The U.S QAP would be evaluating me today, they were sending the team I typically worked with in America to monitor my progress in Japan. I was terrified, if they weren't satisfied with my quirk right now, they would enroll me in a boot camp back in America and I would be forced to leave the home I found with U.A.
I had been gnawing on my nails in worry, fading in and out of the conversation that Shoto was attempting to carry with me. His two-toned hair was breezing in the wind as Bakugo and Kirishima discussed their roles in the upcoming school festival. I would be playing the guitar and dancing with our dance team while Bakugo got designated as our class's drummer. We were outside, waiting for Eri to arrive along with Mirio. Izuku and I were really excited, but the frustration from the QAP's arrival was withering away my excitement and longing to see the little girl that we had rescued.
"Florence, are you alright?" Shoto questioned, waving his hand in front of my face. I realized I had been zoning out and my eyes were focused on his blankly.
"Oh, yeah, just got a lot on my mind is all." I spoke, giving him a calm smile while he studied me for a few seconds before turning away. I had resumed to poking at the skin that surrounded my nails, but a large hand gripped my wrist and forced mine away.
I said nothing, allowing Katsuki to prod at my fingers as he sighed, pulling out a bandage and cursing me all the while wrapping it around my index finger. I flipped him off, "Thanks, that's why I fell in love with you," I whispered in a teasing manner with a wink, he just rolled his eyes and looked away.
"Flo, she's coming!" Izuku's over-the-moon voice made me whip my head in the direction he sprinted. I grinned, watching him happily greet Eri. She was wearing a red overall dress with a white long sleeve and cute brown boots, her shiny looking hair was blowing in the wind as she watched us carefully. She seemed pleased to see Izuku despite her lack of a smile, but I knew that eventually she'd progress.
"Why are you staring at the damn nerd like that?" Bakugo snapped, but I saw from my peripheral vision that he too stared at Midoriya with the same expression.
I chuckled, admiring the energy and spirit Izuku always carried. He was everyone's light without realization, he changed people for the better, challenged them to grow and understand themselves and show kindness. Bakugo and I both knew we were looking at the future Symbol of Peace, he would be far greater than All Might and those who came before him. Katsuki and I promised each other something with a single glance.
We would support and protect Izuku Midoriya as much as we did with one another.
"That's our best friend, Bakugo, no point in denying it." My voice was low, I knew only he could hear me and he grunted, signaling that he wouldn't disagree with my statement, even if he didn't like the idea of it.
"Flo?" Her soft voice beckoned my attention as I met Eri's gaze. She held out a small, light green hydrangea. I walked to her, greeting Mirio before crouching to match Eri's height.
"Is this for me, Eri?" She nodded and I took the flower, studying the smell and how it was the prettiest flower I had seen.
"I want to say thank you, for saving me." My chest gave a dull ache at her gratitude, she was watching me carefully, as if I'd snap at her with hearing the wrong thing. Poor girl, she's been through so much.
I slowly lifted my arms, holding them out to request for a hug but not forcing her to if she wasn't comfortable. Eri looked confused for only a second before pouncing into my arms. I stood up, carrying her with me as she pressed her head into my shoulder blade, I smiled and hid the tears that wanted to seep out. We stayed like that for a while, I whispered, "I like your dress, maybe one day we can go buy another one and eat some brownies?" She lifted her head meekly at my offer, "What's a brownie?"
I grinned, "Only the best snack in the world. Right, Mirio?"
Mirio laughed, flitting his gaze to me briefly, "That would be incorrect, it's cake."
"Mirio doesn't have good taste in treats, please disregard his words, Eri." She just observed us two before looking beyond at the rest of our classmates. I lowered her back into the ground, producing a bunch of lilies. I tucked two of them behind her ear before giving the rest to her.
"My gift to you, Eri." Her eyes widened at the flowers, she took them gratefully before running off to meet the rest of 1-A with Izuku and Mirio.
I turned around, watching them interact. Mineta made a perverted remark towards the little girl and my blood boiled so fast that I summoned a vine around his waist and hurled him into the forest nearby us. Eri squeaked, but Izuku distracted her with pointing towards Heights Alliance. Bakugo guffawed and Kirishima only shook his head at me.
They were touring Eri around our dorms, she walked into mine while I shoved my foot near Mineta, the grape-head was attempting to crawl his way in.
"Stop being a fucking creep," Bakugo snapped, letting his palm light up while Mineta squeaked and ran in the opposite direction. Everyone was too distracted by the arrangements of plants throughout my room to see me kiss Katsuki. He was stunned, pushing me off to cover his face and hide the blush. I laughed, and Kaminari who had been fiddling with my ivy, paused to look back at us. "Hey, Florence, what's this plant's name?"
It was the ivy with a red pot, it had grown long and it nearly touched the floor. "Momo."
"Really? You named it after me!" Momo seemed touched at the notion and gave me a quick hug.
"I made it a goal to collect different plants that remind me of the people I care about, I'm almost done with 1-A." I gestured to the other greenery littered around my room while my classmates took turns at guessing who donned which plant.
"Which one is Bakugo's?" Sero questioned as he placed down the pot full of Agapanthus that I named after him.
I walked to the two plants that were away from everyone else's, they were right by my bedside with the frame of him and I at the Sports Festival.
I pointed to the Bonsai tree with a burnt orange pot, "Bakugo the Bonsai." I turned my pointer finger to the cactus with a single pink flower at the peak, "Katsuki the Cactus."
They all stared at me, the girls, Izuku, and Kirishima looked like they were overwhelmed with how cheesy and romantic I could be in secret, Mirio beamed and Eri watched us in confusion atop his shoulders, while the rest only looked amused, holding back laughter.
"I dare one of you extras to laugh," Bakugo spoke in seriousness, giving a scowl. No one said a thing, turning away to continue peering at my other sources of nature in the room. I heard Mina mutter under breath, "So overprotective."
They were all eventually filing out my dorm, only leaving Bakugo and I to stare at each other.
He wasn't angry or bemused, his eyebrows weren't furrowed which told me that he was thinking deeply over something.
"What's going through that hothead of yours?" He smirked at my pun, closing the door and striding quickly to close the distance between us.
"You're so ugly," He cupped my face, pressing his lips against mine to give me my favorite kind of kiss. The slow and deep type, the one that left my knees weak as he took his time to explore me while rubbing lazy circles over my cheeks. He let one arm fall to hang around my hips as he made my body move forward and leave no distance between us. I hummed, reaching my hands up to bury them in his hair, it was one of his favorite things that I did.
When we pulled away, we were only left staring at each other in a flustered daze. Our lips were swollen and his bangs fell over his eyes perfectly, he stared at me with an intensity that wasn't relenting since I ran into the League after his remedial course.
I gave him a quick peck on the cheek, letting my fingers drag along his biceps, "We should go back to the others."
He nodded, "We'll finish this later."
After we gave Eri her tour, Izuku and Mirio took off to take her back to Aizawa's, she would be staying there temporarily to ensure her safety. I was slightly jealous for a day, I didn't want Aizawa to replace me with the little girl, even if I adored her and wanted her to be loved and appreciated, I was only a weak-minded human who wanted a father figure. After a dinner spent together with my favorite dessert, Aizawa promised that I would still be his kid and he indeed would never replace me.
I was seated on the bench to the girl's locker rooms that connected to the largest gym in U.A. I had avoided properly greeting them, but I knew I couldn't run away from our encounter forever. Their call to notify me of their arrival was so short that I nearly believed I had made it up in my mind in some sort of hallucination. Aizawa only solidified the reality of the situation when he amped up my training these past few days so I could be prepared when they came. Bakugo wasn't letting me off the hook either, we would train and spar constantly until he was satisfied that I wouldn't be leaving U.A High.
I had my hero costume on, I fiddled with the belt while I thought over all that I learned since April.
I grew emotionally, right along with the strength and endurance of my quirk. So many things had happened to me that I couldn't even properly interpret the changes. I entered this country without smiling, without thinking that I'd find happiness, living here was obligatory. I walked into the halls of U.A only determined to become a hero and nothing more, but now this was my home, not this particularly, but the people here.
I carried distinct faces in my head as I walked to the gym, preparing myself for an ugly confrontation with the past that I was so desperate to finally let go of. I wanted to properly heal, to look at my friends and not feel plagued by my life. I wanted happiness.
I stepped into the gym, watching all my classmates watch me as I shuffled to the center, finally allowing my eyes to settle on them.
Six agents, all from the United States Quirk Assessment Personnel, they were wearing simple army uniforms with the QAP's symbol of a cross and circle emblazoned in gold on their black short-sleeved shirts. Myra stood in the center as the leader of their team, I recognized John and Avery, but the others carried no familiarity to them, they must've been higher-ups if I hadn't met them before moving here. Her blue eyes settled on my frame.
"Florence, we meet again." Myra stuck out her hand and I met it, giving it a polite shake as I mumbled a quiet hello. Avery was a bubbly brunette girl, but her fighting ability contradicted her persona, she was devious and knew how to kick my ass.
"Florence, I've missed training you!" Her arms felt like lead trapping my body as my face became suffocated in her chest, I only sighed and agreed.
John nodded, giving me a quick hug and sharp shove on the shoulder before looking out to my friends. He was a young guy, but his quirk quickly moved him up the ranks because of his swift and evasive fighting skills.
The other three shook my hand before Myra spoke aloud to Shota, he was nearby Izuku and Bakugo, Bakugo's red eyes hadn't left me once. They were piercing into the side of my face as if he was trying to communicate to me telepathically. Because we were so close, I could more or less figure out what he was trying to tell me, it was something along the lines of "I'll kick your sorry ass if you don't show them what you're made of."
I met the gaze momentarily, allowing my composure to drop for one second in the hopes that no one but him could see my face. What I was trying to tell him was, "I'll prove that I worked hard enough to stay here. Right after this is over, you and I will be heading back to my dorm for some alone time after I eat a good meal of your spicy curry because I earned it." He looked away, the corner of his lip turning up slightly with my gaze that was harsh but loving, we could speak a million words to each other in just a few seconds. I was snapped out of our personal reverie with Myra's words.
"Move these children out of the way, Shota Aizawa. We're going to run an intense test on her and it might create a large scale of damage so take the audience to the opposite end of this gym." I only blinked, returning to my passive ways before I left America. I wouldn't let the Quirk Assessment Personnel's agents see or know the truth.
If they realized that I got too comfortable here, they'd urge me to leave, they only wanted me living here through a hazy gray life if it meant becoming their best hero.
"These are heroes-in-training, address them as such." Aizawa spoke briskly, I knew he didn't particularly like the QAP, and Bakugo's furrowed brow and jutted out lip told me he felt the same way.
They shuffled back as Myra approached me, throwing clothing in my direction and I caught it.
"What's this?" I questioned, looking in bemusement to see Myra staring back as if I was a dumb cockroach who needed everything to be spelled out for her.
"You're not using your hero costume, it'll give you an advantage. Change into this. Now." My jaw slackened slightly at her words before I pressed it shut.
"Excuse me? I'm not changing in front of everyone."
Bakugo heard us, he was going to open his mouth to begin yelling, but both Shota and Izuku gripped his shoulder.
"Surround her. They won't see you like this and you have ten seconds to change or we move away." The agents gathered around me and faced outwards, they were so tightly pressed together in a circular formation that it gave me enough privacy to change. I tugged the last piece of clothing over my abdomen right when they disbanded, revealing the scar that was woven through my stomach to my class.
I saw their eyes widen, Mina and Jirou frowned while Kirishima only huffed and looked upset. I knew they didn't like seeing me this way, treated like some animal about to go through testing for the United States' benefit.
I now had similar cargo pants to what they had, the camouflage covered me and I donned a simple shirt-sleeve black shirt that revealed the scars all on my arms. I stretched out my limbs, popping my neck as I kept the monotonous expression I used to wear so often. I wouldn't reveal how happy I am, if they like to see me bathed in misery, I'll pretend to be bitter if it guarantees my stay here.
"You have one minute to prepare yourself, we will attack you until you can't fight back anymore. Afterwards, we'll take thirty minutes to see whether you qualify to stay in Japan for the remainder of your professional career. Tell me something first."
I raised a brow at Myra, insisting that she continue.
"Do you wish to continue living here?"
This is a test in and of itself. If I admit that I do, what will happen then? Will they think I'm too distracted by friendships and happiness to focus on becoming a hero? If I say no, will they just decide to send me back? America was a tricky maze, one wrong turn and you'll fall into a bottomless pit of their own creation.
I shrugged, acting indifferent. "Whatever."
She hummed, blowing the shrill whistle that hung around her neck as the agents began spreading themselves out and shuffling meters away from me.
They formed a loose circle, taking steps every so often to adjust themselves while they calculated me as much as I did to them.
I didn't miss my friends' faces. Most of them carried expressions of hurt at my single-worded response. Uraraka, Mina, and Kiri looked the most betrayed and I knew I would have to explain to them why I must act so coldly with this organization around. Izuku and Bakugo were the only ones who understood, they just watched me carefully.
I cannot be distracted. Not now.
I shut my eyes, blocking them out as I focused on the meditation Uraraka had taught to me.
Breathe in, breathe out. Heighten your senses and focus on your surroundings.
All I needed was thirty seconds.
They had guns on them. The agents. I knew this because my eye caught the gleam of the metallic weapon that was perched on the belt loop underneath Myra's shirt.
What exactly were they planning?
My limbs became agile, I felt the adrenaline coursing through them as they begged to coil and fly around the room, they wanted to show off their newfound abilities and skills. My eyes were still closed, I focused on the ground below me, on how if I concentrated hard enough, I could feel my legs being tugged by gravity and the Earth's rotary status, how it was never-ending.
I heard a whistle blow. I still saw nothing but darkness as I heard the cock of their guns.
So, this is the test huh? To quite literally bring me on the verge of death and see if I'd survive their attacks.
They weren't holding back, so neither would I.
A vine plunged into the Earth and sprouted out at six different locations, all targeting the guns that the agents carried while I built stone walls around me.
That was for Myra, if she couldn't see me, her Muscle Manipulation quirk would be less powerful.
I finally opened my eyes, seeing the guns thrown into the air as I jumped up with propulsion, grasping them all as I tucked two down my shirt, two into my waistline and two remained in my hands. I was still high off the ground, whipping my body around to send tornado-like funnels of stone and thorn that wouldn't discriminate. They'd land on most of the agents.
I heard hisses of pain but I was still twirling around so rapidly that I couldn't distinguish who from what. I saw blades fly towards me, and I melted them instantly. That was Avery, she had the ability to produce blades of all variations, but her weakness was that they were created from natural metals, and I could disintegrate them, something I barely learned with Himiko Toga.
My leg muscle strained and I bit my lip from the pain, falling back down into the ground before allowing a vine to catch me and throw me away from voices that were beginning to scream in my head.
That was John's quirk, he can cause anyone to hallucinate and suffer as long as you were within his range. I saw hundreds of bees swarming towards me and I ran towards them, if it was a hallucination then I wouldn't be hurt.
Nothing happened, and I worked my way through the vision before stumbling onto the three agents that I didn't know.
They were all men, tall and strong-looking ones at that. I stooped down and rolled to target their three legs with spiked stone, it was horrific to admit but fighting against Overhaul taught me that move. They groaned in pain, and I used a handspring trick to go back above ground as I slammed pillars over all their heads. They became unconscious immediately.
Half of them down, half more to go. What was a disadvantage on my end was that I failed to take out the three who were actually the most powerful in the team, and they all ran towards me at once.
I could distinctly hear and see Kirishima yelling to encourage me, Izuku was muttering and analyzing under his breath while Bakugo had a clenched jaw, he was squinting and attempting to see me despite the dust that was now flying through.
I felt my arms twist painfully and I bit my cheek, feeling the blood pool underneath my tongue.
Damn you, Myra.
One of the guns slipped out from my shirt, I attempted to reach for it but a demon-looking thing appeared in front of me. I knew it was fake, but I instinctively backed away due to the millisecond of terror. John grabbed the gun and I heard the trigger being pulled.
The bullet pierced only a centimeter of my skin as I felt it burn. I darted away, summoning pillars to slam into him as he flew to the other end of the gym. I manifested thick layers of leaves to act as gauze as I wrapped it around my shoulder quickly.
I turned, seeing a dozen blades all aimed in my direction. I was growing frustrated so I decided to manipulate them and send them all back in Avery's path. When seven of them were inches away from her, I raised the temperature in the metals to melt as they landed on her skin and she yelped in pain, the other blades grazed her in various ways.
"Wow, you've gotten so much better, I'm proud of you, Florence!" She seemed genuinely excited that I challenged her, I only nodded.
"Thanks." She didn't notice the way a vine wrapped around her waist as I hurled her into the nearest wall.
My knees shook, twisting with a fierce pain when I felt the muscles tear. I groaned, collapsing to the ground as I convulsed repeatedly.
I'm not losing. Not anymore. I fixed this. I'm not weak, I don't need to give into those bad thoughts, those harmful words you guys always told me over and over, like a stupid drill that wouldn't stop.
I created three layers of stone that blocked her from me, my arm was beginning to go numb but I ignored it, standing up despite the pain.
This won't end until I give it my all. Bakugo would've wanted this, too. He forced me to fight for this exact reason, to look out for me.
I owe it to all of them to not go down.
I was practicing this skill thanks to Mirio, even if he lost his quirk for now, he was still training with hope. I allowed that same hope for him to melt onto me, I braced my body, calling the Earth to do what it did best.
I plunged through the particles of dirt, but this time with a focus. When I was underground, all of nature suddenly became more amplified, I felt like there was whispers from Mother Nature demanding to be heard. I could pinpoint everyone's exact locations within a two-mile radius, I felt the ground moving, the atoms shuffling as my body did the same.
Focus. Go where she's at.
I sprung upwards, taking a quick breath of air as I grabbed Myra's head from behind and jammed my foot into her shoulder, sending her into the ground. My foot was on her spine and I pressed roughly, taking out two guns. I shot into the air, knowing that it would scare John and Avery enough into wondering whether the bullet would pierce them. I redirected it into a direction where it wouldn't hurt anyone before surrounding them both with vines. I lifted them into the air before allowing them to crash into each other, they released yells of pain before unconsciousness reached John and he slumped forward, defeated.
Avery was still fighting against my vinery, her blades slit the plants as she landed on the ground.
She can't find a way out of this.
I pressed the head of the final gun I had retrieved into Myra's skull. She froze, my muscles didn't contract anymore. I focused on the ground below Avery, sink, it worked. The ground became quicksand, pulling her in so fast that the dirt reached her thighs while she squirmed around, calling out to Myra for aid. I landed a tablet on her head to knock her out and she was gone.
Now, there was only the head of QAP's Quirk Enforcement Division. The woman who would constantly beat me to the ground for a year. The woman that degraded me and made me feel small and worthless to rebuild me back up into the fighter I am today.
I didn't hate her, I was letting go of that anger, the rage and bitterness I carried since I was a young child. I didn't feel the need to seek revenge with anyone or anything, I would allow the pieces of my life to fall into place because either way, that would happen no matter what, now I could at least move with the tide rather than struggle against it.
"Shoot me." I froze, stunned. Myra couldn't mean that, this was a simple assessment, not a life or death situation.
"Why?" My voice was hoarse, my muscles were coiled and strung tightly but not because of her quirk, it was my fear and disbelief.
"Consider me a villain. You won't win and you'll get sent back to America if you don't shoot me. You're a hero, go through with your task. That's what's expected of you."
"Heroes don't kill." My words were simple, my tone was dry but the slight crack in my sentence gave me away.
"Not in Japan. Face reality, that's why so many heroes die here or get forced into retirement. Look at All Might, if he had killed All for One the first time, he'd be a real hero. It's not about humanity, it's about what's good for society in the long run. Sometimes you have to get your hands dirty to succeed, that's why you're here. Set the example for what it means to sacrifice morality to protect others."
I was outraged at her dismissive manner towards All Might, I pressed the gun further into her head while my mind contemplated over her words in a frantic manner.
"You're all so sick. I refuse to leave Japan, I'm going to show them that America isn't as shitty as you guys make it because they'll see that at least I'm from there. Screw that shit about giving America representation in the hero society, my home is here now, not there! Y'all are so full of shit, only helping a family as poor as mine because you saw me as convenient. Take back the money, take back my bare minimum of privilege and kill me right now. You guys can do whatever you want to me, but I'd rather die on this land with people that want to see me become a hero for the right reasons before going back to that nightmare you call living. I won't act as your soldier." I threw the gun to the side and got off her, summoning a single plant that I didn't like to use. It was dangerous and if I breached my emotions, I could give her enough of a dose to launch her into a coma.
All it took was his whisper. It was so quiet that I couldn't even understand how I heard it from such a vast distance, but my vines were still connected to the Earth so it reverberated through my skull.
"Reyna." The plead. It wasn't malicious or frustrated, it was patient and open, ready to understand me at any given time because he was my partner as much as I was his. If I stayed here, that would never change.
I saw him, his red eyes weren't livid or disappointed, he only blinked to show that he would accept whatever I did, he wouldn't judge me, he was my backbone.
I love you, Katsuki.
I called a rare plant, Moonlighter, to pass through Myra's nose briefly. It only took a second, she was collapsed on the ground.
I win. I get to stay here.
I carried the six agents to the center of the gym with vines, laying them out as I walked over to their defeated bodies. The first two agents that I knocked out were beginning to stir, but they would prove futile in a fight.
I placed my hands on their foreheads one by one, summoning Ginger and Aloe Vera to heal their injuries. All their scrapes, bruises, and punctures vanished instantly.
They were all beginning to wake up as my classmates and teacher ran over to us. We were watching them quietly, finally, their eyes opened one after the other for what seemed like forever.
Myra woke last, her blue eyes piercing into mine before looking to the ground. She opened her mouth to speak, and I waited for the real verdict that would decide where I stood on all sectors of life.
"You're allowed to stay in Japan for the remainder of your hero career."