Note: I know I never do this, but I'm realizing something here. Lots of different languages will be spoken in this story, and knowing how much they speak in both Japanese and English, from this point on, if they speak in Japanese, it will be italicized. If it's like one word in Japan, I might actually write it in Japanese, but yeah, that's what's going to happen (unless it's said otherwise...which sounds confusing, but hopefully, I've written this well enough that it's not as I should usually say beforehand in a way...)

Anyways, enjoy!

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Time moved by fairly quickly after that. The exam was much easier than the entrance exam was, allowing me to move past it with ease. Like everyone in the Heroics Department, I knew I had passed it before the teachers allowed me to go home. It was as if everything was working out exactly as it should have.

My plan was to leave Japan and make it to America the day before I started my job. For a while, I thought I'd have to live with one of the Pro Heroes or Sidekicks that worked at the agency until I could find an apartment. The one person who called me about the offer explained that they'd all be willing to help out there. I just wasn't too sure about it.

My plans of when I'd leave Japan didn't change, but where I'd be staying for a while did. Turns out, Tami had family who lived in Fairfield, Rhode Island. When she found out I was going to take the job, she called them up and asked if we could live there until she went to college or until I found an apartment. I was shocked that she was willing to leave to go to America so quickly, but she claimed that plane tickets were cheaper if she'd leave in July rather than waiting a month for when she had to go to school.

I looked it up. It was a white lie she told me as tickets were a few thousand yen more than it'd be if she'd left in August, but I never said a word about it. Whatever her reason for wanting to leave Japan so quickly was just that. The more I thought about it, she just probably missed her extended family a little too much.

To pass the time, she helped me brush up on my English, only talking to me in English to force me to be more fluent. I still had troubles with it. Sometimes, I'd freeze on a word and have to describe it. Tami was never good at guessing, so it would take five minutes for her to figure it out and give me the right word. Like how I'd force her not to say "I give up" in our training, she forced me not to use any Japanese, just so I didn't have much of a crutch to go back on.

Plus, while English was taken as a second language here in Japan, it wasn't the same way in America. Most took Spanish. I felt relieved that Má made my siblings and me learn it when we were young, but I still wasn't as fluent in Spanish as I was in Japanese.

Between the English lessons, self defense training, planning, and so much more, time seemed to move quickly. Before I knew it, Tami and I were heading to the airport to leave. Her family dropped us off, with her parents quickly saying goodbye and leaving as they had to go to work. Luckily for Tami, her little brother stayed behind, refusing to leave his sister's side until he absolutely needed to. It was funny how even though he was a preteen, he still clung onto Tami.

How was he going to act when she was no longer always by his side? I wondered to myself as I realized he wasn't the only one staying behind to wish Tami and me off.

"Raiden! Tami!" a shrill voice screeched from behind.

I winced at the noise, partially wishing they didn't come but relieved at the same time. Tami was the first to turn around and drop her stuff to go running back towards them, but I stayed where I was at, simply turning around to see. Her little brother stood beside me, making sure nothing happened to his sister's things while she was wrapped in a hug with another petite woman and an orange haired man that was still somehow shorter than the dark haired woman beside him.

It didn't hit me until then that this would be the first time I wouldn't be around them. Kaito has been a good friend of mine since middle school. If I was being completely honest, I don't think I remember a time where I was out of the house and he wouldn't try and trail behind me every second of the day. While it was a pain, I couldn't say that this was going to be strange.

"You're going to look out for my sister, right?"

I turned my head to see Tami's little brother, Oliver, standing beside me. His hands were curled into fists as they rested on his hips. While he was a few inches taller than Tami, he was still short. That didn't stop the boy from rocking up to his toes, doing everything in his power to try to look intimidating.

Unfortunately, it didn't work. He looked more like an old teddy bear with his scrawny figure and curly brown hair.

"No one is going to lay a finger on her," I promised. "I'd be a lousy hero if I let something happen again."

Oliver dropped his hands into his pockets as he nodded his head. He tore his gaze as he did, and when I followed it, I realized he was looking back at his sister, who was talking to our friends.

"You promise nothing is going to happen to her," he said in a softer voice, almost as if he was afraid his sister was going to overhear. "She protects me all the time, but I can never do the same since...you know."

I frowned at his answer as he lowered his head. Of course, I knew what he was talking about. It was a topic Tami brought up more times than she should because of her constant worry of the little guy. While I never said anything about it, I always wondered how being Quirkless affected Oliver Davis, especially when he had always looked up to Pro Heroes. Part of me wondered how he didn't resent his older sister because she had a Quirk and he didn't.

While he shouldn't have worried about Tami because she had a Quirk to protect herself, he still did. I couldn't say I blamed him for that. Looking back at my girlfriend, I realized how small she was compared to our other two friends. They have all always been short, but Sakura and Kaito were able to carry themselves in a way that would make people think twice before trying something on them. They were both vastly different from Tami, whose hands fidgeted with the bottom of her pink t-shirt, almost as if she wasn't quite sure what to do.

"She just wants you to be happy," I told him. "Don't worry. I'll make sure she's happy and safe while we're away."

When I turned to look at the boy, I noticed him biting his bottom lip.

"Do you think...do you think she'll like it in America that she won't come back?" he whispered.

I rolled my eyes. "Doubt it. She cares too much that she'll probably try to come back on holiday or something."

Oliver's brown eyes widened as he looked back at me. "I didn't mean like that! I mean—"

"Raiden! Thank God you didn't leave!" a voice interrupted Oliver's nonsense, breaking me out of the uncomfortable loop that would've happened until Tami, Sakura, and Kaito came back, whenever that would be.

Without hesitation, I turned around to see my older sister, Hatusko, walking towards me. Her dark brown hair was hidden underneath the hood of her sweatshirt. I wasn't sure why though. She wasn't exactly a well-known Pro Hero that would have people bombard her. At the same time, I wasn't going to ask her about it. Surely, my sister had some bizarre reason as to why she wanted to be incognito.

She didn't even waste a second as she pulled me into a hug, doing everything she could to crush my bones without doing so. I didn't say a word, knowing she would release me as soon as I wrapped an arm around to acknowledge her.

At least she wasn't as rough to Tami whenever they hugged. Tami would snap in half in a matter of seconds if she did.

When Hatsuko released me from the hug, I let out a sigh of relief while she pulled something from her sweatshirt pocket.

"Mamá wanted me to give this to you," she explained. "She wanted to be here, but with Dad being home, well, it was a miracle I could even sneak out of the house."

She handed me a folded piece of paper with my name on it. Like Hatsuko had said, it was Mamá's handwriting. She wasn't wrong about that.

"Thanks. You going to be okay living there by yourself?" I asked, glancing up to look my sister in the eye.

Hatsuko's slips tugged into a frown as her fingers pushed her sunglasses on top of her forehead. "Don't you worry, I'll be fine. Besides, Mamá's cooking is worth it."

I frowned at what she said as I looked down. In the corner of my eye, I noticed Tami's little brother had walked away, probably to join his sister and her friends one last time. Whether he did that because he wanted to or because of what Hatsuko and I were talking about, I wasn't sure. Either way, knowing the little guy was gone gave me the courage to be more upfront to my own sister.

"You don't have to look out for me anymore," I softly told her. "I know that's why you stayed back all those years. There's nothing holding you back there anymore that you could just get yourself an apartment and stay away from Dad."

My older sister sighed at the suggestion. "That's not true. I—" she paused for a moment as I felt her hand brush on top of my shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. "He's still familia. Whether we agree with him or not, he's still—"

"That doesn't make up for the fact that he's an asshole, Hatsuko," I argued, snapping my head up at her. "I don't know why you keep standing up for him."

Hatsuko frowned at my comment as she lifted her hand from my shoulder and started tousling my hair. Even though we were the same height, I never tried to fight her on it, especially when we were in a public place for everyone to see. All I could ever do was send her a glare, warning her to stop.

She never did.

"One of these days you'll understand," Hatsuko said. "Just make sure you read that note when you get on the plane. It'll keep your mind off of things."

I jerked my head out of her grasp and shook it before looking back at Tami and our friends. Luckily, none of them seem to have heard what she said as they were slowly making their way back. If they did, Tami would've been worried while Kaito would've made fun of it. There was nothing worse than the orange haired man wedging himself in between everything.

There was a light tap on my shoulder, so I looked back at my sister. She slipped the sunglasses back on her face before she gave a short wave goodbye. I didn't even have the chance to say a word to her as she beelined her way out of the terminal, swerving around the herds of people littering around the place.

It wasn't until that moment I realized it'd be a while until I saw Hatsuko again. Sure, all of my other older siblings left the moment they could, but Hatsuko stayed home her entire life. I never understood why, but I could honestly say I finally realized how Oliver was feeling just a moment ago.

Like him, I worried what would happen to my older sister now that she'd have to be with Dad all the time. Only, she wouldn't have anyone to back her up whenever things got heated.

"Awe, Hatsuko left already?" I heard Tami pout.

I turned around, wrapping an arm around her as I pulled her closer to me. Sakura's lips tugged into a small smile, probably internally screaming in excitement as she did. As much as I hate to admit it, I could see why. She was the one who got us to date. For years, I fought her attempts, only giving in when the dark haired girl warned me something could happen if I didn't.

But that was a story for another time.

"Yeah," I answered. "I'm just surprised she even showed up."

Kaito jabbed me in the arm with his fist when I said that. "Dude, you know you can admit you liked that your sister came, just like you're happy we're here."

I glared at my friend beside me. "I think I would've been fine if you just stayed home."

The short man slapped his hand over his chest as he started to proclaim how hurt he felt. Honestly, I didn't care. From my other side, I could hear Tami's soft giggles as she watched. That was all I really cared about.

She was happy. Soon, we'd both be as far away from my father as we possibly could have. While I was going to miss Kaito, Sakura, and Tami's family, I wasn't going to miss him. That man did enough damage.

There was no way I was going to let him get close ever again.

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It wasn't long after that when Tami and I were called over to our flight. We said our last goodbyes, promising our friends that we'd call once we had landed. Sakura even had Tami promise her that they'd call everyday, no matter how late it got for either one of them. The orange haired man beside her tried making me promise the same thing, but I simply told him it'd be useless as I wouldn't be able to smack him in the back of the head.

After Tami and I left and boarded the plane, I found myself looking out the window, seeing people still walking around with their luggage or workers just standing there, talking to each other. My throat started to dry up, as I felt my leg bouncing up and down.

Seeing the people out there while I was stuck in this thing wasn't exactly helping.

A small hand slipped into mine, giving it a gentle squeeze. I turned my head, seeing Tami sitting beside me, offering a small smile. She wasn't there a few moments ago, using the bathroom in the back of the plane before she came back to get into her seat. Her shoulders were relaxed as she leaned in a bit, almost studying my face for a moment.

"Nervous?" Tami asked, speaking in English once again, almost reminding me that I should do the same.

I tore my head away from her, glancing back out the window. There was no way I was going to let her know.

"It's a fourteen hour trip," I pointed out. "I've trained longer than that."

Maybe not consecutively, but during my third year at U.A., my internship with Dark Titan pulled me out of classes for two weeks to work with him at his agency. He needed an extra Pro Hero, or another Licensed hero, to help him out with the crime rate that had skyrocketed. I'd have breaks, but there was one night we hardly slept.

Tami tried slipping her hand out of mine, but I stopped her by squeezing it. She didn't need to go anywhere. While I felt my leg still bouncing up and down as I waited to get off this damn plane already, I felt more at ease with her around. There wasn't much she could really do if this plane fell out of the sky, nor did she really help with how stuffed this plane felt. Guess if anything, it was just nice knowing she was right there.

She didn't try to pull her hand away as I felt something nudging the top of my hand. I glanced, seeing that she was trying to push a stress ball between our fingertips. Her brown eyes didn't meet mine as she tried so hard to push it through. Only when I let out a sigh did she glance up at me.

"I—your sister told me," she explained my unasked question as to why she was trying to push it into my hands. "I know this isn't the same one you gave me, but I figured it'd help since it's a bit tougher; though, if you want your old stress ball, I have it. I just—"

My girlfriend didn't finish as I carefully grabbed it from her and offered a small smile. It didn't last more than a second, but I could tell it was all Tami needed for her to sigh in relief.

"Any tips about planes?" I asked; although, I wasn't sure I worded that right in English.

Tami shook her head. "I was seven the last time I was on a plane, but I know getting your mind off of things can help. Is there anything you want to talk about? Maybe I can ask one of the flight attendants for a snack, or..." her voice softened with each thing she listed off that I couldn't quite hear anything.

"Can you tell me what America's like?" I asked, causing her head to snap up. I didn't give her much time to answer as I glanced out the window, seeing the plane's pilot talking to someone down below. "Or just tell me anything? I don't mind listening to you."

Honestly, I wasn't sure why, but hearing Tami talk was enough to get my mind off of things. I never had to tell her if I was bothered by something my dad did back in high school. As long as I was around Tami, I could feel myself forgetting about that problem. Sure, I still wanted out of this damn plane, so I could actually breathe some air, but hearing her soft voice always meant one thing: that she was alright.

There was nothing more relaxing than hearing Tami's soft voice to know that she was alright.

"Sure," Tami agreed as she squeezed my hand. With her being so small, it didn't feel like much, but I could tell she was putting in as much muscle as possible with it. Seeing her try was something I had admired.

For hours she talked and talked about what she could remember of her homeland and what she was excited to do once we landed. Even when the plane shook rapidly from the turbulence it had experienced, she didn't stop herself from talking. If anything, I felt her hand grasping mine out of fear, but she didn't let her fear control her. She was so much stronger than me in that way.

If I had gone on this flight alone, I wasn't sure I could have made it.

Talking for as long as she took a toll on Tami. Her voice was starting to grow softer and softer that when I looked at her, I noticed her head starting to bob up and down. She did everything she could to stay awake that I placed my stress ball in my lap and brushed my hand on her head, leading her towards my shoulder. As much as I wanted to hear her childhood stories, I couldn't let her tire herself by keeping me calm. While Tami was quiet about her needs, she still had them. I just had to be careful to make sure she was doing alright.

Of course, when she fell asleep, the more I started to realize the situation hadn't changed. We were thousands and thousands of feet above the ocean with no sure way to escape. If I had some sort of Flying Quirk, I could be fine, but it still wouldn't have mattered if we were locked inside the plane in some way. Looking around, I wasn't sure how the people around us could stay so calm.

That was when Tami's voice echoed in my head. "Your sister told me," she had said. Hatsuko had told her the one fear I had, and she did everything to keep my mind off of it. I glanced down, noticing a white piece of paper sticking out of my pocket. I grabbed it, carefully unfolding it with one hand.

Mijo,

It was the only word that was repeated in Spanish while a majority of the words were in English. I wasn't sure why my má would want to write it in English, unless it was her way of trying to help me prepare for the language I was going to immerse myself in.

Still, it was nice to see her handwriting.

I hope you're having a safe flight as you read this. It's easier said than done, but it might be nice to get some sleep early in the flight as it'll be about noon when you arrive. Please, call me once you've landed. It's been so long since I've heard your voice, mijo, and I just want to make sure you're alright.

Please, take care. I know this is going to be difficult for you, moving to a country where you hardly know the language, but I'm so proud of you, mijo. You're going to make every single one of us so very proud, especially your father. I see the way he looks at you when you walk out of the room. Trust me when I say he's hard on you because he sees himself in you.

That is why he is pushing that Quirk Marriage on you and your girlfriend. I have tried to stop him, but you know your father. Once he has his mind made up, he isn't going to back down. I'm sure Tami has told you, but he is bringing her parents into this, trying to buy her hand for you. While I have not met them, they are remarkable people for putting her happiness before their own greed. Though, I don't think they have an ounce of greed in them.

I know your father wouldn't want me to tell you, but I thought you should know. Your father really has his heart in the right place, but he has a funny way of showing it. Just keep being strong, mijo. Do not let anyone bring you down. By the time you come back to Japan, I'll make sure to have talked some sense into him, so he doesn't continue on with this nonsense.

Remember to call me when you land, and remember to have fun while you're working in America. The next time I see you, you better have stories other than what you've done at work. There's more to life than that.

Cuidate,
Má

His heart was in the right place, I rolled my eyes as I folded the paper back up. I doubted that. My má was probably just saying that to convince herself.

No, once I land, I would be as far away from that son of a bitch that I could be. That should have been enough to calm my nerves, but it wasn't. It would never be as I glanced at the blonde who was sleeping peacefully on my arm.

Just as long as she was far away from him, everything was going to be fine..

Author's Note:

And we're back for another arc! Kinda...so this arc is actually a long one, one that will probably be twice as long as the usual arc length, so I'm going to split it into sections as I can do that without it seeming too awkward (I hope that makes sense). The first part will be uploaded as soon as I get the chapters edited and published ready, then there will be a break for me to finish writing the next section of this arc, where when I finish, I'll resume uploading it.

In the meantime, being that this chapter somewhat takes place in a plane, I want to know, have you ever flown somewhere before? If so, what was it like to fly? If not, would you go on a plane to travel?

That's all I have for now. I hope y'all are doing well! Take care!

Character Spotlight: Hastuko Yamamoto
Quirk: Ultra Strength
Likes: Sweatshirts

Song: From Small Beginnings by Gothic Storm Music