Is This Even Allowed? [Hyousuke/Tsubame]

WORD COUNT
555

Tag
Tsubame Takada

NOW PLAYING
DAYLIGHT

Hyousuke had tried to hide his injuries - or rather, the bandages covering them - as best he could. A long-sleeved shirt took care of the arms, of course, but anyone paying even the slightest bit of attention to him would see that the strips of white covering his hands. Fortunately, the pain had since subsided, and he could move them around without too much issue, but it would still be difficult to hide what had happened to his hands without gloves - and even then, that would probably still raise questions, given the time of year. It was only going to be a matter of time before his teacher started on him about it too.

He'd brought a bag with him - a black messenger bag, to be more precise, slung over his shoulder - but he wasn't entirely sure if he was even going to be putting anything into it. As far as he was aware, they weren't going to be doing the usual training - not that he could manage it anyway, if he wanted his burns to heal properly in any sort of timely fashion - but that only made him more suspicious. The woman was up to something, and he hadn't a clue as to what that was.

"Please, I'm too stubborn to die so easily." He mused, waving his hand dismissively at her. He could manage that, at the very least. Considering the fact that a single blast had been enough to damage his arms so much, and that he'd had a string of losses and draws against other students - at least two of which weren't even using their Quirks on him - his words rang hollow. It certainly wouldn't take much effort for a villain to take him down at all, and though he'd vehemently deny it, he knew it to be an unfortunate truth.

Even her seemingly-innocent questions were enough to provoke a sense of suspicion in him. He thought them to just be her trying to lull him into a false sense of security, put him at ease so that he'd be more open to answering something more sensitive. He decided he'd play along with her for the time being, and see where things were going. He'd address the issue of addressing any more sensitive questions when they came around. "It's going fine." He said. A curt answer, but that was the truth of it. "I'm doing alright, far as I can tell." His grades - for the moment - weren't worryingly low, and though his results in the hero course were below the class average, they were at least getting consistently better, albeit slowly.

"Friends? I-" He paused, trying to think. What friends had he made? He had acquaintances, of course. People that he wasn't friendly with, but got along with enough to work with. But actual friends? People that he would spend time with outside of classes of his own volition? That was a little more difficult to pin down. "Two, I guess. Someone in my class and someone in the business course." He wasn't sure that they'd consider him a friend, however. He wasn't sure if they were actually friends with him, pretending to be polite, or keeping him around because he might prove useful. "What, you worried I'm getting lonely out there?" He joked, trying to lighten the (but mostly his) mood.

WORD COUNT
555

Tag
Tsubame Takada

NOW PLAYING
DAYLIGHT

Tsubame's looking at his upper half didn't go unnoticed. He tried to play it off like he was wondering why she wasn't looking at him, but he knew what it was she was glancing over. He'd gotten into a fight again. While he supposed that this one could've been excused as him simply doing as he was taught - being a hero - he knew that charging at someone with a dangerous Quirk and blocking a burst of flame with his bare arms was not just massively irresponsible - it was outright dangerous, and could've killed him if he'd not been lucky.

Briefly, he looked towards the people calling out her hero name, and tried to obscure his own face by looking down. He understood that they weren't interested in him, of course, but even so, he didn't really feel like drawing much attention to himself. Quietly, he paced after her, making sure to stick close and keep away from prying eyes. The last thing he needed was someone looking at his hands and wondering what happened with him - even more so since he was supposedly on thin ice with the school's administration. The fact that he hadn't already been kicked out on his arse was, he had to admit, a miracle.

He supposed that he could at least take some small comfort in the knowledge that they weren't talking about his injuries. The subject of friends was awkward for him, but less awkward than him getting into yet another scrap, and almost losing it with someone that he knew from before his time at UA. "I'll see what I can do." He responded, shrugging dismissively, with as light an expression as he could muster. "I'm trying to focus on my work though. It's why I'm here, ain't it?" He had to admit, though, that the idea of someone he could trust completely, and not have to put on airs with... It was nice.

Quickly, the thought was cast from his mind. He had other things to attend to - things like answering her question. It wasn't easy, and if he was to be honest, he wasn't sure he had a proper answer for her. Yes, he'd been thinking about it - but even a fool would know that she wouldn't be satisfied with that. He'd been reluctant to accept help at all at first - the fact that he'd been training with her at the start was more to do with being forced into it than any specific desire to.

And yet, stubborn as he was, Hyousuke couldn't ignore the evidence that had been piling up ever since he'd set foot in the school. Time after time, he'd suffered defeats or draws that he felt were just flukes. Even the wins he earned - like the one against his old 'friend -' were hard-fought, and all too often ended up with him walking away with some kind of obvious, lasting injury. It was a fact that he would never admit to anyone, but was forced to accept. It was something that he'd struggled with from the outset, and was painfully obvious to all who watched him.

He was weak.

He needed help, plain and simple. His pride demanded that he refuse what assistance she offered, of course. It shouted at him, commanded him to just say no. But for once in his life, the rational part of his mind managed to shout louder. That mountain of evidence of his own glaring weaknesses couldn't be ignored. Hyousuke's prospects were dead in the water if he didn't take the hand that reached out to him.

"I... have." He admitted quietly, voice gruff. He took a deep breath, and steeled himself. It was out there. He was certain she'd heard. No turning back from that. He'd just have to keep going. "You... You said you can teach me how to use a weapon. Well... teach me. Please." He spoke through grit teeth, but his words were still genuine. Sure, he rationalised it to himself as simply learning a new style. He told himself it wasn't showing weakness by relying on the strength of others, it was simply learning how to channel his own power in a different way. But even with his excuses, his desire to learn was there.

WORD COUNT
637

Tag
Tsubame Takada

NOW PLAYING
DAYLIGHT

A small smirk was offered back to her by way of response, but he remained unconvinced. Sure, he didn’t mind making friends - indeed, what desire he had to change had spurred him on to actually try and connect with those two he hoped he could consider friends with him. But his priority - the thing that would always come first, no matter what - was his work. Being a hero was all he wanted, and if he had to sacrifice having friends to achieve his goal, then he would make that sacrifice. Not that he wished to, but as long as it remained a possibility that he might have to, he had to remain prepared to.

Perceptive as he was in combat, Hyousuke wasn't exactly the brightest spark in the toolbox when it came to noticing more social-oriented cues. He wasn't entirely sure what was going on between the Vice Principal and the shopkeeper, even as he glanced curiously between them, but decided not to question it. It was probably something that he shouldn't want to get himself involved in. It was someone else's business, plain and simple, and it would be best for him to leave them to it. he took the packages without thinking - he was lost in thought, and by the time he realised he was carrying something, they'd already set off.

A quiet, suppressed sigh of relief slipped out past his lips. More than her refusal, he feared she'd make a huge deal out of him accepting her help - pats on the back, big grins, and all manner of mannerisms he felt would be patronising. There was, however, the matter of what he actually wanted to learn from her. For a few seconds, he was quiet, wondering where his strengths would best be used, but it was an easy decision for him to make. "The sword." He said curtly, but with conviction.

"I know how to fight up close. I just..." He recalled the fights where he'd been tackled to the ground the moment he threw a punch, tossed to the mat like a ragdoll. Despite all his strength, he'd been easy to counter. He remembered confronting the thief, and how he'd not been fast or strong enough to take him down before the blast. "I need something more." Strength, he wanted to say. Power. A weapon that would give him an edge in battle - perhaps even end fights before they began, with the threat of using steel. But to admit that would be to admit weakness. To profess a dearth of strength. And he wasn't prepared for that, not with her.

Her offering him a snack shook him out of his reverie, and he snapped back to attention. "Oh, uh, yeah. Thanks." Shuffling a bit to free up his hands, he took a stick from the box, and ate it slowly. Partly to savour it, and partly because he was still thinking. Like he was in a trance. The topic of support gear only drove him into a deeper trance, and once again, two sides of him began to argue. That stubborn side of him that held fast to his beliefs, and a more rational voice that cried out for change.

"Maybe... Maybe something with my visor." He sounded far from his usual, confident self. It was like he was forcing himself to admit it - forcing himself to speak, since the words wouldn't come out unless he dragged them. "Nothing much. Night vision, infrared, maybe a radio." A far cry from electrified swords or strength-enhancing power armour, but the fact that he was taking a step forward at all was worth noting. Though they'd not been training together for long, she'd already started to chip away at the walls he'd built. It would likely be slow going, but any progress was better than none.

WORD COUNT
703

Tag
Tsubame Takada

NOW PLAYING
DAYLIGHT

Gentle though the poke was, it was nonetheless unexpected, and had him flinching rather ungracefully. He frowned a little, though it was more an exaggerated, joking response than anything else, and he turned his attention back to the path before him.It was strange to him, though - only once before had he had someone willing to go to such lengths to help him achieve his dream, and he'd had to leave them behind when he got to UA. It wasn't something he was used to, with everyone in his life waiting for the day that he'd finally give up the ghost. If he was to be honest, he himself wasn't entirely sure if the path of the hero was his to take.

"Yeah, I know, I know." He grumbled, in response to her remark about support gear. He thought it a little patronising that she just outright said it - it wasn't like he hadn't thought that to himself before. The issue was that he'd dismissed the thought - cast it out of his mind, regarded it as a notion of weakness. To accept help would be to admit that he wasn't strong enough to stand on his own, that he needed a crutch - even something as small as a radio embedded in his visor was difficult for him to ask for. It wounded his pride, like carving off a part of his flesh.

To Hyosuke, pride was all he had. It was the basis for his very being - it was the force that forced him to move forward and train no matter what, to weather whatever befell him and keep going against the odds. So, to attack something so integral to his very being, was to attack Hyousuke himself. No matter whether it was his teacher speaking something he knew deep down to be true, or him admitting it to himself against insurmountable evidence, to wound his pride was to wound him. It was, in short, painful.

But growth did not come without pain. It was a lesson his old teacher had instilled in him, time and again, until it was ingrained in his very soul. If he was to become the hero he wanted to be, he would have to relent, even just a little. "Let's just go already, I want see this person you're talking about." He was reluctant, yes. His natural instinct was to resist. But, stubborn as ever, he ignored even his own instincts in order to push forward and make even a little progress.

She said to keep it PG, but Hyousuke could only smirk at the rude gesture. He'd seen - and, in most cases, heard - far worse than just that. He just did a good job of hiding the influence it had - most of the time, anyway. He decided to keep quiet while they were talking, glancing curiously about the shop as they bantered at each other, taking in the gear around them. A veritable treasure trove to some, perhaps, but a source of internal conflict for Hyousuke. Nevertheless, when he was invited to look around, he obliged, nodding curtly - but not before quipping back at her. "What, you're not just going to give me a deadly weapon I'm not trained to use right off the bat?"

Not being particularly well-versed in support gear - being unaccustomed to seeing it up close, much less handling it - Hyousuke wasn't entirely sure what he was looking for or at, or even how to tell the man's works' quality beyond 'does or does not look like it might fall apart in a stiff breeze.' He gave everything he passed by at least a glance, though, regardless of whether he knew what they even did. Naturally, his eyes fell on something that looked like what he'd been talking about before - vision-enhancing eyewear. No doubt the ability to use thermal, night, and zoomed-in vision would be useful, especially against foes that relied on stealth and subterfuge, but there was a problem.

The goggles were bulky.

"That size is going to be a problem..." He muttered quietly to himself, scratching the side of his head as he wondered if incorporating them into his visor would be worth it, given the size and weight of the things.

WORD COUNT
313

Tag
Tsubame Takada

NOW PLAYING
DAYLIGHT

Hyousuke all but jumped to attention at the mention of his name, his focus having solely been on the goggles the whole time. Silently observing the banter between the two until it was his turn to speak, he turned to face the vice-principal's friend, still gingerly holding the piece in his hands, glancing nervously between them and him. For few, awkward moments, he hesitated, still unsure about asking for help, let alone asking for support gear. However, after a deeper breath in through his nose, he managed to set aside his feelings enough to actually speak to Haru about what he'd be needing out of the eyewear.

"I was... I was hoping for something like this. But not exactly." Again, he paused, until it suddenly dawned on his addled mind that that probably wouldn't be enough for Haru to go off of if he was going to design something that would actually help him out in the field. "It's just... It's bulky. I'm a brawler, I fight up close, so I can't use these like they are." Indeed, it'd be like having a weight attached to his face whenever he put them on. It was one thing to use them with ranged weapons or Quirks, but another to get into a scrap with them.

"Could you slim them down somehow? But keep night and thermal vision in there?" He didn't quite know how either worked, or if it was even possible, but he supposed there'd be no harm in asking, difficult though it was for him. "My Quirk can supply power, so I guess you could take that out of them?" For someone that was always so confident - often bordering on arrogant - he sounded remarkably unsure of himself in that moment. Like he wasn't sure if he even should have been there in the first place, let alone asking for something from Haru.

WORD COUNT
463

Tag
Tsubame Takada

NOW PLAYING
DAYLIGHT

Hyousuke braced himself for an answer. It was the first time he'd requested anything but his costume, and he hadn't any idea what kind of reaction his questions would get. It wasn't quite fear that gripped him, but apprehension was certainly welling up inside him. His heart began to pound in his chest, and his fists trembled while they clenched, fingers digging so deep into his palms that it was as though he was trying to draw blood from them. He was headstrong and fearless to the point of recklessness - but in that moment, on that spot, he struggled to keep his composure.

Mere moments from calling it off and leaving the shop so that he could catch his breath, Haru offered his response. And, to his surprise, it was far more subdued than he thought. There weren't probing questions or judgement from Haru - indeed, he seemed more interested in just moving forward and developing it, more than anything else. Of course, it would take more than just that to reverse his prejudice, but something the depths of his soul stirred. Something like a faint light, glinting in the depths of the darker parts of his mind.

Hyousuke seemed to visibly relax at Haru's acceptance, though a slight amount of tension returned to him when he heard that a question was to be asked of him - and a little more at seeing just how much larger Haru was than he thought. Normally, someone like him wouldn't have intimidated Hyousuke. He'd made a habit of facing down people tougher than him without reacting much at just the sight of them, but left vulnerable by having to ask for assistance, he found it difficult to keep full control over his emotions and how they showed themselves.

It didn't help that the vice principal had him refrain from asking it. After that, he was just curious what it was that he was being spared from answering, and instead of worrying about giving an answer, he was just thinking about the question itself. Before he could ask for clarification, however, he turned to see Tsubame leave, and followed suit. Before he left, however, Hyousuke nodded, too shaken to offer much else, and muttered - as loud as he dared to manage - "Thanks."

Once out of the shop, Hyousuke exhaled quietly, pausing a moment before jogging forward a step or two to catch up with her. His eyes were led to the choker, wondering what it was for, but he was quickly distracted from it by her other question. "Uh, right, yeah. Sure, let's go." Disoriented by the whole experience, he found it hard to offer as calm and confident a response as he usually would. And yet, despite the addled state of his mind, he felt strangely proud.