You know that you're lame when your own chapter makes you cry. ;-;
'Shoto? Where are you going?' Fuyumi's voice punctured the tranquil silence around the Todoroki household.
'The hospital.' Shoto replied, putting on his shoes. 'What?' Fuyumi asked, confused. 'Hold on, why? You can't just visit, not without telling dad, right?' 'Whatever.' Shoto deadpanned, sliding the door open.
'But why go now?' Fuyumi pressed on. 'Why see her after all this time?' 'I'll be back.' Shoto ignored Fuyumi's question, shutting the door and leaving. As he walked, his mind drifted to a certain brunette. 'How is she?' He thought, hands in his pockets. 'She doesn't seem to have forgiven her father completely.'
'Mum? I feel like I'm going crazy. I can't take it anymore. Every day, the children seem more like him... And Shoto, that child's left side sometimes looks unbearable to me. All I can see is his father. I can't raise him anymore. I... I shouldn't. I want to run away from this life.' Rei's voice echoed over and over again in Shoto's head as he made his way to the hospital where his mother was kept in.
'Ever since that day, I thought that the sight of me would cause my mother nothing but pain.' He thought, pausing in front of the building. 'So I never visited. I guess Y/N was right.'
'But we will always be bound to each other by blood, by our history with my father. That's why, if I'm ever going to use this body and these powers to become a hero, if I'm going to give it everything I have,' Shoto sighed, hesitating at the door.
Don't cry, you've been so strong.
It's okay to use your power. To become who you want to be.
'If I'm going to be hero I want to be,' Shoto took a deep breath, opening the door to his mother's hospital ward. 'I need to see her. There's so much we need to talk about.'
'Hello, mum.'
Rei turned around slowly, eyes widening at the sight of her youngest son, who stood at the door, holding in a breath.
'I'll rescue her from this place, no matter what. That's my first step to getting back on track.' Shoto thought, taking his first step towards Rei Todoroki. 'It's what I have to do.'
'Mother?'
There was no response. A tear leaked out from the lone girl's eye, falling onto the bunch of lilies she held in her hands. Of course there was no response. Stones couldn't talk, could they?
There was no one in the graveyard. It was damp, quiet and abandoned. The teenage girl was the only one there, the only living being present. Even the grass and moss were half dead, despite the humid environment. The girl sank onto her knees, tears pouring thickly, steadily down her face as she bowed over her late mother's marble tombstone.
'I've been selfish, mum.' She whispered, clutching the flowers close to her heart. It was as though an old wound, which had healed after a long, long time, was being torn back open brutally. 'I've been so selfish. I hope you're still proud of me despite my actions, Mama. I'll be a hero, Mama. I'll make you happy. I-' The girl broke down crying once more, her mind flashing back to that particular day, seven years ago.
A knock resonated through the small house. 'I'll get it, Papa!' A young, energetic girl with thick brown hair in two pigtails called, bouncing up to the door and swinging it open. Two men, whom the girl knew worked with her mother, stood at the door with solemn, maybe even sad looks on their faces.
'Daughter of Yui L/N?' One of the men forced a smile, bending down and ruffling the girl's hair. 'Yeah! Did Mama beat the villain?' The innocent young girl smiled widely, silver eyes glimmering with happiness. 'That's the problem, sweetie.' The man sighed, removing his hand. 'My dear child, your Mama is gone. She died fighting the villain.'
How do you even begin to explain to an eight year old that her mother was dead?
Your Mama is gone.
You wouldn't believe how these four short words could easily crush a child's entire life. Y/N L/N's eyes filled with tears, spilling out onto her rosy cheeks. 'My... Mama is... dead?' The man nodded gravely. 'I'm really sorry, sweetheart, but I'm afraid so.'
Y/N felt like a child again as the painful memory she had tried so hard to bury was dug up and replayed, right in front of her eyes, exposing her to the day her innocent views of the world were changed by the slap of the harsh reality. The brunette could almost see it happening around her once again.
'I'm sorry I never visited these years, Mama. Perhaps I was trying to bury the pain. I don't even know any more. I don't know who I am anymore, Mama. I don't know who I'm meant to be. But I hope you can forgive me, Mama. Please forgive me for my selfishness.'
The girl's soft sobs resonated in the silent cemetery. 'I brought you your favourite flowers, Mama. I hope... I hope you like them. I have to be going now, Mama. I'll see you soon.' Y/N whispered, laying down the bunch of freshly blooming lilies. 'I never got to show you my quirk, Mama. Can you see me up there? Can you see my powers?'
Up in heaven, the middle aged woman smiled. 'I can see you, Y/N dear. I've been watching over you. I've seen you grow, in size, knowledge and power. It's fine that you never visited, I know you've been busy. I hope you understand that I was fighting for you, in hopes that you will have a safe world to live in. And, my dear Y/N, my sweet baby, you never needed my forgiveness to begin with. I'm so proud of you, sweetheart. You've achieved so much.'
...
The school was reopened. Y/N, who was currently seated at her desk twiddling her thumbs, was thinking about her decisions. 'Who am I meant to be?' She wondered, staring at her nails. 'What are you thinking?' A masculine voice directed her our of her thoughts. 'How the dreary weather outside matches my mood perfectly. I don't even know who I'm meant to be anymore.' Y/N sighed, brushing away a loose strand of hair as she looked over at Shoto. 'I thought visiting my mother would give me answers, but I'm left with nothing but more questions.'
'I visited my mum too.' Shoto replied quietly, hands still on his table. 'Must be nice having her actually be able to talk back.' Y/N commented, closing her eyes. 'I wish I could talk to my mum. I miss her so much.'
'It was pretty nice.' Shoto admitted, studying the brunette girl's sad expression. 'She gave me a lot of advice. Maybe... you'd like to come along today? I'll be visiting her again.'
Y/N raised her head, small tears in the corner of her eyes. 'Sure.' She smiled wistfully, gazing up at the sky. 'I hope my mother is proud of me.'
The rest of the class slowly began to pour in, all talking about how they were recognised by people who had watched the live stream of the UA Sports Festival.' 'Hey, Y/N! Did you get noticed?' Ochaco waltzed up to Y/N, who proceeded to glare at the stormy clouds outside which happened to match her eye colour perfectly.
'I'm now known to a bunch of elementary school students as the girl who molested the ice guy and burst into tears afterwards.' She hissed, refusing to make eye contact with her classmates. 'Girl who... molested... the ice guy?' Ochaco mumbled, confused. 'Oh wait, you mean after Todoroki's match with Bakugo?'
'Yes.' Y/N grumbled, slamming her face onto the desk. 'And I never molested anyone.' She muttered, voice muffled by the desk.
'Well... you technically did, because you touched him without permission.' Jiro chimed in, glancing over at Y/N. 'You guys are assholes.' She groaned, not even bothering to stand up and attack Jiro like what she usually would've done. 'You seem a lot more different, Y/N.' Kirishima observed, a finger on his chin. 'Ever since the finals of the sports festival, you seemed to get mad so much more easily. Todoroki was the only one who could control you. And your speech during the award ceremony... Is there something you're not telling us?'
Y/N gulped slightly. 'Well...' She started, sighing. 'I... I'm not sure if I want to tell you guys. It's more of a private family matter. I'll tell you guys in time, just not now.' Kirishima nodded in concern, glancing at the girl. 'Don't hesitate to tell us about it if you need to.' 'Of course.' Y/N nodded back in gratitude.
Aizawa slid the door open. 'Morning.'
Immediately the class was neat and in order. 'Good morning Mr Aizawa!' 'Ribbit? Mr Aizawa, you don't have bandages anymore. That's good news.' Tsuyu commented. 'The old lady went overboard with her treatment. Anyway, we have a big class today, on hero informatics.' Aizawa stated, making the whole class go crazy. 'Informatics? Please don't tell me it's a pop quiz...' Kaminari muttered, while Kirishima squeaked, 'Crap, I bet it's about hero law. I'm bad at stuff like that?'
'You need code names. Time to pick your hero identities.' Aizawa deadpanned. 'I'd much rather do a quiz.' Y/N whined to Shoto. 'I spent all that time memorising the hero laws for nothing!' Shoto shrugged. 'Too bad.' 'Ouch.' Y/N murmured, putting a hand on her chest.
'This is gonna be totally awesome!' The whole class except Y/N and Shoto cheered. 'Hmph.' Y/N huffed, still pouting over her missed pop quiz. 'This is related to the pro hero draft picks that I mentioned the last time when we were in class together. Normally students don't have to worry about their draft yet, not until they're in second or third year actually, but your class is different. In fact, by extending offers to first years like you, pros are essentially investing in your potential. Any offers can be rescinded if their interest in you dies down before graduation though.'
'So what you're saying is that we still have to prove ourselves after we've gotten recruited.' Hagakure spoke up, voicing out her view. 'Correct.' Aizawa nodded slightly. 'Now, these are the totals for those of you who got offers.' Aizawa pulled up a hologram of the number of offers each student got if they even got any.
Todoroki- 4123
L/N- 4123
Bakugo- 3556
Tokoyami- 360
Iida- 301
Kaminari- 272
Yaoyorozu- 108
Kirishima- 68
Uraraka- 20
Sero- 14
'In past years, it's been more spread out, but there's a pretty big gap this time.'
'Agh! That's no fair!' Kaminari groaned, flopping into his seat. 'What about the real stars?' Aoyama forced a smile, but everyone could tell he was angry. 'Todoroki and Y/N got the most? Ahead of Bakugo?' Jiro observed, one eyebrow raised. 'Yeah, its the opposite of how they placed in the festival.' Kirishima noted while Sero replied, ' They probably didn't wanna work with the guy who had to be chained at the end.'
'If I scare a pro, they're just weak!' Bakugo yelled, turning back and firing a small blast in an attempt to scare them. Momo sighed before turning to Shoto and Y/N. 'That's amazing, you guys must be proud!' 'These offers are probably because of my father.' Shoto snarked, making Y/N nod in agreement. 'I don't think I would've gotten as many if not for my relationship with Sho.'
'People want us!' Ochaco cried across the room, shaking Iida by his shoulders, while Mineta was busy doing the same to Izuku. 'Midoriya, you got none! I think everyone was grossed out by the crazy way you were fighting.'
'Shut up, Mineta. At least he has an aspiration, unlike you. Now leave him alone, unless you want to taste the walls of the classroom.' Y/N threatened, raising a hand, where dewdrops were collecting. 'Sorry.' Mineta swallowed, before letting go of Izuku and hiding from Y/N's line of sight.
'Despite these results, you'll all be interning with pros, got it? Even those of you who didn't get any offers.' Aizawa announced, and the class quietened down. 'Oh... so we're all interning?' Izuku asked, expression curious. 'Yes. You already got to experience combat during the attack on the USJ facility, but it'll still be helpful to see pros at work up close and personal, first hand.'
'And for that, we need hero names!' Sato realised. 'Suddenly things are getting a lot more fun!' Uraraka cheered. 'These hero names will likely be temporary. But take them seriously or-' He was interrupted by a feminine voice. 'Or you'll have hell to pay later.' Midnight declared, strutting into the classroom. 'What you pick today could be your code name for life. You better be careful, or you'll be stuck with something utterly indecent.'
Y/N scoffed at Mineta, who had literal hearts popping out of his eyes. She launched a small wave of water at him, strong enough to knock him out of his seat. He glanced at Y/N, squeaked in terror and hastily settled back.
'Yeah, she's got a good point.' Aizawa stated. 'Midnight is going to have final approval over your names. It's not my forte.' He muttered as he picked up his sleeping back and wormed his way inside. 'The name you is yourself is important. It helps reinforce your image and shows what kind of hero you want to be in the future, a code name tells people exactly what you represent.'
Midnight distributed cards and markers for the class to write their hero names on. 'I have no idea.' Y/N sighed, using the marker to doodle on the corner of her card. 'Try something meaningful.' Momo suggested, watching the girl draw a bunch of lilies on the corner. 'Say, Y/N. You seem to like lilies a lot. Are they very significant?'
Y/N smiled. 'Yeah, they were my mum's favourite flow- That's it!' She cried, beginning to scribble on her board. 'Thank you so much, Yao!'
...
'Now students, who among you is ready to share?' Midnight asked, drawing gasps from the class. 'We're presenting these?' Kirishima yelled, a shocked look on his face. 'Who's gonna have the balls to go first?' Sero groaned. Aoyama, upon hearing this, strutted up to the front. 'Hold your breath.' He instructed, slowly, teasingly revealing his card.
'The Shining Hero. My name is, I Cannot Stop Twinkling!'
Y/N burst into a fit of giggles at the back of the classroom. 'Hey, I Cannot Stop Twinkling, save me!' She snickered, waving her arms around in the air for a dramatic effect. 'You can't deny my sparkle.' Aoyama defended, while Midnight grabbed his board and began making edits. 'It'll be better this way. Take away the 'I' and shorten the 'Cannot' to 'Can't.' 'It's stunning, mademoiselle.' Aoyama replied, taking his board back from Midnight and returning to his seat.
'Okie Dokie, let me go next!' Mina yelled, jumping onto the podium and showing everyone her name. 'My code name- Alien Queen.' 'Hold on. Like that horrible monster with the acidic blood? I don't think so.' Midnight cried, making Mina walk back to her seat, muttering, 'Dang it...'
'Ribbit. I think I've got one. Is it okay if I go next?' Tsuyu raised her hand. Midnight's eyes lit up. 'Come on up!' 'I've had this name in mind since grade school.' Tsuyu explained, showing her board to everyone. It read, 'Rainy Season Hero- Froppy.' 'That's delightful!' Midnight smiled, appearing next to Tsu. 'It makes you sound approachable. What a great example of a name everyone will love!'