plop*

crinklecrinklecrinkle*

"Mmm?" Uraraka hummed through a mouthful of noodles as her entire table turned to the sound of a candy bag landing on the surface, the crinkling of the plastic following as it was unwrapped. The brunette broke off the strands that weren't in her mouth and turned to the curious and interesting sight of light blue orbs plentiful inside the bag. "Hey what is that Deku? Some kinda candy?"

"Yeah, I got these a few days ago when I went to a candy store not too far from here." Midoriya informed as he discarded the golden tie around the neck of the bag. "They're little pebble things that are candy coated on the outside and they have like this yogurt, kinda cream filling on the inside. I like them."

"You know, looking at them remind me so much of somebody." Asui commented before turning to Uraraka. "Don't they?"

"Hmmm...oh yeah!" Uraraka beamed. "They're practically the same color as Hado ha! I didn't even realize that at first. Man, I miss working with Ryukyu, she's such a fun hero to work under. This time period of not being able to do legitimate hero work is making me so antsy."

"Despite my absence in the first round of Work Studies I must agree." Iida stated. "Acquiring our Provisional Licenses and sitting on the sidelines for the time being certainly has made some of us more impatient than we've realized. I can only imagine the exhilaration for you guys when exercising the increased liberty of our abilities."

"Oh it was REALLY fun, a lot more free reign compared to the internships that's for sure. When Tsu and I worked with Ryukyu she let us take control for the most part, she only stepped in when she knew she was needed or when there was something to be taught in the situation. And then-"

With his classmates focused on the story of Uraraka and Asui's experience with their draconian mentor Midoriya sighed with his right fingers fishing inside the parcel of the candy bag, pulling out a few orbs and popping them into his mouth. His gaze was focused on elsewhere in the distance as he chewed and grinded the candy yogurt spheres. The candy coating didn't have much flavor, the only attribute it contributed really was the combination of a hard shell texture with a softer gooey inside. The perfect combination of crunchy and smooth.

To this day he still doesn't consider himself a candy addict, nor does he ever think he would but it wasn't the flavor or the textures or whatever wacky trait candy brought to his life that he bothered to eat it for, it was the resemblance and coping factors that he continued to eat these spheres in the first place. And both of those factors tied to the one person that he currently stared at across the cafeteria hall, her smile still bright and beaming as if he was standing right beside her. Of course, she didn't notice him, how could she when she was happy and full of laughter with her friends that most certainly spent her time in a much better fashion than he ever would. He didn't know anything worth laughing over even if his life depended on it.

Spending time with Nejiire Hado has made Midoriya conclude that once everything is boiled down to a single sentence? He doesn't have the slightest chance of ever being together with somebody such as her. For starters he was but one out of an entire planet's worth of the male population, and within those population numbers he knows for certain there are people that would catch the spotlight of attention much easier than he could. He's short, doesn't have too distinct features that made him stand out from a crowd, wasn't charismatic or charming by any means, he wasn't anything to write home about. Though if he was he'd want to read that entire letter from top to bottom to determine what kind of methamphetamine his significant other was doing to think he was worthy of being placed in a letter.

It was humorous to him (not really) how he wanted to get Hado off of his mind so that he may spare himself the whirlpool that was a man falling hard for a woman who he knew he didn't have a chance with. But he just couldn't. Which was pathetic given that at first it was nothing more than a mere interest in the type of person that she was, not the person itself. In a little over a week it was clear to Midoriya that this interest of his for the third year had grown to something more, to something he feels stupid for having in the first place. How strange it was for a man to fall so easily, and never see the surface again.

Togata jabbed at the air with his fork while saying something that Midoriya could only figure out from lip-reading, Hado laughing with the widest grin known to U.A. Her eyes shut for a moment before they opened and absent-mindedly glanced to her left and across the cafeteria, looking for a second time and locking eye contact with the first year who was looking straight at her. She flashed a toothy grin and waved happily, Midoriya forming a nervous smile and lifting his right hand to wave back-

CLATTER*

Before hitting the bottom of his lunch tray and tipping it up one side, toppling his uncapped bottle of water on it's side as he scrambled to set it back up. From across the hall he could see Hado visibly giggle at his display of foolery, though he felt no malice or intention of ridicule directed to him before she turned back to the friends beside her. Just a simple laugh beside him as a friend. Oh, curse the gods above for throwing this gem of a third year into his life. But at the same time, bless them for it.

A part of him would want nothing more than to get to closer to Hado when it came to being friends. She said they were friends already but that was due to her overly social nature as he didn't even think they had interacted with each other enough to become friends. At least until the past Friday that was where she invited him to her weekly tradition that was candy day. He wasn't going to lie to the court when saying it wasn't fun, because in reality it was. Being able to try something new while having somebody he knows be there with him was surprisingly more pleasant than he thought it would be. Shame though knowing he lucked out in that situation because it was just her and him. He doubts the next time, if he does decide to go with, it would be just the two of them again.

But the truth of the matter was this. He could think, wish, dream all he wanted, the result would never change. His chances just weren't high enough.

-

"You may have invaded my mind and my body, but there's one thing a Saiyan always keeps! His PRIIIIIIIDE!"

"Pbbbbbt, maaaan." Haya droned with her head planted into the nest of her forearms on the desk, her eyes halfway shut from boredom and the exhaustion of Monday. Earbuds were plugged in as her phone rested against the back of Hado's seat, a generations old anime streaming through her phone. With a lazy left finger Haya reached up to the back of Hado's shoulder and tapped it. "Boreeeee-duh, boredboredbored. Yooooo, Nejire. Got any rainbow ropes?"

"Ummmm, yeah I think I have some left. Lemme see..." Hado bent over to her left where she picked up her backpack and zipped open a small pouch towards the bottom, the top of her candy bag peeking out from the compartment as she snooped around inside. "Oh yeah I got one! I got several actually."

"Double it pass it to me." Haya held out her left palm as Hado protruded two ropes of sticky candy coated with fruity flavored pebbles, handing them both over her shoulder and passing it off to her friend. "Tanks. Hey now that I remember you never did mention this when you got back, how was candy day with the four leaf clover?"

"Midoriya? Oh it was really fun! I think it was funny seeing his face when he came across something sour or that he didn't like, look like he was gonna spazz out any second hm-hm. I had a good time with him, though, the more I talk to him? The more I'm starting to see that he's kinda...weird."

"Why? He's not stealing glances or looks at you is he?"

"Nono nothing like that, he actually keeps eye contact surprisingly well enough considering what I'm about to say." Hado placed her backpack down onto the floor and shifted herself to have her legs sticking out the left side of her desk, Haya removing the earbud from her left ear and listening close. "I don't wanna sound like a meanie or anything but, all in all Midoriya seems really weird to me in terms of how he acts."

"How so?"

"I dunno it's like...It's like he says one thing, right? He says one thing but it doesn't feel like that's what he wanted to say, it's almost like he wanted to say something else. It sounds weird I know but that's the best way I could describe it. And it's not like he can't keep up with a conversation cause he has no trouble doing that whatsoever. It's just...I dunno, can't really put the boop over the snoot and figure out what it is. I wish I could though.

And he doesn't make it obvious but, whenever I'm close to him he kinda gives off these signs that make me think he's uncomfortable with me. It's several times now that I've caught him staring at me, not like in a creepy stalking kind of way but just staring at me in general. Like I'm some new species of animal that somebody's discovered for the first time ever. I know he's smart and I know that he's definitely the type of person to speak up if the situation isn't comfortable for him. He hasn't yet, but at the same time it feels like he wants to. I guess it's not him that's weird about him but rather me not being able to figure him out that makes him weird...if that makes sense."

"Nope, didn't make any sense whatsoever. And if you're worried about him being uncomfortable but he hasn't said anything then it doesn't seem like you have anything to be worried about. You said it yourself, he's a smart cookie he'd tell you."

"Yeahhhhh I know but, I dunno I just have this small sense at the back of my head that makes me feel like I make him uncomfortable. But then I wonder what exactly about me that makes him uncomfortable?"

"Hmmm..." Haya bit the end of a candy rope and flopped the rest of it like a flimsy sword. "Well if you want my honest answer, I think it might be that you're too much for him."

"Too much for him?"

"Yup. Nejire let's face it, you pack so much energy inside you that you can knock out anybody on the planet just by smiling at them, which has often made me think you've got two Quirks going on. Midoriya seems like a quiet type of person, and you definitely aren't quiet. So obviously your two personalities are going to clash at the middle and make it weird for him. But I think if you dial it down a little bit and wait for him to get used to you then you can bring back that truckload of energy that you always bring."

"Dial it down? Mmmm..." Hado scrunched her left cheek. "That sounds hard, and complicated. I didn't even notice that I would be too much for somebody in the first place so to hear that I now have to dial it down a little bit seems complicated."

"You'll figure it out. So from now on and until he gets used to you, whenever you speak to him you'll have to be a little less bouncy than normal. I'm sure he'll get used to you quickly as you guys talk and hangout more, you just have to figure out what it is you guys can do with each other to sit down somewhere and get comfortable. Sure can't be going to the candy store every day."

"I don't remember him having any hobbies, aside from one that I can think of. He likes Quirks, so much so that he writes them down into little notebooks."

"Oh look at that, a kindred Quirk nerd just like you."

BEEEEEEP*

"So now that you two have something to bond over, you can use it as a way to spend time with him and get to know him so much since that's what you're so keen on. Why are you so persistent on getting to know him better?"

Hado hummed over Haya's question, scooping up her backpack and throwing the straps over her shoulders after the last bell had rung for the day. Come to think of it she never did ponder over that question at all, it wasn't that she had a fevered interest for him such as the kind that would make her follow his every move and know exactly what he eats when he eats and how he eats it. But like Haya, she too asks herself,

Why IS she so persistent on getting to know him better?

Throughout her three years at U.A Hado has come across a very unique collection of students from all over Japan, even from different parts of the world for that matter. Some with beyond this world wacky kind of Quirks and others with personalities there could never be another one of that person in this universe. But then comes along Midoriya and every person who she's thought to be curious over seems to pale in comparison to the light that he's brought so far. Looking at him one would never guess that his Quirk was destructive and double-edged until he used in front of everybody back at the Sports Festival. She figured, if at any point, that day in particular was what got her hooked on the first year.

Ever since that day she's been "monitoring" him, mainly just keeping with the word that passed through the halls if it related to him. The first to come would be Stain, and Midoriya's run-in with the Hero Killer alongside two other students but eventually were saved by Endeavor. She'll admit, to this day she feels like the part of Endeavor capturing Stain was somehow a cover for what really happened. A student with the ability to generate fire and ice, a student with powerful engines built into his calves, and a student who was able to unleash powerful torrents of destruction weren't enough to defeat a single villain? She knows Stain wasn't somebody to joke about but still, something didn't feel right with her.

Then came the reports of the horrifying training camp invasion and how Midoriya specifically suffered overwhelming injuries to both of his arms. She remembers that the Stain incident didn't say anything about his arms or hands being injured, so hearing that he did have them injured during the training camp led to Hado deducing that whatever obstacle was in his way forced him to place an unreal amount of strain on his Quirk. Students being injured by their Quirk was one thing, but on the level of Midoriya was another thing entirely. And to think, this Quirk could've ended up in somebody else's hands. Somebody with not so altruistic intentions.

A few weeks later came the word around town about Midoriya getting into an altercation after school with a classmate of his. Being honest this one did throw Hado for a loop mainly because for all she's heard up to that point Midoriya seemed like an honest and rule-abiding student, he didn't seem to be the type that would break curfew rules and get into it with a classmate. So whatever sort of reason there was for him to get into a fight had to be one that pushed him to a certain limit. It was Bakugo that he got into the brawl with, and she remembers Midoriya informing her that they were childhood friends but with a question mark hovering over the friends portion. She wondered what that was all about.

And finally, the raid on the Shie Hassaikai compound resulting in Eri's safe recovery. She knew his Quirk was one of the strongest in the school but what she witnessed that day was something out of this world. Obliterating the significantly mutated Overhaul back into his original form with punches that were power incarnated, she's never seen anything of the like until it happened. By the end of that day every curiosity and question that revolved around him has skyrocketed into space and she wanted nothing more than to have a sit down and wring out each little detail about him that she possibly could.

There was only one issue though, she didn't know how.

As Hado descended to the primarily first year floor she wondered how this is going to work for her. Dial it down? She's never learned how to dial it down before it was always dialing it up when it came to her training with Ryukyu. Though, obviously, this isn't training with Ryukyu so of course it can't be compared. Was she really too much for somebody who wasn't used to the energy she brought? She's never noticed that. But then again that was probably due to her being so caught up in her own world of positivity she couldn't even notice.

'Dial it down huh.' Hado thought once her and Haya touched down on the second floor, the usual crowd of first years moving down the hall towards the exits. "How much exactly am I dialing it down?"

"Mmmmm, don't be so you I guess." Haya shrugged. "It sounds difficult but you got this, trust."

"Don't be so me, hmmm..."

"Look here he comes."

Midoriya strolled down the hall with hands over the straps of his backpack-

"Hey, you green haired punk."

Before he screeched to a halt mid-step and turned to his left with a confused as ever look in his eyes. His eyebrows furrowed in disbelief as he found Hado glaring at him with a brutish face. "H-Hado, senpai?"

"Yeah it's me, you got the memory of a goldfish or what?" Hado said with a deep voice. "Forget what one plus one means?"

"U-Uh-"

"Look here buddy, you're coming with me whether you like it or not. We're going to the library so I don't wanna hear your stupid chatter while we're going down there, you got that? Or is understanding something too much for that pea brain of yours to process? Test my patience see what happens, I'll beat you down so hard you'd think a vampire dropped a road roller on you. Yar yar days, you're so dumb."

BONK*

"Owwww!"

"WHAT the hell is that all about?" Haya asked after a solid smack to the back of Hado's head, the latter recoiling with hands clutching the sides of her head. "I said dial it down not become somebody who would take his lunch money."

"But, but you said for me to NOT be so me." Hado whined as her friend sighed. "Isn't that what you told me to do?"

"Yeah but you could still be YOU, just not so much. Be like the old you, when nobody spoke to you cause you were quiet and mean-looking."

"Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...oh."

"I-I'm sorry is there a place for me in all of this?" Midoriya asked as he pointed out to his right. "Or do I just?"

"No you're needed alright, Nejire here as something to ask you. PROPERLY."

"Heyyy, Midoriya. Um, do you remember how back at candy day you told me that you like to write stuff down in notebooks when it came to Quirks?" Hado asked with the first year nodding in confirmation. "Do you wanna like, talk about those notebooks? Cause I like stuff about Quirks too remember and I would really find it interesting to see what kinda stuff is in your notebook."

"Oh, y-you do? Uh sure, yeah I don't mind showing you, I suppose."

"Fun! Come on let's use the library, it's a lot quieter."

Midoriya complied as he changed direction and head for the stairs that went down to the first floor. Before Hado could move to follow him Haya gently grabbed her left arm and whispered closely. "Remember, just keep it down a little bit, he'll get used to you before you know it. And once he does I'm willing to bet he'd be the one who wants to spend more time with you."

Hado beamed as Haya released her arm and allowed the former to follow Midoriya down the flight of stairs. Keeping it down a notch, seemed simple enough, though sometimes even simple could be the most complicated thing in the world. Following Midoriya to the library was an easy and casual trek, majority of the student population having already left the building or were just about to. The library was but one of many spots that Hado's come to enjoy throughout her years at U.A, it provided that "normal" sense of high-school and a getaway from the heroic feeling that U.A constantly emanated. Not that she hated this school or anything about it, she could never, but taking a step back from hero this and hero that was good every once in a while.

The difference in volume inside the library compared to outside was such a noticeable aspect, as if a giant remote control had suddenly pressed the mute button on the school. It was towards the back area and tucked into a small pocket of the library that Midoriya was interested in, for obvious reasons of not wanting to make himself be seen to everybody else. In the furthest right corner of the library was a table shrouded by walls of bookshelves that seemed good enough for the job. "Is this fine?"

"Yeah it's perfect, I like little corners like this, it's so quiet and peaceful."

Midoriya nodded as he removed his backpack and pulled out a chair to take his seat but froze immediately when Hado pulled out the chair on his left and took her place beside him. She smiled until she saw the frozen first year, cocking her head and wondering if he had somehow been paused in real life. "Midoriya? What's wrong?"

"U-Uh, y-you're gonna sit next to me?" He gulped. "You don't wanna, sit across or, something? Not that I'm telling you to but...heh y-yeah."

"Well yeah, I kinda have to wouldn't I? So I could see the notebook better without making you move too much?"

"Uh, sure. Heh yeah good point." The first year fell like a stone onto the chair, scooting himself forward until the table touched his stomach. His backpack was brought onto the surface and opened where he reached to the very back of the main compartment and pulled out a black and white binded notebook with a pencil sticking out from the pages. He pushed the backpack away from them and cleared his throat. "S-So uh, here it is, or here's one of them at least. I've had a lot more when I was growing up but for the most part this is what they looked like. I called them 'Hero Guides'."

"Ohhhhhhhh." Hado ooh'd with a finger tracing under the title. "'Volume 15 Hero Guide.' Wowww, you have 15 of these?"

"Had, a good portion of them were either destroyed or lost, mainly destroyed but that's not relevant. Here I'll start with somebody we both know."

Hado squinted at how quickly Midoriya was to dismiss the absence of relevance to his past hero guides, the first year flipping through the pages until he stopped about halfway through with the third year brightening instantly at the sketch of a woman. "Oh hey it's Ryukyu!"

"Yeah, so pretty much with every Quirk I write down there are three things I do. First on the left side I write down a short analysis of the person's Quirk from my point of view. Then on the bottom is where I write down how it ACTUALLY works, so there's two sections for the left side. Secondly, I try to do a sketch of the person who used the Quirk and any sort of physical changes that it brought to them. Unless I'm mistaken, the only thing I know about Ryukyu that changed physically wise were her eyes and teeth, but you can correct me on that. And lastly on the right, I jot down notes on any sort of item that help the person's Quirk function properly. So for Ryukyu it would be her clothing that can change size as she changes between forms.

Some of these are straight forward, I've had a few complicated entries in the past but nothing too difficult. Oh uh here, guess you'd wanna look through it yourself."

"Thanks!" Hado took the notebook into her possession and looked over Ryukyu's entry for a moment until she began skimming through the pages. "Wowwwwww, you actually remember all this stuff?"

"If I can, there have been times where I see something and I try to remember to write it down later but by the time I get to the notebook I've already forgotten. Sucks but it happens."

"How long have you been doing these? If this is Volume 15 and you've been filling these out, these must have been going for a LONG time."

"Well yeah, I've been doing these since I was a little kid. After I was diagnosed as Quirkless, I still wanted to be a hero like All Might was but obviously without a Quirk it would be harder for me compared to others. So I tried to figure out a way that could give me the advantage the way others had the advantage over me, and I came up with this idea. I figured if I could observe and record other people's Quirks there could be some things I'd be able to pick out that would help me. Rarely has that ever worked for me but I kept it anyways. It's not that this is Volume 15 because they've all been filled out because like I said, some of them were lost others got destroyed. So I had to keep starting fresh with new notebooks. This one was started recently, at the beginning of the school year so it has all my classmates in there."

"Yeah I could see that, I think I've skimmed by all your classmates by now. You've gotten pretty good at drawing haven't you?"

"A lot better than when I was a kid yeah, and that's because I see my classmates every day so I can constantly update it whenever I have time."

From left to right Hado observed over the entries before it reached the point where the pencil had been stuck into the pages, turning the page to find a very detailed and defined sketch of herself floating in the air. Like an angel without wings or a halo. "Oh hey it's me!"

"Y-Yeah, this is your entry." Midoriya confirmed as he tried to keep his composure. "I was uh, working on it earlier that's-that's why the pencil was in the bind thing, yeah. It's not done yet so you can just move past it-"

"How come I look so detailed and better drawn compared to everybody else?"

"W-Well uh heh I-I mean y-you're an easy person to draw heh j-just a giant smiley face is pretty much enough to sketch you out Senpai. Skipitskipit-"

"Ooh what's this little note down here on the right?"

"IT'S NOTHING DON'T READ IT-"

"'Note: Easy to speak to, fun to be around, candy day was fun. Adds to why she is so likable among others aside from friendliness. Cute, cutest person ever come across to date. Very pretty. Hope to spend more time with.' Awwwwww Midoriya!"

'And my life is ruined.' Midoriya thought with his head tucked in between the clutch of his hands, his entire face turning cherry red as Hado giggled with the pencil in her grasp. 'There it goes, right down the drain. Why didn't I say no earlier? Who am I kidding, I couldn't have said no to her. I'd rather be a villain than say no to her.'

scribblescribblescribble*

"Huh?"

"'Note: Easy to speak to, super duper fun to be around, and candy day was really fun. Would want to experience more candy days with him. Smart cookie, really smart and it shows through this crafty notebook. Hope to spend A LOT more time with.' There."

"Senpai?"

"It's my note for you, hm-hm." Hado chuckled as she pushed the notebook back over to Midoriya, her handwriting etched onto the bottom right corner of a two-page spread. "This entry taking looks fun, I wanna make one of you! But I could only do that if we spend a lotta time with each other so I can know the ins and outs of your Quirk. Not just your Quirk, but as a person too, so let's have a lotta fun days with each other. 'Kay?"

Oh, curse the gods above for throwing this girl into his life. But at the same time, give them every blessing there is in the universe. Because the truth of the matter was this. Yes, he hated being around Hado because of how he acted and carried himself. Yes, he hates the feeling that she brings to him because he knows this could never bloom into something on a deep intimate level. Yes, he knows that the chances he had with somebody such as her was nothing to non-existent.

But at the same time, how could he say no? He simply couldn't. How strange, the curse of a man falling for somebody, and never seeing the surface again.