I tapped my foot, waiting at the copier. The other teachers were quietly working away behind me, the clacks of keyboard keys filling the room. I pulled the copies out and the original, feeling the heat of the copier still evident on the pages.
Weaving through the hallways, I made my first stop. Class 1-C. After knocking, the door was opened for me by Thirteen.
"Hi guys." I addressed the general studies class. Shinso was among them, his head lifting up from the table upon hearing my voice.
"So, since all my Heroics students are doing work studies for the next two weeks starting Monday, I've got a lot of free time. What I'll be doing during this time, is running some self-defence and hand-to-hand combat workshops for all the non-heroics students during your free periods. Self-defence is for anyone that just wishes to learn to defend themselves without their quirk, and hand-to-hand combat is for anyone considering trying to transfer to heroics." The class seemed interested at this, quietly whispering to their friends.
"I'm going to leave two signup sheets on your noticeboard, and I'll collect them all on Saturday, so you've got 3 days to think about it, okay?" The class nodded.
"Great. Come find me in the staff lounge during lunch if you have any questions." I pinned up the signup sheets, giving a curt nod before leaving.
Brilliant, now just every single non-heroics class for every single year group to go!
----
Three days had passed, and I'd collected all the signup sheets. I sank into the sofa cushions of the 1-A common room couch, reading through the sheets.
"Only you of all people would use their two weeks off to continue teaching." Aizawa sat down next to me, peering at the sheets. I jumped slightly. After realising I'd fallen in love with him, I wasn't sure how to act.
"Oh- uh, I'm pretty caught up on all my work, so I thought it would be a nice idea to help some other students!" I smiled, marking down in my planner what students I'd be seeing when. My chest started to flutter, realising our legs were pressed up against each other.
"...You seem different this week. Since Hawks was here." I looked at him, wondering what he meant.
"In a good way. You seem less spaced out. Weirdly enough, you actually look younger too. Like life is burdening you less." I had to give it to him, I felt more present. Not like a passenger watching my life go by, but someone in the driver's seat.
"Yeah. I guess I'm trying to stop dwelling on the past so much. Live in the moment." He smiled back at me, ruffling my short hair. I tried not to blush at this.
"Good. Nice to see your eyebags go away and the light come back to your eyes." He brought his attention back to the sheets I was holding.
"So, how many signed up for your workshops?" He asked, taking a sheet in his hands.
"About 5 from each class signed up for self-defence. But only one student in total signed up for hand-to-hand combat." I held up the only combat sheet with a single name on it- Shinso's. I suppose most kids were happy with the classes they chose, apart from Shinso.
"Huh. I'll join you for that one." I raised a brow. If I had to spend even more time around him, how was I supposed to keep my feelings under wraps?!
"That'll be good for him. I liked your idea of him being able to use your capture weapon." He started to get up off the sofa.
"I have the perfect thing for him." He walked off towards the lift, getting inside. After a short wait, he returned with a briefcase, used for support weapons Aizawa sat back down, clicking open the case.
"My first one from when I was a teenager. I ended up getting a new one, so this one's just a spare." Inside was a rolled-up scarf, just like Aizawa's. This one was a brilliant white, in stark contrast with Aizawa's grey one.
"What the hell have you done to your one? Why is it so grey compared to this one?" He scoffed at me playfully.
"I had this one made in grey on purpose. I prefer dark colours, you know this." I laughed, staring at the scarf adorning his neck.
"Sure. I believe you."
----
Monday had rolled around, and the students were leaving my first self-defence workshop session. My body protested as I stretched my back out, my bones clicking as I did so. I took a seat on the floor of Ground Gamma, waiting patiently for my only combat student as well as Aizawa.
"If Shinso shows promise, any ideas on how to get him into the Heroics course?" Aizawa strolled up, his boots tapping against the concrete floor. His briefcase was in his hand, the silver gleaming against the sunlight.
"We just have to train him up and get him to place at the Sports Festival. It's a stupid rule that to transfer to Heroics you need to come 3rd or higher at the Sports Festival, but it'll be impossible without our help." Aizawa nodded, leaning on the railing behind us.
"There's also the issue of his quirk being a one-trick pony. Once people know what his quirk is, they just won't answer his question. I'll have to talk to Powerloader about a support item for him, because he's not going to get through the Sports Festival otherwise." Aizawa noticed Shinso hesitantly approaching.
"Am I in the right place?" The purple-haired boy asked, looking around. Yet, the grounds were empty, save for the three of us.
"Yeah. Wanna get started?" I asked. He still seemed confused.
"Am I the only one that signed up?" I laughed nervously.
"Yeah... But that's okay! We'll just do some more personalised training with you rather than hand-to-hand combat. Aizawa's here as well to help you learn something new." Taking this as his cue, he opened the briefcase. Shinso's eyes turned to a tired amazement through his eyebags. Between the three of us, we probably had about 5 hours sleep between us on any given night.
"You'll be learning how to use this, Shinso. From what I've heard about your quirk, using something like this will be beneficial." I watched Shinso nod slowly, still taking it all in.
"Before we get started, take me through all the specifics of your quirk." I added.
"If I ask someone a question and they answer, they will be under my control. I have to activate the power myself though, it doesn't go off for any random question. I can have multiple people under control at once, but I can only activate my quirk on one person at a time. I also can't make anyone do something too complicated, like talk, or write something down." I took some mental notes, listening to his explanation.
"What if you talk through a microphone? Or over the phone?" He shook his head.
"It's something about my voice going through anything electronic, but it doesn't work."
"Hm. Okay. Use your quirk on me, then ask me to write something." He let out a dry chuckle at this. I pulled a notebook and pen out of my bag and sat down, placing the notebook and pen in front of me.
"It won't work." I shook my head.
"Just humour me. And try playing around with the wording a bit." He shrugged.
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah-" And just like that, I was brainwashed. I was just about aware of my surroundings and what was going on.
"抖阴社区 your name." My body didn't move to write anything. He shrugged again, turning to Aizawa.
"Break it down more. Each individual action of writing." He explained to the student.
"Pick up the pen." My body moved of its own volition, picking up the pen in a fist.
"Hold the pen as if you were going to write with it." I shifted the pen around, holding it in a writing position.
"Uh... Put the nib of the pen to the paper." I did as he instructed, the pen pressing against the notebook.
"抖阴社区 out your name." My hand didn't move.
"Try again, Shinso." Aizawa encouraged him.
"I want you to move your hand to write out the letters of your name. As if you were writing your name on a blackboard for one of your lessons." Images of a blackboard with my name on flashed in my head. Slowly, my hand moved, scrawling out 'MISS L/N' almost illegibly.
"Almost. Try breaking it down even more." Aizawa told him.
"Think back to your name. What the people you know call you. Think about the name on your birth certificate. 抖阴社区 it down." Images flashed in my brain- Keigo calling me Y/N, Aizawa calling me L/N, images of my birth certificate. Picturing my name, I wrote it down slowly. My name was still slightly illegible and looked like it had been scrawled by a child, but it was my name.
Shinso deactivated his quirk. I snapped out of it, looking up at the pair before getting up with the notebook. Shinso seemed pleased with himself.
"See? Anything's possible. Seems like you have to make your target picture something or think about memories to associate something to write down. Rather than pull my name from my own memory, you have to make me dig through my memory myself. Does that make sense?" Shinso nodded.
"Yeah. Cool to know I can do that." I smiled at him, happy to gain a new student.
"Want to go over the basics of the capture weapon now?"
We spent a while going over Aizawa's signature weapon. Eventually, he was able to grab onto a pipe for just a second.
"You've made good progress today. I'm thinking for the next couple weeks, we dedicate each session to either capture weapon training, quirk training, or fighting. Tomorrow we'll go over fighting. Meet me at the same time as today, but in Gym Gamma." Shinso, a man of not many words, nodded and handed the scarf back to Aizawa.
"That's yours to keep. Here's the case for it." Unsure of what to say, he gave a mumbled thanks before taking the case.
"See you tomorrow, Shinso!" I gave him a quick wave as we went our separate ways. Aizawa and I headed towards the staff lounge.
"Seems you've found your first pet project. I'm surprised it's taken this long, actually." I raised a brow, turning to the man next to me.
"Huh? Pet project?"
"Yes. Every teacher has a pet project in their career. One student they think they can push to 'be the best.'" I rolled my eyes.
"Okay, but Shinso actually has a chance! He just needs some help, that's all. Plus, he's your pet project too now." He let a laugh out of his nose. Great, now I've accidentally roped him into this. Spending far too much time together.
"Fair point."
----
It was after school, and Aizawa and I were in the dorm common room with some of the students who'd returned from their work studies. A lot of them were staying at their agencies, but some were working close enough to stay here still.
"Mr Aizawa, what do you do to your hair to get it like that?" Uraraka asked. The girls were giggling.
"Uh... Shampoo twice, then conditioner." Poor Aizawa was very confused. Whilst the girls grilled my coworker on his hair care routine, my phone dinged.
'From: Endeavour (Todoroki Enji)
Good evening, Y/N. Hope you are well. I was hoping you'd be able to meet me tonight to discuss important work matters. Would you be able to be at my home in an hour?
Thanks,
Enji.'
Good god, what a psychopath. Who writes a text like an email? Then again, it would probably be weirder to receive a text from Endeavour saying 'u up? wanna come over?'
"Who is it?" Aizawa leaned over looking at my phone. Uraraka and Mina were braiding a small part of his hair.
"Endeavour." I mumbled. He laughed quietly.
"Do you mean 'Enji'?" I sighed, ignoring his teasing, and standing up.
"Mind if I borrow your car?" He gritted his teeth before giving me his keys.
"Enjoy the hair salon, I'm heading out." I waved over my shoulder, walking out the building. I missed Aizawa's look of anger as I left.
----
Bundled in my coat, I knocked on the front door of the Todoroki house. I was here more than I wanted to be lately. The door opened with a creak.
"Ah, Y/N. Good timing, the tea has just finished brewing." I gave him a polite smile. He removed my coat for me, hanging it up.
"Your hair is different." He stated.
"Yeah, it got burnt to a crisp in a villain attack, so it had to come off." I ran a hand through my hair.
"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. I must say, it does suit you." I laughed nervously. Every time I met my childhood hero, I had less and less of an idea of how to act around him. He led me to sit down at the low table. Whilst I knelt on a floor cushion he sat opposite and poured me some tea. The steam rose up as I held the cup.
"The reason I asked you here tonight, is that I need your help."
Help? My help? I wasn't good for much more than teaching, as of late.
"There's a villain, known as the Hero Killer. His name is Stain. I'm hoping you'd be able to catch him. As soon as we find him, it's too late. I'm thinking with your quirk, you'd be able to capture him before he even knows what happened." I grimaced slightly. I hadn't told him I lost my quirk.
"Uh- the thing is, after a fight I lost my quirk. Well, I can still hold my breath for ages, and reduce my heart rate, but I can't be impossible to perceive like I used to." He thought about this for a moment.
"I still think with your experience and skills, you're the right person for the job. We know his quirk involves immobilising his victims, so sneaking up on him is best. If you're still silent, that will be useful." I still was hesitant. Was I seriously the only person that could do this?
"Actually, in that case, Eraser Head could help. He could erase his quirk whilst I capture him."
"Oh, him? Yes, I suppose so..." He didn't appear too pleased with my proposition.
"So, what do I need to do to find him?" I broke the now awkward silence.
"When we have some intel on his next attack, we'll send you there for a week. For now, just wait for information to come through from me." The sound of the lock turning in the door interrupted us.
"Hi, dad." A young woman entered, with white hair with flecks of red.
"Oh, Fuyumi. This is Y/N, Shoto's Heroics teacher." He introduced her to me.
"Nice to meet you, I'm Fuyumi, Shoto's older sister." She gave me a kind smile. "I've really heard a lot about you..." She added with a laugh.
"Yeah, a lot. A crazy amount." A boy with white hair followed inside, making his own comment.
"This is Natsuo, my other son."
"Well, nice to meet you both, I hope your dad's only told you good things!" Fuyumi nodded, whilst Natsuo found this very funny.
"Yeah, great things. You're 23, right?" He asked.
"I turned 24 recently." I answered, confused.
"Fuyumi's turning 24 soon. That mean's you're the same age. Dad, she's the same age as your daughter, isn't that crazy?" He said sarcastically. I started to understand what he was trying to imply.
"Haha, anyways, I really need to get going." Checking my phone clock, I got up, shaking Endeavour's hand.
"Yes, thank you for meeting with me." I grabbed my coat, hurriedly putting it on.
"Lovely meeting you both, Fuyumi and Natsuo. Have a good night!" I waved goodbye and headed to Aizawa's car. I held the steering wheel, wondering what on earth had just happened.
Either way, I think I need my own car.
A/N
SURPRISE MOTHERFUCKER! The only reason the book was in 3rd person up until this point was because Y/N was stuck in the past, watching her life go past her from a 3rd person perspective! Boom *mic drop*.
Some of you might think this arc is hella lame but I loved writing it lmao. Felt healing.
Till next time,
Wyatt.