Small A/N: I've been sick with food poisoning so sorry if this chapter is a little shorter. I plan the next one to be big as well so this one had to be cut down a bit. I hope you enjoy it anyway.
My Jirou Academia Chapter 5: Life is Strange
"Take these for the next three days." The small old woman relentlessly typed on a computer whilst extending one hand full of pills. Jirou was handed some acetaminophen as a result of her diagnosis. A grade three concussion with no lasting effects. Recovery Girl had entirely healed the bleeding's origin. A mild cranial trauma, however, was outside the scope of her abilities. Therefore, she was prescribed plenty of rest and three days of painkiller intake.
"So just to be clear, you ate a strand of his hair?" She held the back of her hair upwards, slowly removing her bandages slowly. It was like time stopped as this happened, there was something oddly intimate about the way Jirou removed them. The tomboy looked: cute? Mature? Vulnerable? Interesting? Izuku would struggle on how to properly describe the scene in his mind. He had never seen a girl do menial things this close to him, it was like she dropped her guard for a few seconds.
"Y-yeah, time was closing in and his DNA had to be transferred quickly." He rubbed the back of his head and looked away when answering. One of his coping mechanisms during social interactions.
It wasn't like he could keep this a secret after everything she overheard. All Might even shrugged and gave in once she wasn't buying their excuses. He'd been given the green light to tell her everything shortly following her staunch denials. An honest mistake from everyone in the room, forgetting how public a setting like a school's infirmary could be. Just before the entire explanation began, the number one hero left the room together with Tsukauchi, the policeman. Seemed a longer divulgation of the USJ incident would take place between the two.
The greenie had painstakingly explained everything prior to the entrance exams. Everything about his history with Bakugo, the sludge villain incident, meeting the real All Might, his intense training and finally the nature and root of his power. Nonetheless, during his long winded explanation, he noticed how intently she paid attention, never interrupting or questioning any part. She only interjected right after the story was over. Her eyes remained neutral, showing little emotion for the entire duration.
"Ugh, gross." Jirou stuck out her tongue and her eyes narrowed a bit. It was her first proper facial reaction to the information. Not quite what he expected though. "Did it taste like some weird hair product?" An expression of pure curiosity with a hint of mischief had appeared.
"I-I don't remember, I was too nervous to even notice the taste." Izuku was speaking in a comparatively lower tone to hers. Even with the elder nurse in the room, it was hard keeping his composure whilst being so close to a girl.
"Still, it's not that weird." Jirou noticed a 'huh?' face coming out of the boy. She quickly waved her ear jacks in a panicked motion and retreaded her statement. "I meant to say it's not that weird that a quirk transfers. It could just be an ability inherent to the quirk."
"I see." Izuku put one hand over his chin as the other reached for a scruffy looking notebook resting on the nursing bed. He flipped open the pages and landed on a familiar looking person. Writing 'Transfering ability?' next to his drawing of All Might, he drew a certain punk rocker's attention.
"Is that like… a handmade hero manual?" She looked highly curious at the idea, her eyes locked onto the All Might drawing.
"Y-yeah, I've studied most heroes." Izuku was a little taken aback by her sudden interest in his hobby. It wasn't like before, when the opposite gender would ridicule his fascination with hero culture. His fanaticism was the object of ire, so even the slightest show of engrossment from Jirou gave him a confidence boost.
"Can I see?" Her face got closer as she leaned forwards in a moment of subconscious excitement. Both eyes sparkled in delight. Unbeknownst to him, Jirou was showing genuine enjoyment for this, probably aided by her attraction for the boy. The greenie blushed a little at how close they got but instantly answered.
"S-sure. Go ahead." He passed the slim notebook directly to her, subtly leaning backwards as it happened. Not being entirely sure what her reaction would be, his breath got caught up in his throat as he watched the front page opening.
For a few minutes, they sat in silence as the tomboy skimmed through the hero manual. Sometimes she'd smile at something then go back to a neutral expression. Sometimes there was a clear attempt at holding back a laugh. Sometimes she'd giggle at an entry or two. Sparingly, there would be a blush appearing on her face for a few seconds, then later she'd be back to focused reading. An interesting experience, for sure, watching someone be this absorbed by his handiwork. Then, her eyes widened and she stayed silent, completely still. This was followed shortly by her hands slowly closing the book.
"J-Jirou?" Concerned, Izuku tilted his head as she did this.
Her face was completely frozen, looking down at the back cover. She then quickly reached downwards and placed her hands on something inside her pocket. What she pulled out was surprising, as her phone pointed directly at his nose.
"H-here, you know, add yourself." Jirou looked away, both ear jacks tucked themselves into her hair.
Add himself to a girl's phone?! An impossibility had happened to him. He was in complete shock after hearing this. Some small tears formed on the corners of his eyes, taking the phone into his hand like it were Excalibur itself. His first U.A. contact on his phone (apart from All Might) was a girl, Kyoka Jirou.
She had known the boy to be special, the look on his face often hinted at it. With that said, all of this 'One For All' quirk transferring and All Might being a disheveled, skeletal guy was a bit much. It didn't even feel real, that gargantuan weight of information would need a while to set in. For now, it was nice to have something only between Izuku and her. Their secret together, something that was exclusively theirs.
Speaking of secrets, well, she was adept at keeping them for the most part. Next to nothing would push out her knowledge of All Might's reality. What she read on the notebook on the other hand, yeah, that was already leaked to her close friend. How could Jirou hold that in? What was plastered on those pages was pivotal information.
"Are you positive that's what it said?" Yaomomo placed one arm under her chest and the other just below the chin. The smaller girl struggled to tell if the accentuation of her assets was on purpose.
"Yeah." Jirou rubbed her feet together and hid inside both arms. A small giggle escaped as she thought back upon what the hero manual said.
"That is… a little shocking honestly." The heiress momentarily widened her gaze at the confirmation. "Even if the notebook is essentially a journal, to think he'd be so bold." She squirmed ever so slightly when recalling what was explained to her.
'Kyouka Jirou:
Punk Rocker Outfit
Ear Jack quirk
Often used for hearing through solid surfaces when connected with them
Free control of their extension distance
Able to reverberate her heart beats through the tips
Needs an amplifier
Cute!'
How could she not be giddy after reading that last observation. Izuku described her as cute! In his private notebook as well, not like he would lie on it. She did notice his notes on her other classmates, some which were striking to say the least. Ochako Uraraka: 'Her hair fits perfectly on her head.', Momo Yaoyorozu: 'Mature!', Tsuyu Asui: 'Big round captivating eyes', Toru Hagakure: 'She's naked most of the time'. These didn't bother Jirou that much, her own entry made her that happy. In her stupor, she even told Yaomomo what the manual said about her.
"Well on a less alarming note, you've procured his number." Clearly still a little flustered from the notebook's contents, Momo looks away as she changes topics.
"Y-yeah I did that on a whim." The smaller girl averts her eyes, somewhat self conscious about that decision. "I was too forward too." She puts one hand up to her earlobe and starts twirling one ear jack.
All Momo does is supportively place one hand on Jirou's shoulder. She can understand the feeling of losing one's composure momentarily. Although, she can't exactly comprehend the complicated attraction that came with her rashness. How did it feel to be in love? Or whatever process of liking someone that Jirou was in? While at the same time, she was relieved to have never suffered from the pains of attachment. Much like how her friend constantly showed signs of internal struggle.
As they sat in silence, the classroom door slid open. A few of their classmates walked inside, including the titular proprietor of Jirou's heart.
You had to respect the man's tenacity. He stood in front of his students, bandaged up from head to toe, and had full intentions to teach them. It was majorly off putting, seeing their irreverent teacher in this state. This sight befit hot blooded people, not the gloomy Aizawa who was barely audible from the back row.
"In any case, in light of the recent incident, U.A. will proceed as always." It was difficult to tell if his lips were even moving below all those wrappings. "As such, the Sports Festival will be held with no hindrance whatsoever."
A gasp of excitement escaped everyone's lips. The nationwide famous U.A. event that could shoot their popularity through the stratosphere now upon them. To say this was a momentous chance at piercing the hero world would be an understatement.
"It's the school's way of showing everything is under control." Aizawa continued, the bandaged face moving ever so slightly.
Going ahead with such a massive event sure sounded like a show of stability. It sounded like so on the surface. However, this was probably an attempt to save face, a public relations maneuver to keep the consensus of good faith. The whole ordeal should've left a more apprehensive atmosphere, but the whole class seemed to be vehemently excited.
All but one person, Izuku Midoriya, whose face resembled that of a deer in headlights. Jirou did notice how uncomfortable he looked. In spite of her discerning this, she felt that it wasn't her place to interject. Knowing what he was probably thinking as All Might's successor, the tribulations going on in his mind would have to be resolved by himself. Even though she of course wanted to relieve him of that stress.
To everyone's surprise, Bakugo was also in a stoic state, he simply grabbed his bag and walked in the door's direction right after class ended. Once again, he was the first to leave the classroom. The vocal and brusque person that before would've probably shouted at the thought of the sports festival was gone. Here stood a quiet person, focused on something else entirely. Eyes showing a quiet determination. Maybe he was….
"Eeep!" Bakugo swung the sliding door open. Right outside the classroom was a growing crowd of people. The person closest to the opening shrieked at the sudden aperture.
Every person present was looking at the 1A students, seemingly judging the people who'd lived through a villain invasion. There was an odd looking guy with purple hair menacingly peering over the droves of individuals. A bunch of other interesting looking students clumped and pushed against each other to get a good look. The USJ incident seems to have brought unwanted attention and it manifested as such. Bakugo was stopped in his tracks, as constant mutters from the other classes started to multiply.
One person currently present was someone Jirou had met twice before. That pretty faced intense girl from the bathroom mirror was standing amongst the throng. She fully expected their eyes to meet, given both earlier interactions. Surprisingly, her green marbles weren't focused on the tomboy, nor on Izuku, or anyone near her. They were conspicuously looking behind her, to someone who surely drew innate attention. Her gaze wasn't one of curiosity, unlike the other people around. It was something else, admiration? No, this girl's unwavering stare was akin to what Jirou had seen during the battle scenarios. Specifically out of Bakugo's eyes. A more subtle version, sure, but still with a noticeable animosity.
This leer was set on none other than the class's beauty. It wouldn't be weird if anyone immediately had their attention on the heiress, she was basically like eye candy. Yet the particular way this orange haired girl looked at Yaomomo was unnerving.
The tallest woman in class looked firm, almost like she wasn't at all bothered by the growing multitude outside the class. Even as her eyes peered open and locked onto the intense redhead, there was absolute calm oozing out.
A hand on her chin, her legs crossed and the star ponytail facing to one side. Momo Yaoyorozu met this woman's intense eyes with her own.
To be continued….
A/N
Hey readers, how's life?
This chapter marks a good spot to start looking at things from the second protagonist's POV. Season 2 of Mha has a lot more character work for Izuku than I remembered so he's taking a more active role than he has previously had. No longer will he simply be an attractive nerd to be gawked at. Through his eyes, we get to see an objective view of Jirou, how she would come off to other people. I love the challenge this presented, it forced me to think of how I had written the story up to this point and how another character would interpret everything that has transpired.
Also about All Might allowing the One For All secret to be shared with Jirou, it's not like he didn't do this in the og series. He let Bakugo know about it after his fight with Izuku, granted that was under extreme circumstance but I think Jirou overhearing them talking is equally as extreme.
Oh and Izuku's notebook, it does have some explicit words describing Mount Lady as "Sexy" so yeah it wouldn't be out of the ordinary for his description of other women to have similar elements.
I'm open to any and all criticism, if you feel a character is misrepresented then please point them out.
Have a good rest of your day.
The Grand Ballad.