#Training Camp Arc

[rabbitsonthemoon]

Just appreciating the fact that Aizawa ran outside during the training camp arc, was horrified by the forest being on fire, immediately got blasted by blueflame, dodged it, took down his attacker by slamming a knee into his jaw, restrained him, demanded for know how many villains were present and which students they were targeting, and proceeded to start calmly and methodically snapping his bones for motivation (while implying he wasn't going to stop - and it would be inconvenient if he reached his legs).

I think what makes the scene even more powerful is that it's after the USJ... where a villain pinned Aizawa down and methodically broke his bones in quite a similar manner. Fuck, it's probably where he got the ruthless idea in the first place.

Anything to protect his kids students.

*Eraserhead appreciation noises*

[tokoyamiaddiction]

Sick sense of two | MHA reader insert

Venom! Reader

Genre; Angst, Action

Pairing; A little bit of Todoroki x reader

Sypnosis; A weakened Reader, who was abducted alongside Bakugou in the training camp, is amidst a battle between the heroes and villains, trying to prevent the villains from taking them and Bakugou back into their stronghold.

Warning(s); Slight mention of blood, mentally distressed reader

Context; The Reader has a venom quirk, a symbiote that interacts with them, heals wounds, fights, can control their body, can shoot out tendrils, but needs a specific substance only found in brains and chocolate to function, or else he resorts to feasting on Reader's organs. This takes place in the training camp arc when All might was fighting All for one and Bakugou was trying to escape the league.

I wrote this exactly a year ago..

So basically I wrote this based on a Wattpad fic called 'Symbiote' (I'm pretty sure it got deleted), I really liked the fic but I didn't like this part so I changed it (for myself). I never planned on posting this anywhere but I'm bored haha. I don't expect many people to read this but oh well, I wanna see how active the MHA community still is on tumblr...

FIRST PERSON P.O.V

"All Might is holding back...!" I hiss, my voice laced with hurt and agony. Agony from the horror of knowing why the mighty hero who had come to our rescue, the number one savior in Japan, the ultimate power and symbol of peace, was being absolutely demolished by this savage villain with a mask that hid his harrowing disfiguration.

"Because we're here, he can't risk hurting us," Bakugou said as if completing my sentence. I could hear the uneasiness in his voice, and as I was about to turn to look at him, my attention was hurled away when Toga, the blonde schoolgirl, lunged in our direction with her knife.

The grip around the wooden plank in my clutch tightened as I jumped away from her reach, just in time for bakugou to throw a small explosion in her wake, preventing her from stepping closer and propelling bakugou back to widen the gap between them.

My being tensed when I heard someone's footsteps quickly rush in my direction from behind me. I quickly turned around to find the green lizard man only an inch away from me, his hands outstretched with clear intentions to tackle me. I crouched and recklessly jumped under and past him, my balance betraying me.

I grunted as I fell to my side, but I hurridly propped myself up and slammed my makeshift weapon into the side of the green villain's knee. He yelled in pain and doubled over. I took the chance to shuffle to my feet and scurry to bakugous side.

Our backs are pushed against each other, our heaving in sync. I chew the inside of my cheek whilst I try to ignore the aching in my bones, the pounding against my ears, and the burning of my blistered palms, all while the ringing in my ears sounds louder.

"We can't keep dodging them like caged rats!" I yell, raising my voice in order for bakugou to hear me amongst all the commotion.

"I'M NOT FUCKING STUPID, PARASITE FREAK! I KNOW THAT!!" He snapped his head in my direction, veins bulging from his neck. My eyebrow twitched as I looked back at him.

"Well yeah- we need to find a way out of here, or move this fight somewhere else. At least for all mights sake or in the hopes of the heroes-" My words are cut short when Bakugou hastily yanks me by the neck of my sweater and pounces back using his explosions to move us away from more attacking villains.

"QUIT STATING THE OBVIOUS AND GIVE US ACTUAL IDEAS!!" He yells in my ear as we land, my legs barely holding me up. I grimace at his loud voice then scowl in annoyance. My gaze moved from Bakugou to Compress who was charging at us with his hand outstretched. I was quick to react and through the girthy wooden log at him, my aim precise and my swing strong— the echoing 'crack!-' sounding after the log had collided with his mask serving as evidence.

Bakugou whipped his head around but I swiftly grabbed the collar of his shirt to refocus his attention back to me.

"Make an explosion- a BIG one, one that'll sprain your wrists- at shigaraki's direction. I'll use venom and quickly get us out of here, but we'll have to make a stop at the grocery store right after- before venom's done chewing down on my kidneys!" I announce, a stern, and exhausted, look piercing my face "Ok??!"

Bakugou gazes at me for a moment or two, his brows knitting as usual, with one raised slightly higher than the other. He looked as if he was considering my words, or perhaps calculating them? Then his eyebrows sat back on the same level, dropping closer together in a deep scowl.

"No."

"WHAT?!"

He pushes me aside and I stumble a little, he then throws an explosion at one of the villains that I could only assume was rushing towards us, obviously. He brought his palms together and made an explosion that launched him back, over shigaraki. He threw another explosion, closer to the blue-haired male which sent him tumbling to the side, making a path for me.

I run to his side.

"It's not going to work, and you're going to die. I can tell that you're barely holding yourself together trying to use the least amount of energy so your alien quirk doesn't start chowing down on you."

Another explosion goes off, and another villain is sent back.

"I can see your arm. Even when you were knocked out cold the black thing was covering it cause it was injured. You clearly have nothing left." He concludes, not meeting my gaze. My mouth falls agape then my teeth clenched in frustration.

"I'm saving my energy for the finale!" I retort, grabbing a mid-sized stone for defense. I hear my classmate's gruff voice scoff.

" 'finale', please, stop shitting yourself. I'll tell you what'll happen if we go with your plan, Your quirk'll turn on you halfway through and you'll die and we would have accomplished nothing. Or, we'll get out, then you'll STILL die because WHAT STORES ARE GOING TO BE OPEN NOW!?"

"STOP SAYING I'LL DIE-" We dodge another attack.

"We keep dodging until we wear them down, then we'll find an opening. And stay on your feet, dammit." He says and I get up from my crouching position. I turn to him with a mix of a jarred and frustrated expression on my features.

"Wear THEM down?? Pompom, they're not the ones with a goo-ey mass of garbage about to maul them from THE INSIDE OUT-" My exaggerated gestures pause when a large ramp of... ice suddenly materializes a distance away from the battlefield. The air suddenly stills as we all turn to the gigantic crystal, startled. The shock lingering in the air is only doubled once I see a figure slide on top of the icy surface before it's flung across the air.

The figures glide above ground in the sky, the sky filled with smoke and concrete residue and dust, but in spite of it all, they resembled a shooting star. A shimmer of hope shining amidst the devestation and choas.

And my eyes are wide. Wide with confusion and scenarios and hopes, the warmth of the hopeful star envelops me, And I squint,

But I don't know what hit me until another force does.

An explosion, an explosion from right beside, a large explosion, an explosion strong enough to strain his wrists. Bakugou's explosion.

I'm warm then I'm hot then it's burning and I'm grimacing and flying and falling and I tumble and my sides hurt, but god my face, my face burns from the-

The explosion.

My breath hitches, and I force my hot face up from the ground. I stare at them. I stare at Midoriya, Iida, Kirishima, Bakugou. I stare at them in dread. I can barely make them out as they fly across the sky. Fly further and further away from me. It's like the warmth I had only felt a second ago was ripped cruelly out of my chest. blood drains from my face. I feel cold now, and I realize how cold it is and how cold I am. My hands are quivering under my weight as they press against the floor, stones, and pebbles jabbing into my rusted palms.

I'm feeling too much and I don't want to feel anymore, I feel betrayal and sadness and hopelessness and worthlessness and anger.

I don't want to feel anymore

I really don't want to feel anymore

"[Name]! Focus! Run!"

Venom  is the one who snaps me out of my stooper, despite running out of energy and saving what he could so he doesn't have to resort to his instincts. The tiniest amount of dread is lifted off my chest when I hear his voice, it reminds me that I'm not yet alone. That if I die I can choose to die by him rather than those lowlife bottom feeders. And in the sickest way that gives me more comfort than deemed ordinary.

I blink a few times and regain my focus, while the league is distracted with my classmates and fussing over Bakugou, I shuffle to my knees, wincing at the stinging in my arm.

"Venom" I whisper.

"I can't. If I do anything I'll kill you."

My eyes screwed shut for a few seconds. 'Bakgou was right'

"They abandoned you." Compress looms over me, his mouth visible while his broken mask covers his eyes. I jolt and my eyes dilate. "They left you here to rot."

My throat goes dry and my lips purse together, sweat beading down my face. I'm speechless. And I'm ashamed. Ashamed of how I'm believing- agreeing, with his words.

"I have to say, that was quite the heartbreaking display. The way your eyes lingered on them as they swept away, almost unaffected by your doom. The longing behind your eyes... I felt my heart tremble a bit at your expense." He lifted his hat from atop his head and pressed it against his chest, a melodramatic gesture. " I might be a villain, but I'm not completely void of any emotions."

My mind is quick to start making excuses for my friends, 'they couldn't have known', 'they must've thought I could still use venom', 'they expected Bakugou to take me with him'

"My, your face is tattered with burns... not only did Bakugou leave you without a second thought, he also injured you, knowing that you're quite sensitive to fire. It's as if he intended to hurt you" He continues, his voice more sinister, more hypnotizing.

My face scrunches up and my knees grow weaker and my stance is feeble. The hurt and the pain and the anger and the Realisation is all building up once again, and I can feel myself cracking under it all. Under all the pressure, under all the emotions.

"You know nothing...!" I hiss, glowering at his form. He heaves out a soft sigh of defeat. He places his hat back a top of his head and hums.

"Perhaps you're right,I don't know much about you, or your friends. But from what I've seen, you seem... unwanted, by them at the very least." He says it so casually, and I know his play of words is nothing but a ploy to break me. And my does it work.

It's like a bucket of cold water was dunked over my head. That was exactly it, that was the word that summed up the tens of hundreds of emotions I was feeling all at once. I felt so unwanted, so unimportant. Something you could so easily discard without a second glance. I'm colder and my heart starts to hurt, and all the exhaustion and pain in my body is starting to win as I start to buckle under it all.

There is nothing else I can possibly do, if I stay here and fight, All might will be held back, and there is no doubt that I'll be captured either way, and there is no way for me to escape. I'm helpless.

I'm still glaring at Compress, and I know he sees it. I know he sees it all. I know he sees the way my brows are drawn inwards, and how my irises quiver, and how my jaw is clamped so tightly against itself, and how my face is twisted with anguish. And he can see defeat creep up my back.

He can see me give up. He sees my face finally scrunch up and my eyes shut in defeat. He sees my figure loosen, he sees me slide on my knees and sit, my back slouched and my head down. I'm defeated. I feel humiliated that I let them win. That I'm letting them win.

The pain is worse, the pounding is stronger, the ringing is louder, the prickling in my palms and knees and the stinging burns littering the side of my face and the tightening in my muscles and the rattling of my bones and I'm so cold I fear my hands and feet might start to lose all sensation in them.

My expression tightens as I practically feel Compress's relief and the grin stretching across his face.

A click, a second click, then a boom, and it's an explosion. A small one, but it still manages to make me gasp and jump back onto my hinde. My heart is hammering against my chest again and I'm no longer composed, not the way i was composed when I was dodging attacks from the villains just a few minutes earlier. For whatever reason I'm panicked, I'm petrified, and I'm so incredibly tired. Tired from another devastation occurring one after another. Compress yells something I don't catch, and then I suddenly can't see him anymore as thick, pink smoke surrounds me. I'm breathing heavily and my head's swerving in every direction, my pupils darting at every movement.

A hand appears from within the smoke and grabs my arm, yanking me to my feet and running, pulling me with it. They say something but my head tunes it out. Their voice is familiar, but I'm in too much of a daze to match the voice to the individual. I can't see anything as we zoom away through the smoke, I can barely make out the back of their head.

Am I being saved? Who's saving me? Is it a hero?

My knees start to weaken involuntarily, and now I'm being dragged more than I'm being escorted. My savior realizes this and stops running for a split second. He's a man. I can tell from his build. He sweeps me from the back of my knees and cautiously throws me over his shoulder.

"I'm sorry" He utters. Then he continues to sprint away. I don't understand the apology, and I don't bother to, because relief is all I feel at that very moment, and I feel so much stress and paranoia and panic seep from my muscles. Then my eyes are heavy, they're really heavy and I'm so tired.

"NO! [NAME]! STAY AWAKE! [NAME]!"

I hear my slow breathing against my ear, my chest rising and falling against the man's shoulder, and I'm slumping forward.

My gaze falls on the person's hair, it's grey.

My eyes are closed and everything aches.

I'm so cold.

___________

I'm so warm

My hands are really warm. They're hot. But the good kind of hot.

Something is on my face. It stings.

My eyes flutter open. I blink a few times trying to make out my surroundings. A low rumble echoes through my chest then I hiss as I feel something cold press against the burnt side of my face. I weakly attempt to shoo the thing away but something is grabbing my hands.

"[Name]? [Name] Are you awake!?" A voice speaks. That same voice. My eyes are blown wide and my heart begins to beat so furiously I can hear it roar in my ears. My back straightens against the ragged wall and I'm about to jump up, push, pull, hit, run, anything my mind deems necessary enough to protect me. But I pause when I make out the figure sitting before me.

"Shoto-?" My voice is barely above a whisper. His eyes are slightly wide, I'm not sure if it's because he's panicked or he was simply startled by my reaction. He nods.

"Yeah, I got you out of there." He says, his voice as monotone as ever. I gape at him for a few seconds, my pulse steadily slowing down and my breathing calming. My shoulders relax and my back leans on the hard concrete wall.

I blink.

Then I blink again.

Then I realize my feet are cold, and I tell him for some odd reason, and he blinks, unsure of how to react. Then I realize my hands are really warm. And the side of my face is really cold and it stings. He's holding something cold to my face, and he's holding both my hands in the other.

He's holding my hands.

My breathing stops and I stare down at my hands, my shoulders tensing yet again. I'm frozen in place as I'm not sure what to say or how to react. Chilling silence falls between us, and I can tell he's confused.

"Please don't make out"

He finally realizes why I've been gaping silently down at my hands and he hurriedly lets go of my hands and pulls both of his hands away, removing the cloth from my face and taking away the warmth my palms once possessed.

"Oh- sorry-... you were freezing." He mutters awkwardly. I nod slowly then shake my head, murmuring a small 'it's ok' under my breath.

I pulled my hands closer to me and rubbed them together.

They didn't abandon me. They were planning to rescue me too. They had a plan for me. They wanted and were ready to save me, despite the risks. Todoroki walked into an active fighting zone just to save me. My lips press together and I grip my hands tighter, overwhelmed by relief, and joy, and guilt.

"I thought you left me." I whisper. "I thought... i thought you guys were... I was so scared, I was so upset, I was so... mad." I huddle into myself further, my teeth gritting together.

"I'm so sorry, im so sorry you had to risk your life like that, I'm sorry I ever doubted you. I'm really sorry." My voice cracks. And Todoroki is silent for a while.

"Don't be sorry. It's understandable." Is all he said, and that seemed like more than enough from him. I look up at him with a deshevled look on my face, then I frown as I meet his gaze.

"Why are you wearing a wig...?" I ask, looking at the grey wig on his head. He pursed his lips awkwardly and removed the prosthetic. "Wait why are we here- where are we??" I look around, and we appear to be in an alley, a really narrow one for that matter.

"It was for a disguise... it was Yoayorozu's idea." He answered.

"Yoamomo's here?" My eyes widen. It made sense, where else would they get smoke bombs from.

"Yes. We need to meet up with her. The others are probably starting to worry." He says. "Can you stand?"

"Uh yeah I think so..." I slowly push myself up, leaning on the wall next to me. Todoroki follows suit, his hands slightly outstretched so he could catch me in the scenario of my balance faultering. I test my balance and I'm relieved to find myself with the energy to walk, I glance down at my clothes and exam them, my face scruntching up as my eyes travels across the dirt and blood and rips tainting my attire. And I remember the pounding in my head.

"Oh- Also," Todoroki reached for something in pocket, then pulled out two large, dark chocolate bars. My eyes widen as I stare down at the wrappers before me. "I remember Midoriya saying something about you and needing chocolate so I figured..."

"Thank you...!" I say before Venom takes control over my body and snatches the chocolate from his hands, quite recklessly.

"Can you be any slower!? Hello, I'm starving!"

Venom's words echo in my head as he shoves the chocolate down my throat.

[laziuli]

Taking a break from training

[star-rie-draws]

I made something silly my pookies <3

[shoyowo]

the way the team constantly mess up in those practice matches, they try out new techniques that they haven't practiced in live matches & essentially using this time to try on their new skills for size + they learn a lot individually from the more experienced players there, and not only that, they also learnt by the sheer act of failing - their punishments being flying dives & sprints which ultimately helped them raise their defence as a whole + increased their stamina... truly they DID pounce on the chance and "devour every last scrap of benefit from it".

if they hadn't they wldn't have evolved into a team that cld beat both seijoh & shiratorizawa and get where they did in nationals

[salvagesmha]

It just hit me!! To further add onto the 'Machia wasn't originally supposed to be AFO's confidant/just a Vanguard member/The Muscular Before Muscular', if that's the case, it does explain a certain design detail for both Muscular and Machia.

Both Machia and Muscular wear cloaks as essentially their means of disguise when not in combat and trying to blend in. It could be possible that the decision to take Machia's story in another direction could have been during mid-Training Arc, with the cloak design being essentially an 'out' if Hori wanted to go or stick with the current direction. If this is true, as we know, Horikoshi took the new direction and gave us Muscular instead, though did go ahead and give Machia a new cloak design as likely a call back.

Of course, I could just be overthinking things!! I just like thinking about the 'what if's of My Hero Academia's story, and the idea of someone like Machia having a different role than intended. Thinking about Machia as another Stain follower is just so interesting to me, that it's a shame the story, again, just doesn't do anything with his debut.

Also, would this mean that Machia would have originally been the one to kill Water Hose? Eh, not too, sure on that, esp since he did seem slated to stick around, but I can't say its impossible. I will say, if Machia was supposed to fight Deku early as the brute of the group, given his importance in hcapter 57 as apart of the 'Stain 3', I doubt he'd be shelved by Horikoshi? He might lose, but night still be strong enough to recover and escape. Of course, I say that and we know what the fuck happened to Mustard so who knows XD

[nolawrites]

chapter excerpt:

Bakugou throws himself in front of his friend, blasting the mud creature to pieces with his quirk. “Get out of the way, dumbass,” he growls.

“My hero!” Kaminari gasps, clutching his hands to his chest dramatically.

“Oh, shut up,” Bakugou snaps.

[anxiousdragoncollector]

Y'all, what the fuck happened to Mustard after the training camp attack?

[shiviwrites07]

Moonlight | K. Bakugo | Slight NSFW

Warnings : Mild NSFW

You and the rest of your classmates were brought to the Beast’s forest for your annual quirk training camp with the wild wild pussycats. You all trained hard all day, and made your dinner for the rest of the night. After dinner though, you all were allowed to explore and roam around the forest, as long as you didn’t go too far off. While roaming around on the second night, you found a beautiful waterfall on the side of the mountain. The moonlight illuminated the water, displaying its beautiful crystal blue colour. Little fishes swimmed around in the shallow water near the rocks and when you dipped your fingers into the stream, you shivered from the coolness of the water. It was the perfect spot for a midnight bath. And so began your daily routine. Wake up at 4 am, have breakfast, train your ass off, make and eat dinner and then sneak off to the waterfall at 11:30 pm when everyone was asleep.

                      Katsuki Bakugo doesn’t like when he suddenly wakes up in the middle of the night. Tonight was one such night. He turned around in his futon, muttering profanities, and reached for his phone. The numbers 12:00 am flashed on his Lock Screen along with a picture of you both kissing in the sunset. He smiled slightly at the picture. He then got out of bed and putting on his tank top, he walked out of the room assigned to the boys. As he was walking through the forest with a song playing in his ears, he saw a nearby area glowing. Curious, he followed the light and saw the most beautiful sight he had ever laid his eyes on. A mesmerising waterfall illuminated by the moonlight, and as he walked towards it, he saw the silhouette of a girl with her back facing him. His eyes widened as he realised it was you and when he noticed that you were naked, he felt his cock stirring up. He stripped down to his boxers and silently made his way down to you. His hands aching to touch you.

           You were bathing peacefully, the cold water flowing down your body. You were extremely sensitive to the cold but it helped to reduce the aching in your pussy. You had seen your Katsuki, shirtless, thrice today and you couldn’t help but think about his glistening abs and perfect face. Your nipples hardened immediately and the cold water too, made it more pleasurable. Just as you were about to tweak your nipples, two giant hands caught hold of your breasts. You stiffened as a hardened clothed dick was pressed against your bare as and a bare chest met your bare back. You slowly turned your head back to see who it was but when he started tweaking, pinching and playing with your nipples, you couldn’t care less, too intoxicated with the pleasure he was providing.

         You put your hands over the stranger’s as you guided his hands to your will. The feeling of warm, calloused hands over your boobs was so fucking sexy. Your eyes teared up and you moaned loudly when he groped one of your tits hard enough to leave marks over it. The stranger whispered in your ear, “Now that’s what I like, Teddybear~” and that was when you realised the stranger was none other than your boyfriend, Katsuki Bakugo. 

“Do you like what I’m doing baby?” He asks cockily. And when you reply with a moan, he backs up from you and walks away, leaving you whimpering. You ask why he stopped and he said,

“I want to fuck you, but not like this. I want to make love to you in my bed, while the moonlight shines on us.”

This is just a Drabble, not really well-thought through but I still hope you like it. I wrote this in the morning cause I was too fucking horny lol. I wish I can do something as exotic as this with my imaginary boyfriend. See you all next time!

Sayonara

-Shivi <3

[pixiatn]

Like Ive mentioned before I've been rewatching MHA and OH MY FUCKIN GOD, the way other students/classes blame Class 1-A for constantly getting attack is fucking crazy☠️ like how are you blaming them for going to the usj or summer camps when 1) it's not like they knew the league would show up to a REMOTE location, HOURS away from the school and B) they're STUDENTS how are you blaming them and not idk the FACILITY who made the decision in the first place

[awkwaamo]

His name wasn’t Shigaraki Tomura but that name had left its mark. It would forever be a part of his identity. Something he would never be able to forget if only because All For One made sure of that. 

Perhaps one day he could simply be Shimura Tenko again but he didn’t see that happening for a long time. He was learning, though. Not everything had to be awful. Sometimes things could be funny. Like watching a bunch of kids get the shit beat out of them by slightly bigger but much more skilled kids.

Most people would say “Shimura, that’s not very noble of you!” or “Shimura, isn’t laughing at such things indicative of villainous behavior?” or other nonsense. Anyone who didn’t laugh at their expressions of horror when they realized how utterly outclassed they were was lying to themselves. Even Aizawa was grinning. 

He paused as he was pouring a glass of water, a small realization coming to him. Maybe Aizawa wasn’t the best example of moral superiority, he did seem to take pleasure in pushing his students far beyond their limits. He wasn’t even making an exception for his own kid— though he did keep a closer eye on Izuku than the rest.

Shrugging, he got back to pouring. Good example or not, it did make him feel a bit better about himself so it couldn’t be completely awful. Probably.

[secretlyakobold]

asahi looks terrified

Every single expression here is gold.

Tsukki is mortified lmao

[mindie-arts]

Training camp squad💥

[aspenforest732]

Mortem ad Wrens Chapter 26: Someday We Will Discover

Summary:

tw: vomiting, abuse, flashback, intrusive thoughts, starved, vomiting, fear, memories of bodily harm, nightmares, intrusive thoughts, ed thoughts, child abuse, muzzling, abandonment, foster care, drugs, seizures, creepy adult, ableism Therapy, bit of Popmic, and training camp begins

Notes:

Summary of Chapter 25: Akira’s taken to a secondary location where the traffickers are holding other children for auction or experimentation. They’re put up for online auction, but the heroes raid the facility. Only one other child survives. Akira promises to let Fat Gum know if they know they’re going to be kidnapped, and they have dinner with the Yamazawas, Fat Gum, and Amajiki. MiriTama and ShinKami confirmed. ‘text’ JSL Text thoughts

‘Seeing them just reminded me of when I was younger,’ Akira leaned against the tree trunk on the lowest branch. Fortunately, the late July heat had let up enough to make being outside bearable for longer than a few minutes. Akira still had extra water bottles and their crutches against the tree.

“That must’ve been hard,” Inui murmured. “You were in a very difficult position, waiting for heroes while you couldn’t be there for them.”

Akira rolled their eyes but shrunk in on themself. ‘If I can’t save them, how can I…’ they put their head on their knees. They couldn’t exactly tell Inui their plan, but their family always seemed to haunt their sessions.

“We can’t be everywhere at once,” Inui pointed out gently. At Akira’s half-hearted glare, he smiled sadly. “Heroes save a lot of people, but the first ones you lose are the hardest. Working with the community, reaching out to their family members, and seeking out people you care about can help with the grieving process.”

‘I don’t want to burden them with this, though,’ Akira huffed in frustration and picked at the rough bark poking into their legs. ‘It’s not like I haven’t seen bodies before, much less children. That’s pretty common on the streets as much as we try to help each other.’

“Why do you think what happened is harder for you?”

Akira started to respond but paused, lightly worrying their bottom lip. ‘We take care of each other. Those kids had no one, and most of their injuries were old.’

“Do you think they had an unhealthy relationship with their caretakers?”

‘What do you mean?’ Akira peered at Inui from their tree branch.

Inui hummed thoughtfully. “We often compare ourselves to others, especially in familiar situations.”

Akira shook their head. ‘No, I mean… What would you call an unhealthy relationship? I feel like we’ve been working towards a baseline, but I still get caught off guard a lot.’

Inui nodded slowly and took a moment to collect his thoughts. “It depends on the type of relationship, but for this, we’re talking about a healthy parental figure relationship.”

Pulling from their previous sessions, Akira hesitantly replied, ‘So healthy aspects would be what, only harming each other as punishment and being responsible for each other?’

Inui frowned, “That’s a very low bar. Can you try setting it higher?”

Akira tensed before letting a shudder release some of the tension. Brow pinched in concentration, they tried to think of the snippets he’d shared against some of the “punishments” their family doled out, but most of what they talked about was coping mechanisms and clarifying what was abuse. Granted, the few acts Akira did let slip were some of the less severe methods the Wrens used.

When Akira didn’t respond for a few minutes, Inui gently continued, “Parental figures should never harm their charge, and they should be responsible for their charge. They should provide food, shelter, and education without the expectation of anything in return. Boundaries should be respected, and the charge should feel safe.”

Akira startled, blinking rapidly at the list. Searching Inui’s expression, they only found sincerity and a touch of sadness. ‘You’re saying… Eraser and Mic aren’t the exception outside of hero families?’

Akira jolted awake, bile rising in their throat. They hurriedly stumbled to the bathroom, emptying dinner into the toilet without bothering to turn the light on. After a few minutes, they winced at the light turning on then dimming as they caught a glimpse of Yamada in their peripheral. Too tired and sore to move away, they shuddered as the blonde gently tied their sweaty hair back.

“Hey little listener, I brought some water,” Yamada said softly. He handed them a glass before backing off to a more comfortable distance at their slight flinch. “I know you prefer Shou for this kind of thing, but he’s still on patrol right now. Is it okay if I sit here with you?”

Akira nodded, head pounding as they took a cautious sip. ‘Sorry,’ they signed with shaky hands. ‘You don’t have to stay, I’m fine.’

Yamada hesitated, concerned smile becoming uncertain. “Is that you asking me to leave, little listener? I don’t want to crowd you.”

Akira shook their head and leaned against the toilet, shifting slightly onto the pale blue shower mat as they forced some more water down.

“Okay. Was it something you ate?” Yamada asked after a moment. He slowly adjusted so his knees weren’t directly on the cold white tiles while Akira watched him like a hawk out of the corner of their eye.

‘Nightmare.’ When their stomach finally stopped trying to eject itself, Akira carefully stood and flushed. Shoulders tense, they passed Yamada’s relaxed but vigilant form to sit on the couch and pull the weighted blanket over themself. They winced as their left leg spasmed painfully, the compound fractures in the memory still lingering.

“Think you can handle some soup?” Yamada asked just loudly enough from the kitchen.

Y̷̢͖̘̥͙̜̳̼̮̗̯̱͒̔̅͂̇͒o̷̫̭̣̙̗̟̼̫̖̣͎̱̠̮̰͓̽́́̐̒͆̓́̾̈́̑̏̾̈́̚͜û̸͕͖͕̜̱͕͎̜̘̀͐ ̵̡̨̘̝̥̟̜͇̳͚̮̘̿̏̐̓͊͗̊̀̅͑̌̓́̊̅̚͜͜d̸͙̰͚̦͉̠̹̜̲͆̂͋͒͌͆̄̽͐̾͋͆̀o̷̡̭͎̠͕̳̩̟̺̽̿͆̿̍͜͝n̸̲̩̯͙̩͔̜̠̺̻̥̆͂̐͗͛̌̃̋̚’̵̫̘͕͕̮̲̺̭͔̟͌̊̀͌̀̂̀̄͑̔͌͐͠͠t̶̢̻͓͙̼͓̫̗̣̐̑̔̏ ̴̡͇͇̪͈͉̺̪́̇̏͝ď̶̹̻̣͍̤̺̹̖̖̘̣̥̩̉̈́͋̐̍́̔͂͐̋͝͝ȩ̸̤̩̞͍͕̝́́̌̀̐͝͠s̴̨̨̨̮̮̮̗̗̻͙̱̼̪̈̇̓̕͝ę̵̡̤̳̤̘̜̱̳̒͐̆̓̄̀͆̽̈͑̾̉̀̕͠ͅr̴̙͍̥̹̟̼̹̳̰̣̯͈̟̊̊̂̕͝v̸̮̪̘̠̤̗̮̤̺̱̏̽͒͊ͅe̶̪̘̻͙͕̊̈̉́̽̃͆̈́͑͊͆́̕͘ ̴̛̙̞̳̄ͅf̵̛̠͍̎͐̊̔̊̀͒̂͠ơ̵̧͎̯̙̙̖̞̹̮͔̠̳͚̤̐̈́̽͜͝͝ơ̷̧̟͙͎̬̣̜̺͒̀̀̋͐͑͝͝d̴̨̧̯̻͙̱̞̊̍̉,̸̢̧̥̱̩̰͎͕̎̎̊̂̈́̌̿̋͒̄ ̶̙̩̩̲̬̣͖͎̹̃͗̏͑͌́͆͘͝ (You don’t deserve food)

Akira shivered and gave a thumbs up despite their stomach doing flips. They flipped to the current day in their nutrition journal, wincing as they registered what their episode had cost. Akira noted the loss and left it open face down to update once they were done. They took the proffered leftover soup, letting it first warm their hands as they willed themself to eat.

O̴̡̢͈̠̻̲̬͎͓̹̹͕̭͗̿̈́̇̋̏͘͘͜ͅn̷̡̡͚̪̳̭̞̲͓̘͍̪̦͉͔͙̋́̓͆̈́͊l̵̼͖̤̀͜ͅy̴̞͍̋̊͒͜ͅ ̷̡̯̦̥̬̱͔̾̾̈́̈̃̈́͐̎̚͘͝͠ṫ̴̡̛̐̿̈́̅̃͝͠ḫ̴̨̼̩̘̝̘́͌̈̌͆́̃͐̉̑͆̕͝i̵̧̟̟̜̘̫̬͗n̷̬̟̟̠͓̫̋͒̊̕k̵͔̯̱̹͕̖̇̿̃̈́͗̀̅̓̒̍͌̍͘͝͠ ̷̲̖̠͙̠̺͚͓̻̣͇̻̟̻͔̍͌̈́o̵̢̭̮͈͂̀̇̋̈̓̓͋̿̓̂̾f̸̡̧̭͎͕̗̱͙͉̞̖̝̝̦̻͓̊̈́̀̀̓̚͠ ̸̡̤͔͍̘̭̥͚̎́̂̐ỵ̶̨̝̗̗̘͇̹̱̱͎͓̘͒̓́̒̓̾͗̂̽͂̃̓̽̉̇͠ò̴̡̨̖̥̥̝̦͕̹͚͕͍̘͓̜̦̾͋͌̉ū̵͓̑̐̎̅̌͐́̉̓̔͆̚r̵͈̠̗̓̅͌́͂̆̎͐̿́̀͛͘͜s̴̙͎̲̍̏̌̇̓͗͗̐̔̋̆̏̚ȅ̷̦̻̘̖̭̊͂͆͂̏̐͠l̷͉̚ḟ̶̭̥ (Only think of yourself)

“Mori? Are you alright?” Yamada hovered a meter away, concern lacing his features.

Akira nodded and glared at the soup for a moment before forcing themself to start eating. They swallowed thickly around the lump in their throat and tried to focus on the soft couch and comfortable weight of the blanket on their chest instead of the guilt churning in their gut. After a few spoonfuls, they signed, ‘Intrusive thoughts. Not your fault.’

Yamada settled into Aizawa’s armchair with a mug of tea and placed another near them on the coffee table. Akira held back a wince as they realized they were too stuck in their head to hear the kettle going off. After a few minutes, Yamada gently asked, “Do you want to talk about it?”

Akira continued forcing soup down for a moment before shrugging. ‘It was one of the tamer nightmares… I had a younger brother, but he wasn’t coping well with the abuse. Tried to sneak him food during one of the starvation tests, and obviously that didn’t go well.’

“One of?” Yamada squeaked, letting out a quiet curse as some of his tea spilled onto his lap.

Akira did a double take as they felt the waves of concern pouring off the hero who was now dabbing at the fabric. He immediately looked back up as they slowly signed, ‘One of the faster, although more difficult to time ways of triggering a Brute quirk.’ Akira carefully watched his reaction morph into shock then anger before Yamada tried to school his expression.

He took a breath as Akira cautiously set down their soup. “I’m mad at the people who did that, not you, little listener. Was it your family?” At their nod, Yamada ran a hand down his face. “Did you know I was in foster care growing up?”

Akira slowly shook their head in confusion and shifted to make room for Bastard as the cat opened his mouth to start yowling at them. The tuxedo jumped up onto their lap and gave the stink eye at Yamada.

The hero smiled slightly at the cat, not bothering to correct him this time. The smile fell as Yamada continued, “My parents went deaf shortly after I got my quirk, and since it’s one I have to actively suppress, I was forced to wear a muzzle in most of the homes.”

Akira’s eyebrows shot up and their hand stilled before signing in confusion, ‘But your quirk is perfect for hero work.’ Bastard lightly batted at their hand without his claws until they resumed petting him.

Yamada laughed bitterly, “If it was something I turned on instead of actively keeping off, maybe. But all they saw was a liability.” His expression softened as he focused back on Akira. “The point is I can understand how terrible people can be. Shou got it more from his peers, but we both want to be here for you.”

Akira nodded haltingly then frowned as they looked at a ping from Dabi. “August 7th. Wooded area.” Realizing that would be the third day of camp, Akira signed as much to Yamada, who grew more worried.

Friday night, an arms deal was almost complete under Akira’s watchful gaze when they spotted a familiar shadow enter the window. Catching Isao’s eyes, they signed ‘Eraser. I stall.’ With a nod from the muscle, Akira padded across the beams to intercept the hero. ‘Fancy seeing you here.’

Expression deceptively blank, the hero signed back, ‘We need to talk away from birds.’

Akira took a steadying breath and nodded, signing for him to stay while they made their way back into Isao’s line of sight and gave an all-clear. As the gangs dispersed, Akira swept once more for bugs before making their way back into the rafters. Tension burning throughout their body, Akira tried to put on an air of nonchalance. ‘Fat Gum gave you the brief if you know the code. What do you want to know?’

‘How much does Siren know?’ Aizawa bluntly asked, eyes searching their small frame in the darkness.

Akira blinked at the easy question. ‘I was abused, my quirk forcibly manifested, and I agree with aspects of Stain’s ideology. I’m trying to avoid putting more people in danger than necessary.’

Aizawa nodded slowly, face still closed off and impassive. ‘Why didn’t you tell me?’

Akira shot him a disbelieving look before signing, ‘You’re a mandated reporter, and I couldn’t be sure that underground heroes were safe. You being married to Mic was a red flag as much as him being married to you was a green flag. And I don’t want to put Siren in danger.’

‘Who can I bring in without informing them of the larger investigation?’

Akira hesitated before clarifying, ‘For intelligence gathering, scouting, protecting…’

Aizawa let out a small sigh, ‘Intel gathering. Nezu and Sir Nighteye are the best Japan has in the field outside the Wrens, and both have a distaste towards the family and the Commission.’

Akira shivered as they leaned against a support beam, shifting weight off their mostly healed leg. ‘Principal knows… something. I’ve been avoiding the stoat to put off further risk, and I haven’t died yet, so…’

Aizawa ducked into his capture scarf with a small, exasperated smile. ‘I can find out for you. Nezu will probably ask to see you.’

Akira lightly rapped their head against the beam before nodding. We’d need to find out eventually. If he hasn’t turned me in yet, maybe, just maybe he is on my side.

Monday morning, Akira woke to the odd smell of burnt bread and red bean paste. Confused, they saw it was only 04:30, a full hour before they needed to be up to catch the train to U.A. Akira rolled off the couch to see Dabi in the kitchen cursing at a sheet of taiyaki that were a little extra crispy. They laughed, stepping closer with heavy steps to avoid startling the man. ‘You okay?’

“Fine,” Dabi grumbled as he roughly used a spatula to scrape the treats off, “these were meant to be a surprise.”

Akira waved him off, plucking one off the tray and taking a cautious nibble. Steam erupted from the fish-shaped waffle, and they offered a smile. ‘Not bad. Just a little burnt on the outside. Thanks.’ Peeking around Dabi, Akira grinned at the two baked and one raw sheet of taiyaki on the counter. The former seemed to have fared better at least. ‘Might as well get ready since I’m up. Want some help?’

Akira grinned as Dabi called back no and continued grumbling over the waffles. They triple-checked their duffle bag and eventually decided to bring all their non-perishable snacks and ingredients. The pair had discussed at length the ever-growing chance they’d see each other on Wednesday but couldn’t justify raising an alarm beyond telling Yamada and Aizawa. More food would at least give Akira a better chance of surviving the rest of the League if it came to that.

‘And you’ll ping your location when you warp on site, right?’ Akira asked as they were halfway out the door.

“Yes, now go! You’re going to miss the train,” Dabi said, lightly shoving them out the door.

“Mori! It’s good to see you here this early,” Ida chopped. “Please store any large bags under the bus and take one small bag with you.”

Akira just gave a thumbs up and pulled their box of taiyaki out of their duffle before stowing it. ‘Would you like a taiyaki?’

“Of course, thank you!”

Akira handed one to Aizawa and two to Hitoshi – all three from the less burnt batches – with a wink to the latter before settling towards the middle of the bus in a window seat with their box and oversized smoothie tumbler Yamada insisted on getting them. They’d already had their smoothie for breakfast, but Akira didn’t want to be unprepared with all that could go wrong that week.

The rest of 1-A gradually filtered on, and Sato lit up as he noticed Akira munching on the waffles. He slipped into their row and asked, “Hey Mori, did you make those yourself?”

Startled, Akira shook their head and offered him one. ‘My roommate did.’

Sato grinned as he bit into one, “I love baking. Can you get me the recipe? I like to experiment.”

Akira slowly nodded, glancing at Fumikage as he and Koji sat across the aisle. ‘I also have several recipes from Fat Gum,’ they added haltingly and sent a few taiyaki over via Dark Shadow.

“That’s great! I’d love to get those, too. What’s your favorite to make? I like matcha pound cake.”

Akira leaned into the window a bit, eyes widening minutely as Sato gestured widely. At an encouraging smile from Koji, Akira started exchanging recipes with the boy. Occasionally, his smile faltered as they mentioned cheaper options for ingredients, but he had the tact not to comment.

As the bus headed into the mountains, Akira found themself distracted by the stunning view outside their window. The road climbed high above the trees, letting them see for miles around as Musutafu shrunk in the distance. After only an hour, the bus stopped, and Akira cast a concerned glance to Aizawa as they took in the heavily wooded area below the rest area. Class B’s bus had split off twenty minutes prior, and they weren’t there.

‘Is everything alright?’ they signed to Aizawa.

‘Make sure you have your food and meds,’ Aizawa simply replied. Akira peered up at him before double-checking their backpack.

Pixie-Bob and Mandalay burst from the other car, posing while a young boy scoffed in the background. As Midoriya went off on an excited muttering storm over their team, Pixie-bob rushed forward, claws extending. Akira immediately warped to Midoriya, shoving him out of the way as they ducked under her hand.

“18 at- huh?” Pixie-Bob vehemently insisted then caught herself as Aizawa dispelled Akira’s clone and she was met with the protective teen.

After a tense moment, Akira straightened and kept an eye on her as they led an embarrassed Midoriya back. Aizawa frowned slightly in confusion at Pixie-Bob, raising an eyebrow at Mandalay. They did not join the class greeting as Mandalay pointed out where they would be staying in the distance.

“It’s 9:30 a.m. right now. If you’re fast, maybe around noon?” Mandalay mused, tail twitching.

Casting an annoyed look at Aizawa, Akira sighed. That’s at least 6 hours on foot if they have obstacles. The rest of the class started panicking and rushing for the bus as Pixie-Bob started a feline wiggle.

“Kitties who don’t make it by 12:30 won’t get any lunch!”

“Sorry folks, but training camp…” Aizawa said, a twinge of amusement on his face as Pixie-Bob jumped between the students and the bus. “has already begun.” He met Akira’s eyes with a slight nod.

As an avalanche of dirt flew toward the group, Akira warped on top of the bus. The dirt avalanche seemed to provide enough stability from Pixie-Bob’s quirk to not cause injury, but they didn’t want to risk loose dirt behind the wave still tumbling them into its path.

“Since it’s private land, you can use your Quirks as you wish!” Mandalay continued to explain as Aizawa held out a hand for Akira.

“You can either go with the class or continue on the bus,” Aizawa offered blandly. “I trust you to know what you can handle in this heat.”

Akira slid down the front of the bus, a hand keeping their skirt from riding up. They took the proffered hand to get the rest of the way down and gave a sharp nod to Aizawa, ‘I’ll go with the group. Shouldn’t be a problem with what I packed, but for that distance, I’ll need my mobility aids. Open the undercarriage, please.’

“Hey, where’s Mori?” they distantly heard while half climbing into the undercarriage to get to their bag.

They quickly sent a message to the group chat, “warped onto bus. Will be down in minute.”

Capture scarf settled around their neck and crutches in place, they walked up to the edge of the rest stop and surveyed the nearly sheer cliff face. After a minute, they settled on a path and started warping down, focusing on where they were going instead of the forest below. Once down, they signed, ‘I will need a break in three hours to take meds and will likely need to stop a few more times due to the heat.’

Midoriya and Ida briskly nodded and started brainstorming attack patterns as a dirt and stone creature emerged from the woods. Surging forward, Akira used their capture scarf to pull it down and away from the group. Bakugo and Shoto swiftly blasted it to pieces before Midoriya landed the final blow.

As more creatures emerged, the group set up surveillance, distraction, control, and attack teams. Akira mostly ran distraction with their clones and warping while Hitoshi headed control with their ever-present capture weapon.

When the group was barely a third to the foot of the mountains, Akira signed for the group to stop as they sat on a stump and finished off their tumbler before taking their lunch dose. They polished off their last few taiyaki and noticed Yaoyorozu staring at them. ‘What?’

“How were you allowed to bring that much when we weren’t?” she asked bitterly.

‘Most of it was already in my backpack. The rest was part of grabbing what I needed to manage my quirk. I only stowed these because I was under the impression we were taking the bus the whole way.’ After a swig of water, Akira added, ‘I told you to keep snacks on you.’

Yaoyorozu huffed and stalked off to where Jiro was listening with Shoji. A few minutes later, Akira stood and the group moved on. Yaoyorozu wordlessly handed them a pair of blades a couple hours later as the attack group started running out of steam. Akira warily took the blades, testing their balance before handing over a strawberry jelly pouch to the girl’s apparent surprise. Over the next couple hours, they started to feel a strange burn compounding their aches somewhat like when they used their quirk too much after burning through their fat.

Wait, is this my quirk exhaustion? Akira startled with the realization. They kept up with their metabolism for the most part, so it wasn’t a buffer issue. In between monster sightings, they pulled out their quirk notebook and jotted down the symptoms to go over later.

When the group finally made it to base camp around 17:30, everyone was physically and quirk exhausted, dragging their feet and bearing scrapes and bruises from the numerous fights. Akira had burned through everything they’d brought for the day and had stopped actively using their quirk an hour prior. They stumbled into the clearing supporting Kaminari, who was in the midst of another absence seizure.

Got it, corrupt and ignorant, Akira thought bitterly as they listened to Pixie-Bob admit to boasting. Their eyes narrowed as she looked hungrily toward Ida, Midoriya, Bakugo, and Shoto. Akira passed Kaminari off to Fumikage just in time to see the hero rush at the group, and Akira warped into her side mid-air, harshly pushing her off course as Aizawa’s capture scarf lifted.

‘Back off,’ Akira glared as Pixie-Bob landed on her feet a few paces away. ‘You’re making everyone uncomfortable.’

“I just can’t wait to see where you’ll be in three years!” she cooed.

Akira stalked forward menacingly, capture scarf rising as Aizawa sharply called out, “Leave the kids alone.” As he stalked over to retrieve the heroine, Akira locked eyes with Aizawa and stood down at the fierce protectiveness.

“Whose k-kid is that?” Midoriya asked nervously while his fingers fidgeted. As Mandalay introduced Kota, Akira watched her partner like a hawk.

‘Why is she allowed anywhere near children?’ Akira spun on Aizawa as the others unloaded the bus and Pixie-Bob and Mandalay took Kota inside.

Aizawa frowned after the rescue heroes, “I will be speaking with her. I’ve never seen Pixie-Bob act like this, or I would’ve insisted on a different group.”

By dinner, Pixie-Bob seemed to calm down, although Akira kept an eye on her. Since Aizawa had prepared cold compresses for them in the time it took to get to camp, Akira had a few on their legs and chest held in place by their capture weapon.

“You normally wear the boy’s uniform, right Mori?” Sato asked in between mouthfuls of curry.

Akira nodded, ‘Pant uniform, yes. Less likely to get misgendered when I don’t wear traditionally feminine clothing. I’m only wearing the skirt uniform because of the heat.’

“I didn’t know you could get multiple uniforms,” Kaminari added as he sat down.

Akira smiled at them. ‘Good to see you recharged. Eraser-sensei told me the process when I last went to Nurse’s office. I can help you with it if you want.’

“What are you taking pills for?” Yaoyorozu added as Akira took their evening dose.

Akira scowled at them, ‘None of your business. Piss off.’

“Well, you take more food than anyone else, you’re taking unmarked pills, and you got special treatment while we got thrown off a cliff. What’s next, you pass the licensing exam just so they have a-”

“Yaoyorozu, enough. With me,” Aizawa said gruffly, making her go rigid.

“That, uh, that would be great,” Kaminari said as they walked off. “The second uniform process, I mean.”

“Me, too,” Jiro added, looking after Yaoyorozu in confusion.

Akira quietly slipped into the hot springs area wearing only their swim trunks and settled into the water. Kaminari and Midoriya, who had been talking animatedly by the entrance went quiet as they passed.

“Woah, Mori, is that like a tattoo or something?” Kaminari asked, padding after them.

‘Or something. It’s a scar.’

“That’s so manly!” Kirishima grinned. “Is it a cultural thing?”

Akira hesitantly shook their head, glancing at Hitoshi. ‘Not really, but I have heard of that.’

“Did you get it done somewhere special? The lines are so smooth,” Kaminari asked, reaching out.

Akira slid away from his hand as they tried to keep their breathing controlled.

“Hey, maybe they don’t want to-” Koji started softly.

“Oh yeah! I heard about that guy, what’s his… Carpenter! He’s that hero who brings masterpieces out of any material, right? It’s so rare he works with human canvases. His work looks kind of like that,” Midoriya babbled as Akira blanched and slipped further down in the water.

Hitoshi said, “Hey Midoriya?”

“Ye-”

“Shut up.” Hitoshi glared between Midoriya and the others, clearly daring them to say anything. After a moment, he released Midoriya who blushed, muttering a quick apology before going to sit with Ida. “Are you okay?”

Akira shook their head as their back spasmed. They stood after a moment, signing ‘alone’ before going back to the shared bedroom. Should’ve just worn a regular shirt when I saw I was missing my rash guard, Akira thought bitterly. Their scar burned and itched like they’d landed on a fire ant hill, so they used their long makeup brush to put a little scar cream on it. After a few seconds made it clear the effects were phantom pains, Akira settled for leaning against the grey wall while stroking their Bastard plush in their lap.

“Hey, why do you have a stuffed animal?”

Akira looked up, blinking as they noticed Kota enter the room. ‘Do you know what grounding means?’

“No,” the boy huffed, crossing his arms.

Akira resumed stroking Bastard, mulling over an explanation for a 5-year-old. ‘I have a lot of bad memories, and sometimes my thoughts get too loud because of them. Grounding can be different for everyone, but the idea is to remind yourself of where you are and what’s around you.’

“And the stuffed cat?” Kota looked confused.

‘Is something soft I associate with positive memories. I didn’t have him during the bad memories,’ Akira tried to explain. The kid still seemed a little confused but nodded. ‘Do you have bad memories?’

“My parents are dead.”

Akira winced. ‘Sorry? Did you watch them-’

“No, they were stupid, heroes like you idiots are trying to be with your corny powers.”

Setting Bastard aside, Akira motioned for Kota to come closer. ‘Heroes can be ignorant, mean, or contradictory. The good ones try to save people, and I think most of my classmates could be good heroes.’

“But you’re all just showing off, so you’ll end up dead like them!” Kota stormed up.

Akira’s breath hitched as they briefly saw Minori before they shook their head lightly. They took a deep breath before continuing, ‘Some are, and some will. I don’t blame you for disliking heroes; I don’t like them, either.’ At Kota’s bewildered look, Akira offered a small, bitter smile. ‘Most of my bad memories come from heroes, but there are a few I can now say I look up to. All of these kids have been through a lot, so just try to keep that in mind, okay?’

Kota seemed conflicted before turning and running out of the room. Akira shook their head and turned in for the night, back still on fire as they left the blanket off.

Notes:

Akira’s been going to therapy for three months now with a pause when summer break started. There isn’t the pressure of seeing him every day or interacting outside of sessions, so they feel a bit more comfortable. Kiddo’s still trying to grasp what baselines are supposed to be Gosh this arc came up fast and I’m trying not to cram growth but damn it’s hard. I was especially struggling with my hyperphantasia acting up as I tried to figure out what trauma to have Akira relive, so ended up not writing the dream sequence. I'm really looking forward to seeing y'all's reactions to the last few chapters as things heat up

Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

[fandom-circus]

Thinking about that moment in Haikyuu in the All Japan training camp arc when Kageyama sets the ball and noone spikes it and then he says something like 'sorry, force of habit', but what if he said 'sorry, that was for my spiker, I forgot he wasnt here' and the rest is like 'tf you mean your spiker', 'tf you mean you forgot he wasnt here' and Kageyama is like 'oh you know, there's this guy on my team who I just completely synced up with, my sets are always exactly precise for him and he's always somewhere near me, so I just forgot he wasnt here. He would've spiked that set tho' and then Atsumu is like 'oh, you got yourself a boyfriend back home Tobio?' and Kageyama is like 'ew no, he's not my boyfriend' but he starts thinking about it and Atsumu teases him about it throughout the camp and DO YOU SEE THE VISION

[capobegone]

The highlight of today’s episode

Kamado “😀” Tanjiro