A Change Of Heart ✓

Bonds

"W-what do you mean, Midoriya?" Uraraka asked nervously.

"I had a dream," I explained frantically, "He w-was using some sort of ice quirk... A-and... I was talking to him while he was on the ground... And then...," I felt my face become pale. "I killed him."

The room was filled with a deafening silence.

"Well," Aizawa let me go, sighing as he closed his eyes, "It was clearly just a nightmare, since he's fine."

"But-"

"Don't go pushing what isn't important," he said sharply. "Now, if we're done with that..." He turned towards me, "Go clean up. Then come right back." His eyes wandered to the left of me. "Iida, go with him. And Uraraka, go get the janitor."

"Yes, Aizawa Sensei!" Iida bowed.

"O-okay!" Uraraka smiled nervously.

---

Iida and I walked down the hall back from the bathroom, an uncomfortable silence hanging in the air.

"Iida," I mumbled.

"H-hm?"

I stared at him, heart racing. "I'm scared."

Iida faced back forwards, pausing. "I'm sorry."

"What?"

He sighed. "I feel like I should be able to help more. But I can't."

"Iida...," I said.

He opened his mouth to speak, but stopped himself before any words escaped. Though, he did offer a sense of comfort. "I hope you know that I no longer harbor any ill will towards you. And although I can't discuss what I mean - I'm glad you're integrating with the class now."

I forced out a laugh, smiling sadly. "I'm pretty sure I just blew it."

Iida suddenly stopped in his tracks, causing me to follow his lead, raising a brow towards him.

"I never told you why I wanted to become a hero," he smiled.

"Huh?"

"You asked at lunch yesterday," he mentioned, causing me to remember. He smiled, head raised towards the sky. "Personally, I'd like to make my family proud. But most of all, my brother, Tensei. He's one of the biggest pillars of support that I have."

I smiled. "Must be special, huh?"

"Yes. He was a fantastic pro." He put on a grim smile, causing my heart to fall. "He's not dead, or anything drastic," he explained, easing my nerves slightly, "But he's been put out of commission - at least for now. You see, there was a villain who attacked him, injuring him quite severely." His eyes flicked towards me for a split second. "Though, his life was spared, as, strangely enough, another villain came around and interrupted the fight. After the first fled, the authorities came. His life was spared, but it terrifies me to know that either one of the villains could've killed him in a second if they wanted to."

My lips curled downwards. "That's awful..."

"But that's why," he smiled, "I need to be stronger now. For Tensei. And for everyone else who needs to be saved. At first, I wanted nothing more than to avenge my brother for what that villain did. I see now, though, that I should instead focus my efforts on helping others."

"That's incredible," I said. "I mean, you're determined to help others just... because."

Iida laughed. "That's part of being a hero, I suppose."

"Yeah. Makes me wanna be one too," I laughed. I sensed mild surprise from him, but it quickly faded. "Actually," I smiled nervously, blushing. "I was curious about heroes after you all spoke so highly about All Might, and I decided to do some research of my own. So uh," I coughed, laughing, "I went to the library to find more information, and found myself there for hours."

Setting my backpack on the ground, I pulled out the notebook that I had found under the desk at home. Though, I had added dozens of pages of notes. Standing next to Iida, I flipped through the pages, heat rising to my cheeks.

"I documented a whole bunch of incidents and did some investigation on their quirks, heroics, and everything in between." I grinned goofily. "I even drew up their costumes - though I can't say I'm much of an artist."

Iida's eyes widened as he glanced at the book. "That's amazing." He turned towards me. "You did all of that in one day?"

I blushed, putting the book away. "Yeah. I mean, how could I not? Honestly," I rubbed the back of my neck, embarrassed. "I have to keep myself from freaking out when I see them walking around now."

Iida laughed, and it seemed any hint of tension from him was gone. "I found myself in a similar situation when I first arrived. It is quite incredible seeing so many pro heroes."

My eyes widened. "Do you know how bad it was when I had to go back home with All Might?! It took everything I had in me not to talk his ear off! Though," I laughed, "I'm sure I annoyed him with some questioning I couldn't resist."

"Ah, yes. Th-" Iida's eyes widened as he glanced up at a clock that hung in the hallway. "Oh my! We've been out here for quite a while, we should probably head back!"

I looked over at the clock myself, forming a similar expression to Iida's. "Yep. Aizawa Sensei might kill us."

With no laughter between us, we both began to speed-walk down the hall (as Iida refused to run) arriving at the classroom out of breath.

Before opening the door, I grinned, still catching my breath. "Thanks, Iida."

"Whatever for?" he asked.

"Y'know," I shrugged. "Just talking. It really helped calm me down. So thank you."

Iida's eyes widened before he smiled. "You're welcome."

"And," Aizawa said, standing in the doorway. "You're late."

I felt the heat in my cheeks rise. "Sorry, sir!" I apologized, Iida bowing next to me as he did the same.

"We lost track of time - I apologize," Iida said.

"Whatever, just stand up," Aizawa sighed. As Iida straightened himself, Aizawa finished. "But you," he glanced at me, "Are going to have to stop being so late with everything. It's irrational to waste your time on small things."

I laughed sheepishly, averting my eyes.

Aizawa rolled his eyes before stepping to the side. "Go sit down. Now."

"Y-yes, sir!" I replied quickly, and the two of us (being myself and Iida) quickly made our way to our seats, but not before tossing each other quick smiles.

---

Tapping my finger on my desk, I stared out the window. I could feel the occasional glance my way, but I chose to ignore their peering eyes. Though, I couldn't get one thing out of my head. Why did I know that kid?

Biting my lip, I quickly looked his way but, to my surprise, he was staring at me as well. Tensing up, I faced back towards the front of the class. Shoto Todoroki.

Turning more slowly, I glanced at him once again. Hatred was burning within him - but he wasn't even looking at me. No. He's not mad at me. He hates someone else. And from the looks of it, the rage is intense and ever-burning.

Once his icy glare raised to meet my eyes, I looked away once more, humming as I wondered what was going on. Maybe I'll ask him about it.

---

hecc

idrk what to say here

but here's another chapter for you hooligans

how are we already at part 8 wut

err

Thanks for reading! <3