\\ Rini //
\\ At UA //
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"Did we even stand a chance?"
Hitoshi's question struck me and resonated in my mind. His quiet and defeated voice made me pity him and his team.
I tilted my head to the side a little and offered a sad smile. Without saying a word, I let my expression speak for itself.
You never stood a chance.
And with that, the horn blared and our fight was over.
When the reality sank in that we won, Kirishima and Sero ran to me and gave me high fives.
"We won! Your quirk is amazing! Thanks for the plan, mine would have definitely failed. Kaminari's stun shocks hurt," Kirishima praised with a bright smile, showing off his pointed shark teeth.
"Yeah! Your plan worked perfectly and we won thanks to you!" Sero then tore off his tape and joined in the compliments.
"Aw thanks guys, it's nothing. You made our victory possible because you listened and carried out with it, so thank you," I replied and shone a warm smile.
Meanwhile, Hitoshi, Jiro, and Kaminari were still on the ground immobilized.
"Hey! Aren't you gonna untie us?" Kaminari whined.
"Yeah, I can't feel my toes now," Jiro added in a sour tone.
"Oh yeah of course!" Kirishima said while walking towards them.
We watched as he hardened his hand and used it like a dull knife to cut through the layers of tape on Jiro first. Then he moved onto Kaminari. And finally he came back for Hitoshi.
Once they were all free, we got our instructions to make it back to the monitoring room and started to walk out the building. Kirishima and the others started discussing the fight and how we all equally did well, but Hitoshi remained quiet by my side.
I nudged him and he looked at me with tired eyes.
"What's up?" I asked quietly.
"Oh, nothing. . ." He trailed.
When I gave him a concerned questioning look, he seemed to shake away whatever it was he was thinking about and quickly added to his answer:
"Your team did great. . . And our team did our best. . . But I wish I got to show off my skills."
"Oh. Sorry about that. . . I told Sero to go after you first because I knew you'd be a huge threat. If he didn't, you guys would have won," I revealed to my best friend with a soft smile.
"Really? You saw that happen?" He suddenly lightened up.
"Yeah! You managed to capture Sero with the scarf and wrap the ribbon around him so you technically caught him. Then you guys make it up to the next floor and Kirishima tries to get the jump on you but you insulted him and brainwashed him. Then I couldn't do anything fancy because Kaminari walked into the room by himself and shocked me," I explained.
"Woah. . . So my plan would have worked?" He asked in disbelief.
"Yeah it would have if I didn't interfere. So please don't beat yourself up, this is our first class. You'll have plenty more opportunities to show off your skills," I beamed.
At my encouragement, Hitoshi smiled and gave a nod, the light in his eyes returning in the process.
When we got back to the monitoring room, All Might rated our fight and said Sero and Kirishima did a good job but he gave me credit for coming up with the best plan of action. He also complimented Hitoshi and his team for putting up a good effort.
Once we were done and went outside, All Might gave us more words of encouragement - unlike Mr. Aizawa's buzzkill vibes - before bolting out of Ground Beta. He said he'd go check on Midoriya and left a trail of dust behind, and the class sighed in awe at the number one Hero.
I didn't think much of it like the others since this was All Might, the flashiest Hero, but I still held a little suspicion.
As we started our walk back to the campus, the class started chatting about the fights. Compliments were passed around, recommendations for fighting tactics were shared, and finally talks about quirks were discussed. Specifically Midoriya's powerful quirk and his explosive fight with Bakugo.
"Midoriya has one heck of a quirk. He could definitely be a top Pro with it," Kirishima kicked off the discussion.
"Yeah, but he breaks his bones in the process. Can't be a top Pro if your always injured after a fight," Kaminari waved him off.
Hums of agreement were shared amongst the entire class.
"If Bakugo didn't go at him like a maniac he could've knocked him out with one punch," Mineta stated.
Although he said it loud enough for the blond to hear, to everyone's surprise he didn't make a comment or murder the grape. He kept his head down, red eyes fixed to the ground, as he walked briskly in front of the crowd. He was caught up in his own world and I could see he was having some form of an internal battle.
"Yeah. Why did you try to blow him sky high, Bakugo?" Mina bud in, but once again he ignored them.
Everyone got the message that he wasn't going to waste his time or attention on the conversation. He was clearly too caught up in his own mind to respond.
I wanted to say something as well, but I knew thanks to what I saw in my vision that even if I tried he wouldn't spare me so much as a glance if I were to comment on his behavior towards Midoriya.
"Also Otani, what kind of quirk do you have? You didn't even lift a finger but your team seemed to know everyone elses moves!" Hagakure suddenly jumped on me from behind and put a spotlight on me.
"Yeah, she's right. Do you have like super intelligence or something?" Sato questioned.
"That'd make sense since she figured out the best plan of action," Tokoyami added.
Since I saw this coming, I giggled and played with my hair.
"Oh no it's not that. It's called Anticipation, so I can anticipate anyone else's moves or what they plan to do and can counteract them."
"Oh wow!" Hagakure squealed.
"No wonder your team knew their moves, just like in the entrance exam," Momo hummed.
"That's a very tactical quirk," Shoji commented.
"Yeah. And it sucks when you're on the receiving end!" Kaminari complained, gaining laughs from the class.
"And what about yours Shinso? Is it similar to Mr. Aizawa's quirk since you have his capture scarf, ribbit?" Tsu asked while pointing at his scarf.
"Oh, no it's not. . . Its Brainwashing. I just use the scarf to help in battle," he answered without going into details.
The whole class hummed in surprise and awe. I watched as my best friend sighed in anticipation for their comments. He still had insecurities about telling others about his quirk, but I offered him a soft smile as our class embraced him.
"Woah that's crazy cool!" Hagakure squealed.
"Brainwashing? How does it work?" Ojiro asked.
"Can you tell villains to stop being villains with it?" Sero wondered.
"Can you brainwash me to do my homework when I don't want to do it?" Kaminari joked.
After everyone's comments, I watched with glee as the cloud looming over Hitoshi's head lifted. His usual brooding demeanor morphed into a more lighthearted one. He looked at the others with a loose jaw, making a tiny 'o' with his mouth. His purple eyes glimmered with happy relief as he then answered a few of their questions.
It was a refreshing sight to see.
Once we made it back to campus and changed into our uniforms, we resumed afternoon class like normal. Time ticked by slowly as we learned Math until the bell rang and snapped us out of our trance-like state. Since it was our last class, everyone returned to homeroom and began to gather their things then the majority agreed to stick around and wait for Midoriya.
But Bakugo decided to leave early.
About two minutes after the blond left the room, Midoriya showed up and got bombarded by our classmates. They properly introduced themselves and told him how cool he fought during our Hero class.
While Hitoshi and I made small talk with Hagakure and Shoji by our desks in the back, I saw how out of place he looked while they were swarming him. He offered polite smiles as they said each of their names but his awkwardness was blatantly noticeable.
Since this was as far as I got with my future vision, I didn't know what to expect but I knew I wanted to talk to Midoriya. I excused myself from our tiny group and was about to approach him, but I got cut off by Iida running over to Tokoyami, Jiro, and Ojiro. I did a playful eye roll as he argued with them before making my way over to the group again.
"Hey, Midoriya, glad to see your okay. . . Wait, you don't have a lot of stamina, do you?" I greeted before stopping short of him and gesturing to his arms.
I've known Recovery Girl long enough to know how her quirk worked, so I was surprised to see his arms weren't completely healed because of his stamina. Which I found strange since this was only our second day of school and he only did one battle.
"Oh! Uh, yeah, how did you know-"
"Hey Deku!" Ochaco suddenly rushed over from behind me, cutting him off.
I side stepped so she could join the conversation and she shone an appreciative smile. She then brought up the same thing I pointed out.
"Why didn't she heal your injuries?"
"Oh, uh well it has to do with how much stamina I'm using," he replied with a nervous laugh.
"Stamina?" She questioned, but he wasn't paying attention anymore.
We all watched as he looked over at a desk. Bakugo's desk. Then a tiny frown appeared on his face.
"Uh, Uraraka, where's Kacchan?" He asked.
"You just missed him," she explained.
After she said that, he suddenly rushed out of class to catch up to him, saying a quick excuse me as he disappeared out the door. We were all surprised by his actions and a little worried considering the two fought a few short hours ago.
"Uh, should we follow him, ribbit?" Tsu asked while putting a finger to her chin.
"He seriously wouldn't pick a fight with him, right?" Mina asked the guys standing behind us.
They shrugged and offered no reassurance.
"I don't think he'd pick a fight. . . But then again Bakugo might once he catches up to him," Ochaco trailed in thought.
"Oh, I can use my quirk to check," I gave a nervous smile before quickly using my quirk.
The girls all hummed a thanks while I blinked for a short three seconds and looked about twenty minutes ahead. I got a mild headache and rubbed my temple after I used it and looked at my classmates.
"No they don't, thankfully. They're gonna talk out front by the main gate," I said while pointing out the door.
Ochaco and the others said a quick "really?" before heading out into the hallway to look out the window. I shook my head and decided to tag along. The guys didn't bother and headed over to Hitoshi and the others in the back of the class to mingle some more.
The four of us stood in a line starting with Mina on one end and myself on the other and stared out the window as Midoriya called out to Bakugo. The blond turned around and scowled but didn't go any further. Soon they started talking and shouting at each other but since we were way up and on the opposite side of the glass we obviously didn't hear a word they said.
Suddenly All Might appeared and briefly said something to Bakugo. . . But then he let him go and the blond continued his lonesome walk home.
"What do you think they were talking about?"
"I dunno."
"Fated battle between rivals," Ochaco stated while she leaned closer to the glass.
I didn't add anything to the tiny conversation and simply stared out the window watching as All Might then turned around and talked to Midoriya. I squinted my eyes a little out of curiosity, and a little suspicion, as the two chatted before walking back inside the school.
Soon enough, he came back to class, caught up with everyone a little, and got his things. When the majority of our class started trickling out to head home, I made Hitoshi hang back with me for a little since I was waiting on a good time to chat with Midoriya. Once he hauled his bag onto his back, I semi awkwardly walked up to him.
However, Iida and Ochaco had the same idea so they cut in front of me and joined his side. I really felt awkward after that and decided maybe I didn't need to say anything. It was my "bud in and help" nature that wanted me to talk to him in the first place, but at the moment he had Iida and Ochaco to chat with.
As they walked out of class in front of Hitoshi and I, that weird feeling returned and I furrowed my brows. It only happened when I was around Midoriya I came to realize. I brushed it off again and made a mental note of the strange feeling.
Little did I know how our fate was twisted together by his unique quirk passed down from generation to generation.
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\\ The Next Day //
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Morning rolled around and Hitoshi and I did our same morning routine and commute to school. But when we arrived, we were shocked to see the large hoard of reporters in front of the school gates. We tried to step around them, but they suddenly swarmed us asking about All Might.
"How is the number one Hero's teaching skills!?"
"Judging by those jackets, your first years and apart of the Hero Course, correct!?"
"What kind of training are you receiving under All Mights guidance!?"
Question after question bombarded us as we squeezed through the crowd. Hitoshi and I could barely hear ourselves think until we got through and left the hoard behind at the gate. We glanced back at them and noticed as a few other students, including our classmates, squeezed through.
"Dang, if only I looked ahead to see this media storm I would've gave Nezu a heads up. This is crazy," I grumbled while fixing my jacket.
"Yeah, why is the media so worked up about All Might teaching here anyways. He's a Pro, and he's teaching, so what?" Hitoshi sighed.
I let out a sigh of agreement while we made it to the front doors, but for some reason I got a tiny chill run down my spine and the hairs on the back of my neck stood up as if somebody was directly blowing cold air down my back. I turned around abruptly at the strange feeling.
What the heck is it with the weird feelings?! I thought as I looked around trying to pinpoint the root cause of my sudden spark of fear.
"What's up?" Hitoshi asked.
I stopped scanning the area, slowly turned around, and started walking again.
"Nothing. . . Just got a weird feeling," I mumbled.
He gave a nod at my answer and we walked to class in a comfortable silence. Along the way, we bumped into Riku and Setsuna and said a quick hi before entering our class of 1A.
Our morning went by in a blur. Mr. Aizawa took role and then went over class rep. Iida then suggested we cast a vote, so the class did just that and the results were a bit surprising with Midoriya with three votes and Momo with two. Hitoshi and I voted for each other unanimously so we laughed at our own antics.
After morning classes were finished, we went to lunch and met up with Setsuna and Riku again. As we made small talk about how classes were so far, I noticed across the cafeteria how Bakugo sat off to the side by himself. The same for Todoroki. I kept flickering my gaze between the two boys a few tables away, until Todoroki who was actually sitting facing my direction, looked up and met my gaze. I immediately looked down at my food and took another bite as if I wasn't just staring at him.
However, halfway through my chewing an alarm went off and started telling students to head to the exits.
"What the heck. . ."
"This has never happened before. . ."
"We gotta head to the exits right?"
Upperclassmen around our group of four started chattering in worried voices while getting up promptly to leave. I looked at Hitoshi and the others and we cautiously got up to follow the crowd. . . But that was a bad idea.
Students crowded the hallways in panic because of the supposed intruders on school grounds. We all got swept up into the wave and ended up in different areas. I fought and tried to keep other students from crashing into me but it was no use. I got an elbow to the rib and overall squished between the glass window and students. It was then I noticed the swarm of media out front but another person jabbed me in my back.
"Agh!" I cried while briefly squeezing my eyes shut.
"Rini!" Hitoshi yelled.
"Where'd you guys go!?" Riku hollered from somewhere in the middle of the crowd.
"This is madness!" Setsuna yelled.
Suddenly, we were all surprised to see Iida flying through the air and smacking into the exit sign. Actually, he ended up looking like the man on the exit sign. He yelled at the crowd to calm down and eventually everyone did. Soon after the media was removed from school grounds, we returned to our lunches, talked about the wild experience, and resumed classes.
At the end of the day, Midoriya was once again standing in front of our class, but he humbly announced that Iida should have class rep position. The blue haired teen accepted the position when we expressed we were in agreement due to the stampede incident. Momo was a little bummed that Iida got the role, but she took vice rep anyways.
When the school bell rang and officially ended our day, Mr Aizawa told us to wait after class before Hitoshi and I could step out the door. He said in his usual tired tone that Nezu wanted to speak to me, so we gave a nod and waited off to the side. Thankfully our classmates already cleared out so they didn't notice when he stopped us at the door.
When Mr. Aizawa got his things shoved into his sleeping bag, he told us to follow him. As we walked in silence, I thought back to the incident we had this morning and knew it wasn't some mere accident if Nezu was summoning me. Something was definitely up.
Once we made it to his door, Mr. Aizawa knocked and heard a pleasant "come in" from the other side. I glanced at Hitoshi for reassurance as he opened it, then got semi surprised by the other people standing around inside.
In Nezu's somewhat large office stood my aunt, and Recovery Girl. Nezu sat behind his desk with both elbows resting on its surface and paws clasped around a cup of tea. I awkwardly looked around at them before looking over my shoulder at Hitoshi. He had a similar expression of concern written on his face as we slowly made our way in and closed the door behind us. I opted to stand next to my aunt and Hitoshi next to me on my right, which happened to be next to Mr. Aizawa.
Everyone was in a line in front of his desk and I knew this would be a quick and serious discussion considering he didn't force us to sit and have tea. That and the serious vibe everyone was giving off made it blatantly clear.
"Ah, thank you for coming. And I see Hitoshi tagged along as well," the chimera happily said after putting down his tea.
"Uh, yeah, I hope that's fine?" I replied while glancing at the others.
"Yes that's fine. He may stay if he wants to, however, please know that what we'll discuss can not leave this room."
Hitoshi and I shared looks before giving nods of understanding.
"Excellent. Now let's get started. As you know, earlier today we had a breach in our security by the large crowd of reporters. When the authorities removed them we were able to assess the damage, and it is clear somebody deliberately reduced our gate to rubble perhaps with their quirk."
After he explained that, I straightened my posture and lifted my chin a little since this was going in the direction I suspected. I leveled my gaze with him and he returned the gesture.
"Since everyone here is aware of your true quirk and situation, we can talk freely. I know that this is your month off from using your quirk. However, did you see this incident happen and did not inform us because no harm was done?"
When the question left his lips, I instantly felt my expression morph into one of mild betrayal.
"What? No, I would never intentionally let something like this happen. Believe me when I say I haven't looked farther than a few hours ahead for Hero training class or if I find it necessary since I've started here. I didn't look ahead this morning because I didn't think it was necessary so I truly apologize for not seeing this happen," I explained as best as I could in a calm and neutral tone.
"I believe you. I simply wanted to clear that up before we continue," he replied in his usual happy tone.
I felt my shoulders relax a little and waited patiently as he continued his speech.
"The reason I asked you directly is due to the fact that this incident was not a coincidence. I believe something is at play and we should caution ourselves the best way we can. . . And the best way to do that is by having you look ahead."
At this, I frowned. I knew this would boil down to me using my quirk despite being on my month off. Quite frankly I was happy not using it and dealing with the backlash of nightmares. But I guess this was inevitable.
"Wait, you decided without asking her first if she was okay with this?" Hitoshi stepped forward threateningly and bud in with a critical tone.
"Its fine. I was expecting something like this to happen sooner or later. Preventing things for the greater good is what I've been doing since I was six, remember?" I let out a tired laugh while holding him back.
"But that isn't fair to you and your health," he countered with clear disapproval on his face.
"I know this is unfair of us to ask and put you through despite needing a break from the mental strain, young Rini. However, now that both of you are on your way to becoming Heroes in our society, these situations will arise and you'll have to set your wellbeing aside for the sake of others."
Hitoshi grit his teeth and held back from arguing with our Principal.
Nezu was right to a certain degree. We aren't kids anymore and we're training to be Heroes. In the real world, I would probably have to bear the burden of my future vision a lot more to save a lot more lives. Which was unfortunate but necessary. And it was something I already accepted since I was six but everyone in my life thought otherwise.
"I'm fine with whatever you need me to do. How far should I look ahead?" I broke the silence with my unwavering and determined tone.
"Thank you for understanding Rini," Nezu said and I respectfully waved him off.
"Its fine. How far should I look?" I repeated, not realizing how pushy I sounded.
"We all agreed that a week would be enough," my aunty Midnight said.
"Yeah. If you don't see anything happen within the week we can still prepare during this time if we suspect anything suspicious is at play," Mr. Aizawa added.
"Okay. That will make me sleep for half an hour. . . Should I use my quirk when I go to bed tonight and tell you what I see in the morning? Or. . ?" I trailed.
"Well, I've already set up a bed for you in my nurses office," Recovery Girl stated.
I gave a nod in return, finally understanding why she was present.
"And I guess you already spoke with my parents aunty?" I then directed to her with a small smile.
"Yeah kiddo," she offered one in return but it didn't quite reach her eyes.
I gave another nod and took in a deep breath.
"Alright. . . I guess there's no time to waste then."
After my statement, we all went to Recovery Girl's office and passed a few teachers on our way there. Thankfully there weren't any students wandering the halls to see Hitoshi and I go there. Everyone seemed to have left the school by now.
When we got there, I got myself comfortable on one of Recovery Girl's beds and stared at the ceiling as Hitoshi and my aunt huddled close. Mr. Aizawa and Principal Nezu stood in the background next to Recovery Girl.
"We're right here when you wake up," he mumbled.
"I'm so proud of you honey bunny," she added.
"Thanks. See you in a few minutes," I gave a smile in return and closed my eyes.
As soon as I closed my eyes, I navigated my quirks mental calendar and watched as the days peeled away one after the other until I hit a week. . . And I was beyond surprised by what I saw would happen in the next 24 hours alone.
I saw the typical news report in the morning that I'd watch during breakfast. Then I left home and headed to school with Hitoshi. When we arrived, Mr. Aizawa announced we would be doing rescue training at another location on campus. We changed and hopped on the bus and arrived at said location and met up with Thirteen, which she revealed the name of the building was called USJ.
A mere five minutes of talking and going over rules passed before a portal appeared and started letting in villains. A man made of black and purple mist was behind the portals. A guy with a hand on his face and more all over his body stepped out with a hulking guy that had a beak on his face and his brains exposed on his head.
Then chaos ensued.
I witnessed everything that would have happened that day in great detail since it was a first hand experience. Too many terrible things happened, and in the end we made it out but the experience was too shocking to ignore.
When I received the rest of my week long vision of relative peace and the average news reports of small time incidents, I woke up with a start and my breathing picked up. I sat up and cradled my head as everyone tried to calm me down.
"Hey, it's alright, just breathe," Hitoshi gently rested a hand on my shoulder.
"That's it honey bunny, calm down," my aunt said in her honeyed voice.
I gave a nod and closed my eyes as I calmed my racing heart. I needed to tell them. I have to prevent what I saw from happening.
"What did you see?" Nezu asked with a worried tone.
When I calmed down enough, I looked up and caught the concerned expression on Mr. Aizawa and Nezu's face. I briefly closed my eyes and furrowed my brows, trying to get the sight of Mr. Aizawa's battered and bloody body out of my mind. They patiently waited, and once I was ready, I solemnly stated:
"Villains are going to attack USJ tomorrow morning."
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