I pulled down my wool beanie to shield my eyes from the brutal winter’s breeze. The flowing air around me gently pinched my nerves until I could feel Tourette's tics itching inside my head. Normally, on days like this no one would dare catch me outside in the freezing cold, but this was a rare exception. During the extended winter semester at UA, I found myself trudging through the icy sidewalk from the Class H dorms all the way to the Heights Alliance A.

Just my luck that as soon as fall classes were put on hold, I was asked to meet with the Heroics class for costume upgrades. It was my job as class representative to stay on top of those tasks, and thankfully, I wouldn’t be alone doing so.

My vice representative of Class H, Tallulah Rosemary, had been the one to inform me the Heroics Course requested upgrades. She asked me to meet her at their dorms where I could ideally work with all of them with minimal distractions. As the large overhanging sign reading “HEROICS A” came into view, I let out a sigh of gratitude that was visible through the freezing air.

We’re finally here, so you can come out, Cleo, I thought, addressing the undead spirit I sensed beneath my feet.

“It’s about time!” Cleopatra dramatically vocalized as her translucent form phased through the solid ground. “Boy, it is cold out here! Let’s hurry up and get inside.” I was skeptical that the air in my world affected her at all, but it was typical of Cleo to be swept up in the moments and forgetful of her own afterlife.

I’m sure you’ll manage without having to hide underground, I thought to myself, knowing Cleo as a ghost could hear me. I went ahead and knocked on the door, unsure if my efforts made a sound, but I hoped it would at least keep Cleo from complaining.

“Soooo,” Cleo started in a sing-song and cheery voice as always. “Are you excited to work with your class? I never get to meet any of your other friends, so I know I am!”

I drew out another breath and watched it fan out under the cold temperatures.

This isn’t my class, and I would hardly call them friends. I barely know these people, so, no, I’m not all that thrilled. 

Working with people I wasn’t already close to was a challenge for me. I’ve been deaf since I was ten, and even then, I don’t always know what to say, or write, to people when they’re talking to me. Hero students are even more of a challenge though. They almost never know any specifics when it comes to their costume other than they want it to be “cool” or “epic.” Collaborations like these were always a pain.

As soon as the large, wooden doors opened up, Cleo floated behind me. For such a talkative spirit, she could be cautious around new people. However, the face that greeted us at the door was one she was all too familiar with.

“It’s Rose!” Cleo perked up and swerved from behind me to eagerly wave at my classmate in front of us.

I looked up to Rose. We’ve been friends for a while, but I still couldn’t brush off the fact she was nearly a foot taller than me. Regardless, I greeted her with the sign motion that moved my flat palm off my forehead and slightly out to her to say hello.

Rose reciprocated the motion before dropping the signing and just speaking directly. She knew the most I could do was read lips, and I accepted how she was slow to learn sign language. I followed her inside as soon as she propped the door open enough. Stepping in, I felt the warm air inside the dorms hug around me as if I was being thawed for the first time in forever. I finally let my arms release the hugging position I stayed in to preserve warmth, and I relaxed.

“Glad you could make it,” Rose said, leading me inside. Something felt off though, and I hesitated to follow her in. By her smile and her helpfulness to carry my school bag inside, she seemed almost happy to be there. Rose wasn’t one to choose to work with the Heroics kids in school, so I was suspicious of the sudden change.

I took one look around the common room of the dorms where the couches had been pushed close together to surround the flat screen television. Small piles of snacks and drinks were spotted at every corner, and the few Heroics students that were out were seen in their nicest pajamas.

“You know, I haven’t lived in a long time, but something tells me this isn’t a school project,” Cleo speculated with her fingers wrapped around her chin as she peered at all the kids. I had a similar instinct where I whipped my head around to shoot Rose a glare.

Just as I thought, my friend had a guilty look as she avoided my stare. When she finally did look back at me, she shrugged and gave me a blank grin.

“Surprise?”

I started to pull my hands together to sign, but I realized she either wouldn’t be able to keep up, or she wouldn’t exactly try to. I then thought to pull out my phone and just text her my argument.

“Are you serious?” I typed.

As soon as the message was sent, Rose dug into the pockets of her sweatpants to view it. She answered verbally, “Don’t be mad-”

“Too late,” I typed and sent mid-sentence.

“Come on, I know these guys aren’t all that easy to work with, but they’re nice when you get to know them. We don’t hang out with a lot of people outside of the lab-”

“For good reason.” I didn’t have to look down at my phone to type away as I objected to Rose of all people advocating for us to get out and socialize.

Rose looked at my message and rolled her eyes to the side. “Look, if it’s really the end of the world to just watch a few movies with them, then you're more than welcome to walk back to campus.” After pointing to the doorway to the cruel winter snow, Rose crossed her arms and peered down at me.

From my left, I watched Cleo shiver with the same thought. “It’s cold out there,” she reminded me, and my tics twisted my wrist as another note of what the weather does to me.

Rose knew I would rather die than walk through the aching cold, and she was right. I reluctantly shut my eyes for a second and relaxed my shoulders, telling her I had caved in and agreed.

When I opened my eyes again, I caught Rose’s slight smile as she lifted her hands to her hips proudly. “That’s what I thought.”

“I’m gonna hate you for this,” my text shot. Rose took one glance at her phone before stepping back into the common room, ruffling her metal hand against my head and adding in, “Love ya’ too,”  as her final word.

I batted her hand away from my hair as she sauntered away in victory back to the common room. I turned around to watch the scene from the doorway, my hands gripping the straps of my school bags.

"Oh, don't be such a monotoned mummy. It's not so bad," Cleo optimized. "These guys seem fun!" I followed her stare to the other side of the room where a small group of Hero kids were huddled around the flat screen.

I stepped closer, partly out of curiosity, but also so that Cleo could get a closer look without staying away from me.

I stayed behind the couch and looked over a head of pink and curly hair to see two people in front of the TV in what looked like a competitive dance battle.

The girl of the two was leaner and her choppy blue hair swayed with her sharp motions. The guy was far less graceful as his orange eyes were locked into the screen with a will of iron.

The screen displayed a version of them copying the motions as words followed the bottom. I guessed the lyrics related to the song they danced to, but the language was so foreign, even I couldn't follow the pattern.

I watched the two of them carefully, trying to read the smack talk that occurred between dancing.

"I'm surprised you're still going, Orangie. Bet you won't last much longer!" The girl teased.

Her friend of bright orange hair frowned as he retorted back, "Stop distracting me! I need to focus!" It was obvious the girl was the more agile of the two, yet everyone seated around them was invested in their battle. Even Cleo left my side to float around them and admire their sleek moves.

When it came to the rest of the people in the room, the person I was standing behind and slightly to the left of held up her fist as she cheered them on.

"You got this, Vivi!" She praised. While sitting back, she looked around until eventually spotting me behind her.

She jumped up as if she had no clue I was there, her floppy pink ears perking up until she calmed down.

"Sorry, I didn't see you there," she sheepishly apologized. Her fingers traced the ridges of the curled horns that protruded out of her head.

Kita Yukimura was well known in my class. From her prominent mutation Quirk and exceptional fighting skills, she's someone a lot of us inventors are eager to work with. I mostly knew her as Rose's Heroics partner, or "Designated Main Character" as she put it.

"You're Rose's friend, right?" Kita asked me. "She mentioned bringing a plus one. It's nice to meet you." Kita turned around while sitting on the couch and extended her arm with a warm smile up at me.

I politely shook her hand and nodded, but I then pointed to my ear. When it came to meeting new people, I always assumed no one knew sign language. As much of a pain as it was to gesture out what I wanted to say, it was what I had to do if I couldn't sign or write on my whiteboard.

"Oh, that's right!" Kita remembered, inching back in slight guilt. It was a reaction I was way used to by then anytime someone learned or recalled that I was deaf.

Kita muttered an apology once again, but her sentence was quickly cut off as she turned her head back to the center of the room. I followed her view to see the two competitive dancers gone, and in their place was Rose arguing with a black-haired girl half her height. I squinted to read what the argument was about.

"I swear you do these things solely to irritate me, don't you?" The girl huffed, crossing her arms and glaring up at my friend.

Rose simply shrugged, "Maybe. What's the big deal?"

The other girl threw her hands to her side as she explained. "This may be a casual event, but that does not rule out common sense! You can't wear sweatpants with a flannel shirt!"

"Because everyone knows they're mortal enemies!" Rose sarcastically defied the shorter and much angrier girl.

The two proceeded to argue with this girl as the rest of us watched for entertainment. It was a pointless debate, but I was almost positive Rose only kept it up to win.

When working in Support, challenges like those over outfits or costumes were common. If I wanted to watch someone give Rose crap about her lack of fashion, I would just send Dani a picture of her flannel and sweats and let him give her hell for it.

Already bored of their conversation, I looked around to try and find Cleo somewhere near. Across the half circle of couches, chairs, and blankets scattered about, I could find her hovering around Rose and the Hero girl, already way invested in this debate about appearances.

I knew it would be a waste of time to try and pull her away, so I let her be and turned back to Kita. Kita maintained a blank look at the other two in their heated debate as if she had heard the same argument since Rose arrived.

When she looked back at me, she gave me a nervous smile and what I could guess was a laugh.

"I promise it's not usually this tense around here," Kita said. With someone as passionate about her opinions as the dark haired girl, I doubted that. Still, I put my hand in front of me to tell her I wasn't bothered by it.

Kita looked as if she was about to say something, but she was cut short as a pair of Hero students followed behind her. A girl of pale skin and bright eyes flopped onto the couch next to Kita as she slung an arm around her taller friend.

"Kit-chan," she said, "What's the hold up? We've been here for hours; any news on when we can start movie night?" The girl questioned. Behind her, a guy as tall as Kita stood patiently by in silence.

It wouldn't take a genius to figure out these two were twins. From the chunks of crystal that occupied their hair to the same glassy eyes, they were nearly identical. Their eccentric looks along with the appearances of most of the people there might alarm me, but the Support Course wasn't exactly normal either.

Kita looked around, noticing that the friendly competition had died down and everyone else began to wait for the next activity. She pulled out her phone that displayed only the time and answered.

"We're still waiting on Yamada to bring her movie collection, but it's probably taking her a while to walk in the snow." I wouldn't put it past them if the hold up was weather related. I couldn't count how many times I wanted to turn around and go home. Even Cleo had to take shelter in the first solid surface she could find.

The girl next to Kita huffed when hearing this. Honestly, I couldn't care less who they were talking about. There wasn't much I could do during a movie marathon, so this Yamada could take all the time she wanted.

As the straps of my backpack began to lose their hold, I tried to shrug it back on while also keeping my other books and notes in my arms. Kita, likely remembering that I had been waiting near them for some time, inched her head towards me.

"You can leave your stuff in the kitchen. No one should be in there," she pointed behind me to one of few places in the dorm without people crowding around. I gave Kita a nod and motioned my hand from my chin down to say thank you.

I'd owe her more than that for telling me where I could find the kitchen; for the first time since I arrived, I felt like I could breathe again. I wasn't sure how Rose could be so comfortable around people she's only met a few times. I was already feeling drained, and I hadn't said a word.

I looked around the opened space where the large, wrap around counter took up the majority of the floor. Many people had shoved their sleeping bags and spare blankets in a corner, so I picked an empty adjacent one to throw my things in.

Looking down at the floor, I felt the familiar warmth in my chest grow as a spirit followed me in.

"How are you feeling, Cleo?"

Cleopatra flew out from under the floorboards and took a breath, stretching her arms up behind her head. "Well, that 'Just Dance' sure gets tiring," she sighed. "But those kids are fun! How come you didn't join them?"

I could have named off a list of reasons. Instead though, I avoided it and piled my school supplies over my bag.

"I doubt I'll be needing those anymore." Next time Rose decided to trick me into going somewhere, I'd have to ask for a heads up. Lugging all my notes on Class A and their hero costumes was a hassle for nothing.

Cleo groaned as she hovered around me. "You're so gloomy. Can't you find anyone to talk to?"

"I'm talking to you, aren't I?" I pointed out. As I started to regain feeling in my once numb fingertips, I let go of my beanie and two of the jackets I had on, placing them in my pile with the rest.

"I guess," Cleo droned defeated.

I left my stuff in its corner and made my way over to the counter top to lean against a chair. UA always told their students that they treat every department equally, but judging by how the Heights Alliance dorm kitchen is twice the size of ours, many doubted that.

On top of the wrap-around counter that could seat the entire class, the one kitchen also had the most top of the line appliances. The room even came with a small dining table and a door to a pantry for the Hero students.

Across the wall and hidden next to the fridge, I also noticed a second door, this one seemingly leading outside. I'd normally pay this door no attention, other than how I could easily use it to sneak out early. However, I had to mind it as a girl my age was behind the glass door, struggling to get in.

Her arms were filled with boxes and bags of all kinds, yet she had just enough room to spot me and point to the doorknob in front of her.

I might not see eye to eye with her class, but I wasn't an awful person. I moved up to the door and propped it open with my foot, keeping my arms around myself as the cold air poured in.

My neck twitched back from the sudden temperature change, but I saw the young ginger girl manage to make it inside. Her arms carried bags of take out food, recognizable by the golden, m-shaped arches on the front. Beneath them was a cardboard box that was inches away from falling as she held it up with one hand, her other wheeling in a suitcase.

I hurried to grab the bags of food from her before she ended up wearing it. I would ask Cleo to give us a hand, but I didn't want to freak this girl out.

She smiled and laughed as if she had just said something, but I didn't see her mouth move. It's possible I just wasn't paying attention, but the odds of her speaking with movement were small. Just in case though, I pointed to my ear with one free hand and shook my head.

Her soft blue eyes blinked back in realization. Her lips turned up in a small smile as she adjusted her hold on her box. After, she moved her hand up to her chin and flipped her wrist down.

"Thank you," she signed.

If I wasn't mute, I'd be speechless. There's no way someone else knew sign. I had attended public school for a while, and the only people who knew even a little bit of sign language were teachers. Even then, they only had the basic motions memorized.

Although, "thank you" is also a well known phrase. Just to be certain, I sat down the take out bags and began to sign out more to this girl.

"You know sign?" I asked, moving my fingers from pointing at her to motioning off my head, then rotating to translate the end.

From my left, I heard Cleo exaggerate the obvious in front of us.  “She knows sign! Mordecai, look! She knows sign language!!” If she had the power  to not phase through me, I was certain Cleo would be shoving me towards this girl in a heartbeat.

I received not only a warm smile from the stranger, but she continued to pull her hands together to sign further.

"Well, it's a little tough to go without it since I'm mute."

Strange that while I could now say just about anything and be understood, I was caught by so much surprise that I couldn't think of anything. I didn't believe it. Not only was there a person at my school who spoke fluent sign, but she was mute too. The only one to be more pleased with this than me would be Cleo as she leaned over my shoulder and watched our conversation.

"Koto Yamada," her hands spell out, snapping me back in the moment. My hands felt stiff when thinking of what to say, and I didn't reply right away. Although, the girl continued to place her hands flatly together before pointing both index fingers up, then at me.

"Nice to meet you." What she was signing perfectly to me finally registered, and I didn't bother trying to hold back my subtle smile. Her name was Koto, she was mute, and she was happy to meet me.

“That’s such a pretty name,” Cleo admired, levitating about with her chin resting in her hands. “And she’s so polite too!”

Realizing Koto had stopped signing because it was supposedly my turn to introduce myself, I held my hands together to spell out my name.

I never enjoyed my name or how long it took to sign out. It was always easier on everyone to go by the nickname Double made up for me.

"You can call me Rocket."

I ended up signing with Koto longer than I intended to. It was a nice distraction from the chaotic video game competitions going on in the next room over, and if I was being honest, she was one of the more tolerable Heroics kids. She was nice when talking about the other courses. Anytime I mentioned the H class, she was always interested in hearing more.

I was even more impressed when she revealed she actually knows about wiring and technology. Cleo nearly fainted when hearing this, going on about the chances of the only two muted tech nerds being in the same school. Talking with Koto about her Hero costume almost made me envy the designated extra that got to work with her.

We had torn open the bags of take out food while we signed back and forth. I forgot how easy it was to use  sign language. Writing on my whiteboard took so much time and effort even for the smallest words, but being able to sign with Koto, I didn’t want to go back to my old habits.

Koto was in the middle of explaining the mechanics of her Quirk with some of her support gear, pulling her fingers extended out away from her face for emphasis, when her attention switched into the next room.

She didn’t mention being deaf too, so the best I could assume was she heard the others calling for her to join them. Koto held a hand up as her only response before she was rolling the fast food bags up and heading into the next room.

I watched her go, already slightly longing for the opportunities to sign with someone so much like myself as they slipped away. When her fiery hair swung around, she met my eyes with the brightest smile. Her hands dipped and turned before one was stretched out to me.

“Are you coming?” Her sign said.

A part of me froze, not wanting to take a chance, even on something like this. However, there was something about her that I couldn’t let leave without me. I let her see my smile and I stood up to follow, motioning my hands up near my head and down.

“Yep.”

Chapter one dedicated to
JunieWeathers