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“You have the rest of this class hour to complete everything in the assignment. Remember your post-training analysis at the end of the combat section.” Aizawa explained with little enthusiasm.
“Pairs have already been decided, let’s get to it, 2-A.” He waved his class off and turned from the training grounds, walking to find himself a space along the sidelines and observe the young heroes.
Their assignment was a paired exercise focusing on teamwork and communication. They had a checklist of tasks to complete, and a combat training test of how their quirks worked best both together and against each other. Excited chatter began to flood the grounds, everyone pairing off with their respective partners.
“Looks like it’s you and me, Icy Hot.” Bakugo leered, cracking his knuckles. “Let’s
go!”
“You realize most of these tasks are collaborative, right? We aren’t just fighting..?” Todoroki asked, raising an eyebrow at his assigned partner.
“Yay!
Yao-Momo!” Ashido cheered. “We’re gonna do
so
good!” She sped over toward Yaoyorozu and lifted her into a spinning hug.
Laughing, they both made their way through the training grounds as Momo began, “I’ve already started analyzing the list and I think we can…” Her voice faded out to the others as she and Mina carved out their space and started to plan.
Hitoshi Shinso, newly integrated into U.A.’s hero course, was paired up to train with none other than Izuku Midoriya. Shinso, at times, still felt a little unsure of his place in the hero course —like today. Well, maybe today it was just that feeling of being out of sync with Izuku’s unrelenting enthusiasm —well, that and the
constant
muttering.
Their dynamic felt…well, a bit awkward at first –but functional. He knew Izuku’s heart was in the right place, even if he got caught up in his head a bit when he got too focused on something.
Some pairs of students had run off to complete some of the tasks in the woods or further away in the grounds, while a few other groups, including Bakugo and Todoroki, stayed near the large, outdoor mats and to start out with the versus combat section.
Izuku, and his overthinking, added a minute or two on to the time it
should
have taken them as he debated, muttering to himself about which space would be the perfect area for training.
Hitoshi rolled his shoulders, loosening himself up a bit, and pulled up his mask. “Ready, Midoriya?”
Izuku just nodded back.
Shinso brought out his capture weapon scarf with a practiced ease, and the two of them began to spar. He narrowly but gracefully avoided a kick and a punch—kindly not done with Deku’s full power. It was hard for Shinso to use his quirk while trying to fight one-on-one out in the open. He would have to try to think of something else to tilt the battle to his advantage.
Calling for a break, Shinso made his way to sit along the side. He took some sips of water as Izuku paced back and forth, muttering to himself.
“Midoriya… want to share what you’re thinking?” Hitoshi asked, glancing up at him.
“Hm?” Izuku made a slight sound of acknowledgement, turning as he continued to pace.
“I’d love some feedback, suggestions, tips.. and to work with you on some of the same.. This
is
supposed to be a partnered project, after all.”
“Oh, uh, sorry!” Midoriya grinned sheepishly. “Was I muttering to myself again?” He brought a hand to the back of his neck, cheeks pinkening a bit.
“Yes.” Shinso sighed, reaching his arm out to Midoriya’s side to pull him in closer, help him focus.
Izuku squeaked at the unexpected touch, jumping a little away from Hitoshi.
“Ah–”
“What was that?”
“Huh?
Nothing!”
“Nothing?”
“Yes!” Izuku said quickly.
“Then…are you ready to get back to our schoolwork?”
“Y-Yeah! Exactly.”
“Hm.”
Midoriya started to move himself away from Shinso’s hand on his side, only for the fingers there to reach out further and
poke-poke-poke-squeeze.
“Shi-hihihih-in-
whohohoahahaha–”
The unexpectedness of it all had been what hit him first—what had really put him off guard—a sudden, playful touch that sent his nerves alight and left him gasping for air between unbidden giggles. Shock turned into pure, unfiltered reaction as Izuku realized he couldn’t stop the laughter that seemed to take on a life of its own.
Shinso’s eyes sparkled with an inquisitive awe. “So you
are
ticklish.” He said quietly, mostly to himself.
“Nahaha- I’m
not!”
Midoriya squealed, protesting despite the obvious evidence to the contrary. His knees buckled as he crumpled forward onto the dusty mat.
Shinso followed him down. “Whoever you partner up with, it’s important to be fully honest with one another, isn’t it?” He lamented, teasing as he pinned the other hero-in-training to the floor. “How else will we ever work together?” Shinso grinned then put on a faux pleading look. “C’mon. Talk to me?” He poked along Izuku’s sides, prompting.
Izuku grunted, shaking his head as he tried with all his might to fight his urge to laugh desperately.
Shinso sighed. “Oh, we’ll talk.” Then he dragged one of Midoriya’s arms behind his own back, pinning it bent up against his shoulder blade. “Sooner than you think.” He wrapped his scarf around Izuku’s arm in a few places, then around his chest and neck, securing him in place.
Now, Shinso had him pinned face down, one strong leg over him half straddling his body, one of his arms wrapped down at his side in the capture scarf and the other now half-chicken-winged behind his back. Izuku could probably get out of this with a little concentration, but then… A jolt raced through his mind as he felt a feather-light touch reappear against the side of his ribs, his mind struggling to process the sensation. This wasn’t a quick jab or poke, this was soft, deliberate, giggle-inducing tickling. It started as just a faint, tingling pressure. While his mind was still catching up to what was happening, his body betrayed him, jerking instinctively to the side as the sensation spread like wildfire. His chest ached as he held his breath.
The realization hit him—he was being tickled—
Shinso was really pinning him down and tickling him
—and he
wasn’t stopping.
A squeal of helpless laughter blurted out before Izuku could stop it. His breath hitched when he managed to get a breath in, and for a split second, he froze, caught between the uncontrollable urge to squirm away and the disbelief in what Shinso—
quiet, brooding, mysterious Shinso
—was doing to him (and
during class,
of all times!).
He managed to twist his head to the side enough to get a look at his purple-haired classmate, only to see a devious half-smile on his face. Surprise rippled through Izuku—he would have expected something like this from.. honestly almost anyone else—and the shock quickly gave way to a wave of chaotic, fluttery sensations that had him twisting and wriggling without thinking. Shinso upped his tempo, tapping his fingertips along his classmate’s ribs and grinning. “Thought this might help you talk..”
Fingers pinched up and down Izuku’s ribs, whose eyes widened as his mouth curved up in a wide, wobbly smile. It was as if Izuku’s whole body lit up at once, the gentle, teasing contact making it impossible to stay still, his laughter spilling out in uncontrollable bursts. “Nononono Shihihihinso
wahahahait!”
He giggled helplessly, trying to muffle the sound. “Nohohoho no wahahaha! Hehehe not t-tickling ehehehehe! Peheheheople will
seehehehee!”
His arms struggled against Shinso’s scarf as his legs kicked out against the floor, flailing aimlessly each time Shinso brought his hands up higher along Midoriya’s ribs.
“C’mon. If you don’t want them to notice, keep it down. Control yourself, Midoriya.” Shinso teased quietly, a smug little smile on his lips. “C’mon, does it
really
tickle that bad?”
“Yehehehehes!
It- ha-ah—” Izuku stopped struggling all at once, his eyes going blank as he slumped against the large mat.
“Got-cha.” Shinso half-sang, teasing.
Izuku stared blankly, fully under the grip of his classmate’s quirk. Hitoshi flipped him over onto his back and untangled him from his scarf, adjusting his limbs and spreading his arms out to the sides.
“Now. Let’s see how long you can keep those arms up.” Hitoshi ordered, crawling over his classmate’s body to straddle him, expecting his quirk to be quickly overcome with the desperation brought on by tickling.
Izuku just laid there after bringing his arms straight up over his head, otherwise unmoving.
Somewhere in his mind he was blushing ten thousand shades of red and giggling in anticipation.
“Good job.” Shinso smirked. “Now… Just in case.” He wrapped the strong scarf around Izuku’s wrists, keeping them together where they laid over his head.
Inside, Midoriya whimpered.
“Ohh. You know what I want to try, Midoriya?”
Izuku simply stared blankly up at him.
“I’ve been working more and more on expanding my quirk and making people talk.. I wonder if I can get you to…” He paused, considering. “Tell me where you are most vulnerable to tickling.”
No!
Somewhere in Izuku’s mind screamed as his mouth opened and he heard his voice answering his classmate with almost no intonation. Like it didn’t belong to him. ‘Hips.’
Dammit dammit dammit! What was he saying now? ‘
Stomach. Feet. Armpits.’
Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!
“Now
we’re talking!” Shinso appeared happier than his classmate had ever seen him. “Alright, now. Stay still for me.” He smirked, adding. “Not that you have much of a choice.”
Shinso wriggled one finger gently under each of Izuku’s arms.
His expression stayed neutral all of 5 seconds before a smile morphed its way onto his face and he broke out of the quirk’s hold, tearing his bound wrists down in a futile attempt at protecting himself. He giggled loudly, squirming wildly back and forth as Shinso’s now-trapped fingers danced their way across the hollows of his armpits.
“Plehehehehease!” Midoriya squeaked, kicking his feet into the air. “They’re gonna seeeeheheheheheheee!!!”
“Yeah they might if you don’t quiet down, do you think they’d help me?”
“No!”
Izuku gasped, panicking at the thought before his expression and most of his mind went blank.
Caught again. At least the tickling stopped for a moment.
And then it’s arms back up. Eyes blank. Shinso’s hands closing in…
“Where else did you say, stomach, right?” As Hitoshi drew his fingers over Midoriya’s vulnerable middle—one that used to be soft and gentle but was now hardened with muscle—he wiggled them like a sluggish spider crawling over his belly.
He felt the body tense underneath him and saw the corners of Deku’s lips almost start to twitch into a smile. But, it seemed that as long as he remained gentle, didn’t overwhelm, he might well be able to keep his mental hold on the other boy longer.
On the path back over his shivering stomach, Shinso’s sluggish spidering fingers slipped into Izuku’s belly button, and he hiccuped-laughed his way right back into consciousness.
“Okahahahay,
ohmygosh-
Shihihihinso—” Izuku batted weakly with his joined wrists at his captor’s still-tickling hands. “Plehehease—”
The tickling stopped then, but something in Shinso’s eyes told Izuku it wasn’t quite over yet.
“Now… I’m not gonna tear off your shoes in the middle of class but I
will
be testing those out another time.” Izuku gaped at him as he spoke. “But, I did want to try one more spot you mentioned…” Shinso wiggled his fingers slowly toward Midoriya’s middle.
“Wait! You can’t—” His eyes bugged out wide.
“Oh, can’t I?”
Izuku shook his head, biting his lip to keep from answering again.
“You know I can just tickle you again anyway, quirk or not, right?”
“Nohohoho!”
Izuku whined, he couldn’t help it.
A beat later, his eyes and face returned to what seemed to be their common state—blank.
“There we go…” Hitoshi smiled, having Izuku reposition himself with his arms over his head. His fingers wiggled menacingly and dramatically slow as they approached his lower waist. And just when they made contact—
Izuku shrieked, breaking free from the hypnotic hold mere moments after Hitoshi’s fingers squeezed into the divots of his hips through his uniform. “WahahahaHA-
NOT THERE!”
Shinso chuckled, sounding pleased, as he backed up a bit and stopped pinning the other boy down.
With a quick roll onto his side and a kick into the ground with a small percentage of his power, Izuku jumped to his feet and scrambled away before he could be further caught up in the capture scarf or hypnosis again — or worse, even just pinned from how weak and dizzy he felt with laughter.
“Ahahahalright!
Don’t we have-have work to do?” Izuku whined, putting his bound hands up between them defensively.
“Couldn’t help but keep talking to me, even though you knew it was making it worse for you..” Shinso smirked at him affectionately, reaching out to ruffle his hair.
Izuku flinched away with a sheepish grin. “What? I couldn’t help it. I- you were- you kept-”
“You know… You never actually told me to stop either.” Shinso smirked as Midoriya turned bright red.
“I- what?
No,
I- I did.. I mean, well, I
couldn’t
even–”
“We’ll talk about
that
later.” Shinso waved a hand dismissively.
Izuku buried his face in his hands, mumbling into them.
“Don’t be so embarrassed.” Shinso wrapped an arm around Izuku’s shoulders. “Your reactions were pretty cute.”
“Ohmygodshutup.” Midoriya whined into his hands, cheeks still burning. “We.. we have an assignment to get done.”
“You’re right. Maybe we can use some of what we learned here in our analysis report?” Hitoshi smiled, still a hint of teasing, as he began to unbind his classmate’s wrists.
Izuku brightened, already overcoming his embarrassment by thinking about how the impacts of an outside stimulus can affect those affected by Shinso’s quirk.
Could it be tested further?
They stood, discussing ideas, before they continued on with their assignment.