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.

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 37

The next day…

Mizuki woke up early, taking a jog on her own and made sure not to wear her costume. The streets were still busy, the city life never sleeping. It were sceneries like these that made her glad that she didn't live in such a lively place.

She lost to Endeavor. It was still a bitter reality that she was forced to accept. She was put on paperwork for the rest of her internship. She wasn't going to be trained and it included no patrolling. It was unfortunate, yet, she was going to have to make the best of a bad situation.

She needed to keep her body in shape and made sure to plan a schedule to do so. She had a new technique that she wanted to practice. She might've only had a few days left but it was definitely worth the try.

"Hey, did you hear? The kid lost against Endeavor-san and now she's stuck on desk duty for the rest of the internship. Poor girl…" Burnin listened as her partner spoke from behind her. She was busy stretching her arms behind her head, ears perking up.

"There was no way that she would've been able to win. Her spirit is probably broken," another voice chimed in and Burnin came to a stop. She put her hands on her hips and then let a big grin burst forth onto her expression.

"I don't think so! She looks pretty pumped up to me!" Burnin laughed, pointing towards the office with her thumb. Her partners leaned to the side, heads popping above each other to see what was going on.

"Mizuki-chan! Could you please sort this out for me?" One of the sidekicks yelled, holding a file in his hand. There was another calling for her, another file held into the air. The ash blonde walked towards one of the other sidekicks, a handful of papers in her grasp.

"I'm coming!" Mizuki replied and then put the pile of papers down on the desk. "Here you go. I made sure to put everything in alphabetical order so it'll be easier to put away." She received a thank you and smirked as she walked off, crimson eyes catching sight of Burnin.

"Morning, Burnin. Are you heading out for patrol?" Mizuki asked as she took the files from the men who handed her the papers. The flaming sidekicks stared at the scene with blank expressions, confusion lingering around them.

She's not upset at all!

"HAHA! How lame! You're still wearing those glasses of yours?! Seriously, get contact lenses already!" Burnin mocked the ash blonde female, pointing at her. A vein popped out of Mizuki's head, a scowl etched on her lips.

"Shut up! Stop making fun of it already! I told you I can't wear contact lenses!" Mizuki snapped at the copper green haired female as she continued to laugh. Mizuki sighed, pitting down the last of her documents.

"Oh. Morning, Burnin," Shoto spoke up as he walked up to Mizuki's desk with his own stack of papers. The group of sidekicks blinked in confusion. They were surprised to see him in the office with paperwork.

"Mizuki, I finished up with the papers you gave me. Is there anything else I can do?" Shoto offered his help. The ash blonde female grunted, taking the papers and scanning them through her extra pair of eyes.

"Nah, I think you've done enough…" Mizuki's voice fell away as she looked over the documents. Her eye twitched as her grip tightened. Her temper flared and more veins started to palpitate out from underneath her skin.

"Bastard… I've already explained this to you at least twice. How the hell do you still not get it?! Hah?!" Mizuki yelled at him, hitting him on the head repeatedly with the documents he had done wrong.

"Ah, my bad."

"Don't 'ah, my bad', me! Aren't you supposed to be super intelligent Mr. Recommended Student?!" Mizuki continued to scold, everyone sweat dropping at her actions. Shoto stood impassively and took every hit she gave him on his head.

"Oh? You're giving Shoto your dirty work? Oh? Weren't you the one that lost against the number two hero?" Burnin teased, her big grin mocking and her eyes gleaming. She leaned in between the duo, Mizuki pulling her hand back.

"Yeah, he kicked my ass as if it was nothing," Mizuki stated in a monotone, everyone exclaiming in surprise at her indifference. Burnin stared at the girl. She expected a fiery response and what she received was the complete opposite.

"I offered to help Mizuki and asked her to show me the ropes. She didn't force me to do her work," Shoto earnestly replied. His stoic expression made it impossible to not believe him. Though, they were curious as to why exactly he asked Mizuki?

"It was all in vain though. You're hopeless! You're going to need a team of secretaries and assistants to do your paperwork for you! I feel sorry for your sidekicks someday!" Mizuki stated, one hand on her hip and the other poking his chest.

"Yeah, I'll leave everything to you."

"HAH?! Like hell you will! Who the hell said I wanted to be your sidekick anyway?! I'm following my own dreams here, Bastard!" Mizuki yelled back at him. Everyone else felt like side characters, merely observing their interactions.

It was…odd.

"Hey, hey! I didn't know you two were this close! When did this happen?! Neh, neh, are you two dating?!" Burnin boldly asked, everyone paling at her question. They all thought the same thing but no one took the initiative to actually ask the question.

"No, we're friends," Shoto said, holding up his hands slightly as Mizuki gave Burnin her own look of disbelief. "Mizuki already has a boyfriend." This time, the disbelieving and betrayed look was directed towards him.

"She has?! Ha! You don't bite around the bush, do you?!"

"It's not like that!" Mizuki countered and glowered as she grabbed Shoto on his collar, shaking him. "You little shit! Don't blurt my personal life out to everyone! Who said I was dating Red anyway?!" Shoto blinked and cocked his head to the side.

"You're not? Why? Did something happen?" Shoto asked, unfazed by the way she had shaken him. Mizuki felt heat rush into her cheeks and swallowed thickly. This time, she dug her own grave and she wanted to bury herself deep down.

"Red? What type of name is that?!"

"It's not his real name! Wait! That's not the point! I don't have to explain shit to anyone! Don't you have patrolling to do?" Mizuki asked, embarrassed and breathing heavy. She pushed Shoto on his back towards the door, trying her best to hide her flush.

Burnin laughed at the duo, enjoying the way the two interacted. Mizuki's eyes differed from before and blazed brightly. Her pride had taken a hit and in the way she carried herself made it clear. Yet, she had a dedication that fueled her.

"Let's get to it, Shoto!" Burnin called loudly, walking passed the two. "Enjoy desk-duty, kid! Don't blow anything up!" Mizuki rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest. Shoto stood by the door, staring at Mizuki.

"Yeah, yeah, get going already!" Mizuki waved them off and walked back towards her desk. She had a lot waiting for her, yet the small smile on her lips made him chuckle. Everyone expected her to stand back and give up but Mizuki was far from done._

MIzuki's good mood never faded and contrasted against Endeavor's very sour mood. It started not long after Shoto had returned and went to train. It was accompanied by flaring flames, stomping feet and glaring eyes.

It hadn't improved during the day and besides being cooped up in his office he had schedules conferences to attend. The news of the Hero Killer was still fresh in everyone's thoughts and the media wanted answers.

Mizuki occupied herself with the tasks that were given to her, helping where she could and assuring that she finished before late. She was determined to complete everything to give her enough time to practice.

Her eyes were tired, her body stiff from sitting most of the day yet, she was excited to get herself moving. She didn't have anyone to train her. Even so, she already knew what had to be done and on what she needed to concentrate.

Mizuki let out a breath as she bent her lags, pushing downwards with her body. She dug her feet into the wooden floor beneath her, the blackness of the spot reminding her of the previous day. She was halfway recovered and ready to develop her new technique.

The training room was still in the same shape. There were burnt black spots on the floor, walls and roof and there were places the wood were churned. She kept to the same room, not wanting to damage another area unnecessarily.

Remember… Mizuki closed her eyes as she recalled a familiar old pro hero. Remember how he moved… Remember the pattern… Remember the speed… She told herself, analysing all the possible positions.

She then heated up her legs, the blackness of her costume glowing faintly as steam came from her combat boots. Her muscles twitched as the tension and temperature rose. Her eyes twitched, a trail of sweat falling down the side of her face.

There was a difference in her white explosion. She noticed it when she fought against the Nomu in Hosu. She could push herself at a high temperature without her muscle fibres tearing. From all the overheating and previous tearing, the muscle fibres had grown more resistant and stronger.

I can't push it too far. Only until I reach my maximum and then I need to keep it like that for as long as possible. Mizuki thought, her lower legs turning a bright colour. She leaned slightly forward and then exploded frontward.

She turned her body to press down on the wall, onto to hit the surface with much force on her back. She gasped, her legs cooling off instantly as she landed onto the floor. She groaned rubbing the back of her head.

"That hurt…" Mizuki grumbled as she pushed herself up into a standing position. "Let's try this again." Mizuki went into a stance once again, pressing herself into the floor. She heated her legs up, concentrating on what her next move will be and took in the possible angles.

She exploded from her spot and turned her body faster this time, digging her feet into the ground. She took a misstep and hit her head straight against the roof. She cursed loudly, holding her head in pain as it pulsed.

Mizuki growled angrily and tried again. Her temper flaring in annoyance. She had done it nearly perfectly against Endeavor, she had assessed every possible angle and way to move. She had done it once. She could do it again!


Half an hour later…


"This is hopeless! This is impossible!" Mizuki cursed loudly stomping angrily. She had stinging in her face, back, shoulders and head. She made contact against the wall, the roof and the floor multiple times and got as far as bouncing off surfaces twice.

It seemed like it was only in the moment that she was able to successfully execute the technique. It was difficult to believe that she couldn't do it again. However, she was starting to realize how complicated the movements were.

"…You're not rebelling. You're accepting circumstances too easily…!"

"Shut up, already! I'm not accepting shit!" Mizuki yelled out, her anger causing veins to pulsate out from her arms. Steam emerged from her combat boots, legs glowing and sweat dripping down the side of her face. She wasn't accepting her defeat. She wasn't accepting her incompetence.

She refused to!

Mizuki blasted off, twirling her body in the air. As soon as she landed on the surface, she let loose a compressed explosion that propelled her around. She gritted her teeth as her legs rebelled against each explosion.

Yet, it didn't stop her. A smirked formed onto her lips as she bounced off the surfaces around her. The feeling was thrilling despite the growing pain and heat. Her speed increased drastically as she continued.

The door of the training room slowly slid open and a divided hair coloured male stepped inside. He blinked, a blur of ash blonde and white glowing entered his vision. His eyes widened at the speed, his vision taking a few moments to recognize the figure.

"Mizuki?"

Mizuki's concentration was interrupted by Shoto's voice, crimson eyes glancing at him. She was about to say something before she made painfully hard contact with the wall, face first. She stuck against the wall for a moment, Shoto's eyes widening.

Mizuki then fell onto the floor, her face red from the contact and blood running slightly from her nose. Her head pulsed, body quivering. The force of impact was much stronger because of her increased speed. It was more than she expected.

"Ow, that hurt more than earlier," Mizuki whined as she pushed herself up into a sitting position. She ruffled her own hair, briefly closing her eyes and then averted her gaze to the floor. She was going to need much more practice.

"Are you alright?" Shoto asked as she walked up towards her. Mizuki gave a weak nod, blinking when she was handed a handkerchief from the male. "Here, take this. Your nose is bleeding," he softly spoke and Mizuki chuckled.

"What's it with my nosebleeds that are always present when you're here," Mizuki teased him as she took the soft piece of cloth. "At least this time it was my own fault." Mizuki sighed and relaxed her tensed shoulders as Shoto observed the room.

"What were you doing?" He asked, surprised to find the smell of burnt wood and black patches etched within the surfaces around him. Some patches clearly showed footprints while the others were blackened all around.

"I was practising a new technique that I developed when I fought Prickhead. I tried to copy what I did but it's more difficult than I anticipated. I ended up injuring myself more than anything else!" Mizuki let out a breathless laugh, the tension in her muscles seeping away.

Shoto noticed the several light bruises and scratches she had on her face. The redness of the hit she received against the wall was slowly fading, her crimson eyes blazing despite the exhaustion that lingered.

"What about you? What are you doing here of all places? There are a lot of other available training rooms this late," Mizuki asked, glancing up at the male. She took in his state of clothing, his loosely fitted black tracksuit pants with a light blue t-shirt showing his relaxed physique. It didn't look like he was on his way to train at all.

"I was passing by when I heard cursing and loud crashing." Mizuki's eyes widened, a blush covering her cheeks. "I thought nothing of it until I smelled something burning," Shoto replied, Mizuki snickering despite her embarrassment.

"You got me!" Mizuki stated and then let out a breath. "Would you mind passing me my water? I don't think I can currently stand up." Mizuki pointed at her water bottle, the male going tp pick it up before handing it towards her.

"Did you overheat your legs again?"

"Possibly." Her answer made him stare at her in confusion. Mizuki took a sip of her water after taking away the soft cloth. The bleeding seemed to only be brief, giving her relief that she didn't break it.

"I'll wash it and give it back to you since this is utterly gross," Mizuki said and folded the cloth closed to hide the red stains. She was glad that she had something to help with the nosebleed, she only wished it hadn't been his handkerchief.

"Don't worry about it. As long as I can help," he said, still standing. Mizuki took a sip of her water again while eyeing the male. She wondered what was going through his thoughts, his impassive eyes not giving away any emotion.

"What were you up to today? I heard that you had a rough time. Especially since Mister Number Two was in a very bad mood today," Mizuki pointed out. Shoto grunted and went to sit down next to the ash blonde female.

"I told him you beat me in Hero Basic Training."

Mizuki stared at the male with a gaped mouth, eyes wide. She wasn't shocked that he never told his father about the match. She was shocked that he actually did tell him. She noticed the peculiar gleam in his eyes and burst out laughing.

"You're quite savage, aren't you, Ice Bastard? Ha! I wish I could've seen his face!" Mizuki laughed as she tried to imagine the expression. A small smile formed on Shoto's lips and a light chuckle escaped him.

"Ah man. How was training? How do you train anyway? Do you blast him with ice and then he melts is or…?" Mizuki trailed off, frowning slightly in confusion. Shoto's face became stoic once more, his eyes glancing at her.

"He's teaching me the basics about controlling my left side." Mizuki's eyes widened. "I've learned to control my right side perfectly but I have to learn the same amount of control with my left. I need to be able to regulate my temperature," Shoto replied.

Mizuki was surprised. He was going as far as to use his left side? He never used it previously…she recalled what he had said about the match between him and Izuku. A smirk came onto her lips and she huffed.

"It's about damn time! I can't wait until I get to see it! Can you use both sides simultaneously?" Mizuki asked, Shoto giving her a blank look. He briefly wondered if she was joking around with him and raised an eyebrow.

"Didn't you watch the sports festival?" He asked, Mizuki realizing that she didn't watch the last two matches and shook her head. "Oh, right, you were recovering in that time… I am able to use both sides but the attack is too much of a large scale."

"Mmm, must be nice to use both sides. You don't have to worry about overheating as long as you have your ice," Mizuki mused aloud. She immediately regretted her words when the meaning behind it all sank in.

The Quirk marriage… That was what Endeavor wanted. Meaning, he married someone with an ice Quirk to give birth to Shoto because he wasn't strong enough. She never took it in consideration up until now. Endeavor also overheated his body.

"Sorry, that was insensitive of me."

"It's alright, I know you didn't mean it that way," Shoto said, kindness swirling in his eyes. He then glanced at her legs, faint traces of steam coming from her combat boots. "You said that you were training a new technique?" He changed the subject, ridding the atmosphere form the growing tension.

Mizuki nodded and stared at her legs. "Yeah, it's very difficult to get the hang of. I'm compressing the heat and expansion from my highest temperature explosion. I then use it to propel me to increase my speed and hopefully I'll be able to strengthen my attacks too," Mizuki explained.

She then pulled her leg back, tracing her hand over the material. It was already starting to show faint signs of damage. "I can't keep it up for long since I can't keep my temperature constant. The moment I let my concentration slip I'll be stuck with overheating my legs. Agh, it's a pain!" She said.

"That sounds a lot like Flash Fire." Mizuki cocked her head to the side, raising an eyebrow. "It's the Old Man's technique. He raises his fire's temperature as high as possible and then maximizes his power," Shoto explained.

Flash Fire, huh? If he overheats then there must be something that works against it. Surely the number two hero has some kind of support item- His bracers! Mizuki thought as she recalled the bracers that encased his arms.

She looked at her wrists, the gauntlets encasing her wrists. She rarely fought with her fists and rather used her legs for more strength where he had enough brute strength in a punch. If she could get a support item to flush the steam out of her legs, it would have her cool down quicker than having the heat trapped inside.

"That's it…!" Mizuki jumped onto her legs and let out a laugh. "You're a genius!" Mizuki told Shoto, the poor male baffled at what was happening. Mizuki had gotten quiet after he talked and the next moment she was jumping with confidence.

"I am?"

"If I'm busy fighting, it's only natural that I won't be able to keep the same temperature constantly. However, if I have something that can constantly flush the steam I emit from my legs, I can keep it that way!" Mizuki concluded, Shoto also standing up.

"But you don't have that kind of support item, do you? What are you going to do if you want to develop it?" Shoto asked and Mizuki smirked. She took off her combat boots, her bare feet soon coming in contact with the wooden floor.

"I'm going to have to do this old school. My combat boots only have holes on the bottom where I let loose the explosions and where the steam goes through. I'm going to have to let my legs breathe freely," Mizuki pointed out and Shoto grunted.

He took off his shirt, Mizuki exclaiming in surprise. "W-What are you doing?! W-Why are you stripping?!" Mizuki asked, cheeks heating up. He held his shirt in his arms after taking it over his head and gave her a blank stare

"I want to see what you can do and train with you. I don't want to damage my shirt by using my flames." He folded his shirt up and bent to put it down next to her water. "You did the same at the Sports Festival, didn't you?" He recalled and Mizuki's eyes widened.

"T-That's not-! It was-! I didn't-! Argh! Whatever! You're impossible, you know that?" Mizuki snapped at the male, her embarrassment growing. She completely forgot about her stripping session.

Mizuki then let out a breath and pressed her feet into the ground. A smirk then formed onto her lips, red eyes glowing with excitement. She didn't have to hold back with the worry that she would damage her combat boots.

"Try to see if you can catch me with your flames, Ice Bastard," Mizuki challenged and Shoto grunted. He watched in amazement as her feet started to glow a faint white colour, steam seeping out of the skin. He could smell the burned wood and took his own stance.

He was aware of her dangerous speed the moment he stepped inside but if she didn't have any resistance from her combat boots then it meant that her speed would increase even more. If that was the case then training with her was perfect.

Mizuki blasted off, the feeling of her feet much more natural than before. She bounced against the wall, her smirk turning into a grin. Shoto shot his flames towards her, the teenager dodging the attack by jumping over the flame.

He's narrowing my field of vision by using his flames even though he's only using a small percentage. He's a sly one. Mizuki thought as she twirled around his flames that followed her. She could feel the heat as it neared her and sweat trailed down the side of her face.

She felt a stinging on her legs as she continued but it was less than she expected. By constantly trying to keep her temperature under control with the steaming of her legs were proving to be easier.

She was fast and incredible agile. He had to admit it. Her movements were peculiar, not like her usual elegant techniques. It was more compressed, abstract and rough. He wondered what had given her the inspiration to do these movements. He knew of no one who moved like this.

Mizuki winced when she landed on her legs, pressing into the roof. She reached her limit. She could hear the churning sound from her skin, sparks cracking around her skin. She needed to end it now and take a breather.

She bounced towards Shoto, the male's reflexes fast enough to throw his flames directly at her. Crimson eyes widened at the sudden action and on instinct, she let out an explosion on her feet while in the air, propelling her over the male.

She landed on her one knee behind him and touched his back. She was out of breath, sweat dripping down her legs and steam floating around her limbs. Shoto blinked and looked down at Mizuki with a slightly agape mouth.

"You… You managed to do it mid-air."

Mizuki looked down at her legs, her heart thumping in her ears. She did. She had a feeling that it was because of the moment and that it wasn't a conscious decision. Yet, her body had experienced the movement once, she could do it again.

"I guess I did," Mizuki said and went to stand up, only to nearly lose her balance if it wasn't for Shoto who grabbed her around her middle. His grip on her was tight, unwavering, his eyes swirling with concern.

"You overdid it." His tone of voice was disapproving and Mizuki rolled her eyes at the intense stare she was receiving. "Sit down. I'll cool it off," he said and cut her off with a cool stare when she wanted to retort.

"Fine." She sat down without another word of complaint. She was silently grateful that he wanted to cool off her burning legs, though it was strange. For some reason, he was set on helping and keeping an eye on her.

She wondered if it was the incident at USJ. He stopped her from running after Izuku and then told his father to keep an eye out for her. He was prepared to go as far as to ask Endeavor to train her. He was going out of his way to help her even though it wasn't necessary. It was…nice.

Mizuki resisted a hiss as his icy hand moved over her lower legs, the cooling sensation relieving and painful simultaneously. Luckily, the pain faded only into a stinging sensation after a while of the cold exposure.

"Do you have plans for the day after tomorrow?" Shoto asked, averting the ash blonde female's attention towards him. He didn't look up at her, merely kept his eyes glued to the task at hand. She raised an eyebrow in curiosity.

"It's our last day of the internship, right? I guess I'll be heading home and make my brother's life hell. Why do you ask?" Mizuki asked, the last of her statement flying over the duo hair coloured male's head.

"My sister is making dinner and she wanted to me to ask you if you would like to come?" Shoto asked, crimson eyes widening. He was inviting her to dinner? Wait, he had a sibling? It was a lot of information all at once.

"Firstly, you have a sister? Secondly, that's nice and all but won't I be intruding? I mean, the last person who wants me there is you-know-who. No offense, I also don't want to stare at his scowling face all night long," Mizuki responded, Shoto's hand briefly stopping.

"He's not coming," Shoto curtly responded, Mizuki staring blankly. "It'll just be us, Fuyumi and Natsu but if you don't want to come, that's fine. I'll tell Fuyumi that you can't come." Now she felt shitty.

"Since you're going out of your way, I can't have all that effort go to waste now, can I? That would be rude of me," Mizuki said and looked away as Shoto's eyes trailed travelled towards her face, noticing a faint blush on her cheeks.

"You can tell her that I'll be there."

"You don't have to feel forced-""HAH? Forced? Excuse me, but you can't force me to do anything I don't want to, Ice Bastard!" Mizuki pointed accusingly at him. "And what's with the sibling thing? You have a brother and a sister?!"

He nodded. "They're both older than me." Mizuki gave her an expression to urge him to tell her more. However, he gave her a stoic stare causing her to sweat drop and face palm. He was bad at reading expressions.

"Tell me something about them. I don't want to barge into someone else's house without at least knowing something of them," Mizuki told the male as he sat back. He finished with her legs, the reddish hue faded away.

"You're not barging. You were invited."

"That's not the point here!" Mizuki snapped at the male, a vein pulsing out from underneath her head. This male was clueless and a conversation of him was a hopeless situation. He urgently needed to learn a few social skills.

"Fuyumi is the oldest and she's a teacher. Natsu is older than me and started with college this year," Shoto replied curtly. He got straight to the point and didn't beat around the bush. Mizuki chuckled and a smirk rested on her lips.

At least I know something of them now.

"What would you like to eat?" Mizuki was brought out of her thoughts, brows knitting together. "Fuyumi asked if you have any preferences for dinner," Shoto stated and Mizuki couldn't her but smile.

"Don't worry about me. I literally eat anything. Besides, you were the ones who invited me, I don't want you to go more out of your way than you already have," Mizuki said, her small smile resting on her lips and never wavering.

"I see. I'll tell her that," Shoto said and Mizuki was shocked to find a very rare type of smile on his face. He looked…excited? It was quite adorable. He looked like a little kid who was ecstatic to have a friend over.

He really was something else.


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