Hiro Rising

A crushing first meeting! A valuable new ally

Hiroto sat in his seat toward the back of the classroom, enjoying the quiet return to normalcy. The doctors needed to run a few more tests, so his mom ended up taking Terra and Osen back to the dorms before he was released. He winced as he accidentally stretched too far, causing the bandage covering his burns chafe. "My eyes aren't much better, but at least I can see," he thought to himself. The worried faces of his friends surrounding him in the hospital flashed through his mind. "I have to get stronger. I can't put them through that again."

"Hiro-kun!" a familiar voice sounded from the front of the classroom. Before he could respond, Terra was standing next to his desk, beaming brightly. "You're here! When did you get out?"

"They released me this morning. It didn't make sense to go back to the dorms, so I just came here."

"Wow, man. You've got mad endurance!" Kage said as he entered the room. "I'd have taken the sick day, but glad to see you up and about, dude!" He was followed by the usual suspects who quickly gathered around Hiroto to check in on him.

Hiroto looked around at his friends as they chatted. Their happy faces were a far cry from the worried ones that had been on his mind all morning. A small grin began to form on his own as he rested his head on his desk. "It's good to be back."

Terra glanced at Sachi, Osen, and Shion with a smirk. "Wow, a smile out of Hiro-kun at this time of day?" Terra laughed as she nudged Hiroto's shoulder, causing him to groan in pain. "Gah! I am so sorry, Hiro-kun! I forgot about the burns!"

"We should really change out your bandage so it doesn't get infected," Sachi pointed out, producing a roll from her bag.

"I brought some ointment too," Shion said proudly. "Old family remedy. It'll make you feel better in no time!"

"Y-your eyes are still l-looking a little red, H-hiroto," Osen said as her hand shifted into her water form. "L-let me help you, t-too."

As the three girls went to work tending to their recovering friend, Hiroto stole a quick glance at Terra, who was having a difficult time not laughing at the scene. He sighed and just let it happen. "I guess I have made some good friends . . . not that they need to know that right now." While the medical attention was going on, the rest of the class began to filter in, making comments about the training and checking in on Hiro to make sure he was okay.

"There! Good as new!" Shion said as the three girls stepped back. She quietly glanced at the other two, and her face contorted a little bit. ". . . thanks . . . for the help . . ."

Sachi looked a little surprised at the appreciation from Shion, but she quickly recovered her composure. "Hiroto is our friend, too."

"I think we all want to see him recover as quickly as possible," Osen responded with surprising clarity.

"If you all are done," Mr. Aizawa said from the front of the room, an uncharacteristic smirk on his face, "the bell has rung." Everybody quickly made their way to their desks as the teacher began. "Before we get started, I wanted to address the elephant in the room. Obviously, the events at USJ were totally unplanned for. This new faction claiming to be the last remnants of the league of Villains has gone unnoticed until yesterday." His gaze fell sternly on each of his students. "While the orders were for you all to evacuate the facility as quickly as possible, I do have to commend the teamwork shown in helping get everyone to safety. You took time to assess the situation, and most of you kept your cool and didn't run into danger on your own." His eyes came to rest on Sabi, who shrugged and looked away with indifference.

"We don't know the reasoning for the sudden appearance of this group, but the school is not taking it lightly," Mr. Aizawa continued. "Until we know more about the situation, the faculty has deemed it necessary to put the school on lockdown until further notice. Everyone is to remain on campus for the time being."