Seo reflexively performed the sign for thanks with a nod, tapping his right wrist onto his lest as he kept his hands flat before raising them up. Carefully making his way to the seat next to her, making sure not to smack her or anyone else around them with his bags. Once he was sat down, he turned his attention to her with a grin, reaching for his whiteboard with the intent to intent to express his gratitude more clearly. However, to his surprise, he found that the whiteboard might not be needed as she responded to him in kind as she spoke. He, admittedly, blinked in shock for a few moments before he managed to work up a quick response, a hoarse chuckle escaping him as he rubbed the back of head afterward. He had been fully prepared for even the teachers not to know JSL, much less a girl who looked like she spent more time looking at herself than other people.

'Sorry, not used to people responding in JSL so I was a bit surprised.' Getting over the awkwardness of his surprise, Seo signed a proper response to her question, stowing away his mischievous plans for now. While it was a bid disheartening that he'd yet to find a good target for some ribbing, he wasn't too bummed about it. If there was one thing he knew, it was that there would always be another chance. You just had to choose your targets carefully.

'Moving on, A pleasure to meet you as well, and yeah, freshman just like you. All the way from Tokoyo, if you can believe it.' Setting his whiteboard aside for now, as he likely wouldn't need it, he tapped a finger against his sports bag as he laid it across his lap, considering what to talk about before settling for the obvious. 'If you don't mind me asking, where did you learn JSL?'
@Hero

---

Sapporo, Japan
Ishin Academy, April 7th
"Interacting With":: Annoying Peppy Girl (@Severance), Talkative Nervous Girl (@Sunbather), Pissed Mascot Character (@Inkarnate)

---

Adrianne rested there, completely motionless aside from the tapping of her index and middle finger, swapping between each one in rhythmic intervals. The chattering seemed to be a bit contagious as it decided to spread from across the room to nearby her.

Honestly though, it wasn't really annoying for the most part, though she did hope it wouldn't escalate as she breathed in through her nose and out of her mouth. Honestly though, if she was nervous, why was she even going to this school was one thought that shot through her mind as she tilted her head towards her luggage. The murmurs did pick up however, but they were dissimilar to the talkative Ms. Ousy, causing the girl to frown and open her eyes.

Darting to the side, she noticed some people chattering and pointing at her before chuckling to themselves. Her visage darkened as she glowered with one open eye, to the point where if looks could kill, they would be in a world of hurt. While she didn't know why they were laughing, she definitely had a gut feeling that it had to do with her. What, was there some tradition about singling out foreigners here at this school as well?

Those thoughts were left under the stampedes of people piling into the auditorium, with chattering left and right drowning out anything else people on the other side of the auditorium could be saying, as well as making those other two behind her seem muted. The last thing she could pick up was something about looking a dakick, which she registered as a question, despite a spitting it out.

Closing her eyes again, she kept to herself, at least for a brief moment before someone infiltrated her thoughts. Great, now someone was approaching her for some meaningless small talk. Huffing with a shrug, she opened her eyes up and glared at the newcomer.

Adrianne had a resting bitch face as she analyzed the girl. Green hair, a stupid dopey, grin that was like her brothers, and rubbing. Honestly, she seemed like an airhead from the way she introduced herself, something she made very clear with a bitter scowl forming slightly on her face. "Kunze Adrianne," she sighed coldly as she dejectedly brushed some of her bangs to the side before turning back to face the stage. "You have my name, so you can go now."

She shooed the girl with one hand while resting her head on a fist, closing her eyes and huffing to herself. Breathe in and out Adrianne, she knew who you are, so she'll hopefully go away by now.

Of course, as much as she wanted to dismiss everything, that was an impossibility, especially with the other dunces sitting nearby her. Honestly speaking, their whole act was kind of silly, especially when one of them mentioned how the other looked like scot chara. The moment she heard that, she opened up one of her eyes and looked in their direction.

The squid girls expression told her everything.

Adrianne bit on her tongue, doing her best to hold her giggling in before biting down as hard as she could on her tongue. No, don't do that Adrianne, don't laugh, you're better than that, have some self-discipline. Everyone, you included, are all in a serious institution for making heroes, not primary school. Turning her head slightly to her side, she stared at the two imbeciles, noticing that the squid girls hair was getting quite frazzled, literally.

Great, now they were letting sensitive snowflakes like her get in, really? They made her go through all that bullshit just so she could be paired with Fried Calimari, a Motor Mouth, and a Watermelon Airhead? Adrianne clenched her fists, nails digging hard into her flesh before sighing loudly and turning away from them and stared at the stage.

"I can't believe someone like you got into Ishin."

There were so many more people than she’d expected. Outside, the size of the crowd had been understandable; every year of students were mingled together, rushing through the courtyard and down the halls. But she’d thought—even hoped—that with them being divided by year, the groups would have been more manageably-sized. Now the seats were starting to fill towards the back, though, and people had begun sitting closer in her row.

A boy scooted past her, and she nearly jumped out of her skin. For all her worrying over the auditorium, she hadn’t even been paying attention to it, like her vision had blurred. Reflexively she rubbed her face, worried she might have just sprung another leak, but thankfully not. Just the idea that she might start crying again here was enough to make her palms ache.

“N-no, it’s not. I don’t think.” she answered, when the boy asked after the seat between her and the jelly-girl. She regretted that, in retrospect. It might have been easier to claim she was saving it for someone, and pray she could get through the ceremonies with a little space beside her.

As he rounded up beside her she noticed the bag in his arms, and a fruity smell touched her nose. She reeled a bit, trying to parse out what exactly he had in there, and then found herself instead wondering why he had it.

Before she could think better of it, she was leaning out to steal a peek into the bag. Her brow flattened.

“Is…that a pineapple…?” she asked, mouse-like, yet the sound of her own voice still made her cringe.

Wakako had not expected to be approached in such a manner as she sat there. She got all rigid as she internally panicked for a moment. She shouldn’t have been so nervous, but she was still awfully worried she was going to make a fool of herself in her first real interaction with another student at this school. Of course, it probably wasn’t helping matters that she was sitting there acting all jittery because someone had spoken to her.

Brave face, brave face… She told herself. She faced this Kenzo Osamu with the best smile she could manage. “Not at all, buddy! Sit right next to me!” Her response was a far cry from the obscene formality she had been greeted with. But it wasn’t like Wakako to speak so formally, not that she minded someone else speaking like that. This Osamu definitely seemed like a very straight laced chap, all prim and proper, like a model student. He was perhaps the very model of at least half of what she expected from this school. As for the other half, she couldn’t quite say yet, but at least he seemed nice and polite.

“So, yeah, I’m, uh…” As much as she tried to put on a brave face, she was still more than a little nervous. ”I’m Tanegashima Wakako! I’m a Hokkaido native from Tomakomai, and, uh…” Still floundering. Not a good sign. He was going to think she was awkward. Which she was, but she didn’t want people to think it.

”…well where are you from, Kenzo-san?” She figured keeping him busy answering personal questions was a great way to make it seem like she was just fine conversing, while all she had to actually do was nod along.

---

@Etranger

'Yeah, that's true I guess. I'm used to traveling around a lot though, so it doesn't bother me that much.'

Quite the opposite Seo grumbled internally as his mind once again turned to thoughts of home, but again he put them out as Asuka asked him another question. His grin took a bit of a chiding look as he shook his head, signing up a response that may have sounded a bit condescending but he hoped his demeanor would let her know he was just joining around.

'Asking someone what their quirk is without introducing your own first? Isn't that a bit rude.' He pantomimed an exaggerated huff in the face of the perceived slight, but his gleeful grin likely made it hard to take 100% seriously. 'Well, if you insist, I guess I could give you a demonstration.' As he signed his response, one hand dropped down to his waist to pull out a small metal ball from one of his pouches, about the size of a ball-bearing.

Besides, it's been too long since I've made a bit of a nuisance of myself to someone. He thought to himself with another hoarse chuckle as he rubbed the metal sphere in his palm, yellow eyes lighting up as he applied the needed charge on to it. While it was too small to see clearly on the bearing itself, Asuka might notice a black bar-like marking appear on his palm for a brief moment as this happened. After searching the crowd for a bit, the mute boy's attention caught on the tall girl he'd passed by earlier a few rows ahead of him, talking to a guy who looked about as stiff and no-fun as any kid could be. In other words. . . the perfect target. Closing his palm around the bearing, he'd quickly signal to Asuka to pay attention to the soldierly boy as he extended his arm out towards him.

Extending his index and pointer finger out with thumb raised, almost as if cocking a gun he focused his attention and energy on the show. He even went so far as to close one of his eyes to help aim for his target, the back of the boy's neck. He'd wait was moving to get in his seat before his eyes flashed again. Again a mark appeared on Seo's hand, this time looking like a cross and as soon as it did so, the bearing went shooting off like a bullet towards the target. With a painful sting, it'd make an impact and bounce off towards the ground. However, Seo was quick to retrieve and hide any evidence of his meddling, feigning a yawn as he stretched his hands upward immediately after firing. This time the black bar mark would appear on his other hand, looking much more pronounced this time until something came zipping through the air to smack into Seo's waiting grip as he quickly closed it.

The entire exchange had taken a few seconds, and as Seo finished stretching as if nothing was the matter. It'd be difficult for his target to even tell who'd done the deed, though even if he did, Seo didn't really care. If they were the type to get overly bothered by this minor practical joke, it only meant that Seo would just have to prank them harder next time. He'd turn to offer a mischievous grin to Asuka as he signed to her this time around. If she was paying enough attention, however, she might notice that Seo's eyes seemed a bit duller than they had been before.

'Nothing like a little prank between classmates, no? Though I admit, that was more me being a bother than a real prank.' With a thoughtful nod, the young man would place the small orb back into the pouch before pulling up the whiteboard. 'My quirk is hard to explain in JSL properly, so I'd rather write it out. Otherwise, I'll take forever trying to remember the proper signs.' He explained, raising an open hand over his head and then lowering it down to his ear as he clenched it into a fist while pulling the cap off the marker using his free hand and his teeth. After a few moments of thought and some rapid writing, he'd have a quick and dirty quirk rundown ready for his new sign buddy to read.

~My Quirk is called Pole-tergeist. It allows me to apply a magnet-like charge onto things I touch, like the ball bearing. I can then make them attract to or repel from other things I've charged at varying levels of strength depending on how much i charge it. Smaller objects are, obviously, a lot easier to mess around with than larger ones. Nifty, huh?~ Placing the whiteboard back down, Seo would sign once more, seeming quite pleased with himself as he did so. 'With a little careful planning and preparation, I've likely made a couple 'haunted' tourist traps in Tokyo by making a few garbage cans knock around an alleyway without any apparent reason. A fun way to pass the time when waiting for the late-night train.'

Talking to:@Hero
Annoying:@Etranger
Possible Bystander:@Naw

Hajo's rocking barely halted, instead settling into a passive pace as she blinked, slowly, her eyes fixed on the tense-looking girl next to her. “Oblivious to what?” she asked, finally stopping. Instead, she steadied herself, further leaning into her neighbor's seat, as if to get a closer look at her, her bangs swaying. “Dumb? Eeehhh?!” Hajo ruffled her own hair, rubbing one hand through her lilac-mane, a crimson-hue flooding her cheeks. “You don't seem like the scholarly-type either though... I think...” The girl didn't speak with condemnation or ill-intent, an impression supported by her continued embarassment and utter lack of her hiding it.

Nevertheless, she took the blue-haired girl's silence as a sign that she had mispoken, prompting her to puff out her cheeks and pout. Ishin didn't seem like a particularly sensitive institution, and the little girl's offended nature halted Hajo's enthusiasm in its tracks, instead making her feel bad. “It's okay!” She lifted both hands, balled them into fists, and shook them, as if to encourage her. “This is a hero school, right? It's about more than just tests and stuff! Right? So you can become a super great hero, even if you're small or cute or not the best at school!” Hajo's blush flared further, though this time out of sheer, hot-blooded excitement, and the bright smile that stretched across her face remained even when the girl behind her spoke up in a less-than-friendly tone.

Stretching, Hajo twisted at the hip, her body still mostly turned towards her new-found friend, though she now faced the seated foreigner and, next to her, a green-haired girl. “Me? Or her? Actually...” she said, streching out the last syllable as she turned in her seat to face the large girl properly. “Forget about us! YOU are way crazier to be here! I heard Ishin almost never accepts foreign students - that's so weird!” Turning to the student next to the foreigner, she smiled and gave an expectant look. “Isn't it?” When the cute, small student spoke up again, Hajo seemed to delight in her renewed participation in the conversation, and swirled around, causing her chair to wobble. “Am I not right? It's weird, right?”

Like a puppy hired to officiate a tennis match, Hajo hurriedly glanced back and forth between the two brooding girls, the happy anticipation slowly fading upon their ungiving stoicism. “Is this really the hero course?” she mused aloud. "You know, general studies is probably in a different place, maybe th- Uh... Sorry!” She bowed, and quickly slid back into her chair properly, as her gaze met the
distant faculty member's scolding glance cast upon her and her half-kneeling in her seat, her face glowing like a redlight. With both hands resting in her lap, Hajo was uncharacteristically still, in spite of the quaking shivering that accompanied her embarassment. “A-a-a-anyways, I'm Utusya Hajo, n-n-n-ice to meet you all, yeah?”

_{Location:
Ishin Academy | Sapporo}

---

Caught up in her own mind and nervous fidgeting, Nadeshiko scarcely noticed that people had begun to file into the seating. That was, until somebody deigned to pick a spot next to her as their own. Thoroughly distracted as she was, the goo girl found it impossible to hide her surprise when the large boy to her left asked if somebody had reserved the seat. It was a scenario her physiology certainly didn't help—the sudden appearance of his voice had caused her to jump in her seat just a tad, the motion of which kept her jiggling for a few seconds.

Whether or not that embarrassed her or not was secondary to things, as she had been asked a question. She could make out the voice of another person, and a cursory glance to the further left revealed another girl that Nadeshiko hadn't noticed either. With how quiet she was, it was little wonder. The girl had answered sufficiently; nobody had yet to claimed that seat. But, it would be rude to not answer for herself, and she didn't want to already make enemies from her classmates.

"I'm not sure there are assigned seats for this event... or that we're supposed to bring snacks." She murmured, having at the very least made out the other girl's mention of pineapple.

_{Location:
Ishin Academy | Sapporo}

---

"Oh," she paused, "How thoughtful."

In hindsight, that much should have been obvious. As strange as this one seemed, Nadeshiko did not think a student who managed to get into a prestigious academy like Ishin would spend the opening ceremony nibbling on a whole pineapple. It was still a rather strange familial tradition to have. She briefly thought back those she may have had... though, beyond summer vacations to the lake, she could not recollect any of value. Usually thinking back to family trips brought people some semblance of joy, or nostalgia. Her own simply made the pit in her stomach all the more volatile.

The lingering silence that had fallen in the interim bothered her. Was she being too quiet? Socializing was never something she did a lot of, nor were introductions. The last time she had to introduce herself to a group of her peers was the first meet for last year's swim team, and even then she had the crutch of team mates of previous years to fall back on. This was almost as stressful as the train ride.

"Nadeshiko," another lingering pause before she spoke again, "I'm Nadeshiko."

Kana wouldn’t pretend like she understood the boy’s explanation. But that was alright; family matters were…personal. Sometimes extremely so, and least of all places was it hers to judge. Not only that, but the way he spoke, with that distinctive twang in his voice, had her revisiting a few of his words in her head. His accent, coupled with his looks, reminded her of Kagoshima. More exactly, of the Okinawan sailors she’d meet at the fish markets every now and again. She had half a mind to ask him about it, but then, he seemed to be fidgeting with his own confidence, and she doubted she could muster up enough herself to ask anyway.

Nadeshiko introduced herself, and while Kana was thankful to have the conversation refocused, she might have preferred if things had just fizzled out from there. Did she have to introduce herself now as well? It seemed the polite thing to do, but then again the Okinawan boy hadn’t. The Okinawan boy had also brought a pineapple with him to the auditorium, though, so perhaps she shouldn’t have been taking social cues from him.

“I’m Kana,” she said, and then, unable to stop herself, she added: “Higamura Kana. It's nice to meet you.”

She sat there, surprisingly composed, screaming internally.

That’s not your name. That’s not even kind-of your name. These are the first people you’ve met in years that don’t want to spit on you, or throw you out, and you’ve lied to them. Great. Awesome. That’s going to pan out fantastically. You idiot freak.

Kana bowed her head politely. “I’m looking forward to…ah...learning…with you both.”

This Wakako Tanegashima was clearly a nervous one. But that was to be expected, what with everyone being fresh and new to this school. Osamu was certainly not one to judge. Even he wondered sometimes how well he would adjust to his new environment, though his stoic demeanour would not betray it. He also found safety in the knowledge that of all the schools in Japan, this was the one best suited to his preferences. While UA may have been a prestigious school, he often believed it was responsible for creating the cavalier culture that had developed among Japan’s Heroes. His father believed much the same, but he had many more colourful ways of describing it. ’A disease of foreigners and the self-indulgent, if you’ll excuse me for the tautology!’, as he had said in one speech.

”I am from Aomori, Tanegashima-san.” Osamu responded to Wakako’s question. He would have gone on, but he was in no hurry to tie himself to his father too quickly. While he did not hate his father, he did not wish to invite discussion of his politics into his life if he did not have to. Having to answer for his father’s political speeches was not only tedious but also largely impossible. He could not speak for his father’s intentions.

”Seeing as your last name is Tanegashima, would I be correct to assume that you are-“ He was about to link Wakako to her mother, the Warship Hero when he felt a sharp pain in the back of his neck. He looked back, stone faced as usual, to see if there were any clues as to what had happened, but he could not determine how or why this had happened.

He turned back to face Wakako, rubbing the back of his neck casually. ”Alas, it would appear I have been the victim of some juvenile tomfoolery.” He told her plainly. He was less bothered by the act than he was at the fact that someone had wanted to waste their time in such a fashion. A student who derived joy from irritating and even hurting others was both a menace and a time waster. It would seem that Ishin was not immune to having such callow youths among its student body.

But for all the disapproval in Osamu’s head, his physical reaction was minimal at best. His typically stoic face definitely did not betray any real annoyance.