Chapter Text
Cover
Today was a good day. The sun was shining, flowers blooming, birds singing, a boy about to trip... wait, what was that last part?! Ochako Uraraka only had a split second to react as she reached out and touched the boy on his back. It cancelled the fall, in a way that he couldn't predict. He was rather adorable as he looked around for the source of his confusion... eventually landing his emerald gaze at her. Considering the fact she removed the influence of gravity on him... the reaction was justified. "Huh?"
The brunette apologized as she fixed his orientation, "Sorry about that, I had to use my quirk on you! It's bad luck to trip on the day of the entrance exam, you know?"
He didn't respond, being paralyzed by fear. The silence was a bit awkward... and it was clear that he wasn't used to conversations like this. Attempting to break the ice, she continued to speak. "I know I'm nervous, and I bet you are too!"
His brain appeared to short circuit, something that Uraraka didn't really take stock in. After all, she had nerves too! "Uh..."
Still, they were on a time crunch, and needed to get going. "Well, good luck! See you later!" She waved as she released her quirk's effects on him, and strode into the building, leaving him behind. Today is going great! I feel bad for that boy, though. He seemed really nervous... and I don't blame him!
Finding a seat, she waited for UA to begin the exam process. The first part was the academics, a written exam. From math, to history, and everything else in between. The only subject the brunette really struggled with was English and some hero informatics, but she excelled at physics, chemistry, and mathematics. Considering her quirk, it would be good for her to understand how those work in particular. However, the next part would be the most difficult: the practical portion. This was where heroes were made, and so, they had to have an equally demanding test. UA was the best of the best, with a .2 per cent acceptance rate. And it was made abundantly clear when one of the most iconic heroes, Present Mic, stood at the podium in order to explain how it would work. His voice boomed, able to clearly reach every "WELCOME ONE AND ALL TO MY SHOW! EVERYBODY SAY HEY!" He cupped a hand around his ear as if he was listening for people, but nobody responded. A little put off by the silence, he still put on a strong showing for the audience. "I'VE GOT SHIVERS DOWN MY SPINE, TOO, LISTENERS! ALL RIGHT, EXAMINEES... I'M GONNA GIVE YOU THE LOW-DOWN ON HOW THIS'LL GO DOWN! YOU READY?! YYYYYYEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!"
This... I don't know what to think about this... it was then that her attention was brought elsewhere. She could hear muttering. It was the green haired boy she helped before. He was muttering out of... joy? Is he some kind of fanboy or something? He's acting a bit like a neet...
However, the vocal hero continued, his voice reaching all in the audience: "NOW PAY CLOSE ATTENTION, LISTENERS! WE'LL BE TESTING YOUR METTLE BY RUNNING A TEN-MINUTE PRACTICE RUN AT OUR REPLICA CITY-DISTRICT! YOU CAN TAKE WHATEVER YOU LIKE! EVERYBODY GATHER AT THE DESIGNATED MEETING AREA AFTER THE PRESENTATION, YA DIG? WE'LL BE SPRINKLING A LARGE NUMBER OF "VILLAINS OVER THE BATTLEFIELD. AND THEY'LL APPEAR IN THREE DIFFERENT VARIETIES, WITH POINT VALUES SCALED ACCORDING TO DIFFICULTY!! USING EACH OF YOUR INDIVIDUAL QUIRKS, DISPATCH AS MANY VILLAINS AS YOU CAN. YOUR GOAL, LISTENERS, IS TO RACK UP A HIGH SCORE!! AND DON'T THINK ABOUT ATTACKING ANY OTHER COMPETITORS OR ANY OF THAT NASTY ANTIHERO STUFF, BECAUSE THAT'S AGAINST THE RULES, CAPISCHE!?"
He was about to continue when a blue haired boy stood up, and interrupted: "I have a question..." He paused to breathe, before shouting at the same volume as Present Mic, "YOU MENTION THREE, BUT IN THE UA HANDBOOK, THERE ARE CLEARLY FOUR! AND YOU!" He turned to the green kid, who shrunk back. "YOUR MUTTERING IS VERY DISTRACTING. PLEASE REFRAIN FROM THAT."
Now that was just unfair. Calling him out like that. She could hear him apologize weakly, but everyone turned back to Present Mic when he continued, "OK, OOOKKK... THANKS FOR THE SEGWAY, MUCH APPRECIATED, EXAMINE 7111! THE FOURTH TYPE OF VILLAIN YOU WILL ENCOUNTER IS WORTH ZERO POINTS. THEY ACT AS "ARENA TRAPS". YOU DIG?"
"MY APOLOGIES FOR MY RUDENESS!" The bluette bowed at a perfect 90 degree angle before sitting back down. At least he recognizes it... But the fact he pointed out worried the brunette. The 0 pointers are a real danger. "Area traps"? Those sound like they could actually kill someone! However, she pushed that thought to the back of her head as the pro hero continued, "WELL, THAT'S ENOUGH FROM ME!! I'LL LEAVE YOU ALL WITH A PRESENTATION ON THE "SCHOOL PRECEPTS" OF THIS ACADEMY OF MINE! AS A CERTAIN "HERO" BY THE NAME OF NAPOLEON BONAPARTE ONCE SAID: "A TRUE HERO NEVER STOPS OVERCOMING THE MISFORTUNES IN LIFE"!! NOW LET'S MOVE TO THE MAIN EVENT!! "PLUS ULTRA!!" AND MAY YOU ALL SUFFER GLADLY THE TRIALS TO COME!"
As Ochako waited outside her test city, she breathed in calmly, attempting to focus. The countdown wouldn't be long now, as everyone was waiting impatiently. Ready to give her best, she thought about why she would do this. I'll make you both proud, Mom and Dad, and I'll make it so that you won't have to worry about the future. It was then that she heard the distinctive voice of the blue haired kid. He was saying something in a derogatory tone to another. Ignoring it, she noticed the door start to open... And Present Mic call out to all of them. "AND START! CONSIDER THE BATON TOSSED! WHAT'S THE MATTER!? THERE'S NO SUCH THING AS A COUNTDOWN IN A REAL BATTLE! RUN! RUUUN!!!"
Panic flooded the girl as she struggled to keep pace with many with stronger and faster quirks. The test was simple, deceptively so. The robots weren't the only threat on the battlefield. There was other quirks from other examinees to watch out for too, all in with the clock ticking in the background. The brunette maneuvered the city, destroying whatever robots she could in the only way she knew how... by making them float before falling to the ground, all while keeping a mental count in her head. 1... 4... 6...9...10...12...13...16...17...19...22...23...24...27...28... "28 points..." She needed more. However, a large, spider-like robot, the size of a building plowed a structure, leveling it in a rain of rubble right behind her. What the?!
Running out of the way, she was forced to break as a piece of rubble the size of a vending machine landed in front of her. Her inertia made the brunette trip and fall over. Fortunately, nothing else seemed to be hurt, but the robot's shadow loomed over her. Scrambling, she found that her ankle was twisted, and unable to move properly. A painful reminder of her current situation. Shit! SHIT! How am I going to get away?! Does this thing have restraint?!
It was then that the timid boy from earlier. He was running in her direction, having heard her cry for help. No, don't! It's too dangerous!
It was then that the miraculous happened. With a blast of unique green lightning, he leapt up, and punched the machine in one hit. It splintered apart on impact, and yet, he was falling. Her elation at being saved by the timid boy from before slowly turned to horror as she realized there was nothing to stop his fall, so she did the only thing she could, and slapped him when he was close enough. It was enough to divert his course, and stop him from becoming a human pancake.
When he saw that the brunette was alright, he was relieved. After all, he'd just saved his first life as a potential hero... but this was short lived as a large arm of the robot immediately fell and crushed her before anyone could say anything. He was in shock as her arm was the only thing sticking out from beneath the massive zero pointer. The frail, dainty hand contrasting against the blood and gore squished out from beneath the olive green metal. The sad part was, she never saw it coming.
Ochako Uraraka died at 12:36, July 17, 2167.