Everyone stood in a line in front of the teachers. All the teachers that we had had in class stood in front of us. "Now then. Let's begin the last test. Remember, it's possible to fail this final. If you want to go to camp, then don't make any stupid mistakes." Aizawa spoke, hands in his pockets. We had finished three days of written exams this morning – most of them were fairly easy. Kirishima had bowed down to Katsuki and I as a thank you for helping him as he did not leave any question blank this time.
"Uh, why are all the teachers here?" Jiro fiddled with her earphone jack. Was Akari right?
"I expect you all have gathered information and believe you have some idea as to what you're faced with today," Aizawa continued.
Kaminari made two rock and roll symbols with his hands and leaned back, "we're fighting those big old metal robots!" Mina began to yell out all of the things she looked forward to at the camp.
"Actually, this year's tests," a voice mumbled from Aizawa's scarf. Principle Nezu poked his head out and smack Aizawa in the cheek with his paw, "will be different for various reasons. The tests now have a new focus. There will be hero work of course, but also teamwork and combat between actual people. So, what does that mean for you? You students will be working together in pairs and your opponent will be one of the esteemed UA teachers – isn't that fabulous?" Oh my gosh. Akari was correct. How did she get that information? It seemed like a shock to everyone.
"Additionally, your partners and opponents were chosen already at my discretion. They were chosen based on various factors including fighting styles, grades, and interpersonal relationships. First, Kirishima and Sato are a team against Cementoss. Asui and Tokoyami against Ectoplasm. Ojiro and Iida against Power Loader. Yaoyorozu and Todoroki are a team against myself. Aoyama and Uraraka against Thirteen. Kaminari and Ashido against Principle Nezu. Jiro and Koda against Present Mic. Hagakure and Shoji against Snipe, Mineta and Sero against Midnight, then we have Midoriya paired with Bakugo and their opponent is-"
"I am here!" All Might landed on the concrete in front of the teachers. "To fight! You're going to have to work together boys if you want to win." Wait, all my classmates and teachers were paired up and I was the only one left.
"To complete the exam you have thirty minutes and your objective is to put these handcuffs on your teacher, or you can win with one of you can manage to escape from the combat stage." Principle Nezu explained. What was I supposed to be doing? The teachers were trying to assure my classmates that running away may be the smarter option.
"It's a test of your decision-making skills," All Might boomed, "that's why the support course made these supper clever accessories for us. These babies will add half our body weight to ourselves."
"Finally – Satoshi will be running her exam alone against me, after Present Mic." Aizawa cocked his head and stared right through me. "But you have special rules. Let's begin in the order you were called; Kirishima, Sato you're up. Those waiting their turn to fight can watch the exams or try to strategize together as a team. Your choice. That's all." All the teachers turned to enter the building with the first two students.
"Hold up!" Katsuki grabbed my hand and pulled me over to Aizawa, "Makoto can take the exam with me – Deku can do it on his own."
Aizawa sighed as he looked over us. "You two were paired together for a reason just as Satoshi was chosen to run the exam on her own. There are different qualities that we are looking for in each of you. Satoshi relies too much on others as it is." He waved his hand dismissively as he stalked off towards the first battleground.
"What a load of shit," Katsuki shouted, turning to glare at Midoriya. It was true though. I relied on my sister to talk to others growing up. I relied on her to maintain our speed during the entrance exam so we could obtain enough points split between the two of us to pass. I wanted to do recon and rely on others to do the hero work. Redemption was right – I needed to be versatile. I would be failing this exam because I did not want to face that reality.
"It'll be fine," I attempted to reassure him, "Midoriya's gotten much better with using his quirk. I'm sure it will-"
Katsuki dropped my hand and stalked off. I quickly rubbed my hand with my other before entering the control room to watch the exams.
"When did you and Ka-chan become friends," Midoriya asked from his spot beside Recovery Girl.
When did we become friends? "I don't know. Maybe, the Sports Festival?" Thankfully, Uraraka entered the room and started to chat with Midoriya. I watch the screens as Kirishima and Sato tried to pummel through Cementoss' cement, only to be swallowed up and out. As the exams went by, more classmates slowly joined us. I needed to watch Aizawa's match with Yaoyorozu and Todoroki. I needed to formulate a plan even though I did not know how my rules differed. I watched their match intently. Aizawa erased their quirks and used his support weapon to capture Todoroki. He used his speed and support weapon skill mixed with erasing their quirks against them until Yaoyorozu came up with a plan to capture him at his own game. I left the surveillance room and headed down to my exam room. I stewed, thinking of how Aizawa would fight during our exam. My quirk was difficult to deal with, so he was probably going to try and erase it and force hand to hand combat.
"Next exam is Makoto Satoshi against Eraserhead." A voice boomed overhead. Damn it, I had spent all that free time in my head instead of formulating a plan. Aizawa rounded the corner and stopped in front of the door to the exam. I was not ready.
"So," Aizawa cracked his neck, "your requirements are different. There's no running away for you – that's far too easy. Time limit is an hour, but you must capture me." He tossed me a set of handcuffs. He entered the room and the clock began to countdown from thirty. We were already starting? I frowned, putting the cuffs into one of the pockets on my legs. As soon as I phased the cuffs would drop where I stood anyway. There would be a very low chance that I would be able to use those to capture him. I took in a deep breath and entered after him. No running away. No running away. There was no running away. The room was entirely white and a perfect square.
Aizawa's quirk was active and his bandages shot out for me. I slipped to the ground and somersaulted past him onto my feet behind him. Aizawa was going to try and prevent me from using my quirk and force me to fight. Thankfully, Redemption had taught me quite a bit of combat, but mostly using my quirk. I was able to learn a few moves that were able to shut Redemption – and most villains down – but would they work on my teacher? He turned and attempted to land a kick. I grabbed onto his leg and pulled him closer to me, reaching with one leg to trip him. He lifted his other leg and kicked me in the side, propelling himself away from me. I cringed. Aizawa knew that I could not be healed by Recovery Girl, yet he was going all out. His bandages shot out for me again. I grabbed onto them this time and wrapped my hands in them. I pulled on them, attempting to draw him closer. When my hands reached myself, Aizawa pulled on his support weapon. I went flying off my feet. He jumped over me and I crashed into the opposing wall. That happened every time. I attempted to initiate combat and he would send me crashing into a wall. I was not making any progress aside from making myself tired. It was utterly humiliating when I attempted to get close enough to throw Aizawa, but he ended up jumping up, kicking me in the knee, stomach, and side of my face before landing in a backflip and smashing me into the wall. Again.
"I see you wasted a week with Redemption." Aizawa shrugged, recoiling his support weapon. I rolled myself from my back to my side, slowly standing. "What a shame, he was a good choice for you too. Guess your sister was right."
I ran my hand over my hip as I stood upright. I glowered at my teacher. "Don't badmouth Redemption or my sister."
"She badmouths you all the time," Aizawa shrugged. His hair deflated. I quickly broke myself down and reformed behind him as he reactivated his quirk. I managed to land an elbow jab between his shoulder blades. I knelt behind him and kicked out my leg, hitting his foot out from under him. He flipped backwards and over me. I tried to spin around to face him, but he slammed his leg into me, sending me flying to the left. I hit the wall again. Why were we fighting in such a small space? Most of the others had full miniature cities or forests for their exam. I got to my feet. I had wasted that moment. His bandages shot out for me again. I tried to duck down and run under his bandages, but they wrapped around me and tossed me into the wall again. I was getting far too tired now. Why could I not do anything?
Wait. I quickly examined the room as I got to my knees. The walls were roughly ten feet apart and fifteen feet high. Aizawa generally stayed in the centre of the room. The walls were just slightly slanted outward. I had seven minutes left to pass this exam – I had wasted the entire hour. I let a smile creep on my face as I stood, running at the wall to the left of my teacher. I took three quick steps up the wall and kicked off. I landed on Aizawa's back. I wrapped my arm around his google covered eyes. I dissipated my other hand, reforming it to grab the cuffs I had dropped. He shifted his body and attempted to rip me off his back. I held on with my legs wrapped tightly around his torso. I used my detached hand to capture Aizawa's foot in the cuff. I embedded the other in the floor. He bent over, reached an arm over his head and ripped me off his back. I landed on the floor below him with a smack. I groaned, imagining all the shoe print shaped bruises that I would be covered in.
"I guess that's a pass. Not what I expected you to do though." Aizawa rubbed the back of his head and pulled his goggles down to his neck.
"I'll show you what Redemption taught me when you don't erase my quirk." I cringed as I lifted my arm. I grabbed onto the cuffs and dissipated them, reforming them in my hand with Aizawa free. He smirked and held out his hand for me. I went to hand him the cuffs, but he grabbed my wrist and pulled me upright.
Aizawa took the cuffs from my hand and twirled them on a finger, "the last match just started. If you hurry you can catch it." I looked between my teacher and the exit for a moment before nodding and rushing out. I was on the far side of the building from the surveillance room, unfortunately. Come on Katsuki – please pass.
I hurried back to the surveillance room. Most of the class that had not been knocked out or injured were standing inside staring at the screens. I felt like I wanted to throw up. Midoriya and Katsuki were getting brutally beaten by All Might. No. "Come on Katsuki," I whispered from the doorway.
"Oh dear, there's absolutely no teamwork between those two," Recovery Girl shook her head at the control panel. Midoriya and Katsuki attempted to ambush All Might together after a moment off-screen – but that only allowed them time to run. Please make it. Please. All Might caught up to them and destroyed Katsuki's last gauntlet. He grabbed Midoriya and smashed him into Katsuki. He held Midoriya in the air by an arm and kept Katsuki pinned to the ground with his foot. He tossed Midoriya to the side and Katsuki exploded All Might from below. He stood, grabbed Midoriya and threw him towards the exit. Katsuki's face twisted in pain. All Might's back collided with Midoriya's and sent him flying into a bus. Katsuki went in to attack All Might – setting off large explosions. He fell back, holding onto his forearms as he screamed something. Why did these monitors not have any speakers?
Midoriya slowly started for the exit, his back causing him pain. All Might attempted to stop him, but Katsuki stopped him. Yes, they were working together. All Might grabbed Katsuki by the face and smashed him into the ground. I fell to my knees as Katsuki fell unconscious. No – he had to be okay. Recovery Girl would be able to use her quirk on him and he would be fine. Please. Midoriya punched All Might in the face, grabbed Katsuki and ran for the exit.
Recovery Girl sighed and got out of her chair, "there he goes again – making even more work for me. God forbid he broke that poor boy's back this time."
[B&M]
I slammed the door open to the infirmary. All Might stood against the wall facing Recovery Girl while Katsuki laid unconscious on the bed and Midoriya laid awkwardly on his front. "Why Young Makoto! What are you doing here?" Midoriya looked at me in fear. Oh no. He really was scared of me. He didn't think my quirk was cool as he had said – he was terrified.
"I came to make sure you two were okay," I blurted, watching Midoriya's fearful eyes. I guess I was right to find a new spot to eat my lunch instead of returning to his group of friends. They never wanted me there anyway.
Recovery Girl started towards the door. "Why don't you go change out of your hero outfit and come on back. He'll be out for a few more hours." She closed the door on me. I stared at the floor for a moment, balling my hands into fists. I pulled myself away from the doorway and used my quirk to slip through the floors. I reformed inside the change room. It was empty. I guess everyone wanted out as soon as possible, after all, tomorrow was just a half-day before summer began. I had, of course, picked up extra hours at the café. I reached behind me and unzipped my suit, rolling it off me. I frowned, folding it up into the case with my boots. I stalked, barefoot, to the large mirror in the bathroom part of the change room. Small purple bruises were already beginning to form. My chest, stomach, back, and legs would be dotted in bruises from Aizawa. I wrapped my arms around myself and returned to my locker, changing into my uniform.
I had double the time for my exam and yet I had barely passed within the time limit. Akari had probably passed her exam in seconds with her speed. I was useless. I had fallen far behind her. It was just a matter of time before our classes went up against one another – I would win next time. I had to prove we were on the same playing field. I sighed, adjusting my uniform one final time before heading back to the infirmary. My bag was still in the classroom, but I could grab that later. The infirmary door was open. A thin blonde man in clothing far too large for him walked down the hallway in the opposite direction. I stepped inside. Midoriya was receiving a kiss from Recovery Girl while Katsuki remained unconscious on the other bed. All Might had left.
"Welcome back," Midoriya cringed as he moved to sit properly. "Sorry about earlier – you just surprised me." I frowned but nodded. Right. Just surprised him.
"All Might sure did a number on you two," Recovery Girl frowned as she tapped her cane on the floor. "You all better be more careful next time or there could be damage I can't fix." She turned to stare me down as well. I nodded slightly, tucking my shoulders up to my ears.
"Oh – did you pass your exam? I'm sorry I didn't see it, our exam started near the end of yours." Midoriya rubbed the back of his head. I nodded. He beamed. "How did you win? It looked like a tough matchup."
"She ran up the wall and jumped on top of Eraser. Handcuffed him to the floor." Recovery Girl laughed – hitting Midoriya's bed with her cane. "You're all healed now, go on home."
"But Ka-chan," he started to protest.
"Makoto's here to watch him anyway. You two better not make this a habit of yours," she answered.
Midoriya smiled at me as he slowly got out of the bed, "see you tomorrow!" With that, he left the infirmary. Recovery Girl smacked my knee with her cane.
"You need to learn how to dodge!" She snapped. "Eraser hit you at least a hundred times. Any villain would make sure that one was all they needed. Do you even have any defensive techniques?"
I shook my head. "I've been working on one. But, something terrifying happened."
"What? What happened?"
"I've been trying to work on my father's main defensive move – I thought I had an idea to accomplish that. But, it was like my lungs seized up and it was hard to breathe. It was like my lungs wouldn't work."
Recovery Girl frowned and opened a drawer on her desk, rifling through it. She pulled out a clear plastic device with markings. She placed it on top of the desk, cleaned the mouthpiece, and held it out to me. "Let's see if your function has changed." I took the mouthpiece from her, hesitant. What was happening to me? I took the deepest breath I could muster and blew into the device. She watched the markings. "You're down three percent. I'm sure it's not anything to worry about now. Might've just had a good breath last time or your ribs are sore today. If it happens again let me know as soon as you can."
"What if something is wrong?" I forced out as Recovery Girl cleaned the mouthpiece.
She shrugged. "Could be the side effect of your quirk. You are taking those, right?" I nodded. "Hm. We may need to double your dose then. But we'll see if there's a next time. I've got to go anyway. Just shut the door when you two leave." She jumped down from the chair and exited the infirmary.
I sighed and moved to sit in the chair next to Katsuki's bed, pulling up a game of sudoku on my phone. I looked over at Katsuki. His face was peaceful, calm, a totally different look that he usually wore. I bit my lip. Katsuki had been there when I woke up from my fight against Akari at the Sports Festival – but he never answered me about how long he waited. Akari was there when I woke up the first time but had run after a few moments. Why would he spend all that time waiting for me? What had he done while he waited? I awkwardly looked away from him – why was I waiting for him to wake up? Gosh was this embarrassing.
"Mmm… Makoto."
My head snapped back to Katsuki. He was still asleep. There was no way he had said my name. I shook my head – I had to be imagining things. I returned to my game as the minutes passed by without another groan or moan from him. I must have been hearing things. I pulled my legs onto the chair and hugged my knees as I added numbers into the squares. My phone vibrated with a message.
Redemption: How did the exam go?
M: I passed.
It took a few moments before he replied.
Redemption: That's my hero! We need to celebrate – come to the hideout tonight.
M: Sure, see you later.
He sent an image of a smiling rabbit. I let a large smile creep onto my face. He was such a brute but he used so many cute emojis in our conversations. It did not match him – like Aizawa and his smile. Katsuki groaned again. I looked over and watched his face. His eyes were shut tight and his jaw was tight. Something hurt in my chest. I wanted to reach out and touch him, to ease his pain, but if I did that, he would probably try to explode me. He groaned again, this time turning his head away from me slightly.
"Katsuki?" I put my phone away in my blazer's pocket.
"Shit." Katsuki grunted, sat up and hunched over. He kept his eyes on his hands as his fingers painfully twitched. "Leave. Now."
"Katsuki," I questioned, sitting on the edge of the chair.
"Just leave me the fuck alone!" He shouted, holding his hand tightly at his wrist. He whipped around and glared at me, teeth bared. He was not mad. He was in pain. I moved to the edge of his bed and took his hand, removing his glove. I began to gently massage his palm.
"I can leave if you really want me to," I said as I worked. He did not respond but looked up at me as I worked away on the tense muscles in his palm and forearm. I worked for about twenty minutes on his left arm before moving onto his right.
Katsuki opened and closed his fist a few times. "Where did you learn that?"
I shrugged as I massaged his palm using my thumbs, "I used to do this for my Grandfather. He made and fixed pottery as a hobby until his illness progressed too far. It helped steady his hands."
"Would he had locked you out of your home?"
I shook my head. "Grandmother took a liking to Akari and he to me. He trained me too. Grandmother blames me for losing her husband and daughter, so she refuses to even acknowledge that I exist. It's fine though."
"It's not fine," Katsuki snapped. "They're treating you like shit. Why do you even stay there?"
I shrugged. I thought it was because Akari and I needed each other. But I think I just needed her. Redemption was my godfather – maybe I could live with him at his agency instead one day. "You passed."
"Don't remind me," he scoffed, avoiding my gaze.
"I thought you looked pretty cool." He glared at me. I stopped massaging his arm and stared at his large, calloused hand.
"Did you win?" Katsuki placed his other hand over mine and rubbed his thumb across the back of my had.
"Yeah, but it took me way too long." I frowned.
Katsuki smiled up at me, the right corner of his mouth higher than the other. "We'll fix that at the boot camp."
"Oh no," I quickly took my hands back from Katsuki and got off the bed. I was such a jerk for not noticing earlier. "You were healed by Recovery Girl – you must be exhausted." He shrugged, peeling the blanket off him before getting out of bed. He took me by the wrist and pulled me gently from the infirmary, closing the door behind us. I sighed, letting him lead me through the halls. Katsuki had just been pummeled by the strongest hero in the world and he was walking around like it was nothing. I wish I could be as strong as he was.
We stopped at the change rooms. "I'll be quick." He let my wrist drop as he struts into the change room. I held my elbows and tucked my arms against myself as I pressed my back into the wall. I stared at my feet as I dug my heels into the ground. I had been at UA for an entire semester and I still acted like my shy self. Three months of not being strapped to my sister all hours of the school day and I still shut myself off from everyone. Akari made friends in an instant and I shut everyone down. Maybe, just maybe, I could say yes to spending time with them. Summer did begin after school tomorrow; I would have more time to actually do things with others. After all – I had only spent time with Katsuki and Kirishima. "Do you want to come over?"
I pulled myself from my thoughts and looked up at Katsuki. He stood in front of me in his uniform with his case over his shoulder. My shoulders melted down and my arms fell to my waist. "Redemption asked me to come by – thank you though."
Katsuki scoffed as he started to walk towards the stairs. "Why do you spend so much time with him? He was just your internship placement. Sure, he knew your dad but that's it."
"Actually," he stopped a few steps above me, "he's my godfather."
Katsuki's face froze for a few moments as he stared down at me. "Then why are you living with the old hag and that psycho bitch?" Katsuki exploded, stamping a foot down on the stairwell. I shoved my hands into the pockets on my blazer and began the ascent.
"He wasn't a pro-hero back then. Why would they place a baby with a villain?" I answered, watching my feet as I stepped. Katsuki started up the stairs again, staying at my side.
"Why not just join him now?"
"I-I don't know. I might just get in the way if I moved in with him. His agency's very busy."
"Didn't you say you only saw one other sidekick while you were there?"
"Yes, but he had a lot of sidekicks out on missions and vigilantes that come and go."
"Vigilantes? Are you sure he's a hero?"
"He is. He helps villains out and assists vigilantes in getting their licenses."
"Sounds like a bunch of bullshit to me."
We reached our floor. Katsuki strode beside me to our classroom and put his case away. I gathered my bag and put my books inside. A small, folded black piece of paper fell to the floor. Another one? I bent down and picked up the paper. I opened the flap and in white paint was the word 'congratulations.' Who was leaving these notes? Midoriya and Uraraka did not recognise the writing as anyone in the class – so who could it be?
"Are you coming?" Katsuki stood in the door with his bag. I shoved the note into my bag and pulled it onto my back. I nodded and rushed out of the class with him. We descended the stairs in silence. My phone began to vibrate as we reached the cubbies. I pulled out my phone, it was Redemption. I answered it as I opened my cubby and changed my shoes.
"Makoto – you better be here soon. I sent Phoenix to pick up dinner and she's already back." He whined, clicking a canned beverage open. The carbonation fizzed. Katsuki was already done changing his shoes.
"Oh, I'm still at school." I put my indoor shoes back into the cubby.
"What?" Redemption roared. Katsuki raised a brow, it was loud enough for him to hear it. "What the hell are you doing at school that late? I'll come to grab you in a second."
"I'm with a friend. I'll be in twenty minutes." Katsuki and I walked out of UA. The light blue, four-door sedan was already waiting at the gates to the school. Katsuki's mother, Mitsuki rolled down the driver side window and waved. Katsuki groaned while I gave her a small wave.
"Nonsense! I'll have you here faster than that," the line went dead. I slipped my phone back into my pocket as we walked to meet his mom.
"Did you two pass?" Mitsuki clapped her hands together. I nodded.
"Like hell, we'd fail," Katsuki shouted. "We'll b-" I felt a hand on my waist and the ground disappeared from my under my feet. Everything blurred into streaks of colour. We came to an abrupt halt in front of the large brick building – the front window had been smashed in.
"Welcome back Polaris!" Redemption set me back onto my feet and patted my shoulder as he laughed. I swallowed the lump in my throat. Unfortunately, I was getting used to his intense speed. "Was that your friend? Didn't he come in first for the sports festival? That's awesome!"
I nodded, following him into his agency. The garbage can was overflowing again, newspapers littered the staircase, and shoes piled haphazardly over the entryway and stairs. I had just cleaned up when I was here on Sunday – how was it already a disaster? Phoenix popped her head around the corner of the living room, "congratulations on passing! Oh, your hair's adorable." I cast my face downward, tucking a piece of hair behind my ear. I had continued to pull my hair back from my face after my internship as well as actually maintain my bangs. I had pinned my hair back with a simple piece of black ribbon.
"Pizza time! I'm famished!" Redemption wore his shoes through the house and stalked into the kitchen. I kept mine on, unsure what monstrosities could be on the floor. I followed him. A pile twenty boxes high sat on the three-seater table in the corner of the kitchen. Thankfully, the kitchen was in fair condition. Redemption took the top box, opened it, and walked into the living room. Phoenix took two clean plates from the dishwasher and handed one to me. She took four slices of a meat lovers pizza while I took two of a chicken teriyaki pizza.
She hit my shoulder lightly, "you can't live off that! Look at how much we have! The sidekicks get the leftovers when they come back later, eat whatever you want."
"Uh, o-okay," I nodded and hesitantly took another slice. I followed her into the living room, barely catching the can of coke Redemption threw at me. It flew above my head a few feet, so I dissipated my hand to catch it and set it down on the coffee table before returning my hand to my body. He nodded in approval. Redemption was sprawled out on the sofa in front of the broken window and Phoenix sat on the floor with her back to the front door. I took the sofa across from Redemption. I sat cross-legged and set my plate on my lap, leaning back into the sofa.
"So, what are you planning for the summer? It better not just be working at that café," Redemption spoke before stuffing the crust of his third slice into his mouth.
"For most of the break, yes. But – we're supposed to be going on a boot camp with the other hero course." I picked a small piece of crust off a slice and popped it into my mouth.
Phoenix lit up. "That'll be fun!"
Redemption laughed, "our training sessions better beat that boot camp!"
My face paled and I stared at Redemption, "I hope nothing is worse than those training sessions." The two let out a loud round of laughter.