Yellow Jacket: Interlude: The Icon.

Yellow Jacket: Interlude: The Icon.

Commissioned by Sivantic

Word Count: 2613

…

Koda Tera was concerning.

Her talent and intellect were to be admired, but the way she used them implied harsh upbringing. There was a deadliness to her. She efficient in ways a child shouldn’t be efficient. The way she commanded respect and took the role of a leader was beyond natural talent, but born of experience. 

At first, amongst the teachers and myself, there was merely traded glances and talks with our contacts.

Passive observation of her home life was initiated. 

There were families that focused too much on power, or had parents who wanted to live out their dreams through their children, and with Quirks in play that led to situations that me and my fellows couldn’t abide. Even if the result of such actions was someone as talented and skilled as Koda Tera, it would be against a hero’s obligations to turn a blind eye to an environment where a child needed to mature into a person who didn’t hesitate to use violence and followed every rule to the letter.

Our contacts found normal parents, normal siblings, and a normal life.

Koda Tera acted the way she did because that was who she was. 

Her environment was perfectly normal, perhaps even too friendly, yet when I looked at her, I thought I was looking at a soldier instead of a child.

It wasn’t difficult. She was robust, tall, and very strong. The way she fought was rugged, tactical, and eliminated the advantages of her enemy. There was no straight fight with her. If she couldn’t win, she’d retreat, or she’ll acceptance what it takes to win the fight. In class, when she answered my questions, she delivered the answers I asked for crisply and succinctly, while the other children sometimes stammered, even if they knew the solution.

All qualities of a man who intended to fight battle after battle and return home with as many victories as possible.

Yet, I also saw a girl trying to be her best to be a hero.

The way she planned to fight, using insects and animals, and little gadgets told us all about how she wanted others to see her costume and her tricks before they saw her. Instead of the looming figure that can cast a shadow, Koda Tera wanted to be Yellow Jacket. A hero who talked to animals and had tricks up her sleeves when her friends weren’t enough. 

This sports tournament was the absolute worst for her. 

Kaijuu Kaichou was a name that were trying to press, but “Oni” was getting fast traction within the stadium. And, slowly but surely, that name was making Koda more feared and loved, despite the fact that she was the most earnest hero within the class. All she can do here is fight dirty, with all her strength and power, while her more colorful, chosen companions and her equipment that any normal person could use were not available. 

All she can do is be the villain in the story that the whole of the audience was witnessing. 

We should have been teachers first instead of heroes. 

…

“So, how do you expect this last fight to go, All Might?” Principal Nezu sat beside me. The question was more than it appeared. He was also inquiring about the words I shared with Koda and Todoroki. “Do you think Koda-san needs another talking to?”

“…” He was also asking if Koda could be spoken to. If All Might’s words didn’t reach Koda Tera, then what of the words of others? If the symbol of peace couldn’t have a girl back down from her path, then what could other heroes do for her? I gave him a nod, before I presented my answer. “Maybe. She’s not using her Quirk, even though she’s fighting against Todoroki-kun.” 

“Mhmm, not that her Quirk would be of much use against his ice abilities. This match is utterly unfair for her wouldn’t you say?” Principal Nezu didn’t talk on a whim. There was always more to his words than at first glance, especially when he spoke to people he could trust. I might have been fast on my feet, but I was sure Midoriya could manage to keep up with him better than me. I must’ve looked lost, since instead of taking a sip from his thermos, he nodded his nose at the arena. “But, look at her. She’s walking in there like her victory is assured.”

“She can punch through the frost. That gives her a chance, unless Todoroki-kun uses his flames.” Todoroki’s Quirk was strong, but swiftly generated ice was brittle. It was more of a coming, speedy projectile than an immovable glacier, as that would’ve made his massive attack before his chastisement impossible to do away with. It dissipated quickly and was brittle, but it could still push and attack… but if Koda didn’t fear it Todoroki’s main advantage would be lost. And, Koda didn’t fear anything. “Do you think he would, Principal?”

Todoroki’s circumstances were reprehensible at best. Endeavour’s reputation and the support of other families who pursued Quirks through the mixing of blood was the only reason that Endeavour was merely, quietly told to take a step back and reevaluate himself away from the public eye. Some placed the blame on Todoroki’s mother, but that was due to circumstances set into motion by Endeavour. While Endeavour was a hero who strove for power, strength, and justice so much that he attained the second rank, I couldn’t see him as anything more than an ally or colleague. We were on amicable terms, but… anymore would be…

But, I suppose my position was weak there.

I was gifted with great strength that his training and innate talent could never reach.

I trained, but did I train as much as him?

The scent of coffee filled my nose.

“Here, drink. You seem sleepy, since your mind is wandering so much.”

“Ah, I don’t drink coffee.”

“Drink, Toshinori.”

“Hai, Sensei.”

Ah, I still cave when he talks to me like that…

I didn’t even enjoy coffee…

“Koda-san reminds me of myself, but she hides her intellect quite a bit better than I do. And, of course, she hides her mischief quite cleverly.” Ah. Sometimes, I forgot that Principal Nezu was not human, but an animal that somehow gained a Quirk. Experimented upon until he managed to free himself, he bore scars both mental and physical from his experience. His “mischief” was in the form of quite sadistic methods of testing, such as using a wrecking ball on students trapped in a maze to ensure their abilities. “But, of course, she does not hide it well enough for me. Tell me, Toshinori, are you aware of Koda-san’s impeccable information gathering abilities? That her ability to communicate with animals goes both ways? That she has accessed the medical files of her fellow students… and quite possibly knows your connection with Midoriya-kun?”

Of course, at all those words, I was only able to drop my coffee onto my lap. 

“WHAT!?” I wasn’t able to control my voice. Thankfully, though I’d planned on sitting amongst the public, I’d sat with the Principal in a private cabin to regain my strength after transforming. I’m sure that I’d have drawn quite a few looks from the surroundings by screaming aloud, given my looks outside of my All Might form. However, that didn’t matter as much as another pressing issue. The coffee that was on my pants. “AH, HOTTTT!”

“It’s warm, Toshinori. Hot coffee is for low quality beans and not what I’d give to a friend.” It wasn’t time for being chastised, but I was being chastised. Really, I didn’t know how Midoriya-kun still looked up to me. All my beloved teachers had all been terrifying. He’ll have good publicity and be likable in the future, but I really hoped that he wouldn’t fall to anyone who can hide their intentions! “But, I can forgive you for spilling. Koda-san is quite the surprising and enterprising individual. If the rats in UA weren’t loyal to me and warned me of her surveillance efforts, it’s completely possible that she’d have the whole school in the palm of her hand, ohoho!”

I realized that I’d never heard Principal Nezu talk to anyone with the term –san. It was usually their whole name for those he respected and the usual additions of –kun and –chan for everyone else. How he had the courage to call every girl –chan was an eternal mystery, but that wasn’t important now!

“Could Koda some sort of spy—

“Nope. Impossible. Why? Because if she was the spy, we’d already all be dead… or UA’s name would be tarnished so utterly that the school would have to close down and cast all heroes in an ill light. Hahaha!” Sensei’s laughter meant that he was delighted in extremely puzzling and frustrating someone. However, this laugh didn’t remind me of his usual laugh. It was held back. Cautious. It was like he was restraining himself… like he was a puzzling someone but had to concentrate on doing so. “That girl is out to win every battle… and she sees everything in life as a battle! If she can do something perfectly, if she work hard to accomplish her goal, she would without hesitation.”

I wasn’t very insightful. In battle it was more experience that let me overcome Quirks that were strange and strong, but I was definitely able to see the lines Principal Nezu was drawing now.

“She’s like you. She’s a person who takes others and makes them better.” There were many kinds of Heroes, but there were those who didn’t fit the common image of taking on crimes and disasters for the sake of others. There were those who were more suited for other roles. No one hero can fit every situation. However, if Principal Nezu was implying what he thought he was implying, then I was sure what kind of hero Koda Tera was going to be. “A coordinator behind the scenes.”

“A good answer, but not specific enough. What I’m saying is that she could be to me what you are to Endeavor, Toshinori. Already, I can tell that there’s a chasm forming between her and me, ever since the attack at the Disaster Center.” A successor was one thing, but a better planner than Nezu? That was terrifying. Very terrifying. We were lucky someone with such high intellect and mental abilities was willing to be a hero and coordinate the training of new individuals, while passively providing insight into how heroes should operate across all of Japan. What could be said about a mind that made that one feel incapable of matching it? “We have in our hands someone that can lead the next generation in the conflicts that’ll come after the peace that you’ve brought, All Might.”  

I was able to take some heart in Principal Nezu’s words. How couldn’t I? There was someone like Nezu for Midoriya’s age.  However, the way Nezu talked about her… about information gathering, seizing the means to victory, and achieving victory in exchange for acceptable costs… those weren’t terms given to a hero.

“You make her sound like a general, Sensei.” There was no denying that once I could no longer access One For All, that crime would arise all over Japan. The criminals that were kept down by my presence would rise again. And, I kept many down. The vacuum of power would have heroes and villains fighting each other for years to come. If I closed my eyes, I could almost see the history books writing about it in the future, with text the same as those of the Warring States Period. I didn’t like the thought of heroes and villains fighting a war against each other, but what other way could describe what was coming? “Koda-chan… just seems a little strict. Maybe, you’re putting too much expectations on her?”

“Haha.” Nezu laughed, but this time it the most quiet laugh I’d ever heard from him. His thermos trembled a little in his furred fingers. What did his High Spec Quirk see? Just how much of the situation was he keeping to himself? He knew what was coming. He’d set the heroes towards the path of strengthening ourselves in the coming years to take the brunt of the weight until the next generation was strong and ready. What was it about Koda Tera that made him laugh so quietly, instead of his usual mania whenever he found things going according to his plans? “To be honest, Toshinori, I think I might be underestimating Koda-san. According to my Quirk, I’ve simply found a talented, driven genius who’ll be a integral to the future of heroics in Japan. However, if I simply trust in my instincts, I find myself feeling that Koda-san will not stop at recreating peace, but at villainy as we know it gone forever.”

Nezu looked upon the girl in her first year of high school with fear and trembling.

I didn’t know whether or not to be happy about another person feeling the same way I did, especially because I was supposed to be her teacher, someone who protected her and guided her.

But, wouldn’t I be a foolish, terrible teacher if I didn’t know my student?

…

The fight was a long one. It was not the simple, brutal victory that Koda Tera had in her previous fights. Todoroki was determined to win and fought with every intention to win.

It was a match of endurance between the two.

Koda could not approach him, but she stayed spry, broke through his attacks, and moved to and fro the battle. She supplemented her dodging and counterattacks with thrown pieces of the arena that forced Todoroki to either move or create a barrier. 

It was the way a stronger, more direct hero would take against someone with the advantage in range. 

It was a practical.

Textbook, even.

Pros would undoubtedly look at the way she fought with interest and she’ll gain many requests.

However, that wasn’t what the public saw.

They saw the classic hero wielding ice and trying to restrain the villain, not using his flames since it would harm them, while the villain outlasted the hero through cunning and guile. 

It was my fault.

Being the Symbol of Piece required someone who fought with power, who was easy to remember, and always broke out of a tough spot. 

That was Todoroki here. 

He was the man who would rise against the villains with magnificent power and spectacle. He was the classic hero who would face off against the villain for the common person. He’ll freeze his opponents in ice, never use his fire because it would hurt others, and protect even the villain he fought until the very end.

Koda Tera was the villain who was unstoppable.

In every fight she entered, she would either use her Quirk, her mind, or her body and training. With a yell, she’d called upon a plague that turned the sky dark and had an army of animals and insects come to her, as she could against anyone who didn’t have a simple means to overcome her Quirk. Against those that could, she would outmatch them in wits and lure them into a trap. Finally, against someone who had more power and could overcome her, she’d train for, prepare for, and be ready for. 

She was the villain that killed heroes and no one wanted to think about.

And, she was going to win.

Or, so I thought.

Until Midoriya gave a yell that I didn’t expect and the flames I didn’t expect to rise did.