Chapter 22 - Uraraka's Lament

Izuku and Uraraka's performance in the first event completely rocked the casbah, the stadium buzzing with excitement as contestants and observers alike discussing the enthralling and controversial match. Uraraka powerful quirk, tenacity and strategy of swiping Izuku's tools certainly earned her major points with the pros. Izuku was receiving mixed reviews.

"That Midoriya kid is something else," said one attendee. "To do all that he's been doing without a quirk is really impressive!"

"Yeah, but he's still gonna have a hard time being a hero without a quirk," said another observer. "I mean, look at Endeavor's son. Not much competition there."

"I don't know, he seems pretty good to me."

Izuku didn't really care about what people thought of him. Right now, his only concern was for Uraraka. After leaving the arena, he accompanied her to see Recovery Girl. The explosions had done a number on her, but thankfully it was nothing serious. Izuku still immensely guilty.

"I'm sorry, Uraraka," he said for the millionth time as Recovery Girl healed her.

"Don't be, Deku!" She said, surprisingly cheerfully. "I told you not to hold back, didn't I?"

"Still," said Izuku sheepishly.

"She'll be fine, young man," said Recovery Girl. "Although that bomb you put on her hip caused some severe burns, they're healing up nicely."

Izuku's stomach twisted. He was so proud of Uraraka and how well she fought in the match, but he still felt terrible at the fact that their match had to be the first. That meant she wasn't able to showcase her abilities anymore to potential recruiters. Still, he knew it would have looked bad if he had just let her win. She wanted to show everyone what she could do on her own, without help. But what really bothered him was that he knew that she had a lot riding on becoming a hero, and the field was oversaturated already, making it that much more difficult for heroes in training to make it in this industry. They only had three chances in their lifetime to make a good impression, and he was afraid that he may have taken that chance away. Such was the price of competition, he supposed.

"Don't worry, Deku," said Uraraka, as if reading his mind. "It was a good match. It showed me that I have a lot to learn about fighting. It'll prepare me for the next time. Speaking of which," Uraraka added. "Your match is going to be starting soon, right? You better hurry and get ready. I'll be right there."

"Are you sure?" Asked Izuku.

"Don't worry," said Uraraka again. "I'll see you soon, and I'll be cheering you on."

Izuku hesitantly left, heading off towards the preparation rooms. Recovery Girl went to attend to her other duties, leaving Uraraka alone. She took her phone from her gym bag, but stopped just short of opening it, simply staring at it as it rested in her hand. Tears began to well at her eyes, and she could no longer hold them back. She had failed. She had so much riding on this, and she ultimately fell short. She knew she would have been paired against Deku eventually, but she had hoped it would have been a few rounds in, and not be eliminated in the first round. She wanted to call her parents, but she didn't know if she could --

"Young miss, are you all right?"

Uraraka looked up to see a tall, slender man in a black pinstripe suit and bowtie standing in the doorway of the medical wing. He was an elderly man, balding with a grey mustache under his nose, with bright and very kind-looking eyes staring at her.

"Oh, yes, I'm fine!" Said Uraraka, attempting to stand. Her knee buckled under her. Now that the adrenaline of the fight had worn off, she was aware of how sore she was, despite Recovery Girl's treatment. The man stretched his hand forward, helping to steady her. Uraraka looked down to see that she had inadvertently opened the stitching on her knee, which began to bleed. Recovery Girl had opted for stitches and bandages and not her quirk considering that she had used a lot of her stamina for the match, it wouldn't have made a difference anyway.

"Permit me, miss," said the man, placing his hand upon her knee. Startled at first by this rather forward gesture, Uraraka felt a warm, tingling sensation as the man's hand began to glow. After a moment or two, he drew back and her knee was completely healed.

"I beg your pardon," said the man, bowing slightly as Uraraka stared in amazement. "Forgive my manners. My name is Alfred Pennyworth. How does it feel?"

"Much better," said Uraraka. "My name is Ochako Uraraka. Are you a doctor here too?"

"Not at all, my dear," said Alfred. "Simply an old friend of Miss Shuzenji. Recovery Girl." He added at Uraraka's confused expression.

"I didn't realize that there were other healing quirks out there," said Uraraka.

"It is a rare gift indeed," said Alfred matter-of-factly. "And no two of them are quite alike either." He pulled up a stool and sat down across from Uraraka. "So what seems to be troubling you, Miss Uraraka?"

"Oh, it's nothing, really," said Uraraka, turning away.

"I should think that you should be ecstatic, considering how well you did in the festival," Alfred said.

"It wasn't that close," Said Uraraka. "I rushed it. I didn't have a backup plan after that big move, and it cost me. I failed."

Alfred considered her for a moment. "Is that really such a bad thing?"

Uraraka nodded sadly. "I was supposed to do better, go further in the festival so I would have more chances to show what I'm made of. But I couldn't beat Deku, not even at my best."

"If I'm not mistaken," said Alfred. "Izuku Midoriya is rumored to have been trained by the Batman, is he not?"

"That's right," said Uraraka.

"Well then," said Alfred. "I would say that you were at quite a disadvantage from the start, weren't you?"

"I guess so," said Uraraka. "He's so amazing, and I'm just. . . not." Tears began to flow freely as Uraraka placed her face in her hands.

"Why do you want to be a hero, young miss?" Asked Alfred, passing her a silk handkerchief.

Uraraka sniffed and wiped her tears. "I want to be able to help my parents financially," she said.

"A noble goal," said Alfred. "But potentially dangerous."

"What do you mean?" said Uraraka.

"It's none of my business," said Alfred. "But I'm sure that you are worth more than money to your parents. And the path of a hero is a hard, dangerous, and sometimes lonely road. Isn't there something else less dangerous that could help you meet your goal?"

"Well, yeah, but. . ." Uraraka trailed off. She had considered this initially as well, but it was clear that this day and age the quickest way to celebrity and wealth was through being a hero, even if it was the most dangerous.

"Let me rephrase," said Alfred. "If your parents were to become fiscally secure, what would be your reason to become a hero?"

Uraraka was silent. She didn't have an immediate answer for this. Yes, her parents were the main reason for her becoming a hero, but she had also considered many other avenues, even working for her father and using her quirk instead of heavy equipment. But her father had always encouraged her to pursue her own dreams, no matter what they were. She thought of Deku, and of how noble and strong his dreams of being a hero are. But the truth is that her only dream as been to alleviate her parents suffering, even at the expense of her own suffering.

"It's quite alright not to know right now," said Alfred kindly. "But if you would permit this old man to say so, I think you already know the answer."

"What do you mean?" Asked Uraraka.

"Why, my dear, what is heroism but service to one's fellow men?" Alfred said. With that, he bowed and exited the room, leaving Uraraka alone with her thoughts. After a few minutes, she made her way to the preparation room to clean herself and join Deku and the others to watch the matches. As her current gym uniform was damaged in the battle, she began changing into a new uniform provided for her when her phone rang, startling her.

It was her father.

"Hey dad," said Uraraka, trying not to sound flustered at his surprise call.

"Ochako!" Her father's voice exclaimed from the other line. "Honey, I'm so proud of you! You almost won!"

Her father's cheerful voice brought Uraraka to her knees, allowing her tears to flow freely. That was something she admired about him. No matter how tough things were, how hard he had to work, and how miserable their situation, he always had a smile on his face. She was old enough that she could see through it, and saw just how beaten down and tired he really was, but he refused to let it show through to her.

"Ochako?" Her father said concernedly. "What's the matter?"

"Oh dad," said Uraraka through her tears. "I failed."

"Honey, don't say that," Her father replied kindly. "You did so well. Just because you lost the match doesn't mean you can't be a Pro Hero. I don't have the best understanding of how all this works, but there's always next year, right? This isn't the end."

"I know," she sobbed. "I just wish I could have done better."

"Ochako, what are you in such a hurry for?" Her father said, chuckling.

"Because I want to help you guys out as soon as I can."

"Ochako, there's no need to rush yourself," said her father comfortingly. "I don't want that to be the reason you become a hero."

"What do you mean?" Asked Uraraka, wiping her tears.

"You have always put others first in your life," said her father. "Whenever there was someone who needed help, whenever someone was in trouble, you always felt it was your duty to help them. The very fact that you feel that way shows me that you'll make a kind, caring hero one day. The simple fact is, I believe that being a hero to others is what you were born to do. Do you understand?"

Alfred words before he left flashed through Uraraka's mind like a bolt of lightning: I think you already know the answer . . . what is heroism but service to one's fellow men? "Yeah," she said finally. "I think I do."

"Don't worry about your mother and I," said her father. "Things are looking up."

"How's that?" Said Uraraka.

I got a call the other day," He replied. "It happened so fast I hadn't had time to tell you about it. But an American businessman called me and said that he was expanding his company overseas, starting here in Japan. He said he reviewed my past projects and is impressed with the quality of my work. He's provided me with a huge advance and I've been able to hire more people, purchase new equipment, and we've already started working on projects."

"You. . . you're serious?!" Said Uraraka, hardly able to believe her ears.

"I am, honey," said her father happily. "Your father is now the exclusive consulting contractor for WayneTech Japan, Ochako, one of the biggest companies in the United States. You don't have to rush now, Ochako. Now you can focus on becoming the best hero this world has ever seen. I know you'll make us proud."

Uraraka sank to her knees, her heart filled to the brim with happiness. She knew that this was just the beginning, and that there would be more trials to await her in the future, but right now, she didn't care. Her family was going to be okay, even without her help, but that didn't matter to her. She now knew who she truly was.

I am Ochako Uraraka. I am going to save others. I am a hero.