I want to list some things that might help readers better understand some elements of the story before diving in!

**Important Detail**
-Eventually in the story we will meet a villain named Twice. He has a second persona that changes the way he talks. Not to spoil too many things but Twice has something similar to a multi-personality disorder. He only has the two personas but they often talk right after each other, changing his voice pitch. To help translate this into text I am going to write his lines like this:
"Hey, hey, hey, hey! I know these kids! 𝓦𝓱𝓸 𝓪𝓻𝓮 𝓽𝓱𝓮𝔂?!"

This will help show his real persona more clearly!

◃───────────▹

Important components of the story:

-In the original story, most of the focus is on the twenty students in Hero Course 1A. I am writing about an original character named Rhea Garrison. She has just moved from the United States to Japan and has been added to Class 1A based on factors that will be revealed later. I did this intentionally, so please remember that, especially if you are a series fan and know much of the content.

-In Japan, your first and last name are written in the opposite order compared to the U.S. They write their names as Last Name, First Name. And you are often referred to by your last name. So I would be Matthews, Hope and most people would call me Matthews.

-Rhea learns Japanese but struggles with specific slang and swear words since her brother would not teach her. Anytime she speaks in English, I will italicize it so it's easier to understand when she speaks English. I will also attempt to write most of this story from a third-person perspective (Which I have never done before), so bear with me as I try to find a balance; I might still use the first person occasionally.

-In the story, Katsuki Bakugou's character often refers to Izuku Midoriya as Deku. This later becomes his hero name and a nickname that he is often referred to as by lots of different people. Katsuki called him Deku when he was a kid because he believed Izuku would always be powerless. The term 'Deku' is meant to mock him; it is a Japanese abbreviation of the word 'Dekunobou,' which roughly translates to 'good for nothing.' However, the creator was clever with this, 'Deku' can also be a Japanese abbreviation for 'Dekiru,' which loosely translates to the 'ability to do something.' Which is part of the reason it became his hero's name later on.
Source: SK Anime by Sportskeeda

-In the story, Izuku has called Katsuki Bakugo 'Kacchan' since childhood. 'Kacchan' is a portmanteau* of Bakugo's first name, Katsuki, and the -chan honorific. This honorific is often used for small children, cute girls, and close friends. It can also be used for older boys. Izuku probably uses this honorific because he sees Katsuki as a close friend.

In chapter nine of the manga, we see a flashback to Bakugo, his friend group, and Izuku in their early elementary school years. The chapter shows that Bakugo is among the first in his friend group to learn Kanji (a form of writing in Japan), Which is where he comes up with the nickname Deku. He says that in Kanji, you can read part of Izuku's name (デク) as Deku. One of Bakugo's friends responds, "Wow, Kacchan, you can already read!?". This shows that it wasn't just Izuku who referred to him as Kacchan, and he might not have been the one to give him the nickname.

So why does he still call him Kacchan after everything they have been through? That part is more so up for interpretation. I believe it's an old habit and a way to keep them linked to each other. Whether they like it or not- their visions of what it means to be a hero, how to make it happen, and the sources of their inspiration are closely tied to each other. Which I hope to bring to life in this story!

*Portmanteau: word blending the sounds and combining the meanings of two others.
Source: CBR & Misplacedgamer on Tumblr. Misplacedgamer goes into a deep dive into this nickname with many reference materials. I might agree with their opinions on some dynamics and relationships, but they had the most factual explanation I could find!

◃───────────▹

Cultural things (Not necessarily integral to the story but as an educational basis can be fun to know before diving into the story):

-In Japanese culture, it is considered respectful, and you are generally expected to refer to someone by their last name until you establish a more friendly relationship. Then, some people might refer to each other by first names or give nicknames with variations of that person's first or last name. It depends on where you are, who you know, and the level of respect that is factored in. For this story, I will mention that Rhea is from America, where first names are used freely. Some of the characters that I think would be easygoing with how she addresses them will be referred to by first name, while others will be referred to by last name.

-Japanese culture also uses something called honorifics; this includes honorific suffixes and prefixes when referring to others in a conversation. Suffixes are often gender-specific at the end of names, while prefixes are attached to the beginning of many nouns. Using given names and honorifics is a way to indicate polite speech based on people's age and social relationships with one another. The most common honorifics used are: -San, -Sama, -Kun, -Chan, -Senpai, and -Sensei. After the published chapters, I will post a more detailed description of these honorifics in the Reference One section of the index/glossary.

-However, aside from shedding some light on this fascinating piece of culture, I will not use honorifics in the story. Being from America and only knowing the basics of Japanese culture, I do not feel comfortable using honorifics; most English translations do not carry those over, either. I do not want to misuse a piece of their culture just for a story.

-One of the main facets of Japanese culture is the idea of harmony, mutual respect, and group consensus. There is also value placed on collectiveness, diligence, and conflict avoidance, which results from the need for social harmony. As you get to know and understand the Japan Hero Network and its Workings, I think this can be easily seen in their political climate. Both the ways it is used for good and the ways good intentions don't always lead to the desired outcome.

-This is something I wanted to touch on to show cultural differences, but in Japanese culture, things that can be considered rude or improper for the public would be things like prolonged eye contact, hugging, or shoulder slapping. America is the land of PDA (Public Displays of Affection), and often, physical touch as a show of affection is very common in greetings, times of joy, times of sadness, or just something couples do in and out of the public.

In America, eye contact is tricky and often has its own language; eye contact can be seen as a challenge, a show of respect, or a sign of someone listening and engaging; people use eye contact to show they are serious, falling in love, or as a sign of vulnerability. Americans often emphasize eye contact when showing remorse or apologizing, whereas, in Japan, you would bow (the bow level often indicates how remorseful someone is).

Another difference is talking too much or interrupting others, which is commonplace in America, where you often have to fight to be heard. In Japan, this is not commonplace in their social norms and is usually looked down on, so you will notice this with Rhea and Izuku.