What was it she'd said? That statistically, she had a better chance of succeeding against the Headmaster than Izuku had against All Might? That made sense, didn't it? Nedzu was just a small creature, and his Quirk High Spec wasn't exactly fantastic for combat situations. He had a Quirk that really only helped him in combat situations in a niche way, like strategy, and since a strategist traditionally didn't get thrown into battle, Mina had almost written him off to an extent.
That was a much easier thing to do when he wasn't operating building equipment and swinging a fucking wrecking ball at them.
"Holy craaaa-aaa-aaap!" Another swipe of metal that came far too close for comfort made both Mina and Kaminari throw themselves onto the ground and shield themselves when the chunks of rubble from the building to their left, now utterly decimated by the impact of the operating machinery, slammed into e ground around them and threatened to batter into them.
She and Kaminari wound up running like their lives depended on it - And both were growing increasingly concerned that they actually were! All Might may punch someone into next week, but he wasn't going to kill them!
The Headmaster on the other hand, Mina was growing more and more concerned that he was just absolutely freaking crazy.
"Ashido, you doin' okay?!" Kaminari called over to her, trying to make his way towards her during the now relative calmness around them. The pattern of Nedzu's attacks seemed to cause just a few moments of utter chaos and brutality, which were then followed with brief calmness, probably with him planning which way to mess with them next.
"I'm good." Responded the slightly dazed girl, accepting his hand and help up. The second she got onto her feet, she scanned the area, hoping for a glimpse, a sign, something - Anything - That would help them pin down their targets location. "I don't even know where these attacks are coming from!"
"Aaaargh, you'd think a freakin' wrecking ball wouldn't be this hard to spot!" The Electrification Quirk user exclaimed, slapping his hand against his forehead, his fingernails suddenly scratching against his skin as his hand became a fist. "How're we supposed to beat an opponent that we can't even freaking find?!"
It was absolutely absurd, but it was totally true at the same time. Despite the knowledge that their opponent was working with some sort of demolishing equipment, which sure wasn't going to be small, neither of them could figure out exactly where these attacks were coming from! While the wrecking ball would come suddenly and obliterate some structure nearby, Mina and Kaminari were too busy trying to get crushed to make note of where the giant ball of metal went before it disappeared. Shortly, the process would repeat itself, and they'd be right back to square one. They had no way of pinpointing exactly where the damn thing was!
"Kaminariii, can't you just do something with your Quirk or something?"
"Why does no-one know how my Quirk works?! I can't control where the electricity goes, and even if I could, I don't know where the damn guy is!" He was falling back into panic, like he usually did in combat. It was probably his biggest weakness, especially since his Quirk fried his brain. "D'you want me to get stupid?!"
A small chuckle. "What d'you mean, 'Get stupid?'" Mina jabbed with a small smirk. While it was always fun to make fun of Kaminari, he tended to calm down when people started making jokes. He was good natured like that. She could already see him giving her an evil glare.
So that was a good sign.
In that moment, the announcer suddenly cracked into life, as it had done a few minutes ago to announce Todoroki and Yaoyarozu's victory. Another tram had passed, and so early in the exams too. "Team Bakugou and Midoriya have passed the examination!"
"Wait, what?!" Mina's eyes nearly shot right out of their respective sockets at that announcement as she yelled back at the inanimate object like it had just lied to her. Izuku and Bakugou had taken down All Might?! Izuku and Bakugou?! They'd taken down an absolute monster like All Might?! It was impossible to decide which prospect surprised the girl more - The idea that her boyfriend and his bastard of a childhood friend had managed to work together, or that they'd taken down the absolute clobbering, Villain beating, Quirk stomping badassery that was All Might!
She knew that Izuku was good, but damn!
"Damn, Midoriya and Bakugou really get stuff done." Commented Kaminari, clearly as surprised at the announcement as his teammate was. He was more than aware of the relationship between the two, and was clearly as shocked that Bakugou had managed to put aside his clear distaste for Izuku to actually get the job done. "If Bakugou would chill for ten seconds, those two would actually make one hell of a duo."
"Good luck with that." Mina muttered bitterly. While she was happy Izuku had passed... She was less happy that he'd no doubt gone the extra mile to help out the person who had treated him like dirt had also passed. She knew if Izuku was going to get through this exam, Bakugou also would by extension. It was inevitable if they'd been paired together, but still, that didn't mean she had to be thrilled for the blond jerk. She tapped Kaminari's shoulder to get his full attention away from the speakers. "C'mon, before we get attacked again by that wrecking ball."
They had spent way too much time in the same area already. Any longer and they'd probably just get crushed by whatever Nedzu was operating at the time. God knew what that would be.
When she failed the examination, she felt like she'd been slammed in the gut by an iron pipe. To describe it was an impossibility. It wasn't possible to tell if she was more angry or more upset with herself for failing. After having trained for so, so long and trying her absolute best whenever she could, she had still failed. All those study sessions with Yaoyarozu now just felt totally pointless, all the work that she'd done with Izuku, completely wasted.
Izuku was another reason for her upset. If he was a man of his word, which Mina knew for an absolute fact he was, then he wasn't going to go on the school trip either, and that felt like a truly sharp jab to the heart for her.
She'd been the one to say that she was more likely to achieve victory than Izuku was, and she still maintained that her logic had been solid… But she'd been wrong. Nedzu had utterly crushed her and Kaminari. Whenever they got close to where he was, he'd scurried away and found a new way to mess with them. It had felt like a game of cat and mouse, except the mouse had superhuman intelligence and was trying to drop a building on them. It had almost felt unfair.
But because of her saying that she'd be more likely to pass than Izuku… She'd prompted him to say the same thing. Barely even prompted – She knew that he'd probably say something like that… But she hadn't honestly expected Izuku to even come close to beating All Might. She believed in him, of course, more than she'd ever believed in anyone in her life… But this was All Might they were talking about.
There was a difference between believing in her boyfriend, and flat out delusion.
And yet, he'd proved her wrong, yet again. It was practically a tradition at this point, for him to surpass expectations and leave everyone around him completely stunned by what he could do. By her tally, he'd done it about seven times now. Who knew what he'd be capable of when they graduated.
But still, she had said that she wouldn't go on the trip without him without thinking… And he'd said the same. He was going to honour that promise, she knew that he was going to.
So he wasn't going on the trip either. Because of her.
That was what made it feel all the more upsetting. She felt like she'd failed not just herself, but him as well.
While she knew that this was all to be expected on the road to becoming a Hero, failures and setbacks… That didn't make it any less fun. Just because she knew that, even if she became a sidekick or a Pro, that she was going to fail for certain sometimes, that didn't make the thought any more appealing.
In this case, she just felt awful that it had to be one of these times that she'd had to fail.
As per her instructions, once she had left the testing groups, she returned to the changing rooms and stripped out of her Hero costume and placing it back where it belonged, and then returning to her school attire. Once she'd done that, she sombrely grabbed hold of her suitcase and left the female dressing room. The group of failures, Kaminari, Kirishama and Sato had waited for her, which she thanked them for, and they all headed back up to the classroom together.
None of them said a word on the way though, contemplating their various mistakes and failures throughout the day. Nothing more needed to be said about any of them in all honesty. Typically, they were characterised as the cheerful and energetic bunch. Now they all felt utterly downtrodden.
Mina in particular. And it didn't go unnoticed. Just before they wound up reaching the door to room 1-A, Kirishima tapped on the Acid Quirk users shoulder to grab her attention. "Ashido, you doing okay? You look like you're taking this harder than the rest of us put together."
"Oh?" Mina looked over at her friend, before she quickly sniffled and answered in a more neutral tone than she normally would answer any given question in. "Oh… Yeah, I'm okay… Just really disappointed, you know?..."
"You look like you're about to start crying." As the Hardening Quirk use spoke, Sato and Kaminari gave the two of them a short glance, before passing by the two of them, and making their way into their classroom. The noise and multiple questions could be heard as soon as their other, successful classmates.
Once the noised was dulled after Sato shut the door, and Kirishima used the opportunity to press his questions a bit more.
"I know you wanted to go on that trip – I sure did, but you look way more upset than just that. I know it sucks, but it's not the end of the world you know."
He was trying to be nice and to help her feel better. Mina knew that, and she did appreciate it. Kirishima was a good guy, easily able to get along with pretty much anyone. He was a great friend to have, and it was obvious to anyone who had earned his friendship that he was someone that you could easily confide in.
"… It's about Izuku, that's all." She admitted.
Though Kirishima was just as aware as the rest of their classmates about her and Izuku's relationship, he knew nothing about the little promise both of them had made before actually taking the examinations. He was confused by how Mina's boyfriend had anything to do with her upset. His scarred eye widened slightly as he quirked up an eyebrow in curiosity. "Midoriya? What about him?"
With a small sigh, Mina explained everything to Kirishima, whom stood there with his arms folded, and listened patiently to what she had to say. "We… Before we actually took the test… I thought I'd be more likely to pass the test than Izuku was. I mean, he had to fight All Might, yeah, and I just had the Headmaster. I mean, his Quirk is cool and all… But compared to All Might, I didn't think he was that tough."
"I didn't either, but he's gotta be the headmaster of Yuuei for a reason." Kirishima agreed with Mina, not faulting her for her logic, nodding his head as he spoke to signal his agreement. "What about it?"
"Well…. I… Said that I didn't wanna go on the trip if Izuku didn't get to go as well. And I didn't. Don't. Whatever. It wouldn't be any fun without him. And he said the same thing…"
"Ah. I got it." The red haired boy realized where this was all coming from. Guilt, a feeling that she'd let down her boyfriend. Almost like she'd totally let him down. From how she had put it, it sounded like she had been totally confident in passing the exam. She probably hadn't been, but it wasn't hard to see how she'd come to this conclusion.
A Strength Enhancement Quirk that obliterated as much as All Might's did against an Intelligence Enhancer… Of course Mina would have thought that she'd have the Quirk matchup advantage. Compared to Izuku and Bakugou, practically everyone had been assigned to a teacher to whom they had a Quirk matchup advantage.
The fact Izuku and Bakugou had passed their test when dealing with All Might, while Mina had lost against a comparatively easier opponent… It was no wonder that she felt that she'd let him down. And because of that, Izuku was going to refuse to go on the trip, even though he'd been looking forward to it as much as everyone else had. But...
While she might not see it that way… Kirishima thought it said a lot of good about Izuku.
"...I dunno. I think that's pretty freakin' manly of Midoriya." He said, catching the attention of the upset girl in front of him.
"Huh? What's that supposed to mean?"
"The guy's prepared to stay here just cause you're not gonna get to go on the trip, isn't he? That's what you agreed on? If he stands by that, that says a ton about the guy's loyalty. You saw how much he wanted to go on the trip, but he's prepared to give it up just because he promised you that he wasn't gonna go if you couldn't. It says a lot about him, don't you think?"
Before Mina could even say anything in response, the two of them suddenly found themselves interrupted by the sound of the classroom door quickly sliding open, almost sounding like it was going to snap into a thousand pieces. A crisp slam echoed in the air for a few seconds, before a figure revealed itself from within the classroom.
"Mina!" Izuku's head was turned in the wrong direction for a second, before he rotated to the correct way and saw his clearly distraught girlfriend and Kirishima stood by her. For another short second, Izuku just looked towards her, like he couldn't quite believe that she was actually there.
When he finally reacted to seeing her, he practically ran out of the classroom and made his way rapidly over towards her. Behind him came a few peeking faces whom belonged to people Mina couldn't quite make out at the exact distance. Kirishima seemed to step back a couple of steps, unsure of what was going on, but feeling that he should move out of the way all the same.
Unsure of what else she really could do in this situation, and of what was currently going on, Mina could only think to apologise before her boyfriend reached her within the next three seconds. "Izuku, I'm - "
The second that she was in range though, which was about three seconds sooner than Mina had expected, Izuku threw both of his arms tightly around her, and pulled her into the biggest, tightest hug that she'd ever received from anyone in her entire life. With one hand at the small in her back, and another around the area her shoulder blades were located, Mina was instantly pulled into a warm, comfortable embrace, to which she hadn't been expecting. Her head was pulled onto Izuku's shoulder, causing her to stare up at the ceiling at a slight angle due to their height difference. Her eyes went wide like dustbin lids, and for a moment, she didn't react, allowing her arms to remain limp.
Was this how Izuku felt when he was pulled into one of her many, many unexpected hugs? A combination of fluffy warmness in her stomach, uncertainty and comfort all mixed together into one emotion that Mina hadn't been prepared for. Her sudden close proximity to her boyfriend wasn't unpleasant by any means. It never was, but there was something different about this embrace. For a short while, there was just silence, no words being exchanged between the two, or anyone who was watching them for that matter.
Seeing such a bold display of affection from Izuku had thrown everyone off guard instantly. Even if it was totally justified, Izuku tended to keep his emotions to himself unless the situation was really, really dire, was in complete and utter shock or caught off guard. No one had ever seen him get angry before, and considering everything that happened to him, he had more right than anyone to be. The only emotions he ever really showed were anxiety, worry or happiness, depending on the situation. Anything else was foreign to see from him.
Judging by the tears that Mina could now feel that ran from his eyes onto her skin, this was one of those times where he wasn't holding back what he felt. Or at least, he felt like this one of those times that he shouldn't.
"I-Izuku?"
"I saw... In Recovery Girl's tent, I saw your entire match..." The green haired boy explained, and Mina could feel his grip on her becoming tighter as he held her closer. He was actually shaking, and she could feel his hands trembling as he clung onto her. He'd watched it all, every swing, every attack, every time a chunk of concrete had nearly broken one of her bones... He'd watched all of it.
He had been glued to her fight, and had come close to breaking the table the monitors rested on from gripping hold of it too hard. It had been like a nightmare to him. Seeing someone he cared about - Someone he loved dearly - being attacked, and him powerless to do anything about it. He knew nothing of if Nedzu was actually trying to hurt them, or if they just expected Recovery Girl to heal them if something bad happened... But all the same, just watching it all happen and being unable to do anything to stop it was just... Painful.
It was a reminder... Of why he wanted to be a Hero. To help people in trouble... And to protect people he cared about. People like Mina...
Now that she was here, okay... The tears had just flown, released from his overactive ducts without him even knowing that they'd been there. "I saw... I... I'm... So... So glad you're okay..." His hold onto her seemed to just grow tighter and tighter, like he was trying to stop her from just disappearing into nothingness.
For a short moment, Mina just stood there, and allowed this to happen. For the first time in a while, she was completely taken aback by Izuku. Whoever was watching them right now hadn't moved an inch, curious about what was going on, evidentially. The world was frozen, unmoving, except for Izuku, his tight hold, and his warm, ragged and uneven breath hitting one side of Mina's face periodically, broken up by sharp stops and then equally sudden exhales, like he was shuddering.
He'd been this worried?...
Closing her eyes, Mina finally returned the hug as tight as she could, allowing Izuku to hold onto her all that he needed to. Her own hold on him provided the comfort that he'd clearly needed regarding the whole affair, and gave Mina the comfort that she needed too. "Sorry... I kinda failed the physical..."
"I'm just happy you're okay..." Izuku assured her, keeping her close to him and refusing to let go.
To their side, Kirishima allowed himself to smile. He reached down for the suitcase Mina had dropped when Izuku has collided into hugging her, and made his way into the classroom with it. As he entered the room, the other people whom had been peering from around the corner, now revealed to be Sero, Hagakure and Uraraka, seemed to also slide back into the room, sensing that this was a deeply personal moment that none of them seemed to want to interrupt.
The revelation that all students, regardless of if they passed or failed was certainly an...
Interesting one. The more that the students stayed in the class, the more they were becoming absolutely convinced that Aizawa-sensei wasn't actually as logic-driven as he liked to suggest, but more that he just liked to mess with his students. He certainly seemed to get a lot of enjoyment out of doing so. It was one of the only times he ever smiled or laughed.
Still, it had brought a hell of a lot of joy to those who had failed - Of whom Sero had now joined the ranks of due to his lacklustre performance, which translated to the fact Mineta had basically won their match for them since the Tape Quirk user was asleep for the entirety of it - As it was news that they were actually allowed to go on the trip!
...With the fact that they had to do extra work while they were there. As in, a lot of extra work. More than they would have had to if they had just opted to stay at the school in the first place. Still, beggars didn't get to be choosers, Mina thought to herself, and she just thanked whatever Gods existed that she was even allowed to go on the trip in the first place. That solved so many issues that she'd been worried and upset about that it was a completely worthwhile trade.
She and Izuku had shot each other a happy smile when it that was all revealed.
Once they had all been dismissed, Mina had practically leaped up and tackled him with a hug all of her own, all while laughing with very clear joy.
"If you two get any sweeter, you'll end up giving us all rotten teeth." Hagakure joked, skipping past the two of them to join the group gathering that was taking place just to the side of them. If she'd been visible, the young couple would have seen a smile on her face the size of a hand.
"Shush, Torru. Lemme hug him." Mina smiled, keeping her arms tightly wrapped around her boyfriend.
The majority of the class gathered around, celebrating the fact they all had a trip to look forward to going on together. Some of the students like Bakugou and Todoroki on the other hand, hung away like they usually did. On the outskirts of the conversation, Ojiro swung his bag over his shoulder and made his way over to the group. "Well, everything equal, I'm really glad we all get to go on the trip."
"Hah, this is gonna be awesome!" Kirishima declared, showing off his sharpened teeth along with his grin.
"The amount of work we're gonna have to do isn't..." Sero commented dejectedly. Despite passing the written examination, and his team passing the physical, his lack of doing anything of merit in the physical had failed him. He seemed far more depressed than the ones who had just straight up failed.
"Don't remind me." The condition was a fair trade and a completely worthwhile exchange, but that didn't mean that Mina had to be happy about having to do so much additional academia. She wasn't looking forward to that at all.
It had been at the suggestion of Hagakure that the entire class head on over to a shopping mall in Kiyashi together to purchase the equipment that they all needed as they all had varying Quirks which gave them all different physical features, for a lot of them, this could be an all-day thing, having to head to a hundred different stores, put in special requests and see if they had anything already in stock that they could use. Frankly, it could be a tedious trek of total boredom, combined only with the frustration that came with not actually succeeding that came for many people when they learned they'd wasted their entire day as not a single store had what they were looking for .
So the idea of going in a large group with classmates was one that quite a few members of 1-A were totally on board with.
Being Quirkless since birth, Izuku hadn't ever run into that sort of an issue. Excluding the natural black highlights in his hair, he had no major physical features to speak of like someone such as Ida or Shoji did. So actually acquiring the gear he needed wouldn't be that big of an issue for someone like him. That aside though, he did enjoy the idea of going out with a large group of friends to see what they could get their hands on. Again, due to being bullied because to his Quirkless origins, he'd never really gotten the opportunity to do something like that before.
And of course, Mina had been totally for it without question, signing both herself and Izuku up before he'd even fully registered what Hagakure was suggesting. When he finally did register, he threw his name down for the idea anyway.
There sheer variety of shops in the mall that had been chosen was staggering to Izuku, with hundreds, if not thousands of people all going about their various daily businesses, between going to work, to weekend window shopping, to patrolling Heroes or people just out for a walk. And the stores all sold a thousand things each, from various weightlifting equipment to specialist clothing to everything in between. Specialist stores owned by people who came from support courses like Yuuei's advertised their wares, calling over people of all manner of shapes and sizes.
Many people recognised the students from the famous Hero Academy, some even approaching their favourite students and asking for autographs, and in a few cases, a demonstration of their Quirk, which had to be declined because of the laws. Ever since the sports festival, they were treated like miniature celebrities. Izuku still got people congratulating him, patting him in the back and treating him like he was special on his morning commute to the school, and he was the one of the class that was easy to miss. Mina got that sort of treatment every time she stepped out of the house.
In short, the place was a chaotic building of business as usual.
With the exceptions of Bakugou, who straight up said that he couldn't be bothered with going shopping, and Todoroki, whom visited his mother in the hospital on his free days, the entirety of Class 1-A stood just inside the entrance, glancing around and checking with one another on what exactly they all wanted to grab hold of.
"I need to get hold of some jackets with hoods that'll work with my horns." Mina said, tapping her left extremity. She'd wrapped what looked like a bracelet around it, one that had lots of spherical beads hooked through it, all varying in size. "I'm getting kinda sick of not having any proper ones."
"You don't already have some?" Izuku questioned, finding this fact a little odd. Mina was close to sixteen, and she hadn't acquired some hoodies or jackets that had her horns taken into consideration? That didn't sound right at all.
"Dude, have you seen how expensive they are?" Questioned the pink girl. "You have to pay for design and labour on top of what the normal price would be. I've just been using ones that have really big hoods that'll go over them. I got some cash from my folks so I can buy stuff for the trip, you better believe that I'm gonna actually use it and get some stuff custom made!" She paused. "How 'bout you? What're you getting?"
"Uh… Mostly fitness equipment, I think..." Izuku said, thinking to himself what it was that he really needed. "I want to get some heavier wrist weights... Just stuff to help fine-tune my Quirk."
"I dunno..." Smirked the slightly younger girl. "Your muscles look pretty damn fine to me already." She counted down in her head from three, and suddenly Izuku was a blushing mess, covering up quickly increasing scarlet skin cells, just as planned. She'd been waiting way too long for a good opportunity to use that line.
It had been totally worth it.
"Alright!" Kirishima clapped his hands together, catching the attention of everyone around him. "Since everyone's got different ideas on what they wanna get, should we just agree to meet back here at a certain time?"
Within seconds, the class had already darted off in all different directions at the suggestion, everyone going off in different directions and different groups to get different things that they needed. It almost looked like they'd been teleported with how quickly they'd gone after the time was arranged, some heading off alone, and the majority going in groups.
Izuku on the other hand, was more dragged along by Mina, who was far too excited to get looking around to do what Izuku normally would do, which was browse and then select which stores he thought would be a good bet. Mina just dove right in, and this time, she was dragging Izuku along for the ride.
"C'mon, Izuku!" Mina chimed while she pulled him along by the hand, weaving in between various people and moving at a fast running pace. "There's a place just up here I've heard does awesome custom stuff!"
At this point, Izuku wasn't sure if her endless enthusiasm and energy was something that he'd ever fully adjust to. She'd gotten used to her overall hyperactivity that she displayed on a regular basis, but he and her had way too big a difference in that regard for Izuku to ever think he'd fully adapt to it.
Not that it was a bad thing. It kind of felt like a date, something they didn't get a lot of time for these days, and since they wouldn't get as much free time together during the trip as they'd expected… Mina was probably thinking the same way, and wanted to make the most of the time that they did get.
Just like Izuku wanted to. So instead of letting himself get dragged for any longer, he picked up his feet and joined Mina at her running pace, deciding that they should enjoy themselves while they had the chance. Also returning the grip that she had around his hand, and intertwining their fingers, he shot her a wide grin when she looked at him in surprise, before returning her trademark grin right back at him again. Instead of trying to reel back her excitement, Izuku just decided to indulge in it this time, and meet her head on in what it was that she wanted to do.
"Aww, it's like you two are on a date and it's so damn cute! Kyaaa!"
A floating phone started taking photographs of the two that Izuku wasn't sure of the purpose of, or why Hagakure would even want images of him and Mina on her phone. She was a bubbly person who just did stuff sometimes because she felt like it. She saw something she thought was cute, she'd either impulse buy it, or she'd snap a photo of it.
He just wished she'd turn the flash off on her phone. He was now seeing dull lighting after-fade across his eyes every time he closed them.
After running around to various stores, where Mina had finally gotten some custom jackets that had holes in the tops that would secure around her horns, at which Mina had jumped up and down in the air in excitement for a few times, and Izuku hag gotten hold of some of the weights he'd been wanting, the two of them had run into Hagakure, Kaminari and Ida at another store when Hagakure had gotten sight of the young couple holding hands as they walked around the place, she'd apparently lost any sort of reservations that she normally had…. If she normally had any, anyway. It was hard to tell with her.
Whatever the reason for it, she seemed to start giggling like crazy after taking the photos, browsing through them on her phone right then and there. "Ah, ah, Ashido, come check out this one!"
As Mina bounced over towards her friend to look at the image Hagakure wanted her to see, Izuku inspected the list that they had been given, mentally ticking off the things that he was going to need that he already had. In truth, there wasn't a huge amount of gear that he needed, since he had most of it at home, so he was mostly here for stuff he felt would be of additional benefit to him.
Outdoor boots, large bags, standard outing equipment, it all was in a room back home somewhere, so it wasn't going to be that difficult to find. All he felt he needed was some Quirk refining tools and a few extra shirts for when the others inevitably got mucky.
Today though, it was utterly scorching, and Izuku felt a bead of sweat run down the side of his cheek. With all the running along with Mina he'd been doing, he hadn't actually had time to note just how parched he was. His throat felt dry like sand, and suddenly the only thing that he could think about was getting some refreshments to quench that thirst.
"Hey, Mina, I'm gonna grab a soda or something. You want one?" He called over, seeing that his girlfriend and her friend were looking through the clothing sections at this point, holding up cloths against themselves to get a vague idea on how they would look once they actually tried them on, or if they even wanted to bother trying them on at all. Izuku couldn't help but think that this had to be a far easier task for Hagakure – If she liked the look of a shirt and it fit, she could just buy it. She didn't need to worry about colour clash or anything else that fashionable people might worry about.
The pink skinned girl's ears seemed to perk when Izuku asked this question. "Oooh, Yeah, thanks!" Reaching into her shorts pockets, she produced several small metal coins and threw them Izuku's way. "I'll take something orange flavoured I they've got it! I'll wait here for you."
"Sounds good." Izuku nodded after he'd caught the coins firmly between both of his hands, fumbling with them for a second before smiling. "I'll be back soon."
With that, he left the store they were in, scanning around for vending machines, or a store that dealt with soft drinks and the likes, with a spring practically under his feet with every step. He was smiling a lot of the time today, as was Mina. He was in a fantastic mood and he didn't even know where to begin, but there were a lot of reasons for it. They were all going on a trip soon, and Mina got to go as well, even though she'd failed the test to do so, and he was here along with everyone at the Kiyashi ward mall…
When he stopped to think about it, his life had improved so, so much in these last few months. It had done an entire One-eighty ever since he'd met All Might, and totally changed for the better the moment he was accepted into Yuuei.
He now had a Quirk, the power to follow his dreams. He'd made friends and was learning how to be a Hero.
And everything had improved so drastically ever since he met Mina. No matter how hard he tried to think of other reasons why, the source of his happiness was largely thanks to Mina. They'd only been together for a few of months when he actually stopped to think about it, but he felt like she'd always been there with him.
The amount of love he felt for her was just immeasurable. It really was… Though he could still do without her constant attempts at embarrassing him. She left him flustered most of the time anyway, she really didn't need to try any harder at it.
Thinking of that… His mind returned to a thought that he'd had a few days ago, one that had a conclusion to it that he hadn't really lingered on… Or particularly wanted to linger on.
The fact that, despite how deeply he did love Mina… He'd never actually said it to her.
He'd never had a girlfriend, or even a crush that he had been completely and utterly serious about before. Even when he'd had a crush on Uraraka, he'd never really thought much about what dating someone would fully entail. He'd always assumed that, if it ever happened, that it would just come naturally to him. And to an extent, he had been right, he'd gone on dates now, he'd experienced his first kiss, and many more after that, and learned to just enjoy the here and now along with the person he liked instead of thinking to the distant future like he always did.
The difference between the two of them though, aside from the other thousand things from personality to physical features… Was that Mina wasn't afraid to let Izuku know how she felt about him. She was very open with her feelings and displayed constant affection, in public and in private. She was very willing to let people around her know that they were dating, almost like she was bragging in a certain sense of the word, though Izuku didn't know if that was the case, or if she was just excitable.
Izuku on the other hand…
He'd been reserved for years, and it had practically been conditioned into him from his Quirkless days. Keep quiet, don't speak out of turn, and don't stand out. As he'd grown older, he'd forgone those a bit when it came to his dream of becoming a Hero, but overall he just tried to stay out of trouble, and he didn't fight or stand up for himself. Basically, he was used to keeping his emotions to himself…
And he hadn't managed to shake that particular shackle yet. As he'd grown, he'd always believed that if he expressed himself too much, someone, somewhere would come crashing down to knock him down a peg. Now he was in Yuuei, he was getting that particular idea out of his head… But there was still a certain level or fear within him.
The days to being back in middle school rushed into his head when he thought about expressing how he felt about Mina to her. It was the same as when he expressed to his classmates who had Quirks about his dream of being a Hero.
Ridicule. Shame. Neglect and rejection overall.
In his brain, he knew he was being totally ridiculous. Mina wasn't anything like the people he want to middle school with. She had a dislike for Bakugou, the only other person she knew he went to middle school with. Mina clearly loved him, and even he wasn't able to deny that, no matter how absurd it did seem to him. He knew that he was valued to her.
But the irrational part of his brain just refused to let go. That if he ever said the he loved her, she'd change her mind about him like a switch, and that would be the end of these times where he actually felt like he was alive.
…Yet in his head at this exact moment, those thoughts were silent. Like they knew they couldn't push Izuku away from saying these things to his girlfriend for much longer, because she was too damn good at putting them to rest when she was around that they were just getting weaker and tired from trying to stop him.
He was in such a good mood, and his brain was freed from doubts…
A bigger smile made its way onto his face. He was going to tell her. He'd grab these drinks, take one back to her, and when the two of them separated from the others, he'd explain all of this to her and say three simple words that expressed every complex and confusing thing he felt about her.
'I love you.'
After searching for a few moments, he spotted a vending machine not too far away from the store he'd left, miraculously without a line the size of a truck to wait for usage of the thing. It didn't take him particularly long to head over and use the coins Mina gave him for her drink, and several for his own. He would have paid for Mina's himself, but she'd already thrown them over to him, so he might as well use them. About sixty seconds later, he was walking back with two soft drinks, one orange flavoured and the other lemon flavoured.
"No way! You're one of them Yuuei kids, right? Awesome! Hey, you gotta gimme an autograph or somethin'!" From behind him as he thought these things, a person, probably a few years older than him, seemed to call out for Izuku.
"Huh?" As an automatic response, Izuku's head turned slightly to get a better look at the person who was calling out towards him. He only saw the colours of a black jacket and equally black jeans before he suddenly found himself with an arm wrapped around the back of his neck, which knocked his head forward slightly. "Ooof!"
"Ain't you the kid who got smashed up at the Sports festival?"
"Aaghh… Yes… That's me…" Izuku managed to sputter out. Whoever this person was, they certainly didn't hold back and didn't have respect for the concept of personal space, though Izuku didn't mind too much. He was a student at Yuuei. A year ago, he'd probably have done the same thing, albeit far more timidly. He was really being watched by all sorts of people. It reminded him that his school truly was incredible.
He was in the next generation of Heroes. Of course people would be watching him – He was now one of the people he'd watched for over a decade now.
"Weren't you at Hosu when Stain was cuttin' people up? You're freakin cool!"
"Thank you….?" Izuku had to chuckle lightly. He was trying to be polite…. But this was weird.
Something didn't feel right about this situation. Something felt… Off. Ominous. Like there was some sort of primal sense he was experience that was implying danger…. That he should be getting away from this person while he still had the chance.
"I'm surprised! To meet you again, some place like this!"
Izuku's eyes widened. Again? It suddenly clicked, and he dared to look slightly up at this person, who had now come closer towards him.
"I think this must be destiny, or fate, or something like that, don't you think? Something like that…" As he spoke, Izuku quickly felt that his throat was being wrapped around by a hand, fingers digging into his skin, with the exclusion of the middle finger, which hovered just above his skin.
It couldn't be…
"I suppose… The last time you saw me though… Was back during the Yuuei Invasion"
Wrinkled skin that was pale, like it had barely ever seen sunlight, couples with small, focused red eyes that almost looked dead, like they were disillusioned with the very existence of the world itself. They almost seemed sharp and dull at the same time. The smallest of cars was underneath his right eye, and the left side of his lips. Pale blue hair that looked like it hadn't been washed in weeks fell in front of his face, leaving gaps so these eyes could glare towards Izuku.
"Why don't you and I go have some tea… Midoriya Izuku?"
Shigaraki Tomura. The acting leader of the League of Villains… The person who lead the attack on the USJ… The person who had the goal to kill All Might… The person who had nearly killed Izuku the last time they'd run into one another.
He was here. And he had Izuku literally in his grasp.
Izuku's mind was racing, suddenly trying to come up with a thousand escape strategies or reasons why Shigaraki would even be here, or what it was that he wanted. He could already feel sweat running down his forehead, his teeth gritting automatically. What the hell was going on?
Was the Kiyashi ward about to come under Villain attack? Was he about to be used as a hostage by this Villain to get some sort of way to attract All Might toward him? Or was he just absolutely insane, as was just going to kill Izuku because he happened to run into him.
"You know… You're a real pain." Shigaraki commented, looking straight forward. His eyes laid rest on the store Izuku had just been in, where Mina presumably still was inside, along with Hagakure, Kaminari and Ida. Were they all okay, Izuku wondered, feeling his heartbeat race increase exceptionally quickly. "I've had to trail you for hours now… You just wouldn't stay still…"
He'd been following them? Izuku shuddered.
"Don't move. Don't panic. Calm down and control your breathing… We're just old friends meeting up for the first time in a long while. Act like it." How the hell was he supposed to not panic in this situation?! "I just want to have a little talk. That's alright, isn't it? Don't even think about making a scene… And before you think up any clever tricks, you ask what will happen if you don't play along?..."
From his other hand, the insane villain held an expensive looking watch of some kind in his palm for Izuku to clearly see. In a flash, all of his fingers rested upon the metallic surface, and it began to crumble into nothingness. The implication was clear.
No one else had seen it. Shigaraki had made sure of that. "My Quirk lets me disintegrate anything I want the second all my fingers touch something… And since only one of my fingers isn't currently wrapped around your neck… Use your imagination." He then lowered his vice, as if to contradict his instruction. "It won't take less than sixty seconds for you to be a pile of dust in the wind."
"I-if you do…. A Hero from the crowd…. T-They'll catch you." Izuku managed to force out, fully understanding that he was on a very, very dangerous rope here.
"Of course….But look. There isn't a single person here who would use their Quirk as a weapon… they all trust that no one would do something like that…" Shigaraki seemed to have a wrinkly grin on his face, a sight which, frankly, terrified Izuku. "You know… I could probably kill about twenty… Or thirty of them…"
Internally, Izuku swore.
"Hell, I could probably get that girlfriend of yours if I wanted to…"
On impulse, Izuku suddenly forgot about his position, and shifted his neck around to glare at Shigaraki right in the eye, with uncharacteristic anger. Though he certainly caught the Villain off guard, he didn't make the move to kill Izuku, rather, he seemed to wait for his reaction. Izuku wasn't even aware that he was doing so, but when he met the Villain glare, he spoke boldly and threateningly.
"If you lay a hand on her, I'll fucking kill you!"
For a short while, the two stared at one another, Izuku frankly in disbelief that he'd even spoken so boldly… Yet he stood by it.
"Not a good idea to reveal your weakness to the enemy… Is it 'Hero'?"
When he realized what he'd just essentially done, Izuku knew he'd lost. Defeated, and knowing he'd accidentally put Mina in even more danger, he resigned himself, returning to facing forward, his head slightly slumped forward, cursing himself for talking before he'd thought about this properly. He hated the fact he couldn't do anything… All he could do was do whatever it took to make sure that Shigaraki didn't hurt anyone else.
Even if it meant he got himself killed.
"… What… Do you want to talk about?.."
"That's the spirit…" Shigaraki grinned, before tugging on Izuku's neck, pulling him towards a set of benches. "You're being a good sport here… Let's go sit down. That way we can talk comfortably… Relaxed."