Firework | A Tragic Tale of Two Siblings

38 | So It Begins

"...And that's what happened."

Sachi accompanied Izuku and his friends through the crowded halls of U.A. Monday afternoon, currently en route to the Grand Mess Hall for lunch. The green-haired boy had his chin pinched between his thumb and forefinger, deep in thought. Iida and Ururaka were conversing normally, unaware of the hushed exchange the two friends were having.

"All Might gave me the minor details yesterday while we were training, but I didn't know it was that bad." A bead of sweat trickled down his temple and he gulped visibly, his eyes narrowing at the thought of King and his potential involvement with the League of Villains. "Is there anything I can do to help?" Izuku asked, looking at Sachi with a faux expression of curiosity. All Might must've told him to act as if nothing was going, and Sachi was more than grateful that Izuku was willing to try his hardest to have some sort of role in the current situation.

Sachi gave him a false grin and nodded. "Just stay by my side and be on the lookout for any suspicious activity. Bees included."

Izuku gave a dry laugh that hid a paranoid tremble in his voice, "All Might did say I was the best choice in guarding you outside of home and school."

"Speaking of being guarded..." Sachi whispered, twitching the side of her mouth to indicate where to look. Izuku glanced in the direction Sachi subtly pointed to and spotted Professor Snipe walking the opposite direction in the hall. He tipped his hat in greeting as he passed; not long after he disappeared from view, Professor Ectoplasm came around the corner and spoke with some of the upper-classmen.

"You're being watched on all sides," Izuku inspected, his voice lowering to a determined mumble. "If U.A. teachers were to crowd you then the efforts of finding the enemy would be fruitless, and if they were scarce you'd be substantially more in danger. All Might was right, I am your best bet at protecting you at a moment's notice."

"Despite the devastating odds, are you truly willing to be my shield, Izzy?" Sachi asked, giving Izuku a raised eyebrow, her red eyes portraying her fear. Izuku caught the emotion immediately and softly took hold of her gloved hand, squeezing it gently.

"I've always been your shield, Chi-chan."

Genuine smiles grew on their faces as they passed Ectoplasm, rounding the corner and down the flights of stairs towards the cafeteria. Sometime during their walk, Ururaka noticed the way Izuku and Sachi were acting and decided to question them.

"H-Hey you two! What are you guys talking about?" she asked, her curious smile was stiff at the corners. She glanced between them with round eyes but was primarily looking at Sachi. The blonde girl could spot the jealously from a mile away.

Iida leaned forward with a raised eyebrow, making chopping motions with his hands. "You two have been quiet since we've left the classroom. I hope we're not intruding on anything private, are we?"

The blonde girl pursed her lips and answered smoothly. "Just hero stuff. The benefits of being a hero, what agency is getting the most exposure right now, which new heroes are going to have a bigger name, and so on." Sachi held back a heavy sigh of relief that she lied successfully. She was never a good liar.

Her lie fooled Iida and Ururaka, though. The brunette girl grinned widely and Iida went into a full tangent on which agency is getting the most exposure with their statistics and hero work. Izuku then entered an argument with Iida, talking over Ururaka's shoulder as he spouted out facts about whatever agency Iida was talking about. Ururaka moved to Sachi's side when the argument got more heated.

The Grand Mess Hall was as loud as ever. The many tables had students of different years mingling and eating without a care in the world. Cementoss, Thirteen, and Vlad King patrolled the outskirts of the large cafeteria, chatting with students or just trying to find someplace convenient to sit. Sachi wondered if having three teachers spaced out like this was anything but obvious, but the young girl cleared her throat and stood alongside Ururaka in the lunch lines, the two arguing boys behind them.

"You know that staff members are allowed to cut, right?" Ururaka questioned softly, digging for her wallet.

"Yes, I know. They can also get food for free if they have a pass. I'm a special case, but I don't mind waiting with the rest of the students." Sachi replied curtly, an unexpected edge in her voice. Just then, the student in front of them moved away with a tray full of food and Sachi stepped up and requested her order.

"Why of course, Miss Cherry Bomb! It's been a while since you last visited me, so your meal will be special!" Lunch-Rush gave an optimistic thumbs-up, making wonders with his quirk.

"Wow! You basically know everybody at U.A.! That's so cool!" Ururaka awed, gripping her small wallet with her soft hands.

Sachi thanked Lunch-Rush for giving her meal after a short time and glanced at Ururaka. "Of course. U.A. is like family to me. I thought you would've figured that out already."

Ururaka's countenance fell as she paid for her meal. "That was rude," she mumbled. Sachi caught the hurt in her friend's voice and she felt guilty.

"I'm sorry. I-I don't know what's gotten into me lately. Please don't take my insolence the wrong way." Sachi heartfeltly apologized, partially telling the truth. Ururaka picked up her tray and searched Sachi's face, noting the young girl's body language. Straight shoulders, tight knuckles, stiff spine, Ururaka smiled softly at Sachi and gently bumped her hip against hers.

"It's alright. I get that you're stressed about– well . . . everything. If you ever need to vent, I'm just a phone call away!" Ururaka gave a reassuring thumbs up with Sachi and the two girls strolled to a table that was somewhat empty, save for some 1-A students who had waved them over. Sachi took a seat between her brunette friend and Todoroki, taking small bites of her ramen and exchanged chatter between her students. As Izuku and Iida finally arrived at the table and sat across from her, Todoroki was speaking with Sachi about how she was feeling and what were the results of Friday's practical.

"Izzy managed to snatch the tag in the end," Sachi answered the stoic boy's many questions. "And everything afterward turned out okay. I didn't suffer much of anything thanks to the quirk-numbing serum that's been provided and I was able to recover quickly."

"Wait hold up. So does that mean that we get to have those lectures you promised?" Ashido barged in, her black eyes were round and hopeful. Sachi simply nodded and Ashido, along with the other 1-A students, celebrated their victory.

"What about the cameras?" Todoroki asked, dismissing the cheer of the lunch table. "Have the teachers found out what's been following you?"

Sachi gulped. She actually didn't think anybody would remember the underlying objective of the practical. The blonde girl shot a quick glance at Izzy, who had his green eyes trained on something in the distance, his hand slowly setting down his chopsticks.

"A-Actually," Sachi started, unable to hold back her stutter from the piercing eyes of Todoroki, "y-you see, the thing is, I don't think they've–"

     SLAP!!

The entire table jumped at the sudden crack, even some students in the surrounding area turned toward the sound. Sachi, as well as the other girls at the table, let out a squeal of surprise, a hand placed over her chest from the shock. Izuku was halfway over the lunch table with his hands tightly clasped together above Sachi's head. A bead of sweat rolled down his cheek from his concentration, his complexion turned pink and he began to sweat bullets when he realized how embarrassing the situation was.

"U-U-Uh! S-Sorry, guys! I just– uh, caught a bee! Th-That was...um, flying...over...u-us... yeah..." Izuku gave an awkward laugh as he visibly crumbled in his seat from his classmates' confused stares, still firmly pressing his hands together as he fingered a napkin next to his tray. Sachi swallowed thickly, her gourmet meal wasn't as appetizing as it was earlier.

The table sat in silence, watching the green-haired boy wipe his calloused hands clean of the remnants of the bee that was mercilessly crushed. His freckled cheeks were burning now and Sachi's heart raced. Ururaka placed a calm hand on her bicep in an attempt to calm the poor girl.

     Todoroki and Iida rounded on their friend for causing the disturbance and Izuku apologized repeatedly, crushing the napkin tightly in one of his fists. Sachi's thin hands held onto the edges of her skirt with a white-knuckled grip, the subtle ache in her fingers allowed her to focus on her breathing and remain calm. She glanced around the cafeteria and spotted the three teachers all looking in her direction. She gulped, and stiffly exhaled.