Author's Notes: Chapter edited and corrected by Vongrak.
Louise Pov – Netherlands, two years before entering UA.
I took a deep breath to calm my nerves. I could feel my hands trembling, so I closed them and squeezed tightly.
I am Louise Françoise de La Vallière. Third daughter of the Duke and Duchess of La Vallière. Daughter of Pierre 'Centurion' and Karin 'Heavy Wind', both A-rank hunters. My Aura levels were enormous from the age of 4; I was measured as an S-rank at 10.
I can do it, it's just a tournament. Just… a tournament.
I bit my lip hard. The academy tournament was a demonstration tournament, a way to showcase the new students, the country's rising stars, to the family and the rest of the nation.
The Netherlands did not have heroes or hunters like different countries in the world; instead, both professions were linked to the royal army, commanded directly by the reigning queen of the time.
The Netherlands was one of several countries that reinstated the monarchy with the arrival of the quirks after, in the dark age of the quirks, the government had been virtually dismantled during that time of chaos and the monarchy had stepped forward to maintain order.
At this time, Queen Marianne was overseeing everything, and if there were no problems, Princess Henrietta would be the next reigning queen.
It was common for the Queen to visit and observe the demonstration tournament from time to time. And the Queen and Princess were present at this time.
I couldn't fail, not again.
Take a deep breath. To calm your nerves. It was my second year out of three at the academy. The tournament is held every year, for all grades and years of study; this was the second tournament I'd participated in. The previous year…
I came in last.
I didn't even think about making the top 16 finalists; I lost every fight trying to qualify, where everyone else won at least one, I was the only one who didn't.
Zero.
That's what they started calling me after that.
But this time it will be different… it had to be. I had practiced with… with my quirk, with my… explosions.
I gritted my teeth. All the instructors were wrong, idiots all of them. My quirk wasn't explosions, no matter what they said. No matter how much they insisted or how many fancy doctors were convinced of it. My quirk wasn't explosions, I felt it, I knew it.
Every time there was an explosion, it felt awful, like there was something wrong with my quirk. This isn't how using a quirk should feel. Still… it was all I had. It was the only way I could attack.
Even though I couldn't use my 'real' quirk, the explosions had to do the trick, they had to be enough. But… I wasn't resistant to explosions; they hurt me just as much as they hurt my opponents. So I had to be clever, smart.
I could do it… I had to do it.
I am Louise Françoise de La Vallière and I would do this.
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Louise POV – The next day.
"Last place, I really don't know why I expected anything different." Mother clicked her tongue, I looked down.
"I'm sorry, Mother." I said immediately while biting my lip.
"I should have taken you out of school last year when your demonstration was just as pathetic as this one." Mother growled, and I shuddered slightly.
"I'm sorry, Mother." I repeated once more.
"A disgrace! Even in front of the Queen and the Princess!" Mother grumbled as she massaged her temple.
"I'm sorry, Mother." I repeated.
"I suppose there's no better time than now, I'm taking you out of the academy." Mother said coldly. I raised my head and looked at her in surprise.
"What?! You're going to take me out of the academy?!" I screamed in panic, my mother glared at me and I closed my mouth tightly.
"Yes, I'm getting rid of you. After two years and two demonstrations in which you've failed miserably, it's pointless for you to stay there and continue to embarrass the name of La Vallière." Mother growled, and I shuddered.
"I-I'm sorry, Mother." I repeated as I looked down once more.
"You will continue your studies at home. I will hire the necessary teachers, and you will take the GED when your private tutors say you are ready, before the end of the next school year. I will also hire a Japanese teacher; you have one year to learn the language acceptably." Mother said immediately. I froze slightly.
"Japanese?" I asked awkwardly; Mother wrinkled her nose.
"You'll be going to UA in two years, no discussion," Mother said coldly.
"W-what? W-why do I have to go to Japan?" I asked in a panic. My mother looked at me without any emotion.
"I think it's obvious. You're expected to go to Hunters' College in Amsterdam, just like your father and I did, and like your sister Eleonore and Cattleya did," said Mother.
"So why-"
"Because what do you think? You're the first person with an S-Rank Aura in the country, but your practical performance is abysmal. Your quirk is still as unpredictable as ever. You're not even able to control it or avoid hurting yourself with your own explosions. It was enough that you embarrassed the family with two terrible performances in the demonstration tournaments."
"If that's the level you want to demonstrate at the University of Amsterdam, then it's better to send you to another country," Mother said with her usual coldness, and I shuddered.
"B-but I can't leave! Once I complete the curriculum at UA, I'll have to fulfill Japan's mandatory service!" I exclaimed loudly. Mother looked at me without any emotion, with a blank stare.
"Yes," Mother said simply. I took a step back as if I had been hit.
"Y-you want to keep me away so I can't embarrass you?" I said, my voice trembling. Mother didn't answer; she just looked straight at me. I lowered my gaze and blinked rapidly to stop the tears from falling. "And what about my engagement to Wardes?" I asked. Mother sighed.
"Don't worry, you'll still marry him," Mother said, almost dismissively. I bit my lip hard, almost making it bleed.
"I... one more year, please, let me stay one more year at the academy." I pleaded immediately. "I-I'll try even harder, I promise, I'll train tirelessly." The words tumbled out of my mouth. I looked at my mother, my eyes slightly blurred by the tears that were welling up.
Mother just stared at me, tapped her finger slowly against the desk, but the noise echoed in the office. Mother's silence.
"One year... you have until the next tournament, don't disappoint me." Mother finally said before she closed her eyes, massaged her temple with one hand and gestured with the other to leave the office.
I ignored her and smiled broadly and tearfully.
"Thank you, Mother! I won't let you down! I promise!" I said quickly before leaving the room and closing the door behind me. I took a deep breath as I quickly wiped the tears from my face and calmed myself. I lifted my chin.
I am Louise Françoise de La Vallière. I can do it, just one more year, one more tournament, and I will prove that I can do it. That I am not something to be ashamed of.
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Louise POV – one year later.
"I gave you a year and it's obvious you haven't improved in the slightest. What do you have to say in your defense?" Mother said coldly. I shuddered and lowered my gaze.
"Nothing, Mother, I'm sorry, Mother." I said the words as easily as ever; being a disappointment was already a habit. I closed my eyes tightly. The tournament had gone exactly the same as in previous years. Me finishing last.
No matter how much I improved, the others still had a huge advantage over me and I ended up being crushed in every fight.
Mother sighed wearily.
"You're going to Japan." Mother said bluntly. I shuddered slightly, turned pale, and bit my lip hard.
"B-but... what about Wardes?" I asked shakily.
"He will marry someone else." Mother said. My eyes opened wide, and for the first time since I entered her office, I looked her directly in the eyes.
"W-what?" I asked as my stomach dropped several degrees. "W-Wardes broke off the engagement?" I asked shakily.
"Wardes is already 26 years old, the only reason he hasn't married is because he was waiting for you to finish your studies and we got special permission from the Queen to postpone her mandatory marriage, as a favor to us."
"But as you have proven to be... a disappointment, even with Wardes' status and lack of a noble title, it would be a disgrace for us to hand you over to Wardes in such... condition. You are unfit to be a man's first wife." I felt someone punch me hard in the stomach.
"B-but-" I tried to stutter.
"Of course, you 'll still marry Wardes. When you finish your mandatory service in Japan, after Wardes has married a few women and had a few children, thank Wardes for that. For some reason, he kept insisting on supporting you." Mother sneered, and I shuddered.
I wanted to feel relief; my engagement wasn't broken, just... delayed. But I couldn't feel relief, only despair. Not fit to be a first wife? I studied and prepared my whole life for that position, and now it just... vanished?
Mother didn't have to say it for me to understand, they would wait until the humiliation and my failure subsided for years, and then I would marry Wardes, there probably wouldn't even be a wedding like I expected, they didn't want it to attract attention, the papers would simply be signed without any ceremony.
I shouldn't have to show the shame I felt to others.
"Start packing. I hope you haven't neglected your Japanese lessons. Try not to stand out, and by stand out I mean, try not to humiliate yourself and make a fool of yourself in public. Go unnoticed for the next 10 years, understood?" Mother asked. I could only nod.
"Y-yes, mother." I murmured slowly; mother just waved her hand.
"Go, I have more important things to do," Mother said, seeing me off. I bit my lip, but just nodded and left quickly. I closed the door to Mother's office, blinking rapidly to keep the tears from spilling from my eyes. I clenched my fists and teeth tightly.
I was going to UA, one of the best schools for heroes and hunters; they could train me, I would improve, I would do it.
I am Louise Françoise de La Vallière. I can do it, I will improve, even if my arms fall off, I will find a way to improve.
Take a deep breath before you start walking with your chin up. I would do it, I would get better, no matter what.
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Louise – POV – Day after the UA Sports Festival.
"I'm sorry." I said as I lowered my head, my mother humming through the video call.
"Why?" asked Mother, simply sounding genuinely uninterested.
"I... I did terribly at the sports festival, I didn't even make it to the final event," I said in frustration. Mother just kept humming.
"Don't apologize," Mother said simply. I looked up at her, surprised. "I didn't expect anything from you, so there's no need to apologize," Mother said coldly. I shuddered and blinked rapidly.
"Y-yes, mother, I'm sorry, mother." I said immediately.
"Even so, I suppose it's a bit of a stroke of luck that you didn't make it to the third round. It saved us the embarrassment. According to what your father told me, you made it to the end of the obstacle course and chose a terrible team for the second event. Also, a girl with an explosive quirk made it to the final round, and she was better than you. Like I said, it was for the best that you didn't make it to the final." Mother said dismissively, and I shuddered slightly.
Aizawa Hitomi. I gritted my teeth at the memory of that name. She was a classmate. A classmate with a mind-control quirk that she'd used against me. She knew I hadn't made an effort to socialize with the other students in Class 1-B; I needed to train harder, but… to be used like that.
Aizawa apologized when it was all over, but those apologies sounded so empty that I just turned around and left without looking at her.
I had had a chance, albeit a small one, a chance, if only I chose the right group, I-
Wait… Mother just said that-
"Did Father tell you what happened?" I asked, puzzled. My mother looked at me boredly.
"I knew you were going to fail, why waste my time, Louise? I'm a busy woman." Mother sneered, and I shuddered, paling considerably. She… she didn't even look at the festival?
"O-of course, Mother." Stutter a reply.
"Although I must admit I was curious, your father told me the final round was between two S-rank fighters, so I watched the replay. It was a spectacular fight for two students. Honestly, Louise, why couldn't you be like them?" Mother sighed wearily, my nails digging into my palms.
"I'm sorry, Mother." I repeated once more, biting my lip until it bled.
"It doesn't matter, you're still going unnoticed, I have to go." Mother said before hanging up. I let out a shaky sigh as I tried to compose myself.
I squatted down with my legs closed and hid my face in my knees, closing my eyes tightly as my body trembled slightly.
I am Louise Françoise de La Vallière. I can still do it.
I just need to improve. I… Bakugou Katsumi, if I remember correctly, the girl with the explosion quirk, the girl who could fly, attack and defend herself with explosions as if it were second nature, everything I can't do.
Could I… could I ask her to teach me? To help me control my quirk? I could pay her.
No… my quirk isn't explosions! No matter what anyone else says. Clench your teeth tightly.
Miyamura and Hebert, the two S Ranks, the two who reached the final, Mother praised their strength, both only used their swordsmanship, almost without a direct combat quirk.
If I can't use my quirk... maybe I can learn to use a weapon?
My aura would be enough, right? Yes… yes, that's an excellent idea!
I would! And when I'm able to fight at the same level as Miyamura or Herbert, my mother would be proud!
Yes… everything could finally get better.
Author's Notes: The next chapter doesn't improve, in fact, I think it gets worse, sorry.