Chapter Two - The Same Sun

"En route to U.A…," came the robotic voice from the front seat.

It was the third time Clay tried talking to his driver. He wasn't sure if he would've preferred an actual conversation over this. He turned his head towards the sun, a hand going through his scrappy beard. He could almost feel the weight of all his uncertainties on his shoulders.

Aren't beards frowned upon in Japan? he wondered. He's always going to look white-trashy and disheveled. Shaving's not going to fix that.

He looked at the sun again and he forced a smile. 'It's the same sun,' his mother had kept telling him. 'It's the same sun'.

Clay could see plainly why it was called the Land of the Rising Sun. It was beautiful, but his heart was still sore for home. He lifted Skipper up to see the sun. "That sure is a lot of buildings…"

"En route to U.A."

"Wasn't talking to you." He found himself annoyed by the voice. There was something intrusive about it. It grated against his ears like a dying rabbit. After seeing the absolute hell that was the airport, he'd happily forgo talking to Skipper if it meant a silent ride.

Skipper squeaked happily, the view of the skyline clearly pleasing him.

Maybe we were both due for a change of scenery, he thought to himself, taking in the sight. It was a lot, sure, but it was the same sun.

He didn't know if it was dehydration or a lack of sleep, but his head was throbbing. Sometimes, he was able to communicate with his rats without saying anything, but it was unreliable at best and nonexistent at worst. Skipper was perched on his shoulder, watching the city pass by. Clay wanted badly to express his concerns with him, but he didn't. Soon, Skipper picked up on the stress and curled up on Clay's lap, settling his nerves just enough for him to sleep.

Clay jolted awake with a rat tail being slapped against his face. His eyes snapped open, and it wasn't just Skipper on his lap. There were Alert, Robbie, Cash, and a few other rats. "Alright, alright, I'm up," he grumbled, straightening himself in his seat. "I don't recall calling you all out," he said, watching as one by one, the rats other than Skipper disappeared into a fine mist.

He brushed the sleep from his eyes, and he placed Skipper on his shoulder. He turned his head to the window, and the first thing he saw was the gate being opened for the car. Buildings— Tall. Imposing. Made of soulless concrete as opposed to wholesome wood. More windows than he could count on each one. "This ain't Kentucky," he muttered, finding his hand scratching behind Skipper's ears. "At least the sun's the same."

The robot was mercifully silent, leaving the car blessedly silent apart from Clay's breathing, the motor running, and an occasional squeak from when Skipper was petted too hard.

"Sorry," Clay said with a smirk. "How many social interactions are you gonna bail me out of?"

"En route to U.A."

"And there it is…" he whispered.

He felt Skipper tapping on his shoulder. He turned his head, seeing Skipper pointing out the window. "What's…." He raised an eyebrow. "Uh, yeah. That guy has a bird's head," he said in minor disbelief. He knew that some Quirks were obvious like that, but it was quite different to see it in person. "Don't think he'd appreciate both of us staring," he said, turning his head to the other side, where he saw the view of the U.A. campus.

He'd been told that his things were brought to his dorm room before him. He didn't have all that to bring— just his hunting clothes which he assumed would have to pass for hero clothes, a few blankets from Granny, and not much else.

The car came to a stop. Clay knew what it meant. "Alright, Skip. Let's see how good my Japanese is…"

"Arrived at U.A."

"Shut up."

He slung his backpack on his shoulder, careful not to disturb Skipper. He stepped out of the car, and he was already lost. A vast, perfectly maintained courtyard lay before him. The grass was too green, and the trees looked too good. It was like staring at a painting.

A bit too soon to be overwhelmed, he thought. He shook his head a bit and took a few slow steps forward. He heard the car that drove him here drive off. "Thanks for the ride," he grumbled, moving forward. He wasn't sure where he was going, but he knew he had to go somewhere.

"Hi! You lost?"

The voice was sweet and high-pitched. It was what Clay imagined a squirrel to sound like if they could talk. He turned to the voice, not quite prepared for what he saw.

Pink hair, pink skin, black-and-gold eyes. Something like antennae sprouting from the young woman's head. She was dressed vaguely like she was from the early 90's. It was quite the contrast to Clay's clothes. Old jeans, steel-toe boots, and a hunting jacket that was barely passable as usable.

He understood the Japanese, so that was a good sign. It was one thing to understand the language, but now he needed to speak it. "Hi. Um… Yeah. I guess I'm 1-A and I guess I'm supposed to have a dorm room ready."

The woman laughed. Clay had people laugh at him all the time, but there was something good-natured about it, so he returned the smile.

"You're the guy from the States, aren't you?"

"The States? Yeah." It seemed like his Japanese was holding up fine, though speaking it was odd. It came out so naturally it was almost like someone else was speaking for him.

"Yeah, thought so." The pink woman smiled, and Clay wasn't sure how he felt about it. "We had orientation yesterday. Guess you have a crazy-strong Quirk!"

"I donno if I'd say that…" He was petting Skipper again. "I can just make a couple rats and sometimes they listen to me."

"That sounds pretty cool! You can make, like, a whole army of them?"

"Closer to a well-behaved family… on a good day. The more I make, the less…" He looked at Skipper in his hands. "My brain doesn't work too good with the more rats I make."

"You can work on it! They kept saying in orientation that we'd be pushed to our limits. Come on, you can meet the others!"

Clay was eager to find his bed, and the thought of meeting more of his classmates didn't seem too bad either.

"Who's your friend there?"

"Skipper!" Clay said, a little louder than he meant to. "He's my main guy. He's been with me ever since I've had a Quirk," he said, looking down and gently stroking Skipper's back.

"Cool! Your Quirk comes with a friend!"

The two walked through the courtyard. Clay looked to the concrete he was walking on. It looked so clean it was almost a shame to walk on. "Hope I didn't miss much," he said, his voice a little clearer.

"Nah. It was just them telling us how hard this is going to be. I think they were trying to get someone to quit."

"Best of the best?"

She laughed. "Yeah! They said that like, ten times!" She pointed forward. "That's us."

The building before them looked much like the others, and Clay knew he'd have trouble finding it among so many that looked the same.

"Oh, I'm Ashido Mina!" she said, smiling. "In Japan, we say our family name first, so you can just call me Mina if that's easier!"

"Yeah, I wouldn't have known that," he said with a chuckle. "I'm Clayton Derreks… or Derreks Clayton around here… but my friends call me Clay."

"Nice to meet you, Clay! And you too, Skipper!" she said, reaching out a pink hand. Skipper hissed and scurried up Clay's arm, perching on his shoulder.

"Skip!" Clay snapped before turning back to Mina with a humble smile. "Sorry. He's not used to new people."

Mina laughed at this. "What a protective friend!"

"One word for it," Clay said as he continued to the dorm building.

"Hey!" a voice boomed. "You're the Yank!" The man's hair was red, and his gaze was intense.

"No… My family fought for the Confederacy."

"What?" The newcomer walked closer to Clay and Mina. "I'm Eijiro Kirishima," he said, extending a hand.

Clay shook it, feeling the respectable hardness in the man's hand. He looked to Mina. "So, I'd call him Kirishima?"

She gave another laugh, and she nodded.

Clay squeezed Kirishima's hand, and he gave him a firm nod. "Clay," he said simply. "Or Derreks Clayton…"

This caused Mina to laugh again. "Oh, here 'Yank' is just slang for Americans."

Clay nodded, giving her a thankful look. "I know people back home that'd punch you if you call them Yank… But yeah, I'm the American. I guess I'm 1-A… Don't really know what that means."

"It's our class," Mina squeaked.

"Ah," Clay said. He appraised the man in front of him. He could tell that they would be friends. There was something gung-ho about the red-haired man that he liked. "What can you do?"

Kirishima beamed a wide smile. He held out an arm, and Clay could see it turn to something that looked like stone right in front of him. Clay flicked the tip of one of his fingers, and confirming Clay's suspicions, it felt like stone as well.

Kirishima gave a proud laugh, crossing his arms and allowing his body to go soft. "Guess your Quirk's top-notch if you beat out everyone else in Japan? What can you do?"

Clay smirked at him. His energy seemed to be infectious, and Clay stood up a bit straighter. Pointing his arms just in front of him, a flood of rats came spewing out. They moved as if they were a united liquid, a thick blanket of rats pooling at his feet. Within just a few seconds, there were at least fifty rats and counting.

"Woah!" both students exclaimed.

Clay paid no mind to the frantic step backwards that they made. "C'mon boys…" he muttered, his voice slurred and a little line of drool peeking past his lips. "Show 'em…"

As if on cue, the multitude of rats stopped, an eerie silence fell upon them as they all looked up at the stunned audience. Their squeaking had stopped, and they stood perfectly still like little statues.

Clay felt lightheaded. He knew that he would forget to walk if he spawned many more, but the best way to make a friend and prove himself was to do something impressive. "Do that… tower thing…"

The rats balled up into a clump, and like a group of about a hundred cheerleaders, they stacked upon one another until they made an impressive tower.

"That's really cool!" Mina yelled. "But… are you okay?"

He swayed from side to side, his head feeling like a balloon that was just attached to his neck. "Alright boys, come on back…"

One by one, the rats disappeared into a fine mist, some of them playing amongst themselves and squeaking happily before they dissolved into nothing.

His eyes were a bit glazed over, but he could see his two stunned classmates. His mind was foggy, and he felt like someone replaced his brain with pudding. "Could you… take me to my bed?"

"Yeah, sure," Kirishima said, carefully walking to his side and putting a hand on his shoulder.

Mina held the door open for them as Clay hobbled into the building much like a toddler just learning how to walk while using Kirishima as a crutch. They were greeted with an array of inquisitive looks.

Skipper was on his shoulder, slapping Clay with his tail periodically to keep him awake. Clay's eyes scanned the room, and Skipper could tell there was a change in his posture. As Clay lifted his arm, Skipper went frantic. He skittered to the nape of his neck, repeatedly slapping his cheek, only doing it harder when he saw Clay pointing his finger. To Skipper's dismay, he saw Clay's mouth open.

"Who's the pretty frog lady?"