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***
“You have twenty minutes remaining.”
Aizawa Shouta drawled from within the confines of his sleeping bag, eyes drifting over his students lazily.
In the middle of an exam, it was to ensure none of their eyes drifted from the test in front of them to their neighbor’s. Not that he believed any of his brats would dare cheat in his presence; they had learned long ago that Aizawa saw everything.
Of course he did. Not only was he an underground hero - trained in stealth and able to obtain information from the shadows - but he was also an alpha; his combined force of his skills meant that his students could never hide anything from him.
Aizawa knew Bakugou and Kirishima would sneak out to the roof whenever one of them had a nightmare. He saw the longful and love-struck glances Tokoyami gave Shouji whenever he wasn’t looking. And he definitely noticed the dark hickies poorly concealed underneath Jirou’s foundation.
So it didn't take the hero long to realize his class was slowly, but surely, progressing into a pack formation.
It wasn’t that much of a surprise; hero students spent an absurd amount of time together - training, studying, working - and that meant packs frequently formed at UA. Though a whole class forming a single pack was rather unusual.
But Aizawa had to admit that this particular group of students faced far more than any of his previous classes ever did. With several villain attacks and near-death experiences in their first year alone, he’d be more surprised if they didn’t form some type of pack mentality.
Aizawa witnessed the first hint of their new bond after the USJ attack. His students began spending even more time together; studying in the library for hours on end, crowding closer than usual at the lunch tables, and offering each comfort with brief hugs and pats on the back.
With each incident that occured over that cursed semester, the bond among them intensified. But it wasn’t permanent; nothing was set in stone.
When Mineta was caught in the girl’s locker room with a hand down his pants, the beta was quickly expelled from UA - and none of his classmates seemed bothered by his disappearance.
(They didn’t know it yet, but Aizawa was currently working on finalizing the paperwork for a much better replacement.)
It wasn’t until after the training camp and the Kamino battle that the once-subtle bond among his students fully solidified. The loyalty and friendship each of them held for one another led to the unanimous agreement of declaring themselves an official pack.
A pack consisting of nineteen teenagers.
Nineteen hormonal and superpowered teenagers driven by the innate desire to survive and thrive in the dangerous world of pro-heroes.
A pack with an imbalance of designations.
They got along quite well; but with six alphas, ten betas, and three omegas, Aizawa knew they’d have to work past their most base instincts to keep the pack from imploding from the inside out.
“Fifteen minutes remaining.”
Aizawa studied the sea of desks, noting the layout of each student; they’d rearranged the seating chart to better suit their needs.
Iida and Yaoyorozu, the Head Alphas, sat front and center of the room. A wise choice - the Head Alphas were tasked with keeping order and structural harmony within the pack; a necessity with the number of alphas present. With their joint-knack for responsibility and leadership, they were best suited for the job.
On either side of their Head Alphas sat Bakugou and Todoroki. As Prime Alphas, they were considered the fiercest and strongest fighters and therefore tasked with keeping the pack safe from outside threats.
Aizawa considered their choice for the top-alpha spots practical, and dare he say, decent. (Like he’d ever confess that to the brats.) The remaining alphas, Shouji and Ashido, sat at the back wall, on guard like a pair of watchtowers.
Most of the remaining seats were occupied by the betas. As the majority, they often served as the mediators - noticeably less high-strung than their alphan and omegan counterparts.
“Five minutes.”
And nestled in the middle of the room, guarded at all sides by their alphas and betas, sat the three omegas - Midoriya, Kirishima, and Uraraka.
Omegas were arguably the most important members of a pack. They were the ‘heart’ of the group, so to speak; the metaphorical glue that binds the members together and gives them a sense of unity. Their needs and safety were always a top priority.
And, because the universe loved to torment Aizawa, they also happened to be the only omegas currently enrolled at UA.
His problem children were already overly-protective of each other before; now they were all out possessive of one another, especially of their omegas. Aizawa had been quick enough to bring several experts to educate them on all the in-and-outs of pack dynamics, hoping to curb their behavior. There was a fine line they had to learn to navigate if they wanted their pack to remain intact.
But they were young; everything intensified by hormones and instinct and want.
Aizawa sighed. The Pack appeared to be functioning smoothly for the time being. Well, as smoothly as it could with teenagers.
“Time’s up; pencils down. Make sure you write your names before passing your test forward.”
Even then, knowing his kids were looking after one another brought a faint smile to his lips.
***