Making friends [Ichor}

"Aaaaah~, there she is." Joining up with Ichor's taunting, opening his arms for a hug that would never come. The girl would do exactly what she was told or else. He'd quickly hug himself and chuckle. He'd lean left and right amused with her response. Her boss wasn't their problem! "He can come talk to us. We're plenty friendly." He passed a look to Ichor, and back to the girl. "We could always dine in of course. We're a hoot at parties. Though a dead boss means you don't get paid, OR why not just do a better job of sneaking. I think this is a fair set of options. " He'd pull his fingers through his hair, a light hint of steam coming off of him. The other hand teased the pistol nestled in his holster.

He'd reopen the booklet, and point to a few pictures without care for how much it would cost the restaurant and likely the girl's paycheck. She wasn't using the money for herself anyway, so who cares if a few plates went in her name... certainly not this confident duo. "Anyways, lets get these and this one. Oooh that too!" The steamy punk would let his hand fall and keep pointing out pictures. He'd get a small feast for Ichor and himself. 

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Koito had been dawdling about as usual. Instead of homework or training, his stomach was leading the way today. He had sat down, finally finding a spot to eat. The vibes were good, and so was the food. He couldn't quite put his finger on who the waitress was, but she seemed familiar. Maybe she was one of his classmate's older sister? Maybe an upperclassman? Regardless, his interest peaked when he saw her usual tired expression contort into a worried one. He'd been here plenty of times before, and he never saw that expression before. It was more than just being down in the dumps, something was actually wrong. It was unsettling, to say the least. How could everyone in the restaurant not notice something so obvious? She was the one serving them! Was she that invisible to them?

For better or for worse, Koito was self-important. As cocky as it came off, he often felt it necessary to follow through on the direction his internal compass pointed. It was only natural for him to figure things out and find his orientation. From butting heads with Yoichi, to the villain encounter at the mall, to making friends with Rey the tinkerer... -his nose hadn't led him astray yet. He finished his meal but continued to order root beer floats in order to keep his table. That older girl hadn't come back yet... Something was definitely up. 

Koito frowned... Somehow the waitress looked even worse than she did a few moments ago. The silver-haired teen would toss his money onto the table and b-line straight to her. "Umm, Hi." -Weak intro dude- He thought to himself. How exactly was he supposed to approach the conversation? "We go to school together... I'm a first year named Koito...-not that it matters." He paused, before shaking his head and meeting her eyes with more conviction. He couldn't come at this situation with a weak will. He needed to maintain his resolve. If it's one thing he learned from the mall incident... He needed to understand fear was a part of the process, and that it was up to him not to lose control of his emotions and actions. She was shaking... Koito would softly place a palm on her shoulder. 

"Are you okay?" From what he could tell it wasn't something from the customers. She put on a brave face when serving him, and even when serving the other customers. Why was it that every time she came from the back, she seemed even more on edge than before she left. He'd take a stab at guessing. "Are those chefs mistreating you? Is it your boss?" His mind rolled as he said this out loud. This was a precarious situation to begin with. Come to think of it... why was she even working a job here? Most UA students lived in the campus dorms and were pretty well taken care of. Part of Koito thought he was in over his head, but his other half was indomitable. Why would a number 1 hero student back down from helping someone? They weren't friends yet, but she was indeed in need. 

She seemed nice, but there was something so obviously beneath that. His face fell in response when she told him it was just a busy night. There were tears in her eyes... More than that, she hadn't outright answered his question. It was a simple one. It troubled him more that she was fine with just saying it wasn't his problem. And in all truth, it wasn't his problem. He'd put on a brave face and smile right back. "Yo... Nice to meet you and thanks for the food." He wanted to be reassuring in a situation like this but how? It was none of his business, after all. Naturally, he backed off a bit before bowing slightly.  "And... sorry for butting in." He'd chuckled nervously. Without much other words, he'd slowly walk to the door. As he opened it to leave, he took one last peak. Shake it off Koito~ He mired internally to himself. The tall boy would get lost in the crowd, seemingly gone with the wind.

A banging could be heard from the impatient villains outside. "Hurry up. At least give us some drinks." November grumbled. From the rooftop, Koito watched from above. No way was he going to let Yo out of his sight with a look like that on her face. His nerves were on end just thinking about what she could have been dealing with. Two guys were there. One with spiky hair, and the other whose hair was more tame. They seemed like no good, but something was telling Koito not to bite too early. Perhaps it was Gigabite's teachings sparking in the back of his head... - or maybe Nocturne's detentions.... maybe both. Still, Koito forced himself to sit still and get a better understanding of the situation. 

"Hahaha, thirsty bastard." November snickered at Ichor's antics. The steam punk would get in close and whisper to Yo, "Stay just like this, and all will be well.  Don't want any accidents to happen. Let me fill you in on something confidential... Things are moving rather fast, and we are going to need some good cooperation for our next feat. " She'd know exactly what he meant by accidents, but what did he have planned for her specifically? November passed a look to Ichor. "When we're done chowing down, wanna meet up with some of the others? I just had a great idea." Koito flinched as he watched Ichor from the roof. His tongue? What kind of crazy quirk was that? Yo was definitely in danger and he had to do something! He geared himself for the one closest to Yo...

As far as Koito had planned it, he'd knock November out with a speedy take down and shove Yo into the building while he fought these jerks off. But that tongue... He wasn't quite sure of its reach. How could he play this? He didn't know November's quirk... He felt like maybe he could deal with the sharp tongue. But he still needed to free up Yo. What was November telling her? Was he just supposed to run away and ask for help? No real hero would ever do that! No matter the situation, Koito always found himself diving in head first, but was that really the thing to do? FUCK... He wasn't used to thinking about things so hard. As hard as he thought, the only solution he could think of... was BE A HERO!



"You! Your quirk is crazy strong, but it makes you cocky. You're way too laid back! If you focused and didn't take everything lightly, then you'd be unstoppable. Stop taking everything like it's a joke! Then maybe you could be..." Yoichi's advice rang in his head

"YO, I'm sorry to butt in, but I can't just watch this happen!" It was Koito's voice but where was it coming from?

November looked up, "A friend?" He asked Yo, his smirk ever present. 

He focused hard, sticking his tongue out as he carefully angled himself toward the threat. More than showing Yoichi, he wanted to prove to himself this hero's dream wasn't a joke. He was there to help and that's all there was to it. November's cocky smile would quickly fade and evaporate as Koito launched himself fist-first like a human projectile. The steampunk's upper body would puff into hot steam as a reaction to Koito's attack. "HOT!" It hurt like hell just striking November, but he definitely made contact. He turned to Yo just like his initial game plan, but November had already materialized. The villain grabbed the student by the collar and launched him toward the nearest wall with a hearty grunt, and a quick hand to draw his pistol. A few shots rang out, causing the mains streets to explode in panic. As soon as Koito's back touched the wall, an arrow panel jerked him toward Ichor, subsequently dodging every shot. "Fucker is fast..." Novembers eyes scanned for a clue, but from his standpoint, Koito's body blocked the arrow panel entirely. For the steam punk, Koito's movements looked like some sort of herky-jerky flight pattern. "Ichor, there's something up with kid's moves. " He gave his cohort a heads up. For more insurance, November reached for Yo to yank her into his gun. When in doubt, grab a hostage -Villainy 101. Hero or not, this was a hostage who wouldn't fight back.

As Koito sped toward Ichor, he readied himself. Instead of the same human bullet tactic, Koito came to an immediate halt and pointed to the right. This was to throw Ichor off. If he were successful, his attack would do some serious damage. "Vector Plate!" If the villain weren't paying attention, an arrow would form at his feet and propel Ichor into the wall with great force to deal damage. 

Koito did a double-take between the two villains. November took Yo at gun point, and Ichor was way more durable than he anticipated. That look on Ichor's face... Compared to the villain he fought at the mall, these two felt incredibly different. According to the report, that dragon guy was a tiny bit reasonable. Apparently, Tanzo talked him down a bit. These two? They were monsters! There didn't need to be a greater purpose attached. They did these things out of pure enjoyment. Koito had never dealt with evil-doers like this before. It was unsettling to say the least. He did another double take, not sure November was gonna kill his new upperclassman friend. 

"That uniform is like a flag, I'd like to see burn." The gunslinger replied to Yo, before calling out to his cohort once more. "Looks like the main course came early Ichor. " He'd also send a threat to Koito, "I'll make this a fair fight, in fact, I'll let her go if you win. If you lose, BULLET HOLE." A dastardly smile draped his face. It immediately snatched Koito's attention. So much for a fair fight.

"But, that's not fai-nnngh" He felt something jab into him. The sensation was so jarring, he couldn't move for a few seconds. Damn liar! Wincing in pain, Koito snapped out of it and turned his attention to Ichor. With a thumbs down with one hand, he tried to yank himself free with the other. "Jail!" Arrow projectiles emitted from his shoulders and aimed to pin the long tongue down into the ground. Koito's idea was if the tongue couldn't get him, he'd be safe. The stab wound wasn't huge, but he knew it was going to be a problem if he prolonged this. "Don't worry, Senpai, I'll free you!" He said, pointing in various directions. There was a method to the madness. 

Koito's eyes widened when he saw Ichor powers activated. Mosquito? That tongue! It was making sense now... He wanted to kick himself but this was no time to dwell on a mistake. His opponent was faster now! And presumably stronger too. The villain seemingly vanished as the volley of jail projectiles plummeted into the ground, leaving holes. A complete miss, but where'd his opponent go? Koito fell into a deep concentration for a moment, his pupils flicked as he was still trying to adjust to the fiend's newfound speed. Ichor, as November called him... he sped around by bouncing off the walls, right? Koito couldn't keep up physically, but he could follow the trajectory of the Ichor blur with his orientation quirk. From behind? He turned his head to check and he was right! The boy pivoted as fast as he could and tried to bring a guard up but kicked cleared faster than he could defend, landing right into his side. Koito gritted his teeth and tried grabbing onto Ichor's leg while waiting for his sticker traps to activate. His pain would be masked by a pained chuckle. "Hehe... I'm feeling inspired!" 



Ejecting from the floor, projectile arrows roared upward and made a sharp veering turn toward Ichor. These were missile arrows, sharp enough to skewer with long tails to propel whatever they touched in the direction they flew in. As the projectiles flew, they'd trigger another missile trap that rested on the wall. These seemingly didn't go toward Ichor at all, but they did hover overhead. This triggered a final trap on the opposing wall whose projectiles filled seemed to be aimed behind Koito, filling the space with their long tails as well.

The method to Koito's earlier random pointing was becoming not so random. While he had no clue Ichor was going to go Mosquito Saiyan 1, he did have an idea to create a net made of harmful projectiles. He would be the only safe point, and his enemy would have a hard time trying to avoid being skewered. And if not skewered, the long tails of these arrows would take the villain on a joy ride, crashing into whatever was hard enough. In a wheezing exhale, Koito slapped a name on his new move. An orientation projectile net to defend himself, and sling an enemy across the battlefield- "Compass trap, No Way Home!" Behind this proclamation of a new move, the young hero gave off a goofy smirk. His creativity was soaring as he learned about his enemy. He felt inspired being able to fight on someone's behalf, and he was hoping he could Yo the courage to fight back too!  This was how he fought. This was his justice. This was the winning image he wanted to present, a hero who can improvise and grow no matter what situation they fell into. A hero who could charge in without fear and smile just like Strive and Speed.


November grumbled. Koito was by no means winning, but it was insanely irritating that he could keep up. Keep up may not have been the right expression. He had a ridiculous learning curve. These weren't real tactics, it was improv... November hated heroes like this. It reminded him of how annoyingly crafty some combatants could be. "It's not about furthering anything. He butted in, so it's about teaching respect. He belongs under our feet." He removed the gun from Yo's head and squinted, aiming at Koito. A bullet could squeeze through right? He fired a round, but the bullet veered far off when it came into contact with the tail of one of Koito's projectiles. It was a tighter net than November imagined. It made sense though... as the projectiles moved, their tails swayed, meaning the net itself wasn't stagnant either... ~It's defensive and offensive?~ He thought... This wasn't some impenetrable net. From a distance, it was more obvious Koito was standing in a safety zone of sorts. He wanted to give Ichor some advice, but they had entirely different toolkits for battle. Those arrow projectiles wouldn't affect him if he turned to steam, but how was Ichor supposed to react?