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“Shit,” Itsuka cursed. She shifted the weightless civilian in her arms and reached up to press her headset. “Uravity? We have a problem.”
“What is it, Battle Fist?” Uravity grunted. “I’m kinda in the middle of something, here.”
”If you’re clearing debris, it can wait!”
”How did you?- wait, never mind. I’m tracking your GPS and heading there now! What’s the problem?”
Itsuka passed the civilian off to one of EMT’s, then turned back to the raging inferno. She gritted her teeth and ran back towards the flames. “The lower floors have been evacuated, but there’s someone stuck up top and the only way to get them is through a window! It’s too high for them to jump and we’re the only ones who can get that high!”
”Alright,” Uravity said.
Itsuka heard Uravity shut off the call, then saw her a moment later. She activated her quirk and waved to catch Uravity’s attention, then shut it off and signed, [Float me.]
Uravity’s eyes widened and she nodded. Everyone in the hero course was required to learn some basic signs, and Class 1-A and 1-B had agreed to learn signs related to each other’s quirks and special moves. It was rather helpful in times like these.
Itsuka- no, Battle Fist reached Uravity a second later. Uravity slapped her across the face. Battle Fist felt herself go weightless. She activated her quirk, shoved off from the ground, and soared.
Once she was halfway up the twelve story building, she stretched her hand down and grabbed Uravity. Battle Fist launched her up above herself and managed to see Uravity make herself weightless roust after she began her descent.
Battle Fist had thrown her so high that she flew over the building by a good meter or so, and the weightlessness made it so that she could catch herself on the building.
Uravity forgot to turn her commlink off, so Battle Fist heard what she said as she extended her hand to the scared man waiting in the top floor window.
“Hey there,” she said. “I’m Uravity. I’m here to take you down there safely!” She gestured vaguely towards the ground and then looked back up at the who was already halfway out the window. "Woah, woah! Let me help you!"
Uravity lightly tapped him and Battle Fist grinned at the faint exclamation of wonder she heard. Uravity pulled him the rest of the way out of the window, then eased him onto her back.
"Hold on tight," she warned. Then, she pressed her hands together and yelled, "Release!" The pair began to fall. The man let out a startled shriek but Battle Fish knew her role in this and she reached out and caught them as they flew by. She was dragged down with them, but between her and the man's buoyancy, they were able to slow their catastrophic crash to a light landing.
As soon as they hit the ground, Uravity lightly touched her fingertips together and said, "Release." Battle Fist stretched her shoulders as gravity restored. The man sighed, relieved to have his feet on solid ground.
He looked between Uravity and Battle Fist hesitantly. "Er, is it okay if I..?"
"If you're steady enough, you can walk over to the EMT stations over there," Itsuka pointed, then turned ot Uravity. "Hey, you okay?"
"Yeah, fine," Uravity said. She reached up and tugged her helmet off. Itsuka offered a hand and Ochako gratefully let her take the protective gear. "Kinda want to hurl, though."
"I bet," Itsuka agreed. "Lifting your own weight is hard for you, right?"
"Especially when I'm using Zero Gravity on another person. Still, i think all of my training's been paying off!" Ochako said happily. Itsuka nodded in agreement. She opened her mouth to add something else, then paused when she noticed something else in the corner of her eyes. "Is that a.. reporter?" Ochako asked, confirming Itsuka's thought.
"Yeah."
"Hello there, heroes!" The reporter greeted. "I'm Yamamoto Hanako, a reporter at the Juzo News station. I've not seen you two out on the field before, and I'd love to interview you, if you're interested?" Yamamoto wriggled their eyebrows.
Itsuka bit her lip, remembering Midnight-sensei's words. "You have to be prepared for every interview you give, but your first one especially. How you present yourself that very first time will be what people remember, not the dozens of later interviews."
Itsuka caught Ochako's eyes and hesitated, then nodded slightly. There. Now the ball was in Ochako's court.
"We'll accept your offer," she agreed finally. Yamamoto grinned victoriously.
"Wonderful. Well then, let's get started."
--
"Any parting words of wisdom for the viewers out there?" Yamamoto asked. Their voice came out dry and reedy, a combination of the recording's age and the venue.
Ochako laughed as on-screen Itsuka gave an answer along the lines of, "Word hard and reach for the stars!"
"That's so cheesy!" Ochako laughed.
Itsuka rolled her eyes. "Yeah yeah. Still, it's true."
"Really?" Ochako asked skeptically.
"Of course it is," Itsuka said fervently. "Reaching for the stars brought me here, didn't it?"
"What, watching a decade-old video while hiding out in the bathroom of som sort of villain bar?"
"Ha ha, very funny," Itsuka groaned. "I meant that I was thankful it brought me to you, but I'm not so sure that I shoul be glad," she teased. She took a joking step away, and Ochako reeled her back in..
"Come on, Tsuka! You know I was joking, right?"
"Mhm," Itsuka nodded, then smiled. "Besides, I'm not just going to up and leave my partner of ten years like that!"
"Yeah, you wouldn't do that." Ochako grinned. "You're too nice."
"I'll show you how "nice" I am later," Itsuka promised. Ochako smirked, then softened.
"I know we're on a mission, but that doesn't mean we can't celebrate the aniversaries too!" she urged. Itsuka hesitated but eventually gave in. Ochako made a good argument, after all.
Together, they went back out into the bar and, between bouts of recon, they danced.