Daily Meme
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A side note. A reader asked how many points Ryuu has gathered, and why doesn't he buy things. Well, I believe I mentioned when I first introduced, if not, that is on me, I don't really want this fic to be about numbers, and skills. They are secondary. So you can assume he uses them as recklessly as he first got them. Got some boring stuff. And sometimes he buys utility items. Such as masking, cloaking things he bought during Vigilante chapters before the Sports Festival. Used again after he was released by police. I don't add all these details as I want chapters to focus on real stuff. Hopefully you like them as this too.
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Eri finally said, "Okay."
Nejire clapped her hands. "Yay! Now we gotta plan what to do first!"
Eri blinked. "First?"
"Yep!" Nejire grinned. "First thing when we get there. Are we getting food? Playing a game? Looking around?"
Eri hesitated. "...Food?"
"Good choice," I said. "Festivals have the best food."
She nodded, looking back down at her book.
Nejire nudged me. "We should get her a festival outfit!"
I frowned. "Why?"
"Because it is cute!"
I gave her a flat look. "Eri can wear whatever she wants."
Nejire pouted. "Boring."
Eri tugged at her sleeve slightly. "...What do people wear?"
Nejire perked up immediately. "Ooo, yukatas! Or just comfy clothes! Anything, really!"
Eri nodded slowly.
Mom sighed. "I will take care of it. You two go do whatever you are scheming."
"Not scheming," I said, standing up.
Mom just raised a brow.
I raised my arms. "I wanna cook for Eri and you. It has been a while."
Mom nodded. "Alright."
Everyone loved my cooking. Nejire was already bouncing on her feet.
"Ohhh, does this mean I get to help? Can I chop things? Can I taste things? Ooo, are we making something special?"
I walked past her to the kitchen. "No, no, and yes."
She followed anyway. "You didn't say no to tasting-!"
I pulled ingredients out of the fridge. "Don't touch anything unless I tell you to."
Nejire huffed but didn't argue.
Eri peeked from the couch, watching as I worked.
"You wanna help?" I asked her.
She hesitated. "What do I do?"
I handed Eri the sauce bowl. "How about you mix this?"
She looked at it, then at me. Her grip on the spoon was a little stiff at first, but she started stirring. She was slow, careful. Probably worried she would mess it up.
Nejire leaned in. "Ooo, good technique! Very professional!"
Eri glanced at her, then back at the bowl, stirring a little more.
I turned back to the stove, flipping the food. While it was cooking, I opened the system shop in my head and bought a Trauma Healing Serum. It popped into my inventory immediately. I pulled out a small vial, barely bigger than my thumb, and poured it onto Eri's plate. It was tasteless, just blended in with the rest of the food.
Eri finished stirring. "Is this okay?"
"Yeah." I took the bowl and poured the sauce over the food. "Looks good."
Mom set the table. "If you two are going to hover, you can bring the rest of the dishes over."
Nejire grabbed a plate. "I volunteer as tribute!"
Eri watched her go, then reached for another dish.
I sat down first. Eri hesitated for a second, then climbed into her seat. She looked at her plate, poked at it a little. She always took a few extra seconds before eating. Probably still adjusting to the idea that she could take her time now.
Mom sat across from her. "Eat while it is warm."
Nejire was already chewing. "Mmm! So good!"
Eri took her first bite. She chewed, paused, then took another. Her grip on her chopsticks loosened slightly.
"Good?" I asked.
She nodded.
I ate, letting her go at her own pace. Mom asked Nejire something about the festival, and Nejire immediately launched into a whole conversation about costumes, food, and whether or not she could convince me to wear something ridiculous.
"No," I said before she could even finish.
"But you would look so good-"
"No."
I mostly accepted the quest because of the rewards but also the other day, Mom said Eri told her she didn't know how to smile. Made her cry a little. I figured the festival would do her good.
Not in some deep, emotional, life-changing way…just… enough. Enough for her to feel something that wasn't fear. Enough for her to see what life was supposed to be like for a kid. A day where she wasn't a prisoner, a test subject, or a responsibility shuffled around between heroes and bureaucrats.
Just a kid at a festival.
I didn't expect it to fix everything. But it would be a start.
--
Figuring out what the class was going to do was the easy part. Getting them to actually work? That was the part that was going to make me regret waking up the next morning.
We had the gym set up for practice. Jiro was working on the setlist, running through options while Kaminari tried... tried to contribute, mostly by throwing out song ideas that made no sense. Kirishima was setting up equipment, Yaoyorozu was talking with Aoyama about lights, and Mina was off to the side, hyping herself up for choreography practice.
And Bakugo?
Not even in the damn room.
I turned to Kirishima. "Where is he?"
Kirishima scratched his cheek. "Uh. Said he wasn't doing it."
"You guys warm up. BRB in a minute."
I walked out before anyone could say shit. Kirishima called my name, but I ignored him. I was already thinking of ways to ruin Bakugo's entire day.
He thought he could skip out? That he could just sit back while everyone else worked? No. Not on my watch.
I found him exactly where I expected, outside, leaning against the railing, arms crossed, staring at the sky like it had personally offended him. He didn't look at me when I stopped next to him.
"Oi," I said. "Inside. Now."
"Tch. No."
I clicked my tongue. "Bakugo."
"Fuck off."
I nodded, then kicked his leg out from under him.
He barely caught himself before hitting the floor, snapping his head toward me, eyes already flaring. "The fuck-"
I shoved my foot against his chest, pushing him back down.
"You listening now?"
His teeth clenched. Hands twitched. He looked like he wanted to blow my face off, but I was already two steps ahead.
"You think you get to skip?" I pressed down a little harder. "Like hell."
"I ain't doin' that dumbass dance shit."
I crouched, grabbing the front of his shirt. "You are."
"Make me."
I grinned. "Alright."
Bakugo was strong. Fast. Good at fighting. But I had something he didn't, zero shame and a complete lack of self-preservation.
It took four minutes, two rolls of tape, and one unfortunate encounter with Yaoyorozu's personal project bag to create what I would later describe as a masterpiece of humiliation.
And when I shoved the door open, dragging him in like a prize-winning idiot everything stopped. Even Jiro's playlist paused.
Silence.
Bakugo, wrapped like a damn mummy in tape, mouth covered, arms pinned to his sides, legs barely able to move, and the best part… wearing a pink tutu over his pants.
Kaminari made a sound I can only describe as a dying seal.
Sero doubled over, clutching his stomach. "WHAT THE FUCK…"
Mina actually collapsed to her knees, face buried in her hands, choking on laughter.
Jiro took one look, turned around, and walked straight into the wall.
Kirishima, bless his dumbass heart, tried to be supportive. "Uh. You look… uhh…"
Bakugo vibrated like an over-pressurized grenade.
"You are welcome," I said.
Sero pointed, barely breathing. "H-How…how did you-"
"Don't ask questions," I said.
Kaminari hit the floor, slamming his fist against it. "BROOO-"
Mina was curled up, wheezing. "OH MY GOD-"
Yaoyorozu stared, visibly trying to process what had been done to her materials. "I, how, where did you get-"
I patted Bakugo's shoulder. "Say thanks."
He growled. Actually growled.
Shoji coughed into his hand. "You gonna untape him?"
I checked my watch. "Eh. Maybe later."
Toru wiped a tear from her eye. "Best day of my life."
Bakugo twitched violently. The tape around his arms stretched slightly.
"Okay," Kirishima said quickly. "Maybe we should get started before he explodes?"
"Yeah, yeah." I waved a hand. "Line up. We are testing movement first."
The class shuffled into place. Some still glanced at Bakugo, barely holding it together.
"Alright," I said. "We are doing footwork drills. Follow me."
I started moving. They copied. Some better than others.
Bakugo couldn't do shit.
Every time he tried to step, the tape restricted his legs. Every time he tried to move his arms, the tape held them in place. He had no choice but to waddle in place like a fucking penguin.
Kaminari was losing it. "Bro-breathe-breathe-"
Sero slapped his back. "He is gonna die-"
Bakugo shook violently. Muffled screaming through the tape.
I sighed. "Alright, alright. Let's free him before he actually kills someone."
Yaoyorozu hesitated. "Should we…?"
I gave Bakugo a look. "You gonna participate?"
He didn't nod. He glared.
I grabbed the tutu and yanked it off.
"Start with that," I said.
—
The class was a fucking war crime. Mina looked like she drank five Red Bulls and snorted glitter. Todoroki moved like an NPC coded by drunk raccoons. Kaminari… A walking power surge with no rhythm.
Jiro clapped a hand over her mouth. "Holy shit, you guys are bad."
"You expected different?" I muttered.
Yaoyorozu sighed. "Perhaps a choreographer was necessary after all."
"You THINK?"
I snapped my fingers, getting everyone's attention. "Focus up. Again."
More movement. More footwork. Slightly less of a train wreck.
Bakugo, now freed, looked ready to commit war crimes. But he followed along. Begrudgingly. Like a rabid dog forced into obedience training.
Mina grinned. "Aw, look at him learning!"
Bakugo snarled.
Jiro smirked. "Kinda cute."
Kaminari choked. "K-kinda-bro-"
Bakugo tried to lunge at Jiro. I grabbed his collar.
"Sit," I said.
He seethed. But he didn't leave.
Progress.
We drilled for another hour. People actually started getting better. Not great. Not even good. But passable.
Jiro had an earbud in, testing beats, nodding along. "This could work."
Mina stretched. "We gonna add more moves?"
"Tomorrow," I said. "We need to not suck first."
Yaoyorozu sighed, stretching her arms. "This will be… an experience."
Kirishima patted her shoulder. "Hey, it will be fun!"
Jiro side-eyed him. "You call this fun?"
Sero wiped his face. "My legs hurt."
"Good," I said. "Means you are using them."
Kaminari collapsed on the floor. "Just let me die."
Mina nudged him with her foot. "Nope."
—
Bakugo, breathing heavy, wiped sweat off his face. "You better not pull that shit again."
I grinned. "Oh, I absolutely will."
Kaminari groaned. "Bro, the tutu-"
Mina snickered. "Taped-up Bakugo. A historical moment."
Bakugo cracked his knuckles. "You got five seconds to shut up."
"Four seconds too long," I muttered.
He swung. I dodged. Same shit, different day.
Yaoyorozu rubbed her temple. "We have days of this, don't we?"
I clapped my hands. "Yup. And tomorrow, we start formations."
Collective groaning.
Mina grinned. "Ohhh, this is gonna be good."
I smirked. "You have no idea. This is just the warm-up act."
Extra (Peruse at own risk)
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Paladin: "Why do you read and not vote?"
Reader: "I don't know. I just… forget."
Druid: shape-shifts into a disappointed ferret
Rogue: steals your guilt and sells it for karma
Bard (Ryuu): serenades your sins in C minor
Roll to redeem.
Nat 1.
You perish.
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