Beauty vs the Beast (Katsuki Bakugo fanfic)

22:「 Internships 」

Before the students knew it, the internships had begun, and the class was getting ready to board the trains to their respective agencies.

"You've got your costumes right? Wearing them in public is strictly prohibited, but don't drop them," Aizawa instructed in front of the train station. "All of you, be on your best behavior. Now go!" 

Immediately, he students began to disperse to find their routes.

"Minazuki! I hope you have fun at your internship!" Uraraka smiled meekly at Carine. The small, submissive smile was enough for Carine to recognize that something was worrying her.

A few seconds later, Deku walked up to the two of them. With a troubled look on her face, Uraraka motioned to look behind her.

All three of them glanced at Iida, who had his back turned on them. Without a second thought, Carine understood Uraraka's uneasiness.

She had heard what happened to Iida's older brother, Ingenium, after the festival. She knew that it was her own sister's team that discovered Ingenium's wounded body, but even Halo couldn't catch the culprit.

Ingenium's attacker was still out there, somewhere. Like a ghost, he haunted the streets, murdering numerous heroes and leaving others permanently damaged. This was the work of Stain, the hero-killing villain. 

Iida, however, never told his classmates anything.

"Iida!" Deku called out to his friend, running up to him. Uraraka and Carine followed.

"If it ever gets to be to much and you need to talk, just say something. We're your friends," Deku reassured. Uraraka nodded feverishly beside him.

Iida turned to look at the three of them. "Sure," he replied simply with a smile on his face. With nothing else, Iida walked away from his classmates, who stared at him in bafflement. 

Carine thought about Iida as she stepped foot into her internship's agency. There was something...off...about that smile of his. She wasn't sure if the others recognized it too, but she was certain there was an insidious look in those dark eyes of his.

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"You got here sooner than I expected."  A too-familiar voice greeted Carine at the agency, and she shifted her gaze to look directly at the person coming over to her.

Many agencies offered Carine an internship, and if she had to be truly honest, she herself didn't understand why she chose this one.

Now in front of her, Akari smiled at Carine. "Get ready. We're about to patrol outside." 

Surprisingly, the route didn't have many dangerous villains. They had spent hours running and capturing average villains. Most of them Carine could handle by herself.

She wondered if it was because word had gotten out that the hero Halo was out protecting the streets. In between the patrols, Akari sparred with Carine.

"Your weakness lies in your movement. You're too stiff. It slows you down," the Pro Hero stated as she landed a hit on her younger sister, who was sent reeling back numerous times.

Carine knew she was right; despite how strong she thought she had gotten these past months, she couldn't even touch Akari. Her movements were amazingly swift, like light itself. 

"Think of your body the same way you think of your quirk. It's a part of you. Treat it as if it's weightless. Like water," Akari suggested.

Like water; Carine thought about the way water moved from her hands. It flowed so smoothly, yet moved so quickly, that it was near impossible for the enemy to see where it would hit next. 

The piercing sound of sirens preventing the two of them from continuing any further. Screams erupted from the surrounding area. Promptly, Akari raised her head and turned around.

"There's trouble up ahead. Come on!" Akari instructed as she ran ahead. Carine sprinted after her older sister.

Feeling her phone vibrating in her pocket, she pulled it out as she ran. Deku, Carine thought as she looked at the screen. He had sent out his location; she wondered if he was in trouble. Abruptly, Carine turned around and ran the other way. 

"Hey! Where are you going!?" Akari shouted, seeing her sister from the corner of her eye. 

"4210 Echo Street. It's an Alleyway. If you finish your job or see extra pros, send them there! I'm sure you can handle the trouble here yourself!" Carine yelled back while continuing to run forward.

Akari sighed and decided to keep moving. Up ahead, she saw a pro hero struggling to take down a villain. From her palms, she emitted a large beam of light and aimed it directly at the villain, who instantly fell to the ground, unconscious.

"Leave him to my sidekicks. They'll make sure the cops take him," Akari stated to the other pro hero. "There's an address I need you to investigate for me. I'm Halo, so don't worry. I can take of the rest myself," she said confidently. 

Meanwhile, Carine had finally found the location Deku had sent, after several minutes of running.

She peeked into the alleyway to see Deku, Iida, and Todoroki standing motionless. Suddenly, she saw a figure in midair, about to attack them. The others weren't doing anything. There must be something wrong, she thought.

With a deep breath, Carine released a large vortex of water from her palms and aimed it at the attacker; the water expanded as it plummeted into the air and forcefully reeled him back. 

"Sorry. I hope I'm not too late," Carine spoke as she walked up to her classmates, who each turned to look at her with a bewildered expression on their faces.