Anakin stared at the UA letter on his desk. It arrived that morning, but he hadn't opened it yet. His phone lit up - another message from Mirio asking if he'd gotten his results.
"Just open it," Megumi said from his doorway. She'd come home early from her hospital shift when he texted about the letter.
"Did Great-Grandma Chiyo say anything?"
"You know she can't tell us the results."
Anakin picked up the envelope. The UA seal looked official, too thick to be a rejection. He tore it open, and a small disk fell onto his desk.
A hologram flickered to life, showing Principal Nezu seated at his desk. The mouse-bear-dog principal smiled at the camera.
"Skywalker Anakin," Nezu said, "I'm pleased to inform you that you've been accepted into UA High School's hero course through our recommendation program."
Megumi grabbed his shoulder.
"Your performance in both the practical trials and written exam demonstrated exceptional potential. Your quirk control and decision-making skills ranked highest among all candidates. We look forward to seeing you develop at UA."
The hologram changed to show his scores. First place among the recommended students.
"Classes begin in April. Welcome to UA's hero course!"
The message ended. Anakin sat there, reading the scores again.
"I got in."
"You got in!" Megumi hugged him tight. "I'm calling your grandfather!"
His phone buzzed again. This time Mirio had sent a video - he was phasing through his furniture in excitement while his dad tried to film.
"I GOT IN!" Mirio's message read. "Fourth place! Did you?"
Anakin typed back: "First place."
"OF COURSE YOU DID! Though I did phase through six uniforms during the exam so maybe that affected my score. Worth it though!"
Megumi was already on the phone with Ben. "He got in! First place in recommendations!"
"Tell him to wait there!" Ben's voice came through the speaker. "I'm bringing celebration food!"
More messages flooded in. His grandmother called crying. Dr. Nakamura sent congratulations. Even Chiyo finally broke her silence with a simple text: "Never doubted it."
Ben arrived with enough food to feed ten people. "My grandson's going to UA!" he announced to no one in particular as he set up dinner. "First place in recommendations!"
"Dad, the neighbors can hear you."
"Let them hear! This calls for a party!"
They ate dinner while discussing what came next - uniform fittings, orientation, class assignments. Anakin half-listened, still processing the reality of it.
His phone kept going off with messages from Mirio, who was apparently still celebrating by accidentally phasing through everything he touched.
"Just phased into my neighbor's apartment!" one text read. "They said congratulations! Also please leave!"
"Your friend seems excited," Ben noted as another message came through.
"He's phased through his entire house twice," Anakin said. "His dad's getting calls from downstairs neighbors."
Megumi smiled. "At least UA has experience with unusual quirks. They'll figure something out for his uniform situation."
After dinner, Anakin called Mirio, who answered while trying to stay solid enough to hold his phone.
"Can you believe it?" Mirio said. "We're going to UA! Hold on, I need to get dressed again."
There was a pause while Mirio found new clothes. "Sorry about that. But seriously, this is amazing!"
"Your quirk's acting up more than usual."
"I know! Dad says it's excitement making my control worse. Mom's already ordering more uniforms for school."
They talked about their exam performances, comparing notes now that they could discuss it freely. Despite coming in fourth, Mirio had impressed the judges with his determination and positive attitude.
"That Hado girl got second place," Mirio said. "You know, the one with Wave Motion?"
"Think they'll put us all in the same class?"
"Hope so! Though maybe warn me before using The Force to stop my quirk next time."
Later that night, Anakin reread his acceptance letter. The scores showed high marks in quirk control and combat ability, with notes about his judgment during rescue scenarios.
His phone lit up with one last message from Mirio: "Just remembered we have to wait THREE WHOLE MONTHS before school starts! Also, I've gone through every outfit I own today. Worth it though!"
Anakin smiled and lay back on his bed. Three months until UA. Three months until he and Mirio would start training to become heroes.
His phone buzzed again. "Update: Mom says I need to calm down before I phase through all my new uniforms too. But how can I be calm? We're going to UA!"
"Go to sleep, Mirio."
"Can't sleep! Too excited! Also partly because I keep phasing through my bed!"
Three months felt like forever, but the first day of UA finally arrived. Anakin stood in front of his mirror, adjusting the tie of his new uniform. The gray jacket felt stiff, but at least it fit better than the middle school one.
"Ready?" Megumi called from the kitchen.
"Almost."
His bag sat packed on his bed - notebooks, pencils, and his acceptance letter which listed his class assignment: 1-B. Mirio texted last night to confirm he was in the same class.
The train ride to UA was packed with new students. Anakin spotted uniforms from different middle schools, all headed to the hero course, support course, or general studies. He used The Force to sense Mirio before seeing him - his friend's presence was always easy to pick out.
"First day!" Mirio waved from the platform. He wore a backpack that looked stuffed full. "Mom made me bring extra clothes just in case, but I've been practicing control all break."
They walked through UA's gates together. The main building looked taller
"Class 1-B," Mirio read from the directory. "Second floor."
Their classroom door was massive, designed to accommodate students with size-altering quirks. Inside, early arrivals were picking seats and talking quietly. The blue-haired girl - Hado Nejire - sat near the front, looking around with obvious curiosity.
"Let's get seats together," Mirio said, heading for the middle row.
More students filtered in. Most were new faces, except for Mirio and Nejire who he knew from the recommendation exam.
Their homeroom teacher arrived - a pro hero Anakin didn't recognize. He introduced himself as Sekijiro Kan, also known as Vlad King.
"Welcome to UA's hero course," he said. "You're here because you showed potential. Now it's time to prove you deserve to stay."
He passed out their schedules. Morning classes were normal subjects - math, literature, English. Afternoon meant foundational hero studies.
"First thing," Vlad King continued, "introduce yourselves. Name, quirk, and why you want to be a hero."
They went row by row. Nejire bounced up when it was her turn.
"I'm Hado Nejire! My quirk is Wave Motion - I can convert my vitality into energy waves! I want to be a hero because there's so much to learn about helping people!"
More introductions followed. When it reached Mirio, he stood with his usual grin.
"Togata Mirio! My quirk is Permeation - I can phase through anything! Though sometimes by accident. I want to be a hero to help people smile even when things are tough!"
Anakin's turn came next. "Skywalker Anakin. My quirk is The Force. I can manipulate objects and enhance physical abilities." He paused. Why did he want to be a hero? "I want to be a hero because I believe this power should be used to help change things for the better."
Morning classes passed quickly. Their teachers were pros who understood working with quirks - when Mirio accidentally phased through his chair, no one made a big deal about it.
At lunch, they found seats in the massive cafeteria. Nejire joined them, full of questions.
"How does The Force work? Can you lift anything? Why did you pick UA? Is your hair naturally that color? Why does Mirio phase through things? Does it hurt when-"
"Nejire," Mirio cut in, "maybe one question at a time?"
She barely took a breath. "Okay! First question: how many things can you lift at once?"
Anakin demonstrated by lifting several items from their lunch trays simultaneously. Nejire watched with wide eyes, already forming her next question.
Their afternoon meant hero basic training. They changed into their PE uniforms and gathered in one of UA's training grounds.
"Today we test your quirk applications," Vlad King announced. "Show me what you can do."
They took turns demonstrating their quirks. Nejire flew loops around the training ground, waves of power streaming behind her. Mirio phased through a series of obstacles, managing to keep his clothes on most of the time.
When Anakin's turn came, he showed different applications of The Force - lifting objects, enhancing his movements, sensing his surroundings. He finished with a Force Push that knocked over several training dummies.
"Good control," Vlad King noted. "We'll work on expanding your capabilities."
After classes ended, they gathered their things to head home.
"First day done!" Mirio said as they walked to the station. "And I only phased through two things!"
"Three. You forgot about the pencil in math."
"Right! Still better than middle school though."
At home, Megumi waited with dinner. "How was it?"
"Good. Mirio and I are in the same class and that girl from the exam too - Hado Nejire."
"The one with the Wave Motion quirk?"
"Yeah."
Ben called later to hear about his first day. Great-Granny Chiyo sent a text reminding him to rest well for tomorrow.
Anakin looked at his schedule for tomorrow, this was really happening. He was at UA, training to be a hero.