Jun was in the kitchen going through his usual meal prep, Himiko beside him as she added healthier ingredients here and there to his box.
She keeps adding things. She's helping. I shouldn't be too hard on her.
He heard the front door open before his dad called from the entranceway, "Jun, Himiko, there's mail for you."
Jun and Himiko looked at each other before quickly wiping their hands.
"Was that today?" Himiko asked.
"Yeah. It's been a week."
They nervously hurried toward the entranceway as his dad slipped into his slippers and held out two envelopes. "This one's yours, Jun." He passed the other envelope to Himiko. "And this one's for you."
Jun held his envelope and looked at Himiko. She stared at hers a little longer, then looked over at him.
"Should we open them together?" Jun asked.
"No, no, no. I think you should open yours first."
Jun nodded, took a deep breath, and slowly carried the envelope into the living room, with Himiko and his dad following behind him. Jun sat down on the couch with Himiko beside him while his dad settled into the recliner across from them.
He took another deep breath and opened the envelope.
A hologram burst to life in front of them.
Jun dropped the envelope onto the table, already expecting it.
"I am here… as a projection!"
All Might appeared before them.
Himiko gasped, and his dad immediately straightened in his recliner.
Even as a projection, everyone respects All Might, huh.
"You may be wondering why I am the one delivering this message! That is because I will be joining U.A. as a teacher during the coming school year!"
All Might turned his attention toward Jun. "Young Junya Mori!"
Jun straightened slightly.
"You entered the practical exam without knowing what awaited you, yet you adapted quickly! You and your duplicate worked together under pressure, using the battlefield itself to overcome the villains! And even while fighting, you never lost sight of the other applicants!"
All Might raised a hand. "Your performance against the villains earned you twenty-three villain points!"
A stylized red 23 appeared on the hologram beside All Might.
"But defeating villains was not the only thing being judged! A true hero must recognize when someone needs help and act!"
A stylized green 22 appeared beside the first score.
"Your actions earned you twenty-two rescue points, bringing your total score to forty-five!" Young Junya Mori, congratulations! You have been accepted into U.A.'s Hero Course!"*
The hologram shifted. "You will be joining Class 1-A!"
All Might's hologram blinked out.
His dad grinned broadly. "Congratulations, Jun."
Jun exhaled slowly. He turned toward Himiko. "Okay. Now it's your turn."
Himiko turned back to her envelope and gulped. She opened it. Light rose from the letter, forming another hologram above the table. Himiko quickly set the envelope down as Principal Nezu appeared.
"Good afternoon, young Himiko Toga. I am Principal Nezu of U.A. High School."
Nezu folded his paws in front of him. "We have completed our review of your entrance examination. Your performance on the written examination was quite strong. Your practical score, however, did not meet the standard required for admission into the Hero Course."
A stylized red 9 appeared beside him.
"You earned nine villain points. Unfortunately, the practical examination gave your Quirk very little opportunity to show what it could do."
"While you have not qualified for the Hero Course, U.A. would like to offer you placement in General Studies." "Once you confirm your acceptance and complete the required paperwork, a place will be waiting for you."
Nezu smiled. "What you do with that opportunity is up to you, young Himiko Toga."
The hologram blinked out.
Jun looked at Himiko. She was still staring at where the hologram had been, her expression frozen. He moved closer and pulled her against his shoulder.
Himiko stayed there, staring down at the letter on the table.
[Later That Day...]
Himiko decided to stay home while Jun went to the gym.
Jun arrived with his gym bag in hand. Kirishima spotted him, got up from the weight bench, and hurried over. "You got your letter?"
"Yeah."
Kirishima opened his mouth again, but Jun held up a hand. "No, no, no. Don't say it yet. I kind of want to get the group together so we can all reveal it at once."
Kirishima paused, then nodded. "Yeah, I guess that's a good idea. You better arrange it quickly before Mina starts spamming everyone in the group chat."
"Good point." Jun pulled out his phone and opened the chat.
[Junfun: Hey, guys. I'm guessing everyone got their letters? We should meet up soon.]
Mina responded almost immediately.
[PinkDancer: Yeah! I just got mine! I was about to text everyone!]
[Junfun: Mina, did you get Jiro's number or handle?]
[PinkDancer: Yeah? What do you need it for?]
[Junfun: We might as well add her to the group. We take the same train, so she has to live somewhere around here.]
[PinkDancer: On it!]
A moment later, another message appeared.
[Bassline has been added to the chat.]
[Bassline: Hello?]
[Junfun: Hey, this is Jun. Mina, Kirishima, and Himiko are in here too. We were wondering if you got your letter.]
[Bassline: Yeah.]
[Junfun: Cool. Do you want to meet up and have everyone reveal whether they got accepted?]
[Bassline: Sure. Where are you meeting?]
[Junfun: Me and Kirishima are working out right now, so how about a café this evening? Is that okay with everyone?]
[Bassline: 👍]
[PinkDancer: Yep!]
[Bloodqueen: Yeah, that's fine.]
[Junfun: Then I'll send the location. Meet around five?]
[Junfun shared a location.]
Jun lowered his phone.
Kirishima looked at him. "Man, you added her to the group pretty quickly."
Jun shrugged. "She's basically a friend already. Imagine if she passed too. That's another friend we might have at U.A."
Kirishima studied him for a moment. "You're manly, Jun, but your relationships are complicated."
Jun scrunched up his face and looked at him. "What?"
Kirishima rolled his eyes and waved him off. "Anyway, let's pump some iron, man."
Jun shook his head and headed into the locker room to get ready for the workout.
[That Evening...]
Jun and Kirishima walked into the café, freshly showered after their workout.
Mina immediately jumped up and waved them over. Jiro glanced at Mina before looking toward the entrance.
Himiko looked over at Jun and gave him a strained smile.
Jun sat down with the others. "Well, hello, everyone."
"Hey!"
"Hey."
"Hi."
Jun looked around the table. "So, who wants to go first?"
Mina's hand shot up. "I'll go first." She lifted her head and preened. "I got accepted into the Hero Course. Class 1-A."
Everyone clapped for her.
Mina beamed. "Yep. Go on, continue praising me."
Kirishima pumped his fist. "Hell yeah! Looks like we got another one."
Mina looked toward him. "Oh, you got in too?"
Kirishima gave her a cocky side grin as he flexed his arm. "Looks like U.A. recognized this man's manliness. According to the results, I placed second in the practical exam."
Jiro raised an eyebrow. "Damn, that's actually pretty impressive."
Jun reached over and patted Kirishima on the shoulder. "Hell yeah, man."
Kirishima's grin widened. "Once I started training with this guy…" He bumped his fist against Jun's shoulder. "…those little bots were nothing."
Jiro nodded. "Well, I guess I'll go next." "I also got into the Hero Course."
Mina perked up. "1-A?"
Jiro gave a calm nod. "1-A."
The attention shifted toward Jun and Himiko.
Jun smiled. "Well, it looks like I'll be joining everyone here in Class 1-A."
They clapped for Jun, with Mina and Kirishima louder than the others.
Then everyone turned toward Himiko.
Jun placed his hand over hers on the table.
"I…" Himiko looked toward him and gave him a slight smile before looking back at the others. "I got accepted into U.A., but I'm being placed in General Studies instead of the Hero Course."
Mina stared at her. "What? No, seriously?"
She opened her mouth again, but Himiko raised a hand.
"No, it's fine. You all know my Quirk."
Jiro tilted her head. "Actually, I don't."
"Well, Himiko…" Mina looked toward her.
Himiko gave her a small nod.
"…can turn into other people by drinking their blood."
Jiro looked back at Himiko.
Himiko gave her a wide smile, showing off her sharp fangs.
"Yeah," Jiro said. "I can see it."
Jun chuckled at the exchange, glad to see Jiro react to Himiko's Quirk without any prejudice.
Kirishima crossed his arms. "Still, not getting into the Hero Course sucks."
Himiko shrugged. "At least I'm going to U.A. with all of you. It's not like you guys won't see me."
The others nodded.
Becoming a hero was never really the point for her. She wanted somewhere her Quirk wouldn't isolate her.General Studies still gives her that. And if she decides she wants more later, we can work toward it.
The conversation shifted toward U.A. Jiro started speaking up more, drawn in by Mina's energy and the easy back-and-forth around the table.
Jun eventually set his drink down and wiped his mouth. "You know, we should celebrate. We all got into U.A., right?"
Mina clapped her hands. "We could totally do karaoke!"
Jiro perked up. "Karaoke? I've actually been looking into a place."
That was enough to win everyone over.
As they started getting ready to leave, Jun stood up. "I've got this." He headed toward the counter to pay the bill.
Jiro watched him go. "Does he always do that?"
Mina nodded. "You'll get used to it."
When Jun came back from paying the bill, everyone was already on their feet. They followed Jiro out of the café and toward the karaoke place she had recommended.
Jun walked near the center of the group, Mina talking excitedly with Kirishima beside him. The conversation about U.A. continued as one of Jiro's earphone jacks tapped lightly against the phone in her hand.
Mina looked toward the jack-shaped ends hanging from Jiro's earlobes. "Are those part of your Quirk?"
Jiro's earphone jacks curled upward as she showed them off. "Yeah. They're how my Quirk manifested. Pretty cool, huh?"
Everyone nodded.
Jiro looked between them. "What about you guys?"
Mina held up one finger. A small drop of acid formed at the tip before falling into her other palm. "Acid."
Kirishima hardened both arms and flexed. "I become the wall!"
Jiro looked toward Jun.
Jun gave a small shrug. "Eh." He held out his arm, and #1 formed beside him.
#1 looked toward Jiro and gave a small wave. "Hello."
Jiro blinked. "You can make a second one of yourself?"
"Yep," both Juns said.
Kirishima pumped his fist. "Double the manliness, double the power!"
Jiro looked between the two of them. "That's pretty useful."
#1 gave a small nod. "Okay. I'm going back in." He reached over and touched Jun's arm before folding back into him.
Jun rolled his shoulders.
Jiro watched him. "How does that feel?"
Jun tilted his head slightly. "It's like remembering something you forgot, or having a thought suddenly introduced into your head. Then you're just like, 'Oh yeah. I did that.'"
"Okay, that's pretty cool."
They arrived at the karaoke place a moment later.
Jiro looked toward the others. "So, who's paying for this one?"
"Well, I can take it if no one else wants to," Jun said.
"Nah. We should probably split this one, right?"
Jun shrugged.
"Yeah," Mina said. "I've been saving my allowance ever since Jun started paying for everything."
Jun smiled at her. "At least you're saving."
Jiro laughed, and Himiko chuckled along with her as the group headed inside.
They split the cost, rented a room, and followed an employee down the hall.
The booth wrapped around the central table as everyone scooted in. Himiko sat beside Jun, Mina settled on his other side, and Kirishima took the seat beside her.
Jiro remained standing at the karaoke screen, tapping through the available songs. "Well," Jiro said, "I'll be going first."
Jun looked toward her. "Oh, are you gonna show me that band you were talking about?"
Jiro hesitated. "I don't know. It's not really everyone's jam."
"No, no, go for it!" Mina said. "We should totally listen to it. It's the band you listen to a lot, right?"
"Enough to buy their merch," Jun added.
Jiro smiled. "And enough to know their songs by heart." She quickly scrolled through the karaoke list before selecting one of the band's songs.
The music started. Jiro barely looked at the lyrics as she began to sing. Her voice came out clear and strong, easily carrying over the music.
The others quickly went quiet. By the time she reached the final chorus, Mina was staring at her with wide eyes while Jun nodded along to the music.
The song ended, and everyone stood up and clapped.
"Whoa!" Mina said. "Your voice is insane!"
"Yeah," Jun agreed. "I'm surprised you're becoming a hero instead of an idol or a pop star."
Jiro shrugged. "There's no rule saying you can't be both."
Jun nodded. "Yeah, that's true."
Jiro held out the microphone, and Kirishima quickly grabbed it. "Now it's my turn! I'm gonna show you guys a real manly song!"
Kirishima picked his song and started singing as soon as the music began. He sang loudly, flexing one arm while holding the microphone in the other. His voice cracked when he tried to hit one of the higher notes, but he kept going like nothing happened.
When the chorus came around, he pointed the microphone toward everyone else. "Come on! Sing it with me!"
The others joined in, some louder than others.
Mina went next. She spent almost as much time dancing as she did singing, bouncing around the open space in front of the booth. Whenever the chorus came around, she pointed the microphone toward someone until they joined her.
Himiko chose a slower song. Within the first few lines, the room quieted. Even Mina sat back down as everyone listened.
When the song ended, the room remained quiet for a moment before Jun started clapping. The others quickly joined him.
"Good job," Jun said as Himiko handed him the microphone and sat back down beside him. "All right. Time to bring things back up." He selected a fast-paced rap song.
The beat started, and Jun immediately moved with it. He bounced lightly on his feet as the words came faster, one hand moving with the lyrics while he crossed the open space in front of the booth.
Kirishima pumped his fist along with the beat. "Go, Jun!"
Mina quickly got back onto her feet, dancing beside the table while Jun continued without losing his place.
He turned toward the others during the chorus, pointing at each of them as he moved with the rhythm.
By the time the song ended, Jun was breathing heavily, but he had a wide smile on his face. He walked back toward the booth and held the microphone out to Jiro.
Their fingers touched during the handoff. The familiar bond energy rushed up Jun's arm as Jiro took the microphone.
Jun smiled as he caught his breath. "Can you beat that?"
Jiro looked at him. "I don't know, Mr. Rapper. I thought you were going to do another rock song."
"After your performance, I didn't think I could," Jun said. "So I had to go with my next best."
They continued for a few more songs.
Mina eventually slumped forward against the table. "Ugh, my voice."
Kirishima coughed into his fist. "Man, my throat needs a workout. This is intense."
Jun took another sip of water. "I told you guys to order more water."
"Ugh," Mina repeated.
Jiro laughed.
Jun looked around the room. "Since everyone's complaining, I guess we're done for the night." He pulled out his phone and checked the time. "Yeah, we've been here for almost two hours. Plus the café." He slipped his phone away. "This was a pretty good hangout, but it's probably time to call it. Everyone's gotta get back to preparing for U.A., right?"
Mina groaned again.
Kirishima stretched his arms. "Yeah. After that intense workout today, I should probably take a rest day."
Himiko nodded. "Mm-hmm."
The others agreed and gathered their things. At the entrance, they began heading in different directions.
Jun turned back toward them. "Text the group chat when you get home. Just to make sure."
Mina rolled her eyes. "You worrywart."
"Will do, man," Kirishima said.
After saying their goodbyes, Jun and Himiko started walking home.
Himiko moved closer to his side. "That was pretty fun. You have some good friends, Jun."
Jun looked at her. "We have some good friends."