A Mate
It didn't hold for every poor soul born with an animal quirk, but once it manifested in your line, there was always a chance it could happen. Those in the community kept quiet about it, not as much as going into heat, but it was still not discussed regularly. Those with what was to be considered mutant quirks were often looked down upon or mistreated, especially if it made the bearer appear more animalistic. They would be treated harshly or fetishized; Mirko could attest to that side of the spectrum.
It was a little-known thing to the outside, but the fearsome Rabbit Warrior would come and speak to groups of kids with animal mutant quirks; despite her fierce reputation everywhere else, the woman was soft and kind with them. They talked about changes and things they alone would have to deal with outside of the typical responses and changes that all children must undergo one day.
It was the hope that if you were to be one with the trait of imprinting on someone that the person was in a similar situation and would brand back, these unions were blessed with happiness for the couple as they would connect on deeper levels. Tsu's parents were one such example; her mother and father had imprinted upon each other and, after dating for two months, had gotten married and had been happily ever since.
The much less talked about occasions was when this happened to someone who A: didn't imprint back, B: Who would use the situation to their advantage to manipulate and control the other. Many dark stories would circulate of the pain and, if not outright, the loneliness it caused. Some rebelled against it, would rail and scream, act out, and do everything possible to pull away. Yet how do you truly fight your nature or something screaming at you in your soul? Drugs and Alcohol could only provide so much solace; it was torturous.
A rumor was that Mirko fought so hard because of her mate or something had happened, and her mate was taken away. When she spoke to the group about it, Tsu was sure there was a tinge of sadness in the heroines' eyes, a look of longing and grief.
Now Tsu sat stunned, shocked; her mother had said it so "She had found a mate." How could this have happened? She had met him years ago, so briefly; how? Was this why she would think about him so often over her life, the dreams, the daydreams? What was she going to do? What if he didn't feel anything for her? Was there nothing but pain in her future?
Tsu typically had rather tight control over her facial expressions; most people had dismissed this as she was uncaring, which was not even close to the truth. She was extremely passionate, but due to her quirk, it wouldn't register to anyone outside; her mother, on the other hand, knew this about her daughter and could see the crisis bubbling within her and the breakdown with it.
She reached out and pulled her daughter in close; Tsu began to bluster and have trouble catching her breath; her mother just held and offered what reassurance she could. She had hoped that if her daughter had bonded, it would have been someone with a similar disposition, but there was no rhyme or reason for this; it was latterly one of those things that would happen.
"Mother, what am I going to do?" Tsu finally managed after several minutes.
"There are few options, baby; we can pull you from U.A. and send you somewhere else, but now that you have seen him and bonded, you will ache for him. You can try and get to know him, and maybe he may feel a connection as well; it has happened in non-mutant quirks though it is so rare that most dismiss it. Other than that, even killing him wouldn't necessarily take your feelings away. It just may plunge you into a depression you may never recover from."
"MOM, I don't want him dead," she clutched her chest. The pain was almost unbearable at the thought. "How am I supposed to act around him? I want to claim him, jump in his lap, and yell MINE."
"I am so sorry that this happened when there is no clear-cut answer on how he feels, but your only real option is to talk to him and see."
"But there is some other normal-looking girl already on him, I don't know if they are together, but she finds him attractive; the worst part is she seems nice, but I just want to throw her out the window, and she has better," Tsu finished grabbing at her chest.
"There will always be girls with bigger breasts or a tighter ass. It is about what he wants and likes in a girl, and you are no slouch in either department; maybe he is a leg guy?"
"I do have some good legs," Tsu said, smiling.
"Then, if you want even to have a chance here, you need to talk to him, get to know him, see what happens, and maybe wear stockings to highlight your legs. Boys love stockings."
"MOM!"
-Izuku-
Inko immediately knew something good had happened today with as much composure as she could muster; she waited until they sat down to dinner to ask how his day was.
Izuku burst out with that he had stood up to Bakugo and how good it felt, then that he had made a friend. Her name was Ochaco. Inko almost exploded at this point, a friend and a girl! Visions of grandbabies danced in her head. Then he said it. "Mom, I found HER!"
Inko immediately knew what he was talking about. There was only one HER, the girl from the river. Izuku had talked about her for most of his life, this mysterious frog girl who appeared one day only to disappear like a myth. This girl had inspired her son to one day be a hero, whereas Inko had failed. This girl inspired him to learn how to draw so he could never forget her face; his drawings had become so good that Izuku had been offered a scholarship to art school if he didn't get into U.A. He didn't know because Inko had sent the application without his knowledge. It had even gotten to the point that Inko could tell when he dreamt of her by the expression on his face the following morning.
And oh, how they had looked for her; Little Izuku wanted to go by the river every day for almost a year, hoping to find her again. If he saw anyone that may have been her, he would chase after them to get a clear look but always come back dejected. The mythical Frog Princess had been found in the kingdom of the U.A. and was in the same class. She was slightly disappointed when he told her he hadn't talked to her because he didn't want to come across as weird, but also because she was a girl. Inko was aware of how painfully shy her precious boy was, especially around members of the opposite sex. She remembered him fainting while trying to ask Mirko for an autograph. It was cute but painful.
But now the mythical girl had appeared, "Does she have a name?"
"Tsuyu Asui, I saw it when they posted our scores from the quirk assessment test."
"YOU DIDN'T TALK TO HER?"
"I tried but didn't get a chance," he said.
"IZUKU MIDORIYA, YOU WILL TALK TO THIS GIRL TOMORROW, OR YOU WILL EAT NOTHING BUT PLAIN RICE AND BOILED CHICKEN FOR A MONTH!"
"YES, MA'AM."
-Day 2-
Both Tsu and Izuku woke up early, wondering why. Their emotions were vastly different as they walked through their morning routines and towards the train.
Izuku was filled with nervous excitement; the urge to vomit and scream in excitement was equally strong as he made his way out of the apartment early and towards the train station; it didn't cross his mind how early he was going to arrive till he was standing at the station with almost no one else around, looking at the time he was close to 2 ½ hours early. He didn't want to return to the house to avoid his mother's teasing.
Tsu's dreams were the culprit alternating between blissful fantasy and hellish nightmares; all centered around Izuku Midoriya. She felt a sense of dread and fear wash over her as she made her way out of the house, noticing immediately that I was still much darker than it should be. She looked at her phone and realized she was almost 3 hours early; trying to go back to bed made her want to vomit. Instead, she just made her way to the train station, stopping to look at herself in a shop window; she sighed. Was she trying too hard?
Her hair was in a pretty French braid, with light makeup, lip gloss, and white stockings to show off her legs. She let loose another sigh before making her way to the near-empty train station; quietly, she boarded the train, unsure what to do about today. A quiet ribbit escaped her lips as the train doors closed and pulled away from the station.
Izuku stepped onto the nearly empty train car and almost felt his soul leave his body. There she was, sitting by herself, looking like she wished to be almost anywhere from where she was. He saw her stiffen and immediately look up at him, panic gripping him as he wondered if he had been staring for a creepy amount of time, but closing the doors reassured him he had not.
The train came to another station, and Tsu was lost in increasingly crazy scenarios running through her mind; when the doors opened to let on the latest group of passengers, she froze. She knew he was there; she could feel it; her heart thumped against her chest, and she could feel the warmth. It caused her to stiffen up as she looked up and immediately found him and his beautiful green eyes looking over at her.
They just stood there frozen for eternity; well, about 10 seconds, but you understand. He didn't know what compelled him, but he walked over, his heart in his throat matching hers. As he got closer, he could hear this quiet flurry of ribbits escaping her; he noticed how pretty her legs looked in the stockings before he knew it.
"H. , your Tsuyu Asui, Right. ?"
OMG, he is talking to me, and he knows my name. "How do you know my name, ribbit?" she asked in a whisper.
OH, FUCK I FUCKED UP. "I. I, I saw it when Mr. Aizawa posted our scores from the assessment test; I wasn't trying to be creepy, I swear." He said, waving his hands in front of him defensively.
"Your Izuku Midoriya," she said, looking up at him through her eyelashes. It was super effective. As Izuku rebooted, he heard her ask if he wanted to sit down. Thankfully his body was more capable than his mind as it sat beside her.
"So… do you think today will be like yesterday?" he managed.
"Today is our first Heroics Class. I hope it goes well. Ribbit," she silently cursed as it escaped her lips, she had a habit of sometimes ribbiting, but it happened more when she was nervous.
"You are on the train early today?"
"So are you."
"I couldn't sleep, I. I was. Was too anxious about today."
"Heroics class?"
"No, I honestly forgot about that till you said something."
"Then what had you so excited? Ribbit,"
The thought of seeing you and of maybe talking to you. That excites me; I am so scared of blowing or making some critical mistakes that I cannot take back or recover from. Do you remember saving a boy by the lake?
"Just the opportunity to make new friends," he managed to get out. "I had a rough time in school, and everything is so different." WHY AM I SAYING THIS?
"Yea, the regular school can be rough, ribbit. I want to make new friends as well. If you want, I will be your friend?" Can he see how badly I am blushing? Who the hell says that? I am so dead; if he didn't think I was weird before, he would think I am plain psycho now.
"Really?" he replied. "I would like that, Asui."
"Tsu…my friends call me Tsu." She said in an almost whispered tone, not trusting her voice not to betray her.
"Tsu…" he whispered back, painfully unaware of its effect on the girl. Her mind swooned, it was like she had won some prize, and all he said was her name. She whispered it with what she felt was a sense of awe or tenderness. Her heart was about to explode from her body.
"Then I can call you Izuku, right? Since we are friends now?" she asked. He almost had to reboot again.
"Y. , that should be fine," he managed, cursing himself for the stutter. He heard a contented ribbit escape her lips, making him melt even more.
Neither trusted themselves to say anything more for the rest of the ride; when they arrived at their stop, she was beyond overjoyed when he asked if she wanted to walk to campus together. Nodding her approval, they walked along the still, quiet streets; a few professionals were beginning to emerge and start their commutes. They walked in silence till they passed a bakery that had the most heavenly aromas dancing out onto the streets; in a bold move, he turned to Tsu.
"In my haste this morning, I skipped breakfast. Would you like to get something from the Café with me? My treat."
"I missed breakfast, but you don't have to buy it for me."
"Maybe you can buy it next time?" Sweet baby All-Might, what am I doing? Am I turning this into a date? And asking for a second date at the same time? What the hell is wrong with me?
"I can do that," she responded, her finger by her mouth as if pondering something and looking adorable. He was trying to burn the image into his mind; he wanted to draw it later desperately. "But won't your girlfriend be upset?" she said, attempting to fish out his relationship with Ochaco.
"G. ?" he exclaimed, " I don't have a girlfriend!"
"You and Ochaco just seemed close?" she said calmly, thankful she did not immediately pump her fist or burst into a happy dance.
"We are just... We met during the entrance exam." He replied.
"Ok, that's good. I don't want to interfere if you had a girlfriend or anything."
"I promise, no , never had one." WHY DID I JUST SAY THAT? CAN I SOUND ANY MORE PATHETIC?
"Good," she said. Neither was sure why that was good, but it was out there now, and there was no taking it back. Quickly she commented about being hungry and stepped into the bakery.
After they ordered, they sat silently, staring at their tea momentarily. Tsu summoned her courage and did her best not to think of this as some date.
"Do you normally take that train?"
"Yes, just the later one, of course, do you?"
"Yea, it was so crowded yesterday. I wonder if it is like that every day?"
"Probably with all the commuters, and I see a fair number of students not just U.A but for nearby schools."
"Pretty incredible though, to be going to U.A. I mean."
"It is almost a dream come true; I never thought I would make it."
"Why would you say something like that? Your quirk seems pretty unique."
"I was a late bloomer; I lived most of my life thinking I was quirkless until about a year before the test."
"Why would it take so long for your quirk?"
"It's a stockpiling quirk, it draws stores energy, and my body wasn't ready to handle the power without hurting me. When I started training and working out, it suddenly came in."
"So, you lived your life thinking you were quirkless?"
"I did; it wasn't easy. Society doesn't look down very well on the quirkless."
"I understand; mutants get treated differently depending on how strange your mutation is. Kids used to tease me a lot because of how I looked. Do you have a problem with mutants?" she asked, bracing for a negative response.
"Never; why would I have a problem with something they have no control over? They have some pretty cool quirks, like yours."
"Mine?"
"Yea, I don't know much about it, but I noticed how far you jumped during yesterday's test. I bet you can give someone a serious kick. If you don't mind me asking, does your quirk let you do everything a frog does, like stick to surfaces or turn invisible?"
She smiled as he complimented her quirk; she wanted to ask if he thought she was pretty even though she looked like a frog but dared not to. "I can't turn invisible but stick to walls, my tongue extends pretty far, and I can secret an acidic mucus." Part of her instantly regretted that last part.
"Wow, which is so cool; I wonder if you will get other frog abilities as you age. Do you do ok in the cold?"
Her smile broadened as he praised her quirk again, "Yea, the cold and I are not friends. It makes me sleepy; my body wants to go into hibernation, and extreme heat can dry me out. Is your quirk like your parents? My parents both have a frog mutation as well?"
"No, my dad has some fire breath, and my mom can attract small objects. Mine would be considered a mutation."
"You are not sure what your Dad's quirk is?"
"Not really," he said, staring more intently at his tea. "He left us when they thought I was quirkless when I was about five. They finally divorced when I was ten. I hadn't heard from him since he left."
Her heart broke for having pressed or even brought up the issue; something inside her told him he was still in pain. She chalked it up to her projecting her emotions on the subject. "I am so sorry, Izuku; I didn't mean to bring up something so painful."
"It is ok, Tsu, you didn't know. It wasn't easy, but my mom made up for it. She is amazing."
"I bet she is."
"What about you? How is your family?"
"My parents are lawyers who work hard, and I have younger siblings."
"Tell me about them."
It was easy for Tsu to talk about her brother and sister; she adored them. She took care of them because her parents worked so much. At times she felt more like a mother than a sister; it was challenging to balance between the two. But her parents did their best as soon as their feet hit the door. They only discussed work or brought it home once the kids went to bed. They made sure to devote all they could to their children. It was something Tsu appreciated, she had been reluctant to go to U.A due to the demanding schedule, but her parents insisted on her taking the test. They felt she had sacrificed enough already and shouldn't have to sacrifice her dream. Her mother was about to make a partner, and her father would take a lighter course load to be home more.
As soon as they began conversing, they couldn't help but keep sharing about their lives and exchanging stories. They discovered that they shared an interest in particular movies and books, but their taste in music differed, mainly because Izuku wasn't profoundly knowledgeable about it. They both confessed to enjoying anime as a guilty pleasure, and she was taken aback to learn that he liked to draw. Although she wasn't entirely surprised to discover he was a hero otaku, he still blushed when she pointed it out. She wanted to delve deeper into their conversation and make it unforgettable.
Time slipped by them before they both realized they had been talking for over an hour and a half. When they got up to leave, the hostess smiled and told them they were welcome back anytime. They walked to school with more of a spring in their step; neither noticed it, but they were lighter on their feet and in their hearts. They had just passed the gates when Ochaco called out to them, followed by Ida. Tsu's hackles didn't rise as much when Ochaco fell into step on the other side of Izuku, but she still wasn't pleased. She must admit that the conversation with the other two was a nice thought. They both had their energy, and being around wasn't unpleasant.
Toru and Kyoka caught up to them, falling into step with Tsu; they were their little mob as they made their way to class. Toru was lively, seeming to be enjoying her best life, and she was funny; the group was laughing, which was made worse when they had to try and explain the joke to Ida, who didn't get the punch line due to the slightly blue nature of the mark. When it did finally register, his outrage only added to the laughter. He attempted to sputter something about decorum in the halls of the U.A. as they entered the classroom. Their raucous arrival put more attention on them. Thankfully, they were able to diffuse Ida by heading to their seats.
Izuku took his seat before the Bakugo, "Don't get used to it, Deku; soon, they will all see you for what you are. I will find out how you cheated to get in, and you will be out of here in a heartbeat."
Izuku turned around and stared at his one-time friend. "You know, for someone that doesn't like me, you seem to spend much time thinking about me. How about you shut your mouth before everyone realizes what you are?"
"AND WHAT AM I DEKU?"
"An insecure bully who was so afraid that a quirkless kid was better than him he had to bully and abuse him every day just to try and soothe his overinflated sense of self-worth."
"You better hope we don't meet in combat training?"
"You better hope we don't. When we do, I will show you I belong, and you won't be able to deny it. Then what is going to happen to you and your ego? If the quirkless kid was a threat, what would happen when he shows you how far he has come?"
"OH, WE ARE GOING TO FIND OUT!"
"I am sure we will BAKUGO! And I hate to say it. I can hardly wait."
The argument between them had attracted some attention, particularly Kyoka, who overheard everything, and Tsu, who sensed the anger emanating from Izuku and felt the urge to kick Bakugo in the head as hard as possible. Eijiro, Sero, and Mezo appeared to be preparing to intervene if the situation turned violent but visibly relaxed when the two individuals shifted their focus away from each other. Fortunately, Mr. Aizawa arrived and brought order to the room, ending the uncomfortable silence.
Although the students were optimistic about the morning sessions at hero school, they were underwhelming. Despite having Heroes as teachers, regular school subjects like Shakespeare and math remained dull. However, there was one exception. A pro hero from America named the Black Knight delivered an exceptional history lesson. He was enthusiastic and captivating, and the students were disappointed when the class ended with the lunch bell.
Izuku's dream became a reality during lunch as he sat at a table full of familiar faces from earlier in the day. He was in disbelief that he was eating with them and had to double-check that it wasn't just a dream. The group discussed their morning lessons and then moved on to the upcoming Heroic Class in the afternoon. This was a significant moment for Izuku, who had been eating alone for quite some time.
After lunch, the class's anticipation reached a boiling point.
"I AM COMING THROUGH THE DOOR LIKE A NORMAL PERSON!"
The class held tight excitement exploded as comments about how he wore his silver age costume and how it was simply amazing that the Number one hero would be teaching them personally. Izuku did his best to feign excitement with his class; thankfully, there wasn't any attention on him as everyone was rightfully focused on the Number One hero.
"BEFORE WE BEGIN, THEY SAY THAT THE CLOTHES MAKE THE PERSON, SO YOU WE CAN'T BEGIN UNTIL YOU CHANGE INTO THESE." With a push of a button, cubbies opened in the wall revealing metal cases all with numbers on them 1-20. "NOW, CHILDREN, GET CHANGED INTO YOUR HERO COSTUMES AND MEET ME IN BATTLEGROUND DELTA FOR YOUR FIRST HEROIC'S CLASS, COMBAT TRAINING."
An almost feral grin grew on Bakugo's face, and he walked over, grabbed his case, and headed out the door, with the rest of the class following suit. Izuku did the same with an almost giddy sense of excitement as he retrieved his case; his initial dream uniform had been modified after he accepted One for All to not be so blatant in its homage to the number one here.
Izuku took a little longer than the others to change as he sat on the bench momentarily, staring down at the dark green suit with black accents. He emerged onto the battleground, taking in all his teammates and their costumes; he immediately found Tsu first and was ever thankful for the respirator as it helped hide his blush and admired her in her tight suit. Before he could say anything, he almost went offline, catching a glimpse of Momo's costume and when Ochaco came over with a tight suit that hugged her curves.
"Holy cow, Izuku, you look pretty cool; I should have been clearer with my application. I .wanted something puffier and space themed instead…" she said as she blushed, her head down and arms behind her back. Tsu felt that urge to kick someone again.
"I think it looks great, Ochaco, really cool," Izuku managed without a stutter. He noticed he was immensely proud of himself for that particular feat.
"Thanks, Izuku," she responded, admiring Izuku in the dark green suit. (Very similar to cannon but a darker green with black accents, and instead of the bunny ear cowl, it is more of a hood. Titanium weave, light body armor, heavier boots, like his vigilante arc.)
They walked over toward their friends as everyone complimented each other on their costumes; Izuku looked at Tsu. "I. I. Your costume looks nice, Tsu; I like your goggles." He wanted to smack himself for that one. I like your goggles; what the fuck, man.
"Thanks, Izuku," she said a little bashfully. "I think you look great too."
As they walked towards All-Might, Kyoka whispered to Tsu, "When did you two get on a first-name basis?"
"Oh, we both ended up on an early bus, and we talked for a while," Tsu said, doing her best to sound nonchalant about it, which was easy for her to do, but unfortunately, her friend could hear Tsu's heart racing—deciding not to call her friend out on it right now.
"That's cool."
"NOW, STUDENTS, WE ARE GOING TO HAVE YOU ALL DRAW LOTS BREAKING YOU UP INTO PAIRS; FOR THIS EXERCISE, ONE TEAM WILL BE THE HEROES, AND THE OTHER WILL BE ASKED TO PLAY VILLAINS. THE VILLAINS HAVE SECURED A BOMB AND WILL BE HIDING IN THE DESIGNATED BUILDING, WHERE THE HEROES WILL HAVE TEN MINUTES TO LOCATE THE BOMB AND FOIL THE VILLAINS.
VICTORY CAN BE ACHIEVED BY EITHER INCAPACITATING THE OTHER TEAM; HEROES WILL HAVE AN OPTION OF SECURING A VILLAIN WITH CAPTURE TAPE, OR BY TOUCHING THE BOMB BEFORE THE TIME LIMIT.
EXCESSIVE VIOLENCE WILL NOT BE TOLERATED; REMEMBER, THIS IS TRAINING AS EXCESSIVE DAMAGE TO THE BUILDING. REMEMBER, THIS IS TRAINING, NOT ACTUAL COMBAT. NOW ANY QUESTIONS?"
"Why are we drawing lots to determine teams?" Ida asked.
Izuku raised his hand, "YOUNG MIDORIYA."
"Because once we become pros, we will not have the luxury of choosing who we team up with on the field and will have to learn to work with heroes we may have no prior experience with."
"WELL, PUT. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS?" All-Might looked around, seeing none. "NOW STEP UP AND CHOOSE YOUR LOT."
Tsu was sad that she didn't get paired with Izuku, annoyed that, of course, Ochaco did, and almost felt a hot rage when it was announced that Izuku and Ochaco would be going against Bakugo and Ida. Walking with the others towards the observation room, she silently wished him luck, knowing that was all she could do.
Bakugo glared at Izuku, "Put up or shut up time, DEKU, DON'T GO CRYING TO MOMMY AFTER I BEAT YOUR ASS AND EXPOSE YOU FOR WHAT YOU ARE."
Izuku smiled at his one-time tormentor, his bully, "Bakugo, you have had this coming for a long fucking time; I can't wait."
Ida and Ochaco exchanged worried looks as they walked with their teammates toward their starting areas.
"This seems personal, Izuku?" Ochaco asked.
"It is my quirk that came in super late, so for the longest time, everyone thought I was quirkless."
"That is why he calls you Deku?" Izuku nodded. "What an ass hat? This is your chance to stand up to him and show him you belong. A fated battle, so to speak."
"Essentially."
"Do you have a plan?"
"I do; this is what I think we should do…."