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    [i] Dialogue Color || [color=#F50A83]#F50A83[/color] ||| Thought Color || [color=#0A8BF5]#0A8BF5 [/color][/i]
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[center][h1]~One Week Ago~[/h1][/center]
The blonde girl sat by the side of the train tracks, a faint breeze passing through the station and sending her faintly-glowing hair fluttering in front of her eyes. She frowned, staring intensely at the errant strands as if doing so would make them remove themselves from her field of view obediently, which, surprisingly, it did. A few quick sparks flashed through her bangs, sending them poofing sharply out to either side of her face, as though shocked upright by static electricity, while a single strand that had formerly draped itself lazily across the bridge of her nose now stood bolt upright, pointing directly skyward from the crest of her scalp. 

Fumika herself didn't so much as twitch, however - she was too lost in thought. She just stared forward, continuing to gaze idly down over a nearby guardrail, and onto the town below the hill. Unfolding before her eyes was a familiar landscape - a forest of houses across the roofs of which she and Haruka had silently bounded, separated by streets through which they'd raced. The long, winding road down the slope of the hill from school seemed to glow in the morning sun, reminding her of days gone by. This was home, or at least, it had been.

It had been, but it wouldn't be anymore. Fumika wasn't sure what it was she wanted, but she wondered if it was something other than this. Sitting here on this early morning, about to set off on her own, the bleary-eyed girl found the conviction she'd felt up until now, the certainty she'd had of her objective, starting to slip. To fulfill Haruka's dream for her... it would make her happy, but wouldn't she be lonely? Wouldn't Fumika be lonely, too? Without Haruka to talk to, and without her mom and dad to look out for her as she moved out on her own, she'd be left all by herself. Was that really the right choice to make? She remembered what it was like, being an observer noticed by no one. The days she'd spent without so much as saying a word, that had wasted idly without exerting herself in the least, were still fresh in her perfect memory. Compared to how things had been since she'd met Haruka, those memories were dull... lifeless. She didn't want to return to those days. But at the same time, if she stayed, what would she do then? This dream, even if it was inherited from someone else, was the only real goal she had. Without it, what would she strive for? What would she live for? What was the objective she was supposed to complete to make people happy with her, to make them say she'd done a good job?

She didn't know, so she did the only thing she could. She shook these anxious thoughts from her mind, and resolved to carry on. Even if she'd be sad, if it made Haruka happy, it would all be worth it in the end. That alone should have been enough to re-assure her that she was making the right choice. It should have been, but it wasn't.

Fumika sighed ever-so-slightly, biting the inside of her lip. In all of her recorded memories, she had never once uncertain of what she was doing, since she almost never chose what she did herself when her actions might matter enough to worry about. But, now that she looked back on her words that day in the hospital... Haruka had never once asked her for this, even if she had accepted Fumika's offer with a smile. So, then... did that mean she'd volunteered for something this important without thinking about the consequences? Why had she done something so reckless? She couldn't turn back now without betraying her friend's expectations, but she couldn't proceed without betraying what she herself wanted. No matter which choice she made, she'd still end up failing. This was hard - much too hard for someone like her. Why couldn't it be easy? Why couldn't she just know what was required of her and take the route of least resistance by doing that?

The cool breeze, like the spring wind now long lost to autumn, blew once more across the platform. But, this time, something was different. Carried on the breeze was a sound that Fumika recognized immediately: a faint scuffling of wood on the pavement as a familiar figure crested the staircase and hobbled into sight. The raven-haired figure limped over to the bench where Fumika sat, raising a hand from one of her crutches to give the girl a slight wave.

[color=#C9C916]"Mornin',"[/color] said Haruka, her tired voice still filled with its usual friendliness and cheer. Fumika's expression changed in a heartbeat, a joyous smile spreading across her melancholy face as she leaped to her feet, her suitcase clattering to the pavement as she rushed to her friend's side, wrapping her arms around her and clinging to her like she was afraid she'd fly away the moment she let her go. She felt Haruka's hand gently patting her on the head, and drew back to find the person she admired and respected most smiling down at her. [color=#C9C916]"Easy there, Fumi. If you're not careful, you'll knock me over."[/color] Haruka warned. Fumika just hugged her more tightly, and Haruka laughed, shifting a little to accommodate her clingy friend as best she could.

Haruka gingerly seated herself on the bench, and Fumika followed suit, returning to her own place beside her. The dark-haired girl gave a wry smile, her golden eyes looking almost sad. [color=#C9C916]"Sorry I was late,"[/color] She apologized. [color=#C9C916]"I promised I'd be here, but the walk here was a bit harder than I expected."[/color]

Fumika shook her head. [color=#F50A83]"It's fine. I'm glad. Glad you came to see me off,"[/color] She replied, giving a rare smile. The dark-haired girl gave a slight laugh and patted her on the head again, ruffling her hair affectionately.

[color=#C9C916]"So, then, how are you feeling?"[/color] Haruka asked, grinning. [color=#C9C916]"Ready to go out there, kick some ass, and save people in need?"[/color] Fumika lowered her gaze slightly, shaking her head in response. The truth was that she really didn't feel prepared at all, didn't feel at all like her usual self as an ambivalent observer. She gave a quiet whine, tugging her hair down over her ears uneasily, feeling its warm, soft fluffiness rubbing against her cheeks. While this did help her calm her anxiety to a certain degree, it was far from the consolation she needed. The feeling of her best friend pulling her into another hug, though, was a different story.

[color=#C9C916]"I thought not,"[/color] Haruka said with a wry smile, looking kindly down at her. [color=#C9C916]"You're nervous, aren't you?"[/color] Fumika nodded, rubbing her face into the shoulder of Haruka's jacket. [color=#C9C916]"Well, let me ask you this. What's there to be scared of? You've got an amazing Quirk, and you passed the entrance exam to one of the best Hero schools in the country, for crying out loud! As somebody who's fought against you before, I can safely say that you've got nothing to be afraid of. You can do anything if you put your mind to it, Fumi."[/color]

[color=#F50A83]"That's not it,"[/color] Fumika whispered, her words muffled by the cloth. [color=#F50A83]"That's not it at all, Haruka."[/color]

[color=#C9C916]"Eh? Then what's got you so worried?"[/color] Haruka asked, taken by surprise. Fumika looked up sadly, her blue eyes struggling hard against the urge to shed their tears.

[color=#F50A83]"I want to be a Hero for you... but I don't want to leave you behind!"[/color] She hung her head again, her hands fidgeting as she tried to put her complex feelings into words. [color=#F50A83]"Being a Hero is what you always wanted... it would make you happy... it would be the right thing to do. But if I go to Komei, things will go back to how they were before. I'll be all alone again... I'm not sure if I want that..."[/color] Haruka's eyes widened in surprise as she realized what exactly it was Fumika had said. Through all the years Haruka had known her, she'd said a great many things, and had always paid close attention to what Haruka had asked of her. But, during all that time, she'd almost never spoken of "wanting" or "not wanting" to do something. If she was told to do something, she did it, even if she didn't like it. Yet now, after all that had happened between the two of them, she was hesitating? No, perhaps it could be better said that she was hesitating precisely [i]because[/i] of all that had happened between them.

[color=#C9C916]"Let me ask you this. What is it that you want, Fumi?"[/color] Haruka already knew the answer when she asked the question, but she asked it anyway. Fumika didn't want to be alone, and probably never had wanted to be alone. She'd put up with it as long as she could, but when it had been too much to take, she'd always had Haruka there at her side. But, now... If she wanted to make something of herself instead of just following what orders she was given, she'd have to leave all of that behind. Haruka would have been lying if she said that she didn't want her to stay... but at the same time, wouldn't it be better for her in the long run if she didn't have to slow her pace for an invalid? She couldn't hide in Haruka's shadow forever. The dark-haired girl sighed sadly as she gazed down at her friend, trying desperately to read that look on her face, to make sure she wasn't lying in whatever choice she made. Put on the spot, Fumika hesitated. But, hearing the distant sound of a train - her train - approaching quickly, she realized that she would have to choose.

[color=#F50A83]"I think... I think I want to be a Hero,"[/color] She said at last.

[color=#C9C916]"Then you have a goal. No matter what happens, don't give up on it, okay?"[/color] Fumika hesitated a moment at this, but at last nodded. Haruka moved to stand up, causing Fumika to hastily rise and offer her hand to help her. The train pulled into the station behind them, and, picking her luggage back up, Fumika turned to go. Haruka raised a hand, calling after her.

[color=#C9C916]"Hey... don't worry so much about me, alright?"[/color] Fumika froze, turning to look at her in confusion. [color=#C9C916]"I mean,"[/color] She continued, shrugging as best she could without letting go of her crutches. [color=#C9C916]"Just because we're not in the same town as each other anymore doesn't mean I'll forget all about you, right? I'll call you every night, so be sure to tell me how things go at Komei."[/color] She grinned, and Fumika gave a faint smile in return, nodding with a sudden enthusiasm she hadn't had a moment before. Because she knew now that she'd never truly be alone, right? She was so obvious... As always, no matter how much she tried to hide her feelings behind her poker face, Haruka could see right through her.

[color=#C9C916]By the time I next see you face-to-face, I want to know exactly how it is you became such a great Hero, Fumi."[/color]

Fumika nodded once again, trying just as hard to keep smiling as she tried not to cry. Haruka smiled back, raising one hand from her crutch to give her friend one final wave.

[color=#C9C916]"I'd rather not say 'goodbye,' so... until I see you again!"[/color]

[color=#F50A83]"Until then, Haruka."[/color]

As the train doors closed, and with a loud whine, it began to shift, moving away from the town Fumika had always known as home, she found herself rushing to the window, feeling as though leaving now without taking some part of this moment with her would be tantamount to abandoning the home and the friend she'd so cherished. Sure enough, Haruka was still there, standing as tall as always, even though she had to lean on her crutches to do it. She was smiling as she kept waving, but Fumika could see something on her face that caught the light of the rising sun behind her. The entire station was bathed in the same warm orange glow, almost too bright to look at, but at the same time, so dazzling that she couldn't look away.

Fumika's eyes shifted to a bright wine red, taking in that wonderful instant that she made her first real choice, as well as that sad moment in which she left what was most important to her far, far behind. She could feel the energy coursing into her mind, solidifying that image before her mind's eye and preserving it forever. The bright sunrise, and the view of the town that day... The light filling the station, and the sight of Haruka, smiling through her tears as she waved goodbye...

Those cherished memories were the impetus for her to carry onward, and the tether that kept her from losing sight of what drove her. That single moment of that single day was what made Fumika decide firmly to become a Hero. And so, this memory, without a doubt, was her most precious of treasures.
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[center][h2]Present Day[/h2][/center]

The past week hadn't been pleasant for Fumika.

She'd moved into the dorms very early, since she'd needed to buy a lot of things like small furniture once she'd actually arrived in Hosu. Although she'd been given an extensive allowance for these expenses by her parents, she'd ended up spending only the bare minimum of cash out of a sense of guilty. After all, it wasn't her money.

After spending the first two or so days furnishing her new room, however, she'd found herself with, quite simply, nothing to do. Haruka had told her to call and say how things were going at Komei, but nothing had really happened yet for her to talk about, so no matter how much she'd wanted - no, needed - to hear a friendly voice, she'd ended up lacking the courage to so much as pick up the phone. She'd gone over her textbooks for a little while, but it seemed a little excessive to memorize all of their contents before the semester even began. And, besides, that would just waste storage space she could be using to record interesting people and their Quirks! She was going to be fighting here, right? And against people as strong as Haruka, no less... she'd need every advantage she could get!

So, thinking these sorts of things, she'd ended up wandering around the town a bit, trying to map out new routes for free running so as not to get out of practice. Unfortunately, it seemed like Hosu had significantly more heroes than her hometown, and they didn't particularly like people jumping across rooftops in their patrol districts. She'd been stopped almost immediately by a burly man in a costume, and although he'd let her off easy when she'd explained that she was a Komei student, he'd still told her in no uncertain terms that she wasn't to do it again... How was she supposed to burn off all of her stress if she couldn't practice like Haruka had taught her to? She tugged on her hair, rubbing it against her cheeks for re-assurance as she took a deep breath.

...Speaking of stress, now that it was finally the first day of classes, everybody seemed really worked up about something. They were yelling and pounding on some kind of big gate, which wasn't budging an inch in response. Some of them kept checking phones or watches, too... Was there some kind of important thing she didn't know about? Fumika checked her own phone - not because she was particularly curious about the time, but because everyone else was doing it, so it seemed like she should, too.

8:14. No, 8:15. Class was in fifteen minutes, right? Well, whatever. That was enough time to get to where she needed to be. She'd seen a floor plan of the school once in the brochure they'd sent along with her acceptance letter, and a cursory glance at her syllabus was enough to tell her that her class was meeting in the assembly hall on the third floor, room 304. The map was still as fresh in her memory as ever, so it would be easy to make it up there before the first bell.

[color=#0A8BF5]Oh. It opened.[/color] At some point while she'd been lost in her own thoughts, the giant gate must have been unsealed, since the crowd around her was suddenly gone, and all of them were running in a wild dash towards the main building. Fumika ambled casually up behind them, hopping up and down to try to catch a glimpse over the sea of heads in front of her. Her glasses nearly fell off for her efforts, but she managed to catch a glimpse of what looked like some big men blocking the door... She could wait, but it would probably be easier to just get there some other way. Everybody was all rushing into the other entrances, though...

Oh. That tree over in the courtyard over there was pretty. It was turning all red... She'd read in a book once that maple trees turned red like that. So did that mean it was a maple tree? Maple trees were sturdy, right? She'd never climbed one before, but she remembered someone saying they were tough, so it was probably alright if she did.

Fumika took a deep breath, pushed her glasses back up the bridge of her nose... and then took off, sprinting with astonishing speed towards the tree. The lowest branches were about ten feet off the ground... she'd need a leg up top reach them. As she ran, a green flash lit up her hair, and a circle wound its way around the crown of her head, accompanied by a rather prominent arrow marking in the left side of her bangs. About ten meters ahead of her, another Fumika appeared, kneeling and stretching out her hands. She was eight meters away now, then six, then four, then two, and then-

Fumika jumped into the air, not looking where she was going but rather keeping her eyes focused intently on her image on the ground below. Her doppelganger rose, catching her foot in mid-air. At that moment, she braced against her other self's hand, and leaped again, launching herself higher upward into the air. The green markings around the crown of her head disappeared immediately thereafter, and the copy she'd left behind followed suit.

Reaching out both hands, she caught hold of the lowest branch, using her forward momentum to swing upward and around it, then letting go like a gymnast, hurling herself upward and flipping head over heels. If she recalled correctly from her initial glance at the tree, there should have been a branch right about underneath her.

...Her feet touched down on wood, exactly as she'd remembered. Standing up slowly, she walked gingerly down the branch, spreading her arms like a child playing at being an airplane in order to ensure she wouldn't fall. The second floor window was just an arm's length away, but she couldn't quite reach it without stepping off the branch... Plus it was probably locked, anyway. Oh, but that latch on the inside looked just like the one at her old school! Well, in that case, it would be easy.

The green arrow appeared once more, accompanied by the circle, which receded slightly. Fumika shut her eyes as a green glow overtook their ordinary blue shade, changing their hue completely. Although she couldn't see the image in front of her acting out the memory, she remembered strolling home one day. Left foot first, then the right. The insubstantial copy of the young girl mimicked these remembered motions, walking straight off the branch, across thin air, and then right through the window. Fumika blinked, opening her eyes, and her image dropped immediately to the floor, where she remembered - and it re-enacted - her earlier landing upon the tree branch.

She'd turned around when the gate had opened. The image turned around in exactly the same way, looking back to face her with bright blue eyes. [color=#0A8BF5]No... Your eyes are green now, remember?[/color] The image's green eyes met her gaze, and a matching symbol appeared in the other Fumika's hair to the one currently within her own. Much better.

Now, then, how had the shutters on those windows worked again? If she remembered correctly, first you tugged down on the little latch, then you slid a small bar back, and... [i]Click.[/i]

She'd remembered correctly, of course. She always did. She gave a thumbs-up to her image, which nodded and pushed open the window, like she'd always done to let Haruka in when she was running late for class. How Haruka, the fastest person she'd ever met, had ever been late was a mystery to her... The teacher had always scolded her about it, too, so she'd sometimes created a fake Haruka to sit at Haruka's desk until the real one arrived, in order to fool the old gentleman. But then he'd called on her once before the real one arrived, so she'd had to make the fake stand up while she impersonated Haruka's voice from right behind the fake in order to answer the question... When Haruka had heard about it, she'd thought it was really funny. It had been hard, though... She wasn't very good at vocal impersonations. If only her replicas could make sounds, too...

She hopped gingerly from the branch and onto the windowsill, dropping from there down into the second floor corridor as her image, and the markings in her hair, disappeared once more. Two eyes opened, blue once more, and searched up and down the corridor.

...Where were the stairs again? She remembered the map, but she'd never seen this place physically before...

[color=#0A8BF5]Let's see... if I jumped in from the courtyard window, then shouldn't I be... But where were the stairs, anyway?[/color]