Chapter 77: Happy Lil Accidents

Shuri having made it to U.A. gets to meet with a special little lady and enjoy a great show from the hero course, while some others realise just whose in their midst...

Well, this came out super late because I only finished working on it late. Why was that? I had an assignment that needed to be completed, which took a lot more time than I first thought. But with it gone, and the fact I was already planning on staying up late to update ZZZ, I forced myself to get this done, particularly because this is something of a conclusion to this little Culture Festival part before we return to the Thunder Trials…still not sure on that name.

(Previously)

"Know that I'm not happy about this, and should you make a move-"

Shuri cut him off, similarly keeping up appearances as they pulled on his sleeve and directed him towards a stand which seemed to be run by some business course students. "I'm aware, but wouldn't something with your quirk already know if I will act out? I thought you checked before you ever agreed to this little scheme."

Nighteye didn't comment on that, as there was no way Pyre, or any villain, would know how his quirk worked. The less they knew, the better, as it meant they weren't as active when he was around. He could use his quirk on Pyre now, but he would save it if he acted out, though the principal had been sure the villain wouldn't.

“Just keep yourself and your pyromaniac tendencies in check. You have a free pass for the day, that's it. Once it's over, it's back to business as usual, Pyre." Nighteye frowned as they went to another stand, the man keeping the act as he won his ‘date’ a prize which she happily hugged to her chest.

Shuri let out a giggle, which showed they were having far too much fun with this than Nighteye would like. "Do keep referring to me as Shuri; we wouldn't want any unsightly rumors."

Line Break

Much to Nighteye's relief, most people didn't notice him or the fact that he was walking with a young, beautiful woman, and those who did were wise enough not to disturb him on what they assumed was a date. Shuri, for her part, didn't make it easier to deny, as she pulled him from stall to stall, requesting that they have something small to eat, or see the attraction, and play the games.

"It would be weird if we just acted like this was strictly business. Besides, if you make you feel better, you're not my type," Shuri told him as she hugged another stuffed animal to her chest, this one designed by the school's principal.

"I would hope so; besides, I'm the only one who knows your age." Nighteye kept his eyes forward, but Shuri could tell he was almost as repulsed by her age as by her crimes.

"Rest assured, I'm not so vile that I'll spread false rumors about your supposed preference for younger women," Shuri was honest about that. If she was going to expose heroes, it was to be deeds they've honestly done. Besides, despite how stiff the man was, she respected the pro. "But you can't blame people for thinking what they do when you're quite private."

Nighteye glanced towards her, though one might perhaps think he was sharing a cute romantic moment with his festival date, given how Shuri smiled back at the tall, serious-looking man. “I would imagine someone like you would know most pros are private by necessity, else your kind may try something.”

“Maybe, but those I associate with would never strike at your families," Shuri replied as they joined a line for a haunted house, the disguised villain swaying side to side with a happy little hum. "You know I have a mom, a woman I love very much. I can't do anything about how people treat her, but should any try and harm her…well, they'll find I can easily take away your legs as easily as I helped Ingenium regain his."

Nighteye's frown grew at that, as stuff like that only compounded the confusion that was Pyre. Someone who so coldly set the younger Iida alight, but went out of his way to heal the older one. But then he recalled other cases where Pyre horribly burned people. Physically, they recovered, better than before, in some cases, much like Chisaki's quirk had operated.

But mentally, he left them damaged, terrified, and facing night terrors as so many couldn't escape the sensation, the memory of Pyre's smile as he set them ablaze. It only fuelled their suspicions that Pyre was mentally unhinged. So, he had no issue believing him when he said he would track down possible targets and cripple them.

"You could aid her by turning yourself in. You're a fool, but you're young. Depending on your cooperation and the results from that, you could be out of prison before you're 40." Nighteye conversed as they walked through the haunted house, though he had to admit it wasn't as good as it could have been.

Then again, he had seen so much worse than these students could manage, and they could hear others screaming both to their rear and ahead, so they were a minority.

Shuri held onto him the entire time, and he wasn't sure if she was legitimately scared or just faking it to further sell the act.

Once they got out, she needed a moment to calm down and congratulate someone manning the place for how much she terrified them. As they walked off, Shuri continued the conversation. "One, you're not very convincing for someone who worked with All Might. That sounds more like a threat wrapped in cotton than a deal, " she teased him. “Two, I can’t just stop what I’m doing as much as you can’t stop being a hero.”

"I'm working to protect the world that you seem deadest when burning to the ground." Nighteye countered.

"And I'm working to build a better world so people like me and those I care for wouldn't be tossed aside." Shuri shot back, though she didn't seem heated by the argument, a good thing as it wouldn't do if people noticed such.

"It won't end well for you," Nighteye warned as Shuri glanced his way. He was sure he saw a shine in her red eyes, one that passed as soon as it came.

“Did you use your quirk to figure that out, or is that just standard hero talk for situations like this?” Shuri asked, her smile growing a little more curious, eager for answers, as the villain never quite overcame his desire to study quirks.

“I’m not so foolish as to tell you.” Nighteye dodged the question, which led to her sighing, but she leaned on him all the same, eyes closed.

"Well, I won't push. I know I'm not welcome around here. And if this was for any other reason, I wouldn't have accepted the offer." She joked, speaking the last part loud enough that those passing by would assume Nighteye had asked her out, that she didn't think it was legit, and that some other reason got her to attend.

It perhaps sounded off, but any quirk search would show Nighteye was something of a jokester off the clock. So, anyone curious would assume he had pranked her in the past, a mean thing to do, but it would fit, and they'd go on. In fact, they'll assume any other odd things they saw fit into that. At least, that was what Nine told Shuri when he advised her on this character.

“How much did he pay you?” Nighteye asked as they moved through a quieter spot of the campus. It was not void of traffic, but much less as most turned and remained by the action.

Pulling Nighteye into a bench under a tree, she hugged her Nezu plush, leading to a couple of students awing at how adorable the typically strict, no-nonsense pro was with his catch of a date. "Nothing. The principal didn't even cover my travel expenses, as it wasn't like I was in the prefecture when I got the message." She groaned into the plush.

Nighteye snorted. “Like you need gas or fare money.”

For that comment, Shuri sent a half-heated glare his way. "I'll have you know, Mister Nighteye, that travel in the underworld isn't cheap. Express is even more expensive, as moving people around unseen is hard work." She would say more, but she wasn't so loose-lipped or careless as to do so to a hero. One she knew wouldn't hesitate to try and arrest her if she gave him a reason, or he got one.

“What seems to be the hype? I spoke with Mellissa,” Immediately, Nighteye latched onto her arm, tight enough that it hurt. Bending closer,  he glared at her like she had shot his mother right in front of him.

“You did what?” He seethed, as he could only tolerate so much, and if Pyre dared to

Shuri reached for his hand, acting like she wasn't in pain from his grip. It looked gentle to any who might have seen them from afar, a couple sharing a relaxing moment.

They would never know he gripped two of Nighteye's fingers hard enough that the pro felt it but not so hard that she broke the two digits.

What they would see was the young maiden offering her festival date a lovely smile, laughing as if he had leaned in close to whisper something funny or perhaps inappropriate. “Relax, Mirai. We just added a friendly chat. She believed I was related to someone we both know." She gestured to herself. I would bet half my savings she planned on punching me in the face if I were the little Apple's mother."

Nighteye took a breath and released his hold on her. In turn, she let his fingers go with only slight bruising. "You act as if you didn't purposely dress like this," Nighteye prodded, as dressing in a disguise with white hair and red eyes couldn’t be by chance.

“Admit it, you think it’s a damn good disguise,” Shuri flicked some hair behind her ear. "As for choosing it, I didn't; my friends did for me, and I liked it, so I didn't change it." Mummy did mention they got the idea based on Shigaraki, who also had red eyes, but his hair was more pale blue than white.

But with Nighteye calmed, she got back to her earlier question. “Back to the point, during my talk with Mellissa, she didn’t mention anything about the Culture Festival, but it looks like something’s big’s gonna happen. Care to fill me in?”

“I won’t.” Nighteye shot her down as he stood.

“Sourpuss.”

"I don't need to, as she's there; that's where we're going," Nighteye said, glanced at his watch to confirm the time. “Right now.”

Letting out a little 'Oh' sound, Shuri was quick to get up as well. With her 3 newly gained plushies, she happily walked with Nighteye, Koharu, and Shuri, taking some joy at how annoying Nighteye seemed to be with their act, but Koharu was right.

Man was a great actor.

Line Break

Approaching the gym where class A would perform, they spotted some people outside waiting for them. “Nighteye.” Eraser was the first to see them, and he was immediately suspicious of the young woman at the hero's side.

"Eraser," Nighteye replied, keeping it brief.

"Sir, how's it going? I didn't know you'd be here today." Mirio greeted, standing to the side with All Might and Eri. Like Eraser, he also spotted the woman at Sir's side, but while All Might was confused to see her, Mirio just took it in stride. "Oh, I see. You finally decided the single life isn't for you anymore."

“Mirio, please.” Nighteye groaned, as he didn't need to act so convincingly away from the public. Alas, his student merely believed he was embarrassed to be caught dating.

Mirio approached them both, Eri following close behind but keeping hidden behind the muscular hero student's leg. Mirio didn't draw attention to her as he held a hand for the strange but beautiful woman to shake. “Hey there, little lady. The name’s Togata Mirio, I work for your boyfriend.”

“Oh, I already knew that,” Shuri smiled as she accepted the handshake, letting her hand grow unnaturally warm for the moment. “After all, we’ve already met in that sterile hole in the ground.”

That did the track as Lemiillion instantly realized who she was. “Py-!”

Shuri pressed a finger to her lips, mindful that All Might and Eraser had also caught on. The retired pro looked ready to grab Eri and run, while Eraser was poised to erase her flames and tie her up like an early Christmas present.

“Nope, it’s Shuri Mari, today. A woman with no criminal record and whose presence would not affect your Culture Festival." She advised without saying too much, Eraser frowning as he realized what the principal was playing, but he wouldn't be the one who blew things. All Might, too, figured someone was off. Still, if Nighteye, someone he knew and trusted with his life, was involved in…whatever this was, he could keep his peace about this villain casually walking around the festival in convincing drag.

"Good morning, Eri. You might not recognize me, but we've met." Shuri ignored them and knelt to speak with Eri.

“We have?” Eri asked, pocking out a little to see this stranger who looked like her.

“That’s righty right, but you can’t say my name, all right?” Shuri stated. "Okay, you remember that mean man who was mistreating you and put your grandfather to sleep for a long time? Well, I helped get you out. I was right there, along with Lemillion here."

Eri gasped as Shiri smiled. She liked how quirky Eri was on the draw. “It’s you! You came!” She immediately let go of Lemillion's leg and rammed into Shuri, trying to give her the biggest hug she could. The woman laughed, happily returning the gesture.

"Of course I did. I heard from someone that you wanted to see me. Sorry that it took so long," Shuri apologized. She had no idea Eri would be so upset about not seeing her, but it seemed like Nezu hadn't been lying with his message. "I did pick up something I thought you'll like: three big slices of peach-and-cream pie.” She held up a little plastic bag she’d been carrying.

Eri seemed to smile, but not quite there yet. “I like apples, but Lemillion said you brought peaches for me at the hospital," Eri replied, taking the lie as fact, as how else would Pyre know about the peaches if he hadn't sent them?

Shuri looked a little bashful about that. “That I did. Sorry about that. I guess I just keep seeing you as a little peach and went with that. We'll get you some nice apples to eat with the pie; they're probably better for you anyway."

‘How would he have?’ Watching the two converse, Mirio was happy that things hadn't gone sour, but he was surprised that Nezu managed this, having been prepared for some sort of gift for the girl. It seemed the principal took that as a challenge and even learned about Mirio and Eri's conversation from the hospital.

‘Nezu, just what game are you playing here?’ Eraser asked, as he, too, had been told that it would be a gift. Nezu had claimed he managed to get something which would be delivered to U.A that Eri would like, but he had claimed Pyre wouldn't show up…

Well, technically, he hadn't lied. He and the rest of the staff didn't see Pyre or Midoriya Izuku. They didn’t even see his giant snake. They saw a woman called Shuri Mari, Nighteye, plus one for the event.

Sometimes his boss scared him with his ploys.

“Ready to see class A’s performance?” Shuri stood to her full height, giving Eri the Nezu plush to hold. Mirio offered to carry the sugary treat for Eri to enjoy later.

Despite seeing the 2 people she worried about most and knowing she was safe with them on some level, Eri was still nervous about this. "It looks like many people will be there… and they said it would be dark." She muttered, to which Shuri laid a comforting hand on her head. It was warm, soft, and gentle-nothing like how Overhaul had been with her.

"Don't worry, Eri, we'll be there the entire time," Mirio told her, a smile and thumbs up ready as Shuri nudged Mirio's side.

“And if you need to, you can ride on his big, strong shoulders.” She joked.

Eri took a moment to think, but she eventually made her choice. “They said it would be a big dance and music.”

"Well, I'm sure class A will put on a show," Shuri stated as they walked in, but not before Eri asked to ride on Mirio's shoulders when she saw how large the crowd was.

Line Break

At exactly 10AM, the lights went out as the curtains opened on the class A students. Some of them stood with their instruments, while others posed without them, so the best guess at that moment was that one was the band and the other the dancers. Once things started, oh man, was it explosive in all the best ways. Shuri could admit that she had not expected to see Kacchan participating, but it was nice to see him making good use of those drumming lessons Auntie forced him into.

As the music poured over them, the glitter on the costumes of the dancers who knew their stuff, and them, the special effects of ice sprinkles, confetti, doves, and a laser light show. Seeing them using their quirks so freely, so proudly, and with such joy… made her love heroes all the more, and she knew that if these were the sorts of people that the world would have, then its new order would be a kind and tender one.

The only thing that made the entire experience better was seeing Eri break out the biggest smile she had seen on the girl, all traces of fear, of Overhaul's grip on her soul burned away by the light and love, her arms wide and open as she seemed to want to embrace the experience like child-like glee, as she should.

It's safe to say Shuri was with Eri on this, as they were absorbed by the beat and mood and sang and danced around with the rest. Even that sourpuss Nighteye, who stood by her side like a warden, couldn't keep his smile from his face. She loved hearing his yelp when she snatched him up to dance with her, Mirio spinning Eri around atop his shoulder as they sang and laughed.

Line Break

Having had the time of their lives, it felt…well, Shuri wouldn't say it was a let-down. Still, class B's performance wasn't as focused as it seemed; they smashed together a bunch of other ideas for their play and didn't go well enough, sanding down the edges to make it more polished.

The acting was good, a surprise for a bunch of students she had assumed had no talent or experience in performance. It goes to show what she knew about U.A.'s teaching methods. Having seen it, they went back to speak with class A, or rather, let Eri speak with them.

Watching Eri absolutely talk her head off about what she saw and how she felt to Uraraka and Asui was the most precious thing ever, but eventually, Eri did need to breathe, giving the class A students time to respond.

“Well, thank you for the compliments, Eri. We worked really hard to pull it off.” Asui noted, as she came, that she enjoyed seeing Eri this lively.

“Yeah, we worked under some real stress since someone decided to show up late.” Mineta jabbed at Uraraka as he rushed on, carrying a tray of ice that needed to be melted.

This confused Eri, who looked at a suddenly embarrassed Uraraka. “Why were you late?”

"We had to get some new gear at the last minute, but I'm happy I made it back if it meant you had a good time," Uraraka explained, leaving out the other reason she was late. The less said, the better, as she had already been chewed out by Ectoplasm.

"Don't make a habit of such things; not everyone can be as quick as All Might," Nighteye advised her, though she was sure she noticed a hint of a joke in his statement.

Nighteye's presence was enough of a surprise for class A. Still, they couldn't just ignore that he wasn't alone, as he had a beautiful woman at his side, plushies in her hands, while Eri held onto an adorable Nezu plush nearly as big as the principal they were modeled after.

The only issue was, who would bring it up? “Pardon, but whose your date, Nighteye?” Yaoyorozu would be the one who broke the proverbial ice.

“I thought she was Eri’s big sister or something. They seem close.” Kaminari noted, though he was still lost on who this little kid was, that if Bakugo seemed happy to see her, he sure as hell wouldn't ruin that.

Eri was quick to nod. “We are close, P…Shuri helped me a lot.” She caught her slip, but it was just enough for those involved in her rescue to put the pieces together, and their reaction said it all.

“(Kero).” Asui croaked, her legs shifting stance as she got ready for a fight. Uraraka flinched, One for All charging up as she nearly slammed into the villain in disguise.

“What the hell…” Bakugo looked almost as ready to fight, but Shuri noted he didn't make any moves. He kept his voice down so that most of their classmates wouldn't notice anything off, though they looked confused between the taller white-haired woman and their on-guard classmates.

"Oh, couldn't I help when you're such an adorable little bean?" Shuri beamed towards Eri, reaching for her cheeks and gently pulling on them, leading Eri to laugh more as she tried to fight back, with Shuri letting her take the victory. "But I agree with Eri, we both agree, don't we, Mirai?" She sent a sly smile towards Nighteye, leaning against him in a way that had Hagakure and Ashido gasping, the shipper part of their brains firing on all cylinders.

Because of that, and how well Nighteye was at hiding his growing annoyance, only a few of them knew his response was one of a sky boyfriend, but someone who was close to violence. “It was…an exceptional performance. I hadn’t believed you all capable of such with the time restraints, but you proved me wrong. Well done.” Nighteye kept his gaze on the students and not on his 'date'.

"He totally gives me Eraser vibes, so that's got to be some high praise." Ashido nodded, beaming at the major compliment as she worked hard to get the dance team in order. Jiro was more pleased with the music as it had been an experience to perform like that. Her hands still felt like she had touched Denki when he was training his quirk.

"Only because his girlfriend called him out, he'd better be careful, or he's sleeping on the couch." Sero joked with Kaminari, Ashido, and Hagakure, all laughing at All Might's former sidekick's expense. Even his lady friend seemed amused by the comment as she hid her face in her Present Mic plush, but how her eyes wrinkled around the edges said enough of her feelings.

Nighteye took a breath and held it before releasing it. Once he had done so, he turned to Eraser. “Eraser, could you give those four additional works as punishment?"

“I already had the plans for it," Eraser replied, which caused the four students in question to groan.

“What-oh come on, it’s true!” Hagakure pointed out, her sleeve wildly gesturing to Nighteye and Shuri. Heck, if she didn't know better, she'd say they were Eri's parents, given how much the little girl was latched onto Shuri and how close Shuri was to Nighteye.

"And he looks complete with her there. They're like the perfect couple. He's talkative, broody, and serious, and she's small, cute, and super happy." Ashido added what she saw as solid facts, which only made Nighteye angrier, Mirio worried, and Shuri more amused as Eraser just watched.

"I don't know, he looks like he's not a fan of your comments, Hagakure.” Ojiro pointed out that Nighteye seemed close to losing it, and they weren't sure if it was Bakugo-like anger at being called out, or Sero-like embarrassment at being called out over his crush.

Eraser knew which it was and observed. ‘Well, at least this isn’t at my expense.’

‘Nezu, you will pay me back for this slight, I promise you that.’ Nighteye was sure he could feel the smug gaze from the principal on him, though he doubted he could ever prove it.

“Keep cleaning, we need to finish up!” Mineta yelled, having been hard at work, drawing Shuri's attention.

“Oh, is there something you need to do? I wouldn’t want us to intrude.” Shuri asked, as they had arrived while class A was cleaning, but they assumed they could chat, seeing

“It’s super important, we need to finish so I can score good seats for the beauty pageant," Mineta yelled, as he was already having a great time with the hottie. Still, as she was taken by Nighteye, he wasn't about to try to make an enemy out of the man. So he'll settle for looking, but he also had some other beauties to check out.

Eri jumped at that, looking up at Shuri. "Oh, Lemillion said Hado would be there. Can we go and watch?"

"Oh, course, Eri." She immediately replied, but she noticed Bakugo was still looking at her, so she changed her tune. You can let Mirio take you. I need to use the restroom." She suggested that, having spent some time with the fire user, Eri had no issue letting her step away for a potty break.

“Okay, see you, Shuri.” She grabbed Mirio's hand, and he led the girl out as Shuri hummed. He then led her out back to where the restrooms were. It was out of sight unless you were looking, which she could use as she came to a stop.

Not even a minute late, Bakugo showed up, looking as pissed as she suspected. With him as Uraraka and Asui, the former looking almost as angry as Bakugo, as she was getting sick and tired of the villain slipping through their fingers.

“What the hell are you doing here, you damn pyromaniac?” Bakugo didn’t sugarcoat his words, close to popping explosions in his hands, but holding back to not draw attention.

Shri turned, just enough to look at them over her shoulder with a little smile befitting a cat who caught the canary and knows you can’t prove it. “That’s an odd thing to call me, I don’t even have a lighter on me.”

“Don’t play dumb with me!” Bakugo yelled as loud as he dared, but she wouldn't give the ghost so soon.

Shuri played the fool, tapping her chin and looking at him in faux confusion. "I'm afraid I don't know what you mean. You seem to have mistaken me for someone else. I'm Shuri Mari. Have we met?” she asked him.

Seeing this was getting them nowhere and understanding how futile and self-destructive a fight would be, Asui changed tactics. "How did you get an invite, and why did Nighteye vouch for you?"

“I could tell you this was an happy lil accident,” Shuri started, but with how they looked at her like she was insane, she decided to be a little more honest. "But I'm also acting as a middlewoman of sorts. Little Eri wished to spend some time with Pyre, but a wanted and highly dangerous villain like that couldn't just waltz into campus, especially when a little moue told me that even a sighting of anything suspicious could see this entire day ruined for all of you."

“So instead of him, they sent you, someone we never heard of?” Uraraka asked, as she could put the pieces together. When Eri asked Pyre to come, he accepted, but he learned how tight security was and didn't wish to give them issues by being obvious about it.

That also meant they couldn't make a move unless Pyre was screwing with them. Mouse could mean the principal, and if it got out, he invited a villain like Pyre to U.A…

"Yup, I came to deliver what Pyre couldn't, and that was some much-needed company!" Shuri revealed, opening her arms as she turned to them fully.

“And we’re supposed to just let you walk free?” Bakugo demanded, to which Shuri glanced towards him. In her gaze, he saw more than the act flash through them. He saw Pye, he saw Midoriya. He saw fear, regret, joy, anger, and finally, the will to proceed.

"Why would you stop me? I don't have so much as a parking ticket in my name and was invited to this event." Shuri reminded them, as she walked past Bakugo, patting his shoulder as she went, but he stepped out of her reach. She was left hanging, but she recovered enough. "Oh come now, don't be so angry, it's a culture festival, have some fun. You might enjoy some of the other classes' activities, I know I did."

“I don’t doubt that, but it must admit, it’s weird that you did when you’re you…” Asui spoke up again, as she seemed to be the only calm student.

"I'm not some monster, you know. Once upon a time, I wanted to be just like you. And in some ways, I still do," Shuri replied, turning towards Asui with a smaller, more genuine smile. “I’m honest, I had some great fun here, I had been…stressed later, about an encounter with a friend, the last encounter I’ll ever have with them.”

"So why don't you just give up that life if it means you're losing friends and feeling stressed?" Asui asked, as she was getting some confusing vibes from this guy.

"Hmm, that's a question, isn't it?" Shuri chuckled, as she had been thinking that since she had her deathmatch with Rappa. He had wanted it; he had made that clear, and Pyre had tried to make the fight as fun as possible before the finishing blow.

Still, it wasn't like one could forget the sensation and realization that you willingly took a life. You never forget your first, was the saying after all.

"It's because I believe in what we're trying to do, what my friends and I are fighting for. We want to see a better world and people like you around; it gives me hope that it’ll come.” Shuri eventually responded, keeping the statement vague enough not to implicate Shuri in anything shady.

"If you think we've been good heroes, why aren't you with us then? If you want to see a better world, there are better ways to go about it(Kero)." Asui asked again, calm as ever, even losing her combative stance.

Something shifted in Shuri's gaze. Not dangerous, but a purpose and will that would see it done through fire and brimstone. “The dirt needs to be cleaned before it can shine."

And like that, it was gone as Shuri made her way out and back to meet with Nighteye. “Well, I should get going, don’t want to miss that beauty pageant.”