The next day their extra classes ended with ease and Tokoyami was getting ready to meet Hound Dog in the forest. Reika tagged along with him to make sure he got there safely. On their way there, they spot Koda at the entrance to the forest beside Hound Dog, holding his pet bunny, Yuki. "Koda, What brings you and Yuki out here?" She asked as he gently handed his bunny to her. The bunny gently nudges her snout under her chin. "Hello to you too, sweet girl."
"It appears that his pet is…special, in a certain case that it might be one of them." Hound Dog growled.
"I'm not sure what's wrong with her. When I left this morning she was in my room, but when I came back to the dorms after school, she was in the common room and no one had let her out. I tried talking to her about it but when she tries to, it scares her." Koda said in a worried tone.
She looked towards Tokoyami then to Hound Dog then looked down at the bunny. "Would you try talking to us about it? Just take your time and we can take breaks if you need them." She asked in a gentle tone. There was a long silence between them.
"She says that she was thinking about the first day I brought her out to meet everyone. Then one minute she was on my bed, the next thing she knew, she was on the couch in the common room. And before it disappeared, she saw a silver ring made of light behind her, and inside the ring, was my room." Koda explained.
She smiled and gently stroked the bunny's head. "It's just as you suspected, Hound Dog. Yuki has a quirk. And judging by the nature of this quirk. It's a one of a kind amongst the kingdom." She explained as she smiled. She turns towards Tokoyami. "I'll explain everything to him before I head home, but it'll be up to you to get him to join us. Can I count on you to do that for us, Fumi?"
"Of course, my Dove. Leave it to me." He said as he kissed her palm before he walked into the forest, followed by Hound Dog.
When Koda and Reika were at the UA dorms, she explained everything to him about the animal kingdom of quirks. She explained to him about all the different animals with quirks they have at the zoo. She explained to him about her American penpal and the animals she's seen and saved. She then explained to him about the animals that are still with the HPSC and that they are planning to break them free. "I won't be a part of the mission physically, but we will be using the communicators that we used when we fought the Nomu. The animals at the zoo will be holding a meeting about how we plan to save the animals. We humans can't attend it physically, but they asked us to choose a trusted animal that can represent us. Fumi and I were thinking about having Yuki be our representative. Of course Principal Nezu will be there to keep an eye on her and someone we know is making a camera that's just her size that she can wear for us to virtually be a part of the meeting. Lionzo and the other animals in the kingdom trust you with this big secret and they want you to join us on this mission. Please think it over and give your answer to Fumi. Tomorrow night's meeting will determine when we start the mission to save the animals." She explained.
"This is a lot to take in. So Yuki has a quirk that is unique to the animal kingdom. But what is her quirk?" He asked as he looked at his bunny in thought.
"I'm guessing it's a warp type, which isn't only unique to the kingdom, but possibly the first of its type amongst the animals as a whole. If possible, I'd like to help her train with her quirk, after I'm ungrounded of course." She said as she smiled in embarrassment.
He nodded his head. "Of course. I think she'll like that. As for allowing the two of you to borrow Yuki for this meeting, I'll allow it as long as she comes back to me unscathed. I don't want anyone to think of her as a midnight snack." He said.
"Principal Nezu will be there to watch over her, He is one of the Lords of the animal kingdom after all. I promise that no harm will come to Yuki and if anyone tries to harm her they'll have to answer to me." She replied as she hugged Yuki gently.
He smiles. "As for joining the mission, I'll have to give it some more thought." He said in a shy tone.
"That's fine. Just let Fumi know once we learn when we'll start the mission." She said as she smiled. "Oh! I almost forgot. Don't tell anyone, but my penpal is thinking of coming to Japan for her summer vacation. In America, they only go to school from August to May instead of year around like us, so she would be a great help with training with the awesome quirk she has." She explained in a happy tone. Her emergency phone starts ringing with a familiar English song. "Speaking of, there she is now. Keigo said that I could add her and Fumi's numbers into this phone, for Fumi so that I won't worry him again. Must have just woken up to get ready for school. She's about fourteen hours behind us." She said before answering the phone. "Heya Kera! Good morning sleepy head."
"You told me to call you as soon as I woke up, so here I am." A tired female voice spoke in a happy tone on the other line before yawning.
"You sure sound tired. Oh, I'm with a friend right now. His name is Koji Koda and he has this super cute bunny named Yuki that has a warping quirk." she explained.
"Wait. Did you say a warping quirk? An animal has never had a warping quirk throughout history before. The bunny is the first of its kind!" The girl on the other line said in a surprising tone.
Reika puts the phone on speaker as they hear her looking through papers. "Koda, This is Keralynn. She's my penpal from the United States." She introduced.
Koda hides his face with Yuki. He hears Keralynn giggle. "I wanna guess that he's hiding his face behind his bunny right now. Kawaii! So adorable!" She said cutely. He peeks through between Yuki's ears imagining a girl with light brown hair, almost a dirty blond, eyes as green as emeralds, and a pair of round glasses placed on her nose. He also imagined something very unique about her, a pair of gray feline ears and a gray tail, slightly swaying behind her. "Nice to meet you. My name is Keralynn. I'm a first year student in the Hero Support class in North America. Reika has told me all about Class 1-A." She said to him in perfect Japanese.
His eyes widened as he heard her speak Japanese. "She can speak our language?" He asks quietly. Reika giggled and nodded her head yes.
"He's definitely our shy boy of the class, but his quirk comes in handy all the time." Reika explained.
"While mine is only useful for distractions. Guess that's why I'm in the Hero Support class. But guess what! I just got a letter from UA last night. Apparently your principal, your teacher, AND the BOE, have seen my quirk on a video online that went viral overnight. And they asked me of all people, ME to attend the Hero course for my second year!" She said in an excited tone.
"That means we might be in the same class next year! I'm so happy for you, Kera!" She said happily.
Koda looks at Reika, then at the phone as a slight blush appears on his cheeks. 'She sounds really pretty. I wonder what her quirk is and why she would be in hero support because of it?' He thought.
"So Koda! I hear that your quirk allows you to communicate with animals and they help you with your missions. That sounds like an amazing quirk to have. I've always wanted to know what the animals are thinking. All I can do with my quirk is create illusions as distractions." Keralynn said in Japanese.
"Th-Thank you. Y-your quirk sounds a-amazing too." He stutters shyly. Reika looked at him in surprise.
"Koda! I've never heard you say anything to someone you just met before! Not to mention a whole complete sentence!" She said in surprise. She looks towards the phone "But recently your illusions haven't been just illusions but somehow grew into a powerful quirk that creates physical bodies for the illusions you make."
"Yeah. I guess someone took a video of me using my quirk late one night and posted it online. The next thing I knew, my quirk became an overnight sensation. I guess that's how your principal noticed me. Anyway, I have to get ready for school now. I'll see you in a week. It was great meeting you Koda, and you too, Yuki!" She said as he imagined her smiling cutely at him with her tail swaying behind her.
His blush grew as he looked away then used Yuki's paw to wave at the phone. "N-nice meeting you t-too, K-Keralynn." He stuttered.
She giggles. "Let me guess. He used Yuki's paw to wave? So adorable!"
"You know my classmate so well, I'm glad I sent you the pictures of my friends before I was grounded. I'll talk to you tomorrow when I wake up. See ya soon!" Reika said as she waved then hung up.
"Her quirk is making Illusions? I think I might have seen that video she was talking about." He asked shyly. He gently hands Yuki to her then brings out his phone. "Ever since I first saw it, I've been trying to figure out how illusions like hers could physically attack an enemy and cause damage to him. Not only that, but in the background you can very faintly hear someone singing Jiro's song, even when no one else can hear it. Who would have taught them to sing the song they played at the school festival?" He explained.
"You have sharp ears, Koda. No one else noticed her singing but you. The one singing is the one who's creating the Illusions." She said.
He looks at her, eyes widened. "You mean that's-" He began to say. She nodded her head yes.
"That's right. It's Keralynn singing. I told her about the song our class was doing and she wanted to hear the finished product so I sent her the video of the performance and she loved the whole thing. It only took her a week to memorize the song by heart. The problem about this video is that she was asleep when all this happened. So she has no memory of singing that song to create Illusions like that. But I'm guessing that her quirk reacts to what her heart really wants. And that's to be a true hero someday. Right now she's only in Hero Support to become a sidekick. But because of this video, she finally has a chance to be in the hero course as an exchange student for UA." She explained.
He smiles then looks back at the video. "Her quirk looks very powerful. But her singing. I can't put it into words, it sounds so beautiful." He said.
"That's what I keep telling her but she says that she sounds like a dying horse when she sings!" She said with a surprised tone, then crossed her arms.
"So she said that Mr. Aizawa and Principal Nezu want her to be an exchange student at UA. So I'm guessing that when she comes to visit you, Mr. Aizawa and Principal Nezu would want to meet her." He said in a shy tone.
She smiles. "And of course I want her to meet all of you guys too. Keigo, The twins, and I are actually going to pick her up at the airport. So how about once she gets settled, I'll bring her by the dorms to meet everyone. She'll be staying with us for two whole weeks." She said happily.
"O-Oh…O-Okay then. That sounds good." He said as he nodded his head.
"Let me ask you one more thing before I go. When you heard her on the phone earlier, what did you imagine her to look like?" She asked.
"For some reason, I imagined her as a neko with gray ears and a gray tail. And her eyes as green as emeralds." He said as he looked down in thought. She giggled.
"That's interesting to say the least. I'll show everyone a picture of her during lunch tomorrow. For now I should go, I've been gone for too long. Keiko's gonna kill me when I get home. I'll see you tomorrow, Koda. you too Yuki." She said as she got up and left the dorms.
The meeting between the zoo animals, Lionzo, Nezu, and the human's representative, Yuki, went as planned. Reika, Tokoyami, and Koda, who decided to join, listened through the camera on Yuki's collar. They plan to save the animals one week from that day. The Ring-tailed lemur explained that there will be another human joining the mission from out of country. Reika's penpal, Keralynn.
A week later, a couple days before the mission, the day had finally arrived for Reika's penpal, Keralynn, to visit Japan from the United States. Reika waited patiently with the twins at the boarding platform while Hawks went to grab her bags. She sees a slightly chubby neko girl with light brown hair, pulled back into a ponytail, with green eyes, and a pair of round glasses placed gently on her nose, walk through the door that led to the plane and her eyes lit up. "Keralynn! Over here!" She waves. The girl looks at them and smiles as she waves back.
"Heya Reika! Thanks for meeting me here." She said. They hugged each other tightly.
The twins look at her stomach before they start poking it, watching it jiggle. "So this is what an American stomach looks like." Rhyan said as they continued to poke her stomach.
"Rhyan! That's rude to poke people without asking first." Reika said as she looked down at the twins. She looks back at Keralynn and bows. "I'm so sorry about that Kera! They're still learning right from wrong."
"It's alright. It doesn't bother me at all. I'm actually used to it due to the tourists from other countries. And I'm sure a lot of your friends would want to watch my belly jiggle as well." She said as she giggled.
"That's probably true, no doubt there. Oh! You'll actually be surprised by Koda when you meet him. When he first heard your voice on the phone the other day, He genuinely IMAGINED that you were a Neko, and he guessed your eye color to a T!" She said as they walked towards the baggage claim.
She looks at her with fear in her eyes as she hides her ears with a hat. "You didn't tell him, Did you? You know how much I hate my Neko appearance." She asks fearfully.
"Of course not. I want everyone to be surprised by your ears. For all they know, you only have a cat tail. But I'm sure everyone will love your appearance." She explains. Keralynn sighs with relief.
"You said Koda, right? He's the one that looks like he's made out of a flesh colored rock, Right?" She asked as she looked down at her phone as they saw a picture of Reika and her classmates. She points to Koda, then points to Tokoyami. "And this one's your boyfriend, Tokoyami. The two of you are definitely meant to flock together." She said before Reika blushes and gently pushes her. They giggle.
"Reika, Let's take her back home so she can settle in. Then we can take her to UA so that Nezu can meet her." Hawks said.
"That's my brother, Hawks. The number two hero here in Japan." Reika said. Kera looks at Hawks and bows at him.
"It's nice to meet you, Hawks. I'm Keralynn. Thank you for having me." She said politely in fluent Japanese.
"Speaking in fluent Japanese. Nice job kiddo! The name's Takami, Takami Keigo. But out in public, I'm known as Hawks." He replied.
"Fumi will be coming by the house later today with Koda, so you'll be able to meet him then but after you get settled into your room, we'll go to UA so that you can meet Mr. Aizawa and Principal Nezu. You can come with me tomorrow to see what the hero course is all about. I'll be sure to let my classmates know to introduce themselves a few at a time for you." She explained.
"That would be great! I would be overwhelmed if I met your whole class all at once. But I think four at a time will be fine." She said.
"Bakugo is a bit….hot headed but once you get to know him, he's not a bad guy, just has anger issues. Midoriya will probably want to ask you a bunch of questions about your quirk and he'll write down everything in his notebook. Mineta is just a flat out pervert, no one likes him. If he tries anything on you, just let me, one of the other girls, or Fumi know. Those are the only three you would have to worry about. And of course you already know Koda and Fumi from talking to them on the phone. You'll know them when you see them." She explained.
"I look forward to meeting all of your classmates then!" She said as she smiled cutely.
Reika smiled. When they made it to the mansion, Keralynn looked at it in awe. "Welcome to our home, Kera!" She said in a happy tone.
"It's so big! I've never seen a house this big." She said in amazement.
Hawks and Reika laughed. "I mean, my brother owns his own hero agency and he's the number two hero." She said as she calmed down. They head inside as they see Dark Shadow pass by and float into the kitchen.
"Fumikage! Rei and her friend have arrived!" He called out.
"Damn, already?! But it's not done yet!" He said from the kitchen.
"Fumi? What are you doing here so early?" Reika asked as she walked into the kitchen. When she walked in, she saw Tokoyami, Koda, and Sato were preparing to put a cake in the oven. "What is all this?"
"Koda wanted to prepare a small welcoming party for your American friend and wanted our help." Sato said.
"He wanted her to get a taste of Japan without leaving the mansion upon her arrival. We also have a surprise for her on her balcony. This was all Koda's idea." Tokoyami explained as he gave her a kiss on her forehead. "Welcome home, my Dove."
"Awe, Koda! That's so sweet of you! I'm sure she'll love it." She said as she looked at Koda and smiled.
He smiles shyly before looking towards the living room as he hears Keralynn's voice. "Reika, is this white bunny Yuki? Are you pet sitting right now?" She asks. He blushes slightly before turning around, quietly heading towards the nearest exit. Reika giggles.
"Koda's around here somewhere. I guess he brought her for you to meet her." She said as she smiled.
The boys chuckled. "He's been acting like this for a few days now. Ever since the two of you talked to her, he can't seem to get her out of his head. He's never met her, yet I think he's crushing on her." Sato said.
"And he's been watching the video of her quirk every day, trying to figure out how her illusions can cast shadows and become physical bodies." Tokoyami said as he crossed his arms.
"I could tell that he was attracted to her voice when we talked over the phone. He actually spoke to her that day. And in complete sentences! Can you believe that?!" She said.
"Seriously! You're not pulling our legs are you?" Sato asked.
"I would never lie to you guys." She said.
"Really? Never huh." Dark Shadow said sarcastically as he crossed his arms.
She looks at him in annoyance. "You know what I mean, Dark Shadow." She said sternly.
Meanwhile, with Keralynn and Hawks. "Go ahead. Take a seat. Make yourself comfortable. I'll put your bags into your room." Hawks said.
"Thank you, Mr. Takami." She said. She sits down on the couch for Yuki to hop to her gradually. Unbeknownst to anyone. Koda was watching them from the shadows. "Heya sweet girl. You must be Yuki. You're a beautiful bunny. I'm Keralynn, it's nice to meet you" She said in Japanese as she smiled and gently held out her hand for Yuki to sniff.
She sniffs her hand before hopping right into her lap, sniffing up to her face. She giggles when she nudges her cheek before curling up in her lap. Koda looks at her in surprise. 'She's never been that affectionate towards anyone but me. She must have a way with animals.' He thought as he smiled, watching Keralynn gently pet her head.
"Whatcha doin hiding here?" He screamed when he heard Dark Shadow from behind him.
"Dark Shadow! Leave him alone." He hears Tokoyami's voice from the kitchen.
"But Fumikage! He's acting all sneaky and creepy. And he keeps stalking Rei Rei's friend." He said when he returned to the kitchen.
"He just doesn't know what to think of her yet. He'll introduce himself to her when he's ready. Just give him some time. He'll gain his courage." He heard Reika say.
An hour later, Hawks, the twins, Reika, Keralynn, and Tokoyami sat down at the table to eat a traditional Japanese dinner. Yuki was laying down on the couch taking a nap, and Koda was getting things ready for the surprise for Keralynn. "Shouldn't he be here by now? I thought he was done with it already?" Dark Shadow asked.
"I'll go see what he's up to." Tokoyami said as he got up and walked outside. He walks to where Keralynn's room is and sees Koda putting flower petals all over a long white cloth that says; "Welcome to Japan, Keralynn!" In all different colors of the rainbow. "What are you doing, Koda? Dinner's ready. I thought we were done with the banner." He asked as he sat down beside him.
"I-...I wanted to do something more for her. I know it's a bit much, but I want her to feel welcomed here. I know I haven't met her face to face yet but I know that she's a kind and caring person. I watched how Yuki acted around her. She only acts affectionate like that around me. That tells me that she really likes her, Tokoyami." He explained as he placed some more flower petals on the banner.
"If she's affectionate towards her then that just means that the two of you will hit it off and become good friends. Possibly more than that over time. Sure she'll only be in Japan for a couple of weeks now, but UA is working on having her be an exchange student on the Hero Course for next year, so she'll come back for school when we become second years." Tokoyami explained.
Koda started to blush. "Wh-What do you mean by 'more than that?'" He asked.
He smiled then looked down at the banner. "Let me ask you something, Koda. The day you and Reika talked to her over the phone, What did you imagine Keralynn to look like? Even though you had no prior knowledge of her looks." He asked as he looked at him.
Koda looks back at him before looking down at the banner again. "I imagined her…exactly as she is now, including the ears, tail, even the glasses. As for imagining her correctly, I don't know how to explain it." He replied.
He smiles at him before he stands up. "Come on. I think it's time you met her properly, face to face." He said. Koda looks at him with fear in his eyes. "Don't worry, I'll be right by your side. I guarantee that once you meet her, you'll start talking to her as if she's always been here." He smiles at him.
"You think so, Tokoyami?" He asked.
"I know it." He said.
When they head into the mansion, they hear Reika and Keralynn giggling. They see Keralynn holding Yuki in her arms as Yuki was nuzzling her cheek. "Seems that she really likes you, Kera. I've never seen her act this way before." Reika said.
"I once had a brown bunny named Cocoa when I was little but he never acted like this before. But he used to take my glasses and hide them." She said as she giggled.
Koda looked at them and smiled. "She really likes her, Tokoyami." He said, almost a whisper.
"I found him. He was finishing up his last project." Tokoyami said as he walked into the dining room. Koda hid behind the wall. "Come on, Koda. She doesn't bite."
"Unless you want her to." Reika teased. Koda blushed.
"R-Reika!" Keralynn said as a deep blush appeared on her cheeks as Reika laughed.
Hawks joined her laughing as Tokoyami chuckled. "I didn't know our new resident kitten could blush as much as Reika does!" Hawks said as he calmed down to a chuckle.
She puts her hat on, hiding her gray cat ears and looks down, hiding her eyes. "Please don't call me that." She says in a sad tone.
"She doesn't like that she's part Neko so she tries to hide her ears and tail when she doesn't want people to make fun of her." Reika said.
As Koda hears what she said, he closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. "But, I love your appearance. It's an amazing part of what makes you who you are." Koda shyly said in English, struggling only a little. He comes out of hiding and shyly looks at her. "And with the proper training, You can master your newly evolved quirk." Reika and Tokoyami both look at him with surprise on their faces. Keralynn looks at him as she blushes.
"Y-you think so?" She asked.
He nods his head yes. "I'm sure of it. As far as I can tell, your quirk only lasts for however long the lyrics you sing are. The stronger you sing, the more real your illusions become. Harness that power and use it correctly, It might even be as strong as Dark Shadow." He explained as he sat down across from her. Reika and the boys just sat at the table, listening to the both of them talk and get to know each other. Koda acts as normal as he does when he's around Class A when talking to Keralynn.
"Well would you look at that. I thought he was the shy boy that doesn't talk to new people much." Hawks said.
"We're just as surprised as you are, brother." Reika said as she smiled.
"What'd I tell you, Koda? You're not stuttering or pausing when you speak to her. You're talking to her as if it were me or Shoji. I knew the two of you would hit it off. You're practically friends with her already." Tokoyami explained.
"It would be a good idea to exchange numbers, that way the two of you can talk whenever you want. I'll be sure to send you a really cute picture of her to put on her contact information." Reika said as she smiled and wrapped her arm around Keralynn's shoulders. They both blushed a deep red hue.
"Plus the mission is going to start up soon. You might need to contact her to make sure she's safe." Tokoyami said.
"That is true but actually, Keralynn will be a part of the mission as well. The English letter I got from Gin and Tenshi that night explained something about it. This will be her test mission to see just how powerful her quirk is." Reika explained.
"Wait, you mean the mission to save the animals?" Keralynn asked as her eyes widened with fear.
"Of course! You'll do great, I'm sure of it!" Reika said excitedly.
"Hold on Rei, something's not right." Tokoyami said as she walked to Keralynn.
"Are you alright, Keralynn?" Koda asked as he gently placed his big hand on her arm.
She comes back to reality as she sees Koda and the others looking at her with a worried expression. "I'm okay. I've just, never been in a real fight before. My quirk is only good for distractions." She said in a sad tone.
"But as I said. With the proper training, you can use your quirk for not just distractions, but you can also use it for fighting. We can help you train before the mission." He said as he smiled.