And we're back with the newest chapter! I own nothing!
Motive
"Are you alright? Do you feel sick?"
"Sniff, no it's nothing. Really."
"If you feel nauseous, there's a pressure point you can-"
"hic, no really! Hic, I'm fine!"
Several emotions were running through Momo's intelligent head all throughout the Practical Exam. Right from the start, she felt like she was only holding Todoroki back. When in reality, as soon as she regained her broken confidence and made her plan, both recommended students had the exam in the bag and Aizawa in cuffs.
It was still a little overwhelming for Yaoyorozu though. But Todoroki didn't seem to mind.
"By the way," Aizawa deadpanned from the ground, cuffed and wrapped in memory alloy, "you've both passed, so you can untie me now."
"Ah! Of course! Sorry, Sensei…" Momo immediately made a small wire saw to cut their teacher free. Not that Aizawa told them this directly, but he had to admit, that plan using a catapult, coverings, and a copy of his capture weapon was ingenious. All she had to do was believe in herself. And Todoroki needed to learn to follow and trust his teammate. Win-win.
"Right," Aizawa brushed himself off, now free. "Both of you may now head to the monitor room to watch the rest of the Exams. Though I think most of them are complete by now, you may yet learn something."
"Yes Sensei."
xXx
Toph and Jirou were already kicked back, enjoying the show of their other classmates getting their butts kicked in the monitor room. Some had already passed, like Tokoyami and Asui. Tokoyami even approached Toph and thanked her for the training, as his battlefield awareness and focus had saved them from failing multiple times.
Others were not so lucky. Kirishima and Sato were eliminated within 5 minutes of non-stop brawling against solid concrete and had failed to defeat Cementoss. Mina and Kaminari were still in but were quickly running short on time trying to not be crushed by the collapsing cityscape.
As fun as it would have been for Toph to experience the battles in real time, they were all on screen. So…
"What happening now? With Blasty?"
"He just chucked Midoriya at the escape gate. He's fighting All Might now." Jirou answered.
"Pff. Idiot really thinks he can take on All Might?"
"Actually, he's holding his own! Just barely though."
"Really?" Toph was impressed. "What's he doing?"
"He's just sending megablast after megablast! Just like against Uraraka at the Sports Festival!"
"The hell…" Toph remembered that "megablast" well. And how his arms shook in pain after he used it. She had been on the receiving end, after all.
"Hey guys!" Speaking of people on the receiving end of megablasts.
"Oh hey, Uraraka!" Jirou greeted. We're watching Bakugo and Midoriya's match."
"It's not over yet?" Uraraka asked, concerned.
"Nah, the two ran around with their heads cut off at first but started working together about halfway through." Toph described. "Midoriya's limping to the exit, right?"
"Yeah he's…wait what? WHAT?" Jirou shouted.
"What! What is it?" Toph cried.
"Midoriya went back! He-HE PUNCHED ALL MIGHT IN THE FACE!"
"WHAT?" Toph and Ochaco both yelled.
"Yeah! He's got Bakugo! And-they're through! They passed!"
"WOO!" Ochaco cheered. "GO DEKU!"
Toph was also sporting a grin at their win. Of course she was glad for Midoriya, but Bakugo did it! Despite the worst circumstances!
Wait.
"He carried Bakugo out?"
"Yeah!" Jirou confirmed. "He went unconscious after a bit."
"Ah." That was…disappointing. He sure won't like that. But hey, why complain about a win?
A short time passed when a certain someone popped up on her radar. With a grin, she tapped Jirou's shoulder.
"Hey Earjack."
"Yeah? And it's Jirou."
"Yaomomo's outside the door."
"Ha ha, very funn-"
"Hello everyone!"
"AAACK!" Jirou instantly went beet red. She had been warned, but it was still a surprise! "M-m-m-m-m-m-Momo! You passed then!"
"Yes! It was thanks to Todoroki! He is pretty amazing."
"Not strictly true." Todoroki countered without looking. "Has Midoriya passed yet?"
"Yep! About 20 minutes ago." Toph answered. "Along with Birdface, Tsu, Bakugo, Tail, Not-that-Invisible, Shoji, Sonic,"
"I heard that, and my name is Iida!" Sonic shouted from the other side of the room.
"you guys, Aoyoma, Twinkle-Toes, and us." She counted on her fingers. "Huh, who am I missing?"
"The Grapist." Jirou supplied, still slightly red.
"Oh yeah, real shame there. Not sure about Elbows…though." She stopped counting after feeling something odd.
"Why are all of you looking at me like that?"
"Ehh? How did you know?" Uraraka cried.
"I felt your eyeballs."
'Scary' they all thought.
"It's just…" Momo patted her shoulder. "You're just…you sound a lot like…um…"
Todoroki chose that very moment to be his blunt self. "Are you and Bakugo long lost siblings?"
…
…
"…Imma just pretend I didn't hear that, ok Half N Half?"
"…OK."
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM
Speak of the devil.
"FUCK YEAH, EXTRAS! I FUCKING FOUGHT ALL MIGHT! BET YOU CAN'T SAY THE SAME, BASTARDS!"
"K-Kachaan, you were knocked out…"
"SHUT UP, DEKU! AND WHO SAID YOU COULD HELP ME YOU IDIOT?"
"Sorry? I guess?"
"Humph!" The two looked like they had come out of a blender, with huge bags under their eyes from intense healing. Though their wounds were healed by a fuming Recovery Girl, their costumes were still torn to shreds. Bakugo stomped through the door, immediately seeing his two almost rivals. Not rivals, because fuck that.
"Oi! Half N Half! Did you fucking pass?"
"Yes."
"Tch! Beifong! Did you fucking pass?"
"Fuck yeah I did." She yawned.
"GRRR!"
"I…I passed too Kachaan…"
"SHADDAP DEKU, I WAS FUCKING THERE! KIRISHIMA! DID YOU FUCKING…pass…" Bakugo looked at the red-headed boy, who was sitting in the back. His head was down, and he hadn't said a thing since returning from the exam.
Bakugo's usually unquenchable rage subsided before their eyes in a moment as he looked at his…friend? Acquaintance? Sparring partner?
"…c'mon Shitty Hair." Bakugo walked right up to Kirishima, dragged him to his feet, and walked him out, leaving the rest of the class in awe.
…
"Was Bakugo just…soft?" Uraraka ventured.
"Soft-er may be the better term." Todoroki suggested. "Oh, time's up. Mina and Kaminari didn't make it either."
"Hmm?" Toph hummed in response. 'Too bad for Sparky I guess."
'Wait, am I turning into Bakugo?'
"And after all the effort they put in, right Toph-san?" Momo said sadly.
She shook off the rogue thought. "Yeah…he didn't even leave anything blank."
xXx
Kurogiri patiently wiped a glass clean as Tomura Shigaraki tapped the wooden bar with a single finger, his face hidden behind the dead hand he wore. Sensei had of course agreed and encouraged them to bring on new members to their fold, even if they had to use Stain's name to get it. Something Tomura just could not get over.
"Why?' he thought 'Why would we need Stain's butt sniffers to destroy All Might?'
"They are nearly here Tomura." Kurogiri alerted him.
"Remind me why we agreed to this meeting."
"Because we need numbers to accomplish our goals. Not like the thugs we picked up for the USJ."
"Tch." Shigaraki stretched himself out on the barstool before waving his hand. "Send them in."
The door to the bar unlocked with a click, opening to reveal one of the best illegal brokers in the underworld.
"Nice to see you again, League of Villains." A graying man said slyly.
"I hope you are well, Giran." Kurogiri greeted back. Tomura only nodded.
"Ah but of course, I'm not alone." He turned back to wave his party in.
First to step in looked to be a high school girl. Yellow, cat-like eyes shone from her smiling gaze. From the messy double bun to the knife half-hidden on her thigh, everything about her screamed "insane". She simply skipped in as the next two followed. The next was a pain to see. Burn scars covered his entire body and face and seemed stitched together under his dark clothing. Lazy blue eyes scanned the small bar and landed on lanky leader of the League. He wasn't impressed yet. Did Stain really side with the likes of this?
Piercing golden eyes came next as the last of their group stepped into the room. She looked…well…she didn't have any other clothes except from what she wore at the asylum. A white medical gown adorned her figure, which was slightly malnourished but still strong. Long, choppy black hair flowed from her head, obviously cut by herself at one point or another. Her sharp gaze caught everything in the room, even the layers of dust created from accidental decay from Shigaraki's quirk.
Shigaraki inspected the three of them, not knowing what to make of them yet. The two women were definitely crazy, and the guy looked like an emo. "Giran. You know I know you are the best at what you do."
The speckled man smiled. "I know you do."
"Then why did you bring these…them?"
"Hmm…that's rather rude." The black-haired woman commented. "Don't you think, stabby?"
"I dunno! Don't really care! Do you know Stainy, or what?" The younger girl asked sweetly. Or she would have, it weren't for the obvious bloodlust.
"…I suppose we do, yes." Tomura reluctantly replied. "What's your deal, blondie?"
"I'm Himiko Toga! I just want to live freely! Oh, and stab cuties. Almost forgot!" she giggled. "So Stain! Isn't he amazing? I wonder what he likes! Do ya think he'd be my boyfriend? And that he'd let me cut him! Oh, the possibilities!"
Shigaraki dropped sweat at her enthusiasm for cutting. "K. What about you, patchwork?"
CRACK-BOOOOOOOOM
A flash of lightning shot past Shigaraki's head, vaporizing a couple wine bottles on the back wall! "Getting tired of your lip, handyman." The mental patient sing-songed. She pointed two fingers towards Tomura's head. "Be nice to my baby brother, mmk?"
"Azula." Patchwork interrupted. "We talked about this. Stop firing at anything that annoys you please."
"Fucking make me, dipshit."
"Also, we're twins. We were born at the same time."
"So?"
"So I'm not younger than you."
"Tch, keep thinking that little kid." The man only rubbed the bridge of his nose at his twins antics. "As you asked, I go by Dabi. And this is my sister, Azula."
Kurogiri listened as he quietly cleaned up the shattered glass as Shigaraki sized them up. "You go by Dabi? Is that your name or what?"
"That's what you may call me."
"But what's your name?"
"I go by Dabi."
"Grr, I know that, but what's your name!"
"No."
"No?"
"What's on second."
"What?"
"That's right."
"Who are you!"
"No, he's on first."
"Who is?"
"Yes."
"What?"
"Second base."
…
…
"GGRRRRRRAAAAAAAAHHHH!" Shigaraki leaped forward in an instant, his hand ready to disintegrate this joker. In the same instant, embers flickered from Dabi's hand in retaliation. Azula, itching for an excuse this entire time, flicked her forward, revealing blue flames as Toga readied a knife with glee. The group rushed each other…
fwoom
Dark portals appeared all over the room, redirecting every respective attack to a different area.
"Tomura. You must remain calm. These are potential teammates after all. They could save your skin on day, and vice versa." Kurogiri reasoned to the enraged villain. Shigaraki retracted his hand and grabbed his hoodie, making for the door.
"I'm going out. Recruit these scumbags if you want, I couldn't care less." He spat. He slammed the door behind him.
xXx
"Toph dear! Excellent news!" Sang Poppy as she strode through the foyer of their home. "Toph?" She checked her bedroom, the kitchen, and the small weight room the had installed. Still no Toph. "Where could she be?" She wondered aloud.
"DIIIIIIIEEE!"
BOOOOOOOOOM
CRACKBOOOOOOOM
The sounds of battle shook the rest of the house, rattling the fine china in their cases.
"Eat shit, Beifong!"
"Make me, dipshit!"
CRACKPOW
BA-BOOOOOOOOM
"What on earth!" Poppy rushed to the outdoor training yard (a lady never ran) and poked her head outside.
The training ground was often privy to large amounts of damage due to Toph's destructive and precise fighting style. But there wasn't usually so much smoldering rubble littering the sparring ring. A blond figure shot through the air, using his aerial mobility to his advantage as he dodged and defended against boulder after boulder. Toph remained stationary, using her training and acute hearing to pinpoint Bakugo's location in the air and attack. Valuable training for the both of them, all in all. Poppy winced as an explosion crashed into her daughter, who had covered her feet in rock to root herself to her location. Her clothes her charred and smoking from the boy's relentless attacks, but she herself only had minor burns. Bakugo was also sporting a few bruises from stray rocks that flew his way. Little did either of them know, Toph was using a thin cloud of sand to detect her sparring partner. Not enough to be seen, but enough to give Toph a rough idea of his position as the sand moved around his form. As Bakugo rocketed towards the smaller girl, a stone spike erected right in front of him, which he quickly dodged with a downward blast!
SLAM
But Toph predicted it! A slab of stone was thrown above him at the same time the spike was made, letting Bakugo slam right into it!
"Tch! Cheap shot!" He yelled as he recovered from the surprise attack. It left a fresh bruise on his upper back. 'That'll hurt later.'
"Cheap?" She yelled back, defending from another explosion. "Cheap is intentionally blasting the ground to mess up my senses!"
"Ha! All's fair, bitch!"
"Toph!"
Toph jerked her ear to the backdoor, where she now sensed her mother watching them fight. She threw her hand up to stop the spar, halting Bakugo's next attack as he landed. "Hey Mom! Just a sec!" She took a breath, assumed a stance, and thrust her arms down, sending all the dust and debris back to earth. "Ok, what's up?" She asked as she jogged back.
"Um, just got home." Her mother said, eyeing her acquaintance. "Though I'd rather you didn't use such vulgar language, at least here. Ok?"
"Sigh, ok." She relented as Bakugo walked up. "Mom, this is Bakugo. You saw him at the Sports Festival."
"Ah, of course!" She would never forget the face of her daughter's opponent in the final match. Especially with his fierce attitude. "I'm Mrs. Beifong. It's good to meet you, Mr. Bakugo."
"…yeah. Good to meet you too." He muttered. He wasn't devoid of manners after all. "Nice place."
"Thank you."
He shifted uncomfortably under the woman's gaze, which agitated him to no end. 'Is she…judging me? Do I care?'
"Tch." He turned his head back to the ruined battlefield. "You need help with clean-up, Beifong?"
"Nope! I got this!"
"Great, then I'll get going. Goodbye." He gave a short bow before leaving the two behind. Toph frowned at her friend as Poppy pursed her lips. 'Is he ok? Did I miss something?' She turned her attention back to her mother, whose heart was racing ever so slightly. The tenseness was obvious.
'Ah. Oh for the love of God…'
"Mom, stop it."
Poppy looked back to her daughter. "Beg pardon?"
"Don't look at him like that. He was my opponent, not my enemy, so lay off."
"I never said anything, young lady."
"Tch, I'm showering. I'll clean up later."
"Toph…"
"What?"
"I actually have some good news for you, so don't take that tone with me."
"…fine. Sorry."
"It's alright, now…" Poppy pulled something from her purse. "have you heard of I-Island?"
Meanwhile, Bakugo was moving through the large house, looking for the exit. "Stupid mom, stupid rock, dumbass bigass house…" he muttered as he finally found the front door. He reached forward to open it, but it opened for him.
"…excuse me, who are you?"
He looked up to see a tall man in a suit, probably the bat's old man, come through the front door. He seemed perplexed to see a strange boy in his house upon entry.
"Friend of Beifong's." He answered. Friend was a stretch for him, not that it mattered right now.
"Hmm? Oh, you're a friend of…Toph's…" Lao looked the boy up and down. 'Right, they fought at the Sports Festival. Wait. Boy. Friend of Toph's. In my house?' Lao stared at the explosion user as his brain slowly broke at the revelation.
"…uh, hello?" Bakugo stared right back at the weird guy. 'What's with your weirdass family, Beifong?'
"Cough, yes! Of course, ah…you're one of her classmates I presume."
"Yeah."
"Well, I'm Lao Beifong, Toph's father."
"…oh." Yeah, it was time to leave. "I was just leaving actually."
"Were you now? Well, safe travels. Do you live far?"
"Train's close enough. I should go…"
"Yo Bakugo!"
'Shit-house-mouse, bitch! Let me leave!'
"What?" He aggressively yelled by accident.
Toph ran over with the widest grin in on earth, unfazed by his usual attitude. "I got tickets to go the Tech Expo on I-Island!"
'…well shit me sideways.' I-Island was a moving resort/research facility that traveled all over the world. Their technological advances in Quirk-related support was nothing to scoff at, either! "Seriously?"
"Seriously! I wonder if they have anything for my quirk! Maybe I'll figure this block I'm having…" she began to mutter intelligibly. Almost like…
'Deku.'
He gritted his teeth as Toph rambled on. "Have fun, I guess." He turned to leave again.
"Wait, Bakugo? Bakugo!" She jogged after him as he left, leaving her parents behind. Poppy was smiling proudly as Lao stood speechless, but not because of the tickets.
xXx
"467…468…469…"
"A phone call is here! A phone call is here!"
"470…471…"
"A phone call is here! A phone call is here!"
"Ugh, fine. A stretch won't hurt." Midoriya got up from his push-ups to answer his cell. He was going for a straight 500, but it could wait till tomorrow.
Between the summer camp and the trip with All Might, he wasn't sure how much working out he was going to squeeze in with his schedule so packed. He had to keep progressing with One for All or he'll fall behind! Which is why, for the past week since they got their exam results, he had committed to doing a full set of 500 push-ups, 600 sit-ups, and a 7-mile run down the beach without stopping until he completed it. Kirishima offered to come with him, but the harsh regimen knocked the wind out of him the very first day. Despite his new drive to make up for the exam, there was such a thing as pushing too hard. So, it was just him.
He stretched out a bit before setting his phone to speaker. "Hi, Toph. What's up?"
"That asshole! How were you friends with him?!"
"Ouch…" he rubbed his ear before starting a tricep stretch. "What'd Kachaan do?" he asked, knowing exactly who she was talking about.
"Grr, he's just an asshole, ok!? It's not like I was trying to flaunt anything, I was just excited! So, Mom and Dad were able to get me tickets to go to the Tech Expo at I-Island this year. You familiar?"
"Am I familiar? Of course! You're going too?"
"Yeah and…wait, you're going? How? No offense, but it doesn't seem like Inko can drop that sort of cash anytime she wants."
"All Might's taking me, he doesn't really have anyone else to take so-"
"Pff, seriously? He could try and be more subtle."
"Subtle?"
"Does anyone else know?"
"No, why…oh."
"It's not like he can show too much favoritism you know? For the Number One Hero, he doesn't really think ahead huh?"
"Heh, I guess not. So, Kachaan."
"Right! Well, I offered to take him as my plus one! You wanna know what he said?"
"…what did he s-"
"HE TOLD ME TO FUCK OFF!"
"O-oh." That sounded like him. "Doesn't he say that to everyone though?"
"Well yeah, but he's my friend! It's not like I'm looking down on him or some shit!"
"That's…probably exactly what he thinks."
"GRRRR, I know! But I've got a plus one on my ticket! Who am I supposed to take?"
"Hmm, Yaoyorozu?"
"Already going and taking Jirou and Uraraka. The girls drew straws."
"Kaminari?"
"Apparently he and the Grapist are working there as wait staff."
"You could just take one of the other girls, right?"
Toph thought about this. The truth was, she told them she was saving her plus one for someone else when she was asked. To come back saying differently…no. Besides, then she'd be choosing between someone and that sucks. There is one person…
"Actually, I think I know someone who'd love to go."
"Really? Who?"
"You'll see."
"Oooooook. Wait a minute," Midoriya remembered something from Aizawa's briefing on the Sports Festival. "1st place at the Sports Festival gets a free ticket, plus one, right?"
"Yeah, so? My parents got me the ticket, not UA."
"So if you don't take it, who does?"
…
"…Muttermouth, you're a dumb genius."
"Uh…thanks?"
click
Midoriya looked at his phone, she hung up.
"Weirdest conversation with a girl…ever."
xXx
"DIIIIIIIE!"
BOOOOOOOM
"Hey bro! You seem way more into this than usual!" Kirishima called.
"SHUT THE FUCK UP!"
BOOOOOOOOOM
"I don't mean to pry!" He tried again. One of the best things about UA was their 24/7 gyms with full quirk usage. Bakugo had decided to start training Kirishima since his loss in the Exam, which Eijiou was extremely grateful for, even if it was tanking explosions until he dropped. Still, at least he wasn't running 7 miles straight or anything. That's just crazy. "It's just, you were there for me, you know? I wanna be there for you too!"
"AIN'T NOTHING BE THERE FOR, SHITTY HAIR!"
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM
"Didn't say there was! But if there is, you can talk about it, you know?" Why else would Bakugo call him out of the blue just to blow something up? He was clearly letting out steam about something.
BOOOOM BOOOOOM BABOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM
"Gah!" Finally, Kirishima was knocked back. "Hey bro, I think I'm just about done for today. Same time tomorrow?"
Bakugo straightened, wringing his hands. "Fine, expect to die tomorrow."
"Ha! Wouldn't expect anything else! See ya!" He waved as he left the gym, leaving Bakugo alone with his thoughts.
"Tch, wouldn't expect you to understand anyway. I sure don't get it…" he grumbled as he stuffed his workout clothes into his bag. As he made his way to the underground station, he considered calling Beifong. To say…something. Anything.
"Hmph, no fucking way…"
The truth was, Bakugo had been learning a great deal while he had been at UA, just not the things he wanted to learn. The first thing he learned, was that there are people out there who are almost as amazing as he is. From his experience, he was supposed to be the indisputable number one, the only one who could have a shot at being great, being the number one hero.
But the fact was, he had competition. People get enrolled into UA for a reason after all. Half N Half may be insufferable, but he's strong. Even if he holds back like a bitch. And someone like fucking Deku managed to get in on a pulled out of his ass quirk. Even that gravity chick made him get serious, despite being so god damn cheery. And Beifong. Fucking Beifong beat him! Sure it was a tie at first, but she had come the closest to being his equal.
The second thing he easily learned is that he never had friends before. In middle school, he had extras, lackeys, who would follow him around. Maybe they hoped his greatness would rub off on them or some shit, fucking bootlickers. And now he's got all these people claiming to be his friend! Kirishima! Beifong! Deku! (Though the last one was nothing new) How dare they? Who said he needed friends? He doesn't need help! And he definitely doesn't need fucking handouts!
But then there's the third thing he's learned: the "friends" he had in Middle School were not the "friends" he has at UA. For one thing, they're independent of him. They don't need him to stand on their own and don't expect him to carry them. And when it counts, they call him on shit. It's fucking annoying, but at least they're honest. Guys like Fingers and Goose would never do that at Aldera.
He was so deep in thought, he barely noticed when he got home. He stepped in after locking the door.
"Where were you!?" A woman's voice yelled.
"Training! Why do you care?"
"Because you left without saying anything, brat! I was fucking worried!" Mitsuki yelled from the kitchen. Bakugo walked past his father to the dinner table, where steaming enchiladas sat in his spot. "Mexican today?" he asked.
"No, it's Norweigen. Yes, Mexican! You blind?"
"Shut up, hag!"
"Guys…" Mr. Bakugo said softly. "try and calm down. We're glad you're back Katsuki. How was training?"
"Tch! More for Weird Hair than for me! Guy needs to shape up if he wants to stay at UA!"
"Hmph!" Mitsuki harrumphed as she sat down with her food. "You're lucky to be on time for dinner, 'Suki. Still, I'm glad you have friends to help at UA."
"Oi! I never said he was my friend!"
"Shuddap brat! Were you helping him?"
"Yeah, but-"
"Then he's your friend!"
"Tch! As if!"
"A-Anyway," Masuru interrupted. "Katsuki, have you decided on your Hero Name yet?"
"…no. I guess not." Bakugo admitted, prodding his food. "Unless they'll reconsider Lord Explosion Murder!"
"They probably won't." Mitsuki said as she sipped her tea.
"Tch! I think of something! Just you wai-"
Ding dong
The Bakugos perked up at the doorbell. "At this hour? Who could that be?" Mitsuki wondered aloud as she made for the door. Katsuki decided he didn't care and kept eating as Masuru read today's paper. Mitsuki opened the door, but saw no one. Just the street.
"…who-"
"Down here."
She looked down. A young girl was there, looking straight forward instead of meeting her eyes. "Are you Mrs. Bakugo?"
"…yes? Are you lost young lady?"
"Nope! I'm looking for Katsuki Bakugo. We're classmates, I'm Toph Beifong."
"Ah! I remember you!" Mitsuki recalled her son's final fight in the Festival. "You handed my son's ass to him!"
"Well…I-"
"THE FUCK YOU SAY, HAG?"
"KATSUKI, WE HAVE A GUEST DON'T TALK TO ME THAT WAY!" She screamed back into the house. Turning right back to Beifong, she spoke sweetly. "Would like a bite to eat, Beifong-san? We'd love to have you!"
"I'm ok, I just need to see Bakugo if that's ok with you." Toph returned the sweet tone almost perfectly.
"Hmm, I suppose that's alright. KATSUKI, YOUR CLASSMATE IS ASKING FOR YOU!"
"I'M NOT HERE!"
"YES YOU ARE, GET HERE!"
"IS IT BEIFONG?"
"YES!"
"TELL HER NO!"
"NO! GET HERE NOW!"
"FUCKING MAKE ME, HAG!"
A blood vessel popped on her forehead as Toph dropped a sweat. "Would you excuse me for a moment, Beifong-san?"
"…sure?"
"Thank you, one moment." She closed the door.
…
…
What Toph heard next should not be repeated in any medium, whether it be writing or animation. After about a minute, Bakugo appeared at the door, with a throbbing bump on his head.
"The fuck do you want." Immediately, Toph shoved an envelope into his chest. "Gah! The fuck?"
"Tech Expo tickets. For the winner of the Sports Festival."
His heartrate picked up as he got angry. "You showing off again, bitch?"
"I turned them down, which means they're yours by default."
He looked at the envelope like it was used toilet paper. "Like I want anything by default-"
"Look, I'm not looking down on you. Or trying to manipulate you or con you. I just want you there." She explained clearly, but not forcefully. He narrowed his eternal glare.
"Why the fuck would you want me there?"
"I just do! You're my friend, why do I need a hidden motive? Besides, they're rightfully yours. You should've won anyway."
"The fuck you talking about? You won! Get over it…"
"We tied, and I was knocked out. Just take the damn tickets dipshit. I'll see you there." And before he knew it, she had sprinted back to the limo behind her!
"Hey! Just wait a god damn minute!"
"Nope! Too late!" She yelled as she ran to the car, jumping straight into the side window. "Yu! Go, go, go!"
"GET BACK HERE!" Bakugo roared after her as the limo sped off. He looked at the envelope again, ready to reduce it to cinders.
You're my friend, why do I need a hidden motive?
He glared harder at the envelope. Maybe it's a trick? He tore it open.
Yep, one full ride to I-Island. Plus one of his choice.
"Tch, I don't need a hand out, Beifong!" he said to himself. Sparks popped in his hand.
…
'But…it would be a waste. This is effectively two tickets to I-Island, should I really waste them?' He looked through the envelope again. He found a note!
Yo Blasty. Before you even think about it, don't destroy the damn tickets. They cost too much.
-Toph
"Hmph! Telling me what to do…that bitch…" he grunted as he burned the note in his fist. Not the tickets though.
Not the tickets.
'Blindass…fine. I'll fucking go. Wait a sec, another note?' He rifled through the envelope.
P.S. Our class is going to Kiyashi Ward to grab some stuff for the Training Camp. I-Island too. Text me if you want the details. Or don't. Whatever.
-Toph
P.P.S. Yes I can fucking write. Can I read what I write? No, but I can put a pen to paper. Sue me.
xXx
And that's it for Chapter Sixteen! Things are in motion for both the next arc and the totally canon movie!
So I pretty much skimmed over the Practical Exams for the other classmates. If they were drastically different from Canon I would've put more into that, but they weren't. Also, I know the Jirou/Momo ship was rather sudden. Sorry about that, I wanted it to seem like it was festering for a while without anyone noticing. It something I had in mind since the beginning, but introducing it was hard without giving it away. I hope it makes sense. Now that the dynamics have developed a little bit, I'm going to start introducing more ships. The story won't be really about them, but they'll be present.
Kirishima and Bakugo are total bros and I live for it. Love writing for him.
I feel like Dabi has potential to be a shithead with Shigaraki humor-wise. And Azula works perfectly with him. Not really sure on how to do Toga justice, but I'll figure it out.
As a personal matter, I have had a lot of trouble taking people's actions for what they are instead of speculating their hidden intentions. I relate to Bakugo in this (and only this) way. His real friends aren't out to get him and looking to lick his boots, he'll get it in time.
I-Island is coming up! And hopefully Lao won't lose his freaking mind when the Tartarus level security gets breached while Toph is there. Especially in a high-rise building. With no earth under her feet.
Heh.
And now for the reviews!
To D3lph0xL0v3r
I understand, and don't worry. The ships are not the primary or even the secondary element of the story. This is action and adventure, with a hint of romance to keep things going. Thanks for the review.
Yeah, no. I don't write paragraphs of foreplay. Not interested.
To Flashyyyyyyy
Yes :P
To Aleska1492
Me too, can't get the image out of my head.
Working out differences in the heat of battle. If that's not anime, I don't know what is. Glad you like the ship.
The nicknames don't change. Toph just has a wheel of nicknames for everyone she knows, Wheel of Fortune style.
5th in Midterms.
To vangian13
Yes and no. No it's not canon, but I know some people who have their doubts. It's a popular ship, but with recent manga updates, I'm not so sure.
To DodemGM
But that's my secret. I'm always lost in the sauce.
Thank you, really appreciate that. Glad Jirou didn't come off the wrong way.
I actually heard from someone that Dark Shadow being female was canon, but I could be mistaken. I'm not too worried about it.
To Cy Man
I understand where you're coming from, and you're a little right. Just didn't know how to smoothly introduce that. Romance is hard.
Maid outfit for serving tea! Happy coincidence!
Glad we agree.
To DEMONEZUKO
Not the entire GAang I'm afraid. This is a Toph centric story after all.
I would love to say the chapters are scheduled, and they were at first. But I can't because I'm a literal mess like 90% of the time. LOL
To Yrmbe
Oooooh, it's coming…hahahahahaha
To harlequin320
Thank you!
To D4NG3RxZ0N3
Thank you!
To theshocker517
Glad you think so! The pairing seems right to me, but it's fine you're not with it.
Dunno about the metal, I would think the earth particles are too separated to easily see through. Thanks for the review!
To SebjectCrimsonStorm
Actually, I have that all planned out! You'll see, though I'll probably cry writing it.
To CRose
Thank you!
To Jesus JD DeJesus
Ye.