Himiko woke up full of energy, today was the day! Today was the UA entrance exam! She quickly got ready and had a large breakfast, and then practically raced to the train station. She and Atsuko had agreed to meet up at the station and then walk to UA together.
After they got there, they were split up into different rooms for the written portion of the exam. The first half of the written exam passed rather quickly. About halfway through the written portion they were treated to lunch, and Himiko was pleased to discover that UA's cafeteria already catered to a wide variety of dietary needs - she found a soup that incorporated pig's blood available for her. A definite bonus if she manages to get accepted.
The second half of the written portion was harder than the first, but Himeko persevered. Test taking was not her strong suit - her brain has always been wired differently, and she inwardly cringed whenever she thought about it. There was a good chance that the abuse she suffered from her birth parents made her issues worse. Fortunately for her, over the past year she had been taught several tricks to help her focus properly. All of the schooling she got at Dantin was paying off - she would have to remember to thank Principle Nezu later, if she actually makes it in. Her desire to attend UA was also a strong motivator to push beyond her own limitations, just this once.
Finally with a sigh of relief the final written exam was finished, and she got up to head to the auditorium and prepare for the more exciting portion of the entrance exam - the practical exam. As she picked up her packet and found her seat, she found herself sitting with Atsuko and another boy from Dantin that they only vaguely recognized from another class. When the three looked at their training ground assignments for the practical exam, they noticed they were all assigned to different areas - presumably to prevent friends from working with each other. Himiko frowned at that - she was totally ready to team up if she was given the chance.
However, as Present Mic began explaining the rules for the practical portion of the exam, Himiko's heart sank. Robots! They were up against robots! Where her quirk is useless!
Still, she listened intently to the instructions - they would be split up into groups and had to fight off robots of varying size and strength, in a number of simulated urban environments, based on the training ground they were assigned to. Each robot was worth 1 to 3 points, depending on how large and durable they were, with a 4th robot that was described as 'an obstacle, best to be avoided.' Since her skills are ideally suited to infiltration and facing off against living opponents, she began brainstorming - at least they had permitted her to bring a pair of knives with her, as she felt their holsters strapped to her legs hiding under her skirt, so at least she had that going for her.
After the presentation, they all began filing out of the auditorium. Quickly wishing each other luck, the three broke apart to head to their respective courses. Himiko found herself in front of Training Ground Alpha, which simulates a residential city environment. As everyone stood there trying to mentally prepare themselves, Himiko began evaluating her fellow test-takers, making note of a couple people with obvious mutations that she may have to borrow a few drops of blood from once the exam begins.
"Time starts.. NOW!" Himiko heard Present Mic shout from his observation stand and after a moment of shock at the lack of a countdown, everyone was off. Already feeling the adrenaline kicking in, Himiko began with her first priority - finding a weakness to exploit. Watching other students as they encountered the first wave, she saw students already unleashing flashy quirks against robots, destroying them in a wide variety of ways. The robots looked surprisingly fragile from what she was seeing, with wires exposed on their back and gaps in their armor plates along their legs. Making a decision - she dashed over to the still-twitching wreckage and eyed the metal plates that were lying there. With surprising ease, she was able to pry off several plates that had been twisted and bent, leaving sharp, twisted edges behind.
She tossed them lightly in her hands and inspected them. "Not ideal, but I can make these work." She then looked around. It seems like most of the students are going down that road, I guess that's where the heaviest concentration of robots are coming from. Already behind the initial crowd, Himiko picked a side alley and ran several blocks away from everyone, before she began heading further into the training ground. Her decision paid off, and she almost immediately ran into her first target.
It was a simple one-point robot, but as she was approaching she saw the exposed components she saw earlier and tried to put her plan into action - as the robot lunged at her she dashed behind it, slicing a bundle of cables easily with one of her knives. Then she stabbed one of the twisted plates into a leg joint, like a dagger, and threw a roundhouse kick at the robot. The robot's own weight did the rest as it fell over. She waited a moment to make sure the robot wasn't getting up again, before she smiled and pulled her makeshift weapon out of the robot. "I was right, these things are super fragile, I can do this!"
Himiko continued around the arena, picking off robots as she went. She mentally kept a tally and her points were climbing steadily, but that total was definitely climbing slower then she was hoping it would. She also began to feel herself slowing down as she paused to catch her breath when the five minute warning was called. Fortunately, as she was looking around, she realized she hit Jackpot. One of her fellow applicants - someone with a polar bear mutation - was being overwhelmed by a number of robots, blood matted on his skin, standing out in sharp contrast to his white fur.
A smile split her face as she dove in to help, using her knives to sever cables and using her makeshift weapons to split open the joints of two of the one-point robots harassing him, allowing the other applicant the chance he needed to take down the larger 3-point robot he was tangling with.
"Thanks for the help, but I hope you're not expecting me to repay the favor!"
As he got on all fours and bounded off Himiko knelt down next to one of the robots, wiping off a couple drops of his blood that he left behind. "Too bad, I've already got what I want from you." She licked the drops off her finger and activated her quirk, feeling herself becoming taller and cords of muscle wrapping themselves around her body and limbs. "Now then, let's see about those robots!"
Quickly moving in a different direction, she spotted a new group of 3 robots coming out of an alleyway and charged into them. She found her natural speed and agility were limited in this form, but her newly enhanced strength made up for it, allowing her to bounce between the robots, smashing them all beneath her. It was exhilarating, fighting this way. Not enough to give up knives, of course! But there was a certain appeal to just cutting loose and using brute force. Once the three robots were all down for the count, she began searching again - the robots had begun to thin out considerably, and she wasn't sure how much time was left.
She saw another student who had fallen to the ground and was being overwhelmed, so she charged in, grabbing a robot and throwing it into another, destroying both. She then jumped on top of the third robot and smashed it into the ground, before looking at the student. "Are you ok?"
"Y-yeah, thanks for the help!" He dusted himself off and ran off, while Himiko began heading in a different direction than him.
Before she found any more robots, the two-minute warning sounded, and the 0-point robot was unleashed. She didn't hear it so much as feel it at first, the ground shaking as it appeared and the sounds of buildings collapsing could be heard in the distance. Can't get distracted. When she saw the other students scattering, a quick glance showed that everyone was safely out of the robots path. Gotta focus. She saw everyone running away from the robot and grinned as she began to run towards the robot, before quickly changing direction at the last second to avoid being run over and reach its side. Her guess was correct, and the robot itself was released alongside many other robots, and she dove in, managing to take down one more pack of robots before she heard the timer buzz.
Panting heavily from how far she pushed herself, HImiko found a convenient wall and used it to slide down to the ground, her transformation melting into a puddle of sludge beneath her. It was only when an automated medical robot, followed by a tiny old lady that was checking up on her, did she realize her predicament.
"I-I'm ok, really!" Himiko stammered out, embarrassment turning her face a bright red. "But um, do you guys happen to have a spare set of clothes I could use?"
Recovery Girl just looked at the pile of sludge underneath Himiko and shook her head. "I'll send a robot with a gym uniform out for you."
"Thanks! Otherwise I'm good, just some minor scrapes and bruises." Himiko rubbed her arms feeling sore now that the adrenaline wore off.
Recovery girl smiled and tossed her some gummies. "Take those then, those will speed up the healing process."
"Thanks!" Himiko took the gummies and felt the soreness fading, her energy levels returning a little bit.
Himiko felt confident and excited as she was skipping out of UA after the exam. She had given it her all, and felt good about how she did. As she was leaving she saw Atsuko waiting on the path for her, waving happily. "So how did your exam go Himi?"
"I think I did great!" She gave a happy smile. "I'm not sure how some of those points will be counted, but I think I have around 35 points. Got a bit of a slow start, but there was a guy with a polar bear mutation in my group - once I got a couple drops of his blood those robots stood no chance!"
"That's great! I didn't do so well." Atsuko admitted. "Your brother's advice actually paid off a lot, and I was able to use my barriers in just the right spots to make the robots tear themselves apart. But when that giant robot came out near the end - I basically spent the entire time keeping everyone safe from the falling debris, and then I passed out? The next thing I knew Recovery Girl had come by and used her quirk on me."
"Aww, cheer up! I'm sure you did fine." Himiko tried to reassure her.
"She was crazy!" The two turned to see a boy of African descent and short black hair come up to them. "Don't let her undersell herself. She kept practically an entire office floor from hitting a group of us! I certainly couldn't have done that much with my quirk."
Atsuko flushed in embarrassment while Himiko just grinned. "Sounds about right."
"Yeah. I'm Habiki Hideo, by the way."
"Himiko Midoria, and my modest friend here is Atsuko Hotoko. Mind telling what really happened then?"
"Nice to meet you Midoriya. When the big robot came out he was just tearing through the buildings. We're not sure what happened but the next thing we knew the whole roof of one building was coming down. Then we see this weird shimmer in the air and the roof just smashes into something - it smashed into whatever wall she made, and slid down harmlessly between us and the big guy. She passed out after that, but at that point a lot of us weren't getting any more points either, so it's not a major loss!"
Himiko's face split into a wide grin as the newcomer explained what happened. "Of course you would do something crazy like that."
"I know we were all competing against each other, but I just couldn't just help myself and leave everyone else stranded. What kind of hero would I be otherwise?"
"Truth. And while UA's Recovery Girl is pretty great, I think a lot of us would still be in rough shape if you hadn't!" The man hears a notification on his phone and checks it. "Crap, I've got to get going, but hopefully I see the two of you in a few weeks!"
"Yep, we can't wait!" Habiki ran off and Himiko turned to Atsuko. "Sounded like you're selling yourself short here."
"Maybe I did," Atsuko smiled. "I guess we'll find out in a few weeks?"
A week later, Himiko and Izuku were sitting in the living room doing homework when Himiko's phone began to explode. When she checked her phone, she saw the texts from Atsuko.
Suko: Himi! I did it!
Suko: My letter from UA came today!
Suko: I got in!
Me: Yay! Hopefully my letter will be here today as well!
After those messages, Himiko was too excited to focus, so she wound up pacing the living room until Inko came in with the mail. "Himi, your letter from UA came!" Both looked at the letter with excitement and she took the envelope, which was heavier than expected. Opening it up, a video disk fell out. "If you want to watch it in your room, we would understand."
"No, I want you two to be here with me." With excitement she picked it up and set it on the table, so all three of them could see it. With a deep breath she pushed the play button.
An image of Vlad King appeared before them. "Greetings Himiko Midoriya. I know it's been a few weeks since we last spoke, but for good reason - due to my nature as a teacher at UA I did not want to give the appearance of favoritism or partiality. But now it is time to announce your results! You did well on the written portion of the test, which is a testament to the school that Nezu had picked out for you. This would be enough to let you qualify for UA's general studies course. However! You are aiming higher! And for the talent you have shown on the practical portion of the exam, both in the practical abilities you displayed fighting enemies that you are obviously disadvantaged against, and for the help you gave to those in need, you have scored high enough to be enrolled in the hero course. It is my pleasure to announce that UA will be your hero academia!"
Himiko couldn't control the tears she felt running down her cheeks or the smile that was plastered on her face as the image of a proud Vlad King stood there staring at her, and felt Inko and Izuku wrapping her in a hug. I did it! I am going to UA! I am going to be a hero!
AN: Happy Holidays everyone! And we have our 3rd student from class 2
Habiki Hideo - Quirk: Kinetic absorb / Kinetic release. A fusion of his parents Shock Absorption and Kinetic Charge. He can absorb any kinetic energy that would otherwise impact the palms of his hands / soles of his feet, which builds up inside of him. He can then transfer the stored kinetic energy to another object through various means, most commonly by balling up his fist and releasing it as an explosive punch to send opponents flying.
And with a quick adjustment of the timeline, we can have Izuku meet All Might and begin his own character development in the next chapter. I'm hoping to have a much more even balance of chapters from here forward - some events will focus more specifically on Izuku or Himiko for several chapters in a row, but they will both be sharing the spotlight.