that Hiroshi had been staring at for over two hours last time.
"... I still don't get it," Itsuka said, staring at it with the group of girls. "Just what about this thing in particular got Hiroshi's attention?"
"Yea, it seems like any old stone ax, doesn't it?" Setsuna said, crossing her arms.
"Still, something about it must've been special to catch his eye," Momo added, as she tried to figure out what made this stone ax unique.
"In any case, this is about it for the museum, right?" Kyoka pointed out. "We've basically gone around the whole place by now, right?"
"You're right," Fuka replied, pulling out her phone to start looking up candy shops and karaoke bars. "Let's go to a candy shop and find some snacks to get for the karaoke bar, alright?"
After getting some snacks, drinks, and a big bag of mochi, the girls started to have fun singing at a nearby karaoke bar. Kinoko was getting into it, actually dancing a bit along the idol song she had been singing, while everyone clapped and played some tambourines and maracas. Momo surprised everyone by singing an old pop song. And Fuka... managed to throw off most of them with how she managed to sing a duet between a man and woman by herself, especially how when she sang the male part, her voice drastically deepened and sounded convincingly masculine.
"How did you make your voice so deep!?" Mina asked, as Fuka finished.
"My Quirk gives me a strong respiratory system and control over it, remember? I've learned how to make it so that I can sound like a guy-" Fuka said, speaking in her masculine voice with no issue, before switching voices mid-sentence, this time to a higher pitch than before, "- or even higher pitched than normal."
Her voice returned to its regular tone, "I can't copy voices, though, just make my normal one higher or lower."
"Well if you're done impressing everyone with your voice, it's my turn!" Setsuna said, as she scrolled through the song list. "Yes! They have 'Whirlwind Love' by Kyotoku+Mika! That's one of my favorites from them!"
"Jiro, you alright?" Itsuka asked, as Kyoka turned red as Setsuna started to sing.
"Y-yea, why? There's nothing wrong with me. Nope. Nada. Absolutely fine," she replied, struggling to keep her face neutral.
"Actually, that reminds me. Last time when we hung out at the arcade, Hiroshi and Setsuna were playing Dance Dance Revolution, and he picked 'Super Extreme' by them, too. You reacted the same way, too," Fuka said, as Kyoka started to sweat a bit.
"I-I-I did?" she replied, trying to keep her cool.
"Yea, and in the music video the game played, I noticed that Mika had the same sort of earlobes as you... Jiro, are Kyotoku+Mika your parents?"
"MMMMMM!" Kyoka said, upon realizing that Fuka hit the nail on the head. Setsuna was too busy singing the song to notice what was going on.
"No way!? Your parents are musicians!?" Toru asked, her sleeves waving up and down.
"And they're Hiroshi's and Tokage's favorite band, too?" Mina asked, her jaw dropped. Kinoko stared in awe of Kyoka.
"Y-yes... It's not that I'm embarrassed of them- well except for whenever my dad takes his shirt off, that's embarrassing- but that I was worried that everyone would react oddly to my decision to be a hero instead of a musician... you know?" Kyoka admitted, pulling her knees up to her chest. "It's so completely unrelated, and-"
"I think it's cool," Fuka said, smiling. "You're following your own path. And hey, you can still enjoy music, too, right? Doesn't matter if it's related or not, you know. Hiroshi loves to draw and write, and if he hadn't managed to attain his dream of being a hero thanks to Hero, he probably would've become a fashion designer, architect, engineer, or even a manga artist. Anything that needs artistic ability and an eye for detail, really. And he still enjoys it a lot, even if he's becoming a hero now. For me, I love to bake. It's fun, and I get to eat some tasty stuff at the same time."
"Yea, Jiro! That's so cool!" Pony said, holding Kyoka's hand. "You're so awesome!"
"I... thanks," Kyoka said, smiling a bit. "But let's keep this a secret from Hiroshi for a while, alright? I don't want him to treat me any different if he found out that I'm the kid of his favorite band couple."
"I don't think he'd be like that, but sure, whatever goes for you," Fuka said, grinning. "I'm sure it'll blow his mind when he realizes it."
"Hell yea! Best score!" Setsuna said, finally finishing her song. She turned around to face the others. "What're you guys talking about?"
"We're talking about how Jiro's parents are Kyotoku+Mika," Ochako said.
"No way, really!?" Setsuna said, before taking a look at Kyoka's ears. "... Oh my god, how did Hiroshi and I not realize that?"
"Don't tell him, please, I don't want him to change how he acts around me, like asking me to get autographs from my parents and stuff," Kyoka said, clapping her hands together as if she were praying.
"Yea, sure," Setsuna said, grinning. "It'll be fun seeing his reaction when he realizes it, too."
"So, want a go a karaoke?" Setsuna followed up, handing the mic to Kyoka. She stared at it, before smiling and taking it.
"Alright, and I know the perfect song to sing from my parents! It's just gotta be 'Be Yourself', since that's what I wanna be, right?" she said, as she punched in the numbers upon finding it in the guide.
"Man, Jiro, you've got such a great voice!" Kinoko said, as they left the karaoke bar after their time ended. "You could actually like, make and sing songs on the side!"
"Really? I don't know," Kyoka said, rubbing the back of her head. "I kinda wanna focus on training to be a hero, you know?"
"Yea, that sort of thing demands a lot of focus for a while," Fuka said, shrugging. "But hey, remember that you can still enjoy making music. And it's not like there aren't heroes with other side jobs, too."
"Of course, but I don't think I'll be ready to perform in front of people for a while," Kyoka said, smiling a bit.
As the girls walked, they heard footsteps behind them. They went on alert, though they didn't stop walking.
"Heeeey, cuties!" a voice said. "Hey, I'm speaking to you! Hey! Turn around!"
"Yea, turn around so we can take a good look at you!"
"Those voices..." Setsuna said. "They can't be-"
Setsuna and Fuka turned around, and saw Kenji and his friends behind them. They were equally surprised to see them.
"Gradeskipper and Lizard Lips!?" Kin'ichi said, backing up a bit.
"The fuck you doing with those fine pieces of ass!?" Kenji shouted.
"Oh, that's just rude," Mina said, turning around and crossing her arms. "We're not just things for you to ogle at."
"... Hi," Ryunosuke said meekly. Setsuna and Fuka raised an eyebrow at him; he wasn't usually that meek. "You... you doing better, Furinji?"
"Y-yes?" she said, surprised at his sudden concern for her. "Thank you?"
"Wait, you're all those UA girls!" Kumataro said, realizing who they all were.
"Yea, and?" Itsuka said, glaring at them.
"... Well, that just makes you even better, we're also hero material, too, you know," Kenji said, sneering a little. "So why don't we all hang out and grab a bite to eat? Excluding you two, Gradeskipper and Lizard Lips."
"You've completely lost any chance to hang out with us when you called our friends those names, dumbfuck," Pony said, pulling her eyelid down and sticking her eye out.
"Oh, do you need us to show why we're hero material? No one's around to see, so you better start respecting us," Kenji said, as his arms started to enlarge.
"Whoa, Kenji, let's calm down before-" Ryunosuke started to say.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" a man in a white tank top, jeans, and most particularly a black mask with the top being white ending at his eyes, screamed at the four teens and ran at them.
"HOLY SHIT-"
"BACK OFF FROM THEM!" the man yelled, as the four teens ran off, with only Ryunosuke looking back a bit while the other three were screaming. "YEA! THAT'S RIGHT! GO AWAY!" "YEA DON'T TRY SOLICITING PEOPLE, FUCKHEADS!"
"Mr. Bubaigawara, slow down!" a familiar voice cried out. The girls looked, and saw Hiroshi running towards them, a bag of art supplies in his hands. "You shouldn't just go and-"
"Hiroshi!?"
"Setsuna!? Fuka!? Everyone!?" he said, upon realizing who it was that Kenji was bothering. "What're you all doing here?"
"We were at a karaoke bar, why are you doing here?" Toru said, surprised to see him here.
"Oh, well, you see-"
"Oh, these girls your friends, Hiro?" Mr. Bubaigawara said, looking at them. "I like them!" "I hate them!" "Any friend of Hiro's is a friend of mine!"
"Huh?" the girls said, confused by what he said.
"Yea. Meet my new friend, Jin Bubaigawara," Hiroshi said, motioning at the stranger. "And it's... kind of a big story to tell."
Think Twice
"Well, I got all of the things I needed from the art store," Hiroshi said, as he checked his bag again to make sure he did get everything he wanted. "Always can rely on that place to have all that I need."
"Artistic endeavors are always worth pursuing and assisting with. It's no wonder they'd be well stocked," Hero said in Hiroshi's head.
The boy decided to wear a big hooded green jacket with a star on the back, jeans, with his hood up and shades on so that no one could recognize him, and the jacket's sleeves were big enough to cover the Hero Hand. He started to wear clothes like this to help avoid news crews and so that he doesn't interrupt peoples' days or cause a commotion, thanks to being the 'World's First Alien Hero' like Present Mic called him. His stomach growled loudly. "Guess I'll go and grab some food to go."
Hiroshi stopped by a McDonalds and bought two burgers, two chicken sandwich, two orders of chicken nuggets, large fries, and two drinks. Ever since he became Hero's host, his appetite had like, almost tripled in amount. They figured that it was so that he could use the calories he consumed to help with his transformation into Hero, even if he can absorb sunlight now too. He was lucky his parents were understanding in giving him a bigger allowance now, if only because he eats so much now.
As he walked, he noticed a mask flying towards his foot. It was black with a white top that ended just below the eyes. He picked it up, and looked at it. From the looks of it and how it felt, it was homemade.
"Did someone lose this?" he said to himself and Hero, when they heard a panicked crying from an alleyway nearby. "Sounds like we found him," Hero replied.
Hiroshi walked to the alleyway, and saw a blond man in a white tank top, jeans, panicking as he searched through the alleyway. What was most noticeable was the scar that ran down the middle of his forehead.
"Where is it!? WHERE IS IT!?" the man yelled. "STUPID WIND BLOWING IT OUT OF MY HANDS! I- I'M GOING TO SPLIT! NO NO NO!"
"Hey, sir!" Hiroshi said, catching the man's attention. He held out the mask. "Is this yours?"
"YES! THANK YOU!" the man cried, grabbing the mask and pulling it onto his head. He took a deep breath, and sighed.
"Thanks for the help, kid! I needed it!" "Fuck you, I didn't need any help at all!"
"You're... welcome?" Hiroshi said, raising an eyebrow. "Are you alright?"
"I don't sense an alien presence from him, so he's not possessed..."
"Never been better!" "None of your fucking business!"
"O... kay... you need to talk to someone?"
"You... you would talk to a crazy guy like me?" "I don't need you!"
"Yea, sure. Hungry? I got a lot of food for myself, but I don't mind sharing," Hiroshi said, looking through his bag of food. "Anything you like in particular? Got burgers, chicken sandwiches, nuggets..."
"I'll take a burger, kid, thanks!" "I'm not hungry at all!"
The man's stomach growled loudly.
"Yea, I'm hungry." "Okay, so I'm a little hungry."
Hiroshi handed the man one of his burgers, and the two sat down against a wall, eating. The man had pulled his mask up just enough to eat his burger. "Want a drink? I got Coke and Sprite. Which one you'd like?"
"Sprite would be nice." "I ain't thirsty!"
"Here you go," Hiroshi said, handing the cup of Sprite to the man. "So... what's your name? I'm Hiroshi Furinji."
"Jin Bubaigawara." "I don't need to tell you! I don't need to tell you anything!"
Jin Bubaigawara. That was a familiar name to Hiroshi. He was pretty sure he read in one of his textbooks about a crime spree a few years ago made by a guy with a powerful and unique cloning Quirk who disappeared as quickly as he appeared. But right now, the guy seemed... very lost in purpose.
"Alright, Mr. Bubaigawara. Any reason why you were here?"
"Just walking through. Guy like me can't be around the normal people, you know?" "I was trying to light a fucking smoke when the wind blew my mask away!"
"I see. So why can't you be around 'normal people'? You just seem kinda... quirky, as funny as that sounds. Nothing wrong with that."
"You... you don't think I'm weird?" "You've got to be lying!"
"No way, I'm serious. You see this?" Hiroshi pulled his jacket's sleeve down and pointed to his Hero Hand. "What if I told you that I'm a host to an alien that can grow giant and change forms? I'm probably a lot weirder than you in a way."
"Wait, you're that Ultraman Hero kid!?" "Get away from me, I ain't going to jail!"
Jin got up and backed away a bit, burger and drink in hand, but Hiroshi stood up and smiled.
"Whoa, don't worry. I'm not interested in taking you to jail. I'm not even allowed to handle humans until I actually get a license. Only aliens," Hiroshi said to assure him. "So why don't we just talk for a while. Maybe I can help you or something."
"I... you're serious?" "You're trying to trick me, aren't you!?"
"No sir, I'm not. You can go ahead and run off if you don't trust me, but I'll just stay here if you want to come back," Hiroshi said, as he sat down.
Jin stared at the teen before breaking off into a run.
"I- I can't believe that kid's a hero student!"
"Never trust anyone else!"
"He was so nice though... the first person to really talk to me at all..."
"He's trying to trick you! To trick us! Heroes only save normal people, not people like us!"
"But he said he wanted to help. I... I..."
Hiroshi went back to eating his food when Jin came back. "Hi Mr. Bubaigawara."
"... Hi, Furinji." "Hi, fuckface."
"You can call me Hiro if you want."
"... Hi, Hiro." "Hi, fuckface."
"Good enough. So what's your story?"
Jin bit his lip underneath his mask. This was the first time he's talked to anyone in a long time, and this kid, despite being a hero student, really wasn't judging him at all for who he was. And he was interested in talking to him. So he spilled a lot about his life. Parents killed by a villain in middle school, was hired by an employer who helped fed him and gave him a place to live, was fired by his employer for accidentally hitting a guy who turned out to be a valued customer that decided to never return to his former workplace, was completely alone, made clones, committed crimes, and all sorts of stuff. He wasn't even sure if he was the original Jin anymore.
"Wow, that's a lot of bad stuff that happened. I'm sorry that happened to you," Hiroshi said, as he processed that information. As much as he was a criminal, the man was a victim just as much. He couldn't let him be alone and not help him. "Do you... do you want to go talk to a therapist or something? I'm sure my parents would understand it if I ask them to help pay for your sessions. But I won't force you to go if you don't want to, since, you know, you're an adult, and I'm still a teen."
"You'd... you'd really go that far for me?" "You fucking pulling my leg, right?"
"Yea, I want to help you," Hiroshi said, grinning. "After all, I've been a victim of an unfair system for a long time until getting Hero to help me out, so why shouldn't I help others, too?"
"Right... the news said you're Quirkless. Your... your life mustn't have been easy, either." "You've got fucking guts to say something like that when you're at UA, you know!?"
"Yea, you have a point about that. I had people that did care about me at least, and it's not like I was living uncomfortably. But just telling people that I'm Quirkless, the looks they'd get in their eyes, whether it's disgust, annoyance, or pity... that's what was tortuous. At best, people would just move on and ignore me, like I'm just a speck of dust. At worst, they'd decide that they could get away with treating me however they want, because hey, how am I supposed to stop them? Not like I made it easy for them, I refused to roll over. But doing that so much... it was painful. I got lucky, sure, but what about others like you and me?"
"I know I can't exactly say that I'll be able to fix our society by myself," Hiroshi admitted. He raised his hand to the sky, and grabbed at the sun shining down into the alley. "But I'll reach out my hand to everyone that's like us. Downtrodden, forgotten. And just maybe, we'll be able to make enough waves that everything can change, you know?"
Jin stared at the boy, before he started to sniffle and tear up.
"You... you've won me over, Hiro! If you... if you really mean that you want to help me, I'll do it!" "Hell yea, kid, you're a good guy!"
"Thanks. You want anymore food or something? I still have a lot, and I can always just buy more later," Hiroshi said, as the two dug into the rest of the food he bought. The two exchanged more stories, more perspectives, and more hobbies and the like, and by the end of it, Jin was laughing a lot. He hadn't felt this genuinely happy in a long time. He didn't know that this was how it was like to have a friend. They got up, and started to walk to chat some more, losing track of where they were going until they saw some four teenaged hooligans bothering a group of girls.
"Oh man, wait here, Mr. Bubaigawara," Hiroshi said, motioning him to stay in place. "I'll go and help them-"
"No, let me!" Jin said, rushing towards the four teens, screaming wildly. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
"You've found a missing criminal famous for one of the biggest robbery sprees in Japan!?" Fuka whispered, as the girls crowded around Hiroshi to listen to his story. They peeked over to Jin, who waved at them.
"Hi!" "Sup!?"
"And you're not gonna try to turn him in?"
"I don't think we should, he clearly needs help, and I highly doubt being in jail will be a good thing for him," Hiroshi said. "I've already sent a message to Principal Nezu, Hound Dog, and Detective Tsukauchi about this, and we'll be meeting with them soon and discuss everything with him. And it's not like he's a violent criminal, none of his robberies ever got violent, save for some scrapes here and there. Worst he did was property damage."
"So you're serious about this?" Itsuka asked.
"Yea, someone like Mr. Bubaigawara deserves help, especially with all the things that happened to him," Hiroshi said. "I've already made up my mind on this."
"... You've got a good heart, Hiroshi," Yui said, giving him a small polite smile. "I think... you're doing the right thing."
"Yea, if you think it's a good idea to help him out, so do we," Setsuna said. They broke up their huddle, and turned to Jin. "If Hiroshi's your friend, then I guess I am, too! I'm Setsuna Tokage!"
All the girls followed Setsuna, introducing themselves to Jin.
"Wow, I didn't know you were such a ladykiller, Hiro!" "You're getting all sorts of girls all over you, aren't ya!?"
"Nope, nah uh, we're all only friends here," Hiroshi said, clarifying it. Only Yui blushed at the idea. "And remember, she's my sister," he added, pointing to Fuka.
"Right, my bad." "Hella sorry!"
"You guys go ahead and enjoy the rest of your day, me and Mr. Bubaigawara are going to go to the help I talked to him about," Hiroshi said. The group's said their farewells, and went off on their separate ways.
"So... you're Jin Bubaigawara," Detective Tsukauchi said, as they sat in one of UA's spare rooms.
"Yep, that's me." "What's it to you, cop!?" "I'm not sure how I feel about you being here, but if Hiro likes you..." "I don't like your fucking face!"
"You weren't kidding about him being manic," he whispered to Hiroshi. "He needs to be in a psychiatric hospital more than a prison."
"I don't even think he should be kept in one, just visit one for regular checkups," Hiroshi said back to him. "And he's unemployed, too, so it's not like he'll regularly have the money for one. I'm sure I can ask my parents to pay for them, but..."
"Indeed..." Principal Nezu said, his paw on his chin thoughtfully. "How about this? We'll let him work and live at UA as a janitor in one of our empty break rooms, giving him a livable income, as well as let Hound Dog act as his therapist, with a psychiatric doctor coming to visit very so often."
"I'm fine with that," Hound Dog said, as Jin looked at the chatting adults and Hiroshi. "The man needs help, and I have had patients older than high schoolers before."
"So, how about it, Mr. Bubaigawara? Would you like to work here? You'll have the freedom to come and go as you wish, as long as you have someone to accompany you, like a teacher or Hiroshi, since he is your friend now," Principal Nezu offered. "This won't be a prison for you, after all. Think of it as community service."
"You mean it? A job? Here? Even for someone like me?" "You gotta be kidding me!"
"Nope, 100% serious!" Principal Nezu said, smiling. "Our society might've failed you the first time, but I assure you, we won't let it happen again. So we'll gladly welcome you to UA!"
"Hope you don't mind cleaning up messes as a janitor, though," Hiroshi said.
"You kidding? Way better than what I was doing before!" "Beats waiting around for nothing!"
"Then welcome to the UA staff, Mr. Bubaigawara!" Principal Nezu said, holding out a paw to shake Jin's hand with, who grabbed and shook it profusely.
"So I guess that's it, huh?" Detective Tsukauchi said, taking a deep breath and sighing. "You know, Furinji, you've got an odd way of thinking, but I think it's gonna be for the better."
"Yea, it's a small step, but a step nevertheless," Hiroshi replied, as Jin went to hug him tight.
"Promise me you'll come visit me here a lot, right?" "I don't need your constant company!"
"Of course, Mr. Bubaigawara, I'll come visit you as many times as I can. After all, I go to school here."
Session
Katsuki grumbled as he sat outside of Hound Dog's office. He didn't want to be here. He thought that since they were on break, that he'd get to do some training he'd otherwise be forbidden from, but Aizawa insisted that he still go to Hound Dog on Monday at the agreed upon time.
"Bakugo," Hound Dog said, opening the door. "Come inside and take a seat."
Katsuki sulked into Hound Dog's office, and took a seat on the couch.
"Go ahead and lay down if you want to get comfortable," Hound Dog said, as he sat on a chair and pulled out a clipboard and pen. Katsuki mumbled and growled, but he decided to lay down on the surprisingly soft couch. "Now, you know you're here, right?"
"Because of a bullshit accident that anyone could make?"
"Hm, not starting off well, are we," Hound Dog said, writing down some notes. "Can you try saying that again, but without being aggressive?"
"Fine... I'm here because I accidentally burned the back of Furinji's airhead of a sister, and everyone is losing their minds over it."
"... Mildly better. And?"
"... And I suppose it's because everyone else thinks I'm overly aggressive. I don't give a shit about what they think, I just need them to shut up so I can focus on becoming the best."
"Uh-huh..."
"Why should I even bother with this shit!? This is a waste of my time! I could be doing solo Quirk training and exercise because that's the only way I'll get any training thanks to all those bullshit stipulations that Furinji's parents put on me for something that was an accident!"
"These sessions are here to help you, not hinder you. You just need to become a little more willing to see it that way. But truthfully, they always start off rocky like this. We can just sit here in silence if you need to calm down. After all, we've got more after this," Hound Dog said. Katsuki grumbled. This really was shaping up to be a waste of time for him.
A New Starting Line
Shoto took a deep breath as he stood outside the hospital room. Even after preparing himself on the train, he still wasn't sure if he was ready to face her. His older sister Fuyumi couldn't believe that he was going to come here now of all times to talk, after spending so long without communicating with her. But he knew that he had to tell her. That he had found a new reason to become a hero.
He grabbed the door handle, and opened it. There, he saw his mother, sitting at her desk, looking out at the window. She turned around when she heard the door, and saw her youngest son in front of her for the first time in years since she was here.
"... Shoto?" she whispered, as tears dropped from her eyes.
"Hi... mom," he replied, biting his lips. "So... did you watch the UA Sports Festival?"
"I... I did," she answered. "You... you were wonderful, Shoto."
"Even if... even if I used fire?"
"Yes, even your fire was wonderful."
"... This fire... I don't think it's my father's anymore," Shoto said, looking at his left hand and clenching it. "But I... I still don't know if I'm fully ready to use it."
"Don't worry, it's... it's your Quirk, not his," she said, giving him a small smile when she began to cry. "I'm... I'm so sorry for what I did, Shoto... If you're here... to tell me that I don't deserve to be your mother, I-I understand... I must've... I must've been-"
"No. I came here to tell you, that when I'm ready, to use all of my power, that I'm going to save you, mom," Shoto said, looking at her head on. "I... I don't know if you want me to, since I look so much like my father, but I'm going to become... a hero that will make you smile, a hero who'll live the way he wants... and I want to save you."
She stared at her son, tears dripping down her cheeks. "That's... a wonderful dream, Shoto... I'm so happy for you," she said, giving him a trembling smile. "You'll... you'll make a fine hero."
Shoto gave a small smile. This was it. His new starting line.
A New Look
"You really I think I should get a costume upgrade?" Izuku said, as he, Hiroshi, and their friends left school, excited for their four-day long break.
"Yea, considering that we'll be having quite some time off, I think it'll be a good idea if you got it improved on," Fuka said, shrugging. "I know your mom bought it for you, but I think it could be like, a lot more durable overall. It looked pretty thin and easy to tear while doing hero work. Not to mention that I need to get new upgrades for my own gear after my air compressor backpack got totaled. I figured that since I'm doing it, I could get yours upgraded at the same time."
"That is true..." Izuku said, his hand on his chin. "But will it be ready by the time we're back at UA? I'm not sure-"
"It can be all done by next Sunday depending on all the improvements needed," she added. "Especially since we're UA students, and we have high priority."
"Oh, oh! Maybe we can hang out at your place sometime to brainstorm stuff for all of our costumes!" Pony said, jumping up and down.
"Sure, but we're hanging out tomorrow with Mina and the other girls, remember?" Fuka pointed out. "Maybe on Monday."
"Gives me time to get some new art supplies to help out," Hiroshi said.
"Should we send a message to Iida about this?" Momo asked, as they all thought back to their absent friend. "He might want to upgrade some of his designs, too..."
"I'll go ahead and send him a message," Ochako said, typing on her phone. "Hopefully he and his family are doing alright..."
Izuku stared at the giant house in front of him. He looked at the address again. It matched the house's. He couldn't believe that Hiroshi and Fuka lived in such a big house. He knew that their family would have the money to afford a place like this, but still, it was bigger than any house than he's seen before. Not to mention the police cars that passed by every so often to make sure that there weren't any trespassers or news crews loitering around the house. He rang the doorbell. "H-hello? This is Izuku Midoriya."
"Oh hey Midoriya, glad you could make it. Everyone's here already," Hiroshi's voice said over the doorbell. "Give me a second, I'll open the gate."
A few seconds later, the gate opened, and Izuku walked into, still in awe of the size of the house. Hiroshi was at the door, waiting for him. "First time seeing a house this big?"
"N-no, more like first time being at a house this big," Izuku admitted, as he walked inside.
"That's fair. A handful of the rooms are guest bedrooms, with a couple media and living rooms here and there. I usually work at the kitchen downstairs, but everyone's upstairs in the artist studio, since it's got a lot of room and a kitchenette for some snacks. I just prefer the lighting down there," Hiroshi said, leading Izuku upstairs.
"Th-that's a lot of rooms. I've always lived in an apartment, so this is-"
"Mind blowing? Yea, that's what everyone else said, too. Well, except for Momo, since her family lives in an actual mansion compared to this," Hiroshi said, smiling a bit as he led Izuku upstairs. "Honestly living in a place like this was probably the only upside to my life for a while, since there's a lot to do at home, though I didn't exclusively spend all of my time here."
Hiroshi opened the door to the artist studio, which was larger than his family's apartment. There was a closet and bathroom off to the side, a couch, a couple of tables, a TV, and many easels and canvas. On the walls were pinned drawings and ideas and designs for support gear and costumes, as well as regular paintings such as still life and the like. In the farthest corner of the studio was the kitchenette, and some statutes and models of various things. Everyone was sitting at the tables, the only person missing being Tenya.
"Hey Deku! Isn't this a cool room or what!?" Ochako said, waving at the two who came in. "This is place so amazing! I can't believe you and Fuka live here still!"
"Thanks, but it's not something we let get to our heads like how our parents taught us," Fuka said. "A lot of the time we'd go hang out at Setsuna's house instead. And we visit Grannie Fumino, who lived in an even smaller house before moving to an apartment nearby."
"Grannie Fumino?" Kyoka asked.
"She's an old lady who really liked kids," Hiroshi said, as he went back to his chair. "She liked everyone, and she'd always gave us snacks and balls to play with. We still visit her time to time, actually."
"She was so excited to see Hiroshi after he got Hero and we told her about him. 'You'll make for an upstanding hero, Hiroshi'!" Setsuna said, smiling as she thought back to the day they told her.
"Oh, oh! I wanna meet her!" Pony said, bouncing up and down in her chair.
"Yea, we could sometime! She'd love you guys!"
"She definitely would. But let's get on track and work on some upgrades for you guys," Hiroshi said, opening his notebook. "Alright, so the first thing we need to do is upgrade your suit's durability, which is probably the biggest part of your changes."
"Y-Yea. Do you think they'll be able to keep the suit the same?"
"Hm... most likely they'll use your suit as a base to stitch on a new layer, so it won't be seen anymore."
"Mm... I guess that makes sense," Izuku said, shrugging.
"Maybe they could make it a different color if that's the case! Like a darker green!" Pony said.
"Yea, the mint green wasn't that great of a color for your costume," Kyoka truthfully.
"I... guess it was a little bright," Izuku said, scratching his head.
"So we'll put that in, then," Hiroshi said, as he drew a new suit. "You still want the same sort of lines?"
"Yea, but maybe black instead of white, if we're changing colors..." Izuku said. "Hm... oh! Maybe better knee pads and shoulder pads?"
"Makes sense... Hey, what if we add armored plates onto your shoes and hands? To improve kicking and punching ability without needing to rely on pushing more of One for All out?"
"That's a great idea!" Izuku said, as Hiroshi drew them onto the design.
"And maybe we can extend the gloves to become more like arm bracers, too, to help add more protective power to them?" Momo said, peering over Hiroshi's shoulder and looking at what he's drawn.
"How about changing the respirator mask you have?" Kyoka suggested. "No offense, but the painted smile... kinda odd."
"Yea, and the rabbit ears on your hood are a weird choice..." Fuka said, before realizing something. "Wait, is it supposed to look like All Might?"
Everyone looked at Izuku, who could only stammer in embarrassment. "Well, uh, um, er... yes."
Hiroshi snickered as he shook his head, "Makes sense, since you are a big fan and his successor after all. You still want them?"
"Yea, I think I do... but we can change the respirator mask," Izuku said.
"Alright, I think I have an idea," Hiroshi said, drawing a new mask design. It was similar to the one that Izuku used, but instead of the painted teeth, they were now square metal plates with a diamond-shaped one in the center of the mask, which had eight respirator holes for him to breathe out of. "What do you think?"
"That's perfect!" Izuku said, as they continued to brainstorm more ideas, though they began to work on ones for each others' costumes as well, each one drawing their own.
"Hey Jiro, since you have those leg speakers, maybe we can add some hand ones as well."
"Oh that's a good idea, maybe I can headphones too."
"What if we change your dictionary to a tablet, Yaoyoruzu? It'd be easier to carry than a physical book, plus it'd be quicker to search for what you need. And a visor with a headset could really help you out, too."
"I never thought about it like that..."
"Uraraka, maybe if we add some sort of fan or motor to your suit to move-"
"- That I can achieve a sort of flight when I use my Quirk on myself! That's a great idea, Deku! I'll need to train myself to get less nauseous in order to use it, though..."
"Tsunotori, since your Quirk allows you to control your horns, maybe you could add a lasso to your gear that you can quickly attach to them."
"So I could use my horns to tie villains up? That's genius! It'll be a lot easier to capture villains that way!"
"Setsuna, maybe adding a couple pouches to your belt and boots are the only thing we can do, since anything else might interfere with your Quirk."
"You got a point there, Hiroshi..."
Soon enough, Hiroshi took all the drawings and designs they had done and pinned them to the wall so that everyone had a better look at them all.
For Izuku's, his updated costume was a darker green with black lines instead of white, long white gloves that stopped at the middle of his biceps that were clarified to be made of a tough material for protection, knee pads that reached up to his thighs and now had black shin armor. His shoes had metal plates on them, which matched the ones on his gloves' knuckles. The respirator mask was changed, and the hood, while still resembling All Might's hair in a way, was now slightly smaller in length.
For Jiro, hers was simple. Her updates were simply new wrist-mounted speakers that she could remove from the bracelets with her earphone jack earlobes, and headphones that protected her eyes.
Momo's was simple as well, having simply replaced her dictionary with a tablet, and a new visor and headset, while the boots of her costume had been shortened to allow her more skin exposure for her Quirk to work. There was also now a large opening on her back, allowing her to create things from it without needing to remove or tear through her leotard repeatedly.
Ochako had a new belt that had some fans, as well as slightly bulkier boots for fans as well. Hers also added a small backpack with collapsible wings and fans that she could activate with a press of a button on the front straps of it.
Pony's was also pretty simple, having a loop added to her waist belt for a lasso that could clip onto her detached horns, as well as a new pouch for disposable metal tips she can use to add more piercing power to her horns if she's only using four at once.
And Setsuna's was incredibly simple, with only a couple of pouches added to the belt and boots to carry some small tools and a first aid kit. No sense in adding too much to it when her Quirk lets her split apart.
"I think we got your new looks down, natch!" Hiroshi said, as they admired all the changes and ideas they've created.
"Wait, what about yours, Fuka?" Ochako asked.
"I already did the bulk of mine a while ago to give to my parents earlier. Kinda had to, considering the nature of my upgrades," Fuka replied, shrugging.
"And mine's getting made as we speak, so it's a little late for any upgrades," Hiroshi added. "I mean, if anything, it'll just be additional tools to use."
"It's a shame that Iida missed out on this little costume upgrade party of ours," Setsuna sighed, as Hiroshi gathered the papers and organized them so he could give them to his parents. All of the teens present in the room looked at each other and collectively sighed. Tenya hadn't responded to any of their messages, and the longer he didn't, the more they grew worried.
"I hope Iida and his brother are alright..." Izuku said, biting his lip.
Stalled Engines
"Since your healing progress has been relatively stable, you can expect to leave within a few days for home," the doctor said, as Mrs. Iida, Tenya, and Tensei listened intently. "We'll keep you here in the meantime to make sure your abdomen's at least fully healed, and your arms still need to be in casts. That will take several weeks, as stated before."
"But what about his hero work!?" Tenya asked.
"Tenya, I think we both know that in the state I'm in, I won't be running for a while," Tensei said, sighing.
"When you leave, I would like you to do some walks around your house supervised to keep your legs moving, and so that someone can help you if you trip or fall," the doctor stated. "Don't worry, 6 to 8 weeks will pass by before you know it."
"That long!?"
"Well, I've been wanting to go on vacation for a while, so I guess now is as good a time as any," Tensei laughed.
"Should you really be laughing!? Especially when your attackers are out there still!?"
"Can't be helped. That Virus guy had this teleporting ability, which he used on the Hero Killer, so it's not like we'll be able to track him down that easily. He seemed really interested in the Hero Killer since he read the articles about him, and I was more an afterthought. Virus only injured me since Stain wanted to. Honestly, him just breaking my arms is probably better than what Stain would've done."
Tenya's fists tightened. Virus. He hadn't seen the man, or, well, alien himself, but his classmates who were at the fountain had and talked to everyone else all about it, including to the police. From what Hiroshi, Izuku, Setsuna, Kyoka, Fuka, and Pony had told him, this Virus was... unlike anything they've ever faced. Just his mere presence was crushing. And he hadn't lifted a finger at that time to do so.
So why did he attack his brother? If his brother was just an afterthought to him, why even bother with breaking his arms or kicking him in the stomach? Couldn't he just have taken the Hero Killer!?
"I... I need to use the bathroom," Tenya said, walking out. He couldn't bear this. This wasn't right.
His brother did nothing wrong. He was one of the most morally upright people around.
And since he was going to be out of commission thanks to his broken arms, he'll be the one to get him his due justice. He'll find the Hero Killer and Virus. And he will make them pay.
Poster Boy
"For the love of fucking god, when is he going to return back to normal!?" Tomura shouted, pointing at the living Stain poster. "It's been three days since you've brought him here!"
"Ug guhhag eu tu etur muh tu namal!" Stain coughed out, having regained his ability to speak. Sort of.
"Sorry, couldn't understand you," Virus said, shrugging. "Should wait a few more days before trying to talk again. Everyone returns to normal at their own rates. Some are near instant, some take forever, some just don't. Rarely can I actually help the process be sped up."
"God, this is the grossest shit ever. I never want to see you bring anyone else in like this," Tomura grumbled, doing his best to ignore the sputtering Stain poster.
"No promises," Virus said curtly. Kurogiri sighed as he tried to hand Virus a towel.
"Do you mind cleaning up that spittle he's making? It's landing on the ground and chairs, and I'd rather this place remain clean of things like that," he said. Illne grabbed Kurogiri's hand, and started twisting it. "GAH! What're you-"
"Illne, no," Virus said, as Illne instantly released her grasp on Kurogiri's wrist. He took the towel in Kurogiri's hand. "We're guests and allies here, it'd be rude not to offer our help sometimes."
Virus wiped off the chairs and floor that Stain's spit had gotten on, before dabbing it on his face to get rid of any moisture on him.
"DOH WUHP MUH!" Stain spat out, his spit flying out again.
"Hm... a conundrum," Virus said, crossing his arms. "Oh! I know!"
He picked the flattened Stain up, put the towel he was holding down onto the chair, and flipped the Hero Killer poster over so that his face was on the towel. Stain started to scream, but the towel muffled his voice.
"Perfect, you can barely hear him now, and we're keeping the bar clean," Virus said, as he took a seat again. "Win-win for us all."
"It'll be a win when he's actually normal and talks to us, or if we just get rid of him," Tomura muttered.
"Don't worry, with the rate he's regaining his ability to speak and awareness, he'll be back on his feet within a few more days," Virus said, shrugging. "But when he does... we'll have so much to talk about."
ORIGINAL AO3 NOTES:
- Some of these events are concurrent, so it's not like they're happening one after the other. And I'm not going to show the entire break so as to not drag it out too much. Just the most notable events.
- I had a lot of fun writing these vignettes. It's a nice change of pace for writing UHA.
- I like Twice a lot, and I figured that with all the big changes I've made in UHA, why not go with another big one like this? It's something I've had an idea for while for UHA. I don't know when exactly Twice would've been recruited by Giran for the League of Villains, but I decided that this happens before that, so Twice hasn't met Giran yet. I also figure that he had made a mask first before getting a "better" one and a full bodysuit from joining the League of Villains. Again, wishing that there was a more accurate series of dates so that it'd be easier to determine what happens when instead of guesstimating.
- I hope it's not too farfetched of an idea that Hiroshi would want to help out Twice or him coming across him at some point, and that it's believable that Twice would accept it from him, since Hiroshi's seen the downsides of hero society and he's actually offering a hand of help to him. Or that they even met at all.
- Is it a bit too much to have the costumes upgrades be done early like this? I figured that with Fuka needing to replace her air compressor backpack and using her parents' resources (since they are affiliated with UA), that they could take advantage of it to make the upgrades early.
- We'll be getting some action in the next chapter in what's gonna be a UHA exclusive story. It'll take a while, but I think it'll be workable.