Chapter 2: Beachside Battle
The Second Magic really did live up to its nickname of Kaleidoscope. As Shirou and Miyu floated through the space between worldlines, they were dazzled by the wondrous lights that twirled around them. Every hue visible to the human eye danced in wonder to them. In the future, at any amusement park the Emiya siblings would attend, the roller coasters would fall short of this wondrous display.
As they flew through the cosmos, Shirou picked up on seven lights that flew around them. Blue and silver, gold and red, blue and red, violet and white, indigo and gray, obsidian and purple, and gray and red. These lights spiraled around, eventually shooting forward to a large glowing sphere in front of them. Our new home, the two realized.
The lights spread out, forming into a seven point magic circle. Shirou and Miyu flew right into it, and immediately found themselves underwater. Panicking, Shirou immediately grabbed Miyu and swam to the surface. The second they broke through the water, they gasped hard. Thankfully, Shirou was already pointed towards the shore, so he pushed his strained muscles to the shore line.
Safely arriving on the beach, Shirou set Miyu down on her back and glanced around, looking for Angelica Ainsworth. She's nowhere to be seen. Perhaps the Holy Grail had seen fit to separate them? But then why did it bring her along in the first place? Deciding that was a mystery for another time, Shirou first checked to make sure Miyu was still breathing. She was panting, and shivering in the mystic code black dress the Ainsworths had put her in, but overall she was fine for now. Shirou glanced around at the beach, looking for any security threats.
...The biggest threat was that this place was a dump. It seemed likely that many people used this place to deposit illegal trash. All sorts of appliances, furniture, and even cars were littered all over the place. The part of Shirou that was well-known for fixing stuff was raging to take all of this and start repairing what was possible, but he shoved that thought aside for now. Right now, Shirou and Miyu were effectively homeless, with no resources available to be accessed. No secret Kiritsugu accounts, no contacts, nothing but two siblings with strange abilities that would possibly draw-
This is a world where 80% of the population has a meta-ability called a Quirk. These Quirks are a natural function of the human body, and thus can be trained and worn out. There are a variety of types, including Emitter-types, Mutant-Types, and Transformation-Types. The cause of the Quirk is located within the Quirk Factor as formed by the Plus Alpha Elements-
Shirou smacked his forehead to stop the strange infodump from continuing. Where did that... the Holy Grail . When it sent Miyu and himself to this new world, it must have granted them knowledge to be able to fit in. That was probably within the limits of the Holy Grail, right? He'd have to talk to Miyu about this, and make sure their cover story was the same between them and, more importantly, plausible.
At this point, Miyu started to get up from the supine position Shirou had set her in when they got to the beach. Shirou immediately Traced a copy of the white coat he had had when he first Installed the Nameless Archer Class Card, and wrapped it around her, "Hey, Miyu, how do you feel?"
Miyu nuzzled into him, muttering something. Shirou rubbed her arms and back, trying to warm her up and dry her, "I'm sorry, Miyu, I didn't understand what you just said, can you repeat it?" Miyu popped her head up to glare at Shirou, surprising the older brother. She then started swinging at him, though the white coat made it hard for her to actually land any hits that hurt.
"Dummy! Dummy, dummy, dummy, dummy!" Miyu spoke up, making her thoughts exceptionally clear, "What kind of big brother just sends his little sister off to another world without making sure she has a place to stay!" She stopped, then laid her head against his chest, "What, did you think saying something cool like 'I'm an older brother, so I have to protect my younger sister' makes it okay! Dummy!"
"Heh, you're right Miyu, that was selfish of me, not thinking of my own survival for your sake," Shirou remarked, a sly smirk on his lips at his sister's childish outburst. The smirk faded, though, as he asked his next question, "I had thought that you would want nothing to do with me, seeing as you saw why Kiritsugu and I-"
"Kiritsugu. It was just Kiritsugu who wanted to use my power, right?" Miyu looked back up at Shirou's face, ember eyes meeting ember eyes. "You never even tried to find a way. You raised me, fed me, taught me, and made sure that we could live a happy life. You even brought me to my old home, to tell me what Kiritsugu wanted to do, right?"
Shirou could only softly nod, stunned by her conviction. She nodded imperiously, "I thought so. Then I forgive you. You just need to promise there'll be no more secrets between us, okay? If you do that, I can forget everything that happened in the past." She raised her pinky finger, a gesture the older brother had forgotten he had taught her a long time ago.
Shirou smiled, then raised his own pinky finger, and hooked it with hers, "Okay, no more secrets. Though, I don't think we should be so hasty to forget everything from the past." Miyu tilted her head in confusion, and Shirou gestured to the ocean. Miyu turned, and it suddenly struck her where she was. Her eyes widened, her jaw dropped, and her arms went slack, dropping the white coat Shirou had carefully put on her.
"Welcome to the beach, Miyu." At those words, Miyu gasped, then took off running into the water, the adrenaline of seeing an actual beach overriding any form of tiredness inflicted by the travel between worlds. She immediately splashed at the water, marveled at the sand, and began identifying the types of shells she saw on the beach.
Shirou smiled at the earnest joy, for the first time, feeling proud of something he had done. He looked around where she was playing, and thankfully there seemed to be none of the scrap that littered the rest of the beach. Which seemed a bit strange. Why would this area be...
Shirou, keeping Miyu in the corner of his eye, walked over to a nearby appliance. A washer, it appeared to once have been. Putting a hand on it, he used Structural Analysis on it. Yeah, someone had moved it recently away from the shoreline, but stopped because it was the end of the day. Someone was working to clean up this beach.
He looked at the trash heaps again, and could tell now how it was organized and being moved away from the shoreline, no doubt to some trucks that would cart the trash away. That was good, someone was taking care of this beach. After he and Miyu got settled, Shirou swore to look into this effort and provide any help he could. Miyu deserved to have a beach she could come back and explore whenever she had the time to.
A pain shot through Shirou's arm, and he winced. Raising his appendage to take a look, he could feel his Magic Circuits running raw within him. He had fought for far, far too long for his body's sake. Prefetching EMIYA's circuits had been a necessary cost, but Shirou needed to rest before he got into any serious fighting.
So, for now, he took a seat, propping himself against the washer. He could see both Miyu playing and the entrance to the beach. He tightened his fist, ensuring that he wasn't going to fall asleep soon. He'd rest for a bit, then he and Miyu would go find his new home.
Izuku Midoriya finished his last set of pushups, having done them in the Kashiiku park. His arms always burned the hardest at this stage, after doing a variety of other exercises in between different 5km runs. This was to simulate showing up to the scene, solving it, and running off to the next one. At least that's what All-Might said. Izuku couldn't shake the feeling that the number 1 hero may have been simply adding to the hell that was the Aim to Pass plan.
Shaking his head at his body's weak response to the training, he sat down, and pulled out the lunch that his mom had dropped off for him before she went to her latest photography gig at Deika City. He appreciated her being willing to work with his new drive and scheduling to work towards U.A., even if he knew she worried over how he was going to enter without a Quirk.
I need to ask All-Might if I can tell her about One for All... no, better not worry him about me spilling his secrets. Putting that thought aside, he held the flatbread sandwich in his left hand, taking bites as he scribbled notes from the Present Mic radio show into his latest notebook. All-Might had told him to keep up with the notebooks, as they were a good source of critical thinking and memorization practice. Hearing from his idol that his notebooks were useful... Izuku had to hold back his tears at the memory. I got to work on the crying too...
Marking the heading the logo that Hawks, the Number 3 hero uses for himself, Izuku began to speak aloud as he summarized the interview, "Hawks grew up at Kyushu Island, in a rough home environment. However, he was always a fan of Endeavor, and when he reached the age of 12 he got placed in a great foster home. He attended Kotetsu Omoi Hero Academy, and did a lot of work studies with the immigrated Pro-Hero, Saber Shine."
Taking a second to sketch out the Pro-Hero in question, he returned to his summary, "His Quirk is Mighty Wings, two red feathered wings that not only come out of his back, but he can also control the individual feathers for specific tasks, such as carrying civilians out of the way or as an attack. Flight is of course an option for Hawks, making him one of the fastest heroes in the business. It's no surprise that with this useful Quirk, he has risen to the Number 3 hero rank on the last Hero Billboard Rankings." Scribbling a few more notes and questions Izuku had about Hawks down, he then turned to the next page.
Jotting down Saber Shine's name, and sketching out a blond Englishman dressed in a black spandex suit with a silver cape and waist cape, adorned with a sun sigil made with cavalry saber sigils. Izuku made a small note that the sun sigil was gold, as was some of the trimming on the cape and suit. Rolling his neck, Izuku began writing about Saber Shine.
"Saber Shine, the Solar Knight hero. Real name, Gawain Pendragon. Originally from the United Kingdom, where he was the Number 2 hero for a couple of years. After a tragedy that involved his superior, Lance Lioness, the Number 1 hero, he moved himself and his family here to Japan, for a fresh start." Izuku stopped, putting his pen near his mouth. He didn't really elaborate on why Lance Lioness' death impacted him or why he chose Japan. I wonder if those rumors... never mind. He dismissed the situation as not his business. If Saber Shine didn't want to talk about why he came to Japan, it's not like Izuku was going to get those answers. He continued to write down in his journal, finishing his sandwich as he did.
"His Quirk is Solar Empowerment. His body can synthesize solar energy into physical energy, working strongest from 9am to 12pm, with his Quirk slowly receding back from noon to 3pm. During this time of empowerment, he has super speed, strength, and agility, and clear buildings in a single bound. Rumor has it that he can even emit solar flares from parts of his body, but he denies this."
He's probably lying though. I've seen some of the videos, and whatever light shows up during his fights is not natural. It's probably a very situational ability, though, something for Saber Shine to keep in his back pocket rather than advertise and give away.
As Izuku continued, his phone alarm went off, informing him that he needed to start heading towards the beach. His eyes widened, but he was quick to pack everything up. Trash was disposed of, notebook and pens were packed away, and a water bottle was grabbed as Izuku guzzled it down. He had three, one with regular ice water and the other two that were frozen. They'd thaw and melt as he worked at Takoba beach, allowing himself a nice steady stream of water without over drinking or wasting too much time.
Refreshed, Izuku packed the water bottle back into the bag, shrugged it on, and took off on a light jog. Overall, while the Aim to Dream plan was a hell unto itself upon his body, his mind and spirit were in heaven. He was actually working towards his dreams of being a hero. All-Might was helping him do so. Izuku was doing service for his community, and could feel his body improving. He even saw two shooting stars this morning! For the first time in... forever, really, Izuku felt like his life was going right.
What could go wrong?
The second Shirou Emiya saw the green haired teenager walking up, he was immediately on guard. Yeah, this kid could be harmless, but after Julian had betrayed him, Shirou wasn't going to take any chances. The older brother walked over to the little sister, calling out "Hey, Miyu, it's time to go." His younger sister turned him, but then noticed the newcomer. Spooked, she took off to hide behind her older brother, who put an arm by her to ward off the newcomer. Seeing as she had only really known Kiritsugu, the Ainsworths, and himself, Shirou wasn't surprised by her reaction.
The teen, however, did notice and froze, looking kinda spooked. Judging by the green tracksuit and backpack, it seemed likely to Shirou that this kid was the one of the cleaners of the beach. Maybe he had arrived ahead of his crew? Will definitely need to leave soon. His thoughts were interrupted by Green finally speaking up.
"Um, sorry, am I bothering you? I was just coming to clean, but I can come back if you need the space?" was the message that Shirou got, though the newcomer stuttered a lot more than was expected.
"No, we're fine. We're new to the area, so we thought we should stop by the beach for a bit. We'll go now," Shirou said, then started walking with Miyu towards the steps leading to the main road. The green cleaning machine nodded, then started on his stretches. Before Shirou could help himself, he asked, "So, when does your crew normally get here?"
"Crew?" The stranger looked owlishly at Shirou, then shook his head, "No, it's just me. I've been coming here for the last few months to workout and clean. My mentor said it's great for the body and spirit to do hard labor service like this."
Shirou and Miyu were stunned for a second by what he had said. "...You've been cleaning this beach, for months now? Because of your mentor? Who are you?" Shirou had to ask, because the only person insane enough to do this kind of task with no reward was...
"Oh, I'm Izuku Midoriya. I'm training to become a hero!" The nervous fright in Midoriya's eyes vanished, replaced by a look. A look most would consider innocent. Wide eyes, with a fierce look ready to take on the world.
A world that would grind him to dust. A world that would stretch him far beyond what was possible. A world that did not know feeling, nor know care. A world that would break everything he ever cared about, so that his hands would never hold anything.
Shirou blinked in horror, his mind not processing the information that the Grail was trying to give him. It was something about Professional Heroes, but that wasn't important to him now. He recognized these eyes. He had to stop this kid from trying to walk into that hell...
"You want to be a hero?" Miyu spoke up, surprising both Shirou and Midoriya, who turned to look at her, "That's cool. My brother is one."
Midoriya whipped his head so fast to face Shirou that the redhead thought his own neck cracked in sympathy. The green hero wannabe was also holding a notebook that Shirou was sure was in his backpack two seconds ago. "Oh my gosh, you're a Pro-Hero? Are you a sidekick and an independent? Are you looking to move into the area? What's your Quirk? What's your Hero Name?"
It was only through Shirou's training that he managed to find the spaces in the muttering storm that blasted him, "Uh, I apologize, my sister is wrong. I'm not a hero. I wanted to be one, but..." Shirou stopped, not knowing how to approach the topic of I chose to save my sister by dooming a world full of millions of people. That was a suitcase full of cans of worms that Shirou felt it was better to toss the whole thing than unpack.
Thankfully, mercifully, Midoriya picked up on Shirou's uncomfortableness, "Oh, I'm sorry, I guess that's a sensitive topic, huh? I'm really sorry, uh?" Midoriya went for a name, but then realized that he didn't get one.
"...Emiya. Shirou Emiya. And this is my sister Miyu," Shirou weighed the pros and cons, and decided that sharing his name with this kid wasn't a risk. He was too honest, his nervousness and skittishness making him unlikely to be a threat. Izuku Midoriya was a good kid, far different than what Julian pretended to be, or really was. "It's okay, you couldn't have known."
Midoriya sighed in relief, then handed his notebook over to Shirou, surprising the redhead. Taking it, he noticed it was full of autographs. All sorts of strange names littered the page. Kamui Woods, Death Arms, Ingenium, Snatch, Mount Lady, Burnin, Centipeder. Shirou recalled what the Grail had been trying to tell him earlier...
In this superhuman society, a new profession arose, Heroes. Commissioned by the local and national governments and funded through their efforts and extraneous sponsorships and patrons, Pro-Heroes are involved in all forms of emergencies, from reacting to a crime scene or disaster to investigating criminals or missing person cases. To this society, the pages of a comic might as well be fact rather than fiction.
Shirou was floored. It's... a viable career here? To be a hero? On the one hand, the idea of being compensated for being a hero kinda sickened him. A true hero doesn't care about compensation, they care about helping those around them. On the other hand...
Shirou turned to look at his sister, who was beaming at him. No doubt having the same information play through her head as did his just now. I can save people... and take care of Miyu. We were brought to a world where she could find happiness being normal, and I could by saving people. Shirou felt a pit grow in his stomach. I ruined our old world, and I'm being rewarded for it?
Shirou forced himself out of his thoughts. He can ponder his guilt later. Turning back to Midoriya, Shirou asked, "Um, this is a nice spread of autographs, but...?"
"Oh! I'm sorry, I would like your autograph." Midoriya said it so simply that it took a second for Shirou to comprehend it. Midoriya answered before Shirou could ask why, "I know you aren't a Pro-Hero, but your sister clearly thinks of you as her hero. I think that means you fit in on that page."
Shirou looked back down at that page, then back to his sister. Miyu was nodding her head and smiling. A glance at Midoriya showed an earnest smile as well. Shirou went back to the autograph page. These were people who had dedicated themselves to justice. To saving as many people as they could. For someone like Shirou to put his name among theirs... It didn't feel right.
Before Shirou could find a way to politely turn down Midoriya's request, their peaceful day was shattered. "HEY! HEYHEYHEYHEYHEY!" A loud voice called out from the top of the stairs connecting the beach to the road, and immediately Shirou turned to face this newcomer, putting the notebook into Midoriya's chest. Midoriya quickly put it back into his backpack and put it on, and Miyu moved to remain behind Shirou, worried again.
The owner of the voice jumped the flight of steps, but he wasn't looking at the group of three, instead focused on the trash heaps around them. He had long blond hair that went slightly past his ears, with paler skin that was should have been normal, and his eyes seemed to lack pupils, "WHO the FUCK's been messing with this beach?"
Shirou and Midoriya tensed, taking a step back, when more newcomers jumped down as well. The first one was wearing a vest over a white wife beater and jeans. He had green hair that was slicked back into spikes. Next to him was a guy wrapped in red bandages all the way up, leaving only his pale hair and orange eyes peeking out. He was equipped with military style tactical gear, such as a vest, pads, and a sword strapped to his back, which would normally mean Shirou would have identified him as the biggest threat.
That would have been a mistake. The last newcomer seemed to be a simple schoolgirl. A green letterman jacket covering a typical schoolgirl uniform would indicate that. Even if she had a short haircut, an eyepatch, and a cigarette dangling from her mouth, that would just mean she'd be a teenage rebel, someone that Shirou would normally have no trouble dealing with.
But her eyes... her smile... they contributed to the dangerous presence Shirou felt from her. Damn it, if only he hadn't gotten too caught up with Midoriya, he would have picked up on this gang's approach. No, that isn't fair to Midoriya. Shirou may have also missed them because he was still tired from the Holy Grail War he had just fought. He had rested long enough for his body to start feeling the aches and injuries from the conflict. It would be wise to get out of here without any conflict.
Spiky Green immediately responded to the pale blond, "Relax, Jester, who cares? This place is still a dump, whoever's been working on it's barely done anything." Shirou heard Midoriya suck his teeth in, and immediately winced.
"Yes this place is good for- oh?" The red mummy paused, having heard Midoriya, turned to face the group of three. Spiky, Eyepatch, and Pale, or Jester it seemed, did the same. Shirou stepped forward, and Eyepatch smirked.
"Oh, are you guys the ones that have been cleaning this beach? That's cute." She said, spinning around a keyring on her fingers, "I'm going to have to ask you guys to leave, though. My friends and I want to get some Quirk practice in, and this is a perfect place to do that."
Midoriya seemed caught between anger and fear. Anger, because all of the work he had been doing was about to be undone. Fear, because it was clear that this gang wouldn't hesitate to make him and the two siblings their target for Quirk practice. Shirou put a hand on his shoulder, causing the hero wannabe to look at him. Shaking his head, Shirou turned to the gang, "No worries, we were just about to leave. You can have fun, we'll worry about the cleanup tomorrow." Shirou made sure to look at Midoriya during the last part, trying to communicate that he'll help clean up the beach. Midoriya seemed to understand, as he took a deep breath.
"Thanks, that's kind of you," Eyepatch said, as the gang turned to go wreck the beach. Shirou sighed, then started to guide Miyu and Midoriya up the stairs. Before they got too far, Eyepatch called out again, "Hey, do you need a job, dude?"
Shirou halted, then turned to Eyepatch, raising an eyebrow, "Excuse me?" Eyepatch smirked, took a drag on her cigarette, then snapped her fingers at him.
"It's clear you're good in a fight, you got the posture and your clothes show that you can walk off some serious wounds," Shirou felt chills as she pointed out his battle-torn clothes, "The fact you are still in those rags prove that you need money, otherwise you and the girl would have changed already. So, how about it?" she waved a hand towards her friends, "I recruit people for a small organization. Nothing too fancy, just some small errands and favors. It pays well, and no questions asked. You interested?"
Shirou stared at her, sizing her up. They were homeless, resourceless, and friendless here. Even if Midoriya could help, it would be in some small way, like clothes and a meal at most. In all honesty, he should take the deal, and work for a bit until he could find more legitimate work. But those eyes...
"No thanks. My sister and I are fine." We can figure something out , he didn't add, but the sentiment was there. Miyu made an affirmative sound behind him, and he felt better about the choice he made. Eyepatch, meanwhile, rolled her head to the side and sighed.
"Fine, have it your way," with those words, Shirou turned to walk up the steps with Midoriya and Miyu. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Eyepatch take a drag again, then flick her arm forward. Instincts screaming, Shirou Traced the black falchion Kanshou and slashed at the projectile she launched. His blade connected, and Shirou saw it wasn't a projectile, but a bee. A bee that was a magical familiar. Just like his father's job with the Borzak family.
Slashing through the bee produced a loud ringing, as if he had cut through a solid steel beam rather than a simple insect. Everyone was focused on the exchange. Midoriya's and Miyu's eyes were widening, while Spiky's and Mummy's eyes were narrowing. Eyepatch and Jester, meanwhile, were widening in excitement. Like a predator who found their prey.
Shirou immediately fired up his Magic Circuits and Traced Bakuya and loaded up his Sword Barrel immediately, "Miyu, Midoriya, RUN!" Shirou snarled out, then launched himself at the gang.
"GET THEM BOYS!" Kuin Hachisuka called out, excited for a real test of their abilities. Soga Kugisaki, also known as Spike, immediately went right, expanding his Quirk from between his fingers, while Jester Karture went left, activating his claws that he had in this form. Hoyo Makihara, the Mummy, held back, sending out tendrils to create his puppets. Those puppets took off like a bullet to shield Soga and Jester from the onslaught of fired swords, while they jumped around and attacked the battered redhead.
Kuin whistled as she saw counter play. The redhead blocked Soga's punch with his black sword, then swept his legs from out underneath him. Soga went down, while the redhead immediately slammed his shoulder into Jester, knocking the wind out of the pale dude. The redhead went to slash down and finish Jester off, but Kuin had already sent more bees, laced up with Trigger, after him. The redhead immediately pivoted to cutting those down, then had to block as one of Mummy's puppets smashed into him. Two English broadswords appeared in thin air, and shot through the bandages Mummy used to control the puppet. As such, the puppet fell apart, just as Spike and Jester jumped at the redhead, continuing their attacks and parries.
Kuin breathed out a big sigh as she took a drag on her cigarette. It helped calm her body and made her bees more malleable. She examined the redheaded swordsman as he managed quite well against Spike and Jester. The two worked well together, no doubt, but they had really only picked minor fights with random thugs. The redhead was a bit more proficient than them.
"Still, he's tired, and it's showing," She muttered to herself. The sword swipes done by their target were sloppy, not in the lazy way of the untrained, but in the tired way someone who had been fighting for hours was. He was still fending them off, but he wasn't managing to land any killing blows either. Anything that came close she handled with her bees. Frustratingly, he seemed to sense when they would appear and destroy them. Combine that with the fact that his swords were Projections not Productions, and was it possible he was with...?
Kuin shook her head free of that thought. No way. He would have called for backup if he was. Even if he was a runaway, she doubts it was from those assholes. Cipher would have never let such an interesting asset get far away. It was luck that delivered him to her, since she knew exactly who'd pay a good price for his interesting Quirk.
"Jester!" she called out, causing Jester to switch out with Spike and look back at her, "Go get the Broccoli Head and the girl? We want to take this one alive." Smirking, Jester went to slip by the redhead and get their hostages, only to yelp as a huge slab of just ROCK came right to his face.
"BACK... OFF!" The redhead called, swinging the clearly too heavy for anyone but All-Might slab of rock forward. Mummy immediately moved another puppet to cover Jester, but he didn't need to. Jester immediately activated his Quirk: Six Chambered Heart.
Jester's Quirk lived up to its name. Like a revolver, Jester could store the hearts of up to six other people, which he can cycle between and take their form. This grants him their stats and abilities, but his own knowledge, memories, and personality is kept between forms. This made him a useful test subject, but not overpowered.
Switching to the chamber with his child form, Jester's body shrunk, allowing him to dodge under the slab and kick off to run after the other two. The redhead went to fire off more swords at him, but Spike cut him off, nearly landing a mean left hook right at the face. The punch ended up hitting the flat of a blade, and the redhead snarled as he was forced to focus on Spike and Mummy, who had stepped up to fight alongside his own puppets.
Kuin smirked. Either the redhead would run out of energy, or Jester would get the kids and force them back, getting her a full surrender. Then the good doctor would have a nice Quirk and body to experiment with, and her little gang would get paid quite well. What could possibly go wrong?
Izuku had grabbed Miyu's hand and took off running the second Emiya had called for it, stopping only when he realized Miyu had no shoes. Apologizing quickly, Izuku picked up the teen girl in a bridal carry and booked it. Miyu seemed stunned, but apparently decided to trust him, keeping an eye out behind them for the battle with her older brother. He didn't stop until he got back to Kashiiku Park, by which point his lungs were on fire. At least he got some training in.
Izuku put Miyu down and put his hands on his knees, slightly regretting that he kept his backpack on him. There wasn't time to take it off and get away from Takoba, at least it didn't feel like that. He went ahead and pulled it off, then took out his phone, wondering where the heroes had been, shouldn't someone have seen the fight?
According to the news, no. There were apparently seven different incidents in Mustafar in the last few hours, between traffic problems, improper Quirk usages, and robberies. Mustafar may have had a high hero count, but no one wanted to rest on a Sunday it seemed. Sighing, Izuku turned to Miyu, "Are you alright?"
Miyu nodded, "I am, but what about my brother? Who's going to stop them?" Izuku's heart broke upon hearing her distressed voice. He had also noticed that Shirou Emiya had seemed to have just escaped a fight, just like that eyepatch girl did. From how Miyu sounded, though, Emiya's fight was a bit more deadly than Izuku's own scuffles with Kachan.
I smile to show the pressure of heroes and to trick the fear inside of me. The words of Izuku's mentor flowed into his head, and he decided to act on them. Smiling the biggest smile he could, Izuku spoke as clearly as he could manage, "Don't worry, Miyu! You told me yourself, your brother is a hero! He'll pull through, because that's what heroes do!" He then turned to his phone, and dialed the most important number he had ever received. As it rang, Izuku looked back towards Miyu, still smiling, desperately hoping it was reassuring her, "Besides, I know the greatest hero alive! All-Might!" He wasn't supposed to tell anyone he knew All-Might, but Izuku thought the Number 1 hero would give him a pass in this situation. It wasn't like he was bragging to his non-existent friends, after all.
"All... Might?" Miyu said, her eyes narrowed in confusion. She then winced, putting her hands to her temples. Before Izuku could ask what was wrong, his call was picked up.
"Young Midoriya? Why are you calling, is everything alright?" While not as booming as in his hero form, his shrunken form still had a deep voice that was soothing to hear. Izuku swallowed, then prepared to speak.
"All-Might! I found some people at Takoba Beach and we got to talking then we were attacked by a gang so I ran to Kashiiku Park with the sister and we need" Izuku was cut off as a knife embedded itself into his phone, a small tip poking out of the cracked screen. Izuku dropped the now useless phone, staring at a kid who looked eerily like the pale blond from the beach. The kid smirked, and somehow Izuku knew that this was the same person, Jester.
"Found you!" he sang out, pulling out two more knives in each hand, and began stalking forward, "Now come on, dears, let's not keep your poor friend waiting!"
Izuku's mind immediately flipped to a page in one of his past journals about a Pro-Hero couple from a few years ago, who had perished fighting against a dangerous villain. Their tactics didn't save the day then, but it might now. He shot down into his backpack, as Jester ran at him with knives. Izuku grabbed one of his water bottles that was still half frozen. Pulling it out, he blocked Jester's knife swipe with it, cutting the lid right off. Perfect, Izuku didn't have to unscrew the bottle.
The apprentice of All-Might flung his arm out, sending the ice chunk within the bottle right at Jester before the second knife could strike. The ice connected with Jester's nose, causing the gang member to instinctively cover his face. Izuku immediately grabbed Miyu's hand, and took off into the woods of Kashiiku Park, looking for a spot to hide. He wasn't about to take a knife wielding maniac back to his apartment, and he had already called for All-Might and told him where they were. They just had to hold out enough time for All-Might to get here.
They could do it, right?
"That took too much time," Gawain Pendragon, known to the public as the Pro-Hero Saber Shine, grumbled as they stepped out of Present Mic's studio. The interview itself had gone for the scheduled time, but since Present Mic didn't have anything else scheduled and both he and Hawks were far, far too social, they ended up staying for longer to chat about various random things. Gawain had gone along with it out of politeness, but they were burning daylight. Literally, in his case.
"Oh relax, you wanted to get more people to know who you are and what you stand for, there's no better place for it than Mic's. He's a great interviewer who knows how to hype up the topic to the listener while satisfying them on the questions he's asking," Hawks responded with his arms behind his head, shooting a wink towards some giggling women nearby. "Even being here for five years like you have, people still wonder why England's Number 2 chose to come here."
Gawain sighed, acknowledging the point. Moving to Japan was hard, but was necessary after everything that had gone down with... Lance Lioness' death. Even now, thinking about that event was hard, he had to put her hero name to add some distance. It was a good thing that shortly after moving to Japan, he ended up taking Hawks under him in a work study program. Focusing on showing Hawks the ins and outs of being a hero had helped Gawain rediscover his love of being a hero. It had also helped the young man, now 22 years old, reach the Number 3 spot on the Hero Billboard Chart. Gawain hadn't reached his old rank from his England days, the Number 2 position being filled by Endeavor, but that was fine with Saber Shine. He had his fill of the top spot glory. It was bitter now.
Gawain was shaken from his thoughts by a specific beeping from the Hero Network. Glancing at Hawks, who shrugged his shoulders, Gawain flicked on his smartwatch's holographic display to see All-Might's profile picture, causing both Pros' eyes to widen.
" ATTENTION ANY AND ALL PRO-HEROES IN THE MUSTAFAR REGION! THERE IS AN ATTACK GOING ON AT TAKOBA BEACH AND KASHIIKU PARK! I'M HEADED TO KASHIIKU PARK, BUT ANY WHO CAN HELP NEED TO HEAD TO TAKOBA IMMEDIATELY! " The booming, commanding voice of the Number 1 hero, not just of Japan but of the world, brokered no argument. Saber Shine and Hawks nodded to each other, then took off, hoping to make it to the beach in time to help.
"Why. Won't. He. Stop!?" Kuin was starting to get furious. At first it was cute how much of a fight the redhead was putting up. Then it was surprising. Then it was annoying. Now she just wanted him dead, screw the payment. Doc could extract a Quirk from a corpse, right? She thought she remembered him doing that.
It wasn't just swords with this asshole either. At one point, he made a long, red spear and short, yellow spear. The red spear completely destroyed Mummy's puppets, and when Spike tried to block a strike from the yellow one, it broke right through his left hand's spikes, and suddenly Spike couldn't regenerate them.
Kuin had grinded her teeth at that particular trick. Those must have been Mystic Codes. What kinda bullshit Quirk could just project Mystic Codes like that? One could make a Mystic Code with a Quirk, but this was something else. Thankfully, they managed to coordinate their attacks and caused the two spears to be destroyed, and he had yet to pull them out again, going back to basic swords and those two weird black and white ones. Still, this fight should have been done minutes ago, or at the very least Jester should have been back with the other two. What the fuck was this day?
At that moment, a ringtone went off, causing Kuin to blink and go to her phone. Yup, it was the Hero Network. She had gotten login credentials from some unscrupulous means, but they had always proved to be a boon, so she wasn't about to lose any sleep over it. Not that she ever did in the first place. She hit the message, and immediately regretted her life.
" ATTENTION ANY AND ALL PRO-HEROES IN THE MUSTAFAR REGION! THERE IS AN ATTACK GOING ON AT TAKOBA BEACH AND KASHIIKU PARK! I'M HEADED TO KASHIIKU PARK, BUT ANY WHO CAN HELP NEED TO HEAD TO TAKOBA IMMEDIATELY! " said All-Might, the Number 1 Hero of the entire world. Kuin blinked once. Twice. Then she locked her phone, put it to her forehead and gave a silent scream. The redhead was distracted by Spike and Mummy, so none of them noticed her moment of weakness. She should be grateful for that. She was not.
HOW THE FUCK DOES ALL-MIGHT KNOW WE'RE FIGHTING HERE? WHY THE FUCK DOES HE CARE!?
Taking a deep breath, she evaluated the situation and quickly realized it. The broccoli head. The one in the stupid green tracksuit and the red shoes. Somehow he made contact with All-Might and got the Number 1 Hero to send every available hero to their location right now. Sure, there were a lot of random incidents today, not even planned by the Doc and his boss, but plenty of heroes would drop everything to go get a publicity moment with the Number 1.
Yup, this was a bust. She was out. Jester would be able to get back on his own, he was crafty like that. Spike and Mummy were expendable. They were being vetted for actual positions, but haven't earned their spots yet. Tough shit. She immediately shot off a text to Kurogiri to pick her up immediately, then sent three bees to go sting their targets.
The redhead got the one headed for him, because of course he did. Spike and Mummy, however, were not expecting the sting to hit. Spike immediately swatted at her bee, glaring at her, "What the hell, Kuin? You're supposed to be aiming for him, not me?"
"Nah, I'm bouncing. Have fun with the Trigger!" She sang out, hiding her desperation. She immediately jumped behind some trash, where Kurogiri's portal was waiting. Fuck all of them, let the heroes sort them out.
"That bitch! " Spiky Green called out, yelling after his boss apparently just leaving the fight. Shirou had to agree. Her bees had been very annoying, as his instincts always screamed to take them out. Considering the Borzak case that Kiritsugu had done, that seemed to be most prudent.
Regardless, this fight was completely stupid. He had fought seven combat capable mages who wielded the power of Heroic Spirits. Why was he having trouble with a bunch of two-bit gang members?
Because you just came off fighting seven combat capable mages who wielded the power of Heroic Spirits, then shot your sister and yourself into another world, idiot , his inner voice snarked back at him.
Shirou sighed, then tried to tighten his grip on Kanshou and Bakuya. Tried, because at this point his whole body was shaking hard. He had a nearless infinite energy source thanks to his connection to Miyu, but the body could only take so much. He needed to end this fight now.
"So, want to call this whole fight off?" Shirou attempted to parley, "You can go find her and take your revenge, and I'll go find my sister, deal?" Spike and Mummy just chuckled at him, and Shirou saw the veins in Spike's arms starting to turn black, along with his and Mummy's sclera. Oh no.
"LIKE FUCKING HELL! WE'LL BEAT YOUR ASS THEN GO KICK HER'S!" Spike roared, and as he did he grew in size, with a lot more spikes growing all over his body. Those spikes were giving Shirou a nasty bout of deja vu, though he had no idea why.
Mummy meanwhile, had his eyes start growing and he sent out a wide variety of bandages everywhere. Shirou cut the ones approaching him and jumped back, only to realize Mummy's actual goal. He had assimilated all of the trash and bound it all to himself, forming a wrapped up robot shell. In essence, Shirou was facing down both Godzilla and the Iron Giant.
"Oh damn-" Shirou got out before having to block a strike from the Iron Giant. Mummy lifted his hand before Spike followed up with his own spiked punch. Shirou dodged this one, then Traced a bunch of swords to fire off. He was too burned out to try for any Noble Phantasms. If he did Trace anything beyond Kanshou and Bakuya, he'd just pass out, and that'd be it. He needed a sure hit attack, one like the Gae Bolg that the Lancer had used, but one that'd go off even if he passed out...
"Hope this works," Shirou muttered, dodging another strike before throwing Kanshou and Bakuya. He Traced another copy, ensuring that they would return and strike Spike from behind. Shirou needed this to work, so that even if he passes out, he could get back to his sister soon. "I am the bone of my!"
Immediately, all of his Magic Circuits flared intensely, causing him to lock up in pain. Mummy took the moment to slam a punch into him, flinging him into the brick wall by the road. Shirou coughed up blood, then slid down, his vision going blurry.
Damn it. The spirit was willing, but the flesh was too weak. Even with Miyu's infinite energy, Shirou's circuits were burned out, his muscles shredded, and his head was too hurt. As he saw Mummy and Spike rushing at him, murder in their eyes, his only thought was to his sister, and the hero wannabe he had entrusted her to, Midoriya, protect her.
Then, just before he passed out, a red feather flitted in front of Shirou's face. Before he could question it, it vibrated out words, "Don't worry, we got you!" Whelp, it's true. People near death have delusions. Shirou wasn't a fan of that at all.
Two sonic booms quickly corrected Shirou's record, however. One impacted Spike, shaving off every spike off with sharpened feathers. It was a man dressed in a yellow aviator get up with goggles and red feathered wings. Shirou blinked.
The other impact hit Mummy with a bright flash before incinerating the bandages, the trash making up his robot body falling to the ground right there. The two hit the water, with the newcomer flipping them in the air so that he broke the water first, allowing it to harmlessly put out the fire that was on Mummy. That newcomer was a blond man dressed in a black spandex suit with a silver cape and waist cape, adorned with a golden sun sigil made with cavalry saber sigils. Shirou blinked again.
"Hawks, they have taken Trigger!" The sun man said, and his partner, supposedly Hawks nodded, then pulled out what appeared to be an Epi-Pen and jammed it into Spike's thigh. The gang member hollowed, then seemed to deflate back to the size he should have been and passed out. The sun man did the same thing, and Mummy joined his companion in the land of Morpheus.
Shirou blinked once more, then forced himself to sit up. The realization that the fight was over gave him a shot of adrenaline. He needed to go save Miyu from Jester, right now. The two Pro-Heroes, for what else could they be, were busy handcuffing the two gang members, he could slip out right about...
"Hey, no sneaking off now," the sun man said, and Shirou gave him a glare. The blond Pro-Hero just gave an understanding smile, pissing Shirou off more, "I'm Saber Shine, this is Hawks. We need to talk to you and find out what happened. What's your name?"
"Shirou Emiya. What happened was these guys and their friends attacked me, my sister, and another guy we met here. I told my sister and that guy to run off, but their friend is chasing after them. I need to go save them." Shirou turned, but winced hard as he tried to walk up the steps. Saber Shine had already made his way over, while Hawks hooked up the two gang members to some nearby trash.
"Hey, don't worry, All-Might himself called in this incident, he went to Kashiiku Park to save your sister and this other guy, okay?" Saber Shine put his hand on Shirou's shoulder. He looked so earnest, Shirou wanted to believe him. But he had no proof of that, and that wasn't good enough for the ex-Ally of Justice.
"Sorry, I need to go make sure-" Shirou jerked his head away, but then his vision went black, and he passed out. His body had forced the shutdown, and he wouldn't be waking up for hours.
"Kid, kid!" Gawain panicked as the kid went limp and collapsed on the staircase. Immediately making sure that the kid could and was breathing, he checked the other vitals. The kid's body was super hot, and Gawain had an idea based on the pattern in the kid's arms, "Quirk Exhaustion, he must have really pushed himself fighting these thugs."
"No way, look at some of the damage to his clothes," Hawks pointed at, and Gawain instantly realized what the Number 3 hero was saying. It was older damage, stuff that had been burned and cooled off, only to be reaggravated in this recent fight, "He's been fighting for awhile, probably hasn't slept between his last fight and this one."
"He's a trooper, alright," Gawain commented, then sighed. He picked up this Shirou Emiya and handed him off to the waiting arms of Hawks, "You know someone?"
"Yeah, I know a Quirk Specialist, she's even nearby. Best one I've ever known, and she won't be busy," Hawks informed Gawain, and the Solar Knight hero nodded his head. He got the translation. This was someone that was being rehabilitated by the Hero Public Safety Commission. A former villain that was earning their parole. If Hawks was willing to trust her, that means she's the best of the best.
"Send me the address, I'll go find the sister, and backup All-Might if he needs it," Gawain glanced at the two gang members, now classified as Instant Villains. "What do we do about them?"
"Takahiro is on his way, no more than two minutes. You know how the anti-venom for Trigger works, they'll be out for hours." Hawks responded smoothly, then took off. Gawain nodded himself, then turned to the direction of Kashiiku Park, and leapt to go find this missing girl.
Izuku and Miyu had found a small hiding spot behind some fallen trees in Kashiiku Park, doing their best to hide their breathing. Izuku had taken off his jacket and passed it to Miyu, who used it to muffle herself while she caught her breath. Izuku kept his breathing to a minimum, listening intently to their hunter.
"Come out, come out wherever you are!" Jester sang, and Izuku could easily imagine him frolicking to and fro with those knives of his. "Come, don't be shy, step into the light! We're going to have so much," the psycho was cut off by a phone ringing. Since Izuku's currently had a knife through it and was left behind, it was clearly Jester's.
"Hullo? Huh?" Jester responded, "What do you mean, 'All-Might is on his way to you? Why the fuck would he care about this stupid park? You need to lay off your special honey, bitch." Jester hung up his phone and went back to his childish callouts, even slipping in a "MARCOOOOOO!" in there.
Izuku's breath caught in his throat. All-Might had got his message! Granted, these guys somehow knew that All-Might was coming too, but that's okay. All-Might could save the day. The problem was Jester was getting closer and closer, he would probably find them in the next few minutes. Glancing at Miyu, Izuku knew that she couldn't keep up running, and his arms were burning too much to keep carrying her. Even though she was lighter than the majority of the trash he had cleaned up, running zig-zags all over the park had caught up to him.
Izuku racked his brain for a plan, and stumbled across a stupid idea. So stupid Kachan wouldn't even call him names, he'd be so dumbfounded that "Deku" tried it. But it was the best idea he had, and there was a shot it would work.
Back when Izuku was a kid, he tried everything to manifest a Quirk. One of the ideas he had was that since his father's Quirk was located in his throat, and his mom's involved distance, his Quirk was a special form of ventriloquy. He practiced and practiced, hoping for something to confirm that he wasn't Quirkless, that it was just a late blooming one. Nothing ever did, but he did get good at it, and was able to throw his voice to mimic parents and teachers to throw off Kachan and the other bullies.
Silently clearing his voice, he did the voice that he had heard nearly every week during this journey, and threw his voice in his best All-Might's impression, "Hahahaha! Today is a wonderful day! I think I'll go walking through this park and see if there are any ne'er-do-wells in this park ruining the public's day!"
"OH SHIT IT IS ALL-MIGHT!" Jester freaked out and took off, his voice getting farther and farther away. One minute passed, two minutes passed, still nothing. Izuku looked at Miyu and smiled, giving the thumbs up. He stood up, stretched, and reached a hand for her.
"Let's go, Miyu. Let's go find your brother." Izuku said, and for a moment everything seemed right. That ended as someone kicked his knees from behind, causing Izuku to stagger. That person grabbed his throat and picked him up by it, slamming him into a nearby tree. Miyu screamed as she scampered away instinctively, but Izuku was more focused on getting the now adult form of Jester off of his throat.
"Nice try with that little trick, was that your Quirk?" Jester snarled his teeth. He squeezed tighter, causing Izuku to gasp and thrash around, "Oh don't be like that. You're just going to take a little nap, then you and the girl will wake up with your friend. Isn't that nice?"
A play ball smacked Jester in the face. He frowned then turned to the thrower. "Put him down, now!" Miyu called out, but the fourteen year old in a black dress wasn't quite the threatening sight her words needed.
"Nah, how about this?" Jester pulled a knife out, and Miyu and Izuku went still, "You sit down seiza style, and I don't disembowel him. Capiche?" Izuku tried to motion for her to run instead, but when she looked at him, Izuku could tell she wasn't going to do it. She closed her eyes, then kneeled.
"That's better. Honestly, girl, with your brother's Quirk of Projection, I'd thought you'd be much tougher. Guess not." Jester shrugged, then turned back to Izuku maliciously, "Now where were we?"
"Putting innocent civilians down?" A booming voice called out, causing Izuku and Miyu to immediately take relief. Jester, apparently, was too stupid.
"Dude, it didn't work when I couldn't see you, do you really think it would work-" A simple neck chop dropped the psycho, with the other hand grabbing the knife before he hurt anyone. Izuku slid down the tree, catching his breath. Then he looked up at the greatest hero the world had ever seen, dressed in his new modern costume.
"Thanks All-Might."
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! You had me scared there for a second, Young Midoriya! But I'm glad to see you are fine now! " All-Might turned to Miyu, who had raised her head with tears in her eyes. " Ah, is this the young sister of Shirou Emiya?"
Miyu immediately got up and bowed profusely, "Yes, I am! Please, he's in danger! You need to go to the beach and save him!" All-Might, instead of taking off like she had hoped, instead laughed again and gave her a two finger salute.
"Fear Not, Miss Emiya! Your older brother is safe! I have it in good word that he's being taken care of right now! " Before All-Might could continue, a crash landed nearby, and Saber Shrine walked right out of it. Izuku tried really hard to not lose his crap over the Pro-Hero, and All-Might made a mental note not to tease him about it later. Midoriya was doing a good job holding it in. " In fact, how about you ask your brother's savior in person?"
Miyu jerked her head towards Saber Shine, clear panic visible in her face, so Saber Shine immediately cut to the chase, "Young Emiya is being taken to emergency care right now. He's alive and is going to be okay. Hawks," he paused as Izuku contained a squeal, "Is rushing him there now. I promise he's going to be okay."
The dam broke, and Miyu fell to the ground, bursting into tears, "I was so scared! He had already gotten hurt for me, I don't want to lose him again." The sheer emotion calmed the three men down, as they realized the stakes that were at play. Saber Shine himself reached down, asked if he could pat her back. She affirmed, and he did so, letting her cry it out.
Once she was down, Miyu looked back up at Saber Shine, her face completely red. He decided to answer her question, "I can take you to him now, would you like to go by car or by flight. Car will be more comfortable, but by flight will be faster."
"Flight." Miyu sniffled out, and Saber Shine nodded. He unbuckled his cape, and she climbed onto his back. Securing the cape around her, Saber Shine grimaced.
"I'm going to need to call someone to get her clothes. She can't remain in just a wet dress and a jacket."
"Oh the jacket is mine!" Izuku spoke up, causing Saber Shine and All-Might to give Izuku strange looks. Izuku took a second, then realized how that sounded, "Wait, no she can keep it! I just mean she was only in that black dress."
That caused Saber Shine to narrow his eyes, though thankfully not at Izuku, "I'm starting to see a story I don't like. We'll need Emiya awake to confirm some details." He looked back at Izuku, his face the perfect visage of a Pro-Hero in action, "Do you know anything about these two beyond meeting them here at the beach?"
"No, I met them today. We were talking about pro-heroes, then the gang showed up. We tried to leave, but they attacked us. Emiya told us to run away, so we did." Izuku spoke out, trying to keep his voice steady.
Saber Shine nodded, then looked to All-Might, who flashed a thumbs up "No worries, I already called my police contact. He'll be here to arrest this wrongdoer, then we'll take Young Midoriya here to seek treatment."
Saber Shine nodded, "Just be careful All-Might. The gang members at Takoba had used Trigger. We managed to catch them by surprise, but still."
"They used Trigger?" Izuku blurted out, causing the Pro-Heroes to turn back to him. Blushing, he continued, "I mean, the four of them didn't start using Trigger when they attacked us. Shirou must have fought them hard for them to resort to that."
"Four?" Saber Shine was immediately on guard. "We only came across two on the beach, and there's the one here. Where's the fourth?" At this, Miyu pulled herself up to be more on his shoulder to speak up.
"This guy got a call from someone saying that All-Might was coming. Maybe they bailed?" All-Might and Saber Shine looked at each other in horror. The Hero Network was compromised. They needed to run an audit now.
"This story is getting more and more concerning." Saber Shine murmured. Sighing, he focused on Izuku. "For your part, you did well. Good job. You were a hero today." With those words, Saber Shine took off, Miyu strapped to his back, headed towards her brother.
Izuku sucked his breath in. Someone called him a hero. A Pro-Hero called him a hero. Saber Shine called Izuku Midoriya a hero! This was the best day ever! After the day that All-Might had chosen him, of course. All-Might clearly picked up on his good mood, laughing as he released his hero form and returned to his skinnier form.
"It felt good getting called a hero by a stranger, didn't it?" patting Izuku's shoulder, All-Might continued, "Don't let it go to your head, but cherish that thought, okay? This is what heroes are meant to do. You did well, getting Miss Emiya away from the situation and calling me, then holding out until I arrived."
Izuku nodded, then looked at him with concern, "Are they going to be okay? The Emiyas, I mean." All-Might nodded.
"I think they will be. They're tough. They may have been through a lot, and will have some healing to do. But as long as they stick by each other, they'll be okay. I'm kind of jealous, actually."
Izuku raised an eyebrow at him, and All-Might chuckled, "I'm an only child, like you. Never had a brother or sister. I was just thinking how nice it would have been, or maybe it would have been bad. Who knows what could have been." He walked over to the still completely out Jester and handcuffed him. "Once Officer Tsukauchi gets here, you'll give your statement to him, then we'll go get you checked out."
Izuku nodded, then started, realizing something, "All-Might, your form!" All-Might looked back at him confused, then realized the situation, and started laughing. Izuku frowned, to which All-Might got himself under control.
"Oh, don't worry. Tsukauchi knows about this. He actually also knows about everything else," meaning One for All, "so if you need someone to talk to, he's a good option if I'm not available." All-Might sat down on a tree trunk, then continued, "Once this responsibility is yours, you will have to find friends that you can build that trust with. But, I would wait for a while, make sure you really know them."
Izuku nodded, pondering the situation. He went to write that down, then remembered his notebook was in his backpack, and that his phone was currently embedded with a knife aways away. "Hey, All-Might? Can I go get my stuff? I kinda lost it in the scuffle."
"Of course, young man. Just come right back. Here," All-Might handed Izuku his personal phone, while he held up his work phone, "You can still contact me, the PIN code is 0706." Izuku's eyes were glued to the phone. All-Might had a feeling it was because it was his phone, so he coughed to get his successor's attention, "Hurry now, and be quick. Tsukauchi will get here any minute, and then we'll go have fun."
"Fun? I thought I was getting checked out for," Izuku rubbed his throat, remembering how Jester had grabbed him, "this?"
"Well of course we are, but do you really think we'd go to a regular Emergency Room?" All-Might smirked, causing Izuku to stare back warily at his mentor, "Nah, you've done well today, so I think we should remind you where the finish line is." Izuku's eyes widened, and All-Might nodded his head.
"That's right, we're going to U.A. Academy! Let's give you a tour."
The sounds of a shinai smacking a dummy came to an end when "Ring Your Bell" started ringing out from a blue smartphone. The wielder of the shinai stopped her swinging, then walked over to the phone, answering it.
"Hello? Hey, Dad, what do you need? Wait, what? Yeah, sure, I have some old stuff I could bring, but what is going on? Fine, okay, I'll head there. By the way, Cousin Mordred and I want to go to the symphony, when can we go? Just making sure, okay. Love you too, bye."
Weird... But that was him alright . The innocent question about the symphony was a trap in disguise. Mordred hated symphonies or any form of classical music. She'd rather go scream her throat hoarse at a rock concert. By answering "in 40 years," her dad proved it was really him. But why did he need some of her old clothes to be brought to some sketchy site? Whatever.
She jumped into the shower, quickly cleaning herself off. Drying herself off, she put on her black tights, white blouse, and blue skirt that she loved so much. She then tied her bow to her collar, and braided her blonde hair into a crown around her air. Twisting the cowlick that stuck out of her head around her index finger, she smiled as she pulled her finger out, watching her cowlick bounce. Just like how Mom did it.
She went back to her closet, then picked out some old jeans that she didn't quite fit anymore. Looking through her t-shirts, she settled on a penguin shirt she adored, but was too tight to do anything in. She packed everything into her bag, along with some toiletries. Taking a second, she decided to throw in a hair brush and a copy of her favorite book. She had one that was meant to be well worn, it would be well served here.
Checking her phone again, she blinked at the address she was forwarded from her dad. She sent another secret confirmation text, got the correct answer, and shook her head. This was so, so weird. She grabbed her white jacket, and put it on while slipping on her shoes. Grabbing her blue scarf, she wrapped up, checked that she had her bag and shinai bag, then headed out.
The January air was crisp, but bright. The streets of Mustafar were somewhat busy, but not insanely so. According to the chatter, it was a busy day for hero sightings. She heard her dad's name mentioned a couple of times. Hmmmm..
Eventually, she left the regular streets she knew, and came across the more busy parts of downtown. Slipping down some backstreets, she arrived at the location she was sent. She frowned at it,
It was a dingy, weirdly tucked into a corner place, with no sign above it. It was meant to be a place of business for sure, but no advertising made it very sketchy. In addition, there was a man in a suit standing outside of it, with sunglasses and an earpiece. A real Man in Black type. Was he a cosplayer? There was no way this was a real government agent, right?
Whatever. Shaking her head, she walked up the steps, but the Man in Black cut her off, "Miss, I'm going to need to see some identification and reason for coming here." He flashed a HPSC badge.
Oh my gosh he was a real government agent. Lovely, "Look, I'm just here to drop some stuff and probably just leave. Can I do that?"
"Sorry, miss, protocol is protocol. We have had a lot of traffic come in today, so we need to be sure to vet everyone. Now, please, your ID?"
"Fine," she reached into her bag, pulled it out, and handed it to him. He looked it over, blinked, and double checked, then looked back at her.
"Yeah, I'm Arturia Pendragon, I am the daughter of Saber Shine, who asked me to bring some stuff in. So will you please let me in?"