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It wasn’t a typical morning without the steady thud of a hammer or Nejire’s quiet swears. Well, as quiet as Nejire could be, that is. This morning, Mirio was doubly lucky and woke up to both. Lying groggy on what could just barely be counted as a hammock, he stared at the bumpy ceiling as he listened to another thud followed by a swear. He’d say the walls were thin, but a better word was nonexistent. If he were honest, the fault lied more with him and Nejire; Tamaki was so quiet that sometimes Mirio forgot he was there.
This was a case of getting exactly what they paid for. It was one thing to move in with his two best friends, another thing to pick the cheapest apartment they could afford. Rolling off his ‘bed’, Mirio automatically lumbered over to the window, blinking as his eyes adjusted to the bright sunlight. Grabbing his toothbrush along the way, he started to brush as he peeked out the window, to his adopted town of Musutafu.
As usual, overhead, hot air balloons slowly drifted with the wind and dirigibles cast large shadows on the ground. Just down the street, the sun glinted brightly off the gears of the town’s main clock. Like tombstones, the houses jutted out of a rising hill, matching one another neither in size nor colour. Tall chimneys poked out of roofs, smoke wafting to the sky. In the night, gas lamps would light the streets. Somehow, he never got bored of this sight. Musutafu was a floating city, just barely tethered to the earth, but he could barely tear his eyes away from city proper to look at the ground far below. There was always something going on.
Another clang sounded off behind him. Wryly, he glanced over his shoulder. Mirio didn’t have to look at the city to find something to do, there was always something going on in here too. Hopefully, the landlord didn’t hear it this time. Strolling over to the tiny bathroom, he quickly rinsed and washed his face. The splash of cold water woke him up entirely, ready to face whatever was waiting for him outside.
Sucking her thumb, Nejire looked up at him as he entered the second room of their two-room apartment. Seated on the hardwood floor, she sat next to mass of gears, hammers, and strange pieces of metal. Maybe it was a good thing they didn’t have any furniture aside from a set of mismatched chairs and a wobbly table; Mirio wouldn’t have room to walk otherwise. As it was, he had to be careful to step around her long skirt that pooled around her. “Hey, hey, you’re awake!”
“A little hard to sleep through all that noise,” Mirio replied dryly, turning from her to where Tamaki sat. A pair of goggles rested over his eyes as he worked on a long telescope. His nimble fingers twisted and turned gear, adjusting the precision of the instrument. Well, that explained why Nejire was taking apart things. “New creation?”
Tamaki nodded, a soft smile on his face. “It’d be nice to see the ships coming in at night.” As usual, it took only two seconds for worries to enter his mind and he mumbled, “If it works. If you want to see it.”
“Of course I do!” Mirio chirped, already on damage control. He crouched down to tap on the telescope, and a muted hallow clang sounded off inside the chamber. “And when have you made something that didn’t work?”
“I…” Tamaki still looked doubtful, his hands anxiously playing with the instrument.
“Hey, hey, you’re amazing.” Nejire beamed brightly. She stood up, dropping all the screws and gears from her lap. Gesturing at the mess around her, she added, “You made a telescope using toasters! And that weird toy I found!”
“I can’t believe you recombined them all!” Mirio praised. His eyes widened as he processed what Nejire said and he whipped his head to the pile of scrap on the ground. “That’s not our toaster, is it?”
Nejire laughed. “Nope. I went around collecting junk while you were sleeping, bed head!”
He flushed a bright red and quickly patted down his hair. Not that it’d help much, his hair always seemed to have a mind of its own that a brush could only barely control. He glanced at Nejire’s wild curls. “Your hair isn’t any better!”
“It is!” Nejire flounced forward, flipping her hair off her shoulder. “It’s called style!”
Mirio was certain that wasn’t how style worked, but it was impossible to break Nejire’s confidence. He glanced at Tamaki for help, but he looked away skittishly. “I don’t know anything about that,” Tamaki muttered, nervously fiddling with the telescope.
“That’s alright.” Nejire skipped over to Tamaki and ran her hands through his messy locks. His ears burned a bright red, still unused to the attention. Leaning back, she beamed brightly. “You look great like this.”
“And I don’t?” Mirio retorted, unable to stop himself.
“I never said that,” Nejire leered, giving him a wink. Her dress flared around as she spun to face him, revealing her practical trousers underneath. “But that’s still bed head.”
He wasn’t sure if he should take it as a compliment or an insult. Knowing her, it was probably both. “Fine, fine.” It was easier just to stop the argument.
A large, dark shadow flew overhead, blocking the sun from the window, and Nejire perked up. “Hey, hey, that’s huge!” She ran to the balcony, leaning hard against it as she tried to catch sight of the low-flying airship. “What’s that flag?”
“What flag?” Mirio asked, following after her. Looking up, he saw a giant dirigible pass by, its belly low enough to almost skim the rooftops. He was surprised no one had come to stop such dangerous flying. His eyes slid up the canvas sides to the flag fluttering gently off the top, the image of an ever-burning torch. That explained it. The number two pirate-hunter in the city. “I think that’s Endeavor’s flag.”
“Ohh, I heard he’s a prick to work for,” Nejire sighed, leaning out even further off the railing. She craned her neck trying to catch sight of other airships as they passed to and from the city. “Like a real tough boss. He threatens to toss over anyone who doesn’t listen and he’s constantly breaking things.”
Tamaki stepped out now, keeping a safe distance from the railing. Tugging on the straps of his goggles nervously, he looked nervously at Nejire. “You’re out too far.”
“What do you mean?” Nejire asked, by now leaning so far out her toes were skimming the ground. She looked back, cocking her head, and while her grip on the railing looked strong, it felt like she was about to fall at any minute. She seemed part acrobat sometimes, with no concept of gravity, but that didn’t make it any less terrifying to watch her.
Tamaki squeaked and Mirio quickly loped an arm around her waist, pulling her back to safety. “Try to keep your feet on the ground,” he admonished with a tired shake of his head.
“Thanks.” Nejire grinned before looking back at the airships. The wind blew through her hair and she pulled out a ribbon to tie back her loose curls. “Hey, hey, think we’ll get one?”
“An airship?” Mirio stared at the large commercial blimps, carrying passengers from city to city. The smaller zepplins that were used on an almost hourly basis to ferry citizens from one side of floating city to the next. The medium sized ships used by police and criminal alike. They were the only ticket out of this city, the only way to discover more of the world. He raised a hand as a ship flew by and grabbed the empty air.
He had spent years dreaming, fantasizing about having his own ship. Unfortunately, they were worth far more than the kind of money made doing odd jobs, scraping junk, or cleaning chimneys. Even the hot-air balloons would cost more money than they could save.
“They’re too expensive,” Tamaki sighed gloomily, his back hunched as he peeked out at the sky from behind them. “It’s not happening.”
“What if we built it!” Nejire suggested eagerly, twirling around to gesture at the forgotten telescope. “You made that!”
Tamaki’s mouth fell open. “Do you know how long that’d take? And how much stuff we’d need?” He shook his head, his hands tugging on the straps of his goggles as he ducked his head. His skin grew pale as he considered the possibilities. “And I’d have to keep you safe and what if I did something wrong?”
“You wouldn’t,” Mirio replied confidentially, patting Tamaki’s back gently. “But we’ll keep that as plan B, okay?”
He looked a little better, the colour returning to his face. “Plan D.”
“Plan D,” he confirmed.
“Fine.” Nejire frowned, tilting left and right as she thought about another method. “Hey, hey, we could rob a bank.” She glared down at the fancily dressed people walking below, her eyes narrowing at a particularly rich couple. “Their bank.”
“A bank?” Tamaki looked even more appalled.
“Yeah, maybe not. That’s plan Z.” Mirio chuckled. He was never certain of how serious Nejire was when she said that. Glancing up one more time, he scanned the skies for a familiar flag of an overly smiling buff man. Nothing caught his eye; it seemed All Might hadn’t arrived yet. Clearing his throat, Mirio said, “Sir offered us a job.”
Nejire and Tamaki snapped their heads toward him, their jaws slack. The first to recover, Nejire asked, “Sir did? I thought All Might said we’re too young.”
“Yeah, but Sir convinced him to give us a chance.” Mirio nodded, grinning brightly. This was the first step to their dream and finally it felt like it was within reach, just at his fingertips.
“It’s going to be dangerous.” Tamaki blanched, stepping back. He had always preferred to keep his feet on the ground. “I’ll sit this one out.”
“Hey, hey, we’re the three musketeers.” She loped an arm around his back, keeping him close. “We all go! I’ll protect you.”
“I’ll protect you too! And it’ll pay good,” Mirio added, hoping to convince him. “Maybe we can buy our own ship then, or even take over Sir’s.”
Nejire clapped her hands, excitement shining in her eyes. “We could be pirates!”
“Sir’s a cop,” Tamaki replied dryly.
“A pirate cop,” she corrected. Grabbing his hands, she cocked her head. “Come on, it’s more fun with you.” She gave the widest, most pleading eyes possible and stuck out her bottom lip in a wobbly pout.
It was no surprise what happened next. Tamaki had always been weak to puppy eyes. “F-fine,” he muttered, cheeks red as he averted his gaze. “I’ll go.”
“Great!” Mirio bounced eagerly on his toes. Working in the high skies with his two best friends, All Might, and Sir? There was nothing that could top this.
Aside from owning his own airship, of course.
A loud gong broke him out of hit thoughts. The antique clock tower down the street chimed the hour. One. Two. Mirio counted the gongs silently. Five. Nine. The clock stopped. It was nine the morning. His eyes widened.
It was nine in the morning. He was supposed to be at the docks right now, helping ships unload their cargo. Nejire chuckled. “Hey, hey, aren’t you gonna be late?”
“Maybe if you run?” Tamaki suggested, weakly.
Mirio didn’t bother to respond, already bolting out the front door. Well, it was a good thing Sir offered the job. He wasn’t sure how much longer he had his current one.