Chapter 1: Set Your Heart Ablaze Part 1

'If anything…she'd be super pissed at me if I tried to shortchange my hero.'

Izuku blearily opened his eyes, pushing himself up against the frame of his bed. He lay there, staring at a ceiling he had already seen a thousand times before.

Bringing his feet to the floor, he glanced at the window — it was still dark outside. 'It's only 4 am, no wonder.' He thought to himself, setting his smartphone back to the side.

In the absence of sound, the creak of the bed was almost deafening to Izuku's ears. He cringed for a moment, nervously licking his lips, as his eyes never left the door handle to his room. A minute passed and then 5, before he allowed himself to release the breath he was unknowingly holding in.

As lovely as his mother was, a morning person she was not.

Flipping on the switch to his study lamp, Izuku stared down at the notebook that lay face down on his desk, almost in a daze, as he stood there absolutely still in the silence. Flipping it over, he gingerly picked it up before tossing it back down just as quickly.

'Why can't I remember?' He slumped down on his chair, kneading his forehead with both his hands as he exhaled forcefully. From the corner of his eyes a dull glint caught his attention. Sitting up straight, he reached for the object bringing it onto his palm — the source of all his troubles and his…obsession.

…

Tying his shoelace, Izuku smoothed out his uniform, before checking his bag to see if he had missed anything. Once satisfied, "I'm off!" He called out to his mom. Inko poked her head out of the kitchen, "Have a safe trip, sweetie!" She said with a smile and wave.

Flying down the stairs, he greeted the occasional neighbor in passing as he fiddled with the fitness tracker on his wrist. Stretching his arms and legs at the bottom of the complex, Izuku took in a deep breath, "Alright, let's do this." He said aloud, trying to psych himself up.

Gradually, his apartment building faded further and further in the distance as he soon managed to set a pace for himself. 'Breathe in through the nose, breathe out to the mouth, breathe in through the nose, breathe out through the mouth…'

…

'What's up with the crowd?' Izuku thought himself, slowing down to a stop.

-ROAR!

"Oh…" Flicking his wrist up. 'I still got time' . Though he said that, he was already reaching for his bag before that thought had even registered in his head. Tightly clutching a notebook and pen in one hand he used his other hand to push his way through the swarm of people.

"It's Deatharms!" Someone suddenly yelled, causing raucous cheers to erupt from all around Izuku. 'Shit, I'm missing it!' Surprised gasps were elicited from multiple people in the crowd, separate from the action at the front, followed shortly by either an "I'm sorry" or "Excuse me".

"Who's fighting!" Izuku asked the slightly chubby, elderly man to his right. The older man chuckled. "You're stronger than you look, eh, kid?"

"Huh?"

"I saw you push through the crowd, earlier." He further explained. "Some of the people you shrugged off were at least twice your size!"

Izuku blushed in embarrassment, "Well, that's—"

"LACQUERED CHAIN PRISON!"

They simultaneously looked up at the stream of wood that had surrounded the monstrous looking villain. Just when the wood based hero was about to seal the deal, "LUNA FALL!" A tanned leg hammered his prize down from above.

"Whoa!" Izuku grabbed ahold of the older man to steady him, as the ground shook under their feet, a spiderweb of cracks spreading out from the point of impact. As the dust cleared up, the crowd gawked at the petite woman who had softly landed beside her quarry. A few seconds passed before her rabbit ears twitched, as she raised her head to match their gaze — the vicious, victorious smirk on her face quickly disappearing. "Fuck, I did it ag—" The loud cheering and clapping quickly drowning out the rest of her voice, as well as the "YOU BITCH" of a certain giant sized heroine.

…

"Like I said…ah…"

"For like the hundredth time it's Mt. Lady, goddammit!"

"Yeah, yeah, that. I really didn't mean to ruin your debut, it just sort of happened, y'a know?" Rumi said with a shrug.

Mt. Lady pinched her brows together in frustration. "What does that even mean?"

"Look lady!" The rabbit heroine snapped, glaring up at the blonde. "Take it or leave it, I really don't have time for your bitching." Having said her piece, she walked past the minor annoyance who kept sticking to her like a piece of dog shit. 'Debut this, debut that — only weaklings need to rely on useless theatrics to remain relevant.' Her nose wrinkling in disgust.

"More importantly, I can't let the old man find out I fucking got lost." Rumi muttered under her breath, scowling as she imagined his gloating appearance. Scratching the back of her head, "I might as well ask a local for directions." She sighed reluctantly.

Scanning the small group of people still left on scene, her gaze landed on a green haired boy in a baggy school uniform, helping an older man sit down on a nearby bench. 'Oh, now that's mildly interesting…' She thought to herself, her lips curling up into an almost predatory grin.

…

"Thanks for the save back then young man, you really are my hero ha, ha."

The corners of Izuku's eyes slightly softened. "It was my pleasure." He mumbled, shouldering his bag, "Well then, it was nice—"

Izuku reflexively caught ahold of the wrist on his left shoulder — twisting it upwards, he slid in, gluing his back to his mystery attacker's chest when he found he could no longer move.

"That would've been a pretty good sweep if you're opponent had been anyone but me." She giggled into his ear. 'WAIT, SHE?' Turning his head back in an almost robotic fashion, red eyes full of mirth stared back at him. His already pale face, if it was even possible, turned even paler.

Scanning him from head to toe the rabbit heroine nodded her head, her eyes gleaming. "Like I thought, you're a fucking martial artist as well!"

To respond to AustinGamer117's review— I'll think about it. For now, I just want to focus on the 8 girls I've already decided upon. That said, between Mt. Lady and Midnight who would you guys prefer to see in the harem?

And as always thanks to everyone who has read, reviewed, favorited, and followed so far.

Edit: Filledwithbees you're right, my bad. I genuinely thought it was Mountain Lady all these years lol.