Internship 2

"In the past years it's been more spread out, but there's a pretty big gap this time." Aizawa explained.

"Gah! That's no fair!" Kaminari sighed as he saw his name.

Star was thankful that no one brought attention to her real name after the Sports Festival. Apparently the word had already spread through her class, not that she was surprised. She shouldn't have been surprised by their acceptance of it either, especially with two other students with Pro parents and two more students from powerful families.

The class had taken it in stride, too distracted by their own lives to ask too many questions. They had continued calling her Olivia out of habit, only Mashirao and Momo switching over due to their past familiarity with her real name.

Ayoama looked absolutely tickled, beaming that he got offers. It made Star smile to hear Hitoshi's name in his sparkling mind.

"Todoroki got more than Yaoyorozu?" Jiro asked, concerned for her best friend.

"Yeah, it's the opposite of how they placed in the festival." Kirishima agreed, looking over at the two.

Momo smiled at Todoroki, "That is amazing, you must be very proud."

Star knew Momo really did mean it. The woman was upset as hurt still spread through her, though.

Todoroki looked at her closely, observing her reaction. He seemed to see what Star had heard, because he responded flatly, "These offers are probably because of my father."

The guy was bothered that they were mostly interested in his family name. Star's name crossed his mind at the thought, and he turned to look at her.

She didn't look away, unashamed of eavesdropping since her name was menatally said. Giving him a small tight lipped smile, she echoed his understanding towards her, not a fan of it either.

She hadn't even made it to the second event, so all the offers were obviously there because of interest in her parents. Feeling nauseous at the thought, Star turned away, not looking at the board again.

This was another reason she had avoided her name. She wanted to be chosen for her. Not her parents. Growing up, that was the only attention she received. Even from the person she thought she loved.

"People want us!" Uraraka cried happily to Iida.

Midoriya's thoughts were loud and clear as always as he watched his two friends. He seemed to come to the, probably correct, conclusion that the fact his quirk injured him worked against him. Star couldn't help but wonder if the fame seeking Pros that sent her offers knew about her struggling quirk, and if they would've treated her the same way.

"Despite these results, you'll all be interning with Pros. Got it? Even those of you who didn't get any offers. It'll be helpful to see how a Pro works firsthand."

The class nodded at Aizawa's words, and he continued. "The name you give yourself is important. It helps reinforce your image and shows what kind of hero you want to be in the future. It tells people exactly what you represent." He looked at each of them as he talked, letting his words sink in.

"Now, start thinking of ideas. Ask the advice of the Pro Heroes you chose. After your internships, I expect everyone to have a codename. Got it?"

Distracted by words like 'hero killer' and 'Ingenium', Star's attention was drawn to Iida as she recalled their last interaction.

~~~Two nights ago~~~

After leaving the station, Star went straight to the hospital. It hadn't been hard to find him, but she found herself slowing as she approached him, unsure what she could say. She was soon out of time to come up with anything as she reached where he sat, so she just spoke what she thought instead.

"I-..." Star took a shaky breath in as he turned to face her, "I am so sorry, Iida. If the Hero Killer wasn't after my father… If I hadn't come to Japan… Maybe he wouldn't have thought my father was here, and maybe your brother wouldn't have been attacked... I'm so sorry-"

Iida put a firm hand on her shoulder, cutting her off. He stood straight, as if doing so would help keep his composure together. Star knew better though. As he touched her shoulder, she could physically feel his pain and sorrow, his worry.

Though, she was surprised to find that none of it was directed towards her. That there was hope underlining it all. He tilted his head down, his hair falling over his eyes. Taking a deep breath, he looked back up at her, determined.

"It was close, I will admit. My brother mentioned that it was your name being announced that… prevented it from continuing further. He could have lost his legs. He could have lost his career. He… he could have lost his life." Iida closed his eyes for a second, before reopening them.

"He survived, though. In the end, even if it was not your conscious doing, and even if it had consequences for you… Your name being revealed at that second, saved him. Similar to how he saved you, many months ago."

Star almost buckled under the emotions Iida was feeling on top of her own, but managed to give a small watery smile back.

It was poetic, in a way. Everything seemed to happen for a reason, for a purpose. Even if it feels like your world is crashing down around you, like there is no good in what happened... Even if you wish with every inch of your being that it could be undone, or erased... There is always a reason. It may not be obvious. You may never even get to see it. But just like every cloud has a silver lining, every event, no matter how difficult, has a blessing within as well.

So Star didn't regret that her name was revealed. She didn't regret that the world knew who she was. She didn't regret it for a second, knowing that it saved someone else.

"I am planning to help at the Team Idaten agency during the internships, until he has fully recovered. I hope to prove my family proud, and carry the Iida name until my brother can return, once and for all." Iida told her, clenching his fist in determination.

It would be okay.

~~~~~~

The bell rang, surprising her as she pulled out of her own memory.

Star walked up to Aizawa, bringing her sheet up with her. He glanced up tiredly, but also knowingly. He had already come to the conclusion that the offers were only made because of her real name. Before she opened her mouth, he took her paper and highlighted one, handing it back to her.

'Hawks Hero Office'

"The only one that sent an offer in for 'Olivia'." Aizawa deadpanned, looking down to his papers again. Star wrote the name on her form without hesitation, and put it on the pile. She was going to prove she was more than her name. She had to.

As Star walked out the classroom door, she heard what Aizawa was thinking. He would've put in an offer for her apparently, understanding what it was like to have a mental quirk, and wanting to teach her how to use it. He had a bigger task though.

Hitoshi Shinso.

Star smiled as she closed the door. She was unsure if he had wanted her to hear that or not, but the fact he believed in her potential too, told her that things would work out okay.