The Hero and the Damsel

Blazing Beginnings

            The heat of the fire blazed as myself and my neighbors ran from the building. There was so much yelling and screaming, absolute chaos. Over the yells and screams of confusion and panic I heard a woman's voice over the crowd. She was yelling for her child. Could no one hear her? Was no one going to help her? Where were the heroes when you needed them? I looked around, trying to find the woman, and that's when a different holler caught my attention. The yelps of a child, screaming in terror. It was so high pitched and mortified. How could no one hear the child? Why was no one helping? These people with their damn gifts not doing a damned this to help a poor child trapped inside. Well, if they weren't going to do something, I was.

I bounded forward, I should have been afraid to run towards the blazing building, but at the moment, all I could focus on was getting the child out of that building. As I approached the building at high speed, I could feel the radiating heat. It was terrible and constricting on my breath. I pulled up the collar of my shirt over my mouth to give me some breathing time as I made my way inside. I could hear the calls of the people behind me, calling me crazy and telling me to run the other way. I wouldn't. I was going to save this child. Me. Quirkless me.

I made my way forward, the heat suffocating as I kept the collar of my shirt close to my mouth. I was going to help this poor child if it was the last thing I did. That way I could prove that even a Quirkless person could make a difference and didn't need powers to be a hero. I trudged forward, frantically searching for the child when I heard a crash and the ground shook. Tenseness overcame me. The building was going to collapse with the child trapped inside. I pushed forward in more of a rush as I looked around for the child.

It wasn't long before I heard the coughing and wheezing of a poor little boy. I hurried over to him and yanked out my handkerchief, placing it gently over his mouth. "Don't worry, everything's going to be okay. I'm going to get you out of here." I gingerly picked the boy up, but my strength was starting to elude me. The intensity of the heat was draining, and as I started to exert myself I was breathing more and the smoke was filtering into my longs and choking me. I started cough, but I held tight to the young boy, doing my best to carry him out.

Another crash sounded, closer to my location this time. I tensed in worry. The boy was safe yet; I needed more time. I was frantic to get him out. Then another crash sounded and I jolted back as the wall in front of us collapsed. I panicked and turned my back to the wall, shielding the young boy from whatever was going to happen. I heard a voice call out to me. "Have no fear, for I am here!" I turned to see through the fog and smoke a tall, muscular figure with a cape billowing behind him. A hero. I coughed and struggled to move the boy toward the hero, almost in a gesture to get the hero to take the child out to safety before the building collapsed.

He did as such. He took the child in one arm as I staggered forward, fading in and out of consciousness. I stumbled and fell into something hard. The moment I did, everything moved quickly. Like a blur, there was fire, and then there were cheers and yells of happiness. I hope the mother and son were reunited. I could also hear the sounds of sirens, an ambulance or fire engine most likely. I don't remember if I was standing or laying down. All I remember was some telling me to stay strong and keep fighting. Not to fall unconscious.

I woke up again in the hospital, bandages around my legs and syringes in my arms. I coughed as I sat up with a jolt. A woman, a take it a nurse from her appearance, walked into the room. "Careful. You inhaled quite a bit of smoke during the fire. You're lucky you were saved and by one of the most popular heroes no less." She smiled, almost in a dreamy fashion as she checked my vitals and my bandages. "You should be all right for now, but take it easy. I'll go let your visitor know that you are awake." With that the nurse left the room, leaving me confused.

A visitor? Who was coming to visit me in the hospital? My parents couldn't have found out that quickly about the fire, could they? My questions were answered when I heard the loud steps coming down the hallway. A tall, toned and built figure walked, more liked ducked, through the door and approached me on the bed. "Are you all right?"

I stared at the man. He was very tall, massive, intimidating. He had piercing blue eyes and wonderfully golden hair. He was certainly a handsome man, which gave me the answer as to why he was so popular as a hero. Of course, he would be. Girls could ogle over him all they wanted. He was still dressed in his hero costume, he looked like a right dork standing there like that. I sat up weakly to respond to him, after taking his entire form in. "Y-Yeah..." I gave a bit of a cough, wincing before I took a sharp breath and continued. "Perfectly fine, and I had everything under control. I was going to save...that little boy on my own."

He watched me careful. The blue of his eyes almost looking pained as I coughed and winced. He shook his head as he took a seat next to my hospital bed. I heard it creak under his weight. "I don't mean to sound harsh, but I don't think you had it under control."

I grit my teeth and looked away. "Wonderful, another hero, here to tell me about how Quirkless people shouldn't put their lives in danger." I turned my attention back to him with a glare. "If I hadn't run in there to save that little boy, he may not have made it out alive. I shouldn't be reprimanded for doing the right thing."

He looked at me with surprise in his eyes. I guess he wasn't expecting that kind of a response. I mean, I didn't even thank him. Perhaps he was expecting me to stroke his ego. However, he didn't seem mad at me when he spoke. "I wouldn't reprimand you for doing the right thing. I think it was brave of you to run in there to save that child when no one else was moving. You took matters into your own hands, that is very brave of you, especially someone without powers to rely on."

I was astonished at him. I wasn't expecting him to concede to me. He merely, agreed. No reprimanding at all. I guess I was being a bit rude at this point, yelling at a man who saved my life and all. His demeanor and reply were putting me off guard, so I...became a bit timid. I didn't know what to say. "Thank you..."

He looked over at me and grinned brightly, his perfect white teeth showing. "You're welcome citizen!"

I shook my head with a jovial laugh, but soon cursed myself for the action as I immediately went into a coughing fit as I inhaled sharply again. "Yamane." He canted his head at me as I wiped my mouth from my coughing fit. "My name is Yamane Ayano."

He nodded to me, his smile becoming less audacious and more, sincere. "You're welcome Yamane."

I nodded and leaned back in my hospital bed. "Got a name there, Titan?"

He gave a hearty laugh as he grinned at me again, the sincerity leaving a moment, replaced by a showman's act. "All Might!"

"Well All Might, thanks for saving me and bringing me to the hospital. Don't let me keep you from your duties. You keep saving people, but remember," I focused my eyes on him and pointed at his chest, "Never underestimate us civilians, especially those of us that lack Quirks."

He nodded as he stood up from the chair, it giving another creak of relief from being alleviated from his weight. He smiled at me, more gently this time as he went to the door and ducked down under the threshold. "Of course, Yamane." With that he left, and I laid there wondering why he had stayed if he wasn't going to reprimand me.