Her Own Academia [MHA/BNHA]

II

Almost everyday after school, Hikari and Ochako would rush to their respective homes and meet up at the Uraraka Construction Site, where they trained for hours on end. This practice, though, was the last one; the exam was the following day.

"RELEASE!"

A rain of debris fell from the sky, shaking the earth as it hit. Clouds of dirt swirled around Ochako as she breathed in and out, her breath labored.

Hikari, at a safe distance from her, opened one eye and called out, "How much was that?"

"Th-Three tons, I think," Ochako answered carefully, doing her best to suppress the urge to hurl her lunch.

"That's great, keep it up!"

With a weak thumbs up, Ochako returned to touching as many junk parts as possible in order to make them weightless. By forcing herself to exceed her limits, she would be able to carry more weight if a situation called for it.

Hikari, on the other hand, had begun meditating under the sun as much as possible. She had to let sunlight enter her skin in order to use her quirk much like a solar panel. Of course, this meant lots and lots of sunscreen.

After a few minutes, she rose to her feet and faced a heap of scrap metal. A shield, golden yellow with intricate designs, manifested over her wrist. Hikari ran a few paces and launched the shield like a frisbee. It successfully sliced through the rubble.

"Yes!" she cheered. It had taken her weeks to perfect the move. At first, her shields could barely make a dent into the metal. Now, she was sure that the shields could do some serious damage if she allowed it.

Hikari continued to throw shields onto the pile of metal until there was nothing left. Sweat covered her brow as she breathed heavily, her body exhausted beyond belief.

"Hey girls, how's training going?" Ochako's father asked, two water bottles in his hands.

"Great, thanks dad!" Ochako thanked as she gratefully accepted the water.

"I'll say," agreed Hikari as she drank, "Thanks for letting us use this site as a place to train."

"Ah, it's no problem at all." The man ran a hand through his hand. "Like it's been any use as of late."

Hikari's eyebrow quirked upwards, curiosity piqued. Ochako rapidly waved a hand and blurted, "Anyway's, Hikari, let's call it a day, why don't we?"

A grin grew on Hikari's face. "Not before we spar for one last time."

"It's on!"

//

"I'm home!" Hikari called out as she stepped into her apartment. She sighed as she peeled off her shoes and placed them near the doorway. She felt like she could pass out until--

"Hiichan's here! Hiichan's here!" a voice cried out with glee. It was none other than Maru Hinata, Hikari's baby sister. She was only six and attending primary school. Although many of her classmates' quirks had already manifested, Maru had yet to show any signs of a quirk. Hikari opened her arms wide and let Maru collide into her arms.

"Jeez, Hikari, where have you been? Dinner was an hour ago." And that was the voice of her younger cousin, Ichiro Hinata, a soon-to-be first-year in middle school who was clever and wise beyond his years. He stood over her, hands on his hips.

Hikari blew a raspberry at him. "Well, sorry, Ichiro, some of us are busy training to become heroes."

"You're not even in U.A yet, don't get your hopes up."

"Why, you little--"

Hikari, fired up with newfound energy, let go of Maru and tackled her cousin to the ground, wrestling him into a headlock. "Take that back! Take that back, you little dweeb!" she commanded him.

"N-Never!"

"Hey, hey, what's all the fuss about?" barked a voice, belonging to Hikari's aunt Chika Hinata, a single woman that worked a 9-to-5 office job. With an honest tongue and a quick brain, she was no one to be messed around with.

Hikari released him from the chokehold and rose to her feet. "Ah, sorry auntie, just wrestling your kid. He thinks that I can't get into U.A."

"I never said that! I just said to not get your hopes up, you barbarian," Ichiro corrected, fixing his hair into its proper position.

Chika shook her head and karate-chopped her son's head. "Oi, don't say that, you downer! We have to support Hikari's dream in every way we can, and that means encouraging her now while she's training!"

"Yeah, yeah, I got it," he grumbled, annoyed that he had to fix his hair once again.

The woman shifted her attention to her niece and asked, "So how was training today?"

"Great! I can carry more sunlight and my shields can really do some damage now!" Hikari said excitedly as she punched the air. "I hope that'll be enough for tomorrow."

"And I know you'll do great, sweetie," another voice joined in. It was Hikari's father, Mamoru Hinata. His tall, stocky figure rounded the corner, a kind smile on his face. A man in his late thirties, he had short, wavy teal hair pulled back by a simple headband. Despite his figure, he worked as a secretary at the International Hero Agency, where he was kept in constant contact with heroes from all around the world.

Mamoru adjusted his glasses and picked up Maru, who giggled with delight. "You'll take that test and finally become a hero... just like her," he said in a near-whisper.

The air had gotten tense with his statement, and understandably so. It wasn't long after Maru was born that Hikari's mother, Mitsuko Hinata, a pro hero, had gone missing under mysterious circumstances and was declared dead after her body had been found a few months later. It left a hole not only in the hero community, but in Hikari's home life as well. Mamoru grieved deeply for his wife, becoming clinically depressed as his life spiralled out of control. Hikari was only eleven when it happened, but she understood the impact it left on herself and her father, leaving her and her aunt to raise Maru on their own. She didn't have any close friends after elementary school due to her grief.

"C'mon, Mamoru, not you too! Don't be such a downer when tomorrow it's all about your kid," Chika scolded. Despite her bluff, Hikari could see a faint inkle of sadness in her aunt's eyes. Even Ichiro turned away, refusing to let anyone see his dispirited face.

"Don't worry, dad, I'll avenge mom. She wouldn't want you to be sad like this," Hikari assured him. Her vision became blurry due to her tears, but she wiped them away with her sleeve.

"Yeah, you're right, Hikari." The man cleared his throat. "Now, let's get you some dinner. You've got a big day tomorrow."

A/N: Wowie, so I'm in the middle of rewriting a few things since, looking back, I'm not at all satisfied with the timeskip and little background I've given on Hikari's family. I'm much more satisfied with this and I hope that this sheds a bit of light (hehe) onto the Hinata family and their dynamic. Anyways, thanks for reading!