Beyond Responsibility

Chapter 10: Trigger Part 1

"My main man."

"My homeslice."

"He's a chum"

"A confidant."

"My broski."

"Brother from another mother."

Another bout of laughter ensued.

"So what about you, Pete? How are things going in Japan, any updates on U.A.? You promised to tell me how that exam went, remember?"

"Tons. It's been a real rollercoaster, Harry, you wouldn't believe it."

"Try me."

"Well the school year won't start for another month, but..." Peter hesitated somewhat, but he knew he was going to go through with it. If there was anyone in the world he could share this with, it was Harry. "It turns out, I... have a quirk," Peter nervously revealed.

Harry was momentarily flummoxed. "I'm sorry Pete, the connection must be breaking up a little, I thought I heard you say you had a quirk."

"That's right. Later bloomer I guess."

"B-but how? Is that even possible? You took tests, there was the whole X-ray thing. Don't you have neanderthal feet or something? That's-that's..." Harry shook his head slightly as he gathered his thoughts. "That's incredible Pete, I'm really happy for you. You deserve it more than anyone."

"Thanks Harry. It really means a lot. I'm sorry if this is all a little sudden, it's sudden for me too. I'm still trying work things all out in my head and I wanted to wait to tell you face to face, not even Aunt May knows yet. You won't tell her, will you?"

"Of course not buddy. I'm always here for you, besides, it's your story to tell. But, if you don't mind me asking, just how did this all happen?"

"Funny, that you mentioned neanderthal feet. It's not entirely unrelated. You see, Japan requires everyone living in the country to register their quirks with the government. When I told the immigration and customs office that I was quirkless, they required me to take some tests to verify it."

"Alright, but you took tests when you were a kid too, what changed?"

"They did more than just the standard X-rays you do during a routine check-up at the Dr.'s office. DNA tests, and stuff like that. Turns out, the extra joint in my pinky toe is actually because of my quirk, not because of quirklessness. So I was misdiagnosed as a kid."

"I'm not sure I follow. Even still, you should have manifested abilities by now if you've actually had a quirk this whole time, even if the tests missed it. What exactly is your quirk?"

"It's a mutant type quirk, we're calling it Simian. Basically it gives me the traits of monkeys and apes. Which is why I have monkey-like feet."

"Wait a minute... Bro! You're freaking Kong dude! You stole Kong's quirk!"

"No I'm not!" Peter did not like being compared to Flash's leather faced lackey.

"Nah man, you totally are." Harry couldn't restrain his hysterical laughter.

"At least I still look human. And I clearly got the evolved brains of a Simian, Kong's just a big oaf who plays a good defense and thinks swirlies are mesmerizing. I just got this quirk, you are not going to ruin it for me already."

"Okay, okay, I'll cut it out. Back on topic, how come you never showed signs of having a quirk before? I don't think I've ever seen you climb a tree like a monkey before."

"We have a few theories. First you gotta remember that humans are Simians too, so it's not surprising that my development was pretty normal. After all, how much difference is there between a baby human and a baby chimp? And believe it or not, while it's rare, late bloomers aren't abnormal. Some people's quirks just don't start to fully manifest until puberty."