Breath stopped at 5AM, like a permeating calm
Biting my nails at the emergency exit – which way is tomorrow?
Bessie yawned and silenced her alarm. She dressed herself for school, had a quick breakfast, brushed her teeth and left for homeroom.
Her second day of school at UA was much like her first, only now she more-or-less knew her classmates. As for the subjects themselves, in English class it felt like she was back in pre-school, however Japanese was notably more advanced than the crash course she took before the trip.
Finally lunch time came. After picking up her plate of food she scanned the dining hall until she noticed the table where much of class 1A was seated. She scanned the place a bit longer so it wouldn't look like she was particularly eager, then she slowly made her way toward the semi-familiar crowd, trying to build up courage along the way.
She marveled at the sight of children sitting together. This never happened back home.
"H-hey guys… room for one more?"
Aoyama noticed her intensions and decided to lend a hand. Kaminari was in the unfortunate position of being seated next to Todoroki.
"Denki-chan, this mad'moiselle is from the west. Show her some European chivalry so she'll feel more at home."
The next moment Aoyama yanked the chair out from underneath Kaminari and he hit the ground in a fraction of a second. Denki stood up, awkwardly rubbing his tailbone and took a different seat.
"There you are, mon cheri." Aoyama said, politely gesturing toward the now empty chair next to Shoto.
Bessie took her seat, trying her hardest not to blush. "H-how's your day been so far, Todoroki-kun?" she asked nervously.
"It's been pretty good." Shoto answered. "Always nice to be among friends."
It didn't take long until Bessie was comfortable enough to chat away with the rest of the table like she belonged there. Lunch hardly seemed to last five minutes, in accordance with the old saying.
Finally the day's final lesson came. At last Bessie was able to take her long awaited class from All Might.
"Bessie. A moment." Aizawa called her aside en route to her highly anticipated lesson.
"What can I do for you, Sensei?" she asked nervously.
"For me? Nothing at the time" He answered. "It's about your hero outfit. They finally finished it. Here you are."
Aizwa handed Bessie a package. It was heavier than she had expected.
"They made some alterations to eliminate your quirk's drawback. The gloves are made of a durable gauze. Canisters have been mounted to the shoulders that dispense tea tree oil keeping the gloves soaked in the stuff once their temperature reaches a certain point."
"Why is that?" Bessie asked.
"Tea tree oil is highly effective for both preventing and treating burns. As long as you haven't run out you'll be able to use your quirk as freely and carelessly as you want without having to fear damage. You're finally able to Go Beyond. Plus Ultra."
Bessie's eyes glittered at the sight of her hero suit. It wasn't exactly what she wanted: it was even better.
"Arigato, Sensei!" she said with a bow and rushed to her next class.
"Today we will have a lesson in villain pursuit." The famous hero was even larger than Bessie imagined. He paced confidently while he spoke and the sheer mass of his presence alone was like the sun at the center of the solar system, drawing attention like planets through the raw power of his figurative gravity. "You will be divided into groups of two," he continued. "One of you will be the villain, who had just stolen a valuable artifact." He stuck his hand into his pocket and produced a miniature, gold-coloured Lucky Cat figurine. "The villain will get a five second head start and must either evade capture or escape the boundaries of the course. Obviously, the other member of the group will be the hero. The hero must either capture the villain or recover the treasure before the time runs out or the villain escapes."
As coincidence would have it, Bessie and Shoto were placed in the same group, with Bessie as the hero and Shoto as the villain. All Might handed Shoto the figurine and at a call of "Begin" he was off, but not before dropping "Loser pays for dinner and a movie tomorrow night!" to his pursuer.
Even if Shoto did not get a five second head start it would not have made a difference, because that was exactly how long Bessie stood dumbfounded by his parting words.
"Pursue!" All Might called out as he pressed a button on a stopwatch and Bessie dashed off after Todoroki.
The play-villain left ice in his wake in an attempt to slow down his pursuer, but Bessie, now able to use her quirk without limitation, created fireballs at the upper limit of her power. These were blue in colour and were so intense that they burst through the thick layers of ice like they were nothing. Realising this, Todoroki instead turned his focus to running and pounded for the exit as fast as he could.
Bessie stuck her hands backward and now used her quirk to speed herself forward. She quickly made her way toward the temporary antagonist and grabbed his shoulder.
After the other students had their turns with the exercise All Might took a moment to discuss their use of quirks.
"Baaneto-san. Using backward-aimed fireballs to help propel you forward is an effective method of pursuit in an isolated, stable environment. However, in a real-world setting you need to consider a few things first. If you're not careful you could set fire to someone's property, and paying compensation for collateral damage from a hero is almost always the hero's responsibility. On the other hand, if you took advantage of your range and set fire to your quarry's footwear, you can severely hamper their escape, thereby ending the chase more swiftly and with less effort while drastically eliminating the risk of collateral damage.
This school was so different from the one back home. She didn't attend because everyone who knows the world told her she needs to learn if she wanted a future. She WANTED to learn. The teachers were teachers, not to earn a living but to shape the future of the world – that is to say the children.
Why can't we have a UA back home? Bessie asked herself at the end of the day just as she was fading into sleep. Why can't I have a Shoto Todoroki back home..?