Cosmic Love (Nejire Hado x Reader OC)

Ignition

     Author's Note: Apologies for the (admittedly excessive) delay! There's been a lot going on in my life as of late and I haven't had nearly as much free time to sit down and write, thank you all very much for your patience!

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     "We're going to be taking a short 30 minute break to let our competitors recuperate before the next round, so let's be sure to give it up for everyone who's made it this far!!" 

     Togata's father sighed as the broadcast cut to a commercial break, giving Hado and Amajiki's parents a laugh. "Man, just when things were getting good!" 

     "I'd say things had gotten good a while ago, some of those matches just now were crazy!" Amajiki's father raved excitedly. "Those kids are real fighters, aren't they?"

      "Totally! I'm almost worried for my boy, Clouse about blew up the entire stadium..."

     "I'm sure he'll be fine," Hineri chimed in. "Nejire says they're pretty evenly matched as far as she's aware." 

     "Not that I doubt my son, but I get the feeling he's got his work cut out for him this time." 

     "Well, we'll see in a half hour I suppose!"

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     The last 30 minutes had felt like an eternity, Matthew having spent them alone in a practice room trying to figure out how to set himself on fire. He had little success, only some sputters around his hands and feet. Despite the meager results, he had produced a consistent method to activating this newfound power. 

     "Activate it on my arm, build the pressure, and release..." he muttered to himself. He held his right arm out, flexing as his quirk flushed through and around it. A warm pressure began to build in his forearm, a slight pain with it. He took a deep breath before sharply exhaling, the pressure releasing as his arm sparked up into flames for a moment before wicking out. "There we go, now I've just gotta maintain it." Before he could continue, Midnight announced the beginning of the next round over the loudspeakers. "Whelp, guess I'll figure it out later then." 

     The walk to the arena was short and quiet, the underbelly of the stadium eerily silent despite the crowd right above him. Excitement and nervousness swirled inside of him, more intense than last time. He didn't want to get too into his ego, but he was pretty sure he would win his match with Noki going into it. Togata though, he wasn't so sure. Everything he could possibly throw out was bound to miss at any time, hell Togata had recently gotten the hang of phasing underground and using it to attack from below. It was just up to how many times he could exploit Togata's weakness before he gassed out. Not that he had the time to ruminate on it though.

     His and Togata's entrance was met with more cheering, Midnight getting ready to officiate the match as Present Mic engaged with the audience. "Welcome back everyone! Right now we're getting ready for the beginning of the quarterfinals, and we have one hell of a matchup to start us off! The explosive powerhouse Matthew Clouse and the elusive Togata Mirio, both hailing from Class 1-A, are here to kick off the quarterfinals with a bang! Now everyone... ARE! YOU! READY?!!" The audience roared. Matthew looked up to his class, where he could see Hado and the others cheering. He gave them a small wave before turning back to face Togata. 

     "That's what I wanna hear! Let's get started in 3..." Togata smiled with a nod. 

     "2..." Matthew balled his fists with a small grin.