The Burden of Time [Aizawa x OC]

- twenty five -

(artist creds: jaderarts ^^)

The applause and cheers came to a halt when the auditorium doors burst open. Charging into the room were the students of Class 1A.

"We hear you're talking shit about our teachers," Denki Kaminari stated in the now silent auditorium, his arms folded across his chest. "Not cool, man."

"Yeah, so not manly!" Kirishima boasted, looking directly into Gang Orca's eyes as they charged forward.

Each student proceeded to walk to the center of the floor, where Stand Still and July stood. They gathered around their teachers. It wasn't in solidarity, no, it was as if to protect them from the trial that had just occurred. Stand Still and July were now encircled by their students as they glared all of the Japanese pro heroes down.

Stand Still stood rigid, baffled by the sudden outburst of support. She looked to her counterpart, July, whose face was taut by fighting back emotion. These teenagers, fresh heroes in training, stood with defiance and raw power. They give no fucks. Stand Still thought briefly, her heart aching and warming with every beat.

"What are you guys doing here?" Stand Still whispered quickly to the students, her thought processes suddenly returning to her as the situation unfolded.

It was Mina who turned around to answer, her voice as cool as ever. "Didn't you guys teach us to stand our ground for the things we believe in?" It was so casual, it surprised Stand Still.

"We came here as soon as we heard." Midoriya said, his eyes not leaving the audience of Japanese heroes. "Sorry if we're a little bit late."

Stand Still couldn't think, nor could she speak. Before her, were children intent on protecting her and July. The thought seemed so laughable, yet it was unfolding in front of her in real time. Children who had only known her for a few short weeks, and yet their display of dedication would say otherwise.

There was nothing she felt would be worthy of being said, for she didn't have the words within her. She wasn't sure if those words could exist...

The only thing for sure that was happening was her mind was spinning, trying to grasp onto some reasoning as to why class 1A was doing this for them. She was searching, begging, for any reason. There had to be some logical answer because nothing comes without a price. But the reality was this was happening, and she was receiving something in return for the first time in her life.

It was as if everything she ever wanted, ever craved, was before her. Yet, she couldn't help but question why. There had to be some sort of motive behind their actions, but deep down she questioned if there really was. Could it be that she was valued as a person for the first time in her life?

Stand Still was as conflicted as she ever had been, not recognizing this feeling nor this kind of outward support. Her heart and brain were at complete odds. Everything she had known was being questioned, and all thanks to teenagers she met a few weeks ago, no less.

Her voice was stolen at this moment, everything was stolen. Gone were her thoughts, emotions, complete presence. It was as if she was standing there as a shell of a human. Nothing made sense. Her body and mind were completely separate. The only thing she could do was stand there, like a dummy, with nothing to offer. She was completely stunted.

Was she worthy of this?

Was July worthy of this?

"Who wants to tell us what the problem with our teachers is?" Momo spoke up, using her quirk to create a microphone. She held the microphone toward the audience, as if to challenge them to speak up. This quickly brought Stand Still's attention back to a semi-focus, her eyes sweeping over the other professional heroes in the room.