{Edited 4/30/2021}

Lillian's pov

"Keepin' it mellow, huh? That's fine; I'll skip straight to the main show." Present Mic said when the room remained silent. I barely breathed, too afraid making a noise would draw attention to me in the now fairly-silent room. Beside me, Shinso shifted to gaze to the pro hero in front of us. I wonder if Shinso will know him someday. It seems likely, especially since I have zero doubt about Shinso getting in. How can you go wrong with mind control? What are the villains gonna do? He'll just ask them to walk to the police station and they'll do it! Not that I know the logistics or want to assume, of course, but come on! 

Present Mic was just as large as life as I had always known him to be. He was basically my opposite if you wanted to go that far. He was loud, and confident, and had a sense of humor that could keep a crowd laughing for hours. His untamable charisma was one of the many reasons I couldn't help but admire him so much as a hero. He hosted radio shows that touched on insightful topics and drew attention to the movements taht desperately needed it. He was the definition of a hero. I knew this to be a fact set in stone, without a doubt in my mind. 

"Let's talk about how this practical exam is gonna go down, okay?" Present Mic said. I jumped slightly as a loud guitar riff sounded. I tried not to feel too flustered. Present Mic was so insanely cool that I could hardly wrap my head around it. What sort of school orientation held this sort of energy? I wished she were confident enough to return it. "Are you read-ay?!"

There was silence once more. Super awkward, but not surprising. I still couldn't help but feel a little bad for the pro, who deflated like a stuck balloon for all of one second before he was popping back up again with renewed vigor. I tried to swallow my anxiety as best I could. If anyone's out of place here, it's me. I'm literally not even supposed to be here. I don't know where I got the nerve. Maybe it's a genetic thing. 

"Like your application said, today you rockin' boys and girls will be out there competing in ten minute mock battles in super-hip urban settings!" Present Mic announced. My heart dropped. I inhaled slowly, trying to keep my panic at bay as best I could. This is fine, right? I knew this going in. 

There's no way I can back down now. I'm already here, and though I was dreading this, it was a little too late to back out. I have to give it a go. I've been given a frankly jacked quirk, so I've got to buckle down so that I can at least tell myself I tried. Even if I die in the middle of the exam, whether it be from shock or some other unforeseen force, at least I'd have made some sort of attempt at my dream. I'm just sorry my parents will have to hash out for my funeral. Maybe I could write a quick note letting them know it was okay to send me of on a flaming raft at sea. 

"Gird your loins, my friends. After I drop the mic you'll be herded off to your specified battle center, okay?" Mic grinned brightly. It did nothing to reassure me. Fun fact of the day; I am about to get absolutely fucking folded. Pardon my french. 

I hesitantly flipped up my card to see that I'd gotten put in Battle center A. I swallowed thickly, glancing at Shinso. I would like to make note that I did not in fact look at his card. That would be an invasion of his privacy. Besides, they're clearly trying to split us up, so I'm sure we aren't in the same place anyway. That would be anti-climactic. Right? Not that us being in the same place would matter. Teaming up was unspoken of, and I met Shinso about .7 seconds ago. We'd have to know each other for at least another five to six business days to even consider that sort of trust. At least on my end. For him, I would assume. Because that would be rude. And I'm not trying to do that. Because that would be awful of me. And- yeah, no. 

I can do this. My loins are girded and I am a-okay. Do I slightly regret doing this? No. I immensely regret it, but that's besides the current point. This is happening. I'm going to have to lock up shop and learn how to cope, because I put myself into this ripe bucket of moldy strawberries, and I am the only one who can get me out of it. I've got this. I have to try. I have to hype myself up. I should've brought a mirror so I could give myself a more efficient self pep-talk. The weird looks and social suicide would be outweighed by the effectiveness. I could use my phone camera, but is that the same effect?

"Good luck." Shinso noted nonchalantly as people began to stand up, rushing towards their respective gates. I snapped from my train of thought with a jerky nod, my heart thundering. Points. I have to get points in. Surely I can get at least one. I'm sort of an idiot, but I can freeze things. Does that mean anything? That has to mean something. 

"Thanks. You too." My words came out a stilted mumble he probably didn't pick up. I waited until he vanished into the stirring crowd to get up, not wanting to seem like I was following him. I tried to come up with a game plan as I maneuvered through the mass of hero hopefuls. I don't know how these robots work, but I can freeze them. If I could find a way to crawl on top of some of the smaller ones... could I do something with that? There's really no telling. I guess I'll find out. To think that I only have ten minutes to define my entire existence to these people. This is not going to go well.

My gate was crowded; though, I'm sure the other entrances weren't doing much better. I lingered near the back like a ghost, twiddling my thumbs and wondering how in hot hell I was going to pull this one off. Passing wasn't even a possibility in my mind at this point. A horrible mindset, but can you blame me? Look at me! Everyone things I'm quirkless and my arms look more like overcooked spaghetti noodles than actual limbs. It is not a good day. 

I waited patiently for the daunting event to start. I know that hovering in the back isn't going to do me any good, but neither is getting trampled. Those at the front are confident and driven, and surely have impressive quirks that would blow mine out of the water. The people present are also, undoubtedly, well versed in their given powers. Mine feels almost foreign with how little I've used it. Despite the practice I've tried to put in lately, it doesn't make up for the years and years of experience the other students here have. I can't let myself get caught in their crossfire. I want to get as many mock villains as I can-- again, even if it's only one-- but it would mean trouble for all involved parties if I got a hand chopped off or something. 

I jumped slightly as a voice announced it was time for us to start. The gates opened inwards with an impressive whoosh, grinding to a mechanical halt and sending the group in front of me off running. I followed after the hoard, not daring to second guess myself when there was so little time. This is a bad idea. The only thing I'm truly good at is making homemade croutons, and that is not a skill that's going to help me right now. I once again question why I'm here. All my life choices have led me to this point. I'm vaguely horrified.

Instead of going straight like a majority of the students were, I found myself branching off into the nearest alley ways. It was one of the more narrow ones near the entrance, allowing me to part from the crowd that had charged in like a stampede of angry bulls. I'm going to sue someone if I'm knocked out by anything other than a robot. Can you imagine getting hit by a stray quirk going off the rails some odd few seconds in? I would never be able to live myself! My parents would also have some questions too if I came back from my little outing with a broken bone.

I took off down the alley like hell was nipping at my heels and turned the first corner I saw, which led me to my first villain almost immediately. I froze in my tracks as though I'd just used my quirk on myself. It was the smallest robot on the roster, yet still somehow impossibly big at the same time. I stared down at me threateningly, seeming almost alive as its head cocked. I swallowed thickly. This is great. Totally not about to piss myself. Definitely not shaking so hard I feel like my brain is going to rattle out of my skull. My heart feels like a fork in a garbage disposal. And I mean that in the worst way possible.

 "Target spotted." The robot chimed, as though that were not the most horrifying thing I had ever heard in my life. My jaw dropped as its gears whirred. "Commencing attack."

I squeaked as it rushed forward, raising my hands to shield my face on instinct. I clenched my eyes shut, my quirk activating as I did so. I heard it freeze, the sound of its treads speeding towards me halting with startling abruptness. The sudden stop of sound almost made me release the breath I'd been holding. I risked peeking an eye open to see if my quirk had really done the job. Why am I such a coward? Surely I wasn't born this way. I feel like I have vague memories of being a confident child. What happened to her? Where did she go?

Sure enough, the bot was frozen in place. The stinging in my eyes told me that without me even having to look. I tried to soothe my nerves. I know how my quirk works. This thing isn't going to move so long as I don't pass out or accidentally release it, which does sound like a very me-thing. We will try to avoid making that mistake for the time being. The robot isn't big. It doesn't look hard to climb, which means...

I approached with hesitance, knowing I was on a timer yet not having the courage to go any faster. I was cautious hauling myself up the side of it. I felt a little reassured when it showed no signs of moving. Not even a bit. It wasn't hard to hoist myself up, even if my arms didn't appreciate it. I let my legs do most of the work, mounting myself on its back with a triumphant breath and looking at what I had to work with. I could very clearly see wires between where the two metal plates on its back met. I bit the inside of my cheek, blinking a few times in an attempt to dispel the irritation slowly beginning to creep in. I needed to hurry. I couldn't stay here forever. If this works, I could have a shot. I could actually have a shot. 

I jammed my arm through the pieces of metal. My arm was thin enough-- a blessing, apparently, because it barely fit as it was. My hand curled around the thickest wire I could find. I braced myself for death by electrocution, bracing my other hand against the robot's back and pulling. Hard. 

It came out with surprising ease, almost as though it were meant to. I pulled my arm back out, not minding how the edges of the metal scraped at it all too much as I slid down its back and stumbled. I rushed to hop off of it completely, rushing to the other end of the alley behind it. I waited until I was in a good place to escape before I risked undoing my quirk. No need to get blown up by a lazer because I stayed standing in front of it like a brainless idiot, right? Right. Off topic.

I unfroze the machine. The screech of metal as it slumped forward lifeless made my eyes go wide. It had worked. That had actually worked. My half-baked, made-up-in-two-seconds plan had worked. That had done something. Those were points under my name. Right there. Points. For me. I looked down at my hands, taking in a shaky breath.

I think I have a plan.