To Hold the Stars || BAKUGO KATSUKI

Battle Lines

The next morning, Nomi kept her eye peeled for any sign of the half-burned man she had seen at Tatooin Station the day before. She leaned against one of the bike racks outside and sipped from the canned coffee she had grabbed on the way while waiting for her friends (surprisingly, she had been punctual that morning).

As people streamed around her, she couldn't help hoping for a glimpse of purple skin or piercings. She didn't know why she even wanted to see the man again—she hadn't exactly been eloquent before, and she had no idea what to even say to him otherwise if he happened to reappear. He intrigued her, but as she drank her coffee and checked her phone, she could already feel that intrigue slipping away like sand through her fingers. She couldn't even remember the precise color his eyes had been, he had been gone so fast.

"You're on time!" Watase cheered as he exited the station with Momote and Sanda behind him.

"For once," Sanda remarked, her nose in the air. "It's not as if you don't live only a few blocks away."

Nomi ignored her.

"Morning!" She lifted her coffee can in greeting. "How was the ride?"

"Stuffy," Momote said as they all fell into step together, pushing their way down the sidewalk. "There're always so many people. And I'm pretty sure some creep tried to look up my skirt..."

Nomi wrinkled her nose. "Ew. You should've punched him in the balls."

Momote shrugged. "He quit when Senzo appeared and we moved to a different part. Good riddance."

"So, how was Aizawa, Nomi?" Watase said when he heard his name crop up. He grinned. "Did he make you run until you passed out again?"

She repressed that memory with a shudder. "No, but he came close. And he's rolling over all my tardy marks from last year."

"But how was your new class?" Momote asked, excited. "Are they fun? Cooler than us? What are their Quirks like? Any cute boys?"

Nomi sipped from her coffee and thought for a moment.

"They're weird," she decided. "I don't know much about them yet, but they seem all right." She remembered the angry blond boy from before and grimaced. "Well, most of them. A lot of powerful Quirks, too." She smirked. "So, they might be a bit cooler than you guys."

"Rude!" Momote exclaimed with a laugh. She bounced on the balls of her feet while Nomi distinctly heard Sanda sniff in displeasure. "But the boys! You didn't answer! Are they cute?"

Nomi scratched under her eyepatch. "I guess? I haven't gotten a good look at all of them yet. I was too busy with the Quirk assessment." When Momote looked put-out, Nomi sighed. "I walked one to Recovery Girl's office, though. He seemed kind of plain, but in a cute way, maybe."

"Ooh!" She clapped her hands. "What does he look like? What's his name?"

Nomi thought back to the day before, trying to remember the Deku boy's real name. "Uh, Midoriya. I can't remember his first name. Curly hair, freckles. His shoes were red."

"Eyes?" Momote demanded.

"Green."

She sighed. "Oh, he sounds adorable. You'll have to introduce me someday."

Nomi exchanged a look with Watase. "Uh, yeah. Sure." She turned back to the burly boy walking behind them. "What about you guys? What's the second-year course like?"