Stuck Between Realities-Remastered

Part 1~Going to UA

"Izuko! Wake up, breakfast is ready!" Emiko paused, wondering if she should get him herself. Deciding he deserved to sleep a bit longer, she returned to the kitchen, finishing the meal before preparing it for consumption.

Groaning, the small boy dragged himself into the room, collapsing into his chair and throwing his head on the table. "Everything hurts. Why does everything have to hurt?" The boy buried his head deeper into his arms, hissing as the fresh wounds stung against the pressure.

"Well, maybe if you didn't reopen your wounds every night, they wouldn't hurt as much." Emiko grinned as she passed him the cutlery. They had had this conversation almost every day since he was seven.

"It's not my fault," Izuko pouted, lifting up his head. "If you went through that every night, you would adopt bad habits too. Just be glad I stopped setting fire to the bed."

Emiko smiled at her brother's antics. Some called it dark humour, and Emiko called it a proper coping mechanism. "I've got to go soon. Today is the UA entrance exam. Do you want to come? I'm sure they will let you watch if we explain your condition."

Izuku grinned, shooting up happily, his mood shifting sharply. "Seriously?!"

"Yeah, finish up and get changed. We will need to get there early." Emiko waited for Izuku to finish the meal before jumping up and running to get changed.

He grinned wildly as he returned, bouncing up and down by the door. "Let's go! Let's go! Come on, Emi, let's go already!" Izuku grabbed Emiko's hand and dragged her to the door.

"Alright, we're going." She grabbed her keys before leaving the house, locking the door and leading her excited brother down the road.

~~~

Gaping, Izuku stared at the gate. Just beyond that point was UA, the school for heroes. Unable to contain himself, he ran forward, dragging Emiko behind him.

"Halt."

Izuku squeaked, blinking in surprise as he looked at the security guard.

"I'm sorry, but you cannot enter unless you're taking part in the exam." The guard sighed, all too used to children trying to gain access.

Izuku pouted, his lip quivering as water collected in his eyes. He didn't want to walk home alone or be alone, and the whole thing scared him beyond belief.

Seeing her brother's distress, Emiko stepped forward, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. "Hey! He's with me! You get both of us or neither of us!"

"I'm sorry, miss, I cannot make any exceptions."

"But I can't leave him alone."

"Why can't a parent or guardian look after him? And besides, he's what, 13? He can look after himself till you're done."

Emiko growled, tightening her fist. That jerk. "Yeah, and you look, what, 30? I'm sure you can look after yourself once I'm done with you."

"Now, now, I think we should all calm down." Stepping out of the school grounds, Nezu glanced between Emiko and the guard.

"Oh, my elements!" Shooting past Emiko, Izuku grinned up at the headmaster. "You're Nezu! It's incredible to meet you in person! Doc is always telling me about your contributions to us! You're amazing! And your hero work is outstanding, too! Wait, what animal are you? Were you born this way, or did you change when you got your Quirk? Were you originally an animal or a human? Oh, what about-" Izuku couldn't finish as Emiko hit the back of his head, effectively stopping him mid-rant. "Hey! That hurts, you know!"

Emiko chuckled, crossing her arms. "That's kind of the point. You were going full fanboy there." Pouting, Izuku huffed, making Emiko roll her eyes lightly. "I'm sorry about him. He tends to get overexcited when he meets... well, anyone." She chuckled, shaking her head.