Chapter 43 - A Boat Navigating on a Small River

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<Japan UA 17:41>

Lena left school exhausted from today's long day, she felt like she had been at least a week at the UA Festival when it was only a few hours. Anyway, time was weird shit, and she said so herself who could manipulate her own time.

Kyoka had left with Recovery Girl to speed up the healing process of her ears and Jacks a bit, Momo had been picked up by her servants to join her parents, and Toru was left chatting along with Karishima, Ashido, Tsu and Kaminari in the classroom.

The other students were already on their way to their respective homes to meet their families and talk about the Festival. It was strange, it felt as if he had just come out of a great battle but everything was still normal... it was a strange feeling, a mix between melancholy and peace that left a joyful air.

There was one thing that caught Lena's attention and none other than Bakugo. The normally explosive and aggressive blond instead of looking angry or screaming like a child, he looked reflective and strangely subdued, as if he was thinking deeply about many things.

He simply shrugged as he walked out of the UA walls, getting involved with Bakugo would only bring him more trouble and surely Midoriya would talk to him sooner or later, those two almost looked like boyfriend and girlfriend.

Yawning tiredly she walked for a moment before noticing the car across the street, in the window her father could be seen waving at her with a smile.

Lena's eyes widened in surprise before she quickly climbed into the car, where she noticed that her father had company. In the passenger seat was her uncle, and next to Lena was a beautiful golden-haired girl who hid her eyes with small glasses.

"Uncle?" Lena asked in confusion as she looked at her Uncle, who was smiling at her in amusement, and at the mysterious woman who was looking at her with analytical eyes. "Ehh... a pleasure?"

"Hi Lena how are you?" smiled David with a cheerful smile, but to Lena it looked a little strained. "This is one of our research partners, her name is Angela."

"Nice to meet you" The woman introduced herself in English with a thick accent. "As David has already said, my name is Angela, Angela Ziegler. Congratulations on third place!"

"Oh! Thank you very much! My name is Lena Oxton I am the driver's daughter and future Heroine" Lena blinked in surprise at how polite the lady was before smiling formally. "Hey dad, will it be that David finally stopped having scientist friends over 60 years old?"

"HEY!" David exclaimed feeling hurt by the sudden attack on his person, pretending as if a bullet had hit him in the heart.

Winston smiled at his friend's antics before glancing at his daughter in the rearview mirror. "Congratulations on winning third place my dear, I'm very proud of you. I can tell you put in a great effort throughout the Festival, that Todoroki kid sure was strong but that's to be expected knowing he's Endevor's son, still I'm glad to see how far you've come."

Lena blinked as a warm feeling filled every fiber of her being with happiness making her smile widely. "Thank you! Todoroki's charcoal is ridiculously strong! It can literally attack endlessly without tiring!"

The car was filled with laughter as Lena continued to recount her experience at the Festival. Unaware that her father was thinking deeply about her Quirk and her demonstration during the Festival....

***

<Japan Shizuoka 14:32> <One week later>

"HEEYYY!!!" Lena exclaimed as she ran with her hand raised in greeting, she was in the middle of a large shopping mall where hundreds of people could be seen walking around without giving Lena's loud greeting any importance.

"Hello..." Kyoka replied with a small greeting as she let herself be hugged by Lena. She then looked her up and down with a raised eyebrow. "You look good."

Lena was dressed in a short black jacket with a star print on its side, underneath the jacket she wore a yellow shirt with white stripes, light blue jean pants and white shoes.

"You look good too Kyo!" Complimented Lena as she continued to hug the smaller girl.

Kyoka was dressed in a white jacket over a black colored shirt, she was wearing dark grey jeans a bit torn, white shoes and was carrying a small bag.

Although the Festival boom was still going on even after the event, they were no longer constantly recognized every time they left the house.

"Maybe I should get some new pants though, they've been getting a little tight lately..." Kyoka muttered to herself with a happy look on her face and an annoyed voice. Lena just laughed at the comment and they started walking through the mall.

Today was the last day of the break UA had given them to relax before the rumored internships came into the hands of the students. All the students were very excited while others were resigned, the latter mainly because they did not get good attention at the Festival. 

There were even rumors on the internet that some students had caught the attention of some of Japan's Top 10 Heroes!

And even though they were just rumors the students couldn't hide their excitement. And that would be represented in the more than 250 messages in their class chat, mostly about rumors and theories.

Even now in the mall, there were a few stores selling Festival merchandise, which was a bit odd considering it had already been a week but hey, you have to scrape up as much money as possible. 

After walking around for a few hours and seeing a few stores at some point both girls held hands as they walked around the stores talking about anything and everything.

After a few hours both girls started to get hungry and headed to the food court looking for..... well, food.

"What would you like to eat Kyo?" Lena asked as they walked into the giant food court, there was a stall of just about any food you could imagine and more.

"Actually, almost anything" Kyoka replied as she looked around for a place to sit.

"How about sushi?" suggested Lena as she looked around.

"Nah, I had that recently, my parents celebrated my second place by buying high quality food, my mom and I really like sushi so dad bought a lot" Kyoka informed as they continued to walk around the different restaurants.

"You said anything was fine" Lena said rolling her eyes as she looked at her friend.

"Really? I don't remember" Kyoka replied giving Lena a mischievous smile. "Maybe you just imagined it"

"Yeah, yeah, maybe your cute smile was what made me forget it" Lena replied with a haughty look, which made the shorter girl stutter for a moment.

After a few minutes of deliberation they decided on pizza, mainly because it was Lena's favorite food. Even though they both work out, once in a while it didn't hurt to break the diet for one's own enjoyment.

Both girls let out a sigh of contentment as they rested at one of the tables in the restaurant.

"Pizza never disappoints" Lena sighed with narrowed eyes. "I think I'll come back to this place later..."

"Um" Kyoka nodded listening intently to the classical music playing in the restaurant giving a relaxing atmosphere.

"So, do you want to go somewhere else or...?" Lena asked Kyoka as she stretched her arms a bit before getting up from her seat. "It's not too late, is it?"

Checking the time on her phone, Kyoka replied, "It's still not that late, if you have somewhere in mind, sure."

"I might have some..." Lena replied with a mysterious smile.

***

<Japan Shizuoka River Square 18:11>

In a wooded area, two female figures could be seen walking slowly along a polished stone path. The night was hovering over her like a cloak that enveloped them coldly but comfortingly.

The taller figure had short brown hair, she was dressed in light and bright colors giving off a cheerful and bright vibe as she admired the surroundings happily, her demeanor almost reminiscent of a very hyperactive child.

The smaller figure wore a short black straight cut and was dressed in black and white, which gave her a certain mysterious but attractive air about her, unlike the taller girl, this one looked at the surroundings without much reaction, but her starry bright eyes revealed the enthusiasm hidden deep within her being.

These two figures were Lena Oxton and Jiro Kyoka, they had just arrived at a park called River Square. Its name came from a water fountain which sent small streams of water around the square in the form of small rivers, these rivers lined the stone path as if it was more than just a path, from time to time small decorations in the form of trees or structures could be seen giving people the feeling that they were giants.

There was also a stone statue dedicated to a soldier of the Quirk War who was recognized by the country for his great service as well as a stone with several names carvings honoring soldiers fallen in battle.

Finding a bench to sit on Lena and Kyo sat down to observe the strange but mystical beauty of the square. Sometimes with all the things that were going on in life people tend to forget one of the most essential things in life itself.

"This... is very beautiful" Kyoka murmured with visible amazement at the beauty of the park, she felt like she was in a temple submerged under the sea. "How did I not notice this before?"

"Probably because you don't leave your house" Lena replied sarcastically earning a smack from Kyoka's Jacks. "Ouch."

The two simply lapsed into a comfortable silence after that, slowly Kyoka rested her head on Lena's elbow gently. The latter was surprised by the sudden action, but said nothing as she gently put her arm around Kyoka as they gazed at the small rivers. After a few minutes, small lights began to twinkle in different patterns, lending an air of whimsy to the beautiful sight.

"It feels like I'm in another world..." Lena whispered as she gazed warmly at the beauty of the park. "It's beautiful..."

"Um" Kyoka gave a small nod of her head as she continued to gaze at the mini landscape. "You know..."

Lena tilted her head slightly as she looked at Kyoka "Is something wrong?"

"I... well... just..." Kyoka tried to speak but the words got stuck in her throat, until she forced them out in her own way. "...Thank you so much for everything..."

Lena blinked twice with a confused look but still maintaining her smile. "You're welcome...?"

"I mean it, thank you so much for everything..." Kyoka thanked again as she looked out at the scenery, feeling her voice fade before forcing herself to be heard. "It's been fun... everything is fun when I'm with all of you, like you're part of an old group of friends... it feels surreal... you even helped me with my Quirk and I... I apologize if sometimes my character can annoy you, I know I'm not a very friendly person compared to all of you but..."

"Why? Isn't that what friends do?" Lena asked with a raised eyebrow, a flash of worry appeared in her chest as she looked at Kyoka. "You know, have fun and help each other, it doesn't matter if you're not the life of the party, you're still our friend, my friend."

"I... you don't know how happy I am about that, never was very good at socializing with other people... I was never good with girls because of my not so girly tastes and my love for music so I was usually excluded..." Kyoka muttered as she looked away with a bitter voice, as if she didn't want to remember those times. "It didn't bother me... at least not at first, music felt like my only friend during that time so I didn't feel alone or helpless..."

"And then high school came" Kyoka said as she closed her eyes and let out a sigh. Lena didn't know why, but she decided to stroke Kyo's head to try and calm her down a bit, which apparently worked as Kyoka kept talking albeit shakily. "Originally I didn't care much, just another student level... somehow during that time I got, a boyfriend. Yes, Jiro Kyoka, the girl who had barely developed as a woman, the girl who barely talked to anyone, the girl who was secretly the class tease, had somehow gotten a boyfriend."

Lena hugged Kyoka a little tighter as the latter seemed to be on the verge of tears.

"I didn't make a big deal out of it and looking back on it, I realize how naive I was, but at the time it was an amazing thing for me" Kyoka mocked herself with a resentful snort. "I felt like I didn't need anyone else, that with him everything was done... and it wasn't."

"Kyo..."

"It turned out to be a joke" Kyoka laughed unfunnily as she clenched her hands tightly, her Jacks twitching restlessly. "A joke that lasted 4 damn months, 4 months that I considered magical. It was nothing but months of pranking to make fun of me for getting my hopes up... worst of all, the ones who set up the prank were the few people I considered my little group of friends!"

"I... I locked myself away, I locked myself in my musical world, where no one could hurt me" "However the teasing went on and on, I made a mask of indifference around me... but the truth was that every word hurt..."

"During that time I felt... helpless, or something like that" Kyoka said as she scratched her head trying to think of the right word, but to no avail. "My mother noticed something was wrong with me, I had stopped eating and was much more subdued than usual. She tried to cheer me up... but I kept rejecting her telling her that nothing was wrong... that I would eventually figure it out on my own..."

"But the truth is that even to this day those words still echo in my head" Kyoka broke free from Lena's small embrace as she pressed her knees to her chest. "I know I was never a genetically blessed child...but it still hurt to have people rub it in your face...I was disgusted by myself and I knew that wasn't right..."

"In the end, with my Mother's approval, I decided on Heroism, there is no reason why I decided on that, but I felt a hunch that it was the right choice. I promised myself to become strong, strong enough to forget what they said about me" Kyoka whispered in a firm tone as she gently closed her eyes. "It was during that time that I met you, on the roof of the school, I thought my place of peace was going to be interrupted but in the end it wasn't..."

"Kyoka..." Lena hugged her tightly as she stroked her head, her chest felt many things, concern for Kyoka's condition, anger for the idiots who dared to harm her and admiration for wanting to move on despite what happened.

"Don't let what those people said affect you, you are one of the most wonderful people I know, you were not only very intelligent, but also charismatic in your own way. It's true that sometimes you can be a little edgy, but that's part of your charm. You don't need to have curves or a body like Momo's to feel good about yourself, what you need is approval from yourself, to hell with everyone else, just focus on you" Lena spoke in a soft and warm voice. "And if that's not enough, you can always talk to me, I promise I will always support you in whatever you do and I will also make you stop when you are going to make a mistake..."

Suddenly, Kyoka comes out of Lena's embrace and stares into her eyes before hugging her tightly. Whether Kyoka was crying while hugging Lena, it is unknown.

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