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Outside of the increasingly rare morning where you may take on the form of a bed-burrito, such a feeling is unnoticeable or outright ignored. After today however, it's the only part of your conscience still spurring you on to do something. Lazy things. And it currently suggests to double down, no... triple down on your current posse: Angus, Pony, yourself, and the big comfy couch.

"Y’know, Ah don't have a cable package, but Ah have some extra futons, fast internet and a laptop. Wanna build a pillow fort and watch stuff 'till we pass out?" You ask your couchmates during an opportune pause in their conversation.

>“Pillow fort?! <Hel- er, Yeah!> Sounds fun, and just what we need!” Pony blurts out, catching herself before cussing in front of a kid.

>“Pillow ...fort?” Angus falters trying to repeat the term with a confused tone. His tail wags with the same curiosity as when you showed him your game console.

>“Where you growing up, in a barn? We can show you, no matter! Between your cousin and me, we’ll have you a fort-building professional person in little time!” Pony jokes with a wide smile, pointing at both of you with her thumbs.

While you wince at Pony’s first comment, you’re relieved to see it go right over Angus's head. Your friend gets to mentoring instantly while lifting Angus and herself off their seats. You follow suit, but at a much more leisurely pace. Pony takes this as another chance to cuddle your cousin in her arms before putting him down and showing him how the cushions they were just on can become building blocks to a new Saturday night pastime.

Meanwhile, you head to the storage closet where all the extra stuff you brought from Texas ended up. Within, shelves crammed with small boxes, each full of shrunken items that might prove useful enough one day to keep at hand.

You brush off the thin layer of dust atop a particular shoe box and open it, digging out the miniaturized futons and a fistful of Starburst sized pillows before heading back to the living room. There you find Pony guiding Angus in making a simple roof and pillar arrangement.

>“They keep... wiggling...” Angus scrunches his nose in concentration as he struggles to keep his “walls” from collapsing while placing and adjusting the larger middle cushion on top.

>”See? You are already getting a feel of it!” Your friend encourages him, handing him the last of the cushions.

“Lemme tell ya from experience, the best way to stop’em from wiggling is setting more pillows up against ‘em for reinforcement!” You announce your return and begin the process of enlarging the miniaturized items back to their normal size and tossing them at Pony to catch.

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Pony gives a “Woo!” at each bamf your quirk produces, catching the pillow and then softly tossing it to Angus in turn. Surprisingly, it takes only a moment longer for the little guy to start copying her in cheering you on while stacking the whole lot into an ever growing pile of plush for all of you to build with.

Your cousin’s raised voice still resides comfortably on the “indoor” side of the spectrum, but you’re still elated to see him come out of his shell in any little way. You aren’t the only one it seems, as Rik gives his son a double take as he passes by when the latter ‘loudly’ lays claim to a matching pair of throw pillows.

It doesn’t take too long for the three of you to make a sizable structure utilizing most of the remaining floor space. The few pillows that remain after are quickly repurposed to pad the ground so that every surface was now soft and springy.

In the middle of it all, Angus kept himself busy tinkering with a single cubby hole at the base of the couch with which he could climb and snuggle into. Once satisfied it wasn’t going to collapse on him, he set about decorating it inside and out with his preferred cushions, including galloping back to his room to fetch his lamb plushie.

Every once in a while Pony politely asked for Angus’ “help” in holding a wall or placing a cushion in a particular way, the little guy never picking up on the fact she was creating alcoves and tunnels matching his size for him to crawl around in. For your part, you mostly lounged on the spreading softness, every so often assisting Pony in her grand designs by shrinking and enlarging given pieces at her request to perfectly fit and squish together.

Another surprise came up during when you watched Angus struggle with a bulbous pillow far too soft to support anything. Instead of tossing it aside and trying with another one, he grabbed the tip of his tail like a brush and marked a circle on the cushion, flattening it with dramatic oomph and a small gust of air. He followed this up by tapping it twice, then tracing a line on it before finally letting go of his tail. At once, the pillow fluffed up but only a smidgen compared to before. Happy with the result, Angus turned the slab of now semi-crushed feathers and fabric sideways to use as a sturdy support for the larger fort.

Something to ask him about later, perhaps…

By the time your friend gave a final dramatic nod at the finishing touches she placed on Fort Awesome (her idea), you were starting to fight yourself from wobbling back and forth on your knees. You had a big breakfast before your day out at the mall, but that rather inconvenient life-or-death encounter led to you not having eaten anything since.

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Your light headedness came with a side of extra admiration for Pony’s unrelenting energy in keeping up and crawling around with Angus considering she was literally running around the city for her job before she rescued you by accident. Looking on, you silently remind yourself that she didn’t lose her fight with you during the Sports Festival from knockout, going out of bounds or exhaustion, like your classmates did. Her only fault was being unable to stand back up, her injured hands staining the cement red...

Fortunately, Momma helps to keep you from traveling down that particular memory hole for too long by announcing that dinner is ready. You all take your time meandering over to the dinner table, Pony exclaiming her excitement at sitting for a meal with “real” furniture again like back at home, as your mom and uncle deliver a large spread of dishes from the kitchen.

>"Well, I… No, I don't think anyone really could have planned for today, so I didn't have much in the way of comfort food ready, but I think this will do." Momma states while wiping her hands on her apron, looking a fair bit tired yet far more content than earlier tonight. "I think I remember you had the vegetarian plate at the roof party, so I leaned into that… Still, sorry for the rush job. I'll make it up to you gals with tomorrow's breakfast, okay?"

>"This was a rush job!?" Pony exclaims, her eyes sparkling with disbelief as she stares at the table before switching back to English. "<That's like three dishes! Like, three different, fully cooked dinners!>"

"<And the salad.>" You point out, also taking in the spread before you. The large platter of gyoza in the middle of the table looks and smells impressive, but any good cook can make those in little time. Making them look and smell great is only a matter of the cook's skill… So it's no wonder Angus can't stop staring at them. Same goes for the vegetable curry and the glazed carrots served alongside soba salad. Simple yet abundant entrées that make you wonder for a moment if there's anything left in the fridge.

Were you less hungry, feeling less lazy, or your mom a worse cook, you might have protested at the lack of meat amongst the dishes. But feeling both lethargic and famished has you in the sort of dopey state where you'd be happy with anything edible, including the flower garden out front…This is much better though.

>"Oh? It's not much better than anything you could buy at a food cart, just given a homely touch. I'm sure you've had better at school." Momma waves down Pony’s compliments, pointedly keeping to Japanese.

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>"Oh yeah. Very good stuff at school, and cheap, but not for dinner." Pony replies, deeply breathing in all the aromas set before her. "In some times, I do take-out and rice only. I think I had a full month of sushi right after I settled in …not a good idea. Even with trying the different kinds of fishless rolls, it was still too hard a diet shift."

>"Uh-huh. First time living alone, as it were?" Your Momma asks, getting a bashful nod in response. "Can't say I'm surprised. I know of a certain calf that once thought a week of nothing but pizza was a good idea while her parents were gone…"

"Ah was 12!" You point out, perhaps a bit too defensively. You sit back down and cross your arms, almost shivering at the memory. "So much grease…"

>"Well, we can keep talking but I'd rather not let the gyoza cool down, so why don't we get started?" Momma says, giving you all the go ahead to dig in.

From there, table talk became… downright embarrassing.

You had expected Momma to continue her inquiries into Pony’s life, and you held your tongue from asking her to stop pestering. After all, your friend was eager to share her upbringing, interests and hobbies. Only ever switching back to English when she really wanted to get her point across without confusion to your mom, but always returning to Japanese by the next question. Neither Rik nor Angus seemed to mind these gaps in comprehending the conversation.

What you didn't expect, but were feeling too lazy to put up a fight about, was for your Mom to start telling Pony about all the silly stuff you had hoped would stay on the other side of the Pacific.

Did Pony need to know about the time you almost got mauled by a giant barn cat? Or that you are justifiably scared of geese?...

The most you felt like doing was keeping a conveyor belt of gyoza running into your mouth in an attempt to keep yourself from protesting. Or clarifying, like for what had really happened each time Momma described a funny place and position she remembers finding you zonked out in on the ranch. Or when you refused to come out of the irrigation canal in hopes of it acting like a water slide. Or that time you got your head stuck in the livestock pen railing and were too panicked to quirk out of it.

Soon enough there was no more gyoza and Momma was still going on about all the incidents you had with your hair as a child…

You try to pivot, leverage it in your favor, and address the stories to Angus as early life lessons and words of wisdom, but you aren’t certain you got through to him on any of it. It’s not like he could hear you very well while you covered your blushing face with your hands… his dad laughing beside him probably didn’t help much either.

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Following the clearing your plate (as well as Angus’) of every last speck of food, Pony was just getting around to asking for more details about the time you dressed up as a stack of pancakes for Halloween. With no apparent end in sight, you briefly consider excusing yourself to meet up with Tin in your room rather than endure any further humiliation. But you figure that any meeting with it following the incident at the mall would take you away from your guest and cousin for far longer than you’d like. Besides, Tin deserves more than a haphazard check in after you came to learn that it was the one to call in the police at the mall.

Instead, you set your mind to cleaning the dishes and table, trying your best to zone out the conversation. Not long after, you wish Momma a good night, promising her and Rik to put Angus to bed later, and return to Fort Awesome with your cutie cousin and behooved friend.

When everyone was settled in, you proceeded with the previously proposed vod-watch. Lazing about in a maze of pillows, cushions, and blankets while sharing a laptop and not talking about the many mis-steps of your childhood has never felt so right.

In want of something that you all could enjoy, you and Pony came to the same conclusion that Angus ought to like the classic cartoons you both watched growing up. As you alternated searches for your favorite shows, the cartoons went further and further back in time. Eventually your video queue ends up playing random clip montages of various ancient anime Pony knew of that looked like they were digitized from degrading tapes a few years too late.

By that point, all three of you hardly made the effort to even sit upright to watch, let alone change the auto-play option; content to just stay cuddling in the blankets until Angus dozed off in your arms. If you hadn't needed to put the lil' guy to bed, you might have dozed off right there and then too. But you stayed true to your word, tucking him and his plushie in for a good night's sleep back in his room.

You return to the fort thinking about your own bed and how you are really starting to miss it. As fun and relaxing as these last few hours have been, the whole day has been an energy drain in one way or another and you were past due for a recharge.

>"Now that we don't have to watch Angus over, think we can move over to correct sleepover movies?" Pony peeps at you as you lean down near her prone form, reaching for your laptop. "I know a site that streams the worst… or is it best? Well, you know the kind of so-crap-it's-good movies!"

"Well, Ah think-" You interrupt yourself with a yawn. "Yeah, about that… Ah was thinking it's high time we hit the hay too? You should have more than enough space here, and Ah'll be up in mah room if ya need anything, 'kay?"

Maybe you really have gotten that much better at reading people, or maybe Pony's large blue eyes are just that expressive. But there's no mistaking what you saw from the corner of your vision as you made to turn around.

The same look you saw flash across her face when you separated her from her bag as it turned to dust in front of you both on the mall floor. Realizing a fear. Surprised by its vicinity. Uncertain how to stop it.

"Somethin' the matter, sugarcube?" You ask, immediately pushing your tiredness to the back of your mind. The lazy teenage voice was all but silenced as you leaned down next to her once more.

>"<...Well, no, it's just, you said we'd watch movies till we pass out, right??>" She quickly answers in English, her eyes darting from you to the laptop screen and back to you.

There's clearly more to it than that, but any desire to press her to be honest melts away at the realization: You know that look. You’ve worn it more than a few times before arriving in Japan. When the teacher left class promptly at the bell or when the larger throng of students cleared out of the hallways. A non-verbal plea before the others that were always keen to be close by huddled around you once more…

Please don’t leave

"<Right, … Night's still young 'n' all.>" You reply with just a hint of sarcasm. With a smile and a nod you lay down besides her again, making sure to place a pillow under your abdomen to avoid squishing anything for too long. You don't plan on inflaming your bruises just for a movie. "<Whatcha got for us tonight?>"

>"<Tonight's late night feature izzz…>" Pony starts, dragging out the consistent as she takes hold of and drags her fingers over your laptop's trackpad. The cheer returning to your friend’s voice puts your mind at ease, assuring you that you made the right choice to stay.

>"<Bare Chested Dragon: Hot Spring Heroines Vs. Zombies 5!... I swear it says it's gorey…>"

You are not nearly as reassured by her taste in movies.

"<...Well, it sounds like trash alright. Just check the volume before tunin' in, 'kay?>"

After a few seconds of troubleshooting, you quickly find yourself sharing the largest blanket in the fort with her, quietly riffing and ripping into a movie which delivers exactly what's in the title and little else.

"<Honestly, she should have expected that. That top had a snowball's chance in hell surviving a run down a flight of stairs.>" You mumble as one of the heroines' shirts snaps open as they flee from the waterlogged zombies.

>"<Almost like it’s the point of the scene…>" Pony humms, holding her chin in mock contemplation.

Eventually however, as the heroines are taken out one by one by the towel-wearing undead, the movie manages to create a moment of real tension. As the rookie hides in a cupboard, hugging the base of her chainsaw, she wordlessly fights with herself and her anxiety. Should she try and sneak out to contact the Hero Network, with the obvious risk of being done in if caught?… Or just rev it up, alert the undead, but be ready to cut a bloody swath to the nearest line of communication.

It's in the near silence of watching the heroine try to keep her fear in check in between peeks from the cupboard that Pony opens up.

>"<Home helps, doesn't it?>" Pony murmurs, shrinking under the blanket to where only her horns poked out. "<In dealing with it.>"

"<How do you mean?>" You ask back, having a hunch but not quite certain of what she was getting at. You mimic her and find her sullen expression under the blanket, her face flushed, the craptastic film forgotten.

>"<In trying to get used to it. Adjust to the idea that there is the chance, like a real chance, out of the blue,... of being killed.>" Pony slowly explains, sounding and looking far more grim than her large, sweet eyes should ever allow. "<It's dumb. It can happen to anyone, at any time… They all say that and I’ve been trying to too. Even though nothing like what happened to me today could’ve possibly happened last year. But still, I keep telling myself all that. And I know it's true, but I just can’t… I can’t keep the thought away. It's dumb and I hate it…>"

You also doubt that she could have been called by a robot to address a hostage crisis as a middle schooler, but you choose not to bring it up.

"<Yeah. No matter how irrational you know something is, it doesn't sway the heart. It’s set on feelin’ the way it does until it doesn’t want to…>" You agree. "<Ah guess home does help, if that's whatcha talkin’ about. Feelin' safe, enough to where you can work through that stuff. Even prepare for it in a way… Yeah, it does help.>"

>”<Right, I just…I just thought that I wouldn’t need to. Not yet anyways. I know being in the hero business can be dangerous but…wasn’t there supposed to be like a whole three years of school before we got to the deadly stuff?>”

”<That doesn’t seem to be U.A. way. For better or for worse.>” You grumble back.

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>"<~Woo~.>" Your friend gives a sarcastic cheer before staring up at the blanket. "<I guess it doesn’t help me much to think of home when it’s totally out of reach… Like, I love my place, but I don't think 'safe' describes it. There's a lot of noise outside at night and it's hard to sleep sometimes… I don't really have a place outside of school, and it's not like we can stay on campus after dark. And at this point U.A. is just going to make me think about the danger even more…~Plus Ultra~.>" Pony gives her most lackluster attempt at mimicking Present Mic’s accent and finger point while poking at the fabric above you both.

You giggle along with her at that, but her words don’t sit well with you at all. Even when you were at your lowest, you always had a home to come back to. Being alone with that fear… you were determined to not let that happen when you brought Pony back with you tonight. Wouldn’t the simplest solution be to never let it happen?

"<...Well, what 'bout here, 'bout us?>" You suggest after a moment of shared silence. "<Ah know Ah'd be happy to have you. Momma and Angus too… We're all here if you need us, any time, any reason... And ah reckon you've been officially part of the family since Momma picked you up.>"

>"<I…>" Pony starts, but ends up trailing off. Instead she turns back and stares at you. The last time you personally offered her something, a ticket to an island getaway, she teared up, nuzzled you, and hugged you so tight you ‘squeaked’. You might’ve expected something similar now, but it never came. She just kept staring. And you were starting to feel like you had, somehow, in the most unlikely of times, managed to insert your boot into your mouth

>”<You really mean that, don’t you?>” Pony finally whispers to you.

“<...Why wouldn’t Ah?>“ You shrug your shoulders at her, still more than a little worried you had fucked up. That impression remains a moment longer as Pony scoots closer to you under the blanket. You tense up, bracing for something, even if it is just another bear hug.

All those worries fall away when you feel her arms softly clasp around you and her cheek rests in the crook of your neck so her horns jut away. You can’t see them but get you the feeling she’s closed your eyes as she tenderly leans into your frame. It’s the easiest thing you’ve done all day to just lie there, reciprocating the embrace.

>”<...I can get used to that, 'sis'.>” Pony calmly whispers next to where she thinks your ear hides in your hair. "<No clue how would I ever pay it back, though.>"

You think about it for a moment as you brush her hair with your hand before whispering back. "<Nope. Nuh-uh. I am the one who owes you. For savin' us today, If it weren’t for you, Ah’d be dust on sidewalk.>" You chuckle as you say it, making you both shake a little in your cuddle.

>"<...and if you hadn't helped me study on the train, I don't think I would have made it in to UA.>" She gives a giggle of her own.

"<And if you hadn't… Hol' up, I wanna show ya instead…>" You tell her, scrambling out of the blanket and to your feet. Running upstairs to your room, you’re careful to make as little noise as possible with the pointers Edgeshot gave you. It’s easier than if you’d had hooves, that's for damn sure.

You can babble all you want about how thankful and happy you are to have her in your life, but you are pretty sure you can make your point faster with a little help

It takes you a minute to dig it out of the drawer, as the tiny things inside the small boxes in your drawers full of other similarly small boxes tend to do. It's hard not to hold on to trinkets when you have effectively unlimited storage space.

You race back downstairs, conquering the staircase without so much as a creak, before you jump back into the fort and under your side of the blanket.

"<...Sorry, here. If you hadn't given me this, Ah wouldn't have even made it as far as the written portion.>" You point out while holding up a pen between the two of you. The same one she gave you on the first day of the Entrance Exams. "<For everything ya think you owe me, Ah feel like Ah’m just repaying ya for helping me with the one thing I wanted from hopping the pond …a fresh start.>”

At that, you lightly clack your horn with hers.

“<And Ah was gonna give it back, but it kinda, uh…>" You trail off, staring at the not-particularly useful pen in your hand.

>"<Ran out of ink? Yeah, I also noticed cheap pens don't last long for writing over here…>" Pony comments with a small smile, taking the pen from your hand, twirling it around her fingers before placing it back into your palm before covering it with her own. "<Guess we've had each other's back for a while, huh?>"

"<Wouldn't have it any other way sugahcu->" You answer before being interrupted by the movie. It was easy to ignore before while under the blanket but with that no longer covering you both, the soundtrack has kicked up noticeably and pulled your attention to the chainsaw ripping through soft fabric and tissues on-screen. "<Holy shit, I think those were practical effects.>"

>"<Gosh, I hate these scenes but like, can never look away…>" Pony reacts, facing away from the screen, yet keeping her eyes on it.

With the large blanket back over you both, you spend the remainder of the night together watching what critics would kindly call "a clever parody of Japanese trash cinema" until your eyelids get too heavy to ignore.

Sharing a pillow fort, sharing a blanket and even breath, you calmly fell asleep together, as comfortable as you've ever been with any other member of your family…

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Sunday morning comes when you are woken up by a cavalcade of smells: French toast, waffles, pancakes, marmalades and fresh fruit. Your mom spared no expense nor an ounce of butter to make a hearty, meatless meal for you all to enjoy.

As you sit down for breakfast, you promise to Pony to lend her a fresh shirt (though it will probably look a bit like a short dress on her before a quirk re-sizing) and allow your mind to think ahead on what to do with your Sunday.

You still have to shop for the few supplies you'll need for the camp retreat and anything you might need for the trip to I-Island… But that might be too soon. Or maybe it's the best time, as there's bound to be plenty of law enforcement around for the next day or two after a villain escapes a scene.

Maybe just going for a smoothie and walking your friend home the long way around would be a nice way to spend the afternoon.

Or maybe someone will start knocking at the front door in a slow, methodical fashion just as you begin eating…

You briefly wonder whether to ignore it. If Momma was waiting for someone, she would have told you, so it isn't an expected visit. If it was someone with intent to do harm, they wouldn't announce themselves. The police? They would announce themselves-

>"Mrs. Walker?" Shoto's muffled voice comes from the other side of the door. "May I come in? I would like to check in on Ushi."

Hearing the familiar, if somewhat monotone voice, you quickly rush to and open the door with a smile.

"Howdy sugah!" You say, realizing but not caring much that you are still wearing yesterday's clothes and your hair probably looks like a badger's nest. "Uh, Ah'd offer ya to come in, but Ah’d need to take a shower before anythin' else, if… What're you doin' here?"

Taking a second to actually look around, you notice a few oddities outside your front door.

The first being Shoto carrying a slightly scuffed camera, neck strap and all. The same type the police officer from yesterday used at the scene at the mall. Other than the scratched plastic that is, but still, it's odd to see one of those again.

The second actually gives you a wave. Well, more like a lazy hand-raise if you were being honest with yourself.

>"Hey, Walker. Not too surprised to see you aren't mincemeat yet." Bakugo barks from a few yards behind him, looking you up and down before turning his attention to Shoto. "There, mission accomplished, she looks as fine as ever. Now let's get out of here and finish this, I’ve got other shit to do today."

The last couple oddities would be the faint smell of blood you catch coming from Bakugo. From it, you notice the small bit of reddish gauze poking out of his shirt collar.

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>"...Just taking care of something." Shoto answers you after a second of thought, glancing down at the camera before looking back at you with a small smile. "Don’t worry, Ushi. You do not need to hurry. We will be on our way."

And just like that, he turns around and starts walking away, while Bakugo matches your stare for a bit longer before following suit.

>"<So… Are cute boys mystery visits like, something I've been missing on or was that weird for you too?>" Pony asks, walking up behind you.

>What do you do?

>[You too have things to do. "Weird alright. Come on, let's get ready for the day and go buy the stuff we need, just you and me this time. And the whole lotta cops that are bound to be 'round."]
>[Tell the boys to stop, you need to figure out what's going on. "Yep, that's weird. Too weird. HEY YOU TWO! GET BACK HERE AND WAIT A GODDANG MINUTE! YA'LL DON'T GET TO POKE YER HEAD IN AND JUST LEAVE LIKE THAT!!!"]
>[Whatever that was, you aren't touching it with a ten feet pole. "...Let's pretend that didn't happen and go somewhere nice. Enjoy the lazy day and get ready for Monday?" (Skip to the next day)]
>[Write in.]
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+1 Relationship Dice to Pony! RD is now 3!
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Happy New Years Y'all!

>>5147067
>>[You too have things to do. "Weird alright. Come on, let's get ready for the day and go buy the stuff we need, just you and me this time. And the whole lotta cops that are bound to be 'round."]

>>5147067
>>[Tell the boys to stop, you need to figure out what's going on. "Yep, that's weird. Too weird. HEY YOU TWO! GET BACK HERE AND WAIT A GODDANG MINUTE! YA'LL DON'T GET TO POKE YER HEAD IN AND JUST LEAVE LIKE THAT!!!"

>>5147067
Welcome back PM!

Well it seems obvious to me:

>>[Tell the boys to stop, you need to figure out what's going on. "Yep, that's weird. Too weird. HEY YOU TWO! GET BACK HERE AND WAIT A GODDANG MINUTE! YA'LL DON'T GET TO POKE YER HEAD IN AND JUST LEAVE LIKE THAT!!!"

>Invite them in for Breakfast. It's not like you'll have issues feeding everyone.

>>5147067
Good to see the quest back.

>>[Tell the boys to stop, you need to figure out what's going on. "Yep, that's weird. Too weird. HEY YOU TWO! GET BACK HERE AND WAIT A GODDANG MINUTE! YA'LL DON'T GET TO POKE YER HEAD IN AND JUST LEAVE LIKE THAT!!!"]

>>5147067
>[You too have things to do. "Weird alright. Come on, let's get ready for the day and go buy the stuff we need, just you and me this time. And the whole lotta cops that are bound to be 'round."]

>>5147067
>>[Tell the boys to stop, you need to figure out what's going on. "Yep, that's weird. Too weird. HEY YOU TWO! GET BACK HERE AND WAIT A GODDANG MINUTE! YA'LL DON'T GET TO POKE YER HEAD IN AND JUST LEAVE LIKE THAT!!!"]

>>5147067
>[Tell the boys to stop, you need to figure out what's going on. "Yep, that's weird. Too weird. HEY YOU TWO! GET BACK HERE AND WAIT A GODDANG MINUTE! YA'LL DON'T GET TO POKE YER HEAD IN AND JUST LEAVE LIKE THAT!!!"]

>>5147067
>[You too have things to do. "Weird alright. Come on, let's get ready for the day and go buy the stuff we need, just you and me this time. And the whole lotta cops that are bound to be 'round."]

>>5147067
>[You too have things to do. "Weird alright. Come on, let's get ready for the day and go buy the stuff we need, just you and me this time. And the whole lotta cops that are bound to be 'round."]

Weirdly I trust the two of them together to be reasonable more than individually. Like obviously what the fuck but let’s just trust them I think.

>>5147067
>[Tell the boys to stop, you need to figure out what's going on. "Yep, that's weird. Too weird. HEY YOU TWO! GET BACK HERE AND WAIT A GODDANG MINUTE! YA'LL DON'T GET TO POKE YER HEAD IN AND JUST LEAVE LIKE THAT!!!"]

>>5147067
>[You too have things to do. "Weird alright. Come on, let's get ready for the day and go buy the stuff we need, just you and me this time. And the whole lotta cops that are bound to be 'round."]
Keeping busy can keep the mind off what happened. Might be useful. You can always laze about after.

>>5147067
>>[Tell the boys to stop, you need to figure out what's going on. "Yep, that's weird. Too weird. HEY YOU TWO! GET BACK HERE AND WAIT A GODDANG MINUTE! YA'LL DON'T GET TO POKE YER HEAD IN AND JUST LEAVE LIKE THAT!!!"]

Off to a good start, this thread.

>>5147067
>[Tell the boys to stop, you need to figure out what's going on. "Yep, that's weird. Too weird. HEY YOU TWO! GET BACK HERE AND WAIT A GODDANG MINUTE! YA'LL DON'T GET TO POKE YER HEAD IN AND JUST LEAVE LIKE THAT!!!"]

Glad to have you back mic

>>5147047
Oh, you aren't dead? Cool.
>>5147067
>[Tell the boys to stop, you need to figure out what's going on. "Yep, that's weird. Too weird. HEY YOU TWO! GET BACK HERE AND WAIT A GODDANG MINUTE! YA'LL DON'T GET TO POKE YER HEAD IN AND JUST LEAVE LIKE THAT!!!"]
And happy new year to you too, belated as it is.

>>5147067
>[Tell the boys to stop, you need to figure out what's going on. "Yep, that's weird. Too weird. HEY YOU TWO! GET BACK HERE AND WAIT A GODDANG MINUTE! YA'LL DON'T GET TO POKE YER HEAD IN AND JUST LEAVE LIKE THAT!!!"]
But I suggest not pressing too hard. Obviously, Shoto was very worried because of the haphazard text message and dropped on by. Apologize for that. I forget what they were doing out on Sunday in the audio dramas. Were they on their way to buy stuff for the camp too? Maybe go together.

>>5147067
>[Tell the boys to stop, you need to figure out what's going on. "Yep, that's weird. Too weird. HEY YOU TWO! GET BACK HERE AND WAIT A GODDANG MINUTE! YA'LL DON'T GET TO POKE YER HEAD IN AND JUST LEAVE LIKE THAT!!!"]

>>5147067
>[Tell the boys to stop, you need to figure out what's going on. "Yep, that's weird. Too weird. HEY YOU TWO! GET BACK HERE AND WAIT A GODDANG MINUTE! YA'LL DON'T GET TO POKE YER HEAD IN AND JUST LEAVE LIKE THAT!!!"]

>>5147067
>>[Whatever that was, you aren't touching it with a ten feet pole. "...Let's pretend that didn't happen and go somewhere nice. Enjoy the lazy day and get ready for Monday?" (Skip to the next day)]

>>5147067
>[Tell the boys to stop, you need to figure out what's going on. "Yep, that's weird. Too weird. HEY YOU TWO! GET BACK HERE AND WAIT A GODDANG MINUTE! YA'LL DON'T GET TO POKE YER HEAD IN AND JUST LEAVE LIKE THAT!!!"]
This update was sweet.
Glad to have you back PM.

>>5147067
>>[Tell the boys to stop, you need to figure out what's going on. "Yep, that's weird. Too weird. HEY YOU TWO! GET BACK HERE AND WAIT A GODDANG MINUTE! YA'LL DON'T GET TO POKE YER HEAD IN AND JUST LEAVE LIKE THAT!!!"]

>>[Write in.][Afterwards, text Deku to see how he's doing. "You doin' okay after yesterday sugah?"]

>>5147067
Supporting >>5148011
>>[Tell the boys to stop, you need to figure out what's going on. "Yep, that's weird. Too weird. HEY YOU TWO! GET BACK HERE AND WAIT A GODDANG MINUTE! YA'LL DON'T GET TO POKE YER HEAD IN AND JUST LEAVE LIKE THAT!!!"]

>>[Write in.][Afterwards, text Deku to see how he's doing. "You doin' okay after yesterday sugah?"]

Ill add support,

>>5148011

to my vote+write in at >>5147107 as well

>>5147117
>>5148011
Adding support to thispkpm

>>5148011

>>5147067
Support because I at least wanna know what's going on, even if we don't follow up on it.

Also agreed with the check up on Deku too since he was there too.

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Calling the vote and writing!

Pony, I question your taste in guys if you call Bakugo 'cute'.
Hot, MAYBE, just for the potential explosion puns to piss him off.
But cute? I don't see it.

>>5148889
Dontcha know? Pony likes bad boys....
Or perhaps that's a tad misleading, she likes them dark....
Wait no. That's not what I meant by that.
Uh.
Damn it, how can I ship coyly without sounding like the wrong type of perverted?!

>>5150807
She likes them explosive, emotionally and physically.
Maybe Pony has an abuse kink?

>>5150807
>>5150814
I mean considering what IRL American women think about Bakugo are you even really surprised?

>>5150849
You raise a good point, Pony is American.
She probably misses the sound of gunshots

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You grind your gears for a moment longer, trying to figure out what the heck just happened, and more importantly, whether you care. Deciding that you do, you promptly answer Pony's question.

“<Yep, that was weird… Too weird to let it go.> HEY, YOU TWO! GET BACK HERE AND WAIT A GODDANG MINUTE! Y’ALL DON’T GET TO POKE YER HEAD IN AND JUST LEAVE LIKE THAT!!!” You yell, ready to demand they turn around and explain themselves. You stomp towards the boys… for all of two steps.

>"Why not? I just wanted to be sure you were well, and did not wish to intrude." Shoto asks, having already stopped to look at you with a small tilt of his head. "Besides, you came to meet us outside."

Caught off guard, you take in your surroundings. It’s true, you are now standing barefoot on the sun-warmed sidewalk.

“...Whatever! Look, Ah just woke up n’ haven’t eaten, Ah haven’t looked at my phone since yesterday, and honest to the Almighty, Ah don't think there has ever been a less likely pair to be on a leisurely Sunday stroll, so pardon me if Ah think there's somethin' else going on.” You point out before crossing your arms and letting a small puff of steam out of your nose. "'sides, you live on the other side of town, do people even take that kinda trip for somethin' that can be done over the phone?"

>“...Yes? You came from Yokkaichi to Hosu City to check on me with Midoriya and Iida. This isn’t that different… Apart from the lack of a comfort meal to ensure you feel better.” He answers with a small apologetic nod. "I promise to make it up to you."

“O-oh…” You utter, feeling some heat begin to rise to your face.

Taken off guard again. Man, this Sunday is starting off weird.


Bakugo’s response by comparison is much more normal.

>“Hey, hey! Don’t you get any ideas about us hanging out! I just have unfinished business with icy-hot from yesterday!" He barks, purposely stepping some five feet away from Shoto. "Turns out half-n-half here wasn't willing to do jack shit before being certain your rump wasn’t taken home in a vacuum bag."

"Aw shucks, ‘appreciate the concern. Ah'd sure hate to waste your time…" You snark back at him.

If you weren't already outside, you'd be showing him the door. For his part, Bakugo flashes a brief grin.

>"Got shit to do, Walker, can't spend time checking on what I already know. The only surprises are that the creep didn't get run through a wall and Deku didn't break any bones." He gives a vain shrug, his grimace quickly returning after that. "But really, I’ve wasted enough of the morning on this, so if you could let scarface go now, we can leave you alone to whatever the fuck you were doing with the longhorn hiding behind the door."

>”PONY! I'm pony! It's even my name!” You look back to the door to see Pony, rather her horns and some blonde hair, peeking out from her hiding spot from inside. "Tsunotori Pony? Remember? Fellow U.A. student?"

>”...Fuckin’ who?” The spiky-haired boy replies, getting Pony to peek and stick her tongue out at him. He takes the briefest of glances her way before turning back to you again. "...Right. You like hanging out with the people you beat up, almost forgot that."

Your classmate’s rude replies get you back into the driver's seat.

“Wait, unfinished business? Don’t tell me you two got into a fight? ...With each other?” Your confusion continues to build.

Both their quirks would leave either burns or other noticeable marks, not a cut like you saw on Bakugo’s chest. You can discount the wear on Bakugo’s knuckles as typical so all told, if they were squarin’ up, they both look… just fine.

>"No, not that.” Shoto quickly dismisses the idea.

>"None of your business.” Bakugo rebukes you, yet can't help but shit-talk as he gestures to Shoto with his thumb. "If it were, he wouldn't be standing."

>"<And to think I called him cute…>” Pony laments in English from afar.

“The incident at the mall wasn’t the only attack.” Shoto finally sheds some light on the situation. "We encountered a villain too."

You feel like your hair stands on edge at the news. Was it a two pronged attack of some sort!?

>"Chill Walker, no one died. Perp’s likely still spitting teeth though." Bakugo grumbles impatiently. "Good enough? Daylight's still burning…"

Hearing that, you feel the slightest relief before your stomach drops out from a combination of dread…and guilt.


Where’d you get the idea that once you got attacked that the villains were done for the day? You regret now that you didn’t take the time to confirm the rest of your classmates didn’t encounter similar ordeals in the mall, or later. Hell, you haven’t even checked-in with Deku and he was there with you!

>"That's strange." Pony chimes in, still obscured from view. "Why come we didn't seen you at the police station?"

>"I intended to go to the League task force headquarters now." Shoto explains, looking down at the camera he's carrying. "I called the police to pick up the villain at the scene yesterday, as it was too risky to get more involved and be called out for fighting villains as students. Now that we know Shigaraki showed up at the same time, any possible leads should be reported along with any evidence… tangential as it may be."

>"It was a weak-ass creep!" Bakugo shoots back rather angrily, raising his hands and ushering Shoto to get a move on. His scuffed knuckles now make a lot more sense. "Promised to ‘make a bloodbath out of U.A. students', whatever the hell that means, to someone.Talked a big game and got beaten up by a first year holding back for it. Bastard will be eating his words with a straw for a long while."

>"He sounded scared of them. Fearful of breaking his promise to that person." The other boy counters, holding the camera up. "Whoever it was sent an assassin after students, and they’re powerful enough to scare said assassin. It might not be related to the League. Or maybe it is and this might prove useful to the taskforce."

"If that was the villain's, why didn't you just leave it with him?" You ask, more curious now than anything else. Trophy collecting is valid too, after all.

>"No. Fucking. Reason!" With each word, Bakugo's eyes dart back and forth between Shoto and the camera, before finally launching forward and taking a swipe at the device, which Shoto deftly evades. Your friend takes a step back and holds the camera strap at arms length away from the near-combusting boy.

Right in front of you.

…And right in front of Pony, who surprises you again in quick fashion and yoink's the device out of Shoto's hand, strap and all.

>"Why don't we just see what's these all a-boot?~" Pony playfully suggests as she turns the camera on.

>"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Shoto warns her, but makes no move to stop her. Instead, turning to look out at the horizon? Huh.

Bakugo more than makes up for it and leaps at Pony with a panicked howl.

>"NONE OF THAT!" He yells along with various curses as he runs after her, chasing her up and down the thankfully empty street.

>"Nuh-uh!" Your American friend mocks him as she easily keeps clear of his attempts to reach her, all the while fiddling with the camera's buttons.

Without using his quirk, he'll never catch her. She has him beat in sheer horsepower, after all.

But then she stops as she peers at the electronic display.

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>"Oh!.. ~Oh my~..." She coos, looking back at the boys with a spark in her eyes and a blush across her face. "<B~L~>…"

You sense things are coming to a boil.

>"I'LL FUCKING KILL YOU!" Bakugo nigh literally explodes, his hands smoking as he resumes his chase. "Stop swiping already you fucking horny fujoshi!"

>"He's right, you shouldn't," confirms Shoto, hesitantly explaining further. "There's… more blackmail material in there than just our own shameful pictures. Considering the villain's quirk let him control and pose his victims's bodies as he wished, even the more explicit pictures are likely …coerced."

Oh. Oh no.

"Pony! Stop that!" You shout at your friend who's clearly not listening.

>"Dancing, hip grabbing, hand holding…Shirtless too!" Pony cheers as she trots, flicking through the pics, her attention fully absorbed by the tiny display. "<You gotta see this Ushi! Swap the faces, tilt the shot, and you could use any of these as an> ero-manga <cover!>"

"Why would you hold onto that!?" You ask the boys, both horrified by the information and somewhat intrigued by Pony's antics. You direct your next question to Shoto. "And what in tarnation are you goin' on about?"

>"From what I could stomach, the villain made sure the victims were recognizable, so there might be a pattern or an area of interest the detectives could follow." He continues to look away, plainly disgusted for the first time since you've known him. Filial anger was always mixed in, but not this time. You also get the feeling that his opinion of Pony is not trending upward either… not that he liked her much before.

>"I DON'T WANT TO HOLD ON TO JACK SHIT!" The other boy loudly answers, enough to make your not-particularly-sensitive ears flick.

"Then why didn't you smash it! Like, yesterday?!" You continue your own yelling.

>"He’s had it since he picked it up and ran off to play white knight! And it's profesional gear!" Bakugo rages on, raising his sizzling hands in exasperation. "I just want to kill the fucking memory card! BOOM! Then I can put the damn thing to better use!"

Taking a deep breath, you calm yourself enough to spin a couple coherent thoughts together.

"Hey! Pony?" You simply ask your friend. "Mind if I take a look at the thing?"

>"Oh, sure!" She replies, tossing it at you before stopping in her tracks, watching a bewildered Bakugo swerve away from her and towards you. “Bet you might remember my name now, huh?”

You snatch the device out of the air with ease, inadvertently getting a glimpse of one of the pictures: Bakugo shirtless and snarling under Shoto-

-Your disgust quickly wipes out those thoughts, if not your blush. You hold the power button down, keeping the camera at arms reach as you look elsewhere.

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"Ah'm not lookin’." You state repeatedly, both to yourself and anyone hearing. "Honestly Ah don't even wanna hold this thing, considerin' no one consented to anythin' innit. That shit's nightmarish."

Only after the screen goes black do you let your arm relax.

>"...Ya, that kinda ruins the pics, don’t it?" Pony comments, digging a bit with her hoof.

Bakugo, for his part, stops in front of you snarling and holding his hand out, giving one last brief glance to Pony.

>"I'll remember this, gluestick." He tells her before looking back to you, making it clear the last minute or two will forever be held against her. "Now give it to me and let's all go on with our days. We can even pretend this shitshow never happened."

>"What about the villain's trail?" Shoto asks. His question was seemingly directed at Bakugo, but his gaze stays on you.

>What do you do?

>[Hand it to Bakugo. If you were in those pictures, taken against your will, you'd like nothing more than for them to disappear. "Here, don't make me regret trusting you with this, Bakugo. Please blow that card to smithereens."]
>[Hand it to Shoto. If you were in those pictures, taken against your will, you'd like the villain who did it to get the book thrown at him. "Hope it helps, or at least makes the creep pay."]
>[If what Bakugo wants is the hardware and Shoto wants to hand over the data, a compromise would be simple, if you can pry the damn thing open and pull out the memory card. "Let's just… Be smarter about this." [Hands 4d10]]
>[Fuck it all, spike it into the sidewalk yourself. "There. Done. Nothin' more to worry about. Guy's behind bars, pictures gone… That's as good as it gets."]
>[Write in.]

>>5151049
>[Hand it to Shoto. If you were in those pictures, taken against your will, you'd like the villain who did it to get the book thrown at him. "Hope it helps, or at least makes the creep pay."]

>>5151049
>>[If what Bakugo wants is the hardware and Shoto wants to hand over the data, a compromise would be simple, if you can pry the damn thing open and pull out the memory card. "Let's just… Be smarter about this." [Hands 4d10]]
That creep needs therapy, preferably behing bars, FOR A LONG TIME.

>>5151049
>[Hand it to Shoto. If you were in those pictures, taken against your will, you'd like the villain who did it to get the book thrown at him. "Hope it helps, or at least makes the creep pay."]
This is for Bakugo's own good too. Clean and by the book. Make sure to tell Shoto if he wants to confide in someone you're all ears. He's got some friends now but I doubt he's as open with anyone as he is with Ushi. He's almost in a worse predicament than Pony is in that regard.

>>5151049
>[Hand it to Shoto. If you were in those pictures, taken against your will, you'd like the villain who did it to get the book thrown at him. "Hope it helps, or at least makes the creep pay."]

Damn, that was at the same time? And here I thought we might still have to worry bout stumbling into that ourselves. Let’s try and see this guy put away for good.

>>5151049
>[Hand it to Shoto. If you were in those pictures, taken against your will, you'd like the villain who did it to get the book thrown at him. "Hope it helps, or at least makes the creep pay."]

>>5151049
>[Hand it to Shoto. If you were in those pictures, taken against your will, you'd like the villain who did it to get the book thrown at him. "Hope it helps, or at least makes the creep pay."]
Bakugo can blow it to smithereens later, first they need to get this person arrested and make sure no one else needs to deal with what they had to endure.

>>5151049
>[Hand it to Shoto. If you were in those pictures, taken against your will, you'd like the villain who did it to get the book thrown at him. "Hope it helps, or at least makes the creep pay."]

This is probably a bad time to try and go for a roll.

>>5151049
>[Hand it to Shoto. If you were in those pictures, taken against your will, you'd like the villain who did it to get the book thrown at him. "Hope it helps, or at least makes the creep pay."]

>>5151049
>[If what Bakugo wants is the hardware and Shoto wants to hand over the data, a compromise would be simple, if you can pry the damn thing open and pull out the memory card. "Let's just… Be smarter about this." [Hands 4d10]]

>>5151049
>>[Hand it to Shoto. If you were in those pictures, taken against your will, you'd like the villain who did it to get the book thrown at him. "Hope it helps, or at least makes the creep pay."]
I don't think Bakugo is really supposed to be able to keep the camera. Need to be turned in as evidence too

>>5151049
>[Hand it to Shoto. If you were in those pictures, taken against your will, you'd like the villain who did it to get the book thrown at him. "Hope it helps, or at least makes the creep pay."]

>>5151049
>[If what Bakugo wants is the hardware and Shoto wants to hand over the data, a compromise would be simple, if you can pry the damn thing open and pull out the memory card. "Let's just… Be smarter about this." [Hands 4d10]]

I don’t see why we cannot try this first?

>>5151049
>>[Hand it to Shoto. If you were in those pictures, taken against your will, you'd like the villain who did it to get the book thrown at him. "Hope it helps, or at least makes the creep pay."]
The police would probably need the camera too, unfortunately. But hey they could just ask the police to keep the camera, worst case scenario they refuse.

...Though I do feel for Bakugo here. If those were our picture I'm not sure I would just hand it over to the police with deleting the picture first either.

>>5151049
>>[Hand it to Shoto. If you were in those pictures, taken against your will, you'd like the villain who did it to get the book thrown at him. "Hope it helps, or at least makes the creep pay."]

>>5151049
>>[If what Bakugo wants is the hardware and Shoto wants to hand over the data, a compromise would be simple, if you can pry the damn thing open and pull out the memory card. "Let's just… Be smarter about this." [Hands 4d10]]

>>5151049
>>[If what Bakugo wants is the hardware and Shoto wants to hand over the data, a compromise would be simple, if you can pry the damn thing open and pull out the memory card. "Let's just… Be smarter about this." [Hands 4d10]]

>>5151049
>[Hand it to Shoto. If you were in those pictures, taken against your will, you'd like the villain who did it to get the book thrown at him. "Hope it helps, or at least makes the creep pay."]

>>5151049
>>[Hand it to Shoto. If you were in those pictures, taken against your will, you'd like the villain who did it to get the book thrown at him. "Hope it helps, or at least makes the creep pay."]

>>5151253
I mean we could, but I think the camera is technically evidence too, even if it’s not the more obviously incriminating half. I could see it to where the serial number on the camera is needed to tie the photos to the guy being the photographer.

Also I’m assuming the fail state is snapping the memory card in half lol.

>>5151848
This. As hero students it's probably not in our best interest to get into the habit of destroying evidence that the police can use just because we don't like it. No matter how big or small we think it is. I don't know about Japan but in most places, that's a felony.

>>5151049
>>[Hand it to Shoto. If you were in those pictures, taken against your will, you'd like the villain who did it to get the book thrown at him. "Hope it helps, or at least makes the creep pay."]

>>5151857
It's not admissible in court in any form whatsoever since the "chain of custody", would not be able to be verified and certified that it remained in tact and even then would easily be thrown out by any sort of competent lawyer due to it having been outside the police's custody at any point.

>>5151954
That doesn’t sound right. If the camera were in police custody, then wasn’t, then was again, that would be breaking chain of custody. But this would just be them turning over evidence, which is what you’re supposed to do with it.

The only evidence that wasn’t somewhere else before entering police custody is the kind falsified by the police.

>>5152209
If that were the case than why wasn't it either turned over as soon as they could, or found at the scene.

>>5152254
Near as I can tell, Shoto was able to take it because the usual procedures were interrupted by the mall evacuation, and tried to investigate on his own. He shouldn’t have done that last part, but he should still hand it over now that he can.

>>5151049
>>[Hand it to Shoto. If you were in those pictures, taken against your will, you'd like the villain who did it to get the book thrown at him. "Hope it helps, or at least makes the creep pay."]

>>5151049
>[If what Bakugo wants is the hardware and Shoto wants to hand over the data, a compromise would be simple, if you can pry the damn thing open and pull out the memory card. "Let's just… Be smarter about this." [Hands 4d10]]

>>5151049
>>[Hand it to Bakugo. If you were in those pictures, taken against your will, you'd like nothing more than for them to disappear. "Here, don't make me regret trusting you with this, Bakugo. Please blow that card to smithereens."]

The camera’s probably not admissible in court anyways since it wasn’t gathered by the police and it’s not like what he’s asking for is unreasonable.

>>5151049
>[If what Bakugo wants is the hardware and Shoto wants to hand over the data, a compromise would be simple, if you can pry the damn thing open and pull out the memory card. "Let's just… Be smarter about this." [Hands 4d10]]

>>5158455
it wouldn't be admissible if it was America but this is Japan and I have no idea how it works over there.

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It wasn't the hardest choice to make, but it wasn't the easiest either. Lord knows that just putting yourself in their shoes made you want to smash the thing to bits.

But you are training to be a hero, and you'd be a rather crappy one if you would risk a villain getting off easy, or maybe even scot-free, just for that personal satisfaction. So you take a step towards your close friend and give the camera back.

“Hope it helps, or at least makes the creep pay." You follow up with an empathetic smile.

While reading Shoto's mood is never easy, you've gotten plenty good at it from gleaning those small signals he lets slip. Like the way his shoulders shift back, or that small smile of his re-appearing as he takes the camera.

Seeing him relax reassures you it was the right choice.

Unlike Shoto, your other visitor this morning is much more open about how he’s feeling.

>”Fuck it! I’ve wasted enough time on you skidmarks.” Bakugo swivels in place and stomps-off. The sound of fourth of July poppers going off on the sidewalk follows in his wake.

As he turns up the street, he directs one last sneer at you while giving a heavy flick of his still-smoking fingers at the ground before wiping them with an oil-stained rag he pulled from somewhere.

“Makes ya wonder where he's been wanting to get to on a Sunday, doesn't it?” You muse aloud, not actually expecting an answer from either of your friends.

>“YOU KNOW WHERE!” The spiky haired boy roars back at your rhetorical question.

...You do?

After watching him depart for a second longer, you turn towards your remaining schoolmates, but mostly the boy.

"So… Care to tell me what happened with a lil' more detail?" You ask, rubbing at the bridge of your nose.

>"And why didn't you just turn it, as in yesterday?" Pony sensibly asks in her almost-good Japanese.

>"There's not that much more to say, I ran into Bakugo on my way home from… visiting family and the villain found us moments later. The villain's quirk made our bodies lock up, getting stronger the more we struggled." Shoto explains, looking down at the camera in his hands again. "Despite promising a bloodbath, he admitted he was too squeamish for actual murder, his intent was to take compromising photos to ruin us and stifle our chances of making it as heroes. A character assassination of sorts."

"Eugh." You mutter back. It doesn't make much sense, but it helps you get the overall grossness of the situation. "How did you get out of it, then?"

>"I gave up."

"...Beg yer pardon?"

>"I relaxed and offered to model for him." Shoto shrugs. "He could take as many pictures as he wanted, it just wouldn't ever stop me."

>"~Cool~…" Pony coos at that, then coughs into her hand as you shoot her a glare. "I mean, that explains how er… good the pics were. Yes. Good."

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>"I suppose so. It certainly weakened his control enough to let us strike him once." He continues, wiping his brow at the memory. "That broke his focus completely. We weren’t going to risk expulsion, and so decided against using our quirks. Bakugo used his bare hands instead. I took the camera from where he had dropped it, and called the police to retrieve the villain after Bakugo was done. We left him zip-tied to be picked up."

"You just left?" You feel like a shoddy spy on a radio call, repeating what people just said back to them as a question.

>"It seemed like a good idea at the time, not risking any chance of being accused of vigilantism." He says, looking… angry? No doubt about that as it’s the only emotion that Shoto really allows to come out relatively freely, but you usually get the reason for it. "However, after seeing what this contains, it would be simply wrong not to turn it in. Even if a prison sentence was a certainty from a police extracted confession, his victims deserve justice."


"Ah'm not checkin', but Ah'm fairly sure the evidence of serially commitin’ that kind of evil, especially with a quirk could be enough to get a life-long sentence." You guess. "Good."

>“I’ll be on my way now too. I meant it that I didn’t wish to intrude more than I already have and now I know you are also in the middle of hosting. I will see you both tomorrow for school and the end of term ceremony.” Shoto bookends your talk by moving back toward the street while giving a light bow.


Days like yesterday do a fine job of making you almost forget you still have a school routine to return to. Then again, there are some days off from that right on the horizon.

"See you then sugah!" You give your goodbyes, waving at him alongside Pony. As he turns to leave the neighborhood, you make your way back to your front entrance, reflecting on what you learned this morning combined with what went down yesterday afternoon.

It feels like you missed out on making some sort of 'twinsies' joke about it: Deku and you held by the creepy Shigaraki, Shoto and Bakugo in the clutches of a creep of their own… Then again, each of you had your personal space heavily violated so it’s probably better that you hadn’t.

From what you’ve gathered, it doesn’t seem like it was a coordinated attack, but it does make you ponder if Bakugo interrogated his criminal for any leads as he pulverized him. You doubt he would have left that question completely unanswered, for his own pride more than anything else.

Not that you have the chance to ask him now that he’s run off to… somewhere you know? Wherever that is, you’d have to find him there or catch him at school to ask if the perp mentioned Shigaraki or the League of Villains at all in between blows…or that other name that Mr. Clammy-hands mentioned as he escaped. What was it again? Maybe Midoriya can hel-

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Wait, it wasn’t Shigaraki that mentioned them, it was Midoriya that asked him. And the name was…

Oh…oh.

“Aw, <horseapples>” you say under your breath, making Pony twist her head at you in confusion. “Um er, Sorry, Ah… gotta go head Shoto off…forgot to tell him something. Ah’ll meet ya back inside for breakfast ‘kay?”

You don’t wait for her answer before turning on your heels and streaking back down the sidewalk.

"Hey! Sugah! Hold on a cotton pickin' minute!" You holler at your friend again as you dash towards him before he leaves your line of sight.

For a second, you wonder if he didn't hear you before he perfectly copies his movements from the last time you intercepted him, turning to look at you with the exact same tilt to his head. Efficient, if a bit eerie…

>"Hello again." He greets you before looking over your shoulder back towards your door. "I did not expect you to leave your guest unattended."

"She's older than you sugah, she can stand to be alone for a spell." You wave it off before huddling him in closer. "This might be nothin' in the end… But, remember our talk with Deku, about how he's keepin' secrets? Ah have reason to think he's holdin' back on some info about the League too. And <believe you me>, while Ah don't really mind if he wants to be tight lipped ‘bout his family history, Ah do mind if he's keepin' stuff related to these attacks!"

After that outburst at the mall you know for certain he knows something. Even though that's not much to go and question him about, you aren't really keen on being in the dark on anything that could mean the difference between life and death for you or your friends

>"...Midoriya?" He asks as his eyebrows shoot up.

You’re perturbed somewhat by such a clear visual cue. He's that surprised? They must have bonded more than you thought when they encountered the Hero Killer or after Endeavor rescued them.

"The one and the same." You nod. "Right about when Shigaraki was leavin', Deku asked 'bout someone called 'All for One' and what he wanted. If that’s not unusual enough, Shigaraki told him off… Not in a you-are-talkin'-nonsense way, but in a knowing-but-none-of-your-business kinda way!... Ah know this is starting' to sound like crazy-person ramblin’, but Ah swear Ah'm not makin' it up!"

You really ought to start working on your communication skills. Having to stop and think doesn't really work for spur of the moment attempts at persuasion.

>"I understand." Shoto nods without a moment of hesitation, immediately offering his support. "Do you want my help confronting him about it?"

"Ah thought you'd be interested." You sigh in relief, scratching the back of your neck for a moment. "Not really sure when, but soon. Ah… Maybe All Might's trainin' has me skittish, but Ah don't want to wait for the sure-to-come next attack to start askin' questions, you know?"

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>"Don't worry, I'll be there when you need me." He assures you, not a hint of doubt or sarcasm in his voice.

"...Thank you." You lean in and pull him into a big and friendly hug, one you are glad to feel repaid back after a short pause. Looking up at him just a bit, you follow up the embrace by asking, "Now try to not waste your whole Sunday at the police station and rest, 'kay?"

>"I'll try. I'll look into this 'All for One' later too. If he's of any importance, either Endeavor's office or the Hero Network should have some record of him, even if only mentioned in passing." Shoto gives you a pat between the horns before letting go of you.

"Uh… Sounds like ya gonna go through your dad's stuff?" You ask, dazed momentarily by that last bit of affection.

>"I don't have his passwords, and he hates when people mess with his files." He answers, tapping his chin, and apparently considering the consequences.

"...So you'll do it, huh?" Despite being one of the most mature members of Class 1-A, Shoto rarely passes a chance to exact petty revenge on his father.

>"I'll ask Kamiji to let me use her desk at the office for a few minutes." He decides after some thought. "It's lower clearance, but she wouldn't notice what I'd be doing. She's easily distracted if you let her pester you with questions."

"<Attaboy!>" You encourage him with a playful punch to the shoulder. "See ya tomorrow, then!"

>"Take care, Ushi."

Seeing Shoto not only believe you, but being willing to look into that tidbit himself has you in high spirits as you return to the house. Accompanying it, the relief that despite going through his own ordeal yesterday, your friend came out of it in tip-top shape. Same goes for Bakugo now that you consider it. No matter how abrasive he may be, you still find a semblance of comfort in him having left in, what is for your classmate, a normal mood as well.

All told, things could have gone way worse for any of you.

When you get back inside, you are immediately greeted by the familiar yet strangely omnipresent smell of butter. Considering you left your breakfast on the table, you expected some of that, but to have your nose be overwhelmed by it? It is as if Momma had gone about greasing up every nail on the ground floor with it instead of just the frying pan. It's weird, disorienting even. You don't even know how you could ever overpower every other smell of the meal and house with mere butter… Well one way, but you doubt Momma got to deep-frying without opening the windows in the time you took to talk to your friends.

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You learn a second way upon arriving back at the dining room. The butter dish that once sat in the middle of the table lies shattered, broken ceramic bits embedded into the wooden surface as if hammered into place by a single mighty blow. The same blow that must have vaporized the almost-entire stick of butter that once sat atop it, which is currently being cleaned by your mother and uncle. Both are too focused on wiping the side of glasses and dishes, and even the curtains to notice your return.

>"I sawed you last night… You are doing well. It happened to all of us, and we all learn to control it." You hear Pony say, her usually cheerful tone replaced by a softer, soothing one. "Nobody's mad. You just got a little startled, there's no nothing to be sorry about."

Hearing a soft whimper, you immediately turn away from the table and towards Pony's voice, finding her sitting by the far corner, holding Angus close.

>”Someone was… And I!-” Your cousin sniffles, hugging himself and his tail tightly. "I… I'm so- I didn't… please for- for-"

>"Hmm? Okay, is okay." She continues, nuzzling the top of his head as she speaks. She then notices you staring and nods towards the sobbing boy in her arms. "I forgive you. Your papa forgives you too, and I'm sure your auntie does too. Do you forgive him, Ushi?"

"Of everything and anything, always." You answer without hesitation, giving your most confident, best reassuring smile as you sit down next to her, wrapping an arm around Angus's shoulders and joining their embrace.

It takes another five minutes or so before you get told what happened, after the table (and some of the walls) are clean and breakfast resumes.

>"Little guy got spooked by all the yelling outside and had a quick misfire. I didn't even know you could flatten butter back into oil!" Your uncle explains, nodding to his son munching on an apple on the seat besides his. "Angus doesn't deal well with making a mess of things just yet."

Seeing his son shrink in his seat, you can't stop yourself from shooting a glare at his father. You are far from the only one, as your mom and Pony do so as well.

>"Now, nothing wrong with making a mess sometimes. Most things involve making one, I'd say." Rik rears back, raising and waving his hands in apology to all three of you.

>”Even talking can be messy. Loud is just another kind of messy. Isn’t that right Ushi?” Momma knowingly asks while lowering her gaze from her now rightfully nervous brother to comfort your little cousin with a wink.

Following breakfast, you allow Angus first use of the bathroom to get the waft of butter out of his hair. Perfect timing for you to brainstorm with Pony about how to spend the rest of your Sunday.

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>”Well, unless any more cute boys come to squabble at your front door, shopping for the camping trip is good to me. I am not going to have the times in coming days to get those so I'd rather do it on the weekend… Also replace my delivery bag now that I've thinked it out loud.” Your friend proposes after you both sit there for some minutes using your noodle.

>”If you don't feel like going out and about, I have a suggestion.” Momma interjects as she passes by you two lounging in the pillow fort, taking back a bucket of cleaning supplies. “It'd do you well to practice for the driving part of the motorcycle license test.”

Ugh, nothing better to get you excited about riding than being ‘suggested’ to study for the license test in the presence of your friend the day after a sleepover. You know you have to do it at some point, but why now?

“Thanks Momma, but that doe-”

>"I mean, it's the best time you'll have to do it, what with having to take the exam on Wednesday before we leave.” Momma continues enthusiastically as she heads back into the kitchen to start the kettle. “I don't know about you, but I'd worry way less about whether you'll meet some unsavory types on the train, and you could just ride away from things like yesterday without putting your tail in danger…Just a suggestion, hun.”

...She does have a point. Not that you’ll openly admit it.

>"Just have in mind that only 5% pass without practice." Your momma gives a last remark before the clack of her hooves vanishes into the kitchen.

"Bummer." You let out, huffing a bit before turning to your partner-in-surviving-crime. "What do ya think?"

>"...You have a bike!?" Is Pony's delayed response. "How come we haven't gone for a ride yet!? Oh man, Kendo will freak off!"

"Paperwork ...and we were just getting back to being on good terms right after Ah got it." You spit out the first word, not hiding your disdain at all for it. "The physical will be a breeze, and Ah’ve been reading for the written test so that’s down pat. Still gotta show some retired cops that I can put two and two together though."

>"Oh." She continues, her enthusiasm deflating a bit. "Weird how you need practice to get the papers and the papers to ride, doesn't it? Do you know somewhere to do so?"

>What do you do?


>[Practicing for the test would be nice, but Bakugo's departure doesn't quite sit well with you. And now you have some extra reason to catch up to him. Somewhere you know, huh? "Hmm… Would you mind if we took a trip around town for the afternoon? Ah get the feelin' Ah should try to check on Bakugo. Dunno, he might get an aneurysm or sumthin'." [Out-think, Brains. 5d10]]
>[With your shopping previously interrupted and Pony needing a new bag, it's better to tend to that while you still have the time… "Let's hoof it and get our shopping done today before something else happens. Know any good outlets from work around?" [P.E., Legs. 5d10]]
>[Since you can't really take your bike anywhere without a license, there's only so much you can do to practice… "Momma's right… We could build a mini-track atop the roof and spend the day tryin’ different circuits and maneuvers? C'mon, I'll help you try too, just… don't fall off the roof." [Hands, 4d10]]
>[Write in.]

>>5163372
>>[With your shopping previously interrupted and Pony needing a new bag, it's better to tend to that while you still have the time… "Let's hoof it and get our shopping done today before something else happens. Know any good outlets from work around?" [P.E., Legs. 5d10]]

>>5163372
>>[With your shopping previously interrupted and Pony needing a new bag, it's better to tend to that while you still have the time… "Let's hoof it and get our shopping done today before something else happens. Know any good outlets from work around?" [P.E., Legs. 5d10]]

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>>5163369
>"Of everything and anything, always." You answer without hesitation, giving your most confident, best reassuring smile as you sit down next to her, wrapping an arm around Angus's shoulders and joining their embrace.

Pic related. Hello potential foreshadowing.

>>5163372
>[Practicing for the test would be nice, but Bakugo's departure doesn't quite sit well with you. And now you have some extra reason to catch up to him. Somewhere you know, huh? "Hmm… Would you mind if we took a trip around town for the afternoon? Ah get the feelin' Ah should try to check on Bakugo. Dunno, he might get an aneurysm or sumthin'." [Out-think, Brains. 5d10]]

I like when were on the upswing with Bakugo rather than not. That's two negative interactions in a row with him (The attempted mediation between him and Uraraka and now choosing Shoto over him).

We have his ear more than most (by way of established dominance), might as well make use of it while we can.

>>5163372
>>[With your shopping previously interrupted and Pony needing a new bag, it's better to tend to that while you still have the time… "Let's hoof it and get our shopping done today before something else happens. Know any good outlets from work around?" [P.E., Legs. 5d10]]

>>5163372
>[Since you can't really take your bike anywhere without a license, there's only so much you can do to practice… "Momma's right… We could build a mini-track atop the roof and spend the day tryin’ different circuits and maneuvers? C'mon, I'll help you try too, just… don't fall off the roof." [Hands, 4d10]]
Probably gonna be a good thing to have in the long term, I'd say go for this.

>>5163372
>[With your shopping previously interrupted and Pony needing a new bag, it's better to tend to that while you still have the time… "Let's hoof it and get our shopping done today before something else happens. Know any good outlets from work around?" [P.E., Legs. 5d10]]

>>5163406
>Pic related. Hello potential foreshadowing.

???

>>5163423
Angus is going to murder one of our peers and/or loved ones, obviously. Something unforgivable

>>5163372
>[With your shopping previously interrupted and Pony needing a new bag, it's better to tend to that while you still have the time… "Let's hoof it and get our shopping done today before something else happens. Know any good outlets from work around?" [P.E., Legs. 5d10]]

>>5163372
>>[With your shopping previously interrupted and Pony needing a new bag, it's better to tend to that while you still have the time… "Let's hoof it and get our shopping done today before something else happens. Know any good outlets from work around?" [P.E., Legs. 5d10]]

>>5163372
>[Since you can't really take your bike anywhere without a license, there's only so much you can do to practice… "Momma's right… We could build a mini-track atop the roof and spend the day tryin’ different circuits and maneuvers? C'mon, I'll help you try too, just… don't fall off the roof." [Hands, 4d10]]

I-Island is a big city. We can get some shopping done there if we absolutely can’t cram a shopping trip in first. The bike test is the most pressing deadline.

>>5163372
>[Since you can't really take your bike anywhere without a license, there's only so much you can do to practice… "Momma's right… We could build a mini-track atop the roof and spend the day tryin’ different circuits and maneuvers? C'mon, I'll help you try too, just… don't fall off the roof." [Hands, 4d10]]

>>5163372
>[Since you can't really take your bike anywhere without a license, there's only so much you can do to practice… "Momma's right… We could build a mini-track atop the roof and spend the day tryin’ different circuits and maneuvers? C'mon, I'll help you try too, just… don't fall off the roof." [Hands, 4d10]]

>>5163371
>>[Since you can't really take your bike anywhere without a license, there's only so much you can do to practice… "Momma's right… We could build a mini-track atop the roof and spend the day tryin’ different circuits and maneuvers? C'mon, I'll help you try too, just… don't fall off the roof." [Hands, 4d10]]

>>5163372
>>[Since you can't really take your bike anywhere without a license, there's only so much you can do to practice… "Momma's right… We could build a mini-track atop the roof and spend the day tryin’ different circuits and maneuvers? C'mon, I'll help you try too, just… don't fall off the roof." [Hands, 4d10]]

>>5163372
>>5163406
Even though this probably won't win, I support. It would be nice to be on someone better terms when we destroy class B at camp cooking.

>>5163372
>[Since you can't really take your bike anywhere without a license, there's only so much you can do to practice… "Momma's right… We could build a mini-track atop the roof and spend the day tryin’ different circuits and maneuvers? C'mon, I'll help you try too, just… don't fall off the roof." [Hands, 4d10]]

>>5163515

Yeah, I like the reasoning for this one; I mean, I understand that I-Island proceedings are gonna get interrupted in short order, but Ushi can't possibly know that.

Thus, >[Since you can't really take your bike anywhere without a license, there's only so much you can do to practice… "Momma's right… We could build a mini-track atop the roof and spend the day tryin’ different circuits and maneuvers? C'mon, I'll help you try too, just… don't fall off the roof." [Hands, 4d10]]

>>5163372
>[Since you can't really take your bike anywhere without a license, there's only so much you can do to practice… "Momma's right… We could build a mini-track atop the roof and spend the day tryin’ different circuits and maneuvers? C'mon, I'll help you try too, just… don't fall off the roof." [Hands, 4d10]]
I would like to check on Bakugo, but this is pretty time sensitive.

>>5163372
>>[Since you can't really take your bike anywhere without a license, there's only so much you can do to practice… "Momma's right… We could build a mini-track atop the roof and spend the day tryin’ different circuits and maneuvers? C'mon, I'll help you try too, just… don't fall off the roof." [Hands, 4d10]]

Hot wheels track?

Hot wheels track.

>>5163372
>>5164142

>[Since you can't really take your bike anywhere without a license, there's only so much you can do to practice… "Momma's right… We could build a mini-track atop the roof and spend the day tryin’ different circuits and maneuvers? C'mon, I'll help you try too, just… don't fall off the roof." [Hands, 4d10]]

HOT WHEELS TRACK!

>>5163372
>>[Since you can't really take your bike anywhere without a license, there's only so much you can do to practice… "Momma's right… We could build a mini-track atop the roof and spend the day tryin’ different circuits and maneuvers? C'mon, I'll help you try too, just… don't fall off the roof." [Hands, 4d10]]

Did I hear Hot Wheels track?

>>5163372
>>[With your shopping previously interrupted and Pony needing a new bag, it's better to tend to that while you still have the time… "Let's hoof it and get our shopping done today before something else happens. Know any good outlets from work around?" [P.E., Legs. 5d10]]

Is there a link to the discord or am I missing something?

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>>5166435
Here, sorry about missing adding it to the OP
https://discord.gg/m4Hbr5p

---
It seems
>[Since you can't really take your bike anywhere without a license, there's only so much you can do to practice… "Momma's right… We could build a mini-track atop the roof and spend the day tryin’ different circuits and maneuvers? C'mon, I'll help you try too, just… don't fall off the roof." [Hands, 4d10]]
Won!

Roll me Hands! That's 4d10!

Rolled 4, 10, 2, 3 = 19 (4d10)

>>5166809

>>5166809
Some successes please

Rolled 6, 7, 7, 5 = 25 (4d10)

>>5166809
DDDDDAAAAAALLEEEEE

Rolled 3, 3, 9, 8 = 23 (4d10)

>>5166809
no whamies

Rolled 3, 10, 2, 8 = 23 (4d10)

>>5166809
forgot how to roll for a second

Rolled 9, 3, 5, 6 = 23 (4d10)

>>5166809
yeee haaaw

Rolled 4, 7, 8, 1 = 20 (4d10)

>>5166809

>>5166815
Bitchin'. Damn right momma's always right.

Rolled 7, 2, 5, 6 = 20 (4d10)

>>5166809
YEEEEEAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!

Rolled 6, 6, 6, 6 = 24 (4d10)

>>5166809

>>5167526
This could have been sooo good....

>>5167526
>>5167529
Going that fast, we'd be liable to give momma a heart attack. Maybe the rest of Ushi's family. Pony just became our new sister too.

does Present Mic have a set schedule or does (s)he just post whenever they have free time?

>>5178165
his job can and has fucked with his free time

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No matter what excuse you tried to think up, your better judgment had you back to thinking about your bike and the need to get your motorcycle license on the first try.

Heck, you wouldn't need to choose between errands for the day if you had it already. Getting to the mall and back wouldn't take an entire afternoon if you could just ride your bike instead of the trains.

"...Momma's right." You finally admit, hearing what sounds like a muffled 'of course' coming from the kitchen. Ignoring that, you focus on Pony. "Better make sure I have everythin' down pat, can't risk runnin' over mah own boot or some other silly error in front of the examiner ya know."

>"So, like drills?" Pony makes it clear she finds the idea far from interesting by punctuating her question with a click of her tongue. "I was kinda, sorta… hoping not to do the studyings for a bit? You know, actually have fun and unwind."

"Oh c'mon, it can be fun! We can… You know… " You tilt your head and let your gaze drift to the ceiling as you try to think of a way to do so. "We could build a mini-track atop the roof and spend the day tryin’ different circuits and maneuvers!..."

Crossing her arms over her chest and raising an eyebrow, your friend doesn't look very impressed by the suggestion.

"...with a couple old Hot Wheels sets from the closet?" You propose, pointing over your shoulder in the vague direction of said storage.

That does it, Pony’s eyes lighting up the moment she hears assembling toys is involved.

"Ah knew you'd like to build something cool, you don't build as good a fort as this if you didn’t." You continue, like a liar. "Ah'll help you try to ride too if ya want,... just don't go fallin’ off the roof."

>"Can't promise any a thing. Not sure I'm even legally allowed to drive a factory standard bike." She says, gesturing at her hooves. "Besides, I'd rather watch you go through the track loops!"

>"Loops?" You hear Angus ask as he scuttles by dragging a laundry basket behind him. He then stops and asks again. "...What are hot tracks?"

>"<My mixtape!>" Pony immediately answers with a huge grin, as if by instinct alone. It quickly washes away from her face with a realization. "Wait, you don't know about Hot Wheels? First the fort, now this. I thoughted be the cultural differences, but now? What are they even doing with your childhood?"

>"Uh," is all your cousin manages to answer before Pony picks him up again.

>"I guess I'll just have to keep catching you up on building stuff and other creativity things!" She says, patting him between the horns. "Race tracks, pillow forts and model kits are the cornerstones of a good childhood."

"What about treehouses?" You pose, mostly agreeing.

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Pony just points down to Angus's dangling hooves and her own while raising an eyebrow once more.

"...Right. Dumb question." You shake your head and motion for her to let your cousin go. "As for lil’ sugah here…well, his dad's still new to the whole parent business, don't be too hard on him…[b]Please[/b]?"

You press on the last word the moment Pony opens her mouth, clearly about to punch a hole in your admittedly flimsy defense. She looks a bit confused by your plea, but thankfully stops herself.

>"Yeah, that's my job!" Your mom chimes in from the kitchen once more. "Don't worry, I'll learn him a thing or two about raisin' a child or so help me..."

It only takes a couple hours for everyone to have a shower, get ready for the day and get onto the almost-flat roof. Another hour followed in having fun setting up a mock course with your twinsie and cousin. Every so often you’d enlarge items as needed when asked, and provide input on types of road scenarios you’d like to practice. But mostly, they did the building again while you enjoyed the sunshine and their energetic company.

As Pony and Angus placed the final touches with some markers, you focused on getting yourself and the bike ready, making sure the latter still ran well after its long hiatus sitting miniaturized on a shelf in your room.

>"That should do it." Pony announces as she finishes adjusting one last piece of the track, setting it into place with a calculated stomp. "Just about the same as the published layout! Just, you know, plastic and atop a roof. And orange. And with raised borders to not go off-course... But mostly the same!"

>"I checked!" Angus confirms nodding, holding a small stack of papers. "It's, uh, all in the list!" Your heart swells again in seeing him more outspoken for the second day in a row. If this is what having Pony around for just a weekend produces, you’d be more than happy to have her ride home with you every Friday.

To make that a reality though, for now you’ll have to refocus on the practice ride directly in front of you.

You wondered if a bunch of toy lanes alone would be good practice, but with boxes tactically borrowed from closet and pantry alike, some toy cones and some artistic talent, you had an almost accurate cardboard and plastic town to practice in, with a few glaring exceptions.

"What’s with the loop at the exit?" You ask, pointing at a loop-de-loop near the end of the course as you put your helmet on.

>"Well, you said we'd have fun, and the pieces were in the box, and I kinda promised it to Angus so…" Pony waves your question off. "I'm not great for physics, but I'm fairly certain the fall would be not as bad at six inches tall… Still, I'd try not to fall! Well, I'd not do it at all, but you should try to get it right and like, not fall."

"Sounds safe~." You respond not as sarcastically as you could have. Truth to be told, you want to try it too.

>"Here!" Angus chimes in as he places a familiar pillow under the loop, his tail waving behind him.

"That's all I needed to see." You give him a big thumbs up, happy to see him continue to be in such high spirits.

With your helmet on along with a thick jacket, you hop onto your bike, take a deep breath, and start the ignition. You listen to the engine thrum and feel the entire machine rumble under you… It's [i]exhilarating[/i].

And now to finally ride.You have read the manual cover to cover, you know how it all works, down to where to put your feet… But putting it all together and actually doing it? You have enough of an initial runway to test how much give the throttle and brakes have without driving off the roof…

>"You okay? You've been kind of staring ahead for a minute." Pony approaches, waving a hand in front of your helmet's visor.

"Yeah, sorry." You answer, shaking your head, then slapping the side of the bike. "It just feels… Powerful. Kinda need to get used to it, ya know?"

>"Good thing you have a track, then." She answers with a confident smile and a thumbs up before looking down at the course. "Just, you know, remember to use your quirk before starting. It's miniature, after all."

[green] You nod and grab the handlebars, shrinking yourself and your bike to the intended size before starting the first part of your mock test…

Getting off the bike, picking it up, lifting it over the track's edge and on to the plastic “street”.

"Aight, that's the first step." You comment, straddling the bike once more and adjusting the mirrors, this time actually throttling up and coasting to the first actual obstacle, a noticeably smaller and thinner bit of track within the larger track: your homemade replacement for the balance beam. "Is this thing right? It's like, just a tad thicker than mah tires!"

>"Uh. It should be?" Angus answers, flipping through his papers and bringing them real close to his face. "Oh, Here! The balance beam is, uhm, thirty centimeters, but we couldn't make it that, so we uhm… Please help me?"

>"Oh, we just made sure it was twice as wide as your tires and one hundred times as long. Should be about the same." Pony assures you, ruffling Angus's hair between his horns. "Also, you need to do it in less than ten seconds without falling or you are out of the test. Chop chop!"

"Okay, okay, I'm going!" You say, throttling up the bike and riding over the thin beam without any issues. Driving in a straight line isn't particularly hard, and the time limit doesn't make it any harder. "What's next?"[/green]

[green]You hadn't thought about it, but it's really nice to be able to speak to your friend and your cousin from any spot within the circuit as you traverse the course.

>"Oh, I know this!" Angus says, hopping in place. "Slalom! You need to weave between the cones without touching them! You have … seven seconds! Or, uhm. Fail."

"That'll be easy!" You comment, perhaps a bit too cocky for how little experience you actually have at the controls.

But you put your money where your mouth is, so to speak. Leaning to the sides, it's not hard to make your thick tired bike turn as softly or quickly as you want.

The rest of the course is as easy, if not easier than the first two challenges.

Starting from a slope? Your ride doesn't roll back at all if you don't want it to.
The S-Curve? Since it’s not even timed, you make sure to test your turn signals for the first time.
The Crank? You didn't even graze the cones to the sides of the snaking turn.
The Emergency Stop test was probably the easiest, as you make sure to slowly decelerate within the given distance instead of just cranking the brakes and risking any skidding.
Finally, the Rail Crossing is basically remembering to stop and look both ways before attempting to cross, trivial for anyone that hasn't been run over by a car yet in their lives.

The only other test that makes you pause is-

"A cattle grid? Really?" You ask aloud, coming to a stop in front of a Lego recreation of such an ankle destroying device.

>"It's in the test!" Angus reassures you. "You just need to drive over it for over ten… twenty?... Some seconds without stopping, stalling out or getting stuck."

>"Let me see, lil' guy…" Pony asks, looking over Angus's papers. "Ugh. Yeah, twenty seconds for us."

Despite not liking how it sounds, you do as you are told, riding steadily until you clear it.

After completing the first run through the main obstacles, you spend some time driving the “town”, drilling the turn signals into your muscle memory, and exploring the entire course Angus and Pony built, complimenting their work along the way. By the end, you clear the course another dozen times at various speeds and with other reasonable challenges proposed by Pony and Angus without any issue before calling it a day…

Not before acing the loop though! At full speed and straddling the bike and gripping the bars as hard as you can, it feels just like how you'd expect: a really short and exciting rollercoaster ride…Just with none of the safety features.

Were it not for the cheering from your audience of two, you would never try that kind of thing again… But you aren't discarding the idea of trying other stunts when you have your license.

As the sun comes down, you now feel like the test will be a cinch. And had it not been illegal in multiple ways, you would have been pretty comfortable in giving Pony a ride back to her apartment.[/green]

Instead, you just accompany her to your local train station, giving her a heartfelt hug while you wait for the next scheduled arrival.

“You certain that we can’t treat ya to a ride home? It’d be the least Ah can do for helping me with the license test, ya know?” You sway side to side a little with your adopted sister in your embrace, attracting the gaze of a few other passengers on the platform.

>”Too late for that now. If we go back, I'll have to say sayonara to Angus all over again and I won’t make it back to the apartment until…well, I’d rather be inside before that times.” She comments as you let her go, the sound of the incoming locomotive nearing.

"And Ah don't think he can take any more hugs for a tad after that last good-bye." You admit with a chuckle. You've seen plushies lose their stuffing for less, and they don't need to breathe. "'ave a nice rest, 'kay?"

Yesterday was awful, no matter which way you'd think to slice it… But today nearly made up for it all by itself with no bodily harm to boot. And now you can look forward to an exciting tomorrow! Literally! You'll finally be free from school, if only for a little while, but more than enough to rest and check the Expo at I-Island! And to go to that retreat with your classmates! You just have to sit through a boring ceremony… Scratch that. With U.A. being U.A. something might burn down.

[i]On purpose[/i].[b][i]As a test.[/i][/b]

You shake your head and try not to let your lingering cynicism take hold.

It'll be a couple weeks of fun and not having to worry about imminent danger. Just thinking about the upcoming break is almost enough to keep you awake with excitement, but you were just tired enough to close your eyes, imagine riding your bike through the sunny, dusty summer Texas countryside, and fall into a good night's sleep.

You hop off your bed the moment a stray sunbeam finds you through your curtains. Full of energy and ready to tackle this surely much easier day, you don’t even bother to wait for your alarm to ring.

You make sure not to wake up anyone else as you get ready for school; a task made surprisingly easy by the ability, unlike the rest of your present family, to actually tiptoe around. After a quick breakfast of [i]egg in a hole[/i] on thick sliced bread, bacon, and chugging half of the orange juice carton, you leave for the train station with your rugged backpack and your robotic friend within it.

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Being an early Monday morning, the train is mostly empty. The occupants are either night shift workers tiredly returning home or drunk salarymen drooling on their seats. The latter clearly having spent the night on the train, their stops long past.

Quiet and calm. A good omen for the coming week, you think.

Once you get to U.A., you notice that there are far fewer students loitering around the main gate than you usually encounter. Whether that’s thanks to your early arrival or because the rest are already waiting for the last homeroom of the trimester in their classrooms, you can't tell.

You can tell however, that the few students around are as excited about the break as you are. Relaxed, chatting and laughing, the mood is in stark contrast to the palpable tension exuded during finals week.

Before entering the main building, you make sure not to block the doorway and go stand in the nice morning sun to check the time on your phone.

7:41AM.

That means you have nearly half an hour before your not-classes start.

And till then?

>What do you do?

>[With no pressing matters at hand, you can take the time to talk with Tin on a stroll through the campus woods. "Hey buddy. Thanks for pullin' our asses out of the fire, however you did it." [Anything you want to talk about with it?]]
>[Shoto usually arrives pretty early. You can stalk around and keep an eye out for him to ask how his info search turned out before class starts. "Good mornin' sugah! Did ya find anythin' on that All for One fella?"]
>[While you are one of the class's reps, you probably didn’t make as much of an effort to message your classmates after leaving the mall as you could have. You reckon you can ease any worries by going to Classroom 1-A early and greeting all of them as they arrive.]
>[It's nice and cheery right here between the gates and towers… You wouldn't mind just staying here and basking in the sun till the bell rings.]
>[Write in.]

>>5192999
>[While you are one of the class's reps, you probably didn’t make as much of an effort to message your classmates after leaving the mall as you could have. You reckon you can ease any worries by going to Classroom 1-A early and greeting all of them as they arrive.]

>>5192999
>>[While you are one of the class's reps, you probably didn’t make as much of an effort to message your classmates after leaving the mall as you could have. You reckon you can ease any worries by going to Classroom 1-A early and greeting all of them as they arrive.]

>>5192999
>>[Shoto usually arrives pretty early. You can stalk around and keep an eye out for him to ask how his info search turned out before class starts. "Good mornin' sugah! Did ya find anythin' on that All for One fella?"]

>>5192999
>[While you are one of the class's reps, you probably didn’t make as much of an effort to message your classmates after leaving the mall as you could have. You reckon you can ease any worries by going to Classroom 1-A early and greeting all of them as they arrive.]

>>5192999
>[With no pressing matters at hand, you can take the time to talk with Tin on a stroll through the campus woods. "Hey buddy. Thanks for pullin' our asses out of the fire, however you did it." [Anything you want to talk about with it?]]
>[While you are one of the class's reps, you probably didn’t make as much of an effort to message your classmates after leaving the mall as you could have. You reckon you can ease any worries by going to Classroom 1-A early and greeting all of them as they arrive.]

>>5192999

>[With no pressing matters at hand, you can take the time to talk with Tin on a stroll through the campus woods. "Hey buddy. Thanks for pullin' our asses out of the fire, however you did it." [Anything you want to talk about with it?]]
>[While you are one of the class's reps, you probably didn’t make as much of an effort to message your classmates after leaving the mall as you could have. You reckon you can ease any worries by going to Classroom 1-A early and greeting all of them as they arrive.]

>>5192999
>[With no pressing matters at hand, you can take the time to talk with Tin on a stroll through the campus woods. "Hey buddy. Thanks for pullin' our asses out of the fire, however you did it." [Anything you want to talk about with /him/?]]

Ask how he's feeling. It's our job to nourish that growing sentience...! and also just... spend time with a friend.
(Yes sentience, he's clearly already sapient.)

>>5192999
>>[With no pressing matters at hand, you can take the time to talk with Tin on a stroll through the campus woods. "Hey buddy. Thanks for pullin' our asses out of the fire, however you did it."

[Anything you want to talk about with it?]]

>[Ah guess Ah just wanted to make sure you knew how much Ah appreciate that we're pals an' pardners, right? So you can just call me Ushi, or Loanstar in costume Ah guess. An' if there's things you want or need Ah want you to speak up, 'cause Ah want to make sure Ah'm lookin' out for you the same's you're fer me. Ah know Ah'm no good with this sortsa thing but Ah hope that makes sense."]

>>5192999
>[While you are one of the class's reps, you probably didn’t make as much of an effort to message your classmates after leaving the mall as you could have. You reckon you can ease any worries by going to Classroom 1-A early and greeting all of them as they arrive.]

>>5193016
Support.

>>5192999
>[It's nice and cheery right here between the gates and towers… You wouldn't mind just staying here and basking in the sun till the bell rings.]

>>5192999
>>5193016
support

>>5192999
>>[Shoto usually arrives pretty early. You can stalk around and keep an eye out for him to ask how his info search turned out before class starts. "Good mornin' sugah! Did ya find anythin' on that All for One fella?"]

>>5192999
>[While you are one of the class's reps, you probably didn’t make as much of an effort to message your classmates after leaving the mall as you could have. You reckon you can ease any worries by going to Classroom 1-A early and greeting all of them as they arrive.]

>>5193016
Support

>>5192999
>[While you are one of the class's reps, you probably didn’t make as much of an effort to message your classmates after leaving the mall as you could have. You reckon you can ease any worries by going to Classroom 1-A early and greeting all of them as they arrive.]

>>5192999
>[Shoto usually arrives pretty early. You can stalk around and keep an eye out for him to ask how his info search turned out before class starts. "Good mornin' sugah! Did ya find anythin' on that All for One fella?"]

Ushi’s really getting cynical, if she’s not careful some villain might be able to talk her into villainy.

>>5192999
>>[While you are one of the class's reps, you probably didn’t make as much of an effort to message your classmates after leaving the mall as you could have. You reckon you can ease any worries by going to Classroom 1-A early and greeting all of them as they arrive.]

>>5192999
>[With no pressing matters at hand, you can take the time to talk with Tin on a stroll through the campus woods. "Hey buddy. Thanks for pullin' our asses out of the fire, however you did it." [Anything you want to talk about with it?]]
>[While you are one of the class's reps, you probably didn’t make as much of an effort to message your classmates after leaving the mall as you could have. You reckon you can ease any worries by going to Classroom 1-A early and greeting all of them as they arrive.]

>[While you are one of the class's reps, you probably didn’t make as much of an effort to message your classmates after leaving the mall as you could have. You reckon you can ease any worries by going to Classroom 1-A early and greeting all of them as they arrive.]

>>5192999
>[While you are one of the class's reps, you probably didn’t make as much of an effort to message your classmates after leaving the mall as you could have. You reckon you can ease any worries by going to Classroom 1-A early and greeting all of them as they arrive.]

>>5192999
>>[While you are one of the class's reps, you probably didn’t make as much of an effort to message your classmates after leaving the mall as you could have. You reckon you can ease any worries by going to Classroom 1-A early and greeting all of them as they arrive.]

>>5192999
>>[With no pressing matters at hand, you can take the time to talk with Tin on a stroll through the campus woods. "Hey buddy. Thanks for pullin' our asses out of the fire, however you did it." [Anything you want to talk about with it?]]

>>5192999
>[While you are one of the class's reps, you probably didn’t make as much of an effort to message your classmates after leaving the mall as you could have. You reckon you can ease any worries by going to Classroom 1-A early and greeting all of them as they arrive.]
Checked