The campus of U.A. High looms ahead as Jirou and I jog up the hill toward the main gates. The afternoon sun casts long shadows across the paved entry plaza. A modest crowd has gathered outside – parents, siblings, friends, all waiting for examinees to emerge.

  I spot a few relieved hugs and celebratory fist pumps as early finishers trickle out and reunite with their families.

  Jirou and I catch our breath near a large bronze statue of U.A.'s emblem by the gate. My heart thuds with anticipation. It's been a few hours since we left the café; I can only imagine what kind of trials Karui just went through. I crane my neck, scanning each student coming through the doors. Most look exhausted, some a bit banged up but triumphant. If Karui were hurt badly, surely someone would have contacted us… I push that thought away.

  "See her yet?" Jirou asks, eyes likewise roving over the crowd. "Not yet," I murmur. My fingers drum against the bottle of sports drink I brought, the condensation against my palm. I can feel Jirou's tension too – his posture is casual but his gaze sharp, alert for our sister.

  I realize this is the first time in a long while that all three of us will be together, even if for a short time. Despite everything weighing on him, Jirou looks genuinely eager to see Karui.

  Minutes pass. Then, amid a cluster of chattering students stepping out, I spot a short figure with auburn hair, the sun turning the ends almost fiery red. She's walking slowly, a slight limp in her step, but she's upright.

  "There," I say, already moving forward. Karui has her head down, seemingly lost in thought as she exits the gate. Her clothes – a white short-sleeve tee and exercise pants – are smudged with dirt and soot. There's a faint reddish scrape on her cheek. But her expression… she looks dazed, in the way someone does after a rollercoaster ride.

  "Rui!" I call out, waving. I'm about twenty feet away. Her head snaps up at her nickname. She blinks, focusing on me, and I see a mixture of fatigue and elation break into a grin on her face. She lifts an arm to wave back, but before she can call my name, another voice booms from beside me.

  "Hey, firecracker!" Jirou hollers, unable to contain himself. He steps out from behind the statue with a broad smile.

  Karui freezes mid-step. Her eyes go huge, as if she thinks she's hallucinating. She mouths, Jirou? in disbelief, then suddenly breaks into a sprint – limp forgotten – straight toward us. I barely have time to sidestep as she barrels past me. Karui practically launches herself at Jirou.

  He catches her and staggers back a step with the force of her hug. A laugh bursts out of him. "Whoa! Easy there, you'll knock me flat!" Karui is laughing and crying at the same time, clinging to our brother like he might vanish if she lets go.

  "You're here! You're really here," she gasps, her words muffled against Jirou's shirt. He wraps one arm around her shoulders and uses the other hand to ruffle her hair affectionately. "In the flesh," he says softly.

  If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  "You didn't think I'd miss the chance to congratulate U.A.'s next big hero, did you?" Karui pulls back just enough to look up at him, eyes shining despite tears streaking mud on her cheeks. "But you were… you said you couldn't come—" "Changed my mind," Jirou smiles. "Figured you needed a proper surprise."

  I step closer, offering Karui the drink I brought. She releases Jirou with one arm to grab me into the hug as well, sandwiching me and Jirou together briefly. She's trembling, all adrenaline and emotion.

  "Kai, he's here!" she squeals, as if I might not have noticed. I laugh, hugging both my siblings. It hits me in that moment – this is the first time we've all embraced like this since... I can't even remember. Possibly since before Dad left.

  Finally, Karui steps back, wiping her face with her sleeve, then guzzling half the sports drink in one go. "You have no idea how good this tastes," she groans, catching her breath. Her face is flushed, hair sticking up in wild tufts now from Jirou's noogie and the exam exertion. She looks tired but exhilarated.

  I notice she's favoring her right leg a bit. "You hurt?" I ask, nodding at her leg. Karui glances down like she forgot. "Oh, nah. Just a bruise. One of the big robots tried to karate chop me." She mimics a stiff chopping motion with her hand, then grins. "I, uh, may have blown its arm off."

  Jirou barks a laugh. "That's my sis. How'd it go, overall? You think you passed?" Karui's eyes light up at the invitation to spill. She starts walking with us toward the station, animatedly recounting the exam now that the initial shock of Jirou's presence has worn off. As we stroll, I keep an eye on her just in case she wobbles – she's clearly running on fumes and adrenaline.

  "So first there was this orientation in a huge auditorium," Karui begins, talking fast. "Present Mic – you remember him, the loud one on the radio? – he was announcing the exam rules. We had to fight faux villains, which were these giant robots! Like, they ranged from little two-pointers the size of trash cans to a huge one as tall as a building." She spreads her arms wide to emphasize, nearly whacking Jirou in the arm. He ducks, grinning.

  "And you had to rack up points by taking them down?" I ask, familiar with U.A.'s notorious entrance exam format. Karui nods vigorously.

  She launches into the story: how once the practical started, chaos broke out in a replica city zone. Dozens of examinees dashed around blasting robots. "It was total mayhem at first," she says, eyes shining. "Bots everywhere, students using all kinds of quirks. I blew up a three-pointer right off the bat— you should've seen it, Kai, it went boom!" She giggles, making an explosive gesture with her hands. Jirou feigns offense. "Without proper supervision? I've taught you nothing," he jokes, and she sticks her tongue out at him.

  "Anyway," Karui continues, "after the first few minutes I had like ten points, but then I heard this other examinee screaming. This girl with a vine-hair quirk was trapped under some rubble from a bot I blew up." Her smile fades a touch at that. "I… I was worried I'd accidentally hurt someone, you know? So I ran over and helped her get free."

  "Just like a hero," I say quietly, unable to keep the pride out of my voice. She flushes a bit, shrugging. "Well, she twisted her ankle, so I helped her lean on me. There weren't any examiners coming yet, so I figured I'd escort her to this safer area by a building. Then, while I'm doing that, another robot – a big four-pointer – comes crashing through the wall toward us."

  Karui starts using her hands to reenact the scene, the tiredness momentarily forgotten. "I had to drop her for a second—gently— and I tossed one of my metal spheres at the bot, and BAM, blew its head off." She smacks a fist into her palm for emphasis.

  "Metal bits flew everywhere. Actually," she grimaces, "that's how I got this." She points at the scrape on her cheek. Jirou winces in sympathy, but she waves it off. "Small price to save the other girl. After that, I made sure she was with a rescue bot that showed up."