Chapter 43 Alyssa Blake: Origin

Waves crash over my head, causing me to sink deeper and deeper...

Falling

Into

Oblivion

...

"Help me!"

"Don't worry, princess! Your hero has arrived!" I declared, riding up on a raggedy stick-horse. "...Why do I always have to be the Prince?"

"Because you're taller than me. The prince always has to be taller than the girl, and you know the boy part of the ballroom dance," Jo-Elle explained using her four year old logic. I spied a large stone and kicked it hard with my sneaker.

"I never get to be the princess..."

"You can later. Right now, it's my turn and I want to be Cinderella. Now save me from the dragon, Prince Charming."

"Prince Charming didn't fight a dragon. That's Prince Philip."

"I don't care. Stop being mean."

"I'm not being mean. I'm just correcting you."

Both of us stuck our tongues out at each other when Jo-Elle gasped, "OH! I need my tiara!" She slid down from the top of her 'tower' and took off for the house. I dropped my stick-horse on the jungle gym's rock-wall and sighed. The dresses princesses wore were scratchy anyways. Who wanted to be Cinderella anyways? Ariel was much prettier. When I was older, I would turn into a mermaid and be just like her and get my own prince to sweep me off my feet. That would show her.

Jo-Elle made it about halfway up the hill that sloped down from our house before her screams pierced the air. Two black dogs loped behind her, tongues lolling out of their mouths. Because we lived so far out in the country, it wasn't uncommon to see an animal wander into our big backyard like a deer or a stray cat. In this case, it had been the neighbor's Doberman, Thunder. His broken leash swung wildly with excitement, his barks as loud and intimidating as his namesake as he and a Rottweiler chased Jo-Elle back down the hill.

Grabbing the largest fallen branch I could find, I clenched it with both hands and held it up like a sword heroes and knights in fairy-tales would use to defend the weak, though I felt more like Belle from Beauty and the Beast right when she was attacked by wolves. I had to step up. I was the older sibling. It was my responsibility to protect my baby sister, and there was no prince to save us. I pointed the tip of my 'sword' menacingly at the dogs, refusing to turn my back to them as they circled.

They circled once out of curiosity before they grew bored and took off into the small holt behind us. I lowered the stick, not having to swing it even once. "Thank you, Sissy," Jo-Elle blubbered, her clay-covered fists still clenched into the fabric of my sundress. I hugged her, feeling my own jitters as Mom came down from the house.

"What happened?! Are you girls alright?"

"JoJo was being chased by that big meanie Thunder, but I scared him away!"

"Wow, Lissy, you were so brave." A swell of pride rushed through me at the praise. I had acted like a real hero, like the ones on TV Mommy and Daddy were always cheering for. I craved more of it.

...

"Did you hear? Alyssa doesn't have a Quirk."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Apparently, even her little sister already has a Quirk but she never got one."

...

I tried not to take it personally when kids picked me last for dodgeball. Before everyone had gotten their Quirks, I'd been one of the popular kids in the class, because by kid's logic, being tall in class automatically made you the coolest, most athletic and grown-up of the class. It didn't already help that I regularly competed with the boys at catching bugs and other creatures and beat them at races to the point that they didn't want to play against me anymore, egos too bruised. Now I had one more thing they could hate.

"Great, we're stuck with the freak," grumbled one of the boys.

"Me not having a Quirk's not going to stop me from kicking your butt, Drew."

Drew frowned, clenching the rubber ball in his hands until started to glow with a red energy. Then he pelted me with the energized ball, smacking me hard in the side. I dropped my ball in dismay and went to the out corner before sensing another ball lob past my head. "Oww! I'm on your team, stupid!" Rather than stop, he laughed and started throwing more floating balls. I ducked and weaved, trying to avoid them, but they were everywhere and relentless. Eventually one cause me to trip and face-plant onto the ground, causing all the kids on the playground to giggle at my epic wipe-out.

"Not so high and mighty now, are ya?" Drew sneered down at my humiliation. My palms stung from the concrete, the pain adding more unwilling tears to my eyes. "Aww, you gonna cry, crybaby?"

Snarling, I lunged at the knobby-kneed boy and knocked him down. Then I crawled on top of him and sank my teeth into his arm, emulating the Human Spider and his paralysis bite. Somehow even after hearing Drew's screams of bloody murder that made him keep a five foot distance away from me for the rest of childhood, I knew that this was only just beginning.

...

"Talent and gifted are not the same. Anyone can be special. It takes hard work to be extraordinary."

"You don't need a Quirk to be special. Just be yourself. If you work hard and try new things, you can do anything you put your mind to."

...

An old upright piano sat in the library next to an old desktop full of CD-Roms and PC games along with a compact sheet-music stand. Sitting on the red velvet piano bench next to my father, a seven year old version of myself listened as he played "How Great Thou Art." My fingers jammed the keys down, playing an offbeat rendition of 'Hot Cross Buns' over his music.

"Hey pumpkin, you gotta wait your turn," my father chuckled, ruffling my mop of hair. "I guess you're bored with church hymns, huh? You wanna help me play the next song?"

"Uh huh!"

"Any requests?"

"Hmm... Scar Burrow's Fair!"

"You mean 'Scarborough' Fair." I nodded. He placed his hands over mine, stretching them out over the middle C set of piano keys with little letters taped onto them, displaying which notes to play. "Alright, now hold your fingers like this and play these letters when I tell you to." He placed his hands over the keys, inhaling before pressing down. The keys stuck and were largely out of tune, but my father played anyways, creating a symphony as he counted, breathing in with the music as he rocked his head steadily with the beat.

"'Are you going to Scarborough Fair? Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme...'" Watching him play the music by heart, I played the familiar tune with him as I chimed in with the Canticle portion of the song, albeit a bit off-beat. "Hey, good job. Keep going." My grin widened, exposing my slight tooth gap as he sang, "'Remember me, to one who was there...'" A tiny foot pressed down on the pedals, causing a tremendous echo to reverberate across the room. "'He once was a true love of mine...'"

"Couldn't you two play something like 'Legends of the Fall'?" Mom chimed in, "You two sound so good together for that one."

"Hey, it was her request."

"Yeah, Mommy! Wait in line!"

My mother smiled coyly from across the room. She was always happiest when my father played his music. "You two sounded pretty good. I can't believe you can play it by ear."

"Yeah! I know it by heart!" I chirped, puffing out my chest.

"Really? That's wonderful, sweetie. Maybe you could play it on the violin at church one day." Stroking my father's shoulder, Mom joined in on the rhapsody, singing along as Dad started the next stanza. Jo-Elle waddled into the room, peeking at the other side of the piano. Not wanting to be left out, she slammed her palms abruptly on the keys thinking she was playing along. I clutched onto my ears, wincing at the cacophony. It's so loud! I wailed as the symphony of noise filled the room, the illusion of the room breaking away into a ballet performance of the Nutcracker with the pit orchestra crashing its symbols. I screamed until Mom ushered everyone out into the hallway, the concert too loud for my ears to take.

"Remember to breathe, Alyssa."

BREATHE!

...

"Is there anything we can do?"

"I would recommend seeing a hearing and sound therapist. Studies have shown that they can retrain the brain with classical music to fix auditory processing issues. They can help her adjust to her hypersensitivity. In the meantime, have her wear noise cancelling headphones and earbuds when she goes to places that are loud like concerts or the movie theater."

"Mooresville Christian Academy has an excellent education program, specializing in music and special education. Tuition is a little more expensive, but it'll pay its way forward in a couple of years when she's in high school and trying to apply for jobs and college."

...

"Alyssa, this is Mrs. Dell. She's going to be your kindergarten teacher this year," my mother introduced me to a portly woman with greying blonde hair. I gave her a shy hello, only letting go of my mother's skirt once I saw the bucket of toys in the corner. Not waiting for permission, I immediately ran over and started dumping toys onto the soft puzzle mat.

"No, sweetie, you need to wait and ask if you can play with Mrs. Dell's toys. You need to be nice if you want people to like you-" my mother began before Mrs. Dell smiled.

"It's alright. She can play with them," Mrs. Dell smiled curtly as they sat down to their meeting. "Anyways Mrs. Blake, I wanted to discuss your daughter's future here."

"Is everything alright with our application? You were kind of vague when we last spoke on the phone."

"It's fine, it's just... after observing Alyssa during the interview and talking with her preschool teachers, it's come to my attention that she may require being placed in a more... advanced class."

"You mean like moving up a grade?"

"No, I was thinking more of the special needs class."

"Are you saying my daughter isn't good enough to be in the regular class with her peers?"

"Of course not. I just think she would be better suited in a class that could manage her... unique idiosyncrasies."

"What do you mean?"

"Alyssa has been engaging in inappropriate behaviors. Reading or doodling in her notebook when she should be paying attention during Quirk lessons, not getting along with the other children, growling when she doesn't get her way-"

"She's five. Just because my daughter reads more that the other children doesn't mean she has special needs."

"I didn't mean it like that-"

"My daughter is perfectly normal. Sure, she's a bit rambunctious but what child isn't?" my mother declared. "She could just be a prodigy or have an intelligence Quirk. She's just be a late bloomer. I played a lot of classical music CDs when I was pregnant and now because it's good for a child's development." She expression raised into a proud grin. "In fact, Alyssa's going to play in her first violin concert this Friday, right Lissy?" I ignored her, murdering the stuffed T-Rex with my foot, pretending it was an asteroid. "We just watched Mr. Holland's Opus last week on TV and she turned to me and said 'Mommy, I wanna play that.' She listens to me read her books that I share with my third and fourth graders and plays the piano with her father. Are you telling me that someone with special needs could do that?"

"It's common for people on the spectrum to enter into the music field-"

"Look, I want my daughter to be able to have every chance she can get to succeed. I know from my Masters in special education that autism is genetic and that it takes months of watching behavior and development before diagnosis. No one in my family has it. I know my daughter, and I will not let you slap her with a mental disorder and isolate her based on a hunch."

"Alright... Still, I would recommend seeing a child psychologist in a couple of years to see if anything sticks out to you. They can help her develop social skills and adjust to her hypersensitivity."

"That will be my decision. Until then, Alyssa stays in her regular gifted track."

...

"Keep trying, Alyssa. You're so smart, you'll get it eventually."

"Be sure to apply yourself. Trying new things can help you figure out what you want to do in life."

"Face the facts, Pamara. Our daughter is never going to live up to your expectations. She's not your version of normal."

"Oh don't make this about you, Doug! She's just a scapegoat for your insecurity!"

"Like you're so sure of yourself! You always know what's best! You're putting too much pressure on her, projecting onto her!"

"I just want what's best for her! I won't let her be held back like I was! I want her to have every opportunity!"

...

"You ready for your recital, Alyssa?"

"Yes."

"You remembered to bring your Disney sheet music? You didn't leave it at basketball practice?"

"Yes."

"Good. And don't forget, you have swim lessons and speech meet later this week. I want you ready for this weekend's competition-" my mother turned to see me squinting in the rear-view mirror. "Where are your glasses?

"I dunno..." I fiddled with the sensory brush's plastic teeth between my fingers, trying not to throw up. My vibrating squiggle pen had already run out of batteries, leaving dozens of doodles in my coloring book, and reading any of my animal books made me feel carsick. My stomach lurched as my mother slammed on the breaks and spun the car around, immediately began booking it back towards the house.

"How are you going to read your sheet music without glasses?" Rather than let me answer, she continued, "You probably left them on the nightstand again- and where are your gloves, young lady? You're going to make yourself sick, and I can't watch you if you get sick!"

Feeling like this wasn't a conversation I could ignore, I pulled off my large headphones that had been playing nature sounds and classical music. "I dunno... They were itchy. They felt all weird on my fingernails."

"I don't care! That's the third pair you've lost and they are expensive. Did you leave them at your daddy's house?"

"...I dunno."

"Ugh, that man is so irresponsible! Shows up fifteen minutes late to pick up you and your sister and then doesn't even make sure you're wearing a coat or gloves when you leave the house to go out with that woman."

I squirmed in my seat next to Jo-Elle who was quietly trying to avoid Mom's ire, wanting to tell her not to be mean to Daddy, that he was being nice because he told me I didn't have to wear them if I didn't like them. My stomach churned unhappily on the bumpy country roads. "Mom? I need to go to the bathroom."

"Again?! We just passed a rest-stop! Why didn't you tell me?" I shrugged. She let out an aggravated sigh. "Well you're going to have to wait until we get home." The car grew silent for a moment before she looked back in the mirror.

"I can't believe you would be so irresponsible. You are just like your father! Always-" I clenched my stomach, nausea growing worse. I stared at myself in the mirror. I looked like frightened cat trapped in the backseat. I wanted it to stop, I wanted to become a cat so Mom would leave me alone. So I hissed.

"...Did you just hiss at me?! Don't you dare hiss at me, young lady! Normal little girls don't hiss at people! They use their words." I hissed again. "You hiss one more time and I swear I will pull over this car and spank you! Do you understand me?"

I swallowed, eyes still full of fire and fear. On reflex, I hissed again, testing my mother's resolve. She hit the breaks. I bawled, tears streaming down my face as I pleaded to her that I was sorry and that I didn't mean it. She silently glared at me for a few more seconds, having turned around in her seat while car horns blared angrily behind us. Then she pulled back on the road, lecturing me angrily about being late while I clutched onto my violin case.

In all my nine years, I had never seen her so angry. I couldn't understand why she was so mad at Daddy when it was her being mean that had driven him off in the first place. I wished I had chosen to live with him instead. He never yelled at me or made me do my homework. He let me stay up late as I wanted to watch movies with him and took us out to fun places like the park, Greatimes, and Chuck E Cheese, something Mommy never did. She was always too busy with school and came home tired and angry that I was watching TV when I should have been cleaning my room or practicing my violin.

Back then, I thought that Dad was being nice by taking us out to all those arcades and that it was my fault that Mom was angry. I didn't know he was just doing it to show off to the girlfriend he had left her for.

...

"Why does Alyssa get to have all those toys on her desk?"

"She needs them to focus."

"Why are you so weird?"

"You're embarrassing me!"

"No one likes you because you act like such a freak."

"Fattie."

"Loser."

...

"Alyssa, you need to stop this. You can't keep getting into fights. It's not appropriate," scolded my mother. My intramural basketball team had been down by fifteen points. We'd lost every game this season and after getting routinely frustrated on not being good enough, I tried wrestling the ball away from another eight year old with a sticky Quirk and got benched for the rest of the game.

"But she started it-!"

"That doesn't mean you should hit back. You're a lot bigger than most people. It's easier for you to push someone over, but that doesn't mean you should. You know what the bible says: 'Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.' Would like for someone to hit you?"

"...No," I answered glumly, the lump in my throat growing bigger as my lip started to quiver. "I really wanted to win."

"I know."

"Everyone was counting on me to make those lay-up shots! And they want me to be a good sport when we lose, after that girl just lobbed a basketball at my head and cheated with her Quirk?!"

Her hand ruffled gently through my hair, trying to make up for playing Bad Cop because Good Cop, my Dad, was too busy at work. "I know, honey. Life's not always fair. It takes a lot of strength to choose to do the right thing and not to hurt someone, to turn the other cheek and let it go. 'Having great power is a huge responsibility... When you're stronger than everyone else, it's your duty to protect people, otherwise you end up becoming the bully.' Isn't that what the Human Spider always says?"

"Yeah..." I sniffed, wiping my eyes with the back of my hand.

"Sometimes you just have to ignore it. I had to do that tons of times growing up, especially since I was the tallest and no one really liked my way of doing things. No one in my family really cared if I made captain of my varsity basketball team or needed to go to practice, but I didn't take it out on them and I certainly didn't cry when we lost, even when we went to state and lost. I was a good sport about it. People won't like you if you act mean to them. You can't get upset every time something doesn't go your way. That's life. You just need to learn how to handle your feelings better and learn to suck it up and be the bigger person."

I curled up in her lap and tuned out the rest of her lecture, not wanting to hear anymore of how I should've been a good loser, how I had disappointed everyone. It didn't make any sense to me. Heroes were always supposed to win in the end. They were supposed to pull through at the last second and win the day. They weren't supposed to cry. Maybe if I tried harder, I'd get better. I didn't understand that trying hard simply wasn't enough.

...

"What are you doing!? Don't you have any common sense?!"

"You are just like your father."

"I don't want to be friends anymore..."

...

I glumly sat on the curb with a stack of books I had brought in my pink backpack. I had been ditched by the only person left in my grade who had wanted to talk to me, leaving me with no explanation other than I was weird and that they wanted to play a different game with someone else, someone who could use their Quirk to make friendship bracelets. This had been the third time someone had stopped being friends with me. Was there something wrong with me? Sure, I had grown up Quirkless, but that really wasn't much of an issue to me. That was why I had been reading How to Win Friends and Influence People for Teen Girls behind my latest issue of American Girl Magazine.

'Pro Tip: Friends often share common interests, so try new things so you can bond over shared hobbies.' Seemed simple enough in theory. I had watched the entirety of The Mighty Adventures of All Might and read all the comics our library had in order to have something to talk about with my class other than horses. In fact, I had actually learned more than what they knew about to the point where I had scared people off with my knowledge. Chances were I would have the same result for bracelet making.

I shoved the book back into my book bag with a huff. Who wanted some stupid dumb Quirk bracelet anyways? I didn't need a Quirk to have fun. Who would want to limit themselves to only being good at one thing like making bracelets? Flying and telekinesis were much cooler powers anyways, and I was never going to get them anyways just like I was never going to have red hair.

I could have fun by myself. I had my books and my drawing notebook. What more could I need?

Resigning to my usual reading, I pulled out one of the Animal Ark book "Pony on the Porch," reading it simply for the fact that it was about a horse. Tinny 8-bit noises from my neighbor's Gameboy SP kept me from being able to fully engaged. He was taller than me, a change of pace from the rest of my grade, and had curly brown hair. He reminded me of Parker Peterson, the real name of the Human Spider, only he was younger and much, much cuter.

"Whatcha doin'?" I asked him, curiosity winning in the end.

"Playing Pokémon Emerald," he said.

"What's Pokémon?"

"You don't know what Pokémon is?!" I shook my head at his stunned disbelief. "Oh man! It's the coolest!" He then on about the many fictional animals you could train and capture like pets, including fire ponies, all while looking so enthusiastic I couldn't help but be enamored by him. "I'm Lark, by the way."

"Alyssa," I blushed under his gaze, happy for the first time in ages. Suddenly, I wanted to know everything about Lark and the game he was so passionate about.

...

"I don't want you talking to that Lark boy anymore. He'll misinterpret things that you say and that will get right back to his mother, the superintendent. Do you know how mortified I was when I heard my boss say that her son heard you saying you went to bed hungry most nights? Do you realize how bad that makes me sound?"

"You could have had straight A's this year but you got a B in Math. You need to focus more on classwork and less on reading your comic-books or you'll never be good enough to become a veterinarian!"

"Stop micromanaging me! I didn't ask to be this way!"

"You should be exercising or playing outside and spend less time on that asinine Pokémon game you're always playing that your father got you."

...

I lazily stretched myself out on the couch watching Saturday morning cartoons. After a long school week, all I wanted to do was to relax and not have to think about anything. The best cartoons were on Saturday mornings, from Tween Titans and Pokémon, to The Mighty Adventures of All Might. I was in the middle of watching a marathon of The Renegades, the story of the original vigilantes, when my mother walked in.

"Alyssa, why don't you go outside and play?"

"Because I wanna watch cartoons."

"Come on. You used to do so much before."

That had been before everyone in my class had decided I was no longer fun to hangout with, no longer inviting me over for sleepovers or their games or Quirk coming out parties- something that, much like a christening, was a pinnacle moment that happened once in a person's life. There was no point in inviting someone who didn't have a Quirk.

"Well, you're not going to spend the morning lying around on your butt doing nothing. If you keep this up, you're going to become diabetic," Mom frowned. "And turn that Pokemon crap off! You should be up and out of bed by now."

"It's Saturday- and it's not Pokémon, it's The Renegades."

"That's not the point! You need to get up and do something, something productive."

"...Fine," I huffed, going to my room before snatching Mom's laptop from her desk. After reading comics through my dad's computer, I had stumbled across a chatting IM site for fans. Dozens of message boards flooded my screen, each talking about their favorite games and opinions, a gateway to a greater world, something I hadn't found among my peers in my small hometown. Anime and manga spoke to me in ways that no other media had before. I found other people who also shared similar opinions, people that led me to a world of writing, culture, art, and fandom. Once I had opened myself up to this brave new world of heroes, ninjas, Jedi, and chosen ones, I found that I didn't feel so alone anymore.

PokeYourGurl69: U sound really cool. where r u from?

Alyssa8: I'm from-

"Being on the computer is not what I meant by doing something. I meant get off of your butt and actually go out and do something-" my mother paused her scolding before glowering at the screen, looking a peek level of furious I hadn't seen in awhile. "Who are you talking to?!" I quickly clicked off of my chatroom. "You don't ever share your information online like that! There could be predators or strangers that could find you and hurt you!"

"I-"

"You don't ever get onto one of these sites again, do you hear me!?" I shrunk back, words failing to describe the reason why I was seeking friends online as mother outstretched her hand. "Give me the laptop! You're not to have any TV or electronics until you learn to act responsibility!"

Reluctantly, I held out the laptop, trying to keep my tears at bay as she lectured me for another hour. Then I grabbed the hidden candy bar I had stuffed in my nightstand drawer and munched angrily. I couldn't understand why my mother wanted me to be alone. I didn't realize she was only trying to protect me.

...

Dad had given me a laptop for Christmas. Granted it was because I'd wrecked his computer with viruses by visiting bootleg manga sites, but it was my first step towards independence. I had branched out to safer websites since then, but it was hard to be honest or close with anybody on the forums. I needed an untraceable name to who I was in real life that I wouldn't become embarrassed of when I got older, especially one my mother would never see. Glancing on my bookshelf, I saw the rows of VHS tapes, locking eyes with Hercules, one of the most famous heroes of all time. Hadn't he fought the Amazons, strong warrior women that Warrior Queen had based her design on?

I typed 'AmazonGirl' but it was already taken. I looked further on the back cover and spied the Muses on the right-hand corner. They were heroes in a way, story-spinners that kept the memory of Hercules alive. Without them, there would be no story. I wrote 'MuseGirl' and hit Enter. Also taken.

Fed up, I looked online for different translations for girl and found a word in Japanese. I typed a few quick keystrokes onto the laptop and clicked Sign Up. 'Muse-Musume.' Had a nice ring to it.

...

Logging onto Deviantart, I uploaded an Umbreon drawing with an All Might theme. I had been listening to a playlist of Celtic Woman on YouTube, and the song had just caused the drawing to come out of me. It was always fun to watch the violinist Mairead dance like a nymph across the stage, the peak of feminine beauty and grace (though it probably helped that she had a Quirk that enhanced the appearance of her sound, much like Lindsey Stirling). One of the other singers was chiming in with her cover of "Scarborough Fair" before I noticed an ad by my Deviantart inbox.

"Hey Mom, Celtic Woman is going to be in Bloomington. Tickets just went on sale last week. You want to go?" I called out from the den. Mom wandered in from the kitchen, having just finished a pile of her second graders' homework. "She's the one with the violinist and singers that do all those Celtic covers of popular songs."

"Oh, that's nice," Mom hummed noncommittally, "Maybe some other time, for your birthday."

"Oh come on, Mom. They're only going to be in town for November. Pleaaaase? You can make it my Christmas present." I pleaded, hoping she would take my olive branch. She appeared pensive for a moment, shocked that I had wanted to go out to a concert, much less go with her.

"...Alright, but you better have at least a B+ average for midterms, otherwise no deal."

"Yay! Thankyouthankyouthankyou!" I bounced in my seat. "Oooh I can't wait to hear Hayley Westenra do 'Scarborough Fair' live. Her rendition is so pretty, don't you think?"

"Yes..." Mom stared at the screen with a somber expression before whatever flicker of emotion disappeared, changing into something cross. "Don't spend too much longer on that laptop of yours. You should be more productive and finish your homework, unless you don't want to go to the concert."

"...Okay," I resigned, a bit disappointed that she had chosen to turn my gesture into something to blackmail me with into behaving. Five minutes after she left, a comment appeared in the notification window. Someone named SmallMight39 had liked my drawing, along with most of my gallery. I couldn't understand most their other comments, either written in broken English or Japanese, but Google Translate helped with it somewhat. I copied and pasted the rest of their comment into Google Translate and smiled.

SmallMight39: I like your All Might!

Muse-Musume: thanks...

...

"Did you hear? That Alyssa girl over there attacked Brad in class today. She actually tried to take the book he was borrowing from Katie. She didn't even realize he was joking and nearly broke a desk after wrestling him for it."

"The Quirkless Wonder? What a freak. No wonder she doesn't have any friends."

"Yeah. Not even the retards in her special class want to hang out with her, and one of the kids hits themselves with a pencil. They say it's because she has something called Ass-burgers or something."

"Gross!"

"I was just standing up for what's right! I thought Brad was bullying one of my classmates! How was I supposed to know that he was kidding around?! It's not my fault!"

...

Muse-Musume: Did you know that the creator of Pokemon has autism?

SmallMight39: I did not.

Muse-Musume: It turns out he did terribly in school too, yet he went onto create this billion dollar franchise doing what he loved!
He wasn't limited by his disability or the circumstances of his birth. He made something great despite him struggling with school and getting along with his peers.

SmallMight39: That's really interesting.

Muse-Musume: Anyways enough of my ranting- how are you today?

SmallMight39: Not great. Someone threw my shoes into the koi pond again.

Muse-Musume: I'm sorry. That sucks. Most people just try and knock my books out of my hands.
Muse-Musume: Want me to kick their ass for you?

SmallMight39: Haha, no thanks. I feel like that would just make things worse.

Muse-Musume: You're probably right...
Muse-Musume: I've got your back though. Us Quirkless people gotta stick together!

...

SmallMight39: I just landed a limited edition F4F All Might figure for my desk! What did you do today?

Muse-Musume: Not much. Drew a few comics and then some jerks broke into my orchestra locker and drew dicks all over my notebook in permanent ink.

SmallMight39: Oh no, I'm so sorry.

Muse-Musume: Thanks.
Muse-Musume: Joke's on them tho. I turned them into Sudowoodos and now you can hardly tell they used to be penises.

SmallMight39: That's... creative.

Muse-Musume: Ya
Muse-Musume: I'm still pissed off though...

SmallMight39: That's okay. It's hard to let things go.

Muse-Musume: I know... I'm trying to be more understanding and turn the other cheek, but it's hard. I'm sure they had a reason. Like if I was coming from a place of pain and no prospects and I saw someone happy and doing better than me, I'd probably deface somebody else's artwork too.

SmallMight39: ...'Turn the other cheek?'

Muse-Musume: It means to not fight back if someone hurts you.

SmallMight39: Ah I see.

Muse-Musume: I said that correctly, right? I didn't mess up my grammar?

SmallMight39: No, it's fine. Your Japanese is really coming along.

Muse-Musume: You can thank Google Translate and my school's library aids for that. They let me borrow their Japanese workbooks.
Muse-Musume: Who knew you could find fellow freaks and geeks in the library?

SmallMight39: You're not a freak. :(

Muse-Musume: Aww you're just saying that 'cause you haven't met me yet. xP

SmallMight39: We could still, you know. Tons of people study abroad. Maybe you can learn enough that you could go to school here.

Muse-Musume: Or you could learn English and come here. America's way more accepting of Quirkless people working in the hero field.

SmallMight39: Maybe...

Muse-Musume: You know, Warrior Queen always said that heroes aren't born. They're made. All it takes is determination, strength of heart, and a bit a courage. I mean look at her. All she really has as a superpower is reflexes and support weapons, but that doesn't stop her from trying her best.
Muse-Musume: I'm sure if you stick to your guns, you can become a great hero.

SmallMight39: ...Thank you./././

Muse-Musume: Plus being here means you wouldn't have to deal with so much backlash from that one friend of yours.
Muse-Musume: Speaking of which, how did it go talking it out with angry boy?

SmallMight39: Not good. I tried, but I couldn't do it. He's not a real talk it out kind of guy.
SmallMight39: I don't know why he's so angry at me.
SmallMight39: There's joking and then there's just being flat out mean.

Muse-Musume: It might not be you. Some people are just angry. Hell, I was for a long time. Maybe he's insecure or has an inferiority complex something. It's not always for us to understand why or to fix their problems.
Muse-Musume: Some people are just toxic.
Muse-Musume: Maybe you should just cut him off..? He doesn't sound very nice, and from what you've told me about him, I don't think he's really your friend.

SmallMight39: I would but we were childhood friends. Despite him being horrible to me lately, he's an amazing person and I want to see where he goes in life.

Muse-Musume: Ahhh, like a grudging respect. Gotcha.
Muse-Musume: Just be careful, Mighty Smols.
Muse-Musume: Stand too close to the sun and you might get burned. Plus they totally don't deserve you.

SmallMight39: Thank you. I will.

...

SmallMight39: YOU WON'T BELIEVE IT
SmallMight39: I MET ALL MIGHT TODAY!

Muse-Musume: SHUT UP
Muse-Musume: You did NOT!

SmallMight39: I DID!
SmallMight39: He signed my notebook and everything!

Muse-Musume: LUCKY!
Muse-Musume: Congrats, dude! I'm so happy for you!
Muse-Musume: What's he like? Did he live up to the hype?

SmallMight39: YES
SmallMight39: Well... sorta.

Muse-Musume: What does that mean? Does he not live up to your expectations? Is he secretly mean IRL?

SmallMight39: No no, he's very nice!
SmallMight39: He's just... different than I was expecting.

Muse-Musume: Different how?

SmallMight39: I don't know. More... human, I guess?

Muse-Musume: Well duh lol. He's not a god. I'm sure he has feelings like us mortals too.
Muse-Musume: Even Hercules had human parents.

...

A small message notification buzzed from my phone. I felt my heart flip as the sender's name popped up on the screen.

SmallMight39: Hey, sorry I haven't talked much lately. I've been training a lot to get into my dream high school's hero program and don't have a lot of free time. To answer your question, I imagine mental Quirks would beat physical Quirks, but only if the mental Quirk user has a ton of training- otherwise, it's a moo point.

I smiled at the message. I admired their tenacity at wanting to become a hero, and why couldn't they? Starling didn't have powers and he was a hero, and there were tons of pros that used support items or had Quirks that weren't made for battle that became licensed, so why couldn't SmallMight become the first Quirkless superhero?

Muse-Musume: That's fine. Just leave me a Favorite or comment on one of my comments to show me you're still alive. I'm rooting for you!
Muse-Musume: BTW I think you mean 'moot point.'
Muse-Musume: Unless you're quoting
'Friends.'

SmallMight39: Thanks. I'll try.

I glanced down at the comic strip on my lap, something I had been developing off and on for the last year or so. Originally it was a cobbled together self-insert fantasy, but now it was starting to pick up some steam. It probably helped that a lot of the characters I had were based on actual real life heroes and myths. I couldn't wait to show SmallMight39 when it was finished, not knowing it would be years before I properly heard from him again.

...

Today had to be one of the worst days of my life. Moving to Japan had not been as simple as I thought it would have been. There had been a whole slew-full of etiquette I had to learn on top of learning how function in society and make it a comfortable transition for my mother, who was already anxious and grumpy; even the toilets were different!

This morning had been particularly bad. I had left work with my mother screaming at me for not being awake when her insomnia woke her up (five am), barely making it in time for the 6:50am train, and now couldn't think of a single word to help progress my comic. I had thought listening to my playlist on the morning train would have helped, but all it had done was drain me further. I swiped through my phone while trying not to burst into tears on the morning commute.

"...sley, sage, rosemary and thyme..." I hummed, the familiar tune a way of stimming that usually helped calmed me down. I crossed out another potential word in my Harajuku Lovers notebook and moved to the next word tree, scowering the internet for another definition in Dictionary dot com. Fed up, I turned towards the green-haired man who had squeezed himself onto the train car- he had moved past me at some point during the trek through Tokyo and I was not willing to give up my hard earned seat for nothing -and asked in his general direction, "Hey, do you know another word for lever?"

"Huh?!" His bewildered, emerald green eyes went wide, giving him a youthful appearance while I continued to anxiously spin my flower pen between my fingers.

"A word. I need to come up with another word for lever, and I can't think of it." He turned his head, looking around as if to point to himself and say 'me?' I nodded. "Yeah, I'm talking to you, Freckles. Got any ideas?"

"Uhh... support?"

"Hmm... no."

"Wrench?"

"Nooo..."

"I'm sorry," he apologized, rubbing the back of his neck, rustling the collar of his All Might tracksuit. "I'm not really good at this kind of stuff."

"That's fine. It's not like a wrench or axle. It's like... a pressure point, something that's essential in order to lift something. Fruh... free... ugh something like that."

He ruminated over this for a moment, pinching his bottom lip between his finger. "...fulcrum?"

A lightbulb clicked off in my head, giving me a sudden burst of energy. "Fulcrum! YES! THANK you! God, that was bothering me for hours," I quickly scribbled the word down in my notebook, muttering under my breath, "don't know why I couldn't think of that. It's literally a character in Star Wars..." Stupid. Dummy. Idiot.

"Sure. Glad to be of some help," he said, smiling in a way that brought out the freckles in his cheeks. "What exactly did you need to know that for? Are you doing a crossword puzzle or something?"

"Hmmm? Oh... well it's kind of embarrassing-" I tugged shyly at the long ponytail that sat at the base of my neck, suddenly feeling too hot for the attention. "-but I'm kinda doing research for a story I'm writing, and I couldn't think of the right word to properly express some technical jargon."

"Oooh so you're a writer? That makes sense. What's it about?"

"What?"

"Your story. What's it about?"

"Umm... well, it's hardly original but... it's kinda... fanfiction about... vigilante superheroes." I tugged at the blue earbuds that had been swinging from my ears, anxiously wrapping them around in my hands, feeling suddenly very small. This was his cue to either give me a funny look or barely contained look of contempt and ask why I would want to do something so juvenile as to-

"Whoa cool! So you like heroes too! Are they based on any real pro heroes? Do you have any favorites?" I blinked at his reaction. That had not been what I was expecting at all. Who was this guy? Most Japanese men I ran into were too intimidated by me or spoke clipped, cordial responses. This man was so bright, his smile like the sun, much too bright for a creature of the night like myself that lived it hide in the shadows. As if sensing this, he quickly apologized, "I'm sorry! I don't mean to pry! I just really like talking about heroes."

"It's okay. No one's... really asked about my work before," I admitted shyly, smiling inwardly. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad living in Japan...

...

Everything hurt, even my voice and lungs hurt. I couldn't breathe. I couldn't see. My eardrums were burning. Why was my mouth so dry? It felt like I had coughed up a gallon of sea water. Don't want to hurt. Stop hurt. Stop the hurting. Go away. Stay away. Leave me alone. Hurt. Pain. Stop. Leave. Me. ALONE.

"...sa...a... yssa!"

...Izuku? What... why was he here? My head was pounding. It hurt even to open my eyes, which took a monumental effort for me to concentrate enough. Apparently, something also obstructed my vision as the crusty edges of my eyelashes peeled back. A familiar blur of turquoise was all I could see, but it was the smell that did it for me. The strong smell of peppermint was unmistakable. I fought to anchor myself to it, wanting to burying myself into his neck and breathe in the freshness of his scent and surrender to his embrace. He was so warm against the clamminess of my skin. Then just like that, the pressure lifted, separated from him like I was being carried away by the tide.

Don't go... Please don't go. Don't leave me!

The abyss was now full of light, a rush of emotions and images pouring into it, into my mind...

...

"I admire him a lot. Ever since I was kid, I thought All Might was the coolest hero, always saving people no matter the cost with a huge smile on his face. He's one of the reasons why I wanted to become a hero."

"I am here!"

"It's only fair. I did my impression of All Might, so now you do one of your impressions."

"Can you walk? Here, hang onto me."

"Don't worry about me. I'm told I make a decent cane."

"Let me know if I do it too tight, okay? I don't want to accidentally cut off your circulation."

"For the record, I don't think of you as weak, but I also think it's okay to ask for help if you need it."

"I'm not the best when it comes to dancing."

"You seemed so excited for me to come, and well, this class, it's... it seemed really important to you."

"I think any Quirk can be useful if you find the right way to apply it."

"If you want to talk... I'm always here to listen."

"You're not an inconvenience..."

"I DO LIKE YOU!"

"You're no trouble at all. It's a hero's job to help people, and I'm always happy to help someone in need."

"Umm... Can I... Can I give you a hug?"

"I just kinda realized that... W-well you're m-my g-girlfriend now and... it just all kinda hit me."

"Wait here for me."

"I want to have one to keep in the plastic and one to sell for when you become famous."

"I don't really see myself as macho anyways."

"It's cute that you're all embarrassed."

"You don't have to be afraid. Just be yourself."

"I want to live up to his expectations, but it's so hard when it feels like everything is f-falling apart. I feel like I'm letting him d-down, like I'm letting everyone else down."

"Just because I'm not getting paid for it doesn't mean I stop being a hero."

"Umm... we're... friends, right?"

"I came as soon as I heard about your mom. I wanted to be here for you."

"If you want something badly enough, you'll do anything to achieve your goals."

"I want you to share my starting point... you know, if you want."

"I just figured you needed me more."

"Hang in there, Alyssa! Please! Just a little bit longer!"

"A-Alyssa..."

"ALYSSA!"


I jolted awake from my dream, not quite finding the strength to sit up but definitely alert enough. My head pulsed like a nail had been hammered into my skull, aching from the thick soup I had been wading through as I came to. "Where..?" I slurred, feeling like someone had spiked my drink with NyQuil.

"Mom, she's awake..!"

"Alyssa? Sweetie, can you hear me?"

"Mom...?" I squinted, realizing that I couldn't see her clearly. I went to rub my eyes before I smacked myself in the face with the pulse oximeter clipped to my index finger. "Oww..." I muttered reflexively before I noticed a few more accessories- a bandage on my forehead and devices with tubes on my left arm and right hand. Why were all of these wires and stickers on my chest? I didn't like it. The order and placement was itchy and uncomfortable. Then I saw the needle in my arm and a moment of panic caused me to pull back into cold focus, shrinking further into myself. "What..? Where..?"

"Calm down. You're safe. You're at Reibankurofuto Hospital. Jo-Elle says you were attacked after you left work," my mother eased. I looked over to the blur of my sister that stood motionless at the side of my bed. My mother's voice hitched. "Why didn't you come straight home? You should have come straight home from work-!"

"Mom-" Jo-Elle warned before easing me back. "You might be a little confused. The doctors gave you a sedative because they said your heart was working too hard, and they needed to keep you calm."

My hand ran over my face, expecting to have the oximeter to click against my glasses, only to find nothing sitting on the bridge of my nose. My glasses were gone. "Where... where are my glasses?" I tried to think back, fumbling for a desk or tray for them to be sitting on.

"You didn't have them with you when you got here," Jo-Elle explained. I thought back, trying to remember where I last had them.

CRUNCH!

I sucked in a breath, gasping as if I couldn't hold air in my chest. I'd left them in the alleyway where I was attacked. I had stepped on them. "My glasses..." I felt my throat closed up, barely able to utter the words as surly tears rolled down my cheeks. For the first time in seventeen years, I had lost my glasses- worse, I had broken them -and my mother was there to witness it. Somehow that was only the tip of the iceberg as I broke down. "I didn't mean to break them. I'm sorry. I know they were expensive. I didn't want to tell you. I didn't want you to worry about me-" I sobbed, blubbering like a drunken baby.

"It's okay. I don't care about that-"

"No it's not! I-" I sat up while my chest shuddered, thoughts racing. If I was here, then that meant that SmallMight was still at the Kaikan building waiting for me. I had left him. Where was my phone? He was going to think I ditched him. He was going to hate me too..! "I need to go back. I'm not there. I'm supposed to be there-!"

"Alyssa, you need to calm down," Mom said before frantically turned to my sister. "Jo-Elle, call a nurse!"

"I need to go-" I swung my weight to the side of the bed, ignoring my family's protests and the loud trill from the hospital bed as I stood up before I slumped to the cold hard floor. Two blurry figures in scrubs ran into the room, touching me with their synthetic gloved hands as they tried to help me up. I recoiled from their touch, leaning against the bed for support, my feet suddenly not wanting to do what they were told. Another nurse stood beside me and plunged something into the IV drip before I felt something fuzzy move up my arm. Finally I felt too tired to wipe away the tears streaming down my cheek and fell back asleep, unaware that there had been another presence by the door.


A/N: References are Wonder Woman from DC and Spiderman from Marvel. Fun Fact- Musume means 'daughter' or 'a young, unmarried woman' in Japanese.