AN: Last chapter:
Chaos Theory: Haha whale dumb
Curator: Domain expansion lmao
This chapter: Fluff and character development. The mood whiplash is real.
=VI=
"Why are we even here? This isn't a rescue, this is corpse retrieval. There's no one in there to save."
- Quote by United Korea #18 Hero: Haechi during Dark Winter aftermath.
=VI=
[Aldera Middle School, March 6th 2243]
"How the hell did you do it, Deku!" Izuku's back was slammed against the wall. "How did a quirkless shit like you get into the hero course?" Dammit! He didn't believe it when the crappy Aldera Principal told him, but his mom heard it from Auntie Inko herself.
"M-most of my points were rescue points! I only got a few robots!" Izuku gulped.
"Rescue points?" Katsuki's scowl intensifies. "You got in on fucking rescue points?"
"I got a few villain points!" Izuku squeaked as Katsuki's grip around his shirt collar tightened.
"Bullshit." Katsuki declared. "Your weak ass couldn't do anything."
"I-it's true!" Izuku retorted. "And I got the rescue points with my quir-"
Katsuki slammed him into the wall again. "Don't you fucking lie to me Deku. I know you don't have a quirk." He hissed.
"It's not a lie." Izuku gulped. "It-it came in a few weeks before the exam!" Katsuki was going to find out he had a quirk sooner or later, might as well get it out of the way now.
"The fuck?" Did Deku think he was an idiot? He knew Auntie Inko got the nerd tested, the liar didn't have a fucking quirk. "You think I'm stupid Deku?!" He felt the nerd's surprisingly strong hand grab his wrist.
"L-let me go… Bakugo!" Izuku stuttered. It was faint, flickering for a split second; but a spark of green lightning flickered across his skin.
Katsuki staggered back, eyes wide. He was too stunned to react. 'No way… no fucking way!' It was unmistakably a quirk. 'H-how!?'
Izuku eyed Katsuki warily, more concerned about the accidental use of his quirk. "I- I'm going to U.A. Ka-, Bakugo." Izuku corrected himself. "I have people who believe in me, unlike… unlike you." He gulped. Katsuki was still staring in shock and not, you know, jumping to kick his ass. "You- you've been treating me like c-crap all these years, but I never gave up on my dreams. I… I don't care about your feelings anymore." Even though he was extremely nervous saying all this, God it felt good. "I can't control my power yet, but I can finally be the hero I always dreamed of." He stated with renewed fire in his eyes. With that, Izuku turned and walked away, already steading his breath.
Katsuki clenched his trembling fists, eyes twitching with fury. 'That lying bastard! Hiding his quirk all these years! Was he mocking me?' He thought, just for a second about blasting the piece of shit as he walked away. If he did that he'd get kicked out of U.A. before the year even started. Katsuki was pissed, but he wasn't stupid. 'Deku! I'll show you and your shitty quirk that I'm meant to be number one!' The blonde kicked the wall, then stormed off angrily with his hands in his pockets.
=VI=
[Eikyō Residence, January 7th 2243]
Lumine's sword clashed with the tall knight in dark plate armor, blades grinding against each other with a shower of sparks. The battle had been going on for what seemed like hours, both combatants drenched in sweat beneath their armor with bruises and scratches visible on their bodies.
"Yield!" Lumine commanded, raising her golden blade.
"Never!" The other knight snarled beneath her helmet. The other armored woman lunged, leaving herself open to a sudden slash by Lumine. "Argh!" She fell to the ground, helmet sliding off.
Lumine stuck her sword to the other woman's neck. "Yield, I won't ask again." She looked down to see Haylee's face staring back at her.
"Ah!" She winced, feeling the sword digging into her neck. "I yield…. To think I would lose to a knight as beautiful as you…"
Lumine awoke with a start. Her fantastical dream of knights and kings replaced by the soft bed she found herself in. She rolled onto her back and placed a hand on her quickly beating heart. "It was just a dream…" Lumine whispered, a blush slowly spreading across her cheeks. "Agh!" She whined, covering her eyes and rolling back and forth across her bed. This wasn't the first time she'd dreamed about Haylee since the year started. "I've got it bad, don't I…" She mumbled to no one in particular.
Why did she have to be crushing on one of her friends? She needed to talk to someone about this or she was going to explode.
God, she was such a disaster.
=VI=
[Kamisato Estate, January 7th 2243]
Lumine made her way up the stairway to the Kamisato family estate. It was a large compound by the sea, styled in classic Japanese architecture. You would mistake it for just another house if it weren't for the presence of armed guards and a helipad on one of the rooftops.
The Kamisato family was one of the three families with a heavy presence in the government. The Kamisatos were in charge of the Yashiro Commission, which was responsible for cultural events and festivals like the New Year's celebration at the Grand Narukami Shrine just a few days ago.
Kamisato Kayo was the current commissioner, while her two children Ayato and Ayaka had chosen to travel the path of the pro-hero. The elder Kamisato sibling was secretive about his hero work, probably underground. Ayaka didn't talk about what he did much.
"Halt!" One of the guards flagged her down. "ID please?"
The Kamisatos took the security of their family seriously, as their office in the government while not as practical for defense, was still considered equal to that of the Tenryou and Hero Public Safety Commissions purely because of the Yashiro Commission's role in Japan's economy.
"Eikyō… Lumine?" The guard recognized her.
"Hi Mr. Hirotatsu," Lumine waved.
"My goodness!" The muscular soldier pulled down his mask. "You've gotten so big! I remember the last time you were here, you were only up to my hips!"
"It was only a few years ago…" Lumine pouted. The older man reached down and patted her head with a hearty laugh. "Here to see Miss Kamisato, I presume? She told us she was expecting friends today."
"Yes sir." Lumine nodded.
"Well, you know where her room is. Nice seeing you Eikyō!" The man pulled his mask up and returned to his post.
Lumine walked through the compound, passing multiple employees of the family. Some she recognized, some were new faces. She nearly reached the entrance of the main house before a familiar voice stopped her.
"Ah, Lumine. Have you been doing well?" She heard Ayato ask from behind.
'He was so quiet that I didn't even hear him approach! Lumine startled. "Ayato!"
The elder Kamisato had appeared, almost out of thin air. His tank top, drenched with sweat from an intense training session- showcased the well-muscled arms of a swordsman. "My dear sister told me that you would be visiting today." Ayato wiped his forehead with the towel in his hand. "I know that you two haven't had the chance to see each other with her Hero training. I take it that you are applying to U.A. as well, correct?"
"Yep." Lumine nodded.
"Well, I do hope that you get in. I think that U.A. would be a good fit for you." Ayato complimented. "Maybe once you get your license I'll invite you for a work study. Have you been training?" He quirked an eyebrow at her arms.
"Oh, uh… yeah." Lumine scratched her head sheepishly. "I made some new friends and we've been doing a lot of sparring, swords and hand-to-hand."
Ayato nodded. "That's good. A hero should be prepared to fight without a weapon." The blue-haired man glanced at his phone. "I shouldn't keep Ayaka waiting. I jope to see you around though!" He bowed quickly and made his leave. "Oh, and good luck on the exams! I have high hopes for you!"
"Thank you!" Lumine bowed.
=VI=
"Ayaya!" Lumine greeted the younger Kamisato, using her childhood nickname.
"Lumi!" Ayaka ran over and enveloped Lumine in a hug. "It's been so long since we've been able to hang out!"
"School's probably kept you busy." Lumine giggled. "And who is this?" She pointed to a pink-haired girl lying on Ayaka's bed reading a magazine.
"Oh, I need to introduce you two!" Ayaka dragged Lumine over to the new girl. "Lumine, this is my classmate, Fuwa Mawata."
"Yo!" Mawata waved, fluffy earrings wiggling as she sat up. "Nice to meet you, you're Eikyō, right?"
"That's me!" Lumine flashed her a peace sign. "Ayaka told me a lot about you, so I'm sorry I didn't recognize you until now." It wasn't like Ayaka sent pictures very often, out of respect for people's privacy.
"Oh don't worry, you're fine," Mawata reassured her. "It's nice to finally meet one of the Ayaka's friends." The older girl bowed. "You can call me Mawata if you'd like. Any friend of Ayaka is a friend of mine!" Wow, only a few words in and already on a first-name basis. Mawata seemed like a nice girl.
They started getting to know each other, mostly just Ayaka and Mawata catching Lumine up to speed on what they'd been up to. Mawata was the class representative of 1-A, with Ayaka assuming the role of vice-rep due to her family duties. As the only two members of class 1-A at the time (which they refused to elaborate on why) they had been forced to assume those roles. Even though their class was mostly refilled following the sports festival, their new(?) classmates hadn't had an issue with the two of them remaining in their positions.
Finally, though, the conversation turned to Lumine. "Well, I met some new friends and we've been training for U.A. together…"
"They're new, right? Not Tokage and Monoma?" Ayaka asked.
"Yeah, the first one I met when she quite literally ran into me. Busted her lip real bad too. The other guy is her friend." Lumine explained. "Here, I have a photo," She pulled her phone from her pocket and pulled up a picture of Haylee, Setsuna, Izuku, and Lumine all standing together in their kimonos. "The blue and green-haired ones. That's Midoriya, and the other is Tenno."
"Tenno? Like the empress?" Mawata chimed in.
"No, she's not Japanese." Lumine corrected. "Actually I… never mind." Haylee never actually said where she was from, did she? "But uh," A faint blush spread across her face. "She's been training Midoriya and I to fight. Tenno's an amazing fighter, and Midoriya works so hard…"
"Lumine," Ayaka leaned in closer, the faint beginnings of a playful smile on her face, having noticed the blonde getting increasingly flustered. "You don't happen to have a crush on one of them, do you?"
"Eep!" Lumine dived to the other side of Ayaka's absurdly large bed (seriously, it was half the size of Lumine's room) and pulled a pillow to her chest. "Was it that obvious?" Her muffled voice groaned through the cloth.
Ayaka giggled. "Yes, because you had the same look on your face that Mawata does whenever she sees that boy from the support course."
Mawata squealed, face turning pinker than her hair, and fell off the bed with a thud. A large fluffy cloud of cottony material poofed out around her. "Ayaka, you jerk!" Mawata popped her head out of the meter-tall pile of stuffing. "It's not like that!" She bullshitted, steam coming from her ears like a tea kettle.
"Oh my, it seems I'm onto something then." Ayaka hid her face behind a suddenly produced fan and appeared next to Lumine in a blast of frigid air. "Is that why you wanted to come and talk to me today?" Gone was the facade of an elegant lady Ayaka put on around everyone. "It's just us girls here, talking about our crushes is what we do." The faintest bit of sadness flickered across her face, but Ayaka dismissed the feeling. If anyone missed Aether more than she, it was Lumine. "So who is it? Midoriya? Tenno? Both?"
Mawata slowly sat down next to them, at ease since she wasn't the object of Ayaka's teasing.
"I uh- well you see,…" Lumine stammered, the tips of her ears burning with embarrassment. "T-they're both really cute, but Tenno is…" The blonde hid her face, opening her hand just a bit to see Ayaka's reassuring but mischievous face through her fingers. "Tenno is pretty, she's a bit prickly but nice once you get to know her, and her sword skills…"
Ayaka placed a hand on Lumine's letting the chill of her quick seep over her body to cool her off. "So you have a crush on her then?"
"Yeah!" Lumine wailed. "I do, she's just… I don't know how to describe it!" She hugged the pillow tighter, feeling slightly at ease thanks to Ayaka's quirk.
"Oh, she's got it real bad," Mawata said. "Look at how she's blushing!"
"Almost as bad as you are with Hakozaki." Ayaka poked a little fun at her classmate.
"Shut!" Mawata forcibly clamped Ayaka's jaw shut, tackling her onto the bed. "So, what do you- umf- like the most about her?" She asked while wrestling Ayaka.
"I uh, I really like her swordsmanship. Is that weird?" Lumine tugged at her shirt sleeve.
"Not real- AYAKA!" Mawata shrieked. "Did you just lick my hand!"
Ayaka popped back up while Mawata wiped her fingers on the bed. "I don't think it's that odd. You don't have to find someone's physical features attractive to like them. It certainly isn't the strangest thing that you could be attracted to."
Lumine's face turned to an even darker shade of red. Yes, Haylee's sword skills. That was clearly what she was imagining right now and nothing else.
"I don't think that's what she's thinking about right now." Mawata snorted, causing Lumine to bury herself under the mountain of pillows and leaving only the flower in her hair sticking out.
"Ayaya~ Mawata is bullying me!" Lumine shed crocodile tears beneath the pillows.
"Oh, don't worry, we'll get to her little crush once we're done with you," Ayaka assured, causing her class president to let out a small mouse-like squeak. "So, Lumine, have you thought about confessing to her?"
Lumine poked her head out from the pillow pile like a turtle, instead of the bisexual disaster that she was. "I mean, a little but…"
"But what?" Ayaka and Mawata leaned in.
"Well, I don't know if she likes girls." Lumine tapped her fingers together anxiously. "She's been friends with Midoriya longer than me, and we have the exams coming up next month. I don't want to ruin any friendships close to something so important."
"So ask her after the exams then," Fuwa stated the obvious answer.
"I agree. The U.A. exams are already stressful enough without worrying about your friendships." Ayaka concurred.
"And what about Midoriya? I've seen the way he looks at her… I think he likes Tenno too." They were on a first-name basis, and they spent most of their free time training or hanging out together. "And I uh, don't know how exactly I would go about confessing to her."
Ayaka's shoulders slumped. "I'm stumped on the second part, as I've only been confessed to, not the other way around. As for the first part, I will offer my advice based on my own experience." She suddenly found both Lumine and Mawata prostrating themselves in front of her.
"Yes, sensei!" They both exclaimed while kneeling like knights swearing themselves to royalty.
"Eh?" Ayaka sweatdropped, before clearing her throat. "Alright Lumine, the first thing you need to consider is your concern over your friends' feelings! You don't want to hurt Tenno or Midoriya's feelings if you wish to remain friends with them both. With that in mind, there are several things you must know!"
"Hai!" Lumine saluted, imagining herself in the uniform of a fresh army recruit.
"Firstly, your friendship with Midoriya should be considered. If you think he will be competing for the heart of the girl you like, perhaps you should discuss your feelings with him to make your intentions clear and dispose of any possible misunderstandings!" Ayaka instructed "Which brings me to my second point, depending on how how Midoriya responds. If he does intend to pursue Tenno romantically, remember that she is not some 'prize' to be won. She's a person with her own feelings that need to be considered." The pale blue-haired girl continued. "Courting her shouldn't be a competition-"
"Courting? What are you, an 1800s noblewoman?" Mawata snickered, making fun of Ayaka's fancy language. This earned her a quick bop to the head with Ayaka's folded hand fan. "Owie!"
"And lastly, if you are unsure of her feelings you should test the waters with her. Flirt a little bit to see how she responds. Or, if you feel comfortable enough, you could introduce it as a casual conversation between girls about their preferences, like we are doing now."
'If I asked her directly what her preference is, I'll probably fall all over my words…' Lumine thought. "Flirting it is, then." She said quickly, trying not to think too hard about it.
"Good, we've got that settled then." Ayaka smiled. "Now, onto you, Mawa~"
"Nooooooo!" Mawata wailed, causing both the other girls to collapse with laughter.
=VI=
It was getting late by the time Lumine was prepared to leave. Mawata had departed shortly before her, leaving Lumine alone with Ayaka. She'd accepted the invitation to spend the night since she would be cutting it extremely close taking the train back home.
Ayaka lent her an extra set of pajamas, the silky rich people kind. Since they would be sharing the same bed, Lumine didn't feel comfortable sleeping in her underwear, especially considering this was her brother's girlfriend, missing or not.
"This was a nice break from all the work we've been doing at school." Ayaka slipped under the covers half a meter away from Lumine.
"Have you been stressed out?"
Ayaka sighed, eyes meeting Lumine's. "A little. Final exams are approaching. In a few months, I'll be a second year, so I'll have to worry about the provisional exams next September."
"I'm sure you'll do fine. You're the vice president of your class, and you won the first year's sports festival after all. I'm sure you won't have a problem!" Lumine tried to comfort her friend.
"I know, it's just that I have so many expectations placed on me by my brother and my parents… Ayato wants me to work with him when I get my license and eventually succeed him." Ayaka gulped, hands trembling. "As the Kamisato clan heiress, I have a role to fulfil. It's been my family's duty to serve Japan for generations, and I cannot let it stop with me." Her voice was shaky. This was the first time that Lumine had seen Ayaka so… vulnerable.
"Ayato asked me if I wanted to do a work study with him when I got my license too," Lumine noted. "We could work together!"
Ayaka's expression darkened. "No… I don't think Ayato would be a good fit for you. The work he does is incredibly dangerous."
"Isn't all hero work dangerous? Besides, you'll be there."
"Lumi, please." Ayaka pleaded. "I've been raised to do this, you haven't. Just drop it, okay?"
Lumine blinked, seeing how desperate Ayaka was for her to stay out of it. "Oh… alright. I won't do it if you insist." She reached across the bed and took Ayaka's hand. "But still, this year I might be at U.A. with you! Then I can do my best to support my senpai!"
"It feels odd when you call me that." Ayaka blushed, her worries slowly being forgotten.
"Ayaya-senpai?"
"No." Ayaka giggled.
"Aya-senpai?" Lumine teased.
"Stoooop!" Ayaka groaned.
Lumine was silent for a bit, eyes fluttering as she grew drowsier. "Ayaya, are you still awake?"
"Yes?" She yawned.
"Did I upset you, talking about my crush?" Lumine mumbled, half-asleep and probably not realizing what she was saying.
"Oh… no. It's fine." Ayaka rolled over, avoiding looking at Lumine. "I miss Aether, but you're my dear childhood friend. Your happiness is important too."
Lumine didn't respond, having already fallen asleep before Ayaka finished.
Ayaka rolled back over quietly, stealing a look at Lumine's drooling face. It reminded her so much of him. She stifled a sniffle, reaching out to caress Lumine's face. Her hand faltered centimeters away. Lumine looked just like him, and it was a lie to say seeing her didn't hurt.
'Aether… where are you?' Ayaka thought, hand falling to the sheets as the darkness overtook her.
=VI=
[Tau Residence, January 7th 2243]
Izuku took a deep breath as he knocked on the door. This was his first time going over to someone's house in a very long time, especially a girl's.
During yesterday's encounter with Katsuki, he'd almost used One For All again. It was faint, but it happened and it didn't hurt to use.
The door opened, and four glowing eyes looked down on him. The piercing glare… of the Destroyer of Worlds.
"What do you want, boy?" Hunhow grumbled, sending a shiver down Izuku's spine.
Hunhow was terrifying, not because of his heteromorphic appearance, but because Izuku knew exactly who he was just how overwhelmingly powerful the man was. Izuku gulped. "I-I was wondering if Haylee was here right now? I wanted to talk to her." He stuttered fearfully.
Hunhow stared at the boy, unblinking. "The Tenno is here. Could you not just call her?"
"It's not something that should be discussed over the phone," Izuku replied, sweat beginning to drip from his forehead.
Hunhow glared at the boy, clearly contemplating whether he should just shut the door in his face. However, if he did that the Midoriya boy would just call Haylee and she would make Hunhow let him in any way, plus she would get into an argument with him. With a sigh, he opened the door. "She is upstairs. I do not know if she is sleeping in, and I do not care." Hunhow eyed Izuku with contempt, with the same look of someone seeing a rat in their house. Probably. It was hard to tell with how inexpressive his face was.
"Uhm…" Izuku shifted awkwardly, leaving his shoes at the door. "So do I just go up there, or wait for her down here?"
"I personally don't care what you decide to do so long as it does not involve me." Hunhow huffed. "The girl and I do not like each other, so I will not get her for you if that is what you are asking."
"S-sure…" Izuku stammered. "I'll just- get going then!" The green-haired boy scrambled up the stairs.
Hunhow stared at the fleeing boy for a few seconds, before returning to his chair. Dealing with humans was exhausting. Having more of them, aside from those that Natah considered friends was irritating. At least the boy was polite.
=VI=
Izuku knocked on the door to Haylee's room. He'd read enough manga to know better than to enter a girl's room without announcing yourself. "Haylee? Are you there?"
Haylee rolled over in her sheets. Fuck, it was this late in the morning already? "Izuku?"
"Yeah. Mr. Tau let me in." He replied through the door. "Is it alright if I come in?"
Haylee looked down. "Uh, can you give me a second? I'm not exactly decent."
Izuku blushed as he heard Haylee scramble out of bed, trying not to let his mind wander. The door opened with a creak a minute later, revealing Haylee with disheveled bed-head. "Yeah?"
"Uhm, your shirt is on backward." Izuku pointed out.
"Dammit…" Her arms popped back into her shirt as she spun it around. "There." Haylee blew one of her bangs out of her face. "Sorry, uh- what's up dude?"
"I uh, wanted to talk about my quirk," Izuku said anxiously. "You've been helpful in the past and Toshinori is busy today. I wanted some advice if you think you can h-help."
"Sure, come on in." Haylee opened up the door and ushered him inside, closing it behind him. "Welcome to my personal quarters, aka my bedroom." She waved her arms in a faux grandiose way as if revealing a brand-new car on a game show.
The room was fitting to what he knew about Haylee's personality. It wasn't very girly, the walls bearing the same color as her shirts and nothing else. The most effeminate thing in the room was the myriad of stuffed animals scattered around the beanbag chair in the corner. On the walls were several carved models of what looked like spaceships and robots, and a few people in futuristic suits. Also, the stuffed animals all had an alien sort of look to them.
"You can sit wherever." Haylee hopped onto her bed, kicking some dirty clothes into the corner.
"Oh, uh… sure." Izuku sunk into the beanbag chair, a stuffed animal falling into his lap. "Did you make all these?"
"Yeah, I don't do much else besides study or hang out with you and the others. I have a lot of free time." Haylee shrugged. "It reminds me of home."
"What's this one?" Izuku held up a black spiky stuffed animal.
"That one's a bolarola. They were cute little spikey things that curled up into balls to escape from threats. I think the closest thing here would be a pangolin?" Haylee guessed.
"Cool…" Izuku decided to keep holding the animal plushie. It was surprisingly soft. "So, I wanted to ask you about my quirk."
"You still struggling to control it?"
"Yeah… but yesterday I kinda activated it on accident," Haylee's eyes widened in alarm. "But I didn't hurt myself!" Izuku hastily corrected.
"Oh." Haylee nodded. "Well, that's good. I woulda been pissed if you hurt yourself again." She huffed, crossing her arms over her chest.
"I want to be able to control One For All, even just a little bit. Everyone else has had their quirks their entire lives," He stopped, looking at Haylee. "Well, almost everyone, but your powers work the same. I'm super far behind…" Izuku stared down at his hand, clenching and unclenching it.
"It kind of reminds me of my powers, but mine were dangerous to others, not myself." Haylee avoided Izuku's gaze guiltily. "It took years to learn to control them, which you don't really have." She flopped down onto her stomach, head tilted to look at Izuku. "I guess I'm just lucky that my powers are mostly the same, aside from the weird Warframe thing." Void energy crackled at her fingertips on one hand, the other turning to Excalibur's adult-sized one.
"Do you know why that's your quirk?" Izuku asked curiously. According to Haylee, Excalibur should be the body of a former soldier she inhabited.
"I don't know. I wasn't even using Excalibur when this happened. Umbra was back guarding my ship I think."
'Odd…' Izuku thought. "What were you using?"
"It was a Warframe called Inaros. Super tough and could heal itself, good crowd control too." Haylee explained. "Maybe it was because Umbra had a bond with me? He's the only one that wasn't a mass production model or Prime…" She frowned, remembering how her Rhino Prime had snapped the Stalker's blade in half unprompted. "I'm not sure. I don't even know if my body is the same because you don't exactly have the equipment to measure that kind of stuff here. That doesn't really help in your case though…" Haylee put a hand to her chin. "What does it feel like when you use One For All?"
Izuku leaned back in the beanbag. "I've only really used it twice, three times technically… It feels like my arms are filled with electricity, I guess?" He tried to recall the feeling. "It's like when you're watering a plant with a bucket, and instead of letting some of it out it all splashes down?"
"That's an interesting comparison." Haylee snorted.
"Toshinori said that I should imagine it like an egg in the microwave. That's how One For All feels like I'm cooking the egg too much." Izuku explained.
Haylee's stomach grumbled at the mention of eggs.
"How does it feel when you use your Void powers?" Izuku asked.
"Well, I kind of just point by hand at whatever I want to blast and focus my emotions, and then it's just like BANG SHOOWM! VWOOM!" Haylee waved her hands around wildly, leaving Izuku blank-faced at her explanation.
'That was… really bad.' Izuku sweatdropped, thinking back to when he first told him what to do. That advice was much more helpful. Breathe. Focus. Punch. The first time he did that he shattered his arm. During the entrance exam, he used it to save that nice girl and it felt slightly different, as if on instinct. The same with Katsuki yesterday, where it fired off due to his stress, if only for a moment. "So if I want to control it, I need to reduce the amount of power I put out?"
"That's what it sounds like. I'm not sure how much help I'll be though, because my body was made of Void energy so it was kinda just a part of me… why are you staring at me like that?" Haylee noticed Izuku staring at her with a dumbstruck look on his face.
"Haylee, you're a genius!" Izuku exclaimed.
"Wait, what? What did I do?" Haylee shot up, wide-eyed
"I'm not the egg, I'm the microwave!" Izuku jittered with excitement.
"What?"
"Your- your body, it's made of Void energy, right?" Izuku ran over and grabbed her shoulders.
Haylee jerked back. "Uh, well, I'm not sure if it is now though."
"So that means you always had your power on!" It all made sense now. When All Might transformed he was using One For All in his whole body, not just his arms. Instead of jamming all the energy into one limb he was channeling it throughout his whole body! "I just need to have One For All on all parts of my body at once!" In his excitement, he focused and glowing veins began to appear.
"Idiot!" Haylee smacked him over the head, stunning him before he could activate the quirk. "Not in the fucking house you moron! I don't want you breaking my shit if you're wrong!"
"Owww…" Izuku rubbed his head. "Sorry." He squeaked sheepishly.
=VI=
[Takoba Municipal Beach Park]
"Alright, are you ready?" Izuku yelled.
"Why did I agree to come out with you two?" Hunhow questioned.
"Because we need an adult in case something goes wrong, and you said, in your own words, that it would be entertaining if Izuku blew himself up?" Haylee glared at Hunhow.
"If he dies, I accept no blame." Hunhow huffed. Sitting down on the bench and trying his best to ignore the two teens.
"Whatever." Haylee flipped him off. "Alright, go ahead Izuku!"
Izuku took a deep breath, imagining the One For All spreading throughout his body. Red glowing veins appeared and green lightning sparked off his skin. The sand beneath his feet trembled as the power began to circulate. 'One percent. That's all I need. Channel the lowest possible percent of power.' Izuku repeated to himself.
=VI=
"Oh shit, he's doing it!" Yoichi cheered. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Ninth's unconscious body in to his right, glowing with arcs of One For All's power surrounding him.
"First, why is he doing that?" Bruce glanced worriedly at the boy, who was inside the vestige realm still despite not being dead.
"I dunno. This hasn't happened before." Yoichi stepped out of his chair and walked over to Ninth. "He just sits there sleeping. Eighth's vestige at least does something." He pointed over to Toshinori's vestige, who was watching Ninth on the viewing screen with what he assumed was pride. It was hard to tell because the only facial features Eighth had was his eyes.
"Friggin creepy. We're supposed to be haunting him, not the other way around." Banjo shivered.
"It seems like he's getting a handle on it this time," Nana noted, then shook her head. "And once again, Toshinori isn't the one teaching him."
"I'm more worried about the boy hurting himself again," Hikage said, twiddling his fingers anxiously. "But danger sense isn't going off, so it looks like you are right, Seventh."
=VI=
"It's working!" Izuku yelled gleefully. He took a slow step forward, careful to not move too quickly. 'Breathe in, breathe out. One for all is like the blood in my veins. It's natural.' Carefully, Izuku walked a few more steps before deactivating the quirk.
"You did it!" Haylee cheered, bouncing on her toes with excitement. She ran over to Izuku and gave him a big hug, his face flushing almost as red as Hunhow's skin.
"Seeing as you're not dead, can I go home now?" The aforementioned man asked. He narrowed his top set of eyes. The boy's power… it was the same as All Might's. Whatever. He didn't care enough to look into that further.
Still holding Izuku, Haylee glanced over her shoulder. "Yeah, whatever old man. We're done experimenting."
Hunhow didn't respond, already walking away after the first word.
"H-haylee? Can you let go?" Izuku sputtered.
"Huh? Oh. Sorry, was I holding you too tight?" Haylee asked, blissfully oblivious. "You did it!"
"Yeah… and It's thanks to you!" Izuku wobbled, his body the slightest bit sore from using One For All.
"I know, I'm the greatest, aren't I?" Haylee puffed her chest up smugly. "As thanks, you should buy me some food, seeing as I've skipped breakfast and lunch now." She grabbed his wrist and pulled him across the sand. "C'mon, I want chocolate!"
"You need to eat more than that!" Izuku cried out.
"I want chocolate!"
"Hayleeeeeeee!"
Izuku's wallet was emptied by the time they finished.
=VI=
Go go gadget character expansion.
Only a few more chapters before things kick off!
Next chapter: Natah and Ordan vs the HPSC.
After that, a special chapter, then U.A day one!
