Hi, everyone! I hope you all enjoy this story as much as I did while writing it. Please feel free to review, I would love to hear your thoughts.

I hope you all have a great New Year! May it be a great year to remember!*

Disclaimer: I don't own My Hero Academia or any of its characters. Mizuki, however, is my own creation.

Let's start with the story, shall we?*


Chapter 18

It felt great.

A large explosion erupted from where she stood, a smirk plastered on her lips and sweat cascading down her face and body. She could feel the pull of the muscles in her arms and legs, the excitement pumping through her system

She inhaled deeply and wiped her forehead. She breathed heavy, her heart rate slowly calming down as she stared at the damage. She let lose a concentrated explosion and managed to blow the designated part of the explosion up.

She trained, along with a few other students, inside USJ. She trained by the rubble city and focused on making her explosions more specific. She needed to train different types of explosions, her biggest concern being the overheating of her body.

Mizuki brought her hands together and gritted her teeth as sparks erupted all over her body. An explosion with minimum to no damage. She thought and let out a cry as a blinding explosion erupted from her body.

"Stun grenade!" She exclaimed, the bright light briefly attracted a few of the student's attention that trained near her, in the rubble. It wasn't a large explosion, but their eyes winced at the sudden brilliance.

"Mizuki-chan is really fired up today, isn't she?" Mina asked as she landed on her feet after throwing her acid towards rubble. Ochaco used her Quirk to make it float, giving the pink skinned female more of a challenge.

"Yeah, she's been that since yesterday. Maybe it's because she can train again? Though, I thought that she and Bakugou was going to train together?" Ochaco mused, tapping her index finger on her chin in thought.

"Well, they have a competition going on between them. I guess they're training separately to grow stronger to fight against each other," Mina pointed out and as soon as she realized what she said, she paled slightly.

"I don't want to see that, though. They'll blow up the entire stadium and take everyone with them," Mina thought aloud and Ochaco snickered at the thought. It was quite the terrifying thing to imagine.

"Hey, Ochaco." Both girls jumped in surprise when Mizuki approached them. They glanced back at her, a face towel hanging around her shoulders and a water bottle in hand. Her P.E. uniform's long pants burnt to her knees. It wasn't surprising.

"Hey, Mizuki-san. I see you're training hard again, as always. You got your pants burnt off again," Ochaco laughed lightly, pointing at the girl's bare legs. "I just don't know how you don't burn your shoes…"

"My combat boots are laced with heat resisted fibre and a metal alloy up to 1600 degrees. They also have small openings at the bottom where I can let lose my explosions," Mizuki explained, the two girls gaping at her.

"1600 degrees?! Y-You can make an explosion that hot?! W-Won't you melt yourself?" Mina asked, gaping as her index finger shakily pointed at Mizuki. Mizuki chuckled and put her one hand on her hip, the other hand flexing.

"I've got a sturdy body." They sweat dropped. "I'm not allowed to push my body that far, though. I have a way of overheating my body and get to a temperature that can incinerate my own cells," she informed them.

"Scary… That's scary…"

"That's why I want to join your training." They gave her blank looks. "I have a new technique I want to work on and I need a target for practice. Mind giving me some rubble?" Mizuki asked the brown-haired female who nodded.

"Of course! It'll be exciting to train with you, Mizuki-san!" Ochaco beamed, Mina jumping up in her own happiness. Mizuki chuckled in amusement and hunched down, putting her water bottle and face towel down.

"Here we go! Try and beat me, Mizuki-chan!" Mina challenged as she secreted acid in the palm of her hands. Ochaco touched a bunch of rubble and then activated her Quirk to make the pieces float in front of them.

Mizuki smirked and held out her hand, the palm of her hand facing the rubble. "Bad choice, Mina. I don't lose," Mizuki said, her red eyes gleaming brightly. Mina raised an eyebrow before her eyes widened.

Mizuki's left hand steamed greatly, the skin of her hand turning shades of orange and yellow. The sleeve of her shirt was blown off and the muscles in her arm twitched. The palm of her hand started to switch from yellow to white.

"You might want to stand back before you get blown away," Mizuki said and Mina took a step back in retreat. Mizuki gritted her teeth and pushed the heat in her arm, the secretion of her sweat heightening.

"Piercing explosion!" She exclaimed, the explosion white as it was released. It started out as a beam of light but then expanded, destroying all the rubble floating in the air. She clicked her tongue in annoyance.

The heat is still too much for my muscle fibres to handle, especially if it's only in my arm. The expansion is uncontrollable as soon as it leaves my hand. Mizuki thought as she breathed heavy, her entire arm reddening as steam emerged.

I wanted to train on a way I can use piercing but it'll have to wait. It's won't be perfect in time for the tournament. I'll have to work on my other techniques in the meantime. She sighed and resisted to flinch at the heat in her arm.

"A-Amazing…"

"What was that?!" Mina exclaimed, her eyes wide in a mixture of terror and astonishment. "You completely blew those pieces of concrete to smithereens!" Truth to her words, there was nothing left of the rubble.

"It's something I'm trying out, but the backlash is too much," Mizuki could feel her shoulder ache from the impact. It was the main reason why she and her brother made gauntlets to use during battle. Large explosions were difficult to control and caused a lot of pain.

"Your arm, is it okay?" Ochaco asked and Mizuki smirked, clenching her left fist. Ochaco blinked in surprise and then snickered. "Remind me that I don't want to go against you, Mizuki-san," she pointed out and Mizuki shrugged.

"I wouldn't worry too much about that. You're strong in your own way, right?" Mizuki pointed out and made the brown-haired female's eyes widen. Mizuki slung her face cloth around her shoulders and walked away without another word.


Lunch Time…


Mizuki stifled a yawn as she walked next to her brother towards their usual spot. Katsuki was quiet, his mood neutral. He had been able to train full out with his Quirk and had gotten rid of all his anger for a while.

"I burnt my P.E. clothing again. Mom said I should borrow a pair of yours until she gets me a new one," Mizuki told her brother who rolled his eyes at her. He eyed his sister carefully. She was calm and at peace. It was a bit unnerving, like a calm before the storm.

"It's irritating, stop blowing up your clothing already!" He scolded her, Mizuki giving him a lazy gaze filled with disinterest. She wasn't fazed by his attitude at all. He clicked his tongue and sat down, opposite of his sister.

"It's not my fault the designing is crap. If they put a little more effort into the designing and incorporated heat resistant fibres then it would've been better," Mizuki pointed out, poking a hole in her juice.

Katsuki huffed. "Yeah, right. The heat you generate is much more than even your costume can handle. Just don't use that white explosion of yours," Katsuki stated bluntly and Mizuki cocked her head to the side.

"White explosion? You mean Piercing?" Katsuki gave her an annoyed expression. "Ugh, fine! I can't control it anyway and there isn't enough time to develop it. Also, I can't incapacitate myself like that in a fight," Mizuki replied with a sigh.

"What's with the sigh?" Mizuki glanced up to see a pair of big, bright eyes looking at her and pointy teeth grinning into a wide smile. She felt her heart warm up at the redhead's arrival and she was sure it skipped a beat when he sat down next to her.

"You should be more excited! The festival is around the corner!" Eijiro exclaimed, making fists and excitement rushing through his system. Katsuki ate his food, completely indifferent about the boy in front of him.

"Besides, I heard that you were really pumped up today." Mizuki raised an eyebrow. "I heard the girls talk about how enthusiastic you were during training," he added and Mizuki smirked. She hummed as she averted her attention to her plate.

"Maybe it's because I have motivation," Mizuki said and gave Eijiro a heated look that made his cheeks heat up. She innocently took a bite of her food, feeling accomplished that she caught him by surprise.

"O-Okay… How's your training coming along Bakugou?" Eijiro changed the topic to the male sitting opposite of them. He could feel his heart thumping in his chest. He didn't know what Mizuki meant by her words but he could feel the impact it had on him.

"It's none of your business, Shitty Hair. Other than you jumping off buildings, I'm actually training," Katsuki snapped and gasped when he received a harsh kick on his shin from Mizuki. He gritted his teeth and sneered at his sister in pain.

Eijiro blankly looked at Mizuki who continued eating like nothing was happening. He had an idea that she was behind Katsuki's murmured strings of curses. He then turned his attention towards his meal, not commenting on anything.

He didn't know what it was, but Mizuki was in a good mood. A very good mood. She had her usual sarcastic and blunt statements, her brother still getting regular hits from her. Yet, there was a calmness in the way she carried herself.

She was the predator stalking her prey and he feared who was at the receiving end. Her red eyes were more intense than normally and he could feel the thrill run through him by merely looking into them.

"Hey," Mizuki's voice broke his thoughts. He gazed at her, the intensity of her red eyes swallowing him up. "You've got a little something here…" Mizuki reached towards the crumbs he had on his face.

Eijiro watched as she wiped it away with her hand and felt his entire body go rigid when she licked the crumbs off her finger. His mouth ran dry, his heart beating in his throat and he was sure that his face was blood red. Katsuki watched his sister in horror, his face filled with a large amount of shock.

Mizuki smirked, seeing that she had the redhead's full attention. She then stood up, breaking the lingering tension. She enjoyed the way he looked at her, his eyes filled with both confusion and another peculiar emotion.

"I'll see you later, Red."

Eijiro didn't even know when she finished with her lunch. His mind briefly short circuited, his eyes following her figure until she exited the cafeteria. It took him a few moments before his mind started to spiral out of control.

Huh? What just happened?! What was with that look?! It was so intense I thought she was going to eat me! Eijiro yelled out in his mind, Katsuki eyeing the male carefully. He didn't have a clue about what was happening. It was going to be hard on an obvious idiot like him and entertaining for him.

Mizuki, on the other hand, felt like her head was going to explode from the heat. She couldn't believe she just did that. She wanted to be subtle and for some odd reason she couldn't be. She groaned and shook her head. It was going to be a long day.


Mizuki stretched her stiff limbs, the day ending at the ring of the bell of the last period ending. What a day. It was quite tiring to want to get home to train as soon as possible and sit through the classes with time refusing to go by.

She managed to make enough notes that she had to go through after her training session, after all, mid-terms were right around the corner. Her brother beat her with the written entrance exam. Not this time. She was going to be number one.

She stood up, catching a familiar redhead in the corner of her eyes. She saw him front down at his notebook. He bit down on his pencil and struggled greatly. She slung her bag over her shoulder and walked over towards him.

"Need some help?"

"Oh, Mizuki. Sorry, I didn't even notice you were there!" A vein pulsed out from her forehead. "I've been trying to figure out how Cementoss Sensei got that last answer," he said and sighed, groaning soon after.

"Ugh, I'm tired. I'll try it again tomorrow," Eijiro said leaning back into his chair. He could feel his shoulders ache from sitting forward and taking notes all day long. He just couldn't concentrate that long.

"Don't be ridicules, I'll help you. Tomorrow you'll completely forget what was said. Besides, I found the calculations easy," Mizuki pointed out and Eijiro let out a breath. Of course, she found it easy. She was blessed with intelligence.

"Here," she opened his book and put her hand on his shoulder. She then pointed at the page and stole his pencil with her other hand. "First, you have to eliminate all the complicated figures. You can do that each in a step. It'll take up a lot of space but that way you won't make easy mistakes," she explained.

She leaned forward, Eijiro's cheeks heating up at the close contact. He could feel his heartbeat speed up and swallowed thickly. Concentrate, Eijiro! You're a man, right? He wanted to groan at his thoughts. It was because he was a man that it was difficult.

"You idiot. You forgot to divide it. That's why you didn't get the right answer," Mizuki scolded him and corrected his mistake, his eyes widening as he snapped himself back towards his work. He snapped his fingers and his mind cleared up.

"Ah! That's why! Thank you, Mizuki!" Eijiro said and Mizuki smirked, placing the pencil down on his notebook. He lifted his eyes from the calculation and nearly fell over when his eyes met her cleavage that peeked out from her school uniform.

He wasn't the only one who had their attention on her, Mineta and Kaminari were both staring at her with flushed faces. It was, unfortunately, interrupted when they heard sparks come from Katsuki's hands and averted their eyes immediately.

"Mi-chan!" Izuku called, Mizuki straightening herself up and adjusting her bag. Izuku looked between the two and felt his own flush arrive as he recalled what Mizuki had boldly told her parents, him and Katsuki.

"Yo, Izu-kun. I haven't heard how your training's coming along. Have you been able to get a better grip on moving around?" Mizuki asked and the green haired boy nodded with much more enthusiasm than needed.

Mizuki chuckled and glanced back at Eijiro. "I'm heading out. Call me if you need any help with the work," Mizuki winked at him with a smirk. Eijiro stared at her, speechless as he felt his heart give a tight squeeze when she walked off.

Eijiro was about to tell her that he didn't have her number but interrupted himself when he glanced down at his notebook. Written neatly below the calculations he made, was a number with an explosion drawn next to it.

When did she-?

He looked up to find her snickering and ruffling Izuku's hair. She then walked off, Katsuki glaring daggers at the green haired male as he followed his sister. Mizuki didn't give her brother's temper any time of day as she exited.

Eijiro's eyes then landed on Izuku who laughed lightly at the twins before he was called by Ochaco and Iida. Izuku was her childhood friend. Best friend even. They were extremely close and it made him wonder if there was something more…?

He shook his head and looked down at the number that she gave him. He had no idea what she was planning and he didn't know what to do with the number. He groaned and ruffled his own hair in frustration.

This girl was messing with his head.

Fortunately, he found that he liked it.


Mizuki sat down by her computer, switching it on as she dried her hair with a towel. She had finished with training for the day, her brother not holding back with close combat at all, and then finished with homework before she took a shower.

"Well, if it isn't out little champion!" Rinako's face popped up on the computer screen and Mizuki smiled with a chuckle. The blonde wore her favourite bunny pyjamas, her hair up in a messy bun as she grinned.

"We're definitely not talking about the pink human bunny catastrophe on the other side of this screen. I can see that you didn't bother with a facial mask tonight," Akira was next to pop up on the screen.

"Ha-ha. Very funny. I'll have you know that this skin already had its beauty treatment for the day. Not everyone has flawless skin by only breathing. Ah-hem, Akira. Ah-hem, Mizuki," Rinako coughed between saying the names.

"Yeah, yeah, blame my parents. Not my fault," Mizuki said and sat down with a hum, hanging up her towel. "Anyway, how are things on your side? Anything interesting?" Mizuki asked, Akira shrugging and Rinako giggling.

"Great! There was an unprepared class test and I nailed it! I got an A! In your face, Akira!" Rinako shouted and pointed at the screen. She even stuck her tongue out. Akira waved her off and opened a bag of chips next to her.

"I'm amazed! You can actually do it if you put your mind to it… I'm guessing Akira got full marks…again…" Mizuki trailed off and Rinako huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. Only that made Mizuki know the answer.

"Not my fault it's so damn easy. I tried to make a bit of work for myself by offering to update their security system and they declined. Too bad, their loss. Maybe I should quit school and go work for U.A. to help a little with the security," Akira mused and Mizuki chuckled, Rinako frowning.

"Doesn't sound like a bad idea. I'll keep an ear on the ground if there's a job opportunity opening up," Mizuki replied and made both girls give her blank looks. Akira stopped the chip halfway to her mouth.

"Mizuki-chan, are you alright?" Rinako asked and Mizuki raised an eyebrow. "You seem…a bit…in thought? Did something happen at school?" Mizuki frowned, the worried tone confusing even more.

"I'm fine! Nothing happened after the whole Villain incident. Everyone's preparing for the school festival and I finally got to train. Other than that, nothing's going on," Mizuki told them. Akira sighed and put down the bag of chips.

"It's a boy." Mizuki felt heat rush into her face. She gave the two girls a look of disbelief. "Or it's the festival but seeing the look on your face, I know I was right. Ha, you always fall for that," Akira said with a smug look and Mizuki cursed at her.

"Oooooooh! Tell! Tell! Is it that cutie boy with the red and white hair? He was popular because of something…what was it again?" Rinako pondered, making both Mizuki and Akira sweat drop. Even though she received an A on a test, Rinako was still Rinako.

"You idiot! He's Endeavor's son! You know, the number two hero? Goodness gracious, you're still an airhead at times, you know?" Akira shook her head. "But seriously now, please tell me you're not making eyes for my cutie," Akira practically begged and Mizuki paled slightly.

"Your cutie?" Mizuki couldn't help but chuckle. "No, it's not Ice Boy. He clearly stated that he wasn't there to make friends either. I seriously doubt that he would be interested in any relationship," Mizuki pointed out.

"WHY?! You're not picking the Prince of all boys who carried you in his arms to save your life?! What is wrong with you?!" Akira shouted angrily. Mizuki didn't know if it was filled with relief or filled with anger.

"Calm down, Akira. There's an obvious reason why she didn't pick him. She barely knows the guy and despite being a HUGE romantic… I mean he carried you protectively… I know that Mizuki would pick someone she knew better. It's Izuku," Rinako said and Mizuki groaned.

"Not you too! My Mom kept hinting towards it and even asked Izu-kun how long we've been going out. It's embarrassing. We're not a couple. We're best friends! If I truly wanted him, I would've taken him long ago," Mizuki confidently stated and had caused Rinako to fall over in her chair, very dramatically.

Akira whistled. "Poor guy. He's lucky he escaped your claws." Akira chuckled in amusement as Rinako tried to sit down on her chair again. "The only other guy is that redhead. There isn't anyone else," Akira stated bluntly.

"How do you know I didn't keep it a secret?"

"The fact that you just fell into my trap once again! Mwahahaha!" Akira laughed devilishly, Mizuki giving her a baffled expression. "The moment I spoke about Mr. Redhead, your eyebrows twitched and you resisted a smile, the edge of your mouth moving," Akira stated and Mizuki gaped.

"We know all your signs, Mizuki-chan. For someone who hasn't ever been in love, it's pretty obvious," Rinako said, a big grin plastered on her face while Akira chuckled at Mizuki's discomfiture. It was a whole new experience for the ash blonde.

"Okay, fine. I like him, but that doesn't mean he likes me back," Mizuki stated and glanced at her phone. It was quiet, no messages coming in or out. Did she scare him off? Was it wrong of her to hope that he struggled with something so that he could ask her for help?

"Doesn't matter. I just got the photo of our little crush! Geez, why does no one care about their system security?" Akira wondered aloud and Mizuki blinked a few times before her brows knitted together.

"Akira, did you hack U.A.?"
"No…"
"Akira…"

"I didn't! I promise! I wanted to. It was tempting but I didn't. I found the photos that the news stations broadcasted about the class after the villain attack at USJ. There's only one redhead in the picture and-Holy crap. Look at those refined and toned muscles!" Akira exclaimed and the image of Eijiro popped up onto each one's screen.

"What are you-Oh… Why is he half naked?"

"He's not half naked! It's his costume! Also, I can see you drooling Akira and it's very disturbing. Stop it," Mizuki scolded the female and then scowled at the teasing gazes she received. She didn't like the unwanted attention at all.

"When do you plan on snagging him?"

"Now you really sound like my mother." Mizuki shook her head in discontentment. "I'm not snagging anyone. I gave him my number in case he needed any help with calculations and he hasn't contacted me yet… It's frustrating…" Mizuki lay her head on her crossed arms with an exhale.

"Whoa, you already gave him your number? Bold move. You're really going for it, huh? What else did you pull out of your little bag of tricks?" Akira asked, pulling a notebook closer and made the other two sweat drop.

Mizuki swallowed thickly and looked away from the screen, trying to hide her blush by digging her face into her arms. "I think maybe I scared him off. It was all of the sudden. Ugh, this is ridiculous!" Mizuki whined.

"I would say wait it out. Boys don't catch onto stuff like this easily. Besides, he's focusing on training for the festival too. Give him some time to process everything," Rinako advised, much to their astonishment.

"When did you get this smart about relationships?"

"I have my secret talents… Anyway, the way I see it is that Mizuki's ultimate move would be to make him realize he likes her. It's a secret move that has always worked. The power move called: Jealousy," Rinako said and Mizuki frowned, shaking her head.

"No thanks, Rinako. I appreciate your advice and I know he's concentrating on the festival. It's just that…ugh! I really like him!" Mizuki said and buried her hands in her hair. Her friends were taken back by the unexpected honesty and smiled, giving her the best advise she would ever need.

"Then, be yourself. You threw him the line. Let him come to you. Don't overthink this. You've also got a festival to prepare for. Which, by the way, I already got us tickets to so don't disappoint!" Akira said and Mizuki chuckled, happiness and warmth residing in her heart.

"I promise I won't."


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