I stare at the door in front of me, trepidation filling my stomach. Or maybe that's the grenade Hatsume threw together for me yesterday. The fact that it only took her five minutes to build something that she could confidently say would collapse a room should probably be a bit concerning for the heroes. Then again, they clearly see her as a problem child who doesn't have enough restraint for her ideas, and are trying to stifle her potential.
Poor, poor heroes. They have no idea just how brilliant that girl is. She's wasted here at UA. I truly hope that she accepts my offer, when the time comes. The LoV would be so much better for her to spread her wings and soar to greatness. Or, rather, they would allow her explosions to reach a force she never imagined before. Where now she can destroy a room, staying at UA would lead her to being able to destroy a building by the time she graduates.
If she joins the LoV, she could destroy a city before the year is out.
But that's a consideration for later, if she wishes to accept. For now I need to prepare myself to deal with this latest challenge. Something that I considered, every once and a while, but always discarded as not worth the time investment.
Therapy.
I can honestly say that I have no idea how this is going to go, which is a rarity. Normally I'd have at least some sort of view as to how whatever I do will end, even if I end up being wrong. But here? Nothing. It's… unsettling. Is this how other people feel whenever I start a mutter spree? Well, other than Melissa and Himi. Melissa because she'll go on her own spree whenever talking about one of her inventions, and Himi because she thinks it's cute.
After what feels like an eternity of standing there but is most likely no more than a few minutes, I sigh. "Best to just get this over with," I mutter to myself and raise my hand to knock on the door. Just because I'm a villain doesn't mean I have to be rude. But just before my hand can make contact with the wood it swings open, and the person on the other side walks right into my fist.
"Ow!" They say and take a step back while bringing their hand up to rub at their nose, though probably more from surprise than actual pain. I wasn't going to put much force into my knock, after all. I really hope that this encounter isn't an omen for how my therapy session will go, because the person I just accidentally hit in the face is Izumi.
I stand there and stare at her for a moment, studying her. After the reveal of One For All, we haven't talked again, which I'm more than happy with being the case. Other than speculating about what Toshinori's actual quirk is, I've done my best to put the whole interaction out of my mind. I still don't know what my feelings about it are, and at this point I think I need to talk to Himi to work through them. But maybe my session with Hound Dog will be productive, somehow? Maybe?
It seems like Izumi can't say the same for being outwardly affected by our talk, though. Huge bags under her eyes, messy hair, and medical patches covering her cheeks that stretch all the way to her jawline. Speaking plainly; she looks like shit. Not that I care, obviously. As shown by how I simply step aside after she pulls her hand away from her nose and opens her eyes, making eye-contact with me. We stand there in a tense silence before she dips her head towards me and takes her leave, neither of us speaking a word.
I stare after her retreating back until she turns the corner before shaking my head and stepping through the cleared doorway into Hound Dog's office. It's not particularly large or small, just an average size. Neither is it cluttered with 'therapy stuff'. Apart from the desk holding a computer and some personal items, the only furniture are a couch and chair sitting across from each other in the middle of the room, and a few bean bag chairs scattered around. There are also a bunch of plushies scattered around the room for some reason.
Hound Dog himself is sitting in the chair, staring at me with a raised eyebrow. "Mister Usagi," he says in a neutral tone that causes my hand to twitch towards the knife strapped to my thigh. "I wasn't expecting you so soon. Your appointment isn't for another forty-five minutes."
I shrug, trying my best to seem casual. Ugh, why is this so stressful!? We haven't even started yet! "I dislike the possibility of being late." I shoot a quick glance over my shoulder. "Didn't expect to run into another… patient?"
The dog-person hums. In acknowledgment? Doubt? Curiosity? He hums and that's all I can say about it. "Well, since you're already here, would you like to take a seat?" So he says, but he doesn't gesture to either the couch across from him or one of the beanbags. Is this a test? Something that will tell him about my personality? Why did I never do any research into how therapists operate!?
But I can't just stand here, I do have an agreement with Nezu, after all. So I snatch a surprisingly soft cat plushie off of the couch and carry it with me to a dark green bean bag in front of his desk. I let myself drop into it, sinking in comfortably before I look back at him. He's just staring, menacingly!
Or not. He can easily intimidate someone if he wants though, given his size and appearance. And he does use it to great effect whenever he's out doing hero work. "He could probably give Ashido a few tips if she's determined to keep Alien Queen as her hero name. Though I never bothered to learn if she actually does want to be an intimidation-type hero, so if she's plans to go more in line with a cutesy or casual 'Alien Queen' then her best bet would be getting tutelage under someone like Selkie. Though obviously she'd be able to get a more positive reaction than him, given that she's female and doesn't have a naturally intimidating appearance. But if she decides to be a Twilight or Underground hero, then she'd be perfect for jump scares! Which would really tie in well with her allusion to the movie series. Furthermore-"
I'm pulled from my thoughts by the hero/therapist clearing his throat, and my teeth clack together at the realization that I started muttering at some point. I hold back a grimace as I wait for him to say something, and after staring at me for a few moments, he does.
"Are there any topics you'd like to avoid?"
I blink in surprise, taken aback by the question. "Things I'd like to avoid?"
Hound Dog dips his head in a slow nod. "Yes, I find that it is easier for people to talk about things if they know that I will make an effort to avoid sensitive topics."
Huh. That's… interesting. I thought therapists are supposed to get you to talk about things that you don't want to talk about. Isn't that kind of the point? You won't get better if you don't talk about what's bothering you? Or maybe it's a stage thing? Talk about the thing that bothers you the least and then build up to what bothers you the most?
I really want to research the kinds of methods therapists use during their sessions, but I know myself enough to realize that if I do I'll just do my best to give him the 'correct' answers instead of the true ones. Not that the 'correct' answers wouldn't be true, but some things are more true than others.
I shrug, squeezing the cat plushie in my lap. "The Yagis, I guess. Middle school."
Hound Dog nods easily. "That's perfectly fine. If things get too uncomfortable for you while we're talking, just say so and we can move on to a different topic."
I nod hesitantly, eyeing him warily. So far, this has not been going as I expected. A quick surreptitious glance at the clock tells me that I've only been here for a few minutes. And since I showed up so early, I technically have more than two hours before the scheduled end of the session.
This is going to be a long two hours.
But then he asks the first question, and all my worries are pushed to the back of my mind.
"So, I heard that you like quirk analysis?"
I perk up at the mention of one of my favorite topics.
`~`
"...which means that with enough practice, Mandalay can probably share memories, or even her sight with other people! And let's not forget that Pixie Bob is literally a one-woman army! No, a one-woman special forces! If she carries even just a bucket of dirt around a city with her, she can easily be the most effective Underground hero! Really, the only reason that the Wild Wild Pussycats as a whole aren't ranked in the top ten is because they're so focused on rescue work as opposed to apprehension!"
I finally take a breath, finishing my explanation on why the Pussycats are some of the best heroes in Japan and some of the only ones I like and respect. Not to mention how effective their quirks could be if they thought about them differently! I blame the quirk counselors they had as children. Not that I know who those were, but I can still blame them.
Hound Dogs shakes his head in bemusement, which I can understand. The LoV still can't keep up with my mutter sprees, and even though I try to slow them down to the best of my abilities, sometimes I just have to go full speed ahead! "Well, that was certainly informative."
Yep, I lost him somewhere along the way. Oh well, I had fun at least.
Then I blink at that thought. I had fun? At my mandatory therapy? Is that supposed to happen? A quick glance at the clock has me jerking in surprise, jostling off of the bean bag in surprise when I see the time.
"We've been here three hours!?"
Hound Dog blinks and looks at the clock as well. "So we have," he says with his own sense of bemusement. He shakes his head to clear whatever thoughts are filling it before he looks at me. "Well, luckily for me I don't have any appointments after you. We can end the day's session here if you'd like, or I have another hour to spare before I need to get started on some paperwork that needs to get done?"
The question is clear in his tone, and for a moment I think about it. It has been nice to let loose and get some old fashioned quirk analysis. Sure, bouncing things around with Yaoyorozu and Monoma is fun, but it's just not the same when I have to slow things down so others can understand me. In fact, I don't think I've been this relaxed since I took Nezu's deal.
But no, I think that's enough for the day, and I tell the man as much. He just nods understandingly and tells me that his office is always open if I ever want to talk. And as I head to the dorms, I can't help but think that I'll be taking him up on that offer sometime. Much to my surprise.