---

It was the early dawn of a new day, Ruby was very tirred as she been up all night since she techically didn't have somewhere to sleep after running away from home. The first hours had been mostly her trying to put as much distance between herself and home as possible, and as the hour grew later she started regretting her choice... she knew nothing of living on her own, if she didn't get a reply to her message to Tumblr about her wanting to seek her out and trian under her she didn't know would happen to her. Hours passed and she had just aobut all given up hope when her phone rang, she checked briefly if it was from anyone she knew then picked it up as she realized it was the number she been waiting on. "It is?... I really hope so, because I'm betting just about everyhting on the information I gathered about you. Never mind, I meet you there" she replied and hung up, it wasen't that she wanted to be rude or anything, but it was all information she really needed and talking longer would only risk her phone call getting tracked if anyone was listening to her phone. If the FBI Episodes had taught her anything, it was that nothing is really 'secure'.

With her message completed Ruby threw her phone to the ground and stomped on it to shatter it into pieces. Then to be extra sure she inhaled deeply and breathed fire onto the pieces. She then turned tail towards her destination, lickily she had bought a map as she didn't want to use her Gps function, and Toshinori National Garden happened to be a pretty big mark on it. She pulled herself up from the bench she had been resting on, realized she had quite a distance to travel. Yet looking around she noticed several tall buildings nearby, her choice became simple... she spread her wings and flapped them again, she was tired... but she still managed to carry herself after resting. She flew up to the first steps of a set of firestairs and then used them to ascent to the top of the first building. Once she reached the roof she looked around to find her directions an then spred her wings. Hesitating for but a moment Ruby then shuddered before she ran to the side, spread her wings and threw herself off it like only a Lunatic or suicidal person would. Her wings caught wind and her fall slowed, with a few flaps she adjusted with some difficulty into the right direction and then mostly just glided from the high place as far as it would carry her.

It toook her a while, and when the garden was in sight she thought she could just die from the tiredness. She smiled and walked into the garden, finding it beautiful and peaceful. She wondered if it wouldn't make a good place to sleep if nothing else, not that she was feeling particular hobo, but beggars couldnt' be choosers and it was not like she could just go home. When she saw the sandbox she approached it, thinking only then about how oddly particular of a place it was to meet. Perhaps it was just a place that stood out and was easy to find, or perhaps there was some kind of plan behind the place. Ruby hoped that the person she was meeting didn't at least hope to bury her corpse or something in the sandbox, after all she had no idea who she actually was meeting with. "Are you Tumble?" she asked as she didn't quite recognize her for the hero yet.

She noticed a male and female pair around her age nearby but didn't pay any extra attention to them at first. However she did wonder if they was someone involved in this or not.

Music of the city streets hummed and buzzed per usual. Various exhaust smoke trails, steam trails from machines and buildings filled the air. The scents? Ranged from flavorful to foul. Answering yet another phone-call, a similar angered fueled hang-up ends the conversation. Leisurely Murdok exits the second phone booth he's been forced to use today. Generally annoyed and always lacking haste to his step, Murdok decides to take the long route. Enjoy the current walk through the concrete jungle he calls home.

Decent amount of time passed before arrival to the destination told by Tumble. Cigarette poised in mouth, movements didn't cease until Murdok lazily leaned against one of the swing-set poles. Not particularly bothered by anyone he spots, or passes. (Though they probably didn't find his faint trail of smoke enjoyable.) Heck the man hardly gives Tumble a nod upon showing up.

Realizing his surroundings the cigarette is quickly extinguished on his tongue. Flicking the butt onto the ground, fingers are interlaced behind head. Furthering his lackadaisical vibe. Albeit still hosting an expression which seemed very disgruntled over the whole scenario. Coughing or grunting weakly, Murdok clears throat to aid speaking. Saying his voice sounded unenthusiastic would be a horrific understatement. The man's gaze could be seen slowly inspecting every individual who was there.

"Well? Lets get on with it..."

_BGM
Nori's laughter took Reina by surprise, and her natural reaction was to glance at the other girl with sheepish confusion; as though she assumed she had said something stupid to garner the reaction, but didn't know exactly what. Had she really already made a fool of herself in front of her group?

When she saw Nori's expression, however, the unpleasant doubt she felt dissipated--the smile the girl wore was bright and comforting, and it made Reina notice how nice her laugh was to listen to. Her speaking voice, as well; it was confident, and composed, and--

Reina caught herself. Why... was she thinking so much about Nori? Why was she noticing so much about her on their first meeting? Why did she find herself really wanting to spend more time around her?

The black-haired girl felt her cheeks reddening as she dwelled on the implications of her thoughts.

Enough. You're stupid. That's not--

Nori addressed Reina, saving her from her inner voice. "Your plan to rig the votes would’ve been a good one if you actually knew someone here, let alone everyone.”

Reina looked to the girl, considering her words for a moment before giving a sheepish smile as she scratched at her cheek. Nori was right--to do that she'd have to get everyone on board with the idea, and Reina wasn't exactly adept at speaking, especially to people she didn't even know the names of. She thought it over some more, realizing there was an element of trust needed for the plan as well; if anyone didn't like it, they could simply vote for anyone that already had one vote against them. Doing so probably wouldn't make the person very popular with the rest of the kids, but it was another flaw in the idea.

“I’m not gonna vote on you, I’m not even gonna vote at all. I haven’t even seen anyone’s capabilities yet, so I don’t want to, it’s easy really,” Nori said.

Reina nodded in agreement, wearing her own faint smile. Her eyes widened slightly and she tensed up as she suddenly noticed Nori taking confident steps towards her. Her instincts told her to move away, though she managed to fight against the natural reaction and stop herself.

If it had been anyone else approaching her, she would have taken a few quick steps back due to her quirk... but she didn't have to do that around Nori, as was made evident by the increase in the strength of the girl's breeze against her. It was the first time Reina had ever had someone stand so close to her and appear completely unaffected by her quirk; it was a strange thing for her to experience. The realization took Reina by surprise--somehow, it felt significant in some way. All she could do was meet Nori's close gaze, struck by a measure of quiet awe by the whole situation. She tried to keep her mind from focusing on exactly how close Nori was to her, but she still felt her cheeks and ears slowly flushing pink.

“I challenge you to a game."

With her heart beating too quickly, she listened intently to Nori--her expression and tone commanded attention, but it's not like Reina wouldn't have hung on to her words if that wasn't the case. In Reina's mind, there was no refusing Nori, even before she said she wouldn't be taking no for an answer to her bet. Reina nodded quickly, as if scared that Nori would take back her words.

"O-okay," was all she dared to say.

If Nori was trying to motivate and settle Reina's worries, she was succeeding, to say the least.

Reina's widened eyes finally began to narrow, an expression of quiet determination beginning to replace any uncertainty. She nodded slightly again, more to herself this time. The last person she wanted to see go was Nori... and, well, the promised reward was more than a little appealing. She stuck her hands back in her pockets as she did what she could to fight back the dumb smile that was trying to force itself onto her lips.
_BGM
"Um, thank you, Nori," she said with that subdued smile, glancing towards the girl. She paused before adding "I... I'll make sure you won't have to take my place."

The first step Reina could think of to not get any votes: at least act like she belonged, despite whatever she may have thought of herself. She'd focus on fixing her weaknesses once she got through this.

That was what Nori wanted to hear, confidence and determination; Reina would turn into a formidable opponent if she kept this up, and that excited Nori.
But before she could further her interaction, Boro spoke up; he was asking for volunteers and it was the perfect opportunity for Reina to doubt herself again, so Nori instinctively looked at her.

Even before Nori's motivation, Reina had banished the thought of ousting herself. There was no chance she was going out like that now. Feeling Nori's gaze on her, she glanced over at the girl to confirm the thought, suddenly feeling a little self-conscious. Though she looked away again quickly, it was clear by her expression that Nori had nothing to worry about.

"I'm assuming he means volunteers to leave the program," she said with a shake of her head. "I think that'd have to count as a loss for me, so... not happening." The reserved but genuine smile that Nori seemed to constantly elicit from the girl played on her lips again.

Nori couldn't help but return the smile, she was happy that Reina was taking the challenge seriously. But that Boro, he was pro-actively trying to get rid of the weak and doubtful minds without even giving them a chance to develop themselves. It was a cruel thing to do, especially after sending an invitation that gives them hope. It annoyed Nori more than she'd like to admit, enough to spiral her into action.

"Hey Reina, Fenrir; cover your ears." Nori said softly yet a bit agitated, she inhaled deeply, closed her pores and with all her might released as much air out of the pores as she could muster. The result was a screeching whistle emitted from every part of her skin that was uncovered, and it should get everyone's attention.

Reina blinked in curiosity at Nori's command, but followed it without much hesitation--blinking again in amazement and disbelief as the loud whistling took over the noise in the room.

"Boro! What is your problem? Aren't you supposed to be our teacher? What does it take for you to get serious? You know what, I'm annoyed by your attitude-" Nori spoke quite loudly, and in her agitated state, emotions took over as she pointed a finger towards Boro, "I challenge you to a duel! If I lose, I instantly get all the votes, but if I win... you let everyone stay!"

Reina tensed up as the girl addressed Boro as she did. As the initial shock wore off, she found herself having to fight back a small laugh--seeing Nori getting heated was captivating. The confidence she had been demonstrating since the moment they had met shone through brightly, mixed with only a little bit of endearing brashness.

Reina's quiet giggles subsided at the mention of a duel, her eyes widening as uncertainty mixed with her amused expression. While she echoed Nori's sentiments, a fight with Boro seemed like maybe not the best of ideas at the moment. Nori had very likely saved Reina from removing herself from the program, so... maybe she could manage to help the girl in return, in a smaller way.

Her hand reached out, fingers gently tugging on the base of Nori's shirt as a way to help rein the other girl in without making too much of a show out of it. She took a half-step forward, looking from the two who had volunteered themselves--a black-haired boy and a... plant-girl, judging by her voice--to Boro himself.

"Why... are you wanting to kick some of us out already?" she asked him, managing to look him in the eyes. "Is it something Tumble asked you to do? What's the purpose of it?" The girl assumed the reason was along the lines of weeding out any who were obviously not hero-material, but it seemed unnecessarily harsh to do that so soon. They were all kids, and they were all still growing--making such quick judgments on them as they were just seemed unfair. She wanted to hear Boro's own thoughts on the whole thing... and, hopefully, distract him from getting too bent out of shape about Nori's challenge.

@Leotamer @Jabber

@Pacifista
"Sh-Shouichi..."
"Good." She said, nodding, her expression still neutral "Work on that. Build confidence. Take speaking classes." She said, before turning to Boro.
@Jabber
@HeroicSociopath

Volunteers. Seems things were starting to get intense. Boro was angry and the impatient complaints of the kids were answered. As she waited for Tommy to finish, she got ready to speak up, only to be cut off by Yuki calling Boro's bluff.

"I'll resign instead. Shenmu, you have to take over as team ladies' man, got it? Just steal their hearts."

"Team Ladies' Man?" she said, confused, holding at her cane. "I don't see what you mean..." Her tone sounded a bit annoyed.

@Riegal
"I challenge you to a duel! If I lose, I instantly get all the votes, but if I win... you let everyone stay!"

Now someone was shouting. "Too loud." Shen-Mu said, tensing up. Despite the breach of the sound barrier, however, the challenge interested the young girl. A gamble of sorts involving a duel? Were they really going to have a fight this early?

Looking back to Shouichi, she asked "Who will it be? The one to be resigned? To come here only to immediately leave. I don't know about you. But I didn't come here to immediately turn back."

Shou's eye twitched at Shen-Mu's words. His previous sheepishness was gone as he glanced over her briefly. Who do you think you are? Mocking me? Rubbing it in? No one asked you..." Averting his eyes, glaring off, he wanted to relax, but Yuki was still on him for the time being, though he finally let go. Shou let out a sigh of relief as he stepped off, before giving and uncomfortable shudder. Why does everyone have to touch me? This is the worst. Of course, since he went off...

Wait, he resigned from the team too? And now he was facing down Boro. Along with everyone else, it seemed like. Wait a minute...

Ah. Ah! Aaaaah! I'm so stupid! Stupid stupid stupid! Grumbling to himself, he couldn't believe how short sighted he'd been. This whole voting nonsense was probably supposed to test them as heroes or something! And since all these wannabe heroes were so self-sacrificing, everyone was dragging each other back, like crabs in a bucket, even though the only thing outside the bucket was a steep drop. Probably. Besides, if he started whining about wanting to go it'd probably be taken as him being no different from all the hero wanna-

Shrill whistle piercing the room and his thought bubble, once his ears stopped ringing, he clicked his tongue as yet another clamored to the chopping block, or something. Every single thing happening in this room just made Shou want to be anywhere but. He shifted his seating, tempted to just get up and walk away, but Shen-Mu's head turned towards him.

"Who will it be? The one to be resigned? To come here only to immediately leave. I don't know about you. But I didn't come here to immediately turn back."

Raising his head, Shouichi gave Shen-Mu a befuddled look, before shrugging. Eh? She's not being all condescending anymore? Or maybe she is, but she doesn't really sound snippy about it. I don't... But then...he noticed she'd looked towards him. And...her eyes...

...She's blind! Shou realized, jaw dropping in horror. He'd...he'd just shrugged at a girl who couldn't see. Internally cringing himself into a nether realm, he pulled himself back up as he realized he technically hadn't responded yet. Why was the worst thing always happening? But of course, he couldn't come up with anything good to say.

"M-maybe everyone. Th-th-th-this whole th-th-thing is a j-j-j-joke. Hu hu hu..." He capped it off with a forced laugh, only heightening the harshness of his clumsy comment.

It seems confusion was the word of the day. Leon's question was met with only a reply from the wind, howling quietly in the distance. He rubbed the corner of his eye with his knuckle scanning the area, expecting this to be a test of sorts. Maybe this Tumble was just a decoy and the real one was watching from some sort of vantage point? Although, the point of such a test escaped Leon. Regardless, he was confused about the situation.

He turned his head, hearing someone else approaching. Sure enough, she introduced herself, but before another, more awkward silence could follow yet another girl appeared. Then came the awkward silence. Leon opened his mouth to speak a few times but honestly had no idea what to say. Next was a rather unenthusiastic monkey, posing a much more assertive introduction to the group.

Figuring out what the monkey and the dragon's quirks were was relatively simple. The other girl however, was a mystery. Regardless, it seems the arrival of the fourth member was enough to awaken Tumble. A small smirk grew on his face at the mention of combat prowess. However, the small factoid that he could be one of the most combat experienced in a group consisting of a majority without any combat experience was a factor. Leon chose to assume the other ten were all battle hardened warriors and that he was just a prodigy.

He had no real questions as of the moment. He was interested in what she had planned for the four, but he assumed she would delve deeper into that shortly. If only to fill the silence he spoke up.
"I'm still a bit confused about why we're meeting here of all places."

@Jabber

---

From what she could gather where she stood, it seemed to become clearer that the others around her was also people expecting to meet Tumblr. Yet her question was hushed, and Ruby fell obediently silent without really reflecting upon it until a moment later. At that point she wondered why she just obeyed, even if she knew it was rude to talk to someone wanting some peace of mind. However her answer came almost by itself when a Monkey like figure approached, it seemed that Tumblr was waiting for them all to get there which she understood.

Ruby's attention finally fell upon the others, she realized they were all around her age and while that made sense to her she did realize it was about the first time in her life she had met someone outside the four walls she once called home. Maybe it was for the best that she kept silent for a while. When she heard Tumblr mention that they was better fighters than ten others she was quite surprised, she didn't really expect to hear something like that. Ruby wondered what Tumblr could possibly know about her, then again it became clear to her that she had given the lady her phone number.

She didn't know how she could possibly be more combat capable than anyone, she may have trained self defense and all, and be able to breathe fire, but she really didn't have any fighting experience beyond that nor did she know how Tumblr could possibly know it. Ruby doubted that her combat profile would be the first thing to pop up during a search on her name, even her real one would most likely only say she had protected identity like most wealthy people.

However, nobody else knew she didn't have any experience in an actual fight either so she could probably use that to her advantage. And with what looked like pretty confident people around her it wouldn't make her any favor to appear to be shy among them. She sighed as she put on her social mask, and. Then decided that a display of Bravado was probably in order. "If your idea of socializing translates to US fighting the others I have no objections. I have no questions that can't wait until later. " she replied, her voice full of bravado now rather than insecurity.

She still felt quite beat thought, and would rather sleep than do anything. But she didn't really have the luxury of sleeping any longer, and she was getting more awake from the emotions swirling about the situation.

Jake laughed at the smoky arrow being pointed at him and then came Tommy then Nori. Everyone was shouting and commenting on the vote so Jake put his two cents in so to speak. "Hey guys why vote at all? If all of us refuse to vote then no one gets voted off. It's simple really but a duel would be awesome to watch. Anyone got popcorn and I get to duel the winner!!!" A ear to ear grin swept across Jake's face as he said that last bit.

He then walked back to Yuki "so since we've both resigned why don't we just be loners we don't need to be in a group to work together. Also I've got $10 on Boro and the next fight is mine." Jake then started stretching and proceeded to break one of his ring fingers and sighing in pleasurable relief. He then turned to Shenmu "The devil was cast out by the ones he loved most because he couldn't love complete strangers and sinful ones at that over his own father his own family. So in turn he helps those cast out by others no matter there sins or personalities. He takes all those in that heaven permits not good enough and teaches them of pain and sin in turn teaching them how to live life without fear of being judged by others or fear of life itself."

Jake then smiled "The devil smiles upon those god frowns, for he to has been banished for love and cast out, He takes you in no matter your sin, for he is the embodiment of the fire within."

After that first wild ride of a greeting, Shuko really shouldn't have been surprised when Tommy pulled her into a hug. The boy's personality shone out like a beacon, as if his small body just couldn't contain so much warmth and energy at once, the excess spilling over and flooding into the world through his movements and speech. A sudden embrace was only natural, for him.

On the other hand- how long had it been, since anyone outside of her family had shown her affection like that? How long had it been since she'd accepted it?

Her arms gingerly closed around him, for just a moment, and she made an effort to give him a small smile as they separated. "I don't mind. Anyone would be thrown off balance by a day like this." Her hand fell smoothly into his, and she kept pace behind him, barely needing to be pulled. It felt easier, letting him take the lead.

When he released her, Shuko's hand fell straight back to her side.

The plant girl- Akemi -was utterly adorable, and Shuko quietly imagined herself stepping forwards and simply burying herself in those soft vines, just as Tommy had done. She stood back, however, and let him handle the introductions, her only contribution a small wave as he indicated her to Akemi. It was sweet, watching the excited boy ramble on with effervescent optimism, setting aside the manners and rules of adults for a simple, innocent approach.

Almost too innocent.

Who really behaved that way, blurting out everything in their head to complete strangers? An easy way to overwhelm people, to put them off balance or off guard. An act, carefully tailored to induce an impression of harmlessness and endear oneself to a mark, setting up future opportunities to take advantage of-

Stop. He was a kid. Younger than her, even.

She broke out of her thoughts just in time to catch him looking over at his bags, and deftly stepped between him and them. "Don't worry, I'll get those for you." Giving him no time to launch into another monologue, she walked briskly but quietly towards his bags, carefully picking them up once she got there.

For a short while, this took her away from the center of attention, away from where the students were gathering as Boro asked for volunteers. An excuse, in a way, to keep her from stepping up. She let the babble of the other conversations fade into the background, and focused on the smoke still hanging around them. What was it made of, how did it work? She watched it, idly playing with numbers as they came up, while she retrieved Tommy's bags and moved to return them to him, in no particular hurry.

By the time she'd done so, the others were already crowding around Boro, confronting him with voices loud and small. Shuko stayed silent, watching with wide eyes and a growing sense of dread. It was only when the devil guy had started ranting about sins that she slipped in among them and spoke, her voice quiet and wavering.

"Please, let's- let's not fight." She was trembling just a little, not looking anyone directly in the eye. "We came here to learn to be better, didn't we? Mr. Boro, I'm sorry." Here she glanced at him, a slight gleam at the edges of her eyes, and cast her vote.

"None of us deserve to be here."

Her eyes dropped to the ground, as if in shame. "None of us would be, if not for Tumble."

Inwardly, she wondered if anyone had even heard her.

@Jabber
Shen-Mu thought on Boro's words and what everyone was saying. She was just a young blind girl, seeing only what she would focus on with her powers, living in a dusty old boarding house belonging to a friend of a friend of a friend of her father's. Now she was all the way here with the chance to be a hero. She'd still be cramped up in that room right now if it wasn't for that letter. "The devil smiles upon those god frowns, for he to has been banished for love and cast out, He takes you in no matter your sin, for he is the embodiment of the fire within." said Jake. Shen-Mu wondered to herself: Just maybe, could those words be applied to Tumble?

But soon, she snapped back to attention as Boro cleared the room, and everything was made clear. He's gone? She said, as Boro disappeared. He was just gone. Now, her ability could be used in full effect, with no smoke interfering with her ability to perceive the world. Looking in the direction of the passed out drunk woman at the table, she hummed, attuning her Radar to "see" the entirety of the room, "Mmmm... Woman of the hour.

Plugging her nose, smelling a hint of alcohol, she noted "A little decency would be nice. No matter... Who should wake her. One of us girls preferably." She said as she moved a little closer. "A man shouldn't wake a girl in such a perverse state."

"None of us deserve to be here... None of us would be, if not for Tumble."

Shou felt himself wince involuntarily. He felt a pressure on his head as his mind worked to consider her point of view against his. Th-that's not...

But his defense was starting to feel flimsy, as was his seating as Boro removed the metallic smoke he rested against, causing him to flop on his back like a lump. Quickly pushing himself back up as attention shifted to the corridor beyond the lobby, Shouichi was at an impasse. Glancing over to the door outside, where the restless media could very well still be waiting, on the other hand was whatever Boro had in mind for them, probably.

As a few moved that way, Shou was hesitant to simply stand and follow. He kept thinking about what glasses girl said, or rather, how she phrased it.

My parents signed me up for this. That's all there is to it!

But as he repeated that thought, it seemed to echo hollow in his mind. It was quickly becoming apparent how illogical it was: if signing up was the only requirement, then this place would be absolutely packed. Tumble was supposed to be a super popular hero, so...how the hell did Shouichi of all possible people end up here!? It must have been a mistake. His parents just assumed anyone who applied would be accepted... No, his dad wouldn't be so lax.

So...Tumble handpicked all of us...including...ME!? He felt his heart tweak as he tried to come to terms with that thought. How was this the most logical conclusion he could come up with?

Once again he glanced at the door outside, but as he stood, he instead trailed at the back as the group moved along to the corridor beyond. If he couldn't understand why the hell he, a kid with a useless quirk and no drive for anything whatsoever, let alone heroism, was here, then the only one to ask would be...

The slovenly oaf resting on a table that somehow looked more important than her.

Eyes glazing over as his heart tumbled over and turned to stone, he let out a long, low sigh. "A p-p-prank?" he blurted in exasperation, though whether this was the start of a new joke or just the punchline of the last one remained to be seen.

Fenrir had been on his knees desperately trying to cover his ears. It physically hurt, and it hurt a lot. His balance felt a bit off and he had a massive headache, but he had been in worse situations. He got to his feet, and noticed that Boros had left, revealing Tumble.

He got a good whiff of the room, and it already smelled like home. He looked at Tumble, and couldn't help but remember Loki passed out drunk in a similar fashion. He just sighed, leaning against the wall, and muttered to himself I might not have my sanity by the end of this, but I have to do it. I owe him much more than this.

He then stopped, and looked over to Nori and made a noise that almost sounded like a snarl to Nori, "I appreciate you standing up to Boros, but if you decide to make ears bleed again, I don't care if you a male, girl, or whatever. Do that again, and we will need to settle that outside."

@addamas

Yuki had watched the whole affair nonchalantly. He was certain he had gotten the right answer.

"so since we've both resigned why don't we just be loners we don't need to be in a group to work together. Also I've got $10 on Boro and the next fight is mine."

"I don't think he was serious. But, tell you what. If he is, we can become outlaws." He said, giving Jake the thumbs up, even as the albino breaking his own fingers made him shudder.. "Alas, though, I don't keep money on me most of the time. If we can do that..." He turned to Boro.

"Oi! Pothead! I'm gonna kick you ass after Jake is done!" He said, pointing to Boro, just in time for the man to disappear. Asshole. Yuki had actually been spoiling for a fight with him. The condescending attitude was pissing him off to no end. As he headed down the hall, he was pleased to see someone who could maybe clear things up for him.

"A man shouldn't wake a girl in such a perverse state."

"Too late~" Yuki said, having already approached the table and started buttoning the blonde's blouse.

Tommy had a look of disappointment as Akemi used her vines to maneuver him to a 'comfortable' distance. Honestly though Tommy would have been comfortable just continuing to lie on Akemi's vines. Maybe pulling Shuko along with him, after all don't they say... ummm 'something something company is better something something hug everyone'?

Well maybe they don't but Tommy sure says something like that anyway. Words to live by. He was about to grab Shuko and do just that, hopefully making a comfy vine pile hug, when everyone started getting really serious about this 'voting people out' business as if it was some kind of reality show they were on. How could Tommy let such a good hugger like Akemi escape so easily?! This guy isn't Tumble, Tommy wasn't here for lung cancer and he wasn't about to let Marl spoil today for him! Then there was the ear piercing shriek of a challenge to Boro that if Tommy wasn't used to the racket of a Pachinko Parlor he might have been more disoriented. Thankfully Tommy had encountered a smart friend called Shuko to group up with.

"Wooo! You tell him Shuko! You're smart. This guy isn't Tumble, so why do we care what he says! He could say something like 'hugs are the worst' or something and I know that's a lie." Briefly hugging Shuko again Tommy squeezed her before breaking away when Boro began his spiel about 'trusting Tumble'. Rolling his eyes Tommy might talk with, work with or even respect Tumble, but trust? Well, trust is something to be earned. Trust is something more precious than gold. Dashing back to grab his bags of 'winnings' Tommy followed the group as they soon found Tumble 'sprawled out' and 'disheveled' being a polite way of describing her appearance.

"A little decency would be nice. No matter... Who should wake her. One of us girls preferably. A man shouldn't wake a girl in such a perverse state." Shen-Mu's voice broke the silence that filled the air at Tumble's appearance. Her words bringing up a small problem.

"Don't worry pretty voice lady, I've got this. Besides, I don't think Tumble would care and it's not the worst state I've seen someone drink themselves into... HEY! No fair!" seeing Yuki going for Tumble's blouse Tommy saw that he couldn't wait any longer. Not giving anyone else a chance to to react Tommy jumped above the table and 'pulled' on the metal framework of the building, soon Tommy was sliding across the table at a fast pace, occasionally getting airborne as he skimmed, turning his body side on as he moved so that he would fall into Tumble's lap if he reached the end.

@Drifting Pollen @Er0r @HeroicSociopath

Almost as soon as the words left her mouth, Shuko found herself regretting them. Even if Boro had heard, she couldn't know for sure how he might react, and if things went badly the whole group would end up blaming her for it. It would've been easier to just stay in the background and let events run their natural course. At least that way, whatever happened wouldn't have been her fault.

Then she heard Boro speak her name.

Frightened, she looked up, only to see him walking away, disappearing amidst the thick clouds of smoke that faded away soon after. What? It... was over? He'd left them be, releasing everyone from the prison formed by his Quirk without kicking any of them out.

Perhaps it was just luck, but her gamble had paid off.

Before she got a chance collect herself, Tommy had his arms around her again. His compliment made her smile, along with the sudden realization that she'd actually been right and that she might have just saved everyone from being booted off the program. Part of her felt like pumping her fists in the air and shouting out with relief, but she kept herself restrained, not wanting to look smug about the whole affair.

"Thanks! To be honest, I wasn't quite sure if..." She trailed off, seeing that he'd moved on already. A free spirit, that one. People were tricky, impossible to fully understand though raw calculation, but at least now she'd started to get a sense of how this strange group worked, even if a few individuals remained a mystery to her.

Lagging behind the more adventurous students, she managed to get a quick look past them to the room ahead, where Tumble herself awaited. Her eyes widened, and she blushed a little at the sight.

Whatever she'd been expecting, this wasn't it. There really was no way to put it politely: the so-called hero looked like the kind of woman who'd hang around in dive bars and nightclubs, letting people pick her up and have their way with her. The messy hair and unkempt clothing Shuko could understand and sympathize with, but for their supposed mentor to be completely asleep, not making any effort to present herself well for them, with her blouse in a state like that in front of a group full of teenage boys? What the hell had Tumble been thinking?

The only thing that kept Shuko from freezing up in sheer mortification was the echo of Boro's parting words. Believe in Tumble. This could be a test, or a prank, a plan meant to keep the hero candidates on their toes and gauge their reactions. She couldn't back out just yet, not until she was sure.

Nor could she stand by and let the boys pile onto a sleeping woman like that.

"Wait!" She reached out with both arms, trying to grab Tommy before he went careening off towards the slumbering hero, but he'd already gotten a head start and she only ended up stumbling forwards, painfully banging one hip on the table's edge. "Aaaaah-!" It wasn't serious, but it made her lean over and wince, cutting short any further attempts at dealing with the rowdy boys. Not that she could have done much anyways. Helpless, she could only glance imploringly at the other girls, hoping one of them would be able to intervene before Tumble woke up and realized what was going on.

_BGM
While everyone was busy assessing the situation and rationalizing everything that happened in this short moment, all Nori could think about was the rejection of her challenge; no not even a rejection, she just got straight up ignored. Boro was not gaining any affection in her eyes. The thing that removed Nori from her train of thoughts was a growl of some kind; upon looking around to find the source, she noticed Fenrir, who apparently threatened Nori; she didn’t really understand why he was so upset about it when others barely batted an eye, but appearances needed to be kept so she innocently gazed at Fenrir and softly said,

“Well…sorry, I didn’t know your ears were that sensitive, though it’s pretty obvious if you think about it-“
her last words being said in a more joking tone before removing the smile from her face and scratching her right cheek with one finger, as if to look cute. “I *did* warn you.”


After addressing Fenrir, Nori turned around, only to see a round table with a single person sleeping on it in the most nonchalant way possible. It made Nori lift the right corner of her mouth and twitch her eye in dismay.

"Mmmm... Woman of the hour.”

Nori quickly glanced towards the blind girl before looking back towards the sleeping beauty. The words slowly sunk in, that unruffled woman was Tumble! She is the one that gave Nori the opportunity to challenge U.A., and she is the one in charge here. The sight made Nori a bit agitated though, Tumble was a very popular hero, but this slop in front of them didn’t look competent at all. Yet she was even more agitated at the boy buttoning up her shirt as if it was the nicest thing to do. She wanted to speak up about it but before being able to, a little boy was flying across the room, looking to tackle Tumble. Her first reaction was surprise, what reason did he have to glide straight into Tumble? How did he even do it? Luckily, she was able to contain herself and remove any unnecessary thoughts so she could focus on the important things, like impressing Tumble herself.

With a sigh, Nori set one arm to face Tommy and the other in the opposite direction and she began to suck air in from Tommy’s side and pushing out air on the other end. In a flash she was racing across the room getting closer to Tommy, and with each inch closer, the pull affected Tommy more.

As he skidded across the table, aiming to fall right into Tumble’s lap, suddenly he felt the air around him drawn off course, his first instinct was to ‘pull’ harder to compensate, but if he did that he would be more likely to hurt Tumble than give a surprise. Changing from pulling to pushing, Tommy flew towards the source of the suction force, a pale girl with fun hair’s arms. Well… if she had her arms wide open, what kind of gentleman would Tommy be if he didn’t oblige~?

Opening his own arms to match Nori’s, Tommy was soon on a collision course with her instead, adjusting his speed so he didn’t slam into her, Tommy was mere moments away from impact.

“I didn’t know my hugs were in such high demand! You could have just asked, I was also going to get around to everyone at some point~.”

Nori’s plan had completely backfired, both literally and metaphorically. That little brat was heading straight for him, and it all went so fast that she could barely hear what Tommy was saying. she tried to stop and dodge him, but the momentum didn’t allow her to move, and so with a squeal, the two hit each other and tumbled down on the floor.

_BGM
Nori blinked a few times, still a bit surprised; at least the fall didn’t hurt a whole lot since she used her quirk to reduce the fall damage. upon looking down, her eyes fell upon Tommy who blissfully had his arms wrapped around her. Yet instead of red cheeks and an awkward expression, Nori looked pissed off.

“Get off of me boy, what is wrong with you!”
She shouted while pushing Tommy aside with a good gust. after getting up, adjusting her clothes and hair and facing Tommy she continued with an almost scolding tone, “You can’t just fly across the room hugging everyone as you see fit, it’s rude, annoying, and obnoxious. have you ever seen a hero fly around cuddling everyone? It’s childish, even for someone of your age, so stop it; if you want affection, earn it.”
Nori’s arms were folded at this point, her gaze still on Tommy.

Nori’s gust lifting him into the air Tommy, suspended himself for a moment to flip backwards for dramatic effect. Landing with arms up in the air and then looking around with a wide grin on his face like he was an olympic gymnast that had just completed their routine. He was about to take a bow when Nori berated him. Her points had merit and the affection comment did cut close to the bone, but he couldn’t just let her have the last word!

“Well, ma’am, you did a spectacular job of blowing me away, but why shouldn’t a hero fly around hugging people? Disasters happen, villains happen, just plain old scary stuff happens. Hugs are comforting, reassuring. They say ‘I’m here, you’re safe’. Hugs and affection? They might as well be as important as a hero’s costume. Is it childish? Probably. So is dressing up in spandex and stopping a mugger. So is coming up with a whacky code name to be called by everyone while wearing the spandex. A hug is important. Even a quirkless can be ‘super’ if they can give a kid a hug when needed, sometimes people need that more than a costume.” Bowing after making his point, Tommy’s smile was as ever present as always, but lacked a certain charm. Getting back up, the charm was back on and sighed.

“And here I thought I could be the first thing Miss Tumble saw upon waking, oh well. I’ll make a hugger out of you ma’am~!”

“Is that your excuse for hugging everyone around you? You’re obviously missing the point, it’s really sweet that you want to comfort people, it’s a heroic quality even, but let me ask you; when you came at Tumble or me, did we look like we needed comfort? what if I felt very anxious around people, what if I didn’t like being hugged out of comfort at all? You’re not paying attention to others around you before you assault them, so that begs me to think, you have ulterior motives for your charade. besides, if you go around hugging people at the pace you’re at, it will give as much comfort as a handshake.”

“Charade?!” both hands over his heart, Tommy acted as the the accusation struck him physically “My word, you wound me! Well, if I did have an ulterior motive it would be something along the lines of ‘I like hugging and I’m a human being and therefore inherently selfish by nature’. But that’s on the assumption that I have an ulterior motive. Besides, have you given Miss Akemi a hug? It’s so soft! As for you, you’re wound kinda tight. If you were anxious around others would you have yelled at Marl back there, challenging him to a duel? If you don’t like being hugged, well I’d find out pretty quick and adjust my actions. Like what has happened now. My actions, my responsibility. It wouldn’t be Miss Shuko’s fault if I hugged you and you didn’t like it. It wouldn’t be Miss Tumble’s fault either. Mine, that’s all. Point is though, are we going to debate the fact I hug people all day? Or are we going to do something productive?”

Nori being as competitive as she is, got lost in trying to win the debate, and it took Tommy’s final words to make her realise it. she had made a fool of herself by talking about such a silly and childish subject with such passion, and that did make her blush. quickly facing away from Tommy and towards Tumble, she hoped that her future teacher was still asleep and hadn’t heard all the commotion.

“Fine, let’s leave it at that then.”
She said abruptly before walking away from Tommy and towards a chair to the right of Tumble, sitting down with her arms folded.

“A wise general does know when to retreat… or something like that anyway~” going back over to Shuko, Tommy saw she’d hurt herself and offered her a seat. Nori’s talk making him think he was somehow responsible, and also offering one to Akemi, because that was just good manners.

---

The conference room that they had all gathered in was plain in design and the decor was scarce, but behind its simplicity, was a layout that facilitated excellent acoustics. Unfortunately, this just made the noise that had been piercing through Tumble's ears even louder; the fact that she probably had a hangover just made things worse.

Tumble thought that if she ignored it enough, she'd eventually fall back to sleep. However, there was no helping it; the peaceful silence that previously filled the room was nowhere to be found. I guess it was time for her to finally get up. Tumble's arms persistently rested atop the round table as her head slowly crept upward. Her expression remained languid while sluggishly looking from side to side, as if trying to identify each person that was in the room.

With one hand partially outstretched, she began counting along her finger. "Uhhh...One...Two...Three..." Tumble's cheeks slightly puffed for a moment as she attempted to smother a yawn while continuing her head count. "Seven..Eight.."

Although still predominantly exuding a lethargic vibe, a puzzled look happened to find its way unto Tumble's face. She was missing two others. It didn't take long before she realized the mild tugging that was going on below her head.

"Nine.." Tumble said as she laid eyes on Yuki. Their eyes met and the gaze between the two awkwardly lasted longer than it should. In an instant, she had wrapped her arm around the young boy's neck, gradually applying more pressure as she looked for her tenth student.

"Fucking. Boro." She whispered to herself in annoyance; she knew exactly where the last one was. His actions didn't deviate from what they had planned, but Tumble didn't expect him to take one this early on. As much as she wanted to deal with this now, she didn't have the time.

Loosening her hold on Yuki, Tumble began to stretch out her body before leaning back into her chair. "Take a seat." Her somnolent appearance quickly faded as more vigor started to build up in her face. "Oh yeah. And before I forget." Her voice started to sound stern, losing the previous lackadaisical feel it was giving off earlier. Pulling back most of her hair, she proceeded to tie it in a ponytail as she cleared her throat. "The name's Mika Nagano. And yeah, welcome to Team Tumble."

@Jabber
Taking a seat, Shen-Mu waited for the meeting to begin. Not good at first impressions. She said, staring in Tumble's direction. Regardless, I suppose I am happy to be here. As long as you don't strangle more of us.

@HeroicSociopath
...Even when they deserve it. She said, turning to face Yuki.