Ruka had fallen asleep in the middle of studying, a textbook laying on her stomach as she slept. Suddenly, a knock on her dorm room door woke her up. She sat up and rubbed her eyes, the textbook falling into her lap as she did so.
"I am here to wake you up. You don't want to be late for class do you, Young Ryuutou?" All Might's cheery voice sounded on the other side of Ruka's door.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm up, I'm up. Just give me a sec. I need to get ready." Ruka called out as she stretched and packed her school materials back into her backpack. Then she changed out of her pajamas and into her school uniform. When she was done getting ready, she opened her door to see All Might standing there with that bright smile of his. He accompanied her to the main school building and to her classroom where her classmates were waiting for Mr. Aizawa to arrive and start teaching. The class went silent as Ruka stepped through the doorway and walked to her seat. Shortly after, Mr. Aizawa entered the classroom and the school day began with core classes.
~Time Skip~
The bell had just rung, signaling the start of lunch break and Class 1-A headed to the cafeteria to eat. Just as Izuku was about to head out the classroom door, Principal Nezu stopped him.
"Midoriya, may I have a word with you?" Principal Nezu asked Izuku who gulped, thinking he may have gotten into trouble somehow. As if reading his mind, Principal Nezu spoke before Izuku even had the chance to ask if he had done anything wrong.
"Don't worry, you're not in trouble. Actually I have a request to ask of you." Principal Nezu said as a puzzled expression made its way onto Izuku's face.
"What is it, sir?" Izuku asked the principal who had climbed onto the teacher's desk and sat down.
"I would like for you to help Ryuutou with her studies after classes, be her tutor if you will." Principal Nezu said as he crossed his legs and folded his paws together on his lap. Izuku became even more puzzled.
"You know how final exams are coming up in about a month. Ryuutou didn't want to be omitted from taking the exams just because she hasn't been here from the start of the year to learn all the material that will be covered. But that means she's going to have to catch up on everything that she's missed in order to pass." Principal Nezu explained further.
"But wouldn't Yaoyorozu be a better study partner? I mean, she's the smartest student in the class." Izuku suggested.
"Midoriya, Ryuutou specifically asked for you." Principal Nezu said as he unfolded his paws and placed them on his knees, his eyes glinting with a seriousness that made Izuku freeze.
"M-me? She asked for me?" Izuku asked as the principal nodded his head.
"Can you do this for me, Midoriya?" Principal Nezu asked Izuku who got a determined look on his face.
"Yes sir. I will do my best." Midoriya said as Principal Nezu smiled contently and slid off the teacher's desk.
"Glad to hear. I appreciate it Midoriya. You may head to lunch now." Principal Nezu said as he left the classroom. Izuku left as well and headed towards the cafeteria. When he got there, he grabbed some food, then looked around for a place to sit. He saw his friends Uraraka and Iida already sitting together. His other classmates were scattered throughout the cafeteria in their own little cliques. Then he spotted Ruka, sitting alone at her own table. Everyone avoided her, even students from other classes. Apparently, she was more well known than Izuku initially thought. He had heard about her because he was a hero nerd and a few pro heroes were among her victims. Even though she was a killer, she didn't appear to be a bad person deep down. Uraraka and Iida noticed Izuku and waved at him and gestured for him to join them. But then he looked at Ruka again. She looked so lonely. He looked at his friends again, gave them an apologetic smile then headed towards Ruka's table. Izuku sat down at her table across from her, making her look up from her bowl.
"Hey. I know we haven't spoken before, but I'm Midoriya Izuku." Izuku said in a friendly manner giving Ruka a wide smile.
"I know." Ruka said as she took a bite of her food and an awkward silence ensued between them. Then Izuku spoke again.
"I was told by Principal Nezu that you wanted someone to help you study for the final exams." Izuku mentioned.
"Yeah, that's right." Ruka said, continuing to eat her lunch. Another awkward silence followed. Man, Ruka really wasn't much of a talker. There was something Izuku was itching to know.
"So... why did you want me specifically to be your study partner?" Izuku asked Ruka right as she was just about to take another bite of her food. She paused, then put her chopsticks down.
"Why do you want to know?" Ruka asked, not answering Izuku's question.
"It's just that, I'm not the smartest student in our class. In fact, I have to work harder than everyone else just to keep up with them." Izuku said as Ruka slightly furrowed her brows.
"What? Are you bad at academics?" Ruka asked Izuku.
"What? No, it's just... kinda complicated." Izuku said, hoping that Ruka wouldn't ask anymore on the subject. She studied his face, honing in on every movement of his facial muscles, analyzing his expression with critical accuracy. She noticed the tiny beads of sweat forming on his brow. He was hiding something, a secret that could potentially change the world if it was leaked out to the wrong person or group. She raised an eyebrow then leaned back slightly in her seat.
"I won't pry. If you don't want to tell me the secret concerning your quirk, then don't. As long as your grades don't suck, I'm fine with studying with you." Ruka said as Izuku breathed a sigh of relief, but then paused when he realized something. Wait, was he that obvious?
"Wait, how did you...?" Izuku asked his sentence trailing off as a slight look of amusement made its way onto Ruka's face.
"Assassins must be highly perceptive to be effective. I've learned to read the tiniest twitch in peoples' facial expressions, shifts in their bodies, and movements of the eyes. But you don't have to worry about me spilling the beans. Assassins are known to be very secretive. And I'm no exception." Ruka explained.
"Right. Thanks Ryuutou." Izuku said as he grinned while scratching the back of his head.
"Most people avoid me here because of my reputation. So why did you decide to sit with me?" Ruka asked Izuku.
"Well, we're going to be study partners, so I was hoping to get to know you a little. And to be honest, I don't think you're a bad person deep down. After all, you're working hard to become a hero despite your background. I don't think someone who was truly bad would even try to become a hero." Izuku said before taking a bite of his food.
"It was either this or Tartarus." Ruka said as she continued to eat her lunch.
"Say what you will, but I really don't believe you're a bad person." Izuku said as Ruka scoffed at his remark.
"Heh, tell that to my kill count and all the other students here." Ruka said as she finished eating and stood up.
"See you in and after class, Midoriya." Ruka said as she walked away and took care of her dishes. Izuku finished his lunch shortly after and took care of his dishes and headed back to the classroom.
~Time Skip~
After Basic Hero Training was over, Mr. Aizawa accompanied Ruka to the dorm building with Izuku following close behind. They took the elevator to floor 2F where her dorm room was. Ruka let Izuku into her room.
"I didn't know the school had dorms." Izuku said while looking around Ruka's room.
"Yeah, well apparently they just finished this building. They're still building the dorm buildings for the other classes. They let me move in early because I have nowhere else to go. You guys will be moving in later on." Ruka said as she set down her book bag and pulled out her textbooks. Izuku did the same.
"So where are you in your studies right now?" Izuku asked Ruka as she handed her textbooks to Izuku.
"The bookmarks mark how far I've gotten with self studying. One thing you should know about me is I don't move on in a subject until I understand it." Ruka said as Izuku opened each textbook to the bookmark to see what chapter she was on in each subject. He noticed that some of the subjects she was right where she needed to be, but some subjects she was a bit behind in.
"Wow, you got pretty far on your own in one night." Izuku said, seeming impressed by the progress Ruka made by herself. He handed the textbooks back to her.
"I stayed up late to get as far as I have. I'm pretty much already up to date on Language Arts: Classical Japanese, Math & Science, Foreign Languages: English, and History/Social Studies since I received schooling during my time in the Shadow Organization. Also, my training there pretty much covered hero course subjects like Quirk-Based Physics, Quirk Combat/Non-quirk Combat, and the first aid portion of First Aid & Rescue Techniques. So those were easy to understand." Ruka explained as she picked out the textbooks of the subjects she was the most behind in which was Foundational Hero Studies, Hero History & Villain History, Agency Management, and First Aid & Rescue Techniques since she wasn't familiar with the rescue techniques portion.
"These are the ones I need help catching up on." Ruka said as she placed the textbooks she picked out in front of Izuku.
"Alright, let's just work through one subject at a time until we get caught up. How about we start with First Aid & Rescue Techniques since you're already familiar with half of it." Izuku said as he grabbed and opened the textbook for First Aid & Rescue Techniques. They studied together, going over the material before Izuku tested Ruka on it. He walked her through things she didn't quite get until she knew it by heart. They took small breaks here and there so that the study session wouldn't be too overwhelming.
~Time Skip~
It had been a couple hours and Ruka was fully caught up in First Aid & Rescue Techniques as well as finished with today's homework.
"So do you want to start on another subject or do you want to be done for the day?" Izuku asked Ruka who flopped back onto her bed.
"I think I'll call it a day." Ruka said as Izuku nodded and started to pack up his things.
"Okay. We'll start on the next subject tomorrow. I'll see you later." Izuku said as he headed towards the door. But right as he reached for the door, Ruka called his name.
"Hey Midoriya. Thanks for helping me study." Ruka said with a faint smile on her face. Izuku smiled back.
"You're welcome Ryuutou. Anytime." Izuku said as he opened the door and exited her room, shutting the door behind him. After he left, the atmosphere changed. It felt... lonely. Even though Ruka had lived a fairly solitary life, she had never really felt lonely before. Ruka decided not to dwell on the feeling too much and started playing games on the phone U.A. provided for her until it was time to get ready for bed. After she got her pajamas on, she got under her covers and just laid there until she fell asleep. Over the next three days of school that week, Izuku sat with her at lunch time and joined her at her dorm room after school to study with her. They studied hard, taking small breaks here and there. Aside from studying, Ruka didn't say much to Izuku, even on lunch break or breaks during their study sessions. He would always try to start conversations but her replies were brief. But she was slowly warming up to him. Becoming a little more talkative with him over the time they spent together. Eventually, they began to share stuff about themselves to each other, things like their pasts, favorite things, and hobbies. By the end of the week on Friday, she was all caught up on everything. Izuku was just about to leave her dorm room after they finished studying together, but stopped in his tracks when he felt a soft tug on his sleeve. He looked back at Ruka.
"I just wanted to say... thank you for all you've done for me this week. I... I really appreciate it." Ruka said in a quiet voice.
"Of course Ryuutou. I'm happy to help you succeed." Izuku said, smiling brightly at Ruka.
"I'm not just talking about helping me catch up on my studies... You were the only one who didn't judge me based on my criminal background. I could see it in your gaze when I first walked into the classroom. You chose to sit next to me during lunch instead of avoiding me and sitting with your friends like everyone else does... Made me feel less alone... less of an outcast in this school... Thank you." Ruka said as Izuku's smile softened.
"All my life, I've never had a true friend. You're my first real friend, Izuku." Ruka said, using his first name for the first time. That was different. She had been calling him Midoriya up until now. Izuku's cheeks burned a bright shade of pink as his heart squeezed when she called him by his first name. He clutched his chest as he made a strange face like he was about to cry.
"Is it not okay to call you by your first name? I can continue calling you Midoriya if you want." Ruka said as Izuku shook his head and waved his hands side to side frantically.
"N-no, i-it's fine! Y-you can call me Izuku." Izuku stuttered as Ruka smiled in amusement, a moment of silence following.
"So... does this mean I can call you Ruka?" Izuku asked as Ruka's facial expression softened.
"Sure. You can call me Ruka." Ruka granted Izuku permission to refer to her by her first name. He smiled at her and nodded, turning around to leave her dorm room.
"Now that I'm all caught up on everything, does that mean you won't be coming over after class anymore?" Ruka asked before Izuku managed to take another step.
"I don't know. We'll have to talk to Mr. Aizawa or Principal Nezu about that." Izuku answered as Ruka sighed.
"I've actually come to really enjoy your company here after school. It's gonna be quite lonely without you. I'll miss it." Ruka said as Izuku turned his head to look at her.
"Yeah... I'll miss it too." Izuku said as he smiled. Then he opened the door and left. As the door shut behind him, that empty feeling surrounded Ruka again. She sat on her bed and brought her knees to her chest.
"I wish the rest of the class would try to get to know me like you did, Izuku." Ruka said out loud alone in her room.