The aftermath of the raid continues. Suri meets Kodiak's family. A celebration is had and Suri gets the recognition she's been wanting.
When Suri got to the hospital with Ketsuiki she expected several things. The feeling of utter dread and despair that was filled to the brim with pain and agony was one of them but not quite the one she got. There was dread and despair, sure, but not in the way she thought. Dread and despair came in the form of an old woman who was barely five feet in height, possibly shorter, slightly crouched over from using the support of an old wooden cane to keep her standing. She was screaming and causing a commotion out in the hallway, berating heroes, doctors, and nurses alike in full blown Russian. The six of them were lined up, heads hung and flinching every time her voice cracked from the screaming as her voice raised in a wild roller coaster of tone. To add to their flinching she smacked the heel of her cane on the floor every time she emphasized something in her rant. No one knew a thing she was saying but the anger in her voice and her actions radiated the meaning loud and clear for them.
After what seemed like an eternity, the old woman closed her eyes, took in a deep breath, and then settled herself.
"Come. Come," she motioned before roughly pulling the six of them, which included Hellfire, Libra, and DreamWeaver into a tight hug that had them all practically bending over in half to even reach her. She started speaking in a mix of broken Japanese and English, which everyone barely recognized or understood other than the feeling put into those words. There was one thing that everyone did understand and that was her saying, "thank you."
"Ma ma," a tall and fairly muscular and built brunette woman said softly in a heavy Russian accent. Her angelic tone seemed slightly misplaced, like her voice should have been stronger and more boisterous to fit her stature. She then said something in Russian to the old woman before turning to the two teen heroes who were watching the entire scene. "Ah, you are Rook and Wild Eyes, yes?"
"Yes, ma'am," Suri and Ketsuiki nodded, answering in unison.
"Please, call me Nascha," the woman answered. The soft, gentle smile, delicate green eyes, and shy voice were still off putting and now Suri realized why as she caught the woman's scent and felt a small flicker of her power. It made the beast girl shiver because the woman in front of them, no matter how gentle her demeanor seemed, was one incredibly powerful werebear. She was Ursa, bear queen, to Alexie's Ursol, bear king. "Come. He's been waiting for you."
As Suri passed her, she was careful to notice just how much attention she was giving Suri as she passed her to enter the room. Apparently she'd sensed Suri's own power and flavor of beast and was now measuring the younger girl up. It surely wasn't measuring her up for a fight but measuring her up as one queen would compare another queen to herself. Suri noticed the same look of intrigue from the old woman who made Suri visibly shiver as she got closer and passed by her from the amount of lycanthropic power in her aura alone. She'd forgotten what it was like to experience that mass stockpile of power some of the especially older wereanimals had ever since she'd moved out of Grandma Kuroyashi's compound.
Between the two werebear women, the old woman, Mama Bear as she'd been called, was leagues above Nascha. The younger woman was the face of the role and acting queen but the old woman was the queen of queens. Fitting since their culture saw mothers akin to god.
"In the eyes of a child, mother is god," Atiena voiced quietly inside Suri's head as they both remembered the old adage they'd heard several times.
When Suri and Ketsuiki entered the room they were met with the sight that both made them let out a deep breath neither of them realized they'd taken and held. The concern that was in Suri's eyes that was ready to stiffen in sadness went slack to relief and she had to fight off the urge to cry. Not an ugly, sad cry, but a relieved, happy cry. There was a very distinct difference in levels and types of crying and that was just a scientific fact. The dread seemed to waft away as they walked in and saw Alexie sitting up and quietly laughing as he watched Yumei frozen in terror and embarrassment. Granted, watching the snake girl blush was always entertaining since the blush wasn't strictly held in place to her reptilian cheeks; the red hue transferred across her white and soft pink scales all throughout her body.
"S-Suri. K-Ketsuiki. I-It's not what it looks like," the snake girl desperately whined in despair.
The two teens couldn't help but smile and begin to laugh as well because the sight that they entered into was a welcome distraction to the heaviness of the situation. Next to Kodiak's bed was another woman, maybe an inch shorter than Suri, with a slender, lithe build that carried a voluptuous chest and wide hips. She had rose gold colored hair that shifted from gold to pink depending on where the light hit it, and bright blue eyes that were narrowed in careful concentration. Concentration because she was pouring over Yumei's attire, going back and forth between unbuttoning and buttoning the single button on the snake girl's black, low cut top. When she wasn't testing her top, the woman was adjusting and toying with the - normally - knee length denim skirt that buttoned up the side. When Suri and Ketsuiki had walked in, the woman had the skirt almost completely unbuttoned and exposing more of Yumei's hip while pulling the shirt down to expose more cleavage. A look Suri happily appreciated.
Then the woman set her sights on Suri.
The beast girl was left in shock and frozen in place as the woman came for her at an almost blinding pace of speed. She was so taken aback by her quickness that Suri had a delayed response of shock as the woman began toying with the beast girl's cami and short shorts. Suri got her bearings when the woman went for one of her pet peeves and quickly leaned back before the woman could get her hands on her loc'd hair. The woman looked almost offended that Suri had dodged her and then narrowed her eyes, realizing what Suri hadn't wanted.
"You. Wear eyeshadow and mascara. It will bring out eyes and sharpen cheeks," she said in a low, tight critiquing voice. Her voice was what Nascha's should have been. "Increase band or cup size. It will give more va va voom," she directed next, emphasizing with herself as she cupped her large breasts and bounced them for Suri to see. She then grunted and pointed towards her hair, a movement Suri took as directing her towards her own hair. "Stop going soft on conditioner, your hair will shine more."
Suri couldn't do anything but nod, her brow cocking upward as she watched and listened to the woman who was far more off putting and domineering than her looks or stature suggested.
"And you," she said with a snap, turning back around to face the snake girl. "I suggest lotion to make scales softer and shine more. Eyeshadow and mascara too. It will make your eyes much more prettier." She then motioned wide up and down at Yumei, suggesting her entirety with the gesture. "Have more fun with dress. You are attractive girl, no? Do not hide it so."
Yumei blushed harder and nodded in response, both trying to be respectful and acknowledging what the woman was saying. It was as she was turned back onto the snake girl that Suri was finally able to take a breath and ease herself from the tense interaction. That deep breath made her tense up again and she realized just who was in front of her and what she was because there was no mistaking the scent of wolf and no hiding the power level that was on par with her own mothers and Rukia Kurogami. She was Alexie and Nascha's scary powerful wolf queen.
"Ha ha ha. Anastacia, my love, don't pester and scare the little ones so much," Kodiak chuckled heartily. He was boisterous and full of cheer, almost back to his former self which meant recovery had done him a lot of good. The most glaring difference in the man was the still heavily wrapped stub of his left arm and the eye patch that now covered his right eye. While Suri was distracted, Kodiak turned and motioned to everyone at the door with a big grin. "Come in my friends, we have much to celebrate."
Suri and Ketsuiki turned to see the residents of the hallway file into the room, namely Hellfire, Libra, DreamWeaver, and the old woman. Now that Suri thought about it; it was incredibly obvious who she was because her bright honey colored eyes were a dead giveaway.
"First, little ones, let me introduce you to my lovely wives," Kodiak grinned and, in a very practiced display, both women came to him with Nascha taking a seat on his left and Anastacia taking a seat on the right side of his bed. It occurred to Suri that where they sat correlated to his tattoos on his hips. "Nascha and Anastacia Novikov. My honey bear and my sugar puppy."
Both women groaned and rolled their eyes in exasperation but neither could stop themselves from smiling with every ounce of love and adoration in their entire beings and laid into him. Of course, Kodiak would never lose his terrible sense of humor and affinity for cheesy pet and nicknames. His happiness was one of the most infectious parts of his personality and it showed as, even though Nascha wasn't able to be cradled with his left arm, the two women happily chuckled and kissed either side of his neck.
"O-Oh my god, it is you," Yumei gasped and then quickly covered her mouth, afraid she had spoken out of turn or possibly offended someone. It drew everyone's attention to the snake girl and she sheepishly hid herself for a moment before shyly peeking back. "I-I umm, I've, like, seen you on a bunch of fashion blogs."
Anastacia smiled and looked away shyly, like she was bashful about being recognized. As she did that, Suri's eyes decided it was at that point to take notice of the tattoo on the left side of Kodiak's neck. She'd always wondered why he had the number 55 tattooed on him and now she realized why. As soon as she saw the tattoo and recognized it for what it was, she looked at the werebear woman and her jaw dropped. It made her feel silly for not realizing sooner she'd faintly recognized not only Anastacia, but Nascha as well.
Then again, being at a hospital does tend to cloud your head.
"Wait, you play for the women's euro league. The Moscow Dynamo, right?" Suri asked curiously.
Both women went wide eyed for a split second and then both began laughing as they sat up and gave their full attention to the two teen girls. They both then gave small curtsies and nodded their answers with gentle smiles.
"Aye. I do," Nascha confirmed first. "This season I was intending on possibly getting a contract through free agency market to play here in women's league."
"And while my lovely wife plays basketball here in Japan I was hoping to expand my fashion businesses more," Anastacia added. "We were intending on moving completely as Alexie continued to work in Japan but now…"
Both women's expressions softened and they frowned, looking at each other sadly before they were taken by surprise and practically knocked into each other. Kodiak laughed again and batted his wives in the back, knocking them into his lap and each other. The two women bumping heads made them jump and yelp from the sudden collision and then they began laughing just as heartily as their husband. The three began laughing even more when Anastacia snorted and her voice cracked into a range that was higher than even Nascha's
"I made funny noise," Anastacia giggled hilariously, which only made the three of them more hysterical in their laughter. It was to the point the three of them were practically rolling with each other on the bed like three overgrown children.
The display was absolutely adorable to say the least.
It was a relief to see that, even with his injuries, the bear man was still a center point of utter happiness and joy. Especially surrounded by the loves of his life and his friends.
"No more sadness, my dears," he spoke, all the humor gone and replaced entirely with utter care and tenderness. "Many changes are coming, yes, but there is no need for sadness. I may have lost many things but I did not lose that which is most important to me. And because of these three little ones," he looked up and grinned, letting his voice begin to boom and carry wide once again. "We achieved a valiant victory in our mission!"
"Thanks to Rook, all of the children that we recovered that night are on their way home safe and sound," DreamWeaver spoke softly with a small smile. "And because of the various low level crooks you and Wild Eyes were able to subdue, we managed to drill up some more information about the trafficking ring. We're currently working with other agencies across Japan and in several other countries to help infiltrate and bring the operation down entirely. It's a large-scale effort that we're taking on but without you kids, we wouldn't have had the head start that we do."
"I've been in contact with my great uncles and working with them to track down sorcerers that have ties to anyone near and dear to Gemini and her associates. The devil kin are on board with retrieving all these kids and getting them home," Hellfire added with a nod.
"Shiozaki would have a mental crisis if she heard that," Suri snorted, unable to hold back her thoughts at that exact moment.
"That we're getting kids home?" Hellfire tilted his head, cocking his brow in curiosity.
"No," Suri shook her head and waved her hand defensively. "She's one of those especially god fearing kinda girls that goes to church every Sunday and reads the bible for fun. Shoulda seen her face when I told her one of my bosses was a hellspawn."
"Ahh, one of them types," he chuckled with his twangy southern drawl. "They're especially fun to mess with."
"Anyway," Libra chuckled, drawing attention to him and trying to get the conversation at hand back on track. "Alexie is right. There are a lot of changes coming and we wanted you three to be here so you were aware of them and not taken off guard. Trust me, the others are going to be… troubled to say the least."
"Masato, my friend, there is no need to scare the little ones," Kodiak chuckled and then let out a sigh. "But he is correct. As I'm sure Suri has already been able to determine, I no longer have my powers, I am now, what's it called… Ah! Asymptomatic."
"Asymptomatic?" Yumei questioned in confusion.
"It means he doesn't have his beast," Suri sighed and gave her mentor a somber, apologetic look. "You can't take on beast form anymore and don't have the benefit of the power reserves all of us have. I mean you're probably a lot stronger, faster, and more invulnerable than most humans, Quirk or not. You might even still have your healing though, right?"
"You speak as if you're an expert," the old woman said, coming forward and moving around to Alexie's right side. She gently took his hand, gripped it and then looked back at Suri.
"I wouldn't say expert," Suri smiled bashfully and blushed, nodding towards the woman with gentle respect. "My biological mother was born asymptomatic so she never had a beast for herself but she's worked hard enough that she's as powerful without a beast as some that have had beasts their entire lives."
"Ah, Orihime Kuroyashi's little one, yes?" the woman asked curiously.
"That's her," Suri grinned, showing a little pride in her eyes.
"Your babushka's a good woman. Strong, lots of oomph," she balled her fists tight and pumped them for emphasis, which made Suri, Alexie, Nascha, and Anastacia giggle. "I may have to see her. I enjoy her tea and company," she added with a thoughtful tone.
"One of my moms, Alexis, she's asymptomatic too. Partially anyway," Suri quickly added before continuing. "She went through a… a really bad pregnancy. She partially shifted one Lupanar, it was during a blood moon or a harvest moon, a night lunar magic was really high and volatile, ya know? Anyway, the shift caused a partial shift in her fetus and sh-… it… started feeding on the… umm… long story short, she miscarried and she had to have emergency surgery. In the process her beast sacrificed herself to save her life. She's like my mom where she still has a lot of the benefits of carrying lycanthropy but not all. Best example is that she's a massive lightweight when it comes to alcohol now. My moms take her out to drink whenever they get the chance just to tease her. Pretty sure the song Tequila Makes Her Clothes Fall Off is about my mom," Suri chuckled, trying to end on a lighter note.
"Ah, so much like my own Vladimir did," Alexie nodded, his face turned stern in focus from listening to Suri and drawing comparisons to his own situation. "I know I was very much on death's door and my old friend and I were saying our goodbyes. The thing about our beasts that I've learned over my many years is that they cherish life more than anything and they always have us, our humanity, in their best interest."
"I would agree with this," Atiena spoke up, making her presence known and making the three shifter women shiver as her power leaked out ever so slightly. "I know I've already tried to make that same sacrifice for Suri once. She is though, as you know quite well, too fucking stubborn for her own good sometimes."
"Hey! I resemble that," Suri groaned and pouted as she forced herself back to the surface and pushed her bestial side back into their shared mind. Atiena was chuckling happily and offered no resistance to her human counterpart.
"Hah! Yes, yes she is," Alexie laughed. "But that's what we've come to love about her, and you little one. If I do regain my strength, I would wish to challenge you on a full moon."
"Darling, don't push yourself too quickly," Anastacia said, the quiet concern apparent in her eyes and tone.
"I agree. You should take time and see where you stand before you go making challenges," Nascha agreed.
He chuckled as he looked back and forth between the two women and rolled his eyes and laid back in his hospital bed. It was quite the display seeing the burly, heavily muscled and tattooed older man pout like a teenage boy. Oddly adorable actually. After his momentary pouting he looked up at the two women and nodded while letting out a deep breath.
"Okay, okay. I won't fight Suri's beast… yet."
Alexie's mother scowled and smacked the back of her hand against his thigh, making him flinch in surprise. They had a quick exchange in Russian which basically boiled down to his mother being… well… his mother. She was softly scolding him like he was a toddler tempting something that was dumb and potentially dangerous and trying to get him to learn not to do said dumb and potentially dangerous thing. After a long moment, Alexie finally nodded and relented to his mother with a smile before focussing again and turning back to everyone.
"As I was saying. Because I no longer have my beast I have had some time to think about the future. A new, wonderful future that involves much more attention to the loves of my life and my children," Alexie grinned wide. "I believe I will relieve myself of the life of a hero. I will still be a hero in the eyes of many but I think my days as Kodiak have passed."
"And I will be joining him," Libra spoke up, letting out a long breath. "Because of everything that happened and the hand I had in all of this. I will be stepping down as well."
And just like that, Suri watched two pro heroes hang up their metaphorical capes right in front of her. The news hit her like a truck and she was left wide eyed and stunned, staring at the two men that were her bosses and mentors not more than a few moments ago that were now just that; men.
When Alexie Novikov, formerly the pro hero Kodiak, said celebrate, he meant it. There was a celebration to be had because of finally capturing Gemini and throwing her psychotic bloodthirsty ass into Tartarus. She was now locked in one of the world's most secure super prisons built for the most dangerous criminals and super villains and she'd be joining some of her old friends in the League of Villains who were locked up there now. She wasn't going anywhere, not for a long time. A very long time.
That had upset some clans because they wanted her treated just as other rogue wereanimals, especially Reavers, because she was now classified as such. She needed to have her head taken, body burned, and have the ashes spread into different bodies of water so she could never ever come back from the dead. Was the tradition overkill? Maybe a little but it ensured that, by the chance of the gods, if someone came and started resurrecting the dead, evil like her wouldn't have a snowball's chance in hell of returning to the living.
There was just one question now.
"So why are we doing this here and not at headquarters?" Suri asked, cocking an eyebrow at her former boss who was happily lugging in a cooler full of drinks. It was still impressive as hell that he managed that with one hand because it was not a small cooler. "There's more room there for something like this."
The dormitory already smelled like heaven because Alexie's mom, Marie, had arrived first thing in the morning and started prepping food. The ground floor was now basked in the scent of cooked beef, chicken, vegetables, and various sauces all while the old woman hummed traditional and nontraditional music to herself the entire day. The sight of a tiny old woman humming Lady Gaga and Garth Brooks in between all of these old waltzes and dance songs was something of a spectacle.
"That may be, little one, but trust me," Alexie grunted as he used his knee to help drop the cooler onto the ground next to the fridge in the kitchen. He sighed with a smile after looking down at the cooler and then up at his mom in the kitchen. "There is plenty of room for family here. Besides, you have much better kitchen than headquarters do."
"Well yeah, I guess that's true," Suri shrugged. "Headquarters is more of a break room kitchenette. It's more to cook quick meals to keep you going on missions that have you doing all nighters and shit."
"See," Alexie bellowed. "You have learned much under my tutelage."
"Ya know," Suri sighed and looked up at the big man with a sorrowful smile. "I'm gonna miss that a lot."
"I may be retired now, yes, but think of All Might," he grinned. "If he refuses to slack around even after he became puny, then I surely can do the same, yes?"
"That's not really retirement, then is it, my love," Nashca said sweetly as she and Anastacia entered the living area carrying boxes filled with glass plates and cups. The soft clinking gave away that they were glass but it was seeing the plates that made Suri's eyes widen.
"Ah, little one, where do you want the china?" Anastacia asked Suri.
"Oh! Um I guess on the table here. That… Are you sure that's safe for a bunch of us kids? Especially Bakugou," Suri cocked an eyebrow with an amused smile. "Those look extremely expensive to have around."
"They are expensive," she chuckled in response. "But nothing we can't afford if some break."
"And yes, I know that's not exactly retirement but you know how I am with the little ones, my loves," Alexie chuckled in response to his wives. "Guidance will ensure they don't make the same mistakes I did when I was truly young."
"Yes, but Alexie, my friend, that's what makes us who we are," came an all too familiar sweet honey and whiskey toned voice.
"Right? I've made plenty of mistakes in my career but I've made a lot more that were far better because of them," came another in a similar deep gravely warmth.
"Dad! Uncle Toshi!"
Suri was smiling ear to ear as she all but teleported into the living room and slammed herself into the two men. All Might stumbled a few steps backwards before he was forcefully cradled back into his niece while Alpha stood firm. Then again, her dad was far more used to being hit like a missile from an overly excited teen wereanimal than Toshinori was. As she hugged, squeezed, and nuzzled her face into the two men's chests she pulled back to see even more people coming in and Suri realized in that moment just how big this party was going to be.
By the time everyone filed in and everyone had somehow managed to find somewhere to sit, the feast began. And once the stroganoff, kiev, solyanka, pirog, vereniki, and various other dishes were served the living area filled with the loud booming of talking and laughter as everyone conversed and celebrated even though most of Class 1-A really didn't know why they were having a celebration. Everyone knew it had to do with Suri and her mission success, which made Suri feel incredibly self conscious because knowing what had happened to Izuku literally a few hours after her victory made the entire event feel selfish.
Why celebrate when the deaths of Sir Nighteye and twelve other pro heroes and police officers were still fresh on everyone's minds?
That weighed heavy on her mind all throughout dinner, which had been incredibly annoying given how delicious the food had been. Alpha Squad had been right about the old bear woman. She was an absolutely terrifying ball of fury when she was upset but then would just as soon grab you, pinch you by the cheeks like an old grandma with a toddler, and feed you just to make sure you didn't go hungry. It weighed heavy even though everyone that had come and were now happily conversing and sharing joy in meeting new people were Suri's new friends in the witches and shifters. It weighed heavy on her mind even though she wanted to focus on the entertainment for the evening that came in the form of one, Yukari Kurogami being seated next to Katsuki Bakugou. It had been a flurry of insults and ego back and forth with one another, something they'd all been counting on. They'd gone blow for blow on the attitude, snarky remarks, and sarcasm while talking to each other, then to challenging each other, and then back to making sarcastic remarks about each other. It had distracted her from listening to all of the pro heroes at the table and how they shared story after story and for everyone else it brought excitement, joy, and eagerness to get out there and do good work.
But it all glossed over the elephant in the room.
"H-Hey, Alexie," Suri put her fork down gently and rolled her eyes up, still sorrowful and uncomfortable, to look at the big man. "Are you sure this is okay? I mean, with everything we've lost. Everything you've lost. I just…"
"Hehe," the bear man chuckled softly. "Little one, I know it may not seem it, but we do have much to celebrate and find happiness in." His eyes turned directly to Izuku sitting next to Suri and he offered the boy a soft smile. "I did not know Nighteye as well as you or All Might, but from the times I had met the man, I know he would want this. He would not want us to fill with regret over things that we cannot control. He would want us to smile, no? He would want us to look to future, no?"
"Y-Yeah," Izuku took a shuddering breath and met Alexie's eyes with shaky confidence and a smile of his own. Under the table he moved to take Suri's hand and squeeze it tightly. "Yeah he would. Before… Before he passed he said that we have to keep smiling because a world without smiles and humor has no bright future."
Suri looked at Izuku for a long moment before looking back down at her food. She closed her eyes tight, took in a long, deep breath, and let it out where it shuddered at first but calmed as she finished.
"You're right," Suri nodded, trying to hold back from choking up. "That future would suck, wouldn't it?"
"Baby," Demitrius spoke, drawing his daughter's attention. "We've all lost friends and loved ones doing this job. It's not an easy one and I'm sorry for you kids for having to have it happen already just after getting your licenses. It's a rough start for you but in the end, it will make you kids stronger and help you to take care of the things around you that matter the most. Well," he chuckled and rolled his eyes at himself. "As long as you don't become a stubborn asshole like your old man. Or too one track minded like this guy," he chuckled and smacked All Might on the back, making him cough and sputter.
"Hey now! What's that supposed to mean," Toshinori glared at his old friend.
"I am here! I am the Symbol of Peace, I'm far too busy for that woman, she deserves better," Demitrius picked up his fork. He held it high and tightly as he mocked his friend's voice and gave an overly dramatic impersonation of the former number one hero. Everyone at the table chuckled at the display while All Might rolled his eyes and shook his head at the display, folding his arms tight and pouting. The beast man then grinned wide and rested his chin on the back of his hand as he gave Toshinori a mischievous look. "What was her name? No, there were a few right? Hara, Elizabeth, Kotori, Rosita... She wanted to kill you when you broke up with her."
"Wait, so you did date during your career. So that means you made time for more things that I thought you did. Which makes sense, especially during your later career when the crime rates dropped drastically and there were a lot more heroes to spread out the work."
"And, we lost him," Mina sighed and giggled as she, Tooru, and Suri watched their boyfriend quickly descend into his muttering fest.
"Ugh, don't remind me about Rosita," All Might sighed, his gaze softening as he watched his protege go off the deep end with his analysis of his dating life. "I was getting angry letters from her up until a month ago when I had to retire. I'll give her one thing, she's nothing if not persistent, but I shoulda taken your advice back then."
"What advice is that?" Maon spoke up, leaning to look around her husband to look at both of the men with a questioning glance.
"Don't date latina women," both men said in unison.
"They'll break your neck if you ever break their hearts," Demitrius laughed.
"May the gods have mercy on Dante's soul," Suri chuckled and smiled happily, playfully crossing herself like Shiozaki before kissing the palm of her hand and raising it to the sky.
"Shit, he ain't goin' nowhere," Eve laughed and leaned back in her seat between Maon and Alexis. She then playful nudged Alexis with a devious grin, "that girl has him wrapped around her finger so tight she might as well have him on a leash."
"Sounds like Alexie and these two," Hellfire chuckled and grinned wide at his best friend, motioning to the two women that flanked his sides.
"Hardly," Alexie huffed and rolled his chin up in defiance. "I am strong independent man, master of my own fate."
"And yet who keeps your finances in check?" Anastacia smirked.
"And taught you more proficient techniques in bedroom?" Nascha smiled, taking another bite of food and not meeting her husband's eyes.
The bear man went wide eyed, slack jawed, and absolutely silent as he looked at his wife with utter shock and betrayal while their shared wife and their friends erupted in laughter. Everyone joined in with the hysterics even more when the bear man decided to pout and grumble his retort that he was proficient and had always been proficient. After a while he sighed and smiled, finally giving in to becoming the butt of the joke and taking it in the good fun it was meant to be taken in. After a long moment of laughter and warmth, it finally quieted down and Alexie cleared his throat in his deep, gruff tone before standing up from his seat. Nascha and Anastacia both realized what he was doing and stood up with him while everyone watched as he pulled out two large glass bottles that were the size of small barrels while they began pulling out a small army of shot glasses.
"My friends, it is time to celebrate what I have invited everyone here for," Alexie bellowed as he brought the large bottles to the table. It took him two trips being able to only carry one bottle at a time due to his injury. "Tonight we gather to wish congratulations to the little ones for their first victory in their blossoming careers. Tonight we have cheers to wish you all success," he said with a grin. Meanwhile, Anastacia and Nascha began delivering shot glasses to everyone and then began pouring the contents of the bottles into the glasses.
"Sir, I must object," Iida said with shock as he realized what was happening.
"Are you sure this is okay?" Momo asked next, her eyes widening with fear as she looked up at the old pro hero.
"Is weak batch," Anastacia chuckled softly as she poured Momo's glass. "It will be fine, little one, I assure you."
Suri furrowed her brow as she saw everyone getting a shot glass and had smelled the vodka that was in each of the giant jugs when they were opened. She had had a suspicion that something like this was going to occur and figured it was just going to be the adults partaking. She sighed and shook her head as she looked around the table at the several concerned faces that stared at the small glasses.
"If anyone doesn't want to take theirs, I will have your toasts," she spoke up and watched the reactions pour in. "It's fine, lycanthropes metabolize alcohol so fast that it's next to impossible to get drunk. I could chug one of those and not feel a thing."
"Now now, don't rush yourself, little one," Alexie chuckled. He then looked around as he stood at his seat and took his shot glass in hand. "If anyone would like to take Suri's offer, I would not find offense in it. I know I should have warned of what is customary of my clan."
"Well, if it's customary," Todoroki said evenly, staring curiously at the glass.
In the end, no one opted out of their glass.
"Comrades, tonight we toast to glory," Alexie boomed, filling the room with his thick, warm, raspy voice. "We celebrate the victories we achieved as heroes! We wish well the beginnings of our little ones here and commend their efforts. To Kuroyashi, Ketsuiki, Nagamaki, Kurogami, Midoriya, Kirishima, Asui, and Uraraka! And to Togata, Hado, and Amajiki who could not be here with us tonight! We toast to your victories and the roles you played in taking down the Shie Hasakai and Gemini. We toast to our fallen comrades and hope their memories live on in our hearts," he lifted his glass high and nodded with a cheerful fang filled grin and everyone raised their glass high with him in response. "Nostrovia!"
"Nostrovia," everyone cheerfully boomed back in response with high spirits before quickly knocking back the shot glass and clinking them down on the table.
Everyone's reaction was different; most being a hissing and cringing sound as the drink went down with a burning sensation. Some, like Kirishima, Sero, Kaminari, and Mina, did the same as Suri and let out a woo sound and let their lips smack before chuckling happily. Then there was Momo and Ochako who were shivering from the taste and had one eye closed as they looked at the glass like it was the most foul thing on the planet.
"That was weak?!" Momo whined and pushed the glass as far away from her as she could get it.
"Is it supposed to burn like that?" Ochako added with a whine of her own.
"That's not bad honestly. There's others out there that burn so bad you might as well drink gasoline," Tooru said casually, making everyone turn to look at her with shock.
Seeing everyone turn their attention on her made her shrink and flip the button on her bracelet to turn invisible again, trying to make herself even more invisible than she was to practically everyone at the table. To know that sweet, innocent Tooru was no stranger to alcohol made everyone question just how innocent she actually was. Though, that question had been answered a long time ago in Suri, Mina, and Izuku's case. Tooru and everyone's reaction to her made Alexie let out a bellowing laugh that filled the entire building.
"I see why Suri took you as a mate. You are full of surprise," Alexie remarked.
"Heh," Tooru giggled sheepishly. "T-Thanks."
Grandma Kuroyashi, who'd been mostly quiet throughout dinner, cleared her throat and stood up then. She gave Suri a warm smile before she looked around the room and took a deep breath and then let it out slowly. She gave Alexie, Demitrius, Rukia, and Tiago a careful glance of question and received a nod of acceptance. It was a gesture Suri was quick to pick up on and narrowed her eyes in suspicion at the older wereanimals.
"I have one other thing that I would like to add to tonight, if I may," she said with as much grace as you'd expect from an experienced queen. "As the other wereanimals here know, many of my generation have pushed back against the idea of our young ones breaking off from their clans to set out on their own. They have expressed fear that allowing such a thing would only lead to more of those like Gemini. Fear, I believe, is vastly misplaced, if I do say so myself," she grinned and looked quite pleased with herself.
Outside of the adults, everyone at the table was looking around in question. They were trying to figure out if anyone had a clue as to what was going on. No one did, not even Suri.
"It's that same fear many pro heroes have towards letting all of you go out into the world and prove yourselves. They say you're too young and moving too fast, that you're put into danger too soon but I say that they are foolish in that judgment. Danger, evil, will come for you, and will find you, and evil does not care if you are just kids. And as such, leadership and potential come to those who go out and seek it. Tonight, I believe, is as good of a time as any to declare that the next generation of our kind is in the hands forged by the gods themselves."
"We are of the few in the world that are fired up to see the next generation step into power of their own and forge their own paths," Rukia added next, standing with a proud smirk.
"There's a lot of the older clans that won't recognize you but that's okay. Just stand up to them and prove that you're worthy of standing in front of them," Vaz spoke next.
"Every one of us that's a member of the old guard are proud and excited to see what comes next for our kind," Demitrius continued, standing and beaming with pride at his daughter across the table from him. "Yukari Kurogami," he chuckled then and turned to Yukari, folding his arms and standing over her with pride searing in his eyes. "I know this is sudden, but, as the youngest of the little queens, it's time to introduce yourself to our council."
"C-Council?" Yukari choked as she was taken by surprise and looked back and forth between all of the older wereanimals. "The fuck is this? What are you talking about?"
Suri was shocked and surprised as well. She stared at her dad full of confusion and bewilderment as she tried to wrap her head around what was going on. It was so sudden and out of the blue that everyone that hadn't been in on what the wereanimals were doing were looking to others for answers.
"Oh please, kid," Rukia laughed and gave her daughter a fiery smirk. "It's not like you haven't done this before. Hell, you did it to me and your dad not too long ago, right?"
Yukari looked wide eyed up at her mom and her eyes began to narrow while the signs that the gears were turning in her head began to play out. It seemed to make sense to her after a long moment and she began nodding slowly at first. Whatever was happening was making Bakugou irritated and he voiced as much.
"What the hell is this? Why do we need to do fuckin animal business here anyway," he snarled and scoffed towards Yukari and her mom.
That seemed to finally make whatever Yukari needed to do click and she turned on Bakugou with all of her being.
"Watch your damn mouth, Pepper Breath," the wolpard girl snapped back at him and stood over him in his seat. "Have some fuckin' manners or I'll force feed you lessons, ya hear? Cause that's no way to talk when you got a queen right here in your face."
The fire in her voice made Bakugou grin and he felt the need to challenge her right then and then but she beat him to the punch. Instead of him pushing himself out of his seat to stand over her, which he easily could since he was taller, she pushed back and kept him in his seat. As he had pushed his seat back, she planted her left boot on his chair right between his legs, put her hands on her hips and pushed her forehead against his, making it so that if he wanted to stand he had to headbutt her out of his way. While their heads were forced together, they stared each other down and both of them let out gravely chuckles as they tested each other's wills.
"Go on, princess," Bakugou teased with a husky rasp. "Cause I don't see a goddamn queen here. Just you."
"Oh yeah?" Yukari replied back with her own dangerous, thick rasp and let her eyes roll to beast. When they did, she was too busy with herself to notice the tenth of a second where he tensed up and flinched.
Then again, no one noticed it at all.
Once she'd rolled into that first stage of power she let a wave of it fill the room and press against everyone with an electric charge that had a hint of heat to it. She looked up and over everyone while continuing to be a brat to the explosion user and moved around him so that she could use the top of his head as an armrest.
"I'm Yukari Kurogami, advanced first year at Shiketsu High School in the hero course. The only first year there to get my provisional. My pro hero name is Lotigre and I'm the daughter of the most powerful werewolf and wereleopard in Shinjuku. But that's not what you guys want, huh?" She smirked with an overconfident glare towards the other clan leaders in the room and then her voice doubled, letting the presence of her beast join in on the fun.
Because she was having fun now.
"I am Yukari Kurogami, Lupra of the White River Clan to the east," Yukari boasted happily. "A clan that's already ten strong and a coven of six backing me. Even though we're small, we're already one of the strongest clans in all of Nagoya and we're only going to get better and stronger as we get older."
Once she was done with her display she continued to keep up the boastful act until she watched the older lycanthropes begin to chuckle. They were all grinning ear to ear while everyone else at the table had their brows upturned in utter dumbfoundment as to what was going on. Katsuki on the other hand was on the verge of smoke coming out of his ears with how pissed off he was.
"Very good, little one," Alexie bellowed and let out a happy chuckle. "I like the fire you have. Very take no shits and take no prisoners attitude I can really appreciate."
"All in favor of recognizing the White River Clan as an official expansion to our ranks of beast kings and queens, say aye," Rukia purred with a smirk. The way she said official made Yukari flinch and nearly slip from her perch she'd created using Bakugou.
"Aye," all of the lycanthropes answered in unison. What surprised both Suri and Yukari was the fact that Alester, Masato, Jomogoro, and Toshinori joined in with the vote and their words seemed to help add more weight to the approval.
"W-What the hell was that all about?" Yukari growled as she looked around.
"Ah, no need to be so uptight and afraid, little one because now," Alexie grinned with a playful bear-like growl in his voice.
"You're no longer just a little queen," Demitrius spoke next and let his head turn to Suri and locked eyes with her. "It's not traditional by any means but this? This is an initiation ceremony for the both of you."
Then all of the lycanthropes turned their attention to Suri and she felt the welt of power begin to push at her. It threatened to make her shrink or want to back away but instead she clenched her eyes and gritted her teeth tight. The power was becoming tight and threatened to make her head pound from the pressure but then she felt something that made all of it disappear. When her eyes opened, she saw Izuku, Tooru, and Mina all cupping their hands over hers and she looked up to see them staring at her with confident, warming smiles. Looking around the table, she found her coven giving her the same warm affection and confidence in her. The younger shifters that she oathed to her looked at her with the same warmth and ease that made her know that, without a doubt, they would stand behind her. And then she met eyes with her friends and classmates who, once they realized what they were in the middle of, were either giving her nervous glances or ones that were the same confidence boosting eyes of approval.
Suri closed her eyes again, took in a deep breath, counted to ten, and then let it out slowly. When her eyes opened she rolled them upwards to look at Yukari with a dangerous challenge of authority. Her expression was made all the more intimidating as she found her confidence enough to curl a large, fang bearing smirk across her lips.
"All right, since we're doing this," she purred, Atiena's own voice joining with hers to create a sultry purr to her tone.
Atiena was more than happy to show off for everyone and let her power flood the room with a warm electric wave of heat. The lycanthropes tied to her growled as their eyes rolled to beast and each of them took on the first stages of power. All six lycanthropes that were oathed to Suri now had lengthed claws, fangs, and ears, and had sprouted tails from their lower spines. While Suri opposed forcing the other shifters to show off power and show any signs of the change, something in her mind assured her that it hadn't been as forced as she might have thought.
"I am Suri Kuroyashi-Okwondu, and you already know everything else about me so I don't need to repeat myself in that regard. With me tonight are my mates," as soon as she said the M word, Izuku, Mina, and Tooru felt compelled to stand up from their seats and flank her sides.
"My coven that has been oathed by blood and graciously share their magic with me."
At that Ryuko, Saito, Taiga, and Chiba rose from their seats and came to take either side of Mina and Tooru who were at Suri's sides.
"And my clan that has been oathed to me by blood and under the presence of the moon goddess here on our land that we have performed rites to."
Pazuzu stood next and was followed by Nishijima, Mai, Koto, and Hanegawa as they came to stand next to and surround Suri even more. With the mention of the rites, the lycanthropic power held be Suri and her wereanimals pulsed, sending a small thrumming heartbeat throughout the room. It made the weres across the table from her shiver with the power.
"And finally, I want to recognize my friends who choose to trust me, a complete stranger and a foreigner, at the first of the year as their class representative. Who have continued to give me their love, support, and trust even after all of the hardships we've gone through. I've called them my pack from nearly day one and I know the old heads might not accept them but I ain't gonna discredit them for being the reason I set out as a queen for myself. So for that, I wanna say I love you guys and thank you for sticking by my side through all of this. I know it's fuckin weird as hell and probably awkward which is why I ain't gonna make you stand here with me. Unless you choose to."
At that Yumei, Kirishima, Ochako, Tsu, Jirou, Momo, Kaminari, Tokoyami, Koda, Shoji, and hell, even Shoto and Iida stood and came to surround Suri, putting her front and center in front of the group. She stood proud and her confidence instilled confidence in everyone who presented themselves as a force to be reckoned with. And they were a force, a small army, all behind Suri. It made the beast girl shiver and she had to force herself especially hard not to get choked up and teary eyed knowing that everyone did end up supporting her at that moment. Hell, the fact that Bakugou had even given Suri a small nod of approval, made her nearly choke up at the support that continued to surprise her.
Now it was time to present herself and them to the world of lycanthropes. Problem was that she'd never even considered a clan name. Sure it had come up but she'd always glossed it over and batted it off. Now she was here and needed something to tell the world who they were together as a unified force. That was when Atiena came to her side, leaned herself onto Suri and whispered something into her ear. Something that seemed perfect because it was something she'd heard Mina mention when they'd gone out with Izuku to look at the stars from the clearing. About how the moon had looked like a piece of silver jewelry that night and how they should get matching necklaces to wear as a group when they were together. It was something that would always remind her of the pinkette and her wanting to be a cheesy matching quad.
It seemed fitting for all of them.
"Together, we are the Silver Moon Clan," Suri declared proudly. She then turned that proud, confident glare at the others across the table and let her lips curl into a haughty smirk. "All in favor, say aye."
Everyone met her gaze and smiled as they responded in kind with the one word she'd told them to say. It made her feel powerful and strong. Even more; it made her happy and feel at home.
"That's what I fuckin' thought," she purred.
Yeah. It was good to be queen.