𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐞!
The next day, it dawned on Asumi just how booked her day was and how busy she would be. She had stuff to handle this morning, but couldn't keep her mind off everything else that awaited her to do and to make sure it was perfect.
The girl was so caught up in her thoughts about it that she hadn't even realized her blank stare at the floor made those around her a little uneasy given she didn't blink once. Not to mention they could feel the tense air around her, making them nervous to even snap her out of it.
One brave person had leaned their head in front of hers, opting that physical touch might not be the best approach knowing her and how spooked she could get despite how well she had been doing recently.
"You seem kind of nervous, Asumi."
Asumi blinked for the first time in a while, taking her a second to come back to a clear vision before she recognized the smiling face of Mirio in front of her.
Now that she was out of it, Midoriya added in concern, "Are you okay?"
"Yeah..." The girl began as she unconsciously chewed on her bottom lip, "I'm just hoping everything goes well." It was an honest answer, but saying it aloud made it that much more real, and she couldn't help but frown slightly.
The pressure was on, and it was like a pair of hands pressing down on her shoulders. Normally she was one to give in to it and just sink until it shoved her into a hole and left her alone, but this time she knew she couldn't give in. This was too important.
It was so important yet she hadn't even gotten started yet besides having all the plans in place, but she'd have to outwardly worry about that later because she didn't want to let a certain little girl who looked up to her down.
"Oh, yeah. I almost forgot that was tonight." The blond hummed as he stood back up to his full height, having heard about it but was mostly out of the loop since he wasn't a part of their class. Still, Mirio was Mirio and offered her a charming smile to try to ease her nerves, "I'm sure it'll be great!"
"Yeah, that's the hope..." It became obvious that it did little to help the pressure as Asumi physically deflated, reflecting the tone of her words.
The girl in question whom she didn't want to let down, looked up at her curiously, listening to everything they said, "Planning what?"
Asumi noted Eri's impeccable patience, one a parent could only dream their child would have, as she explained her plans. She kept her vermillion eyes on her the entire time with interest, trying to grasp everything she said as she fiddled with the light pink cuffs of her turtle-neck sweater.
It went without saying, she was adorable.
But shortly after her finish, another familiar face she had been told of only once before appeared with Aizawa. Eri's brows furrowed in concern as she voiced, "It's the bad guy. Oh, no!"
Asumi blankly stared at Monoma as he laughed, bringing a hand behind the back of Eri as she quickly latched onto her hip for a sense of safety.
"What's this foolish child saying?"
Mirio was on the other side of her, serving as a second shield as he explained lightly, " Oh, I told her that UA has its bad parts and that you represented one of its downsides." Well, that explained a lot.
Monoma tried to act like he wasn't briefly wounded by such a description of himself, "I'm sorry, I'm a man who follows the path of peace and justice. How dare you malign me, sir."
"Um... Do you have any idea why he was asked to come here?" Midoriya posed the question of the day, only receiving a shrug from the older girl as she comforted the younger by gently stroking her hair.
"Midoriya, Togata, Amajiki. Sorry to borrow your time." Aizawa finally caught up, having been the one to call them all there, "There was something I wanted to ask Monoma to do, but after thinking about their personalities, I wasn't sure they'd mesh well."
"Well, I love to hear you've been thinking about me, teach!"
Monoma tried to take it one way, but Aizawa, in other words, was saying that Eri needed someone there who she'd like to make sure everything went smoothly.
When they went inside, Monoma immediately got to work by bringing his hand to Eri's which was outstretched with a gentleness that Asumi didn't know he had. Turns out, he wasn't always a headache.
"How 'bout it? Any luck?" Aizawa asked, breaking the silence of the room and watching as a familiar horn grew on his head.
He turned back to their teacher, announcing, "This one is a blank. Unfortunately, I'm not gonna be able to help you out, it seems. Sorry, sir."
"Disappointed, but it's not your fault."
The other three realized then that he wanted him to copy her quirk, having a few questions as to why and what he meant by 'blank'?"
"It must mean her power works like yours." He looked toward Midoriya, choosing to remain silent about something else as he cast a curious glance at the indigo-haired girl standing between the two boys.
Monoma went on to explain he could only copy the core nature of a quirk, but if it was an ability that accumulates something and changes it into a form of energy, he couldn't copy the store-up fuel that would make it function. Thus, it was dubbed a stockpiler or... a blank, because he couldn't use it.
If not for this little quirk in his quirk, Monoma would've become an actual explosive when he copied Midoriya's quirk.
"So... Why try this on Eri?" Mirio asked.
"She's not able to activate her quirk right now, but one day, it may return in full. If she doesn't know how to use it, she might endanger herself or others." Aizawa briefly explained, but it was all that needed to be said for them to get the point.
As he went on, Asumi's eyes fell on Eri who clenched her smaller hands at her side, staring down at the floor with a frown.
"That's why I thought it'd be easier if Monoma borrowed her power, trained with it, and taught her how to use it safely."
It made her tilt her head, trying to figure out what was wrong.
"But I supposed that was a longshot."
Her questions were answered, realizing exactly what was on the little girl's mind as she brought a hand to her horn and spoke in a soft, trembling voice, "I'm really sorry."
All eyes flew to her, hearts plummeting to their stomachs at her words.
"You're having a lotta trouble because of me. It's always like that. I cause everyone problems." Eri's eyes began to water, face sinking deeper and deeper into her sadness and frustration.
Asumi was already walking toward her before she could finish.
"I just wish that I didn't have this power."
Her attention was pulled from the floor as Asumi took her smaller hand away from her horn gently, holding it in her own hand assuringly.
Then her eyes turned to Midoriya who had crouched down in front of her, "It doesn't always cause trouble, though. You can't forget. You saved my life with your rewind quirk. Powers aren't good or bad."
Both Eri and Asumi listened attentively, eyes glued to the boy as he went on with words that held so much more weight than he knew, "I know! Think of them like they're knives in the kitchen. They may be dangerous, but if they're sharp and you use them right, they make yummy food, huh? That's why when you use your power for good, it's wonderful."
The older girl failed to see his eyes shift to her because she was so focused on feeling Eri's mood shift, a hopeful grin reaching her face as Midoriya reached right to her heart with his strange gift of being so good with his words when he truly believed them.
It reminded her all over again why she trusted the boy, and why she saw him as one of her true friends. He saw the world in a way she didn't realize and opened her eyes to it. She hoped together they could do the same for the rest of the hero world, and surely with Bakugo at their side knowing him.
But for now, they'd start with Eri who needed to hear it the most.
"Okay, then. I'll get better at my quirk!" Eri declared with a new hope in her eyes, and they all couldn't be more happy for her.
But their time with Eri came to a close, as Asumi had a reminder twirling in her mind annoyingly dubbed anxiety, and soon she was giving the girl a big hug before she left.
"I'll see you real soon." She had said, Eri's smile growing wider at the news before Mirio took her hand and led her off to do whatever else she had planned that day.
However, as Asumi was following Midoriya out the door, a touch on her shoulder made her stop and turn her head around.
Her eyes trailed up the hand to find Monoma who gave her a sheepish grin before pulling away. She had a sneaky suspicion as to why but let him briefly explain himself, "I had to be sure the first time wasn't a fluke."
The first time was the sports festival, but this result was no different than the last. His confusion came from the fact that her quirk wasn't a blank, but because he didn't feel energy at all. There was no core to the quirk... As though she didn't have one at all.
Asumi, however, was not about to give away Yume as she was still kept under wraps from most others. Instead, she assured him at the very least, "There's nothing wrong with your power, but I can't explain why unfortunately."
"Secrets, secrets, secrets." Monoma tsked, giving her a look before leaning forward with a mischievous grin, "You seem to have plenty. Spare one for punching me in the face?"
"If I wasn't an aspiring hero, I'd probably punch you again." Asumi shrugged, making a point to refer to how he called her a villain.
Thankfully, in a gesture of surrender, he stepped back away from her with his hands up and remained silent for the first time she could ever recall.
☯︎
Unlike rain, Asumi wasn't particularly a fan of snow. They both fell from the sky, but this one didn't come with her favorable fragrance, make lovely white noise, or satisfy any marks in a long checklist of why she liked the rain.
The first snowfall of the winter season drew half of her classmates outside to play in it, even if there wasn't enough sticking to the ground yet to do usual snow-day activities or were inside trying to warm up.
Asumi didn't fall into either category, too busy with her other tasks.
The usual chaos of her class didn't phase her, totally tuned it out.
"Close the door, you guys! Tsu's going into hibernation!"
"Oh! We'll get her warmed up quick."
"Wonder what the weather girl is sayin'."
"Anyone know what time Todoroki is gonna be back from his big test? I wanna borrow some manga from him."
"Should be around six." Midoriya answered Sero who called out from the living room, only for the only room to flinch at a sudden crash.
All eyes immediately fell onto the indigo-haired girl who had set up in what they called their dining room, though none of the spaces were really separated by walls.
She had pushed several of their tables together and sprawled out all of her supplies on one side, the other filled with the craft she was currently working on.
But there she stood by the table like a deer frozen in headlights, slippers now soaked in water from where her plastic cup had crashed to the floor and was now rolling away.
The mere mention of the time they'd be back made her panic.
"Oh, Asumi. Let me help you, sweetie." Yaoyorozu jumped to her rescue by grabbing a towel to clean the mess, but the girl was already springing back into action with a mutter of thanks.
Her need for water was long forgotten, returning to her silent stressing in finishing the craft laid out on the table with the fabric paint she had stashed away in her room.
Everything had to be perfect, and she was determined for it to be so, but without speaking a word.
Upon seeing her stress, some of her classmates dropped what they were doing and offered to help the poor girl despite the fact they weren't supposed to be doing this for at least a few more hours.
She was over-prepared for tonight, though.
When they offered, she pointed at something on the other end of the table without looking up from her steady hand painting. They walked over in confusion but realized it was an exact list of where everything was going to go and what needed to be prepared.
Sato was already working on the cake for her, following the specific kind she had picked out knowing both the boys so well and what they'd like.
As they began to dig through the many bags she had, Jiro shoved balloons into Kaminari's hands and told him they were going to work on blowing them up, others that remained relaxing or doing other tasks watched in surprise.
"I don't think I've ever seen her so determined before." Iida voiced in surprise, recalling the girl as someone who would sleep through class and let her mind wander during very important training sessions... or any conversation ever, really.
Midoriya nodded but said nothing. He didn't need to, but it was a sight that made him smile despite how anxious the girl was.
He had grown up with Bakugo, only recently becoming good friends with Todoroki, but neither was very open to other people or let people get too close. This girl had managed to get close to both of them and with Bakugo, it was in a way he never imagined.
It was nice to see they had someone in their corner, someone they trusted, someone who cared enough to throw them a surprise party and knew what flavor of cake they liked and didn't.
Kaminari, with a half-blown-up balloon stuck between his teeth, leaned his elbows on the table where she was working and spoke through gritted teeth, "Don' shress."
It was all garbled, but she realized he had said 'don't stress', causing her to finally break her silence with a worried frown, "What if they don't pass?" They'd come home and be disappointed to see a surprise party for what was supposed to be a success! But if they failed, it would only make everything worse.
Before anyone could ease her worries, she was already shaking her head and muttering to herself, "Of course, they'll pass."
"Then what are you so worried about?" Uraraka asked curiously as she came over to help after wrapping a blanket around Asui.
Asumi didn't look up from her very precise work, but everyone could hear her nervous tone as she murmured barely audibly, "What if they hate it?" That was the main worry in her mind. This had all been her idea after all, bringing it to the class who all agreed it was a great idea–though, she still took control over the whole thing. No one really minded, seeing how much she cared about this.
"They're not going to hate it. Why would you think that?" Yaoyorozu frowned, bringing a hand to her shoulder in a comforting manner.
"I don't know, it's possible given their personalities."
Kaminari, being the dumb boy he was, didn't realize her hand had stopped moving altogether and appeared to go full Tamaki-mode. That was the only way they could describe it, for the first time seeing similar behavior between the siblings as she hung her head.
"I mean, have you met them–" Thankfully, he was slapped upside the head by Jiro, causing the balloon he was tying shut to fly across the room and deflate entirely.
As the boy was scolded for his idiocy, Asumi began to think he was right.
Before she could fall too deep into her doubt, Ashido spoke up with a firm finger pointed at her from across the table that caused her to look up, "You've been planning this for the last few weekends whenever they leave for class. They're not allowed to hate it."
"I'll personally beat their ass if they don't." Ashido finished sternly, fully committed to this if they broke her heart, and it was enough to make the girl smile a little.
Others had come back inside then, offering to help. Sato did the cake, others blew up and strung up the balloons along with other decorations, and Kirishima and Tokoyami were more than happy to hang up the banner once she finished.
It was all coming together.
☯︎
"Did we have a blackout or something?"
"Maybe everyone else left the dorms?"
The lights suddenly flew on as Uraraka called out, "You got your licenses!" Then came the pop of the confetti poppers they had all been given, colorful streamers and crackling pops like the little explosions Bakugo could make surprising the two boys standing in front of the door.
"Congratulations!" The entire class grinned, much to their confused surprise.
They just stood there at first, not quite knowing how to react, at least until Sato shoved a four-tier cake toward them excitedly, "Have some cake!" He was proud of it.
"That thing is massive!" Bakugo gawked.
"Wow, Todoroki!"
"We're proud of you."
"Thank you."
"Bakugo, you did it!"
"Congrats! Now we can do hero work together! It'll be great, Kacchan!"
"What, you think you're better than me 'cause you got your license first?!"
"That's not what I meant–"
"You better shut your face if you wanna live!"
Thankfully, Asumi had interrupted the argument before it got too heated, walking up to the two boys and raising her arms to pull them close to her in a side hug. "Congrats, you two. I knew you could do it!" She grinned widely.
Todoroki just accepted it with his usual expression, though a little more outwardly pleased than he usually showed; but, Bakugo was still seething from his fresh argument with Midoriya and because Todoroki was so damn close now. He still had a scowl on his face, but didn't shove her off.
The party moved to the main common room, allowing them a chance to see all of the decorations set up as everyone rushed to get some cake.
Talking bubbled around the room, all blurring into one as the two boys walked further into the room.
Bakugo and Todoroki's eyes trailed up to the banner, reading the words 'Congrats on your Hero licenses, Shoto and Katsuki!'. Both could tell at a glance and the little extra decorations who had done the work of painting it.
Todoroki walked over as Midoriya and Iida called him over with a slice of cake ready for him, but Bakugo remained staring at it.
At least until Kirishima threw his arm around his shoulders, earning himself a side glare. That was happening far too much tonight for his liking.
But he instantly forgot about it when Kirishima smirked at him, "You know someone was really worried about you liking the surprise after working so hard to put it all together."
He was quick to add a little more seriously, "Also, Mina would've had your head on a platter if you didn't, but I didn't doubt you, Bakubro."
Despite his surprise at the newfound information, already knowing who this someone was, Bakugo showcased his annoyance as Kaminari threw himself over his other shoulder so he was sandwiched between the two menaces. He wore a matching smirk, only much more suggestive, "So why don't you give a kiss as a thank you–"
His teasing was cut short as he was roughly shoved off, "Get lost, loser!"
He resorted to shrugging off Kirishima, eyes already finding the girl who was very obviously trying to hide the fact she wasn't watching him. He had felt her nervous eyes on him since the moment he walked through the door, only it remained because she had already been assured by her best friend.
Bakugo walked right over to her, not saying anything at first as she handed him a slice of cake. He glanced at it before taking the plate, instantly digging into it in silent delight. Strawberry shortcake was his favorite, and her annoying ass remembered because of course she did.
Though, he wasn't mad.
She was still trying to figure that out as she watched him, slowly taking a bite of her own cake as she sat on top of the counter of the now empty kitchen trying to act like she didn't care, the boy leaning against it right next to her legs.
With everyone else now in the living room, he finally voiced after swallowing another bite and turning his eyes to her, "Lightswitch, I hate surprises."
The girl visibly deflated, but instantly tried to stand up straighter. She hid her frown by shoving another bite of cake in her mouth.
"But this one didn't suck."
He sucked at words, especially when it came to talking to her, but for once he didn't hesitate to say, "Thanks."
He, too, stuck another bite of cake in his mouth to hide his angry embarrassment for admitting such.
Asumi couldn't help but smile, swinging her legs slightly like a little kid.
☯︎
The end of December had come faster than anyone could be prepared for, but they certainly weren't prepared for the video that came back on Bakugo and Todoroki's interview.
They were interviewed about their villain takedown quite literally thirty minutes after they got their licenses, explaining the delay of why all of the class sat in the dark for so long waiting for their arrival. However, when Todoroki told the interviewer they were friends, Bakugo couldn't be described as happy.
Come to find Bakugo had been cut out of about ninety percent of the interview because of all of his yelling and harsh comments, the class laughing at the fact.
Asum couldn't help but laugh too, earning her a very dirty glare from the blond–not that she minded much. It just made her laugh louder and in his face because he had done this to himself.
That led to the conversation that the public currently had mixed views on the hero world and the entire system itself. Right now there was more encouragement than bad, but that had led to the introduction of Mt. Lady and Midnight who were going to teach their class today.
Publicity and media training... Yay....
An entire stage was set up in the field where they had their first class where they'd be practicing hero interviews.
"Shoto, my dear. You first."
"Okay."
Asumi crossed her arms, sinking into the hood of her costume as she watched the boy leave her side and walk up the stage to stand beside Mt. Lady.
Everyone watched like an audience, now in their hero costumes, as their guest teacher stuck a microphone in his face and acted out an interview, "My goodness! You were amazing out there!"
"Wait, what are you talking about?"
Asumi slapped a hand over her mouth, trying to hold back her chuckles as Bakugo side-eyed her blankly for her behavior.
"Pretend you just finished up a big mission! Go!" She whispered not-so-quietly but quickly returned to her acting, "Tell us, Shoto. What kind of hero would you like to be?"
Here, we go...
"Well, I guess.. A hero who makes people feel safer?"
Okay, okay. So far so good.
"Lovely. Problem is, if a handsome boy like you showed up to save me, I'm afraid my heart would go into overdrive!"
"Oh, do you have heart problems?"
Asumi snorted, causing Bakugo to whack her upside the head.
"And what kind of ultimate moves are you working with?"
Todoroki took the approach of showing the whole class what it was, explaining the move before coming back up on stage as his father's ultimate move he used came up.
Mt. Lady moved the conversation away from his family issues very bluntly before recommending him to smile at least once, "You flash those pearly white and the ladies will drop dead, ya feel me?"
A look of horror reached his face, the most genuine expression he had shown in a while, "If I smile, then they'll die?"
Asumi couldn't hold back anymore, openly cracking up amongst her silent and slightly confused classmates. She clapped loudly, "You're doing great, Shoto."
"MOVING ON!"
With Todoroki off the stage, they were able to ask about what had happened. A question had come up about showing off their moves, clarified by Mt. Lady that their ultimate moves are like their personal calling cards. It's all about not being forgotten, the best way of doing so is by showing off your assets. They were also handy when teaming up with others and frightening off villains, all of it being about helping people learn to trust you with their lives.
The thought was a daunting one, but Asumi had tuned out after that. Her attention fell on her foot in the first, dragging the tip of her boot around to make shapes.
Tuning it out also meant she didn't listen to most of the interviews, their voices like a faint whisper in the wind as her inner thoughts spoke louder.
"I chose my hero name because it was my brother's, and I want to live up to the honor and passion he embodied as Ingenium."
"You're oozing with sincerity!"
"My name is Creati, and your safety is guaranteed thanks to my encyclopedic knowledge."
"Confidence makes people rely on you!"
"Hi there, I'm Uravity! My quirk is Zero Gravity! And when I'm around, your problems and fears are weightless."
"Aw, everyone loves a gentle hero."
They went on and on... but because of her distraction, she had completely missed when it was her turn. At least until Bakugo roughly nudged her and she snapped her head up.
She trudged her way onto the stage, blankly staring at Mt. Lady who awaited her to speak into the microphone.
"I'm Dreamcatcher, and uh..." She tried to be clever, but it damn sure was hard, "I don't catch dreams, I catch nightmares and keep them away. Villains, I mean... same thing."
"Good message, but let's improve your execution."
When she walked back down the steps with a shrug, she was just glad to do better than Todoroki despite her awkwardness. She had to admit, it was a lot harder with a microphone shoved in your face and she wasn't looking forward to that part of the job.
When it was finally Bakugo's turn, he voiced his opinion very openly to no one's surprise, "I'm not gonna say stupid stuff like that! Shut your trap and trust me."
"You're just as bad in an interview by yourself, huh? I think I understand now, you just have a problem with humanity." Leave it to Mt. Lady to be as blunt as possible.
Asumi's eyes fell to Todoroki as he spoke from beside her, only shifting a step forward, "I'm sorry, Bakugo. You were completely cut because I was there." She smirked despite her friend's genuineness, already seeing where this was going.
Bakugo pointed an accusatory finger at him, "You're not so great! I don't give a damn what you think and I definitely don't want your apologies!"
"Okay."
Asumi was now openly laughing once more.
Her laughter didn't end, even with Bakugo shaking her violently with his hands gripping the front of her hero costume to shut up, until Midoriya reached the stage.
As it turned out, Midoriya had complete stage fright and was stiff as a damn board while violently shaking even in front of only his classmates and Mt. Lady.
"Deku, right? What a treat. I saw you in action."
"I'm glad. Really glad." He mutters, voice raised a few pitches and audibly trembling. Poor guy couldn't even blink, "Just super glad..."
"I'm sure we'd all love to know what was going through your head."
His arm stiffly raised an inch, sweat dripping down his face, "Just that... I'm still glad."
"Holy crap, when'd he learn how to use my quirk?" Kirishima pointed out his stiffness innocently.
Asui clarified, "He's just so nervous."
Only when Mt Lady questioned his similarities with All Might did he snap out of it... only to ramble very intensely about All Might and the workings of his quirk, and a lot of other things she couldn't catch. He was spiraling into his rambles once again, to no one's surprise.
Mt. Lady had questioned about the quirk, drawing the boy to silence.
A beat had passed before he had raised his hand, everyone watching curiously as a minuscule black whip appeared only to quickly retreat again which made him jump for joy. "I did it! Yeah!"
She and Bakugo sweatdropped with blank looks on their faces, the whole class mimicking them. They had expected more... but at least he didn't almost die again?
"Sure it was just a tiny wisp, but that's the first step to one day controlling this power!"
"Don't be happy about something so weak." Bakugo muttered quietly at her side, making her nudge him slightly.
Sure she was... taken aback that the little wisp was it... but the poor boy was trying! They knew better than anyone there that it wasn't as simple as they had it.
The end of the lesson came shortly after that, Bakugo and Asumi walking at the back of the pack as they made their way back to the locker rooms.
This was usually done in silence between the two as the rest of their class chatted away, maybe a bicker every now and then, but she hadn't been expected to be asked what he did.
She wasn't sure if she heard him right the first time, asking him to repeat the question. Perhaps she was daydreaming again.
But no, he repeated the exact same words much to her confusion, "Is your guy's quirk only allowed to be nightmares?"
"I mean..." Asumi blinked, never outright asked this simple question because it seemed so obvious to her, "Yeah."
"Have you ever tried to?" The boy pressed regardless of her tone that screamed 'no shit, sherlock'.
She at least took the time to think about the follow-up question before answering, "No."
Yume had always made it very clear how it worked, not that Asumi could see it in action. The quirk was self-explanatory once you got the hang of it, and it had been nothing but nightmares for as long as she could remember, there was no use in trying to make it something it wasn't.
Still, Bakugo was relentless in his theories always confused or frustrated her, but he always ended up having some point in the end despite this. He worked to take off his gauntlets as they walked, tucking one under his arm as he said, "Then try. Better than not."
Asumi was convinced that it probably didn't work that way as much as she wished Bakugo was right. All For One would've utilized that if it were possible so he would've known, right?
But she laid the idea in the back of her mind for later as they reached the locker rooms, kicking the back of his knee and fleeing to the girls' room before he could do anything about it.
His voice boomed behind the door, "I'm gonna kick your ass!"
Asumi ended up walking out with the girls surrounding her in tight coordination as human shields when they were done.
☯︎
Help it's 1 AM (when is it not when I publish tbh)
Oh my god last half of season 5 starts after the next chapter... and then shit gets REALLL ANGSTY AHHH
brought to you by:
mik who finally ordered the book Shatter Me because I'm so so curious
{ 5440 words }
3.31.24