Fearbruary2022

I am never comfortable with festivals, especially when alcohol is involved. However, how can I say no when my friend invites me? Gray Fullbuster would always invite me, and I appreciate the company as we walk along the stalls, seeing what magic they had or any good food and trinkets, and he seemed to know my discomfort as we avoided the ones with any kind of mind-numbing brew.

Though a few times I would flinch whenever someone who was completely sloshed comes near me, try to hug me, or flirt with me, having severe flashbacks where it was debilitating and I couldn’t do anything but try to get away from the source. This is where I am also grateful for my friend as he would freeze them in place before guiding me to another area. Today was just too much…

I suddenly lost my temper and sent Macau flying with a plank I teleported before running to find a place for solace, ignoring Gray’s voice trying to call me back to no avail. I just didn’t want to be anywhere with people who willingly drink to lose control of themselves.

Why did they always drink like him?

My father would always drink himself to a stupor, and he would lash out at anything and anyone he could get his grubby hands on, even if it meant his only daughter. I would be thrown around, punched, kicked, and even a target for his magic practice to where I would be unable to move the next few days, and he would apologize for every time whenever he regained his self-consciousness. However, he never stopped so what is the point of apologizing?

That was two years since he had last done this, when Gray and the Guildmaster Makarov came and confronted the man with a few of the Rune Guards to arrest him. He would deny the allegations and would beg me to tell them it was a lie since if I would say he did nothing wrong they wouldn’t charge and arrest him since I was the only victim.

Unfortunately for him, I grew tired of his lies. I took off my shirt and revealed the bruises and scars he had done over the years and the look of betrayal passed through his eyes before yelling obscenities for my treachery. I became numb to his insults and just said. “The only treachery here is you using your daughter as a punching bag.” The look on his face was priceless. 

I then became a member of Fairy Tail, and I slowly gained a new family with them, but the trauma still remained. I have seen several there drinking like no tomorrow and some had passed out, but they never had any ill will whenever it was done, yet why couldn’t I just let that go? Why can’t I drink a drop without thinking if I would become like him, just as cold and ruthless? Just thinking of letting it remove my control just makes my stomach churn.

Gray had eventually found me in a cave outside of town looking at the large lake glowing in the moonlight. I was still shaking from the ordeal, flashbacks plaguing my mind of every drunken torture and vowing myself to never drink that vile concoction in fear of me becoming like him. 

Fear of poison or being poisoned.

Katsuki was worried about Izuku. Ever since the two were attacked by that Sludge Villain he noticed that the verdanette had not eaten much or refused to eat the school lunches, and he could see he was losing weight. He even noticed that he would avoid anything that resembled or had the same consistency as that sludge bastard.

Avoiding the sludge or mud is one thing, but refusing or not eating was another. He needed to find an answer, but he needed to make a couple of bentos. If it is something that he suspects, then he just hopes the Nerd trusts him enough for this.

Izuku was starving, but ever since the encounter with that Villain and almost possessing him triggered him. He had never felt so unclean when the slime forced down his throat and pooled into his stomach, then intestines cramping in him he had never felt so violated. For days he still had to expel whatever was inside him, and it was vile.

Another thought during the first few nights was, even if the main villain was in Tartarus, did he still have control of the sludge inside Izuku? That freaked him out so bad that he had now refused to eat anything, even after the slime was completely gone. 

He knew this fear was irrational, but his mind wasn’t thinking straight when the fear came in and his stomach would roil in discomfort, increasing his fears even more as it felt like something was alive in there like an alien. Inko had taken him to the hospital twice within a month when he suffered severe cramping and panic attacks. 

The doctors had diagnosed him with Iophobia, the fear of poison or being poisoned. In hindsight that is what it may have been, as the slime gave him the feeling that it was a fucking parasite, poisoning his veins to force him to do his bidding. They also added cibophobia as they also noticed he was refusing anything with a certain texture like pudding or gravy.

They are now trying some type of exposure therapy, but so far no luck. He just does not feel comfortable with the doctors, especially when one of them expressed disgust that he was Quirkless. Izuku couldn’t trust someone like that for his well-being.

He sighed again as Izuku got up to go somewhere quiet and away from everyone, he didn’t want to be in a crowd. Besides, he didn’t have anyone to be with besides Kacchan, Riko, and Tsubasa.

Speaking of Kacchan, he saw the blond get up and walk towards him with bento boxes wrapped in a traveling cloth. He looked at him in both fear and confusion before Katsuki leaned forward.

“C’mon, Nerd.” He said as he gently touched Izuku’s elbow to get him to stand and guide him outside the building and to one of the ancient wisteria trees around the school before sitting down and leaning against its trunk.

“Here,” Katsuki handed Izuku a bento filled with rice, katsudon, egg rolls, and cherry tomatoes. “I can tell you haven’t eaten in the last month, you need to regain your strength.”

Izuku’s stomach lurched and he looked away. “I-I can’t…”

Katsuki looked at him with a soft expression and set the box down. “Does it have to do with that Sludge Bastard?”

The verdanette’s eye twitched as he had some flashbacks before nodding in confirmation. “I-I know he is gone, but…he left…things inside me…”

The blonde immediately knew what he was going through, the villain did the same thing to him as well when he tried to possess him, and he could understand the violation Izuku had felt. It was not something anyone wanted to experience. 

“It has been over a month, and he is locked well away from us.” Katsuki said as Izuku tucked into himself more. “I can’t deny I felt the same way, Deku, but think about it. He is powerless, and they would have had him restrained or Suppression Cuffs on him.”

Izuku blinked in realization and cursed at himself when he missed that detail. It was true, they had cuffs on him, making his Quirk useless. He was such an idiot. But still…

Katsuki lifted his bento box again and handed it to the verdanette. “At least eat the cherry tomatoes. I won’t yell at you for not eating my food, just get some vitamin c.”

Izuku’s stomach tightened and growled followed by nausea,  a vicious cycle that his body was telling him to eat but the mind was saying that he would puke it out. However, when he looked at the cherry tomatoes they did look fresh and untampered. He took the bento box and took a cherry and slowly popped it into his mouth before biting down, allowing the juice from the small fruit to burst in his mouth. The flavor of it slowly worked into his senses, savoring the fresh flavor before swallowing. His stomach clenched for a second before rumbling louder, begging for more as another cherry was sent down. 

(Gephyrophobia is the irrational fear of walking across or going through bridges and tunnels. Many manifestations of this fear can be caused by a single breeze rocking the bridge, the roof collapsing in the tunnel, or even collapsing by your weight.)

The classes of 1-A and 1-B were once again training together and they were heading towards their training camp before the real fun began. The location was so remote that the only way to get there was by foot and cross a ravine about midway.

They just arrived at the bridge to pass that ravine and everyone either whistled or gasped at the drop. It was so deep and no one was able to gauge it as the mist was covering the ground below. It looked more like an endless chasm than a simple ravine.

“H-hehe, look at that.” Kirishima shuddered. “There is no way to tell how deep this ravine is.”

That statement sent an involuntary shiver down Tetsutesu’s spine. The height he had no problem with, as his Quirk would most likely protect him from death, however, the bridge itself was the one that was sending him warning signals.

The bridge looked fairly new, with unmarked wood planks, not a fiber shredded along the edges of the ropes, yet why did he feel like he was going to die if he even took a single step?

“...Tetsu?...Hey Tetsutetsu!”

“Huh?” The silver-haired teen jolted and looked across his fellow brother-rival. Kirishima was looking at him with a slight worry. 

“You spaced out for quite some time bro, you ok?” Kirishima asked, now noticing that Tetsutetsu was shaking as if he was cold or feverish. Something did not feel right to the redhead. “You are usually talkative.”

“I-I’m fine, I was just thinking if there might be another way to get to the training ground. Something more manly!” The silverette said with a smile, but a few others in the group noticed that he was nervous about something.

“Tetsutetsu, I am disappointed by my fellow classmate.” Monoma said and started to walk towards him. “Are you by chance afraid of that little old bridge there, how pathetic.”

Tetsutetsu growled and Kirishima glared at the laughing sociopath before he got grabbed by a large hand and yeeted across the ravine by their class rep. “Damn Monoma, I am sure he’s going to feel that in the morning.” She replied before looking at her classmate. “Are you sure you are ok? You are looking rather pale.”

The silverette tried again to put up a front but eventually, he looked defeated. “I-how am I able to explain this…it’s like when I look at the bridge I feel like something bad would happen.”

That caught some attention, especially Izuku and their teachers. “Is it like no matter how you think, you feel a sense of dread? Like the bridge will fail?”

Tetsutetsu nodded, “Exactly, it keeps giving me thoughts of the wind snapping one side of the bridge, or my weight will make it collapse and fall to our doom, even though I can see that it is well maintained…” 

He shuddered again and his mind's-eye suddenly made the bridge longer, making it look farther than it should. Everything began to feel much colder and his chest felt heavier like something was sitting on his chest. His legs then started to feel numb and cold, like they were submerged in ice and a second later he felt like they were jelly.

The unsteadiness of his legs made it even worse, as he now felt like he was on that damn bridge itself. His breathing picked up the pace as these symptoms were overstimulating him, fiercely producing more images of bridges collapsing from under him. Am I going to die here!?

Izuku immediately picked up the symptoms. “Kirishima, get him away from the ravine. We need to separate him from the trigger.”

Kirishima nodded and gently grabbed hold of the other’s forearm while Kendo held the other and slowly pulled him away from the bridge, barely making it in time as his legs finally gave out on him. Momo produced a cooling cloth and poured water over it to put it over the silverette’s eyes once they had got them settled. 

Several moments had passed as they watched their friend slowly recover from the ordeal. Izuku was keeping tabs on the symptoms and he determined that Tetsutetsu suffered from Gephyrophobia, and bad. The verdanette needed to help him cross the bridge but for now, help him calm down.

“I-I’m pathetic…How can I be a Hero if I’m afraid of a bridge. This is not manly.”

“Don’t think like that bro, everybody has fears.” Kirishima said right next to him, letting him know that it is ok. “It happens.”

“How am I going to the training ground then? I c-can’t cross that bridge right now…” The silverette said, looking down in frustration. He then felt a tap on the shoulder.

“We may have a solution Tetsutetsu,” Izuku said with a smile. “From what I see you are uncomfortable with bridges so the next suggestion is floating.”

“Floating?”

“Hm. Uraraka will use her Quirk on you so you can levitate and Kirishima will walk across the bridge with you and Uraraka. You will be tied to a rope so you won’t float away.” Tetsutetsu looked unsure. “We would also recommend blindfolding you so you won’t see the bridge or look down.”

“Another option is also straightforward is to have Uraraka levitate you then push you across the ravine until you reach the other side and she can release her Quirk then.”

“N-no. Normally I would choose the latter but right now…I don’t think I can handle it alone.”

Cortez was preparing dinner for the 1-A class while the others were cleaning up. She was making some beef chili with different types of salsas, and one special homemade extra spicy salsa for Bakugou.

Today would have been the Explosive Blonde’s turn but during training that day they had made a bet on who would be cooking that night and lo and behold, he got his ass beat royally. Though, she does have a suspicion that he held back on purpose. Damn Pommy.

The minty-haired teen snorted as she was reaching for the chili powder when some kind of movement caught her eye along the counter. Her stomach lurched and she froze, adrenaline immediately pumping into her veins and she could hear her heartbeat beating like a snare drum.

Cortez immediately closed her eyes and took deep, shuddering breaths to try to calm her nerves. Her hands were shaking in fear, and she was becoming angry. For some reason, her fear made her combative, and the last time that had happened she destroyed an entire building. That is the last thing she wants to do at this time.

So with massive effort, she opened her eyes and grabbed the long, wooden spoon next to her, and raised it high ready to attack the demon. Turning quickly to give a surprise kill, her blood ran cold as her eyes saw a large, hairy, eight-legged creature staring back at her in a striking pose, black fangs dripping juices…

The entire 1-A class’ hairs stood on end when they heard a bloodcurdling scream they have never experienced before and several of them rushed out of their rooms either fully or partially dressed confused as all hell.

“What the fuck is going on!?” Bakugou yelled while pulling his pants up. “Who the hell is screaming!?”

“I don’t know, I have never heard a scream like that.” Kirishima said with a warble in his voice, hardening his body just in case there is danger. He and Bakugou were looking around when they felt the ground shake and a ruckus from the floor below.

“That sounds like it is from the kitchen. What is that Dragon Bitch doing!?” Bakugou and Kirishima ran down the stairs to the ground floor and they saw pots, pans, and other kitchen supplies being thrown outside the door. Midoriya and a few others were keeping their distance, staring at the mayhem unfolding, but the greenette was trying to reach the teen.

“Aura-cha-ack!!!” Midoriya tried to yell at his friend to get her attention but stopped when a flying knife nicked his cheek, blood dripping from the fresh wound.

“...What the hell?” Bakugou said, dodging a few knives as they were being thrown like kunais, sticking on the walls behind him. Kirishima gulped loudly.

“¡Jodida tarántula! ¡Mantente alejado de mí o morirás horriblemente!”

Another explosion happened and this time the entire group had to run as the refrigerator was the next victim.

“Alright, that’s it!” Bakugou yelled and marched into the kitchen and walked towards Cortez. “Dragon Bitch, what the fuck are you doing!? I ain’t cleaning all this shit up from your stupid tant-guh!!”

Bakugou grabbed the minty-haired teen by the arm and immediately his instincts told him that was a mistake. His reaction to dodge came too late as the girl rounded on him and punched the blonde several times in the stomach and chest. The wind got knocked right out of him and his knees started to buckle, but he held firm on his friend’s arm and pulled her even closer, and held her in a comforting yet firm hug.

“Get off of me!” She screamed and proceeded to kick the blonde on his sides. “G-get off!!”

It was risky, he could now see that she was in a full-blown panic attack and she was a danger to herself and others. He needed to get her out of that mindset, especially since she is hyperventilating and has a risk of passing out.

“A-Aurora.” Bakugou said with a slight hitch, a sharp pain coursed through his ribcage, and realized she had broken a few ribs. “You're ok, breathe. Focus on your breathing, follow how I breathe.”

“I-I can’t!” Cortez gasped, her lungs were feeling constricted, suffocating her. “I c-can’t!”

“Yes, you can!” Bakugou said, “Just follow my lead, breathe in slowly for four seconds, hold for two, then breathe out for four. It may be tough at first, but keep at it. It’s like calming down from exercise.”

Cortez slowly looked up and her green eyes locked into his red. “B-but, ta-tarantula-”

Bakugou widened his eyes slightly and looked at Kirishima, who immediately got the hint and walked around the area carefully while Bakugou got back to the girl. “It’s not here, and it won’t harm you. I am here and Shitty-Hair is here as well. We are more than enough for that bastard.”

Cortez gave a breathy half-chuckle and Bakugou congratulated himself when he saw her mood change for the better. He then looked up when he saw Kirishima tiptoe back out with hardened hands and he saw a couple of black legs poking out of his hands. So there was a tarantula, I will yell at Shitty-Hair to keep an eye on his pet.

Cortez continued breathing deeply taking in Bakugou’s caramel scent and she started to feel herself calming down. After that short chuckle, the serotonin started to release inside her and it was easing her mind. However, that also meant that the adrenaline was also dropping and as a result, her legs gave out from underneath the minty-haired teen.

“Hey! Watch it-itte!” Bakugou tried to hold his friend steady but from her sudden dead weight and the broken ribs and injuries he couldn’t hold on and he fell on his back with her on top of him. The ribs panged like he had been stabbed again, and grunted to prevent himself from yelling so he wouldn’t freak out Cortez.

“I am going to get in so much trouble for this…” Cortez said weakly, her tired eyes scanning the kitchen from where she can see. “I also messed up dinner…”

“It would depend on the situation.” Someone said and the duo jolted as they heard the gruff voice of their Homeroom Teacher. “From what I can see and what Problem Child has told me it wasn’t a normal Rage.”

Cortez shuddered and began to cry and felt Bakugou gently rub her back in a rare affection. Aizawa-Sensei raised his eyebrow for a brief second before he bent over the girl. “Let’s take you both to Recovery Girl, I’ll carry you and Problem Child will help Bakugou, and don’t try to resist.” He said the last part to the blonde as he could tell he was about to refuse. “He will carry you, no resistance, got it?”

“W-wait…What happened to Bakugou?” Cortez asked, confused. She blinked a few times when she felt a cold pit in her stomach and looked back at her friend and saw that he was slightly shaking from some kind of pain and certain areas were starting to swell. More tears started to fall. “Oh my God, Pommy. I’m so sorry!!”

“Don’t worry about it,” Bakugou replied as he slowly got up with the help from Midoriya. “Besides, if you burned down the kitchen we wouldn’t have spicy food for a while.”

Cortez deadpanned, “So that is why you lost to me at training. You wanted my chile con carne.”

Bakugou stiffened and looked away with a slight blush, causing Midoriya, Cortez, and the rest of the group to laugh at the interaction.

“Once Recovery Girl heals you, then we will talk about what had happened,” Aizawa said with slight amusement as he rarely sees the blonde that flustered. “I don’t get paid enough for this.” He sighed, “This will cost me big time…”

Cortez suddenly gave a weak giggle as she was going in and out of consciousness…“True, but you wouldn’t be a Father Figure if it didn’t.”

Everybody in the 1-A class was relaxing in the common room after class watching the news when Aizawa walked in with a moving bundle in his scarf.

“Hi Aizawa-Sensei, what do you have there? Is it Principal Nezu?” Midoriya asked, noticing the bundle.

Aizawa’s eye twitched as the Problem Child was very observant in the teachers' personalities. “Not this time, Midoriya,” He then reached his hand into the bundle and pulled out something with bluish-gray fur. “I found a stray kitten around the corner and I waited for its mother but it was abandoned. I am going to take care of the furball.”

The kitten mewed and everyone in the room was awed at its cuteness, its green eyes glowing like it had been exposed to sunlight.

“Oh wow! Is that a Nebelung?” Koda suddenly said, causing the group around him to look at their friend like he grew a second head. He can talk!?

“From what I can see, yes. I figured you would know the breed, Koda.” Aizawa said in amusement and handed the kitten to the boy. “You mind asking him where his mother is or where I can return it to the family?”

Koda nodded and took the kitten and started talking to it. It may take some time so everyone else was either looking at it or continued watching the tv. Bakugou looked to the side and noticed that his friend was looking a little weird, and he was avoiding eye contact with the furball.

“Oi, Shitty Hair. What’s up?”

Kirishima tried to smile, but the blonde knew it was forced. “Y-yeah, bro, I’m fine. I-I just not a fan of cats.”

Bakugou raised one of his eyebrows in surprise. “Why’s that?”

Kirishima looked down in thought. “I don’t know how, but a few years ago I developed a dislike of cats. They never harmed me or anything, but…it is their face that gives me the creeps.”

Mineta suddenly laughed at Kirishima’s fear. “Dude, it is a cat. Why the hell are you afraid of it?” Immediately he knew he said something stupid as Kaminari next to him whispered “Bro” and the girls around him were glaring daggers.

“Not cool man.” Sero replied, shaking his head.

“What, I just think it is stupid.” Mineta then got punched by Uraraka and Momo hung him upside down, creating a spiked bat next to him. It sounded heavy.

Kirishima went on the defensive, glaring at Mineta as well. “I can’t help that my mind thinks they are evil. Have you seen those fangs!? They look like vampires!”

“I can definitely see a kind of resemblance, Kirishima-kun.” Midoriya contemplated, “I think that is how some people derived the vampires from cats.”

Kirishima pointed a finger at the greenette. “See?”

“Everybody has some sort of fear, some more than others, kero.” Tsu said, “It could be from a trauma or like Kirishima, some kind of visual that may seem unnatural.”

“Exactly,” The red-head replied and then looked at the kitten who was now looking back at him with those glowing green eyes. He shuddered. “It also feels like it can see my soul.”

Koda then gave the kitten back to Aizawa and gave him an answer. “He lost his mother in an attack. He is the only survivor.”

Kirishima then looked at the cat in sorrow, his discomfort suddenly gone. “Oh, shit. I’m sorry kittybro.”

“Meow.” The kitten then jumped down and landed on Bakugou’s lap, not going any closer as he could sense the boy’s discomfort. He lay down on the blonde’s lap and purred, showing that he was harmless.

“U-uh, hehe.” Kirishima tensed a bit and close proximity, and with some hesitation, he lifted his hand and brought it to the kitten’s nose. The Nebulong sniffed it for a few seconds and chirped.

“The kitten wants you to know that he won’t harm you. He wants to be your friend.” Koda replied, with a smile and a nod. “He just wants company.”

Kirishima nodded and looked at the kitten again. His eyes were still glowing green but somehow the demeanor changed. It looked lonely. So, with resolve, he gently scratched his ear and in response the kitten leaned into it, chirping happily. Kirishima chuckled.

“I guess my fear was just stupid after all.” He said and everybody cooed as he picked up the kitten and put it on his lap. “I know you found the kitten, Aizawa Sensei, but can I name it Vlad? I think it would be cool for the ironic situation.”

Aizawa chuckled and nodded. “I guess so, as he seemed to like the name as well.”

Aizawa was getting a migraine, and it will not disappear anytime soon. The reason being is that he just heard about one of his students being distant or aggressive when receiving help, and it has gotten to the point where it is affecting the cooperation of others. The weird thing though, it was not Bakugou this time.

He needed to talk to Todoroki about why he is not trying to make friends with the other students. He has a hunch it may have to do with his father, but he needs to make sure.

“You wanted to see me, sensei?” Todoroki said as he sat down in a chair across from his Homeroom Teacher.

The said teacher sighed, this will be a difficult subject. “Todoroki, over the past few months during group training I have noticed you are not cooperating with your teammates or accepting their help.”

Todoroki stiffened and got on the defensive. “I don’t need to have anybody dragging me down to achieve my goal.”

“Your goal as to what?” Aizawa said sternly, getting up slowly. “Your goal in becoming a Pro Hero, or your goal in proving to your Old Man that his Patriarchy does not rule over you?”

Todoroki’s eyes widened at his teacher’s statement and a hot mist escaped his mouth and the area started to heat up. “You don’t know what my goal is.”

“Do I?” Aizawa challenged and canceled Todoroki’s Quirk to prevent him from overheating the area. “I know Endeavor is not what one calls an “Ideal Father” but that should not define how you live your life. In the real world cooperation between heroes is vital in this world, especially in recovery or disasters. Endeavor was never a people person, but if you want to up him then you need to open your standards. From what I can see you are following his path even without your fire.”

Todoroki gritted his teeth as flashbacks of ill memories appeared in his mind. Aizawa had a point, he was forced to train alone with him since his Quirk manifested, and he was prohibited from playing with his siblings around the same time. His need for isolation and independence was because of him. He huffed in frustration and looked at his hands in deep thought.

Aizawa released his Quirk and sat back down and waited for his student to speak. He knows this will take some time, but if he can open up what is bothering him they may be able to help. A few more moments have passed and the dual-haired teen started to open.

“I- My father never allowed me to interact with my siblings or anybody else and forced me to train under him every single day.” He said slowly, taking a few deep breaths. He briefly looked up and saw that Aizawa was at attention. “And whenever we had someone, they were usually there to ‘train’ me alongside the Old Man.”

Aizawa internally flinched, he might have known what was going on. “So, you have a hard time trusting someone you don’t know without the thought of them only hurting you?” He saw the boy nod and he was angry. “You lost a lot of trust, even from strangers.”

“It-It’s not easy, I have begun to trust Midoriya and Bakugou but the nagging feeling in the back of my mind still tells me to be wary or not be too reliant on them. Like I am…afraid that they will betray me eventually.”

Aizawa nodded and wrote a few things down. “I appreciate you telling me this, Todoroki. What I am understanding is that you have a moderate to severe case of Soteriophobia. It is a term that means Fear of Dependence on Others. Does that sound right about what you are describing?”

Todoroki’s eyes widened that there was a term for his situation. He gave it some thought to all the things that made him uncomfortable or avoided what made him feel uncomfortable. So, because of his bastard father, he developed this phobia, paying the price of his parenting.

“That sounds about right.” He said finally, then gave a hardened look. “What can we do about it?”

“That we will need to see Recovery Girl, tomorrow.” Aizawa said finally and started to feel the migraine fading from his temples. They finally found the answer. “Once we confirm the diagnosis as I am only a teacher then we can start the treatment. Therapy will be one of the requirements, but maybe some exposure as well. That will depend on what she says though.”

Nabu Island was a small tropical island south of Japan with a small community of around 1,000 civilians living peacefully with very few interactions of Villain activity. The Hero Agency there usually helps with small details like community service or lost-and-found as like I had said earlier, Villains rarely attack there.

That is where the class of 1-A would be going to get some more Hero training. Most of the group, like Mineta, Kaminari, Tohru, and Mina were looking forward to possibly having fun at the beach after they have completed their work credit. Others, like Bakugou, did not think this was great as he believed he was too ‘awesome’ to do petty work and wanted to blow real Villains to smithereens. He would have refused if his homeroom teacher hadn’t threatened a humiliating house arrest. That, and his girlfriend would torment him with her hidden Quirk.

They had to get to the island first, and the only way to get to Nobu Island was by boat and since it is isolated they will be in open waters for several hours. The group will have some time to relax and enjoy the view…except for one.

Kaminari Denki was feeling nauseous. The butterflies became bees when he found out the only way to the island is by boat, and they will be in open waters where they won’t be able to see Japan or any other island until then.

Don’t get him wrong, he loves traveling and going to new places, however, he and salty water are not the best of friends, been like this since age five. He walked inside to have a room where there was little access to any windows, sat against the wall, and put his headset on full blast to avoid the sound of the ocean and seagulls, taking deep breaths to try to calm his nerves but his mind already knew what was going on.

“We haven’t even left port, dammit.” Kaminari said and a shuddering breath forced itself out of his lungs. He was starting to feel panicked and tears started to form on the edges around his eyes. “All this fear because of the stupid sea.”

Just then he felt the ship lurch and a few moments later his stomach clenched like he got hit by All Might’s Detroit Smash. “Oh, no-urp!” Kaminari immediately got up as his mouth started to build the lubrication for the purge, barely making it in time to reach the toilet in his room.

Meanwhile, Bakugou and Ophiuchi were traveling along the cabin halls heading towards the cafeteria to get something to eat. It also so happens that Ophiuchi was starving as it has been 2 weeks since her last meal.

“I’m starving, I hope they have a good variety of eggs. Too bad I can’t feast on frogs and lizards.” Ophiuchi said and had a look of a ravenous beast with her tongue flickering as if hunting for her next meal. “I had to change my diet so as to not scare Tsuyu, poor thing.”

Bakugou clicked his tongue and tried to curb the unpleasant taste in his mouth when his girlfriend mentioned her diet. He will never get used to this, that much for sure, but he still fell for her charms anyways. “Well, you are on top of the food chain so to speak, but you have a serpent mutation quirk, it is a part of you.”

Ophiuchi looked back at the blonde and flicked her tongue, sensing that he was uncomfortable, so she changed tactics. “Correction, my mutation came from my family quirks, my actual Quirks are Silk Touch and Subspace, as you unwillingly found out about my latter.”

Bakugou stiffened as he was reminded of her forcing this ‘hidden’ Quirk on him when he was refusing to stay at the dorms when he became ill. She made him submit to her will and he hated the fact that someone tamed him to the point that he cannot resist, just like Shinzou’s Brainwash, however, hers was more aggressive as she uses commands like an Alpha to Omega.

He was mad as hell that was for sure, but once she released the hold when Bakugou recovered she looked very remorseful and apologized painfully before putting distance between them. He chalked it up to her being afraid of retribution, but later he found out that with something that powerful there was a serious Rebound for both of them. The blonde eventually forgave her, and after a while Lord knew how it happened they had started dating. I guess even shitheads deserve romance at some point.

They had walked past a door when they heard someone vomiting on the other side of it, causing the duo to look at it in surprise or disgust. It was then followed by moans of discomfort and someone falling hard on the floor.

Ophiuchi flicked her tongue and immediately went into medical mode. It was Kaminari, and he was in a lot of distress with the scent particles she was picking up. She slithered towards the door and knocked on it. “Kaminari? It’s Ophiuchi, you ok?” She heard Kaminari move and after a few seconds the door unlocked and he had opened the door.

“H-hey,” Kaminari said quietly, and immediately red flags were flying in their brains when they noticed his demeanor.

“Jesus, Dunce Face, you look like you are about to keel over,” Bakugou said and walked over to him. He wasn’t lying, the bright blond teen looked like he would croak.

“I-I’m fine.” Kaminari huffed and tried to get his breathing in order, but he was starting to panic again. “I-I’m just not a fan of l-long boat r-rides.”

Ophiuchi looked at him in concern and activated her Silk Touch to try to calm him down. She didn’t need to flick her tongue to see he was suffering from a panic attack. “Shhhh, Kaminari it’s ok, it’s only a short ride.” She then curled herself and sat the Electric teen on her coils, causing some muscle movement to help with the calming process. “Bakugou, can you bring some damp towels and if possible get to the cafeteria, I need to be here.”

Bakugou nodded and did not try to fight it, he could tell that Kaminari needed special attention to get his mind off the trip. Speaking of which…”You planning the latter?”

“Only if this doesn’t help.” Ophiuchi replied, and after a nod from Bakugou he closed the door to get the items she requested and possibly more.

The Serpentine Heroine looked back at her charge and saw more tears fall from his cheeks and it made her sad, seeing a most energetic kid look so scared and vulnerable. But she needed to comfort him and not make him think of the long ride, so he needed to be distracted.

“W-what did Bakubro mean ‘planning the latter’?” Kaminari asked, suddenly curious at what the Explosive blonde meant.

Ophiuchi smiled, glad that he had found something to distract him. “Did you know I have 2 unrelated Quirks?” She said softly and continued to use her Silk Touch to lightly graze his skin, feeling the tingle of his Quirk trying to let loose. “You already know my Silk Touch, which is great for therapy or acupressure, but another is more mental.”

That perked Kaminari up as he gave a look of curiosity. He sniffed. “What is the other Quirk? Why haven’t you shown it to any of us?”

Ophiuchi looked sad and answered truthfully. “I don’t like people knowing it due to my past of being hunted, but the name of my other Quirk is called Subspace.”

“What does it do?”

He shifted closer to her cool body, still looking at the serpentine with a child-like curiosity then jolted when he heard a knock on the door, bringing him back to reality. Bakugou opened the door and had some moist towels presoaked and a large basket of sandwiches, eggs, and drinks.

Bakugou noticed the electric blonde curl further into his girlfriend and was about to snap when Ophiuchi hissed at him with a frequency telling him to stop. “I brought some orange juice and breakfast for all of us. And the towels are pre-soaked with a little bit of lavender.”

“Thank you,” She smiled and took the towels and put one of them on Kaminari’s forehead. He closed his eyes on reflex and breathed in the calming scent. She then continued the conversation.

“Subspace is a mind Quirk where with a command I can force someone into an astral plane where the body is still in this world. It is like Shinzou’s quirk but it is much harder to break and I can activate it at any time.”

Kaminari looked confused then started to break it down at what he understood. “So you are saying, once your Quirk is triggered you force someone’s spirit out of their body and send it to another dimension of sorts and the body will do whatever you say once the command is given?”

Ophiuchi chuckled nervously while Bakugou gave an involuntary shudder from the background. “Pretty much, like I separate your will from the body.”

Kaminari looked in thought, then remembered a certain incident from Bakugou when he was ill. He knew he was fighting not to miss class but he looked like one misstep was going to send him to the hospital. “You used it on Bakubro.”

Ophiuchi jolted and Bakugou released a small blast and blew the sandwich in his hands to dust. That confirmed his suspicions.

“Can you use it on me?”

Ophiuchi looked down at Kaminari and looked like he was at his limit, and personally, she herself thought that he will not handle another panic attack, and the ride will be 6 hours. “Are you sure? You are giving me permission to put you under a submissive hold?”

Kaminari nodded, knowing the risk of losing control of his body. Frankly, he is scared but is willing to do it, he is trusting his friend with his well-being as she did for Bakugou. “Yes, you know it is bullshit on what you said will be a short ride. Maybe this might help.”

Ophiuchi nodded and curled them both onto the bed. “Ok, you will feel weird like you are floating or high at first, but once you get comfortable you will stay in subspace until I will release it, which I will do when we get to the harbor. You will still eat and drink when I command you, but you will stay here in the cabin.”

Kaminari nodded, giving her consent.

That was her cue to activate her secondary and stared at him with a look of power. “Sopor.”

The effect was immediate as he suddenly fell asleep in the serpentine’s arms. It went off without a hitch, now he will be like this for the rest of the ride. Ophiuchi sighed and thanked Bakugou as he gave her some orange juice and a couple of whole eggs. She opened her mouth and swallowed the eggs whole and took a few sips of her juice.

Bakugou looked at her with surprise and had to put a hand over his pants as he watched her down those eggs without breaking them. What would it be like if she could down him? He thought, then blushed when she saw him looking and licking her lips like she was mind reading him.

“Why don’t we try that AFTER we finish the Hero Training, maybe that will be a good incentive for you to behave?”

Bakugou blushed even further, but his eyes were wide with excitement. “Is that a challenge?”

Ophiuchi looked at him with a more ravenous stare. “How well you perform will determine how much of you I will devour.”

Midoriya stood in the background, breathing deeply to calm down his nerves. He and the rest of the A1 class were in one of the buildings looking and identifying helpful plants that are needed for survival. Unfortunately for the greenette, they also included things that made his skin crawl.

They had plants that were fleshy pink to red in color, draping over trees and pots ominously. It was making him paranoid, even though he knows it is his imagination, but he kept seeing those damn vines move in the corner of his eyes like they were tentacles, inching closer to him waiting to grab his legs. Rationally he knew that they weren’t moving but the illusions were blending into his thoughts.

The bees buzzing in his stomach were not going away and he could feel his heart palpitating in his chest. He needed to get some fresh air, but he couldn’t fucking move. Hopefully, they will be over soon and they can go back to the dorms.

“Hey Midoriya, take a look at this plant! Isn’t it amazing!” Kaminari said suddenly to the side of him holding something in his hands.

Midoriya turned his head where Kaminari was talking to him and not even a second later his eyes were covered by a hand. The damage was already done when his eyes saw that damn plant and his throat tightened and swallowed to keep the lump in his throat down.

“Hey, Dunce Face,” The person growled, who he immediately recognized as Bakugou. “Is there someone else you can annoy, Deku is not in the mood right now.”

“What? I just wanted to show him this cool plant.” Kaminari said and held a pot with fleshy-pink fungi, with multiple curled limbs looking like octopus legs, and a stench one could guess that was coming from the green goo along the arms. “Smell’s not pleasant, but it loo-”

“I think it is shitty. Why don’t you show it off to someone who actually cares?”

Kaminari started to get angry. “You don’t have to be rude about it? Why are you covering Midoriya’s eyes?”

“That is none of your business, Extra.” The blonde said and started to release explosions from his other hand. “Go bother Earlobe or Pink Cheeks or better yet show Shitty Hair, he would like to see that.”

Kaminari raised his eyebrows but then noticed Midoriya starting to shudder and his breathing rapid. “Midoriya are you ok?”

The greenette did not respond to Kaminari’s voice, except maybe draw himself further into Bakugou’s presence.

“K-Kacchan…”

Bakugou looked down at his friend when he heard the change of tone in Midoriya’s voice. Tears were starting to stream down his face and were trying to make himself feel small, and immediately knew the Greenette was at his limit.

“I will deal with you later, Dunce Face.” Bakugou said, glaring at Kaminari with a look of promised pain which the blonde responded by gulping. “C’mon, Deku.”

Bakugou gently pushed Midoriya while still covering his eyes out of the Botanical Garden and back to the dorms.

Midoriya started to calm down somewhat but he did not want Bakugou to remove his hand just yet until he felt ready and out of the garden area where he knew nothing would trigger him further.

“S-sorry, Kacchan.” The greenette said weakly, now feeling drained. His legs felt like jelly, and he was stumbling a bit.

“Don’t be, Nerd. It’s not your fault. We are almost there.” Bakugou said, now nudging upwards indicating the greenette to climb the stairs. After a few minutes they arrived back at the dorms and Bakugou sat him down on the couch. “I will need to remove my hand to make you some tea, would you be comfortable with that?”

Midoriya took a few deep breaths and nodded, and he felt his friend’s hand off of his eyes. He still had them closed but he felt calmer now. He then heard movement not too far away and in the direction of the kitchen. A few minutes later he got a whiff of lavender tea brewing.

“You want Mochi with the tea?” Bakugou asked, poking his head out just in time to see the greenette slightly nod. “Alright.”

Bakugou went back into the kitchen to finish up the tea and Mochi before bringing it to the coffee table. He was also deep in thought as he knew about his friend’s phobia and from the reaction he had at the Botanical, there was a high chance of him having nightmares for several days.

He blames himself for this reaction though. Yet Midoriya still forgave him. The Nerd doesn’t deserve a jackass like him.

He brought out the tea and mochi to the common room and breathed a soft sigh of relief when he saw that the greenette had his eyes open.

“You doing ok, Deku?”

Midoriya jolted out of his thoughts and looked at his friend before looking at the tea Bakugou had given him. He felt miserable, the Greenette hated feeling this way. Hated the fact that he has this stupid phobia, hated becoming paralyzed with fear, hated the fact that he was feeling helpless, useless.

Bakugou saw his hands shake a bit and his breathing became labored. Shit. “Deku, focus on me.” He said sternly, and lightly tapped Midoriya’s face. That seemed to work as his green eyes were now focused on his red. “Drink your tea and eat and maybe we will be able to go to the mall for the new All Might figurine.”

That perked the greenette somewhat. “Sure, if possible can we go tomorrow? I feel completely drained.”

Bakugou nodded, he was not going to force him in this state, no matter how much of an asshole the blonde is. “I can deal with that. Wanna just hang out in my room for a night or two?”