No man is equal to another. More so, in stories, there is always one better than any other. The one who's braver, one who is stronger, the one who is the most honest and the one who is more knowledgeable. The One, in essence.
Stories are created to relay one or the other moral to the younger generation. Legends instead, are told to preach the accomplishments of the One.
So how does one get to know the One, you ask? Simple. Read the story.
The flight was a rollercoaster of farts, crying babies, lines for the lavatory and air hostesses offering water for a dollar. At least the people were nice enough.
After getting all the formalities done for immigration into the country, Avtaar gingerly picked up his duffel and stepped out into the sun in Japan. His back was kinda sore, after the hours of sitting in the cramped seats on the crowded plane.
This was his first time coming to Japan and he was nervous about attending school here for the year. He'd read a lot about Japan and its etiquette system. He was hoping to use his Anime knowledge to get any advantage. Unfortunately, he knew anime was always dramatized a lot.
As he started out, he immediately saw a big board with his name written on it outside the airport. It was held by a tall man with a wiry look. He wore a bored look, and people seemed to be walking around him, giving him a wide berth.
Does he smell? Avtaar thought curiously but walked quickly towards the man, suppressing his curiosity. He was told a teacher would be waiting for him at the airport.
He knew from what he'd read, that in Japan, that meant it was a Pro Hero. He was about to join the Hero Course in the most prestigious Hero Academy in the world after all. It wouldn't do for someone who wasn't a Pro Hero to be expected to control so many powered teenagers, would it.
"Mr. Avtaar, I presume?", the man asked in a grating voice. His English was as rough as his voice.
Okay, this is not gonna be easy. This voice does Not go with that stature. Avtaar paused and blinked, then smiled and greeted the man with his hands folded together. "Greetings teacher, I am Avtaar Dash. Dash is my family name." Avtaar replied in broken Japanese.
"I'm Aizawa Shota and I'll be your homeroom teacher for this year. You may call me Aizawa-sensei." Aizawa paused, taking an appreciative look at the kid. He could sense power and could tell it was possible to erase it. But he could also sense something else. He continued the rest in the Japanese language.
"Come, we have a long way to go to reach UA. Hope you had a good rest in your flight. There's someone you should talk to before we take care of your sleeping arrangements." Saying so and without waiting for a response, Aizawa turned and walked away with the board in his hand.
A little while later, Avtaar found himself alone in a cosy room. Sitting on a green couch, he stared at the teacup in his hands, with some steam waving off it in slow lazy curls. Aizawa had stayed long enough to sit him down and pour some tea for him, before leaving urgently, muttering something about this or that being a bother.
Mustering up his courage, he prepared himself to take a sip of the strange tea in his hands. He never liked the taste of green tea, but when in Rome…
Just as he took a cautious sip, the door to the room blew open. "It's ME! The Principal!", exclaimed… An animal? Avtaar nearly spat out his tea in surprise and began coughing. He didn't know whether it was surprise at the sudden entry, or at the sudden entry of THAT.
"You must be Avtaar. Oh young man, if you want your hair to look as good as my fur, you must Drink the tea instead of spraying it. Tut tut."
His coughing subsiding a little, Avtaar couldn't help but ask the first question that came to his mind, "What… are you??". Of course, he instantly regretted it.
It was not polite to comment on someone's appearance. He'd had a lot of that going on back home, and he'd like not to bring that over as an aspect of his culture to a new country. He stood up immediately and apologized.
"Forgive me sensei, I didn't mean to say that. It slipped out… hehe. I am Avtaar Dash, yes. I'm looking forward to learning from you."
Principal Nezu smiled warmly. "It's okay young man, hahaha. Everyone has that reaction when they first see me. What am I? Am I a mouse? Or a dog or a bear? What I am is… The Principal!", he almost recited. Avtaar had a feeling like Principal Nezu said that line a lot. Is that his catchphrase?, he wondered. Should I have a catchphrase? No, that's stupid.
Shaking his head slightly, he focused back on the mouse-dog-bear-man-thing. He had seen a lot of transformation Quirks back in his country. Hell, even his ability could be considered as transformation type. Therefore, thinking negatively about someone who was at the top of the UA hierarchy didn't really make sense. The principal was no doubt a formidable force, despite seeming harmless.
Upon the principal's insistence, he sat down again on the couch and waited for him to start speaking. The principal poured tea and sat down across from him, looking at him silently for a second.
"We will need to work on your etiquettes along with your normal studies. Some people look less than kindly upon people from foreign lands. It would be good for you to immerse yourself in the culture of Japan, seeing as you'll be spending what I hope is a very wonderful year here."
Avtaar was a little taken aback. Of all things, he was not expecting etiquettes to be the first topic of conversation. Language, he had expected, but much much further down the line. He realised that he had breached a rule unfamiliar to him.
As Nezu paused, Avtaar fell into thought over their interaction to this point, Avtaar was slightly unsettled… He had no idea which offense or indeed how many of them he'd committed. Slowly going through the list and his own observations, he opened his mouth hesitantly.
"Is it the tea?", he ventured. "I should have poured it for you. Aizawa sensei poured it for me, and you waited for a bit before pouring for yourself. I have caused offense over my exclamation and most probably my greeting as well, but the tea was the one that you took a pause over."
Principal Nezu had a satisfied smile on his face. "Ah, how delightful. To think the youth of today possess such sharp minds. You have a lot of potential dear Avtaar, if you're able to breakdown a problem and think critically about it like that already. It's going to be a fascinating year. Cultural collaborations that I am sure everyone will benefit from. I am looking forward to how you will develop through this immersive exchange program." He smiled and seemed to be thinking about something in the future.
Listening to the principal, Avtaar found himself a little speechless. In the most wonderful way possible. Nobody ever talked about development of him as a person before and Nezu was telling him about Cultural Collaboration and whatnot. It was always about his Quirk. It had felt that since the day that the potential of his Quirk was discovered, that was all anyone cared about.
He quickly scrubbed the thought from his mind. I can't believe this nonsense. These people are all the same. Even he will turn out to be working for his own agenda. He only cares about my Quirk.
After all, his Quirk was something to care about. He could potentially cause a Catastrophe wherever he stepped. He had the power of Legends at his fingertips. At least that's what everyone kept telling him. Only he knew, that was just the tip of the iceberg.
Avtaar firmed his heart and forced a polite smile on his face. He had decided long ago to always look out for himself. Except for his parents, there was nobody else who had done that for him, not even his elder brother, who had become a Pro Hero recently. And in this country, having been separated from everything he knew, he was a target ripe for the taking.
Principal Nezu came out of his reverie soon and they proceeded to talk about his upcoming year at UA High School. Avtaar was slated to join the Hero course in UA, due to an agreement between countries. He didn't know all the details, but this was one of the reasons he couldn't trust anyone here to have his best interests at heart.
The evening drew closer as they talked and Principal Nezu informed him of the arrangements they'd made for his time here in Japan.
Here he had been expecting to be left alone and forgotten at some dorm or hotel. He was looking forward to it as well, so he could finally practice with his Quirk, away from prying eyes.
To Avtaar's complete surprise, his father had made arrangements with a friend of his. He'll be living with one of his future classmates.