Chapter 19: Sparks
(Three Weeks ago)
Melissa Shield was a young woman who had a fairly…..unique group of people in her life. Her father for one was a world renowned inventor and head of I-Island, one of the most technologically advanced manmade islands in the history of the world where he worked. Her uncle and godfather was All Might, the number 1 hero of Japan and some said the world as a whole, and her mentor was Dr. Otto Octavious. A brilliant scientist who was pushing the bounds of available technology.
But even she was surprised by meeting Spider-Man, a vigilante who had garnered national attention for his involvement with taking down the leader of a world wide crime syndicate. Despite his legal status, she couldn't help but find him very friendly.
"I'm….surprised that you know Mister Fantastic." She admitted, shaking the wall crawlers hand as he sat perched on the railing. She idly noticed how he wasn't actively balancing himself, which made sense if he really had a spider's abilities.
Beside her Otto stepped forward. He was a middle aged man, around the same age as her father, he was svelte beneath his white suit and black dress shirt. His hair was cut short to his head with the sides cut to a fade. Most noticeable of all was the odd eyewear he had.
A pair of what looked like goggles with green lenses were strapped around his head. The eyewear prevented his pupils from being seen, however the way he smiled? One didn't need to see them to know they were widened in delight, "Oh my….Richards you continue to impress." he said with a slight German accent to his Japanese.
Reed smiled to the man, "Spider-Man this is Doctor Otto Octavious, a specialist on machine learning, advanced engineering, and Artificial Intelligence development." Reed introduced as the goggled man raised his hand.
Spider-Man shook it as Melissa couldn't help but stare at the vigilante. "Nice to meet you doc." he greeted. Melissa almost winced, that was part of a nickname that she knew her mentor lothed with a passion. However the respect in the muffled voice showed he wasn't mocking, so Otto took it in stride.
"Please, call me Otto."
(Now)
December turned to January within the blink of an eye, the decorations for the holidays came down but the snow decided to stick around. Thankfully for Izuku the sidewalks were clear of snow all the same, "Come on, come on, come on!" He chanted to himself as he rushed down the sidewalk and up a flight of stairs. Reaching the rope, he took out his card and swiped it along the surface of the turnstile and breezed through it and managed to reach the train doors before they closed! "Yes!" He cheered to himself.
He finally caught his train to school.
As the train departed from the station, he looked out the window at the passing scenery outside. He was in his third and final term of his high school senior year with only two months and counting for graduation. And after that, U.A.
He still could hardly believe how quickly it was approaching now, but then again he had been so preoccupied with the Kingpin for so long that his aspirations for U.A. had fallen by the wayside. I still need to look over the possible degrees that they offer that's not included in the hero and support course curriculum. He thought sadly.
He felt under prepared, and he had no one to blame but himself.
A chime on his phone brought him out of his funk. Pulling it out, he looked at the message and smiled when he saw a picture from Kendo. Opening it he chuckled, the photo was of Itsuka in her garage, she was leaning against her Motorcycle she had finished over the last few weeks.
The bike was a Triumph Bonneville, something she was immensely proud of as it was an older model she and her dad had put together and rebuilt over the past three years. In the picture, she was wearing her school uniform with her biker jacket, a black leather jacket which looked good on her, over her school uniform with a helmet under her arm.
Itsuka: First day out on it!!
Izuku smiled, he could imagine how excited she must be.
You: You look great!
Izuku stopped, re-read that message, and blushed before deleting it. Neither of them had talked about his...boldness at the Christmas party. He still couldn't believe he did that! What was wrong with him??!! But Itsuka didn't mind, Obviously she didn't, he knew that she wouldn't. But still! Her cheek was so soft...I wish I could touch it. He thought before shaking his head and typing out a new message.
You: Awesome!!! Drive safe!
He nodded to himself. Perfect.
As soon as he sent the message however, the train suddenly lurched violently forward! A few people who were standing and not holding onto the overhead straps fell over! One of them slammed into Izuku but he managed to catch them, "Ugh! Sorry man." A young man around Izuku's age with black hair grunted. Izuku turned his head towards the front of the train, people were either clinging to the overhead straps or sprawled across the seats and floor. Himself however hadn't budged an inch, Oh crap I must have stuck my feet to the floor on instinct. He thought as he leaned down to help someone up, the other boy who he caught doing the same to a middle aged man.
"Here you go." the other boy said as he carefully helped an elderly lady to her feet, more and more people were recovering and thankfully it didn't seem like anyone suffered more than a bruise.
The speakers crackled to life, 'Attention passengers, we apologize for the abrupt stop, there seems to be a disturbance on the track ahead. Please be patient while proper authorities are contacted.' the conductor explained in a calm voice. Izuku looked up at the speakers and then towards the front of the train. Well so much for catching the train to school today. He thought.
As Enjiro Kirishima helped the last person up, he turned to once again apologize to the other guy who had caught him only to see the mop of green hair heading towards the next car, helping people up along the way. He decided to follow the young man's example and do the same in the opposite direction.
Izuku stepped out between subway cars and leapt up to the roof of the train, and crouched whilst looking ahead. Further down the track he could see a cherrypicker crane was laid across the track with the man in the basket still inside. Shooting a web to a nearby building he pulled himself into the shadow of it, "Ok, guess this is a good field test as any."
(Three Weeks ago)
"I must say the tactile data that Richards shared with us was incredibly informative young man." Otto said as he scrolled through the number of reports on the holographic screen. Reed had allowed them to use the lab that the picotech had been first held in for Otto and Melissa to inform Spider-Man about their research. "I'll be honest most pro heroes aren't a fan of field testing anything that's not their own support gear." the doctor said with a shake of his head.
Melissa gave him a smile, "Doctor, they ARE pro heroes. They're concerned with saving lives first."
"I know, I know, I just wish I didn't need to bribe Stars and Stripe with a whole chocolate cake to get approval for those subsonic engines they let me install into her team's planes." he chuckled. He stopped scrolling when he came across the file he was looking for near the bottom of the list. "Ah, here we are." he said, opening it and clearing his throat before turning to Spider-Man, only to stop when he saw that the vigilante was hanging upside down by a threat. ".....is that….comfortable?"
"Surpisingly? Yes." Spider-Man replied.
Otto shrugged, "Very well, ahem." He cleared his throat as Melissa walked over, "About a year ago, Melissa here reached out to me in regards to a support item that she was researching." he introduced. Melissa smiled as she tapped her watch on her wrist, suddenly a strand of white light expanded and stretched out of it! The thin light twisted and spun in the air forming a 't' shape…..and when the bottom of it hit the ground and bounced into her hand, Izuku recognized it as a pogo stick.
"Woah that's-that's amazing!" he exclaimed.
Melissa smiled as she held the toy in her hand, "I was researching nanobots, I was looking to see if I can find a way to make portable support items. Using tiny machines to form into various components." she explained before giving a sheepish smile. "However...this was the most complex that I could make it." she admitted, holding up the pogo stick.
Otto's smile wasn't deterred, "Remarkable, regardless of the desired result, the fact that Melissa was able to create machines that were able to form a fairly complex tool is still incredible." he praised.
Spider-Man nodded, "Yeah! I mean the fact that your able to make anything already is really impressive...but how does the picotech factor into this?" he asked, tilting his head to the side.
Otto smiled, "Glad you asked." he turned to the holographic projector and brought up an image of the picotech in it's basic black look. "As I'm sure Mr. Richards informed you, he designed Picotech as a way to make an affordable fabric that could self replicate. This was in part to allow cost saving measures for pro hero uniforms. However Melissa's research led us to another possibility." He tapped the screen, and a number of windows popped up, each one of them showing a diagram of a device. "Support Costumes."
(Now)
Spider-Man swung over to the cherry picker, from the looks of it the worker had been in the middle of collecting decorations from the street lights when the arm gave out. Swinging to the buckwt, he shot a pair of webs to cradle himself in between the lamp posts on either side of the track, so he was sitting in a swing that lowered in front of the bucket. Of course, the worker jumped when he saw he wasn't alone, "Holy-!"
"Hey! Sorry, didn't mean to startle you. You ok?" Spider-Man asked with concern.
The worker, a man whose quirk seemed to include making his skin blue, nodded despite his surprise at the vigilante's appearance. "Y-yeah, the cherry just died on me though." He said, trying the controls again to no avail. Spider-Man looked down and saw there was no power to the display.
"Huh…..well, is it ok if I move this thing off the tracks? The train down the way stopped but I figure you don't want to be staring down train tracks all day." He joked lightly.
The man nodded. "Sure, just be careful? This thing is worth more than my annual salary." The worker warned. Spider-Man leapt from his web to the top of street lamp, and connected a web to the arm of cheerypicker. Pulling back on it, the ark lifted up from the tracks, and reeling his webbing in pulled it back over the street, and then he gently fed it back out to lower him back down.
As the worker climbed out of the bucket, Spider-Man dropped down. "All good?" He checked in. The worker brushed the gathered snow off the side of machine and gave him a thumbs up.
He wiped the snow off the side, where a monitor was, and tapped it. He then did a double take, "Huh. That's weird, thing should at least have some power." He muttered as Spider-Man pulled himself into the air with his webs.
He swung up to the corner of the bidding beside the tracks and he watched as the train he had been on pulled away from the spot at a noticeable cautious pace. "Well that's a good way to start the day." he said to himself, looking down to see the worker calling in what happened. As he was about to hitch a ride on the train however, he noticed something down the street from the man who he helped. The traffic light was off.
"Huh...don't think I've ever seen that before actually." he muttered, shooting a webline and swinging towards the intersection where cars were treating it like a four way stop. And as he swung past it he also saw the row of lightposts were out as well, catching himself on one he crawled up and inspected the bulb and saw it broken. "Oh man can't have that." he muttered, sliding down to the street where the glass was, shooting a wide enough web to collect all the large enough pieces and gathering them in a ball of webbing which he then suspended from the light post.
He repeated this the entire length of the street, some people stopping to watch him in curiosity.
"Hey isn't that Spider-Man?" a girl asked.
A guy nodded, "Yeah it is….what is he doing?"
"I think he's picking up glass." another guy guessed.
"Oh…..wow that's actually really nice."
"Thanks Spidey!"
"No problem!" Spider-Man waved back as he made another web ball. Leaping up to the street light's top, he looked back at the row of lights he had done. "Ok, place is cleaned up but I should probably get the police called in to collect this stuff." he said to himself out loud.
\\I can do that Izuku.//
(Three Weeks Ago)
"An AI?" Spider-Man asked skeptically.
Melissa nodded, "Yes, it'd be an artificial intelligence that takes in data from what you see and do, and try to help." she explained. "This was the first step when we came up with the idea, if we want something this complex we need something that can run the various programs without someone needing to tell it to from a computer. So a AI was the solution we came to." she explained.
The vigilante rubbed the back of his head, "I mean…..that makes sense but….I don't know how much something like that would really help?" he asked. He wasn't the most technologically savvy but he understood the basics of what an artificial intelligence entailed, he read I, Robot for summer reading but he doubted they were going to put a positronic brain in his costume.
The blonde girl nodded in understanding as Otto worked on the console, "I can understand that, your…..profession is pretty hands on. But that also means that you're doing everything yourself and don't have the same resources as a pro hero would." she explained. She clasped her hands together, "That's not to say this AI would be able to do everything an agency could, but it could help make your job a little easier." she clarified.
Spider-Man cupped his chin in thought, "Hmmm.....would this thing know who I am?" he asked.
Melissa blinked, and then let out an 'Ah' of understanding, "Well it would know who you are, it has to in order to be keyed to your commands. But all personal data is locked off to the internal system. Even the data that me and Dr. Octavious would get wouldn't have anything that could lead to discovering who you are. Just statistical analysis data that we'd use to tweak the code and designs." she explained in a patient tone.
If she was being honest with herself, working with a vigilante was…..kind of morally questionable. But she had seen videos of Spider-Man for months now, and what stuck out to her wasn't his abilities, though amazing as they were, it was…..his kindness. She recalled how in one video after stopping a car from going over a railing and into a river, he got the driver out of the car and helped calm them down from their first serious accident. That stuck out to her.
There were pros who would make a show of that sort of thing, but this had been captured on someone's phone from across the street. It wasn't a sort of….photo op….it was genuine. "Spider-Man….if you don't want to do this, I understand."
The masked teen's head snapped up to her, "Wha-oh! N-No! It's not that, I want to help you two and this seems like a really interesting idea I just....I wear this mask for a reason. There's people...people I want to protect…..and….well I'll be honest I'm not the most 'tech savvy'? I don't know if this stuff can get….hacked?"
Melissa blinked before snorting, "You think someone could hack technology that Reed Richards, the smartest man on the planet, made?" she laughed.
"...fair point." he concluded.
She smiled at him, a good natured one, "But still, I understand...and as a support specialist, you have my discretion." she said earnestly. "Trust me, I know some stuff about some very high ranked pro heroes that I wouldn't deluge under any circumstances." she added. Though she left out how she would completely use what she knew to embarrass her Uncle Might if she had any opportunity.
Spider-Man tilted his head. "Oh yeah? Who?"
"Nice try." Melissa stuck out her tongue.
THe vigilante snapped his fingers, "Darn it, thought that'd work."
"Do not beat yourself up young man, I tried it on her as well, she is a very tight lipped girl. Good student though." Otto chimed in cheerfully as he turned to them. "Now, are you on board?"
Izuku considered it a moment. "...ok, sure. What's the harm?" he asked with a shrug.
Otto smiled, "Wonderful! Now, its update shall include the AI. The picotech will reset." He said before hitting the activation key.
Melissa watched as the red and blue of Spider-Man's costume faded away and he became an ink black silhouette. She jumped a little at the drastic change in appearance, looking more…..menacing then friendly. However a second later the pattern returned with his suit sparking a little.
"Uh…..wow. That was something…..so how do I use it?" He asked, looking over his costume for anything that looked different.
"It'll take time to activate, a few weeks or so, this AI learns from you, in a way it's learning functions will be based off your own." Otto explained. "It'll even sound like your voice."
Melissa nodded, "We did think about gong you the option to choose who you'd base it off of, but looking at it from a consumer perspective? I don't think most people would want All Might talking to them all the time." She giggled.
Spider-Man's head whirled around to her, his mask showing a shocked expression, "Wait! I could have had an All Might AI?!?!" he exclaimed before falling to his hands and knees in despair. Melissa watched this unfold with shock, which quickly turned into amusement.
Of course someone like Spider-Man was an All Might fan. She patted his head, "There, there." She comforted him.
(Now)
"Oh! Hey, um. Sure thing?" Izuku told the suit. "Um…..hi, by the way. Wait, how do you know my name?" He asked.
\\I have a record of your conversations with your mother. But don't worry, that information is protected. And you're the only one who can hear me.//
Izuku blinked beneath his mask, that was…..a little more than he expected. "Oh, um, ok...so…..what do I….call you?" he asked. He didn't know exactly what the social situation regarding an artificial intelligence was, so he thought approaching it like he would anyone else was the best way to handle it.
\\...you may call me suit. That is my designation. Well officially it's Pico_02. But Suit is the designated command phrase.//
Izuku nodded, "Alright, erm….Suit. Thank you." He said gratefully before looking back over his work. "I wonder why someone would do something like that to a bunch of street lights." He mused aloud. He supposed it was just vandalism, but he just didn't really understand that.
"Hey! Spider dude!" The vigilante looked down to the base of the street lamp and saw a young man around his age catching his breath while he looked up at him. He had blonde spikey hair, it was brighter than Bakugo's and a little more droopy on the top with a few black strands that zig-zagged in it like a bolt.
When Spider-Man turned his head down to him, Kamanari was a little scared by his angular eyes looking down upon him. However when the vigilante crawled down the side and said, "That was an option I had but I went with Spider-MAN. But still, there's a catchiness to it. How can I help?" he was relieved.
"I….erm…..are you like….investigating this?" He asked unsurely, hedging to the row of lights. Spider-Man stopped on the pile at Kamari's height, "I mean I don't know exactly how you…..do things? I'm
sorry man." He lamented.
"No, no. It's fine. Do you know what happened here?" He asked.
Kamanari glanced away with anxiousness in his eyes. "Look um…..I don't want anyone to get in serious trouble here, it was an accident." He assured the vigilante. "…..I think it was my brother." He admitted.
"Your brother?" Spider-Man echoed. The young man nodded, "Alright, start from the beginning. What's your name?" He asked.
"Kaminari, Denki Kamanari, my brother's name is Maki." He explained, reaching across his chest and grabbing his elbow. "Maki and I have…..well our quirks are similar? But different." He began, the vigilante's head perking up at the mention of quirks. "See, I can conduct electricity to whatever I touch. Maki however can control it."
Spider-Man cupped his chin as Kamanri explained this, it wasn't unheard of for deviations in a quirk to happen with siblings. "He's like….way better at it then I am, he's taught me stuff! But I'm still kinda lame by comparison." He bemoaned.
"I-I'm sure that's not the case! Your quirk sounds like it just operates differently!" He said enthusiastically.
Kamanri smiled at the positiveness, however it disappeared as he continued. "But Maki…..his quirk has a drawback. For one thing? He needs to absorb energy in order to live, like how you and I eat." He explained. Izuku hummed in thought at that. "I mean usually it's not an issue, he can eat food and all that but…..crap I don't know how to explain it. Basically when we have a family dinner, we get him a car battery charged."
"Ok? So how does this relate to the broken street lights?" He asked.
Kaminari frowned, "Maki's...well his quirk allows him to store and expel electricity. But he can't store that much, maybe like a car battery if he pushes himself." He explained. Izuku nodded, while that didn't sound like much on a grand scale it was still pretty substantial.
Kaminari sighed, "See, he wanted to get into the JDF's rescue branch. They're the people who go into natural disaster areas and help out. They even grant special licenses for people to use their quirks if applicable." He explained.
Spider-Man nodded, "That's really cool, but what's the problem?"
"….have you heard of Trigger?" He asked.
Izuku's lenses widened, Trigger was a drug designed to enhance people's quirks. "He…..had some." He deduced. Kamanari nodded, "And I'm going to guess that it had an effect."
Kamanari nodded, "Yeah…..me and folks found out after my mom was cleaning his room and found…..anyway we confronted him about it." He began, "He was super defensive about it and stormed out. My mom and dad went looking for him but as he left? He used his quirk and it overloaded the lights at our place."
"Because he's able to expand more energy his intake needs to match it." Spider-Man analyzed instantly. It made sense, quirks could be….strange and fascinating. But for the most part they followed the laws of physics to some extent. And the last time he checked the law of conservation of energy was something a lot of quirks still followed.
"Uh….yeah, that...we haven't seen him for a few days now, and...we don't want to call the police and get him in trouble for the trigger but we're out of options." He said fearfully. He looked down the street, "I saw you cleaning this mess up and it reminded me of what happened at home."
Izuku cupped his chin, "Do you have a photo of him?" he asked. Kaminari pulled out his phone and brought up a picture, it was of the two of them at arm's length, pointing at each other with grins. Maki was a little taller but slimmer, as well as having longer black hair than his brother's spiky hair. Within his line of sight, Izuku's lenses notified him that the photo was saved for later reference, blinking at that, he turned to Kaminari. "I'll do my best to look for him. Can you give me your contact info?"
The young man's shoulders sank in relief, "Sure, here." He pulled out his phone set to air drop his number, as Izuku was about to pull out his own phone to retrieve it. A little notification in the corner of his eye said it was saved.
"Er-I got it. Thanks. I'll let you know if I find anything, and if you hear anything please let me know."Spider-Man said as he shot out a webline and pulled himself up, Ok I know what he looks like, but where the heck do I start looking? He wondered as he swung around a building and launched himself to the top of it, landing on a large HVAC unit. "Crap and I gotta get to school still." He whined.
\\May I be of assistance?//
"Oh! Right, forget about you Suit. Sorry." Izuku said, flushing with embarrassment.
\\No need. I took the liberty of saving the image of Maki for future reference.//
Izuku hummed. Right, that explained that little pop-up he saw in his field of vision when talking to Kaminari. "Ok, good work…..but what can I do with it? I mean I can't just walk around looking for him, he may not even be anywhere close by here."
\\True. Would you like me to run the facial recognition software program?//
Izuku blinked. "….the what?"
\\I can attempt to infiltrate the CCT network and use it to run a search for our suspect.//
Izuku hissed a breath in between his teeth, "Thhhhaaaaat feels kinda of like I'm overstepping my bounds there." He said, he didn't really like the idea of surveillance in general but his main concern was the moral concerns he saw with such an action.
\\Understood. I can try a different approach.//
"That. Please do that." He said as he swung towards school.
Itsuka was in a good mood, anyone could see that as she sat at her desk, a small smile on her face as she bobbed her head to a song playing in her earbud while she went over her notes to get her homework finished in her last class of the day. Humming a song by Luna Snow to herself as she filled out the answers on her homework.
Things had been going pretty well for her, for one thing she was on the fast track to finish her training for One for All within a few weeks, much earlier than originally predicted. Then there was the fact her baby, her bike, was finally done and in the parking lot right now. And she was going to take it for a drive to the beach after school today.
Her dad had also officially become the Chief of Police again. It was...complicated. On the one hand she was proud of her dad for stepping up and getting things back on track after a huge shakeup like the Kingpin's arrest. And it wasn't like the job was dangerous, he was behind a desk most of the day and when he did ever go out to take care of something on sites there were a dozen other officers and a pro hero with them most times.
But on the other hand it weighed on her dad, she could see it. It was worse when she was younger, his job prevented him from catching some important parts of her childhood. But he would always try and make up for it. And at this point of her life she didn't NEED her dad around constantly...but she still liked it when he was around.
Overall it wasn't bad, just different. A change she still needed time to adjust to.
And then there was Izuku.
She shook her head despite the smile on her face, who would have thought that Izuku fricking Midoriya would have the courage to plant one on her cheek??? Granted it was with a mistletoe but still! The guy who tended to stutter his way through conversations with her when the first met had come a long way.
She felt her chest flutter as she thought back to that night, she had let her vulnerabilities show when she shared her prior relationship issues with. And Izuku had shown her…..comfort, not like it was with her mom or her brother when she told them some details about what happened. Or Set and Yui who had gotten more protective of her.
Izuku shed tears for her…..it was something that others might call 'weak' or make fun of him for only showing the depths of how much empathy he held for her at that moment. And then he said her name…..her first name. And then he plants one on her cheek?!
She stopped writing and let her head hit her desk.
Setsuna was right that boy IS dangerous!
She lifted her head From the table and slapped her blushing cheeks. Focus girl. You got training today so- she thought before her phone vibrated. She pulled it out and saw a message from All Might...she blinked and read it again.
fiygituutgtfdyjfju ggfii hi g Hegeadrght :All Might
Kendo blinked.
Forgive me young kendo, my hands were too large to type properly. :All Might
I'm afraid I'll have to postpone our training today as I found out a good friend is in town and I want to take some time to see them. Please forgive me for the suddenness of this. : All Might
Kendo smiled sweetly, she was looking forward to training today but she also knew that outside of her parents and Ms. Midoriya (something which everyone was curious about) she didn't know if All Might had that many friends. Nighteye probably used to be, but given how they no longer spoke to each other that might not be the case any longer. So if her sensei got a chance to hang out with an old friend? Who was she to stand in the way?
You: Its fine All Might, enjoy hanging with your friend!
She sent the message and smiled to herself before gathering her supplies. Apparently she now had the rest of her day off from training. And with her bike? The sky's the limit on what she could do. Maybe she'll visit her dad at police headquarters and surprise him with a snack? Nah, he was probably busy getting his old office set up the way he likes it again.
She wanted to show her bike off to Nejire but there's a good chance she's out on patrol for her internship. And she didn't want to disturb her while she was doing her job.
There was that coffee place she liked that she hadn't been to in a while. Maybe Yui and Set could meet her there? It's been a minute since they went out on a girl's night…..nah, a cafe wasn't really 'girls' night' for them. They got too rowdy.
...and now she's thinking about Izuku again.
However, getting a coffee with him actually was something she had been meaning to do. Actually, does he like coffee? She wondered. Taking out her phone she asked him that very question over text before going back to and completing her homework.
By the time she finished her homework, Izuku had messaged her back.
If you spend enough time with Hodo you learn to like coffee. :Izuku
She snorted.
You: I'm going to grab some after school, you want in?
Sure! :Izuku
You: Sweet! I'll pick you up after school!
She smiled to herself. It was a date.
Izuku had, surprisingly, a decent day at school. With the suit searching for Maki on social media and any dirt if news articles related to him, something he would have spent time doing himself in his free period, he was able to get his homework done in advance for a change.and that was before Kendo had messaged him about going to grab some coffee after school, something that he was looking forward to.
So by all accounts he was having a good day...but Maki was still out there. Kaminari's story of his brother was all he could think about, he had asked him for help and he felt guilty that he was sitting here in class instead of….doing something. But he had to remind himself there wasn't really anything he could do right now aside from wait.
As the bell rang, signaling the end of the day, he stood up and headed for the door of his classroom. "Oh, Mirdoriya, could you stay a moment?" his teacher called out, making the green haired young man stop mid stride. He heard a few of his classmates make sounds of amusement, Bakugo bumping his shoulder on purpose, his teacher hardly looked up and gestured to the front of his desk as the rest of the class emptied out. When the door slid closed he spoke up, "Now Midroiya, I saw that you were applying to the General Studies course for U.A." he began.
Izuku nodded as his teacher finally looked up at him with a not so interested expression, "That's right, I know that there's a number of different degrees I can get through it. And with…..me being quirkless, I thought it would be for the best." he said, unable to hide the disappointment in his voice.
"Oh, well that makes sense. And honestly it is probably a better move. Better than wasting your time with the Hero Course." his teacher said ignorantly. Izuku felt himself frown, "Hmm? What is it?"
".....is that all?" Izuku asked.
"Oh, well, yeah. Basically." he said before returning to his work. Izuku's frown deepened as he walked out of the classroom, "Hey." his teacher said, "I didn't dismiss you." Izuku ignored him and left the room, the man rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Not even worth the effort." he muttered to himself, unaware that Izuku heard it.
And just like that, whatever sense of contentment that Izuku had gathered up today had been suddenly struck away with a few cruel, disingenuous words. He sulked through the school, of course his teacher didn't care, why was he even surprised?
He walked out of school gripping the straps of his backpack a little tight. He saw that most of the students were scattered around the entrance and courtyard to the school, the koi pond in the middle of it looked serene against the bustle of students.
"What do you think, he got in trouble?" One of the girls from his class asked another, not bothering to whisper.
A boy scoffed, "Deku? Who knows with that guy. I heard he snapped at his teacher last term."
"Get out! Seriously?" Another guy laughed.
Izuku frowned as he shuffled to try and get around them, "Hey, Deku! Is that true?" The boy laughed. Inzuku lowered his head as another student stepped in his way. "Hey come on don't be like that, what'd he say?" he pressed. Izuku glanced up at him and frowned, the other student was cutting off his exit.
He really, really didn't want to discuss what happened with his classmates who made fun of him. "Nothing." He tried to move past them but another student stepped in front of him.
"Oh man it must have been bad if he's like this." The girl said, not even addressing izuku directly.
"Did he spaz out?" One asked.
A boy shook his head. "Maybe he failed the last test?"
"Oh I got it! His quirk finally came in!" Another boy joked, making the crowd erupt in laughter. Izuku looked down at his shoes in humiliation at the laughter, he didn't know which was worse. This or Bakugo just calling him useless.
"Excuse me." A stern voice started with an edge that made everyone jump. The group of students collectively turned to see a young woman with fiery red hair tied off in a pony tail giving them all a collectively cold glare that matched her aqua colored eyes.
Itsuka Kendo did not like what she heard one bit. And standing before the group of students, in a zipped up bomber jacket that went to her neck. Her school uniform hidden beneath it while her skirt and leggings poked up at the hem.
Izuku meanwhile was taken aback by the gaze her eyes held as she looked over the students, she almost resembled an adult scolding children but had an underlying threat to them. The next person who said something was going to get it, when their eyes met however, they softened immediately. She stepped past the students, who were all looking at the beautiful stranger with confusion, and watched as she walked up Izuku and smiled at him, "Hey Izuku." She greeted warmly.
The surrounding students' jaws collectively dropped. No one called Izuku by his first name. It was either Deku, or Midoriya. And what made everyone's eyes bulge and look between them happened when Izuku replied.
"H-Hey K…Itsuka." He corrected shyly. The blushing young man still getting used to calling her that.
She took his hand in hers without hesitation and led him away from his classmates and out to the sidewalk, the flabbergasted students watching in disbelief. Her bike was parked on the side of the road and Izuku had to admit it was a really nice looking bike in person. On the back were two helmets, a black and white one, with her handing him the former while she slipped the latter on.
"I-er-Itsuka I've never ridden a motorcycle before." He admitted.
The redhead smiled at him, "Just hop on behind me." She said before lifting a leg over and straddling the bike. Izuku looked at her with a nervous gulp, he knew that he'd have to get on the bike with her, but that meant being right up against her!
I can just stick to the bike! Yeah I'll hold on to it with my powers. He thought as kendo leaned over to grab her helmet. At that moment, izuku was looking down at the seat, and with kendo bending over to the other side-
....and now he was looking at her butt.
Her skirt covered her obviously but he could still make out the shape. It wasn't overly large but instead toned. No doubt from hours of training on end.
He ripped his eyes away and blushed as she stood and turned to him with the white helmet, she hopped on the bike, slinging one leg over it with ease. She put her own helmet on, looked at Izuku, while glancing behind him with a smirk at the slack-jawed jerks that were his classmates, and patted the spot behind her expectantly.
Izuku climbed on behind her, and before he could lean back and grab the back of the seat to hold on to, her hand reached back to his and pulled him forward. "Just hang on, I won't go too fast but just to be safe, ok?" She promised him, his hands locking in front of her abdomen.
Kendo felt herself blush a little at the feeling of his hands there but that was nothing compared to izuku whose face was red as her hair.
Kendo had abs...and he could feel them! ...oh god that is hot. Izuku thought.
He blinked, Wait. What?!?
Kicking the bike stand off she started up the cycle and drove off away from the school with everyone gawking at the pair of them. Kendo felt herself smile as Izuku jumped against her back from their departure. In all honesty she didn't even consider the fact that izuku would have to hold onto her when she picked him up.
Not that she minded in the slightest.
As they drive away and out of sight, the entire student body who witnessed Izuku be seemingly picked up by a hot biker girl was, understandably, confused.
"...is this real life?" A girl with floaty hair asked in a daze.
"I-I-I think so?" A boy replied.
"D…..Deku pulls baddies...." Another punk looking boy said in awe.
A girl grabbed the sides of her head, "...I think I need to go home and rethink my life."
As the group of classmates all recoiled from Izuku's departure, Bakugo approached tham. Giving the collection of students blocking his path a sneer he asked, "The hell is wrong with all you extras?!"
They all turned to him collectively, "What?" He spat out.
"...we're pretty sure Midoroya's girlfriend picked him up on her motorcycle." A student said.
Bakugo's expression became blank. Processed that. And then shouted, "WHAT?!"
Maki hated the withdrawals.
He had done research, of course anyone who was planning to try a drug without a prescription would. The problem with Trigger was that due to how it would stimulate a person's quirk it had different biological effects depending on the person. So the side effects of which was a grocery list for a family of six. For Maki? They were in the form of shakes, his hands tremored slightly within his pockets as he made his way though the streets, being careful not to touch anyone or anything else like he did with that cherrypicker and the street lamp. Last thing he wanted was drawing attention to himself so close to his dealer.
He had finally managed to charge his phone without worry of burning it out and set up a meeting, and the last of his cash was on him at the moment. He had left his cards at home but...going back wasn't an option, at least not now. All he needed to do was get enough to get his fix, he'll go back home and say he made a stupid decision and he won't do it again, and make sure he hides his stash somewhere away from home.
The thought of Denki finding it? And using it? The thought caused a cold shiver to go through him.
He just needed to…..to calm himself. He couldn't think really clearly until he had his dose, after that he'd finger out what to say but….only after he got a charge. His usual amount just wasn't cutting it anymore. He was glad that consuming power didn't gain body weight because he'd probably look…..the opposite of what he looked like now. His frame, beneath his green puffer coat, was skinny. His ribs were just barely visible and even the fat on his face was going to the point that his eyes were looking a little sunken.
He just needed a hit. And then he'd feel better.
Turning off the street and into a park, his eyes darted around in search of his supplier.
Walking over to the fountain, Maki felt a sense of relief when he saw the familiar red scarf of the man who introduced him to his vice. Walking over, he took a seat beside him, "Thanks for meeting me man." he said with a smile.
Shoyo grinned at him, "'Course, I could tell that you needed some. The question is, can you afford it?" the man said, giving Maki a look. He almost looked….amused, and it made a feeling of anger flash in Maki's gut but he ignored it, instead fishing out his cash from his pocket and handing it to the man. The dealer hummed, taking it and flipping through the money. "Mmmm….your five hundred yen short. But I'll overlook it, just this once." he said before pocketing it.
Maki shuttered out a breath, "I-I know, I couldn't get to my cards. I lost them." he said as the man reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a vial with red liquid inside it. Maki's tremors in his hands intensified at the sight, he had to fight the urge to snatch the nectar out of the dealer's hands.
"Well it sounds like you gotta pay a visit to the bank my man. That should last you a bit. But give me a few days to get some more. Yeah?" Shoyo asked with an easy going grin.
Maki felt his stomach drop, "W-What?" He asked with a scared voice twinged with accusation.
The dealer raised his hands defensively "You're not my only customer man, I gotta re-supply." The man said as Maki gripped the vial even tighter. "Look it'll be fine, just get some cash ready and I'll be in touch." He said as he stood up, Maki however stood as well. The dealer turned and the smirk was gone as bolts of golden electricity sparked out of Maki's eyes.
"Is there anyone else???"
Shoyo looked him over, and then smiled again as an opportunity was presented to him. "Well I do know this little outfit working on their own Trigger...not ours, so it ain't as good." He laid a hand on Maki's shoulder, "But tell you what, you take those sparks of yours and…..eliminate the competition? The next fix is on the house." He offered.
Maki's eyes widened at that offer. A free fix?! That was…..he could get through his withdrawals now with this hit, do the chore he wanted, and then get another for no charge! That's plenty of time to think and find out what to say to his folks and Denki...
"Alright. Where is it?"
The man told him where to go, as he left he smiled to himself, Maki was perfect. He was hooked on Trigger, meaning that when he came up short like this, which presumably will be happening more and more, he'll do him a favor. And this worked two fold, it eliminated the competition of the Shie Hessaikai, and would throw a bone to the pro who had been sniffing around their turf.
Chesaki would be happy to hear this.
The Silver Spoon Cafe was an old school coffee shop that Itsuka loved to visit every once in a while. However the distance to it was a train ride away and ever since she started training? She hadn't really had the time to visit, but with her new bike she could now take a casual trip to it…..and having her crush hold onto her as she drove through the city was a nice bonus as well. "Ahhhh, that's the stuff." Kendo sighed happily after taking a sip of her mug. Izuku sat in the booth across from her with his own coffee, while she had gotten a black coffee with a shot of expresso, Izuku had gotten a French Vanilla blend.
He took a sip and let out a surprised hum, "Mmmm! This is good!"
"Right?" She smiled, "This place is the best." She grinned, looking out the window of their booth and seeing her bike parked out in front of the cafe. Izuku followed her gaze and turned to her with a small blush, she noticed and felt her face warm up as well.
Izuku had been very aware of where he had held onto her while driving, giving her an occasional apology when they would hit a bump and grip her waist a little tighter. Not that she minded, "Thanks for bringing me here Itsuka." He said gratefully.
"No problem. It's nice to just hang out." She smiled, she saw his gaze lower slightly. When she arrived at his school and parked, she had planned to wait until he walked out, however when she saw a group of students gathered around him she went over to investigate.
And then she heard their teasing.
Admittedly her first thought was chopping one of them on the head to make them all stop. But instead she decided to just….get Izuku out of there. He didn't look like he wanted to hit them like she probably would have, he just….wanted to get away. "You ok?" She asked.
Izuku blinked as he looked up at her, "Huh?"
"I mean...back at school….." she tilted her head.
"O-oh….yeah..." he frowned. "Um….that was….my teacher wanted to talk to me after class and they wanted to know what about."
She raised an eye at him, "That looked more like pestering than asking." She replied.
Izuku managed a little smile, "Er….well, yeah. I guess so." He admitted before frowning again. "He just wanted to make sure I was applying to the General Studies course at UA…..said it'd be a waste of time for me to apply for the hero course." He said with a sardonic laugh.
Kendo's eyes narrowed at that, it reminded her of her meeting with Sir Nighteye in a way. "Well screw him." She spat out before taking a sip of her coffee.
Izuku stopped before he took a drink of his own, "Er-what??"
"Screw him. He doesn't know you, you'd be amazing in the hero course." She smiled at him encouragingly.
Izuku gave her a sad smile, "If I had a quirk you mean?"
She shook her head, "I mean as is."
Izuku blinked and felt himself flush with embarrassment, "O-Oh....thanks K-Itsuka." He replied, wincing at his near slip up. He looked down at his coffee, then up to her, her blue eyes looking into his with a kind warmth in them.
"Hey." She said, getting his attention, "I'm serious, I know that your school...it sucks. Teachers should encourage you. Not…..that." She said, making a face that looked like it was something between annoyed and fed up. Her eyes looked into his, "And...I know how hard that choice must have been for you."
He looked down at the table, "It...it was."
She slid a hand across the table and gently took his free hand, giving it a squeeze. "…..you know if you ever need to talk, I'm here. Right?" She asked him, "I know you don't have anyone at your school and...well I'm here."
Izuku smiled at her, "Thanks Itsuka…..and I know you are. It's just…..I don't know, I really just want to put it all behind me."
She frowned a little, "I mean, I get that but…..it doesn't just go away once you graduate Izuku." She said knowingly. "Wei was…..well he dealt with bullshit like this. And sometimes he still thinks back to it. He's gotten better obviously but still."
Izuku sighed, "I know. I just…..all my life I've just been….the useless Deku there." he said, the redhead frowning at that stupid nickname. "U.A. will be a fresh start, and the sooner that happens the sooner I can just….leave this behind me." he said anxiously. He glanced out the window, as though he was looking out to somewhere far away.
Kendo sighed, "Yeah. I can understand that...but I think you're forgetting something." she said. He turned his head back to her and was surprised to see her smiling at him. "That place may be the worst, and in fact if that place burned down tomorrow I wouldn't feel an ounce of sympathy for it." she joked, making him briefly smile. "But...you managed to come from there, and yet despite being picked on like that every day? Your....your a good person Izuku. And….corny as it sounds? That's pretty inspiring."
He felt his heart beat against his ribcage, he swore he could see light radiating from her face with the smile she gave him. She's...so amazing…..god I am so lucky. He thought, "T-Thanks….Itsuka…..that means a lot." he said, tripping over using her name which made her snort. "Anyway, enough about me, how are you?"
"I've been good, my training has been going well. I actually should be finished sooner than we planned." She smiled pridefully. All Might had mentioned how when he came up with her training plan he was very glad that she was already in good physical condition and was already training regularly, it sped up the time table. But the closer she got to the end? The more anxious she felt about getting One for All.
Unfortunately she couldn't share that with Izuku. "What about you?" She asked.
Izuku couldn't help but smile a little slyly to himself, thinking of all the stuff he's done as Spider-Man since he last saw her. "I've been keeping busy." He replied, he looked at her and saw her smiling at him.
God she's pretty. He thought to himself, he recalled the story of how Itsuka's ex had treated her and found himself staggered by not only how insensitive he was but how stupid he must be as well. Oh. Wow that's kinda mean.....well anyway. "Thanks for the ride by the way, I've uh….bever ridden a motorcycle before." He laughed.
Itsuka beamed happily, "It's a blast isn't it?" She asked. Izuku nodded with a smile, it wasn't exactly as crazy as web swinging but he saw the appeal, "Honestly you were really good as a passenger, if it wasn't for how tightly you were holding on I'd say you'd ridden one before."
Izuku nearly choked on his coffee, "S-Sorry about that." he stuttered.
She snickered at his reaction, "It's ok." she assured him before looking him dead in the eyes. "I didn't mind."
Izuku swallowed, and there wasn't any coffee in his throat. He knew what she meant by that. And his….emotions about her had solidified to the point that he was in fact infatuated with Itsuka Kendo. But…..there was something in the way, something keeping them at arms length.
Spider-Man.
He didn't know much about romance, but what he did know was that starting one with a lie would never work out well. So if he was going to do this, then he needed to tell her the truth. It was something that he had been fermenting on how to explain for weeks now, and to be honest he wasn't sure how she'd react.
As he took another sip of his coffee he looked around the Cafe. This wasn't the right place to talk about it, he'd much rather do it somewhere private. Like one of their homes while they were alone.