Bokuboy A bigger chapter with 3,580 words.
“You guys are AWESOME!” Saida yelled as Izuku and I stepped off the train. She was there with the other girls in our class, even Ming. “UA never stood a chance! Not even that glacier guy could catch you!”
I chuckled at her enthusiasm. “I'd give you a hug if I wasn't sweating so much.”
“You have ten minutes to shower and change, then you better give me my due!” Saida said with a grin. “Nicola might want a hug, too.”
“SHHH!” Nicola, the tall redhead hissed at her, which made the other girls laugh. Not Ming, though. She just had a lost look on her face.
I knew she was really regretting letting me go, especially after seeing me fly like my dad. “Once I don't smell like wet gym socks, we can talk.”
That made the other girls giggle and Nicola blushed. We all started walking towards the school and saw that Miss Aiga was waiting there for us.
“Connor, Izuku.” Miss Aiga said. “The principal would like to see you before first class.”
“It looks like the hugs need to be postponed a few minutes.” I said and the girls giggled again. “We need to shower and will be at his office in about eight minutes.”
Miss Aiga nodded as we turned off our weighted backpacks and then we ran and disappeared from her sight. “Oh, my.”
*
“They did that at the sports festival, too!” Saida said, not realizing that I could still see and hear her. “They had to slow down so that the cameras could catch them actually participating!”
“You're kidding!” One of the other girls said.
Saida shook her head. “They needed to put on a show for the television and made sure they took their time.” She smiled. “They still had the fastest time ever recorded.”
Miss Aiga nodded and they walked to the school. “They weren't allowed to legally win, since they weren't UA students at the time; but, they would have won it all if they were allowed to participate.”
“Wow.” Nicola whispered and the girls nodded.
“I wonder why he's not flying all the time?” Ming asked.
“It takes concentration, apparently.” Saida said. “I didn't think any quirk could be that versatile.”
Miss Aiga laughed softly. “They have given you all quirk suggestions and techniques to improve yourselves.”
Most of the girls sighed and Ming blushed.
“Ah. I see.” Miss Aiga said and shook her head. “I won't give you additional detentions for the same mistake.”
Ming didn't say anything.
“It's my fault. I should have run after her sooner.” Saida said. “I was too late to stop her from burning all of Connor's and Izuku's suggestions.”
Miss Aiga looked thoughtful. “Why have none of you asked for replacements?”
“It's too embarrassing.” Nicola said. “They helped us so much and because we didn't memorize what they gave us before we lost it...”
“You feel guilty that you missed the opportunity when you had it.” Miss Aiga said and they all nodded. “Then there are only two things you can do.” She gave each of them a look, even Ming. “You can apologize for wasting the opportunity and ask for another... or you can flounder around and hope you can stumble upon their insightful quirk analysis on your own.”
None of the girls said anything as Miss Aiga turned to go to her classroom and they turned to go to their first class.
“By the way, Ghost has refined her own quirk, thanks to their help.” Miss Aiga said as a parting shot, smiled at the girls and their shocked faces, and left.
*
“Now that was enlightening.” Izuku said as I relayed everything to him. “Ming really did burn our offered ideas.”
“She didn't limit it to just her first couple of friends, either. She burned all the notes we gave the girls.” I said and we walked towards the principal's office. “Should we let them come to us or offer replacements?”
Izuku whacked my arm. “We can't just offer! They'll know we found out right after the teacher told them to ask.”
“Oh. Right.” I said and he laughed. The secretary waved us by and I knocked on the president's door.
“Yes, come in.” The president said.
“You wanted to see us, sir?” I asked and he pointed to the two chairs in front of his desk.
“I did and it's nothing bad.” The man said and grinned. “In fact, it's stupendous!”
Izuku and I exchanged knowing looks.
“My phone has been ringing off the hook since yesterday and the school's email accounts have been flooded with inquiries and offers.”
“You don't say.” I said and the president laughed.
“Of course you knew! Ha!” The president sat back in his chair. “The delivery men had dropped off several hero agency packages for the both of you and my secretary has been printing off the relevant offers from the emails we've received.”
“What about the irrelevant ones?” Izuku asked and the man laughed.
“We've forwarded everything to your own school accounts, so there's no need to worry that you might miss something.” The president said. “In fact, your afternoon hero studies course has been changed to a self introspection period.”
“Is Red Fury okay with that?” I asked, curious.
“It was her suggestion!” The president said with a big smile. “Part of the hero's career is going over such things and weighing the possibilities versus the realities.”
“What are the offers for, exactly?” Izuku asked.
“For the hero internships, of course!” The president said, happily.
Izuku and I exchanged looks again.
“Just us?” I asked for clarification.
“Mostly.” The president said and then smiled. “We've had several agencies ask to send scouts, secretly of course, to observe several of our hero training classes next week. Your words about UA having exclusive rights to show off and agencies only sending scouts to them, really ruffled some feathers.”
“Good feathers, we hope.” I said and the man laughed.
“Yes! That's exactly right. They had always preferred to send scouts to UA, because they were the best school and had completely forgotten that there wasn't a Class 1-A last year that participated in the sports festival.”
“Sometimes it takes an outside observer to point out the flaws.” Izuku said and I nodded agreement.
“I'm glad you boys see it that way.” The president said. “I can give you some pointers and some tips on the better agencies and who to talk to and get the real information about what it's like working there.”
“Thank you, sir.” We said at the same time.
“You can pick these up and my secretary's contributions after lunch.” The president said and pat the foot tall stack of folders. “Have fun telling everyone we have actual scouts coming here!”
I couldn't stop my laugh as I stood. “Once we tell the girls, the whole school will know by second period.”
The president laughed as well and we left the office after waving to the secretary.
“That went better than I thought.” Izuku said. “I predicted the offers and not the scouts.”
“Me, too. I suspected some of the smaller agencies might have people here observing occasionally to see if there's any hidden talents, just not any of the larger known agencies that always went to UA.”
“Which is why no one spotted us before now. They hadn't sent their scouts in to watch the first years yet.” Izuku said and I nodded. “They will now.”
I chuckled. “If we wanted an excuse to redo the analysis on the girls, this gives us the perfect excuse to give them updated versions.”
“Ha.” Izuku said and stopped me just outside the classroom to whisper. “Do we do it publicly in front of them or secretly during class and then hand them off when they ask for them?”
I smiled and spoke a little loudly. “It depends on how quickly we can tell them about the hero agency scouts that are secretly coming to the school next week to check everyone out.”
Several loud girly shrieks and a curse came from the classroom.
Izuku hit my arm with a grin on his face and we walked into the class, only to see every pair of eyes staring at us. “Can anyone guess what the president just told us?”
“It's TRUE?!?” Ming yelled.
“Thanks to us showing off at the sports festival yesterday and revealing we were from Shiketsu Academy.” I said and she had an odd look on her face.
“We also have hundreds of offers from hero agencies for the two week internships at the end of the month.” Izuku said. “We've got a lot of paperwork to get through this afternoon and a decision to make by next week.”
“No one gets picked for internships.” One of the guys said.
I gave Izuku a glance and he nodded. “That changes this year.” I said and everyone looked surprised. “The scouts will be here next week, so you need to show everyone what you can do. We've been training for half a year now and Red Fury will be very disappointed in us if we don't give it our all.”
Everyone started mumbling and conversing about it.
“Just remember. You only need to impress one scout, not all of them. Do your best with what you know and you'll be fine. You might not get picked; but, don't let that discourage you. You can still apply for an internship at any hero agency that you think you can do your best at.” Izuku said and I nodded.
“Just because it's always been UA students applying for the most lucrative positions, that doesn't mean you can't.” I said and several girls nodded. “The school has no problems giving us time off and accrediting us with the time as Hero Studies, as long as we get a decent performance review for those two weeks.”
“You make it all sound so simple.” Saida said.
“That's because it is.” I said and she looked surprised. “Look at yourself. Where do you think you'll do the most good with your quirk?”
Saida thought about it for a minute. “I think I could do well at a Defense Agency.”
I smiled and nodded. “Exactly. How many UA students do you think will ignore going for the bright and flashy agencies and sign up to do bodyguard duties for VIPs?”
Saida actually looked surprised. “I never thought about that. I just assumed...”
“When you assume, you make an 'ass' out of 'u' and 'me'.” I joked, and several people laughed, getting it right away. “Look at what you want to do as a hero and then decide where you want to go to do it. I know it's only a quick internship and you might not actually end up there later when you graduate...”
“...but, it's a great learning experience and will look great on our transcripts when we go for our provisional licenses.” Izuku said. “Having previous hero experience is a bonus that they won't ignore.”
Just then the bell rang and Black Tiger came into the room. “History has a tendency to repeat itself.” He said and sat on the front of the desk. “Even with knowing it happened before, sometimes it's inevitable and can't be stopped.”
“You're talking about the fall of a society.” Izuku said and the teacher smiled.
“I love having bright minds in my class.” Black Tiger said. “The Mayans. The Incans. The Romans. All full societies that lasted a very long time... and all perished under their own rules.”
“Some for different reasons.” I said and he nodded.
“Yes. The Romans were the worst, since they knew exactly what they were sowing when conquering everything in sight.” Black Tiger said. “They were conquered in turn and their religions, policies, and personal views were all but abolished by the new regime.”
“Which one are we concentrating on first?” Saida asked.
“The Pompeiians.” Black Tiger said with a grin when only a few people recognized what he said. “I hope most of you have strong stomachs as I tell you the tale.”
There were groans around the classroom and he laughed before telling us about the doomed ancient city positioned under a sacred mountain that was really a volcano.
*
I wore my best suit and carried my backpack as I walked up the long driveway to the main gates. When I reached there, I didn't have to push the button to get someone's attention.
“Name, please.” A male voice from the box said.
“Connor Kent, Hero Name Supreme, Son of Superman, prolific student at Shiketsu Academy, and defier of Eraserhead and President Nezu of UA.” I said, just to hear the man on the speaker spit and sputter. I could also hear some womanly giggles in the background.
“B-business?” The man's voice asked.
“I am here to sweep Miss Momo Yaoyorozu off her feet, make her fall madly in love with me, and to have as many babies as possible with her before she's twenty.”
There were two choking sounds this time, from both the man and the woman, and I chuckled.
“I'm joking, of course. I'm here to meet with an intelligent girl and to compare our schooling experiences. We might also talk about personal things and perhaps have a meal with each other, if I can convince her to either leave the comfort of home or allow me to join her and her family at their table.”
After several quiet moments, the gate buzzed and opened. I stepped through and it closed behind me.
I think they are watching me, too. I thought and walked up to the mansion. I thought about rushing, then decided that it wasn't worth showing off to get there quicker. Flaunting the law was not a good thing to do when approaching very rich people.
The front door opened as I approached the steps and a stern looking butler stood there. He was also completely bald. A blushing maid stood behind him off to the side and she had long brown hair tied in a ponytail.
“Your sense of humor is severely lacking.” The butler said.
I was kind of glad that they were the ones on the intercom and not Momo's parents. “I know. I've also tasted my shoe more times than I can count.” I said and the maid giggled.
The butler glared at her for a moment, then sighed and stepped back to allow me entry. “The maid will take you to the Young Mistress.”
“Thank you.” I said and stepped inside and bowed slightly to the maid. “I am in your care.”
The maid giggled again, even if her blush stayed the same, and she waved for me to follow.
I did so and she led me through several hallways that were populated with some very expensive looking things. I admired them for what they were, status symbols. I couldn't tell if they were bought or created, though. If Izuku was here, I would bet on bought.
The maid knocked on a door and waited for a response for exactly three seconds, then she opened the door. “Young Mistress, your date is here.”
“EEP!” Momo almost shrieked as she whirled around from her dressing table and then she blushed deeply when she saw me. “Sandra! I could have been changing!”
The maid giggled and walked into the room. “You've been dressed appropriately since you came home from school, Young Mistress.” She said and checked Momo's face. “You even have your new eye liner applied correctly. Well done.”
Momo's face went redder. “Sandra!”
The maid giggled again and took Momo's hand before she pulled the embarrassed girl across the room to me. “Young Mistress, this is Defier of Eraserhead and Nezu.”
Momo blinked her eyes several times, then she giggled. “I think we can share part of that title.”
I chuckled. “I don't mind sharing it if you don't mind sharing why.”
“I'll leave you two alone for half an hour and then I'll bring tea to the tea room for you.” The maid said and pushed me inside before she shut the door.
“Your maid is a little pushy.” I said and Momo nodded. “I think I like her.”
Momo smiled and waved at the chairs on the fancy rug near the small couch. “Please sit.”
“Thank you.” I said and went to sit down. I stopped and waited for her to do so first, then sat myself.
Momo gave me an odd look. “Connor...”
“I need to start on the right foot before I strip off half of this monkey suit and relax.” I said, which made her giggle. “How are you, Momo?”
“I'm all right.” Momo said and gave me another odd look, before she sighed slightly and then sat back in the chair, her pose relaxed and her posture slouching.
“I can't strip off yet. We're going for tea.” I said and she smiled at me. “Tell me about defying Aizawa.”
Momo nodded and went right into describing all of the little digs that she had given the arrogant teacher. She also mentioned the two students that she resented for taking the spots that Izuku and I left.
“I really am sorry that they let us go without even protesting Aizawa's decision.” I said. “They all just accepted it and no one was surprised that it happened, not even Nezu.”
“I know.” Momo said and took out her phone. “I've been keeping track of everything that's been going on.”
“Did you see the video of the sports festival?” I asked with a smirk.
“It's approaching ten million views.” Momo said and then whispered something.
I had to change my smirk into a teasing smile. “A lot of them were from you?”
Momo blushed and ducked her head.
“Hey, don't.” I said and reached over to lift her chin. “Was it my awesome solution to the Zero Pointer or my flight at the end that got you hooked on watching it?”
Momo's blush faded and she laughed softly. “Both.” She said as I removed my hand. “I also liked your minefield assault.”
I laughed and sat back like her, relaxed. “We were much too quick to get caught in the explosions, so we thought we would help the UA students as much as possible while we showed off.”
“They really lost two of the best students when you were kicked out.” Momo said.
“Yes, of the best, not the best.” I said with a nod. “I've been saying the same about UA. Just because everyone thinks it's the best, that doesn't mean it is.”
“Connor.” Momo said and then sighed. “You've really hurt the reputation of the school, which also hurts the teachers and the students.”
“That's because you are all contributing to the problem.” I said and she looked surprised. “No one spoke up or said anything about how Izuku and I were treated and then dismissed. Even after we pointed that out, not a single teacher or student approached us to apologize.”
Momo opened her mouth to give an excuse, then closed it.
I leaned close again and looked into her eyes. “What were you going to say?”
“I...” Momo took a breath and let it out. “I was thinking that I would have said something that day if I wasn't so stunned by the sudden turn of events. I didn't even get to greet you in class before we were rushed out to the field and then you had that confrontation with Aizawa.”
I studied her face and was a little surprised that her heartbeat hadn't wavered once. “What else?”
“I regret not meeting you first and possibly being able to interfere with the argument and keeping you there at school.” Momo admitted. “I was really looking forward to getting to know you and I lost that chance.”
I smiled and took her hand. “You didn't lose it. It was just delayed until I could trick the school into letting me get close enough to you.”
Momo chuckled and looked down at our clasped hands. “I looked at all that evidence you gave me.”
“What did you think of it?” I asked, genuinely curious about what she thought.
“I think... we would have been friends this whole time and not only since the sports festival yesterday.”
I chuckled and she looked up at my face, surprised. “We've been friends since we met that first time.”
“Really?” Momo asked.
“I kept the middle school suit that your family paid to have replaced.” I said and her eyes widened. “My mom thinks it's sweet that I've bothered to let it take up room in my closet.”
Momo felt her heart as it fluttered a little. “It... is... sweet.”
There was a knock on the door. “The tea's ready! Get dressed and get your butts to the tea room!” The maid shouted through the door, then she ran for it. Her retreating steps were loud, even through the closed door.
“For some reason, I think we're needed for tea.” I said and Momo giggled. “May I escort you, Young Mistress?”
Momo shook her head as she stood. “Not you, too.”
“Only in public.” I said and held a hand out for her to take. “Wait a second. We already joked on national television.” I smiled. “Never mind. I'll only do it to tease you a little.”
Momo laughed softly and took my hand. “Lead on, Mister Smarty-Pants.”
Bokuboy A bigger chapter with 3,580 words.
“You guys are AWESOME!” Saida yelled as Izuku and I stepped off the train. She was there with the other girls in our class, even Ming. “UA never stood a chance! Not even that glacier guy could catch you!”
I chuckled at her enthusiasm. “I'd give you a hug if I wasn't sweating so much.”
“You have ten minutes to shower and change, then you better give me my due!” Saida said with a grin. “Nicola might want a hug, too.”
“SHHH!” Nicola, the tall redhead hissed at her, which made the other girls laugh. Not Ming, though. She just had a lost look on her face.
I knew she was really regretting letting me go, especially after seeing me fly like my dad. “Once I don't smell like wet gym socks, we can talk.”
That made the other girls giggle and Nicola blushed. We all started walking towards the school and saw that Miss Aiga was waiting there for us.
“Connor, Izuku.” Miss Aiga said. “The principal would like to see you before first class.”
“It looks like the hugs need to be postponed a few minutes.” I said and the girls giggled again. “We need to shower and will be at his office in about eight minutes.”
Miss Aiga nodded as we turned off our weighted backpacks and then we ran and disappeared from her sight. “Oh, my.”
*
“They did that at the sports festival, too!” Saida said, not realizing that I could still see and hear her. “They had to slow down so that the cameras could catch them actually participating!”
“You're kidding!” One of the other girls said.
Saida shook her head. “They needed to put on a show for the television and made sure they took their time.” She smiled. “They still had the fastest time ever recorded.”
Miss Aiga nodded and they walked to the school. “They weren't allowed to legally win, since they weren't UA students at the time; but, they would have won it all if they were allowed to participate.”
“Wow.” Nicola whispered and the girls nodded.
“I wonder why he's not flying all the time?” Ming asked.
“It takes concentration, apparently.” Saida said. “I didn't think any quirk could be that versatile.”
Miss Aiga laughed softly. “They have given you all quirk suggestions and techniques to improve yourselves.”
Most of the girls sighed and Ming blushed.
“Ah. I see.” Miss Aiga said and shook her head. “I won't give you additional detentions for the same mistake.”
Ming didn't say anything.
“It's my fault. I should have run after her sooner.” Saida said. “I was too late to stop her from burning all of Connor's and Izuku's suggestions.”
Miss Aiga looked thoughtful. “Why have none of you asked for replacements?”
“It's too embarrassing.” Nicola said. “They helped us so much and because we didn't memorize what they gave us before we lost it...”
“You feel guilty that you missed the opportunity when you had it.” Miss Aiga said and they all nodded. “Then there are only two things you can do.” She gave each of them a look, even Ming. “You can apologize for wasting the opportunity and ask for another... or you can flounder around and hope you can stumble upon their insightful quirk analysis on your own.”
None of the girls said anything as Miss Aiga turned to go to her classroom and they turned to go to their first class.
“By the way, Ghost has refined her own quirk, thanks to their help.” Miss Aiga said as a parting shot, smiled at the girls and their shocked faces, and left.
*
“Now that was enlightening.” Izuku said as I relayed everything to him. “Ming really did burn our offered ideas.”
“She didn't limit it to just her first couple of friends, either. She burned all the notes we gave the girls.” I said and we walked towards the principal's office. “Should we let them come to us or offer replacements?”
Izuku whacked my arm. “We can't just offer! They'll know we found out right after the teacher told them to ask.”
“Oh. Right.” I said and he laughed. The secretary waved us by and I knocked on the president's door.
“Yes, come in.” The president said.
“You wanted to see us, sir?” I asked and he pointed to the two chairs in front of his desk.
“I did and it's nothing bad.” The man said and grinned. “In fact, it's stupendous!”
Izuku and I exchanged knowing looks.
“My phone has been ringing off the hook since yesterday and the school's email accounts have been flooded with inquiries and offers.”
“You don't say.” I said and the president laughed.
“Of course you knew! Ha!” The president sat back in his chair. “The delivery men had dropped off several hero agency packages for the both of you and my secretary has been printing off the relevant offers from the emails we've received.”
“What about the irrelevant ones?” Izuku asked and the man laughed.
“We've forwarded everything to your own school accounts, so there's no need to worry that you might miss something.” The president said. “In fact, your afternoon hero studies course has been changed to a self introspection period.”
“Is Red Fury okay with that?” I asked, curious.
“It was her suggestion!” The president said with a big smile. “Part of the hero's career is going over such things and weighing the possibilities versus the realities.”
“What are the offers for, exactly?” Izuku asked.
“For the hero internships, of course!” The president said, happily.
Izuku and I exchanged looks again.
“Just us?” I asked for clarification.
“Mostly.” The president said and then smiled. “We've had several agencies ask to send scouts, secretly of course, to observe several of our hero training classes next week. Your words about UA having exclusive rights to show off and agencies only sending scouts to them, really ruffled some feathers.”
“Good feathers, we hope.” I said and the man laughed.
“Yes! That's exactly right. They had always preferred to send scouts to UA, because they were the best school and had completely forgotten that there wasn't a Class 1-A last year that participated in the sports festival.”
“Sometimes it takes an outside observer to point out the flaws.” Izuku said and I nodded agreement.
“I'm glad you boys see it that way.” The president said. “I can give you some pointers and some tips on the better agencies and who to talk to and get the real information about what it's like working there.”
“Thank you, sir.” We said at the same time.
“You can pick these up and my secretary's contributions after lunch.” The president said and pat the foot tall stack of folders. “Have fun telling everyone we have actual scouts coming here!”
I couldn't stop my laugh as I stood. “Once we tell the girls, the whole school will know by second period.”
The president laughed as well and we left the office after waving to the secretary.
“That went better than I thought.” Izuku said. “I predicted the offers and not the scouts.”
“Me, too. I suspected some of the smaller agencies might have people here observing occasionally to see if there's any hidden talents, just not any of the larger known agencies that always went to UA.”
“Which is why no one spotted us before now. They hadn't sent their scouts in to watch the first years yet.” Izuku said and I nodded. “They will now.”
I chuckled. “If we wanted an excuse to redo the analysis on the girls, this gives us the perfect excuse to give them updated versions.”
“Ha.” Izuku said and stopped me just outside the classroom to whisper. “Do we do it publicly in front of them or secretly during class and then hand them off when they ask for them?”
I smiled and spoke a little loudly. “It depends on how quickly we can tell them about the hero agency scouts that are secretly coming to the school next week to check everyone out.”
Several loud girly shrieks and a curse came from the classroom.
Izuku hit my arm with a grin on his face and we walked into the class, only to see every pair of eyes staring at us. “Can anyone guess what the president just told us?”
“It's TRUE?!?” Ming yelled.
“Thanks to us showing off at the sports festival yesterday and revealing we were from Shiketsu Academy.” I said and she had an odd look on her face.
“We also have hundreds of offers from hero agencies for the two week internships at the end of the month.” Izuku said. “We've got a lot of paperwork to get through this afternoon and a decision to make by next week.”
“No one gets picked for internships.” One of the guys said.
I gave Izuku a glance and he nodded. “That changes this year.” I said and everyone looked surprised. “The scouts will be here next week, so you need to show everyone what you can do. We've been training for half a year now and Red Fury will be very disappointed in us if we don't give it our all.”
Everyone started mumbling and conversing about it.
“Just remember. You only need to impress one scout, not all of them. Do your best with what you know and you'll be fine. You might not get picked; but, don't let that discourage you. You can still apply for an internship at any hero agency that you think you can do your best at.” Izuku said and I nodded.
“Just because it's always been UA students applying for the most lucrative positions, that doesn't mean you can't.” I said and several girls nodded. “The school has no problems giving us time off and accrediting us with the time as Hero Studies, as long as we get a decent performance review for those two weeks.”
“You make it all sound so simple.” Saida said.
“That's because it is.” I said and she looked surprised. “Look at yourself. Where do you think you'll do the most good with your quirk?”
Saida thought about it for a minute. “I think I could do well at a Defense Agency.”
I smiled and nodded. “Exactly. How many UA students do you think will ignore going for the bright and flashy agencies and sign up to do bodyguard duties for VIPs?”
Saida actually looked surprised. “I never thought about that. I just assumed...”
“When you assume, you make an 'ass' out of 'u' and 'me'.” I joked, and several people laughed, getting it right away. “Look at what you want to do as a hero and then decide where you want to go to do it. I know it's only a quick internship and you might not actually end up there later when you graduate...”
“...but, it's a great learning experience and will look great on our transcripts when we go for our provisional licenses.” Izuku said. “Having previous hero experience is a bonus that they won't ignore.”
Just then the bell rang and Black Tiger came into the room. “History has a tendency to repeat itself.” He said and sat on the front of the desk. “Even with knowing it happened before, sometimes it's inevitable and can't be stopped.”
“You're talking about the fall of a society.” Izuku said and the teacher smiled.
“I love having bright minds in my class.” Black Tiger said. “The Mayans. The Incans. The Romans. All full societies that lasted a very long time... and all perished under their own rules.”
“Some for different reasons.” I said and he nodded.
“Yes. The Romans were the worst, since they knew exactly what they were sowing when conquering everything in sight.” Black Tiger said. “They were conquered in turn and their religions, policies, and personal views were all but abolished by the new regime.”
“Which one are we concentrating on first?” Saida asked.
“The Pompeiians.” Black Tiger said with a grin when only a few people recognized what he said. “I hope most of you have strong stomachs as I tell you the tale.”
There were groans around the classroom and he laughed before telling us about the doomed ancient city positioned under a sacred mountain that was really a volcano.
*
I wore my best suit and carried my backpack as I walked up the long driveway to the main gates. When I reached there, I didn't have to push the button to get someone's attention.
“Name, please.” A male voice from the box said.
“Connor Kent, Hero Name Supreme, Son of Superman, prolific student at Shiketsu Academy, and defier of Eraserhead and President Nezu of UA.” I said, just to hear the man on the speaker spit and sputter. I could also hear some womanly giggles in the background.
“B-business?” The man's voice asked.
“I am here to sweep Miss Momo Yaoyorozu off her feet, make her fall madly in love with me, and to have as many babies as possible with her before she's twenty.”
There were two choking sounds this time, from both the man and the woman, and I chuckled.
“I'm joking, of course. I'm here to meet with an intelligent girl and to compare our schooling experiences. We might also talk about personal things and perhaps have a meal with each other, if I can convince her to either leave the comfort of home or allow me to join her and her family at their table.”
After several quiet moments, the gate buzzed and opened. I stepped through and it closed behind me.
I think they are watching me, too. I thought and walked up to the mansion. I thought about rushing, then decided that it wasn't worth showing off to get there quicker. Flaunting the law was not a good thing to do when approaching very rich people.
The front door opened as I approached the steps and a stern looking butler stood there. He was also completely bald. A blushing maid stood behind him off to the side and she had long brown hair tied in a ponytail.
“Your sense of humor is severely lacking.” The butler said.
I was kind of glad that they were the ones on the intercom and not Momo's parents. “I know. I've also tasted my shoe more times than I can count.” I said and the maid giggled.
The butler glared at her for a moment, then sighed and stepped back to allow me entry. “The maid will take you to the Young Mistress.”
“Thank you.” I said and stepped inside and bowed slightly to the maid. “I am in your care.”
The maid giggled again, even if her blush stayed the same, and she waved for me to follow.
I did so and she led me through several hallways that were populated with some very expensive looking things. I admired them for what they were, status symbols. I couldn't tell if they were bought or created, though. If Izuku was here, I would bet on bought.
The maid knocked on a door and waited for a response for exactly three seconds, then she opened the door. “Young Mistress, your date is here.”
“EEP!” Momo almost shrieked as she whirled around from her dressing table and then she blushed deeply when she saw me. “Sandra! I could have been changing!”
The maid giggled and walked into the room. “You've been dressed appropriately since you came home from school, Young Mistress.” She said and checked Momo's face. “You even have your new eye liner applied correctly. Well done.”
Momo's face went redder. “Sandra!”
The maid giggled again and took Momo's hand before she pulled the embarrassed girl across the room to me. “Young Mistress, this is Defier of Eraserhead and Nezu.”
Momo blinked her eyes several times, then she giggled. “I think we can share part of that title.”
I chuckled. “I don't mind sharing it if you don't mind sharing why.”
“I'll leave you two alone for half an hour and then I'll bring tea to the tea room for you.” The maid said and pushed me inside before she shut the door.
“Your maid is a little pushy.” I said and Momo nodded. “I think I like her.”
Momo smiled and waved at the chairs on the fancy rug near the small couch. “Please sit.”
“Thank you.” I said and went to sit down. I stopped and waited for her to do so first, then sat myself.
Momo gave me an odd look. “Connor...”
“I need to start on the right foot before I strip off half of this monkey suit and relax.” I said, which made her giggle. “How are you, Momo?”
“I'm all right.” Momo said and gave me another odd look, before she sighed slightly and then sat back in the chair, her pose relaxed and her posture slouching.
“I can't strip off yet. We're going for tea.” I said and she smiled at me. “Tell me about defying Aizawa.”
Momo nodded and went right into describing all of the little digs that she had given the arrogant teacher. She also mentioned the two students that she resented for taking the spots that Izuku and I left.
“I really am sorry that they let us go without even protesting Aizawa's decision.” I said. “They all just accepted it and no one was surprised that it happened, not even Nezu.”
“I know.” Momo said and took out her phone. “I've been keeping track of everything that's been going on.”
“Did you see the video of the sports festival?” I asked with a smirk.
“It's approaching ten million views.” Momo said and then whispered something.
I had to change my smirk into a teasing smile. “A lot of them were from you?”
Momo blushed and ducked her head.
“Hey, don't.” I said and reached over to lift her chin. “Was it my awesome solution to the Zero Pointer or my flight at the end that got you hooked on watching it?”
Momo's blush faded and she laughed softly. “Both.” She said as I removed my hand. “I also liked your minefield assault.”
I laughed and sat back like her, relaxed. “We were much too quick to get caught in the explosions, so we thought we would help the UA students as much as possible while we showed off.”
“They really lost two of the best students when you were kicked out.” Momo said.
“Yes, of the best, not the best.” I said with a nod. “I've been saying the same about UA. Just because everyone thinks it's the best, that doesn't mean it is.”
“Connor.” Momo said and then sighed. “You've really hurt the reputation of the school, which also hurts the teachers and the students.”
“That's because you are all contributing to the problem.” I said and she looked surprised. “No one spoke up or said anything about how Izuku and I were treated and then dismissed. Even after we pointed that out, not a single teacher or student approached us to apologize.”
Momo opened her mouth to give an excuse, then closed it.
I leaned close again and looked into her eyes. “What were you going to say?”
“I...” Momo took a breath and let it out. “I was thinking that I would have said something that day if I wasn't so stunned by the sudden turn of events. I didn't even get to greet you in class before we were rushed out to the field and then you had that confrontation with Aizawa.”
I studied her face and was a little surprised that her heartbeat hadn't wavered once. “What else?”
“I regret not meeting you first and possibly being able to interfere with the argument and keeping you there at school.” Momo admitted. “I was really looking forward to getting to know you and I lost that chance.”
I smiled and took her hand. “You didn't lose it. It was just delayed until I could trick the school into letting me get close enough to you.”
Momo chuckled and looked down at our clasped hands. “I looked at all that evidence you gave me.”
“What did you think of it?” I asked, genuinely curious about what she thought.
“I think... we would have been friends this whole time and not only since the sports festival yesterday.”
I chuckled and she looked up at my face, surprised. “We've been friends since we met that first time.”
“Really?” Momo asked.
“I kept the middle school suit that your family paid to have replaced.” I said and her eyes widened. “My mom thinks it's sweet that I've bothered to let it take up room in my closet.”
Momo felt her heart as it fluttered a little. “It... is... sweet.”
There was a knock on the door. “The tea's ready! Get dressed and get your butts to the tea room!” The maid shouted through the door, then she ran for it. Her retreating steps were loud, even through the closed door.
“For some reason, I think we're needed for tea.” I said and Momo giggled. “May I escort you, Young Mistress?”
Momo shook her head as she stood. “Not you, too.”
“Only in public.” I said and held a hand out for her to take. “Wait a second. We already joked on national television.” I smiled. “Never mind. I'll only do it to tease you a little.”
Momo laughed softly and took my hand. “Lead on, Mister Smarty-Pants.”
