From souls to heroes

A Life Anew

As for curveballs, this was the hardest one yet. When Orihime, proud protector, healer, wife and mother, passed on into the afterlife, she wasn't sure what to expect.

To be born again was not one of those things.

It was odd to be so tiny, swaddled in a blanket, looking up at a woman and man you had never seen before. The two people, who she assumed were her new parents, were crying happily about her.

"Look how beautiful she is" the woman smiled tearfully down at her.

"Yeah, we did amazing sweetheart" the man kissed his wife before he too smiled down at her, tears in his eyes.

"Welcome to the world, Ochaco"

Orihime, now Ochaco Uraraka, knew from a young age that this world was different from the last. Sure, the soul society and hollows were weird, but when she realized that her preschool teacher had fish scales where skin should be, she knew something was off.

It wasn't just her teacher though. Many of her classmates also had strange abnormalities.

She learned a little later on that about 80 percent of this world were born with things called quirks.

Usually, they wouldn't appear until the age of 4 or 5, but some people with mutation quirks would show signs as soon as they were born.

Heck, her own mother was able to make people's eyeballs move in weird ways.

It was a lot to take in. Thankfully, she had prior experience with dealing with the unusual, so it came as less of a shock.

Age 4 was when Ochaco discovered her own quirk, she could make things float.

She discovered it on accident when she went to grab something. She was surprised by a small pink flash and dropped the item, only it didn't hit the floor.

She heard her mother gasp behind her as she rushed over.

"Ochaco, did you just..."

Ochaco turned to look at her.

She then touched something else, and, with another small pink flash, it started to float. Her mother was amazed.

"That's your quirk, it manifested! Oh, just wait until your father sees! He's going to be ecstatic!" As her mother rushed out of the room to grab a camera, she left Ochaco to think for a few moments.

'So, this is my power?' She looked down at her hands.

It felt like the first time she activated shun shun rikka all over again. She was amazed.

'Maybe, I can use this power to help people again' she softly smiled; a look of determination filled her eyes as she clenched her hand into a fist. She felt, once again, like the girl who could take on any situation without batting an eye, the girl who went through multiple battles and survived.

Until something bumped her train of thought.

"But...how do I turn it off?"

"You want to help with the family business?"

Ochaco nods at her father.

Her parents always looked so tired no matter how much they tried to hide it. It was something she noticed even before her quirk manifested.

Ochaco could pick up on things a lot faster than an average 5-year-old and the fact that her family was struggling financially bothered her to no end.

The building company that her parents ran hardly ever got any work, so they were dirt poor.

"Yeah, with my quirk, you could cut costs on moving supplies".

Her mother and father shared an odd glance at each other, something that they would do often when Ochaco said something that wasn't very childlike, before turning back to her and softly smiling.

"Well, you certainly have thought about this a lot" her father mused, putting his hand on his child's head and rubbing it softly.

"However..."

Ochaco looked up at him. He was smiling brightly now.

"...I think it would be better if you followed your own dreams. Then, you can take us on a nice trip to Hawaii someday. How about that kiddo?"

The first time she sees a hero in public , Ochaco is hooked.

To see everyone gathered around smiling brightly and wanting autographs, it makes her heart happy.

The feeling grows even more when she sees All Might on tv for the first time.

He was so brave and kind, it reminded her of Ichigo.

To save people with a smile on her face, that's what she wants.

"I want to be a hero" she admits to her mother one day.

"You do?" She nods excitedly.

"Yeah, I want to be able to help people. I want my quirk to help, not to harm"  her mother seems surprised at such a mature response coming from a 6 year old, but she soon smiles happily at her.

"I'm sure you'll be a wonderful hero, Ochaco"