So far, you and Iida's turn was going smoothly. You were first this time, so that did inevitably put some pressure on you. You were both now walking back to where you'd begun, your fake citizen resting safely in your pocket. Funnily enough, this one was shaped like a banana, placed on a display with other fake fruits.
The area of the city you were let into this time was much more narrow and long, the shape differing from the last. Technically, your turn was not yet over so you continued to be on alert if only a little.
"So Iida," You began, attempting at some kind of conversation. "How do you like school so far?" Not the most interesting or engaging question, but you were sure approaching a conversation about memes with Iida wasn't the way to go at the moment.
"Ah!" Iida adjusts his glasses so they wouldn't glint in the sunlight -you could now see his nice blue eyes- and the tall male turns toward you as you continue the walk. "It is only our second day, however, I find myself enjoying this prestigious school!" The bluenette seemed interested in the topic but he politely kept himself from going on a tangent.
'He does seem like the type to enjoy a tough school... Not that it's a bad thing..' You mused to yourself, careful not to get lost in thought. "What do you enjoy about it?" You asked, your voice laced with curiosity. Instead of leaving the conversation at just that, you helped it continue.
"The faculty continues to challenge us in ways only befitting of a school of U.A.'s stature! It is refreshing to be surrounded by such astounding Pro-Heroes too; their guidance is much appreciated!" Iida explains himself, leaving you to mull over his words.
"I like it here too, to be honest! It's very different from my old school but it's a good different," You offer your input with excitement, your arms gaining a tingling sensation as you gestured with them as you talked.
"Indeed! While my previous education has been up to par, U.A. is a very unique establishment for teaching us heroes in training!" The bluenette boy commented one last time before you made it to your destination.
Stepping carefully over the finish line, -you were careful not to trip and embarrass yourself now that you knew you were being recorded- you and Iida emerged from the mock city.
The pair of you walked over to the bins meant for holding the ties. You slipped them off and headed back over to your team's base.
-✼ ҉ ✼ ҉ -
Now that you were done with your turns and could properly relax, you noticed more details inside of the homey place. Whoever designs structures for U.A. clearly knows what they're doing.
Past the area with the sofas and recliner chairs that you'd taken note of earlier was a medical bench. It was complete with plush cushioning, first aid kits on a wooden shelf slightly above it accompanied by a phone, most likely meant for contacting Recovery Girl or your teacher in case of a medical emergency.
To the right of the medical bench -it was against a wall- was another comfortable area. There was a tablet attached to the wall, clearly displaying the rules in an eye-pleasing and neat Questrial font.
In the space next to it was a mint green circular clock, displaying the time. Both of these devices were mounted on the wall, a few feet above the ground. On the floor beneath them were two medium-sized bookshelves, each of them holding colorful looking books. In front of the shelves, a few beanbags and teddy bear chairs were strategically placed around, a plush circular carpet underneath the seats, completing the cozy area.
You felt it looked very comfortable, the set up easily reminding you of a lounge room of sorts. It didn't take long for you to decide you wanted to relax here, and as you let the soft cushion of a teddy bear chair envelop you, your mind began to wander.
'Who's turn is it next? Mm, it was...Izuku and Kota's turn next..' You wanted to wait for your best friend to come back from his turn and what better way to pass that time in between than to nap? Your thinking was soft and unattentive as you felt the warmth from the chair encircle you.
'A little nap won't hurt... Besides, everyone else has their turns so that equals...sixty minutes..' At this point, your thinking was spaced out and your inner voice was soft and hazy. You felt yourself being whisked away to dreamland.
You couldn't say you really minded though, as you had a long day ahead of you. You curled up into the chair, your head resting on one of the arms while your legs curled behind you on the seat. Your breathing evened, and you were off.
-‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾★☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙-
"Can I? It's almost time to go anyway, so it doesn't matter much!"
"Fine."
You were slowly waking up to two distinct voices. One was smooth and curt, while the other held a similar seriousness, accented with unusual eagerness, a hint of mischief barely present.
You were slowly waking up...until something soft tickled your nose. It brushed back and forth very gently, but you weren't quite ready to budge. Your face did scrunch in slight displeasure though, and the gentle sensation stopped.
Only to return ever so slowly to the side of your neck. It trailed along your neck and when it grazed over a vein you flinched.
"Dark shadow." The smooth voice hissed again in a whisper, sounding slightly disgruntled. "You said you would wake her."
"And I am! Look, she's moving." The second voice responded again, suspending the first's complaints. True to the second's word, you had begun stirring in your chair, eyes squinted as they adjusted to the light.
"Mmh?" You mumbled out incoherently, not quite ready to form actual words. You sat up in the comfortable chair and rubbed your eyes so they would clear, glancing around with a much less disorientated visage.
"Tokoyami? What's going on?" You ask, your face expressing how bewildered you felt about how you'd woken up. The dark feathered boy crosses his arms and a small frown dances on his beak.
"Apologies. Dark Shadow was supposed to wake you up, per his request." Tokoyami explains, and you sit up further, shrugging your shoulders. "It's no problem," You looked up at the cute bear-themed clock. "It's about time to go anyway."
With your meager acknowledgment of the time, you slid off of the teddy bear chair and began smoothing out your blue and white clothes as you walked with Tokoyami to the starting area.
Although you wanted to get to know Tokoyami better; you settled on relaxing in the tranquil silence you both walked in.
--
"Alright. So you guys were supposed to battle it out now but we ran out of time. We'll finish tomorrow. Dismissed." Aizawa says, his tone serious but you didn't think anyone would deliberately cross him after those piercing red eyes he flashed yesterday.
You were a little bummed you wouldn't get to finish today but you had a busy agenda today anyway, so in a sense you were grateful. Plus, lunch was next so yay for food! You headed towards the girl's locker-rooms with the rest of the female population in your class.
༶•┈┈⛧┈♛ ♛┈⛧┈┈•༶
You strolled into the lunchroom with Kirishima by your side. "Where do you wanna sit (L/n)-chan?" The redhead asked you, his face set into an easygoing grin. "Oh! I'm actually eating lunch with Bakugo," You responded with a smile to match his own. "But I'm sure if you sit next to me he won't blow you up." You offered.
If you left Kirishima alone you'd feel pretty bad. "Hey, it's alright! I have some friends I'll sit with. It'd be rude to interrupt a lunch meetup! But consider sitting next to us tomorrow, okay?" Kirishima flashed you a toothy smile and you found yourself agreeing. "Of course! I'll give you my number later." You promise him, giving him a quick side hug that makes his cheeks a little pink before you separate.
You plop down into the seat across from Katsuki and begin eating. "Done flirting with shitty hair?" The ash-blonde asks, his voice gruff as he stares at you, his face hardened as usual. You poke your noodles with your chopsticks, before muttering out a "Maaayyybbbeee", elongating the word to emphasize it.
With your response, you properly tuck into your noodles, humming in delight at the flavor. Katsuki huffs and turns to his own food. He seemed strangely tame right now, and you kind of wanted to ask but refrained, not wishing to upset the mood. It was only when a table next to you guys started chatting loudly that you focused on something other than your delicious array of food.
"Hey, guys? Isn't that (L/n) and Bakugo?" a voice from Kirishima's table called out. The other classes in the cafeteria continued their chatter, but most of your class was now listening.
"Woah! It totally is!" Someone else responded, a couple of people peering around others to ogle you two. For a moment, you thought about what you should do. It would be perfectly acceptable to just continue eating and pretend like they weren't there, watching you both. Or, you could go with a much more appealing option.
"Hey, Bakugo." You murmured under your breath, just loud enough for him to hear whilst continuing with your noodles. "What the fuck do you want?" Katsuki whispered back harshly but did indeed keep his voice down to your volume. "Our class is watching us, so I'm going to prank them. Follow my lead, please?" You asked, almost pleading with him. This was too good of an opportunity!
"Fucking- whatever," Katsuki said, rolling his red eyes. You did see the corner of his mouth turn up into a smirk- you already took him for the "messing with people" type, anyway.
"Do you think they got together after the class activity??" Somebody asked, and you heard a few spit-takes. You wiped your mouth with your napkin and stood up, causing the conversation to cease for a moment. You walked over to the ash blonde's side of the table and slid in next to him.
You leaned in towards Katsuki, cupping your hand around his ear. Instead of whispering a saucy secret or something really important like your classmates seemed to believe, you whispered instructions. "When I pull away, put your arm around me and give me a bite from your food with your chopsticks. Yell at me later, I really wanna prank them." You added the last sentence with hopes he would just comply and get pissed later. When you pulled away, he glared at you with the barest tinge of pink on his pale cheeks. Luckily, a second after, you felt his arm wrap around your shoulders. Your face was also tinted pink by now, but you supposed that helped with the whole prank.
Katsuki gently placed his chopsticks down with care you didn't even know he had and wiped a piece of rice from the side of your lip. From there, he tilted your head towards him and picked his chopsticks back up.
Your class was dead silent now, almost every student watching with interest. Most were plainly staring, but some had their mouths open in shock and disbelief.
Katsuki picked up a rice ball and fed you it, straight to your mouth. Gasps could be heard as Katsuki continued feeding himself and you with his other arm still hooked around you. Once he was finished and the bell was about to ring, he began standing, so you stood with him. You both walked over to the exit of the big space and while Katsuki's arm around you was enough, you leaned your head on his shoulder for good measure before you both disappeared from view.
As soon as you were away from the prying eyes of your open-mouthed classmates, Katsuki shoved you away, his arms crossed and vermillion eyes glaring. "Jeez, okay! I get why you're mad, I guess.." You spoke, rubbing your arm gingerly.
"Shitty fucking Spasm, always doing weird shit..." Katsuki said to himself, kicking a stray soda can while stomping away.
You could kind of understand where he was coming from. When you wanted to prank your peers, you didn't really think of the after-effects. Now, shock lingered in the air but it wasn't quite the reaction you wanted. How would you even clear this if a rumor went around?
Shaking your thoughts off with an apprehensive smile, you rubbed the back off your neck. "Sorry, Bakugo.." You uttered and sped away. There were only a couple more minutes and you had finished your food (and some of Katsuki's, you remembered with a pink face) so you found yourself in U.A.'s garden.
The garden was mainly for students who volunteered to take care of it, but some had an actual gardening class. Speaking of, your class should be having your first gardening class next week! Some could wonder why U.A., a school for heroes in training even had a garden but honestly, U.A. has everything. Plus, it was useful for students with plant quirks.
You wandered into the garden, your school shoes clacking on the pathway. You noticed a figure up ahead, eating a bento on a bench. Strolling over to them, you figured this was as good a time as any to make a new friend.
Who you saw on the bench was someone you recognized, though.
"Hey..isn't your name Shinso?" You asked carefully, sitting on the bench next to the purple-haired boy. You gave him a nice amount of space, though, and cocked your head.
Shinso lowered his bento from his face and onto his lap. "Yeah." Your goal of making lots of friends hadn't been deterred, so you deftly crossed your legs. "I never got a chance to apologize about the mix-up with our letters... Sorry about that." You apologized, offering a sheepish grin towards him.
"Doesn't matter," Shinso dismissed, although you were sure you saw his lips pull downwards at the corners. "It won't stop me." He grumbled, taking another bite from his bento.
"Stop you from what?" You asked before you could stop yourself. Shinso's face hardened and his purple eyes that were indifferent before were cold. 'None of my business, I get it..' You internally sulked.
When you put your hands up in a surrendering motion, he dropped it and continued eating, his eyes back to normal and his face more relaxed. "Sooo, what's your quirk?" You asked, still wanting to converse and befriend the sleep-deprived boy.
Shinso grunted. "Why?" You put your arms behind your head and looked up at the sky. "I'm just interested, but you don't have to tell me." Shinso looked uncomfortable with the notion and faced away from you on the bench. He scoffed.
"Brainwashing."
You moved your eyes over to him. He was almost completely off the bench and he looked like he wanted to leave. At the same time, he was side-eyeing you with expectance, like he expected you to react in a certain way or say something he'd already heard a million times.
You hadn't put all the puzzle pieces together yet, but you either would soon enough or he'd tell you straight up.
You flashed a smile at the tense boy. "That sounds pretty neat! I don't know if you have before, but if you wanted to test something with your quirk on me I'd love to help!" And you weren't lying, either. In all honesty, as long as it wasn't permanent, it sounded fun!
Yeah, you would probably be under his full control- you didn't know how his quirk worked exactly- but if he made you do anything weird you could always prank him back.
You retreated from your thoughts and examined Shinso's face. He was fixing you with a bewildered stare, looking at you as if you were an alien that just descended from heaven and proposed to him on the spot.
"..What..?" Shinso asked slowly, pure confusion and something akin to horror on his face. You were a little confused but easily repeated yourself. "I said it sounded neat and that if you wanted to try something with your quirk, I'd be up to help!" You shot him another smile.
If Shinso's facial expression was any clue, he was still knee-deep in disbelief. "B-but," Shinso cleared his throat to clear the stutter and looked at you with an almost unreadable expression. "But isn't it villainous? Aren't you afraid I would hurt you or make you do something dumb?" Shinso still looked disbelieving but now he looked like you were a liar, as if what you said was a false truth, like you were just playing with him.
"Villainous? I mean usually brainwashing is a superpower villains have in shows.." You pondered, but you weren't regretful about your offer to help him. "But TV shows aren't very realistic. Plus, it really depends on the person. And if you were going to hurt me why would you be studying in a hero school? If you made me do something dumb, I'd just have to prank you back!" You winked at him and pulled your knees under your chin.
"Besides, what right do I have to judge you for a quirk you got when people don't even choose the quirks they get?" You offered another reason, wanting your argument to be solid. "I don't know if you're alone by choice because I know everyone needs alone time but what kind of hero in training would I be if I let you be alone for lunch? You seem like a cool guy, it'd be a shame if I didn't get the chance to talk to you more." You finished your mini-speech, raising a hand to brush a few strands of (H/c) hair out of your face.
Shinso stared at you, completely and utterly baffled. A few stray tears gathered at the corners of his eyes and he opened his mouth to say something to you.
Ding Dong, Ding Dong.
Ding Dong, Ding Dong.
The bell chimed and you jumped to your feet. "See you soon, Shinso-kun! Next time I'll tell you about my quirk!" You promised, waving before taking off towards the school entrance.
Shinso waved back in a meek, unsure manner. The purple-haired boy blinked away his tears and headed back to his class, your words and cheery voice bouncing around in his head like a mantra.
・゜-: ✧ :- -: ✧ :-゜・
Despite your efforts at running to your class like an Olympian, you still got to class a few minutes late. Luckily for you, Bakugo walked in right after you. You considered yourself fortunate because if Aizawa were to scold you, you wouldn't be alone. Plus, Katsuki was rarely late anyway.
You bowed and apologized to Aizawa for being late, Katsuki doing the same but barely. Aizawa nodded- he must not have had the energy to scold you- and turned back to the class. You began walking back to your seat before realizing something. Everyone in the class, save for Aizawa and Katsuki were feverishly moving their eyes between you and Katsuki, and you were frankly confused.
Before you heard a whisper.
"I thought it was a joke, but then they came in together and late too!!"
Oh no. You whipped around towards the source, your fists clenched by your sides and your eyebrows furrowed. You felt a mixture of horror and anger. Not at them, but more so at yourself. What if your classmates believe it? What if Izuku believes it? That you went and got into a relationship with his childhood bully?
Before you could say anything, you heard another.
"Do you think they were making out in the bathrooms together or something??"
You wanted to gag. You had been trying to befriend him, not earn a reputation that warrants making out in bathrooms! You couldn't even look in Izuku's direction. You felt so shameful, so disgusting when you weren't even actually in a relationship with Katsuki!
What if Izuku thought all those years you tried to defend him from Katsuki were a lie? That you were pitying him? Or someone made you do it? That you weren't really his best-
"S-sensei? Can- can I use the b-bathroom?" Izuku's voice came from behind you. You turned to look at him, out of the corner of your eyes. He looked like he was shaking a little, his hand raised meekly as his forest green eyes that were brimming with unshed tears were glued to the floor.
Aizawa nodded and Izuku went promptly. No, no, no, no, no. This can't happen. You ran after him, your heart pounding in your chest, you had to find him, you had to explain! Aizawa's capture weapon wrapped around you right before you got out of the door. "(L/n)." Your teacher's voice was stern.
You struggled relentlessly as you began begging. "No, no! Sensei, please! Let me go, I need to GO!" You screamed the last part, tears streaming down your face. Your breathing was heavy and frantic, you didn't care about anything else right now. This was your fault.
Aizawa relented, and let you free from the bindings. He didn't say anything, but his eyebrows were furrowed. You didn't stay behind to see why. Bolting from the room, you ran quicker than you ever had. Even though you forgot the entire classroom as soon as you were let go, you were grateful to Aizawa. You were surely on the verge of a panic attack.
You ran through the halls of U.A., your shoes pounding in sync with your heartbeat. You ran inside the first boy's bathroom you saw, with no clear regard for the rules. "Izuku?!" You pounded on the stalls. You even looked under them, but there was no sign of his red sneakers.
You ran faster, your heart was trying to get out of your chest and you couldn't breathe- your lungs were on fire. "Izuku?!" You screamed through the halls, your own body shaking. There were students around you, bewildered. One of them might've gone to get a teacher but you didn't care.
You ran through the hallways, passing by more students. "(L/n)?" You heard somebody call you but disregarded them for the time being. You made it to the next bathroom, the door bouncing on its hinges behind you.
There he was. In absolute pieces. The bathroom was otherwise deserted. He was crying and sobbing messily, slumped against the wall. You choked on nothing, your own tears spilling over again. You dropped onto your knees before you crawled over to him. You never wanted to be the cause of his tears.
"Izuku-" You choked out once you got close. His head whipped up towards you, his eyes were a little dull but full of surprise. "(Y-y/n)?" He asked, and you tugged him into a hug immediately. He returned it and you held each other as tightly as you could. Still clinging to each other like lifelines, you began to speak.
You dug your face further into his shoulder. "Izuku, I-i'm not dating him. I j-just wanted to prank our class. I'm s-so sorry." You cried, tightening your grip on his shirt. The greenette heard you out and nodded into your shoulder.
"And.." You hesitated. "About your new quirk.." You felt Izuku tense. "It's okay, you don't need to tell me now. I t-trust you, and I know you didn't lie! So let's start walking together again, okay?.." You spoke about all the things that had been happening between you two.
There were a lot of pent up feelings from this kind of distant state you and Izuku had been in, and here came the outburst of emotions.
"I-i'm sorry for not waiting for you so we could walk h-home... I-I'll tell you about..my quirk sometime," Izuku responded, nodding into your shoulder.
"I-i believe you (Y/n)-chan. About Kacchan...I know you l-like to play pranks s-sometimes..! " He stuttered. You pulled away from your hug and held him by the shoulders. "You're so important to me, okay? I know you can become a hero, and he's so wrong for bullying you! If he bullies you more tell me, please.." You begged, and Izuku pulled you into another tight hug.
"I will, th-thank you (Y/n)-chan.."
♥ ♡ ♥ ♡ ♥ ♡ ♥ ♡ ♥ ♡ ♥ ♡ ♥
You and Izuku walked back to your classroom after washing your faces. You had insisted on holding hands, and the greenette didn't argue, despite twitching a little in nervousness. This time, it did cross your mind how it looked to others. The pair of you leaving the boy's bathroom, faces flushed and holding hands. This time, you didn't really care. The thought of losing Izuku over passive-aggressive grudges and silly pranks shook you to your core and both of you kind of needed some physical support, someone to lean on.
When you and Izuku were outside the door, he entwined your fingers, looking a little worried. You had kind of caused a scene, after all. Your other hand was about to slide the door open and you paused and gave him a questioning look. He blushed and pulled his fingers back, reverting back to simple handholding.
You smiled and interweaved your fingers again as you slid the door open. Aizawa was in his sleeping bag, taking a cat nap while the class chattered. Izuku seemed nervous so you squeezed his hand and pulled him inside.
Most everyone turned towards the two of you and you gave them a sheepish smile. You didn't regret your earlier actions per se, but you did feel a little embarrassed. With another hand squeeze and smile, you and Izuku sat down at your respective desks. People began to rush over to question you guys before they heard a sound.
Zzzzzzpppp.
Aizawa unzipped himself from his banana yellow sleeping bag and stood. "Welcome back (L/n)." He said to you with a slight glare and you nervously grinned at him. "Quiet." He said to the class and everyone became silent. "(L/n). You know where to go."
You gathered your belongings including your backpack this time, so you wouldn't have to come back here to grab it. While you did that, Aizawa addressed the class again, who seemed to think they were about to do something interesting.
"Take your textbooks out and take notes on Chapter 1.5." The class groaned but did as they were told. You left, heading towards class 3A. You rounded the corner, but this time Mirio, Tamaki, and Nejire were waiting outside the door.
Nejire skipped over to you, bouncing on her feet. "HI!! It's so good to see you again!! Come on, guys! Our cute little kohai's here!!" Nejire called, stretching your cheeks with her thumb and pointer finger.
"T-thank you, senpai!" You responded with difficulty as Nejire didn't cease her cheek-pulling. Mirio stepped forward with Tamaki meekly following behind. "Good afternoon, (L/n)-chan!" Mirio greeted boisterously. You waved a little and smiled to the best of your ability. Nejire finally stopped, rolling on her heels with her hands clasped together.
"Hey, guys." You smiled again and held your backpack straps. "So what are we doing today?" You asked, tilting your head in question. "Well, you'll be doing a class activity with us!" Mirio says with his usual smile before he pulls the door to their class open. Mirio led the way while Nejire pulled you by the wrist excitedly and Tamaki took up the back.
You throw your head over your shoulder and smile at Tamaki. "Hi," You whisper and Tamaki looks up from the floor. "H-hi.." He says before returning his gaze to the floor. Now satisfied, you tune into Nejire's rambling and enter the room.
Power Loader's inside and everyone's facing him. "Now that everyone is here, let's begin." The teacher instructs, clicking some kind of device that makes another hologram board appear. 'Huh.. so it's not only Aizawa-sensei.' You muse, your (e/c) eyes beginning to scroll over the instructions.
'Today you will be using devices produced by the support course.
In teams of three, you will engage in a race and afterward, a fight.
Good luck.'
This time, the instructions were much more sparse then they had been in your class. Power Loader clicked the screen off and crossed his arms. "Change into your PE uniforms and meet me in Ground Beta C." He said strictly, leaving no room for argument. You headed down with the rest of the class, filled to the brim with unfamiliar students. Nejire tugged you over to the girls' locker room.
You found a more secluded corner and changed into the spare PE uniform you kept in your backpack. You zipped your backpack up and placed it down. You readily stuck by Nejire's side as the girls regrouped with the boys. It was admittedly cool to see everyone looking excited, even if you didn't know them.
"We should totally go to the mall together!! Ooh, ooh!! A sleepover would be so fun! Aren't you curious about what we're going to do???" Nejire continued her banter and you nodded at her musing. "Those would be fun! And we're about to find out, Nejire-chan!" You nudged her as everyone walked out onto the field.
There were these banana-shaped contraptions. They were designed to carry two people -it was obvious because each had only two seats inside- and they kind of looked like kayaks but metal ones with lots of buttons, not to mention the big sturdy wheels keeping them up.
"These are the contrivances you will be using for today. In teams of two, you will use these devices to get through an obstacle course. Quirks are not allowed until the second portion. Each device has multiple mechanics, such as features fit for swimming and climbing. You will not be timed. Do your best. Am I clear?" Power Loader instructed, his big, burly arms crossed again.
"Yes, Sensei!" Everyone chimed.
"Now. The pairings."
Nejire ended up getting paired with one of the girls, who must've been one of her friends because she began excitedly ranting to her. You lost her in the crowd. Sighing in slight defeat, you listened to the other pairings. Mirio was paired with a guy with some kind of claw quirk. The blonde waved to you and Tamaki, before clapping the brash looking guy on the back.
On one hand, you were a little disappointed. You wanted to have the chance to be on the same team as Mirio and Nejire. On the other hand, you had plenty of opportunities for that, and who knew what today's activities held?
"Alright, Ishiki and Ozoro together and lastly, (L/n) and Amajiki. You have five minutes to get acquainted with your gadgets. No, there are no manuals. Good luck." Power Loader finished his instruction. You were excited, but a little on edge. You figured this activity would be at least a little difficult. One, you didn't know of anyone's quirks, including your teammates. Additionally, there was no specific instruction regarding the device you guys would be using.
You flashed a smile at Tamaki before moving over to your device wordlessly. You crouched by the big metal object. You only had five minutes to figure at least some of how this thing operates. The first thing you spotted on the side was a big sticker that said 'Banana Rocket'. You blinked. Well, the support classes didn't have to be special when naming their inventions but it was amusing still.
You stood up again and brushed off your blue clothing. Shifting your eyes to see what Tamaki was doing, you witnessed him with a look of concentration. He was looking over the buttons on the dashboard. The seating was vertical, so somebody was going to have to be in front and the other in the back. In the front, there was a steering wheel and a couple of buttons.
Upon further inspection, the buttons in the front looked to be to help the driver navigate across the course. There was a button that would conceal the wheels to effectively make it easy to go across shallow water. A big green button was used to make it so your Banana Rocket mobile could climb up walls, and a medium-sized blue button was used to replace the wheels with springs, enabling the users to jump around.
Towards the back, there were cranks, with a simple label under reading "speed". Another button, -bright pink in color this time- was used to make the "banana rocket" have the qualities of a submarine. With a soft magenta button to provide you with something akin to a GPS, you were finished looking over it.
And just in time, too.
"Time's up! Get in with your teammate and get ready to start." Power Loader called, cupping his hands around his mouth.
Everyone obeyed, even with the quick decision of who would go in front and who would operate the back. "Amajiki-kun, which part do you wanna be in?" You spun around and asked the dark-blue-haired boy with a sweet smile. You were rightfully excited. While technology was fairly advanced, you were already pumped to use a device like this.
"The back is f-fine..." Tamaki responded in a gentle tone, shuffling on his feet. You nodded at him, hopping into the front of the Banana Rocket. On the inside, there were just two cushioned chairs, with one closer to the front and one towards the back. There was no divider, and there was just enough space to be comfortable.
Unfortunately, these chairs had no backs to them either. 'Lucky Amajiki..he can lean on the back!' You thought, giggling internally. The two of you climbed in carefully, adjusting to your way of transportation for this exercise. The inside was a comfortable room temperature, and the metal on the inside wasn't too cold.
"Ready, Set, Go!" Power Loader called, moving to survey everyone from somewhere else. You pushed your sneakered foot hard on the gas pedal. Tamaki jolted forward a little but was otherwise fine. There were a couple of people behind you, but Nejire was upfront, yelling freely in excitement as her hair whipped in the wind.
Mirio was a little behind her, and also going strong. He wasn't yelling, but he had a big grin on and was moving pretty fast. His teammate was swearing at him under his breath while clinging to the sides of their banana rocket like a koala.
You bit your bottom lip. Right now, everyone was just racing on the pavement, but a water segment was up next. You wanted to go faster, but you were afraid of hurting or upsetting Tamaki. "Hey, Amajiki-kun?" You spoke up, twisting around in your seat some. Tamaki nodded at you to show he was listening. "Can you.. um, can you hold onto my shoulders, I'd like to go faster!" You asked a little sheepishly, your excitement shining through at the end of your sentence.
Tamaki flushed a little and looked down while answering. "O-okay." He muttered. You gave him a smile you weren't sure if he saw before turning back around and gripping the steering wheel tightly. Tamaki was hesitant and his hands were a little shaky, but they did make their way to your shoulders. You smiled and said a loud "Hold on tight!" before pushing the gas pedal to the floor. The dark bluenette behind you jolted and tightened his grip. Everyone was starting to get more serious now, and you were determined to do well as everyone approached the water.
"Get ready for water, Amajiki-kun!" You called out over the noise of the wind, the same breeze whipping your hair around. Tamaki hummed an affirmative noise, and you launched into the water, your finger pushing down hard on the button to retract the wheels. Tamaki clicked a button on his end to help you guys advance through the water quicker.
You were going smooth, approaching the front at a steady pace. Some people hadn't discovered the water speed button and were going through the water slower, their faces morphed into a baffled expression. You and Tamaki glided up the ramp built to help you guys get in and out of the water quicker.
Next up was this vast and wide stone wall, blocking everyone's path. Tamaki replaced his hands on your shoulder blades again. You lightly pressed a button that was meant for jumping across things in a frog-like manner, jolting in your seat when you began moving. It wasn't automatic, and you still had to navigate and push the gas but it shook the contents of your lunch up in your stomach.
Tamaki looked like he felt similar about it, his skin paling a little. The banana rocket jumped onto the wall, and began scaling it in short, timed jumps. You felt a little dizzy and had a difficult time resisting gravity now that you and Tamaki were literally going up sideways like a bug. You were slowly sliding out of your seat towards the back, and with no back support from your chair, the gravitational pull was becoming successful.
"Sorry, Amajiki-kun!" You squeaked out, your back finally falling against Tamaki's chest. The pointy-eared boy's face heated up and he held your upper arms with hesitance, trying his best to steady you. You guys were almost at the top at least, and not far behind the person who was in first.
You relaxed into Tamaki's nervous warmth for a second, trying your best to block out the jolty movements of the banana rocket. You weren't motioned sick, but the dizzying motions of the device carrying you and Tamaki over the wall definitely made you a little off balance.
You finally emerged on the other side. You leaned up back into your seat and gave Tamaki an apologetic smile that he simply returned with a flustered expression. You noticed something you hadn't before. It looked vaguely like a thermometer. You were dissatisfied with being in the middle of everyone at this point, so you cranked up the thermometer looking object on a whim, hoping for the best.
Instead of launching you back- you wouldn't put it past the support class to add a feature like that-, the jumps got slower but bigger. 'Oh! It's for the length in between jumps!' You turned the knob to around halfway, allowing you and Tamaki to progress further.
"C-careful!" Tamaki suddenly stuttered out and you narrowly avoided someone who was trying to go faster and consequently got into your way. "Thanks!" You called to Tamaki in a breathless manner. He hummed again and you accelerated, leaning your body towards the front as if you were racing on a track.
You gaped openly at the next obstacle. It was a large maze that completely towered over everyone by a lot. It was ginormous and kind of intimidating. You shared a look with Tamaki before delving in. Everyone knew that to complete this, bravery was a requirement. You'd try your best to make it through.
"Wait, Tamaki?" You suddenly remembered something, peering back at your dark-haired companion. Tamaki looked up and tilted his head some. "Isn't there a navigator back there?" You said with hopeful undertones as you halted the vehicle.
"Oh," Tamaki glanced over the mechanics in the back. "Yeah, t-there is!" He spoke a little less timidly then when you first had started. You were happy about that, especially because you were hoping he was enjoying this as much as you were. You grinned at Tamaki. While you wanted to win, taking this super seriously would do less for your enjoyment. "Think you can navigate us?"
»»——⍟——««
"L-left! Wait, right!" Tamaki called out instructions from behind you. You weren't perturbed and followed his shaky directions as you navigated. Every once in a while, you would come across another team, but the encounter would be brief.
"We're a-almost there.." The bluenette muttered, peering carefully at the digital directions provided to you. "S-straight and then take another right," Tamaki voiced and rotated the speed cranks a little. "Okay!" You said, moving towards the exit. Nejire and her teammate passed by you two, and unluckily for her, she was headed in the wrong direction. She seemed like she was enjoying herself nonetheless.
"Hiiiii guyyyyyssssss!" Nejire elongated her words loudly and giggled out, waving at the pair of you as she bounced in the other direction. "Hi, Nejire-chan!" You waved before losing sight of her as you neared the way out.
You emerged from the green foliage of the maze, breathing a sigh of the cool air. "You okay, Amajiki-kun?" You turned around in your seat. You were the first ones out, so even if only briefly, you had the luxury to take a breather for a second. "I'm g-good (L/n)-chan, l-let's keep going." Tamaki verbalized, giving you a shaky smile.
"Right!" You answered. You guys were pretty close to the end by now, and students were slowly trickling out of the maze behind you. The last object was a high, suspended bridge. You had to maneuver up the steep steps and then carefully make it across. The railings were flimsy and unpredictable, but there was a giant net under the whole contraption that made it safe. Running a hand briskly through your hair, you turned on the frog-like setting and adjusted it where the hops were slower and more spaced out.
You traveled up the stairs, clinging tightly to the sides of your banana rocket. Once you made it to the top, you avoided looking down and instead turned a little in your seat. "H-hey," You cleared your throat, firmly keeping your eyes from straying downwards. "Amajiki-kun, why don't we name our Banana Rocket?" You suggested, your body language and tight clutching of your vehicle letting him know you kind of wanted a distraction.
Tamaki internally agreed with you and kept his own dark blue eyes off of the ground way below as you both slowly progressed. "S-sure." He nodded, peeking behind the two of you. There was nobody directly on the bridge quite yet, but you could hear faint chattering and noise behind you.
"What do you think we should name him then?" You pondered aloud, a small smile crossing your face. "H-how about Tsubaki? It's a f-flower name," Tamaki explained with a small smile of his own. You looked at the bridge. A little more than halfway.
"It's pretty! Tsubaki the banana rocket!" You announced with vigor, pumping your fists into the crisp air before hurriedly bringing them back to you. It was quiet, but Tamaki chuckled at your excitable behavior and relaxed in his seat some more. "Thanks for taking us across, Tsubaki!" You mused, wrapping your arms around the front of the vehicle.
"Mhm." Tamaki agreed, pressing his hand to the metal meekly as if he was petting it. "Time for the steps," You said in a somewhat jovial tone. Those steps weren't kind on the other side. You peeked back. Nejire was halfway through the bridge, cheering at the adrenaline rush of being so high. Mirio was only a few feet behind you, still carrying the energy for his team.
"Let's hurry, Amajiki-kun!" You insisted, pressing down on the gas and steering carefully. Tamaki nodded, using his arms to roll the speed cranks. Mirio's teammate must've noticed what Tamaki had been doing to help you go faster because he began doing the same thing. Your face changed as determination to win overtook you.
You were neck and neck with Mirio now, each time constantly pushing onward. You turned to the side and blew raspberries at Mirio, both of you wearing matching grins as he returned the favor. "So close, so close, so close!" You uttered, pushing to win as best you could.
Suddenly, Tamaki sped his cranking up and you made it! It was just by a hair, but you won! You slumped over in the front and breathed heavily before excitedly jumping out. "C'mon, Amajiki-kun!" You beckoned the bluenette, grinning victoriously when he clambered out of Banana Rocket Tsubaki.
You both headed over to the water bottles. You sipped at the cool beverage, leaning against the cooler they were in. Mirio walked over and began drinking one as well, his teammate stomping away. "Congrats, guys! That was great!" Mirio spoke with his usual smile, his good sportsmanship shining through.
"Thanks! It was really fun! Me and Tamaki even named our banana rocket, Tsubaki!" You told the blonde, waving your arms in excitement. "That's great, (L/n)-chan! The next part will be exciting, right Tamaki?" Mirio conversed, whereas Tamaki nodded his agreement. "Y-yeah.."
"Oh my god!!" A loud voice came from behind you. You spun around in anticipation. As expected, it was Nejire, whose eyes were sparkling in unrivaled exhilaration. "Hi, Nejire-chan!" You smiled wide, waving a little. The periwinkle haired girl practically hopped over. "That was soooo fun! So (Y/n)-chan how'd you do? Did you get lost in the maze? I did, but it was exciting, like an adventure! Aren't you excited for the next part? We'll get to use our quirks!!" Nejire spouted her words out like a running faucet.
You didn't mind, though. "It was! We won, so I'm really happy! And no, we didn't really because Tamaki navigated with the map thingy they gave us. I'm super excited about the next exercise too!" You answered, mouth forming a grin with a happy light in your eyes.
With bits and pieces of conversation, you guys lightly chatted until the rest of the teams made it.
"Alright, quiet down. Here's how this is going to work. This time, it is not a team activity. You will be divided into two separate groups. I will show you the boundaries of the area I bring you to, and then you will engage in a free-for-all fight. After the last one is standing, the next group will go. Are we clear?"
"Yes, Sensei!"
＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚ ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊
Now, everyone was standing in their respective groups -Blue and Red-. You and Nejire were on Team Blue, and Mirio and Tamaki were on Team Red. Blue was to go first, so along with your blue-haired friend and a group of other students you walked into the center of the boundaries Power Loader set for you.
They weren't completely blocked off, which allowed the possibility of getting knocked out of bounds. Instead, they were marked with purple traffic cones that were placed firmly into the ground. There were four corners and six students in each. Nejire was in the corner to your right, so the faces around you were unfamiliar.
"Three," A robot's high pitched voice rang out in the heavy air that filled the area. Most students had bright grins on as if they'd been anticipating a fight. You couldn't say you weren't eager to use your quirk either, so a similar grin spread across your face.
"Two," The robot continued the countdown, prepping everyone around for the fight that was about to occur. Power Loader was going to keep a close eye on everyone from a slight distance. Team Red was sitting off to the side, outside of the boundaries. Most of them were eager to watch your group go.
"One," The robot gave the final "warning" before mayhem would ensue, but what was also sure to be a pleasant fight. You readied your stance, stretching your arms and legs some as pure adrenaline flooded your veins.
"Go!"
★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★
As soon as the robot finished the short word that would start the free for all, you rolled out of the way. While there were only five other students directly around you, you were sure to get trampled if you didn't move. Most of the people in your corner had moved away, but two students got into a fistfight that everyone backed away from after bumping into one another.
You had moved around the boundary, contemplating whether or not it would be wise to attack someone or if staying on your own was a smarter move. In the end, a girl with a bull quirk came charging at you. You moved to the side as quickly as possible, dodging her big horns with difficulty.
You were sure at some point you were going to have to engage in some kind of fistfight, but you definitely would prefer not to fight a bull girl whose strength was probably superior. Your eyes frantically scanned over the arena space.
Nejire was pushing a few people out with her energy waves, and there were a few group fights and personal fights. 'Someone has to have some kind of red..there!' You successfully found what you were looking for. A girl who was on the outer edge of a group fight.
As the bull girl got ready to charge at you once more, you snatched a red headband off of the girl's head. "Hey!" She grunted at you but quickly got re-engaged in her fight. You unraveled the headband -it was really a bandanna that she tied around her head- and waved it at Bull girl. Just as you hoped she followed the movement with her eyes almost hungrily.
You were glad in any case because the girl's bandanna wasn't nearly as big as the capes bullfighters use. It was more so the size of a washcloth. You waved the bandanna in a fluid movement before tossing it right into a pile of people fighting. The bull girl charged towards the bandanna, effectively getting herself tangled up in the fight.
You stepped far away from there, and instead into a different section, near a different corner. Upon noticing your arrival, the same guy with the claw quirk began attacking you, and unlike Bull girl, he didn't have something you could trick him with.
You supposed you would just have to fight him. Or better yet... The ravenette swung at you with his long hand claws, his teeth noticeably getting sharper. You pretended to run from him, essentially leading him towards the edge. You had your back to the bounds at this point. Swiveling around and behind him, so he would be the one close, you earned a few scratches as he clawed at your body as much as he could.
Each cut stung but you already had a plan. Once you were behind him with a new myriad of bruises and cuts littering your body, you activated your quirk and sent it pulsing to your hands. With your newfound energy, you pushed, shoving him just out of bounds. He scowled at you before stomping away like earlier.
Your legs worked to get you back in the middle. Being near the boundary wasn't the safest option, anyway. A frail-looking guy approached you with a very neutral look on his face. You weren't going to underestimate him, and he looked ominous approaching you the way he did, so you were reasonably tense.
Suddenly, a girl showed up on the right and another boy on the left. Someone came up from behind you, forcing you into the middle of this dangerous looking circle. A sweat drop rolled down your face. Power Loader explicitly stated that this wasn't a team exercise.
Before you could figure out what exactly was happening, or call for help, or do anything at all...
They all attacked you at once.
≿————- ❈ ————-≾
Oh my god. To whoever's reading this, I'm really sorry! I update this story on Quotev first and this chapter should've been posted a while ago! I will try my best to keep the Wattpad version updated, but if you'd like you can find me on Quotev at Nocturnal Pixie Stix, where I post more often. Thanks for reading!~ <3 -Pixie)