I do not own anything you see here!
And that was also my disclaimer, if somehow that was not explanative enough. Anyways!
So the voting has begun and there's definitely a fire under everyone, because I don't know if I've ever seen it so even. There was an early lead from Mina, but Uraraka is bringing it back, while Yaoyorozu holds a steady second place. Tsuyu has been quiet, as has Jirou and Hagakure, but I suspect that's from a lack of involvement. So! To highlight that, I will extend the voting for one more chapter, and in doing so, I'll introduce this little ditty!
A short feature of each girl getting their independent time with the children! If that makes you want to change your vote, then so be! Otherwise, starting this chapter, I'll be counting the base votes in the poll, the review votes (one per person) and anyone on Tumblr that votes (ScandinavianSensation, if you don't know). If I notice a particular bias, I'll factor in possible tampering via multiple votes. Also, one other thing to consider.
There are TWO children. Ergo, there MIGHT be two mothers. I don't know. Just something to consider. Kids aren't all the same, and there's no reason that they can't have differing opinions. It'll just matter on who comes out on top, and how the voting looks.
Either way, I won't be taking away from anyone, and expect other characters, such as Sato and some of those lesser seen characters, to get their chances to shine here in the upcoming chapters. I hope this voting doesn't result in people deciding they don't want to read anymore, because that'd be rather unfortunate. It's just a fun little thing to get some involvement in the story from you, the fans!
So enjoy and vote!
Jirou
Truthfully, Jirou had no clue why Midoriya asked her to watch the two things he held closest to his heart nowadays. She admitted, yeah, she liked the little tykes, and she had wanted to get to know the duo better... but that was on a basis that wasn't... this! She was completely unprepared to take care of a child, let alone two, all while being alone!
"I need to accompany Bubble Girl on this recon mission... I-if you don't mind, I'd really appreciate if you could watch Eri and Kota for the day!"
She didn't mind. But that didn't mean she was ready to do it, either.
Eri was, for all intensive purposes, a timid kitten. Her eyes, wide and full of curiosity, shone brightly in the light, and between her and Midoriya's, it was hard to tell who had the more vibrant orbs. His emerald eyes were hard to say no to, but Eri's were near impossible. Her withdrawn tendencies when speaking only made her that much more difficult to say no to, and she was so soft-spoken that it seemed Jirou had to strain to hear her.
On the flip-side, Kota was easier to care for, but much more difficult, strangely enough. He was independent - still - and he had tendencies to brush off people that weren't Midoriya. Which, unfortunately, was everyone. But as headstrong as he could be, he was terrible at masking his interest. He was smart and he wanted to learn - a trait he probably picked up from Midoriya, unwittingly. And, ultimately, it was only thanks to that little fact that Jirou was able to bond with the two at all.
She'd decided to let Eri draw - something Midoriya adamantly recommended for the snow-haired girl to keep her from becoming overwhelmed without his presence - and Kota seemed plenty invested in his homework he was doing, so the sound-based heroine plugged one of her earjacks into her phone, and idly twirled the other while she carefully constructed the sentences that Present Mic had assigned the class for homework. She scowled; English was her least favorite subject, to the surprise of most of her peers.
While it wasn't hard, persay, most of the words had multiple meanings, and she struggled to spell them based on how they sounded. She could hardly imagine any person growing up with the language - it was insane!
She leaned back in her seat, sighing loudly and trying to keep from blasting the paper in front of her with a good few soundwaves. While it would do very little, it would feel good, and just the prospect of that was tempting. From the corner of her eye, she spied Kota's attention diverted from his homework, and she turned in her chair to get a better look at what he was focused on. She followed his gaze toward her Jackson guitar, and she smirked.
So the kid had a little music in his soul, huh?
"Hey." Kota's gaze suddenly shot toward Jirou, and his eyes averted to the ground, as if he was ashamed to be caught. She frowned. "Relax. You ever played?"
Kota slowly looked up, but kept his eyes diverted. "No..."
She rolled her eyes; he could give her a little more to go off of, couldn't he? This was just as hard for her - not everyone was a goodie-goodie like Midoriya.
"C'mere," she said, standing up and popping a few of her joints. She sighed, this time in pleasure, as she loudly cracked her back, filling the room with almost a shotgun like sound. She walked over to the royal blue wonder she'd come to dedicate most of her spare time to, and gently picked it up from its stand, making sure the amp cord was unplugged before she moved it. Kota slowly stood up and awkward stood by her as she sat on the edge of her bed.
She snorted softly. "I mean, come here." She pat the spot next to her for emphasis, which got the point across. From the ground, Eri gently peeked up from her drawing, intrigued.
Gently, like she'd done it a million times (and, if she'd been counting, there was a really good chance she'd done it over a million times) she ran her fingers along the strings. The hum that came from the strings sent a wave of pleasure through Jirou, with shivers down her spine as she felt herself slowly ease into the music - like a bout of painkillers, only they were dulling the frustration that had come from the events of the day.
Kota watched in keen interest as her fingers danced along the strings, creating a beautiful, low euphony that seemed to dance in the air magically, brightening the room by just a touch. He smiled and closed his eyes, and a ghost of a smile touched Jirou's lips as well. She continued strumming, feeling the music vibrate her soul and spread throughout her body like a branching warmth.
"You like it?" While it was tempting to sing it, Jirou wouldn't pretend that she could sing. She had good pitch, but she just lacked the vocal discipline for singing - besides, she enjoyed the feelings she could create without words.
Kota nodded wordlessly. "I could teach ya something if you like," Jirou said casually. She watched in contained amusement as he opened his eyes suddenly; a look of excitement flashing deep within.
"R-really?"
She shrugged. "Yeah, sure. But I have one condition." Kota looked uncertain, but nodded slowly. "You gotta pick what kind of instrument."
Just like that, the look of excitement returned, and Jirou felt another type of warmth cascade through her soul; though, this time, it wasn't brought upon by music. She'd never had siblings, and she was hardly the 'doting' friend, so she didn't precisely know what it meant to be motherly toward anyone, but in that moment, she imagined, this was probably how she'd really get to bond with her child, should she ever have one.
Maybe they wouldn't like music (unlikely, but entirely possibly), but somehow, she knew they'd just find a way to click. Her mother, for instance, wasn't the best at opening up to people, and for awhile, she seemed somewhat indifferent toward interacting with Kyoka when she was young - but that all changed once she was old enough to understand the beauty of music. Once they shared their first song together, it all changed.
"Can it be the drums?"
Of course it had to be the one type of instrument she didn't play. They were too loud - too damaging to her sensitive ears.
She must've had some type of look on her face, because Kota frowned, and looked away. "If not... that's okay..."
An unfamiliar feeling tugged at her heartstrings, and she grimaced, before cursing under her breath. She wasn't foreign to the feeling of guilt - though she wished she was - and she knew when it was rearing its ugly head. "H-hey, I did say you get to pick."
Slowly, he looked up, and the hope that shined in his eyes drove her a step further. She sighed; somehow, this would come back to bite her... but it would make the kid happy, and ultimately, that's what mattered. Plus, Midoriya had said to look after the duo, and she owed him for some notes he'd taken for her while she was sick a few weeks ago. While it hadn't been what she was expecting when he'd asked a favor, she wasn't going to turn him down when he needed her.
Besides... this would teach him to say 'no' to them once in awhile. Unless he wanted a splitting headache all the time.
"I'll text someone - he has a set at home, and I'm sure he could bring them over sometime." Kaminari most certainly would be willing to show off, if she knew the yellow-haired dolt like she thought she did. He'd be skeptical at first, and he'd definitely complain incessantly about having to haul around all the equipment, but once Kota got to hear him play once, she was practically positive he'd do it a million times over.
She almost rolled her eyes. What some people would do for compliments.
"In the meantime, I'll..." she thought for a second. There had to be something important he could do in the meantime, right? Her eyes fell on some of her classical music records, and a lightbulb went off in her head. "I'll show you how to read music, cool?"
"Cool!" It was clear he'd meant to sound cool about it, but the excitement in his voice caused a bit more enthusiasm to slip in than he'd planned, and the word sounded off, eliciting a soft laugh from Jirou.
"I wanna learn something, too!" Eri proclaimed suddenly, her coloring book all but forgotten.
Jirou smiled and casually strummed the strings as she chalked this experience up as a 'W'. The world of music might be changing, but with these two, she could at least keep the culture rich. Plus, what was music without new talent?
Hagakure
The lithe form of the 'Invisible Girl' swayed in place, her skirt swishing from side to side like the pendulum of a clock as she carefully styled Eri's long snowy hair, being sure not to tug too hard otherwise the small girl would yelp out in pain. She was biting her lip - not that anyone could see - as she tried to finesse a bundle of Eri's hair through a tight loop.
"A-almost...!" Hagakure muttered with strain. Her eyes narrowed as she subconsciously held her breath; hoping maybe the lack of breathing would aid her in her quest to finish the young girl's new hairstyle.
With one final push, the cord of hair slipped through the loop, and Hagakure exhaled in relief, pulling the hair tightly before pushing backward in her chair to revel in her work. "Perfect!"
Eri tried to turn around to see her hair, but as she turned, so did her braids, prompting a cute giggle from the invisible teen. She fished her phone from her bag that sat lifelessly on her bed, and quickly snapped a picture, before handing the device to Eri. She awed and cooed over the new style, and Hagakure could practically see the delight that shone in her eyes.
"W-wow!" Eri continued to fawn over her new braids, gently touching the end of her hair with her fingers, as if afraid the contact would cause her hair to revert back to normal. "It's so pretty!"
"You're so pretty!" Hagakure gushed. And she meant it. With eyes that shimmered ruby red, the light only increased the emotion that could be found glimmering within, and they seemed to sparkle whenever she smiled - which, nowadays, was far more often then Eri could ever recall. Her skin was a creamy white, further complimenting her eyes, and even with the scars that littered her arms and legs, she still had the cutest face Hagakure had laid eyes on. The single horn atop her head only gave her a mystical look, and more often than not, Hagakure often forgot it was even there.
While nobody would be confusing Eri as actually being Midoriya's child (which had happened once, as they shared similar personalities), Hagakure was far from hesitant in admitting she could see the two actually being related.
"Yeah, yeah, everyone's pretty." Hagakure smiled; she hadn't forgotten about Kota, although from the grumble in the boy's words, it was clear he didn't think the same way. "Can we do something please?"
"Do you want a make-over too?" Eri asked innocently. Kota's frown turned into a look of reserved panic - he'd lived with the Pussycat Heroes long enough to know that anytime a female wanted to do a make-over, it was akin to the end of the world. He stumbled as he jumped to his feet, putting both hands forward in an attempt to ward off the approaching storm.
The fear in his eyes almost caused Hagakure to burst out laughing. "N-no! I want to something fun!"
"But this is fun!" Eri argued.
"Maybe for you..."
"It would be for you, too!"
"No it wouldn't! I'm not a girl!"
"What does that have to do with anything?"
Hagakure could sense the building argument, though she had no idea how to prevent it. It occurred to her that, despite all the times that the duo was with Midoriya, they'd never actually fought one another - at least, not in the public's eyes. Then again, it was just possible that Midoriya's presence was enough to dissuade any type of argument from even building up.
She feebly put her arms up, though it did very little as the two children couldn't see her arms, even with her uniform on.
"Girls like stuff like that, don't they?" Kota's voice was growing louder.
Eri's frown grew more pronounced and her eyes took on a stormy look. "You don't know that!"
"HEY!" Both children froze, startled by the sudden noise. Hagakure immediately clasped her hands over her mouth as it occurred to her just how loud she'd shouted. She coughed lightly, hoping to alleviate the sudden heat that had spread across her face. "I-I don't think you two should be fighting. Kota, just because we're girls, doesn't mean we only like fashion. And Eri, not everyone thinks the same things are fun. Sometimes, we have to do a few things to find something that everyone enjoys."
Being a single child meant that Hagakure didn't have younger siblings that she had to watch over as a child. It also meant she'd never scolded anyone before; especially not two young children. She'd read plenty of books where the protagonist had to scold a bunch of feuding siblings, and the way they'd always done it involving playing the middle-man and not taking side, which she decided was the easiest route in this particular case.
Both kids sheepishly looked away; in Kota's case, his gaze turned toward his feet, while Eri's attention was directed toward wringing her hands together slowly. Hagakure paused, trying to think of what to say next with the sudden blanket of silence that had fallen upon them.
"Uh... you should apologize to one another, I think."
They looked at each other, before diverting their looks once more - whether from embarrassment or not, that part was unbeknownst to the invisible heroine.
Finally, after a moment of silence, Kota stuffed his hands in his pockets and grumbled quietly. "I-I'm sorry I said that stuff..."
"I'm sorry I tried to force you to think this was fun..."
While they both had apologized, it didn't look like either Eri nor Kota felt any better afterward. In fact, Hagakure couldn't help but wonder if they looked even more miserable. Had she done the wrong thing? Maybe they hadn't wanted to apologize yet... or maybe they weren't ready to? She groaned; this whole thing was harder than it looked.
"It's okay to make mistakes." Hagakure recalled what her mother used to tell her when she'd get into arguments with her cousins. While it didn't frequently happen, it occurred enough to earn a few scoldings, and after each one, the young invisible girl felt awful for what she'd said, despite having her apology accepted. "Just learn from them, and understand everyone's different, okay?"
"T-that sounds like something Izuku would say..." Eri mumbled quietly. Hagakure smiled, bobbing her head to the side, the bow in her hair dancing with her movements, and nodded enthusiastically.
"Exactly! And I'm sure he wouldn't want you feeling down about a little mistake!"
Both Kota and Eri noticeably perked up, the room suddenly seeming a little bit brighter as identical smiles broke out on both children's faces. They gave each other a look - and for a second, Hagakure was worried they were going to lose their blooming joy - before sheepishly giving each other a hug, despite Kota's obvious reluctance. He caved when Eri didn't give him room to move away.
"Aww!" Seeing the two little ones hug caused a flutter in the teenager girl's heart, before a lightbulb went off in her head and she jumped up, excitement radiating from her features. "Let's take adorable photos! It'll be fun!"
She didn't see the identical looks of contained fear that spread symmetrically across the siblings' faces. Not that it would stop her. She was determined to have fun.
Uraraka
"W-wow!" Eri whispered. While she hadn't intended to say it aloud, she didn't mind that anyone else had heard, because she was sure her excitement was plenty visible for anyone with even the worst vision. Her hands were balled into fists as she sat cross-legged in front of the T.V., though she was ready to jump up at the next big thing that happened - like she had several times already. "He's so... cool!"
Kota wordlessly nodded. He hadn't seen this fight when it aired live, but the first time he was introduced to it after being saved by the same teenager as seen on television, he was completely and utterly addicted. He wasn't really sure why, to be honest. The scene itself was... slightly scarring, if he was honest. He was watching his caretaker break his bones like it was nothing, using the same shattered limbs to throw more punches, and then going a step further and nearly pulverizing his already broken bones. The blood that dripped from his wounds, along with the nasty bruising that discolored his skin... it was far from 'child-friendly'.
He was just glad that Uraraka didn't seem to care.
In fact, it was her idea to watch her class's Sports Festival from their first year, anyways. She had been fairly relaxed for the majority - although she had jumped in excitement when Midoriya took first in the Obstacle Race, and she bowed her head in embarrassment during her fight with Bakugou - once the fight between Midoriya and Todoroki had come on, she was animatedly punching and flicking the air in the same way Midoriya did to counter the half-and-half's ice quirk.
"... And right here, he goes BOOM!" Uraraka shouted, swinging her fist as Midoriya's fist made contact with a motionless Todoroki, sending him sprawling backward and ripping the ice shards flying from the fabric of his uniform. Uraraka's grin was contagious, and despite the damage being done to both of her classmates, it seemed like she was just as enthralled by the fight as the two kids were.
On the screen, it was shown that Midoriya was yelling something, although it was inaudible due the camera's further proximities. Eri took immediate notice. "What's he saying...?"
Uraraka paused the fight and smiled warmly. "Well... I couldn't hear everything, but Jirou said that he was telling Todoroki that the fire part of his quirk doesn't belong to anyone else."
"Huh?" Simultaneously, both Kota and Eri tilted their heads in confusion. Uraraka began to rub the back of her head, but took a seat in front of the two and tried to recall the story to the best of her ability.
"You see... Todoroki's father is Endeavor, although I'm sure you already knew that. But Endeavor isn't a great dad, from what I've heard. And because of that, Todoroki didn't want to use the fire-half of his quirk, because it would be acknowledging his father's power." Kota looked to his hands and silently, thought to himself, remembering his reluctance to use his quirk due to his parents. While the history wasn't the same... the principles were somewhat similar. Uraraka continued. "But Deku didn't care about that!"
"He yelled at Todoroki because everyone was giving their all - except him! I-I mean, I get why he didn't want to... but Deku wasn't happy about that. So, he told him that the power he has... is his own. No matter who he gets it from, or who his parents are, their quirk isn't his, and his isn't theirs. No matter what Endeavor said, it didn't make them the same person."
"I... kinda get it..." Eri said slowly. In truth, she understood the idea behind Midoriya's message, although it was a little confusion to hear without having any type of backstory. "Endeavor's quirk is Endeavor's quirk. And Todoroki's quirk is Todoroki's."
"Exactly!" Uraraka pumped a fist into the air, but brought it down as her face settled into a more relaxed and thoughtful look, before she rested her hand back on her leg. "I didn't really know... why he chose then of all times to say that. He could've won the fight - I think everyone, including Todoroki - acknowledged that if Deku hadn't said anything, he probably could've won. Of course, Todoroki was still capable of fighting, so maybe not, but anyways, after thinking about it... I realized why he did it."
A look of admiration highlighted Uraraka's expression. "He's a hero, all the time."
Kota couldn't argue with that, and as he shot a glance over at Eri, with the expression on her face, he immediately knew that she couldn't either. He was their hero.
"Did he save you, too?" Eri knew that look; she saw it in Kota, and she sometimes saw it in herself when she was cleaning up in the mirror in the mornings - that slight gleam that would appear in her eye when Izuku would call Eri for breakfast; just his voice being a reminder of the life that he'd given her. If she hadn't seen it in Kota, she might never have placed a name to it, but when it appeared only after she was free from her prison... she knew the truth.
And sure enough, Uraraka smiled bashfully. "Y-yeah, he did. It was during our initial exam before we were actually U.A. students. I was... trapped under debris and couldn't really touch the boulder that was holding me down, and there was a gigantic robot that was rolling my way. I don't know if it would've ran me over or not..." Uraraka looked uneasy, but continued nonetheless, "but Deku jumped in and BAM!"
She popped up and swung her fist like she had earlier, this time, spinning for effect. "And blew it up! Like nothing!"
Her excitement dwindled as she sat back down, a faraway look glazing her eyes. "I... I want to be a hero, too. That's why I'm here. And even though he's grown so much... I have my own goals." A determined look settled in her eye, the smile she wore thinning, but remaining on her face, as she clenched her fist and turned to the kids next to her. "Someday, you two will know what you want, and you'll get the chance to walk down that path. It's okay to think of others, but make sure you put your own goals first."
"Do you think you aren't?" Kota almost clamped his hands over his mouth when he realized that he'd been the one to ask. Uraraka looked surprised, but to Kota's relief, she didn't look angry or offended that he'd ask, instead, she began the poke her fingers together and shrugged.
"W-well, I think sometimes I get a little distracted... b-but I'm pretty focused!"
Eri giggled. "So your homework is done?"
"I-it is!"
"Izu said it wasn't!" Eri continued to tease. "He said Satou made treats and you didn't want to leave!"
"It would've been rude to not taste them for him!" She almost crossed her arms, but an idea came to her. "C'mere!"
With just a touch, Eri was floating helplessly in the air, but the young snow-haired girl was only laughing harder as she spun and twirled in the air like a dancer. "You aren't distracted now, huh?"
Kota smiled softly as he watched Eri continue to tease the older girl, with Uraraka laughing along, spinning his sibling in the air, causing her to gain momentum and squeal with excitement. This was significantly better that having tens of thousands of photos taken of him. Besides; he would never pass up a chance to learn about his favorite hero.
Asui
Fact: Eri couldn't swim.
Fact: Kota loved the water.
Fact: It was a constant argument between the two.
Tsuyu blinked uneasily as Kota laughed and splashed water on an unsuspecting Eri, who scowled and stuck her tongue out at her foster brother as she tried to shake off the water. "Stop it!"
The water was far from cold - thanks to U.A. and their outrageous budget - but for the life of her, Tsuyu couldn't quite figure out why Eri was so resistant to having the water touch her. She had changed into a bathing suit, and even gone as far as to bring a towel with her - but once the water was within sight, she suddenly kept as far back from the glassy surface as she could.
She even eyed it with rather impressive disdain - a look that was admittedly foreign on Eri's cute face.
Kota rolled his eyes before taking a deep breath and plunging underwater, using his quirk to rapidly move underwater like he was being pushed by a jet. He hadn't practiced with his quirk too much in the water, but he couldn't help but admit he missed the pool way too much. The Pussycats springs were the closest thing to a pool they'd had, so going underwater wasn't advisable for very long, due to the heat.
"Eri, is there something wrong?" Tsuyu asked as she paddled over to the edge closest to Eri. The girl frowned and looked away, folding her arms around herself like she was trying to hug herself.
She slowly shook her head, but that did little to convince Tsuyu of anything.
"Do you not like water?"
Eri remained silent.
"Are you scared of it?"
"No!" Eri said defiantly, surprising both Kota (who had resurfaced) and Tsuyu. She realized how loud she'd been and sighed quietly, lowering her voice as she spoke again. "I-I just don't want to get wet."
It didn't exactly scream out 'rational excuse', nor did it appease Tsuyu's curiosity, and Eri could read the disbelief on the frog girl's face without even having to try. As young as she was, she was far more mature than simply not wanting to get wet. But she didn't want to be honest - not when Kota was going to make fun of her.
How was she supposed to tell anyone that her father hadn't been around long enough to teach her to swim? She was sure that they could guess the man that had held her prisoner for so long was the furthest thing from a teacher and could care less about her abilities to move freely in the water. While he'd been above torture, she sometimes had nightmares that he would drown her to keep her under his command, and not being able to swim did little to appease it.
She knew she could be honest with Tsuyu, but for whatever reason, she just couldn't stand the embarrassment of having Kota tease her for something like that - especially when he seemed to swim so well! She almost pouted when she watched him move gracefully through the water. She wanted to be able to swim like that!
Tsuyu, thankfully, was significantly more observant than Kota, and picked up on the stutter in her voice, before realizing her posture was to avoid being near the water. She wasn't particularly sure on how to approach something like this - no one in her family was scared of the water. Her brother and sister both had the same quirk as her and her parents; they all adored the water like it was a second home.
Ribbit. "Why not put a foot in?"
Eri shook her head. "No... I-I'm good."
Well that didn't work, Tsuyu reflected. Admittedly, it was beyond a long-shot, so she was far from dissuaded. Instead, she pulled herself out the water and sat down on the edge of the pool, with her feet still submerged and pat the spot next to her. "I promise, you won't get that wet." She even shot Kota a look that he clearly saw, and understood, judging by his return look.
With a bit of her lip, Eri hesitated. She... kind of wanted to. She loved the water. She remembered when Midoriya showed her a picture of someone with a quirk that made the woman appear like a mermaid, with a long tail and immense grace within the water, and she remembered how cool it was. She wished she could be a mermaid!
But... she still couldn't shake that fear. The fear of suffocating. Of drowning.
Another pat of the tile, and Eri found her resolve crumbling as she inched closer to Tsuyu, and by reference, the water. It did look calming. The surface was calm, despite Kota paddling around, and it seemed relatively harmless. But she looked harmless too, and she knew better.
'What would Izuku do?'
Just like that, she took a seat next to Tsuyu, to the frog-girl's surprise, though there was plenty of joy, too. Eri tried not to shake too much as she dipped her small feet in the water, the fear pooling in her chest, its cold grip spreading around her lungs, trying to suffocate her. She felt her breathing begin to quicken, but a damp hand on her shoulder snapped her from her tunneling vision, and when she looked at the smiling girl next to her, her breathing regulated, and the darkness in her vision began to recede.
Kota gently passed by, mildly disturbing the surface, but not splashing any water up at his foster-sister. He saw the look she kept shooting the water as she had gotten closer. He knew she was afraid, he had to be ignorant to miss out on that. He squirmed uncomfortably in the water, trying to ignore the creeping guilt that was making its way to his heart. He hadn't meant to splash her in a way that scared her.
He was just having fun.
With a sigh, he realized his mistake. His fun wasn't her fun.
"You don't have to get in yet," Tsuyu said calmly. She meant it, too. It was a huge step that Eri had taken - there was no need to rush it. "I'm going to get in, is that okay?"
Eri nodded. She wasn't as afraid now that her feet were in.
With a contained splash, the frog-girl was back in the water, the warmth of the water surrounding her once more as she sighed in bliss. An idea came to her as she thought about the times she came to train, and she paddled over to a chest that was kept at the surface of the water, before opening it and pulling a large ball out.
The smile on Eri's face was bright and even Kota seemed excited. He grinned as he peeked over at Eri, who was now completely distracted by the idea of a game, silently promising he'd get Izuku to help teach her to swim (so that later on, he could splash her and not feel bad in doing so).
As for Tsuyu... as she played with Kota in the water, using her legs to spin him around and push him into the air so he fell back into the water with a big splash, drawing laughs from the typically stoic child, she felt herself smiling as she felt like she was back home. She glanced over at Eri - who was smiling and pushing the ball underwater, only for it to come back up- well, she'd just have to bring Eri back a few more times.
Yaoyorozu
In exchange for helping her talk with a certain half-hot, half-cold teen (really, she talked to him all the time, so she had no idea why her throat closed up when he asked her if she wanted to join him and Izuku for lunch), Yaoyorozu promised Midoriya one single favor he could repay at any time. She didn't tell him that she'd help him with anything if he asked, but it just seemed more practical to her for them to do a favor swap.
She'd been expecting something simple - involving her quirk, perhaps. What she came to find was two little kids, books and backpacks on their body, and an uneasy expression on Midoriya's face.
"T-they're distracted from their homework around me, a-and... well, I was hoping you wouldn't mind watching them?"
It was short notice, true, but it was also unexpected, and Yaoyorozu would later come to figure out that Midoriya was working on a new level for his 'Full-Cowl', as he called it, and the two little kids were too intrigued by his training to focus on their own lives.
She didn't mind - she'd been planning to go to the library anyways, so this was just another reason to go.
"I hate math," Kota mumbled. He bounced his pencil off the notebook, snorting as it landed dully on the crease of his notebook, the entire process seemingly as amusing as actually doing the work. Yaoyorozu looked over at his paper - full of illegible numbers and randomly-placed formulas - and glanced back at her own paper. It was immaculate, clean, but most of all, it was precise.
She hesitated saying anything. Would he get annoyed that she offered anything? Would he deny her outright?
Her eyes flickered back to his forlorn expression (how did he look like he was doing to die?) and she made up her mind, exhaling lightly as she did so. Before she spoke up, she glanced at Eri, who was sitting across from her and Kota, and was satisfied to find that she was immersed in her homework. She even had a pleasant smile as she hummed softly to herself.
"Kota?" The boy's eyes rolled over to where she was sitting, slightly wide with surprise that she spoke up.
"Sorry, did I annoy you? I'll stop."
Momo cursed silently; he was obviously a bit more distraught that she'd originally anticipated. "N-no, that's not it. I, um, are you okay?"
Kota's body position shifted slightly, his head peeking up from the previously defeated position it had landed in, as curiosity overtook his features. He slid the notebook back a little as he pulled his head up.
"Yeah, I guess," he muttered. "I just... hate math."
She repressed the urge to say, 'I know', and instead, put on a soft, kind smile. "Well, what part makes you hate it?"
"The numbers. And the idea of it. I won't do anything with math..." His brows furrowed. "At least, I don't want to. Maybe I won't do anything. I don't know."
The frown on Momo's face grew more pronounced as his tone became edged with greater agitation. It was clear this was more than a matter of just mathematics giving the young boy a headache. She made a mental note to talk with Izuku about his behavior later, but for now, she had to fix at least one of his problems if she could.
"Math is more than just numbers... it's about understanding topics, such as quantity, structure, even space." Truthfully, Momo loved math. It was an essence of science; one of the building blocks of civilization. Without math, she doubted human-kind would have made much progress through history. The look of horror on the boy's face made her pause, however, as he looked practically mortified.
"You mean... it only gets worse?" His voice was barely above a whisper. Momo sighed in exasperation.
"No; you get smarter." She paused, trying to think of how to move the conversation in the way she wanted. "Would you like me to show you how to do it?"
Kota hesitated. His eyes flickered from his paper to her eyes, and back to the paper, before a light red blush coated his cheeks and he crossed his arms with a feigned indifferent expression. "Yeah, sure, if you want."
Gently shuffling her chair over a few inches, Momo leaned over so that she could get a better look at Kota's homework. Her eyes quickly scanned over the problems, and a smile broke out onto her face. Not that she had any doubts, but she knew exactly what the material was, and she knew just how to solve it. Now the hard part was finding out how to teach it without frustrating or embarrassing the young boy.
Deciding the best course of action would be to find where Kota was struggling, she let him pick their starting place. "Where are you having issues?"
His answer came slowly, and there was a tinge of embarrassment to his words. "I, uh... h-here."
Momo nodded and began to go to work. "See, the first thing to do is to pull this number," she said, gesturing to an '8' with her pencil's eraser. She tapped on the paper softly, and slid her eraser down, mimicking the movement. "Down to here." She then deftly wrote in the '8', and added the parenthesis, before dragging other numbers down, humming gently to herself as she did so. It was like being a child again - she felt nostalgia blossom in her chest as she remembered her own mother lecturing her on the simpler lessons in school.
Before she knew it, the problem was complete, and her work was just as well structured on Kota's paper as it was on her's. She turned to the younger boy with a smile. "Did that make sense?"
The boy blinked. "Can... you do that again?" He paused, and added on. "But slower."
Momo almost sighed, but she didn't miss the change in his tone. He understood what she did. He just needed to see it a few times, that was all. Speed was her forte, but there was no reason that she needed to fly through the material. It wasn't even for herself.
"Sure," she said warmly, and began writing again, this time, at a slower, more appropriate pace.
As they were walking through the problems - Kota slowly, but surely, showing evident signs of progress - Yaoyorozu thought back to Kota's dejected statement about how he 'might not do anything'. She had never really struggled with anything like that throughout her growth as a child. Her parents, despite how little they could be around, were fairly certain she'd make for an excellent heir to their business. She was dedicated to heroics, obviously, and that was how she ended up at U.A, especially due to her powerful quirk.
In fact, with her quirk, she was told she'd make a wonderful hero from a young age - though, it was in part thanks to her butler that she kept a level head and understood humility and how to sympathize with others, despite her fortunate status. Looking at Bakugou, she always wondered if he had something similar happen with him, where everyone worshiped him... his behavior was exactly what she expected from someone who was spoon-fed compliments. She'd heard From Midoriya he was popular, she just didn't know to what extent.
She shook the thoughts free; she was supposed to be focused on Kota!
Despite her lapse, he was doing just fine, toiling away at the homework like he hadn't even been struggling in the first place. The frustration that had been all over his body language was now gone, replaced with silent contentment, but that didn't mean that Yaoyorozu had forgotten anything.
"Kota?" He didn't stop working, but he did slow down for a second, showing he was listening. "What did you mean earlier? When you said you don't know what you'll do?"
This time, he did stop writing, but he still kept his eyes on the paper in front of him. "I... don't know what I'll do, I guess. I don't know... what I want to do when I'm older." He slid his hand over so that he was able to write on a blank sheet of paper, and he began to idly doodle. "Adults like to ask me what I want to do... if I want to become a hero or not... and I... don't know."
Before she could say anything, he continued, the tremble in his voice matching the tremble that shook his body. "I know... Izuku is a hero. And so were... my parents. But... I don't know if I want to be a hero. Being a hero has brought a lot of pain with it. For everyone I've known. I don't... know if I want that."
From across the table, Eri had stopped writing, and her ruby eyes were now clouded as she peeked up at the duo. Momo wanted to hit herself; she hadn't meant for the mood to become so solemn. But now that he'd confessed to her, he couldn't leave him hanging, either. What was the right thing to say? These were Izuku's children - not her's.
If only Midoriya were here... she thought silently. What would he say?
"H-hey... it's okay." Kota stopped shaking momentarily. "Sometimes, you won't always know what you want, and that's okay. There's a lot to do in this world, and... you shouldn't feel obliged to do something. I know... Midoriya won't be mad if you don't want to be hero. There's so much time between now and then, you might just find something you like. But... don't feel like you have to know."
"E-even if everyone else does?"
"Especially if everyone else does. Because... they aren't you."
'That's what Mr. Aizawa was trying to teach me... I'm not Todoroki... a-and... I shouldn't try to be...'
Yaoyorozu smiled brightly. "That's right! They aren't you! So... please, don't worry. It'll be okay."
He might not have been trying, but slowly, a smile broke onto Kota's face, and his posture relaxed, and the trio settled back into their homework. Well, almost everyone did. Momo went back to her paper, but as she put the pencil to the notebook, she found her mind blank, and the only thought on her mind was: when can I do this again?
Ashido
"The park?" Kota asked skeptically. "You want to go there?"
Ashdio grinned. "Of course! Are you saying you don't want to climb trees and skip rocks?"
"Uh, but-" Eri tried, but failed, to nab Mina's attention.
"Trust me, you guys'll love it! I know all the sites!"
"A-Ashido, it's ra-"
With a hand on her hip, Mina pushed her hand forward, striking a pose with her fingers doing a peace sign. "Midoriya'll be like, 'woah, why didn't I think of that!', and then, you'll wanna go back all the time!"
"It's raining." Kota said bluntly.
Mina froze. She scrambled over to the Common Room window and pulled the blinds back, only to reveal a gusto of wind and rain coming down the building, pattering the glass with heavy droplets of water. Her expression fell and she nearly slid to the ground as disappointment took place of the energy she'd once had. "Aww... that sucks." She turned to the two kids dejectedly. "How did you even know?"
"Izuku," they said in harmony, holding up the phones that he'd gotten for them in case of emergency. Sure enough, she peered closer and saw he'd simultaneously told them to be safe if they went out, because the storm was picking up.
Mina frowned, and crossed her arms, before huffing. "He didn't text me."
A buzz came from her pocket, and her expression changed yet again, this time, to one of surprise. She slipped her phone out, and found herself with one unread message from 'Midoriya, Izuku'.
'Hey, I won't be back for a bit; have fun with Eri and Kota! I hope they're not too much! Be safe if you go out! Thank you for watching them! :)'
She smiled; he even attached a smiley emoji!
"You were saying?" Kota asked. His voice barely masked the smirk on his face.
"Sassy," she said, sticking her tongue out. She then moved over to the couch - exactly where Eri and Kota were sitting - and plopped down between them, causing them readjust so as she didn't accidentally sit on either of them. "Well... I don't have any ideas."
They sat in momentary silence, before Eri slowly spoke up. "What about a movie...?"
Mina snapped her fingers. "I got it! The perfect movie!"
She lunged off the couch and crawled over to the television, which was held up by a small wooden cabinet that had various video games, video game consoles, and movies - all belonging to different students, but left in the Common Area for anyone's use, so long as they were respectful. Which, pleasantly, everyone was. Even Bakugou.
"C'mon, c'mon..." Mina muttered, running her finger along the spine of every movie case on the shelf. She paused on 'Monty Python and the Holy Grail', wondering who in the world had brought that movie, but moved on, deciding it wasn't worth the effort. A grin broke out onto her face as she found the movie she was looking for, yanking it out and proudly holding it up for the two kids to see.
"A-are you sure? It looks... scary...?" Eri asked hesitantly. Even Kota looked a little unsure.
"Nah, trust me! I was watching this movie around your age. Plus, you know my first hero name was Alien Queen, right?" They wordlessly nodded. "Now you'll see where I drew inspiration from!"
The two kids glanced at one another, uneasiness written all over their faces, but ultimately, they relented. If Mina said it wasn't scary... then surely it couldn't be that bad, right?
"Let's grab some blankets and popcorn! And lights off!" Ashido suggested excitedly. No matter how many times she watched this movie franchise, she'd never get tired of it. It was just perfect, to her. Even if it was a little outdated by modern movie standards.
She popped the DVD into one of the game consoles, knowing it doubled as a DVD player, and quickly ran over to the kitchen, pulling out some instant popcorn. Eri went over to Izuku's room to grab some of his fluffy blankets, hoping that she could bury herself in them if she became too scared. While she trusted Mina, she also had her doubts, seeing the cover of the movie.
Aliens.
She gulped.
Maybe it wouldn't be that bad?
Nearly two hours later, Eri was sure she wouldn't sleep again.
Her body trembled, despite being wrapped up tightly in Izuku's comforter, and with every breath, she tried to inhale as much of his scent, hoping it would calm her frazzled nerves. She glanced over at Mina and Kota, who had radically different expressions. Kota's eyes were wide, and he, too, was clutching the blanket, as if holding on for dear life. Mina was grinning from ear-to-ear, the popcorn bowl in her lap completely empty, no thanks to either of the two kids.
Not that Eri had wanted to eat, anyways. She was pretty sure she'd be terrified to death the next time she had a stomachache.
"So? What'd you think?" Ashido asked eagerly as she navigated the menu and ejected the DVD. Once she cased it, she turned back to the kids, and her expression changed as she saw their faces. "Was it that scary...?"
"I-it... y-yeah..." Eri mumbled, barely keeping her eyes visible. She was slightly ashamed to admit she was scared, but she was also slightly guilty, seeing the excited expression Mina had, turn so downcast. She was sure the pink girl hadn't meant to scare them - she probably had watched it at their age - but that didn't mean it wasn't scary!
Kota coughed gently, trying to put up some sort of facade, but failed to do so.
A frown touched Mina's lips. "I'm sorry... geez, I didn't mean... for this kinda reaction."
"It... i-it wasn't... bad." Gently, Eri lowered her blanket, but kept it close to her body, and tightly in her hands. As of now, it was her lifeline, until Izuku was home. Then he'd be her lifeline. "It was just..."
"Terrifying," Kota supplied helpfully.
Mina gently took a seat between the two kids, not noticing how they wiggled closer to her for extra protection, as soon as she'd sat down. "Are you guys okay?"
"Y-yeah."
"Sure, I guess..."
The rain hadn't paused during the movie, and now as it knocked against the window, the room seemed much more ominous - especially with the occasional bolts of lightning that darted across the sky, filling the room with natural light for a few seconds, before a rumbling crack of thunder caused what seemed like the whole building to shake. Mina sighed dejectedly. "I'm sorry..."
"It's okay... r-really." Eri meant it, too. She wasn't... fond, of being scared half-to-death, but... she wasn't mad at Mina, or anything. The U.A. student was just trying to show off her passion, and her favorite movie series. There was nothing bad about that. In fact, in the parts that weren't riddled with... horror and death, it was actually a fairly enjoyable movie. "W-what made you want to name yourself after the queen...?"
"Hm? Oh! Nothing, really." She giggled. "It's not the queen I draw inspiration from, actually. People always thought I looked a little different - I mean, I do! But, like, my friends would jokingly call me like, an alien, and it seemed like my head was always in the clouds, or in space, so... I was kinda like an alien in that sense! And who doesn't wanna be a queen?!"
"Me." Kota rose his hand, but it was ignored.
"And since I loved the movie series so much, I just thought it'd be a cool name, too!" She then frowned, as if remembering something. "But Midnight thought it was too scary..."
A sweat-drop rolled down Eri's face. 'I wonder why...'
"So what's your name now?" Kota asked curiously.
Mina crossed her arms, and pouted. "Pinky."
Lightning interrupted any laughter that would've escaped from either child, effectively paralyzing them with fear as a particularly loud crack of thunder rolled through the sky, roaring at the ground below it. Both moved even closer to Mina, now practically against her sides. She draped an arm around the duo and pulled them into her sides, still feeling slightly guilty for scaring them the way she did.
"Maybe next time, we'll watch the second one when Mido is here, huh?"
"Please!"
"T-that'd be good!"
She smiled, hiding the sly smirk that was daring to slip onto her face. She'd been trying to get him to watch that, and now, she had a way of getting him to. But, as another round of thunder rolled overhead, and the two squeaked, pulling themselves into Mina's stomach, she felt a warm feeling blossom in her chest.
If they needed a place to cuddle before Midoriya got back, she had no problem with being that source.