With Open Hearts And Open Minds
Class 1-D Homeroom, 3 years ago.
"And that's how commercial quirk licenses were born," Hijack finished, closing the book with today's chapter. "Quite convoluted, isn't it?"
Kalianne couldn't muster enough energy for a reply, struggling to stay awake in this class.
"Now, an assignment for Friday."
"Ugh..." she groaned, almost hitting her forehead on the desk.
"I want essays on how hero and commercial licenses changed over the decades in Japan. Cite the cultural shifts and prominent cases leading up to it. Extra credit if you mention policies adopted from other countries' hero systems."
The pro hero chuckled at their flat expressions, placing his book back in his bag. "Anyway, this is light work since we're only nine days into the semester.. but if you still struggle, I'll allow you to write and deliver the essay in pairs."
After two bell rings, their teacher left the class, waving at them. "See ya, Class 1-D!"
"Bye, Hijack-sensei..." Kalianne's weary voice joined the class' chorus.
She liked her time in Shiketsu so far, really. But this class drained her spirit in ways she didn't know were possible until her first lecture.
"Sato."
Kalianne turned her head as someone called her. It was a blue-haired boy looking at her nonchalantly.
She hadn't memorized all her new classmates yet, but she still recognized him. He was the one elected as vice-class rep two days ago... from that big-shot family...
"Atsushi-kun."
He didn't react negatively, so that was probably it.
"Let's do the assignment together," he asked. Well, more like decided.
Strongly suggested. Yeah, that was it.
"Ehh... sure."
He was probably the studious type, right? No need to make this class harder on herself by refusing him.
Atsushi nodded, eyes going to the math teacher coming through the door before returning to her. "We'll talk more after class."
"Mh-hm," she agreed again, and that was that.
However, as the final period rolled in, she found herself stealing glances at his desk, wondering why he went to her, of all people. Did he not see her almost falling asleep during class?
Eventually, those thoughts faded into the background as she tried to focus on what their teacher was trying to explain.
After classes ended, she approached him but wasn't the first to do so. Some other students were chatting with him as they walked to the door.
Actually, chatting was a poor choice of words. They bombarded Atsushi with questions, and he did his best to keep up.
"Is it true that you're related to Ryukyu?" A blonde girl asked excitedly. Kalianne vaguely recalled her from the entrance exam. Her quirk was being a living Swiss army knife.
"... Ryuko? Our families are distantly related, but—"
"Really?! You gotta get me an autograph!"
"I'm not that—"
"Atsushi-kun," she called, and he paused, somehow noticing her through the three or so people talking at him.
She waved at him. "I'll be waiting at the library."
For a moment, his stoic expression gave way to a quiet smile. "Alright."
Kalianne stepped outside the classroom, only catching bits of the following conversation.
"What was that all about?"
"We're doing Hijack's essay together."
"Damn, dude... you work..."
It was good that Atsushi got delayed because she needed to catch up on the parts of Hijack's lesson that entered one ear and left in the other.
So she got to the library, took a place in the first unoccupied corner, and cracked open her textbook.
Kalianne was a fast reader, but she also needed to peruse a book multiple times to truly get it.
She could do that at her own time, later. Right now, she only needed to know enough to not be clueless in front of her duo.
She skipped a few irrelevant sections and reached the chapter Hijack explained... last week—
Something landed on her shoulder.
"Have you—"
"Eep!" Kalianne jolted, and the hand held her tighter, stopping her from falling out of her seat.
"Sorry for startling you."
He sounded like he meant it, but she could swear he was trying to sneak up on her. How did someone move that quietly? Especially in a library, where there wasn't enough noise to hide him.
Realizing he was waiting for an answer, she sighed, "It's alright..."
Atsushi pulled the chair to her right and seated himself. On the table, he placed his textbook and two thick paperbacks.
Advent Of The Supernatural: The Full Timeline, Volume I
Heroics Law
This was bad. She still wasn't done—
"Did you catch up on everything?"
"Eh?"
He was looking at her textbook.
"You missed most of today's lesson, right?"
"Ah... you saw that..."
She turned a few pages to make it seem like she wasn't reading up on an older lecture, but the damage was already done.
"You did the same last week, too."
"... And you still picked me for the project?" she asked, a hint of annoyance seeping into her tone. She was well aware of how behind she was, but having someone else point it out... for some reason, it irritated her.
"I picked you because of it."
Those words completely flipped her mood.
"... What?" she muttered, looking at him like he was crazy. "Don't you normally pair up with someone who can pull their own weight?"
"Yes. But it's part of a vice-rep's duties to help their peers."
She huffed, amused but trying to hide it.
His intentions were pure, but his words were too blunt.
"So I'm a pity case?"
"That's not what I—"
As his tone turned apologetic, she lost it, laughing and waving him off. "Ah, I'm just ribbing you. As much as I hate it, this class has been kicking my ass. So I appreciate the help!"
He pouted, and she smiled wider.
"Hm. And my question?"
"Still catching up," she admitted sheepishly, scratching her hair.
"That's alright. I'll get started while you do that. When you're done, you can check the draft, and I'll read up on that extra credit Hijack mentioned."
She nodded, and they returned to their books, one swiftly scribbling a draft with a focused expression and the other idly flipping through pages.
Kalianne frowned as she reached a particular section, then looked between her textbook and the boy sitting to her right.
She shrugged. Atsushi said he was there to help, right?
"... Atsushi-kun."
"What is it?"
She pointed a finger at the page, specifically at one kanji.
"Is this implementation or regulation?"
"... Implementation."
"Thanks."
...
...
...
Another page flip.
"Atsushi-kun."
"Hm?"
Another complicated kanji.
"What does this word mean?"
"Treaty."
...
...
...
"Atsushi-kun."
"... Atsushi-kun."
"... Atsushi-kun..."
On her sixth question, he turned to her and said, "Maybe we should read together."
She flushed at the suggestion. "I-I don't need that much help! This book just uses some really obscure kanji!"
His eyes widened. "Sato..."
"Hijack-sensei does it too. When I think I'm starting to get it, the devil of legal jargon takes over him, and then I can't keep up anymore! Does he not think about—"
He grabbed her chin and turned her head slightly, making her face a glaring librarian.
"I understand your troubles as an exchange student, but we're in a library," he reminded, and she noticed the stares from the other staff members and her fellow students.
"Ahaha... sorry..." she chuckled nervously, and the bespectacled man walked away, shaking his head.
"Reading together sounds good," she mumbled, dragging her chair closer to his.
And so, they did. Occasionally, Atsushi stopped to mention something that wasn't in the books—but that Hijack had explained—or for an impromptu Japanese lesson when she didn't understand how a sentence flowed.
Soon, she stopped reading the textbook and just listened to his summary of the past lessons.
Atsushi was a decent tutor, but he wasn't perfect. He tended to go on tangents that weren't meant to help her understand the subject better but were simply concepts he found interesting.
Unfortunately, Kalianne wasn't a perfect student either, constantly getting immersed in his voice and absorbing the trivia instead of asking him to get back on track.
Still, learning like this was a lot faster than when she was alone.
Minutes flowed by, and then hours. They managed to get her updated on Hijack's lesson plan so far and even did most of the project.
"This should be good enough for a first draft," Atsushi said as they put away their things. "But it still lacks information on the last few decades. Tomorrow we'll add those last sections and start working toward that extra credit."
"Do we have to do that last one?" she asked with a pout, heaving her backpack.
"Yes."
"I feel like we're gonna ace it even without it."
"We have the time for it, so we should," he insisted.
"Fine..."
As they left the library, Kalianne checked the time on her phone and winced. "Shit."
"What happened?"
"... it's nothing. I think I missed a train to my place."
"..."
"..."
They kept walking until—
"I could give you a ride," he blurted out.
"... What?"
[With Open Hearts And Open Minds]
"Y'know, I actually have a bike," Kalianne bragged as they strolled through Shiketsu's parking lot. "My grandpa gave it to me before I left for Japan... shipping was a pain."
"But you don't have a license, right?" he assumed, correctly.
"Yep. So I gotta wait until I can ride it here..."
Following his steps, she saw him beeline for a blue convertible. A blond woman stood in front of it with her hands in her pockets and a blank expression. She wore a black two-piece suit and carried a sword on her hip. Two more swords were mounted on top of the car, both taller and wider than her.
Somehow, spending two hours with Atsushi made her forget that his family was supposed to be filthy rich.
"Yuusei-sama," the chauffeur greeted with a bow as they approached, then stared at Kalianne with an unspoken question.
He stepped forward with an easy smile. "Hey, Hiyori. This is Kalianne Sato. I used too much of her time with a school project, so I offered her a ride home."
"... I see," the now-named Hiyori replied, opening the rear door for them.
With a nod from Atsushi, Kalianne entered first.
"Velvet seats?" she muttered, feeling the texture with one hand while shrugging off her backpack.
"My father has a strange sense of aesthetics," Atsushi commented, closing the door on his way in.
"Where to, Sato-san?" the driver asked, looking at them through the rear-view mirror.
"Gimme a second..."
She put the location on her phone and showed it to Hiyori, who nodded and started the car.
"So, Atsushi-kun..." Kalianne began, fastening her seatbelt. "What does your family do that makes you too rich for public transport?"
His eyes twinkled with amusement at her bluntness.
"It'd be easier to ask what we don't do."
"Be humble, apparently," she said, face carefully blank.
"It sounds arrogant, but it's true. Financial services, shipbuilding, public relations agencies, pharmaceutical companies, tourism, broadcasting networks—"
She put up a hand in defeat. "I think I get it."
He paused, satisfied with proving his point. "We're a greedy bunch, so we have a lot of investments."
"And a lot of returns."
"And a lot of returns," he agreed.
"And yet, you chose to be a hero student. Why?"
If she had that kind of money behind her, she wouldn't be at Shiketsu at all.
"It's a family tradition. All the heirs go through it."
... It was a tradition to put their members in a career with low life expectancy?
"Ah... so it's like that?"
He noticed the pity in her look and shook his head.
"I wasn't forced into it if that's what you're thinking. It was my own sense of responsibility that got me here."
Wasn't that just a kinder way of saying peer pressure?
"If it wasn't a tradition, would you still have enrolled?"
He hummed. "I don't know. Maybe I would have been in general studies. Or perhaps I could have been inspired by the other pro heroes in the family. But I find that focusing on these 'what ifs' is an exercise in futility."
She nodded, not willing to push the subject. Even rich kids had their battles, she supposed.
"What about you, Sato? Why did you come to Shiketsu?"
"I don't have any grand reasons," she claimed, shrugging. "My quirk is good for it, and it's a well-paying job. But if you're asking about moving here, then I'd say it's because hero schools in Brazil suck."
"Your quirk is... Flamethrower, right?"
"Yeah. And yours is..."
She couldn't remember seeing him use it. Actually, she couldn't remember seeing him in the entrance exam at all.
Ah.
He was probably a recommendation student. As if he didn't fit the rich kid stereotype enough.
"Chromatic Dragon."
"So you get fire and super strength? Some people really have all the luck..." she lamented, sighing dramatically.
"I can't breathe fire."
She wiped a nonexistent bead of sweat from her forehead. "Phew. There's still justice left in this world, thankfully."
His phone rang, taking away his attention and the retort about to leave his lips.
"Sorry, I have to take this."
"It's fine."
They were too close inside the car, so she didn't bother trying not to hear him talk on the phone.
"Father. How are you doing?"
{"...! ... ...?"}
"... Yes. Why?"
{"... ... ..., ... ...?"}
He frowned. "I'll be there, then."
{"...! ..., ... ?"}
"I'm fine... though I'll be coming home late. I'm giving a ride to a classmate."
{"... ..., ..."}
"I know that much," he sighed. "I offered because we were doing a project together, and she missed her train."
{"...~? ... ... ... ...~}
He glared half-heartedly at the screen. "Don't be ridiculous, old man."
Kalianne heard laughter from the other end, and the call ended.
"He sounds like a peculiar character," she commented, and he glanced at her.
"I apologize for anything you might have heard," he responded with a slight flinch, and she laughed at the earnestness behind it.
"I didn't hear anything!" she returned his sincerity in kind, and his expression turned flat.
"So you just felt he was peculiar from my replies?"
"Maybe." She shrugged. "... Hey, you mentioned being inspired by the other pros in the family. Is your Dad one?"
"No. My uncle used to be one, but he retired before I was even born. Nowadays, the only active hero in our family is my older cousin, Akane. You probably won't know her because she's underground, but her hero name is Blast Burn."
He was right. Kalianne did not recognize her. Then again, she didn't know much about Japan's heroes except for the top 10.
"Is she your favorite pro?"
"Oh, no," he denied, suddenly all too serious. "We're currently in a war for Orochi's affection, so I can't feed her ego like that."
When she looked confused by the name, he continued.
"Ah, Orochi is my younger cousin. Here, I'll show you—"
They went through pictures of him with his extended family, and he gained a fond grin when talking about them, the most emotion he'd shown thus far. With how he described the three girls, he seemed to treat them more like sisters than cousins. It was kind of cute.
They spent a few more minutes talking about life and Shiketsu until the car finally reached her apartment complex. Atsushi walked her to the door.
"See you tomorrow, Sato. And also... we'll have to finish the project on Thursday. My father roped me into coming to a meeting with him tomorrow."
She winced. "Ahh... but I'll be busy Thursday..."
"With what?"
"Remember when I said I had a bike?"
He nodded.
"Well, it's not exactly in good condition... I'll be going to the other side of town to take it from the repair shop."
It seemed they'd be busy on both days between the deadline.
"We can do the rest onli—"
"How about we do it now?" Kalianne proposed while unlocking the door to her place, inadvertently cutting him off.
He took a moment to answer.
"... Sure. I'm free now."
"Great!" she cheered, opening the door and pulling him by the arm. "You don't have to take off your shoes, by the way."
He took a single step inside, then stood in place, resisting her next tug.
"Wait," he told her, reaching into his pocket. "Let me send a text to Hiyori first."
Oh, right. The chauffeur. Kalianne hoped her neighbors wouldn't get the wrong idea from seeing that armed woman lurking outside.
"Why does your driver even have that many weapons, anyway?" she questioned, closing the door behind them.
"She's a pro hero."
"And a bodyguard, too," she guessed.
"When the situation calls for it—"
After putting down his phone and looking in her direction, a heavy frown settled on his face.
"Does my place look that bad?" she joked, turning on the living room's lights.
"Ah, no..." He shook his head, returning to his stoic expression. "It's... my father told me this would happen, and I said he was being ridiculous. He'll be insufferable once I get home."
She gestured for the sofa, and he sat down, placing his bag over the coffee table.
"Do you want anything to drink?" she asked, moving towards the fridge.
"Water's fine."
She offered him a cup and dropped on the seat to his right.
"Hmmm... so when you apologized earlier, it was because you thought I heard him calling out your long con," she surmised, retrieving her textbook.
He almost choked on his drink. "... my what?"
"From watching me in class and offering to be my duo to giving me a ride and walking with me all the way here..." Kalianne recounted, nodding to herself. "I wasn't familiar with your game, but I'm starting to see it now."
He chuckled, then covered his mouth as if embarrassed by the noise. "Hah... You're overestimating me. I don't think I could have planned this down to scheduling conflicts."
"A likely story," she said, not bothering to hide her grin. "What's your next move, Atsushi?"
"I can promise to be on my best behavior if you'd like."
She pouted. "That'd be no fun."
"But I thought we were here for schoolwork?"
"So studying can't be fun? For shame. LocaLoca-sensei would be so disappointed..."
Their banter continued through the afternoon, drowning out the scratching of pens and shuffling of papers.
It was the start of a beautiful and enduring friendship.