The lobby is chaos almost all evening.
With the arrival of All Might, everyone scrambles for his attention. Momo and Kyoka make him tea, Sero, Kirishima, and Kaminari convince him to play one of their fighting video games, and even my quieter classmates join in. Kouda shows off his rabbit, Ochako and Toru cooing over how cute he looks holding the long-eared creature. Iida excitedly regales the man with stories of how they've been doing, Laser and Mina behind him dramatically reenacting it out.
Toshinori-san beams throughout it all, smiling at everyone though it's clear Midoriya catches most of his attention. He and the green-haired boy look like family, especially with the way the proud blonde smiles down.
I retire from it all at about half past nine.
Slipping through the door, I'm a little surprised to find Sensei stretched across the couch, an arm across his eyes, his phone against his chest, and…
Is he snoring?
I close the door quietly, locking it shut before creeping closer.
Sensei's chest rises and falls in steady increments. Mouth open slightly and hair scattered lazily behind him. It… It makes him look younger, especially without the deep lines beneath his eyes.
"Sensei?"
He breathes deeply, arm shifting, and peeks open one eye.
"Hmm?"
I don't hesitate, sliding onto the couch, I stretch completely on top of him, giggling when he grunts and both arms immediately to my shoulders. He looks at me weirdly, lips twitching up in amusement.
"What are you doing?"
"Getting affection," I laugh, before wiggling and twisting sideways into the small space between him and the back of the couch. It's tight and warm and it's like being squeezed in a perfect hug. I move his left arm, adjusting it myself to loop around my head so I can lay on his shoulder. He snorts. "Are you sleepy?"
"No, my eyes hurt," he huffs, before turning to rub his rough chin across my face. I giggle, reaching across his middle and squeezing him.
"Stop that!"
He hums, breathes a warm kiss on top of my head, and then relaxes back.
"So All Might?" he asks.
"Jealous?" I laugh, stretching my feet and yawning before relaxing. "You could have had a hug too."
"You give me enough hugs," Sensei huffs. "Minasu said you had to discharge your emotions and mentioned there was a situation between you and Midoriya. Did something happen at the internship?"
My good mood slips away like sand.
Sensei, who had returned to closing his eyes, peeks one open in concern.
"Rin?"
"It… It wasn't anything terrible," I admit, reluctant to confess to exactly what I'd done but also unwilling to lie. Sensei could practically smell lies and especially secrets. "It's just… I got the position. I just… he said he only gave it to me because All Might recommended me."
I sigh, pressing my face into Sensei's shoulder and my hand curling in the soft fabric of his shirt.
"I see. Do you still want to intern with him?"
I blink at that.
"What?"
Sensei sighs, reaches up with the arm not trapped around me, and massages his forehead.
"Interviews are as much a chance for you to decide if you like an establishment as it is for them to determine if they like you. If something feels off or you don't click well with the people, you don't have to settle. You can always respectively decline and look for another opportunity. You're not going to get along with everyone you work with, I don't get along with everyone I work with, but if you're going to have a mentor, you need to be able to trust them and rely on them. If you can't, this isn't going to work."
I frown.
"He wasn't mean."
"I didn't suggest he was. He wouldn't have been on that list if I didn't think he was trustworthy in some capacity. But that doesn't mean he's a good fit for you. If you have concerns about him respecting you or you have some other fear regarding him, you can choose someone else. If you think it was just a bad first impression, you can continue as you are. I've never worked with him, but Hizashi and Nemuri both had nothing but compliments regarding his work ethic and personality. He's clearly risen quickly in the ranks, so he has multiple skills that you would benefit from learning. He appears to be an excellent hero, but that doesn't necessarily translate into a good teacher. So it's up to you."
I consider it.
Should I pick someone else?
"There's only one person on this list worth wasting your time."
"No," I sigh, closing my eyes. "I… I want to learn from him, and he's really strong."
"Is that the reason you picked him?" Sensei asks, voice dry. "Because of his ranking?"
"No," I huff. "I had a bunch of people I didn't want to work with! Bakugou-kun helped me pick from there!"
"Bakugou," Sensei repeats flatly.
I laugh, turning slightly on the couch to get more comfortable and then wrapping my legs around his. Sensei just sighs, sounding entirely put upon.
He doesn't kick me off though, and after a while, his breath evens out quietly, his chest rising and falling in a steady rhythm. I smile, a soft glow warming my skin. It's so… so peaceful. Warm. Times like this… they make me wonder how anything else could be better.
I don't want it to end.
"I love you," I whisper, smiling at his tired profile.
I love that you always keep me.
I love that you're kind.
I love that you want me.
Sensei tenses beneath me, breath catching for a moment and hand squeezing, as if in surprise. He slowly relaxes a moment later though, back to steady breaths.
"I love you too Rin."
.
.
.
Sunday mornings are apparently now hospital visit days.
Which means Midoriya, myself, and Mirio of all people have to walk and catch the train together. Midoriya really isn't a problem. He happily walks along talking to anyone that will listen and sometimes to just himself. It's Mirio that's awkward.
He grins, tells ridiculous jokes, and just kind of… glows.
And for some reason, just looking at him makes me forget how to speak.
It's like we're back in the gym again, his fist passing through my attacks only to leave me breathless. I just splutter, pink, and hurry to walk beside Sensei, unable to stand the sight of his bright blue eyes or the resounding shout of POWER still echoing in my head.
Thankfully the blonde boy is content to just grin and chat amicably with Midoriya.
Sensei, with an actual cup of coffee in hand, ignores my antics.
Of course, we're visiting the little girl—Eri.
As soon as the two boys disappear into the room, I give Sensei an irritated look.
"Is this going to be a thing?" I scowl.
"You acting shy and forgetting how to speak?" Sensei asks dryly, raising his brow. "I don't know Rin. Is it?"
I purse my lips, red light bleeding through my skin.
"That's not what I'm talking about," I scowl, folding my arms. "This… This visiting the hospital every weekend!"
Sensei ignores me, flagging over a nurse and asking for a list of developments. I roll my eyes and wait beside him, sour when I glimpse the little silver-haired through the window. There's a sound of boys' laughter and I scowl, the taste of acid on my tongue.
Pulling out my phone, I text Hitoshi instead.
What are you doing tonight?
Thankfully he responds quickly, though strangely with a moving picture of a person dancing around in excitement. Did that mean he was going dancing? What?
Tonight's the last of my makeup hours!
I blink, surprised, before immediately bursting into brightness.
Sensei stops mid-sentence, turning to give me a look.
"Are you okay?" he asks, raising a brow.
"Um… yeah?" I huff, ignoring him in favor of Hitoshi. I quickly type my excitement. That's so awesome! Are you gonna have a party? Do you want cupcakes? Daisuke already asked for the chocolate ones, but I can make other flavors! Hitoshi that's so awesome! I'm so excited for you! Yay!
"Rin," Sensei says, and suddenly there's a hand on my head, tilting it back to get my attention. The glowing ears atop my head twitch. "No quirks in public."
I hold my breath and puff out my cheeks.
Ugh.
Stupid law, it wasn't like I could help it. It was just happiness, and it wasn't even hurting anyone.
Sensei raises a brow, and I blow out the air at him, slowly managing to reign it back in.
"There," I grunt, pursing my lips. "Better?"
He raises a brow, and I can almost hear the unspoken words.
Watch your tone.
"Yes," he says flatly. "Why don't you go visit Eri and introduce yourself."
Introduce myself.
Had he led with that, I wouldn't have even need to work to reign in my good mood.
"Why?" I scowl.
The nurse looks between us frowning. Sensei rubs his neck and sighs.
"We'll discuss it more later, but you'll be seeing quite a bit of her in the future. Go introduce yourself and spend at least five minutes interacting appropriately, please. I need to speak with the nurse without distractions."
I sigh, entirely put upon. Sensei's expression twists into mild disbelief, one brow rising.
"Fine."
Returning to my phone, I slowly walk away, lips pursing as the nurse actually giggles.
"Your daughter's too cute!"
"Hn."
I nearly trip. Wide-eyed, I look back, but the two have already moved on. Face hot, I hurry to the room and scowl at the laughter on the inside. Then, sucking in a deep breath, I push open the door. All noise in the room stops, with both Mirio and Midoriya, turning back to look on in curiosity. Midoriya grins ridiculously the moment he recognizes me, Mirio just tilting his head.
My skin heats further.
Stiffly, I step into the room.
"H-Hi," I manage, before turning to the girl I was supposed to introduce myself to.
The one my brother had hurt, even if indirectly.
She's small. Pretty too in a child-like way, with silver hair cascading down her back and large, innocent eyes. The tiny, flesh-colored horn near her hairline is receded compared to the last time I saw it, and her pale skin looks better too—less flushed with color and fever—less sickly.
It's her expression that gives me pause though.
The numb, almost distant look she uses as she stares.
It… It strikes me unexpectedly.
I frown.
"Hoki-chan!"
"Did you come to meet Eri-chan?" the blonde asks, eyes crinkling. Even with such a happy face, I can see the sharp lines on his body. He's worried.
I nod, face hot at the fact that he's addressing me. Stiffly, I turn back to the silver-haired girl.
She stares just as distantly still.
I slip into a shallow bow.
"Good morning. My name is Hoki Rin, it's nice to meet you."
The blonde relaxes and Midoriya moves, quickly standing to demonstrate the proper response to a greeting.
"You've gotta bow back Eri-chan! Just like this! And the you say nice to meet you too! Please treat me well!"
I wait, eyes still on the red-eyed girl.
She bows and quietly repeats the words, voice hesitant and soft from disuse. I rise, noticing immediately the thick scars on her arms. She doesn't seem bothered though, her own eyes on my neck.
"Were you sick too?" the tiny voice asks.
I furrow my brows, Hitoshi's responses rattling my phone in my hand.
"Oh Eri-chan!" Midoriya says, sounding sad. "That—Overhaul was wrong, you—people with quirks aren't sick. Hoki-chan isn't sick!"
Something about all of that doesn't sound right. I don't know if I want to know what they're talking about either, so I just give them a weird look. Then, shuffling to a corner, I lean against the wall and pull out my phone, fidgeting at the feeling of Mirio's eyes.
POWER.
I lick my lips, returning to my texts.
Really? Hitoshi's words are written where I left off. I don't want anything.
Don't be embarrassing.
Smiling at my phone, it's easy to pretend like we're not all in here together, especially when their backs are to me.
Cupcakes aren't embarrassing!
.
.
.
"So you spent the entire time on your phone?" Sensei asks, sighing as soon as Mirio is out of earshot. I relax considerably, face hot at Sensei's knowing look.
"I introduced myself," I scowl, making a face. "Besides, she was weird, and she asked me if I was sick."
Midoriya makes a noise and Sensei sighs again, massaging his temple.
"She's not weird!"
I give the green-haired boy a look.
"You sleep with All Might staring at you," I scowl.
The green-haired boy stutters and nearly trips. Sensei catches him before he falls face-first though, looking exasperated.
"Rin. Really?"
"She was only asking because Overhaul made her think her quirk was a sickness," Midoriya squawks, hands moving wildly. "He did a bunch of experiments on her and told her that he was making her better, so she thinks scars are from having a bad quirk."
I frown, giving him a look.
"Those scars are from a prank, not… sickness or quirk or whatever," I tell him sourly. "They're because my housemates were mean."
"That's a shitty definition of a prank. Pranks are supposed to be funny. You know what's funny? Cat videos. Watching your stupid classmates make an ass out of themselves. That-" he cuts off and touches the scars on my neck. I flinch and he scowls. "is not funny. That is not a prank. That's assault. If someone did that to me, my father would press charges. They would be in jail. I would not be the one moving rooms."
Something in Midoriya's expression shifts.
I dislike it, the pity or whatever it is there.
I scowl and walk faster, beating Sensei and unlocking the door.
Sensei shuffles in nearly twenty minutes later, looking strangely exhausted.
"Couch."
Rolling my eyes, I go as directed, plopping on my end, and folding my arms at what's probably a lecture on why you shouldn't be mean to green-haired idiots or something similar.
"Yes?"
"Rin," Sensei sighs, sitting on the other side. "Tone."
I scowl, but don't argue, waiting for whatever stupid lecture he wants to give.
Sensei sits, looking particularly unenthusiastic.
"Do you want to talk about that?"
"About the fact that my old housemates were mean? No, not particularly. You already know it anyways."
"Just because I'm aware of something doesn't mean you can't speak about it," Sensei says flatly. "If you want to talk about your mother or father or brothers, I'll listen. If you want to talk about your old caretaker, I'll listen. You're my child, Rin. I'll always listen."
The anger disperses quickly.
With a sigh, I pull down the blanket and curl up.
"Thank you."
"It's not something that requires thanks," Sensei says dryly. "Now, you asked me if visiting the hospital was going to be a thing?"
I nod, surprised he remembered.
"In short, yes. At least until Eri is released. Do you remember how Principal Nezu informed you that the main reason you weren't expelled was due to political backlash?"
Sensei waits for me to nod, I do so slowly, not sure where he's going with this.
"Yes..."
"Eri's placement is a similar scheme," Sensei says, rubbing his neck. "As of now, Eri has no legal guardian and no known family available to take her in. She could be placed in foster care, but with an uncontrolled quirk and ties to the Yakuza, the number of people willing and capable of taking her in have been drastically reduced."
I don't know if I like what he's alluding to.
I narrow my eyes.
He sighs.
"UA will be taking in Eri," Sensei says flatly. "As soon as she's cleared physically, Principal Nezu has already signed the papers."
Principal Nezu signed the papers.
"So he's adopting her?" I ask, not sure what any of this has to do with us.
"No," Sensei says, shaking his head. "But she will be a ward of the school. And as a teacher here, I am partially responsible for her care, much as Nemuri, Hizashi, and your other teachers will be."
My lips thin.
"Why are you telling me this?"
"Because I don't know what all that will entail. The specifics haven't been fully worked out, but more than likely she will be around often as I'm one of the few people that can safely cancel her quirk without negative side effects."
Something sharp and hot claws through my chest.
"She's coming here," I snap, voice rising as my emotions rise chaotically inside me. "With us?"
Sensei moves, reaching and I flinch away from him, hurt.
"What?" I croak, tears burning my eyes as I stare.
"Rin…" Sensei says, and there's a sadness on his face that I can't stand. "Stop. Breathe."
I don't want to breathe. I don't want to do anything, but rage and tell him no. Why did he have to take care of her? Out of a school full of teachers, why him?
What happened when he liked her more?
What happened when he realized-
They always wanted the little ones.
I lean forward and sob, fingers curling in my hair, palms pressing at my eyes. Sensei is there in a moment, strong arms pulling me close.
"Rin… I've got you."
Why wasn't I enough?
.
.
.
Monday comes quickly—though not quick enough.
I spend most of my time trying not to think about little girls with long silvery hair and deadly quirks.
Sensei arrives soon after, wearing his sleeping bag of all things. He scans the room, his eyes stopping on me. He frowns, expression shifting strangely, before looking away.
"We're going to have a school festival."
Out of all the things I expected out of his mouth, that was not it.
A school festival?
That felt so… normal.
Apparently, my classmates agree. And like usual, they can't help themselves. They jump up excitedly, arms waving and expressions hopeful. Well… most of them. I frown at Kirishima's lack of enthusiasm, especially since he was normally right there with them.
He looked… upset.
"Sensei, is this really okay? Acting so carefree like this?"
Kaminari says something, but I can barely hear it over Sero's continued excitement.
"Villains are flourishing right now!"
I look down.
That was true.
Kaito. The Owl… not to mention the League of Villains…
"You're right," Sensei says. I frown, mind shifting from villains to the bag as he zips himself up in it. Did he stay up all night doing paperwork again? He only ever wore that thing to class when he worked late nights. "However, UA isn't just about the hero course. If the sports festival is the big moment for the hero course, the school festival is that for the others, like the support students, general studies, and business course students. It's not afforded the same amount of attention, but it is something for them to look forward to. Many of them are already stressed by our new policies, including the dorm systems, which was a result of the hero course."
"Oh… Then there's no excuse for not holding it…"
"Correct. Unlike in the past years, this year will be one of the smallest, with only those here at the school involved. Even if heroes aren't the focus, each class still needs to participate with something. You need to decide today."
I lean forward, watching as my guardian sinks to the floor, shuts his eyes and just… falls asleep.
What the hell…
I pinch my nose.
Why is he so weird?
Todoroki gives me a side-long look and I just shake my head.
I don't know.
Of course, this leads to Iida and Momo standing at the front of the class. The room dissolves into its typical chaos.
"Let's do a maid café!"
I let my head drop.
"A mochi shop!"
With the things my classmates cooked?
Absolutely not.
"An arm-wrestling tournament!"
With who? The general curriculum students had arms like jelly.
"A fun house!"
What the hell was that?
As the suggestions continued, they were clearly becoming more and more bizarre. Silently, I wonder at my own chances for taking a nap with Sensei. Especially when Koda suggests a petting zoo of all things, Tsuyu wanting to sing frog songs, and Bakugou wanting a death match.
Was this for real?
"Hoki-chan! Do you have a suggestion?"
I look at Iida like he's lost his mind.
"No."
"Oh, come on Rin-chan! At least suggest something! It can't be worse than a death match!"
Bakugou glares at Kyoka like he'd like to have a death match with her. Around them, several of our classmates giggle.
I still don't know though.
I'm not… creative like them. I didn't care what we did either, as long as it wasn't ridiculous. Sighing, I try to think of something my old schools had done in the past. It takes a few minutes, finding something that wasn't food related but hadn't been offered yet…
Waiting, my classmates all lean forward curiously.
"Ah… a costume photo booth?"
My classmates blink, as if surprised.
"That's surprisingly normal!" Iida announces, sounding shocked. Momo, behind him nods, quickly writing the words on the board.
I scowl.
"Did you want something crazy?" I snap, not bothering to hide my annoyance. "Considering only three people in here can actually cook, I don't know how we're going to have any of those food places." Iida's eyes widen, but I continue on, sourly taking in his list. "Then there's trying to keep up with animals at a school function, that's going to be ridiculous and gross. Arm-wrestling isn't ideal for people that don't work out, which is almost everyone this is supposed to be for, and a death match is just as stupid. All these ideas suck."
"Harsh," Sero complains, leaning back with a raised eyebrow. "But you know, she's not wrong. At least, not about the foodstuff. Food stalls really aren't any good if the food doesn't taste good, and who can compete against Lunch Rush?"
"Some of that's pretty boring too," Ochako says, nodding.
"Yeah, like the study session and local history presentation!" Satou grumbles from the other side of Todoroki.
I lean forward and watch as they debate until the bell rings.
Sensei stands, removing the sleeping bag and lazily striding across the room.
"Well… that was illogical. Decide what you'll do by tomorrow morning, or I'll make it a public lecture."
I snort, amused at my classmates' nervousness. It wasn't like Sensei actually wanted to waste his time lecturing. He was probably just saying it as… what did he call it? Oh, a logical rouse.
"Everyone, we'll decide tonight!"
Well, they could. I was going to see Hitoshi tonight!