The students of Class 1-A were relaxing in the lounge, discussing what they planned to do for the School Festival when they all heard a large explosion from the other side of the room.
"WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING, YOU IDIOT!??!" Bakugou shouted at Ayano. He was, surprisingly, not the cause of the explosion. Luckily, it wasn't a large scale one, only resulting in puffs of smoke and soot to be launched into the air with no damage to the furniture.
The inventor coughed into her hand, desperately trying to clear her lungs as she waved away all the smoke with her other hand.
Several of her classmates cautiously waded through the smoke, concerned for their friend. "Aya-chan! Is everything okay?!" Many of them asked.
"Everything is fine." She quickly replied, immediately going back to the couch. Machines, gadgets, and all sorts of tech were littered about on the table in front of her.
"The hell it is!!! You're dead tired and you need sleep, damn it!!" Bakugou grabbed her shoulder, making her face him. He was prepared to use force if she didn't listen.
"I'll sleep when the School Festival is over." She mechanically responded, but she couldn't deny that she was incredibly tired. Ayano had been working day and night in preparation for the festival, along with attending regular class.
The students of the Support Course would hold a big tech exhibition for the festival, showcasing their talents and inventions. Due to recent major events, U.A. had decided to go through with the festival on the conditions that only a select few would be able to attend this year. The Support Course students had received a list of all the support companies that would send a representative to the festival, and this was by far the biggest opportunity for all of them.
There was absolutely no way that Ayano would let this chance slip by.
"You're going to sleep now!!!" Bakugou grabbed each of her wrists, forcing her hands down to her sides so that she would be unable to work on anything. He had overpowered her, but he was certainly struggling. Perhaps if she weren't so tired, she might have been able to break free.
"I'll have...plenty of time...to sleep...when it is...over!" Ayano grumbled out as she fought to break free from his grasp.
"Will you give it a rest already!!! You already said you're way ahead of schedule! Look at this!!!" Bakugou gestured with his head since his hands were occupied with holding down Ayano's. "You made a stupid mistake when you never would have before! Now get some fucking sleep!"
Ayano stared him, searching desperately for a rebuttal. She couldn't find one though because he was right. If she were of perfectly sound mind, her invention never would have short circuited like that. "You're right." She sighed, admitting defeat.
"Damn right I am! You're always telling me to get to sleep before ten, why?!" Bakugou wanted to pour just a little bit more salt in the wound.
"...Because we need seven to nine hours of sleep to remain at peak performance, and lack of sleep depresses cognitive function..." Ayano mumbled out.
He smirked in triumph. "Good! Now don't be a hypocrite and get the fuck to sleep!" He pointed at the elevator down the hall. When she didn't make a move to get up from the couch, he scowled at her. "What the hell are you waiting for?!"
"...There is no room. That's why I came down here. There is more space in the lounge." Ayano explained.
"Ehhh?! There's that much stuff in your room!? It's even on the bed?!" Mina asked in disbelief. The rest of her classmates felt a sweat drop down their temple when Ayano nodded. Just how many things was she working on!?
Bakugou plopped down onto the couch next to her. "You're really too much, you know? I guess you can just use my bed for now." He suggested.
Kaminari and Mineta raised their eyebrows at him suggestively. "Oooh? Smooth, Bakugou! Real smooth! Trying to get Aya-chan into your bed, huh?"
"SHUT THE FUCK UP, YOU PERVERTS!!" He was about to get up and attack them when he felt a pair of hands wrap around his waist. Ayano had her lower half splayed across the couch as she latched onto Bakugou, laying her head on his chest.
"Your room is too far. I'll just sleep here so that I can get right back to work once I wake up." With that, Ayano promptly fell asleep snuggled up to Bakugou as he spluttered out obscenities with a blush on his face.
Apparently, Ayano was much more tired than he thought because she didn't even think about her actions. There's no way she would have done this in her normal state.
He tried prying her off, but she was already sound asleep. After all this effort to get her to rest, he didn't want to wake her up so soon. She desperately needed the sleep.
Bakugou sighed in annoyance, but he really wasn't all that annoyed. Even if he was, gazing at her sleeping face would have calmed him down instantly.
"Let's go! Let's go! Things might get steamy in here!" Kaminari and Mineta whisper-shouted, ushering the rest of their classmates out.
Well, now he was annoyed again.
"Once she wakes up, I'm going to kill you all!!!"
.
.
.
On the morning of the festival, Bakugou barged into Ayano's room with a pair of drumsticks in hand. She was packing up all of her things into a large suitcase. It was the same one that she brought to the orphanage that one time.
She looked at him briefly as he walked in, but soon returned to packing. "Good timing. I was just about to tell you that I'm leaving." Snapping the suitcase shut, she walked with him to the elevators.
As they were riding it down, Ayano flipped through several flashcards. Bakugou looked at her curiously. "What are those for?" He asked. Without looking at him, she responded. "Flashcards for my presentation."
The blond raised an eyebrow. "Didn't think you needed those things." He commented.
Putting them away as the elevator reached the first floor, Ayano looked forward. "I don't. I've already memorized everything, but one must always prepare for the unexpected. 'Fortune favors the prepared mind' as they say."
As they walked out of the elevator, they were met with much of Class 1-A rushing to prepare for departure. Seeing the pair, Kaminari rushed up to them while waving a shirt in his hand. "Bakugou! Come on, you gotta wear the shirt! The band has to match!" The T-shirt was a relatively simple one with the words 'A BAND' plastered on the front.
"I'm not wearing that piece of shit." The explosive boy bluntly responded. "Then I'll just have to force it on you!" The electric boy shouted as he plunged the shirt's opening over Bakugou's head. The two of them struggled against each other, but Bakugou eventually put on the shirt. Of course, not without hitting Kaminari a few times.
"It is unfortunate that I will not be able to attend your performance. Although, I'm sure you all will blow the audience away." Ayano complimented as she examined Bakugou in the band's 'uniform.'
Since Class 1-A's performance was one of the first, Ayano would still be preparing for the tech exhibition and wouldn't be able to see it. A fact that had the both of them quite a bit more disappointed than they thought they would be.
The blond clicked his tongue. "Of course we will." His face displayed a great amount of displeasure. "I have to clean up afterwards, but I'll come to see your exhibit as soon as I can."
Ayano smiled tenderly at him. He didn't have to do that. In fact, she had never even asked him to come see her presentation. Although, she probably shouldn't have been too surprised, considering that she just did the same thing. She expressed her regrets at not being able to see Bakugou's performance despite him never having asked her to come, and now he was doing the same thing.
Perhaps something like this was just a given for those in a relationship.
Ayano raised her hand to cup Bakugou's cheek. "You don't have to worry about that. Just do your best."
The boy placed his hand over hers, giving a slight frowning pout. "Who said I was worried?" He was so dishonest sometimes, but he would never deny her affections.
She smirked at him, knowing full well that he was just putting up a front. "Play your hardest and I might even hear it with how loud you can be."
The girl gave him a quick, chaste kiss. She pulled away, preparing to leave when he pulled her right back into a much deeper kiss.
"I'll blow the whole gymnasium down with my drumming." Bakugou promised her. She smiled at him, turning to leave for real this time.
Upon reaching the exhibition site, Ayano nearly shivered with excitement. This would be one of the greatest opportunities she would ever be given, and seeing everyone else setting up their inventions only served to exhilarate her more.
The young inventor cracked her knuckles and stretched, fully prepared to put on a show that the support company representatives would never forget.
.
.
.
The exhibition site was soon bustling with students showcasing their work and visitors interested in becoming potential clients.
Many of the Support Course students had created something grand, hoping to attract attention through the size of their inventions. Ayano, however, was one of the very few who had chosen to display something on a much smaller scale. This, in itself, attracted much attention within the throng of gigantic machines. She also had the added benefit of being recognized from the Sports Festival.
"Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedules to witness my exhibit." She bowed to the support company representatives. Raising her head, she gave a smile full of confidence. "I can assure you that your time will not be wasted." Stepping to the side, she revealed pedestals that showcased her inventions.
Many of the representatives gave questioning sounds and glances. "These look just like common prosthetics...?" One of them questioned. On the pedestals were several objects that appeared to be prosthetics, or rather, some type of mechanical exoskeletons.
"That is precisely what they are." Ayano offered a perfect business smile. "After the Sports Festival, I was fortunate enough to intern at the Matsumoto Prosthetics and Orthotics Manufacturing Company."
Several of the representatives widened their eyes or nodded their heads in recognition, knowing this company to be one of the leading companies in the production of prosthetics and finding it strange that someone like Ayano would deliberately choose to intern at such a place.
"During my internship, I had the pleasure of working on a company project in which we were to develop and donate prosthetics to children in orphanages. Those children left a profound mark on my life, and they made me realize just why I do all of this." Picking up one of the exoskeletons, Ayano let it attach itself to her arm. It slowly covered the entirety of her limb, perfectly matching the shape and leaving no skin out in the open.
"Support companies still separate themselves into categories, such as hero support and lifestyle support but, in essence, their goals remain the same. They exist to help people, heroes and non-heroes alike. I have incorporated that concept into my inventions. These mechanical exoskeletons have a dual-purpose. They can offer protection to fighting heroes as well as helping average citizens. If you would direct your attention above, please." She gestured above her with her hand, a screen projecting some video clips.
"As you can see, these exoskeletons can fit the shape of any person and any body part – big or small, mutated or not." True to her words, the screen showed many people of differing body types trying on the exoskeletons. It fit Shoji's Dupli-Arms as well as Iida's large engine calves with no difficulty.
"They can even replicate limbs that are no longer there, phantom limbs so to speak." The video then shifted to show children from the orphanage. Missing several appendages, they tried on the exoskeletons, which formed into perfectly functioning arms and legs.
"Prosthetics can be incredibly expensive, not just because of the nature of manufacturing but because of age. Children at this age are always growing and prosthetics nowadays are unable to account for such growth, forcing their families to constantly buy new ones once the children grow even a little bit so that their body parts remain even and balanced. Due to the shapeshifting qualities of my exoskeletons, we will be able to eliminate such problems entirely." Many of the representatives nodded their heads along with her explanation, becoming more and more impressed as she spoke.
Shutting off the screen, the representatives' attentions were directed back to Ayano. "Moving onto the hero aspect of my creations, these exoskeletons offer an extremely protective layer to hero costumes. They are made of lightweight material, which prevents heroes from being slowed down unlike many bulky armors." Without warning, Ayano lobbed one of her mechanical exoskeleton limbs toward a representative. The man fumbled a bit at the sudden action, but was able to catch and carry the object with ease, thus proving that it was indeed lightweight.
The young inventor walked over to the side where a hydraulic press was situated. With the exoskeleton still latched onto her arm, she placed her arm onto the surface of the press and turned on the machine. Some of the support company representatives shouted in surprise, concerned that she might crush her arm. However, there was nothing but confidence on Ayano's face and their concerns were entirely unwarranted.
Despite the extreme force being exerted on her arm, the girl showed no pain and her arm was far from being crushed. "As you can see, my exoskeletons remain lightweight while still maintaining sufficiently high tensile strength. They can withstand extreme forces as well as extreme weather..." Turning off the hydraulic press, she moved to the small kiln next to it. She plunged her arm into the fires of nearly two thousand degrees Fahrenheit. "...All while preventing any harm to the user."
She concluded her speech by hyper cooling the exoskeleton in a vat of liquid nitrogen, earning her a round of applause and impressed representatives. Ayano bowed to them as she removed the exoskeleton from her arm.
One man, however, interrupted the applause. He wore a business suit and possessed a rodent-like head with every feature of his face being akin to that of an animal's. "I have some questions on what you might do if a villain ever got access to this equipment. I do see the value in your inventions, but it could be very dangerous if in the hands of a villain, don't you think? I also know that you were kidnapped by the League of Villains. There were some rumors about your involvement in their weapons. I think most of us here have also seen your performance at the Sports Festival and have witnessed just how destructive your weapons can be. Don't you think your exoskeletons might do more harm than good if an organization like the League of Villains were to get their hands on them?"
For Ayano's safety, it was not revealed to the public just how involved she was with the League of Villains and their weapons. However, rumors still spread and it was known that she had at least some influence on their gear.
Many of the other support company representatives nodded their heads along with the man's probing. Their brows furrowed in concern, seeing how dangerous the exoskeletons could be.
Ayano showed no signs of panic. In fact, she was completely prepared for these types of questions. After all, she was the one most concerned about her support items falling into the wrong hands.
"Would you like to see for yourself what would happen?" Rather than explaining it outright, Ayano directed him to one of the pedestals showcasing an exoskeleton meant for the arm. The man hesitantly stepped forward, feeling uneasy about the amount of confidence in her smirk and in her speech.
He slowly raised his arm, reaching out to touch the exoskeleton. As soon as he did, he quickly jerked his hand back as the equipment short circuited and broke down before his very eyes. Baffled, he turned to the girl for an explanation.
"My exoskeletons are programmed to recognize only one user. If any other being tries to use them, they will short circuit and break down just as you saw. Of course, the user can manually override this programming. Heroes often have to work together on cases, and a situation may arise in which they have to share equipment."
The man with the rodent-like head was about to offer a rebuttal when Ayano interrupted him. "Now, you may have questions along the lines of, 'Well what if a villain manages to force the hero to manually override the programming somehow?' In such a situation, I have programmed another fail-safe. These exoskeletons are designed to monitor the hormones in the blood stream as well as brain wave activity. Many different hormones are produced and brain activity can change drastically when one thinks about different things. The hormones and brain activity of someone planning to do harm in order to protect are very different from someone planning to do harm because they find enjoyment in it."
Ayano tapped at her head. "In other words, my exoskeletons have the ability to detect and distinguish between people with good intentions and those with evil ones. In the case of the latter, they will short circuit and break down just as you saw before. Of course, nothing is ever foolproof, but I believe I have taken the necessary measures to limit as many negative possibilities as I can."
With that, the man had no other questions. He clapped his hands in approval, causing the rest of the representatives to join in.
With her presentation being finished, she was bombarded with a flurry of representatives offering her their business cards and wishing to speak with her more in private. As Ayano spoke with each of them one by one, she saw Bakugou in the corner of her eye.
He had a small smile on his face and eyes full of pride.
Somehow, that made Ayano far happier than any of the offers she received from the representatives.
She walked towards Bakugou when she thought she was finished speaking with all of the representatives, but was stopped by another pair. "Sasaki-kun! A moment of your time please!"
The same rodent-like man from earlier was standing with another person. It was a man wearing a green dress shirt and tie with a black pinstriped blazer. He was wearing sunglasses and a fedora. Ayano's eyes widened in recognition when he removed his sunglasses and tipped his hat at her, revealing two dark moles on the left of his forehead.
"Yotsubashi Rikiya...The President and CEO of the Detnerat Company..." She breathed out in disbelief. "To what do I owe the pleasure? Or rather, what is a man of your standing doing at this festival?"
The students of the Support Course were given a list of all the support companies that would be sending a representative to the festival. The Detnerat Company, the leading lifestyle support manufacturer, was not on that list.
The tall, older man laughed. "Well, it's like you said! Support companies, hero and lifestyle alike, exist to help people! Although we are the leading company in lifestyle support, I think it's about time we delve into hero support as well."
Ayano slightly furrowed her brows. "While that may be true, you could have just as easily sent a representative here rather than come yourself."
"You're just as astute as Matsumoto said you were!" The man laughed again, referring to the CEO of the Matsumoto Prosthetics and Orthotics Manufacturing Company that Ayano interned at. "I wanted to see for myself just what the students of U.A. are capable of, and I was not disappointed in the slightest! You, my dear, are just as impressive as I had hoped!"
He stared at one of her exoskeletons still on a pedestal. "A fail-safe that completely destroys the support item...perhaps my company should make something like that when we make our debut into hero support." He commented, pulling out a business card from inside his blazer.
Handing the card to Ayano, he smiled at her. "I hope you might considering contacting us and working with us in the future." He turned away but turned back after a moment of thought. "Oh! And do keep it a secret that the Detnerat Company has plans to go into the hero support industry! We'll be making an announcement later in December."
Ayano bowed to him. "Of course. Please do enjoy the rest of your time at this festival."
The CEO smiled at her, putting on his sunglasses again. He turned to his colleague, the rodent-like man. "Let us be off, Miyashita!" The two of them went to see the rest of the exhibits.
Ayano stared at their backs, the business card still in her hands. Seeing that there was nobody left to bother her, Bakugou finally walked up to her. "Who was that?" He asked.
"...Just another person from a support company offering me their business card." The girl responded, keeping in mind that the CEO of the Detnerat Company probably wanted to keep his presence here a secret, given what he told her and knowing that the company was not listed in the ones invited to U.A.
Bakugou thought nothing of it since he saw plenty of other men and women offering Ayano their business cards. He helped her pack up her inventions into the large suitcase and carried it for her. In his other hand, he offered her a crêpe that he got from one of the stands on his way here.
Ayano took it gratefully, a smile gracing her face. They walked out of the exhibition site together, intent on exploring the rest of the festivities. After a couple of seconds of walking, Bakugou held his hand out to her.
The girl stared at his hand as she nibbled on the crêpe. Suddenly, Bakugou glared at her. "You better not say anything about my hands being sweaty again..." He threatened.
Ayano laughed, taking his hand and intertwining their fingers. Seeing as she was done working on support items for a while and wanted to just enjoy the festival with him, she saw no harm in holding his hand this time.
"...Just because it is not explicitly stated does not mean they are not sweaty." She commented, squeezing his hand.
"Shut up!" He yelled, but squeezed her hand back nonetheless.