"Amusement Park?" Iruma asked with a raised eyebrow. "That's a place with a lot of rides, right?" The fact his friend had to ask that question was reason enough to bring him along.
"Indeed, Iruma. The pro that we helped path up, Native, wished to show his gratitude for our endeavor that night, and he's showing his appreciation in the form of amusement park tickets." Iida explained
"Oh he didn't need to do that, we were saving you anyway right?" He asked his friend, a tilted head in confusion.
"True, but I figured you probably never have had the experience yourself, and wanted to share it with you." He bowed his head. Truthfully, Iida didn't feel worthy of any form of praise for that night, or any at all until he could make the Ingenium name proud, but his friend's emotional well being took precedence over that. Iruma did the same for him, so he would do just as much.
"Oh, I don't know, I'm kinda busy writing my appreciation letter." The boy held up a single piece of paper. Definitely behind.
"I shall lend my assistance then, I have completed mine at forty pages!" His family deserve nothing less for dealing with a child like himself, and keeping him as rule-abiding as they could.
"Hold on, did you say forty pages?" Hagakure asked. "I'm only doing five, how did you have the time to write forty!?"
"It's simple really. I just managed my time well after compiling all of my thoughts together the previous night." He brought the five hundred page notebook he used, all of it filled and perfectly spaced out. "I then narrowed down what I knew was the most essential to say and proceeded to make the final draft."
"You got forty from narrowing down …" Uraraka stated before looking down at her own paper. "Plus Ultra for real …"
"If you're willing to help I'll join you." Excellent, a day of unwinding and fun is perfect for calming the soul. "Are you guys going to?"
"Can't, gotta make a Mochi sale, gonna get the discount pack so I can make a big meal for the family."
"Ah, I understand. Those can be so hard to come by." Iruma nodded. "Most of the time though I just buy whatever's the cheapest and hope it's enough to last the whole day."
"No Iruma, you've gotta look out for discounts, THOSE are where the money is at." She explained. "The highest quality food combined with the most quantity, I can show you my chart sometime." Iida gave her the same look they all gave Iruma when he said something concerning.
"So, is it possible for me to join you guys?" Hagakure changed the subject. "There doesn't happen to be a ticket for me?"
"Of course! Native provided for everyone that partook in… the incident ." He said slowly, filled with regret. "I invited Todoroki as well, but he chose to decline in favor of spending time with his mother."
"So we just need a fourth … oh, let's invite Dark Shadow. He seems like he'd enjoy the rides."
"I don't know about Tokoyami … seems a little distant." Hagakure mentioned.
"No, Dark Shadow. You know, the guy that's always right next to Tokoyami? They're always hanging out and talking? I never see him eat so I always make sure to save a plate for him at lunch."
"…" This was going to be an awkward talk.
==
"So you're a quirk?" The boy asked among the bustling people. It wasn't what Tokoyami preferred doing, but Iruma invited him, or rather Dark Shadow, to an amusement park, and the brightness his smile generated was so powerful that his will weakened.
"Yeah, it's really no different than being a human though, except I never get tired and don't really get hungry, but sleeping and eating is pretty fun for me to experience, so thanks again for the lunch kid." The demon that dwelled within him spoke aloud.
"No problem, you should get to do what you want to right?" The boy asked.
"Such a lovely and adorable kid, why couldn't I have gotten him instead of you, hu?" His quirk asked.
"Because you would have caused him nothing but agony and despair, it is my burden alone to bear upon this world." Also Dark Shadow absolutely would have corrupted him, just by saying please he could get the kid to rob a bank or eat human flesh. "Nonetheless, thank you for your invite, Iruma. It's nice to be noticed every once in a while." Even if it was in a way he didn't particularly enjoy. "I haven't experienced many amusement parks in my life."
"Neither have I, or at least, never rode on any of the rides. The USJ, the not-school one, kept me on a strict timetable. There wasn't any time to actually have fun." The dark journey his classmate took was indeed troublesome. How such light could prevail was a mystery for the ages.
"Well you get to do whatever you want, Iruma-kun." Hagakure proceeds to glomp on him. "Food, rides, an intimate moment inside of the ferris wheel."
"Oh yeah, you could see a lot up there, the view must be amazing." Apologies to Suzuki's future offspring, your father was incapable of reproduction.
"Yes…the view is amazing…" If Tokoyami could actually see the invisible girl, he was certain her face was a mix of awe and sheer frustration and restraint to NOT slap the boy silly. "Just make sure to stay by me at all times, we don't want you getting lost."
"Oh come on, what are the chances I could get lost?"
"Very likely." Iida spoke with no remorse.
"Absolutely high." Hagakure agreed.
"The majority has spoken." You didn't know him enough to judge Dark Shadow.
"Revelry in the dark." It wasn't the most appropriate time to say it, but it fit the mood well enough. A small aroma filled the air, and it actually made the bird boy almost smile in excitement. "Is that…apple pie?" Sweet and tart…the taste of perfection.
"Oh, it must taste good." Suzuki ran over to it, noticing the little girl near. "Hey, do you want some pie? I can get you some if you want, no one should be hungry in a place like this." Even now you still look after others.
"I'm … looking for my parents." Wow, Suzuki may not have gotten lost, but he found a lost kid in record time.
"I see, don't worry, we're heroes in training." He pointed over at the group, and the girl shrieked before hiding behind a trash can.
"Birdie!" She shouted, and it wasn't the first time he's seen a reaction like this to his appearance. That was just the hardship most Mutation features lived with.
"Oh no no no, he's not scary! He's the nicest and friendliest bird man I know."
"How many do you know?" Hagakure asked.
"Just Tokoyami and that Nomu thing from the USJ. Oh, and Bird-sama from the sports festival."
"He means Hawks." They stared at Tokoyami before shrugging, accepting it as simply a Suzuki thing. Revelry in the dark.
"Don't worry, the big scary bird man won't hurt you, not as long as we're here." Hagakure attempted to comfort the girl. "My name's Toru, and this is Iida and Iruma-kun. What's your name?"
She stays quiet for a moment. "Yuka."
"Do not worry young Yuka! We will scour this park in its entirety for your parents, no matter where they may be!" He shouted, causing the girl to flinch from the volume. The boy coughed when Hagakure … glared? Glared at him. "Where did you last see them?"
"Um … they told me earlier if I got lost we need to meet by a big apple."
"A big apple?" Hagakure questioned. "You mean like the name of a Pie Shop that's around here?"
"No, no! It's a big red apple! It's supposed to be somewhere around here, but I don't see it!" The girl started crying.
"Oh, so you're looking for a place that looks like an apple? Round and red, right?" Iruma summarized. Guess it helped to have an overgrown kid around to understand the actual kids. "So to find a big apple, we need to find a big tree." Or not.
==
"I guess you were right, Iruma." Iida spoke up, pointing to a building. "The lost child center. Big and red, in the middle of the forest park."
"I guess that would've been the most obvious spot to try first." Hagakure found herself slapping her head. At least she got to enjoy that ferris wheel ride with Iruma-kun, even if the mood was HORRIBLE for any form of romance to occur. "I don't get why you didn't try going here in the first place." She questioned Yuka.
"It's not an apple, it doesn't have a stem!" Right, child, patience.
"And it's metal, so you can't eat it." Right, ignorant, patience.
"I say it was still enjoyable … wouldn't you?" Tokoyami asked Iruma-kun and the kid.
"Oh yeah, we got to see so much!" His smile made the entire experience worth it.
"Ye-yeah, it was fun…being so high up…almost like we were flying…like birds." The girl shook a little, before bowing her head. "Sorry for saying you were scary, even if you are a little mean-looking." Ouch, that had to sting. Least Tokokyami had a look people would notice. Half the class didn't know which way she was looking half the time!
"It's fine, your fear of birds is honestly refreshing compared to comments others have labeled me with." He gave a smile. "And I do have companions, so I do not let comments get the best of me." Mutants really did have it bad, didn't they?
"Yuka, Yuka! Thank goodness you're here!" The girl's mother rushed in and picked her daughter up. "What did I say about walking off on your own?"
"I'm sorry, I needed to potty. And then I tried to find an apple and I couldn't. Then the nice heroes found me and helped." She was called a hero … somehow it felt more genuine then when Stain or Native spoke it … felt nicer.
"Thank you all so much, I don't know what I would have done if I couldn't find her."
"It's fine, we're just helping out, like anybody else would." No Iruma-kun, no one was going to help that girl until you noticed her. Not everyone was as sweet and kind hearted as you. That's what made you special.
"It is our duty to help anyone in need!" Iida had caught the Iruam-kun bug ever since Stain happened, trying to help others as much as possible instead of just thinking about himself. "It was the least we could do."
"She was pleasant company for the short time we spent together." Tokayami was in higher spirits about it than she thought he would be. Guess the girl apologizing really cheered him up.
"Thank you everyone!" The girl shouted as the mother pulled her away. Hagakure watched with a smile on her lips.
"So what should we do next on our list?" She asked the boys.
"Apple Pie eating contest!" Iruma-kun shouted out. "I'll win for sure!"
"Oh really? I don't even have a stomach, so the sky's the limit for me! I'm a bottomless pit!"
"You threw up three gallons of popcorn the last time we went to a movie theater." Tokoyami deadpanned. "The concerning part was you only ate two." Physics be damned apparently.
"And that is a risk I am willing to take again!"
==
Iruma patted his stomach. "Good food and a medal, eating competitions are the best." Why did he never do them before? "They give you free food and everyone cheers for you! I didn't know eating was so exciting."
"It probably has something to do with the fact you ate three tables full of Apple Pie within ten seconds…before the other contestants even had the chance to blink." Tokoyami explained. "The void is vast, empty, and endless. I dare not stare too deep into the abyss."
"Food-sama says the same thing, you guys should start a poetry club." Iruma blinked. "Does UA have clubs? I've never seen them advertised or anything."
"We have them, but those are genuinely for the Management, Support, and General Education courses." Iida explained. "As hero course student's, we're given classes that the majority of UA don't have, and likewise with the rest of the school. The Sport's festival is primarily an event for the hero course to shine, but later in the year, the Cultural festival will give the rest of them a chance to shine in the limelight."
Iruma thought it over, it made sense in hindsight, heroes were free to punch and use awesome powers, so other classes got a chance to be better. "I guess that makes sense. I bet Shinso is gonna do something big, and Mei too."
"Please, don't remind me of that menace, Iruma." Iida shivered. "She's a deceitful, loathsome, deplorable human being that disgraces the fine halls she walks through."
"But she's really nice and helpful. She even gave me gear to help slow down how much I break my bones and help me climb walls." Iruma argued. "Also she talks about you sometimes you know. Mainly how your legs 'make her crazy' or something like that." It was almost as confusing as the baby talk.
"Well, better the crazy lady go for you rather than Iruma-kun, so sorry, not sorry, Iida."
"I do not want that woman looking at me in any way or form!"
"Revery in the dark." He had to ask one of these days what that actually meant. It wasn't that dark, it wasn't even sunset yet.
"So many apples … i'm gonna …" Dark Shadow flew over to a trash can, giving up very good food. He understood it tasted good, but it really shouldn't be wasted in such large quantities.
"I warned you, and you didn't listen." Tokoyami argued, noticing something. "Hey, it's the mother." Oh yeah, she was coming back. Really fast too.
"I need your help, my daughter's trapped!" Eh? "The animatronics in the haunted house went wild, they're attacking anyone they can find! Please!"
"Yes mam!" Iida instantly responded, waving a hand signaling them to follow. "I know a shortcut inside, we can sneak in through there without any problem."
"How would you know about a secret passageway?" Toru asked.
"I jumped out of a window once when the place was going to blow up!" The engineer really should have double checked that pipe. They made their way to the side of the building, pulling off the latch as they moved in. "Be quiet, we need to know what we're up against …"
"Do you wanna be my friend?" They turned to the bear with a bow tie and top hat. "Let's sing!" It rushed at them with giant metal teeth.
"Die, creature of the abyss! You shall not consume anyone today!" Tokoyami released Dark Shadow, and the dark bird creature started waving everywhere and clawed at the bear, matching it blow for blow.
"Such a good friend." The bear began to squeeze the talking quirk.
"Friend with someone so insignificant? Pa, I'll eat your non-existent soul you hunk of junk!" Dark Shadow seemed a lot more angry here than he did before.
"Freddy found some palls." Now there was a robo bunny and robo chicken! He began to charge up power for the clash.
"Energy Suit. Right Hook Punch!" The blow sent the thing flying. "Toru, go find her, we'll hold these guys off!"
"On it, Iruma-kun!" Toru's clothes dropped to the ground as she ran into the other room. The robo-bunny was starting to get back up, but he wouldn't give it the chance. Like Rabbit-Sama always said: If something stands in your way, murder them! They were robots, so it was okay.
==
Yuka had been scared at first, truly scared. The mean machines kept saying nice things as they started breaking things, it didn't fit, it was creepy. But then she heard the invisible girl's voice. "It's okay, we're here to help." She could feel hands push her up and begin to walk in a direction.
"I have you now, fowl beast!" She watched as the bird man beat up a mean machine. He was saving her with everyone. Something so mean looking looked so cool…so pretty…how did darkness look so pretty? "Suzuki, Iida, are you two okay?"
"We're fine, they're not very fast, so we just need to-there was a fox!" She could hear shouted, and more loud thuds. "Don't sneak up on people, pirate-fox! It's really rude!" Yeah, the machines were pretty mean. They didn't even shout surprise like they were supposed to, and they looked scary too and tried to eat her! Very rude.
"Iruma, they aren't aware of manners, we need to-"
"Huuug." The chicken lady sparked.
"Extended Spin!" The glasses guy kicked the chicken hard enough to send it's head flying. It was like a jack in the box, but instead black goo shouted out of it.
"Let's look the other direction. Why did they make these robots so realistic?" The invisible girl asked. She shrugged, not knowing the answer.
"Tensei used to tell me about a few urban tales that surrounded this place back when he was a kid." The glasses hero spoke. "Apparently there was some pizza establishment that was built over this, the animatronics are leftover from an incident involving a dead-"
"Did you forget there was a child here?" The pretty bird man spoke, crushing his robot. "Please keep it PG. Suzuki, how is it on your end?"
"I finished … I think … the fox one keeps twitching." The boy pointed at the sparking fox. "I can smash the rest of it."
"Shannttyyyy-frine-yohoyoyoyoyoyhooooo." The machine sparked, before the blue lightning guy crushed the head.
"We should leave before we get blamed for this." Invisible girl told everyone. "Yuka, you alright? You didn't get hurt?"
"No, no one saw me. They looked past me." She shook in place. "My skin got dark and no one was able to see me, not even my mom. It was scary."
"There there." The girl seemed nice. "I know not being seen can be scary in times like this, but you were really brave you know." She patted her head. "You'll always win at hide and seek now. You're a natural champion now."
"And it's fine to be afraid of the dark." Pretty Bird got down and patted her back. "But it can be a friend to you as well."
She smiled at him, eyes sparkling. "I'm not afraid anymore." She planted a kiss on his beak, blushing. "Thank you, birdman."
"Yuka! You're far too young to think about romance!" Glasses man shouted like her father did sometimes when she hung out with friends.
"Aww, you have an admirer, good job Tokoyami!" The blue haired boy smiled brightly.
"Better you than Iruma-kun. Sorry, not sorry." What was that about?
Her knight in black armor only said one thing. "Revelry in the dark."