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Hotaru:

I feel so lonely. Daddy... do you really think this is right? Do you really think it's good?

Maybe daddy doesn't like me anymore. No... No, that's not daddy. He likes me. But...

The memory plays in my head.

It was just a few days ago.

I had just finished visiting with Ochaco. She showed me how to put on makeup. Daddy came to see me, and I saw tears in his eyes. He took me into the hall. I didn't know why Daddy was crying, so I hugged him to make it better. He picked me up, like he did when I was smaller, then carried me to a room at the end of the hall.

"Honey, I'm gonna need you to be strong for me, okay?" He said. I didn't know what he meant, but I never liked it when he talked about being strong. Something bad always happens when grown-ups say they want you to be strong.

And something terrible did happen.

He opened the door next to me into a nice, comfy-looking room. It had a bed—my bed from home... I walked in and saw that it also had my old, worn dresser. On the dresser were my pictures of Grandma and Grandpa and my picture of my favorite day playing with Daddy in the park back when I was nine. Under the bed were the two dolls I rarely played with and the toy cars I always played with.

"Do you like it? There wasn't much to set up. Your clothes are in the drawers- the ones that don't need to be hung up, of course, and those are in the closet." Daddy put his hands in his pockets while I looked around.

"What's going on?" I asked. "Why is all my stuff in here?"

"Cause this is your room now. You'll sleep here, study here, play here- well when you're not doing those things around the campus." Daddy said.

"Oh... okay. Where will you sleep? At home, you sleep down the hall." I giggled, looking out the door and down the hall. "Those are all girl's rooms, Daddy. Daddy will be sleeping in a girl's room. Daddy will be sleeping in a girl's room. Daddy will be sleeping in a girl's room." And on I started to chant, playing, of course- I never suspected the truth.

"Honey," He put a hand on my head. "No. I will be in the boy's area on the other side of the building. UA is a boarding school now. After the last few villain attacks on the school... all students are being placed under high security, not just you."

"But... but how far away will you be from me?"

"Pretty far."

"If I cry, will you hear me?"

Daddy got down and looked me in the eyes. He always does that when he's about to say something I won't like. "Kid, if you get scared, try to get over it, but if you can't, one of the girls will be able to hear you if you yell, alright? You'll be fine."

"But... I don't understand... How can I sleep if I... If you're not there... If you're not near..."

He shook his head. "This is how the school is set up now. And really, you need this. You need to be more independent." He chuckled. "These rooms are very nice. There's even a fridge- go on, check it out."

"Daddy- you don't like me anymore?"

"No... no honey, it's not like that. I love you, but you need... well..."

"To be alone?"

"Something like that." He messed up my hair and got up. "Be brave."

And he walked out.

So now, here I am... alone for the third day in a row. After school and training with Bakugo, I just go to my room and study.

I'm currently doing my homework, but whenever I need help with a problem... daddy isn't there.

Math is killing me here. I really do need help, but... do I annoy Ochaco?... It's just a few problems. I grit my teeth. No, no, I don't want to be a burden. I'll struggle through.

Minutes go by without progress, and... there's a knock at the door. Ochaco maybe?

"Hey, shut in!" Comes a voice. Um... not Ochaco. "Hey, open the freaking door. You keep hiding in your room, and you're worrying, Momo... You hear me? Open the door, or I'm coming in!"

Um... what do I do? She can't just do that, can she? THUMP! "Ow... okay, I probably should have figured that would happen- just you hold on though, I'll pick this lock!" I hear scratching on the door knob. "It's electric... look, just open up, or I'll keep yelling at you!"

Finally, I hear Ochaco. "Kyoka Jiro, knock it off. If she doesn't want to come out, she doesn't have to."

"You coddle her too much, Uraraka! She's here to socialize, and besides that, she's here for protection. She could be kidnapped for a whole day before anyone noticed- OPEN UP!" Kyoka starts banging on my door again. Despite her words, she sounds much more angry than concerned. "C'mon brat, Momo sent me to check on you, and I'm gonna do it."

Ochaco sighs. "Might as well open up Hotaru. Kyoka can have a temper, but I promise she won't hurt you."

I slip off my bed and walk over to the door, opening it. "FINALLY!" Kyoka yells as she barges into my room. "Look, Momo has been..." She pauses as she looks around my room. "I... kinda expected a child's dream of a thousand toys or a video game collection- that would explain why we rarely see you outside of class, but... this is it?" She starts walking around. "A worn dresser, an old bed, and a couple of old toys... let me see that laptop," She picks up my laptop. "Seriously? What is this a word processor?" She turns to me. "What do you even do in here, kid?"

"Study," I reply.

"You don't have THAT much work to do, or at least I don't think you do. What else do you do?"

"Sleep, study, play a little... but the toys get boring, so... stare at the walls. Everyone does that sometimes, right?"

Kyoka just stares at me.

"You know we're allowed to customize our dorms, right, Hotaru?" Ochaco asks, looking around my room as well. "You don't have to be so minimal. You'll be living here for the rest of the year, so you might as well decorate- you might even live here for six years. UA is a boarding school now."

"So, do we go home in the summer?" Kyoka asks Ochaco.

"This boarding school thing got going because of villain attacks, so... beats me," Ochaco admits.

"Well, still- just sitting in a dark, gloomy room like this, is this even healthy?" Kyoka asks, now starting to sound at least a little concerned. "Are you THAT scared of everyone, Hotaru?"

"It's not fear these days..." I admit. "I just don't know how to talk to you guys."

"Well, a part of me figured that seeing your room might help me figure out how to talk to you, but... fffff!" Kyoka huffs in frustration as she waves her arms around the room. "Sherlock couldn't tell anything from this, let alone me." She looks around for a few more moments. "How much homework do you have left?"

"Math... lots of math..." I say.

"Give..." Kyoka says, snapping her fingers at me and then opening her hand for my math book. She is technically my elder, so I give it over. She starts looking over my figures. "You haven't done half the problems, and half the ones you did are wrong. Have you been taking this seriously?"

"I'm so lost..." I admit."

"Are you trying to accuse her of skipping because she's so eager to return to staring at the wall?" Ochaco asks.

Kyoka puts her head in her hand. "I guess not,"

"I keep feeling like I'm missing things- like, a lot of things. I just don't get so many of these concepts, and I promise I'm trying..." I take back my math assignment and get back on my bed. "I barely know what fractions are, so... I don't know... what am I even doing? I keep checking last year's math book, but I can't find any help."

"Where is your last math book?" Kyoka asks. I point at a drawer in my dresser. Kyoka finds my old textbook easily and starts looking through it. "This... huh... I mean, there's stuff about fractions in here, but not until the last few chapters, and it's not very detailed." She checks a few things in the front of the book. "I think... no... no way... it can't be..."

"What's up?" Ochaco asks.

"Oh, you poor girl, no wonder you're lost!" Kyoka says, sounding more amused than concerned. "This is a fourth-grade textbook; you're in the sixth grade." She sits down. "You're screwed if you keep going like this- you skipped a whole grade." She then takes the assignment I'm working on, wads it up, and throws it in my trash can.

"HEY!" I shout.

"Don't worry about it, munchkin, I got ya. I'm calling your dad right now," Kyoka says. I raise an eyebrow as she takes out her phone and puts my dad on speakerphone.

"Daddy! Kyoka threw away my math assignment!" I yell at the phone immediately, so Kyoka immediately grabs my head and hand-gags me.

"What the heck is going on over there? Hotaru, are you really trying the whole "my dog ate my homework" thing? If you try it, you'll regret it—" my dad starts. Yeah, don't mess with my dad on homework; just buckle down and do it.

"I did throw it away. She wasn't getting anywhere anyway, and she wasn't going to," Kyoka says.

"I beg your pardon?" My dad does not sound happy. "She can do it if she just buckles down."

"No, she can't," Kyoka says back. "She's missed too much."

"And how would you know that?" Now, he sounds sarcastic. I don't think this is going to work out for Kyoka.

Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

"Look, professor, I'm not insulting your daughter. Rare is the kid who could do what you're asking of her right now. Did you check the grade level of her last textbook?"

"What are you getting at?"

"It's a fourth-grade math book. It only says so on the third page, but still..."

"It was the fifth book in a series... oh no... wait..." he suddenly sounds exasperated. "Ohhhhhh... nooo... shoot,"

"What's wrong, professor?"

"That stupid homeschool program. I had her go through five books on each major subject. It was a heck of a slog for the poor kid, but she pulled it off. But now that I think about it, the first book wasn't in first grade; it was in kindergarten." I hear a sound that sounds like him dropping against a wall. "Why didn't I think of that?"

"Professor... you've been doing a lot, teaching, crime-fighting, raising a daughter, homeschooling... It seems like something would fall through the cracks inevitably. No wonder you always seem tired." Ochaco says.

"Thanks. I so need a lecture about work-life balance from a fourteen-year-old," he replies sarcastically.

"Well, you need it from someone," Kyoka says, apparently fearless, considering my dad can expel her "for any reason" per the school rules. "Are you really expecting your traumatized middle school daughter to just skip a grade out of nowhere?"

He sighs again. "No... I'll come over there and sort this out."

"No- no... how about a deal?" Kyoka says.

I can hear my father drumming his fingers on a wooden surface, apparently losing his patience.

"Sir, Ochaco and I will call all of the other professors in our track and inform them of what's going on with Hotaru so they can figure out what's best to catch her up. In exchange..." she looks around my room again. "You let us girls take Hotaru on a shopping trip."

"You need me to set a spending limit?" He asks.

"Bahhh! We can handle it between the six of us. If the girl is gonna hang out in this freaking cave all the time, then she should at least have things in it. Maybe this way, Momo and Ochaco will stop worrying about the brat."

"You wanna rephrase that last part?"

"I mean, beautiful little girl," Kyoka says with a nervous grin.

"Fair... it's all six of you?"

"Sure," Kyoka says.

"Right, so you should be able to protect her. Don't miss curfew, stay in local stores, and... Kyoka..."

"Yes, professor?"

"Thanks. Tell everyone thanks. It means a lot that you're all looking after her."

Kyoka pauses for a few seconds but then gets a pleasant smile and says, "No problem, professor." She then hangs up.

It occurs to me that being both agreeable and introverted doesn't work out well when my hand is grabbed and I'm pulled out of my room. And because I won't say anything, it's whether I like it or not.

The girls of 1-A gather, and off we go. The first place we go to a big music store. I've never been big into music, but apparently, Kyoka sure is. I guess that makes sense just looking at her. She's a dark-haired girl with extendable earphone jacks coming off her earlobes that fire off massive sonic attacks.

"What do you mean you don't care about music?" she asks when I tell her so. "Nonsense, you just haven't heard that much- come with me, ya freaking shut in. Do you even know what rock'n'roll is?"

"Not really..." I admit.

"Oh... really?"

"What should I do?" I ask.

Kyoka seems caught off guard at being correct. "Well..." she looks around the vast, brightly decorated store that is full of posters and different kinds of records and CDs. "I mean, actually buying CDs is a big investment these days and kinda unnecessary. Still... you always want to support your favorite artists..."

"She just said she doesn't HAVE a favorite artist," says Mina. She's a girl with pink fur covering her whole body who can throw acid from her hands, which—yeah, don't ask me how those go together.

"She'll have one soon," Kyoka says quickly as she puts headphones on my head and practically places me in front of a sound station of some kind. She then puts on some music... I think it's music. The song's name is "Cut the Cord" by Shinedown. I have a hard time understanding anything the singer is saying, but I think it's about suicide, so I'm not sure I like it. I like the music, but the ideas, or what I can get, scare me.

Sweet reprieve when someone pauses the song for me. "If you still want to show her rock, maybe make it something that focuses on things kids might like... my little brother likes this guy." Says Tsuyu. She's a girl with long green hair, but her face and skin seem to be morphed a little, making her look like some kind of cross between a person and a frog. She punches a few buttons on the music controller, and another song comes on. This style is similar to Cut the Cord, but it's much more upbeat, and the main singer is singing about... a laser-shooting dinosaur.

I grin, listening to the ridiculous lyrics about a dinosaur made in Tokyo that fights goblins and apparently has a human rider. There's even a cartoon on the screen of the music sample device I'm plugged into. The lyrics are simple and easy to understand, and I immediately enjoy myself.

"Really... Angus McSix?" Asks Kyoka. She sighs. "I guess she could do worse."

"Ahhh- c'mon, don't be judgy. This trip is about helping our little friend, not making her a clone of ourselves," says Mina, as she wraps an arm around me and helps me pull up more songs by Angus on the sampler. "There's a big poster of the laser shooting dinosaur on the wall over there- what do you say, Hotaru? Want a copy for your room?"

"I... I can have it?" I ask, feeling very thankful as I look at a big, colorful poster of a goofy Tyrannosaur being ridden by my newly discovered favorite songwriter.

Kyoka doesn't seem happy with how things are shaping up as she rolls her eyes, but she looks around the store nonetheless and then picks up a big plastic sword with a giant goofy portrayal of the sun on its hilt. "Well... at least if I see this crap on her walls, I'll have something to talk with her about. It's not like I hate Glory Hammer or McSix; they're just super immature."

"What did you think she was gonna go for, Marilyn Manson?" Mina points out that I naturally have no idea what she means.

"Oh, this is cute! Do you want it?" Ocacho says, holding up a bizarrely proportioned doll with super-short arms and legs and multi-colored hair that sticks straight up.

"Not particularly..." I say, even as I don't want to upset my friend.

She frowns until Momo, a tall, dark-haired girl, taps her on the shoulder. "Just get it for yourself. Clothes next, gals!" She asserts.

"I don't really need-whao!" But I'm pulled along, first to the cashier and then to the next store.

It's Mina who speaks up first in the clothing store. "What all do you have for clothes anyway? I mean outside the school uniform."

"Um... a couple white shirts and blue jeans," I say.

"Seriously? That's just sad," Mina replies.

"Yeah, clothes are a way to express who you are!" comes a voice behind me. I jump when I don't see a face- but then I calm down, realizing it's just Toru.

"In your case, they're how we even know you exist!" Mina says, teasing the girl whose hero name is literally "The Invisible Girl." "What color is your hair, by the way?"

"Even I don't know by this point," Toru admits while... from her clothes, I guess she's putting her head in her hand. "But c'mon, Hotes, what's your favorite color?"

"Um, pink," I say.

"HA! Pink, pay up!" Mina says to Kyoka.

"Dang it, I figured it would be blue," Kyoka says, handing over a little cash to Kyoka.

"You bet on my favorite color?" I ask.

"You rarely talk, so no one knows you, so we've kind of been making up who you are in our heads," Mina says.

"You really should get out of your room more," Tsuyu says, tousling my hair a little as she walks past.

"Oh, look at this! It's such a cute pink crop top—try it on!" I look at the blouse Toru hands to me and cringe.

"Dad would kill me if I wore something like this- does it have to reveal my stomach?" I ask.

"Well- no one cares if I wear these," Toru says, a couple of the other girls snickering at her.

"Get whatever you feel like, kiddo," Momo says as she hands me a more loose-fitting and appropriate pink T-shirt. It has a picture of a pack of horses running on the front, and I kind of like it. "I'll pay."

"We should probably get her a desk and chair, too," Tsuyu says, "I bet she falls asleep studying on her bed all the time."

"I mean... sometimes..." I admit.

"We got ya," Ochaco says, putting an arm on my shoulders.

I look at the shirt from Momo and then at the things I got at the music store and smile, feeling so grateful to everyone.

"We should get her a phone!" Momo says.

"Yeah, that way, she can hear enough music to figure out what she likes," Kyoka says, to which Momo rolls her eyes.

"And so she can communicate, but a minor detail there, right?" Momo says sarcastically.

"You guys really don't have to do all this," I say. "Dad already lets me have a phone."

"Yeah- a clam shell. I've seen it. You need something to put songs on- oh, and a stereo would be good; we need to get one for her," Kyoka says.

"She'd probably be fine with just a headset," Momo says.

"You guys really..." I say.

"Oh, let us spoil you a bit. A couple of us just miss the younger members of our family—I know I won't be able to go shopping with my little sister for a long time with the school's new security policies," Mina says. This is an outlet."

"You guys are great friends!" I announce, to which... everyone pauses. "What?"

"I'm not sure you're our... friend... so much," Mina says.

"Be nice everyone..." Ochaco says.

"You're more like a little sister to me, one I wish would get out more for her own sake," Momo says. "That's why I don't mind getting you stuff."

"That and your family is stupid rich," Mina says, elbowing Momo in the ribs, "Me- I kinda just see you as the class mascot, no offense."

"Same here," Toru says. "Sorry."

"I sometimes forget you exist, and that's kinda on you, girl, just being honest," Kyoka shrugs. The others seem to give her an evil eye, but she shoots a glare back. "Have I really done anything wrong here? Pretty sure I've actually been helpful."

"Lay off Kyoka, everyone; she's not being a bully or anything. I'm with Momo; you're kinda a little sister... when I remember, you're even in the class," Tsuyu says. "I'm only here because everyone else is really. I don't hate you; I just don't know you is all." Kyoka says, looking like she really wants to justify herself right now.

I start to slow down, my eyes turning to Ochaco. "You're my friend, right?" I ask. Ochaco has been my anchor, the first person I trusted. Surely she...

Ochaco puts a hand on her head, scratching her scalp. "Um, sure, of course, we're friends." She says.

"Really?" Momo says. "We should be honest with the poor kid. We would all protect her if she were in trouble, but we're training to be heroes, so that doesn't mean much. The question is, would you rely on Hotaru if YOU were in trouble, Ochaco?"

"Well... I mean..." Ochaco looks away from me. "If there was trouble, I would just want her not to be around so she could be safe."

"Sounds like you're more in the little sister camp," Mina points out.

"Hey- but I hang out with her just for fun sometimes; that makes her a friend, right?" Ochaco tries.

"I hang out with my seven-year-old sister, Ochaco, all the time. She's a blast when she's in a good mood. That doesn't mean she's a "friend," Mina says.

I can feel my heart dropping in my chest. Momo kneels down a little to look me in the eyes. "Hey, don't overthink it, okay? You really do need to get out more, but it's hard for everyone to see you as an equal, and that would be true even if you were more of a socialite. But we do all care about you." Her eyes shift to Kyoka, "Well- mostly."

"When we remember that you draw breath..." Kyoka says.

"Shut up before I smack you," Momo says without even looking at Kyoka, who decides it's a good idea to shut up and start looking away.

"But Daddy says I should make friends."

"I don't know what to tell you, kiddo. Let us finish spoiling you for a bit and just be happy with everyone being good to you, okay? Just for now... Who knows, maybe if you start asserting yourself more socially, we'll see your talents and find ways to rely on you."

"Yeah- hey, I would never rely on you in a fight; that's kinda an honor thing 'cause you're so much younger than me, but what if you're really good with history or English? I struggle with those," Mina points out. "Get out and talk to us more. Half of us are aggressively friendly if you haven't noticed."

"I'll try," I say, keeping a smile on my face even as I look down. "Sorry, I haven't been good enough."

"None of us are perfect, girl. But stop letting yourself blend into the background, okay?" Momo says as she finally gets back up. "But hey, don't get it in your head that us being nice to you doesn't mean anything. You're still one of us 1-A girls, and no one can take that away."

"Except your dad, 'cause he can expel you!" Mina teases.

I smile again and grip my bags.

I have a good feeling, even if... it feels like something is missing. No one relies on me for anything? I guess that really is my fault. But they're all so much bigger, more confident, and better than me in many ways. I just wish I wasn't so far out of my league. Or, more like it, I wish there were someone else here that was in my league.

(***)

Henry:

I walk into the office of Professor Aizawa, better known as Eraserhead- or one of my former nemeses.

When he sees me, he almost glares.

I gulp, "I was told you would explain the parameters of my exam." I push out, regardless of his intense gaze.

He almost seems to snarl, then he stands up and walks over to a writing board, "Right. As you've been told, I'm supposed to be your guide for the next week as you try to qualify for a reform track. I'm supposed to explain the rules and keep you from doing anything so stupid that only a twelve-year-old could be forgiven for doing it." He starts writing on the dry-erase board, "For the next week your work ethic will be your own concern, though I will take tardiness personally-" he suddenly stops writing. "By the way, where is your sister? You were both supposed to meet me here at six, but I only see you." He stares down at me, his size dwarfing my own, and I can feel his shadow over me.

"Well, I mean, these days, I kinda represent her and-"

"If you represent her in briefings, then you represent her in class. If you represent her in class, then she has no reason to be here, and she can go back to sitting in jail... seems to follow as far as I'm concerned anyway." He says, almost staring down his nose at me.

"I um... um..."

"Unless you want her expelled from even the entrance exam, I suggest you get her fast- I trust she's in the building."

"Yes sir, she-"

But he interrupts me. "Then go get her. And hurry up; I'm taking this as you both being late, and if you're more than twenty minutes late for anything in this school, it's grounds for expulsion."

"Right- I'll be right back-"

"Running in the halls is also grounds for expulsion. I hope you're good at speed walking," I'm almost out the door as he clears his throat, "One last thing- Hizashi is my best friend. You have no idea how excited he is to finally have a son. Don't even THINK of disappointing him- go!"

I exit the room to go get Tori. I had never felt tired from speed walking before today, but it turns out that it is actually possible!