~~~
Six Years Ago
"Teach me!" Kira yelled, standing next to the Light Bringer in the back fields beyond their house.
"Akira," Light Bringer laughed. "You might not inherit all the abilities that I have, you know that."
"But I can learn."
"Maybe." She tilted her head at her daughter. "Maybe not."
Kira stared up at her mother, the Light Bringer, her idol. She wanted to be exactly like her, like a dynamic duo. With matching costumes and matching abilities. What a sight it would have been.
"But..."
"Spit it out, Kira," her mother said, tilting Kira's chin up with her finger. "Heroes are certain. Strong. Say what you want with confidence."
"Dad doesn't have a Quirk. Doesn't that mean that I'm just like you? I have all your powers."
"No," Light Bringer sighed. "Think about the generations before you. Before me. In your generation" - she pointed to Kira's chest - "who knows what phenomenal powers you'll grow and evolve with."
~
Present Day
Akira had heard of the Quirk Singularity Effect, where as each generation is born, their Quirks grow and evolve to become stronger and more complex. If she is an example of one of them, then shouldn't her father have had a Quirk also? Maybe her mother tried to have it so Kira isn't a victim of the Singularity and isn't at risk of producing such a powerful Quirk.
But what happened with her Quirk when she threw that ball... she hadn't even seen that happen to Light Bringer.
Kirishima nudges her in the ribs and she blinks up at him, putting her hand back down by her side.
"Mr Aizawa is Eraser Head!" He beams, as Aizawa glares at Izuku Midoriya, his eyes a bright red.
"You're not ready," Aizawa was saying, as Kira focuses on the conversation. "You don't have full control over your power. Were you planning on breaking your bones again... counting on someone else to save your useless body?"
"No! That's not what I was trying to do-"
Aizawa latches onto Midoriya with a single piece of his scarf, wrapping it around his torso and pulling him forward.
"No matter what your intentions are, you would be nothing more than a liability in battle! You have the same reckless passion as another overzealous hero I know. One who saved a thousand people by himself and became a legend," Aizawa leans back up away from Midoriya. "But even with that drive, you're worthless if you can only swing a single punch before breaking down. Sorry Midoriya, with your power, there's no way you can become a hero."
"Wasn't that a little bit harsh?" Kira whispers.
"Are you kidding?" Kirishima scoffs. "After what Midoriya did in the entrance exam, he definitely needed a pep talk."
"I was there when it happened," Ochaco says, stepping up next to Kira and Kirishima. "His power is pretty crazy, but he did what he did to save me. So... Mr Aizawa is wrong on this. He has every making to be a pro hero."
The class falls silent as Midoriya prepares his throw. His arm lights up, red vein-like appearances glowing on his skin. It seems to be vibrating, before it starts fading away and collecting on his index finger. He then launches the ball sky high, bruising only his finger, instead of his entire arm.
Aizawa shows the class the score: seven hundred and five meters!
"Mr Aizawa," Midoriya groans, clenching his injured hand into a fist. "You see, I'm still standing."
"Over seven hundred meters! That's crazy!"
"He's finally showing us his true power!" Ochaco shouts, leaping into the air.
"His power is very odd," Iida analyses, his finger on his chin. "Just like in the entrance exam, he broke a part of his body."
Suddenly, Bakugou charges at Midoriya, seemingly in a fury, his Quirk unleashing. "Hey! Deku, you bastard! Tell me how you did that, or you're dead!"
Aizawa promptly stops him from inflicting any harm to Midoriya, but it's definitely a shock. The class knows that Bakugou is hot-headed and has clear anger issues, but the fact he actually wants to hurt Midoriya... And what was that he called him: Deku?
"Stand down," Aizawa says lowly. "It would be unwise to make me use my Quirk so much. It gives me serious dry-eye." He releases his hold on Bakugou. "Hurry up, you're wasting my time. Whoever's next can step up."
Everyone clambers around Midoriya and his broken finger, but Kira keeps her eyes on Bakugou, practically trembling with anger. He keeps his head down as he walks back, his hair covering his eyes. Kira looks back at Midoriya, and then to Bakugou - they must have gone to the same school at least.
They eventually finish the last of their fitness exams, all of which Kira passed with flying colours. All of her extensive training with the Light Bringer has kept her in shape and ready for pretty much anything.
"Alright, here are the results," Aizawa announces, back to his usual tired self. "I've ranked you best to worst."
A projective image lit up in front of them, big and blue against the side of the building. First was Momo Yaoyorozu, then Shoto Todoroki and then - she couldn't believe it. She was third! Knocking Bakugou out of the top three.
"What!" He roars, clearly not over his weird incident with Midoriya. "There's no way this loser was better than me!"
Bakugou pushes his way to the front of the crowd, ready to tear Kira a new one.
"Enough!" Aizawa bellows, his eyes flaring red again.
"I deserve to be in the top three more than anyone!" He continues, ignoring Aizawa altogether. "Fight me!"
"Dude, chill," Kirishima says calmly. "It's just how it is. Kiriya is better than you. You're not acting very manly about it."
"I was lying," Aizawa says suddenly, causing even Bakugou to stop. "No one's going home. That was just a rational deception to make sure you gave it your all in the tests."
"That was so nerve-racking." Kira sighs, placing her hand on her beating heart.
"I'm always down for a challenge." Kirishima grins.
"Of course you are." She smiles back at him.
"That's it, we're done for the day. Pick up a syllabus from the classroom and read it over before tomorrow morning."
After they change back to their school uniforms, they're onto their next lessons for the day, but nothing really sinks in as much as her experience with Mr Aizawa. He's strict, but fair. Precise and reasonable.
The school day drifts by until it's time to return home and Akira didn't live far from UA - it's a simple half-hour walk away. Others have to take a train to get here. Kira turns right down a street, staring at her hand once again. She examines her elbow, as if there would be some mark leftover from her Quirk.
"Hey, light girl!"
Light girl? Kira turns around on the spot and spots Bakugou stomping after her, fire in his eyes.
"You think you're better than me!?" He shouts.
"What?" She frowns.
"You idiot!" He continues. "You think you can beat me!?"
"No-"
"I'll kill you!"
Kira narrows her eyes at the boy, curious if she'll get a word in. She wonders what causes him to act this way: hostile towards everyone, even his own classmates. Honestly, where does he even live? Did he really chase after her just to threaten her? To make a point?
"I'm talking to you!"
"Look." She sighs, trying to keep her cool. "I aced the physical exam, okay? But..." She looks down at his hands, ready to explode any second. "Your Quirk is definitely stronger than mine."
"Huh?" He grunts.
"Yeah." She tries a smile. "Are you kidding me? I've been practicing mock physical tests my whole life. But to actually use my Quirk in combat?" She pauses, choosing her next words carefully. "You're definitely the better hero."
"Whatever," he grumbles, turning and trudging back down the street. "I'll kill everyone..."
Kira watches with a raised eyebrow as he continues to mutter to himself down the street, attracting a few curious bystanders. She releases a deep breath, one she didn't know she was holding and turned the last corner to her house.
One of Light Bringer's sidekicks are already waiting for her, opening the door and taking her bag and coat.
"How was UA?" She asks, her voice monotone.
Kira glares back at her. "Like you care."
Kira ignores Light Bringer's sidekicks whenever they try to engage in conversation with her. She's moving on in her life, progressing in ways that's both terrifying and exhilarating. She was exposed to new abilities today, new people and new complications.
And, for some reason, she can't get her strange altercation with Bakugou out of her head for the rest of the night.
The very next day is filled with usual boring lessons, learning all about grammar, and the usual school stuff. The food is gourmet, made by the pro chef hero himself. Eventually, it's time for the hero lesson.
"I am here!" All Might charges into the room, dramatically presenting himself.
Of course, everyone worships the ground he walks on, but Kira has her own idol. She's more than happy to finally meet the number one hero in person, but the ecstatic energy everyone else felt wasn't one she could mimic.
"Today's lesson will pull no punches!" He laughs heartedly, revealing a card that clearly says 'battle' on it.
Great. Kira even said to Bakugou that she's weakest in terms of battle.
"Get yourselves suited up and meet me in Training Ground Beta!"
Kira has completely forgotten about her costume. Her face lights up as they pop out of the wall. Hopefully, they're able to meet some of her necessary needs.
They all meet up outside the large doors of the training ground, clad in their superhero outfits. Everyone looks amazing, suited up in clothing that fit their Quirks and their own fighting style.
"I love it!" Ochaco squeals next to Kira.
Kira looks down at herself once more, examining her costume for the millionth time. She asked for the colours to match that of her Quirk and the designers did a pretty decent job.
It's a black and white bodysuit, fashioned with dark green gauntlets, a dark green collar and dark green boots. They got the type of green perfectly to match her eye colour. It's a little plain on the front, but the costume is only temporary. Maybe she can ask for detailing later.
The boots are strengthened to support her from a high fall and the gauntlets are made of a heat-resistant mesh. Hopefully, it will hold together if her arms become too hot. She had already submitted her costume by the time she discovered that she can produce light from the bottom of her feet and her elbows, so she just hopes that the outfit will remain intact should she use them.
"And yours!" She tells her, admiring her cute pink outfit.
"We're all here!" All Might's voice booms over the chatter. "Now shall we get started you bunch of newbies! For this training exercise, you'll be split into teams of good guys and bad guys!" He continues. "Now this year, we have an unusual amount of students, so someone is going to have to have a third player on their team! I'm sure you'll all be able to manage that."
"No way! Isn't that unfair on whoever will be competing against them?"
"I don't care who it is, I'll crush them all."
"I want the third person on my team."
Kira listens intently as All Might explains the rules of the battle, trying to think ahead already.
"Time's limited and we'll choose team's by drawing lots!" All Might announces.
Akira digs her hand into the lots and reveals the letter J. She's thrilled to discover that she's on Team J with Kirishima and Sero, and so are they.
"Yes! We get the third player!" They chant simultaneously.
Kira laughs as they perform a little spin on the spot, waving their arms.
"Don't get your hopes up, guys," she says. "We still have to see who'll we'll be up against."
"You're absolutely right!" All Might bellows. "You never know what Quirk your opponent may have and they can use that to their advantage to beat even the most powerful of heroes."
"We still stand a better chance anyways." Kirishima leans over to whisper in her ear.
"Now then, the first team's I declare will be fighting are... these guys!" All Might pulls out two balls: Team A and Team D. "Everyone else can head to the monitor room."
Bakugou versus Midoriya... Based on their encounter yesterday, this battle isn't going to be easy.
~~~