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Chapter Text

Bright afternoon sunlight speckled by the shadows of falling cherry blossom petals filters through the two big windows flanking the desk of the main office of the Ryukyu hero agency. Besides that ornate desk, the office is furnished with several chairs and built-in bookshelves line either wall. Save for the desk chair itself (which is a comfy leather swivel chair) it's all fine dark hardwood, carved with an elegance to match that of the woman behind the desk.

She brushes her dark hair out from in front of her golden slit-pupiled eyes as she glances away from the guest standing opposite her desk. Her eye settles on a small photo frame to her left, one of the few purely decorative items in the space - though she has a fondness for fine things and trinkets, she likes her workspace functional. The rest of the desk space has just a few pens neatly arranged next to two stacks of papers, and a laptop.

"You're certain about this, Ryumi?" She says without looking back to the girl. The photo holds her attention still. It's several years old now, but remains a favorite, a memory of better times. Hero work was never what she'd call safe, but it was rewarding - personally and professionally. Now though...

It's a group shot. Four individuals, three adults and a child. Ryuko herself is on the left in her hero costume, a delicate looking embroidered crimson dress and claw-like silver hairpiece. Her grin shows off her pointed teeth, and her arm is around the shoulder of a navy-haired woman. The other woman is in hero gear too, a fairly basic but functional black martial arts style outfit with a bit of additional armoring around the neck and chest, plus some understated detailing at the edges. Of course, her most striking feature was the deep blue scaly wings spread behind her, and the matching tail just barely visible in this picture. Her eyes are slitted like Ryuko's, but a bright emerald in color. She too has a grin on her face, but hers is wilder, almost conspiratorial, and lacking refinement - but that's just how she was.

Maki...

"Of course I'm sure!"

Ryuko's gaze darts back to the girl. She looks and sounds more like her mother every day. On one hand, seeing her feels like a reunion with an old, very dear friend and sidekick - a sister even, though not by blood. But on the other, she's also a firm reminder that those days are past, and of a failing not yet forgiven.

The girl is in the photo too, much younger than she is today, and with a carefree look that's now replaced with cold but well-intentioned determination. Every bit her mother's daughter, she bears the same draconic features, slit pupils, wings, and a long tail - though her scales gradually shift from navy to black at the tips of each limb, and the wings bear silvery marks down the webbing in a pattern reminiscent of a lightning strike. She has her mother's hair, a stark natural navy, almost metallic in the sunlight, though she has a shock of her father's silver in front, all gathered together on just one side. Her eyes are as blue as her father's, and they shine with an almost neon glow. Then, as now, she's dressed in a simple school uniform, white shirt with buttons, long dark gray skirt, and a red tie just to give a little color to the look. In the old picture, she's flying above the other three, striking an overly excited pose and mimicking her mother's feral smile - a child's idea of heroism.

Her father, yes. The last person in the picture. Ryuko looks back from the girl as she considers what her answer will be.

He's on the right side of the picture, standing awkwardly on an uneven bit of concrete. Rescue operations for the event had concluded by then, but the cleanup was only just starting in earnest. He would be rather plain-looking by most standards, a little shorter than his wife if they were all on level ground. His hair is short, pure silver even though he's too young to have gone gray, and his eyes are a piercing blue somewhat marred by the visible dark circles under them. He's clearly overworked and tired in the picture, but he's still smiling. He's not a hero himself - at least not in the modern sense of the word - but a paramedic. He's wearing his hospital uniform and carrying a suitcase-like first aid kit in one hand, and holding his wife's hand in the other. Behind them all, the skyline is a bleak ruin of half-demolished office buildings. The area, of course, looks nothing like that today. The structures have been rebuilt, stronger and more resilient to the type of quake that brought down the originals.

The girl shifts a little, uncertain. "Well, auntie? Can you help...? I mean, I'll try on my own anyway, but with your standing in the hero rankings..." Her eyes are locked on Ryuko, pleading. She idly grabs her elbow with her other hand and her wings lower to her sides, wondering if this request had been too much.

Ryuko sighs and studies the girl as she is today: nervous to be asking for something from a person she perceives as famous, even though she's known her for years, but there's a flicker of drive and a commitment to a long and hard-thought decision too.

"...I miss those days. All of us, working together." She looks down at the floor, at her shoes. "I know it probably sounds weird to miss the chaos, or rude because people died in all those tragedies..."

"No, my dear. I understand." Ryuko smiles faintly. The girl really was becoming so much like Maki. A few more years, a bit more experience and training, and the confidence from that... "I can recommend you if you're sure." She watches as the girl's eyes light up and all the fear vanishes from her demeanor. Her tail twitches ever so slightly.

Ryuko stands up and walks out from behind the desk. "You know that doesn't automatically get you in, though. It will increase your chances, but even recommendations have to pass difficult written and practical exams. You'll still have to work for it, harder than anything you ever have before, you understand?" She sets her hand on the little dragon girl's shoulder.

"Yes! Yes, of course. I'll train every day - I..." She instantly and excitedly jumps into the plan she's clearly been thinking about for months, but her thought process runs off the end of the tracks before it can fully get going.

"You can use the facilities here, after class and over the summer. I'll even help when I have time." Ryuko offers a gentle smile as the young one hugs her.

"I'll go get started right now!"

"Okay. Just don't neglect your current schoolwork."

"I know, I know..." Her voice trails off as she dashes down the hall toward the training gym. Ryuko waits a moment, glancing back toward the framed photo, then walks slowly but purposefully along behind.

Chapter Text

As she rounds the corner to step into the last stretch of sidewalk, it finally hits her. The massive main building of UA looms over the area, even though the shadows are on the far side at this time of day.

Is this really happening?

She looks down at the direction card she's carrying, checking that she's still going the right way. Dozens of other teens are strolling along the massive sidewalk too, most of them carrying similar cards and wearing the same mix of uncertainty, excitement, and anxiety. They're almost all going toward a larger building, probably for the general exam.

Ryumi takes a breath and continues walking. The trek up the hill was a bit of a tough one, normally she would have flown over terrain like this, but the whole atmosphere of the prestigious academy has her on edge.

A few more minutes of walking and the crowds have mostly thinned out. When she arrives in the exam room there's only a couple dozen applicants - not even enough to fill out all of the plain desks neatly arranged in the space - but almost all of them look exceptional.

Ryukyu was right, it might be less competition, but that wouldn't necessarily make it easier. Everyone here is a level above. Well, that is why she worked so hard the last few months.

Like everyone else, she immediately starts sizing up the others and trying to guess at their quirks. Determined and curious faces are all around, and a wide range of hair colors and body shapes. She can feel the stares of nearly everyone else linger on her. It's no surprise - she's the only one in the room with an obvious mutation element to her quirk. She's used to drawing attention because of it: even if mutation types are fairly common, people always have to look whenever you have non-human features.

Luckily that's not even the most impressive part of my power, they won't have too much of an advantage just knowing that much.

A dark-haired man in incredibly plain dark clothes and a long white scarf casually walks in. His eyes are frighteningly intense, and even though he doesn't look much like an official staff member he clearly commands the space like one.

Instructions are given, exams are handed out. Heads go down and pencils up, aside from the occasional thoughtful ceiling glance or clock check. Everything and everyone is quiet and focused under the dark-haired man's watchful gaze.

Well, almost everyone. As is typical in these kinds of high-pressure exams, someone always breaks. One kid near the back who was clearly the most nervous person in the room from the very beginning, and the only one visibly sweating, finally dies inside and vomits on the floor.

This draws some brief looks, but with a sigh the dark-haired man summons someone else from the hall outside to come deal with the kid and the atmosphere in the room soon returns to normal. After a handful of minutes, the kid is escorted back into the room to finish his test.

The rest of the exam time is basically uneventful. A few pencils snap and are replaced, nothing outside of what you expect. An hour later, the call goes out.

"Pencils down."

About half the students were already finished, looking idly about the room and out the windows. Ryumi is among them, she can't remember the last time a school exam actually took her the entire allotted time. The rest hurriedly scribble a last couple things and begin passing the exams forward for collection.

There's a short break for lunch before the practical begins, so everyone starts to file out. The vomit kid is notably shaking as he nears the door.

"Go home." The dark-haired man steps up to the kid, eyes cold and serious.

"W-what? What do you mean?"

"I said, go home." His eyes narrow and he leans down almost menacingly. "If you can't handle the pressure of a simple piece of paper, how can you expect to make it in battle?"

The kid starts to protest, but he can't find the words. His shoulders slump and he stops trembling, though his gaze seems hollow, like his soul has left him. A meek "Yes, sir..." is all he manages to say.

"The rest of you. You have forty-five minutes. The location of the practical is on your exam card, don't be late." The man says, returning to his podium and stuffing the stack of tests into a manilla envelope.

After lunch the same crowd (minus one) reassembles at a wide-open area deeper in the campus. The scene in front of them is absolutely wild, like something out of a theme park – and not just because of the enormous roller coaster dominating the entrance. The strange man with the dark clothes and hair isn’t here, though. Instead, another man in mostly black but with wildly spiked blonde hair and triangular sunglasses who Ryumi actually does recognize is standing at the front. Even if his appearance might not be instantly known to anyone, his voice certainly is.

“Weeeeelcome listeners!” Present Mic shouts, far louder and more enthusiastically then necessary for the small group. “The written portion is over! Next up is the practical part, and last is the interview. You’ll be in groups of six for the practical, these numbers are up first! Please proceed to the test site!” He points with both hands at a screen to his side, displaying a set of random numbers.

Ryumi double-checks the card that’s been pinned to her shirt, even though she knows her number by now. She’s up first, and heads to the starting line alongside the other five who were selected.

As they walk and take up positions, the voice of Mic projects unnaturally loudly from behind them. “Your test is a three-kilometer footrace, but this isn’t a race that can be finished just by running! Make use of your quirks to reach the goal!”

The lights above the starting line count down.

Three.

Two.

One.

The six of them tear off, Ryumi immediately taking to the air but keeping low. Though there’s no need to fly just yet, and this puts her start a little slower than the others, given what Mic said about the course she suspects being airborne will be an advantage fairly quickly.

And she’s right. Just as the group passes under the roller coaster’s big drop, the path curves to the right and swings back left to a series of pillars leading across a small pond.

This seems awfully light on challenge. People used to do stuff like this even before quirks, on gameshows... Ryumi thinks as she casually soars above the platforms. They aren’t even that small or far apart.

Below, the other hopefuls are forced to slow to deal with the jumps. One girl, a bit taller than Ryumi and with her hair tied back in a long black ponytail, reaches forward and produces a vaulting pole with a flash of multicolored light from her palm.

That’s interesti-- Her thought is cut off as she nearly flies straight into a giant metal ball rolling down the hill across the gap. Fortunately, she hears the crunch of the ball on the gravel slope just in time to swoop to the side. Ah. Getting serious then. She grins and refocuses.

While it would be easy enough for her to just fly above the height of the balls, that wouldn’t be nearly as fun. And if the point of this is to show off her skills, then... well. She presses onward up the ramp darting left and right as the heavy balls cascade down at regular intervals, splashing into the pond below.

Cresting the hill, she passes over the mechanism that fires and recycles the balls, evidently not unlike a larger version of the ball return at a bowling alley. Just beyond it a series of signs proclaim ‘danger’ in all capitals, some sporting skull and crossbones as well. The little mounds of disturbed dirt suggest what it is, so Ryumi keeps to the air.

Her suspicions are confirmed when she hears the blasts from behind her - and the startled shouts of suddenly aerial competitors. She’ll have a nice lead after this, though its still quite early in the course. She doesn’t risk a look back this time, tempting as it might be to see the others thrown about.

It’s a good thing, too, because just after passing through the castle gates a slot opens in the ceiling and a metal ball swings across the hall from a heavy chain. Ryumi dips under the thing, a tight fit in the corner but manageable. As she continues farther into the hall and around the corner, they keep dropping out of the ceiling every couple of meters, getting closer and closer together as she nears the exit.

The misses are nearer and nearer too, until the last one just barely clips her leg. Ryumi yelps, though she’s surprised to note how little it actually hurts. It does hurt, but not nearly as much as she would have expected from a solid hunk of metal of that size. She doubts it’s more than a bruise, honestly. More than anything, the hit just caused her to spin out of control in the air.

She rights herself at the exit gate and cruises over a slippery-looking ramp that runs all the way down to the water’s edge. She imagines that the others might slide straight into the pond and be forced to swim back to the shore and lift themselves out. The soaking clothes would only make the next challenge harder for them if so.

It’s a series of roughly fist-sized holes carved into the side of a tall, thin mountain. It rises even higher than the peak of the roller coaster on the opposite side of the course. It’ll still be a brutal ascent for her, even flying, without any significant updraft to catch, but at least she won’t have to fear slipping and falling back down.

With nothing else to watch out for as she struggles her way up, she looks down on the others now exiting the castle. As she thought, most of them quickly lose control on the downward ramp and splash into the lake. One, the girl with the long ponytail, pauses at the top of the ramp and a glow emits from her hands again. New shoes appear and she slips them on, jogging down the ramp with ease and pulling ahead of the others that are still swimming back to the base of the mountain.

Finally cresting the mountain peak, Ryumi gives herself a moment to rest and catch her breath. She looks out ahead at the next obstacle, a series of rickety old rope bridges crossed by half rotting planks. Definitely going to want to fly over that.

She peeks down over the ledge and sees the others making their way up. Most are going rather slow, but that same girl with the dark ponytail is riding up on a jetpack now. Ryumi takes a last deep breath and hurries along. What a powerful quirk...

As she swoops between the mountain tops alongside the bridges, she keeps close to look at the planks. Definitely a handful of them are going to be iffy about supporting a person’s weight. On the far side of the two bridges at the third mountain peak, a sign points down at a series of rope ladders dangling over the side.

Ryumi grins wildly, tucks in her wings, and plummets at speed to the ground. She’s always found long dives like this one exhilarating - the rush of the wind, and seeing just how close you can get to the ground before pulling out. A daredevil’s dream.

As the lower mountains come up to greet her, she casually half spreads her wings once again and glides swiftly along the winding narrow switchbacks that lead the rest of the way back to ground level next to the lake. Another sign directs her to hook around to the left and into a wide mouthed cavern.

The cave is dotted with pillars and the lighting is low. For anyone else, it would be hard to maneuver at speed through, but with her eyes it’s no great feat. She rolls side to side dodging into the gaps between.

But that’s not the only obstacle the cave has in store. A third of the way along there’s a faint whirring sound from either side, followed by a flurry of rubber bullets pelting her.

“Ack!” She hisses, bringing out her scales to increase her defenses. The hard rubber projectiles might not be much real danger, no more than paint balls or similar, but they still hurt. And the speed and number make it nearly impossible to dodge them all in these tight quarters.

She powers through, the hits becoming mostly just irritating once her scales are up to protect her. The cavern ends soon enough, and she pauses to blink away the sudden light increase bothering her eyes. There’s a waterfall just outside the exit, so she tucks her wings in and spins as she passes through, flaring her wings wide and casting a spray of mist around as she rights herself.

Over the small gap where the waterfall lands into the lake is a short ramp that leads down to an icy section of the path, covered in a dense fog. Ryumi shivers as she flies above it, though the chill doesn’t last long as just on the other side a jet of steam bursts from the next section of ground.

The hot air tosses her for a loop, and she barely recovers before another jet blasts her off to the side. Well, that’s annoying. She growls and steadies her flight a second time, hearing the others starting to catch up behind her.

Ahead is the roller coaster, so she must be coming up on the end of the track. She cruises up along the peak of the coaster, diving to the side once to avoid the cars as they rocket down the hill toward her. As Ryumi crests the peak she risks one quick look back to see how the others are doing.

The girl with the dark ponytail has the clear lead over the rest of the pack, but they aren’t too far back themselves. Still, nothing for Ryumi to worry over - wings are simply too useful in a challenge like this.

She swoops to the side around a couple more cars slowly coming up the track. The final stretch down the coaster and across the finish line is an easy glide for her. The one girl follows less than a minute behind, and the rest cross in the next couple minutes after.

“Alriiiiiight! Great work everyone, go on ahead to the big building over there to wait for your interviews while we run through the rest of the groups.” Mic points with both hands toward a building down the road from the finish line. “And the rest of you, check the board! We’ve got these numbers lining up next…”

The six from Ryumi’s group file into the building and are led to a hallway lined with office doors, benches spaced in between. There’s a water machine just outside one of the doors as well, and after that lengthy race everyone is eager to grab a cup and have a drink and a sit.

One by one the hopefuls are called into the office at the end of the hall. After ten or fifteen minutes each is dismissed and the next is called in.

Eventually Ryumi’s turn comes and she steps into the office. It reminds her a lot of Ryukyu’s in design, though the desk chair is oversized and bright red. Sitting in the chair is a small mouse-like creature with white fur and a scar across one eye, dressed in a fine dark suit and red tie. “Welcome. Have a seat.”

She takes one of the indicated chairs, tail flicking nervously. It’s not so much that she’s meeting the principal of the school, so much as it’s who the principal is. While Hawks would easily be her favorite pro hero, the white mouse called Nezu is also someone she’s always looked up to - after all, he’s one of the primary advocates for people like her.

"Ah, h-hello, sir.” She tries to keep her eyes on him, but she repeatedly finds herself glancing about the office instead.

Nezu smiles patiently. “Arisato, right? I just need you to answer a few questions.”

She nods, doing her best to swallow her nerves.

“First and most importantly, why do you want to be a hero?” The mouse begins, taking up a pen and clipboard to make notes.

“I want to help people, like my mom and dad. I’ve helped a little bit in some disasters before...” She explains, though she expects that part is likely in her file anyway.

“Mhm. Excellent.” He scribbles something down. “And why come to our school in particular?”

Ryumi takes a deep breath. “UA is the best there is, but also... because of you, sir.” She flicks her eyes away again, examining the detailing on the edge of the desk. “I’ve spent my whole life being told I was lesser, or that if I had a chance at anything it was being a villain. And I’m not even as bad off as some others. But here, with such a big advocate for mutant rights in charge, I feel like I won’t have to worry.”

Nezu nods to himself, again scratching out some notes. “I see, well you’ll certainly find a welcoming home here.” He looks up briefly from his paper and smiles warmly. “Now the last thing... this is just for you, actually. I’m aware of your difficult circumstances, and...”

“I can handle it.” She answers, forcing herself to find some confidence, though in truth she has lingering doubts. “...The only concern I have is the um, financial aspect.”

“I’m sure we can work out something for that.” He finishes up writing a last couple words on the page and pulls it free, sliding it behind the others. “That’s all, Arisato. We’ll be in touch.”

She stands, gives a slight bow to the small mouse, and exits the room.

Ryumi kicks off her shoes and steps into the smaller set of slippers by the door. Two other sets sit there on the mat, waiting. The bundle of mail in her hand is heavy, it's been a week or so, and she figures it's about time for the results to come out.

She sets everything on the dining table and rifles through the various bills and junk mail, opening nothing until her hands rest on the envelope bearing the UA crest. Her heart pauses for the faintest second as she lifts it up, ignoring the rest of the unsorted stack.

She falls into a chair and stares at the envelope. It's heavy, physically and with anticipation. The tip of her tail starts to twitch. She takes a breath and flicks her wrist - her arm covers itself in dark scales and each finger is tipped by a viciously sharp claw as she activates her quirk.

With a practiced hand she uses just one claw to slice the letter open, and her arm and hand return to normal a moment later. She pulls out some folded papers - forms maybe? - and a small metal disk. As she sets the disk on the table, it flickers to life, spewing light into the otherwise fairly dim kitchen of the apartment. For a moment a collage of family photos stuck to the fridge is illuminated.

"I am here - as a hologram!" The little speaker shouts as a small representation of the number one hero, All Might, dressed in a golden stripey suit and with his trademark crazy antenna-like blonde hair grins in the hologram message. "To tell you your results on the exam!"

Ryumi blinks at the small device. It's a flat projection, the equivalent of a TV screen, but floating in midair. Not as insanely expensive as a full 3D model of hologram would be, but still so expensive that it surprises her. Just how much money does UA have to throw around, anyway? She knows they're the best, and surely they have very impressive facilities, practically an entire mountain to themselves, plus other satellite locations away from the main campus... Even considering all that, it still seems to her a bit much to send such technology out, even if it is only for those who actually get accepted.

"Well, young Arisato... you may have already guessed as much, but you did excellently on the written exam." The recording of All Might taps some papers against his other hand. "Quite impressive! But my alma mater does expect such greatness, especially for students who were recommended."

She bristles a little at hearing her last name. Even though she knows it's standard practice, a politeness and formality thing, she's never cared for it. Not that it was a bad name, it was her father's, but... she's never felt like it suits her. And the things it reminds her of…

Of course, in school there wasn't much to do for it - the teachers at least were always going to call her that.

He's right about the rest though. Leaving the exam that day, she'd felt confident. The only thing that had given her pause was that everyone else she was competing against surely did just as well. It's not an easy feat to get recommended, after all. The big names of the hero world don’t stake their reputations on just anybody.

"And as you can see here, you made a fine impression on the practical as well!" The holo-Might gestures grandly to a screen behind him that starts showing footage of the practical exam. It's just a few clipped highlights of her flying over the course, a few of the closer misses with some of the aerial obstacles.

As the clips run out on a frame of her standing triumphant at the end of the course, wings spread wide and with a grin that almost matches All Might's, he turns back to face the camera. "With that in mind, I am thrilled to offer you a place here. Welcome to UA! I look forward to seeing you, young Arisato, as I will be joining the faculty of this prestigious academy. Who better to prepare our future heroes? I'd tell you good luck, but I'm certain you'll do well regardless!"

The hologram fades out to black as All Might laughs and some plain text instructions hold on screen. Fill out the attached forms by X date and return by mail or directly to the UA campus. Then, the device flickers off, plunging the apartment back into darkness.

A moment goes by. Ryumi doesn't pick up the forms. Instead, she takes out her cell, poking at the screen.

guess what came today auntie? I got in. :) 

The response is too fast. Ryukyu's phone returns an automatic reply.

On patrol currently, for urgent matters please contact my office at: 319-555-01XX

It takes a bit to really sink in. She looks around the rest of the apartment. It's almost pitch black, but she can see okay. There's nobody.

Her wings slowly lower to her sides, tips almost resting on the tile-patterned floor. She takes a shaky breath. She knows she should be happy. Thrilled, even. It's what she's wanted for years, ever since she was old enough to understand what going to UA meant. The best hero course in the country. Her dream to carry on the legacy, the values her parents gave her...

But the victory rings hollow in the empty silence of the apartment. Even the happy faces in the pictures on the fridge door seem like they're taunting her. She shivers, folding her arms as if that will help any. It hurts. Everything hurts. It's been some time since it last hit her so hard. She's been so focused on her goals these past months; it was easier to ignore. And seconds later, she's pushing the forms across the table so they don't get soaked by falling tears as she collapses, shaking, into the cheap wood surface.

Chapter Text

The UA campus main sidewalk is much less crowded than on the day of the exams, but it's still lively and busy. Ryumi even catches sight of a couple others in the school's uniform flying around overhead as she stops to catch her breath after cresting the steep hill. She's still not fully comfortable or confident enough in her place here to go for it herself... Soon though, since it doesn't seem against any rules, and she's always felt like flying was easier than hiking - at least for ground as steep as this.

One last deep breath, and she starts off toward the main building, again following a little directions card to find her way to her classroom. As she's taking in the sights of campus, now without the pressure of the entrance exam, she spots a familiar girl walking a bit ahead of her.

"Oh, hey!" She calls out and waves to the tall girl with the long black ponytail. She's not sure of her name, but she was sitting a few spots to her left at the exam, and she showed off a neat quirk during the practical.

The other girl looks confused at first, but smiles as soon as the recognition flashes across her face. "Oh, good morning - you were at the recommendation exam, correct? You have an impressive quirk..." She pauses, something like doubt on her face for just a second. "My apologies, I never caught your name."

It's kind of a silly question, mutation quirks tend not to be super forgettable. But sometimes people like to pretend they are, in hopes of making things less awkward. It doesn't ever actually help, but she understands the reason.

"Yeah - I'm Ryumi Arisato, it's nice to see a familiar face." She grins and offers a hand. "Just Ryumi is fine though."

The other girl nods, taking the handshake and then falling in step with Ryumi. "Momo Yaoyorozu."

"It's good to meet you properly, Yaoyorozu - your quirk seemed pretty cool too. Way more versatile than mine is." Ryumi swishes her tail excitedly. She'd made a promise to herself to take this as a fresh start and really try to make friends here, so she's pleased it's going well already.

Yaoyorozu smiles politely and thoughtfully touches a hand to her chest. "Thank you. Sometimes I think it's not as well suited for combat, but..."

Ryumi ponders, putting a finger to her chin for a moment, and shrugs. "I don't know about that. I mean, I'm sure it's a lot harder to use well than something more straightforward, but with so many options you can be a huge help in a much wider range of situations." She cracks a grin and flexes her scales on one arm. "Takes a lot more thought than mine anyway."

"What is your quirk exactly, if you don't mind my asking?" The taller girl gives her a genuinely curious look.

Ryumi's grin turns briefly sheepish. "Oh right, I guess I did fly off pretty quickly on the practical." She thinks it over for a bit. "Well, the simple way to explain it... It's basically a transformation-class strength-enhancer that uses electricity as a sort of fuel." She isn't too concerned about dropping the technical terms - if Yaoyorozu was in the recommendation pool she's probably familiar with at least that much.

Her assumption proves correct as Yaoyorozu nods, looking at the gleaming navy and black scales on Ryumi's arm.

She releases the transformation on her arm and the scales vanish. "It's a little more complicated, but the extra details take forever to get into. What about yours? I saw you could create stuff, obviously, so I'm guessing it must be an emitter-class but..."

Yaoyorozu seems surprised. "You really know your quirk studies."

Ryumi smiles again, chuckling lightly. "Well, my mom's from a family of quirk scientists, and dad's a paramedic. I guess I picked up some things." Something in her expression changes slightly as she mentions her parents, but she hides it again before anyone can notice.

"You're right, though. As for how it works, I can turn the lipids in my body into nonliving matter, but I have to know the atomic structure and makeup of the item I want to create." Yaoyorozu explains, reaching over her shoulder to tap her backpack. "I have a whole book of things I'm working on learning."

"Wow, that must be so much to remember and keep track of - that's amazing though." Ryumi's eyes unfocus slightly as she gets lost in considering the possibilities. "You would never be out of medical supplies in a rescue scenario..."

Yaoyorozu blushes lightly. "Thank you, I've studied so much to try and make good use of it."

They're nearing the big building by now, and the changing light draws Ryumi out of her thoughts. "Oh, what class are you in? I got 1-A."

"I'm in 1-A as well, actually." Yaoyorozu replies with a gentle smile.

Ryumi's wings spread just slightly, and she pumps a fist in the air, causing her tote bag to shift on her shoulder. "That's great. It's always a little nerve wracking coming into a class where you don't know anyone else, don't you think?"

"Mm. Even having someone you just recognize makes it much more comfortable in a new class." Yaoyorozu stops to hold open the door for Ryumi and the two enter and find their lockers together.

The sliding door to the 1-A classroom looms impressively in the long hallway. At first she thinks it's an accessibility thing (it does remind her of the design used at Hopper's Cafe), but when Yaoyorozu opens the door, Ryumi wonders how the classroom could possibly support anyone who would need a door that size. Maybe they would completely redo the interior in that case. Certainly, her estimation of UA's wealth would allow for something like that.

As it is, though, it looks like a reasonably standard classroom. Two sliding doors on this side, one at the front and one at the back, with windows into the hallway between, twenty desks arranged in four rows of five (though the desk chairs are nicer than she’s used to seeing), a podium and desk up front for the instructor with a chalkboard and projector screen behind, and windows to the outside along the back half of the opposite wall. The other half of that wall is blank, but there are faint seams in it, like something could slide out.

Ryumi follows Yaoyorozu in, seeing that many of the desks have been filled already. She briefly wonders if there's some kind of seating chart, but there aren't any obvious instructions on the desks themselves or the board up front. She shrugs. "I'm a back of the room kind of person, what about you?"

Before Yaoyorozu can begin her reply, a boy with short cropped blue hair, glasses, and an overly serious look approaches them both. "I'm Tenya Iida, from Somei Private Academy. I don't recall seeing you two at the exam."

Yaoyorozu smiles politely. "Momo Yaoyorozu. It's nice to meet you, Iida. We were actually in the recommendation pool, not the general exam."

Ryumi nods, offering a hand. "Ryumi Arisato, but please, Ryumi is fine."

Iida takes the handshake. "Oh, you both were entered on recommendation. You must have come from very impressive schools then!"

Ryumi puts a hand to the back of her head, ruffling her hair and trying not to look too flustered. "Uhh, not exactly. Well, not me anyway."

He looks a bit confused for a second, but the recovery is quick. "Well, either way you must be very skilled - I look forward to working and learning alongside you both this year."

"Same to you." She slides toward the back of the room, as Yaoyorozu lingers to make small talk with Iida. She notices several others in the room rolling their eyes at his intensity and seriousness already.

As she's about halfway to the back of the room, another boy, this one with bright yellow hair with streaks of black in a lightning bolt pattern stands and offers his hand. "Hey there, my name's Denki Kaminari." He has an infectiously cheery grin.

She reaches for his hand and starts to say her usual line, even though he probably heard her when she was talking to Iida, but just as her fingers touch his, a jolt of electricity shoots into her.

They both recoil immediately, and several of the other students take notice of the sparks. "Whoa, holy crap I'm so sorry - I don't know... that's never happened before." Kaminari looks at his hand, embarrassed and a little worried.

"No, no... that's my bad." Ryumi waves her hands in front of her. "I should have guessed from your hair that you're an electric type and been more careful."

"Is that part of your quirk?" He looks kind of amazed, but keeps glancing back at his hand. "I hope I didn't hurt you."

She smiles, drawing her wings up close to her back. "You're fine, don't worry about it. It's... yeah, part of how my quirk is. No harm done."

Kaminari sighs dramatically and brushes his hair back. "Man, that's a relief. It'd be just my luck getting in trouble on the first day just for trying to be nice. Well, it's cool to meet you - you must be an electric type too, right? We should talk sometime." He grins again as he retakes his seat, eyes subtly following her tail as she walks past.

Ryumi nods politely and at last lands at her preferred place: the back corner of the room, opposite the doors. She's not the daydreaming or note-passing type, it's strictly practical, a habit picked up from her parents. Have a good view of all entry and exit points to a space, preferably from an angle that has your back to a wall or corner so nothing can sneak up on you, while also being close enough to an exit to escape if needed.

Yaoyorozu takes the desk just in front of Ryumi after finishing her chat with Iida, and they both set down their bags and start mentally preparing.

First days are always so boring... We'll probably just go over the syllabus and maybe get assigned some reading or something.

Ryumi stops looking through her notebooks and starts surveying her new classmates, trying to assess what their quirks might be. She's pleased and honestly relieved to see she's far from the only mutation type in the room, and moreover she's not even the stand out among them. There's a guy with a bird-like head; another guy with...  she thinks she counts six arms, all connected by a sort of webbing; a boy with a strong but also kind of fluffy tail; a girl with small horns, pink skin, and dark eyes; a guy with... she can only think to describe his face as 'rocky'; a girl with audio cables for earlobes; and another girl who's apparently straight up invisible.

She grins a little to herself. This was already shaping up to be a fun year.

Impressively, the next person to arrive finds a way to slam the sliding door. He has an intense look too, but in a very different way than Iida. His hair is a short but spiky untamed puffball of pale blonde, and he has deep red eyes and a powerful scowl. He flops into an empty desk two spots in front of Yaoyorozu, tosses his bag to the floor and kicks his feet up on the desk like he owns the place.

It doesn't take long for Iida to close in on him. "Remove your foot from that desk immediately! Such an action is insulting to those who came to UA before us as well as the craftsmen who made the desk!" He gestures with a wild chopping motion at the other boy, presumably for emphasis. "...Disrespecting this academy by scuffing school property - and it's only the first day of class!"

"You're kidding me, right? Your old school put a stick up your ass?" The red-eyed boy huffs with a foul sneer, unmoved by Iida's arguments. "Or were you just born with it, you extra?"

Another kid - a boy with short curly green hair and freckles nervously lurks in the open doorway, probably worried about jumping into the middle of whatever is happening. Ryumi can't really fault him for that. While she's not a stranger to fights, she doesn't really want to get into one on the first day, and she wishes this altercation was occurring a little farther away from her.

Iida is thrown a bit by the dismissive response to his request. "Right. Let's start over. I'm from Somei Private Academy. My name is Tenya Iida." He politely lays a hand on his chest and offers the other to the rude boy.

"Somei, huh? A stuck-up elitist, then? You must think you're better than me. I should blow you to bits." The boy's red eyes narrow threateningly and he curls one hand halfway to a fist as he leans forward. "Heh. I'm gonna have fun tearing you a new one." Ryumi can already tell she's not going to like this guy. And it doesn't escape her notice that he never actually introduced himself, either.

"Blow me to bits...? You would threaten me?" Iida breathes sharply, pulling away and looking quite shocked. Must not have been many rude bully types at Somei. At least, not the kind to make outright threats (or promises) of violence. "You're awful. Do you really wish to become a hero?"

"Tch." Is the only reply given, but Iida gets distracted by the other new arrival to the room.

The green haired kid tries to sneak by without drawing too much attention from the two making the scene currently. But unlucky for him, pretty much the whole class turns to look and he doesn't succeed or even really get close to claiming a seat before Iida walks to him. "Uh... Hi..."

"Good morning! I'm from Somei Private Academy..." Iida begins, same as every other time.

"Uhh, yeah... I know. I heard you before!" He cuts Iida off, waving his hands in front of him and slowly, awkwardly, starts to shuffle in the direction of one of the last couple of open desks. "Ah... I'm Izuku Midoriya. It's super nice to meet you, Iida..."

Iida nods thoughtfully, and adjusts his glasses. "Midoriya, you... you realized the true nature of the practical exam, while I did not...! You must be very perceptive, and I completely misjudged you. I hate to admit it, but as a student you were far superior to me!" He bows his head in deference to the shorter boy. Something pretty impressive must've happened during their exams.

Shame any recordings of that probably aren't available to students, Ryumi muses.

"I find that hard to believe..." Midoriya mumbles to himself, eyes downcast.

That rude boy growls under his breath as the others have their exchange. "Deku..."

A girl pokes her head through the still open door. She has short brown hair and a cheerful smile. Midoriya jumps as she pops up behind him. Ryumi casts a brief look over the remaining unclaimed desks and gathers that this girl must be the last of their new classmates.

"Ah! That curly hair - the plain-looking boy! You got in, just like Present Mic said!" She runs over and grins broadly at him. "Makes sense though, that punch was awesome!" She waves one arm back and forth in a playful punching motion.

Midoriya cowers, hiding his face with his hands, though he's doing an awfully poor job of it. The defensiveness of the pose is such that if his face wasn't obviously turning bright red, it would have looked like he was afraid she might actually punch him. "No! I mean... I have to thank you for speaking on my behalf. I... Well..."

"Huh? How do you know about that?" A puzzled look comes over the girl's face.

The angry boy is still glaring toward Midoriya, and mumbling to himself. "...Something fishy about this... I'm going to destroy him. Right after I figure out how he got in."

The brown-haired girl doesn't seem to notice though, and just keeps rambling obliviously to Midoriya and gradually leaning toward him as she babbles. "So, we've got our entrance ceremony and guidance sessions today, yeah? Wonder what our teacher'll be like? Oh I can't wait to meet everyone... Boy, I'm super nervous."

"So close..." Midoriya looks nearly paralyzed by her presence, until something - or, someone - else appears in the doorway, snapping him back to reality.

A large, bright yellow puffy sleeping bag inches toward the threshold like a caterpillar. Everyone gives it a confused stare, waiting for something to happen.

A low, tired voice comes from inside the cocoon. "If you're just here to socialize and make friends, then pack up your stuff and get out, now."

As the class collectively blinks at the bizarre sight, a head of long black hair pokes out and sips from a juice pouch. "Welcome to UA's hero course." The bag unzips and a man climbs out and enters the classroom. Ryumi doesn't know his name, but she recognizes him from the exams - he conducted the written test for recommendations and scared off that one kid. He's wearing the same unassuming dark outfit with the long scarf that he was then.

The man sighs, tossing the sleeping bag and empty juice pouch aside as he claims a spot behind the podium. "It took eight seconds for you to quiet down. Time is a precious resource. You lot aren't very rational, are you?"

"So he's a pro hero too...?" Midoriya muses quietly, still standing dumbfounded near the front of the room.

"I'm your homeroom teacher, Shota Aizawa. Pleased to meet you." He recites the greeting plainly, his voice still carrying the energy level of someone who slept two hours a night at most for the past several weeks.

The class mumbles a collective, "Pleasure to meet you, Aizawa sensei" in return.

Aizawa picks up something from behind the podium. A gym uniform in standard UA colors, blue with white and red accents. He thrusts it toward Midoriya, who is still standing near the front of the room with the brown-haired girl and Iida. "Quickly now. Change into your gym clothes and head out to the grounds."

Everyone looks at each other confused, but the instructions were clear enough. They all file out to get their uniforms and change.

Chapter Text

Outside, the group reassembles in a field near a couple of large equipment sheds. It smells like it was mowed just this morning, but there are no clippings to be seen anywhere. The grass is as perfectly trimmed and maintained as what you’d see on a high-end golf course, and though the dirt sections of the space are sightly messier, the paint lines on them are fresh with crisp, sharp edges, and no sand seems to have escaped the bounds of the long jump’s sandpit.

"A test of our quirks?" Someone asks.

The brown-haired girl gives their teacher a surprised and confused look. "What about the entrance ceremony? Or guidance sessions?"

Aizawa returns a flat, serious expression. He sounds more awake now, but his tone is still low and even. "No time to waste on pointless ceremonies if you want to make the big leagues and become heroes. UA is known for its 'freestyle' educational system - we're not tethered to traditions. That applies to us teachers as well. That means that I get to run my class however I see fit."

He continues, pulling a fancy looking softball from his pocket and tossing it lightly in one hand. "Softball throwing. The standing long jump. The fifty-meter dash. Endurance running. Grip strength. Side-to-side stepping. Upper body training. Seated toe touch. You did all these standardized fitness tests in middle school, yes? But you never got to use your quirks in physical exams before."

"This country still insists on prohibiting quirks when calculating the averages of those records. Trying to insist we're all created equal by not letting those with the most power excel. It's not rational. The Ministry of Education is just procrastinating, but one day they'll learn." He looks out over the crowd of students, measuring them. His eyes land on the loud kid. "Bakugo. You got the most points on the entrance exam. How far could you throw in middle school?"

The boy, apparently named Bakugo, takes a half moment to consider. "Sixty-seven meters, I think."

Aizawa nods and tosses the ball to Bakugo, gesturing to a circle painted on the dirt. "Great. Now try it with your quirk. Do whatever you need to. Anything goes, just don't leave the circle. Give it all you've got." He waits as Bakugo steps into position. "Go on, you're wasting our time."

"Awesome. You asked for it." Bakugo grins intensely, stretches his arms with the ball in hand, winds up, and finally pitches it with a shout and a small explosion. "Die!"

A rush of wind from the explosion blows past everyone watching as the ball disappears into the field beyond.

"It's important for us to know our limits. All of you need to know your maximum capabilities." Aizawa checks a phone-like device. It beeps, and he turns to show the readout to everyone. 705.2 meters. "That's the first rational step to figuring out what kind of heroes you'll be. Finding out your potential."

"Whoa! This is awesome!" A boy with spiky red hair yells out. Ryumi happens to agree. This is already way more fun than any first day of classes she's ever had.

"Whoa, 705 meters? Seriously? Are you kidding me?" Kaminari looks dumbfounded by the number, more than ten times higher than the already impressive number quoted before the test.

"I wanna go! That looks like fun!" The pink girl leans forward and claps her hands together excitedly.

"Man, this is what I'm talking about. We can use our quirks for real, as much as we want. The hero course is great!" Says a dark-haired boy with oddly-shaped elbows.

The excitement is starting to spread, even among those who were reluctant before. After years in regular school, finally getting the chance to really unleash your true potential instead of being told not to is pretty enticing.

"Awesome, you say? This looks like fun, huh?" Aizawa has a smug look now. "You're hoping to become heroes after three years here, and you think it'll be all fun and games? Idiots."

Something in his eyes changes and he becomes much more intense, almost frightening. "Right. Today you'll compete in eight physical tests to gauge your potential. The one with the lowest score across all eight events will be judged hopeless and will be expelled immediately."

About half the class calls out. Shock and worry ripple across the crowd as each of them starts to evaluate their chances.

"Like I said, I get to decide how this class runs. Understand? If that's a problem, you can head home right now." Aizawa rocks the phone back and forth with the reading of 705.2 still on it. "Your fates are in your hands now. Welcome. This is the hero course at UA high!" He grins to himself.

"The lowest scorer will be expelled?" A voice worriedly cries, hoping they had misheard.

The brown-haired girl stammers. "You can't send one of us home - we just got here! It's only the first day! I mean, even if it wasn't... that's totally unfair!"

Aizawa shakes his head, disappointed. "Natural disasters. Highway pileups. Rampaging villains. Calamity is always right around the corner. I'd say Japan - no, the whole world - is full of unfair things." He sighs. "Heroes are the ones who correct all that unfairness."

Ryumi is surprised to find herself nodding along thoughtfully and largely agreeing with the explanation. Put like that, it makes good sense to her. But she's well acquainted with the deep unfairness of the world, in a way most of her classmates probably aren't.

"If you wanna be a pro, you're going to have to push yourself to the brink. If you were hoping to spend your evenings hanging out at McDonald's, I'm sorry to tell you that for the next three years UA will put you through the wringer. One terrible hardship after another." Aizawa grins again, challenging them. "That's Plus Ultra. Use your strength to overcome it all. So bring it. Go beyond." He beckons to the class with a finger. "Show me it's no mistake that you're here."

Ryumi quietly starts to crack her knuckles and stretch her shoulders. She can work with this. A confident smile spreads on her face, even as worry infects some of the other students. She's lucky. Her quirk is well suited to this challenge - enhanced strength and (to some degree) reflexes will carry her easily in at least four of the tests. And that's without counting the long jump, which she can basically cheat by flying.

No, there's no fear here. Even knowing that all nineteen of her fellows are exceptional in their own right, she knows not all of them will be getting the same level of advantage by being allowed their quirks on the tests. The invisible girl, for one - unless her quirk has an extra element to it beyond the obvious mutation (very possible, but who can say) then she likely won't score much better than she did in middle school.

Iida takes out a water bottle and sips from it. "Can't say I approve of this kind of hazing but... I suppose this is what it's like at the top. We've got no choice!" 

"That was nothing. Time to blow these nerds away." Bakugo chuckles to himself, and starts stretching to prepare.

"Now then, we're just wasting time by talking. The demonstration is over. Now it's for real. Let the games begin." Aizawa leads the group to a different set of painted lines on the field. "We'll start with the fifty-meter. You'll run it in pairs, go when you hear the starting pistol. The machine will detect when you cross the finish line."

Iida and a girl with long green hair are up first. The little robot at the far end of the track plays the sound of a starting pistol and the two tear off down their lanes. Little flashes of flame and bits of smoke trail from engine-like exhaust pipes in Iida's legs as he speeds along. The girl with green hair, whose quirk must be something frog-related, elects to hop along the ground, but she's surprisingly quick as well.

"3.04 seconds!" The robot calls out in an overly cheerful feminine voice as Iida crosses the finish.

He skids to a halt, kicking up a sizable cloud of dust, and looks back. "I can only get up to third gear in fifty meters..." The exhaust pipes on his legs are smoking lightly as he heads back to the group.

Aizawa notes something on a clipboard he's carrying. "Eh... like a fish in water. He's definitely in his element, but speed won't help in every test. We'll see how he does in the other events."

The frog girl hops across the line not long after Iida, though her finish is less dramatic than his. "Ribbit..."

"5.58 seconds!" The robot calls out. Ryumi watches, just as Aizawa is. Though she isn't concerned with this particular set of tests, it might come in handy to know what her classmates can do in the future. Plus, it's always kind of exciting to see what other types of quirks are out there.

The brown-haired girl who had been talking to Midoriya steps up next, alongside the boy with the big fluffy tail.

"I'll just make my shoes lighter... my clothes too..." The girl touches her uniform and shoes and a light pinkish glow emits from her hands briefly as she does.

When the start is called, she runs normally, while the boy smacks his tail against the ground right at the beginning to give himself a little extra speed.

"5.49 seconds!" The robot calls out, cheerily as ever, as the tailed boy crosses.

A bit of a pause, and the girl runs across too. "7.15 seconds!"

"Faster than in middle school at least." She says, panting. After she catches her breath, she presses the tips of her fingers together and the soft pink light flashes again from the places on her clothing and shoes where she touched them before the race.

This is already proving Ryumi's theory. In a physical test like this, the way their teacher has set it up, it's all a matter of how effective your quirk is for what's being tested. And not everyone here has something suited to all - or in some cases, any - of the standard fitness tests.

Up next is a boy with short golden blonde hair and the pink girl. She takes up a normal running pose, but without her shoes, while he turns to face backwards.

"Heheh... Nice attempts, mon amis. So unimaginative. All of you - you're just not showing enough panache!" The blonde boy calls out, with a hint of an accent – French, maybe? Must be a transfer student, or perhaps a half-Japanese transplant like Ryumi herself. "If we can use our quirks... let your powers shine!" As the start is called, he jumps up and fires a laser from a large lens on his belt, launching him down the path.

It's not quite far enough, though. He lands with a tumble about halfway and has to stand and perform a second jumping blast to cross the line. The girl, meanwhile, catches up and narrowly finishes ahead using her technique of... it almost looks like ice skating, on some sort of liquid.

"5.51 seconds!" The robot chirps as the boy makes his second ungraceful landing.

He stands and brushes himself off, seeming undeterred by the inelegant execution of his trick. "If I'd fired an instant earlier, my stomach would have exploded."

This pair was interesting. Rather than attack the test in a straightforward manner, they changed how they thought about the test and were able to make better use of their quirks because of it. Could that be what their teacher is really looking for?

Aizawa taps his pen on the edge of the clipboard as the next pair lines up, mumbling something to himself.

The next two up are Bakugo and Midoriya. Midoriya gives a friendly smile to his partner, but receives only an angry glare in return. He turns meek immediately and focuses up on the dirt path before him.

Bang.

"Explosive speed!" Bakugo shouts as he blasts off, pointing his palms behind him and firing small explosions from them to propel himself forward.

"Huh? Gah!" Midoriya recoils from the blasts, stumbling a bit as Bakugo sails past him. He also takes the test with a fairly normal run, like the brown-haired girl.

The robot chimes as Bakugo skids to a stop. "4.13 seconds!"

"Using both hands distributes the force..." The angry boy thoughtfully comments to himself, staring at the smoke coming off his palms for a moment before looking back over his shoulder. "What about Deku...?"

"7.02 seconds!" The robot cries, as Midoriya crosses the line, breathing heavily and resting his hands on his knees.

Bakugo huffs and walks back to rejoin the crowd. "Hmph. My power has more uses than anyone else's in this school."

Ryumi pretty confidently disagrees with that, knowing what her new friend Yaoyorozu can do - though she keeps her thoughts to herself. She admits that Bakugo's quirk is impressive, and more versatile than expected, it's just a shame about his obviously shitty attitude. She's glad she isn't sitting any closer to him than she is.

Before too much longer it's her own turn to line up so her analysis has to be put on pause. Her running partner is a quiet boy with hair split into red and white. Ryumi gives a little wave to him, but he doesn't respond or even acknowledge it. 

She shrugs, kicking off her shoes and bringing out the scales on her legs, thinking her talons will make for better traction. She falls into a standard starting position, but with her wings curled up tight at her sides and ready to give her a little extra burst off the starting line.

When the pistol fires, she surges power into her wings as she pushes off, claws raking the ground harshly with each stride. She mostly takes it as a normal run, thinking flying wouldn't actually be faster over a short distance with no run up or dive to gather speed.

She's faster to start, but a dozen meters in the boy surges past her on a sheet of ice. Even in the warm afternoon sunlight she shivers a bit from the chill air coming from the other lane.

"5.31 seconds!" The robot announces as Ryumi throws her wings wide and beats them forward to slow her momentum past the line. It's a respectable time, but nothing exceptional. Plenty of opportunities left for that though.

She looks for the boy to compliment his skills, but he's already walked back to the group and disappeared into the back of the crowd.

I guess quiet is an understatement...

The rest of the runs are mostly unexceptional. Yaoyorozu is up against the dark-haired boy with the strange elbows. He launches some kind of tape-like material to pull himself forward, but his speed is nothing compared to the rocket booster Yaoyorozu uses to claim the best overall time.

Ryumi claps her hand on her friend's shoulder as she rejoins the group. "See? I told you, that versatility..."

Yaoyorozu smiles humbly. "I don't know, we'll see how the rest of the tests go."

After everyone has times recorded for the fifty meter, Aizawa shuffles the class along to a shed where several devices are laid out. Grip strength would be next then. He motions for everyone to take one.

"Just grab as hard as you can, the screen will record the best number you manage. I'll come around and take the numbers down in a minute." He instructs, taking a spot where he can observe the techniques being used.

Midoriya struggles mightily and eventually comes up with fifty-six kilograms. "Wow..." He sounds a little impressed with himself until he overhears tape boy talking with one of the others, the guy with six arms.

"540 kilograms?! Are you a gorilla or an octopus?" The tape boy stares in awe at the number.

The six-armed boy seemingly has no response to that.

Ryumi activates her scales on one arm and comes up with a respectable 430 kilograms. Not the strongest in class, but close. She's happy enough with the number.

Surveying the others, there's not too much novel going on in this test compared to the previous. A few of the others with unusual anatomy use other limbs - the frog girl uses her tongue, and the boy with the tail uses that. Yaoyorozu simply creates a ratcheting vise grip and maxes the reading somewhere around 900 kilograms. It almost feels like cheating, but Aizawa doesn't comment on it.

Next their teacher shuffles them all off to a sand pit for the standing long jump. The golden-haired boy with the laser-like blast uses the same technique he did in the fifty-meter, facing backward and firing his quirk off midair. He goes a reasonable distance, but lands exactly as gracelessly as before.

Bakugo also mimics his previous technique, but with more upward power to keep him from touching the sand. He easily clears the entire pit and puts a real shitty smug grin on his face. Ryumi smiles a little, excited for a chance to show him up just a bit.

Midoriya lands pathetically, face-first in the sand only a short distance from the line. It's kind of embarrassing, frankly. Ryumi shakes her head as the poor kid dusts himself off. He's looking more and more worried by the minute.

She's not about to improve his feeling of his chances though. This is her event. She steps up and leaps, not bothering with any forward momentum. Her wings catch her a meter or so off the ground and she glides effortlessly over the pit, and a good few meters beyond.

"I could keep going..." She comments, looking over her shoulder at Aizawa. He shakes his head and takes down the number.

She's grinning fiercely as she touches back down and rejoins the crowd. Most of the others are about how you'd expect. The tail boy launches himself the same as he did in the fifty-meter, and the quiet one with the mismatched hair shows him up by throwing himself the whole distance by creating an ice pillar under his feet at high speed. The frog girl makes the full jump too, no surprise there. And Yaoyorozu uses a strange slingshot-like device to launch herself. The brown-haired girl impresses here too, floating herself the full length, though with an undignified finish that leaves her puking in the bushes for a few minutes.

Next up, sidestepping. Nobody seems particularly well suited to this one, almost everyone basically executing more or less around the same level as a normal person. Ryumi doesn't note anything super exceptional, though Yaoyorozu does stand a little above the rest by making and using a pair of sideways trampolines.

As they move on to throwing, now halfway through the events, there's a growing dread in the lower scoring folks. Midoriya especially looks terribly pale. He has yet to impress with any event, but so have a couple of the others.

The brown-haired girl is up first this time. She tosses the ball with almost no form to speak of, even letting it slip from her fingers a bit early, but it just keeps going into the distance anyway. "Oh, whoops!" She grins sheepishly, messing with her hair as the ball disappears entirely.

Aizawa grins and holds up the tracker for the rest of them to see. The numbers give up their tally a moment later and the display changes to infinity.

"Infinity?!" Someone exclaims, incredulous.

Kaminari throws out his arms and looks equally impressed and defeated. "That's insane! How's that possible?"

When Ryumi's turn comes around, it's nothing too fancy. Solid throwing form and scales on her right arm to boost her strength. Decent, but not as impressive as some others (even excluding the brown-haired girl). Bakugo repeats his performance from the demonstration; the tape boy throws the ball almost like a shotput, sticking it to his tape, winding up, and then severing the line at just the right time. The frog girl does a similar move with her tongue, and the tailed boy strikes the ball like a bat with his tail. Yaoyorozu draws a few questioning looks when she crafts a whole pitching machine for her attempt, but again Aizawa doesn’t remark on it.

While observing the test, Iida quietly remarks to some of the others standing nearby. "Midoriya isn't doing very well. If he doesn't shape up soon, he's the one going home."

Bakugo scoffs, glaring at Iida and pointing toward Midoriya. "Well duh. Of course he is. He's a quirkless loser!"

"Quirkless?" Iida looks truly surprised by the assertion, unfolding his arms and turning to face the other boy. "He has a quirk! So, you haven't heard about his feats during the entrance exam?"

Though Ryumi realizes now that she hasn't actually seen any evidence of Midoriya using a quirk on any test, she assumed it simply wouldn't have been useful. Kaminari has yet to show off his too, but given her suspicion of what his quirk is, she's not surprised by that.

Bakugo returns a puzzled and irritated expression. "Huh?"

Aizawa watches as Midoriya's turn comes up and he takes to the circle. He taps his pen against the clipboard, like he's expecting something.

Midoriya stands there for long enough that Ryumi wonders if Aizawa will yell at him to hurry up. But before that can actually happen, he takes up his stance. There's a flicker of some kind of power in his throwing arm, he winds up and lets go...

...and the ball drops in a sad, flat fall.

"Forty-six meters." Aizawa announces. His expression is dark.

Midoriya looks even more worried than before, but now it's mixed up with confusion. "Huh? But I was trying to use it..."

"I 'erased' your quirk. That ridiculous entrance exam. Completely irrational when you consider someone like you got in." Aizawa glares intensely at the boy, eyes glowing red and scarf waving about his shoulders like it's caught in some kind of energy. With the scarf lifted up, a pair of slatted goggles is now visible hanging around his neck.

"Erased...? Those goggles... of course!" Recognition flashes across Midoriya's features, and he seems excited. Almost like he's forgotten that he's currently the favorite to go home. "The erasure hero, Eraser Head! You can look at someone and cancel out their powers."

"Eraser? Who's that? I've never heard of him." The tape boy turns to the frog girl, standing to his left.

She responds, tapping a finger on her chin as she tries to recall. "I've heard his name before. He's an angler type hero. I think he works on the down low."

Aizawa takes a menacing step towards Midoriya. "I saw it. You're not ready, you can't control your quirk. You'd just be incapacitated. Were you planning to break your bones again?" He takes another step and his intensity only grows. "Counting on someone else to step in to save your useless body afterwards?"

"No, it's not like that. That's not what I was trying to do..." Midoriya waves his hands defensively.

Aizawa throws his scarf forward, wrapping it around Midoriya and using it to drag him in close.

Angler. I see. Ryumi almost thinks she remembers her mother talking about a hero like that, someone she worked with during the instant villain investigation, but... She drives those thoughts back. Can't let myself get distracted.

After what she can only imagine was a short lecture about how he needs to shape up if he hopes to make it here, Aizawa sighs, closes his eyes, and releases Midoriya to complete his test. "You've got your impractical quirk back. Give it another go. Hurry up, let's get this over with."

The blonde pretty boy with the accent slides over next to the brown-haired girl and lays his hand on her shoulder. "Are you worried about him? I'm not worried at all, cheri."

"Wait, uh, who are you again?" She looks confused and a bit unsettled by his presence.

Iida nods to himself and adjusts his glasses. "Seems like he received some special instruction. Our teacher must have given him some advice."

Bakugo just laughs. "Yeah. The instruction to leave this school. Probably told him to start packing."

Again, Midoriya takes up his position and seems to think a while before winding up. Ryumi doesn't see the same flash on his arm this time, but just as he goes to throw there's a tiny glint in one of his fingers.

Aizawa shakes his head, mumbling as he observes. "You have no chance."

The ball erupts from Midoriya's hand, launching from the tiny spark in his finger at the last moment. It disappears into the far distance, looking surprisingly similar to Bakugo's first throw, and the readout comes back: 705.3 meters. Not the best score in the group, but easily a standout.

Midoriya stands powerfully in the circle, though he's clearly in pain, clutching his throwing hand by the wrist. "Sensei... I can still move. You see? I'm still standing...!"

"This kid..." Aizawa grins, a look of genuine surprise on his face. He looks truly impressed, more so than with any other performance from any student in any event so far.

Kaminari looks impressed too. "Wow, he threw it over 700 meters!"

The brown-haired girl actually cheers, raising her arms. "Yeah! Woo! Now that's a hero-like record if I ever saw one. He's finally showing us his true power!"

"His finger appears to be swollen, maybe broken now. Thinking back to the entrance exam... what a strange quirk." Iida shades his eyes with a hand to try and get a better look.

Ryumi agrees with that assessment. The way he's cradling it, and the fact he looks a touch nauseous in addition to just in pain - classic broken bone. But not just that - backlash on that level, and from such a small thing... She can only imagine if he'd put that power in his whole arm like it seems he'd originally intended. It's not unheard of for quirks to have aftereffects or downsides, but this is awfully far on the destructive-to-user spectrum. Maybe too far to be natural.

She touches her wing without thinking, brushing her hand across the spot where the scales change from navy to pure black. Surely not... but then, why?

The blonde French boy has an awfully smug smile. "Stylishly done. Though it wasn't a very pretty throw."

It takes a few minutes for Bakugo to locate his jaw and pick it off the floor. He looks equally enraged and shocked - like his whole worldview has just been shattered. Little explosions fire off from the palm of one hand. He races toward Midoriya, furious. "What the hell? Explain yourself, Deku, you bastard! Tell me how you did that or you're dead!"

"Wahhh!" Midoriya cowers and panics completely, but there's ultimately nothing to worry about.

Before he can get within striking distance, Bakugo ends up snared by Aizawa's scarf, wrapped around both his face and torso. "Nggg! Argh... What the... this cloth... it's stiff. Why the hell is your damn scarf so strong?" He struggles violently, but seems unable to do anything to free himself.

Aizawa's eyes are flashing again. That must be the tell for his quirk. "Because it's a capture weapon made from carbon fiber and wire made of a special alloy. Now, stand down and stop using your quirk already. I'm getting dry eye over here."

Bakugo growls in frustration, but does finally stop struggling.

Aizawa sighs again, clearly feeling as over the kid's attitude as Ryumi is. "What a waste of time. Prepare for the next event." He releases Bakugo and recoils his scarf about his neck.

Midoriya carefully skirts around Bakugo, almost seeming to tiptoe like he's trying desperately not to wake a sleeping bear.

When he slides back into the group, the brown-haired girl pops over next to him. "Ouch. Is your finger okay?"

"Ah... yeah, sure. It's fine." He holds it gingerly, close to his chest.

Liar. Ryumi rolls her eyes.

"Tch." Bakugo kicks at the dirt. There's not much else he can do.

Ryumi watches him closely, gaze narrowing. That kind of anger...

The remaining three events – sit ups, seated toe touch, and endurance running - pass mostly uneventfully. Some of the same tactics pop up again, particularly in the running, though some of them are used much more sporadically because of the exertion involved. Ryumi achieves respectable scores in two of them, and aces the endurance run by changing up between running and flying so her muscles can rest a bit mid-test.

When it's all said and done, Midoriya hasn't pulled together any more good scores, and actually seemed to do worse than expected - probably because of the pain from his finger. As the weary students regroup at the edge of the field there's a clear sense of blood in the water. Midoriya is definitely going home.

"Moving along. Time for the results. The lowest score gets expelled. So someone here is going home." Aizawa tucks the clipboard under his arm and taps the phone-like device from the softball throw. A big hologram scoreboard lights up in the air before him with names and rankings. "Your total scores simply reflect your performance in each of the events. Explaining the process would be a waste of time, so all you get are the final rankings. You should probably have a good idea of your standing already."

Physical Quirk Application Test Rankings:

1 - Momo Yaoyorozu

2 - Shoto Todoroki

3 - Katsuki Bakugo

4 - Ryumi Arisato

5 - Tenya Iida

6 - Fumikage Tokoyami

7 - Mezo Shoji

8 - Mashirao Ojiro

9 - Eijiro Kirishima

10 - Mina Ashido

11 - Ochaco Uraraka

12 - Koji Koda

13 - Rikido Sato

14 - Tsuyu Asui

15 - Yuga Aoyama

16 - Hanta Sero

17 - Denki Kaminari

18 - Kyoka Jiro

19 - Toru Hagakure

20 - Izuku Midoriya

Ryumi prods Yaoyorozu's shoulder when she sees the results. "Versatility..."

Yaoyorozu shakes her head and smiles. "You did quite well yourself."

"Also, I was lying about expelling someone. That was a rational deception meant to bring out the best in all of you." Aizawa states this completely flatly, like it should've been obvious from the start.

A bunch of the class (mostly those in the lower ranks, but particularly Midoriya, Iida, and the brown-haired girl) look stunned and cry out in surprise at the revelation.

Yaoyorozu has the same flat look as Aizawa. "Well of course it was a lie. I'm surprised the rest of you didn't figure that out. I'm sorry. I guess I probably should have said something."

"Yeah, you should have..." Kaminari and the girl with audio jack earlobes complain in unison.

The tape boy rubs the back of his neck. "That was pretty nerve wracking huh?"

"Nah, I'm always down for a challenge." The boy with the spiky red hair replies, raising a fist.

Ryumi chuckles and turns toward them. "Same, man. Feels good, not having to hold back like in middle school."

Bakugo distances himself from the rest of the group. "Huh."

"Anyway, we're done here. Your documents about the curriculum and such are back in the classroom. Give them a look before tomorrow morning." Aizawa turns and starts walking, then stops suddenly. "Midoriya."

The kid instantly panics.

"Take this and have the old lady fix you up. Tomorrow's trials aren't gonna be any easier." Aizawa turns back to Midoriya and pushes a half filled out pass for the nurse's office into his hands before walking away. "Make sure you're prepared."

Midoriya stares at the paper while the rest of the group files back to the classroom.

A short while later, Ryumi and Yaoyorozu are walking back from the classroom to the edge of campus. Mercifully, it's mostly downhill.

"So, how's it feel, miss top-of-the-class?" Ryumi grins, nudging Yaoyorozu with a wing.

"Please, it isn't that big of a deal." Yaoyorozu smiles gently, and pushes Ryumi's wing away. "And it's not like you did poorly either."

She waves a hand in response. "Yeah, yeah. Say, did you really know the whole time that Aizawa wasn't serious about kicking someone out?"

"Of course." Yaoyorozu turns to the dragon girl, looking surprised. "Don't tell me you fell for it too?"

Ryumi rubs the back of her head, ruffling her hair a bit. "Well..." She drops her hand back to her side and shrugs. "I guess in a way it doesn't really matter. It wouldn't have changed anything I did. I was never really worried anyway." She pauses, glances over her shoulder. "Though, some of the others..."

"Well, I'll remember to share next time, if it comes up again. I'd hate to cause our classmates any undue stress." Yaoyorozu clutches her elbow for a moment.

"I feel like it probably will. I mean, if this was the first day..." Ryumi waves her hand in a little circle, and Yaoyorozu nods. "Anyway, what do you make of the rest of the class? I know I'm already sick of that Bakugo guy. He's impressive, sure, but that attitude..." Without realizing it, she curls one hand into a fist.

"He certainly seems like he'll be a handful. Asui was quite good in several of the tests, I'm actually a bit surprised she didn't place higher." Yaoyorozu taps a finger on her chin.

Ryumi glances skyward, a look of struggle on her face. "Who was Asui again...?"

Yaoyorozu smiles gently. "The frog. Did you not catch everyone's names?"

Ryumi sighs heavily. "Well... I've never been that great with names. Especially when it's a bunch of new people all at once..." She pauses, and a look of sudden shock comes over her. "Wait, you already know everyone's names and quirks?"

"Is that... odd?" Yaoyorozu blinks in genuine confusion.

Ryumi covers her face with a hand and pulls her wings up to further hide. "Now you're making me feel bad. I was so proud I had like five of them down..."

Yaoyorozu steps closer and lays a hand on her friend's shoulder. "Oh, don't worry too much. I'm sure you'll get them before too long."

"Ahh. Anyway, what about Midoriya? Don't you think it seems odd how much backlash his quirk has?" Ryumi wishes she could say what she's really wondering about, but raising the topic at all would lead to questions about herself that she's not prepared to answer. Nice as Yaoyorozu is… if she knew, I doubt she’d want anything to do with me.

The taller girl puts a hand to her mouth and briefly closes her eyes as she considers. "It does seem odd, but... perhaps he's never had much opportunity to practice with it?"

Ryumi shrugs, and then has to readjust the bag on her shoulder. "I guess..." She does a bad job of sounding convinced, and she knows it, but they're nearly at the edge of campus now anyway. "Oh, since you're so good at remembering people... clear something up for me?"

They stop a short way outside the main gate. "Of course - what were you wondering?"

"That boy who sits next to me? With the..." Ryumi puts a hand up to her face, drawing an imaginary line down the middle. "He looks familiar. Was he in the recommendation exam?"

"Oh, Todoroki? Yes, he was." Yaoyorozu nods to herself.

"Todoroki, huh? That was his name..." Ryumi's expression twists as she fights to recall. "Man, that sounds so familiar too but I can't place why..."

Yaoyorozu's eyes widen. "Ryumi, you cannot be serious."

Ryumi cocks her head to the side. "What? Am I missing something obvious?"

Yaoyorozu shakes her head and moves closer, lowering her voice to a whisper. "He's the son of the number two hero."

"Oh, Endeavor. Right..." She tucks her hair back behind her ears. I guess that should have been obvious, but... She refocuses her thoughts, tries to move on from her embarrassing lack of knowledge. "Well, honestly I think he's a little scary. But I guess I'd rather sit by the quiet and intense guy than be any closer to Bakugo."

Yaoyorozu laughs lightly. "I'm certain it won't be that bad. But I should be getting home now - see you tomorrow?"

Ryumi grins, fishing a pair of tight-fitting sunglasses from her bag and putting them on. "You bet. Have a good night!" She waves as a powerful flap of her wings throws her into the air and she speeds off toward home.

The burst of wind throws Yaoyorozu's ponytail wildly, and she shields her eyes until it settles down. She waves back at Ryumi as she flies off, and then turns to run down the block toward a waiting car.

By the time she returns to her apartment, it’s getting dark out. Some light still filters in through the living room window onto the collection of plants arranged around it. In the kitchen, Ryumi removes her shoes and steps into her slippers. As always, the other two pairs remain. She fishes in her pocket for her phone – it had buzzed on her flight back.

It’s from Ryukyu.

Hello dear, how was your first day?

She temporarily dumps her school bag by the battered dining table and settles into a chair to poke out a reply.

it was great! :) we had a test already but it was fine – actually it was pretty fun.

That’s good. I heard Aizawa is your teacher.

Ryumi tilts her head, and swishes her tail as she considers.

how’d you hear that?

Information gathering is part of being a good hero, little stormcloud.

…keeping tabs on me? >:| I didn’t realize the pros gossiped so much.

Making sure you’re staying out of trouble. Aizawa has a… certain reputation, as a teacher. He can be very tough.

She frowns. If she’s honest, she understands why Ryukyu would worry, but still… she could have a little confidence in her restraint. Ryumi sighs and waits a moment to respond, ultimately deciding not to argue about it. That can wait until she inevitably does get into a fight. With the way things went today, seeing what that Bakugo is like, they’ll end up having that conversation before long anyway.

well he did threaten to expel the worst scorer, but he didn’t do it. and I got fourth anyway.

The delay before Ryukyu’s reply is longer than usual this time. Had she been preparing for an argument? Ryumi checks the time, and dismisses the idea. Around now, most days, Ryukyu would be having a quick meal in her office while catching up on paperwork. She’s probably just finishing up some work, no reason to think anything more of it.

Well, I’m glad you’re doing well, dear. I have to take care of some things around the agency before my next patrol. Keep working hard, if I get some time I’ll try to visit – or you can drop by the office on your day off, if you like.

Just don’t neglect your homework.

sure thing, I won’t.

good to hear from you, auntie. :)

Ryumi leans back in the chair, laying her phone on the table. She briefly tries to tip the chair onto its back legs before remembering one of them is a little loose and she abruptly stops. It’s nice to hear from Ryukyu, even if only in texts. She’s a busy woman, after all – just like Ryumi’s parents. Always something more to do.

She looks around the empty apartment. It’s getting pretty dark now, but she doesn’t bother turning on a light. She stares at the old family photos on the fridge doors, and at the slippers by the door.

Taking a breath, she gets up and wanders to the fridge to start figuring out dinner.

Chapter Text

The next morning begins rather dull, in Ryumi's estimation. Morning classes are all regular high school stuff, though there are occasional dips into something more exciting like hero history, hero code, or quirk science. Unfortunately, even Present Mic can't make learning English or studying literature interesting (not in Ryumi's opinion anyway) - but at least with all the shouting he does it's hard to doze off no matter how boring the day's lesson is.

Afternoon, though... Afternoon it's time for the real fun. The reason she was set on coming here.

Almost as soon as everyone has landed back in their seats after lunch, the door slams open and the hulking form of All Might leans in, hanging himself bizarrely from the sides of the doorframe. He’s wearing an older costume – primarily red with some white circles and stripes, yellow gloves and boots and a deep blue cape – Ryumi doesn’t know which one specifically, just that it isn’t his current style.

"I have… come through the door, like normal!" He takes an awkward step after releasing his grip on the doorframe but recovers into a proud march, taking up a spot behind the podium. He flashes his trademark grin at the awestruck class. Everyone's eyes light up with excitement.

"Wow, it's All Might! Incredible." Kaminari leans forward in his seat. They all knew All Might was going to be teaching at UA - besides being announced in this year's acceptance letters, it's been all over the news the last few days - but it hasn't really sunk in yet. "He's really gonna teach us...?"

"So he is a teacher!" The red-haired boy grins brightly, making a fist with one hand. "This year is gonna be totally awesome."

The frog girl, Asui, tilts her head to the side. "Look. Is he wearing his silver age costume?"

"I'm getting goosebumps. It's so retro!" The tailed boy comments.

Midoriya is practically beaming, looking almost ready to leap onto his own desk. "That is his silver age costume...!" He thinks he's whispering to himself, but he's so caught up it's more of a stage whisper, which catches him some looks from a few others - and a glare from Bakugo.

All Might poses dramatically, flexing his arms. "Welcome to the most important class at UA high! Think of it as hero-ing 101. Here, you will learn the basics of being a pro. And what it means to fight in the name of good! We're going to put you through all sorts of special training to mold you into heroes." He drops his pose and his volume, but only slightly. "Naturally, it also gives a ton of credits. No time to dally now, let's get into it! Today's activity will pull no punches!" He reaches into a pocket and with another action pose, presents a small sign: "Battle training!"

Ryumi grins wildly, her wings spreading out behind her. "Hell yeah. About time."

Bakugo unknowingly matches her ferocious smile, though his eagerness comes off as a touch more unhinged. "Fight training."

"Real combat...?" Midoriya mumbles, a mix of excitement and worry on his face that's quickly becoming his signature after yesterday.

"But one of the keys of being a hero is... looking good!" All Might pokes at a remote from the podium and points dramatically as always toward the wall. "Yes, and for that... you need these!"

Click.

Several panels of the front left wall slide out to show a series of numbered cases. "These were designed for you based on the quirk registry and the special request forms you filled out before school started..." All Might begins, but he's cut off by a shouted collective guess from several of the students.

"Costumes! Yeahhhh!" They cheer.

Midoriya gets halfway out of his seat, almost starry-eyed. "Costumes...!"

All Might smiles as the class gets out of their desks and gathers around the front of the room. "Get yourselves suited up. After you change, come out in ranking order to ground beta. I'll be waiting!"

"Yes, sensei!" Comes the collective reply.

All Might laughs as heartily as ever as he walks out, leaving the kids to it.

Slowly, the group reassembles at the indicated location. It's a big mock cityscape, no people or cars, just empty, unlabeled buildings. Most of them look roughly like offices or retail space, and the occasional warehouse.

All Might is waiting for them, as expected, posing like a life size action figure of himself. "They say that clothes make the pros, young ladies and gentlemen, and behold, you are the proof! Take this to heart. From now on you are all heroes in training!" He nods approvingly at the wild assortment of designs.

Ryumi's costume is perhaps the most understated of the group, as she looks around the gathering crowd. Primarily black, with some navy-blue accents, it's a basic bodysuit covering her torso and extending about halfway down each arm and leg. The material is made from the same stuff as her scales, and is reinforced around the neck and abdominal area for additional protection. Some clips on the back of the waist let her carry a trauma kit for emergencies, and the look is completed with a pair of tightly fitting dark gray sunglasses to protect her eyes in flight - suspiciously similar to the yellow ones worn by the pro hero Hawks.

For a while she's lost in admiring the other costumes - the tailed boy in his martial arts style gear that reminds her of her mother's costume (if very different in color); a fittingly office-supply themed look for the tape boy; a heavy dark cloak for the bird guy; suitably flashy brightly-colored bodysuits for the pink girl and brown haired girl, and for Asui as well; an almost military-looking getup for Bakugo; something she can only describe as medieval knight joins a sentai team for Iida; an actual medieval knight look for the blonde French boy; a decidedly casual but very electrical themed look for Kaminari; and a similarly casual punk-ish one for the audio jack girl; then there's a boldly shirtless look on the red haired boy; a half icy thing that honestly reminds her of the Terminator for Todoroki (not helping to make him feel less coldly intimidating), and...

"Oh, hey Yaoyorozu." Ryumi steps up behind her friend, and can't help but be surprised at how revealing the other girl's look is when she turns around. She's probably showing more skin than anyone else here - shirtless red hair guy included. Well, maybe not more than the invisible girl with her costume of just gloves and boots, but does it even really count as showing in her case? "Whoa, you chose something like that...?"

She smiles, showing only the slightest hint of embarrassment. "Well, it helps when making larger objects - otherwise I'd end up ripping my costume all the time." She glances down at herself. "I guess it is a bit... but it's needed, I assure you."

"You all look so cool!" All Might cheers, genuinely excited to see all these fresh faces suit up for the first time ever. "Well - shall we begin, you buncha newbies?"

"Ah! Hey, Deku!" The brown-haired girl waves at Midoriya as he runs along to join the group. His costume basically amounts to a teal tracksuit with gloves and a bunny-like helmet.

Midoriya gasps and turns red as he looks at her pink and black bodysuit. "Uraraka... whoa!"

"Love your costume! Really practical looking, not too flashy, ya know?" She grins, approaching him.

He nods enthusiastically and covers his face with his hands, even though his tinted visor is mostly hiding his face already.

Uraraka blushes and rubs the back of her head, a sheepish smile on her face. "I wish I'd been more specific about what I wanted on my request form. This suit's skintight and so curvy. Not really my style. It's embarrassing..."

"We're all here then? Looking good!" All Might calls out. As his gaze lands on Midoriya he coughs slightly and grumbles something under his breath. "Well, now that you're ready, it's time for combat training."

Iida raises his hand, and waits for All Might to nod in his direction. "Sensei, this appears to be the same fake city from our entrance exam. Does that mean that we'll be conducting urban battles again?"

All Might beams at the observation. "Not quite! Today you'll be moving two steps ahead. Indoor anti-personnel battle training! Most of the villain fights you see on the news take place outside, however... statistically speaking, run-ins with the most dastardly and heinous evildoers happen indoors."

The hero pauses a moment to let the assertion sink in. "Think about it! Between black market deals, home invasions, secret underground lairs... Truly intelligent criminals stay hidden in the shadows. For this training exercise, you'll now be split into villain teams and hero teams, and face off in two-on-two indoor battles!"

Asui tilts her head and puts a finger up to her mouth. "Isn't this a little advanced for basic training?"

All Might lets out that trademark laugh of his. "The best training is what you get on the battlefield! Practical experience teaches you the basics! But remember, you won't be fighting disposable robots this time - you're dealing with actual people now."

Yaoyorozu raises a hand. "Sensei, what determines victory? Will you be the one deciding who wins?"

"How much can we hurt the other team? Can I just blast everyone away?" Bakugo asks, a distinctly evil - or at least vicious - grin creeping onto his face.

Uraraka shuffles nervously. "Do we need to worry about the losers getting expelled, like with Aizawa sensei...?"

Iida raises his hand once again. "How do we proceed to divide ourselves into teams? And will you be splitting us up based on chance or comparative skill?"

The French boy lifts the edge of his sparkling cloak, showing how it catches the sunlight. "How fabulous is my cape? Isn't it tres chic?" He smirks, but half hides it behind the cloak.

All Might clenches a fist in light annoyance. "One at a time! My quirk isn't super hearing! And I wasn't finished talking!" He reaches into a pocket and takes out a small paper which he delicately unfolds and starts to read from. "Listen up! Here's the deal, the situation is this: the villains have hidden a nuclear missile somewhere in their hideout. And the heroes must go in and try to foil their plans!"

Midoriya's eyes light up. "Like a plot from western comics! I know All Might is a big fan of..." For once, he catches himself rambling and quiets down without having to be told.

All Might continues to read from his notes. "The heroes have a limited amount of time to either capture the villains or secure the weapon. The villains must either capture the heroes or protect the weapon until time is up."

"Your battle partners will be decided by..." The hero stuffs the paper roughly back into his pocket and presents a box that had been sitting on the ground nearby. "...drawing lots!"

"Is that really the best way?" Iida pipes up, looking uncertain as he taps a finger on his chin – or that area of his helmet, anyway.

Midoriya jumps in, saving All Might from having to answer. "Think about it! It makes sense, because pros often have to team up with heroes from other agencies on the spot during emergencies."

Iida stops to consider the other boy's words. "Yes, I see. Life is a random series of events... I apologize for getting ahead of myself. My mistake." He bows deeply in apology.

But All Might just brushes it off. "No sweat! Let's just get to it!" He gestures dramatically and beckons everyone to come forward and take a ball from the box. The balls are lettered A through J, and there are two of each in the box.

After a bit of milling around, the teams sort themselves out.

Team A is Midoriya and Uraraka. They both glance nervously at one another when they meet up.

Team B will be Todoroki and the six-armed boy, who both seem calm and cool.

Ryumi is excited to find herself on team C, along with Yaoyorozu.

Team D consists of Iida and Bakugo. Iida looks almost concerned by the arrangements, while Bakugo retains his perpetually annoyed expression.

On team E we have the French boy and pink girl, who both look quite cheery.

For team F it's a bigger, muscley guy and the quiet, rocky-looking kid. The big guy looks calm but serious, and the quieter one seems a bit worried.

Team G is the audio jack girl and Kaminari. They both have an easy chillness to them.

Team H has Asui and the bird boy, who both look surprisingly intense.

Team I's members are the invisible girl (who is practically bouncing with excitement) and the tailed boy (who looks a bit concerned).

And finally, on team J it's the red-haired boy and the tape boy, who both look really fired up and ready for a fight.

Uraraka cheers at her teammate. "Wow, what are the chances? We're a team! It must be fate - let's do this!"

Midoriya starts to hide his face again as he mutters to himself. "Oh my gosh, seriously? I can barely say two words to her! I have to make a good impression..."

"Moving on, I declare that the first teams to fight will be... these guys!" All Might draws a ball from each of two boxes - a white one for heroes, a black one for villains - and holds them up for the class to see. "Team A will be the heroes, team D will be the villains."

Midoriya is overcome by his signature blend of shock and worry as he realizes who he's up against. Meanwhile Bakugo just seems a bit more irritated than usual, and Uraraka and Iida both look surprised.

All Might clears his throat to regain the teams' attention. "The villain team goes in first. The timer starts in five minutes, when the hero team sneaks in. The rest of us will head to the monitoring room to watch via CCTV."

"Yes, sensei!" The group files out, while All Might lingers to say a few words to each team before hurrying along to join the class in the monitoring room.

The monitor room is in the basement of the villain's base, and is a dimly lit space with an entire wall of screens showing various views of plain metal hallways, doors, and windows. When All Might arrives, he takes up a spot in front by a keypad that must control the camera feeds. The eyes of the class scan over the various blank views until they finally see some of their fellows.

On the cameras, Iida and Bakugo locate the weapon and discuss something. Iida knocks lightly on the fake rocket-looking thing that they have to protect. Whether from the conversation or something else (hard to say, as the cameras don't pick up sound), Bakugo looks suddenly enraged and storms off leaving his partner behind. Iida tries to stop him, taking a few steps with his hand stretched out, but quickly realizes it's pointless. Instead, he looks around a while and, seeming to have some kind of idea, begins preparing the weapon area by removing every other object from the room.

Outside, Midoriya and Uraraka are studying the maps of the building while the villains have their five minutes of setup time. Midoriya, once again, looks a bit panicked as they talk.

Ryumi shakes her head at the early state of things. Bakugo already seems like he's refusing to be a team player, and Midoriya looks half ready to break down entirely. What a mess.

All Might taps a microphone that projects his voice through the building's speakers. "Alright, let's begin the indoor combat training. Team A and team D, your time starts now!" He presses another button, which begins a countdown timer for the observers to keep track of.

"Pay attention, kids. Watch closely and try to learn something. And think about what you would do." All Might draws out a clipboard and dramatically gets ready to take notes.

Midoriya and Uraraka slip in through a window and start sneaking along the plain metal halls, checking corners as they go. But only a minute in, as they poke their heads around another one, Bakugo leaps out at them and fires off an explosion.

Midoriya sees it just in time. He dives and drags Uraraka along with him. As the dust starts to settle, the two stand back up, slowly. Bakugo waves his hand to clear the smoke between them.

"Whoa, a sneak attack!" Kaminari jumps almost like he was the one getting ambushed.

The red-haired boy looks unimpressed. "A sneak attack, Bakugo? That's low! What kinda man pulls cheap crap like that?!" He makes a fist and punches into his other palm.

All Might shakes his head at the boy and notes something down. "Yet it's a viable strategy! He's playing the part. Acting like a true villain would. This is practical experience."

The pink girl bounces excitedly and glances back and forth between the cameras and her classmates, hands balled up and tucked in close to her chest. "But it totally didn't work! Midoriya dodged him!"

"I think Bakugo might be too... well, loud - just in general - to make good use of stealth like that." Ryumi comments, swishing her tail as she watches the fight play out.

Kaminari points up at a screen. "Look, there he goes!"

Bakugo has an insane look in his eyes and charges in again. But instead of dodging, Midoriya pivots so the punch passes harmlessly by and grabs his opponent's arm. Leaning into that momentum, he pulls the other boy forward and throws him directly into the floor while Uraraka cheers him on.

Though the hit was clearly hard enough to knock the wind out of him, Bakugo actually looks more surprised and angry than in pain. Small explosions pop off from his palm as he recovers.

He gets back up and turns toward Midoriya again, raging and leaving his back completely open to a possible attack from Uraraka. Midoriya stands his ground, defiant but obviously shaking.

On another screen, Iida looks around nervously and touches his earpiece, apparently trying to contact Bakugo. On the main feed, Bakugo yells again and pulls out his earpiece, crushing it with a small explosion and tossing the broken shards to the floor.

Iida keeps trying to talk for a bit longer before giving up with an exasperated sigh and returning to cleaning.

The red-haired boy pipes up again. "Hey, sensei, who's Bakugo talking to? I'm not hearing anything - can we get any sound with this video?"

"He has a radio in his ear so he can talk to his partner. Well, had..." All Might jots something down. "We give them to the battlers along with the building blueprints. Also, this." He holds up a roll of sturdy-looking gray tape. "A roll of capture tape! Wrapping this around your opponent means you've captured them, and they're out for the rest of the game. Er, training mission."

The pink girl puts on such a comically focused expression that Ryumi could swear she could hear the gears in her classmate's head turning. "So they've only got fifteen minutes, but the heroes don't know what floor the weapon is hidden on, right?"

"Correct!" All Might calls out.

The pink girl hums in response to that. "The hero teams are at a real disadvantage, huh. And a big one!"

All Might nods sagely. "Real pros have to outwit villains on a daily basis. That's life. Even when the odds aren't in our favor, we fight! It's like Aizawa told you... say it with me!" He strikes an epic pose and turns to the class.

"Plus Ultra!" Everyone cheers along, raising their fists to mimic their teacher’s pose (with varying levels of enthusiasm and embarrassment).

The French boy gestures back at the screens. "Ah, monsieur Bakugo - he's on the move!"

All Might turns back, apparently having momentarily forgotten he's supposed to be grading them. "Hrm?"

Everyone's attention returns to the screens. Bakugo is sprinting at Midoriya again, using his explosions to pick up speed. The green-haired boy calls out to Uraraka and she flees, looking worried but apparently trusting her teammate to handle things.

Bakugo is momentarily distracted by this as he closes in, and Midoriya takes the opportunity and nearly gets the tape around his leg after blocking the incoming kick. But it's still not enough, and Bakugo counters with another big blast which causes his opponent to recoil and he narrowly escapes.

The muscley boy nods approvingly at the near miss. "The little guy's really good!"

"He's holding his own and he hasn't even used his quirk yet! And against the top scorer in the entrance exam!" The tape boy grins, leaning closer to the screens.

On the screens, the two boys regroup a few paces apart. Midoriya takes off around a corner before he can be charged at again and Bakugo curses in rage, throwing a small explosion into the wall near him before tearing away to give chase, yelling the entire time.

Kaminari frowns at the monitors. "Man, that guy has some real anger issues. It's kinda scary..."

Ryumi glances his way and shrugs. "I don't know about scary. But you're right about the first part."

"Geez Ryumi, doesn't anything faze you?" He jokes back.

She chuckles. "Sure, just not him." No, people like Bakugo... they just piss her off, more than anything else. But she keeps that thought to herself for now.

The combatants are all far enough apart now that they're each on their own camera feed. Midoriya ducks down at the edge of a corner to catch his breath. Bakugo has given up sprinting after him and is quietly prowling like a caged panther patrolling its territory, methodically blowing down each door he passes with his quirk. Though he's stopped screaming, he's obviously still got the temperament of an active volcano. He just must have realized that he'll need a strategy if he hopes to actually be effective.

Uraraka peeks into the weapon room and spies on Iida, who has his arms folded, tapping a finger as he waits, thoughtfully looking around the room (which by now has been thoroughly stripped of all loose items aside from the weapon itself) and keeping watch.

Suddenly, something causes Iida to notice her, and they both step out into the open. They begin talking and Iida gestures grandly to the room. Even without the audio, he gives off the impression that he's a cheesy movie villain unveiling his master plan.

Uraraka backs up into a pillar, though she's giggling a little even through her concern at being caught. Iida playing the villain must be even sillier in person.

Midoriya is crouched by that corner still, alternately looking at his capture tape and the area he expects Bakugo to come from. He taps his comms and says something, then glances at the ceiling.

Back on the weapon room camera, Uraraka seems to respond as Iida slowly stalks toward her.

Meanwhile, Bakugo calmly slides around the corner opposite the one Midoriya was expecting, and points one of the heavy grenade-like gauntlets at him.

They stare each other down. Bakugo primes the gauntlet and pulls the pin...

The suspense is heavy in the observation room, nearly everyone is inching closer to the monitors.

All Might cuts the tension by yelling into his mic - causing a couple of the students to jump. "Young Bakugo! Don't do it, you'll kill him!"

Flames race past several of the cameras in the area before the feeds from them go dead. A massive explosion rocks the whole building, shocks are even felt in the control room. Several of the students observing look worriedly around at the ceiling as bits of dust rain onto them.

On the cameras, Iida and Uraraka are both struggling to keep their footing. An external camera shows a massive hole in the structure. The explosion took a chunk out of at least three different floors.

"Whoa, whoa, this is nuts! I thought this was just practice!" The red-haired kid calls out, deep concern written on his features.

Even All Might is sweating a bit, leaning into the keypad and trying to reach the combatants on his microphone. "Midoriya... kid! Come in! Come in, Midoriya!"

Several camera feeds are showing static now, having been decimated by Bakugo's attack. All Might flips around through the channels on those screens until he finds the two boys. Midoriya is on the floor, breathing heavily and coughing from the smoke, but he looks mostly intact - minus a few scorch marks. Though his costume isn't faring so well, between this and the previous blasts it's near half destroyed. Bakugo is looming menacingly over him, partially obscured by the still settling dust and debris.

On the upper floors, Uraraka recovers before Iida and makes a dash for the weapon, levitating herself to leap over him.

Though it catches Iida off guard, he's still faster than her. He picks up the weapon (it must not weigh much, maybe cardboard?) and runs to the far side of the room. Uraraka’s jump misses with her target gone and she lands roughly on the floor, tumbling into the wall and losing her helmet in the process.

Midoriya starts to get to his feet and taps his comms. Bakugo takes a step forward and flexes his other arm.

The second gauntlet is still fully loaded.

Kaminari looks to Ryumi. "So does he scare you now?"

Ryumi huffs in response. "Me? No. But I do worry about Midoriya..."

"You're crazy." A little bit of a grin slips back onto Kaminari's face.

The red-haired boy shoots another concerned look at All Might. "Sensei, isn't this getting out of hand? Shouldn't you stop him? That Bakugo's acting crazy. He's gonna kill him!"

All Might is still leaning in, having apparently forgotten about his notes completely as he's been swept up in the action. "No... not so."

The teacher pauses to think, then taps his mic. "Bakugo. Use the power stored in your gauntlet again and I will forcibly end the match. Your team will lose. Using massive attacks like that indoors is inviting the destruction of the stronghold you should be protecting! Whether you're a hero or a villain, it's a poor strategy. And a good way to lose points."

Bakugo is shaking, and seems to howl in frustration on the cameras, grabbing at his head. Midoriya touches his comms again as Bakugo blasts off toward him, firing his quirk off behind him like a rocket.

Midoriya goes for the same counterattack as before, but just as he would grab his attacker's arm, Bakugo abruptly changes his trajectory midair with another explosion. Midoriya desperately throws his arms up in front of his face to guard against the blast, while Bakugo flies right over his head, following up with another blast pressed right into his opponent's spine.

Everyone in the monitoring room gasps at the violent display, as well as the impressive technique behind it.

"What was that move?" The red-haired boy still has worry in his voice, but there's a bit of admiration too.

Todoroki speaks up, and Ryumi realizes it might be the first time she's heard him say anything. "He doesn't come off as a guy with a strategy. But he's actually quite intelligent."

Evidently, Ryumi's not the only one surprised to hear him adding his thoughts. The pink girl and red-haired boy both turn to look back as soon as he finishes talking.

"What are you talkin' about?" The red-haired boy cocks his head to one side.

Todoroki doesn't look at them as he explains, keeping his gaze fixed on the cameras. "He used the first explosion to simultaneously feint and change his own trajectory in midair. Then he followed up immediately with another. Very clever."

"He doesn't seem like a thinker, but that strategy was fairly intricate. A feint attack like that requires an extreme amount of precision. He had to calculate the physics and demonstrate control over his quirk." Yaoyorozu folds her arms as she adds her own thoughts to the explanation.

Ryumi nods in agreement, and spreads her wings out to half their full span. "Yeah. That kind of aerial maneuver is tough even with wings. The precision part is easier, but coming up with the force required for a hard shift in momentum like that... I'm not saying I couldn't pull it off, but he's definitely got the advantage in raw power."

"Ughhh. Damn, Bakugo is like, uber talented. I hate it." Kaminari complains, sounding a bit dejected.

Bakugo winds up again before Midoriya can fully recover. He grabs the other boy's right arm, and spins him around using his explosions to increase the speed before slamming him harshly back into the floor.

The hit is powerful enough that he actually bounces off the metal.

The pink girl shuffles fretfully after seeing that vicious attack, hands covering her mouth. "This is hard to watch! It's just torture now. He could've already ended it with the capture tape, he doesn't have to kill him..."

"Bakugo's certainly acting like a villain." The bird boy adds from the back of the group.

Kaminari is looking a bit scared now too. "I thought Midoriya was pretty amazing at the start of the fight, but he's completely outmatched in terms of combat power. Not to mention, Bakugo seems like a natural at all this stuff."

As soon as Midoriya recovers, he scurries away into a wall, desperate for some space.

"He's running away!" The pink girl cries out, pointing at the monitor.

The red-haired boy frowns as he watches. "It's not very manly, but he doesn't have a choice. It's odd... he's outgunned. Unless he's got some kinda plan. It's possible..."

On the screens, Bakugo paces toward Midoriya. They're yelling something at each other, but without audio it's impossible to say what. Both boys suddenly break into a run and wind up to punch the other, sparks crackling in Bakugo's open palm and energy coursing across Midoriya's fist.

"Sensei, this looks bad! They're gonna kill each other! Sensei!" The red-haired boy goes to grab onto All Might and shake him, to try and get his attention.

The hero himself is even trembling now. He finally presses his microphone. "Both of you, stop th--" But he cuts himself off mid-sentence when he hears something from the comms.

Midoriya leans away from Bakugo and throws his punch upward, missing what everyone assumed his target to be. A huge shockwave soars upward, tearing apart concrete and shattering windows one floor after another, even ripping another gaping hole in the roof of the structure.

Back with Iida and Uraraka, the floor between them erupts and she grabs a now-loose pillar with her quirk, swinging it like a baseball bat to rain the other flying debris into Iida's face.

While he's busy defending from the hail of concrete chunks, Uraraka leaps past him using the same trick she failed previously. This time with Iida distracted, it works, and she gives the fake weapon a hug as she falls directly into it. Iida looks startled as the rain of debris stops and he sees that they've lost.

Bakugo stares up through the series of holes in the ceiling now bleeding daylight into their battlefield. Realizing that Midoriya's punch wasn't directed at him at all, he looks down at his opponent. The other boy is crouched on the floor, punching arm looking notably bruised and battered, while the other arm is scorched from defending against the last explosion. A look of horror falls on Bakugo's face and he starts shaking.

The whole class is stunned into silence at the massive display of power.

All Might is quiet a moment too, before remembering that he's in charge of all this. "You did it. The hero... The hero team... wiiinnnns!"

Bakugo is still staring blankly into space when Midoriya collapses from the pain.

Uraraka also falls to her knees, puking from overuse of her quirk. With the exercise over, Iida drops his villainous facade and goes to comfort her.

Kaminari is the first one to speak up after All Might runs off to collect the combatants. "What a weird way for this to end. The losing team is nearly unscathed, while the winners are both down for the count..."

The bird boy closes his eyes as he answers. "How does the old saying go? They may've lost the battle, but they won the war, so to speak."

"It's just training, though. This class is intense." Asui shrugs.

On the cameras, they watch transport bots take Midoriya away on a stretcher, and the rest are rounded up and taken back to the monitor room.

All Might retakes his place at the front of the room once everyone has rejoined the group (except Midoriya, of course). "Well, I'd say, despite the results... the MVP in this battle was young Iida!"

Iida seems taken completely by surprise at that. "Huh?!"

Asui tilts her head thoughtfully. "Not Ochaco or Midoriya? Shouldn't it be one of the heroes instead, since they're the winners?"

"Mm! Valid question. I wonder why I didn't choose one of those two? Who has a guess?" All Might grins as he waits for someone to chime in.

"I do, All Might sensei." Yaoyorozu raises her hand and politely waits for him to nod for her to continue. "It's because Iida embraced this challenge. He was most able to adapt to his role in the scenario. From what I saw, Bakugo's judgment was clouded by an obvious personal grudge against Midoriya. And as you mentioned before, sensei, using such destructive attacks indoors was a foolish move. It could have been disastrous."

She pauses, looking out over the rest of the class. "Similarly, Midoriya's plan was also poorly thought out, considering the amount of damage that he received. He rendered himself helpless. Not smart. As for Uraraka, she lost focus halfway through the battle. And her final attack was far too haphazard and reckless given the hypothetical stakes."

Bakugo looks despondent, like he's not even really there anymore, and Uraraka casts her gaze downward, ashamed.

Yaoyorozu continues, after another nod from All Might. "If she'd treated the fake weapon as though it were real, she never would've risked using such an imprecise move. But Iida formed an actual counter-strategy, and was fully prepared for his opponent's arrival. He envisioned what the actual struggle would be like, had a strategy, and never lost sight of his mission to protect the dummy weapon."

She stops again for a short breath. "He was only too late in reacting at the very end. Technically the hero team won, yes, but they only won because this was a training exercise with exploitable constraints. They didn't respect the spirit of the trial."

Iida looks pleased - touched, even - by the praise. The rest of the class hangs in stunned silence. Well, except Ryumi.

"Gunning for a teaching position already, huh?" Ryumi grins playfully and nudges Yaoyorozu with her wing.

Yaoyorozu gently pushes the wing back with her arm and returns a good-natured smile to her friend before turning back to their teacher.

Even All Might is surprised by her thoroughness. "Yes. Well, you overlooked a few things. I-I'd also add that Iida was a bit too stiff, but... Yes, you're correct!" He takes on one of his usual dramatic poses and gives her a thumbs up.

Yaoyorozu bows her head graciously to their teacher, and resumes a proud and confident stance with her hands on her hips. "One should always start with the basics and devote themselves wholeheartedly to learning. We've got to start at the bottom and work up. And if we don't earnestly cheer each other on, we'll never be top heroes!"

"Now then, time to blow this joint! Let's move on to the next match! Think about everything we saw and discussed as you tackle this training for yourself." All Might waves for the class to follow him as he leads them to a fresh structure for the next battle.

"Yes, sensei!"

Chapter Text

Next up is teams B (heroes, Todoroki and the six-armed boy) and I (villains, tailed boy and invisible girl). Once again, the villains head in to prepare and the hero team waits outside.

With the rest of the class reassembled in the new building's monitoring room, All Might calls out on the speakers. "Match two! Villains, you can head in and get started. Heroes, you have the blueprints so get to planning!"

On the screens, the villain team prepares their defense. The invisible girl takes off her gloves and boots, rendering her almost completely unseeable - save for the comm link on her ear, but that little speck isn't really visible on the cameras, and would even be tough to see in person. The tailed boy looks somewhat embarrassed at the thought of his classmate running around naked, but he gets ready to fight regardless.

"Look alive, kids! Show us you're the embodiment of good. Or evil. Let's go!" All Might calls the start of the match and begins the fifteen-minute timer - though, unlike the first round, it would hardly be needed.

When time is called, the hero team enters the main door and begins scouting. The six-armed boy uses his quirk to change his hands into ears and listen in. After a moment, he turns one of the ears into a mouth and says something to Todoroki. He calmly responds and the six-armed boy leaves the building. Todoroki takes one more step inside, lays his right hand on the wall and the whole structure is completely frozen over in just a few scant seconds. He stops for a breath, exhaling a cloud of ice crystals, and strolls casually past both of his opponents, frozen in place where they stand.

The observers in the class shiver in the monitoring room. Ryumi folds her wings around herself and wraps her tail around one of her legs. She hates the cold. It's only a big problem for her in severe conditions or over longer timeframes, but she hates it anyway.

All Might shakily starts taking notes, teeth chattering as he speaks. "He incapacitated them without compromising the weapon or his teammate. Take close note of his technique, students."

"Whoa, he's so strong!" The red-haired boy has his arms pulled up to his chest, obviously his costume isn't well-suited to the 'weather' either.

On screen, Todoroki taps the weapon with a hand, looking back to say something to the tailed boy who was standing guard.

All Might taps his mic again. "The hero team wins!"

Then, as quickly as the freeze went out, the ice melts away, leaving the structure dripping with water and the air fogged by steam as if it was a sauna or hot springs.

"Holy crap!" The muscley guy blinks at the screen, watching the teams regroup to return, barely a few minutes after they left.

Kaminari gapes at the video feed. "That guy's kind of intimidating..."

Ryumi turns toward Kaminari, still holding her wings close to warm herself back up even as the temperature is swiftly returning to a more comfortable range. "Right? But damn, that's some crazy power."

"Alright, he's definitely scary, right? Right?" Kaminari pokes her shoulder with a finger, jumping in surprise when a bit of electricity sparks into her. "Ahh! I forgot about that!"

She shakes her head, cracking a small smile. "Don't worry about it."

"He got in on a recommendation, so he must be good." Asui nods thoughtfully.

All Might coughs to get everyone's attention back. "Moving on! Time to gather 'round for a review of the second match. After that, we'll jet on over to our next battle!"

"Yes, sensei!"

The next battle is the tape boy and red-haired kid as villains, and Asui and the bird boy as heroes. During the setup, the villains string up tape traps around the fortress to slow down the heroes and aid in their capture. When it's time for the fight, while it seemed like a good strategy, Asui and the bird headed kid prove too agile for it to make much difference. The red-haired boy even manages to trip himself up as he tries to hold his opponents off, and ends up tangled in his team's own traps. Once again, the heroes take the match.

Up next, it's Ryumi and Yaoyorozu's turn as villains, and Kaminari and the audio jack girl as heroes.

Kaminari grins as the two girls head into the base to set up. "Hey, go easy on me, alright?"

"Not a chance." Ryumi laughs, giving a little wave before disappearing around a corner.

When they reach the weapon room, Ryumi takes a moment to look around, then turns to Yaoyorozu. "Well, what do you think? Honestly, I'm not a huge fan of indoor battles. Not enough space to work with."

Yaoyorozu hums and puts a hand to her mouth. "Hmm. I think we start by reinforcing the doors. I'll make something." She sits and starts using her quirk to produce sets of interlocking metal slats.

"Right, I'll set them up." Ryumi brings out the scales on her arms and legs, picks up four or five of the slats and heads to a door.

"Do you have any ideas, Ryumi?" There's a distinct clang each time Yaoyorozu finishes creating one of the barrier pieces, and another each time her teammate sets one in place.

"Mm, you know I'm just dumb muscle." She grins at her own joke as she walks back to collect more slats. "Although... could you make night vision goggles?"

Yaoyorozu tilts her head curiously. "Sure, but what for?"

Ryumi taps a claw next to her eye. "I can see in the dark just as well as in the light. If you have a way to deal with the dark too, we could have a big advantage. Say we block the windows and smash most of the lights?" She nods her head toward the windows and then collects the next batch of reinforcement bars.

"Oh, of course. I'll work on that after these." Yaoyorozu smiles at her classmate. "Anything else?"

"Hmm..." Ryumi finishes shoring up the first door and hauls the leftover slats to the next entry point. "No, but... I don't suppose you know anything about our opponent's quirks? I know Kaminari's is electricity related, I'm not as worried about him."

She nods, taking a moment to count up the total metal pieces she's created. "Of course. Jiro has a sound-based quirk, she can hear exceptionally well and also project sounds using her earlobes."

"Hmph. Well, my scales don't protect as well against sound. If they do make it in here, I'll ambush and tackle Kaminari since he can't hurt me." Ryumi frowns, wondering if he might have enough power to cause an overflow in her quirk's 'batteries'. I guess it's good I'm burning up some energy now, just in case...

Yaoyorozu collects the last of the slats needed to reinforce the doors and hands them to Ryumi. "Right. Then I'll try to handle Jiro if it comes to that. Now something for the windows, and goggles..."

They finish up smashing light bulbs and blocking windows just as time is called. Now the real work of waiting around can begin.

Five or six minutes in, as Ryumi flutters around the perimeter of the room, she shoots a look over at Yaoyorozu and jabs a thumb in the direction of the nearby door.

Yaoyorozu nods, she hears the clattering from the other side too.

"Ughhh, come on... stupid door." Kaminari's muffled voice calls out from the far side of the door in question.

"Stand back, I'll try. And keep your voice down, idiot." Another voice hisses back - probably Jiro.

Minutes go by with the hero team’s increasingly noisy attempts to force the door or break it down. Yaoyorozu waves to Ryumi, and the dragon girl's gleaming blue eyes briefly vanish as she closes them and shakes her head. Their enemies aren't getting anywhere.

And ultimately, they never do. The hero team does switch things up a bit eventually, trying to break down the walls themselves or shimmy along the outside of the building to get in a window, but it comes too late and the clock runs out.

Ryumi flaps back over to the weapon itself, where her teammate is waiting. "Wasn't much action, but good work."

Yaoyorozu smiles. "Well, preventing the fight is preferable in most cases."

"I know... still less fun." She moves back to the door the hero team had most recently been working on. "Hey! You two back up, alright?" Ryumi waits a moment, then in a burst of power, rips the defenses apart with her claws and kicks the door down to unseal the weapon room.

Kaminari nearly leaps out of his skin when the remains of the door sail past him into the far wall with a rough clang. "What the heck!" He puts a hand to his chest and sighs when he sees who it is. "Ah... Ryumi, that scared the hell out of me..."

"Working as intended." She responds with a broad grin. Yaoyorozu appears behind her, and the four walk out of the structure together.

With a first win for a villain team all day, the last match gets prepared. There's not too much of particular note going on in this one, though it’s amusing how bad the heroes (the pink girl and French boy) are at working together. Only seconds after entering, the pink girl has already accidentally splashed her acid onto her teammate more than once. The rocky boy can't do too much in the fight, but even so, the clumsy efforts of the heroes stumbling over one another still easily get defeated by the muscley guy.

After the last match finishes up, the whole class (still minus the injured Midoriya) gathers outdoors again, near the entry to the fake city, and All Might tweets a whistle. "And that's a wrap! Well done, everyone! You really stepped up to the plate. No serious injuries - apart from Midoriya's. Great teamwork, though! You should be proud. Excellent first day of training, all around!"

Asui steps forward from the crowd of students and raises her hand. "It's nice to hear some encouraging words after our homeroom class. Aizawa sensei was kind of a buzz kill."

About half the class nods in agreement. Again, it's mostly the folks who placed lower in yesterday's tests. No surprise there.

All Might laughs in his usual boisterous way. "I'm happy to bring such staggering positivity to my alma mater! That's all for now, folks. Now, I'm off to check on young Midoriya and give his evaluation. Change out of those costumes and head back to the classroom. Now, watch how a pro exits - like he's got somewhere to be!" All Might vanishes in a puff of dust as he dashes off at top speed toward the main campus.

Kaminari looks thrilled and points after the pro as he runs off without them. "Okay, you guys, that is a hero!"

The tailed boy slumps his shoulders and sighs with disappointment. "Aw, I'll never be able to run that fast..."

Everyone walks back to the classroom in a big group, excitedly chattering about the various fights and strategies seen through the afternoon.

Ryumi crosses her arms and flicks her tail. "Just a shame I didn't get to really show off much."

"Well maybe you guys shouldn't have made the doors so tough then!" Kaminari leans in front of her, poking out his tongue.

"Eh... victory comes first. You can blame Yaoyorozu for the smart strategy." Ryumi gestures to the taller girl, walking on her opposite side.

Kaminari slides over to pester her. "So, the doors were your doing!"

Yaoyorozu smiles gently and places a hand on her chest. "Please. Preparedness is key to any battle."

He lets out an overdramatic sigh. "Ugh, but you made it so hard. Like, we were already doomed, since both of you guys got in on recommendation. You could've given us a chance at least..."

Jiro rolls her eyes at her teammate. "Speak for yourself."

"Hey, c'mon..." Kaminari jumps over to walk next to her in the group but gets chased away just as quickly when Jiro jabs him with her earphone jacks. "Ack!" He whimpers and falls to the back of the crowd, to the delight of a few of the other girls.

The boy with the spiky red hair drifts over toward Ryumi. "Hey, I'm Eijiro Kirishima." He offers his hand. "Your battle might not have been much, but the way you demolished that barricade after it was over was crazy! I can't wait to see what you can really do!"

Ryumi smirks and takes the handshake. "Ryumi Arisato, but Ryumi is fine. You seem like a pretty tough guy yourself."

"Ehh, I made some bad mistakes in that fight. Trust me, I'll put up a way better showing next time!" He grins, showing off his shark-like teeth.

After returning to the classroom, there's a bit of cleanup and other business to do before everyone can go home, so folks split off into groups to take care of it all. That, and a bunch of people want to stay until Midoriya gets released from the nurse's office. A few start to trickle out as it gets later, nearing sunset. Yaoyorozu, Todoroki, Bakugo, and a couple others have all wandered out by the time the green-haired boy returns. He looks to be in good spirits, but his right arm is in a sling.

Kirishima is the first to notice when the door slides open. "Hey, Midoriya's here!" He calls out to the others and several gather around the front of the room. "Welcome back, man! Ha, I don't know what you were saying back during that match, but that was a wild battle! You were all fired up, huh?"

"I can't believe you held your own against Bakugo! He's super strong." The tape boy comes up to join the others, smiling and holding up a fist for emphasis.

The pink girl cheerily hops forward and leans in between Kirishima and the first desk. "You did a great job dodging!"

The big muscley guy walks over too, looming over the others from behind. "You guys really turned up in the first match, so we were all super pumped and didn't hold back in our rounds, either."

The tape boy nods in agreement.

The French boy peeks in - it's his desk they're all crowded in front of. "You were far from elegant, but I suppose--"

"--And the dodging was like, whoa!" The pink girl interrupts and bounces toward Midoriya, who nervously leans away from her.

He blinks and steps backward, surprised by all the attention. "Huh?"

Kirishima steps toward him and holds out a hand. "Hey, I'm Eijiro Kirishima. We were all just going over the battle training results while you were in recovery." With his other hand he points a thumb back over his shoulder at the tape boy.

"Hi. I'm Hanta Sero." He gives a little wave and smiles at the pink girl, who’s still wavering and bouncing around with nervous energy.

The French boy leans forward in his desk, resting his chin on his interlaced hands. "More importantly, I'm Yuga Aoya--"

"--I'm Mina Ashido! And I just gotta say, your dodging was awesome!" The pink girl bounces up and down again, waving her arms excitedly in front of Aoyama.

Asui wanders over as well, hopping out from behind Ashido and smiling. "Tsuyu Asui. But please, just call me Tsu."

The big guy leans in and offers a thumbs up. "Hey, I'm Sato."

"Whoa. Um. Hey, guys." Midoriya looks terribly embarrassed, as if he's never gotten this kind of attention from classmates in his life. He totally can't handle it.

Aoyama attempts to join the conversation again, gesturing to himself. "UA's shiniest star here--"

Sato laughs. "You might sparkle, but you sure sucked it up in training."

Aoyama gets a gloomy look on his face and several of the others start chuckling as well.

Elsewhere in the room, Ryumi, Jiro, Ojiro, and Tokoyami are chilling, having a much calmer chat about music. Most of them are standing around, but Tokoyami has taken a seat on top of a desk.

"So noisy..." Tokoyami comments distantly, eyes closed.

"Mmhm." Ryumi agrees, glancing up at the mob at the front of the room. "So Tokoyami, what did you think of that track from..."

Iida, who was tidying up near the front of the room suddenly takes notice of this affront to school furniture and dramatically points at Tokoyami. He takes up a purposeful stride toward the desk. "Tokoyami! Desks are not meant to be sat upon. Stop using it as a chair! Please get off of it this instant!" He flails his arms to try and help make his point, but it doesn't quite work out.

Jiro rolls her eyes at him and puts a hand on her hip. "Dude, you need to chill."

"Ah!" Iida stumbles, shocked by this casual rebuttal.

Ojiro gestures at Iida and shifts his tail. "You're carrying a lot of tension."

Ryumi nods along with the others. "Yeah, take All Might sensei's advice and loosen up a bit."

Iida sinks down, looking momentarily defeated. "No one understands..." He clenches a fist and stands bolt upright, fired up all over again. "I cannot condone actions that disrespect these desks. Not when great men and women, our upperclassmen, once used them!"

Tokoyami, eyes still closed, shakes his head. "Also noisy."

Midoriya pokes out from behind the crowd around him, looking flustered but still smiling at the overserious boy’s dramatic reaction. "C'mon, don't get bent outta shape, Iida."

The door slides open again, and Kaminari and Uraraka come in carrying stacks of textbooks for the next morning's classes.

"So anyway, wanna grab a bite together sometime, Uraraka? What kinda stuff you like?" Kaminari asks, heading to a table up front to drop off the books.

Uraraka pauses to think, glancing toward the ceiling. "I like mochi, or anything sweet..." As she looks for a place to set the books, she gets distracted seeing that Midoriya has returned. "Oh, hey Deku!"

Kaminari looks momentarily disappointed as Uraraka runs off to talk to the other boy. But he recovers quickly and slides over next to Ryumi. "Heyyy, Ryumi, you wanna get some food?"

Ryumi turns around, grinning evilly and flicking her tail. "Are you buying, Kaminari?"

"Eh heheh... I was going to, but now you've got me worried." He messes with his hair, then shoves his hands into his pockets.

Ryumi chuckles. "Coward."

Uraraka drops off her stack of books next to the others and runs right back over to Midoriya. "Your arm! Why didn't she heal your injuries?" She rubs her own arm worriedly.

"Oh. Uh, well... It has to do with how much stamina I'm using. I'm pretty worn out, so..." He rests his hand on the arm in the sling as he explains.

"Stamina?" Uraraka tilts her head, not understanding.

Midoriya looks past her and the others, noting Bakugo's empty desk. "Um, Uraraka... where's Kacchan?"

"Sorry, we tried to stop him from leaving, but he wouldn't listen." Uraraka looks over at the desk, then up at the clock on the wall. "You just missed him."

"Sorry everyone, I have to..." Midoriya cuts himself off, dashing out of the room and down the hall to try and catch up with Bakugo.

Ryumi peeks out down the hall and shakes her head. "I hope that turns out alright, whatever he's planning."

Ashido has drifted over to the window and waves to the others. "Look, they're down there!"

Ryumi, Tsu, and Uraraka join her in watching as the two boys talk on the mostly deserted main sidewalk. Midoriya looks almost ashamed or possibly fearful about something, and Bakugo, predictably, looks like he's having none of it. This goes on for a couple minutes, before All Might appears to sort things out.

Ashido pouts and presses her face harder against the glass, as if it will help her understand the events better somehow. "Huh, I wonder what that was all about."

"The fated battle between rivals." Uraraka muses, with a super serious look of determination on her face.

"Whatever Midoriya was saying, it looked like Bakugo really wanted to punch him." Tsu adds, pulling away from the window since the show has ended.

Ryumi shakes her head. "Isn't that just Bakugo's default mood?"

Uraraka is still staring out the window, caught up in her thoughts. "Childhood friends turned enemies..."

"Right... Are you sure about the ‘friends’ part of that?” Ryumi picks up her bag and waves at the others who are also preparing to head out. “Well, I'd better take off before it gets too dark. See you guys tomorrow."

Chapter Text

For the third day in a row, reporters are flocking around the campus gates, bombarding anyone coming or going with endless questions about All Might. Even from a few dozen meters back, Ryumi and Yaoyorozu can hear them accosting Iida and Uraraka - microphones and tape recorders jabbed toward their faces as the swarm closes in to prevent escape.

"What's it like learning from All Might?"

"Tell us what the Symbol of Peace looks like in front of the class!"

"Tell us about 'All Might, the teacher'."

Ryumi sighs, lowering her wings as she sees the crowd. "Ugh, media again...? We'll be late if we get bogged down answering their questions."

"What other choice do we have, though?" Yaoyorozu also stops walking, well back from the media so they won't be spotted right away.

"I have a thought..." Ryumi spreads her wings and grins. "Ever been flying before? You've made a jetpack or something with your quirk before, right?"

"Mm, my family has a helicopter that I've traveled in a few times." She answers so plainly, as if everyone has personal helicopters. It takes a moment for her to realize what the blank stare she's getting from her friend is for. "Oh, is that... not typical?"

Ryumi sighs again and shakes her head. "I keep forgetting you're a rich kid. I don't know how, but I do... Anyway. I can carry us both over, if you're up for it? Promise I'll take it easy." She slips her flight glasses back out of her pocket and puts them on.

Yaoyorozu looks from her friend to the crowd and back. "Oh, alright. If you're sure you can manage it?"

She can’t help but laugh a little at the suggestion. "Don't be ridiculous, someone your size... I could probably carry two of you without even using my quirk. Three, if we didn't have all these textbooks on us." Ryumi adjusts the bag on her shoulder and steps up, putting her arm around the other girl. "Hold on." She grins and spreads her wings wide, giving Yaoyorozu a moment to grab hold of her shoulders before a flurry of powerful beats throws them both into the air.

Yaoyorozu grabs on tighter as the ground leaves them. "Aaaah! That's a lot rougher than I expected..."

Ryumi laughs as they soar gracefully over the crowd and past the wall. "Aw, that was actually pretty smooth, I thought. You should see what kind of tricks I pull flying solo."

"I think I'd rather not. This feels a lot more dangerous than the helicopter." Yaoyorozu complains as they set down, and she takes a moment to resteady herself before they resume walking.

Ryumi removes her flight sunglasses and shrugs. "Just because you don't have a metal box around you? I'd trust my own wings over a machine any day, but that's just my opinion... I mean, I've only been flying since I was like three or four years old. I like to think I'm pretty good at it by now."

Yaoyorozu shoots her a worried glance. "And you haven't broken anything? From falling or hitting something?"

The dragon girl cackles - this is hilarious. "Ahahaha. Of course I have! Loads of times. But you have to keep pushing or you'll never get faster. Plus Ultra, y'know?" She spreads her wings behind her and flexes one arm.

"You have a concerning amount in common with Midoriya." Yaoyorozu shakes her head as they enter the building, passing Aizawa on his way out.

"Good morning, sensei. Going to chase off the media again?" Ryumi says with a wave as their teacher heads down the walk.

Aizawa nods, growling in his usual early morning tone. "Someone has to. And Mic thinks it's 'my turn'."

"I'll make sure we get things started on time, sensei, if you're not already back by then." Yaoyorozu adds as she opens up her locker.

It wouldn't ultimately be an issue, though. Aizawa arrives at class just after the bell as everyone settles into their seats.

"Decent work on yesterday's combat training, you guys. I saw the video feeds and went over each of your team's grades and evaluations." He pauses, taps the stack of papers he’s carrying against the podium, then looks directly at problem child number one. "Bakugo." The angry kid glares up at Aizawa, but the teacher is unfazed. "Grow up already. You're talented, so stop wasting it by sulking like a child about your loss, okay?"

Bakugo's expression turns dark and he looks away, out the nearby windows. "Yeah whatever... got it."

"And Midoriya." Problem child number two straightens with a little yelp as Aizawa focuses on him. "I see you ended yet another day with a broken arm. Even though you won."

Midoriya shrinks in his seat, trying to make himself smaller, hoping to disappear behind Bakugo.

Aizawa sighs heavily as he lays the papers on his desk. "Work harder. Learn to control your quirk - because just trying isn't going to cut it. You can't keep breaking your body while training here. But you do have potential, assuming you can overcome this. Work at it, Midoriya. And show a little urgency, huh?"

Looking relieved, Midoriya sits up straighter again and nods. "Right! Okay."

Aizawa turns away from the class. "Now on to homeroom business. Our first task will decide your future. Sorry for the sudden announcement, but today..."

Worry creeps around the class, as fears of another big surprise test start to gather. Would he actually expel someone this time? Would he...?

Aizawa turns back toward them with a fierce look. "You'll pick a class president."

A collective sigh of relief passes through the students. "Oh good, just normal school stuff."

Kirishima flashes his sharky grin and gets halfway out of his seat, throwing his hands in the air. "Pick me, guys! I wanna be president, lemme do it!"

Kaminari coolly raises a hand. "I'll take it!"

"Yeah, you're gonna need me." Jiro proclaims, with utter calm and complete confidence as she too raises her hand.

Aoyama gestures grandly to himself. "Someone with style would be best. The position was made for m--"

"--I'm, like, totally the right pick! I wanna be a leader!" Ashido calls out, leaping from her chair to interrupt Aoyama and wave her arms around.

“Hey! You want the best, don’t you?! Then I’m your only choice!” Bakugo shouts with his hand up, pure rage on his face.

Ryumi is one of only a couple people conspicuously not volunteering themselves.

Yaoyorozu has her hand calmly raised, but she's not shouting like most of the rest. As she looks around at the other volunteers, she notices Ryumi leaning back in her chair and waiting. "You're not interested?"

"It's not really my speed. I'll lead in a crisis if nobody else is, but day to day? Eh. Besides, I think we have people better suited to it." Ryumi tilts her head a little in Yaoyorozu's direction, and smiles.

"Quiet down, everyone! Silence, please!" Iida stands, slamming his hands on the desk as he does. "The class president's duty is to lead others - that's not something just anyone can do. Leading the many is a task of heavy responsibility... and ambition does not equate to ability." He pushes his glasses up, getting an extra serious look.

"This sacred office demands the trust of every student in the classroom...! Therefore, the most logical way to fill this position is democratically. Our true leader must be chosen by election!" He finally declares, thrusting a hand into the air.

"This is just a classroom, not congress! And it's pretty obvious you want us to vote for you." A few people roll their eyes at Iida's display.

Kaminari frowns, waving his hand in a little circle. "Is this really the best idea?"

"But Iida, we've only known each other a few days, that's not long enough to build any trust." Tsu questions, looking at Iida earnestly, finger resting thoughtfully on her chin.

Kirishima interjects with a shrug before he can even respond. "Besides, everyone'll just vote for themselves."

Iida nods. "Most people will. But that's precisely why anyone who does receive multiple votes must truly be the best suited individual for the job." He gestures emphatically and turns to Aizawa at the front of the room. "Will you allow this, sensei? It's the best way, right?"

Aizawa stares tiredly at the overserious boy as he slides into the yellow sleeping bag in the corner. "Do what you want, just make it quick. Decide before my nap's over."

"Thank you for your trust!" Iida cheerfully begins passing out slips to vote with.

Over the next fifteen minutes or so, votes are written and tallied on the board up front.

Class President Voting Results:

Izuku Midoriya - 4

Momo Yaoyorozu - 3

Mashirao Ojiro - 1

Katsuki Bakugo - 1

Eijiro Kirishima - 1

Koji Koda - 1

Mezo Shoji - 1

Kyoka Jiro - 1

Tsuyu Asui - 1

Denki Kaminari - 1

Hanta Sero - 1

Fumikage Tokoyami - 1

Rikido Sato - 1

Mina Ashido - 1

Yuga Aoyama - 1

"How did I get four votes?!" Midoriya yells in total shock and panic when the results are revealed.

Bakugo slams his desk and stands, shaking with rage. "What the...! Okay, you idiots, who the hell voted for Deku?!"

"Guess we know it wasn't you." Sero responds with a laugh. "What, did you honestly think anyone was gonna vote for you?"

"What did you just say?!" Bakugo takes half a step toward Sero, red eyes glaring intensely. “You wanna go up in smoke? Don’t tell me you voted for that little turd.”

Uraraka pointedly looks away from the scene, whistling to herself and putting on her most innocent expression.

“You’re proving my point now, trying to explode your way into the job.” Sero’s grin only gets wider.

Meanwhile, Iida collapses onto a desk, trembling in defeat. "Zero votes... I feared this might happen, but I can't argue with the system I chose! This is the harsh reality of this sacred office...!"

"So, you voted for someone else, huh?" Yaoyorozu asks plainly, staring at Iida.

Sato has a bit of a bemused look on his face. "You're the one who proposed an election. You knew it was best to vote for yourself, right? What were you trying to prove here, Iida?"

Aizawa cuts off the discussion by emerging from his sleeping bag. "Fine. So your president's Midoriya and your vice president is Yaoyorozu."

The two head up front, Yaoyorozu looking very slightly embarrassed, though ultimately pleased, and Midoriya looking totally panicked even though he'd originally volunteered for the position.

"S-seriously...?! Really? Uh. It's not a mistake?" He stammers, barely able to manage a complete sentence when standing in front of everyone.

In the back of the room, Ryumi shakes her head. And this kid thinks he's going to be a hero someday...? If he’d taken the recommendation exam, Aizawa would have ripped him apart before even starting the practical.

Yaoyorozu sighs, mumbling to herself. "What a shame... how'd this happen?"

Tsu nods approvingly at the pair. "This might not be so bad."

"Yeah, I can get behind Midoriya I guess." Kirishima adds, with a cheerful and supportive grin.

Kaminari nods as well, momentarily closing his eyes like he's trying to appear smarter or more thoughtful. "Yaoyorozu was totally on top of it when it came to our training results!"

The random chatter continues until Aizawa once again silences the class to get them back on track.

"Congrats on the VP pick, by the way." Ryumi says as she finds a table in the crowded cafeteria and sits down next to Yaoyorozu.

She returns a soft smile. "Thank you. I'll do my best to be worthy of the faith others have put in me."

"You make it sound like you think it's misplaced." Ryumi ponders, stirring her ramen around with her chopsticks as she waits for it to cool. "But it's like Kaminari said, I think you impressed some people with your fight analysis the other day." She intentionally doesn't mention that one of those votes was her own - no matter how genuine her belief in Yaoyorozu's skills, she worries it could come off seeming like just a favor for a friend or something if she revealed it.

"I don't know, I only said what made the most sense. It wasn't anything that special, I--"

Vreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.

A loud warning siren blares throughout the cafeteria. All around students look up from their food in search of the source. "Warning. Level three security breach. All students please evacuate the building in an orderly fashion." A robotic voice calmly intones - and then, everyone starts to panic.

A crowd surges toward the door, pressing into the narrower hallway and backing up into the dining area as more and more people try to funnel into the exit. Various voices cry out above the general din of fearful chatter.

"Ow, ow!"

"Stop shoving!"

"Wait, I'm gonna fall!"

"I said quit pushing!"

Yaoyorozu taps Ryumi's shoulder as they hang near the back of the group. "Do you think you could see what's happening if you flew over to the windows?"

"Sure." Ryumi nods, flexing her wings. "I'll be right back."

Farther ahead and fully engulfed in the chaos, Uraraka is being squished repeatedly by the flow of people. "Oww! What's going on? This is a total mob!"

"Such a rapid response to danger! I'd expect no less from students of this great institution!" Iida notes, ever the optimist, though the crushing power of the crowd has thrown his normally perfectly aligned glasses askew.

Midoriya coughs, having been shoved just as he was trying to take a breath. "Maybe a little too rapid. Everyone's panicking..." Before he can finish the thought, he's being pulled away and knocked over by the latest wave of evacuating students. "Oof. I'm going down!"

"Deku!" Uraraka cries out, reaching for him, but it's too late. He's disappeared completely into the mass of bodies.

"Midoriya!" Iida, too, is drawn away by the flow, pushed up against the windows. "Who... Who in the world could have trespassed onto campus grounds?"

Up above, Ryumi is placidly fluttering in front of the windows. "The media? How did they even...?" She shakes off the thought and heads back to find Yaoyorozu.

Iida sees it too. "It's... the press that was outside this morning!" He struggles, trying to keep from being crushed amid the mob. "I was afraid it was some kind of attack on the school, but there's no danger. There's no need to worry, everyone! It's just the media! Everyone calm d-- yowch!" His shouts go largely unheard in the panic, and he desperately starts searching for some way to get the word to everyone.

But there's too much going on. A few voices stick out, pleas for help, but it's all too loud and nobody else can see.

"Oww!"

"Hold on, I'm falling! I'm falling! Stop pushing!"

"This is dangerous!"

"Stop it guys! Slow down! Slow down!" Kirishima begs, flailing around to try and keep from getting trampled. "Everyone! Stop freakin' out!" He isn't getting anywhere either.

"This sucks." Kaminari has a look of despair on his features as he gives up and the crowd drags him away. "The current's too strong..."

Iida calls out to them, but nothing can be done. "Kirishima! Kaminari!"

"Eek! Iidaaaa!" Uraraka reaches out for her friend, but she too is being pulled along away from him.

"Uraraka!" Iida thinks for a moment, and his eyes light up. "Uraraka! I have an idea!" He reaches out to her, but the gap between them is getting wider by the second.

"Huh?" She fights the current, though it's all she can do just to maintain her position.

Iida stretches his arm out a little more. "Touch my hand. Make me float above everyone else!"

"Oh!" Uraraka reaches back, inching toward him, and barely catches his fingers - but that's enough. The little pink flash of her quirk briefly covers him, and he starts to drift upward.

Iida tries to steady himself midair with his arms, but it's not working so well. He scans the area, seeking some way - any way - he can get everyone's attention. The exit sign at the end of the corridor hangs like a beacon in front of him - if only he could reach it. He takes a breath and activates his quirk, trying to boost himself forward...

...and ends up spinning in wild, uncontrollable circles, going nowhere. "Whoa!" At some point his glasses go flying, drifting off into the mayhem below.

A half-crushed Midoriya gets a brief view of his friend looking like a worryingly unsafe carnival ride. "Iida?! What're you doing?"

Ryumi and Yaoyorozu arrive back on the scene just in time to see this madness. Ryumi flaps over and grabs the spinning Iida, putting the dizzying display to a halt and gently righting him. "Need a hand there?" She smiles playfully.

"Ah, thank you..." Iida mumbles, looking a little green as he slowly regains his bearings. "Oh, Arisato - and Yaoyorozu."

"Ryumi is still just fine, but yeah." The dragon girl corrects him before continuing. "That was a good effort, but flying takes more than just weightlessness and thrust. Were you trying to go somewhere? Looked like you had a plan."

Iida is jolted back into the moment finally as she mentions it. "Ah, right! I need to get everyone's attention, there's no need for all this panic." He looks down the hall at the ledge above the exit sign. "Could you get me over there?"

"Of course." With her free hand, Ryumi takes Iida's and effortlessly tows him to the location.

"Iida. Take this." Yaoyorozu produces a megaphone with her quirk and carefully reaches out to hand it to him as he settles into the tiny ledge.

Ryumi chuckles a bit at her unnecessary caution. "Relax, I'm not about to drop you."

Iida nods as he accepts the megaphone. "Thanks, Yaoyorozu." He carefully steadies himself on the ledge and holds up the megaphone while Ryumi takes herself and Yaoyorozu a fair distance back. "Everyone... everything’s fine!" He stops to take a breath and slightly lowers his volume as all look up at him. He trembles a little, nervous about hanging on such a tiny surface. "It's okay - it's just the media outside! There's absolutely nothing to worry about. We're fine! This is UA, we need to remain calm and prove that we're the best of the best!"

Ryumi rolls her eyes at the end of his statement. "Such an Iida way to finish it off..."

Yaoyorozu chuckles.

The three of them watch from above as the crowd settles down and begins a much calmer and more effective evacuation. They wait for the crowd to thin out and once it does, Ryumi flies down to drop off Yaoyorozu and see if Midoriya is alright.

"You two good down here?" When they land, Uraraka is helping him up. He looks a little battered and bruised, but no worse than usual. For him, anyway.

"Ah, I'll be fine..." Midoriya stumbles a bit but recovers quickly.

Iida clears his throat as he stares down at them. "Umm..."

Ryumi glances up at the stranded Iida. "Oh, I suppose you want help getting down, huh?"

Iida shifts awkwardly, standing on that ledge is obviously uncomfortable. "Well, I don't think I'm weightless anymore..." Uraraka confirms by shaking her head. "But if you could... Perhaps if you flew Uraraka up here and then..."

Ryumi huffs dismissively. "As if that's necessary." Before he can protest further, she flies up and grabs him. "You're not that heavy. In your hero gear I might have to actually use my quirk, but this is easy."

"Oh. Really?" Iida seems surprised.

"I used to carry sandbags and supply crates all the time in big disasters. And I was a lot younger and weaker back then." Ryumi lands and lets go of Iida, puffing up her chest and spreading her wings proudly.

"Impressive. Well," Iida looks to Midoriya and Yaoyorozu. "President, vice president - I think we should go make sure the rest of our classmates got out of here safely."

Midoriya is startled again by the reminder of his new responsibilities. "R-right!"

Yaoyorozu, meanwhile, takes it in stride and nods. "Of course."

Uraraka, Midoriya, and Yaoyorozu head out. Iida lingers to walk beside Ryumi.

"Thanks again for the assist there." He goes to adjust his glasses, only to remember they fell off and got crushed.

"Eh, don't mention it." Ryumi pauses thoughtfully, flicking her tail. "You know, Iida... you seem like a guy who's not afraid of some crazy speed. You wanna go flying sometime? I bet we could have some serious fun. You carry me, take off at top speed, and then I'll get us in the air - like the jet boosters they use to help planes take off on an aircraft carrier?"

Yaoyorozu glances back over her shoulder at the two. "Be careful what you agree to, Iida."

Ryumi puts on a sinister grin. "I don't know what you mean..."

Iida quickly shifts from looking intrigued to cautious, while Midoriya just smiles at the exchange.

Chapter Text

Back in the classroom after everyone is rounded up from the evacuation, Yaoyorozu and Midoriya are once again standing at the head of the room.

Yaoyorozu checks her notes, then looks to the clock. "It's time. Go ahead, class president. Let's begin."

Midoriya still has a look of total panic on his face. "Um. Okay. So, we need to choose the other student council members! But first... this is important. There's something that I wanna say." He's trembling as he continues his speech. "I've thought a lot about this. And I believe... that Tenya Iida is better suited to be our class president."

Iida's eyes go wide with surprise, but he also looks genuinely touched by the suggestion.

"You all saw how well he led everyone in that crisis. He was able to capture everyone's attention and get us in line. So I think... he's the correct choice for the job." Midoriya slowly stops shaking and finds his confidence as he continues. "He should be the one leading our class from now on."

Kirishima tilts his head in thought for a moment, then nods. "Yeah, you know what? If Midoriya vouches for him, I'm good. Plus he was a big help. He really showed his stuff back in the cafeteria. Totally manned up and took charge, right? Not that I've got anything against Midoriya!"

"Yup. He was like a beacon pointing to the emergency exit." Kaminari agrees, but then he grins wildly like he suddenly realized something funny. "Actually, did you notice he looked just like the dude on those signs when he was up on the wall?"

Aizawa has his usual unamused expression on, sipping his juice pouch in the corner while he waits for the class to resolve things. "Whatever. Just get on with it. this is a waste of time." He glares at Midoriya. "I don't care who the president is, just hurry up."

"Eek!" Midoriya jumps and scurries away back to his seat.

Iida stands proudly and adjusts his glasses (apparently, he has spares in his locker for occasions like this). "If Midoriya is nominating me for this job, then I humbly accept! I pledge to carry out the duties of class president to the best of my abilities!" He raises his hand in a sort of salute.

Kirishima chuckles at his overserious attitude. "Sounds good, emergency exit."

"Emergency exit Iida! Don't let us down, man." Kaminari adds, grinning at Kirishima.

Yaoyorozu glances around the room, a bit worried. "...Is my position really safe? I got three more votes than him..."

Once all the student council business has been settled, Aizawa retakes the front of the room. "Now, for today's basic hero training, things will be a little different. This time you'll have three instructors - All Might, myself, and one other faculty member will supervise and keep tabs on you."

"This time...? So it’s a special class. Or is it because of the break in?" Midoriya wonders aloud.

Sero raises his hand. "Um, sensei, what're we doing exactly? What kinda training is this?"

Aizawa puts on a smug smile and holds up a card. "Rescue. We'll be preparing you for disaster relief - fires, floods, shipwrecks, stuff like that."

"Yesssss!" Ryumi cheers, spreading her wings slightly. Her favorite, and a large part of why she always wanted to become a hero.

Kaminari leans forward, resting his head on his hand. "Disasters, huh? Sounds like we're in for another rough day."

"Totally, right?" Ashido agrees, but she seems much more excited about it than Kaminari does. 

“This sounds way better than fighting each other.” Iida comments.

Kirishima gets halfway out of his seat. "Come on, this is real hero stuff! This is what separates the men from the boys. I'm pumped! Shakin' with excitement."

In the back, Ryumi grins. "Hell yeah, Kirishima. Rescue work is the best part of being a hero." 

"Finally, I get to show off how good I am in water. I'll be right at home in a flood. Ribbit." Tsu smiles a little, clearly excited though her typically even and level tone of speech makes it a little harder to notice.

Aizawa clears his throat and glares at the class. "Guys, I'm not finished yet. It's up to each of you what you wear for this training." He taps the now-familiar remote which summons the costume cases out from the front wall.

Click.

The shelves slide out, numbered cases gleaming, tempting them. "I know you're excited about costumes, but keep in mind you haven't gotten used to them yet, and some of them are ill-suited to this sort of activity. This special training site is a bit remote, an off-campus facility, so we'll be going by bus. That's all. Get ready." Aizawa puts the remote back and walks into the hall to wait while the kids make their decisions.

After a handful of minutes, everyone is prepared and assembled outside at the bus location.

"Hmm?" Uraraka looks up as Midoriya runs along to catch up with the rest of the class. "You wore your gym clothes, Deku? Where's your costume at?"

Midoriya stares down as his mismatched temporary gear - a few pieces of his costume like the gloves and boots survived Bakugo's assault from the previous day, but the suit itself couldn't be saved. "Ah, it didn't make it through the combat training in one piece. I mean, you saw it, it was kinda trashed." He shuffles, embarrassed by the clashing elements he's currently wearing. "The school's support company is repairing it. Just gotta wait for now."

Up front, the bus arrives and Iida blows a whistle. "Gather around, class 1-A! Form two lines according to your ID numbers so we can load the bus efficiently. Let's fill those seats in an orderly fashion!" He waves his hands like he's directing an airplane to the runway and tweets the whistle a few more times.

"Iida's going full throttle..." Midoriya mumbles as he walks with Uraraka to the bus.

The boarding plan doesn't end up working out, as the bus’s seating design is more like you get on public transit, rather than the school bus style the president must have imagined. Ryumi ends up taking a spot near the back of the bus, next to Todoroki. And of course, Bakugo is right in front of them, while Yaoyorozu is across the aisle.

It's far from an ideal arrangement. But she's not the only one disappointed.

The bus has barely started moving when Iida slumps forward, head in his hands in defeat. "Darn. It was this type of bus... this open layout ruined my boarding strategy."

Ashido, sitting next to him in the lower front section, gently smiles and pats his shoulder. "All that for nothing. Iida, you really need to chill."

"If we're pointing out the obvious, then there's something I wanna say... about you, actually. Ribbit." Across from them, Tsu turns and looks at Midoriya.

Midoriya blinks, surprised by the sudden attention. "Oh, about me? What is it, Asui?"

"I told you to call me Tsu." She returns flatly, without a second of hesitation.

Midoriya shifts, now even more flustered. "Oh. Yeah, right."

"That power of yours. Your quirk - isn't it a lot like All Might's?" She asks earnestly, with a subtly curious and analyzing expression.

"R-really?! What? You think so, huh? I never really thought about that... I guess it's kinda similar. Nah. I mean, I..." He panics, rambling at double speed and waving his hands defensively before turning away from her to think.

The sudden commotion draws Ryumi out of her phone briefly. Though she was initially worried, for the moment the ride isn't too bad. 

Kirishima, sitting on Midoriya's other side, jumps in at this point. "Wait, hold up, Tsu. You're forgetting All Might doesn't hurt himself. They're already different in that way. That makes a huge difference."

Ryumi eyes the green haired boy as he lets out a deeply relieved sigh. What a strange reaction for a guy who's seemingly a huge fan of All Might... Maybe the idea of being compared to that is just too much pressure?

Kirishima holds up a fist and grins. "But still, that sort of simple, strength-enhancing quirk is awesome! You can do lots of flashy stuff with it." He opens his hand and activates his quirk, turning his arm to inspect it. "Not like my hardening. It's super strong and can destroy bad guys, but it doesn't look all that impressive. Sure, I'm good in a fight, but it's real boring."

"Oh, no way. I think it's really awesome looking." Midoriya's usual enthusiasm has returned now that he's not the one being talked about. “Your quirk's more than enough if you wanna go pro."

Kirishima offers up a weak smile at the other boy's assurance. "You really think so? Seems like it'd be easier to be a popular hero if I had somethin' flashier."

"My navel laser's got the perfect combination of both panache and strength. Perfect for a pro." Aoyama comments coolly, taking his favored glamor pose, with his chin resting in his hands.

Ashido leans in conspiratorially and lays a hand on his shoulder. "But it's way lame if it gives you a stomachache, sweetie."

Though Aoyama doesn't move from his position, there’s a brief twitch in his features and his expression turns grim and gloomy.

Kirishima shoots a glance up at the raised back area of the bus. "If you're looking for the pro quirks in the class, just look back there - Bakugo, Todoroki, and Ryumi - they've all got strong, flashy powers."

Bakugo momentarily perks up at hearing his name. "Tch." He frowns and returns to leaning on his fist and staring at the passing scenery out the window.

Ryumi isn't paying too much attention, idly poking at her phone, like Jiro in front of her. Though she too has her attention drawn back to the conversation up front as she hears her name. Before going back to her phone, she hazards a glance at Todoroki and finds him peacefully dozing off. Does he not get enough sleep?

Tsu nods and puts a finger to her mouth. "Sure, but Bakugo's so unhinged. He's always angry so he'll never be that popular."

"Uh-- what'd you say, frog-face?!" Bakugo erupts from his seat and looks ready to leap the railing into the lower section of the bus. "I'll kick your ass!"

Ryumi rolls her eyes at the reaction. So much for a quiet ride.

Tsu is completely unperturbed, poking out the tip of her tongue and pointing at Bakugo. "Ya see."

Ryumi grins at the frog's straightforwardness, but keeps her gaze down at her phone. She can feel the menace pouring from the seat in front of her.

"Y'know, we basically just met you. So it's kinda telling that already you've made it so abundantly clear to us that your personality is basically flaming crap mixed with garbage." Kaminari adds, also pointing back at Bakugo, with a real stupid smirk plastered on his face.

Midoriya ducks down and starts softly mumbling to himself again. "I can't believe what I'm hearing... Kacchan's getting bullied! UA is so confusing." He's trembling, almost reflexively hiding his face with his hands to keep out of what's happening.

"Yeah, okay, Mr. Vocabulary. How about I pound you?! You're gonna regret the day you applied to this school, you loser...!" Bakugo sneers, volume increasing as he continues his little tirade. He grips the railing tighter and leans forward, glaring at Kaminari. "I'll kill you!"

Kaminari just puts on a smug, self-satisfied smile in response, while Jiro (who had the misfortune of sitting next to Bakugo) leans away from him with an annoyed expression - he must be overpowering whatever music she's trying to listen to.

Ryumi looks over at Todoroki again, amazed that he's still napping with captain chaos shouting his lungs out not a meter in front of him. How in the world is he doing that?

Iida stands, grabbing onto one of the loops hanging from the ceiling to steady himself. "Enough. Classmates should encourage each other, not--"

Bakugo is predictably unmoved by Iida's demands, and cuts him off mid-thought. "Well, I'm gonna encourage this dumbass to explode!"

Kaminari stifles a laugh and takes a jokey tone. "Wait, what did you say? Phrasing, dude."

"What a vulgar conversation..." Yaoyorozu covers her mouth with a hand and has a vaguely disgusted look.

Her seatmate, Uraraka, laughs lightly with just a hint of a devious smile. "Yeah, but I think it's fun listening to them fight."

Ryumi gives up on reading the article she'd been staring at, pocketing her phone and looking up toward the two girls across the aisle. "I didn't realize you had such a dirty mind, Yaoyorozu."

Yaoyorozu spins around and blushes fiercely. "What? That is not what I meant!"

"You did! C'mon, admit it!" Uraraka gently elbows Yaoyorozu, with an even more devilish grin on her face.

Iida calls out again, still making a valiant effort to tame the fight. "Alright, both of you should apologize."

Kaminari shifts into a sly smile. "I will, but only if he does it first."

"Like hell I will!" Bakugo roars back.

Aizawa glowers at the commotion. "Hey, hey, we're here. Stop messing around. Look sharp, now."

"Yes, sensei!" Most of the class answers…

…Except Bakugo, who just grumbles. "Whatever."

The bus pulls up to a large domed structure and everyone piles out. A person in a big puffy space suit is standing outside.

"Hello everyone, I've been waiting for you." The suited figure cheerily greets them with a wave.

Midoriya jumps excitedly when he sees who their special instructor is. "Wow, it's the space hero, Thirteen! The chivalrous pro who's rescued a ton of people from disasters across the world! They're a hero who does their best work in rescue scenarios!"

"Ooh, I love Thirteen! They're one of my favorite heroes." Uraraka cheers as well.

Thirteen waves for the group to follow as they walk toward the dome. "I can't wait to show you what's inside."

"This is gonna be awesome!" Kaminari grins and hurries along.

Inside the dome is a truly massive space with a solid half dozen terrain types modelled after different potential disaster scenarios, some of them even contained within their own smaller domes decorated with imagery suggesting the disaster inside. A fountain plaza stands in the center of the various zones and the entry platform is way above it all, giving a spectacular view of everything the facility has to offer.

Kirishima gapes at the vast scope of the place. "Holy crap. It looks like some kind of amusement park!"

Thirteen proudly walks up to the railing at the edge of the platform to introduce the facility. "There's the flood zone - complete with shipwreck, landslide zone, conflagration zone, windstorm zone, etcetera. Every disaster and accident you can imagine. I built this facility myself, to prepare you to deal with all kinds of disasters. I call it... the 'Unforeseen Simulation Joint'!" They gesture grandly to each area as they call them out. "But you can call it the USJ!"

"Just like Universal Studios Japan..." A couple people mumble.

Ryumi smiles and gives a little wave to the space hero.

Thirteen perks up, remembering her from some event long ago. "Ah, Arisato! Good to see you, it's been so long..."

Aizawa steps up and cuts them off. "Hey, Thirteen. Where's All Might? Shouldn't he be here already? I thought he was meeting us here." He looks around, not hiding his irritation. "Lemme guess, he booked an interview instead."

Thirteen lowers their voice. "Ah, about that, senpai... Actually, it's something else."

"Hm?" Aizawa frowns.

"It seems he just about reached his limit during his morning commute." The suited hero holds up three fingers.

Meanwhile, Ryumi is being ambushed with questions by Uraraka, and can't follow the rest of what the teachers are saying.

Midoriya has a worried look as he tries to hear what's being said, just catching the three signal.

Uraraka turns to the dragon girl next to her. "Wait, Ryumi - you've met Thirteen before? They just called you out like they knew you."

Ryumi tucks her wings in close, embarrassed, and waves her hands in front of her. "It's really not that big of a deal, my parents have always been in crisis response. Sometimes I would just... tag along, help carry supplies or something relatively low-risk. I was just a little kid, but an extra set of hands is always useful, you know."

Midoriya snaps back to the conversation happening beside him. "So you don't just know them, you've actually worked with them before?" His eyes are shining, like he's totally starstruck, even though the actual number one hero is one of their teachers.

Ryumi just shrugs dismissively. "...I mean it's not like we talked much or anything. You're making this a way bigger deal than it is. I'm sure you've met some of your parents' coworkers once or twice, right? Got dragged to a company picnic or something..."

"Are your parents heroes, then?" Uraraka grins excitedly.

She's getting a bit uncomfortable with all the questions, and lowers her wings to her sides. "Uh... my mom, yeah. Dad's a paramedic."

Midoriya is too hyped up to notice her trying to back off and grabs Ryumi by the arm. "Really?! Who is she?" He stops, as if suddenly struck by a realization. "Wait, you're not related to Ryukyu, are you?" He asks, becoming visibly more excited - if such a thing is even possible.

Ryumi lets out a small polite laugh. "No, that's not it. Ryukyu's a close friend of my mom's..." She pulls her arm free from Midoriya's grasp. "But, she's not... my mom's nobody you would have heard of. Not high enough in the rankings to be famous."

"Oh, I don't know about that..." Uraraka smiles at Midoriya, who already has his phone out. He’s totally absorbed in the screen, trying to look up Ryukyu's friends and close contacts for ideas.

Ryumi sighs and shakes her head. "Look, you're not going to find--"

Aizawa clears his throat, apparently done coordinating with Thirteen. "Well, we should be okay with just the two of us. So be it. The clock's ticking. Let's get started." He glares at the walking hero encyclopedia. "Focus up, Midoriya."

Thanks for the save, sensei...

Midoriya jolts out of his head and hurriedly puts his phone away. "Y-yes sensei."

"Excellent! Before we begin, let me just say one thing... well, maybe two." Thirteen counts on their fingers as Aizawa walks off to lean against the railing of the platform. "Or three... four... possibly five."

"We get it..." The class drones.

Ryumi smiles to herself. "Just as meandering as always, huh?"

"Listen carefully. As I'm sure many of you are aware, my quirk is a powerful one, called ‘Black Hole’. It can suck in and tear apart anything." Thirteen holds out their gloved hand and regards it.

Midoriya jumps in. "Yeah, and you've used black hole to save people in all sorts of disasters before."

Uraraka nods along with furious enthusiasm.

"Indeed. However, my quirk could also very easily be used to kill." Thirteen pauses as the group gasps. "I've no doubt there are some among you with similarly dangerous abilities." They look out over the stunned silence as each student considers their own power. "In our superpowered society, the use of quirks is heavily restricted and monitored, so we often overlook how unsafe they can actually be. But we must never forget that it only takes one wrong move with an uncontrollable quirk for people to die. If you lose focus, your powers can be deadly. Even if you're trying to do something virtuous like rescue someone."

Ryumi frowns and shifts her footing, unconsciously brushing a hand over the edge of her wing – the area where the scales fade to black.

"Thanks to Aizawa's physical fitness tests, you have a solid idea of your quirk's potential. And because of All Might's combat training you likely experienced the danger that your respective quirks can pose to others. Carry those lessons over to this class. Today I'll show you a new perspective: you will learn how to utilize your quirks to save lives." Thirteen stands proudly at the edge of the high platform. "You won't be using your powers to attack enemies or each other, only to help. After all, that's what being a hero is all about. Ensuring the safety of others." They stop for a breath, and then take a deep bow. "That's all I have to say! Thank you so much for listening."

"So awesome!" Uraraka turns back to the girl still standing next to her. "Ryumi, you gotta tell me what it was like to work with them."

"Bravo! Braaavo!" Iida claps enthusiastically – right up until he awkwardly realizes he’s the only one doing so.

Aizawa leans on the railing of the platform during Thirteen's long speech, looking exceptionally bored and repeatedly checking the time on his phone. "Great. Now that that's over. First off..."

Above, an arc of electricity flies across the dome. Meanwhile, below in the central plaza, there's a strange sound and a speck of darkness appears and expands, drawing Aizawa's attention.

The blip of dark purple energy spirals into a huge churning gate. Out of the vortex steps a creepy, lanky man wearing dark clothes and with many pairs of severed gray hands grasping at his face, neck, arms, and torso. And then the cloud explodes outward further, throwing dozens of varied people into the plaza.

Chapter Text

Aizawa shoots a serious look over his shoulder at the students and yells. "Huddle up - stay together and don't move!"

"Huh?" Iida stares dumbfounded at the scene along with the rest of the class.

Aizawa steps forward and readies his scarf. "Thirteen! Protect the students."

Kirishima shades his eyes with a hand and squints to try and make out what's going on. "Whoa, what the heck's that thing? Wait, has the training started already? I thought we were rescuing people."

"Stay back!" Aizawa shouts, with a harsher than usual edge to his tone, as some of the students start to shift forward to get a better view. The class flinches back and he puts on those slatted goggles normally hidden by his scarf. "Don't move. This is real... those are villains."

Everyone gasps and some take up defensive positions, while others look half ready to flee.

The dark mist of the portal retreats after dumping its cargo and forms into a rough person shape with gleaming yellow eyes and dressed in a fine suit with a piece of metal armor around where the neck would be. Those shining eyes narrow as they examine the gathered group on the platform high above. "The only real heroes I see are Thirteen... and Eraser Head, is it...? Perplexing. According to the staff schedule I received, All Might is supposed to be here as well..."

"Of course. That whole incident - you scumbags used the press as a cover and sneaked onto campus." Aizawa tenses as he puts it together.

The man covered in severed hands scratches at his neck as he too scans over the group. "Where is he...? We've come all this way. And I went to the trouble of bringing so many playmates who're eager to meet him. All Might... the great Symbol of Peace... I can't believe he's not here." He paces in an irritated manner, but stops as an idea strikes him and he drops his arms, cocking his head to one side and glaring hungrily at the platform. A twisted grin is barely visible behind the severed hand on his face. "...I wonder if some dead kids will bring him out to play?"

A chill passes through the group as the malice of that glare makes it clear this isn't some elaborate trick of a training exercise.

"What? Real villains?! No way! How could so many of them get into a UA facility this secure?" Kirishima looks worried, but he readies to fight anyway.

Yaoyorozu turns to the teachers, sweating but still maintaining calm in her tone. "Yeah, Thirteen sensei. Aren't there intruder sensors? Why aren't the alarms going off?"

"Yes, of course there are." Thirteen responds, looking up to the domed ceiling. "Good question. I'm not sure."

Icy cool as ever, Todoroki looks down over the railing at the plaza, then back at the entry doors. "Is the entire campus under attack? Or is this their only target? Either way, if the alarm sensors aren't working, then one of these villains must have a quirk that's masking their presence here."

Ryumi flicks her tail. "Maybe that discharge that happened right before they warped in?"

"This place is far from the campus. They carefully chose this isolated facility as an entry point at a time when a class was being taught. They're fools for trespassing here, but they've thought this out." Todoroki pauses. "So maybe they're not as dumb as they seem. Whatever their plan, they must have a concrete objective in mind. But what is it?"

"Thirteen, begin evacuation! Get them outta here, and alert the main campus!" Aizawa waves the others back, then stops. "Actually, if they've got the ability to block our sensors, then one of these villains might be jamming our regular communications, too. There's a good chance one of their electric types is causing the interference." He glances back at the kids. "Kaminari. Try using your quirk to signal for help."

Kaminari grimaces. "Uh, got it, sensei."

With that settled, Aizawa puts himself in front of the students and gets ready to leap into the fray below.

"But sensei, what're you gonna do? You can't fight them all alone! There's too many of ‘em." Midoriya takes a half step forward, though he's shaking with fear. "Against that many... even if you can nullify their quirks, your fighting style's not suited for this. Your power works best in stealth and one-on-one fights. That's not gonna help in head on battle against a big group..."

Aizawa turns back to look at Midoriya. Even with the goggles hiding his eyes, the intensity and seriousness in it remains clear. "No good pro is a one-trick pony. I'll leave it to you, Thirteen! Take care of them." And with that, he hops down and races to the plaza to engage the villain threat.

Thirteen nods, but there's a worrying hesitation to it.

Several villains with ranged abilities line up to fire, thinking they can pick off the pro as he runs in, but before they can begin they find their quirks useless under Eraser's gaze. Once the gap has been closed, Aizawa expertly leashes three of the villains with separate strands of his weapon and smashes them into each other above his head.

As that first wave collapses into a crumpled heap at the base of the stairway, a big guy with four arms comes up from behind. Though mutations aren't affected by Eraser's power, he easily dodges and lands a solid punch on the villain's face, sending him flying. And then, before he sails too far, grabs the man's ankle with the scarf and reels him back in.

Aizawa dodges a punch from another guy, and slams the four-armed villain into the fresh attacker, knocking out both. After every move, new villains continue to surround him, but he's still making quick work of them.

Midoriya hangs behind the others, busy watching the fight instead of fleeing. "Wow...! He's holding them off even when outnumbered. I guess I shouldn't have underestimated him."

Iida returns to him, chopping at the air with one hand. "This is no time to be analyzing! We have to go. Hurry up and evacuate!"

Midoriya reluctantly nods and both boys run to catch up with the others, but just as they do, a dark purple cloud blocks their path to the exit. Thirteen puts themselves between the villain and students, though they're clearly uncomfortable with the idea of fighting.

The cloud resolves into a humanoid again, speaking in a cool but sinister voice. "I won't allow that. There is no escape for you."

Shock at the villain's quick appearance runs through the crowd. Even Aizawa is momentarily distracted by his failure to keep them from reaching the kids.

"Greetings. It's a pleasure to meet you. We are the League of Villains. Forgive our audacity, I know it's impolite, but we decided to invite ourselves into this haven of justice to say hello..." Though the mist man has no features aside from those eerie yellow eyes, he gives off the impression of a malicious smile as he speaks. "And besides, isn't this a fitting place for All Might, the Symbol of Peace, to take his last breath?"

His indistinct form wavers and shifts with an unfelt breeze. "We were under the impression that he was supposed to be here today, and yet I see no sign of him. There must've been some sort of change in plans we could not have foreseen. Perhaps his schedule was revised? Ah, well, in the end I suppose it doesn't matter."

Thirteen pops open the covering of their suit on one finger, ready to attack.

"My role remains unchanged." The cloud starts to expand again, trying to envelop the class.

While this posturing and monologuing is going on, a little glance shoots between Bakugo, Kirishima, and Ryumi. As soon as the mist villain starts to move, the three leap into action - Bakugo in the center, firing an explosive blast directly at the villain's head, while Kirishima and Ryumi each dash in from a side to go after where they think his shoulders should be.

"Not if we end you first." Bakugo yells as he fires his attack.

The dark fog of the villain's form twists and shifts, and he pulls back away from the three - minor damage at best.

Kirishima lands into a bladed stance, ready to continue the fight. "Did ya think we were just gonna stand around and let you tear this place to shreds?"

"Don't celebrate so soon. I don't think we hit him that hard." Ryumi cautions, carving gashes into the pavement with her claws when she lands.

Midoriya coughs through the smoke from Bakugo's attack, gasping as it clears to reveal the villain looking no worse for wear.

The yellow eyes of the villain narrow threateningly. "That was close. Yes... students though you may be, you are the best of the best. You live up to your school's reputation. But you should be more careful, children. Otherwise, someone might get hurt."

"No, get back, all of you! Get out of the way right now!" Thirteen reaches forward and starts to move to get the other three behind them again.

Ryumi glances between Thirteen and the villain, and pushes hard with her wings to throw herself backward just a second before the black cloud engulfs them all.

"Begone!" The booming voice of the villain seems to come from everywhere around them at once. "Writhe in torment. Until you breathe your last."

Kirishima shields his face with his arms. "Crap. What is this?!"

"What's going on?" Iida does the same, even farther back from the group the swirling of the cloudy mass is kicking up a powerful gust.

"Everyone!" Thirteen cries, but it's already too late.

The dark fog is impenetrable, even to Ryumi's enhanced vision. She tries to beat it back with her wings but it resists, clinging to her in an unnatural fashion until the world goes dark, and then silent.

Damn, he must be able to control it as if it was part of his body... or maybe it is his body...

But it doesn't stay silent long. A crack of thunder echoes out followed by the incessant roar of torrential rain pouring down. She's in a totally different place – another basic mock cityscape like the one from training the other day, though the style of structures is slightly different, and this also one features a few scattered cars.

She's not alone, though. Tokoyami and the quiet rocky boy are here, and so are about a dozen villains.

"Well... looks like we're in a bit of trouble." Ryumi glances to the two boys and then keeps a steady watch on the villains surrounding them.

"Indeed." Tokoyami calmly states as he shifts his footing to better resist the harsh winds battering them.

Ryumi grins and lowers herself, half crouching to reduce her profile. "Trouble is kind of an old friend of mine at this point, though."

Tokoyami chuckles, while the other boy nervously shrinks and shuffles closer to the two fighters.

"You dumb brats..." One of the villains draws a knife and smugly comments. "Shame Shigaraki only sent us three of you to play with."

"Actually... judging from the weather, I think we'll be just fine. Though it'd be a lot easier if we had Kaminari." Ryumi scans the environment, catching a glimpse of the aftereffects of a lightning strike snaking energy through distant power lines. "Tokoyami. Help me make an opening?"

The bird boy nods as another mighty rumble of thunder shakes the ground. "Of course. Come, Dark Shadow!"

The demonic bird-like creature erupts from under Tokoyami's cloak and crows excitedly at the chance to cause chaos. "Right!"

Tokoyami glances back at the other boy. "Koda, stay close."

Ryumi internally sighs with relief. Koda. Remember that. Koda. Talks to animals. Right.

Koda nods and shuffles a bit closer as the villains continue to press in. Dark Shadow giggles and leaps out to claw at a pair of villains in front. Two more take this as an opening and rush for Tokoyami. He plants a firm kick right in the center of one's chest, while Ryumi slides in to trip the other with a quick leg sweep.

"Just hold them off for a moment, I've got a plan!" She bounces off the fallen villain, knocking the breath from his lungs as she takes to the air. The wind and rain make for rough conditions, even with her flight goggles on it's all a bit blurry.

A flash strikes another nearby power line, a beacon in the raging storm. She struggles against the winds and lands nearby, grabbing the line in her claws.

"You boys wanna see something neat?" She yells over the roar of the weather just before the thunder booms and rattles the area again, drawing the momentary attention of several of the villains and allowing Tokoyami and Dark Shadow to get a few more good hits in.

And then, she puts the cable in her mouth and bites down. Fangs pierce the thick insulation and power surges into her body, searing in every muscle. She can just make out the looks of confusion and concern from the others below through the haze of electricity.

Ryumi laughs as she drops the cable, sparks playing across the back of her wings. The rain picks up again, and the view of her from below is obscured by sheets of water. The only thing they can make out is the glow of serpentine coils of electricity writhing around where she had been standing.

"Idiot girl. What did she think that would accomplish?" Another villain dismissively comments as he clashes with Dark Shadow's talons.

"Ryumi..." There's an edge of worry in Tokoyami's voice, but he trusts that she wouldn't have done that without good reason.

A crack of thunder precedes a heavy thud, a splash sending small waves through the flooding streets, and the sound of concrete shattering. Behind the villains' lines, the silhouette of a massive beast picks itself up with a low reptilian growl, deep blue eyes flashing and glowing with power. As the villains turn to see what made the sound, the beast flares out its wings to their full span and unleashes a roar to rival the storm itself.

The remaining villains are struck, momentarily frozen to the spot in terror. Ryumi, in her true form, flashes her fangs and pounces on two of them. She bats one into the wall of a building the same way a cat would strike at a toy mouse, and sends the other straight down into the pavement, crackling the sidewalk around him.

Of her allies, Dark Shadow is the first to recover and resume taking out the enemies. He cackles at the sight of the dragon as he puts down a villain of his own. "Hey Fumi, I like this one!"

Tokoyami shakes himself free of the effect soon after, though Koda is still clinging desperately to his back. "It's fine, Koda. She's on our side."

Koda still looks worried, and only barely loosens his grip on the other boy.

A cluster of five villains charges for the dragon, though one slips on the slick street and eats concrete. He might be the luckiest of them, because the others find a huge tail swatting them down the street, through an empty storefront window, and into the building's interior wall.

Hampered as he is by Koda, Tokoyami still gets a solid kick in on another villain, and before he can even land, Dark Shadow flies in and bashes him into a brick wall in the nearby alley.

The bright blue eyes of the dragon scan the area, and she turns in a slow circle, looking for any others. "Had enough?" It's unmistakably Ryumi's voice, though slightly deeper than usual and given an almost echoey, growling undertone.

When no response or movement is forthcoming, she relaxes, folding her wings in. There's a pause in the rain followed by a sudden splash as a large gap in droplets is left when the beast returns to her normal body.

Ryumi sits on the ground for a moment, rubbing the back of her neck as she catches her breath. "That's always so tiring..." She looks up at Tokoyami and... Right, Koda, his name's Koda, as they approach.

Koda is still hiding behind Tokoyami.

"I think that worked out pretty well. Good work." She smiles at them and stands, a bit unsteadily at first.

"You have an impressive power." Tokoyami remarks. Dark Shadow grins wildly and flashes a thumbs up, but he's quickly pushed away by his master. "Ignore him."

Ryumi does, and looks over the fallen villains. "So... I don't think these guys are going to cause much trouble anytime soon. Shall we go check on the others? If we can find them."

Tokoyami nods. "Let's go." Koda follows along, always keeping Tokoyami between himself and Ryumi.

Chapter Text

The scene outside the smaller dome that comprised the windstorm zone is total chaos. There's obviously still a large, dangerous fight happening in the central plaza, but it's hard to say much about the other zones from ground level.

"I'll go up and have a look, you two stay hidden for now." Ryumi glances back at the two boys, who nod and shuffle back into some bushes. If there's a safe place, she can fly them there easily and start regrouping everyone. But she needs to know what's happening, where to go, before making that decision.

The conditions here make for much easier flying than the storm, and better visibility too. She only needs to ascend about half the dome's height to see enough to assess most of the areas.

At the flood zone next door to the windstorm area, she sees Midoriya and Tsu just making it to the edge of the lake. Midoriya is cradling his hand close to his chest again, so he must have used his power and broken some fingers or his whole hand – hard to say for sure from up here. Scattered in the water behind them are a dozen or so dazed and/or unconscious villains drifting about near where the boat used to be.

Next around the big circle is another closed smaller dome like the one her and the two boys just left, but this one has flames painted on the exterior. Conflagration zone. Well, she'd rather not breathe a bunch of smoke just yet. If I could meet up with Yaoyorozu and get her to make an air filter, it'd be a lot safer... She tables that location for the moment.

After that is the mountain zone, where she spies Yaoyorozu, Jiro, and Kaminari, seemingly making quick work of their villains as well. Yaoyorozu and Jiro are just crawling out from under a large silvery sheet of cloth, and Kaminari is stumbling around a field of collapsed enemies. She notes their position and continues around.

The landslide zone stands out as being covered in a huge patch of ice that definitely wasn't there when the students first arrived. Must be Todoroki... She can just make out him talking to a couple of the incapacitated villain popsicles dotting the hillside. Certainly looks like he's got it under control.

The collapse zone is another one where so much of it is interior spaces that it's hard for her to survey properly. There are a few conspicuous smoke clouds rising from one structure though, again, something that wasn't present when the class entered the space earlier. Could that be Bakugo?

In the center, Ryumi grimaces, seeing Aizawa is in rough shape. The villains are overpowering him now, but there's too many for her to make a dent in, especially after she’s mostly exhausted her energy stores - much as she'd like to swoop in and help.

Lastly, the entry platform. She sights a handful of her classmates - Uraraka, Shoji, Sato, Sero, and Ashido - plus an incapacitated Thirteen lying on the floor. The misty villain seems to have left them to take part in the central fight. That's the safe spot, then...

Ryumi dives back to where she left Tokoyami and Koda, and the bird boy calmly steps out of hiding. "Well? What did you find?"

She closes her eyes and takes a breath to respond. "Most of our classmates are doing fine. The ones I could see, anyway. I think most of this force is low-rent thugs with no real training..." She reopens her eyes and gets a serious look. "That warping guy, and a couple of the guys at the center, though... they're for real. Thirteen is hurt, though the villains seem to have abandoned that area, and Aizawa..." She doesn't finish, but the worry on her face is all that needs said.

Tokoyami nods, doing a fair job of staying calm. Koda shrinks back again.

"I can take the two of you up to the platform with the others, for now. I should see about patching up Thirteen at least." Ryumi taps the trauma kit she has clipped to her belt.

"...And then?" Tokoyami asks, watching her carefully.

She sighs, shifting uncomfortably. "I want to help sensei, but... I think it's beyond what I can do. We'll have to trust he can hang in there for now, and just see if we can get the rest of the class back together."

"Not even with that power you used before?" Tokoyami nods back toward the windstorm zone.

Ryumi shakes her head. "I can only handle the kind of power output that form requires for a few minutes at a time. If I could get Kaminari to help, maybe I could swing a few more minutes today... but if that isn't enough to turn the tide, I'm toast when it runs out. Recharging from empty or near empty multiple times in a day is rough on my batteries."

"I see." Tokoyami closes his eyes, contemplating.

She pauses, casting a curious look at her bird-like companion. “What about you? You seemed like a decent fighter back there.”

“Not in these conditions.” He reopens his eyes and tips his head up to stare at the sun-soaked dome above. “Dark Shadow is weaker in bright light – though easier to control. We’d be lucky to do half as well as we did inside.” From under his cloak, there’s a small whimpering voice whining something about sunlight.

“Right, we’ll head for safety and watch for an opening. Maybe the dangerous ones will leave Aizawa like they did Thirteen. If it was just the little guys, I think the two of us could take them.” Ryumi steps over to the others and motions for them to come closer.

Tokoyami looks up to the platform above them. "Let's go then. Time is precious."

"Just hold on, okay?" She grabs Tokoyami and (with a bit of coaxing) Koda, and takes to the air again, landing amid the group on the platform.

"Ryumi! And Tokoyami and Koda!" Uraraka calls out to them as they arrive and Ryumi releases the two boys. "You guys are okay!"

Ryumi takes a quick scan over the others present - fortunately, nobody looks hurt aside from their teacher. She rushes past Uraraka to Thirteen, kneeling next to the suited hero and laying the trauma kit out on the floor nearby. Their costume has been ripped open, exposing bloody lacerations across the length of their back and upper arms. "Uraraka - what happened up here?" She doesn't look up as she asks, focused entirely on finding the supplies she needs out of the kit.

"Ah... Thirteen sensei tried to suck up that warping villain, but..." Uraraka sits next to the fallen hero as well, wiping tears from her eyes. "...he opened a portal and redirected Black Hole back onto Thirteen..."

Ryumi nods, pressing her lips together in a frown. That matches what she's seeing. She quickly pours some disinfectant over her hands and opens up a pack of gauze, and another, and another, and starts covering as much of the bleeding as she can. Luckily it looks like they were able to cut off their quirk before the damage got too deep. This is mostly surface level, though a significant amount of it.

Thirteen groans lightly as the work is done. Still conscious then – that’s good. Should be fine if we can slow the bleeding…

"Can I help...?" Uraraka asks, worried.

Ryumi glances up at her. "Yeah. Clean your hands first, then hold pressure on the gauze, press down as hard as you can. That will help the clotting process start faster." When she reaches for more supplies, she looks at the others in the group. "You guys too, if you're not afraid of a little blood."

Sato and Sero both nod and join in as well, taking different sections of the wounds.

As the process wraps up and the cuts are all covered to some degree, she leaves a few more unopened packages of gauze for them. "Just keep holding pressure until help arrives, okay? If it soaks through too much, get some more gauze and then continue just like this."

The three of them nod. Tokoyami, Koda, and Ashido shuffle closer so they can trade out with the others as necessary.

"I'm going back to see if I can help anyone else." Ryumi closes up the kit and reclips it to her side in case someone else needs attention before they can be moved.

"Ryumi... Iida went to get help from campus a few minutes ago." Uraraka looks toward the partly opened main doors of the dome. "Hopefully... hopefully they'll be here soon."

The dragon girl casts a fearful glance at the plaza before taking off. "...Yeah, hopefully."

Tokoyami says nothing, but his gaze is similarly downcast.

Back at her surveying height, Ryumi looks out over the great mess once again. Things have started to turn in those few minutes she spent at the entrance. Bakugo and Kirishima are visible walking along the rubble of the collapse zone, heading for the edge of that area, making a total of sixteen out of nineteen classmates accounted for - though only eight are in a safe-ish location so far. Todoroki is similarly headed out of the landslide zone. The group at the mountain zone, though... most of their villains remain down, but one lingers and appears to have Kaminari as a hostage. Before she can fly over to assist them, she spies something even worse happening in the plaza below.

Midoriya and Tsu are engaged with the hand villain, and it's looking bad for both of them. Aizawa is being held down in a pool of his own blood a short distance from them by a monstrous black creature with a beak mouth and an exposed brain.

Damnit Midoriya... She changes course to dive toward them, but just then, the boy throws a wild punch at the hand villain. The force of it sends shockwaves through the air and creates an insane gust, far stronger and much more unpredictable than what she'd dealt with in the windstorm, blowing Ryumi back from the central battle before she's able to right herself again.

The strange, hulking monster has stepped in to block Midoriya's attack, and now the four of them - Tsu, hand villain, brain monster, and Midoriya - are all in a desperate melee.

Far away atop the entry platform, the big doors smash open, and a furious All Might steps onto the scene. All around, the remaining villains look up and leave their former targets alone to focus on their true goal.

Before any of them can blink, the last of the low-level thugs in the center are knocked out by the Symbol of Peace, and he's snatched up a bleeding Aizawa and pulled him back from the fray. In a flash he's grabbed Midoriya and Tsu as well, leaving them to take Aizawa to safety while he steps forward to deal with the strongest villains. The brain villain moves out to meet All Might, towering over him and matching the pro hero blow for blow when the punches start flying.

All Might seems to get the upper hand for a moment - suplexing the villain and kicking up a vast dust cloud from the force. But when the dust settles, it's All Might who's in trouble. The warp villain has opened two gates in the floor, allowing the brain villain to pass right through. Now, his claws tear into All Might's side as they struggle over the pair of gates.

Tsu and Midoriya are only a short distance away, not even halfway to the stairs when Midoriya stops, seeming conflicted. He lets go of Aizawa and dashes back toward the fight.

That idiot! But something catches Ryumi's eye before she can dive down to stop him, and a little smile creeps onto her face. ...Maybe it'll be alright.

She lands next to Tsu as Midoriya takes off. "Tsu! Let me take Aizawa sensei. I can get him stabilized until the rest of the teachers get here. Can you head to the mountain zone and help out Yaoyorozu, Kaminari, and Jiro?"

Tsu glances worriedly at the green haired boy's back as he charges into danger. "Sure, but what about Midoriya? Ribbit."

Ryumi grins as she carefully takes Aizawa from her classmate. "No need to worry - Bakugo, Kirishima, and Todoroki are already heading this way. And after sensei is patched up, I'll come back and join the fray too. Assuming it's not already over."

She thinks on this for a moment before agreeing. "Alright. The mountain zone?"

"Yeah, it looked like they took out a bunch of villains, but now they're pinned down." Ryumi glances in that direction, hoping the others are holding out. "Oh, and we still don't know where Ojiro, Aoyama, or Hagakure are - if you see them around, send them up to the entrance?"

Tsu nods and starts hopping away, careful to keep her distance from the central fight. "Of course. Ribbit."

"Sorry about the rough treatment, sensei..." Ryumi mumbles before taking to the air, even knowing he probably can't hear her.

As she glides back to the entrance, she risks a look back over her shoulder. The brain villain is frozen in place inside the gates; All Might is injured, but free; and Bakugo has pinned the mist villain down by the neck.

She smiles to herself, only a little disappointed that she won't get to join the fun this time. Get 'em, guys.

When she lands at the platform, the others have rotated out who's helping Thirteen to give their arms a rest. Ashido, Tokoyami, and Koda are currently taking care of things, and a couple (but not all) of the gauze packets Ryumi left for them have been opened.

That's good. The bleed must be stopping.

Uraraka, Shoji, and Sato rush over to meet her as she carefully lays their teacher out on the ground. Uraraka covers her mouth and starts trembling all over again. "Sensei..."

"I know." Ryumi coolly answers as she reopens her supplies and sets to work. "It looks bad, but... I think he'll make it."

She could tell from carrying him that while his heart rate and breathing were predictably a bit elevated and erratic, it wasn't in the danger zone yet. As long as he doesn’t lose too much more blood and start going into shock…

Of course, with the state of the bleeding around his face and head... Even knowing that head wounds tend to look worse than they really are, she can't shake the fear of brain damage. But she's not about to admit that reality to the others. There's no need to scare them more.

Uraraka steels herself and comes over, and the others who aren't already busy with Thirteen join her. "How can we help?"

Ryumi nods and hands out more gauze and bandages. "Be careful around his head. Just cover the bloody spots, don’t press too hard in case there’s a fracture. And Shoji, could you lift him up a little? Just get his shoulders off the ground. Keeping his head above his heart will slow the bleeding in that area."

Shoji carefully positions himself and raises up their teacher's head, while Uraraka and Sero gently pat bandages into place.

Since they have the head wound handled (as much as is possible, anyway), Ryumi begins working the sickly decayed area around Aizawa's elbow. The skin is completely destroyed here, all the way down to the muscle tissue. She pours a bit of disinfectant over the area before wrapping it. With any luck, that will be enough to stop a deep infection from taking root.

"Don't worry... All Might will take care of this..." Thirteen softly mumbles between rough breaths. "When the other teachers get here, it'll get dangerous, so find someplace to hide."

"Uh, okay..." Ashido whimpers.

"Thirteen..." Ryumi looks away from her work to the battle, just in time to see things turn again. The brain creature breaks itself apart on purpose, not caring one bit about losing an arm, a leg, and half its torso to Todoroki's ice.

She can't see his face from this distance, but Todoroki takes a step back. The monster flails around for a moment before regrowing the missing parts of its body and once again towering over the others.

Focus! If you just finish up here you can go help them...

A crash distracts her again and she and the others look up to see their classmates safely away from harm, but all the villains are once again freed up and All Might has taken another rough hit from the monster. He slowly emerges from the rubble of one of the concrete walls around the fountain plaza.

Ryumi presses a fang into her lip, drawing blood, but she barely notices. She takes another look at their teachers, there's not much more she can do for them with what she has on-hand. The rest will have to wait for the real doctors.

She stands up and flares her wings, leaping the railing without a word to the others.

"Ryumi!" Uraraka calls out, but Shoji stops her with one of his extra arms.

"She's counting on us to hold things together here." The mouth at the tip on his arm assures the girl. She looks upset, but returns to her assignment.

As Ryumi speeds toward the battle, she sees the next round winding up to begin. The brain villain steps silently up to All Might, while the hand covered guy moves in to go after her classmates.

All Might and the brain monster charge at each other, stopping the others in their tracks. As the first punch lands, a shockwave blows the other combatants apart, throwing them far from the point of impact. The two at ground zero seem totally unfazed and almost immediately begin a fresh flurry of strikes, trading blows faster than anyone on the ground or in the air can see.

Each strike kicks up a fresh gust and Ryumi struggles to move forward. Eventually she's forced to the ground where she can at least use her claws to hold traction. She crawls her way toward the others slowly, like she’s climbing a mountain.

"He's going to fight that brain guy head on?" Midoriya crouches down, barely able to hold his position as the force on display in front of them keeps pushing back.

"Whoa, they're so fast!" Kirishima yells, before the next gust overtakes him and bowls him over. He slides to a stop a few meters behind the rest of them.

Even the other villains can't seem to close in on the action with the constant barrage going on. All Might is slowly pushing the monster back, until a gap appears and he absolutely launches the creature into a lightly wooded area at the zone boundaries. The hero leaps after him, and they collide in midair. All Might is smashed into the pavement, but he quickly jumps up and returns the favor to his enemy, throwing him from a massive height and shattering most of the central plaza's concrete flooring.

With the shockwaves finally dying down, Ryumi catches up to the other four students watching in awe at the battle unfolding before them.

All Might lands next to the creature before it's even finished bouncing off the ground. "Now for a lesson. You may have heard these words before, but I'll teach you what they really mean. Go beyond..." He winds up for another punch, striking the brain villain directly in the chest. "Plus Ultraaa!"

The monster goes sailing through the air, not even slowing as it smashes explosively through the outer dome, shaking the entire building.

Kirishima stumbles back to his feet. "That was like the finishing move in a video game. He just smashed right through - beat the shock absorption right out of him. I've never seen that kind of brute strength."

"Imagine having power like that." Bakugo adds, staring up at the gap in the ceiling. "He must've been punching that monster so fast he couldn't regenerate."

"Guess that's why he's number one..." Ryumi stares up at the hole as well.

"He did it..." Midoriya steps forward, to approach his hero.

All Might, battered as he is, poses dramatically as ever. "I really have gotten weaker. Back in my heyday, five of those punches would've been enough to knock that guy out. But that was more than three hundred mighty blows." He turns to the remaining two villains. "You've been bested. Surrender. We all want to get this over with quickly."

The hand villain is shaking. "He cheated... How dare you do that to my Nomu?" He starts scratching at his neck again. "Oh, come on. What's going on here? He's not weaker at all - he's just as strong as he's always been. Damnit... don't tell me I was lied to."

"What's wrong? Not coming to get me? What happened to 'clearing the game'?" All Might taunts the villains, still standing resolute in the exact same spot. "Well, come and get me, if you dare. If you think you can take me, then bring it on!"

The hand villain stumbles and doesn't respond right away. He must be trying to make a plan.

Bakugo actually looks almost... worried? "Man, this is... intense."

"As I expected." Todoroki eyes the standoff between All Might and the villains. "There's no reason for us to fight now. He'll handle this."

Midoriya takes another small step forward, but Kirishima reaches out and grabs him by the shoulder. "Come on, Midoriya! We oughta just hang back for now. Actually, we should regroup with the other guys. The last thing we should do is rush in now - they might take us hostage, and we'd just be in the way."

"Yeah, I'm with Kirishima. We should either head back, or go out to the other zones and find our missing classmates." Ryumi spreads her wings and gestures back at the entrance. "All Might can handle these guys."

"Well? What's keeping you?" All Might carries on with antagonizing them. "What, are you scared?"

The villains continue to wait around, and the apparent leader starts scratching at his neck again, with both hands this time. "If only Nomu was still here, he'd rush you right now. He was taking those hits so well... he'd pound you into the ground without giving it a second thought!"

The misty villain leans in. "Tomura Shigaraki. Calm yourself. Please, do not fret. Look at him. He has definitely weakened, and it's apparent that Nomu did manage to deal some real damage."

The hand villain - Shigaraki - stops, following the guidance of his companion.

"He's on his own. The children appear to be frozen in fear. And look, our underlings are recovering. We likely still have a few minutes before their reinforcements arrive." The mist shifts closer to Shigaraki. "If you and I work together, we can do this. We haven't missed our chance to kill All Might.”

"Yeah... yeah. Right, right. Right..." Shigaraki slowly pulls his hands away from his neck. "You're right. This is it. We can do this. We have no choice; we have to do it now. I mean... the final boss is standing right here..."

Some of the villains knocked down the earliest by Aizawa stand and start to close back in on the five students watching the confrontation.

"I think All Might can hold his own against those two main guys." Kirishima turns to face the new challengers and activates his quirk, taking a fighting stance. "Let's make sure these dudes don't hurt anybody else."

"Right." Ryumi brings out her scales and steps up next to Kirishima to be their front line.

"Midoriya." Todoroki turns back, looking over his shoulder at the boy. "Will you be joining us?"

While Midoriya is still staring back at All Might, Shigaraki charges in. "Consider this revenge for what you did to Nomu!"

The warp villain surges forward too, and as they close in on the hero, the students feel a sudden gust as one disappears from their group. Faster than any of them could see, Midoriya is flying in to intercept the two villains.

"Whoa, Midoriya!" Kirishima yells, but the other boy doesn't seem to hear, or care.

"That idiot..." Ryumi growls, baring her fangs. "He's just going to get himself killed!"

"Don't you touch All Might! You stupid villain!" Midoriya cries, power flickering in his right arm as he readies a punch.

But the mist villain is too fast. Two sets of gates open, one protecting his body from the attack, and the other allowing Shigaraki to reach through to the kid and use his decaying touch on him. "I won't fall for that again!"

Shigaraki cackles as his fingers close in on the boy's face. Ryumi remembers the horrible damage to Aizawa's elbow - damage that must have come from this villain...

The laughter abruptly cuts off into a scream as blood spurts from a fresh hole in Shigaraki's hand. The sharp bang of a gunshot draws eyes to the entrance, where Snipe and a dozen other teachers stand at the ready.

"Sorry, everyone. I know we're a little late." Principal Nezu announces from his seat on Vlad King's shoulder as the teachers assemble on the high platform. "But I brought everyone over here as soon as I could."

Uraraka turns to look at the arriving group and puts on a relieved smile. "It's Iida...!"

Iida rests his hands on his knees, sweating, and breathing hard. A moment later, when he finally catches his breath, he stands proudly. "President of class 1-A, Tenya Iida, reporting for duty - and I've brought reinforcements!"

The group behind him has nearly every pro hero in the school staff - Vlad King, Cementoss, Ectoplasm, Snipe, Hound Dog, Midnight, Power Loader, and Present Mic, as well as Principal Nezu - all standing ready to get this mess back under control and rescue the rest of the class.

Below in the plaza, several of the recovered thugs previously knocked down by Aizawa drop their attack on the students to charge the newly arrived heroes. Some of the villains from the flood zone are waking up now too, and are also making their way to the next fight.

"Heh." Present Mic grins as he steps forward, taking a deep breath to prepare his quirk. "Yeeeeeaaaaahhhh!" He yells into his directional amplifier, blowing away most of the villains in the central area with the powerful soundwaves of his voice.

Ectoplasm steps up next and spits out a dozen copies of himself which charge down the stairs to mop up the rest of the attacking villains.

"Our priority is to protect all of our students!" Nezu directs from his vantage point on Vlad's shoulder.

"Yes, sir!" The teachers answer as they move out to secure the facility, splitting up to cover more ground.

"Aw man, they're here... it's game over. For real. Guess we gotta try again another time, Kurogiri..." Shigaraki gets his thoughts cut short again as Snipe lands shots in both of the villain's knees. Kurogiri, the mist villain, moves to block several more shots from the hero as his leader collapses.

Snipe pulls his gun back as his target has been hidden from view. "Need someone who can wrangle these ne'er-do-wells from a distance."

"I'm on it..." Thirteen struggles against their would-be caretakers and crawls to the edge of the platform, activating their quirk.

"Let's go!" Kurogiri grunts as he starts getting pulled away from Shigaraki. "This is..."

On the platform, Thirteen is now standing with help from Sato and Sero. "It's me...! Black Hole!"

Despite being dragged toward the platform, Kurogiri is still able to form a gate for their escape. Shigaraki glares intensely at All Might as he disappears limping into the portal. "I may have failed to kill you this time, Symbol of Peace... but your days are numbered. The next time we meet you're dead, All Might. I am going to kill you."

And then, as suddenly as they first appeared, the two main villains are gone, leaving only the various thugs scattered around the different zones.

"What in tarnation..." Snipe adjusts his hat as he scans the area for any more targets.

Midnight shifts, looking confused and a touch frustrated. "They just fled? And we let them get away? And after such a dramatic invasion...?"

Nezu taps Vlad's arm and Vlad helps him down to the ground. "They took us completely by surprise... but let's concern ourselves with the students' well-being for now."

Down in the central plaza, Todoroki is looking up at the heroes all moving out. "If all the pro teachers are gathered here, it must mean the rest of the school's safe." He rubs the back of his neck as he looks back to the other students. "The villains attacked this facility, but not the rest of the campus."

With the danger gone, Kirishima runs in alongside Ryumi to check on the others. "Midoriya, hey!"

Midoriya props himself up on his elbows. He’s still lying where he fell after the timely intervention from Snipe broke up his fight with the two villains. "Sorry, I can't get up..."

"What? Are you okay?" Kirishima calls back, worried.

Midoriya suddenly panics, waving his hands. "Uh, Kirishima, Arisato, wait--"

A massive wall comes up between the area where Midoriya and All Might are, and where Ryumi and Kirishima are running. The pair skid to a rough stop and look for the source.

Off to their right, Cementoss calmly stands and smiles at the two students. "For your safety, please stay back, you two. Join your classmates at the front gate. Leave the injured to us, we can take care of them."

Kirishima grins and nods, agreeing to the suggestion without a second thought. "Oh, gotcha. I'm on it." He runs off back in the other direction.

"But..." Ryumi protests, stretching her wings and tapping her medical kit.

Cementoss' eyes narrow, and he firmly answers. "Go on. We can handle it from here."

Kirishima stops and waves to her. "Come on, Ryumi."

Ryumi turns, but looks back over her shoulder suspiciously, growling and kicking lightly at the ground. "Right..."

Kirishima runs ahead of her, so he catches up to the others first. "Hey! He said for all of us to head to the entrance!"

Chapter Text

Over the next hour, Thirteen and Aizawa are taken away by ambulance for treatment and the students are gradually rounded up outside of the big dome, while the pros gather up the villains and hand them over to the police. It takes a dozen or so police buses to haul away all of the villains.

A detective in a tan coat and matching trilby hat counts the students as they file out to the grounds outside the USJ. "Sixteen... seventeen... eighteen... nineteen. Besides the one with the messed-up legs, looks like they're all unharmed." He eyes a few of them as they wander out - several of the ones who had been closest to the entrance helping tend to the teachers are lightly splattered with blood (but thankfully not their own).

"Ojiro..." One of the distinctive gloves of Hagakure's hero outfit appears and pats the tailed boy's shoulder.

Ojiro turns to look at her, struggling a bit with finding where her eyes ought to be. "Huh?"

"Looks like it was into the fire for you this time. And all alone...? I heard you were a really good fighter, but I had no idea you were so strong! Nice going!" She balls her other hand into a fist and cheers at him.

Ojiro grimaces slightly. "I thought everyone was alone... I only survived with hit-and-run tactics. So where did you end up, Hagakure?"

"The landslide zone! That Todoroki's crazy strong." She points at him, standing off by himself and watching the latest filled police bus drive off. "You wouldn't believe it. He's amazing."

Ojiro puts on a worried smile. "You don't say. Well, either way, I'm just glad you didn't get hurt."

Aoyama shuffles around between the various groups that have formed to discuss things while they all wait to be directed. "Aren't you wondering about moi?" He makes a dramatic gesture to himself and points the question first at Tokoyami, Kaminari, Kirishima, and Ryumi. "Where was my sparkling light...? Anyone have an idea?"

Tokoyami just ignores him. He apparently has a fair amount of practice ignoring Dark Shadow's irritating comments. "Interesting. So the people you fought were also low-level thugs. Guess they were spread out, waiting for us."

"Looking down on us cuz we're young." Kirishima punches into his hand for emphasis, a fierce look on his face. "They messed with the wrong kids though, huh?"

Ryumi nods casually, folding up her wings. "We're lucky they were just regular street thugs, nothing I haven't dealt with before."

Kaminari shoots a frightened and slightly amused look at her. "Dude, what kind of messed up neighborhood did you grow up in?"

"Did you miss me?" Aoyama drifts to the periphery of another group, gesturing dramatically again, this time at Shoji, Sero, and Sato.

Sero, too, ignores the flamboyant French boy. "So All Might put that hole in the dome after all. I figured."

"That took some hardcore power." Sato agrees, folding his arms.

Shoji nods, and one of his arms becomes tipped by a mouth. "Yeah, it was crazy."

Aoyama slides a little desperately over to Tsu and lays a hand on her shoulder. "Where do you think I was?!"

Tsu looks a bit startled by his sudden closeness. "Um, where?"

"It's a secret!" Aoyama strikes a glamor pose, shading his face with a hand.

Tsu turns away, having no time for or interest in his nonsense.

The detective walks up to the group of students, and Ryumi's eyes light up as she realizes she recognizes him. "We're gonna get you kids back to the classroom for now. You've been through a lot - this is no time to take your statements."

Ryumi steps out of the crowd and waves to him. "Hey, Tsukauchi! I wondered if they'd send you."

Tsukauchi smiles at the young dragon girl. "Arisato, it's been a while." Suddenly he leans down to her eye level with a sort of joking menace. "I thought I told you to stay out of trouble!"

Ryumi grins back and shrugs, flexing her wings. "You know how it is, boss. Trouble has a way of finding me."

Tsukauchi stands back up and chuckles. "Yes, I certainly do." He takes a more serious look, and briefly pulls her aside, away from the other kids. "I understand you patched up Thirteen and Aizawa before the other teachers arrived."

"Um, yeah. It's not a big deal or anything..." Ryumi answers softly, almost shyly.

Tsukauchi sets his hand on her shoulder and gently smiles at her. "Your father would be proud."

Ryumi casts her gaze at the ground. She's quiet for a bit, and half chokes on the words when she finally does respond. "...Thanks, boss."

When they return to the group, Tsu hops over to Tsukauchi. "Detective?"

Tsukauchi turns back to the others and nods for Tsu to continue.

"What about Aizawa sensei...? Is he doing okay?" Tsu asks hopefully, with more than a bit of concern.

Tsukauchi checks his phone for an update. "Both arms were smashed to splinters. His face is also fractured... Thankfully, he doesn't have any brain damage. But... his eye sockets have been pulverized. There's a chance he may suffer long-term loss of vision. We have no way of knowing how it'll go until he's healed up. Or so I hear..."

Tsu only looks more worried after hearing the report. "Ribbit..."

Ryumi sighs, actually glad to hear that brain damage has been ruled out.

Ashido awkwardly steps forward, wringing her hands. "Um, sir, what about Thirteen?"

"There's no need to worry there. Thirteen has terrible lacerations across their back and upper arms, but their life isn't in danger. They're gonna pull through just fine." Tsukauchi reports, reading once again from the message on his phone.

It's relieved sighs all around from the various students - Ashido and Uraraka in particular.

Tsukauchi glances at Ryumi as he continues. "Honestly, it could have been a lot worse for those two. All Might's injuries aren't life threatening either. Recovery Girl's healing will be enough for him, so he's gone off to the nurse's office."

Uraraka suddenly looks worried again. "What about Deku...?"

"Yes, what of Midoriya...?" Iida echoes, standing a bit straighter.

Tsukauchi seems confused at first. "Midori... Ah, Recovery Girl is taking care of him too. He's fine."

Uraraka, Iida, Kirishima, and several others relax. "Oh, thank goodness."

"Now, let's get you back to class." Tsukauchi turns to grab one of the other officers standing guard around the area.

"Okay." The class responds together.

Tsukauchi stops by a cop with a mutation quirk that makes him look like a cat. "Sansa! I actually have some business in the nurse's office myself. I'll leave the rest to you, 'kay?"

"Yes, sir. Understood." Sansa salutes, causing the little bell necklace he's wearing to jingle softly.

Ashido stares at Sansa as he walks over to the class. "He's a cat?"

Uraraka giggles softly to the other girl. "Aw, look at his bell!"

Ryumi rolls her eyes, commenting under her breath. "Acting like they've never seen a mutant before..."

"I'll be by to collect statements from you kids later." Tsukauchi waves as he walks off to finish up his other investigations.

Ryumi calls back over her shoulder to the detective. "Sure thing, boss. You always know where to find me."

Tsukauchi chuckles to himself. "Unfortunately..."

Meanwhile, Bakugo is staring at the USJ, seemingly lost in thought and not following the others. "Tch."

Kirishima is first to notice and runs back for him. "C'mon, man, we're goin' back to class now."

"Yeah, yeah, I heard him, ya idiot." Bakugo finally turns and starts moving.

As Sansa escorts the kids back to campus, Uraraka runs up and taps Ryumi's shoulder. "You're awfully chummy with the detective, Ryumi." She grins evilly at once again ambushing the other girl with questions.

Ryumi sighs and shakes her head. "I already explained this... Tsukauchi worked with my mom a bunch several years ago, some kind of big drug bust or something." Yeah. Or something. Like that whole case isn't a defining part of my life now. She lightly touches one of her wings, where the scales change color.

Uraraka is thankfully oblivious to the significance of any of it. "But you really seemed like you know him pretty well."

"Well, with Thirteen, I only met them like two or three times - but Tsukauchi... and Sansa, for that matter... I think I used to bump into those two once a month at least." Ryumi's gaze is a little unfocused as she explains, staring into the vague middle distance.

Uraraka tilts her head curiously. "Used to?"

Ryumi snaps back with sudden internal panic as she has to think of a plausible reason. "Oh, well, my mom works a different jurisdiction now, so..." She doesn't like making direct lies like that, but sometimes it's unavoidable. Especially with the police all around.

Uraraka hums back at her. "But didn't he say something about staying out of trouble?"

"C'mon, police are always like that." Ryumi tries to hide a little behind her wings, but Uraraka remains persistent until she finally gives in. "Okay, I maybe got into some fights in middle school. Nothing crazy."

"I knew it!" Uraraka jumps and lightly hits Ryumi's shoulder, wearing such a self-satisfied smile.

Ryumi shakes her head. But at least this was preferable to her sticking to the previous line of questioning.

Throughout what's left of the afternoon, students are periodically called away to give statements on the events of the day. Ryumi is scheduled to go in next, so she's waiting, leaning against the wall outside the office the police have been using.

After a few minutes, Uraraka pops out from the door and passes by Ryumi in the hall. "You're next, huh?"

Ryumi bounces off the wall and stuffs her hands in her pockets. "Guess so." She walks the opposite way, slipping through the office door.

Tsukauchi is waiting, sitting on one side of the plain desk. He gestures for Ryumi to sit, and takes up his pen and notebook. "Alright, please start at the beginning and give me all the details you can remember."

Ryumi takes the chair and rests her elbows on the desk. "You know that I know the drill, boss. We've been here a time or two..."

The detective sighs and clicks his pen a couple of times. "Force of habit. I've done an awful lot of these today."

She taps the desk idly. "Yeah, I know. So, let's see... it was right as Thirteen finished talking. Aizawa sensei wanted to get things started, but suddenly there was a flash, a... like an electric discharge, across the dome. And then that portal thing appeared in the central plaza..." She recites the rest of the events as she recalls them: being separated and landing in the windstorm zone with Tokoyami and Koda, fighting off the villains there, escaping to the entry and treating Thirteen, and then retrieving and treating Aizawa while sending help to the mountain zone for Yaoyorozu and the others there, and trying to get in to help with the big fight, though she didn't actually do much there.

Tsukauchi listens intently, but he doesn't take too many notes. He's probably heard lots of this a dozen times already from her classmates. He taps the pen on the desk thoughtfully as she finishes up. "It really could have been a lot worse. For your teachers, especially."

Ryumi fidgets awkwardly in her seat. "I just did what needed doing. The way dad taught me."

He sighs and sets down his notes and the pen. "I know. I wish it was that simple for more people..."

The dragon girl looks down at the surface of the desk, wringing her hands and pulling her wings close. "...Hey, boss? I know you've got your hands full right now with... all this. But... have you found any leads on... on that case?"

Tsukauchi stops, getting a sad look in eyes. "...No. Nothing new has turned up. Sorry, Arisato."

"...That's okay, I know you're trying... It's just..." Ryumi's wings lower to the ground, and she shrinks a little.

He holds to take a deep breath. "Yeah. Sorry, but you know I have to ask... you haven't told anything to your classmates, have you?"

She shakes her head, still looking down at the desk. "Of course not."

"Good. I, uh... I know it's hard, not knowing, and not being able to say anything, but... You understand, right? It helps the investigation if things stay quiet. Plus, the concerns about... stability, of things..." Tsukauchi does honestly hate having this conversation with her, and she can tell, but that doesn't make it easier.

Ryumi nods sadly, reluctantly. "I know, boss..."

He picks up the pen again and clicks it a few times. "I probably shouldn't mention this, but... there have been rumblings around the department about closing that case. Certain people think we won't find anything meaningful after almost three years."

She finally looks at him again, pleading.

"But you should know, as long as the Chief and I are involved, we won't let that happen, okay?" There's a determined look in his eyes as he continues. "They were our friends, too. Not just our coworkers. And they were good people. I swear, if the truth is out there to be found, I will find it for you. We just... have to be patient."

"...Thanks, boss." When she replies, it's a half-choked whisper.

Tsukauchi checks the clock on the wall above the door. "Well, sorry to cut this off... but I have a few more of your classmates to talk to, and a whole campus worth of security measures to inspect... at this rate I doubt I'll be home before eleven." He stops and looks back at Ryumi. "It was good to see you though. I'm glad you're doing... alright. All things considered."

Ryumi nods again, gets up, and leaves. "...Yeah, good to see you too, boss..."

On the way out she passes Yaoyorozu - she can't muster the will for a smile, but she does give a small wave to her friend as she walks by.

Chapter Text

There are no classes the following day, to give the faculty and police time to tighten and adjust the security of all areas of campus. And maybe they wanted the students to have a little break - though Ryumi actually would have preferred otherwise.

The dragon girl groans sleepily as she fumbles for the phone on her nightstand, to silence the overly cheery tune that has woken her. When she's finally got it, she rolls onto her side and idly scrolls through the notifications that came in overnight. She plucks a soft pastel blue plush gryphon from the floor near her bed as she reads, tucking it under her arm. "Sorry about that, buddy."

Most of the news is focused on the USJ break in. No surprise there, but very little is anything new to her. Details are sparse in the articles, even thinner than what her and the others had figured out during the attack. UA and the police must be suppressing some of that for investigation purposes. There's a public statement from Principal Nezu, the usual stuff you'd expect about safety being a top priority, reexamination of systems, all that. And of course, every article has the standard 'reached out to UA for additional comment, have not heard back at time of publication'.

"They gave a statement, obviously they don't want to elaborate further... Especially since the media was kind of involved. Even if unwittingly." She pets the head of the plush gryphon as she scrolls through the last headlines and stretches her legs under the soft blankets.

She sighs as she lowers her phone, staring into the gryphon's glossy black eyes and sinking down to rest her chin on the pillows. "What the heck am I supposed to do all day, huh?"

The plushie obviously has no answers for her.

After another couple minutes spent summoning the heroic will needed to get out of bed, she delicately places the little gryphon next to her pillows, alongside the other plushies. The pile consists largely of mythical creatures and various dinosaurs, with one very cute crocodile mixed in. Of course, there are a handful of different dragons. She takes another quick look around the floor to see if any more of them escaped during the night. Once satisfied that they're all where they should be, she throws off the covers and sits up.

Her room is windowless, and thus dark, but with her eyes she doesn't need the help. It's a small space, disorderly in a way that would offend Iida's sensibilities, but not messy. The furnishings are limited to the bed, nightstand, and a simple desk with a chair. Her school bag lies dumped unceremoniously on the floor - it should be propped against the leg of the desk, but she must have missed the mark when she got back, as it's tipped over flat on the carpet. A few notebooks and a math textbook lay atop the desk, some unfinished homework she'll have to get back to later. Above the desk is a poster of the pro hero Hawks, and over the bed hangs another showing the main cast of Devil May Cry V.

She finds her slippers by the end of the bed and stands, stretching out her arms and wings with a yawn. As she starts to walk out, she kicks something small - a little plastic star. Looking up toward her ceiling, she scans over the collection of faintly glowing stars to find where this one fell from.

Ah. She notes the spot, near the center of the room, collecting the star and laying it on the desk. She'll fix it after breakfast.

The bed is left unmade, a tangled mess of blankets and pillows, as she retrieves her phone again and stuffs it into the pocket of her pajamas. Her eyes linger on a pill bottle on the nightstand for a moment. Last night wasn't too bad. Today won't be either, if she can find a reason to get out of the apartment for a while. She decides to hold off, for now.

Ryumi shuffles out to the living room first. The legs of her pajama pants are a few centimeters too long for her, and they drag on the carpet as she walks. It's a dark colored two-piece set, patterned with tiny white dots that suggest the night sky.

The soft sunny glow of the early morning is quietly leaking in through the glass balcony doors. She walks the aisle of bare carpet between the battered coffee table in front of the couch and the TV, flanked by shelves of manga - some volumes in English, some Japanese. She lands at the little garden by the windows, checking the humidifier and lamps. Everything seems fine, though the water level is a bit low.

She gets up and wanders back to the kitchen. Pulling a clean glass from the cabinet, she fills it in the sink and sets it aside. Then, she fetches the tea kettle from the stove and fills it as well, returning it to the burner and starting it up.

With that done, she heads back to the garden with the glass and carefully tops off the water level in the humidifier. Resting on her knees, she takes a moment to admire the delicate blooms.

They're all bleeding hearts. Lamprocapnos spectabilis, to use their fancy scientific name, in a variety of cultivars. Long stems with a series of flowers shaped like little hearts hanging off them - each seeming to drip from its base. There are the standard kind, pink with a white droplet; alba, which are pure white; goldheart, which sport yellowed leaves but otherwise look just like the standard kind; and Ryumi's favorites - valentine, a striking red with white droplet; and royal, an equally lovely blue with purple.

They're fussy things, at least if you hope to enjoy the flowers for more than a week or two each year. All the equipment - the lamps and humidifier - are there to keep conditions around the plants close enough to spring to keep them blooming. Her mother's project, though Ryumi certainly doesn't mind looking after them. They are quite beautiful, and somewhat unique as houseplants go.

A bit of sadness starts to creep onto her face.

In the kitchen, the whistle of the tea kettle draws Ryumi from her thoughts and she gets up to fix herself some breakfast. The fridge is disappointingly bare, and she ends up digging around the cupboards for some time.

Ultimately, she has to settle for just plain rice and a couple eggs, lightly seasoned. She pokes at the rice with her chopsticks while poking at her phone with her other hand. There's a thoughtful look on her face as she takes a bite. She has phone numbers for a couple of her new classmates. Maybe someone else is just as bored with the surprise day off.

When she opens up the messaging app, it’s still showing the conversation she had with Ryukyu last night after getting home. She glances back over it quickly.

How are you doing, dear?

I’m fine, auntie.

…guessing you heard about the break in. probably on the news already.

Yes, but not from there.

your “sources,” right? pro hero gossip circle.

Very funny, dear.

Well, if you’re joking around you must be taking it okay.

yeah. I’m fine… it’s sooner than I expected, but most of them weren’t any worse than what you might see in the wrong alley in Naruha, so

I see.

…it was kind of scary seeing what the couple real threats did tho.

Aizawa sensei and Thirteen…

I know. If you want to call and talk later, go ahead.

I know you’ll still be awake when I finish my patrol.

nah, I’m alright. thanks for checking in.

If you’re sure…

There was a half-typed reply in the box, which she ultimately didn’t bother to send. She finishes erasing it and checks over her other contacts.

She tries Yaoyorozu first.

hey, this is Ryumi.

got anything going on today? wanna hang out?

She sighs and pushes the phone away to focus on her breakfast while waiting for a reply. It takes a fair bit before the little chime of her text alert goes off, though she had the impression Yaoyorozu was an early riser.

Hey Ryumi! :)

Sorry, but my mother needs me to assist with a few things today. Normally I would love to have you over - perhaps another time?

no problem. another time, for sure.

Ryumi sighs. Strike one. Maybe Ryukyu wouldn't mind if I came by to train? She clicks her chopsticks together a couple times. No, she'll just worry if I do that, after I said I was fine... She’ll ask why I didn’t go out with my friends...

She spends a couple minutes patiently picking up every last grain of rice from the bowl. As she walks over to the sink to rinse the dishes, she remembers Kaminari had asked to grab food sometime. She glances over the empty apartment, eyeing the two pairs of slippers by the door.

Yeah, alright... She runs each dish under the water and leaves them on the counter to be properly washed later. She snags her phone off the table and finishes her tea.

hey Kaminari – it’s Ryumi. that offer of yours from the other day still open?

The reply is almost immediate, which surprises her a little, but it is getting to be about the time school would be starting.

heck yeah dude! lunch? where do you live? ill come meet you

She cracks a small smile. Everyone needs one of those friends - the person with the open schedule who will say yes to just about anything, just about any time. She used to have friends like that. Hell, she used to be that friend for some people.

She brushes those thoughts away and taps out a reply.

nah, I live in a crummy neighborhood, remember? hate to see you get beat up, lol.

aw c'mon - i was like super heroic the other day

i think i can handle it

that’s not what Jiro said... :p

ugh that snitch... ok how about we meet at the station near UA then? noon-ish?

sure. see you then.

She relaxes a bit, lowering her wings. Maybe today would be alright after all. Tapping the phone screen to check the time, she has a few hours to play around with until she needs to head out. Plenty of time to finish that crappy math homework, put the star back up on her ceiling, shower, and maybe clean those dishes.

Ryumi hops off the train a few minutes before noon. The place is as crowded as ever, though she expects that she stands out enough even without her school uniform that Kaminari won't have trouble finding her.

Her casual look couldn't really be described as stylish, but she's not the type to fuss over that - if not for the winds she dealt with on the flight over to the station in Naruhata, her hair might still be damp from the shower. She has on simple black scrub pants, a sky-blue t-shirt bearing the logo for Hopper's Cafe, and a light jacket - black with two white stripes down each arm, worn unzipped.

She checks her phone, there's still a couple minutes. Shoving her hands into her pockets, she starts idly wandering the plaza outside the station. Though it's actually a few blocks from the edge of campus, UA is clearly visible, towering as it does over this part of the city. She shades her eyes and squints in that direction, trying to see if she can spot any of the patrols or other activity going on.

"Hey, there you are!"

Ryumi turns around, and Kaminari's ever present grin appears from the crowd. He's wearing jeans and a black t-shirt with a repeating pattern of yellow lightning bolts.

"Hey." She lifts one hand in a little wave. "Figured I didn't need to text you. I usually stand out well enough."

Kaminari stares for a moment, seemingly without even realizing. "Oh, uh - yeah. Sorry. It's weird seeing you out of uniform." He brushes a hand through his hair.

Ryumi eyes him suspiciously, though in truth she's not too annoyed by it. "Not the look you were expecting?"

He shrugs. "So, ramen? I know a good place near here... my treat." He winks and waves for her to follow, though he quickly pauses and glances back over his shoulder. "...But take it easy on my poor wallet, please?"

She chuckles and falls in step beside him, swishing her tail. "Yeah, yeah."

Kaminari strolls along through the busy sidewalk. "Actually, I'm kinda surprised you're not more into American food. Burgers are great."

"You know I was born here, right?" Ryumi jabs the claw on her wing into his shoulder - lightly, just enough to be irritating. "I've never even been stateside."

"Ow, hey..." Kaminari jumps at the sudden poke and rubs his hand over his shoulder, a pitiable look on his face. "...Really? Don't you have family over there?"

She shrugs, ruffling her wings. "Yeah. But... mom's not on speaking terms with her family."

His eyes get wide at that. "Seriously? Jeez. Do you know why?" He stops, then puts his hands up defensively. "Sorry if I'm prying."

Ryumi waves off the concern. As long as it doesn't get too close to certain topics... "I don't know all the details." Which is true - she's only ever heard little bits of what happened back then. "...Let's see, how did dad put it...?" She taps her chin thoughtfully. "You could say that choosing to stay here was her ultimate act of rebellion."

"Damn, sounds like it must be quite a story." Kaminari grins sheepishly. "So, enjoying the break from classes? I know I am."

"Eh, I'd rather be in class honestly." Ryumi grumbles, though she doesn't intend to elaborate on why.

Kaminari sighs and slumps forward a little, though he has to cut the dramatic display short since they're walking. "Man, I'd agree if it was just the afternoon classes. You know, the fun practical stuff. But I'm so over the rest."

She tilts her head to the side, and then nods. "Fair. I still have a bit of that math assignment to finish tonight..."

"Ughhh. I still have the whole stupid thing..." He whines, a pained look on his face. He perks up quickly though, pointing out one of the storefronts. "There, that's the place."

Before long they're seated at a table in the corner with steaming bowls of ramen in front of them. Ryumi casually stirs hers with her chopsticks as she waits for it to cool.

"So hey, what made you want to go to UA?" Kaminari asks, carefully splitting his own chopsticks. "I mean... you were recommended, right? So you must've had your eye on the hero track for a while."

She pauses her stirring, flicking the tip of her tail. "I guess so. Really I just wanted to help people, to be like my parents. I kinda got caught up in it pretty young."

Kaminari snaps his fingers and points. "Oh yeah, you were saying something like that to Uraraka the other day, weren't you?" He stops for a moment, poking absently at his noodles. "Man, that feels like such a long time ago, but I guess it hasn't even been a whole day yet."

"Are you worried about it?" Ryumi asks, pinning a few noodles and lifting them. "The security, I mean."

He takes a moment to think it over as he eats. "Ehh... maybe a little." His expression is a mix of embarrassment and concern. "I wasn't expecting to be in a real fight so soon."

"You'll get used to it after a while." She says, then continues to slurp her noodles.

"Man, I don't know about you sometimes." Kaminari smiles, but it's a worried smile.

"So what about you? What made you want to come to UA?" Ryumi eyes him over the edge of her bowl as she sips the broth.

He hums and taps his chopsticks on the edge of his bowl. "Same for me, I guess. My mom isn't technically a hero, but she works with them a lot. Even gets into proper fights with villains once in a while."

"Oh yeah?" She cocks an eyebrow, intrigued.

"Yeah." He stops to have another bite of noodles. "She's like, an engineer, I guess. Works for a big support company. I think she even worked on Ingenium's truck. But sometimes she insists on going out with the heroes to make sure the gear she's made is working right."

"Sounds like she takes her work pretty seriously." She sets her bowl back down and pokes at the last few noodles.

"Yup. So, I dunno, I guess I wanted to do that kind of stuff, but like... more directly." He pauses, looking almost wistful until a devious grin pushes his seriousness aside. "Plus, chicks dig heroes, right?"

Ryumi chuckles at that. "Sure, that's why All Might isn't even dating anyone."

Kaminari falls into the table. "Man, but like, he doesn't count. He's a special case. And he totally does have girls going after him all the time."

She puts her hand to her mouth to stifle a laugh at his reaction. "Of course."

"So, what do you do after class, huh? Other than suffer through math homework." He pushes his empty bowl aside as he gets up, punctuating the mention of math by poking his tongue out.

"Mostly read, or play games. And train, when I can." Ryumi answers, carefully picking up the last couple stray bits of noodle.

"Oh yeah? Wanna hit the arcade after this?" He grins broadly as he fishes for his wallet.

Ryumi brushes a hand through her hair sheepishly. "Well... I'm a little short on money..."

Kaminari waves her off as he pulls a card with the logo of a nearby arcade on it. "Don't worry, I've got this one."

With that settled, they head out to the arcade. It's all dim lights and neon and chasing high scores through the remainder of the afternoon. They're passing by the DDR machine on their way out after running through the game credits on Kaminari’s card. The high scores flash up and Ryumi glances at the list - every entry has the exact same name.

Mina.

She taps Kaminari's shoulder. "Who do you suppose that is?"

Kaminari looks up, but he's too slow and the screen has changed back to the title. "Huh?"

She starts to explain it to him, but a familiar girl with pink skin and hair leaps out from behind one of the other machines.

"Heyyy!" Ashido trots over to her classmates, carrying a couple bags. She's dressed in a loose zebra striped top, galaxy print leggings, tan shorts with a light blue belt, and dark platform shoes. "Fancy running into you guys here!"

Kaminari returns her cheerful smile. "Looks like you're having fun today."

The bright pink girl bounces on the balls of her feet. "Oh yeah! I found some super cute new stuff. What about you guys?"

Ryumi shifts and lightly stretches her wings. "We just grabbed some lunch and played a few games."

Ashido looks between the two and the DDR machine. "Up for a challenge?"

"Obviously!" Kaminari steps up eagerly, before suddenly recalling his card was empty.

Sensing his sudden resistance, the fashionista grins triumphantly and presents her own arcade card. "I'll pay for the match, but let's make it interesting, hmm? Loser buys ice cream?"

"Hey Kaminari--" Ryumi catches sight of the high score screen once again, and reaches for the boy.

"You're on!" He totally misses her attempted warning and steps up to the left platform.

Ashido walks over to Ryumi and holds out the bags. "Watch these for me?" She tosses out a little wink as the other girl takes the bags.

The dragon girl sighs as her other classmate hops onto the second platform and does a few quick stretches before scanning the card to start the game.

It's an absolute massacre.

While Kaminari is deeply focused on the game, he's clearly not an expert at this one. He's not such a novice that he stands stock still in the center all song, but his movements are stiff and all about results.

Ashido, by contrast, is a clear pro. She flows from step to step, never returning to center, and including constant extra flourishes without ever dropping the beat.

When it's over, Kaminari is full of misplaced confidence as they await the score tally. His jaw hits the floor when he finally realizes how badly he's been beaten. "Wha-- how did you...?"

Ashido giggles and hops down from the platform, taking her shopping bags back from Ryumi. "It wasn't even all that good, didn't crack the top ten."

On cue the high score screen appears, covered entirely in scores by Mina. Kaminari collapses into the machine at realizing he's been tricked.

The gleeful pink girl pops over to the defeated boy and prods his shoulder. "Hey, hey! Don't forget our bet~" She practically sings.

The boy dejectedly pulls himself up and sighs. "Alright. A deal's a deal..." He looks toward Ryumi. "You coming too?"

She shrugs. "If you're offering. I'd hate to add to your humiliation."

His easy grin returns as he starts off toward the ice cream shop with the two girls in tow. "Ehh, I'll get over it. C'mon."

Ryumi smiles to herself as the three of them head out together. Yeah, today turned out pretty okay after all.

Chapter Text

The morning after that, it's thankfully back to business as usual at UA.

Hagakure spins around in her chair to face the others, excitedly waving her arms. "You guys! Did you watch the news last night?"

Ojiro shifts in his seat, trying to find a comfortable position for his tail, and nods to her. "Yeah."

She gestures back with one hand. "It was so cool that we got a few seconds of screen time!" Her excitement quickly melts away though, as she slumps forward, laying a hand on her chest as if wounded. "Though I bet nobody noticed me hanging out in the background..."

"Probably not." Shoji responds flatly.

Ojiro puts on a somewhat embarrassed smile, pointing toward the ceiling. "It is difficult to stand out when you're just gloves."

"And boots!" Hagakure argues – just from her tone it’s easy to imagine her making an endearingly pouty face.

Kaminari leans back in his seat with his hands folded behind his head, crowding into Kirishima's desk space. "We're totally big deals. Those news channels love us - we're basically celebrities."

Kirishima doesn't seem to mind losing half of his desk though, as he grins at the boy in front of him. "Yeah, it's kinda crazy, right?"

Jiro looks up from her phone and stops twirling her ear jack around her finger, interrupting and waving a hand at the two boys. "Get over yourselves. The hero course that pumps out pros was attacked, and that's what they care about."

"Who knows what woulda happened to us if the teachers hadn't shown up." Sero nods and leans into his desk, resting his head on his folded arms.

Midoriya mumbles softly, shooting a worried glance at Sero. "Why even say that...?"

"Oh, shut up and grow a pair, loser! We woulda been just fine." Bakugo shouts at Midoriya, causing him to cower.

Ryumi drops the pen she's been fiddling with at the sudden yelling, barely catching it before it rolls to the floor. She frowns intensely at Bakugo and lets out a low growl.

Sato raises a fist and grins. "Did you guys see All Might fighting the bird guy? That dude was super strong, and he still destroyed him!" He throws a few playful punches into the air, and Koda leans fearfully away from him.

Tokoyami briefly cocks his head to the side at the description of the villain. He crosses his arms, closing his eyes thoughtfully. "Yes. His strength is truly a thing of wonder."

The clock ticks over to 8:24. Almost time for class.

Iida jolts up at the sound of the clock and rushes for the front of the room, gesturing for everyone to sit. "Attention, everyone! Morning homeroom is about to begin. Everyone, stop talking and take your seats!"

Kirishima stares confused at Iida, who is still up by the podium with arms spread wide. "Uh, we're all sitting."

"Yeah, you're the only one standing." Sero adds with a sly smile.

Iida dejectedly sits back in his seat, trembling, and making Koda nervous. "Dang it!"

Uraraka makes a placating gesture toward Iida. "Don't sweat it."

"Hey Tsu." Ignoring Iida's instructions to be quiet, Ashido leans way back in her chair and nearly falls over before Tsu calmly catches the chair and pushes it back into balance. Ashido gives a good-natured chuckle and a smile at that. "So... who do you think's gonna teach class today?"

"No idea." Tsu takes one hand off Ashido's chair to tap her chin as she thinks. "Aizawa sensei's still in the hospital recovering from his injuries."

As if on cue, the classroom door slides open drawing everyone's eyes and Aizawa walks in covered in bandages, both of his arms in casts. "Morning, class."

A few voices call out in surprise.

"What are you doing here?"

"You're back already, sensei?!"

Ryumi cocks an eyebrow suspiciously, sounding a touch worried. "You sure you're alright to teach, sensei...?"

Kaminari looks concerned, but also a tiny bit impressed. "What an undeniable pro!"

"Glad to see you doing well, sensei!" Iida chimes in, raising his hand.

"If you can call that 'doing well'..." Uraraka mutters, nervously peeking out from behind Iida to watch Aizawa slowly walk to the front of the room.

Aizawa stands behind the podium and looks out over the class. "My wellbeing is irrelevant. What's more important is that your fight is far from over."

Bakugo boredly glances upward, barely raising his head. "Our fight?"

"Don't tell me..." Midoriya worriedly awaits their teacher's explanation.

Kaminari also looks concerned. "More villains?"

Aizawa's glare turns serious. "The UA sports festival is fast approaching."

Kirishima bangs his desk lightly with his fists and grins broadly as he dramatically leans forward. "Yes!"

Around the room various students sigh with relief.

"Ugh! why would you scare us like that?"

"The sports festival... that's so totally ordinary!"

"Let's go kick some ass!" Kirishima adds, raising a fist.

Kaminari leans backward into Kirishima, silencing him and mushing his face with his hand. "Wait a second."

Jiro takes over the thought for him, lifting a questioning hand. "Is it really such a good idea to hold the sports festival so soon after the villains snuck inside?"

"They could attack once we're all in the same place." Ojiro offers. Behind him, Kaminari finally takes his hand off of Kirishima.

"It's necessary." Aizawa asserts, surveying the class’s reactions. "Apparently, the administration thinks this is a good way to show that the threat has been handled and our school is safer than ever. Plus, they're beefing up security compared to past years. There'll be five times the police presence, and many more pros around than usual. Anyhow, this event is the greatest opportunity you'll get while you're here at UA. It's not something that we can cancel over a few villains."

"Uh, I'm sorry - are you sure about that?" Kaminari gets quieter. "I get it's important, but..."

Midoriya turns toward him, surprised. "Huh? Kaminari, don't you know how important this competition is?"

"Of course I do, that's not what I mean... I just don't wanna get murdered." He responds with a worried half smile.

Aizawa clears his throat to reclaim everyone's attention and continues. "Our sports festival is one of the most watched events in the entire world. In the past, everyone obsessed over the Olympic games - the whole world would be whipped into a frenzy over them. But as you know, once quirks started appearing, that tradition shrunk in scale and viewership to a shell of its former self. For anyone who cares about competition, now there's only one tournament that matters. The UA sports festival."

Yaoyorozu perks up. "That's right! And top heroes everywhere will all be watching." She makes a fist as she continues her thought. "This is where you get scouted."

Kaminari sighs, defeated by her sound logic. "She's right. They'll be looking to hire us as sidekicks after we graduate. That's how it's done."

"And a lot of those sidekicks never manage to go solo. They miss their chance to go indie and then they're sidekicks forever." Jiro pauses a moment, before snidely adding. "That's probably where you're headed, Kaminari. You're kinda dumb."

Wounded, he grimaces. "Tch!"

Aizawa ignores the pair sniping at each other. "Naturally, you'll gain valuable experience and popularity if you're picked up by a big-name hero. That's why the festival matters. If you wanna go pro one day, then this event could open the path for you. But your time is limited. One chance a year. Three chances in a lifetime. No aspiring hero can afford to miss this festival. Show the pros what you're made of here, and you'll make futures for yourselves. That means you better not slack off on your training."

"Yes, sensei!" The class collectively responds.

Later that same day, Cementoss walks out as the lunch bell rings, carrying his notes.

Ryumi stretches her arms above her head and collapses dramatically into the desk. "I'm already so sick of modern literature... post-modernism might be the most idiotic artistic movement in history." She slowly picks herself up and starts packing up for lunch.

"That villain stuff sucked, sure, but I'm so freaking pumped for these games!" Kirishima stands and excitedly throws up his fists.

Sero playfully nudges Kirishima and shares in his enthusiastic grin. "We put on a good show here, and we're basically on the road to bein' pro!"

"Yeah, this is why I'm even here in the first place." Sato adds thoughtfully, and punches into his other hand for emphasis.

Though it’s barely been five minutes since class ended, Tokoyami is already sitting atop his desk. "We get so few chances. We have to make the most of this."

Hagakure runs over to Ojiro's desk, waving her arms. "Oh man, Ojiro, I'm getting kind of nervous about the festival. I have to come up with a way to get noticed! Maybe like a cheer?"

Ojiro awkwardly smiles, still sitting while Hagakure bounces and does a basic cheer routine in front of him. "Uh, sure. Maybe you should be looking at a shinier costume or something? Otherwise, you're gonna have to try really hard."

Aoyama buts in, shading half his face with a hand. "My, what's a boy to do? I stand out even when I'm standing still. That means the scouts won't be able to take their eyes off me!" He dramatically spins and throws his arms wide, pointing to Koda.

Of course, Koda panics, raising his hands defensively and backing away.

Aoyama can't take a hint and leans uncomfortably close to his face. "Don't you agree?"

Koda nods furiously with pure terror in his eyes.

"Well, I guess if they're sure they can hold it safely..." Kaminari sighs, leaning to one side as he sits on his desk with his legs crossed at the knees. "You're so lucky, Shoji. People are bound to notice your unique quirk."

Ryumi bristles slightly, but says nothing. Calm down... He's just an idiot. He has no idea...

Yaoyorozu glances between Kaminari and Ryumi, noticing that something is off, but also remains silent.

"Sure, but what matters is that I show them how useful I can be." Shoji lifts all three of his right arms, forming a fist on each.

Jiro covers her mouth, holding back a laugh. "No doubt you'll make a scene, too. Making that dumb face that you do..."

Kaminari grumbles.

"This is gonna be nuts! Everyone's so excited..." Midoriya muses, looking at the crowd gradually heading out the door.

Iida is still packing up at his desk when Midoriya walks up to him. "Well, yeah, of course - and you aren't? We enrolled at this school with the sole aim to become heroes." He suddenly leaps from his seat and spreads his arms, before falling into an awkward fighting pose, or... maybe it's supposed to be a dance? "So naturally, we're all getting fired up. This is our chance to add our names to the ranks of heroes!"

Tsu looks back at him as she gets up to leave for lunch. "Wow, Iida. You got a funny way of showing it. Those are some... interesting moves. Ribbit."

Iida leans in and points at Midoriya with both hands. "You have to be excited too, right, Midoriya?"

Midoriya meekly raises fists in response. "Well yeah, of course I am!" He pauses, lowers his fists a bit and looks at the ceiling. "And also nervous..."

Meanwhile Uraraka pops up behind them with a dark intense expression and putting on a scary voice. "Deku. Iida..."

"Uh..." Iida stares at her, confused.

"Ah." Midoriya gives her a concerned look.

Uraraka carries on being needlessly intense, practically radiating an aura of doom. "Let's do our best in the sports festival."

"Um, Uraraka... what happened to your face?" Midoriya asks worriedly.

Ashido pops up between Iida and Midoriya. "Seriously, what’s up...? You're normally, like, the most laid-back girl ever."

"Is it that ti--" Kaminari begins, but he's swiftly cut off - slapped by Tsu's tongue. He yipes and flees out of the room.

Uraraka doesn't even seem to have noticed, throwing up a fist and falling into a low, super dramatic pose. "Everyone! I'm gonna crush this!"

Ryumi stops by the door and chuckles. "Do it, girl."

Iida, Midoriya, Ashido and Tsu all raise fists as well, though Tsu is less enthusiastic. "Yeah!"

Uraraka spins around to face Sato, Sero, Tokoyami, and Kirishima. "I said, I'm gonna do my best!"

Kirishima puts up his fist. "Got it..."

Sato, Sero, and Tokoyami reluctantly join in. "Uhhh..."

Kirishima puts on an awkwardly friendly smile. "...You okay? You kinda look like you're losin' it."

Uraraka completely ignores his arguably reasonable concern. "Once more for the kids in the back! I said I'm gonna do my best!"

Ryumi shakes her head as she walks out of the room. "Is she trying to be Present Mic now...?"

The cafeteria is as busy as ever. Crowds are chattering away and long lines stretch out from each station. Ryumi falls into the ramen line as she does almost every day. She'll catch up with Yaoyorozu and hopefully find a less packed table after grabbing her food.

Today, it just so happens she's ended up right behind Iida and Uraraka.

"Wonder what he wants with Deku." Uraraka thinks aloud, tapping her chin.

"What who wants with Deku?" Ryumi leans in toward the other girl conspiratorially, flicking her tail as she awaits a reply.

Uraraka jumps a little at the sudden intrusion and nervously ruffles her hair. "Oh! Ryumi, hey there."

Iida waves off the topic. "I heard Midoriya dashed in to help when All Might was attacked by villains during the USJ incident. Perhaps it's about that?"

"Oh yeah!" Uraraka taps a fist onto her open palm.

"Also, remember what Asui mentioned on the bus...? They have similar super strength. It's possible All Might has taken a liking to him. I wouldn't be surprised. How lucky for him!" Iida pumps a fist triumphantly, while Uraraka nods in agreement.

In the soba line next to them, Todoroki subtly glances at the three of them chatting.

"Tsu." Ryumi states, correcting him.

Iida turns to look back at her. "Hm?"

"She likes to be called Tsu. You really can't stop yourself being all formal, can you?" She folds her arms. "Anyway, it's possible. He did charge in to help All Might back then. But I'd say it's equally likely he's getting chewed out for breaking all his bones again. Or just for being reckless in general."

Iida nods thoughtfully at the suggestion. "Though that seems to be Aizawa sensei's refrain, more than All Might's."

"Sooo, Ryumi - you must be pretty excited for the sports festival, huh?" Uraraka grins.

Todoroki loses interest at this point as the conversation drifts away and his line once again starts moving forward.

Ryumi returns the smile. "Oh yeah. I've only shown off a fraction of what I'm capable of so far."

Once again that dark intense look appears on Uraraka's face. "Let's both do our best then!"

"Heh, of course." The dragon girl brushes her hair back a bit nervously, wondering how long this is going to keep up.

Chapter Text

The last bell chimes and the day's classes come to an end. Everyone starts packing up to head home, and it's the same as any other day... Except that a huge crowd has gathered outside the 1-A classroom.

Uraraka, Midoriya, Iida, and Bakugo are all on their way out (not as one group, of course - Bakugo is off by himself), but the door opens into a sea of people. It looks just like the hall out of the cafeteria looked during the media invasion a couple days ago - but this crowd isn't even trying to move.

"What's going on?! Why are you all here?" Uraraka stands, gaping at the mess of other students.

Iida looks confused at first, but he holds out a hand as his class presidential instincts take over. "Do you students have some sort of business with our class?"

Kaminari picks up his bag and steps over to see. "Dudes, why are you blocking our door? I'm pretty sure that's a fire hazard or something."

"They're scoping out the competition, Pikachu. Don't be an idiot." Bakugo growls and makes to leave even though the crowd hasn't budged. "Cuz we're the kids who survived a real villain attack. Makes sense they'd want a look with their own eyes before the sports festival."

Midoriya sighs, muttering under his breath. "And that's him on a good day... let's just hope he doesn't explode anybody..."

Bakugo stops barely a foot from the group blocking the doorway. "No point, though. Move aside, cannon fodder. At least now you know what a future pro looks like."

Midoriya backs up a few steps, shaking at the sudden aggression. "Oh no..." Uraraka joins him in his worry.

Iida makes his signature chopping gesture in Bakugo's direction. "Can we please not resort to calling those we don't even know 'cannon fodder'?"

"So, this is class 1-A. I heard you guys were impressive, but you just sound like an ass." The crowd parts slightly, and a taller blue haired kid speaks up. "It's true, we came to get a look, but you sure are modest. Are all the kids in the hero course delusional, or just you?"

"Huh?!" Bakugo glares at the blue haired newcomer.

Midoriya, Uraraka, and Iida frantically wave 'no' in the background.

Ryumi slides up near Bakugo and peers out the door. "If you're asking if we're all self-centered assholes, then no, that's just this one." She jabs a finger in Bakugo's direction.

He snarls, tiny sparks of his quirk flashing on his palm, and takes a swipe at her.

The dragon beats her wings and dodges away with a little whistle. "Yeah, way to make us look good."

"Gotta say, I'm a little disillusioned if this is what you're offering." The blue haired kid rubs the back of his neck. "I wanted to be in the hero course. But those of us who didn't make it are forced into a different track - stuck in general studies and the other programs. There're quite a few of us." He lowers his hand, shoving both into his pockets casually. "I didn't cut it the first time around, but now I have another chance. Did you know...? Depending on the results of the sports festival... if any of us do well enough, the teachers might consider transferring us to the hero course."

The mystery boy's gaze and tone become sinister, vaguely threatening. "I understand the reverse is also possible for you... after all, they'll have to transfer someone out to make room. Scoping out the competition? Maybe some of the others are. But for me... this'll be the perfect chance to knock you off your pedestals. I'm here to let you know that, if you don't bring your very best, I'll steal your spot right from under you. Consider this a declaration of war."

Midoriya looks predictably panicked; Uraraka, Yaoyorozu, and Kaminari appear somewhat worried; and Iida is a mix of disappointed and embarrassed. Ryumi kicks back against a wall and yawns, while Kirishima and Todoroki look bored and ready to go home, and Jiro just seems slightly more annoyed than usual.

Before anyone can make another move, a different boy, this one silver haired, starts shouting with his fist in the air, an enraged look on his sharp features. "Hey, you! I'm from class 1-B, next door! Heard you guys fought some villains, so I came to see if that was true. Wanted to find out more, but all I'm seeing is this arrogant bastard who thinks he's better than us! Talk all you want; it'll just be more embarrassing when you're KO'd!"

Midoriya, Uraraka, and Iida are becoming increasingly concerned with the way the situation is progressing. Iida is obviously trying desperately to figure out a way to defuse the tension, but he doesn't seem to be getting anywhere.

Meanwhile, others are content to playfully escalate.

Ryumi grins at the silver haired boy's comment, calmly swishing her tail. "Look, another person who's only known you for literally seconds and already has you pinned down, Bakugo."

The bully takes a menacing step toward her, apparently forgetting the crowd. "You wanna go, Scales? I'll pin you down..."

Midoriya's concern intensifies at that. He's starting to look a little pale, in fact. 

"Duuuuude. Phrasing!" Kaminari snickers loudly at the attempted comeback.

Yaoyorozu frowns disgustedly and covers her mouth, turning away from all of them.

Ryumi pushes away from the wall and laughs. "You know, you should really buy a girl dinner first, before you go talking like that."

"The fuck is that supposed to mean?" Bakugo growls again, and behind him Midoriya is frantically signaling for Ryumi to stop.

She's undeterred by the warning, and stares unflinchingly into the crimson eyes of her opponent, smirking. "Ask your parents." She says coolly, and leans forward, taunting him.

Midoriya looks like he wants to die. Even Iida seems half ready to panic, and Uraraka almost appears ready to catch Midoriya's soul if he does die - or his body if he just passes out.

"Maybe they'll explain when you're older. I, however, have more important stuff to do today." Ryumi finishes, then straightens and ruffles her wings.

"Tch. Whatever." It comes as a surprise to nearly everyone that Bakugo simply disengages and starts to leave, again, shoving the crowd to get by.

Several of the others who had been holding their breath waiting for a fight to break out sigh with relief. But it's not quite over just yet.

"Don't you ignore me!" The silver haired boy from class B pops up and waves his arms over his head, in an attempt to continue harassing Bakugo.

Kirishima also steps up to the door to yell after him. "Wait, you jerk, where are you going? You gotta say something. Thanks to you we've got a whole mob of haters now!"

Glaring over his shoulder, Bakugo grumbles. "I don't give a crap. These people don't matter."

"Huh?" Kirishima stares at him in confusion.

Ryumi shakes her head. "I don't know why you're surprised..."

"I'm heading for the top. So why should I care? The only thing that's important is that I beat them." And with that, Bakugo disappears around the corner.

The silver haired boy pops up one more time with a fist raised. "Hey! I'm comin' for you!"

Kirishima slinks back from the door to lean against a desk. He growls in frustration as he wipes manly tears from his eyes. "Tch...! So straightforward... I hate that, that was such a manly exit."

Kaminari looks at him, then out the door, and then back, baffled. "Huh? Huh?!"

Tokoyami nods and closes his eyes in his usual way. "The top... We have to beat them. He's not wrong."

"You said it." Sato strokes his chin thoughtfully.

Kaminari desperately holds his hands out in front of him, like he's begging for some kind of sanity to exist. "Yeah, sure, but this sucks! Don't let him play you - all he's doing is winning us more enemies!"

Yaoyorozu and Jiro share an amused and slightly worried look, while Todoroki takes the opportunity to walk out now that the crowd is finally starting to disperse.

"So, with all that fun settled..." Ryumi glances around those left in the room. "Anyone looking for a training partner?"

It's been a week since the announcement, and still one more to go until the festival. Things have settled into the standard routine once again, though the classroom empties out a little earlier than normal at the end of the day as everyone hurries off to their own training.

Ryumi is picking up her bag to go when she has a thought. "Hey, Tokoyami." She walks up to the boy, still collecting the last of his things. "Got a minute?"

He pauses, eyeing her. "I suppose." He stuffs the last notebook into his bag and zips it shut.

They arrive at a secluded area of campus a few minutes later, behind one of the storage buildings close to the field where a few of their classmates are training.

Ryumi kicks back against the wall. "I haven't said anything to anyone else, you know. About what you told me back at the USJ."

Tokoyami narrows his eyes, adjusting the bag on his shoulder.

"I'm just guessing you probably don't want your weakness to be well known."  Ryumi folds her arms and taps one of her fingers. "...Since we might end up battling each other."

The bird boy closes his eyes thoughtfully. "...You're asking if I revealed anything about your quirk. No, I haven't."

A smile plays across her face. "Perfect. So, what would you say to a deal? We both keep quiet about what we know. Even from our teammates, if we end up facing off in a team event."

"And if we fight each other individually?" He reopens his eyes and stares at Ryumi intently.

"In that case, I say we both use what we know. Sound fair?" She pops away from the wall and shifts her wings.

Tokoyami takes a moment to think, running a thumb over the underside of his beak. "What about Koda?"

Ryumi tips her head to the side and shrugs. "Have you heard him say even one word since the year started? He's the only one quieter than Todoroki. I'm not worried."

He nods and smooths the feathers on the back of his neck. "Very well. I accept."

Her grin spreads and she offers a hand. "Great. Looking forward to the big event."

Tokoyami takes the handshake, sealing the agreement. "May I ask one thing?"

"Mm." She nods, adjusting her bag as she prepares to head out to train at Ryukyu's agency.

"...Who are you concerned about?" He asks, turning away and readying to leave himself. "You clearly have a good idea of who I would worry about facing."

"Heh." She chuckles lightly. "Depends if you mean who I don't want you talking to, or who I actually don't think I can beat."

The edges of his beak curl into a little smile as he walks away. "Fair enough."

Chapter Text

Another week passes in a blur of classes, homework, and training as many hours as possible. It's a tricky balance for Ryumi, pushing herself as hard as possible while still having the energy to fly back home in the evenings. But at last, the big day is here.

The stadium and surrounding events area full of food stalls and souvenir shops is even more impressive in person. The public parts of the venue are seemingly wall to wall people in every direction you look. The clamor of excited fans and the shouting of vendors is penetrated only by the booming echo of Present Mic announcing the opening ceremonies, sponsors, and program schedule for the day.

It's a little quieter (though the dull roar of the audience and Present Mic are still audible) and definitely more spacious in the athletes-only sections of the stadium, but the prep room for class 1-A is still a flurry of activity. Folks are variously sitting around talking strategy, looking at phones, grabbing last minute snacks or drinks, or just trying to focus and get themselves hyped up.

Ryumi is in the second camp, sitting on the edge of a table next to Kaminari and poking out a last-minute message to Ryukyu on her phone.

I know you're probably busy, but I hope you can at least catch a recording, auntie.

I will, dear. Good luck out there.

She smiles and tucks her phone away, looking over her shoulder at the others.

Ashido stands by the lockers, tugging at the edge of her gym shirt and pouting. "Aw man... I was totally hoping I could wear my costume."

Ojiro finishes stretching his shoulders and shrugs. "They're not allowed, in the interest of fairness. At least everyone'll be in uniforms." He gently pushes the door to his locker shut and flicks his tail.

At a table not too far from the lockers, Sato is sitting and talking with Tokoyami and Shoji. "I wonder what they have in store for us in the first round."

"No matter what they've prepared, we must persevere." Tokoyami responds, arms folded, and for once actually sitting in a chair rather than on a table.

Shoji nods to the other two. "Right."

At that moment the door slams open, and Iida frantically barges in. "Is everyone good and ready?! Get your game faces on, the event's going to begin soon!"

Midoriya lays a hand on his chest and takes a deep breath to try and calm his nerves.

"Midoriya." Todoroki strolls casually across the room, left hand in his pocket, though his expression is serious.

He jumps at hearing his name and frightfully looks up at the other boy. "Uh, hey Todoroki... What's up?"

Bakugo, Ryumi, Ochaco, Yaoyorozu, Kaminari, and a few others take notice, looking over at the pair from their own conversations.

"Huh?" Ochaco blinks, confused.

"Objectively speaking... I think it's fairly clear that I'm stronger than you. More capable." Todoroki continues, gaze fixed on the shorter boy.

Interesting... Where's this going? Ryumi glances curiously at Kaminari, who shoots back a similar look.

Midoriya stares back at Todoroki, seeming confused and a little worried by the sudden proclamation. "Huh? Sure... uh-- um, yeah." He lowers his head and nods, looking at his feet.

"All Might's got his eye on you, doesn't he. He's helping you out." It seems like it should be a question, but he states it like fact, startling the green haired boy back into nervously meeting his eyes. "Now I'm not here to pry into why that is, about what's going on between you two, but... know that I will beat you."

Ryumi whistles softly. Thinking about it... Ochaco and Iida said something like that too, didn't they?

In the chair closest to her, Kaminari gasps and straightens from leaning on the table, a devious grin on his face. "Ooh! All these declarations of war lately! And from the strongest in the class?!"

Bakugo glares across the room, looking unimpressed. Though his shoulder twitches a little at hearing someone else being called the strongest.

Kirishima wanders away from his spot at the table between Ryumi and Bakugo. He steps up to the action, with a friendly but worried smile and grabs Todoroki's shoulder. "Hey man, what's the big deal? Why are you pickin' a fight all of a sudden? We're about to go on..."

Todoroki calmly shakes his hand off, without even turning to acknowledge the red-haired boy. "I really don't care. I'm not pretending to be anyone's friend here." He walks away from them both, finding a quiet corner away from everyone. "Don't forget, this isn't a team effort."

Ryumi leans down toward Kaminari, whispering. "Before, you wanted to know who scares me?" She nods in Todoroki's direction. "He's terrifying."

Bakugo casts a brief look at her and grumbles dismissively.

Kaminari nods, and softly replies. "Right with you there..."

After a moment spent fiddling with his uniform, Midoriya curls his hands into reluctant fists. "Wait a sec, Todoroki."

He stops and slowly looks back.

"I don't know what's going through your head, and I'm not sure why you felt the need to tell me you'll beat me... and yeah, of course you're clearly stronger..." Through the nervous rambling, the grip of his fists is slowly tightening. "In fact, you probably have way more potential than anyone in the hero course. That's why you got in so easily. And I can't even measure up to most of the others here in skill... Objectively speaking, even..."

Kirishima puts on an awkward smile, and makes a placating gesture. "Don't be so negative, Midoriya. No need... you're being a little hard on yourself, and us."

He continues anyway, shaking his head. "No, he's right, you guys. all the other courses - they're coming for us with everything they've got. But...! We're all gonna have to fight to stand out. And I'm... well, lemme say this. I'm not gonna fall behind." He finally pulls himself into a look of real determination. "I'm aiming for the top too. With everything I've got!"

Todoroki doesn't seem particularly moved. "...Right."

"Tch." Bakugo's frown deepens.

For a moment the mood in the room seems to settle, but before everyone can get back to chatting, someone else decides to make a challenge of their own.

Ryumi hops off the table, stretching her arms and wings. "Well, if we're all just laying our cards on the table here..." As soon as she relaxes, she spins around and glares directly at Bakugo. "Hey. Asshole."

He cocks an eyebrow and looks at her, irritated. "Huh?"

The dragon girl gets a devilish smirk on her face. "It's good to know you answer to that." She circles the table to stand in front of him, arms folded and wings flared out behind her. "Watch your back, cuz I'm coming for you. Honestly, I've been holding back so I don't get in trouble so soon at the start of the year..."

Her eyes narrow dangerously, and she unfolds her arms to crack her knuckles. "...But I've wanted to beat you bloody since the first day of class. ...So, I really hope I get to take a shot at you today. While it's all school sanctioned."

The room's atmosphere suddenly snaps back to oppressive - possibly even heavier than before. Everyone but Todoroki and Bakugo is staring at Ryumi in shock and terror. To the rest, though she's harassed the ill-tempered boy many times, she's never seemed the type for an overt threat.

Kirishima tries to put on a friendly smile and get between them, but he's clearly very worried behind it. "Uh, hey, take it easy there..."

Bakugo stands, pushing past him to get in Ryumi's face. "You have no idea who you're dealing with, scales."

"Oh, I do." She responds flatly, unimpressed with the rage building in his features. "A hot-tempered bully, with more villain in his blood than hero. Just the kind of guy I can't stand."

Kirishima nervously glances between them, and Midoriya (despite his earlier courage) looks half ready to die of fright.

...But before things can escalate further, the tension is cut by the call to head out.

Bakugo huffs and turns away, unconcerned with the daggers being glared into his skull from behind. Gradually, everyone recovers and files out into the stadium.

Yaoyorozu lands next to Ryumi in the group and nudges her. "What was that about?"

Ryumi shakes her head. There's not time to get into it now.

The sunlight beams harshly down after so long in the dim prep area, and the dull roar of the crowd ramps up to full cheers the closer they get to the field.

Present Mic's voice booms from every direction over the loudspeakers. "Hey! Make some noise, all you rabid sports fans! Get those cameras prepped, media hordes! This year we're bringing you some of the hottest performances in sports festival history, guaranteed! I've only got one question before we start this show: are you ready? Lemme hear ya scream as our students make their way to the main stage!"

Mic appears on the big TV screens dotted around the stadium walls, waving his arms. "First up... you know who I'm talkin' about! They're no strangers to the spotlight, the miraculous rising stars who brushed off a villain attack with their steely willpower! The first years of the hero course, it's class 1-A!"

Up ahead, Midoriya manages to hold himself together for about two steps before he hazards a look at the packed stands, causing him to start trembling and grab at his chest. "Whoaaaa... What a crowd... uh... I didn't know there'd be so many people."

"And we're expected to put on the best performance we can in front of so many spectators...! I suppose this is merely one more necessary skill if we are to become heroes." Iida muses, doing a much better job of staying calm but definitely not helping Midoriya.

Kirishima is beaming up at the crowds. "Yeah. Present Mic sure did talk us up a lot. They're really giving us too much credit... kinda makes me nervous. But we won't let it shake us, right, Bakugo...? How you feelin', man?" He glances toward the red eyed boy walking next to him.

"I'm not worried. Just gets me pumped up, makes me wanna win this thing even more." Bakugo responds, an almost sinister grin on his face as the class arrives at their space near the center of the field.

"They haven't got as much screen time, but this next group is still chock full of talent! Welcome hero course class 1-B!" Present Mic announces, gesturing down from the TV screens as the students of class B file out and take position next to class A. Ryumi notes the silver haired loud boy who was challenging Bakugo that day after class. She vaguely remembers asking Yaoyorozu who he was, and getting an answer, but she's forgotten it by now.

"Next up, following class B, it's classes C, D, and E of general studies...!" The three general studies classes fill out the first row of spaces near the small stage. Briefly, Ryumi thinks she sees the other challenger from that day, the tall boy with blue slicked back hair. She's not sure of his name, either.

"And here comes the support course classes, F, G, and H!" Mic continues, and they line up behind A and B, forming the second row. "And finally, the business course... classes I, J, and K!" The last of the first-year classes fill out the second row behind general studies. "Give it up for all of UA's first year contestants!"

A couple of the general studies kids grumble. Maybe not all of them are as driven as the blue haired boy.

"We're just here to make the others look good."

"Yeah. Hard to get motivated."

With all classes assembled, the stage manager for the first years arrives on the platform. She's a woman of particular grace and strength - and also, a degree of controversy. Midnight, the R-rated hero commands the stage in her famously revealing costume. "Now for the introductory speech!" She calls into the microphone, flicking her short whip for emphasis.

"Uh, someone should talk to her about what she's wearing." Kirishima mumbles, looking slightly redder than usual.

Kaminari nods distractedly. "Yeah... that costume should come with a warning."

Tokoyami closes his eyes, lightly shaking his head. "Is this really appropriate for a high school event?"

"Pipe down! Silence, everyone!" Midnight cracks her whip again to reclaim the attention of the athletes. "For your student pledge, our representative is... from class 1-A, Katsuki Bakugo!"

Everyone in class A turns to stare with varying levels of incredulity and concern as he walks up to the platform.

Ryumi mimes gaging and pokes out her tongue. "Who picked him?"

"Whaaa? It's Kacchan?! He's the first-year rep...?" Midoriya calls out, shocked - immediately covering his mouth as he realizes he was a bit too loud.

Sero hums. "I guess... must be because that hothead placed first in the entrance exam."

"The hero course entrance exam, you mean." One of the general studies girls huffs.

Midoriya shrinks, pulling his arms up close to his chest and inching away from the other classes. "Oh, right."

Sero lowers his voice to a whisper. "That girl obviously hates us."

Kaminari rolls his eyes, irritated. "Yeah, and we've got Bakugo to thank for that."

"Bleh. I would've guessed that kind of public speaking thing would go to a class president or something... at least Iida or Yaoyorozu wouldn't make us look like jerks." Ryumi growls softly.

Bakugo climbs the stairs on the side of the platform and joins Midnight on the stage, while all the rest of class A collectively braces themselves for the impending disaster.

When he lands in front of the microphone, he stops and takes a moment for a breath. "I just wanna say... I'm gonna win. Make no mistake about it."

"I knew he'd say something like that!" Kaminari whines, slumping forward.

"Don't get cocky, class A." Someone in the B section yells.

"What did he say?"

"Class A is so full of themselves."

"Boooo."

"Get him off the stage!" Come the various other jeers from all directions and classes.

Ryumi briefly considers joining in on the booing, but she ultimately keeps her mouth shut. Frankly I agree with most of them...

Iida, mortified, runs up to the steps as Bakugo descends to rejoin the group and chops at the air in his direction. "Why must you show contempt for the dignity of this event?! Why would you be so disrespectful? You're representing us all!"

Bakugo walks right by him, only pausing to give a rude thumbs down to the class president. "Not my fault. You'll all make great stepping stones to my victory."

"Overconfident jerk! I'll be the one to crush him! I can't wait to knock 'im down a size!" The silver haired boy from class B moves to the edge of his class's section, enraged.

Iida gestures wildly as he follows Bakugo back into their group, though he seems to have lost the words to express his outrage - even as the bully deliberately shoulder checks Midoriya as he walks by.

Midnight doesn't seem bothered by the events at all, smiling as she retakes the microphone with her whip resting on her shoulder. "Now, without any further ado, let's get the first event started." She points toward the largest of the TV screens on the stadium walls, and each of the screens changes from a view of the stage to an image of a roulette wheel stocked with various event types.

"Everything at UA's always without delay... they really don't believe in letting us catch a breath, huh?" Ochaco comments to the other girls standing near her.

"The first round is the qualifiers! This is where you begin feeling the pain - because it's in this stage that so many are sent home crying every year! And the fateful first event this year is..." Midnight says, as the screens all start cycling through event types at a blinding speed. "What could it be...?"

Jiro rolls her eyes and twirls the end of one of her ear jacks around her finger. "She's actually stalling like crazy..."

"It's... this!" The screen stops scrolling as Midnight points at it, reading 'obstacle course race'.

"So it's gonna be an obstacle course!" Midoriya mumbles, louder than he realizes, as he so often does.

"This treacherous contest is a race between every member of all eleven classes. The track is a four-kilometer lap around the outside of the stadium itself!" Midnight gets a playfully evil smile on her face. "I don't wanna restrain anyone, at least in this game. And our school preaches freedom in all things! Heh heh heh... So as long as you don't leave the course, anything is fair game! Now then, take your places, contestants."

At her word, the two hundred or so students crowd up by the starting gate, a sea of blue and white uniforms.

Midnight toys with her whip and poses for the audience in the stands. "Racers, to your positions..."

The series of three lights above the gate slowly blink on one at a time until...

"Start!" Midnight cheers, snapping her whip as a horn blares through the stadium and the combatants surge forward.

The loudspeakers crackle to life again as Mic takes over announcing duties. "And we're off to a racing start! Mummy-man! Are you ready for our live coverage and commentary?!" He yells, at hype levels that would be completely unsustainable for a normal person.

"Not voluntarily..." The groggy voice of Aizawa - Eraser Head, as he was introduced to the audience - contrasts perfectly with his excitable co-host. "How did you talk me into this...?"

"What should we be paying attention to in the early stages of the race?" Mic asks, blowing right past the protestations of his companion.

Aizawa responds flatly. "The doorway."

Several voices cry out as a crush of people pushing to get ahead clogs the gateway.

"The starting gate's too narrow!"

"Hey! Hey!"

"You're trampling me!"

Ryumi has no trouble, though. Simply taking to the air, she sails past the stampede overhead. It's a slower start than those runners who squeezed through in the opening seconds, but she is actually going somewhere, unlike most others.

Todoroki is among those early runners. "The first filter." As he passes out the tunnel and onto the course proper, he activates his ice, freezing the tunnel and the first dozen meters or so of the path. Many of the students in the area are left frozen where they stand, struggling to break themselves free. "Apologies." He calls back as he runs on ahead leaving nearly all the competition behind.

The voices of the crowd cry out.

"Yowch! I'm all frozen! Can't move!"

"So cold!"

"That bastard!"

"Ow, no fair!"

"Too easy, Todoroki! Here I come!" Kirishima shouts back as he breaks free using his hardening plus raw strength and leaps back into the action.

Bakugo growls as his explosions propel him through the air above the new skating rink. "I ain't letting you get ahead that easy, icyhot bastard!"

Ryumi chuckles to herself, though she shivers in the chill air over the ice field. "You'll have to try harder than that."

Yaoyorozu flies out next, bounding forward on a vaulting pole. "Nice trick, Todoroki!"

Every second, more students are escaping the clever trap. Aoyama uses his laser to launch himself up, and Tokoyami leaps with Dark Shadow's assistance.

Ashido yelps as she melts the ice with her acid. "Close one." She stumbles awkwardly forward until she finds a balance and lands comfortably into her skating form.

"Nope. Not happening a second time." Ojiro bounces with his tail, determination in his eyes.

Midoriya and Ochaco both barely get free and struggle to keep traction on the ice, shuffling carefully so as not to fall and get trampled.

"Gotta wait for the right time to show off my quirk!" Ochaco puts on her game face and resteadies herself.

The blue haired boy from general studies escapes too, held aloft by four of his classmates. "That guy's pretty handy with his quirk... So, they actually are good."

Even as he charges ahead, Todoroki risks a glance backward to see how his plan fared. "I expected it from our class, but... more made it past than I thought would."

Farther along the course, a group of robots ranging from huge to massive walk onto the path. They're all painted military green and gunmetal grey, and seem to come in four styles: a single wheeled model with machine pellet guns mounted on shield-like arms painted with a white number one, and a single red eye staring out on a long neck; a four-legged spidery model with yellow number twos on each legplate and a pair of sharp scorpion tails, one of which has two robotic eyes to compliment the three others on its body; a bulkier one with tank treads, huge cannons on its back, and big punchy arms painted with red threes; and the truly huge ones which would tower over most buildings, marked with a big yellow zero.

Their 'eyes' gleam, blinking bright red as the first students come into view. "Multiple targets acquired...! Terminate them!"

Midoriya slows as he sees the collection of bots forming a wall blocking the course. "The faux villains from the entrance exam?!"

"Ooh! Enemies have shown up out of nowhere! Well, every obstacle course needs obstacles! Starting with... the first barrier. Robo inferno!" Mic audibly grins at his co-host. "I bet we're in for a treat here, a test of strength and cunning!"

Todoroki stops dead in his tracks in front of the super bots, along with dozens of others.

"Are those the zero-pointers from the practical exam?" Kaminari asks, terrified, as he takes a step back from the looming robots.

Some of the other students stop farther back, in awe of the threat before them.

"Seriously? The hero course kids fought those?!"

"Too many. There's no way past!"

"This is what they meant by obstacles?!"

Todoroki stares up at the bots. "So this is what the other students faced in their entrance exam..."

Yaoyorozu too holds back to strategize. "Where's the school even get the funding for these...?"

Several others stop, and a fresh cluster is fast forming at the first official obstacle.

"Man, I almost wish I'd been in the general exam now. These look fun." Ryumi doesn't hesitate, she flies higher until she's above even the zero-point bots. Then, bringing out her scales for protection, she folds her wings in and dives into the head of a large bot on the far edge. Between the force of gravity and her own strength, her talons sink a deep, crushing crater into the metal. As the zero bot begins to tumble, she pushes off, almost seeming to bounce as her wings catch her and she glides on to the next challenge.

Not to be outdone, Todoroki swiftly crouches and activates his quirk as his right hand touches the ground. In an instant every bot is frozen solid, and he nearly catches Ryumi too as the crystals explode out of another zero that she's passing. "They obviously went through a lot of trouble, but I wish they'd prepared something a little more threatening. Especially because dear old dad is watching." He throws his hand upward, sending the ice out even farther (though the dragon girl is far enough away now that it isn't a close call this time). Todoroki exhales a cloud of light frost before taking off running, passing under the tangle of frozen metal.

Above, Ryumi shivers again at the wave of chill air as she looks over her shoulder at her classmate's display. "Damn, his range is insane..."

"Dude, he stopped the robots!"

"He stopped ‘em! We can get through that gap!"

"Look, between their legs, we can get through!"

The various students of the other classes call out as they ready to take advantage of the opportunity.

Once again looking back as he runs through, Todoroki warns against the obvious plan. "Bad idea. I froze them while they were off balance and in pretty unstable positions... so they'd fall."

On cue, the bot damaged by Ryumi's strike cracks and tips over, smashing into the ground and further destabilizing several others nearby. A cloud of ice and dust builds up around the area as more of the enemies collapse into themselves and each other, further complicating any attempt to just rush through.

"That's class 1-A's Todoroki! Busting through and sabotaging the others in one move! This guy's cold! He's pulling ahead to an early lead with that devastating display! Amazing!" Mic slams the desk before jumping out of his seat entirely. "He's definitely one we should watch - it almost feels unfair! Thoughts?"

"His attack was both offensive and defensive. Very skillful. But... don't count out Arisato. She's not far behind, and from the air she can avoid interference much more easily..." Aizawa answers in his typically even tone.

"Well said, mummy-man! Keep your eyes on those skies, listeners! It's no wonder both of our current frontrunners were let in on recommendations! They've never even seen those robo infernos before, but they still didn't stand a chance against those chart-topping moves!" Mic cheers, his excitement seeming to only increase.

Midoriya skids to a stop again as fresh bots walk and roll into place to reinforce their lines. "Gotta hurry! Tch...! Think, think..."

Chapter Text

"The first-year students are already off to one rockin' start! And it's only the first round! Talk about a cruel obstacle course! Our players are racing against each other in a vicious battle where anything goes so long as they stay on the track!" Mic waves a hand dramatically, forcing Aizawa to duck to avoid being hit.

Aizawa growls at his co-host. "Watch it."

"We'll continue to bring you live updates and pulse pounding action thanks to the camera robots placed around the course!" Mic calls as the cameras show a few such bots sitting on the sidelines and appearing to cheer for the combat models.

"Why do you need me here?" Aizawa asks with a sigh.

Present Mic just carries on though, with or without any enthusiasm from the other half of the desk (but mostly without). "The stakes are high! We've got a whole school of top-notch students trying to be heroes, but do they really stand a chance against our heavy metal swarm of robo infernos?"

Midoriya and Bakugo shield their eyes - the dust and ice cloud kicked up by the collapsing bots is rapidly expanding now, after the last of the frozen zeros collapsed all at once. Heaps of mangled metal litter the course, and even more robots are coming out to replace the fallen.

A few voices fearfully cry out from the group of stalled racers.

"Hey, there's someone pinned under there!"

"Do you think we should try and help 'em?"

"They've gotta be dead! I didn't know we could be killed during this thing!"

Bang. Bang.

The pile of scrap metal rips apart and Kirishima bursts free from the rubble. "Dead? As if!"

"1-A's Kirishima was crushed! What a hardcore debut for this rookie!" Mic yells, nudging his co-host for a reaction - but the reaction he gets is just a mumbled 'ow.'

"That bastard Todoroki, timing their fall like that! Jeez. I'd be dead if I wasn't me!" Kirishima pulls himself free of the bot's remains and starts to climb down when another loud sound gives him pause.

Bang. Bang.

It's the silver haired boy from class B - but now he appears made entirely of metal as he too bursts free from the robot that collapsed onto him. "Class A really is just full of jerks, huh...! I'll smash that ice guy when I get my hands on him! Anyone other than me woulda been killed by that!"

Kirishima stares at him. "The dude from class B!"

"Class B's Tetsutetsu was also flattened! Ouch! What are the odds?" Mic goes to prod at Aizawa again but yelps as he's struck first.

Kirishima jumps down to ground level and dashes off, manly tears streaming across his face. "Our quirks are basically the same! How am I supposed to stand out now?"

"You damn copy-cat!" Tetsutetsu yells back as he runs alongside his 'twin'.

Kaminari sighs as the pair push on ahead. "Man, how lucky are they? They can just smash through without worrying about being crushed."

Another boy from class B steps up next to Kaminari, sporting dark hair pulled back into a short braid. "We may be racing against each other, but... let's team up for now so we can carve a path through!" He lifts his arm and a sheet of pale green scales form.

Boom.

Eyes shoot skyward to see Bakugo blasting off and going right over the wall of bots like Ryumi did. He cuts the height a little closer, and is forced to adjust midair as a couple of the zeros take swipes at him.

"Bakugo?" Kaminari gapes at the daring maneuvers.

Present Mic screeches over the speakers. "Class 1-A's Bakugo is rocketing over the obstacles! Clever!"

Sero laughs as he uses his tape to pull himself up and over the bots, just behind Bakugo. "With your personality, I was sure you'd just try to blast your way through these things. But you avoided a fight! I'm impressed."

"Allow me to follow in your wake." Tokoyami adds, leaping with Dark Shadow again.

"Heheh." Sero grins at the sour expression on Bakugo's face as he spools out more tape to pull himself down.

"We're landing." Tokoyami commands, and Dark Shadow swiftly repositions himself to cushion the fall.

"Gotcha!" The little shadow demon calls out in its shrill voice.

"The current leaders of the pack are overwhelmingly from class A!" Mic announces, and a few of the screens around the inside and outside of the stadium flip to show the current standings.

Aizawa quietly continues where Mic leaves off. "...Class A knows there's no time to hesitate. They've been exposed to the real world, seen what it's like, up close and personal. They've had that fear planted in them. Of facing villains. And they've endured it. Overcome it. Each has grown from that experience and forgotten how to hesitate. They know they must act quickly if they want to stay alive."

Iida charges and jumps into a powerful kick, smashing one of the smaller bots and then tumbling to a graceful landing. He barely loses speed as he rolls back to his feet and dashes on ahead.

Meanwhile, Jiro attaches her jacks to a pair of bots and amps up her soundwaves. The hunks of metal vibrate dangerously and shake themselves apart as she hones in on the correct frequency.

Kaminari, determined not to be left behind as so many of his classmates are surging forward, runs up to a smaller bot and jumps into it, pulsing electricity and frying its circuits.

Ochaco runs up to a few more and taps them, letting them float helplessly into the sky while her and Kaminari charge past. "Release." Ochaco calls out with her fingers pressed together, dropping the robots back to the ground and crushing them.

Ojiro smacks a bot with his tail from midair, and continues running once he lands on the far side of the rapidly collapsing robot defense.

Midoriya barely dodges a strike from another robot. As he rolls away, he spots a broken piece of armor from the leg of a destroyed type-two bot. He snatches it up and swings at the neck of the one chasing him, slicing the head off cleanly.

Boooom.

Another explosion, but bigger and more bass-y than Bakugo's. More of the large zero-point bots fall.

Midoriya stops and looks for the source of the explosion, slinging the armor piece over his shoulder. "Yaoyorozu!"

"Piece of cake!" She stands proudly near a freshly made and fired cannon, her uniform jacket unzipped. With the path mostly cleared, she too begins to run forward.

Sato falls in alongside Midoriya as they both follow Yaoyorozu's lead. "The path is clear!"

"Wow, she beat a zero-pointer so easily...!" Midoriya passes by the last of the bots still carrying the metal piece in case it comes in handy later. "No wonder she got in on recommendations!"

As the leaders approach the next obstacle, Mic jumps back in to introduce it. "So, the first barrier was a piece of cake?! Well, for those of you who thought that was too easy... how about the second? Drop down and you're out! You gotta crawl across if you wanna make it - this is the fall!"

A massive chasm looms around the corner, dotted by narrow pillars with a maze of tightropes strung between them.

Ryumi looks toward where the announcer's box would be and shakes her head. "C'mon, Mic... make me actually work for it..." She takes off and easily flutters across the chasm.

At the front edge of the next obstacle, Ochaco is staring at the big pit of pillars along with Tsu and Ashido. "When did they even have time to build something like this?"

Ashido glances around as Tsu walks confidently to the ledge and leaps out. "What are you doing?"

"Ribbit. Just a giant tightrope. This is my moment." The frog girl grips the rope and crawls across quickly with her sticky climbing ability.

"She's fast!" Ashido gasps, watching her classmate disappear across the gap.

Ochaco watches too, as she tries to plan out what her own strategy should be. "She's a long way from the front though..."

"Hee hee hee, here we go. Yes, finally... My chance to make a splash! Hee hee hee." A girl from one of the other classes with pink hair and huge goggles readies some gear she's wearing about her waist. "Time for my support items to steal the spotlight from these wannabe heroes! Everyone! Take a look, all you national support companies! Observe what my brilliant gadgets can do: wire arrows and hover soles!" She grins wildly and spreads her arms to draw attention.

Ochaco turns to the newcomer. "She's in the support course!"

"Wait. She's allowed to have those things?" Ashido pouts, pointing at the various gadgets cluttering the other girl's uniform to the point that it's nearly half covered up.

"You guys in the hero course get all kinds of practical battle training for your quirks, don't you?" The support course girl grins at them. "In the interest of fairness, and giving us a fighting chance, as long as they're items and costumes we developed ourselves, we're allowed to bring whatever gadgets we want into the games! You might even say..." She stops to fire a long wire from a launcher on her chest harness. "For the support course students... this is the greatest opportunity to show off our inventiveness and craftsmanship to the industry, hee hee hee!"

The wire lands and pulls taught as a micro winch engages. "So, eyes on me, all you corporations out there! I hope you're watching!" She leaps from the edge and activates her hover soles to glide across. "Check out my adorable babies!" As she falls the winch on her harness kicks in and she glides up the side of the pillar it's attached to, cackling maniacally as she lands and resets to do it all again.

"Wow!" Ochaco stares at the impressive contraptions, momentarily stunned. "But I won't lose! Let's chase her down!"

"Ugh, talk about annoying! How's that fair?" Ashido flails her arms around before charging ahead herself.

The blue haired boy from general studies approaches the pit at about the same time the girls all dive in. "Interesting..."

"The truth is, we've got all types trying to make it big here today, Eraser Head. It can be hard to get popular without a flashy quirk. Right buddy?" Mic says with a needling tone.

But ever calm, Aizawa refuses to take the bait. "I don't know what you're talking about, idiot."

Mic brushes it off like nothing happened and moves right back to the play by play. "Meanwhile, the leaders of the pack move on undaunted! Looks like Todoroki is still skating by easily! And of course it's smooth sailing for Arisato! Those big gaps are no worry when you have wings!"

Todoroki finishes gliding across on his ice, deftly hopping back to solid ground on the far side of the pit. He's caught up, now just behind Ryumi up above, despite the disadvantage of having to actually cross the gaps. And the rhythmic bang of explosions creeping ever closer to them signals that Bakugo isn't too far either.

"Not so fast!" He shouts at the two ahead of him as he propels himself over the last bit of the chasm.

Todoroki glances back. "He's finally all fired up... took him long enough. Must be a slow starter."

"You suck, get back here!" Bakugo roars, focused more on Todoroki than the dragon spying on them both from above.

Back behind them, Iida awkwardly skates along the lines using his engines, a stiff and unnatural pose. He's shaking the whole way, like he might fall any second. "It's very likely my older brother is watching... I mustn't let him see me look foolish. I've got this!"

"Sure looks foolish to me!" Mic jeers over the speakers. "The leads keep breaking ahead, while the rest of the pack is bunched up at the fall! Our racers don't know how many will get to move on, so all they can do is aim for first place!"

In front, Todoroki has caught up and retaken a narrow lead as the trio tears off toward the final obstacle.

Back at the fall, Midoriya is cautiously hanging from a cord and crawling along, watching with just the slightest envy while Aoyama launches himself across using his laser, and Shoji jumps and glides using his webbed arms like proto wings.

"And our leader has reached the final barrier! Everyone had better tread carefully, because... it's a minefield! A quick glance is enough to reveal the mines' locations! So, keep both eyes open and watch your step!" Mic calls out, encouraging those in the back to hurry up. "I should mention... our mines were designed for the games, so they don't pack a deadly punch, but they're loud and flashy enough that you might need a change of underwear when it's all over!" He cackles at his own lame joke.

You can nearly hear Aizawa rolling his eyes at the childish antics of his co-host. "...Depending on the individual, of course. Get ahold of yourself, Mic."

Midoriya at last pulls himself up from the final rope and starts running again. "They've already made it that far...? Quickly! Gotta keep moving! I can do this!"

Todoroki can only afford a brief pause to get the lay of things, with his more mobile opponents trailing close behind. He already has to go much more slowly to avoid the mines - several are already popping off from the reckless efforts of others trying to reclaim lost time. "I get it, this puts whoever's leading at a disadvantage. It's all a big show."

"Haha. It's over. This crap... can't slow me down!" Bakugo laughs as he passes the other boy, easily keeping himself off the ground and out of range of any danger. "Bastard. Your declaration of war... was to the wrong person." As he closes in, he turns and risks a blast at Todoroki, though his target nimbly dodges out of the way and doesn't even stumble for the effort.

"But mine wasn't." The shadow of wings falls over the pair, and with a demonic grin Ryumi dives directly at them.

It's the same drop she used on the robots. Tucking in her wings, she plants the talons of one foot directly at the base of Bakugo's neck between his shoulder blades, throwing her weight into him and shoving him hard into the ground. The boy coughs roughly as the air is knocked from his lungs, and the dragon girl bounces off him and takes to the skies again. "Now what was that you said about stepping stones?"

"And just like that, we have a new leader! Get excited, mass media! You guys love this sort of turnaround!" Mic hits the desk as the battle for first heats up, and Aizawa can be heard grumbling in the background.

When Bakugo hits the dirt, he skids forward and instantly triggers a mine. The bright flash of pink and purple dust catches both boys and tosses them. Ryumi just barely escapes, but the sudden flash leaves her dazed and shading her eyes, rapidly slimming her fresh lead.

Behind them, only partway across the field, Iida frantically charges ahead. He's clearly counting on his speed to outrun any blasts - and it works, for a time, but as the mines get thicker farther in, he's eventually overtaken in a shower of colorful glitter.

"The rest are catching up! But with these three grappling for first... can they hold on to their lead?!" Mic cheers.

When Bakugo recovers his position, he picks up speed and fires explosions up at Ryumi, forcing her to fly higher to stay out of his range. He then switches back to harassing Todoroki, though he has to carefully space out his attacks to avoid destabilizing his flight.

Todoroki swats the other boy's hand away and catches him, a freezing ice patch forming on Bakugo's arm as he tries to get in front.

"Bakugo, Todoroki, and Arisato are in the lead! They're about to cross the finish line..." Mic screams, but a sudden explosion cuts him off.

Booooooooom.

A massive explosion overtakes the entire first half of the field, drawing concerned looks from all ahead of it.

Mic remembers he's supposed to be commentating and picks up his duties again. "A giant explosion from behind?! What caused such a blast? That's way more powerful than it should be! An accident? Or was it intentional?"

Those in the back half of the field shield their faces from the pink dust and bright flash, though most end up being thrown by the shockwave once it catches them.

Ochaco is farther along and glances back to see the commotion. "Huh?"

"Tch!" Tokoyami flinches at the blinding flash and glittery powder, though he's far enough from the primary blast to be relatively safe.

It's Iida, proceeding more cautiously after his earlier risk, who first identifies the culprit. "Midoriya!"

Present Mic catches on a second behind. "Incredible! What just happened?! Class A's Midoriya rides the wave in hot pursuit... or something!"

Kirishima and Tetsutetsu stare as Midoriya flies over their heads atop the hunk of metal he's carried the whole course. Tsu and a girl with thorny vine-like hair also stop to watch him pass. And Todoroki and Bakugo swiftly abandon their fight as Midoriya sails above them both - while Ryumi has to make a quick dive to avoid being struck by the human missile.

"Strike that - he's passed them all! The lead is his!" Mic shouts, and the crowd back in the stands can be heard erupting in cheers.

Now truly enraged, Bakugo promptly forgets Ryumi and Todoroki entirely and blasts off with even quicker, larger explosions. "Dekuuu! What do you think you're doing, huh?! Get the hell... back here!"

Meanwhile Todoroki again freezes a path for himself - with the pressure plates frozen in place, he can charge straight through without having to weave between mines as he has been, and he closes the fresh gap between him and Bakugo. "This path will end up helping the others, but... no time to worry about them!"

Ryumi dives lower to pick up more speed, now cruising just centimeters above the ground in an effort to reach the three boys in the lead. Her heart pounds in her chest from the thrill of it, and she doesn't even notice the chill air coming up from the ice path, she's so laser focused on the finish line. This is amazing... just like the videos of Hawks...

Present Mic slams his desk again. "Look at that plot twist! Our former leaders have called a cease-fire to chase down Midoriya! When a common enemy appears, people stop fighting! Well, actually, they're still fighting, just not each other! But this is still far from over!"

Aizawa groans, thoroughly over this whole thing. Probably almost wishing he was still in the hospital. "...What're you even trying to say...?"

Midoriya starts to tumble free from the wreckage he's riding on, and all three of the others are poised to overtake him again. With no other option, he desperately swings the metal piece over his shoulder, slamming it into several mines. The resulting bang blasts himself forward and tosses the other three wildly in all directions.

Ryumi recovers first, thanks to her flight, though her vision remains blurry after taking a flash so close to her face. She tears off at top speed anyway, flying half blinded, as the other two are surely just behind her.

"And in a stunning move, Midoriya blows past the competition with no time to lose! I don't believe it - he cleared that minefield in an instant! Your class is something else, Eraser Head! What the heck are you teaching these kids?" Mic jabs at his co-host, but this time he doesn't suffer any retaliation.

"This isn't my doing. Each of them is powered by their own drive to succeed. And they've been spurring each other on all on their own." Aizawa calmly replies, the faintest hint of pride creeping into his tone.

Present Mic audibly grins and seizes on the obvious joke. "There you have it, folks, Eraser Head is a terrible teacher!"

"I'm what?!" Aizawa actually raises his voice, finally getting taken in.

"Well, who could have predicted such an incredible turn of events so early on?!" Mic adds, moving right on back to business.

Aizawa growls with clear irritation. "...Are you ignoring me...?"

"And the one who made it back to the stadium first is... none other than Izuku Midoriya!" Mic yells excitedly, throwing his hands in the air.

Midoriya trots over the line to a slow stop. He stands hunched over, panting, resting his hands on his knees. "Haa! Haa... Haa..." Despite his exhaustion he grins, mumbling to himself between breaths. "Don't cry, don't cry..." He stands upright and makes a triumphant fist, though he fails to keep tears from welling up in his eyes.

Ryumi is next through the gate, landing roughly and skidding to a stop on all fours with wings spread wide, digging harsh gashes into the ground with her claws. "Woo." She takes a second to breathe before slowly standing upright again and deactivating her quirk.

Todoroki and Bakugo arrive just half a second later, both breathing hard. Todoroki is first, but only barely.

"Racers cross the finish line one after the other! We'll go over the standings later, so catch your breath for now! Let's hear some applause for all our competitors!" Present Mic calls out, and the crowd follows his lead in cheering and clapping as more and more students arrive back in the stadium.

Todoroki stares silently out at the crowd, a subtle cloud of steam drifting off of him as he catches his breath.

"Haa... Haa. Again... damnit! Deku... No way... that little...! Not again!" Bakugo looks up at Midoriya, gripping his own arm in frustration. He snarls as he straightens and starts to stalk angrily toward the other boy.

Ryumi steps in his way, wings spread out behind her. "No."

Bakugo's vicious gaze shifts from Midoriya and lands on her. "What?"

She folds her arms and flicks her tail. "I said, no." She leans forward, getting up in his face and narrowing her eyes. "I'm sick of watching you beat up on Midoriya. Pick a fight with someone who actually stands a chance against you."

Bakugo growls and looks half ready to throw down right here to get through her to Midoriya, but he stops as more racers arrive. "Tch. You won't even make it that far." He turns and walks off to get away from the growing crowd.

Ryumi huffs and walks away in a different direction - but still close enough to keep an eye on things - deliberately catching Bakugo's shoulder with her wing as they part, like he'd done to Midoriya earlier.

He glares back over his shoulder at her, but doesn't escalate things again.

Ochaco arrives at that moment, looking ready to collapse, but she still runs over to greet her friend. "Deku...! That was amazing!"

Midoriya dries his eyes and turns to her, suddenly nervous again. "Oh, thank you!"

A somewhat distraught Iida slides into the arena next. "To lose a race, of all things, with my quirk... It's clear I still have progress to make...!"

"Uraraka. Iida." Midoriya smiles at his friends.

"First place, though! I can't believe it! Man, I'm jealous!" She jumps at him, and he pulls back a bit.

"Aw, nah... It was nothing! It was actually really close..." He cowers, half covering his face with his arms.

After a few more minutes, and a total of forty-two students have crossed into the arena, Midnight addresses the group gathered by her stage. "So, it's finally over. Let's check the results, shall we?" She adjusts her glasses as the displays around the arena all change to show the rankings from the race.

1 - class A, Izuku Midoriya

2 - class A, Ryumi Arisato

3 - class A, Shoto Todoroki

4 - class A, Katsuki Bakugo

5 - class B, Ibara Shiozaki

6 - class B, Juzo Honenuki

7 - class A, Tenya Iida

8 - class A, Fumikage Tokoyami

9 - class A, Hanta Sero

10 - class A, Eijiro Kirishima

11 - class B, Tetsutetsu Tetsutetsu

12 - class A, Mashirao Ojiro

13 - class B, Yosetsu Awase

14 - class A, Tsuyu Asui

15 - class A, Mezo Shoji

16 - class A, Rikido Sato

17 - class A, Ochaco Uraraka

18 - class A, Momo Yaoyorozu

19 - class A, Mina Ashido

20 - class A, Koji Koda

21 - class A, Kyoka Jiro

22 - class B, Sen Kaibara

23 - class B, Kosei Tsuburaba

24 - class A, Denki Kaminari

25 - class B, Kojiro Bondo

26 - class B, Reiko Yanagi

27 - class C, Hitoshi Shinso

28 - class B, Itsuka Kendo

29 - class B, Jurota Shishida

30 - class B, Shihai Kuroiro

31 - class B, Yui Kodai

32 - class B, Hiryu Rin

33 - class B, Nirengeki Shoda

34 - class B, Kinoko Komori

35 - class B, Togaru Kamakiri

36 - class B, Neito Monoma

37 - class B, Pony Tsunotori

38 - class A, Toru Hagakure

39 - class B, Setsuna Tokage

40 - class B, Manga Fukidashi

41 - class H, Mei Hatsume

42 - class A, Yuga Aoyama

Chapter Text

"The top forty-two from this qualifying round will move on. But for those who placed lower, don't worry - we've prepared other opportunities for you to show your stuff!" Midnight pauses and licks her lips. "And now the real fun is about to begin! The press corp's going to be jumping out of their seats, so give it all you've got! Now, on to the second event! I already know what it is, of course... dying in suspense? Will your wildest fantasies come to life? What could it be? The waiting is torture..." At her cue, the screen cycles as before...

"Prepare yourselves... for this!" The screen stops on cavalry battle as she gestures toward it.

Kaminari gives a concerned whine. "Cavalry battle! I'm terrible at those."

Tsu rests a finger on her chin. "Huh. It's not an individual event. So we're teaming up, but I wonder how exactly?"

"Allow me to explain! Participants will, on their own, form teams of two to four members each and get into a horse-and-rider formation!" Behind Midnight, the screens change to show diagrams explaining the game. "The rules are fundamentally the same as those of the ordinary playground game - snag your opponents' headbands while guarding your own - but with one exception: each of you has been assigned a point value based on your ranking in the last event!"

Sato nods, arms folded. "I get it. A point-based system like in the entrance exam? Sounds simple."

"So the point value of each team depends on its members!" Ochaco notes, looking at the diagram on the screen.

"Uh huh!" Ashido agrees, pointing a pair of finger guns at the other girl.

Up on the stage, Midnight cracks her whip. "I'm about to explain it, so just shut up already!” She takes a breath and calms. "Anyway, yes! The individual point values start at five, at the bottom. So, the student who took forty-second place is worth five points, forty-first is worth ten... get it? But our first-place participant is worth... ten million points!"

Midoriya looks so horrified that it almost seems he could drop dead on the spot. "Ten million?"

The tall blue haired boy from general studies gets an intrigued smile on his face. "Really...?"

"In other words, if you take down his team..." The pink haired support course student adds, adjusting her goggles and grinning hungrily.

Midnight shares the evil smile that is spreading on many faces in the crowd, delighting in the glares all focused on the top finisher. "The higher-ranked students are the ones to aim for. This survival battle is a chance for a comeback, it's anyone's game!"

She holds for a moment, hands on her hips. "There's more suffering ahead for those at the top. As you must have heard countless times since enrolling at UA, and will continue to hear over and over... this is... Plus Ultra! Show us what it means!" Midnight flicks her whip toward Midoriya, singling him out from the crowd. "Izuku Midoriya, after taking first place in the qualifiers... he'll be worth ten million points!"

All eyes in the group turn to stare at Midoriya, their faces looking like vicious demons. He shrinks back, even though he's surrounded, panicked but with a hint of determination.

"First years! These are the rules you'll abide by: the match itself will last fifteen minutes. Individual point values will be added together to reach your team total. Everyone will know how much you're worth thanks to your headband, which will be worn by your rider. Swipe as many headbands as you can to raise your team's score. Until the match ends, you'll all compete to grab each other's points and maintain the ones you have." Midnight explains, posing with one arm overhead, running the fingers of her other hand through the tendrils of her whip. She watches as glances and nods are exchanged between the students, the beginnings of alliances and plans.

"Any headbands you steal must be worn from the neck up. So, the more headbands you steal, the harder they'll be to manage! And most importantly, even if your headband is taken or your team falls down you can keep playing until time's up. It's not over ‘til it's over!" She finishes, pointing with her whip toward the crowd once again.

"It's anyone's game, then." Yaoyorozu thoughtfully rubs her chin. "That means..."

Sato folds his arms and nods. "Since there are forty-two contestants, there'll be ten to twelve teams fighting on the field the whole time...?"

"Sounds hard..." Aoyama mumbles, a gloomy expression on his face.

"So there's no need to panic if your points are temporarily stolen, yeah?" Ashido slowly waves one finger on each hand in little circles. "Even if you lose your headband at the beginning, you have more time to make up a plan."

"But you can't really tell if you're not paying attention to the minute-by-minute point breakdown." Tsu pauses and presses a finger to her lips. "I dunno, Mina. Maybe we should wait and see how the teams turn out before we start strategizing."

Midnight waves her whip overhead to reclaim the spotlight. "This is going to be rough. You may use your quirks as much as you like. However, there are still rules! It's still a cavalry battle! Maliciously attack another team with the intent of making them fall, and I'll slap you with a red card - and that means you're disqualified!"

"Good thing they specified, or we all know what Bakugo's first move would be..." Ryumi huffs, casting a wary look toward him as he gets a grumpier than usual expression on his face.

"Now, you've got fifteen minutes to build your teams! I recommend you get started." Midnight calls out, as a timer displays on the screens all around the arena.

The crowd immediately breaks into smaller groups and starts chattering, a few people sliding around and shopping for a good team.

Midoriya just waits where he is, quietly thinking things over. He's focused, but there's a small concern still on his features over the massive target he's now wearing.

Meanwhile, a fresh crowd has formed around Bakugo. He stands stock still, surrounded and staring straight ahead as the others pester him, almost as if he's uncomfortable with the spotlight despite his constant loud insistence that he deserves it.

Sato takes another step toward Bakugo, looming over the shorter boy while jabbing a thumb back at himself. "You should team up with me!"

Sero, Hagakure, and Shoji push to get closer and be heard.

"No, you definitely want me by your side. Hey, Bakugo, pick me!" Ashido yells, bouncing energetically around in front of Bakugo.

"He's picking me, of course!" Aoyama says, a smugly sparkling smile on his face as he poses.

Bakugo glances at them all, confused and a bit annoyed by the crowd of eager teammates. "Wait - I don't even know what your stinking quirks are!"

"You're kidding! We're your classmates." Ashido pouts, irritated by his attitude.

Sato huffs, folding his arms and backing away. "Forget class B - he's too self-absorbed to even notice us!"

Aoyama shuffles awkwardly, his face turned gloomy, body curled up as if in pain. "I don't wanna beg, but please."

"Remind me what your powers are. And your names." The barest hint of embarrassment creeps into the front of annoyance that Bakugo tries to hold up.

A bunch of the group surrounding him shake their heads or sigh and slump forward dramatically.

"Bakugo!" Before any of the others can get over it and fulfill the request, Kirishima runs over and waves, trademark friendly sharky smile beaming. "I was gonna try Todoroki, but he's already wrangled up a team for himself! So, hey! We should team up." He pushes into the crowd between Sato and Hagakure, holding a hand out to the boy at the center.

Bakugo has seemingly recovered by now, tone and expression returning to his usual unimpressed growl. "Hey, dumb-hair."

"My name is Kirishima! Remember it! And my hair's not much spikier than yours!" He frowns, pointing at himself for emphasis as he corrects the other boy. "C'mon. You wanna be the rider, right? So, you're gonna need a strong front horse who can take all those explosions without getting hurt, yeah? That'd be me."

"Hm... I need someone with guts. Someone not afraid to die." Bakugo responds flatly, though he's clearly considering it.

Kirishima ignores the comment, pointing his thumb at himself again. "My quirk was made for this! I got you covered, man!" He holds up a fist and activates his quirk, turning his flesh into a stony material. "This horse won't break - let's go charging into battle together."

"Ah--" Bakugo seems to realize something.

"Ten million. Bring it." Kirishima states, leaning in. "You wanna take Midoriya down, right?"

An evil grin spreads on Bakugo's face.

Across the field, Midoriya reaches out to Ojiro, but he quickly slides away. "Oh, hey. What's up, Ojiro?"

"Sorry..." Ojiro lowers his tail and awkwardly shuffles over to another group, avoiding looking at his classmate.

Midoriya freezes there, shocked at the blunt dismissal. He's totally alone.

But only for a moment - then Ochaco's bubbly smile pops into his view. "Hey, Deku! Team up with m-- whoa." She stops short as he begins sobbing with joy.

"Uraraka! You mean it?! Are you sure? Everyone'll be after me and my ten million stupid points!" He whines back, soaking the sleeve of his uniform in a vain effort to dry his eyes.

Ochaco remains cheery as ever, gentle smile on her face, though slightly embarrassed by his overreaction. "Yeah, but if we run away the whole time, then we'll win, right?"

Midoriya shifts his feet, worried but also touched by her offer. "Um, I think you're either overestimating me, or underestimating everyone else here."

"That's fine! Who cares? Teaming up with a friend... it just seems right! It's always better when you can team up with people you like!" Ochaco answers, beaming and pumping her fists in the air - though she suddenly turns concerned as her friend squeezes his eyes shut and turns away. "Is something wrong?"

"No, I just thought my chest was gonna explode for a second." He whimpers, seemingly struggling.

She blinks at him, a worried look. "...Do you have some kind of heart condition?"

"No..." He shakes his head and wipes away more tears with his other sleeve, recovering somewhat. "Actually, I wanted to team up with you too, so thanks a lot!" He smiles, pointing between himself and her. "You're right. For a game that requires so much teamwork, it's smart to find people you get along with and communicate smoothly with!"

Ochaco nods furiously in agreement.

Midoriya doesn't notice, he's looking down, counting on his fingers. "In fact, now that we've got your quirk, Uraraka, if we had one other person... we just need him... or maybe her... You know what - I think I might have the perfect plan!"

Ochaco leans in curiously. "Huh?"

Midoriya snaps up and spies the two he has in mind, and they're both standing in a cluster with Todoroki, Yaoyorozu, and Kaminari.

"...I originally would have picked Iida for his superior speed, but... your stunt at the end of the last round proved the advantage of aerial maneuverability." Todoroki glances between Ryumi and Iida, before settling his gaze on the dragon girl. "So if you're certain you can carry all of us..."

Ryumi grins and flashes her claws. "Don't ask stupid questions." She eyes the three locked-in team members in front of her, then focuses back on their leader. "You're probably the heaviest one - bet I could still lift you one handed without even using my quirk. Wanna try?"

"That doesn't answer the question." Todoroki replies, humorlessly.

She sighs. "Yeah, definitely. It'll take some power; doubt I can keep us up for the full fifteen minutes. But even on the ground, if I take point my wings can be a nice shield for you, limiting the angles of attack that can be used against us. So... we get the big points say halfway through? I can definitely keep us well out of reach until it's over."

Todoroki nods thoughtfully.

Ryumi suddenly points at Kaminari, who jumps a little at being singled out. "Even easier with him here. I know you picked him for offense, but my power is fueled by electricity. He can blast straight into me, and it'll only make me stronger..." She pauses, folding her arms. "Well, up to a point, anyway. I think I've made my case."

Todoroki looks between the two hopefuls one more time. "Alright, you're in."

"I see. I'll seek out a different opportunity in that case." Iida frowns, trying to hide his disappointment by pushing his glasses up his nose.

As Iida turns away and bumps into Midoriya and Ochaco, Ryumi steps over to join her new team.

She eyes the other three as they start talking a few paces away. "You're lucky I like this team, Todoroki. I'd be guaranteed to advance if I joined them. With Ochaco's quirk I could keep the whole team in the sky for the entire match, and there's only maybe a half dozen people who would have any hope of reaching us."

Todoroki glances at her, then turns away. "Do it then. I'll still take Iida."

She laughs off the comment. "Nah, too easy. It's no fun if it's not a challenge. Besides, I said already, I like this team."

A short distance away, Midoriya runs up to the class president and waves to him. "Iida, hey! Do you still need a team?"

Iida silently steps up to him, looking grim.

The shorter boy simply plows forward with his pitch, obliviously. "I was thinking, if the three of us form the horse, with you in the lead... and Uraraka can make us weightless, so we'll have excellent maneuverability! No one could catch us."

Ochaco runs up next to him and brings her fists up to her chest. "Good idea!"

"The only thing is... we'll want our rider to be someone physically strong - still haven't decided. I don't know who could do it, out of the few who aren't taken yet..." Midoriya mumbles, putting a hand to his chin in thought. "Anyway, I know it's not much, but it's the only evasive plan I could think of this fast." 

Iida adjusts his glasses again, seeming oddly quiet and reserved. "I'd expect no less from you, Midoriya. To be honest, I feel like I've been losing to you ever since the entrance exams. I approached Todoroki because I wanted a chance to prove myself against you."

"Iida..." Ochaco mutters, concerned that he will look for a different team.

"I still consider you a wonderful friend, of course. I just... feel like I cannot continue to follow you if I hope to grow. I'll never get stronger." Iida takes a breath and stares out at the rest of the groups. "...That said, it seems I'm running out of viable options. So I'll join you for this round."

The other two share a relieved smile.

He nods to Midoriya, expression still serious. "But if we make it to the next - don't expect me to hold back if we end up facing each other."

"Of course! I'll hold you to it." Midoriya nods back, lifting a fist.

With that settled, Iida's look softens at last. "Right. So who do you have in mind for our fourth...?"

A realization strikes the green-haired boy and he rushes off leaving the other two behind. "If he isn't already taken... he'd be perfect!"

Iida and Ochaco share a bemused look before hurrying along after him.

While they give chase, Todoroki turns to his team. "The reason I chose the three of you is because I believe we'll make for the most stable formation possible. Kaminari. You guard the left and keep enemies away with your electricity. Yaoyorozu. You take the right. Provide an insulator, shield us and supplement our movement. Arisato, you take the lead. Your mobility and strength will be our physical defense."

Yaoyorozu nods and looks between each of her teammates. "And you'll hold them off with your ice and fire, right, Todoroki?"

"...No." The answer is distant and cold. Ryumi, standing to his right, could swear she even feels a slight chill as he glares up at the stands and makes a fist with his left hand. "When I'm in battle... I refuse to use my left side."

Wonder what that's about. Not that he seems to need the extra power... She watches him as he looks up, trying to follow his eyeline.

Kaminari quietly coughs and raises his hand. "Okay, dumb question, but... how am I supposed to be able to touch you without causing problems?" He looks at Ryumi, then pokes her shoulder, causing a tiny spark to leap from him into her.

She puts aside trying to figure out what Todoroki is looking at, and just smiles at Kaminari. "Easily." She lays a hand on his shoulder and... nothing happens.

"What the heck... How are you doing that?" He pokes her arm again just to be sure - again, nothing happens.

"I'm suppressing my electricity absorption. You can prevent the effect too, if you focus on holding back your quirk." She takes her hand away. "Try it now."

Kaminari pokes her again. "Ah! That feels so weird... Honestly, I wouldn't count on me to be able to focus on that during the whole battle..." He eyes Yaoyorozu and Ryumi, a dumb smile creeping onto his face. "...Especially with two gorgeous ladies on the team."

Yaoyorozu huffs dismissively and rolls her eyes, turning away from him.

Ryumi just nods, ignoring the joke. "Right, and if I'm our mobility and defense I probably can't either."

Todoroki sighs and glares at the pair of them. "Get to the point, please."

Ryumi looks to Yaoyorozu. "You were already planning on making insulation to protect the team - can you make a glove for Kaminari too?"

Yaoyorozu turns back and nods confidently. "Consider it done."

"Right, anything else?" Todoroki asks, sounding just slightly impatient.

Kaminari raises his hand again, sheepishly. "Uh, one more from the dumb guy?"

Todoroki sighs again, clearly almost regretting choosing him. "What this time?"

He turns to Ryumi again. "You said you can take my blasts just fine 'up to a point'?"

She nods. "Mm, yeah. It's hard on my batteries if they overcharge."

"Overcharge? What happens then?" Kaminari shoves his hands into his pockets and waits for her response.

Ryumi chuckles, deflecting the question. "Well, we wouldn't have much of a formation anymore. Put it that way."

"So..." He begins, but isn't quite sure where to go from there.

She turns to show her back to the others, spreading her wings out. "See these silvery marks?" She awkwardly reaches to point at the shiny, vein-like lines running along the webbing of her wings. "If there's sparks coming from them, try to hold off on using your power for a bit. I can always burn more energy faster to compensate, but I need a minute or two to adjust."

Kaminari grins and flashes a thumbs up. "Got it! I can do that."

Todoroki glares in his direction. "...Are you done now?"

"Yup. I'm great. Let's rock this!" The electric boy snaps his fingers and winks to the group.

Yaoyorozu shakes her head as a soft glow comes from her arm. A moment later, as her quirk finishes up, she hands Kaminari the requested glove and a pair of skates before sitting to put on some skates herself.

He takes them, but gets a quizzical look over the skates.

"We won't have to worry about synchronizing our movement speeds this way." She answers without even looking his direction.

"Right, that totally makes sense. Thanks!" Kaminari smiles to himself and sits to put the skates on. "Beauty and brains..." He mumbles as he works the laces.

Up on stage, Midnight stretches her shoulders, eyeing the media section of the audience with a playful smile. "Oh, goody. Your fifteen minutes are up, and it's time to get this party started."

"Hey, hey - wake up, Eraser!" Mic pokes his co-host's shoulder.

"Mm?" Aizawa opens his eyes but doesn't move from his relaxed position.

"After fifteen minutes, they've had time to form teams and talk strategy. And now all eleven teams are lined up and preparing to go head-to-head!" Mic calls out to the crowd - applause and cheers roar back in response.

Aizawa doesn't even take note, focused instead on the groups taking their places at the edges of the arena. "...Interesting. The teams they've come up with. Some unexpected combinations."

The screens flash up a series of images showing each team's members and point total for the benefit of the audience.

Team Midoriya: Iida, Uraraka, and Tokoyami (total: 10,000,485)

Team Tetsutetsu: Honenuki, Awase, and Shiozaki (total: 685)

Team Bakugo: Kirishima, Sero, and Ashido (total: 650)

Team Todoroki: Arisato, Kaminari, and Yaoyorozu (total: 625)

Team Hagakure: Jiro, Sato, and Koda (total: 385)

Team Monoma: Tsuburaba, Kuroiro, and Kaibara (total: 305)

Team Asui: Shoji and Hatsume (total: 295)

Team Shinso: Shoda, Aoyama, and Ojiro (total: 290)

Team Kendo: Yanagi, Tokage, and Komori (total: 225)

Team Rin: Tsunotori, Shishida, and Kamakiri (total: 195)

Team Kodai: Bondo and Fukidashi (total: 165)

"Come on, everyone get your hands in the air! Let's get a battle cry! Blood begets blood in the UA battle royale! Let me hear ya scream!" Mic yells, drawing an irritated glare from his companion.

A blonde boy from class B smirks at the leader of the team on his left. "Hey, Tetsutetsu."

Tetsutetsu glances at him. "Huh?"

"No hard feelings, okay?" The other boy asks, smugness barely concealed.

"Right!" He responds enthusiastically, throwing a fist in the air.

Present Mic continues his introduction of the event as the screens finish showing each team and flip over to display a scoreboard. "Okay all you first years! I hope you're happy with your chosen teams! Let's get this party started! One final countdown before the game starts!"

Bakugo cracks his knuckles. "Get 'im."

Todoroki calmly stares out at the same target. "...He's ours."

The screens flip over to a countdown.

Three...!

Two...!

One...!

Midnight points forward with her whip. "Begin!"

Chapter Text

All around the various teams start to run after one another, but of all of them Midoriya's team is under the most fire right away.

"This is basically one big battle for the ten million, and everyone knows it!" Tetsutetsu shouts as his team charges forward.

Not too far from them, a topless Hagakure is cackling madly as she rides atop her thoroughly embarrassed teammates. "Hah hah hah! We're coming for you, Midoriya! I'll be taking that headband!" Her three 'horses' are all blushing lightly, and doing their best to keep their eyes shifted away from their rider as much as possible - even though there's nothing to actually see.

"Incoming attacks right off the bat... two teams." Iida announces to the others.

"They're not even giving us a chance. Such is the fate of the pursued..." Tokoyami observes from the back-right of Midoriya's formation, while Dark Shadow lurks nearby, glancing around warily.

Iida hazards a quick look at their leader. "Make your choice, Midoriya!"

"Fate...! This is it..." Ochaco mumbles.

"That's easy. We're running away, of course!" Midoriya waves a hand, directing them away from the other teams.

Tetsutetsu's team surges ahead. "Don't think so!"

"Yeah!" The front horse on his team, another boy from class B with light hair and a skeletal-looking face calls out. As he steps, a trail extends from his foot to encompass Midoriya's team and they start to sink into the ground, as if the concrete had been replaced by quicksand.

"Tch...! The ground!" Iida struggles as he sinks, trying to keep his exhaust pipes from dipping below and clogging.

Ochaco worriedly looks between the various challengers coming for them and her own rapidly sinking feet. "What's happening?"

"We're sinking! It must be that guy's quirk! Uraraka, Tokoyami, you know what to do!" Midoriya puts on a determined face, though sweat drops bead and run down the edges of his forehead.

Tetsutetsu shouts in an almost playful tone. "I'm comin' for ya!"

"Right!" The gentle pink flash of Ochaco's quirk blinks across the team.

"Dark Shadow!" Tokoyami commands the demon.

"I got it..." The creature crows in its shrill voice, pushing off just as Iida fires his engines. With this effort, they all pull free of the softened ground, launching into the air.

"They're flying? Must be that damn bird guy! Get 'em!" Tetsutetsu turns his team around to give chase.

Hagakure nudges her front horse. "Jiro, now!"

"I know, I got it." She shoots out her ear jacks at the still-airborne team Midoriya, but Dark Shadow swings down and deflects with its claws. "Stupid bird!"

Tokoyami looks down at the clash as the demon returns to position. "Well done, Dark Shadow. Please continue to cover our blind spots."

Dark Shadow cries out cheerfully as his head flicks back and forth to scan for further attacks. "Gotcha!"

"Wow, that was awesome! Your shadow is just the defensive power we were lacking. Now we're covered at midrange from every direction! Good going, Tokoyami, you're amazing!" Midoriya smiles at his teammate, genuinely impressed with his power.

Tokoyami remains focused, responding in an even tone. "...You're the one who chose me."

"We're landing!" Ochaco warns as the ground rapidly approaches.

"Hang on everyone!" Iida braces himself. The landing is rough, but not as bad as it could have been since everyone is weightless except Ochaco. They come down on the opposite side of the field from where they leapt up.

"We'll go after them too! They're not that far away. Come on, Jiro, full speed ahead! Time for revenge..." Hagakure prods at her horses again.

"Hey, wait! Hagakure! Our headband's gone!" Sato stops short, shocked as he catches a glance at their leader's head and sees the points have vanished.

Hagakure panics, shifting around frantically and looking for the lost headband. "Whaa?! But when? Who--? How?! No!"

"Well, that was easy. Just call me an opportunist." The blonde class B boy smugly twirls Hagakure's 385-point band on his finger before slipping it around his own neck.

"Wow! Barely two minutes have passed since we started, but the battlefield's already chaotic! It's a total free for all! Yeah!" Mic leans forward and smacks the desk with both hands. "Watch those headbands! With everyone scrambling, it's not just the ten million out there! You could even ignore them and go after the other chart toppers - they're worth a shot as well!"

"Heh heh heh! A scramble? No, with the help of my cute little babies... this will be a total massacre!" An unseen manic voice starts giggling as Shoji charges toward Midoriya with his arms held up behind him forming something like a clam shell.

"Huh?! Shoji's alone? But this is a cavalry battle! Where's his team?" Midoriya looks around for an exit.

Tokoyami is scanning for a route too. "We must keep our distance. Fighting multiple foes is a bad idea, especially if we get caught between them."

Strange, sticky net-like webs fire from inside Shoji's arms, through the narrow gap above his head.

"Huh?! I'm stuck!" Ochaco struggles against the webbing that has caught one of her feet, repeatedly tugging on it.

Midoriya searches for the attack's source, but can't seem to locate it. "Where did that come from..."

"Heh heh heh. In here~" The same overly-cheery voice answers him, and the pink haired girl from the support course peeps out of the gap between Shoji's arms.

"Whoa! Is that legal?" He gasps as another sticky net flies just past his shoulder.

Midnight gestures to that part of the battle with her whip, as always. "Sure is! The judges say yes!"

Tsu's tongue fires out next, narrowly missing both Midoriya and Tetsutetsu's headbands. "Good job dodging. Impressive moves as usual, Midoriya. Ribbit." She also peeps out from the gap in Shoji's arms.

Midoriya ducks to avoid another barrage while his team tries to get free under him. "Oh man. Asui too! How many you got in there, Shoji?!"

"I told you to call me Tsu." She corrects, retreating and resuming the attack as her tongue lashes toward team Midoriya again.

"Team Asui's members are using their varied sizes to form less of a horse and more of a tank!" Mic dramatically points out at the field as he carries on with the play-by-play.

“A rational approach. Limiting their headband’s exposure to attack.” Aizawa calmly adds. “...But they’ll need more than one to advance.”

Tokoyami looks up at Midoriya and then to Iida, his voice a little harsher than usual. "Quickly, we must move!"

"Hang on, I'll get us freed up." Iida blasts his engines, the extra force tearing the spiderweb-like sticky fibers.

"Ahh! How dare you escape my sweet babies!" The support course girl howls and fires a few more of the nets in retaliation.

Just as team Midoriya escapes team Asui's attack, they come under fresh fire as Bakugo blasts toward them alone.

He wears a terrifyingly vicious grin as he speeds forward without his team, flying using the power of his explosions. "Getting pretty full of yourself, huh, you bastard! Don't think for a second that you're safe!"

Ochaco yelps at the sight and hurries up her pace.

"I've got you!" Bakugo snarls as he closes in, reaching for the headband.

Midoriya throws his arms up as a weak defense. "Tokoyami!"

Dark Shadow looms upward and forms a barrier between the team and Bakugo, keeping him from getting close enough.

The crowd in the stands erupts with cheers at the wild, risky move.

Bakugo growls, frustrated as his approach is blocked. "What the hell's that?" He's about to tumble to the floor when a line of sticky tape soars out and catches his shoulder.

A ways back with the rest of the crew, Sero tugs on the tape, reeling their wayward leader back in.

"Ohhhhh?! Bakugo has been separated from his horses! Is leaving your unit really allowed?" Mic yells in disbelief, while his co-host simply watches with silent interest, taking down occasional notes.

Landing roughly back on his teammates, Bakugo looks more annoyed than ever. "Tch."

Kirishima grins back at Sero. "Whoa, nice catch!"

On the referee's stage, Midnight gives a thumbs up in response to Mic. "He never touched the ground, so technically it's okay!"

"You heard her, folks! Still, what a crazy move from team Bakugo!" He stops to glance at the clock before continuing. "As expected, everyone's after the first-place team, giving them no time to catch their breath. What a show this is! But both the doggedly pursued first place team and its determined pursuers from class A are nothing to sneeze at! Now let's take a look at the current point spread... How are our teams doing after seven minutes of play?"

The TV screens retally the points...

1 - (A) Team Midoriya 10,000,485

2 - (B) Team Monoma 1,340

3 - (B) Team Tetsutetsu 980

4 - (B) Team Kendo 680

5 - (A) Team Todoroki 625

6 - (B) Team Rin 195

7 - (A) Team Bakugo 0

8 - (B) Team Kodai 0

9 - (A) Team Asui 0

10 - (C) Team Shinso 0

11 - (A) Team Hagakure 0

"...Ohh?! Hold on here. Wait just a second! This is an unexpected turn. Other than Midoriya, class A's not looking so hot... even Bakugo is losing! What happened?!" Mic shouts, waving his arms and partially blocking an increasingly frustrated Aizawa's view of the action.

Meanwhile, the blonde from class B slides past team Bakugo as they recover from catching their leader, snatching his headband. "Too simple, really. Class A." He grins, looking impossibly smug. "You're all too small minded. Think bigger."

"He got us!" Ashido cries.

"What did you say? Come back here!" Bakugo yells over his shoulder toward the enemy team, enraged. "Give that back! I'll freaking kill you!"

The other boy smirks at him. "When Midnight announced the first event, it didn't take a genius to realize they wouldn't be thinning our numbers that much right off the bat."

"Huh...?" Bakugo grumbles, still angry, but also a little unsure of what his new nemesis is getting at.

"It wasn't much of a stretch to imagine they'd be letting a good number of us advance to the next event. Forty or so seemed reasonable." The class B boy gestures grandly as he monologues about his master plan. "Then all we had to do was stay in the top forty as we ran. It was the perfect chance to hang back and observe our soon-to-be rivals' quirks and tendencies." He pauses for a patronizing smile at Bakugo. "Only a fool would obsess over winning the preliminary rounds, wouldn't you agree?"

Bakugo growls and sets his team chasing after them. His frustration with this guy is quickly getting out of control, and everyone can tell. "You planned this. The whole class was in on it...?"

"Well, not everyone, it wasn't unanimous... that wouldn't have been a bad idea, but I'd say it's still playing out well..." He responds, his team still not making much of an effort to get away.

One of the back horses, another boy from class B with messy dark hair nudges his leader. "Monoma. Hey, they're coming."

But Monoma waves him off to try and get in one last jab. "...Instead of aiming for some fleeting first place, like a horse going for a dangling carrot."

Bakugo twitches, and the sparks of tiny explosions crackle on his palms.

"Ah, but you're already a celebrity, aren't you?" Monoma turns away and finally starts his team moving, though he keeps shouting petty taunts as they flee. "The victim of that sludge villain incident! You'll have to tell me about it sometime. It must be strange to always find yourself in the role of the victim. So how does it feel to get attacked by villains on an annual basis?"

Bakugo grits his teeth, and his expression darkens. "Kirishima... we have a change of plans."

Kirishima throws a worried glance at his rider.

"Before we go take down Deku... we're gonna murder every last one of these B-list idiots...!" His face is practically demonic as he hisses out his orders, frightening the rest of his team.

"Don't provoke him, man. That's the kinda thing he would do." The dark-haired boy on Monoma's team warns.

Monoma just shrugs. "Yeah, I guess you're right. It's not very heroic of me. Besides, you know how these things work. Heroes are always being hounded by moronic villains desperate for some kind of revenge."

Behind them, Bakugo is seething, trembling with barely contained rage.

Kirishima looks over his shoulder as they try to close in on the other team. "Calm down, Bakugo. You gotta keep a level head. If you don't keep your cool, we'll never get our points back!"

In response Bakugo howls and punches into his palm, making a small explosion. "Shut up and keep moving, Kirishima! I've never been calmer. Can't you tell?"

"Come on, man. Please don't make us regret this..." Kirishima grumbles, clearly dubious.

"You think you're tough?" Bakugo lashes at Monoma and blasts him as soon as they close in, but the blonde just casually leans aside and taps his opponent's arm as it passes harmlessly by.

Bakugo turns to attack again, but he's forced back as another explosion goes off in his face.

"Ooh... That's neat! Wow. I see why you like this quirk!" Monoma sings, swiping at him again. The whole team shuffles back, but he still just barely tags Kirishima with a hand. "It sure is nice!"

A furious and lightly scorched Bakugo growls at the opposing leader. "That's my...!"

Kirishima pops his head up, confusedly staring at the smoke trails coming off Monoma's hand. "Whoa weird, he has your power too, Bakugo!"

"Damn it. You bastard!" Bakugo sends another explosion flying at his smug opponent.

But again, Monoma blocks him - this time by turning his arm and upper body into a hardened stone-like form. "But I'm better at it!" He smirks again. "You both have impressive powers. But I think you'll agree, mine's better."

Kirishima blinks, stunned. "Huh? Wha--?! My quirk? Am I looking in a mirror? He has mine too?"

"Bastard." Bakugo grumbles, but his tone has dropped from enraged to merely unimpressed. "Nah. This jerk's just a copycat. His quirk... he can copy other powers. Probably whoever he touches."

Monoma grins. "Ding ding! Very good." He speaks like he's praising a little kid or a dog. "Well, any idiot could figure out that much."

Bakugo moves to take the offensive again, but before he can close the gap a spray of thick glue forces his team back and sticks them in place.

"It's you, Bondo! Nice one. Thanks for the backup." Monoma waves to his classmate's team, specifically to the large yellowish boy with the strangely-shaped head who just bailed him out.

The dark-haired boy nudges his leader again. "Monoma! If we keep these headbands, we're good. As long as no one gets near us, we'll make our class proud."

"Stop them!" Bakugo presses his team to advance, not yet realizing they're stuck.

Beneath him, Kirishima struggles. The glue has hardened into something like concrete and he can't get his leg free. "Damn! It's all hard! Crap. I can't move!"

"No problem! My quirk should melt this gunk away!" Ashido lifts her foot out toward the base of the gluey mass and her acid sizzles at it.

Sero has started to actually worry too. "Well hurry up! We're sitting at zero points now!"

Monoma waves casually back to them as his team trots away. "Aw, don't be mad. No hard feelings, right? You brought this on yourself, after all. You provoked us. Hey... what was it you said in that little speech you made earlier? Oh, right. Oof. Seems kinda embarrassing now..." He turns and heads off. "Well, whatever. Thanks for the points!"

Bakugo seethes. "This isn't over. I'm still taking first place. First place... but not just first place, no. I'm taking the first to end all firsts! The undeniable champion!"

"Guys, don't worry. I think we'll be okay; it won't be too hard to evade..." Elsewhere on the field, Midoriya stops short as new challengers approach. He breathes to calm himself as he stares down Todoroki. "Or maybe... it won't be quite that easy. Guess I was wrong."

"As the cavalry battle enters its second half, it's anyone's game! Class 1-B has made an unexpected showing, but in the end... who will wear the ten-million-point crown? That's the real question, sports fans!" Mic calls out, and the crowd answers with a roar of cheers, whistles, and applause.

"We're... coming for you." Todoroki stares icily back at Midoriya. "I'll be taking that now."

Not far from the brewing standoff, Shoji mumbles behind his mask. "Teaming up with you two seemed like a good strategy. So how'd you lose our headband?"

Tsu hums thoughtfully, tapping her chin. "Not sure. But now we have nothing left to lose."

Hatsume cackles madly. "Hee hee hee. Right! On the attack!" She taps her goggles and points out the pair ahead of them. "Go for those two!"

Dark Shadow lurks ahead of Iida ready to intercept attacks, but staying low to keep the line of sight clear.

Tokoyami splits his attention between watching the demon and his own field of view. "Looks like this won't end without a fight... I didn't think this confrontation would happen until later in the contest."

"They're really gunning for you, Midoriya." Iida shuffles a bit to keep Todoroki's team in front of them.

Midoriya steels himself, wiping beads of sweat from his forehead. "We're only halfway through, so we've gotta keep moving! But there're multiple teams incoming! We can't stop now!"

Todoroki leans forward. "Arisato."

"You got it." Ryumi grins and tears off toward Midoriya's team at full speed, talons digging into the ground. "First name is still just fine, by the way..."

He ignores the request, continuing to hand out orders. "Yaoyorozu, prepare our defense. Be ready to protect us."

"Right! On it." She starts crafting something from her arm and another item from her stomach, a faint sparkling glow emanating from each.

"Kaminari. You..." Todoroki starts, only to be cut off.

"Yeah, I got it! I know what I gotta do, just stay alert!" Sparks play across Kaminari's free hand and he smiles deviously.

Midoriya frantically glances between the various threats all closing in on them. "Uh... Watch our surroundings! It's not just Todoroki. Everyone's after us!"

The sparks on Kaminari's arms get brighter and more numerous as he finishes charging up. "Hope you made something strong, Yaoyorozu!"

Ryumi chuckles at that. "I'm sure it's fine - any stray bolts in their direction will get pulled toward me anyway."

Todoroki silently pulls the insulation sheet up to shield the rest of the team just as Yaoyorozu finishes crafting it.

Seeing the shield in place, Kaminari's grin becomes wilder and he throws his arm out wide. "Indiscriminate shock! 1.3 million volts!"

Ryumi is only partially protected because of the angle, catching a much-reduced fraction of the blast. Fortunately, it's little enough to be just a nice boost, and not enough to risk an overcharge just yet.

The rest of the teams around don't fare nearly as well, stuck shaking in place as muscles not designed to take the overwhelming electrical signal spasm uncontrollably. Of the cluster of teams, only Midoriya's is still moving freely, thanks to Dark Shadow catching the majority of the bolts for them, though the bird demon is starting to look rough after that attack. He might not survive another.

Hagakure's team is among those caught, and front horse Jiro growls and struggles to regain control. "Kami...nari!"

With the blast over, Todoroki pulls back the insulation sheet. "Less than six minutes left. No turning back now. It's time to make a move." He grabs a long metal pole from Yaoyorozu in his right hand and touches it to the ground. Ice starts to creep down the pole. "Sorry. But there's no other way."

The ice explodes outward in an arc, sweeping through several teams still struggling against the electric shock. It crawls up their legs and locks them in place, making them easy prey for the others.

Hatsume flails on Shoji's back, searching for some support item that can help them. "Ack! Surely one of my babies..."

Shoji struggles but can't get free on his own.

Mic slams the desk in the announcer's box. "What's this now?! Will you look at that! Todoroki's taken out a herd of cavalry teams with one fierce attack!"

"He waited until they were stopped by Kaminari's shock before freezing them in place. I wouldn't expect any less..." Aizawa mumbles, more to himself than to the microphone in front of him. "In the obstacle course, he was surprised by how many people avoided his attack. He's adapting his strategy."

"Nice commentary!" His more enthusiastic co-host flashes a thumbs up. "I knew there was a reason we brought you."

Aizawa just glares in response.

As soon as the ice stops forming, Ryumi charges along the edge of the arc using her claws to keep traction. The chill is noticeable, but not too bad at this speed, and with the extra energy from Kaminari's attack it isn't a concern. As they pass by each frozen team Todoroki swipes the headbands and adds them to their growing collection.

"Argh! Our headband!" Another girl from class B calls after them, staring helplessly along with a boy wearing short dark braids who leads a different class B team.

Todoroki briefly holds the two bands aloft before slinging them both around his neck. "I'll be taking these."

The girl, who sports a fiery orange ponytail, shouts again. "Come back!"

The team next to hers glances around confused. "What? Mine too?"

As Ryumi and her team press forward to their ultimate goal, a vast wall of ice forms behind them, sectioning off one portion of the arena. It'll be just their team and Midoriya's.

Midoriya looks around nervously, though they escaped the first ice attack thanks to Dark Shadow's intervention, these fresh walls severely limit what options they have.

"They're too strong! We'll never get away!" Ochaco cries, peeking out around Iida's shoulder.

"I could run us over the ice walls, but she would just follow." Iida glares toward Ryumi. "And the slick surface would slow me down."

"I'll create a diversion!" Tokoyami lifts a hand and Dark Shadow surges toward Todoroki. "Take care of them!"

"Arisato, Yaoyorozu!" Todoroki raises his arms to protect the points around his head and neck.

"Chill... we're fine." Ryumi flares her wings back behind to block most of his body and neck, while Yaoyorozu creates something like a big metal flyswatter and smacks Dark Shadow with it.

Midoriya grits his teeth. "Her creation quirk! She's too good with it, we have to be careful."

Tokoyami shakes his head. "No... Kaminari's the real threat. The brightness of his electricity would wreck my armor... If the sun was any brighter today, that last attack would have destroyed Dark Shadow."

He gasps as he puts it together in his head. "Right! Kaminari's quirk... I get it, his lightning is our biggest problem."

"As long as he keeps using his quirk, I don't have a shot. It will be very difficult for me to attack." Tokoyami sighs at the demon, who has retreated back to float by his side. "The little guy's so fickle. He's too timid in the light."

Dark Shadow sniffles sadly. "...Violence solves nothing... can't we all just get along...?"

Ochaco yelps as they reach the edge of the arena, ice walls blocking them on both sides. They're truly cornered now.

"Team Midoriya has nowhere left to run!" Mic yells, driving the dire situation home.

Midoriya looks out at Todoroki's team closing in on them. The two of them are now in their own miniature arena, apart from the rest of the battle. "So you have less offensive power now, but they don't know that, right?"

Tokoyami shifts his feet and lowers his stance. "Probably. The only ones I ever told about my weakness are Koda and Ryumi, back at the USJ. And Koda is a man of very few words."

Iida glances back at him with a start. "But Arisato - she's on that team!"

The bird boy shakes his head again. "If she's as good as her word, then she hasn't said anything to the others."

"Huhh? Why not?" Ochaco is keeping a close eye on her feet, making sure nobody stumbles over the red line they've been forced up against.

As the teams slowly shift positions and circle each other looking for an opening, Tokoyami quietly explains to the others. "...She approached me several days ago, and promised to keep my weakness quiet as long as I didn't reveal anything about her quirk."

"That seems like a bad strategy for her, although..." Iida hums. "...Perhaps she's also keeping something in reserve."

Midoriya takes a breath, still thinking. "Okay, we can use that... as long as they don't know, we can fake them out! We'll be fine! And the ten million points will stay with us!"

Chapter Text

"Only about a minute left! Todoroki has made his own little arena, cornering the ten-million-point team, and is primed to snatch the ultimate prize in an instant!" Present Mic continues. "Or so we thought. At least, that's what I would have predicted - but it's been five minutes now! Unbelievably, team Midoriya's managed to evade Todoroki inside this small space for five whole minutes!"

"Keep away from them!" Midoriya insists, perhaps more harshly than he means to.

Iida is sweating from the effort of constant dodging and repositioning. "I'm trying!"

Ryumi throws a glance back at her team leader. "Todoroki."

"What?" His response has the slightest edge of irritation under his usual calm.

"You've been holding back because you're worried about freezing me, right? Because of the angle they're staying at?" She grins, showing her fangs. "Don't." Sparks cascade off the backs of her wings as she flexes them. "I'm all charged up - as long as the ice isn't too thick around my legs, I can bust out no problem."

Todoroki sounds skeptical. "You're sure?"

"Oh yeah." Ryumi looks back at him. "Tell me when you're ready, and make sure you get the headband."

"Do it, then." And with that, he sweeps his right hand up, sending a massive wave of ice at the others. Ryumi does get caught, as expected, but with a surge of strength she rips herself free, shattering the crystal around her feet just as the freeze grips Midoriya's team.

Midoriya is in shock at the risky play. "Hitting his own teammate?"

"We have bigger problems!" Iida interrupts his awe, struggling once again to get free.

Ryumi rushes them and before they can even begin to formulate a plan to escape, the ten million is in Todoroki's hands. The crowd above erupts with excitement at the rapid shift in scores.

"Whoa! What a shocking turn! Or more like a freezing one!" Mic grins at Aizawa, nudging him with an elbow. "Todoroki froze his own team to get to Midoriya, but Arisato broke free easily, allowing them to snag the points!"

Aizawa shakes his head at his co-host's poor joke before moving on. "Taking advantage of the strength boost she received from Kaminari's earlier attacks."

"Insanity! What a reversal! This entire game was just turned completely on its head! Todoroki's got the ten million points! And Midoriya's plummeted straight down to zero! With just one minute left, Todoroki's got four headbands - and a solid grip on first place!" Mic cheers, riling up the audience again.

The scoreboard updates...

1 - (A) Team Todoroki 10,001,470

2 - (B) Team Monoma 1,340

3 - (B) Team Tetsutetsu 980

4 - (B) Team Kendo 515

5 - (A) Team Midoriya 0

6 - (B) Team Rin 0

7 - (A) Team Bakugo 0

8 - (B) Team Kodai 0

9 - (A) Team Asui 0

10 - (C) Team Shinso 0

11 - (A) Team Hagakure 0

"Charge them! Don't let them go!" Midoriya cries desperately.

"I can't attack as long as Kaminari's there! Going after someone else's points is our best bet..." Tokoyami asserts, and Dark Shadow whimpers and nods in agreement.

But Midoriya insists. "No good! Can't you see the difference in points?! This is our only chance!"

"Then let's go!" Ochaco alone remains encouraging, a determined look hardening her soft features.

"Trying... there!" Iida finally frees himself, using the heat from his exhaust pipes to gradually loosen the ice.

Ryumi chuckles at their efforts. "Good luck with that!" She turns, looking over her shoulder to the others. "Hang on, okay?"

Yaoyorozu tightens her grip on Ryumi, knowing what to expect. With a heavy beat of her wings, the whole team takes to the air. Kaminari yelps and nearly loses his hold, but hangs on - barely. Todoroki does an impressive job of not reacting but even he briefly grabs onto Ryumi's shoulder to steady himself until they settle at height.

Present Mic jumps out of his seat. "Ooh! What will team Midoriya do now? Arisato has lifted the ten million way out of reach! Have we found our top four teams for this event?"

Across the field and away from the ice arena, Monoma is grinning and waving to the crowd above, clearly loving the attention. "Second place, huh? Seems too good to be true. Let's focus on keeping what we've got. We've done pretty well for ourselves, now we can just let the clock run out."

The front horse on Monoma's team grumbles to himself. "Wish the crowd would shut up."

"Wait just one stinkin' minute! Losers! Get back here!" Bakugo howls.

Monoma sighs, glancing over his shoulder with all the energy and attention one might give to a somewhat obnoxious gnat. "Ah... Persistent, aren't you? Knowing when you've been bested is an important part of being a hero. That sort of tenacity is..."

Bakugo leaps from his horses and blasts off, leaving his team far behind and startling Monoma into losing his train of thought.

"Get back here, Bakugooooo! Don't just fly off on your own!" Yells a concerned Kirishima, as the team hurries along to follow their rogue leader.

Todoroki eyes Bakugo as he takes to the air. "Arisato."

"I know, I've got eyes on him. Luckily, he should be the only one we have to really worry about..." Ryumi answers, watching carefully and ready to maneuver if needed. Luckily, it seems like he’s busy chasing a grudge again instead of focusing on the real goal.

Monoma's aloof attitude crumbles quickly as he's caught off guard by the attack. "Tsuburaba, guard! Stop him!"

"Got it!" He takes a deep breath, exhaling upward toward Bakugo.

A slight, nearly imperceptible shimmer in the air is the only hint that something has changed, until Bakugo crashes into a solid wall.

Tsuburaba grins at his handiwork. "A'right!"

"Tch!" Bakugo smears across the barrier, hanging in midair. He snarls and starts punching at it repeatedly.

"Ha ha! How d'ya like that? It's an invisible wall! You look pretty stupid fighting with air." Tsuburaba laughs as his team makes their escape, confident in the barrier between them and their attacker.

Bakugo winds up and punches straight through the barrier, shattering it like a piece of plate glass. He clings to the fragments and grabs two of Monoma's headbands before Sero catches him and reels him back in once again.

Monoma frantically grabs at his neck as they flee. "Crap, he got two of them!"

Present Mic eagerly calls out the action. "Team Bakugo's stolen two, putting them in third place! A late shake-up in the rankings! That's the spirit of youth for ya!"

"...Don't start talking like Midnight." Aizawa mutters.

The scoreboard updates again...

1 - (A) Team Todoroki 10,001,470

2 - (B) Team Tetsutetsu 980

3 - (A) Team Bakugo 690

4 - (B) Team Monoma 650

5 - (B) Team Kendo 515

6 - (A) Team Midoriya 0

7 - (B) Team Rin 0

8 - (B) Team Kodai 0

9 - (A) Team Asui 0

10 - (C) Team Shinso 0

11 - (A) Team Hagakure 0

There's blood in the water now. Where the various class B teams once worked to protect Monoma's lead, now a few of them try to jump on the opportunity. Tsuburaba blows another air wall, fending off an attack from the front, while Monoma's copied version of his quirk blocks another from Bondo, coming at them from behind.

A little worry is creeping in for the formerly smug copycat. "Damn..."

Tsuburaba senses his leader's concern. "It's fine. We're still in fourth! And Kendo's not going anywhere, frozen like that..."

Monoma nods, gripping the 650 band tightly to protect it. "Right! Just have to guard this one with our lives and we'll move forward."

"I told you to give us some warning before you jump!" Sero shouts at Bakugo as he pulls him back in.

Ashido winces as Bakugo lands heavily back in place.

Kirishima shoots a look at the others. "Whatever, this means we're advancing."

"We're not done yet!" Bakugo roars, directing them forward.

Sero gapes in shock. "Huh?!"

Bakugo leans forward and hits Kirishima on the head repeatedly to punctuate his words. "I'm not settling for some half-assed first place! We're gonna be the undisputable champions of the game!"

Aizawa perks up a little as this exchange unfolds. "Now, look at this... class 1-B's strategy was a reasonable one, but there's one thing they forgot to consider."

"I couldn't brace myself earlier when I jumped. So move! Get closer! We're taking our points back from this idiot. And then, the ten million!" Bakugo growls down at his horses.

Kirishima grins, and Ashido looks surprised, but pleased.

Sero joins them and smiles too. "This guy! Let's do it!"

"Elbows! Tape, now!" He calls out, leaning away to allow him a clear shot.

"My name's Sero!" He argues back, but launches his tape forward as instructed.

Monoma looks briefly concerned, then turns rapidly back to cocky as the tape hits the ground next to them. "You missed."

Bakugo leans the other way next. "Raccoon eyes! Lay down some acid in the direction we're going!"

Ashido grumbles, but splashes out mild acid ahead of them, lightly bonking Kirishima's shoulder as she puts her hand out. "It's Mina. Mina Ashido!"

Bakugo holds his hands out behind them and fires, launching the whole team down the prepared path at high speed, like a car fitted with rocket engines.

Team Monoma tries to defend with another air barrier, but Bakugo has a heavy blast at the ready that smashes right through without delaying them for a second. They slide past the enemy team, snatching the 650 band with ease in the transition, and leaving Monoma with nothing once again. The crowd roars at the display of power.

There's a hint of a smile on Aizawa's face. "Class 1-B didn't take into account his overwhelming tenacity... they couldn't see or match it."

Mic completely jumps over his co-host's words. "Bakugo! Absolutely merciless! What a perfectionist! What a point hog! That was a shield break heard 'round the arena, and I can't wait to watch the replay! Anything worth doing is worth over-doing, I say!"

"...Of course you would." Aizawa softly hits back.

Present Mic nudges him with a playful grin. "Plus Ultra, right? We're nearing the end of the game!"

With target number one down, Bakugo turns toward the ice wall splitting the arena and glares upward. "Next up! Deku and Todoroki!"

On the far side of the ice, Ochaco shuffles her feet, trying to keep from total despair. "Ahh! How will we get to them now?"

A moment of quiet passes, then Iida speaks up. "...Midoriya. I can get us the speed, if Tokoyami can give us a boost and I use the ice as a ramp..."

"Iida...?" He looks down at his friend.

Iida smiles gently at him. "Just be sure to get it, okay?"

Midoriya nods, resolute. "Got it. Tokoyami?"

"Of course." He responds, and Dark Shadow shifts into position to push off and get them airborne.

"Here we go!" Midoriya calls out, pointing toward Todoroki's team high above.

Ochaco has recovered her determined look. "We're getting it back, Deku! No doubt!"

"Uraraka!" The faith his friends put in him warms Midoriya's spirit.

"Get ready." Iida leans down and his engines spit azure flares. "Recipro... burst!"

A blur of speed, and Iida pulls the team toward the highest point of the ice wall. He slows a little on the slick surface, but at this velocity it’s hardly noticeable. They charge up the ramp and Dark Shadow pushes at the last second, throwing them into the sky for a brief moment.

In the space of a blink, Midoriya's determined face appears before the fliers of team Todoroki. Power glows in his right arm as he reaches for the headbands. Todoroki puts his arms up to block, and as Midoriya's fingers close in, his left arm erupts in flames to force his attacker back.

"Twenty seconds!" Mic announces. This will be their last shot.

But the force of air pressure from Midoriya's quirk pushes through the defense and extinguishes the flames.

"Todoroki!" Ryumi starts to push back to get them out of Midoriya's reach, but it's too late and he snags one before she can move them far.

"I got it! I really got it!" Midoriya cheers as the team lands roughly back on the ground just outside of the ice arena. "That's it, we did it!"

Present Mic waves his arms and calls out again. "Seventeen seconds remain! And we have another fierce recovery! Team Midoriya's back in the game!"

"Ryumi, why'd you let them get so close?!" Kaminari frets.

She snarls back at him. "I didn't think we had to worry about Midoriya... I was busy watching for the people who can actually fly."

Yaoyorozu huffs, without a hint of concern. "Calm down, both of you. We're fine - right, Todoroki?"

Todoroki checks the headbands and nods absently, clearly still distracted.

Ochaco panics as she finally notices the band in her leader's hand after the difficult landing. She's the only one who sees the number. "Wait a second. That headband... it's the wrong one!"

Midoriya lifts it up and stares in horror at the 195 band in his hand. "They tricked us!"

Up above, Ryumi glances over her shoulder, Todoroki is shaking and clutching his left arm. "You good?" She resights Bakugo, he's still the biggest threat in her mind. "Stay focused, it's almost over."

Yaoyorozu calls down to their hopeful rivals. "We switched the headbands around just in case! There's no way we'd leave the prize on top. Too naive, Midoriya! You underestimate us."

The scoreboard updates...

1 - (A) Team Todoroki 10,001,1275

2 - (A) Team Bakugo 1,340

3 - (B) Team Tetsutetsu 980

4 - (B) Team Kendo 515

5 - (A) Team Midoriya 195

6 - (B) Team Monoma 0

7 - (B) Team Rin 0

8 - (B) Team Kodai 0

9 - (A) Team Asui 0

10 - (C) Team Shinso 0

11 - (A) Team Hagakure 0

Present Mic lays a hand on his chest and feigns a devastated look. "Oh no! Team Midoriya didn't get the ten million points after all! And time's almost up. Let's count down. Hey, everybody say..."

A buzzer sounds, the scoreboards flash big numbers up, and the crowd joins Mic in calling them out...

Ten...

Nine...

Midoriya charges toward the space under team Todoroki, desperate for points. Dark Shadow reaches upward, but Kaminari has his free hand at the ready to defend.

Eight...

Seven...

Bakugo blasts off from his team toward Todoroki, and Ryumi beats her wings to pull them away. She only has to buy a few seconds.

Six...

Five...

The insulation sheet is pulled around team Todoroki again, and Kaminari unleashes what's left of his power to force Bakugo and Dark Shadow back.

Four...

Bakugo deftly adjusts his trajectory to keep out of Kaminari's range until the discharge has finished and he can resume his pursuit. Team Midoriya tries in desperation to repeat their previous trick, but with Iida's engines stalled, they can't get nearly enough height, and Ryumi is watching for them now.

Three...

Two...

Yaoyorozu creates a fresh metal pole for Todoroki. He takes it and covers it with ice, forming something like a lance.

"Damnit, icyhot!" Bakugo shouts as he closes in.

One...

"Time’s up!" Mic yells, and the end round buzzer sounds.

Everyone stops dead in their tracks, Bakugo landing gracelessly on his own face as he drops to the ground. His team hurries to catch up with him below, though their rush decreases after he hits the floor. Midoriya crumples up, clenching his teeth and fists from the disappointing failure.

The various teams below disassemble their formations, and Ryumi carefully brings hers down to the ground.

Sero trots over to his fallen leader. "Bakugo!"

"Are you okay, man?" Kirishima asks, following close behind.

Bakugo strikes the ground with his fist in anger, still lying face down in the dirt.

Todoroki climbs down from the formation, still looking dazed. "Damn..."

Ryumi smiles a little at Bakugo's display. "Ending two rounds on the floor? That can't be a good feeling, even if you still placed okay."

He snarls as he pulls himself to a sitting position, but otherwise seems to ignore her.

"Now, let's take a look at who our top four teams are!" Mic waits as the score screen retallies. "In first place, Team Todoroki!"

"Hell yeah! Go us!" Kaminari cheers and raises his (ungloved) hand for a high-five.

Ryumi goes for it, generating a shower of sparks as their hands connect.

He yipes and pulls his hands close to his chest, drawing snickers from the dragon girl. "Ack. I forgot..."

"We ended in first place, but it was too close for comfort." Yaoyorozu smiles at their antics as she delicately wipes the sweat from her own forehead.

"Sorry about that. I should've guessed Midoriya would come up with something wild, after what he pulled on the race..." Ryumi brushes a hand through her hair and pulls her wings close to her back.

Yaoyorozu shakes her head and gently pats her friend's shoulder. "No, you're fine. You're the reason we won - without your flight we might not have held onto those headbands as easily as we did."

She puts on a relieved smile, and turns to their silent leader. "What, aren't you happy?"

Todoroki doesn't answer, still staring vacantly at his left hand.

Ryumi shoots a look back at Yaoyorozu, who shrugs.

Present Mic continues his announcement as the scores slowly reveal themselves on the screens. "In second place, Team Bakugo!"

Ashido whines, looking skyward in despair and waving her hands. "Ughhh. We were so close to first plaaaaace."

Sero doesn't seem bothered though. He's grinning, holding a hand out in front of himself. "Meh, sure. But we're movin' on, so it's all good."

Kirishima runs a hand through his hair, a slightly embarrassed smile on his face. "I don't think our leader would agree with you." He turns and looks at Bakugo, who is still sitting on the ground and growling in frustration. "Like... at all."

Bakugo slumps forward and howls.

"In third, Team Tetsu... Huh?! Wait, what?" Mic stops and rechecks the scoreboard. "Whoa! Team Shinso? When did they come back from the dead?"

Shinso smirks back at his confused and embarrassed teammates. "Thanks for all your help."

Behind him, Aoyama has gloomily turned his back to the others, Ojiro is glancing around confused, and the round-faced boy from class B is just staring blankly ahead.

Present Mic keeps quietly rechecking the points even as he continues talking. "Who saw that turnaround coming? Who even saw it happen?!"

"Deku." Ochaco approaches him.

Midoriya is looking away from the rest of his team, trembling, with a sorrowful look. "Um... Guys, I'm so sorry... really..." As he finishes mumbling the words out, he barely musters the courage to turn and look at her and Iida.

Ochaco points at Tokoyami, who's standing quietly in back. She's trying hard to keep a straight face, but she's failing and giggling a little behind her other hand. Iida smiles at Midoriya, and nods in Tokoyami's direction, arms folded.

"I must apologize." Tokoyami begins, opening his eyes and looking straight at his fearful leader. "Todoroki was clearly shaken by your first attack. I did my best to nab the ten million, but... things didn't go as planned. I came up short."

Midoriya's eyes grow watery as he slowly moves from shame to cautious hope.

"Still, I got another one." Dark Shadow slowly pops up over his shoulder, the 625 headband dangling from its beak. "I managed to get the one on his head when he dropped his guard. Midoriya... you created the opening for me. That last-ditch effort of yours left Todoroki open." Dark Shadow gives a thumbs up and seems to have a bit of a smile on its blurry features.

Present Mic's voice booms from above. "And in fourth place is... Team Midoriya!"

Midoriya immediately falls to his knees, sobbing. This draws a good-natured smile from Iida, some laughs from Ochaco, and causes Dark Shadow to retreat after dropping the headband into Tokoyami's waiting hand. Ochaco slides over behind her teammate to pet the little shadow creature. It seems to appreciate the praise, nuzzling her hand.

"These four valiant teams will advance on to the final round!" Mic continues, as cheers erupt from the audience once again.

Todoroki mumbles to himself, staring at his hand. He doesn't seem like he's been paying attention to any of it, lost in his own thoughts. "No... how could I let that... I said I'd never use this to attack... but as soon as I was overwhelmed, I broke my own promise." He curls his left hand into a fist. "It's just what my old man expected... at this rate, he'll win and I'll end up becoming exactly who he wants me to be."

Ryumi looks away from the celebrations of her other teammates to watch him. Something about that... But she can't quite place it, and a poke from Kaminari quickly pulls her thoughts away from the subject.

"Now, we'll proceed to the afternoon portion after a one-hour lunch break! See ya soon!" Mic turns to his co-host. "Hey, Eraser Head. Let's grab some food."

"I'm taking a nap." He replies, kicking his feet up on the desk, leaning back in his chair, and laying his scarf over his eyes.

Present Mic stares at him, mouth agape. "Wha--?"

Tetsutetsu dejectedly mutters to himself. "What the hell happened to us? How'd we end up with zero points...?"

Next to him, the vine haired girl looks shameful and clasps her hands close to her chest. "Maybe it was some sort of karmic punishment for taking the frog's headband. It was so underhanded..."

Tetsutetsu yells and clutches his head. "No fair! I want a do-over!"

As the event winds down and folks start to move toward the cafeteria, Tsu wanders over to Ashido. "This sucks. But congrats all the same, Mina."

"Meh..." Ashido ruffles her own hair, looking away, dejected. "Thanks, but Bakugo only picked me because I could melt Todoroki's ice. It's not like, y'know, I really helped that much. This win doesn't really say anything about my strength." She pauses, then grumbles under her breath. "...He couldn't even remember my name..."

Nearing the edge of the field, Ochaco mimes Iida's distinctive running pose. "Iida! I can't believe you were hiding that super-secret move! I had no idea you could do that!"

Iida adjusts his glasses and waves dismissively. "It's a good strategy to keep a few cards in reserve for the right opportunity, to surprise your opponents." He eyes Ryumi as she heads off with (most) of her team toward lunch. "Arisato clearly felt the same."

Tokoyami nods thoughtfully, eyes closed. "Indeed. It should be interesting... She's hiding something, even now." He folds his arms, reopening his eyes to look toward Iida. "But I'm bound by my word. She obviously didn't say anything to her team, or they would have been much more aggressive."

Dark Shadow pops up and covers its beak with its hands like it's suppressing a laugh. "It's going to be great~" It crows, in a weirdly sing-song-y tone.

Tokoyami pushes the shadow back into his body. "Anyhow. Lunch?"

"Let's go!" Ochaco nods enthusiastically.

Iida nods and falls in alongside them as they start walking. "Really though, I was just hoping to measure up to Midoriya. I know many in class don't think much of his ability, but his determination and commitment to improve are..."

Ochaco cuts him off. "...Men. Always measuring their... Hey, wait. Where's Deku, anyway? He was just here." She looks back and forth, scanning the crowd, but there's no sign of the green haired boy anywhere.

Iida shades his eyes and looks around as well, but as he fails to find anything, he shrugs. "Perhaps he went on ahead? I'm sure he'll turn up."

Chapter Text

Kaminari balls up the wrapper from his hamburger and starts idly picking at the pile of fries on his tray. "So, explain this to me again... I'm totally with you on Todoroki, but Bakugo..." He trails off, pointing a fry at Ryumi sitting across the table.

Ryumi snatches the fry out of his hand with her chopsticks and eats it. "I thought I was pretty clear before..."

Kaminari looks wounded over the stolen fry and pulls his tray an inch closer. "I'm slow, alright? Just explain it again."

Yaoyorozu shakes her head as she pokes at her salad. "It's impolite to talk about others when they aren't around."

"Well, one of them is a big jerk and the other totally ditched us after the match - he could've been here if he wanted to be." Kaminari asserts, dipping a fry in ketchup and munching it. "So I say it's fine. Besides, I'm just asking her opinion. It's not like we're gossiping."

Yaoyorozu still looks displeased and carries on eating, trying to stay out of it.

Ryumi swirls her ramen with her chopsticks. "Well, the short and simple version is I dealt with a lot of people like Bakugo when I was in middle school. In my experience, the guys who have to yell the loudest about how great they are, how much better they are than you... They're really nothing special." She pauses to slurp up some noodles. "So, it follows that the people who are clearly strong, but don't constantly talk about how great they are - they're the ones to watch out for."

Kaminari tilts his head to the side. "But Bakugo is super strong too. Maybe he's not on Todoroki's level, but he's still way powerful."

Ryumi just shrugs, tapping the end of her tail against the leg of her chair. "You don't have to believe me. Bakugo is powerful, sure, and probably a little unstable, but at least you can tell what he's thinking most of the time."

Kaminari sinks into the table and lazily noms another fry. "Yeah, usually it's 'die!' or, 'get out of my way, extra!'..." He performs a passable impression of Bakugo, and pokes his tongue out.

"Exactly. He's predictable." Ryumi swipes another of Kaminari's fries while his guard is down. "Which makes him easy to manipulate. Remember in the combat training, how Midoriya caught his right hook and threw him?"

"But he improved and changed his strategy after that." Yaoyorozu adds, without looking up from her salad.

"Oh, now you're not too good for this chat, huh?" Kaminari jokes, grinning at her.

Yaoyorozu sighs, turns to the girl next to her. "Actually, Ryumi... I wanted to ask before, but there hasn't been much of a chance..." She lays down her chopsticks, having finished as much of the salad as she intends to. "Were you really serious about that, back in the locker room?"

Kaminari suddenly sits upright, looking like a lightbulb just flashed on in his head. "Oh yeah - I was wondering about that too. I mean, I get you don't like the guy, but that felt super aggressive."

Ryumi has a distant look in her eyes, staring out past her teammates at seemingly nothing in particular. "...I sounded serious, didn't I?"

The pair look at each other, then back to Ryumi.

Kaminari is the first to hazard a response. "Well, yeah... I think that's why we're worried about it."

Ryumi carefully picks up her bowl to drink from it, hiding her face. "The way he treats his 'friend' Midoriya doesn't worry you?"

He shrugs. "I dunno, man. They've known each other since they were kids, right? Maybe that's just how they are."

Ryumi lays down the empty bowl and her chopsticks, staring down at them. "Look, I just... I can't stand bullies. That's all there is to it." She stands, picking up her tray. "...Anyway, I wanna go check something quick before things kick off again. I'll catch you guys in a bit?"

Kaminari stares blankly, confused. "Uh, sure..." He barely gets the words out before she walks off to return her tray, quickly disappearing into the crowd.

A quiet moment passes. He frowns and looks back at Yaoyorozu as he finishes off his fries. "Well, that didn't answer anything."

"...But it does imply some things." She too starts collecting her trash and gets ready to return her tray.

Kaminari reaches for it before she can get up. "Hey, let me get that for you." He stacks it with his own and heads off.

"Oh, thank you." She seems a little distracted, still pondering what her friend had said.

On his way back from the tray return, Kaminari passes by a group of cheerleaders, and a devious grin forms on his face - though he's hidden it again by the time he arrives at the table. "Oh hey, don't you need to go get ready?"

Yaoyorozu blinks at him, drawn from her thoughts. "Huh? Ready for what, exactly?"

Kaminari feigns exasperation. "The cheer routine, duh. Aizawa told me to remind you." He points to the other cheerleaders across the cafeteria. "All the girls are supposed to join them."

Yaoyorozu looks around confused, quickly becoming a little flustered. "B-but we don't have uniforms, or..."

He shrugs and turns away from her. "Hey man, it's your head. If you wanna risk making sensei mad..."

"Oh - ah... Alright, I better hurry." An uncertain Yaoyorozu rushes off to collect the other girls.

Kaminari grins proudly to himself, already imagining the glorious sight.

But his fantasy is disrupted when Bakugo bumps into him. "Hey, sparkplug, watch it." He growls, then notices Yaoyorozu running off in a big hurry, and throws a suspicious glance at the boy next to him. "...What are you up to?"

Kaminari nervously ruffles his hair. "Nothing, dude, chill..." He mumbles and swiftly slips away.

Lunch ends, and everyone reassembles in the main field. The stands are a little thin yet, but the audience members are still gradually trickling back in.

"Before we get to the main event, I've got good news for all of those who didn't make the finals! Since this is still a sports festival, we've prepared some super fun side games for all participants! We even brought in cheerleaders from America to get you pumped up..." Mic stops his announcement as something catches his eye. He adjusts his sunglasses and shades his eyes to get a better view. "Hmm? What's this?"

Aizawa grumbles. "What're they doing?"

"Class A? Why?!" Mic calls out.

All the girls of class A are dressed in bright orange and white cheerleader outfits bearing the UA logo, and all of them look completely dejected - except Hagakure and Ryumi, who basically look like they're just going along for the ride, though Hagakure honestly seems kind of into it.

Yaoyorozu raises a pompom menacingly and shouts across the field. "Kaminari! You tricked us?! You're gonna regret this!"

Kaminari sheepishly waves and grins at the girls from across the field, flashing a thumbs up.

"How'd I let myself get fooled by his stupid prank..." Yaoyorozu mumbles, falling to her knees and staring at the grass.

Ochaco kneels down and gently pats her on the back.

Ryumi pops up from leaning against the outer wall with an easy, good-natured smile on. "I mean, you should have been suspicious of Kaminari to begin with... especially since you had to come up with the uniforms."

Jiro grumbles and throws her pompoms, facing the wall to hide the color rising in her cheeks. "That idiot... Ugh! I hate that guy!"

Meanwhile Hagakure cheerily shakes her pompoms and prances between the others. "Well, we do still have a little time before the finals start, and I kinda like these uniforms, so... No sense in sitting around..." She jumps up and waves her arms excitedly. "Why not just go with it? Could be fun!"

"Are you crazy?!" Jiro spins around and glares at her.

"You're enjoying this, Toru. And you've got skills." Tsu observes, in her usual flat tone.

Present Mic moves on with the program while the girls argue over what to do now. "Have fun competing in these little side games, everyone! Once that's over, we're on to the final event. Between the sixteen members of the four winning teams, we'll have a formal tournament! A series of one-on-one battles! I promise you're not gonna wanna miss these epic matchups!"

"I'm with Toru - we're already here, may as well go with it." Ryumi unfolds her arms, and tugs at the edge of her skirt. "Though, to be honest, orange isn't really my color..."

Yaoyorozu frowns at her. "If you were so sure it was a trick, why didn't you stop me?"

The dragon girl shrugs. "Honestly, I think we can turn this to our advantage."

Jiro tosses a skeptical, annoyed look her way. "Yeah? How's that?"

Ryumi flexes her wings and strikes a cute pose, leaning forward slightly with her knees pulled together and arms held close to her chest. "How well do you think those boys will be able to focus during the next round if they've been staring at us, hm?" She winks to the group.

Jiro huffs and straightens, a slight blush returning to her face. "Okay. I'm in."

"Yesssss! Let's go, ladies!" Hagakure bounces around. "C'mon!"

At a signal from Midnight, everyone gathers around the main stage.

"A tournament, huh? So we'll be up in that ring I see on TV every year!" Kirishima balls his hands into fists and shows his sharky grin. "Aw yeah. Finally gettin' the chance to show what we're made of."

Ashido pops up next to him. "Was it a tournament last year too? Is it always a tournament?"

Sero looks excitedly over his shoulder at the two of them. "The format's different on each year, but the finals always involve some kind of one-on-one competition. Last year it was a foam sword fighting match."

Midnight waits on the stage, holding a small box. "The matchups will be decided by drawing lots. Once that's settled, we'll move on to the festivities and then the tournament itself! It's up to each of you sixteen finalists whether or not you participate in the fun. I expect some of you would rather take a breather and save your strength." She covers the hole in the top of the box and shakes it gently. "Now, let's start with the first-place team..."

Before anyone else can move, Ojiro raises his hand. "Um... Excuse me." His tail droops, and he looks upset. "Sorry, but I'd... like to drop out."

Midoriya turns to him, shocked. "Ojiro! No way. Why?!"

"But this is your chance to get noticed by the pros and get scouted!" Iida adds, butting in.

"It just wouldn't be right." He lowers his hand and sighs. "The cavalry battle... I have barely any memories of anything that happened up until the tail end of it. It's probably his quirk that did it..." Ojiro gestures toward Shinso, who turns away. "I know this is a great opportunity. And I know how stupid it must seem to throw it away... I wish I could take advantage of it, but my conscience won't let me."

Midoriya steps closer to him, almost pleading. "Ojiro... just think about this."

Ojiro curls one hand into a fist and grimaces. "I have, okay? But this final tournament... Everyone else made it here by their own strength. They gave their all in round two, but I was just someone's puppet. No way." His expression falls, becoming sad but determined. "I don't wanna advance if I don't even know how or why I got here. I just can't take it. It wouldn't be fair."

"You're thinking about it too hard! Just show what you're made of in the tournament! Kill it in the finals and prove that you should be here!" Hagakure pops up behind him and shakes her pompoms in his direction.

Ashido approaches him too. "Yeah, what she said! By that logic, I also shouldn't be here! I didn't do much in the battle either."

Ojiro covers his face with a hand and pulls his tail close. "No... That's not it. I'm talking about my pride, here... I refuse to give that up. I don't think it's right." He briefly peeks between his fingers and shrinks back from Hagakure, mumbling. "...And why the heck are you girls dressed like cheerleaders anyway...?"

A few of the girls (but mainly Yaoyorozu and Jiro) slide quietly back into the group, embarrassed.

Midoriya looks uncertain, like he wants to go comfort him but doesn't know how.

A short haired, round-faced boy who was also in Shinso's team steps up and makes a fist. "Nirengeki Shoda, from class 1-B. I can't remember anything either... I think I should withdraw for the same reason. Regardless of how strong I am, this isn't how I wanted to get here. And it would go against the values of the festival to advance without earning my spot."

"Listen to these guys! They're so manly!" Kirishima proclaims, his eyes closed as he fights back tears.

Sero stares in surprise at the two sudden withdrawals, while nearby Bakugo looks bored, hands stuffed in his pockets, like he's wishing they could just get on with it.

"Well now. Here's another strange turn of events..." Mic observes from above.

Aizawa hums. "We'll have to see what Midnight has to say about all this - she's the one in charge."

On the stage, Midnight gets a dark expression and lifts her whip to her shoulder as she considers. "This sort of talk is incredibly naive and green, my boys..." She pauses, cracks the whip and grins. "I... like it! That turns me on! Shoda and Ojiro have officially withdrawn!"

The crowd of students stares at her awkwardly.

Ojiro wipes tears from his face and starts to walk off, but Aoyama appears behind him, laying a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry. I'll... win it for you!"

"Now let's see... we'll have to move up two students." Midnight taps her chin. "Replacing those two will be members of Team Kendo, which took fifth..."

The girl with the long orange ponytail who must be Kendo looks back at her team and then toward the members of Team Tetsutetsu. "If it's gonna be like that... shouldn't it be them instead? I mean, we were frozen and immobilized practically the whole time. Honestly, we barely did anything in the cavalry battle. Isn't that right? Girls?" She looks again to her teammates, who all nod. "But they were giving it their all to keep what they had until the very end. Team Tetsutetsu, I mean. You should choose from them."

The others look surprised and honored by the suggestion.

"Kendo!" Tetsutetsu yells, taking a step in her direction.

"Don't worry. We're not colluding or anything. I'm not doing this as a favor. It just feels right." Kendo sighs, but puts on a smile.

Tetsutetsu looks as if he's about to cry. "You guys!" He salutes Team Kendo. "Thank you!"

The vine-haired girl next to him bows deeply as well.

"So be it. Tetsutetsu and Shiozaki advance to the final, bringing us back up to sixteen competitors!" Midnight gestures to the screens around the arena as they switch to display the tournament bracket. "And here are the matchups! Take a look at the bracket, my dears."

Match 1: Midoriya vs. Shinso

Match 2: Todoroki vs. Sero

Match 3: Arisato vs. Kaminari

Match 4: Iida vs. Shiozaki

Match 5: Ashido vs. Aoyama

Match 6: Tokoyami vs. Yaoyorozu

Match 7: Tetsutetsu vs. Kirishima

Match 8: Uraraka vs. Bakugo

Tetsutetsu and Kirishima eye each other after looking at the screen. "Seriously? How does this keep happening?" They call out in unison.

Tokoyami nods to Yaoyorozu. "I'll give it my all."

She returns a determined look. "Good. That's all that I ask of you."

Aoyama gestures to himself and winks at Ashido. "Ma cherie. I'm afraid it's the end of the road for you."

Ashido is undeterred, and gets up in his face. "I can't wait to melt your butt!"

Hm... Well, the first round will be cake. Second against Iida or... who's Shiozaki? Ryumi scans the crowd. One of the ones from Tetsutetsu's team... must be the girl with vine hair. Not too sure what she's capable of. Either way it could be tough. Then if I make it to round three... She silently bites her lip and ruffles her wings. Todoroki. I'm not sure I can win that...

"Shinso, that's gotta be..." Midoriya mumbles, unknowingly thinking out loud, yet again.

The person in question appears behind him, startling the shorter boy. "Izuku Midoriya. That's you, yeah?" Shinso asks.

But Midoriya gets distracted by his own thoughts and doesn't quite answer him. "From general studies..."

Shinso takes it in stride and simply tries again. "A pleasure. So, you excited?"

Midoriya seems to wake up and starts to respond, only to find his mouth covered by Ojiro's tail. "Uh, yea--mmf..."

"Midoriya! Not so fast." The tailed boy steps closer, glaring at Shinso.

"Heh." He eyes Ojiro, sighs, and walks off.

Baffled by the exchange, Midoriya carefully moves the fluffy tail away from his face and turns. "Ojiro - what's the deal?"

Ojiro keeps his gaze firmly on Shinso until the boy disappears from view. "That guy... don't answer him. Don't even say a word to him."

"Huh?" Midoriya glances between the two, confused.

Ryumi notes the interaction quizzically as Ojiro pulls Midoriya aside.

Todoroki, meanwhile, stares up at the screen for a moment, and heads out without a word to anyone.

"Uraraka?" Bakugo says the name like he isn't even completely certain he's pronouncing it correctly. "Who the hell's that?"

Ochaco eeps and jumps back from him, hiding herself behind some of the other girls.

Present Mic takes over again as the students disperse. "Okay! Now let's press pause on the tournament for the time being. Before the battles begin, it's time for some pulse-pounding side games!"

The group scatters - some head off to their own preparations, while others stick around for the games. The first round is a scavenger hunt using the crowd. Participants run around trying to get the items on various cards - some easier than others.

"Hey, anyone up there got a bag they can give me?" Sero yells. A moment later someone lifts one and tosses it down, and he deftly catches it with some tape. It's perhaps less impressive than the Bakugo-wrangling he showed off last round, but it's still a feat.

Sato picks up and looks at another card. "A cat?" The big guy sighs and runs to the edge. "Anyone sneak a cat in here?"

Kaminari rushes past them both, waving his own card. "Anybody got a textbook with them?"

As this all unfolds, Monoma just leans against a wall, casually fanning himself with his card. "What a joke. They're actually taking these dumb side games seriously? As usual, those class 1-A idiots really need to get their priorities in check."

Kendo runs up to him. "Monoma! If you're not playing, come with me."

"Uh... Okay..." He answers, confused.

She grins and holds up a card reading 'perverse person'.

Before he can protest, Monoma is picked up and carried off in Kendo's giant hands. "Uh... I think you may have the wrong impression of me, Kendo..."

But Kendo is determined, unmoved by his comment. "Trust me. This fits."

The round after is like a game of football with multiple, oversized balls that require several people each to move and control at any decent speed. It turns comical fast, people tripping and falling over themselves and getting run over by the balls.

And through it all, the girls of 1-A cheer everyone on - though Yaoyorozu and Jiro are notably less excited about it than the rest. After the last event ends the field gets cleared so Cementoss can construct the battle arena.

Chapter Text

As final preparations finish up, Mic's voice echoes out over the empty field, now with a large concrete battle arena constructed in the center. "Thank you, Cementoss!"

Cementoss bows and starts to clean up his materials.

Mic stands and slams his desk. "Hey, sports fans. Are you ready?! After all the action you've already witnessed, it's time for the real battles to begin! Can you feel the excitement? Our competitors have been through hell to get here! And now they're on their own - sometimes, heroes only have themselves to rely on! Even if you're not a hero, this saying holds true! You know it: heart, skill, strength, wisdom, and courage! They'll have to use all of these things to ride to the top and show us their best!"

Up in the stands, most of the remaining competitors and their classmates are in assigned sections for their individual classes. In 1-A’s section, most of the boys have already arrived to claim spots for themselves, but the girls are still gradually filing back in after changing back into their gym uniforms. Ryumi walks up to Iida and Ochaco in the front row. "Hey guys. Saving that spot for Midoriya?"

Iida nods to the spot on his right, between himself and Tokoyami. "Of course."

Ryumi keeps walking and settles into a seat just past them on Ochaco's left. "No hard feelings about the cavalry battle, right?" She smiles at the three of them. "That was an impressive effort near the end. I wasn't expecting anyone but maybe Bakugo to be able to pull that off..."

From the far edge of the seating area, Bakugo glares toward her at hearing his name mentioned.

The dragon girl looks around the reserved seating for their class as Yaoyorozu takes a spot next to her. Todoroki must be in the prep room already. Sero's not here either.

"Alright, audience! Let's cut to the good stuff and not delay these finals any longer! Welcome our first fighters." The screens show pictures of both competitors as Mic introduces them. "Whoa, he looks kinda scared in that picture, doesn't he? It's Izuku Midoriya, from the hero course!" He holds for cheers, and the audience obliges.

Midoriya walks out to the platform, cracks his knuckles and stretches. Though his face is mostly determined, there's a faint hint of worry in his smile.

In 1-A's section, Ochaco and Iida join in the cheers enthusiastically, and several others make polite efforts, but most (including Ryumi) just quietly applaud. Ojiro shifts worriedly in his seat, and Bakugo glares impatiently.

"Versus! ...Sorry, but this guy hasn't really done anything to stand out yet! It's Hitoshi Shinso, from general studies!" Mic pauses again for cheers, but this round is a little less loud.

Shinso walks out casually, rubbing the back of his neck.

"The rules are simple! Win by knocking your opponent out of the ring, immobilizing them, or getting them to say 'I give up'! Bring the pain and injuries, because we've got our very own good old Recovery Girl waiting on standby! So put your morals aside and don't be afraid to fight dirty if you must! 'Ethics' have no meaning here!" Mic explains. "Well, of course, going for the kill is a no-no! You'll be disqualified! Real heroes use their power to throw villains in jail, not kill them!"

Cementoss sits opposite Midnight's stage, forming a chair of concrete as he does. "I'll stop anyone who tries to get too rough."

The crowd erupts in fresh cheers as the two combatants stare each other down.

Mic leans forward, almost pressing against the glass of the announcer's box window. "Now let's get this thing started! Readyyyyyyyyy? Begin!"

Despite the booming call to action, nobody moves at first. They're just talking, staying stock still at their opening positions. And then something changes, and Midoriya starts to look angry.

He charges blindly at Shinso, who just stays in place, imposing in his casualness. But only two steps into the rush, Midoriya stops dead in his tracks.

Ojiro leaps from his seat, running both hands through his hair and waving his tail. "Damnit, Midoriya. I warned you not to say anything!"

A worried Sato glances between Ojiro next to him and the arena below.

"Huh?! Hey, hey, what's the dealio? This battle's just beginning. Show us some spirit! This is the first match; it should start with a bang!" Mic seems baffled too, though he's probably just putting on an act, playing it up for the crowd. "We’re mere seconds into the match, and Midoriya's... frozen in place? Looking confounded, he's not even twitching! Could this be Shinso's quirk?!"

"Deku...?!" Ochaco fretfully stands as well, leaning forward over the railing along with Iida. "Come on..."

Iida adjusts his glasses and strains for a better look at what's happening. "Why in the world isn't he moving?"

Ryumi grabs the back of her chair and turns to look over her shoulder at Ojiro. "What's going on?"

"That guy... his quirk is like mind control. Anyone who responds to him gets taken over." He ruffles his hair again in frustration, his frown deepening. "I tried to tell him..."

She nods, turning back to the fight. "Hm. I guess that's it for Midoriya, then..."

Ochaco shoots her a quick pouty glare. "Don't say that! Deku will think of something..."

"Hitoshi Shinso seems to have Izuku Midoriya completely stunned! He didn't stand out in the first rounds, heck, we were barely aware this guy even existed, but now... he sure is one to keep an eye on! It's possible Shinso's crazy powerful! Who could have imagined this turn of events? That's the festival for ya!" Mic just finishes his rambling before getting distracted by the sound of papers shuffling beside him. He turns to his co-host. "Hm?"

Aizawa stares at two sheafs of papers out on the desk in front of him. "Like I said, that entrance exam was completely irrational. This is a perfect example of why."

Mic lowers his voice (though it remains plenty loud) and leans in to get a look. "Huh? What's that?"

"Since we're on to the individual matches, I had some information compiled about our final competitors. Here are the simple specs on these two." He picks up a sheet from each pile and lays them out side by side. "Shinso failed the practical part of the exam, so he lost a spot in the hero course. Since he also applied for general studies, he probably figured that would happen. His quirk is extraordinarily powerful, but... given the format of the practical exam - fighting those faux villains... those robots. It gave a huge advantage to those who had physical superpowers they could show off - but his ability didn't help him out at all. Despite his impressive quirk, Shinso never stood a chance at passing."

Slowly, Midoriya pivots and starts to walk away from Shinso toward the edge of the arena. His expression is blank, dead-eyed, like he's not even really seeing anything.

Mic blinks and leans close to the glass again. "Whoa! Uh... what? Midoriya's following orders like a good little boy!"

He keeps walking, one slow step after the other. In the stands, Ochaco and Iida are gripping the railing anxiously as they watch.

Ochaco releases her grip only to pull her arms up tight to her chest. "Oh no, Deku, what are you doing?"

"He can't walk out of the ring! He'll lose the match if he does!" Iida starts flailing his arms in his bizarrely precise way.

Ryumi shakes her head, resigned to the outcome - but as Midoriya lingers just one step from the edge, a tiny flicker of light catches her eye.

Could that...? She leans forward and shades her eyes, squinting to try and see.

Just as she does, a huge rush of air pressure explodes from around Midoriya. He stumbles, but recovers his footing without crossing the boundary of the ring. He's breathing hard, but the focus is back in his eyes as he slowly turns to face his opponent again, clutching two newly broken fingers.

Mic jumps out of his seat. "What's this? Midoriya! He stopped? And just in time!"

Iida raises his arms and cheers. "That's the way to do it!"

"Whoa. I was about to freak out!" Ochaco tilts her head back and wears a relieved smile, clasping her hands together.

"Wow... to go that far..." Ojiro sighs and finally sits down again, though his face is a mix of relief and concern. "Whew, that just about killed me."

For the first time since the start of the match, Shinso's calm cracks. He obviously wasn't expecting his control to be broken like that. He takes a couple steps, trying to keep up the cocky attitude, but as Midoriya charges him again it's clearly an act, barely concealing his desperation.

Midoriya grabs the other boy by the shoulder and tries to shove him, taking a punch to the face in the process. Blood drips from his nose and splatters his uniform, but he keeps pushing. Together they slide to the edge, but Shinso isn't giving up. He pivots and pulls away to the side, jabbing at Midoriya's injured hand. And while Midoriya stumbles forward, Shinso tries to knock him over, pushing him by the face.

Midoriya rights himself enough to resist, though, grabbing his attacker's arm and flipping him over his shoulder. Shinso slams into the ground, flat on his back, on the outside of the ring boundary.

Bakugo straightens in his seat and cocks an eyebrow as he sees the same move that he fell for weeks ago. "Oh?"

On the judge's stage, Midnight gestures with her whip at the two boys. "Shinso is out of bounds! Midoriya advances to the second round!"

Ochaco jumps up and cheers.

Midoriya walks over to offer a hand to help Shinso up, but his opponent ignores him and gets up on his own.

Mic chimes in with the results again, in case anyone missed it. "And with that expertly performed throw we have our first victor of the finals! Class 1-A's Izuku Midoriya moves on to the second round!" The screens show Shinso's name crossed out while Midoriya's slides up to await his second round.

Ochaco sighs and falls back into her seat. "Ugh, that was so nerve-wracking!"

"Turning the tables at the last moment - a classic Midoriya maneuver!" Iida smiles proudly as he also retakes his seat.

Kaminari nudges Bakugo, playfully holding up his fists. "He got you with that shoulder throw before, huh?"

Bakugo's expression sours. "Shut your damn face, sparky."

"Jerk..." Kaminari sulks, and looks like he's reconsidering his choice of where to sit.

Up front, Ochaco pokes at Ryumi. "I can't believe you doubted him!"

She shrugs in response, shifting her wings a bit. "You said it was nerve-wracking - so you know it was close."

Ochaco frowns and protests by shaking Ryumi's shoulder. "No way! I believed in Deku the whole time!"

Present Mic's booming announcement distracts the pair from the debate. "Oh yeah! That was actually kind of a boring first match, kids. We're off to an uneventful start, but both of you fought bravely! Well, put your hands together for our fierce competitors! Let's show them some love, everyone!"

The crowd roars with cheers and applause. Midoriya bows, and Shinso just lowers his head and turns to walk away. When he nears the exit a few kids from general studies lean over the railing to cheer for him too.

With the first match winding down, Ryumi stands and stretches. "Well, guess I better head for the prep room..."

Yaoyorozu smiles at her. "Good luck out there."

"Thanks." She waves as she trots up the stairs into the stadium's interior.

Kaminari grins and follows along with her. "None for me? I'm hurt..." He makes a pouty face at Yaoyorozu before disappearing.

Yaoyorozu shakes her head and turns back to the arena - clearly still mad about the whole cheerleader thing.

As they walk down the hall Midoriya nearly bumps into them in his rush to get to the stands. "Oh, sorry!"

Kaminari waves off his apology. "Hey, good work beating that guy."

"Uh, thanks..." Midoriya responds sheepishly.

Ryumi nods in agreement. "Everyone thought you were done for. Later you'll have to explain how exactly you broke free - but we have to go get ready."

"Ready for my victory." Kaminari winks at her and heads down the hall to the second prep room.

"In your dreams..." She rolls her eyes at his misplaced confidence, then gives a quick wave to the other boy and wanders off. "Later, Midoriya."

The prep room comes equipped with a TV displaying the fights, a couple plain tables, and a few basic folding chairs. The outer tables are supplied with towels, bottled water, and some basic healthy snacks. The TV remote is left on the center table, in case the competitor doesn't want to watch, or needs quiet to focus.

Ryumi doesn't mind, though. Actually, she's glad she won't have to miss any fights. She takes a seat at the table, facing the TV, and idly tries to balance the chair on its back legs while she waits for the action to begin.

Mic's volume is slightly more bearable coming out of the TV - the techs working behind the scenes must have a tough time balancing his audio. "Enough standing around! The wait is over! Moving on... there they are! Now welcome our next players to the ring. The cream of the crop, yet this guy's somehow still as plain as they come! He's got skills, but at the expense of some really creepy looking elbows. It's Hanta Sero, of the hero course!"

The crowd cheers, and the camera briefly pans over them before cutting to Sero as he steps into the ring. He laces his fingers together and stretches his arms out in front of him, looking almost cocky despite facing arguably the toughest person in their class.

"Versus... the best of the best, strongest of the strong! An early frontrunner in the competition who's way too strong for his own good! Someone who rightfully got into the hero course based on recommendations. It's Shoto Todoroki!" Mic calls out, and the crowd roars again.

Todoroki glares icily at Sero.

Present Mic jumps up and gestures dramatically to the arena. "And now for the second match of the finals! Reaaaaaady? Begin!"

Sero raises his hands above his head to stretch his shoulders, then brings them down quickly, tape firing from each elbow. Todoroki is swiftly wrapped up around his arms and legs, and for a moment it actually looks bad for him as Sero drags him toward the edge.

Ryumi drops the chair back onto all four legs, staring intently at the screen. "Surely not..."

"He's trying to push him out of bounds with a surprise attack! A brilliant strategy from the underdog! Sero's giving it his all!" Mic's commentary echoes over the field, and then...

An entire half of the arena erupts in ice, startling even the audience as it creeps dangerously close to their seating. Todoroki slowly exhales an icy cloud. The tape binding him cracks and shatters, and he stumbles a little as he drops to the ground. Sero is frozen into a massive glacier, only his head and upper chest exposed.

"Damn..." Ryumi mumbles to herself, a little concerned about her possible future match against him. As she leans back in the chair, she's quietly glad that she's watching from in here, away from all the ice - though she thinks even in here the temperature has dropped a degree or two.

The judges aren't spared a light frosting from the extreme display either. While Midnight isn't totally frozen, there are traces of ice on her clothes, and Cementoss has a glaze of snow on his chair.

Midnight shivers in her thin costume. "Tell the truth, Sero... can you move at all?"

Sero grimaces. He looks like he wants to shake his head no, but can't quite manage it.

"Sero has been immobilized!" Midnight proclaims, though she skips pointing with her whip this time in favor of holding her arms close to her chest in an effort to warm up.

Todoroki slowly walks up to Sero, while the crowd rings out cheers of "good try." He lifts his left hand and gradually melts away the mass of ice, freeing Sero. He doesn't look the least bit happy or even proud of the victory as he leaves the arena. In fact, his gaze is nearly as empty as Midoriya's was while under the influence of Shinso's quirk.

Ryumi is still staring at the screen, lost in thought, when the call comes for her to head out for the next match. Actually, she has to be called twice before she notices.

"Ah - sorry!" She stumbles out of the chair, tipping it over in her rush. She's not too worried about this first round though, it won't be a problem if she's a little distracted.

"Welcome back to the finals everyone! Sorry for that long wait. But with the arena finally all thawed out, it's time for the next match! And it's another class A against class A! Give a big welcome to our next competitors!" Back in the arena, Mic is once again at the familiar booming volume.

As she takes the first couple steps out in the bright afternoon sun, Ryumi shades her eyes to give them time to adjust. Once she reaches the halfway point between the gate and the arena though, she's all confidence - wings spread wide and tail flicking as she grins and offers a small wave to the cameras and crowd above.

Mic chimes in for her intro. "With second and first place finishes so far today, this dragon is proving herself to be one of the fiercest competitors here! And with those results it's no wonder that she was admitted on recommendation. Ryumi Arisato, of the hero course!" As before, the crowd cheers during the brief breath. "...Versus...!"

Across the field, Kaminari strolls out with a cocky grin, hands shoved in his pockets.

"The boy with the electric personality! Another young hero in the making, it’s Denki Kaminari!" Mic continues, and the audience cheers once again for her opponent.

"Sorry about this, Ryumi... but I'll happily buy you dinner after this is over." He pulls one hand from his pocket and little sparks play on his fingertips.

So, he actually believes he's got me... She chuckles at the apology. "You think it's going to be that easy for you?"

"Keep those eyes peeled! I wanna see a super flashy battle this time! You readyyyy? Begin!" Despite Present Mic's dramatic call, as with the first match, neither combatant moves immediately.

Kaminari smirks and gestures to himself. "Hey, I'm not as dumb as I seem. You said back during the cavalry battle that your absorption has a limit... So I just have to blow past that limit, like All Might did with that creepy brain guy!" Sparks and tendrils of light start to coil around his arms and chest. "This is all gonna be over in two seconds."

In the stands, Tokoyami shakes his head at the display. "He's a fool to have such confidence."

Midoriya looks up from his notebook, where he's been scribbling details about each fight. "Hm? How's that?"

"You'll see." He nods toward the arena.

"Is that so...?" Down below, Ryumi draws out the scales on her arms and legs, charging at him full speed. "I guess I'd better win before you have a chance to do that."

"Already too late!" Kaminari spreads his arms wide and discharges a massive storm of electricity. Thick coils of lightning slither out from his body like wild pythons of pure energy. "Indiscriminate shock, 1.3 million volts!"

Ryumi gets caught in the full blast and stops mid-stride as it hits her, in fact, the nearest bolts seem to change course and leap into her body. The bright flashes and smoke swiftly obscure her from the audience's view.

"What a display of power! Is it already over?!" Mic is pressing his face against the glass, straining to see even a shadow of the girl, while his cohost simply shakes his head – he also knows exactly what’s about to happen.

Kirishima grumbles, lifting a fist. "Woah Kaminari, did you really have to go that far?"

"Kirishima." Bakugo glares sternly.

The redhead looks over his shoulder, confused.

Bakugo narrows his eyes, sparing only a faint glance for the boy in front of him. "...Don't underestimate scales."

"Uhh..." Kirishima looks at him a moment longer, then returns to staring at the dust cloud hanging in the arena.

Yaoyorozu shifts in her seat, covering her mouth with a hand as she worries about her friend. A few of the other girls sitting behind her also share a fearful look.

The edges of Tokoyami's beak pull into a small smile. "Here it comes."

Dark Shadow grins and cackles, grabbing a handful of popcorn in its claws. "Heehee. I can't wait, Fumi!"

Tokoyami casually pushes the demon away, taking the handful of popcorn for himself as he does.

Next to him, Midoriya lowers his pencil and looks worriedly on. "Is she okay...?"

"She'll be fine. Back at the USJ... I watched her bite into a live power line for a boost." The bird boy quietly munches his popcorn, and points to an indistinct dark patch in the cloud. "Behold."

Midoriya glances back at him in shock. "Really?" He hurriedly looks back to the fight and squints to see more, to make out any detail of the spot being pointed out.

A shadowy figure stirs in the clearing dust, while Kaminari just stares dumbly forward. But the shape is larger than it should be, and a low growl rumbles out from the fog. The dark shape stands, and at last the view clears...

Kaminari, still stupefied from overuse of his quirk, takes a little step back. A huge reptilian creature, easily as big as a large horse and with scales of navy fading to black near each paw, wing- and tail-tip, steps heavily forward, cracking the cement beneath its claws. It seems to grin, baring shining fangs.

Midoriya gasps. "Is that...?" He immediately begins sketching, gaze flicking rapidly between the page and the battle.

Ochaco and Yaoyorozu stare in awe.

Tokoyami's smile turns a bit smug. "Indeed. Her true power... she might even be a match for Dark Shadow."

At hearing its name, the demon peeps out of his shoulder. "C'mon Fumi, I could take her..."

He pushes the demon back into himself again.

Bakugo huffs and leans back, kicking his feet up on the empty seat directly in front of him.

Kirishima stands and stares, moving to the railing. "That's amazing..."

The beast spreads its wings wide and roars, a deep echoing sound which recalls the rumble of thunder following a lightning strike. Kaminari freezes in his place even as he starts to wake from his dumb mode, sheer terror on his face. Among the audience as well, a few faces of those sitting closest show hints of fear.

With her prey temporarily paralyzed, the dragon stalks toward him, coiled up like a big cat ready to pounce. She lowers herself and growls again, before leaping at her opponent. One claw swipes at his legs to knock him over, and the other comes down to press him into the floor.

He struggles and squirms, but can't even lift a single claw from his back. "Uh. Wha... How...?"

Ryumi leans her head down to ground level, gleaming blue eyes staring at him. "Ahh... So much for your easy victory." Her voice is deeper and rumbling, but still perfectly identifiable as hers.

"He's immobilized! That's all, folks! It was over in an instant." Mic declares.

Midnight waves her whip and repeats the verdict. "Kaminari has been pinned - Arisato wins and advances on!"

The dragon grins at Kaminari, lifting her claw from his back and sitting down, delicately folding her wings and coiling her tail at her feet. 

Mic chatters over top of the roaring crowd. "What a quick turnaround! It looked like a win for Kaminari, but Arisato's power is just too much! Arisato advances to the next round!"

Kaminari slowly crawls to his feet, pouting. "Man... How did you...? You said your batteries had a limit, that it was bad to overcharge them!"

Ryumi releases her transformation, reappearing crouched down in her normal form. She chuckles at him as she stands up. "It is. I just didn't mention that I have certain safeguards... if the charge would exceed my capacity, I'm forced to use as much power as possible quickly." She walks over and offers him a hand getting up.

"So that's what max power looks like, huh? Scary..." He takes her hand and stands, rubs his neck and frowns. "Ugh. You totally got me..."

Ryumi smiles at him, and gestures toward the exit gate. "Sorry, but I plan on winning this thing."

He sighs and walks out of the arena alongside her. "Well you better keep it up - if I have to lose, I wanna lose to someone who's going all the way." He puts on his usual cheery grin. "So don't make me look bad by failing in the next round, okay?"

She laughs at that. It's a silly justification to ease his pride, but still a respectable reaction to the loss. "Sure thing. I still wanna punch Bakugo in his stupid face, after all."

Up above, Midoriya scribbles frantically in his notebook, muttering to himself as he does. "I've seen Kaminari in action before, he's super powerful. But Arisato's strength is incredible, and with that absorption she could turn Kaminari's attack against him, making his quirk essentially useless. Her quirk is almost a perfect counter for his... maybe he would have had a chance in hand to hand? But I think even without her enhancement active she's stronger than him at a base level..."

"Hm?" Ochaco looks at Midoriya.

Midoriya doesn't even notice, still mumbling into the pages, sketching and theorizing. "I thought Kaminari's quirk would be stronger, but Arisato was admitted on recommendation, she's the real deal... Her strength and size increase is a little like Mount Lady's, but with flight on top of that it dramatically improves her options for maneuverability, and since she doesn't have to become larger to fight, she can operate in a wider variety of spaces..." He pauses to nibble on the end of his pen as he considers other advantages and potential problems.

"Your match just ended but you're already thinking ahead, strategy-wise?" She puts on a gentle smile and leans over to peek at his notes. "Maybe you should take a sec to relax before planning too many matches in advance."

Suddenly jolted out of his thoughts, Midoriya covers his mouth with a hand. "Huh?! Oh, sorry! Sometimes I don't realize I'm talking out loud when I'm taking notes." He relaxes a little, lowering the notebook to his lap. "I'm just... well, you could call this a hobby of mine... We finally have a chance to see everyone's quirks in action - even the people outside our own class..." He holds up the notebook proudly for her to see. "Oh! Right. Actually, I've got everything you'd need to know about most of class A in here. Even your 'Zero Gravity,' Uraraka." He excitedly points at the scribblings - the current page has rough sketches and notes on Ryumi's quirk, then after a moment he flips to the pages covering Ochaco's. "See?"

Ochaco looks surprised at first, then smiles at him again. "Y'know Deku, I thought you were amazing since the day we met. You've got so much drive and focus in you. But... this sports festival has brought you to a whole other level."

Midoriya stares a moment, confused and unsure what to think of that - until Mic's announcement draws him back to reality.

"Let's keep pumpin' out these hits and moving on... Who's next in the battle for the top? It's time for the fourth match! Get ready to watch two new players duke it out!" Mic mimes a guitar riff while Aizawa subtly shakes his head and shuffles his stat sheets.

Chapter Text

Ryumi arrives back in the stands with Kaminari, just as Iida and Shiozaki step into the ring below.

Even with the next fight to distract him, Ryumi barely gets halfway to her seat before Midoriya jumps at her with a million questions.

"Arisato! That was a great fight. Your quirk is amazing..." He clutches his notebook to his chest, eyes shining. "...Can you tell me how it works? I have some theories already but..."

She sighs as she takes her seat and settles in to watch the new match. "I'd be happy to, but..." Her grin changes, taking a slight edge to it as she points a claw in his direction. "You and I might still end up fighting each other before this is over."

He pauses, like he's just now realizing. Must've been too caught up in his theories to think that far ahead - or maybe he doesn't actually expect he can win against Todoroki. "Uh, right..." He looks just a little disappointed.

"Tell you what, after one of us is eliminated, then we can talk." Ryumi shifts a bit, and nods toward the arena. "For now though, we've got another match to watch."

Midoriya's eyes light up again at the promise of more details later, and he smiles as he settles back in to study the next battle.

Mic cuts in to introduce the new challengers as images of them flash on the screens. "He's the kid with engines in his legs, coming from a long line of pros - Tenya Iida from the hero course! Versus..."

Iida confidently takes his place in the ring as the crowd cheers and whistles for him. He gives a very slight, precise bow.

"And up against him, even beautiful flowers can have thorns! It's class 1-B's assassin! Ibara Shiozaki from the hero course!" Mic continues, and the audience roars again.

The vine haired girl calmly steps up and bows deeply, though she twitches slightly at hearing the word 'assassin'.

"Excuse me!" She turns away from her opponent to face the announcer's box, one hand raised, the other laid on her chest. "Please pardon my objection, but what exactly do you mean by 'assassin'? I'm not sure why you called me that. I have merely come this far seeking victory, not to take my opponent's life. That wouldn't be in line with the values of a hero at all, sir."

Mic sounds flustered, like he's not entirely sure what to do when his hype has been questioned. "Right. Sorry about that!"

"Gentlemen, I didn't enter UA for wicked or selfish reasons, but to deliver salvation to others!" Shiozaki spreads her arms, then slowly clasps her hands together over her heart. A beam of pure heavenly light seems to shine on her out of nowhere. "It is my humble quest to spread true good across this world."

"Listen, I said I was sorry! That was my bad, okay?" Mic stumbles over his words as he tries to get everything back on track.

Shiozaki smiles gently and bows her head toward the announcer's box before turning back to her opponent. "I thank you for your kind understanding."

"I have no idea what this fight will look like..." Tsu mumbles to herself.

Ryumi folds her arms. "I guess it all depends on how fast she is, and how strong those vines are. But I don't think I would bet against Iida if it comes down to speed."

"Right... with that settled, let the fourth match... begin!" Mic mostly recovers his confidence as he calls for the battle to start.

Shiozaki clasps her hands together and her long hair writhes behind her, extending into the ground and then lashing out at Iida.

On the far side of the battle area, Iida crouches down and his engines flare blue like before in the cavalry battle. Shiozaki doesn't even see him move - to her and to the audience it seems more like he simply vanishes and reappears at her back.

Before she can react, he grabs her by the shoulders and pushes her like a stubborn shopping cart until a last shove sends her skating right over the painted boundary of the ring. In a matter of seconds, it's all over. Shiozaki stands there, blinking.

Even Midnight looks a bit surprised, but she recovers swiftly and points to the pair with her whip. "Shiozaki is out. Iida wins the match!"

Iida gives a small precise bow before exiting. Shiozaki, meanwhile, seems to take a minute more to fully process what just happened before she shamefully takes her leave.

Ryumi taps a finger on her chin. That speed will be tough to beat. But... will he risk that against my flight? If I can react in time, I'm sure I have the advantage in raw strength, and I can always take to the air...

Ochaco mumbles to herself as the cheers echo around the stadium. "Right... I'd better get to the prep room." She gets up and walks off leaving Midoriya to his notes, and a half-finished cup of tea to mark her seat.

Midoriya doesn't seem to notice as he continues scribbling. "Amazing..."

Not long after, Tokoyami and Yaoyorozu also make to leave for their upcoming fight.

"Good luck out there." Ryumi waves as the pair head downstairs. Yaoyorozu waves back, and Tokoyami gives a simple nod.

Present Mic carries on with introducing the next set of combatants. "We're gonna charge right along to the fifth match, folks. Let's hope that gaudy belt serves some kinda purpose. It's Yuga Aoyama from the hero course!"

Aoyama flicks his hair back and winks to the audience as they cheer, drawing another wave of yells and a few whistles.

"Versus... is there some kinda purpose for those things sticking out of her head? From the same class, Mina Ashido!" Mic continues, the crowd erupting again.

As Mina arrives at her place, she folds her arms behind her head in a series of quick stretches. When she's finished, she quickly points forward with both hands and giggles, playing to the crowd just like her opponent.

"Come on, Mina, you can do it!" Tsu calls to their classmate.

Midoriya of course is muttering into his notes again as he looks over pages for the two fighters. "A match between Aoyama and Ashido. Let's see. Considering what their powers are, Aoyama will probably keep his distance and try to attack with his laser from far away. So, it'll all depend on whether or not Ashido can dodge his attacks and manage to use her power against him in close combat." He stops, flicks through a few pages, then looks at the arena. "Problem is, there's nothing much for her to use as cover in this ring. So she's at a slight disadvantage."

A few seats away, Ryumi nods. "Sound reasoning, Midoriya."

He nearly jumps out of his chair at the sudden comment. "Oh, Arisato. Sorry, I was thinking out loud again..."

She sighs and rolls her eyes at him. "My last name is for adults, authority figures, and people I don't like - and I consider you a friend, you know."

"Right... sorry." He flushes ever so slightly at the strict reply, rubbing the back of his head with one hand.

"Anyway. It's solid reasoning, but I'd put my money on Mina. You haven't really seen how she can move." Ryumi tilts her head back to look at Kaminari. "Isn't that right?"

Kaminari sinks forward in his seat and groans. "Ughhh, don't remind me..."

Midoriya looks up from his notes and glances between them. "Did I miss something?"

Behind Ryumi, Jiro smirks playfully. "I heard the loser got his ego bruised at the arcade."

The dragon girl nods to confirm. "He lost a bet. I did try to warn him not to take it..."

Kaminari slides farther down his seat, in a weak effort to hide. "Maaaaan, I paid my dues, so stop bringing it up, will ya?"

Though Jiro looks to be readying another comment, she's cut off by Mic and everyone's attention leaves for the battle. "Now let's get started! Fifth match... begin!"

For once, the action actually starts as immediately as expected. Aoyama takes his usual firing pose, arms folded behind his head. He leans back as the lens on his belt gleams blue and fires a bright sparkling blast.

Mina easily leaps to the side and begins closing the distance, skating on her acid to increase her speed. She ducks under another beam and seems to be taunting the boy as he launches one quick shot after another.

She leans back, crossing under another laser as if it was a limbo pole, then instantly pulls a 180 and leaps over one more, gracefully landing in her skating pose.

Through each move Midoriya is frantically scribbling down notes, and he somehow still hasn't noticed that Ochaco has left - despite looking past where she was to talk to Ryumi. "Wow... you're right, she's evading his every attack so smoothly!"

"Almost looks like dancing, doesn't it? Or figure skating." Ryumi suppresses a laugh as Kaminari grumbles again from the row behind.

Mina's dodges are becoming narrower and narrower misses as she gets closer and has less time to react, but Aoyama is slowing too. He's sweating, and there's obvious discomfort on his features. Mina bounds over another low beam with ease and slides under the next on her knees. She's only a couple meters out now. A glob of acid collects in her hand and she pitches it toward her opponent's waist...

A direct hit.

The lens sizzles and cracks, disarming him, and the belt even comes loose from Aoyama's pants. He quickly grabs at them to protect his dignity (such as it is), and Mina closes for the kill shot. She glides in on her acid in a low stance and rises into a brutal uppercut delivered straight to his chin.

Aoyama collapses, making no effort to try and recover.

"Aoyama has fainted! The winner of this match is Ashido!" Midnight declares and points at her.

Mic jumps in on the fun as well. "Dang, Aoyama went down hard! That's an undisputable victory if I've ever seen one, sports fans!"

The crowd cheers and the media section lights up with camera flashes. Mina waves and holds up victory signs with each hand, grinning wildly. Meanwhile a pair of robots arrive carrying a stretcher and load Aoyama up to be taken to Recovery Girl.

"Wow, Mina is amazing!" Tsu audibly smiles at seeing the other girl's victory.

Midoriya's scribbling has intensified, his notebook now an inch from his face. "The match unfolded like I thought it would, but I definitely underestimated Ashido. Although, now that I think about it, she did place tenth out of the class in that quirk assessment test. She has a great power, but she won because of her physical strength."

"What a match! Now, let's not let this hot streak cool. Time to move on to the next battle!" Mic declares, and in the class A section Kirishima gives a quick wave as he disappears to get ready.

"Go get 'em Kirishima!" Kaminari leans over and intrudes on Bakugo's space as he calls out, drawing a growl from the grumpy blonde.

Mic gestures to the field as the new combatants arrive. "Offense and defense in one! The dark samurai and his darker shadow! From the hero course, Fumikage Tokoyami!"

Tokoyami stares ahead, resolute and focused, arms folded as he patiently awaits the starting call.

"Versus... the great creator! She was admitted because of recommendations and I think we can all see why. Also from class 1-A, Momo Yaoyorozu!" Mic sings over a fresh round of applause and cheers.

Yaoyorozu looks determined, but her one hand is grabbing her other elbow, betraying a slight worry about her matchup.

Ojiro leans forward onto the back of Ochaco's empty seat to peer at Midoriya's notes. "How do you think this one will end? Any clue?"

He barely takes his eyes off the page as he answers. "Timing is going to be the key thing here."

"Oh? How so?" Ojiro tilts his head curiously.

Ryumi watches the arena intently, mumbling to herself. "She can win this easily, if only she knew..."

"Sixth match... begin!" Mic yells, pointing at the ring.

Tokoyami puts his arms up defensively and calls for Dark Shadow - another quick start to contrast the earlier showings. The demon surges straight for his enemy, looking vicious despite the looming afternoon sun. A glow forms on Yaoyorozu's right arm and a small metal shield comes up to deflect the first strike.

Another glow is briefly visible on her left hand, but she has to block again as Dark Shadow recovers and immediately bears down on her again. A third strike from the demon bounces the shield out of her hand and leaves her stumbling.

Ryumi stands and goes to the railing, tail twitching. Come on, you can still win...

Yaoyorozu forms a fresh shield in time to block the demon's fourth hit, but she's forced back a fair distance by the weight of the impact. She doesn't even notice that she's slid out of bounds, finally making her weapon as Dark Shadow returns to its master's side.

"Yaoyorozu! You're out!" Midnight points at the girl with her whip.

Yaoyorozu gasps and looks down, one of her feet is just centimeters past the painted white line.

Midnight poses for the cameras in the media section as she announces the results. "This match goes to Tokoyami!"

Tokoyami recalls the shadowy creature into his body and straightens out of his combat stance before giving a small polite bow.

Mic takes the commentary over from Midnight once again. "Yikes! Another fast, overwhelming victory! Is it possible that Tokoyami's Dark Shadow is the greatest quirk ever? I think so!"

Yaoyorozu stands in the ring, staring blankly as her opponent leaves.

Ryumi closes her eyes and shakes her head sadly as she falls back into her seat. If only she knew... but I gave my word...

"Tokoyami is way too powerful. I can't believe he forced her out of bounds by focusing his attacks on her shield. He obviously had a strategy worked out." Midoriya is rechecking his notes and chewing the tip of his pen.

Ryumi sighs. There's nothing she could've done, not without breaking her promise. "The little guy is awfully strong for a semi-intangible bird demon, that's for sure." Her words are sincere, but she can't help sounding a little disappointed for her friend.

Ojiro nods, still leaning on the back of the chair in front of him. "Yeah, I guess so. Maybe he didn't wanna hurt her."

Midoriya nods back, clicking the pen a couple times as he flips between pages.

"I bet she's really upset about how that went down. I feel bad for her." Ojiro shifts his tail and sits back in his own seat properly.

Yaoyorozu has her head hanging low as she finally walks back across the field.

Ryumi frowns and ruffles her wings. "Yeah... her quirk takes concentration and a lot of forethought to use well."

While the others are talking, Bakugo gets up and leaves for his upcoming match without so much as a word or gesture to anyone.

Midoriya finally looks up from his notebook and notices that Ochaco is gone, that only the cup of iced tea she'd been drinking is in her place.

Chapter Text

"Okay, let's see who we've got for ya next. The seventh matchup includes two completely redundant quirks! It's a mirror match, folks! Look at that, even their profile pictures are the same!" Present Mic jeers as the screens show the pair in nearly identical poses - the only difference is Kirishima is sporting a friendlier grin, while Tetsutetsu's is more intense.

Beside him, Aizawa shuffles through his stat sheets to pull up the next two competitors. His eyes widen a little as he glances between them. “Their scores are almost the same too…”

Mic continues, and you can practically hear him smirking at how similar he plans to make both introductions. "One of them's a passionate, manly fighter made of steel. The hero course's Tetsutetsu Tetsutetsu!"

Tetsutetsu appears to roar, holding up two fists as his introduction finishes and the crowd roars back.

"Versus... a passionate, manly fighter made of rock! The hero course's Eijiro Kirishima!" Mic snickers a little bit as he finishes and the crowd does their thing.

Kirishima cracks his knuckles and looks somewhat upset.

"Make us proud, Tetsutetsu!" A few cheers can be heard from the class B section over the wall.

"Can't wait to see how this one ends! It's gonna be a real beat down! Begin!" Mic commands.

Apparently, the time of slow start battles is well and truly over. Tetsutetsu activates his quirk, turning his body into shiny steel, and charges at Kirishima - who, of course, has done the same, except his flesh has a rough stony texture.

When they meet in the center, both throw a heavy punch and both block with their own strike. A flurry of hits commences, neither combatant seeming to slow or struggle or even be slightly phased by the other's attacks.

Ryumi leans back in her seat. "Looks like it's going to be a long one."

Midoriya looks between his notes and the drink on Ochaco's seat, then the arena, then his notes again... and he gets up to leave.

Kirishima lands a strong punch on Tetsutetsu's face, but it does little more than push him backward and set him a little off balance. The metal boy recovers swiftly and returns the favor, ending with the same result, but reversed.

Kirishima hits back with an uppercut, only to take another left hook to the jaw. Minutes of this go by, hundreds of powerful blows exchanged, all to seemingly little effect. Even Mic starts to sound a little exhausted and bored by the repetitiveness of it all. Finally, they both go at each other once more, heavy punches straight into the face and at last someone falls.

...Unfortunately, it's both someones. The pair land on the pavement in perfect sync, like they'd planned this outcome.

Mic finally picks himself up from where he fell into his desk during the lengthy fight. "Wow, that hurt me and all I'm doin' is watchin' these guys! Is it over? They're both down?! These hardheads look like they're KO'd! But who's the winner?"

Below, Midnight walks out to check on them, and they're equally battered. "They're both down! We have... a tie." She taps her whip against her chin, then seems to have an idea. "In the event of a tie, we'll determine our winner with a simple contest after the combatants recover... perhaps arm wrestling!"

"Well, while we wait for Tetsutetsu and Kirishima to recover, we'll move on to the next battle." Mic announces, as two sets of the medic bots arrive and load both boys onto stretchers.

Midoriya and Iida finally return to the class A seating just as pictures of Ochaco and Bakugo appear on the screens around the field. Yaoyorozu trails along behind them, still looking downcast when she retakes her spot in the stands.

“Hey.” Ryumi nudges her shoulder with a wing and puts on a small smile. “You put up a good fight, you know. Tokoyami is a tough opponent.”

Yaoyorozu shakes her head. “I barely even did anything...”

“I’m sure you still made plenty of good impressions earlier on.” Ryumi offers, but her friend seems unmoved.

Behind them, Tsu fidgets in her seat. "In some ways, I'm most worried about this next one. Ribbit. This might be the most disturbing matchup."

Jiro folds her arms and mimes shivering with fear. "I know. Honestly, I almost don't wanna watch it."

Midoriya and Iida both look worried as Ochaco steps out into the ring.

"For the eighth and final battle of the first round of matches... He was kind of a hotshot in middle school, and just look at that determined face! It's Katsuki Bakugo of the hero course! Versus..." As always, the crowd roars as Mic introduces the competitors. "The one I'm personally rooting for, also from class 1-A, Ochaco Uraraka!"

Ochaco takes a deep breath, seemingly to calm her nerves. Bakugo, meanwhile, has what you could only describe as an ugly grin on his face, with his hands in his pockets.

Iida gestures to the boy sitting beside him. "Midoriya. you said earlier you thought of a counter-strategy for her against Bakugo. I'm curious. What was it?"

"Huh? Oh! Nothing special, really..." He flips through the tattered notebook in his lap. "Honestly it wasn't really much of a plan. Kacchan is so strong... he's got virtually no weaknesses when it comes to close range combat, he almost never leaves any openings, and the more he moves, the more he sweats, which just makes his quirk more powerful. And he's gotten really good at using his explosions to maneuver in midair, but if Uraraka can touch him, get him floating, she'll gain the advantage. She could use her quirk to force him out of bounds. That's why, it's obvious what Uraraka needs to do to get the upper hand."

"Let the eighth match... begin!" Mic declares.

"She needs to strike first!" Midoriya has his full attention on the battle below, setting his notebook aside entirely for the first time all afternoon.

Immediately Ochaco charges at her opponent, keeping low, while Bakugo holds position where he started.

Midoriya leans forward and cheers, sounding almost as excited as when he was analyzing things before. "Wow, look at her go! That's a good start, and all she has to do is touch him one time!"

Iida remains a little more cautious in his estimate. "But it won't be easy. You know Bakugo's not gonna let her get too close to him."

"Right." Tokoyami agrees with a nod.

Midoriya tenses as distance between the pair below shrinks. "And if I know Kacchan... he won't dodge. He'll confront her, focus his energy on counterattacking."

As predicted, Bakugo holds steady and prepares what looks like a right hook, but he switches up with a large blast from his quirk at the last second. Ochaco catches the full power of it, disappearing into the dust cloud the explosion leaves behind.

Iida and Midoriya cry out at the same time. "Uraraka!"

Jiro gasps, shuffling uncomfortably.

"Looks like Bakugo's not planning on showing her any mercy." Tsu comments, concern inching into her voice.

Bakugo stalks the edges of the cloud, watching for any hint of movement. Something catches his eye and he pounces, throwing his weight into pushing the shape to the ground and adding a little extra punch from his quirk.

But it isn't her. It's her uniform jacket, taken off and left floating as a decoy. She leaps out of the dust behind him, hoping to catch his shoulder before he can react.

Mic jumps from his chair at the development. "Whoa! She threw her jacket over and sent it floating, all on the fly! Such incredibly quick thinking! What a ninja!"

Unfortunately, Bakugo is still too quick to counter - he swiftly spins and throws an explosion backward. Ochaco is tossed by the pressure wave, landing and skidding to a stop a few meters away.

Sero blinks in surprise. "Look at that reaction time!"

"Seriously, the dude's insane. You can't get the drop on him, even with a smoke screen. And since Uraraka can't use her quirk unless she touches him, his lightning-fast reflexes put her at a huge disadvantage." Kaminari glances over at Ryumi. "Man, I don't care what you say, he's totally scary."

Ryumi just shrugs in response.

Bakugo pushes through the debris cloud to follow after his opponent, but he's only two steps in and she's back on her feet and charging him another time.

"Uraraka wastes no time. She's charging again!" Mic comments, still standing at the announcer's desk, his chair apparently forgotten.

Another blast, and faces in the audience start to look worried. Even in the public sections, a few folks start to boo and complain. He hits her again. Class A's section of the crowd is nearly silent. Jiro is covering her eyes.

"Ochaco..." Tsu mumbles fearfully. "Is she okay?"

"I can't watch this..." Jiro complains, her voice muffled behind her hands as she covers her face.

Despite the repeated blasts, Ochaco keeps pushing, getting up again and again, only to be beaten back every time.

Present Mic seems like he's losing his enthusiasm for the commentary as well, his voice dropping to a more natural tone than the bombastic one he usually uses. "Looks like she's not resting between attacks, despite being exploded. The poor girl... she keeps charging relentlessly, but... this is..."

The boos from the audience intensify as the frantic battle continues with another round of blasts. Someone in the pro hero section stands and starts shouting for the match to be called off.

"A group in the crowd is booing! But to be honest, I kinda agree with what they're..." Mic begins, a little uncertain, only to be cut off as his co-host bashes his face with an elbow. "Ack! Why? What the crap?" Mic whines, fixing his sunglasses to sit straight on his face again and pitifully rubbing his jaw where Aizawa struck him.

But Aizawa isn't interested in explaining to him. "Where is the man who started this uproar? Are you a pro? How many years of active duty?" He pauses. "...If you're being serious, if that's what you're taking away from this, then you can leave. No point in watching. Go home and start looking at job hunting sites."

Midoriya joins several others in looking at the announcer's box. "Aizawa sensei?" He glances back to Iida. "You know what he's talking about?"

"Guess he's a hard ass to everyone, not just his students." Ryumi muses, flicking her tail.

Aizawa continues his teardown of the other pro. "Bakugo's fierceness is an acknowledgement - she's come this far, and he knows her strength. His caution shows that he recognizes her as a worthy opponent. It's exactly because he wants to win so badly... that there's no room for carelessness or holding back."

Ochaco struggles to her feet after taking another rough hit. There are scorch marks on her face, arms, and clothes. Bakugo is completely unscathed, and stands ready for her next move.

This time she doesn't run at him, though. She stands up, and presses her fingers together. There's a brief pink flash.

Midoriya, Iida, Ryumi, and the rest of the class look up just in time to see them - the hundreds of shards of floating concrete, the debris kicked up as Bakugo's attacks damaged the arena itself - before they all start streaking down to pepper the area.

"It's a meteor storm!" Mic cries.

Aizawa shakes his head, responding flatly. "Now you notice."

Ryumi smiles, more than a little impressed with what the other girl managed to pull off - and with the risk and determination the plan required. "Damn, she's serious..."

"Hey, she had a plan all along!" Midoriya jumps from his seat. "Such an extreme strategy... Uraraka!"

Just as it starts to look bad for Bakugo, the hunks of rock pouring down over him and his enemy surging forward for a last attack, he simply lifts a hand, palm up, and fires.

The blast encompasses much of the falling concrete, certainly everything within a radius of being dangerous to him, and once again knocks the girl back. The concrete pieces are pulverized further into harmless pebbles that gently rain over the space around them. Ochaco lands roughly near the boundary, but not quite over the line.

Mic gapes at the turn of events, his energy returned after it started to look like a proper battle again. "What an explosion! Bakugo bangs out a huge demonstration of power! Uraraka's secret plan just... went up in smoke!"

Class A's section is stunned into silence. Jiro peeks at the fight between her fingers.

Ochaco struggles to get up again, but before she can take even one step, she topples over.

"Uraraka is down!" Mic proclaims.

Iida's voice is low and shaky as he watches. "It's too much."

Midoriya leans over the railing for a better look. "...Yeah. She's way past her limit."

Ochaco continues to crawl toward her opponent, and Bakugo drops back into a fighting stance just in case.

Midnight walks into the field, kneeling at the girl's side. She holds up a hand for Bakugo to wait, and he relaxes again. "Uraraka... is unable to continue. Bakugo moves on to the second round!"

The medic robots come in as before and take Ochaco away. Bakugo waits a moment, scowling at the notable lack of audience support for his victory, and then slowly exits the arena.

Mic finally finds his chair again, slumping into the desk. "Oh, poor Uraraka... taken down by Bakugo in the first round." He sighs. "I was really pulling for her."

"You're supposed to be unbiased; you know..." Aizawa grumbles. "If you're going to be an announcer, then do it right..."

Of course, Mic ignores him. "Get it together, everyone... let's try to forget that depressing outcome!"

"You're making this way too personal..." Aizawa shakes his head again at his overdramatic co-host's antics.

With a sigh, Mic carries on. "The first round is now over! We'll move on to the second after a quick break!" The crowd cheers, but it remains softer and more reluctant than before this last battle.

Midoriya heads out quietly, deep in thought and clearly worried both for Ochaco and for his own upcoming fight. And just a minute after he vanishes, the villain of the hour returns.

Sero waves at Bakugo, a stupid grin on his face. "Ohh... Hey Bakugo. Rough match, huh, playing the villain again?"

Ryumi snickers from the far side of the section.

Tsu leans forward, pressing a finger to her chin. "Even if it was just because of who you were up against, you do make a pretty convincing bad guy."

"Shut the hell up, all of you! Or else!" He roars back.

"For real, dude." Kaminari adds, pointing at him. "No, really nice job blowing up that frail little girl. I don't know how you could even aim a blast like that at her." He pauses to fold his arms. "Not like me. I couldn't help but hold back against mine."

Ryumi cocks an eyebrow at him and smirks. "Sure. Whatever will soothe your poor ego."

"You were beaten fair and square. She completely overpowered you, Kaminari." Tsu calmly corrects him.

Kaminari frowns, looking wounded. "Aw, come on, Tsu... can't you just let me have this? Especially if Ryumi was going to..."

Bakugo lands heavily in his seat and kicks his feet up on the empty chair in front of him. "Hmph!" Then adds in a low voice as he looks out over the devastated arena. "There was nothing frail about her."

After a few minutes, Cementoss comes out and quickly fixes up the arena floor, then adds a large block to the center.

Kirishima and Tetsutetsu walk out together from the tunnel closest to the nurse's office, and join Cementoss and Midnight by the fresh concrete slab.

Mic picks things up again. "Before we move on, we have one last match to settle! As suggested, these two will face off again in an arm-wrestling competition!"

The pair take their positions on opposite sides of the table, the two judges standing close by.

"Ready... begin!" Mic yells, and the struggle is instant, both of them straining against the other, their arms barely moving. "Ahhh, ohhh! Kirishima or Tetsutetsu? Who's going to move on?!"

Cracks start to form in the table where each competitor grips it to stabilize themselves. The little fissures slowly spread, and gradually Kirishima starts to get a slight edge.

And then, quickly as it began, it's all over.

Kirishima slams his opponent's hand into the stone table, cracking it further and shattering a few chunks off of the edges as the various faults lace together.

Mic jumps up again, as the screens update the bracket to show the slate of combatants moving on. "After their draw earlier, Kirishima has won! He earns a spot in the second round!"

Kirishima raises a fist in victory, while Tetsutetsu curls up on the ground. Ever the good sport, the red-haired boy cuts his own celebration short to offer a hand to his opponent.

Midnight fawns over the display. "Ooh! So chivalrous!"

"We now have our full lineup for the second round! With that said... let's get the party started now, ya dig?" In the announcer's box, Present Mic points finger guns at his co-host, but as usual he refuses to muster any kind of energy in response.

Chapter Text

A little while after the arm wrestling ends, Ochaco returns to the stands. Her eyes are red and puffy, and she's bandaged in a few places, but otherwise looks mostly okay.

"Have they started yet?" She looks out at the field as she returns to her seat. "I have to see this."

Tokoyami and Iida are still surprised by her appearance, though. "Ura..." Iida stops, startled at her face. "Were you blinded?! Hurry up and go see Recovery Girl!" 

"I already did. This is from... something else." She rubs her eyes as she sits between Iida and Ryumi and reclaims her drink.

"Something else? You're not having the best of days..." Iida frets over her.

Ryumi rolls her eyes at the overserious boy. "She was just crying, you dummy."

Ochaco pouts, giving a weakly indignant defense. "I was not..."

"Ah, of course. If I were you, I'd be frustrated too." Iida nods.

"It's no time to wallow. Don't regret your loss. Just learn from it and move on. Use this next fight as a source of encouragement." Tokoyami adds sagely.

Ochaco puts her determined face back on. "Will do."

"That's precisely right." Iida nods, then drops his voice to a faint whisper. "...You're so wise."

"Couldn't have said it better myself, Tokoyami." Ryumi looks at the brown-haired girl sitting next to her. "You put up a good fight, regardless. That alone will impress some agencies. You can train people to be quicker, stronger... but that kind of determination is a lot harder to come by."

"You really think so?" Ochaco smiles and rubs the back of her neck. "...Thanks."

Yaoyorozu shifts in her seat, remaining silent as she keeps her gaze shamefully away from the others.

"I can feel the anticipation in the stadium! And that's because the second round's first match is gonna be epic!" Present Mic begins, posing dramatically in the booth. "First up, it's the guy who won his last fight by a landslide and literally left half the audience frozen. The hero course's Shoto Todoroki!"

Todoroki walks out, a grim look of determination on his face.

Mic continues after allowing a moment for the audience to yell and applaud. "And this kid almost walked out of his first matchup, but made a stunning comeback by showing off some impressive moves! Also from the hero course, Izuku Midoriya!"

Midoriya steps out, doing his best to conceal his fear. The attention from the crowd, all the eyes on him doesn't seem like it's helping things.

In the stands, Iida pipes up as they await the starting call. "Tokoyami. How do you think this match will go?"

Tokoyami closes his eyes a moment to think. "It depends on whether or not Midoriya is able to get in close to him."

"Yeah, that's the problem." Ochaco looks back at the arena. "So, how's Deku gonna deal with the ice?"

Ryumi taps her chin and flexes her wings. "Those blasts of his are pretty strong, but since he breaks his fingers to do them..."

Ochaco instantly starts pouting at her. "You sound like you're doubting him again!"

"Calm down, Uraraka. It's a good point..." Iida offers, making a placating gesture.

"Well, I still think he's gonna find a way to win." Her voice is slightly muffled and echoey as she sips from her iced tea.

Before long, the two boys are staring each other down for the first match of round two. Todoroki is as calm as ever on one side, and a slightly concerned Midoriya on the other.

"Both of these competitors have won top marks in this festival so far, but there's only room for one of these greats in the ring! So which of these rivals will advance to the next round? Prepare for... Midoriya versus Todoroki!" Mic pauses for a deep breath. "...Begin!"

Immediately a wall of ice surges at Midoriya. He raises a hand, bracing his wrist, and flicks one finger as the familiar reddish sparks of power course through him.

The wall stops dead an inch from his face as the shockwave ripples through the arena, tearing and shattering the ice as it passes. Todoroki slides backward a ways, catching himself by forming an ice wall at his back.

The air in the arena grows chilly. Ryumi frowns and folds her wings around her chest. It's annoying, uncomfortable, but not too bad with the afternoon sun still beaming down. She keeps her eyes focused on the battle, as does Iida a couple seats away - one of the two will be facing the winner of this match in the next round.

"Whoaaa! He smashed through! Midoriya managed to break Todoroki's insane opening move!" Mic shouts over the audience's cheers at the impressive display.

Another wave of ice closes in on the green haired boy, and again he braces and flicks a finger. The air pressure roars across and pushes back the assault a second time. Midoriya is shaking from the pain, but he holds strong.

Mic inches closer to the window. "He countered again!" Even Aizawa leans forward, watching with heightened interest.

A third volley surges forth. A third finger breaks. The ice splinters yet again.

Ryumi winces a bit, and not just because of the increasingly cold air blasting into the stands with each clash. She's broken plenty of bones herself as she learned to fly, but never intentionally like that. The fact that he can will himself to it once, let alone repeatedly, and then to not end up vomiting from the intense pain...

It's at this moment that Kirishima finally returns after his arm-wrestling match. "Oh no, crap!" He runs for his seat. "Gah. They already started! I'm missing it!"

Kaminari waves to him as he passes. "Hey! Nice job getting to the second round, Kirishima!"

"Thanks, man." He stops next to the row where Kaminari and Bakugo are sitting and grins, putting his hands on his hips, seeming almost cocky. "Looks like I take down Bakugo next! Gonna be a good one."

"I'll kill you." Bakugo responds flatly, without looking away from the battle.

Of course, Kirishima just laughs it off. "Ha ha ha. Yeah, sure. I'd like to see you try!" He pauses to look below and takes a more casual stance. "No, but, seriously man. It's crazy how you and Todoroki both have moves that blast the whole stadium! Must be pretty nice. You can fire off as many of those crazy-strong attacks as you want..." He waves his hands.

Sero leans forward to join in, looking a little jealous. "Plus, you don't have to pause between attacks."

Still not looking at either of them, Bakugo scoffs at the suggestion. "As many as we want? Don't be stupid. It's not as easy as you think, ya morons."

A confused Kirishima turns back to him. "Huh?"

"If you overuse your muscles, you risk tearing them apart. If you sprint too much, you run out of breath." Bakugo looks down at his hand. "Quirks are still physical abilities. They can get worn out. You can't just use them nonstop. Even this guy's gotta have some kind of limit."

Ryumi shoots him a look from across the seating area. "Never thought I'd be agreeing with you, of all people..." She huffs and returns to watching the fight. "But he has a point."

Bakugo glares back at her, before also settling his gaze back on the battle. "Tch. Nobody asked you, scales."

Kirishima hums, walking up to the railing and joining the others in observing the action. "Yeah, I guess you're right... It makes sense when you put it that way. I wonder if that's how Midoriya thinks he's going to beat Todoroki. By trying to draw things out."

"Seems that way. We'll see if it works. If he doesn't have any other tricks up his sleeve, he's only got five more shots." Privately, Ryumi thinks it has a strong chance - but only if Midoriya can stall long enough, and still have some strength left in reserve once Todoroki is worn down. If he's used to ending all his fights in a single move, or at least within a short span... She taps her tail against the chair. She won't know if she stands a chance with that strategy until she sees how this plays out.

The fourth wave of ice moves in. The last of the fingers on Midoriya's right hand is broken. While he's still reeling from the kickback, Todoroki rushes him, propelling himself forward on a sheet of ice.

"Todoroki, undaunted by Midoriya's power, moves in to close the gap!" Mic declares.

Midoriya switches to his left hand, firing without bracing his wrist since his other hand is mostly pulverized already. He only just fires in time to blow back the first close-range ice blast - but there's another right on its heels, and it catches the boy by the ankle as he tries to leap away. For a second, the sparks of power glowing in Midoriya's arm grow brighter.

A massive shockwave shakes the entire arena, much stronger than the previous hits. When the mist from the battered ice fragments clears, Midoriya's entire left arm is bloody, hanging useless and broken at his side.

Todoroki lifts himself out of a cradle of ice that only barely saved him from being pushed out of the ring. Both boys stagger to their feet, but Midoriya is clearly in the worse shape. Even from this distance, his breathing is clearly ragged, his movements clumsier than normal.

But though Todoroki hasn't really been hit yet, only tossed around, something is happening to him. It's faint, hard to make out from the stands, but Ryumi sees it. There's patches of frost on his right side, and every time he breathes, he exhales a cloud of ice crystals.

"Todoroki continues his relentless assault! Could this next ice attack win it all?" Mic announces, sounding a touch concerned over the brutal way the match is heading, while Aizawa remains quietly analytical.

The ice surges once again - and Midoriya's fingers are all broken already.

Ochaco covers her mouth with her hands. Most of class A stands or leans forward to see...

The ice explodes again. One of Midoriya's fingers has turned a sickly purple. The bones must be utterly pulverized.

Ryumi silently presses a fang into her lower lip. With one that was already broken? Is he insane? Who the hell is this guy? She can't believe it. The weakest kid in class, the one whose power destroys his body, is keeping up with the strongest... at least for the moment.

Again, Todoroki is pushed to the far edge of the space, but again he stops himself before the line with an ice cushion at his back.

The two stare each other down for a while, from opposite ends of the arena. They're talking, but even when Midoriya starts shouting it's impossible to make out the words over the roar of the crowd. He somehow curls his busted right hand into a fist, challenging his opponent.

"...I know we have Recovery Girl to count on, but..." Ryumi mumbles - just thinking about how much surgery, how many pins it will take to set those bones again... A glance over the rest of the faces in their class's section tells her she's not alone in that concern - though probably few if any of the others are picturing the specifics of the repair process.

When Todoroki charges again, there's a cold fury in his eyes. Midoriya is ready for him as he drops his guard, landing a heavy punch with his right arm directly into his opponent's stomach. Todoroki goes flying, but not without catching Midoriya's upper left arm and icing it over.

He's too far from the ground to create ice to catch himself, but he slides to a stop just a meter from the edge. The frost patches on his skin are spreading, becoming larger, and he staggers as he gets to his feet, clutching the spot he was hit. When he shifts his foot to send out another ice wave, the motion looks almost uncoordinated, and the ice is slower to form as well as smaller. He really is reaching his limit... but is Midoriya already past his?

The bloody underdog tries to make a fist as he dodges the latest attack. He can't manage it, so he holds his thumb against the inside of his mouth to flick it without needing to bend any other fingers.

The shockwave forces Todoroki back, a small patch of ice slowing him. Midoriya is right behind though, giving up on his quirk he simply shoves the other boy. They both stumble, but recover slowly. There's still enough space for this to go on for a while.

Midoriya punches him again, in the chest. It's hard to say if it's the freezing, his anger, or just over-reliance on his power that's left Todoroki's defense so open to regular attacks. Maybe it's all of them.

As Todoroki struggles to stand again, Midoriya shouts something.

A spark ignites.

Flames burst forth, exploding out from where Todoroki was kneeling. For a moment, the action below is invisible to the crowd through the flames.

Ryumi gets out of her seat as the chilly air completely vanishes. She grabs the railing and looks out. He said he didn't use fire... He was obviously upset after the cavalry battle because he did, even if only barely...

Ochaco leans back in her seat. "Whoa, it's so hot now." She whines uncomfortably.

"Incredible..." Iida mutters.

As the flames reduce, Todoroki stands confidently. The frost patches evaporate, leaving steam trails off his right side as flames engulf his left. He smiles at Midoriya, but it's a little off, like he doesn't quite remember how.

The pair each ready massive attacks. Todoroki leads with his ice, but as Midoriya leaps over it, power surging in his busted arms, he prepares a gout of flame. Midnight tears her suit to release the mist of her quirk, and Cementoss jumps from his chair to form barriers between the combatants.

As the flames shoot out and Midoriya throws his final punch, the whole arena explodes, the concrete barriers destroyed in an instant.

The shockwave is powerful even up in the stands - though it's not enough to blow anyone from their seats, it feels like being in a strong windstorm. Many of the onlookers shield their eyes and hunker down as it hits them.

Kaminari peeps over the chair in front of him cautiously as the winds die down. "This is crazy!"

"What's happening down there?" Yaoyorozu struggles to see either of their classmates.

The resulting dust cloud obscures much of the arena again. At first, neither of the boys can be seen anywhere. A slightly battered Midnight and Cementoss reappear and begin to look around.

In the announcer's box, Mic tumbles out of his chair. "What the--?! What happened just now? What the heck is with your class?"

"The air around the ring had been thoroughly cooled down, and then rapidly expanded when heated up." Aizawa calmly explains, ignoring his overdramatic companion.

"Wait, that's what caused the explosion?" He crawls back to his chair slowly. "What a blast, though. And what heat! Jeez, I can't see a thing. Has the match been decided or what, huh?"

When the dust finally begins to settle, Midoriya is slumped against the outer wall of the arena. He wobbles a little, then collapses. Todoroki watches, still standing in the battle arena, though minus half of his uniform's shirt - apparently burned away by his power.

Midnight starts to walk over to assist the defeated boy. "There... Midoriya... is out of bounds. Todoroki wins! He moves on to the third round!"

Once again, the robots appear and cart off Midoriya. As Todoroki walks out, he takes a last conflicted glance at the destruction the two of them caused, and at the robots taking Midoriya away.

Ochaco frowns and shifts uncomfortably, waits a moment, then stands.

Iida looks at her. "You're going?"

She nods. "I... I just want to make sure he's okay..."

Ryumi rocks in her seat, swishing her tail as she considers... and then she also stands. "We might as well go too, Iida." She points out at the wreckage in the field. "Gonna be a bit before they're ready for us, I think."

Just as she says it, Mic is announcing a break in the tournament, and the screens start playing some highlights from the second- and third-years’ events to keep the audience busy while repairs and cleanup get done.

Ultimately, the three of them plus Tsu hurry over to the temporary nurse's office down below. Ochaco leads the way, nearly running and threatening to leave the rest of them behind.

She slams the door open when they arrive. "Deku!"

A second later, the others of the group arrive. "Midoriya!"

Along with Midoriya, bandaged up and lying on one of the beds; and Recovery Girl sitting on a wheely stool with her usual calm but stern look; there's a very tall, gaunt man standing at the end of the bed who startles when the door opens. He's wearing a fine suit that looks a touch too baggy for his frame, as if he'd lost a significant amount of weight very quickly - added to his sunken facial features and ragged blonde hair, he reminds Ryumi of the descriptions of late-stage cancer patients from her father's books.

Ochaco cautiously steps inside, arms pulled up tight to her chest. "Are you okay...?"

"...Scared the heck out of me..." The strange man mumbles, clutching at his heart. He straightens and covers the gesture by adjusting his tie.

His father, maybe? Ryumi glances between the man and her classmate. ...Certainly didn't inherit his height if so...

Ochaco also looks curiously at the tall man as she approaches the bed. "Oh, hello. It's nice to meet you, sir..."

"Uh, yeah..." The man replies nervously. He must frighten easily. Or maybe he's just on edge over the shape Midoriya is in.

Recovery Girl hops off her stool and walks over to the bed to ward off the others. "He's in no state for visitors."

"Hey you guys... But... the next match..." Midoriya groans painfully from the bed. His arms are fully immobilized and wrapped, folded across his chest.

Iida jumps in to answer Midoriya's question. "The arena stage was mostly destroyed, so they're taking a break to repair it now." He points back behind himself, indicating the direction they'd come from.

Ochaco pushes closer, wringing her hands. "We came cuz we were worried."

"That was a hell of a fight, Midoriya." Ryumi smiles, leaning against the wall by the door and flicking her tail slowly back and forth. "You're tougher than I've been giving you credit for. Still not sure how you'll manage that kickback in the field, but..."

A pouty, angry look from Ochaco silences her, and she lifts her hands defensively.

"You know sensei would agree with her, Ochaco." Tsu steps up and sets a hand on the brown-haired girl's shoulder.

Recovery Girl strides purposefully ahead and brandishes her cane at the four, a shockingly menacing display from the tiny woman. "You're much too noisy - pipe down! It's fine to worry, but he's about to have surgery, and I need to focus."

"Surgery?!" Ochaco and Iida look panicked, and Tsu a little surprised.

Ryumi is baffled by the reaction from the others. "You didn't know? His arm bones have to be in splinters after all that. Even with a super healing quirk, there's no fixing something so serious without a somewhat invasive procedure. The medical profession still exists for a reason."

Recovery Girl pushes the lot of them back to the doorway. "Precisely right! Now shoo! Go on, get out of here."

"But..." Ochaco starts to protest.

Iida shuffles and chops at the air with one arm. "Will his wounds be healed?"

"Don't worry, just leave me to it." Recovery Girl puts on a reassuring smile, though she continues to push the children back.

Tsu looks on sadly. "Ribbit..."

Before the school nurse can finish forcing them out and close the door again, Midoriya starts mumbling. "I'm sorry..."

Everyone stops and looks toward the boy. The unknown man walks closer to the bed and watches him.

"I couldn't do it... Maybe if I'd just shut up, not said anything... I might've been able to beat him. But I... I had to say what I did to Todoroki..." It sounds painful even for him to speak, and yet he doesn't stop.

"You... were trying to bring it out of him." The man answers.

Ryumi dares to take a step back into the room. "What did you say to him, Midoriya? What happened out there?"

Either he doesn't hear, or he's too deep in his own thoughts to notice. "Right... I guess so. Todoroki... It was just, in his first match, he looked so sad... I thought maybe... I should just mind my own business..." A jolt of pain forces him to pause. "I was trying to figure out why, when I should've been focused... but... I had to say something... because at that point, I couldn't take it anymore... I was so frustrated. I forgot why I was there... I lost myself... I'm sorry..."

Recovery Girl pushes the rest of the kids out by threateningly pointing the sharp end of her syringe-shaped cane at them and closes the door.

As the others head back to grab snacks and wait for the break to finish up, Ryumi lingers near the door.

"An unfortunate outcome, indeed. It's true that the match didn't go how we wanted it to." The muffled voice she hears through the door could only belong to the tall man. "And calling you a fool, even realizing where you went wrong won't change what happened. However... giving help that's not asked for, meddling where you don't technically have to - is the essence of a true hero."

Ryumi grabs her elbow and pulls her wings close to her back. She waits a moment longer, but when she hears footsteps approaching the door she hurries along to catch up with the others.

Chapter Text

A while later, as the cleanup is nearly complete and an official resume time has been declared, Midoriya slowly walks back to the class 1-A seating section. He still has one arm in a sling, both with casts and heavy bandaging, but he seems in good spirits.

Iida stands and meets him at the railing in the aisle. "Midoriya!" He smiles at his friend. "Thank goodness! I'm glad to see your surgery was a success!"

Midoriya looks over his shoulder. "Yeah. Thank you." He turns back and stares out over the railing at the repairs finishing up below. "Have I missed anything good?"

"Nope." Ryumi bounces over to join the two boys. "They're just finishing fixing up the mess you two made."

Iida nods. "Indeed. Arisato and I are due on stage in fifteen minutes. We were just about to head to the prep rooms." He leans against the railing next to Midoriya, opposite Ryumi. "Your match against Todoroki was quite informative."

Ryumi flicks her tail and also nods. "One of us will get to put that to good use." She shoots a fangy grin at Iida. "We'll find out who soon enough."

"Right." Midoriya seems momentarily disappointed, but quickly cheers up. "Do you know if your brother Ingenium has been watching you this whole time, Iida? Is he excited about your wins so far? He must be so proud of his little brother."

Iida adjusts his glasses. "Mm. I'm not sure. I called him earlier... but he was working."

Midoriya bobs his head. "Oh, okay. Sorry."

"He'll watch the recording when he has time, although..." He pauses. "I'm actually glad. When we do talk, maybe I'll get to tell him that I won."

Midoriya turns to the girl on his other side. "What about you, Ryumi? Are your parents watching?"

Ryumi jumps slightly, not expecting the question "Oh..." She looks out at the field, and her expression falls as she pulls her wings close. "...No. They're not..."

The shorter boy shifts, a little embarrassed. "Sorry..." He offers an apologetic smile. "They must be busy with work too, huh? I'm sure they can't wait to watch when they can."

He doesn't know... Remember, he has no idea... She bites her lip and forces back those thoughts. "Yeah. Of course." Her response is a little stilted, but if he notices, he doesn't press her on it.

The awkward moment ends suddenly with a sharp buzzing from Iida's pocket. Both of the others watch as he pulls out his phone.

Iida looks down at the screen. "Excuse me - it's my mother..." He starts walking down toward the prep room to take the call.

"Don't chat too long! We've got a fight coming up, remember!" Ryumi shouts after him, and he lifts a hand in acknowledgement. "I should probably go too." She hops back from the railing and waves to Midoriya. "Enjoy the show."

The time in the prep room passes quickly enough, even without another fight to follow as she waits. And it's not long before Ryumi is called out to take the field.

"We've already seen an impressive showing from our next competitor - winning her last match with a crazy forceful comeback - but can she pull it off again?" Mic rambles to rile up the crowd as he introduces the match, voice booming and echoing around the stadium. "We'll soon find out, ladies and gentlemen! It's Ryumi Arisato! Versus..."

"It's the speedster who dominated his last opponent in the blink of an eye - but how will speed match up against raw strength? It's Tenya Iida!" Mic continues over the roaring crowd.

As soon as he steps into the ring, Ryumi can tell something is off. The class president's usual cheerily serious look is gone. His eyes appear hollow behind the front of determination he's trying to maintain.

"Iida. Is everything alright?" She asks, not paying attention to whether the starting call has happened or not.

He tips his head down, casting a glare over his glasses that hides his eyes. "My brother... he was hurt by a villain." One of his hands curls into a fist, and his voice is shaky. "Mother called... because he's in critical condition, at the hospital..."

"...Are you sure you want to do this right now?" There's a genuine sorrow in her words. She knows too well how he must feel right now. "If we asked, they could probably postpone our match until the end of the round..."

He shakes his head, takes a breath, and recovers somewhat, adjusting his glasses as he readies to face her. "No. Tensei... he would want me to carry on fighting, to do my best regardless."

"...If you're sure." She also readies to fight, dropping into a low stance.

He nods. And they both make their opening moves.

Iida crouches down just like he did at the start of his battle with Shiozaki. His engines flare up, spitting blue flames...

...Which is just what Ryumi is watching for. She leaps into the air the instant she sees the flash of blue, and he passes under her, barely missing catching her by the leg or tail.

So he is risking it... Is that the only strategy he thought he could win with? She eyes him from above. There's nothing he can do to get to her up here. She only has to ride out the few seconds until his engines stall. Surely he suspected...

Below, he tries to keep evasive to prevent her from getting a strike on him from the air, but before long his speed starts to falter.

Ryumi brings out her scales at this point, and dives at her opponent. He rolls to the side, his reflexes still heightened even if his straight up running speed is shot now for the duration of the match.

She lands heavily, cracking the concrete, and turns to leap at him again. Iida throws a kick into her side, knocking her back, but as she skids away, she catches the ground with her claws and makes a swift recovery.

The pair run at each other again, but just as Iida tries for another hit, Ryumi redirects, dropping low to the ground and sliding past him. Her tail coils around his ankle as he puts his weight on the leg, and before he can rebalance himself, she pulls him over.

He lands roughly, glasses skittering across the arena away from him. He starts to get up, but he's being pulled by his ankle yet again - skyward this time.

Ryumi lifts off with a flurry of wingbeats, holding her opponent dangling by his leg from her tail. He struggles and writhes around, trying in vain to escape or lift himself enough to reach her, but the position he's left in is far too awkward for someone who isn't a gymnast to get out of on their own.

He gives up a moment later, going limp in her grasp.

On the judge's stage, Midnight points up to the pair of them. "Iida is immobilized! Arisato advances to the next round!"

The crowd cheers and Mic is saying something over top of them, but Ryumi isn't paying attention to any of that as she gently drops her opponent back on the ground before landing a few feet away herself.

She doesn't feel good about this victory. It's obvious his heart was never in the fight, no matter what he might have claimed. Still, she goes to help him up.

He takes her hand and brushes himself off. He looks distant and sad again, distracted.

Ryumi sighs. "I don't like this, you know. Feels unfair to expect you to fight after getting news like that." She spies his glasses and fetches them for him. The left lens has a notable crack in it from hitting the pavement during the fight. "Sorry."

He takes the glasses and puts them back on, despite the crack. "It's alright. I said I wanted to continue... but I'll have to leave soon anyway. Even if I'd won, I'd have to drop out before my next battle. Father is coming to pick me up..." His voice falls. "...to go see Tensei."

So he just wanted a graceful exit. She closes her eyes a moment, then steps up and lays a hand on his shoulder. "Iida. Don't worry about all this. There's always next year - for now... go be with your family."

...While you still can.

It takes him a moment to respond, but eventually he nods - though he can't find the will to look at her. "Thank you. Will you... explain to Midoriya and Uraraka for me?"

"Of course." Ryumi nods back, gesturing toward the exit for both of them to head out. "...I expect a real rematch from you someday, you know."

A ghost of a smile passes over his face, but it's plainly forced. "Right." Just before they head their separate ways, Iida stops. "Good luck on the rest of the tournament."

She smiles softly, even though he's looking away and can't see. "Thanks. I don't know if I stand a chance against Todoroki, but... I'll give it everything I've got." She opens her mouth once more, but quickly closes it again. There's more she wishes she could say to him, but she can't. Not now.

...And then he disappears out the doors, leaving the festival behind - while Ryumi starts up to the seating area to look for Midoriya and Ochaco.

The two in question leap from their seats the second they hear footsteps coming up the stairs to the 1-A section of the stands. "Iida!" They both call out - but they quickly find themselves covering for the disappointment in their eyes at seeing only Ryumi return.

Ochaco is the first to pull herself together. "Um, Ryumi? Where's Iida?"

The dragon girl shakes her head. "He had a family emergency come up. You know his brother, Ingenium?" She pauses, pressing her lips together as she tries to decide what to say. "He... got hurt on the job today. Badly. He made it to the hospital, but he's critical still... So..."

"Oh no..." Ochaco gasps, covering her mouth with both hands. "Is he going to be okay?"

Midoriya looks devastated. "Iida..."

"They don't know yet. Modern medicine can do a lot, but..." Ryumi pulls her wings up close to her back and grabs her elbow with her other hand. "Iida asked me to let you know. He's leaving, so he can visit his brother."

Midoriya casts his eyes downward. "I hope everything is alright... Iida really looks up to his brother."

Ochaco shifts uncomfortably, holding her arms up to her chest. "Yeah..."

Ryumi nods, afraid to say much more. She feels for Iida, more than anyone here could know, but it's not something she can talk about.

The trio all settle back into their seats to watch the rest of the tournament. Midoriya awkwardly pulls out his phone to send a quick message to Iida, though with his arms and fingers so bandaged up it's an obvious struggle for him. The whole front row of their section is full of quiet melancholy even as the next match prepares to start.

Mic's announcement draws them halfway out of dwelling on the news. "The wave of darkness returns to sweep over another opponent! It's Fumikage Tokoyami - will his next match go as easily as the last? Is his quirk as unstoppable as it seems?"

Again, Tokoyami bows his head as he takes up position. Though class A's section is notably more somber and reserved than it was at the start of the tournament, the rest of the audience remains as hyped as ever.

"And up against him, the dancing queen here to melt your hearts - with deadly acid! It's Mina Ashido!" Mic continues over the cheers echoing around as Mina takes up her place. "Ready... begin!"

At the start, Tokoyami immediately calls Dark Shadow while Mina collects acid in her hands. The demon surges out toward her and she stumbles backward a step before finding her resolve again.

She steels herself and pitches globs of sticky acid at the shadowy creature but it shifts and swerves easily around them, cackling to itself as it closes the distance. With a heavy shove, it knocks the remaining acid balls from her hands and forces her back.

Mina tries to balance on her tiptoes as she skids back to avoid crossing the line, but she's still a bit off kilter as her momentum stops and she tumbles backward, landing on her butt just outside the boundary.

"Ashido is out of bounds!" Midnight points to the girl with the whip, then turns back to her opponent. "Tokoyami will advance!"

Dark Shadow returns obediently to its master's side as the crowd roars for their victory.

Kaminari blinks at the outcome of the fight below. "Whoa! He won that battle super fast!"

Tsu nods in agreement, a finger resting on her chin. "Tokoyami's Dark Shadow is so amazing. Ribbit."

With a sigh, Ryumi stands and goes to leave for the prep room. She'll be up again after this next match, and... she still doesn't have a great plan in mind.

"Oh, ah - good luck out there..." Midoriya offers nervously as she passes by.

She puts on a smile, and nods.

"Yeah, you go get 'em Ryumi." Kaminari lifts a hand, probably intending just a friendly wave, but she chooses to interpret it as a high five. As always, he jumps and yelps at the spray of sparks when she touches him.

Her smile shifts, becoming more of a smirk. "Thanks, Kaminari." She waves without looking back as she disappears into the stadium interior.

Sitting in the prep room, Ryumi sips from a bottle of water and stares at the footage playing on the TV.

Kirishima shouts as he readies a mighty punch, but Bakugo's reflexes make it a glancing blow - just grazing his cheek enough to draw a little blood. While his opponent remains close, he plants a hand right on Kirishima's side and lays into him with a big blast.

"A counter!" Mic calls out.

Kirishima slides backward from the force but hardly looks any worse off. His uniform can't say the same, as the attack scorched a huge hole in his shirt, but he doesn't look fazed by that either. In fact, he almost seems to be taunting the other boy.

Though she's still watching, Ryumi's mind is undeniably elsewhere for most of that time. She taps a finger against the water bottle in her hand. She knows she can hold out against the ice for a while - perhaps at least as long as Midoriya, though her limit will be strictly time-based. The longer she spends in direct contact with the freezing temperatures, the quicker her power stores will deplete.

She glances over her shoulder and flexes her wings. The silvery veins shimmer but don't spark. It's as close to a full charge as she can get right now, so it will have to do. She's not entirely sure if Kaminari even realized what she was up to as she left the class A section. I'll thank him again later, if I manage to pull this off.

On the TV screen, Kirishima keeps the pressure on, racing at Bakugo with a flurry of punches that he barely has time to dodge.

Mic pipes up again. "Bakugo struggles to stand up to Kirishima's brutal attacks! He's having a heck of a time dodging all those fierce moves!"

"He'll have to press harder. He can't afford a drawn-out battle." Aizawa adds, and there's a faint sound of papers shuffling. "The longer this lasts, the more likely Bakugo wins."

Mic jumps over his co-host's very reasonable comment. "Oooh! Bakugo is countering again! But what's this? It seems to be working this time!"

There's another forceful blast from Bakugo to Kirishima's left side, scorching another hole in his uniform and sending him flying. For the first time all match, there's a hint of pain on the redhead's face.

Kirishima rallies as soon as he lands, scurrying back to his feet and taking up a fresh defensive pose. But only a second later a flurry of explosions engulfs him in smoke and fire. As it starts to clear, Bakugo launches another heavy blast and the other boy falls backward, his uniform in tatters and the skin below singed by the heat. Kirishima collapses for the second time today.

"Kirishima has been knocked out. Bakugo is the winner!" Midnight points to him as the crowd roars.

Mic continues as the cameras pull out, and the familiar medic bots file out to collect Kirishima. "Bakugo's vicious carpet-bombing blasts him into the third round! And with that, ladies and gentlemen, we've got our final four!"

Pictures of Todoroki, Ryumi, Tokoyami, and Bakugo appear on the TV.

Ryumi takes a deep breath and finishes off the small water bottle, tossing it into a bin by the door. If I could figure out how Midoriya convinced him... She wishes she'd pressed the boy on it once he returned from Recovery Girl's care, but... after Iida left... Heck, even if he didn't want to say, I bet I could've gotten it out of him in exchange for explaining my quirk.

Too late now though. She hopes the few tricks she has in mind are enough.

"Let's move right on to the next round! Both of these competitors have shown us exactly why they deserve to be here, but now only one can continue! It's Ryumi Arisato versus Shoto Todoroki!" Mic's booming voice seems to come from all directions as the competitors enter the field and he turns to his co-host. "Any idea what we should be looking for, Mr. stats sheet?"

Aizawa ignores the jab, though he does answer the question. "Arisato has the clear advantage in hand to hand, though she's lacking in long range options. After seeing what she's capable of in the cavalry battle... I expect Todoroki will keep his distance and not take any chances with her."

Ryumi gently presses a fang into her lip as she stares at her opponent. Aizawa is right, and she knows it. Though Todoroki is a bit taller than her, and likely a little bit heavier, her quirk would more than make up for it. She has him beat in raw strength, but that only matters if she can get close. And if she can do that before her fuel runs out.

"Wow, you sure know how to make it sound boring! I'm just hoping to see some more big spectacle - and I know you sports fans are with me! So, let's get this party started, huh?! Let the first match of the semifinals... begin!" Mic points dramatically at the field.

Todoroki fixes that cool gaze of his on Ryumi. And as he lifts his right hand, the first wave of ice surges forward. It's smaller, like he's testing the waters before committing to a full attack.

She doesn't even try to evade it, a calculated risk. Without knowing what trigger or button Midoriya used, she's forced to rely on the simple fact that her opponent wants to win.

The ice encircles her legs, thicker and more solid than what she endured during the cavalry battle last round, but she only needs to hold out for a moment. Staring dead on into Todoroki's mismatched eyes, she activates her quirk.

And the ice shatters.

It's perhaps far from the dramatic display of force Midoriya put on, as the shards don't fly far. But that doesn't matter - all she needs is for it to look effortless.

"So you were holding back before." He narrows his eyes and takes a step forward, another larger wave of ice sweeping out as he does.

This time she doesn't let it reach her, slashing with her claws and carving chunks from the main mass of crystal each time it gets close. She thinks she notes a small hint of frustration in his features as she fights off his strikes.

"You can't keep that up forever." Todoroki sends another sheet of icy spires at her, but again she cleaves them apart.

She's shivering a little, standing amidst the growing piles of destroyed icicles, but her gaze remains hard and sharp. For this to work, she needs to appear unaffected, so she focuses on keeping any glimmer of discomfort out of her expression and her voice. "Neither can you - your last fight made that obvious."

There's a flicker of something on his face. Concern, maybe? Surprise? It's gone again before she can tell, but something about him does feel sharper, more focused when he responds. "Fine then."

He shifts his weight onto his right foot and lifts the hand on the same side. A massive wall blasts out, overtaking her half of the arena in a mere instant.

"Whoa! Another huge glacier!" Mic half panics and glances around. "At least we didn't hit the stands this time. But wow, I'm not sure if she's coming back from that..."

Aizawa glances at his papers, and silently, he waits.

"It's totally different than when he fought Sero. He aimed that attack carefully... while staying on guard!" Midoriya mumbles to himself. He starts to reach for his notes, only to remember that he'll find writing anything down fairly difficult with the state his hands are in.

Yaoyorozu and a few of the other girls shift nervously in their seats. Kaminari stands and shades his eyes, searching for any hint of movement inside the slab of ice.

Below, the judges are starting to wonder if the match should be called. Midnight and Cementoss seem to be debating over radio when a shimmer appears inside the glacier.

In the announcer's box Mic is shouting something, as usual, but Aizawa just glances at the clock expectantly.

The flashes of light start to crawl outward from the center, and an electric crackling can be heard. Todoroki takes a half step back, ready to defend.

A second after the first coils of lightning break the surface of the ice, large cracks form and snake across every edge. And then, with a force that actually does rival Midoriya's air blasts, the glacier splinters and explodes.

A cascade of tiny crystals fills the arena, creating something like a heavy, chilled fog.

And within the fog, a familiar large shadow stirs.

"...That won't work." The beast that is Ryumi states plainly, in her low growling voice. With a slow, deliberate motion, a dark claw steps out from the icy mist hanging over the arena.

Kaminari jumps up, fist held high. "Hell yeah! You show him, Ryumi!" He sounds more than a little glad that he won't be the only one to face down her true form today.

Midoriya stands and leans against the railing, trying for a better view and cursing his injured hands for their inability to write. "Amazing..."

Ochaco stands too, collecting his notebook and pen with a smile as she nudges him. She has the book open to the correct pages.

With a beat of Ryumi's wings, the mist dissipates entirely, revealing her full body at the same moment she lets out a terrible roar.

As before, those seated closest in the audience seem to freeze in place, as if afraid to even breathe. Todoroki looks stunned too, his eyes wide at the sight of the dragon towering over him.

She knows it won't last long on him though. Someone as strong willed as he is should shake off the effect within only a second or two, so she has to move fast.

Ryumi sprints at him, claws raking the concrete as she barrels ahead. "I hope you didn't think I needed an outside power source for this."

As expected, he regains enough of his senses to send another wave of ice at her as she's about halfway to him. She braces for it, curling her head and neck back and crushing the crystals to a snowy powder under the weight of her charge. "I told you..." She hisses. "That won't work!"

In truth, she's bluffing. Hard. If he keeps these up much longer, she'll be out of power and without her strength surge it's unlikely she can break free from even something as weak as his initial attack.

But she has, unfortunately, gotten good at lying. And most find reading the tells of a reptilian face much more challenging - so her current shape is helping. There's a small chance he might have noticed her shivering during the cavalry battle, but she hopes that little clue wasn't enough for him to guess at her weakness.

She's scarcely a meter from him now, and he lifts his hands defensively. Even if her roar has faded, anyone could be expected to panic a little at seeing half a ton of fang and claw bearing down on them at speed.

Flames ignite across his left arm.

The dragon grins.

The fire surges out to meet her, but as this is just what she's been hoping for, she's ready. Her wings spread wide and pull her back as the heat reaches her - though she has to trust in the resistance of her scales to take some of it.

"Just like Midoriya..." Todoroki is sweating, breathing heavily, but recovering fast.

The real fight starts now.

Ryumi shakes out her wings and forelimbs. The flames were manageable so far, but she's not sure taking the full blast would be a good idea. She gathers herself up and pounces at Todoroki.

He rolls to the side and launches another stream of fire behind him. It splashes the concrete at her intended landing place, but she never actually lands. Mid-leap as the flames scorch the ground, she pushes off with her wings and takes to the air.

A couple more weak blasts shoot up at her, but they're vague potshots. A distraction, or an effort to make her waste her energy on dodging. She swerves narrowly around them and dives at her opponent.

He rolls away from the impact again, barely avoiding her crashing into the arena floor and forming a shallow crater in the concrete. Even as he recovers and tries to regain some distance, those big gleaming blue eyes sight him, and her tail swings out and lashes into his chest.

Todoroki skids backward across the battlefield, setting up an ice wall at his back to keep from sliding out of bounds. He stumbles very slightly as he prepares for her to press the advantage.

And she does, sparing him but a half second to recover from the blow before swiping at him again. The hit from her tail must have knocked the wind from him, because he's struggling to keep out of reach of the flurry of claws.

It's irritating how he keeps escaping, though she knows this is a weakness of her current form. It takes more effort and time to get this larger body moving quickly, so a smaller opponent can - theoretically - just dance around her strikes.

He's trying, but with each quick backstep, the misses are becoming narrower. One claw just catches his uniform, ripping a diagonal gash in the fabric, but still not reaching Todoroki himself. She follows that by trying to feint - putting her wing up to obscure his view of the rest of her body in hopes of catching him off-guard. He sends another surge of ice out in retaliation, and it captures her awkwardly mid-strike.

It takes a second for her to shatter the ice binding her left forelimb and wing, time that buys Todoroki an opportunity to put some distance between them again.

"...You're not used to long battles, are you?" Ryumi taunts him in her low, growling tone as she pulls herself free. "You usually win in a single show of force, before your enemy can even blink... So, you're not prepared when someone can actually take a hit from you."

He doesn't give that a response, only glaring at her across the battered battlefield. But she can tell she's right just looking at him as he stands there defensively, panting, struggling to catch his breath, and sweat running down his face.

Aizawa tilts his head curiously. "...Interesting. She's wearing him down."

"Wow! What a match! These two powerhouses throwing down is exactly what we all came here to see, right sports fans?!" Mic continues, distracted by the crowd. He wasn't listening, and tips his head toward his co-host only after he finishes what he was saying. "Huh? What was that?"

Aizawa shuffles the papers on his half of the desk and points to one. "Arisato pinned one of Todoroki's few weaknesses - his stamina. Every fight we've seen today, with the exception of Midoriya, Todoroki has won in a single attack, or close to it." The hint of a slight grin appears on his bandaged features. "These drawn-out fights are taking a toll, specifically because of his over-reliance on his quirk - and the fact that he rarely faces a real challenge."

Midoriya grips the railing with the one hand that can, staring nervously out at the battle. "Can she really do it...?"

Ryumi pounces again, closing the gap between them, but a blast of flame shoots from Todoroki's left hand, forcing her back into the air to evade. She circles above him, looking for an opportunity, as he holds his ground defensively.

She's running out of time to finish this. She can feel the subtle burn building in her muscles that signals her power reserves running low. There's only time for one more strike.

Ryumi eyes Todoroki below her. He's clearly physically exhausted, but his quirk hasn't reduced in power at all. Her only move is to dive at him, hoping he can't get out of the way fast enough.

He'll likely try to catch her in a blast to buy himself some extra time. She can roar again to counter, but she won't have the spare seconds to dodge. She'll have to just take whatever he throws at her.

That's it then. My last shot.

She folds in her wings and plummets toward the ground. As Todoroki starts to flee, a slight shift in her wing position keeps her on track to land and pin him.

He realizes quickly he lacks the energy to outrun her, and positions for a last stand. A huge blaze gathers around his left side, wreathing his upper body. Ryumi roars as she falls, though the effect is even less than last time, producing only a brief hesitation before he unleashes the cone of flame upward.

She pushes as deep into the inferno as she can before releasing her transformation - her hope is this will create a small buffer of clear air between her and the flames.

But it's too much. She's strained her batteries from all the fighting today, even with recharging between, and the combined shock of running out of power and the heat edging toward painful makes the world turn black.

Chapter Text

The dragon disappears into the flames as Todoroki stares upward, still gasping for breath. The faint, indistinct shadow suddenly shifts and shrinks, and the fire evaporates soon after.

A cold sickness comes over him. For a moment, he isn't sure if the figure falling from the sky is the girl he was just fighting, or a young version of himself, covered in burns. In the low afternoon sun, his own shadow looms before him - it looks huge and monstrous, like his father's.

He forces his eyes shut. When he reopens them, the girl is still falling, but he's sure it's her now. His hands shake. He can't believe what he's done. This is just what he wanted.

Midnight and Cementoss are rushing in to catch her, but Todoroki doesn't notice. The rest of the world feels distant and muffled to him. As he stares upward, all he can see and think about is the weight of his own mistakes. His failings. His inability to hold to his own principles. The faint nausea is getting stronger.

Midoriya... I want to believe you. But I can't... not when this...

Todoroki takes a step forward. Ice surges up from his right foot, forming a smooth slide that reaches up to Arisato's body. It catches her, and she glides comparatively gently down to the ground. He kneels, and she comes to a stop in his arms at the base of the ice spire.

He averts his gaze immediately, too terrified to look at the damage he's surely caused. He knows how much it hurts. He knows - and yet he did it anyway.

I really am no better than him... I could easily have killed her...

The teachers arrive and collect Arisato, sending her off to the nurse's office. He dimly registers the sound of Mic and Midnight calling the match in his favor, but he doesn't care. If this is the cost of victory...

He's losing control of his breathing. It's taking all his focus just to hide it. He has to get out of here. Get away. Anywhere. Away from people, away from his class.

Anywhere that he can't find me.

He hurries off the field, shame bearing down on him. The trembling in his hands is getting worse. A plain little unmarked door at the end of a side hall catches his eye and he slinks inside.

It's a storage closet. There's various equipment for other possible events packed neatly into the small space.

Todoroki collapses into a clear spot of wall between a rack of foam swords and a stack of hurdles, sliding down to sit on the cold stone floor. A shallow, shaky breath escapes him and he draws his knees halfway up to his chest.

"How... How could I...?" He grabs his left arm with his right, gripping it tightly. He presses his nails into the flesh - not enough to leave any obvious mark, but enough to hurt.

He lets go, and looks down at his arms. He feels a phantom burning coming from the old scars. They're so faint and faded now as to be nearly invisible - but he still remembers them, still sees them. How could he ever forget?

For a while... almost... but then I...

Hot tears blur his vision, and through the distortion he slips into a memory.

He's on the floor, on his hands and knees. The burns on his arms are fresh and painful, but he's so exhausted and sick he can't even do anything about it.

He tries to breathe, and looks up to the man standing over him, pleading in his eyes.

But the mountain towering above has no pity, no mercy for the young boy. He might only have been five or six back when this happened, but already he was expected to train like a real pro. The blue eyes of his father hold only cold rage and disappointment. "Get up."

He tries, but the pain is too much. He coughs and the world seems to swim around him. He might throw up again. He tries to push it back - if he gives in now, it will only make things worse later.

"You're pathetic. You think you'll be the best if this is all you can do?" The harsh gaze of the giant man burrows into the little boy. "You won't last a year to even get onto the rankings if this is the best you have. Forget about defeating All Might."

Through his young eyes, his father looks like an ogre, or some other horrible monster from the fantasy stories his mother would read to him. He wishes for a knight to come and rescue him. Not a hero - if this creature is considered a hero, he doesn't want anything to do with the word. He can't understand how this monster and someone like All Might can both be called heroes.

"Get. Up." The ogre barks again. He doesn't unfold his crossed arms, but he takes a menacing step toward the boy.

He struggles, but even knowing what will happen if he fails, he just doesn't have the strength left. He pushes himself halfway to his feet, but a dizziness takes him and he collapses into a fresh sea of fiery pain.

He can't even keep his eyes open. He hears the raised voices of his mother and father arguing. But even in the memory - though he knows she picks him up and carries him to bed at this point - she feels distant, impossibly far away.

He opens his eyes. He's in the storage room. His heart is still pounding, and his breath shallow. He stares out into the dark void of the unlit room.

Mom... I'm sorry... I tried to reject him and his power, for you, but...

He pulls his knees up tight to his chest and rests his head against them. He sits there a while, focused only on calming himself before his inevitable next match. The dull roar of Mic and the crowd pierce even this far off room, if only barely.

He's not sure how much time passes, but eventually his thoughts drift back to Midoriya's words - unknowingly echoing his mother's, from so long ago.

"I just... I don't know what to do now..." He sighs, wiping away tears and uncurling himself. "Mom... I wish I could..."

He lets his head fall back against the cold concrete wall. If only I could talk to her. Then maybe... maybe I...

But those thoughts are pointless right now. For today, the only thing he can do is what he'd always intended.

He stares distrustfully at his left arm, before lifting it to cover the scar on his face.

I won't use it. Not again. Not until I figure this out. Not until I can talk to her.

He prepares himself, slowly getting to his feet. There's a bit of light sneaking in through a crack under the door, and he uses that to find his way.

He'll lose the fight if needed. Anything to keep his promise. Anything to not be the kind of monster that his father is, to not inflict that horrific pain on others.

Anything to distance himself from that part of him that terrified his mother.

...He hesitates as he lays his hand on the doorknob. His right, of course. Can he actually find the will to go see her? He isn't sure. It's been so many years, but...

He covers the left side of his face again. She said she couldn't bear to look at me. But she...

Todoroki shakes his head, and steps out to ready for his next match.

It's only a couple of minutes after her fight ends that Ryumi groggily reopens her eyes. She groans and shifts on the uncomfortable bed she's been laid out on. Every muscle aches - a feeling no less miserable for the familiarity of it. It's always like this when she pushes her quirk too hard.

Recovery Girl hobbles over to her bedside. "Awake again, are we?"

Ryumi slowly sits up, fighting against the pain of every action. She checks herself over - a couple scattered small bandages decorate her arms and legs, but nothing seems serious. None of the areas are notably more painful than the backlash from her batteries being drained.

Recovery Girl clicks her tongue. "You and that other boy... Well, at least you didn't do yourself any permanent damage."

"Other... Oh, you mean Midoriya." Ryumi gingerly starts to check each of her joints, grimacing through the searing pain as she does.

The little school nurse shakes her head as she walks back to her desk. "You both need to be more careful. Risky behavior like that will be the death of you if you keep it up."

"Yes ma'am..." She pushes herself to the edge of the bed, following Recovery Girl with her gaze. She catches sight of the little TV on the desk, and slowly walks over to peek at it. "Did I miss anything?"

Recovery Girl hums and adjusts her bun. "Not as such. The loud one and the bird boy just started." She clicks her tongue again. "Expecting another batch of injuries from that one..." She eyes Bakugo pointedly as the camera focuses in on him.

Ryumi tries to linger to watch, but she can feel the pressure to leave from the tiny woman at the desk. So, slow as it is for her with the state she's in, she starts walking back up to the class A seating area.

Before she can reach the door to leave, Recovery Girl pipes up one last time. "You should thank the boy you were fighting. You would've been much worse off, taking a fall from that height, if he hadn't thought to catch you."

Ryumi stops, her hand on the doorknob, and looks back at the nurse. She hasn't stopped watching the current fight on her little TV. "He... what?"

The older woman doesn't elaborate, or even turn to face her, only giving a vaguely dismissive wave. "Go on, shoo. I'll have new patients soon."

Ryumi shakes her head and steps out the door. Honestly, she's sort of hoping to bump into Todoroki anyway - though she doubts it will happen. He hasn't shown his face around their section of the stands all day, only appearing when he's on stage for an event.

Well... even if I can't thank him for the fun battle or for saving me some pain, I at least owe Midoriya a little clarification, since both of us are out of the running now.

When she finally crests the stairs back into their seating area, she sees Bakugo lunge at Tokoyami in the arena below. Dark Shadow puts itself in the way, taking the brunt of the incoming blast. The demon's glowing white eyes look almost watery in the instant after the attack.

"Bakugo's unstoppable! Tokoyami's come this far with a series of wins thanks to his near-invincible quirk, but now he's totally on the defensive! He can't even get close!" Mic comments enthusiastically. "In fact, he looks like he might be on the ropes!"

Dark Shadow intercepts another blast, and Tokoyami tries to back off and get some space between himself and Bakugo.

"What is that bird brain doing?" Mina waves her fists in the air in front of her, as if to beat them against an imaginary table. "C'mon Tokoyami! Your attacks against us were crazy strong!"

Yaoyorozu has a hand held to her chin curiously. "There must be a reason. Are we missing something?"

"Dark Shadow... the light from those explosions is keeping him at bay, so he can't go on the offensive. This matchup couldn't be any worse." Ochaco mumbles, her hands pulled up to her chest.

"Most people don't know about his weakness." Midoriya watches intently as Bakugo goes in for another attack. "He could still turn this around if Kacchan hasn't figured it out yet."

"Yeah." Ochaco pauses, distracted, and glances over the green haired boy next to her. "You sure you're okay, Deku? Your wounds..."

He pulls his eyes off the clash below just long enough to show her a little smile. "Yeah, I'll be fine." But as he's about to look back at the fight, he's pulled away again by the sight of Ryumi slowly returning to her seat. "Oh, you're back."

She nods weakly. "Yup... hell of a long walk from the nurse's office when everything hurts this much." She sighs and sinks into her chair.

Yaoyorozu gives her a worried look. "It's good to see it wasn't too bad, though. That blast..."

Ochaco chimes in with a nod. "It looked really bad. I mean... it wasn't super explosive like the end of Deku's fight, but you didn't have any barriers to soften the hit, so..."

Kaminari leans down and waves a hand dismissively. "You two aren't giving her nearly enough credit. Of course she's fine. After all, she beat me." He gets a broad, stupid grin for just a second as he finishes, before Tsu's tongue lashes out from across the area and swats the back of his head. "Ow! Come on!"

Ryumi chuckles lightly and shakes her head. He's actually kind of right, even if the logic behind it is suspect. She turns to Midoriya. "Hey... did Todoroki really catch me after our fight ended?"

The green haired boy gives her a curious look and opens his mouth to answer, but Kirishima jumps in before he can actually get any words out.

"Yeah!" He puts up a fist and his eyes start to grow watery. "It was great - everyone loves a graceful victory. So manly..."

Even more reason to try and talk to him before this is all over...

Bakugo leaps up and blasts himself forward to reclose the gap before firing at the pair again. Dark Shadow pushes into the attack and tries to grab him, but Bakugo pulls a move similar to the one he used on Midoriya in the first day of combat training. Using a smaller explosion he redirects entirely, flying over top of both birds.

"Wow! Bakugo leaps behind Tokoyami!" Mic calls out.

Though Bakugo is now at Tokoyami's back, Dark Shadow has already swung around to defend before the follow up attack comes in. Even so, it's not enough. The explosive blond presses his palms together and fires a narrow blast, even brighter and more concentrated than before. Tokoyami and Dark Shadow both vanish into the blinding flash and dust.

"Always with these dust clouds! What's happened down there?!" Mic stands, pressing himself against the glass and shading his eyes for all the good that will do. "How'm I supposed to commentate when I can't see?"

When the smoke clears again, Bakugo has his opponent pinned to the ground. He's standing over Tokoyami with one hand holding his beak shut and the other poised to fire another explosion if needed. Tiny crackling sparks emphasize the threat, and a smaller than usual Dark Shadow looks on, whimpering helplessly.

A moment passes. Tokoyami stops struggling.

Midnight steps forward and raises a hand. "Tokoyami has surrendered! Bakugo wins!"

Bakugo releases the other boy, and coldly walks off without even offering to assist his opponent. Tokoyami shakily gets to his feet, and his demon companion swiftly vanishes.

"Looks like our final match is set. Todoroki versus Bakugo!" Mic announces over the roar of the crowd.

Ochaco slumps back into her seat. "Man, what a bummer. Poor Tokoyami..."

"I totally thought the bird would win for sure." Sero admits, looking toward Kaminari in the seat to his left.

"So his quirk's not invincible after all." Kaminari muses. He pauses, a sudden realization obviously coming over him. "Oh man, I guess even I could beat him." That same self-satisfied grin appears on his face again.

"A weakness to light, huh? Interesting... and Bakugo's the kinda guy who would exploit stuff like that..." Kirishima grimaces as he considers it.

The voice of Kendo, the ponytailed girl who gave up a spot in the tournament for Tetsutetsu, can be heard from over the wall separating the two first-year classes. "Looks like you picked one hell of a terrifying guy to make your enemy." Her tone is playful, teasing.

"Not at all. He just got lucky with that quirk matchup." The smug voice of Monoma, the copycat, dismissively replies.

"So it's those two... I wonder what this match will be like? Besides intense." Midoriya holds one of his battered hands up to his chin as he looks out at the screen showing the final two.

"Well, I think they're giving the combatants a short break before the next battle..." Ryumi looks at the boy two seats over. "...and I think I promised you some details about my power."

Midoriya's eyes light up and he scrambles for his notebook and pen. "Right! Uhh..." He fumbles for the correct page, struggling with his bandaged and partially immobilized hands, before holding the book out to the dragon girl. "...Could you actually write it down for me? I um, I'm having a hard time holding a pen still..."

"Of course." A joking smile passes Ryumi's features. "...We're both kind of a mess today, huh?"

"I guess so." Midoriya responds sheepishly.

She takes the book and flips through until she locates the page and scans it over. It's actually quite impressive - reasonably accurate sketches of her normal body and her dragon form dominate the two-page spread, with little notes, theories, and strategy ideas cluttering the space around each drawing.

"This looks fairly good so far, you know. For just observations." She taps the end of the pen against part of the notes. "You got that I use electricity to fuel my quirk, and the guess that my strength is proportional to the amount of power I'm using is correct... I see you even picked up that I passively absorb energy from electrical sources that I'm touching." She casts a glance back at Kaminari. "Though someone certainly gave you ample opportunity to see that in action..."

"Man, don't pick on me for my bad memory..." Kaminari grumbles from the row behind.

"Maybe you'd actually be able to keep something in that head of yours if you weren't always frying your own brain..." Jiro remarks with a sly grin, and Kaminari sinks lower into his seat.

"What about this?" Midoriya leans over at pokes at the sketch of her dragon form.

"Well, when I use my power to strengthen my body, the area being enhanced gets covered in scales, so..." Ryumi smiles, showing her fangs. "This is just what it looks like when I'm running the energy through my whole body, all at once. Obviously, that burns up my reserves pretty quick, but the boost can be useful against some opponents. I'm a little slower then, but my strength and resistance is much greater than normal."

Ochaco leans over and looks at the notes too. "Hmm. What about that roar though?"

Kaminari groans again from behind them. "Ugh, yeah. That's super scary. You guys have no idea..."

"Oh, right. That only works in my dragon form. The sound produces a fear response, but the effect is weaker with distance, and on repeat usage. And people with particularly strong wills can resist it entirely." She scribbles in a few little notes and changes, doing her best to take it slow so the writing is halfway legible, and then hands the notebook and pen back.

"Why do I feel like I've been insulted just now...?" Kaminari pouts.

Midoriya bows his head gratefully as he accepts the book. "Thanks so much…" He admires the pages a moment, glancing over her additions. "It's a really impressive power. You don't see many that are so complex. But I guess transformation class are always a little more..."

He trails off into his own thoughts, and doesn't seem to notice when Ryumi shifts uncomfortably in her seat, running a hand over the edge of her wing where the scales change color.

Chapter Text

Todoroki sits in silence in the prep room, having turned off the TV immediately after arriving. He's leaning forward over the table and staring vacantly at his left hand as distant voices echo in his head.

Midoriya's frantic yell near the end of their match comes in first. "So come at me with all you've got! It's yours! Your quirk, not his!"

The faint, gentle voice of his mother, half-forgotten, follows. "Do you still want to be a hero?"

As he closes his eyes to focus on these thoughts, to try and recover some more of that moment, what else his mother had said, another image invades his mind.

It's Arisato, burned body falling to the ground before him.

He throws his eyes open. He can't afford to slip now, not so close to the final match. But a shift has already occurred.

His mother's voice again - but in a hushed, almost panicked tone. "His left side sometimes looks unbearable to me. All I can see is his father."

He curls his right hand into a fist, and he stares again at his left.

How did this happen? I pushed her out of my mind. I tried not to think about her. Then that fight with Midoriya... Mom... He shakes his head. The last fight, his... victory... over Arisato. I think... Mom wanted me to be a hero. I wanted to be a hero... but... The image flashes over his eyes again when he blinks. He almost thinks he can hear the faint whine of a tea kettle.

The door to the room slams open with a sudden, violent crack that drags him back to the present. Bakugo stands there, foot still hanging in the air from kicking it open.

Todoroki is struck by a brief internal panic, his heart racing. But he calms just as quickly as he sees who it is, showing no outward reaction besides silently turning to face the newcomer.

"Huh? Hey, what the hell are you doing in here...?" Bakugo growls, pointing at the other boy. "This is my space to-- Ah, crap. This is waiting room number two?"

Todoroki stares at him, and then turns back to his thoughts without a word. He hopes Bakugo will just leave if he doesn't engage.

No such luck. His soon to be opponent stalks inside angrily, swaggering right up to the end of the table. "Alright, fine, so I may have walked into the wrong room... but don't think that means I'm not gonna be on top of my game, you got that?" He pauses, then slams a hand on the table with a small blast to punctuate. "Look me in the eye, two face! You better bring all you got to this!"

That comment draws his attention. "That... Midoriya..." He mumbles, half just to himself.

"Huh?" Bakugo sneers at him.

"He said the same thing." Todoroki lifts his left hand and regards it uncertainly once again. "That fool. Instead of trying to win the match himself, he... he went out of his way to smash what was holding me back. And yet..." He glances briefly at Bakugo before continuing, setting aside the fears haunting his thoughts. "You've been friends since you were kids, right? Was he always like that? So helpful..."

Bakugo, listening to this, is getting more enraged by the second. As the other boy finishes the question, he's shaking, hands trailing smoke and curled into fists. "That damned nerd... Who the hell cares?! What does he have to do with any of this?"

He kicks the table out from in front of Todoroki, sending it clattering to the far wall of the room.

When he begins again, his voice is even harsher, dripping with barely contained fury. "It's all between you and me now. Focus on the match. That's the only thing I give a damn about. All his stupid speeches... and you! Your family? Your damned feelings? Who cares?! None of that crap matters, just make sure you don't hold back. Come at me with your left side. Go on. Use your flames on me." Bakugo leans threateningly into Todoroki's space, crimson eyes gleaming, then leaves as suddenly as he entered. "I'll crush them like I do everything else. I just want everyone to know I beat you at your best."

After the door slams shut, Todoroki simply returns to staring out at his hands until the call comes to head out for the final match. But this is... How can I...

He stands, briefly looking at the mess Bakugo made of the room, the table lying on its side... and he walks out the door.

"At last, we've arrived! Welcome to the final battle of the UA sports festival! In just a moment here, we'll see which of the first years come out on top!" Mic spins in his desk chair, clearly still full of energy - or perhaps just caffeine - even so late in the afternoon. "Yes, it all comes down to this, folks! From the hero course, Shoto Todoroki." He leaves a brief break for cheers, as usual. "Versus, his classmate, Katsuki Bakugo! Now... begin!"

Todoroki looks calm and distant, possibly even distracted, while Bakugo has a viciously demonic grin and fury in his eyes. But a focus seems to come over Todoroki just as the match begins. He presses his right hand to the ground and a glacier similar in size to the one that trapped Sero and Ryumi in the earlier rounds engulfs the arena - though this time he again avoids blasting the crowd or judges.

Bakugo resists for a while with a flurry of blasts, just as Ryumi did with her claws, but after a few seconds of sustained fire he's completely overrun and enveloped by the ice.

"Todoroki starts with a crazy ice blast! Bakugo seems to have been completely buried! Do we already have our winner so soon?! Is that possible?" Mic frantically exclaims as he leans toward the glass.

"Again... it looks so similar, but there's a deliberateness to it..." Midoriya mumbles to himself.

"I just hope he puts that asshole in his place. Since I'm not going to get the chance now..." Ryumi sighs.

Midoriya glances her way, a weak smile on his face. "Aw, c'mon Ryumi. Kacchan's not so bad when you get to know him..."

The look she returns to him is a blend of doubt and concern. "Honestly, Midoriya... I don't really trust your judgement there."

Down below the judges look around, once again wondering if they should be calling the match. But muffled explosions and crackling sounds say that Bakugo isn't finished just yet.

Kaminari cups a hand to his ear and leans forward. "What the heck is that sound?"

"It's gotta be Bakugo's doing." Tsu hums, with a finger pressed to her lips.

And a moment later, a spray of icy shrapnel blasts out of the glacier at Todoroki, with his opponent flying just behind.

Sero jumps from his seat. "He used his explosions to tunnel through the ice like some kinda mole man!"

"These two are insane..." Kaminari remarks worriedly, then glances at Ryumi with an almost conspiratorial expression. "Though... I give you more points for style."

A little smirk appears on the weary dragon girl's face. "Much appreciated."

Todoroki throws his right hand forward for another ice attack. But before the crystals can capture Bakugo, he blasts downward and to one side, pushing himself up and over the other boy. He grabs Todoroki by the left shoulder and hair and pitches him across the field.

"He dodged the ice with a blast and then grabbed him! Wow!" Midoriya sounds genuinely impressed by both combatants, making it hard to say who he's actually rooting for.

"Awesome..." Ochaco whispers under her breath.

Ryumi stands, drifting over to lean on the railing, her wings fluttering ever so slightly behind her - she can see the icy patches forming on Todoroki's face and arm. He'll need to change his tactics soon if he's going to win this.

As Todoroki nears the ring boundary, he comes just in range to tap the ground with his right hand. Another curtain of ice catches him and propels him back into the fray.

"Todoroki surfs an ice wave to avoid going out of bounds! How thrilling!" Mic turns to grin at Aizawa, nudging him with an elbow. "Kinda looks like fun."

Aizawa just quietly rolls his eyes.

Bakugo slides nimbly to the side of the forward part of the ice wall Todoroki rides. He lunges for his opponent as he gets close, but Todoroki counters, grabbing Bakugo by the forearm.

But it's his left side, and everyone seems to realize this at once. Todoroki tosses him back instead of using his power. When Bakugo lands, the fury on his face is deeper and more chaotic than before.

"Bakugo timed his explosions and grabbed Todoroki's left side on purpose, just so he could get caught by his left hand. He's done his research. His aptitude for this becomes more apparent with every fight." Aizawa observes, in his even monotone.

Mic adjusts his sunglasses and nods at his co-host's assessment. "Oho! Interesting."

Aizawa continues, still paying Mic's comments little mind. "Todoroki's moving pretty well too, but... his attacks are lacking. Too simple. It almost seems like he lost his spark after fighting against Arisato."

Explosions snap on Bakugo's palms, and for once, the fighters are loud enough to actually be heard over the din of the crowd.

"Stop screwing around! What, do you think I'm not worthy of your fire? You think I'm not as strong as scales? As Deku?!" Bakugo howls at the top of his lungs, as he starts slowly stalking toward Todoroki. "You'll regret making a fool outta me! I'll freaking kill you! I'm taking the first to end all firsts! I don't want there to be any doubt that I'm the best student at this festival. That's only possible if you come at me as hard as you can! There's no point in winning against some half-assed punk! No point if I can't do better than scales, or even that pathetic Deku! So if you're not trying to win, get the hell outta my face!"

He takes off at a run, continuing to scream at his opponent. "Why're you even here, you bastard?! Show everyone you're trying to destroy me!"

Todoroki stares at him, silent, struck. I'm sorry, Bakugo... Since that fight, I'm unsure of so much. Whether or not I did the right thing. What my left side means to me... If I can or... should use it...

Midoriya's voice pierces down from among the clamor of cheers. "Don't lose! Come on, Todoroki! Don't give up, do your best!" He's standing at the railing, his bandaged hand raised but unable to make a proper fist.

And Arisato is right next to him, wings spread wide behind her. "You beat that stupid asshole, Todoroki!"

He catches the eyes of the pair cheering for him, but only for a second, then he drags his gaze back to the ground. He can't bear to look at them for long. Though... they were cheering for him to win? Is that possible?

As Bakugo closes in on him, he aims down and blasts off into the air. The ice patches covering Todoroki's arm begin to recede. For a moment, a flickering flame plays over his left arm.

Bakugo spins into a spiral of explosive fire. Todoroki makes no move to dodge - at first looking like he'll stand his ground and counter, like he did against Ryumi's final dive...

The image of the burned body falling from the sky imposes itself over Bakugo.

The flames vanish, and Todoroki seems to just accept his fate.

Bakugo crashes straight into him and the remains of the glacier, leaving a huge crater and shaking the entire stadium.

Mic tumbles from his chair due to the explosive quake, but continues his commentary from the floor. "Bakugo's taken that massive firepower he showed in his fight against Uraraka and added some speed and rotation to it to become a human artillery shell!" He pauses a moment as he gets back up. "But Todoroki doesn't seem to have fired off that flame attack he showed us in his last two fights. In the end, what has become of our two top competitors...?"

When the smoke and fog clear, Bakugo struggles to pick himself up off the ground at the base of the icy rubble. Todoroki is lying unconscious on a larger chunk of ice, well outside of the ring boundary. Bakugo staggers over to his defeated opponent and grabs him by the collar, shouting.

Of course, there's no reaction.

Midnight trots up behind the enraged victor, and tears the sleeve of her costume, releasing the sleep-inducing mist of her quirk. Within a second, Bakugo drops Todoroki and collapses.

Midoriya and Ryumi stand there gaping at the result. Both look devastated as the match is called.

Midnight raises a hand. "Todoroki is out of bounds, so... that means Bakugo is the winner!"

The crowd cheers as Bakugo's picture appears on the screens, with 'winner' stamped on the top - but the front row of class A's section isn't feeling very celebratory.

Mic takes over. "And that concludes our contest! The first-year champion of the UA sports festival is... Katsuki Bakugo from class 1-A!"

Ryumi stares down at the field as the two boys are gathered up and carried off. For some reason, the words of the strange man who was with Midoriya in the nurse's office echo in her head. Meddling where you don't technically have to... Right. Despite the pain still aching in her muscles, she takes to the air and disappears into the lower levels of the stadium.

Midoriya reaches out toward her as she flies off. "Ryumi..."

When he wakes up among the sterile white walls of the nurse's office, it takes a moment for him to actually recall the end of the fight. The pieces come to him slowly, and all out of order. Bakugo's last attack, him escaping the glacier, his challenge... and Midoriya and Arisato encouraging him from the stands.

Were they really cheering for me? Both of them...?

He drags himself up to sitting, but though he isn't hurt too badly he still makes no move to leave the bed. Despite his questions, he'd rather not run into either of them until he's had some time to think. Really, he's hoping he can avoid everyone. There's every chance the rest of his classmates think he's a monster.

I know I would, if I were them...

He sighs and looks at his left hand. Most of all, he wants to avoid any smug comments or... anything else his father might have in store for him later.

Not that he can avoid that forever.

He takes a moment to rest his eyes. When he opens them again...

...It's her.

Arisato is lurking around the edge of the curtain separating his bed from the rest of the office. She waves at him.

The same cold pit from before opens up inside him, and he has to focus to keep his hand from trembling.

"Hey Todoroki - sorry to bug you when you're just waking up..." She glances around and takes a cautious step closer. "...but I wanted to make sure I got a chance to talk to you before the festival's over."

He swallows. This is the worst possible thing he could have to face right now - other than his father. Actually... this might even be worse. He casts his eyes nervously around, anywhere except where she's standing, as he waits for his victim to chastise him for the pain he caused her.

But it never happens.

"I um, really I just wanted to say thanks. For the fight. And for catching me after - saved me a couple broken bones, from what I've been told." She smiles at him, but he still can't quite believe what he's seeing. "Not many people can give me a good run against my full power. It was fun."

He risks a brief glance over her face. It all seems genuine, but... that can't... She can't possibly mean that.

She waits an awkward moment for him to say something, but when it becomes clear he isn't going to, she continues. "You know... I was kind of hoping maybe I could talk you into sparring after class once in a while. I think I - well, I think both of us could improve a lot."

He's staring at her now, confusion plain on his face. She can't mean that. Why would she even suggest that?

"Todoroki?" Arisato walks over to the end of the bed, and he finally realizes he hasn't actually said a single word to her.

"Uh... What is it?" He looks away from her again, pretending like there's something interesting on the plain wall to his left.

She walks over to that side, making it clear he's not going to be able to avoid her. "Can I ask you something?"

He glances around frantically, worried all over again about where this is going. Surely now, this is where she turns on him. "S-sure." He internally curses himself for stuttering there, even knowing his discomfort with the situation must be obvious.

"Why didn't you win?" It's a simple, honest question. Her bright blue eyes are searching, waiting expectantly for his answer. "I mean... I think we all know you could have." She briefly flicks her gaze over her shoulder and jabs a thumb vaguely in the direction of the arena floor. "Even that jerk Bakugo."

He opens his mouth to speak, but thinks better of it immediately, and remains silent.

Arisato shifts her shoulders a little, like a half of a shrug, and her wings flex slightly at her back. "He might actually be angrier about this than he would've been if he just lost... and while I might've considered throwing a match just to piss him off..." She coughs, and mumbles under her breath. "...Probably still wouldn't have, but I'd have thought about it..."

A small grin that shows her fangs plays briefly on her face before she gets serious again. "...You don't seem like the type to pull something like that. Maybe I'm wrong, but... I think something else is going on."

Todoroki stares downward at his hands, resting in his lap. Of course people would notice. Of course they'd wonder. Though he was expecting his father to be the first to ask - and not nearly so politely.

When he doesn't answer right away, she speaks up again. "Hey, um. Can I be honest with you for a moment, Todoroki?"

"Ah... Sure. I guess..." He glances at Arisato again, but still feeling the pressure of his own guilt, he can't keep his eyes on her. He wishes she wouldn't stand there, on his left...

"...So, I know what you said this morning in the locker room - that you're not here to make friends - but..." She shifts her feet, and her tail flicks back and forth a couple times before curling around one of her legs. She takes a deep breath. "...but I am. And... I think maybe... you could use one right now."

Slowly, cautiously, he dares to look at the girl. Her eyes, unusual as they are with their slitted pupils, are full of kindness - and her smile is gentle.

This time, she's the one who nervously casts her gaze aside. "Maybe I'm wrong, I don't really know what's going on, what you and Midoriya talked about during your match... but..." She fishes in her pocket and produces a folded slip of paper. "If you want someone to talk to or... whatever... I'm offering. You don't have to decide right now, but... take this." She holds out the scrap of paper.

He takes it. Inside is her name, a phone number, and a crude sketch of a pair of dragon wings. When he looks up from the paper, she's smiling again.

"Just... think it over, okay? I don't really have much going on outside of school, so I'm free basically whenever." She steps backward, and starts to head out of the room.

"Arisato."

She stops and looks over her shoulder, shifting her wing lower on that side to clear her view. "Please, just Ryumi."

He pauses, nods, and starts again. "Ryumi..." It's more difficult than he expects to find the words. "I uh... I think I'd like that. Are you..." He stops to breathe for a moment. "Are you free after this?"

"Tonight?" She seems surprised at first, but that reassuring smile is back almost immediately. "If you want, yeah. I don't have any plans. Where do you wanna meet? I know a place we can talk privately, if you're worried about that... and I promise, I can keep a secret. I won't say anything to the others."

He nods, looks at the paper again, carefully refolding it and tucking it into his pocket, next to his phone. "There's a storage closet, near the end of a side hallway on the ground level."

Ryumi cocks an eyebrow at the strange location, but quickly nods. "Okay. I'll be there. We should probably get going to the awards ceremony for now though..." The dragon girl starts to leave again, raising a hand as if to wave.

"Wait, Ryumi..." He pushes himself to the edge of the bed and hops down, walking up behind her. "...Can I ask you something?"

She pauses, looks back at him. "Of course."

"Why?" He feels he should elaborate on that, but he struggles to figure out how to explain what he means.

Fortunately, she seems to catch on anyway. Ryumi sighs, turns away from him, and lowers her voice to a faint whisper. Her wings drop a few inches closer to the ground. "I just... I know what it's like. Suffering all alone, with nobody to talk to." She takes a slow, deep breath, wincing slightly at the end. "I don't think anyone should have to go through that, if they don't want to."

And before he can even begin to find a response to that, she's disappeared down the hall toward the arena floor and the awards ceremony.

Chapter Text

"The first-year students have completed all of the events for the UA sports festival. Now it's time to relax and enjoy the awards ceremony!" Midnight calls to the crowd and gestures to the empty space behind her.

Fireworks go off around the perimeter of the arena and in the skies overhead, crackling and spraying the darkening sky with rainbow colors. The students of all classes are gathered in the field, with those who advanced the farthest nearer to the front. A smoke screen covers the podium as it rises out of the ground behind Midnight to reveal the top four competitors.

"Wow..." Jiro mumbles, obviously trying to sound unimpressed, but a little genuine awe sneaks through.

"What...?" Yaoyorozu asks, covering her mouth in shock at the sight of their first-place classmate in particular.

Kirishima shakes his head, an embarrassed half smile on. "He's been going wild since the second he woke up..." He sighs. "Man, Bakugo. Pull yourself together."

On stage, at the top level of the podium, Bakugo is wearing heavy chains and a muzzle not unlike the equipment police use to nullify the quirks of dangerous prisoners. He thrashes and rattles the chains, growling incoherently through the muzzle. Todoroki stands silently on the second-place podium, ignoring the chaotic display next to him and staring out at nothing in particular. The third-place podium is shared by Ryumi and Tokoyami.

Tokoyami spares a small glance at the rampaging Bakugo. "What a bloodthirsty beast. Acting like a feral animal."

Bakugo growls in his direction.

Ryumi rolls her eyes and shakes her head. A moment passes, then she looks at Tokoyami. "Kind of glad I didn't have to face you to break the tie." She rubs her right shoulder - it always bothers her after a tough day. "Doubt I'd have put up a good fight after all that."

Tokoyami nods. "Perhaps we can settle it another day." He eyes her, a hint of challenge in his tone and the slight smirk on the edge of his beak. "If you really want to know."

She chuckles, even though it hurts to do so. "You bet. Give me some time to recover, I'll be there."

Down in the crowd, Tsu looks around the group of their class. "Too bad Iida couldn't be here. He was so excited."

"Yeah..." Midoriya adds, his face a mix of worry and disappointment.

"Now for the medals! Of course, there's only one person worthy of distributing the awards..." Midnight collects a box of shining medals and points up to the sky.

A shadow appears on the edge of the walls high above, laughing as the crowd cheers - it's a laugh that anyone would recognize in an instant. "Citizens! I am... here with the medals!" The silhouette of All Might leaps from the wall down into the arena, landing dramatically.

"He's everyone's number one hero... All Might!" Midnight announces as the man himself lands just feet from where she stands.

All Might glares back at her as he gets to his feet.

Midnight presses her hands together and dips her head in a slight apologetic bow. "I cut you off, sorry..." She recovers and holds out the box of medals to him. "So now that you're here, All Might, why don't you start the presentation?"

All Might proudly steps up to the third-place podium, laughing his boisterous laugh. "Congratulations, young Tokoyami! You showed great strength out there."

Tokoyami bows his head and allows the medal to be placed around his neck. "You honor me too highly."

"But relying on your quirk alone won't be enough to overcome a bad matchup. You've more training to do if you're going to be able to fight against different kinds of villains." All Might continues, as he leans in and pats the bird boy on the back.

Tokoyami holds the medal up, admiring it. "Yes, sensei. Understood."

All Might takes another third-place medal from Midnight's box. "Congratulations to you as well, Arisato! A fine debut for a fine young hero."

Ryumi lowers her head and wings, coils her tail nervously around her leg. "Thank you, sensei..."

"Of course, you still have plenty of room to grow. Keep looking for ways to shore up your weaknesses." All Might lays the medal around her neck and pats her shoulder. Though he towers over her, the gesture has a gentleness to it.

Ryumi nods as their teacher moves on to the next section of the podium. "Yes, sensei."

"Young Todoroki. Congratulations." All Might lays the medal around his neck and lowers his voice. "You held back. You didn't use your left side, though it cost you the final. I assume there was a reason for that?"

"It was Midoriya... and Arisato, too. I... I think I've lost my way." He shifts his gaze down and looks off to his right. "Midoriya opened my eyes during our match, and I thought I could... but after what I did to Ari--" Todoroki stops and corrects himself. "--to Ryumi... I started to doubt myself. I know you've taken an interest in Midoriya. And I think I'm starting to see why." He briefly glances over Midoriya in the crowd, and to Ryumi across the podium. "I've... always wanted to be the kind of hero you are. But... my path isn't as clear as I thought it was. I can't just forget. That's not enough... I have a lot to think about, and there's... something I have to settle first."

Ryumi watches carefully from across the platform - as best as she can, around the still struggling Bakugo. There's still so much uncertainty on Todoroki's face, and yet... the smallest hint of determination peeks out.

All Might nods and pats him on the back. "That's a new look I'm seeing from you. So, say no more. I won't ask for details, but trust yourself. Whatever you must settle, I'm sure you can do it."

"Right..." Todoroki answers softly.

"And finally, young Bakugo!" All Might ascends to the top level of the podium where Bakugo has been chained. He looks awkwardly at the various restraints the boy is under. "Well, um, this is a little much..." The hero delicately pulls the muzzle off his student's face before continuing. "Well, you did what you said you'd do in the pledge. You're true to your word." He grins, thinking he can defuse the situation with praise.

But Bakugo doesn't wait a second to begin howling and cursing. "All Might. Winning first place this way doesn't prove that I'm the best one here...! It doesn't mean squat. Doesn't matter what anyone says - even if the world sees me as the winner. I refuse to accept it like this! If I don't recognize it, then that medal's just garbage!"

All Might gulps, actually looking slightly intimidated by the furious winner. "Look at that face..." He clears his throat and straightens. "Hmph! In a world where we're constantly being compared to one another, there are very few who can keep their eyes focused on the top spot. You're one of them."

Bakugo continues growling, obviously having none of it.

"Still scary..." All Might mumbles as he reaches to pick up the last award. "So please accept this medal! As a wound, even! So you don't forget!"

"I told you I don't need that junk! I don't want it!" Bakugo struggles to keep the medal from being placed on him. "Get that trash off of me, you idiot!" But he succeeds only temporarily, as All Might eventually shoves the cord into his mouth, creating a new makeshift muzzle and silencing his protests.

All Might returns to ground level in front of the podium. "Well! Here they are: the winners of this year's sports festival! But hold on everyone, listen closely. Any of you first years here today could have been standing on these podiums! Think about what you've done today." He gazes out over the crowd, the student sections in particular. "Competition! Encouragement! Pushing each other to climb higher and higher! I think the next generation of heroes is proving to be our most promising one yet!" He points upward. "In that spirit, let's have one final cheer! I want to hear everyone yell it with me! You know what it is! One, two, and... thanks for the hard work!"

"Pluuuus Ultra!" Comes the shout from the audience, the students, and the other teachers.

Midnight shakes her head at the number one hero. "We're supposed to say 'Plus Ultra', All Might!"

"Oh, right... It's just they really did work so hard and..." He responds sheepishly.

A short while later, the class gathers one last time in the locker room with their teacher. Iida is notably absent, his locker left open and empty.

"Nice work. In light of the festival... you'll have tomorrow and the next day off to recuperate." Aizawa addresses the class as the students collect their things and prepare to head home. "I'm sure the pros who watched the festival will wanna recruit some of you. Scouting reports and such will be waiting for you after the break. So, look forward to that as you enjoy your time off. Get some rest. You still have a lot of training."

"Yes, sensei." The group replies, and gradually folks start to disperse and file out of the stadium.

Ryumi casually strolls over to what she hopes is the correct place, tote bag slung over her shoulder. She looks relieved when she sees Todoroki leaned against the wall by the door at the end of the disused hallway.

"Hey." She waves him over.

He’s a little reluctant at first, but does join her. "So..."

Ryumi nudges his shoulder with her wing. "Just follow me."

He falls in step a little behind her, making an effort to keep her on his right. Though as they pass through the tangle of hallways and the crowds outside he often finds her slipping over to his left. He can't be sure if it's intentional or if he's just imagining things.

They travel in silence until they're a ways out from the stadium, where the crowds have begun to thin to more reasonable levels.

"So, what do you like to eat?" Ryumi suddenly asks as the train station comes into view ahead of them.

"Huh?" It's not a difficult question, but the suddenness of it catches him off guard.

She flicks her tail as they walk. "It's getting to be dinner time, so I thought we could grab something on the way. There's a bunch of great places that aren't too far. So, what sounds good?"

Todoroki looks at the pavement. "I like soba... cold, if possible..."

"Sure, I know just the place." Ryumi grins as they hop onto the train together.

"Hey, Ryumi?" He looks at the route map for the line they're boarding. "Where are we going?"

"My place." She shrugs, and her wings also shift a little in time with the gesture. "I figured you would want someplace quiet. You know, where nobody would overhear..."

He nods and starts to ask something when she cuts him off.

"I know what you're gonna say - don't worry about it." She turns to stare out a window. "My parents will be out working late tonight."

"Oh." Todoroki also turns to watch the urban sprawl passing by outside the windows.

A silence falls over them again for the remainder of the train ride - right up until it finally pulls into the Naruhata stop.

"This is it." She nudges him again as they disembark.

"You live all the way out here?" Todoroki looks around the station. "This is practically in Tokyo..."

Ryumi leads him over to a small food stall just outside the station square. "The commute isn't too bad. I do hate having to get up so early though."

She puts in the order, and before he can even find his wallet, she's got hers and paid for both meals.

"You don't have to do that, you know..." He protests.

Ryumi shrugs as she takes the bag from the cashier. "Relax - we're friends, right?" She smiles at him and holds the bag out for him to carry. "And you've had a rough day, so... my treat. If you really want, you can get me back next time."

"You make it sound so easy..." He takes the food and starts following her again as she heads off away from the main commercial area of Naruha. "...Is it really that simple, to just say we're friends?"

"Why wouldn't it be?" She glances over her shoulder at him, then around the different alleys branching off the main road. She lowers her voice. "Stay close through here, okay? I know you can handle yourself, but..."

Todoroki nods and starts following her more closely. As he looks around, he can feel the eyes of several people on him, watching from the shadows. "I just... I don't actually know you that well."

"I dunno, I think a good fight is the best way to get to know someone." Her wild grin makes another appearance, fangs peeking out.

He obviously isn't satisfied with that answer, though. "I mean besides your quirk..."

Ryumi chuckles, flicking her tail. "I know, I know. But that's an easily fixable problem. What do you wanna know?"

"Um..." Suddenly given the invitation, he's not sure what to even ask. "I guess... Why do you wanna be a hero?"

"Mm, well, at first I think it's just because that's what my mom and dad did." She stops at the door to an older apartment building, fishes out a key card and bops it against the reader to unlock it. She opens it and waves for him to head inside. "I mean, my dad isn't... he's not like a hero-hero. He's a paramedic. But he saves people. So, it's kind of the same. Less flashy, doesn't get nearly as much press these days, but it matters."

He nods, listening to her explain as they head up the stairs.

"Man, I can't remember the last time I actually used these to get in... normally I just land on the roof and use that door. This is so much more effort." Ryumi sighs. "Anyway, after a while I guess I sort of fell into it, mostly by accident. I don't know if you heard me telling Ochaco before the whole USJ thing... I started tagging along when they'd both get called out to big disasters. Sure, I was just a kid, but nobody was gonna turn down an extra pair of hands - or wings. My quirk has always made me strong for my size, so I could haul supplies, and rough terrain was never a worry for me." She spreads her wings slightly and grins broadly yet again.

"Eventually they even let me do a little scouting from the air, finding people in need of help..." Her tone is almost wistful as she goes on. "Nothing beats the feeling of knowing you saved someone's life. So... yeah, here I am." She pauses in front of a plain door, pulls out a regular metal key, and opens it up. "And here we are."

It's pitch-black inside, and Todoroki lingers near the door to avoid tripping on anything he can't see. Ryumi, however, disappears with confidence into the dark.

"Um..." He begins.

She turns around, blue eyes shining in the gray void like tiny beacons. "Oh, right, sorry."

He watches as the eyes slowly get closer, moving up to the wall next to where he's standing. With a sharp click, the overhead light flares to life, revealing a very basic kitchen with a simple table and four chairs in its center. Three of the four seats have cloth placemats in front of them. Off to the left the flooring shifts from the kitchen's faux tile to a beige carpet - he can just make out a couch, a low table, some bookshelves, and a TV in the space beyond. And... it looks like some plants near a window on the opposite wall, but he can't tell what kind in just the little light overflowing from the kitchen.

"I uh... I don't actually need the lights, so I don't bother when I'm the only one around. Saves on electricity." While she's by the door Ryumi kicks off her shoes and steps into some slippers, leaving her tote bag leaning against the wall. "Go ahead and have a seat." She waves toward the dining table. "...Do you like tea? It's not anything fancy, but I'll put some on if you want."

“Sure...” Todoroki also removes his shoes, then heads for the table. The bag is set out and he puts each bowl on a placemat along with a set of chopsticks. He glances around the apartment as he waits for her.

"I know, it's uh... 'very modern'. Actually, dad used to tease mom, he'd always say the place was 'too American'." Ryumi comments as she busies herself filling the tea kettle, finding some glasses, and checking to see what blends she has around.

The photos peppering the front of the fridge catch his eye, and he wanders over to them. It's a collage of different scenes, mostly featuring the same three individuals - Ryumi and her parents, he assumes. But there's a fair number of appearances of two or three others. He recognizes one as Ryukyu, a high-ranking hero, and he thinks the other two are police, at least one of them he's sure he's met, but he can't place their names.

"Is this...?" Todoroki starts to ask, but loses track of his thoughts partway.

Ryumi looks back over her shoulder as she's still searching through the cabinets. "My parents? Yup. Can't tell from the resemblance?" She chuckles and goes back to looking for the tea.

She's right - even setting aside the obvious, that her mother bears the same scaly wings and tail, there's a striking resemblance between the two. Although her mother is taller and has much sharper features. The similarity is less clear looking at the man who must be her father, though his short silver hair matches the stripe of the same color in hers.

He must have been staring at the photos for a while, because when he turns back to the table, she's finished setting things up and has taken a seat, already swirling the ramen in front of her with her chopsticks.

"...Wondering what brings an American out here?" Ryumi asks, referring to her mother. Though quirks have made those differences between nationalities more subtle, they aren't entirely gone.

"No, but..." Todoroki takes his seat and also starts to unpack his food. "...since you said something..."

She shrugs and leaves the thought hanging while she slurps some noodles. "...It was for dad, originally. Then for me."

He nods, listening carefully as he picks at his soba.

For a moment, Ryumi considers how to explain that further. "How... uh... how much do you know about... well." She presses her lips together and stares down into her soup, as if it holds the answers. "Have you heard of quirk marriages?"

Todoroki pauses suddenly, nearly dropping his chopsticks. Does she... she couldn't possibly know, right?

She doesn't seem to notice his surprise, though. She fidgets a little in her seat, and looks at the ceiling for a moment. "I know they're banned here, but Stateside... Well, they're officially banned there now too, but at the time... It was frowned upon, obviously, but people with money always seem to feel like the rules don't apply to them."

Ryumi sighs and focuses on her food as she thinks. "My mom comes from an important family, over there. The Connors. They were into tech, software, and a little bit of pharmaceuticals originally, I guess. But when quirks appeared they went all in on the science, medical applications, gear... they don't have a huge presence in Japan, but their support company is big enough you'd probably still recognize the logo."

She pulls out her phone and quickly types something up with her off hand as she lifts more noodles with the other. A moment later, she pushes the phone across the table. The symbol on the screen is a stylized blue dragon.

Todoroki looks from the image to the girl across the table as she pointedly flexes her wings.

"So, you can probably tell they have a real fixation with their uh..." Ryumi coughs. "...personal brand." She rolls her eyes and briefly pokes out her tongue.

"...I never met any of them, so this is strictly from what mom told me. Almost as soon as it became clear that quirks weren't just some passing thing, they jumped in, started pulling people off the streets who had interesting powers..." She notes that he's giving her a bit of a strange look, as she drags her phone back to her side of the table. "Not literally, I assume. But they're one of the richest families in the country, so they could buy pretty much anyone."

"In the beginning it was just shots in the dark, but by mom's time they were on the bleeding edge of quirk science. Still are, from what I understand... so they knew exactly what they were looking for... and they found dad." She glances over her shoulder at the stove, but it obviously hasn't been long enough yet. "It was one of those dating apps that rich people use... the kind that claim very strongly for legal reasons that they don't facilitate this kind of thing, but they do."

"And you still live here?" Todoroki hopes it comes across more as 'here, in Japan', and not 'here, in this run-down apartment'. It seems so small and cramped compared to his home, even if only three people live here. He can't imagine how you'd ever have any privacy - though if her parents are out working so much, maybe it isn't too much of a problem.

Ryumi nods. "Well, mom had - she has some disagreements with her family." She tries to cover that correction by taking a long sip from her ramen. "...She's never said much about it. Not in detail, anyway. But she said... she said she never felt like she was a person to them, just another experiment. And she didn't want that for me."

Todoroki stares distantly into his noodles. He would probably say 'project' rather than 'experiment' - but he gets the feeling. All too well.

"So, when dad finished his medical training and they were supposed to go move to the States to raise me... they just... didn't." Ryumi pokes at the noodles in her soup, slowly gathering them up.

He raises an eyebrow at that. "Her family didn't have a problem with her doing that?"

Ryumi smiles, suppressing a weak laugh until she's swallowed her bite of noodles. "Of course they did." She points her chopsticks at him. "But... I guess they thought if they cut her off, she'd get tired of having to work for things, of living, well..." She gestures to the space around them. "…like this."

"She never did, though. And... I guess, even if I don't have the whole picture of what it would've been like growing up back there, I'm... grateful." She lifts the bowl and drinks the last of the broth. "Besides, I think I like Japan better anyway."

It's quiet for a while, as he thinks over the story while he finishes his food. The sharp whistle of the tea kettle startles him out of his thoughts and into a brief internal panic. He presses his eyes shut to ward it off, and when he reopens them Ryumi doesn't seem to have noticed, being busy turning off the stove and putting the tea together.

Once the glasses are set out and she's returned to her seat, a funny smile crosses her face. "You know... I invited you to talk because it seemed like you had something that was bothering you, and so far, all we've done is talk about me." She raises her hands half defensively. "Not that I mind, if you actually want to hear about this stuff... or if you don't feel comfortable talking..."

Todoroki shakes his head. She's right, he's delayed it long enough. "No, it's fine. You're right..." He sighs, staring at the empty bowl in front of him. It shouldn't be so hard. He already told most of it to Midoriya, anyway. "Actually, my parents... they also got together because of a quirk marriage."

When he glances up at her, the surprise on her face seems genuine. So she really had no idea...

"...It started because my father was so desperate to be the top hero in the rankings." He begins, pausing as he decides how best to explain it, but something distracts him before he can continue. "Ryumi?"

She looks both focused and a little nervous, one hand held to her mouth. Her wings slowly shift closer and closer to her shoulders. "Yeah, umm..."

"Is something wrong?" He asks, just as confused by her reaction as she seems to be by... whatever has her attention.

"No... it's just..." Her wings creep around in front as it appears she's slowly trying to retreat and hide her face. "I know I should remember... I'm sure Yaoyorozu told me, but..."

"Remember what?" Todoroki watches her struggling, without a clue of what she could have forgotten.

Ryumi slides her wings forward and covers her face with her hands. Her voice is muffled when she finally admits it. "...I know he's some kind of big deal, but I don't... who is your father again?"

He blinks at her. This must be a joke, there's no possible way she doesn't... but she looks truly embarrassed. He decides to humor the question. "Endeavor. The number two hero..."

She sinks lower in her chair. "Right. Sorry... I just..." She sighs and flops backward, staring straight up at the ceiling, wings hanging limp at her sides. "I've always had a hard time with names and stuff, especially when it's a lot of new people all at once, and with twenty new names and faces and quirks getting thrown at me I just..." She briefly pauses in her rambling. "I guess minor details like that kind of get away from me..."

He starts to respond, but stops before any words come out, struck by that idea.

Ryumi lowers her face to the table in a deeply apologetic bow. "I'm sorry, I know, I suck..."

"No, it's just..." He watches as she cautiously lifts her head to peek at his reaction. "It's... kind of funny. I've never heard anyone call my father a 'minor detail' before."

She smiles sheepishly, carefully picking herself up as she starts to recover her composure, though her tail is still invisibly coiling and uncoiling about her leg under the table. "Well... I mean... you're the one who sits next to me in class, right? So why should he be more important? At least, as far as I'm concerned."

It takes him a moment, but he nods, slowly. Even as he restarts his explanation, that thought continues to turn over in his head. He can't remember the last time he wasn't 'Endeavor's son' first, and Shoto second - if people even cared to know him beyond his relationship to his father at all, which most of them didn't.

"Sorry, keep going. I'm caught up now." Ryumi prods him, hoping to move on from her awkward admission.

He takes a breath and starts again. "My father has always been obsessed with defeating All Might. So... when he realized that goal was beyond what he could ever accomplish himself, he... he set out to create a child that could do it for him." Todoroki stares down at his hands.

Ryumi shifts in her chair. Though her discomfort is perhaps more subtle now than previously, it's still clear.

"...You could probably guess, after seeing my fights. But the main drawback... the limitation on both of my powers, is they affect my body temperature. Too much ice and I can get frostbite, too much fire..." He trails off, assuming she can put it together.

"Heatstroke, right?" She's watching him closely. He nods. "So he wanted the ice to counteract that."

Todoroki nods again. "He sought out my mother for her ice quirk. Just for the sake of creating me. The bastard raised me solely to be a hero that could surpass All Might... The training, his expectations... it was always brutal. Usually more than I could handle. I never even got to see my siblings. He told me I was part of a different world, that they were failures who would only hold me back..." He stares into the glass of tea in front of him, watching the steam flutter and shift above the liquid.

"That's... horrible." She starts, but seems to trip over her words. "I don't know how you... I don't think I could have dealt with that."

He sighs, taking a slow, careful sip of the tea. "It was like a nightmare. Maybe there was a time before... but not in my memory. Any failure, any slight, things going wrong at work - he would take it out on us. Every memory I have of my mother... she's crying, or screaming at him to stop, to protect me..."

Ryumi is quiet, with a terribly pained expression on her face. He can’t blame her for it – what are you even supposed to say when hearing something like this?

"And eventually... she couldn't take it. I... found her in the kitchen. I could tell she was upset, I'd seen her crying enough to know, even though I was just a little kid." He stops, trying to refocus, to finish the story. It's still hard, even now. "When she saw me, peeking out from behind the door, just my left side showing... she panicked." He lifts his left hand to cover the scar on his face. "She... poured boiling water on me."

Todoroki takes his hand away from his face. "She realized immediately and tried to cool me with her quirk, but... cold burns just as well as heat. He sent her away after that. I've... not seen her since. I never blamed her - I always knew it was him that caused her to do it... but..." He takes a deep, slightly shaky breath and sinks a little lower in the chair. "After that, I decided I would do what he wanted, I would try to beat All Might, but I would do it without his damn fire. I would ruin everything he built..."

Ryumi fidgets in her seat again, clearly starting to put it all together now, and not liking it.

"And I... I couldn't do it." He looks up at the ceiling, then back to his tea.

"So..." She carefully begins. "...can I ask, what changed your mind? I could tell even during the cavalry battle you were still set against using it. You seemed almost shaken that you activated your flames, even if only for a second."

He closes his eyes. "Midoriya... It was something he said. It reminded me... something I'd forgotten. I... the details are still fuzzy, but I remember sitting on the couch with my mom, watching... I think it was an interview with All Might. I'm not sure..." He opens his eyes again, looking searchingly over his left hand, turning it over. "But she asked me, 'do you still want to be a hero?' and I think... I think she told me it was okay to use my power, because it was mine, even if it came from him."

"And for a little while, I just... forgot him. I did what I wanted to do, because I wanted to do it." He lays his left hand on the table, taking the tea in his right and sipping from it. "I was uncertain, even immediately after that fight, if I did the right thing."

"And then I pushed you again." Ryumi adds, seeming to feel notably less good about their match than she did previously.

"...Yeah. I felt... almost okay with it for most of that. But right at the end, watching you fall..." He pauses to rub his forehead, trying to push away the guilt that he still feels. "I suddenly felt like... like I was becoming him. Like I was doing what it took to win and not caring who I hurt, or how badly. I... I panicked after that. I couldn't continue to use it."

"Todoroki... I'm sorry." She offers, softly. She doesn't look up from the untouched tea sitting in front of her.

That surprises him a little. "Why are you sorry? I was the one who..."

She shakes her head. "It sounds like I made things a lot worse for you. So... I'm sorry." She bows again, sorrow in her eyes.

Todoroki glances away and then back to the girl across the table. "It's fine, I don't blame you. It's not like you knew, anyway..." He sighs, gently swirling the tea left in his cup. "I only told Midoriya because... well, I guess because I felt like I owed him an explanation for why I was going to beat him. Why I needed to beat him."

"I still feel bad about it..." Ryumi mumbles into her glass as she finally finds the courage to have a drink from it. "...you could have beaten me easily, you know? If you'd stuck with just your ice."

He doesn't say anything to that, at least not immediately, so she continues.

"I don't deal well with the cold. All the extra surface area, from my wings... I lose heat so much faster than a regular person. I can sort of use my energy reserves to compensate, but then I wouldn't have been able to break free from your ice once I ran out of power." She sighs, her tone still low and shameful. "I tricked you. I knew I couldn't win if you kept that up. So I convinced you to switch by making it seem like I could break out of anything."

"Ryumi." He gives her a direct, serious look. "...Don't worry about it."

She doesn't seem entirely convinced, but she returns a small nod before hiding behind her glass as she sips from it.

"You asked me earlier, why I didn't beat Bakugo. When the fight started, I planned on only using my ice, even if it meant losing..." He looks at her, catching her eyes, if only for a couple seconds. "Then I heard you and Midoriya cheering for me. For a moment I thought... If that's what you two wanted, I should try..." He casts his gaze back to the table, inspecting the simple geometric pattern on the placemat. "But when Bakugo dove toward me with that final attack, it... it looked too much like you - like your last attack. I couldn't do it again. So I just... gave up."

"Sorry..." She mumbles again, over the edge of the cup, as she shrinks lower in the chair.

Todoroki sighs. "It's fine. Honestly..." He pauses to think, sipping his own tea. "...I should probably be thanking you."

The surprise of that statement draws her eyes back to him, waiting for an explanation.

"As hard as parts of this have been... in a way, it feels... good, to put it out there." He pushes his empty glass toward the stack of other dishes in the center of the table. "I... don't know if I would have agreed otherwise. But... something about the shock of seeing someone I felt like I'd hurt so eager to come back and try to help me..."

A weak smile comes over her face. "Hey, don't worry about that. My scales are tougher than they look, alright? And you did keep me from ending my day in a cast."

The faintest ghost of a smile takes him as well. "Only if you stop worrying about tricking me."

She takes a breath to consider it. "Okay. Deal." The easy grin she had on the way over here returns at last.

A silence comes over the two again, as for a moment neither of them is sure how to proceed.

Chapter Text

Ryumi is the first to say something again. "So... what now?"

Todoroki sighs and looks at the ceiling for a moment, then down at his hands. "I... I'm not sure. I feel like... I don't know if you'll understand, but..." He stops and takes a breath. "I feel like I need to see my mom. I don't know what I should do, and... I guess I want to know if my memory of that day... If that's right. If she still feels the same way."

She nods, slowly. "I think I get it. Sometimes... sometimes the person saying it matters just as much as what's said. Even if I tell you I agree with Midoriya, that it's your power, and you deserve to use it... we're not the ones you need to hear that from."

"Yeah..." For a moment he worries that might come across as ungrateful, but she seems to move on without a hint of offense.

"Why have you never gone? Does he not let you, or...?" Ryumi asks as she finishes her tea.

"No, it's just..." He trails off, only to start again. "Ever since that day... I thought the sight of me would cause my mother nothing but pain. So I never visited."

"So she has no idea how you felt about it? She doesn't know that you never blamed her for it?" Her voice becomes notably more urgent, and her stare intense.

The barrage of questions catches him off guard. "Uh... I guess not."

She leans forward and gently hits the table with both hands. "You have to go." Her eyes are deadly serious, gleaming. "Not just for you, not just because you need this to move forward, but for her."

"...What do you mean?" He's not sure where she's going with this. He knows he needs to do it, but...

Ryumi sighs, long and drawn out. "It's something my dad was always really serious about." She waits for a moment. "This is... a bit of a story, but bear with me, okay?"

Todoroki nods. He's confused, but he'll hear her out at least.

"In his line of work, my dad often saw people on the absolute worst day of their lives - and often as not, their last." She stops, as if suddenly realizing how that must sound. "...I don't mean that as a reflection on his skills, it's just... sometimes by the time help arrives, it's already too late. It happens."

"And because of that... he's seen a lot of people desperately trying to mend fences or soothe an old grudge on their deathbed. And plenty who wanted to, but never got the chance." She pauses, closing her eyes as if to focus, before she continues. "I don't mean to suggest something might happen to your mom. What I mean is... something could happen to you."

It's a chilling thought. She clearly doesn't care for it either, shuffling in her chair and pulling her wings up to her back. "...We might be just students now, but hero work is dangerous. Heck, we already got a taste of that at the USJ." The look in her eyes is sad, but serious. "If something happened to you tomorrow... would you want her to be left wondering - forever - if you forgave her or not?"

Todoroki closes his eyes, wringing his hands together. "...No. Of course not... but... it's been so long, and I don't know..."

"If it helps... my dad said that people were always surprised at how easily they could move past things. Even serious stuff." She continues, watching him carefully. "Most of the time, he said, they'd both been holding off out of fear that the other was still mad. If either one had just taken that first step a little sooner..."

He lays his hands flat on the table, his right on top of his left.

"He never got the chance to make up with his own brother, you know? They had a fight around the time he and mom got together. But... do you remember that big earthquake and tsunami event several years ago? He... lost his brother then." Her gaze flits to the photo collage on the fridge, lingering on a particular image of herself, her mother, and Ryukyu. It's one of the few where the subjects don't look particularly happy.

Todoroki remains silent, but he’s sure his struggle is obvious on his face.

"The hardest part is just starting... opening the door." Ryumi turns back to him, apparently leaving the old memory. "If you want... if you think it will help, I'll go with you."

He finally looks up at her again. "You... would do that?"

Her smile is gentle, understanding. "Of course. We're friends." She states it like a plain, obvious fact, the same as every other time this evening. There's a brief pause, and then... "I mean, I'm sure you'll have a lot to talk about that you wouldn't necessarily want me there for - I can step out after you start... but if you think having someone to keep you from chickening out at the last second would help, then yeah, I'll gladly tag along."

He considers it for a while, then nods. "...Yeah. If you really don't mind..."

"Sure. When do you wanna go? Tomorrow?" Ryumi taps at her phone so she can note down the time. "I have even less on my schedule than usual, since we don't have class..."

He takes a slow, deep breath. Sooner would be better. As terrified as he is of the idea, he knows he won't feel any better until he confronts it. "Yeah. Tomorrow. Ten o'clock?" He stops. "...That's not too early, is it?"

"C'mon, I get to school on time, don't I?" Her grin is almost playful as she pokes at her phone. "Speaking of... it's getting a little late. You should probably get home, huh?"

"Yeah..." He starts to stand up and get ready to leave, when something small that's been bothering him this whole time occurs to him again. "Ryumi? Can I ask something else?"

"What's up?" She looks over her shoulder, having started picking up the empty tea glasses and gathering the trash from dinner.

He shuffles a little, shifting his weight from one leg to the other. It's strange, a small thing, probably nothing, but... something about it...

It's not like he can back out now.

"A couple of times tonight... when you talked about your parents... why were you... talking about them in past tense?"

Slowly, the look in her eyes turns to horror. She nearly drops the glasses she's carrying.

For a while, a sharp breath is Ryumi's only response. With trembling hands, she puts the glasses in the sink and stares at Todoroki.

Damn it... I was too careless. Should've paid more attention to what I was saying...

"Ryumi?" He takes a careful step toward her, holding out a hand. "...Are you alright?"

She stands stock still, head lowered to stare directly at the floor between her feet. "I..." She begins, or tries to. She knows she can't say. She isn't supposed to say. Those things never happened - that's how it is, how it needs to be, to prevent a public panic. And yet...

He's been so open with me. And it obviously wasn't easy for him...

Ryumi forces her eyes shut and swallows. "...I can't talk about that. I could get in a lot of trouble, with the police, with the Safety Commission, if I say anything about it. But..." She looks up at him, a pleading in her eyes.

Truthfully, all she's ever wanted since that day was to have someone else who knew - someone she didn't have to hide from. Someone besides the police and Ryukyu.

A real friend.

"...If you promise to keep it quiet, to never tell anyone else... then because you trusted me... I'll trust you." Her voice is barely a whisper.

It takes him a moment to respond. He's obviously taken aback with the sudden shift the topic brought up. He nods, but it's a tiny, worried gesture.

She waves for him to sit back down. This is going to take a while.

"My parents... aren't working late." Ryumi looks past the boy sitting opposite her, at the other sets of slippers by the door. "That hasn’t been true for a long time. The truth is... they were abducted by villains."

His eyes widen, nearly matching the terrified expression she had when he first asked the question. "Wh... how? What happened?"

She hangs her head low, her wings drooping to either side. "They... went out for dinner." She takes a moment to recover, a few slow breaths to try and settle her nerves. "...Sorry. I've... Never told anyone this. It was a late anniversary thing. They had both been too busy with work, like always, but they finally had a night off together. It was... kind of a date thing for them, and I had school work to deal with, so I stayed home."

"They were going to bring something for me on the way home, so I was just waiting around here." Her wings curl in closer, covering her arms. "I wasn't worried at first, but as it started to get later... I tried to call. They didn't answer."

Todoroki subtly squeezes one hand with the other. Everything he thought he understood about her shifts under the weight of this information. The tiny apartment, which originally felt so cramped to him, suddenly feels impossibly sprawling and terribly empty. The photos on the fridge, once looking like a window into the sort of picturesque family life he'd never had, he realizes are closer to a bitter reminder of what's been lost.

What she said... about suffering alone...

Seeing him looking at the pictures, she goes to the fridge and carefully takes one down. It's a photo showing four people - Ryumi, her parents, and one of the police officers. She points to the policeman. "That's Tsukauchi. I don't know if you remember him. He was the lead detective on the USJ investigation. He took our statements after everything else was settled..."

He nods, that sounds roughly familiar. It explains why he felt like he'd maybe met the man before.

"...Back when I used to help out a bunch. Before..." She stops, apparently not sure what to say, and then just skips over it entirely. "...If people were talking to my dad, it was 'Arisato'. If they wanted my mom, it was 'Maki' - her hero name. And for me... it was always 'Ryumi'."

She leaves the photo there and slowly returns to her seat, falling into it heavily. "I was so excited, relieved when the doorbell rang that night. But... when I opened the door, it wasn't my parents. It was Tsukauchi and Ryukyu."

"And he said... 'Arisato... Can we come in? I have... some bad news.'" Ryumi pauses again to rub at her eyes, trying to push away the tears threatening to form. "...It wasn't even the look on his face that first told me something was wrong. He... he never called me by my last name. Never, until then."

"...Is that why you ask everyone to call you Ryumi?" Todoroki hazards - the question slow and reluctant.

Ryumi nods. "...It's not that I don't like the name. It just... it reminds me..."

"Yeah. I... understand." He cuts her off, trying to save her from feeling like she needs to elaborate on what's clearly a painful memory.

She takes the lifeline and jumps ahead in the tale again. "Apparently when they left the restaurant, some men came up and picked a fight with dad. Mom tried to defend him - my dad was never a fighter, not like mom was… but they were both overpowered eventually.” She has to stop briefly to collect herself again. “It was... decided... I think by someone pretty high up at the Safety Commission. This whole thing - it didn't happen. Officially, I mean. They said it would help the investigation to keep it quiet... and that news about a rising hero and her husband just getting taken off the street would only create a public panic." She sighs, looking at the photo on the table, then back to the others on the fridge. "So... nobody outside of the people directly involved knows about it. I have to - I've had to lie, to everyone. I hate it..."

"I um... I don't really know..." Todoroki begins, uncertain what he could say, though he knows he wants to say something. "...But I'm sorry."

A sad smile forces itself onto her face. "It's alright... I..." She takes a deep breath and starts again. "It's... been a long time. Almost... three years now. I'm mostly okay. It's still hard sometimes. I still have nightmares, panic attacks... I have pills that take the edge off the worst of it." There's a momentary glance over her shoulder, toward the hall that must lead to her room. She'll probably need one of those before she goes to bed tonight. "...And I tell myself that they wouldn't want me to give up. That they'd want me to go on trying to be a hero, to continue the work they can't anymore..."

Todoroki looks at his hands, a deep sorrow in his eyes. They've both suffered. He cautiously makes an effort to meet her gaze. "Ryumi, I... I'm not... good at this, but..." He presses his lips together, trying to think, to find what he should say. "...if you need someone to talk to... I..." He can't quite figure it out, but even so, he sees a little spark of light return to her eyes.

"Thanks, Todoroki. I appreciate it." Her smile is still weak - a sad, distant thing, but it's there.

"...Shoto."

She stares at him, a little confusion edging into her expression. "Huh?"

He glances away, out to the darkened living room beyond the threshold. "...Call me Shoto."

"...You're sure?"

He nods. "I've been thinking. What you said before... nobody outside of my family ever thinks of me as just me. I'm always 'Endeavor's son' to them. But... you... you saw me first. You didn't care about him." He fidgets in his chair, wringing his hands. "I want it to stay that way. Even if he had a hand in choosing this name for me... it's mine. So..."

"Alright... Shoto. Thank you." She gets up and pockets her phone, matching the faint smile on his face. "...You really should be going soon though, before the trains stop for the night."

He jumps a little, and quickly starts to get ready to leave again.

The pair hurry back to the train station in near silence, thankfully arriving in plenty of time. Shoto lingers on the edge of the platform.

"So, tomorrow? Where should I meet you?" Ryumi asks.

He thinks a moment. "Um... it's not too far from my house."

She nods, holding up her phone. "Text me the address, I'll be there." She lifts a hand to wave as he steps aboard the train back to Musutafu. "Good night, Shoto."

That faint smile appears again. "Good night, Ryumi."

The train doors slide shut, and it slowly pulls out of the station. Shoto watches from a window as Ryumi takes to the air to head back home.

The whole ride back, he's still turning it all over in his head. Even as he arrives home, to the inevitable shouting of his enraged father, he's still thinking about it. And even after that finally ends, as he lays down to sleep, it continues.

A minor detail... I'm more important...

There's a faint warm feeling as he replays the conversation in his head. Even with the looming worry over what the next day will bring, and the sadness he feels for Ryumi's situation, it remains. Not even the abuse of his father - thankfully just verbal today - has diminished it.

He wonders as he drifts off, if that's what happiness is supposed to be like - but he can't quite remember.

Chapter Text

It's 9:57, and Ryumi is standing in front of the most extravagant Japanese-style mansion she's ever seen. She pulls her phone from her pocket as she stares awkwardly at it from the sidewalk, double and triple checking the address Shoto gave her.

I guess... If his father is the number two hero...

When she tucks the phone back into her pocket, she can't help but feel a little underdressed in her casual clothes. Though it would probably be just as weird if she showed up in her school uniform. As it is, she’s wearing her usual combo of a dark pair of scrub pants and a pale blue t-shirt (UA logo this time), with a lightweight gray jacket left unzipped.

She shoves her hands into the jacket pockets, walks slowly to the door, and nervously presses the bell. While the agonizing wait for a response begins, she makes an effort to keep her tail from wrapping around her leg - though she still unconsciously pulls her wings up to her back.

A few soft footsteps sound from the other side of the door, and it opens to reveal a young woman with a slightly confused expression. "Hello? Can I help you?"

She's a few years older than Ryumi, though a tiny bit shorter. Her hair is white, but flecked with strands of crimson, and she wears glasses and a cozy looking pink sweater with gray slacks.

His sister? He mentioned siblings, but...

"Um... is... Shoto home?" Ryumi asks, not even realizing she's failed at her mission - her tail is coiled around her left leg again.

The woman in the door only looks more confused by the question.

"Oh, sorry, uh..." Ryumi bows lightly, uncurling her tail as she does. "I'm Ryumi Arisato, one of Shoto's friends from school..."

Even that doesn't seem to help. The woman opens her mouth to speak but gets interrupted by footsteps coming up behind her.

It's Shoto, hurrying over to the door and pausing only long enough to put on his shoes. He glances at the door, seeing it standing open. "Oh, hey Ryumi."

The dragon girl is slightly relieved at seeing him also in comparatively plain clothes - a dark blue button up with long sleeves and gray pants. "Hey Shoto."

"Shoto? Where are you going?" The woman standing in the doorway turns to stare at him.

"The hospital." He replies, as if it's no big deal.

"Huh? The h-hospital? What? Hold on, why? Why so sudden? I mean, can you really go without telling father?" The questions spill rapid fire from her mouth, and she almost seems to have forgotten the other girl standing on the doorstep, until... "And who's your friend?"

"That's Ryumi. She's going with." He ignores the rest of the tidal wave of questions, checks his laces, and stands, grabbing his school bag as he heads out the door.

"Wait, but... why go now? Why see her after all this time?" The white-haired woman takes a half step outside, watching the pair head down the sidewalk together.

"I'll be back." Shoto calls over his shoulder.

The woman just stands there staring at them. When they're about halfway to the street, she seems to give up. "Will you be home for dinner?"

He pauses and turns around. "Yeah." And then he carries on walking with Ryumi.

"So... your sister?" She asks as they head down the block.

"Yeah. That's Fuyumi." He answers plainly.

"She seems nice." Ryumi glances back toward the house. Even now she can still see the property, it so dominates the street. "Your place is so..."

"Traditional? Yeah... not what you're used to, huh?" He eyes her for a moment, then points out the next turn up ahead.

"Actually, I was mostly thinking it's so huge. If my parents could've afforded it, I bet I'd have grown up in a more Japanese style house too." Ryumi shrugs. "When we used to go visit my dad's family, out by the coast, they had a house like that... not nearly that big, though."

It gets quiet again as they wait for the light to turn at the crosswalk.

"So..." She lightly nudges his left shoulder with her wing as they hurry across. "You excited? Nervous?"

He grumbles softly. "...Both."

"It'll be fine." She bounces up ahead of him and puts on that fangy grin. "Trust me. It'll be easier than you think."

As he catches up, he slides over to her left - though by the time they're waiting at the next crosswalk, she's shifted back.

"Have you thought about what you're going to say?" She folds her hands behind her back, watching him curiously.

Shoto sighs. Of course he's thought about it - it's probably all he's thought about since he woke up this morning, but she’s curious anyway. "I'm going to tell her... that I still want to be a hero. That... I want to be her hero."

Ryumi smiles at him. "That's perfect." She can see that same hint of determination in his eyes, like he had during the awards ceremony at the end of the sports festival, but she swears it's stronger now. "Oh, is that the place?"

A large, rather plain, boxy white structure looms down the next block. A big red cross hangs over sliding glass doors at the entrance.

Shoto holds for a moment to stare up at the building. He wonders which of the dozens of windows might be hers. Can she already see him?

He takes a breath and walks inside.

It takes a little bit of explanation at the front desk, but a few minutes later they're on their way up the elevator and walking down the hall.

Shoto pauses at one of the doors. He checks the slip of paper in his hand, then the number on the door.

This is it.

He slowly reaches for the handle, stops just short and pulls his hand back. He takes a deep breath - and the edge of a navy wing pushes into his shoulder. He looks to his new friend.

Ryumi nods, and gestures to the door. "You can do it. It's just a door."

Shoto takes another breath and nods. He reaches out again and turns the handle. It opens slowly, but surely.

The room is as sparse as any you might expect in a hospital, though slightly nicer given it's in an extended stay ward. There's a window at the far side with a bed nearby, plus a desk and chair, and a TV mounted on one wall.

"Hello... mom."

A woman with long pure white hair and dressed in a plain pale blue long sleeve shirt and matching pants sits on the end of the bed, looking out the window. Slowly, she turns around.

She looks surprised at first, but her expression quickly changes to a gentle smile. "Shoto." Her soft gray eyes flick over to the girl standing behind her son.

Ryumi shifts her feet awkwardly. "Ah... hello..." For a moment she flounders on what to say. Given the history she's heard, she can't imagine she'd like to be called by her husband's last name... "...miss Rei." She bows deeply. "I'm Ryumi Arisato. I'm um... I'm one of Shoto's friends."

Rei Todoroki looks to her son, and he nods.

"I... I understand it's been a long time. I'm really just here because I wanted to make sure he made it. I can... step outside, while you two talk..." She takes a step back toward the door.

"Please, stay. I'd love to meet one of my son's friends." Rei smiles at her, then looks to Shoto. "I think there's another chair in the closet."

Without a thought, he goes to the closet door and finds the folding chair tucked away. He opens it up and gestures for Ryumi to take the other one.

But she walks up and puts her hand on the back of the folding chair instead. "I appreciate it, but this will actually be more comfortable for me..." She lifts her tail slightly, just enough to make the point.

"Uh... right." Shoto walks over to the desk chair and sits, facing his mother, for the first time in years. "Mom, I... I have something I need to tell you."

"I think I know." Rei says, her voice soft and patient. "But... that can wait. Tell me how you've been. How's school going?"

Shoto looks stunned.

Ryumi lifts a hand to her mouth, suppressing a laugh. She pushes her wing into his side again. "She asked you a question."

"I..." He still seems to struggle for a bit. On the walk over he seemed to have it all worked out, even if he was still nervous about how it would go, but he obviously hadn’t prepared for this. He takes a deep breath. "It's... good. I got into UA... and I made a couple new friends..."

"He was amazing at the sports festival." Ryumi adds, trying to help him. "I think there's recordings available, if you didn't get to see already."

Shoto shifts in his chair. "It wasn't that great... but... it did help me realize some things."

"You don't give yourself enough credit." Ryumi grins and looks at Rei. "He placed in the top three in every event, you know."

The older woman clasps her hands together and beams. "That's wonderful! My little hero."

He gasps softly at that, and turns toward the window. Ryumi thinks she can see his cheeks turning pink.

"Come on, don't make me keep talking you up all day..." She prods his shoulder again.

He shrinks a little in his seat, takes another slow breath, trying to locate some confidence. "Well... uh... where should I start? It's... mostly normal school stuff... Oh. All Might is one of our teachers, actually... you... probably heard that on the news, but..."

Despite his worry, Rei never shows anything less than complete enthusiasm for everything he says. "That must be incredible, getting to learn from your idol. You always loved watching his TV appearances."

Just for a second, a real smile appears on his face. "...Yeah. It's... been great. We did battle training, and rescue..." He pauses to reconsider. "I guess we didn't really do rescue. We... you probably saw that on the news too."

"I'm sure she'd rather hear it from you." Ryumi grins at him playfully.

"Oh... right." Shoto closes his eyes a moment, then starts going into detail about the whole USJ incident. From the initial assault, to the class being split, and then the battle in the center between All Might and the main villains. At first, it's slow and reluctant, but every little reaction from Rei seems to encourage him a bit more. Though it still lacks the kind of flair and energy that the tale might have if Midoriya were to tell it, by the end it's easily the most engaged Ryumi has ever seen him.

It goes on like this for a few hours, Ryumi occasionally prodding him with another topic or to give more details - or adding her own thoughts, but only when she's asked.

Around the time the late afternoon sun starts to become unbearably bright through the window at the back of the room, as another topic winds down and visiting hours are surely close to ending, Rei speaks up again. "Now, Shoto... you had something you wanted to tell me?"

He seems surprised when she brings it up again - almost like he'd forgotten his original plan entirely. "Oh... yeah. I..." He takes a breath and swallows. "Mom... I still want to be a hero. And... I... want to be your hero..."

Rei doesn't answer him immediately. Instead, she stands, taking a moment to draw the outer curtains and dim the harsh sunlight. Then, she stands in front of her son, and takes his hands in hers. "So do it. I know you can." There's a certain warmth in her eyes, her voice.

His gaze avoids hers, still uncertain. "Are you sure? What about..."

Rei nods, without a second of hesitation. "It's your power, honey. Even if it came from him. It's yours now - what matters now is how you use it..." She smiles and gently pulls him to standing. "...and more than anything I just want you to be happy. If that means being a hero, then do it. I trust you - and I bet your friend agrees."

Ryumi smiles, giving a small nod in acknowledgement of the comment. But Shoto doesn't notice, his focus is entirely on his mother.

"Mom... I..." He takes a slow, cautious breath. "I never blamed you. Not for a second. I always knew it was his fault and..."

Rei releases the boy's hands and pulls him into a gentle hug. "...Thank you." Only Ryumi can see the tears threatening to form in the edges of the woman's eyes.

She lingers there for a moment, then slowly releases him, glancing out the window. "You should get home, it's almost dinner time. But..." A soft smile returns to her face as she looks back into Shoto's eyes. "...don't wait years before you visit again, okay?"

"I... I won't. I'll come every day, I..." He stands there, the words falling from his mouth.

Rei chuckles lightly, covering it with a hand. As she recovers, she reaches out and ruffles his hair. "Don't go neglecting your training or your school work for me. Just once in a while, when you have some time."

"Mom..." He complains, immediately trying to fix the colors into their separate sides, though he can't actually do it properly without a mirror. "...Okay. But when we have a day off, or..."

"Ryumi, dear, you feel free to come by too, if you like." She turns to her other guest; the same kind look in her gray eyes.

Ryumi stands and lifts her hands in a nervous attempt to back out graciously. "Oh, I wouldn't want to impose..."

"Not at all." Rei steps over to the girl and pulls her into a brief hug as well. "It makes me so happy to know that my son has such a good friend looking out for him."

"I, ah..." She's startled by the gesture, but also grateful. Her eyes find the floor as the woman releases her. "I mean... I could... but only if Shoto is okay with it."

Shoto nods, collecting his bag and returning the folding chair to the closet. “I don’t mind…”

After the three say their goodbyes, Ryumi and Shoto start their walk back. Before they even reach the elevator, Ryumi notices something different about the boy walking next to her.

"You're smiling." She comments, nudging him playfully. It's a real, genuine smile, too.

The look disappears as the poke jolts him out of his thoughts. "Huh? What?"

Ryumi chuckles and shoves her wing into his shoulder again, just hard enough to make him stumble a little. "You don't have to stop because I pointed it out, y'know."

"Oh." Gradually, the smile returns.

Ryumi can't help but grin back at him as they step into the elevator. "You know, I was going to ask if you felt better now, but..." A faint laugh escapes her. "It's pretty obvious just to look at you."

"Yeah... I..." He struggles to put it into words, clearly still processing everything that happened. "...You were right. So... thank you."

"What for?" She nudges his left shoulder. "It's not like I did anything."

Shoto looks briefly confused. "But you..."

Ryumi waves a hand dismissively as they exit the elevator and continue down the hall to the main entrance. "It's not like I have some kind of super persuasion quirk. You would've gone eventually even without me here. I mean... you said yourself that you needed to do it."

"Well, yeah... but..." He protests, though he's still listening to her argument.

"Maybe it wouldn't have been today. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe next week, or even next month... but you had already made up your mind." That bright, kind smile never leaves her as she explains.

"I guess..." He seems to consider it for a moment. "Then... thanks for pushing me to go sooner."

"Hm, if you insist." She pauses just after they exit the hospital into the dimming sunlight. "...Actually, if you want to thank me... I'd still like to train together after class sometime. If you're up for it?"

Shoto stops as well, thinking it over.

"We don't have to go all out like at the festival." She offers. "Honestly, probably better if we don't - I'd hate to end up on Recovery Girl's list like Midoriya has..."

"...Sure." Some hesitation remains in his voice.

"Hey, I thought we agreed you'd stop worrying about hurting me." Ryumi raises a fist and activates the scales on that arm, challenging him. "I'm not some delicate flower."

"Right, sorry." He still sounds a little worried, but he nods.

She releases her scales, returning her arm to normal. "Great. Well, you should get home. You said you'd be back for dinner." She turns and puts on her flight goggles. "See you around. Text me later if you want."

He lifts a hand to wave and say something, but the gust of wind coming off her wings forces him to shield his face.

She grins over her shoulder from the air and waves as she disappears toward the station.

A while after she's gotten home and cooked a meager dinner for herself, Ryumi's phone buzzes.

Ryukyu.

I had some time today, you did quite well at the festival.

Ryumi pokes at her phone.

just now?     

Of course I saw the final standings the same day. But I wanted to watch the events for myself.

She hums and eats a bit of rice while thinking over her reply.

most of the fights at the end weren't much...

think I still showed off some good stuff in the earlier rounds. and against Shoto.

That close with Endeavor's youngest, are you?

A brief pause.

But yes - it was a good battle. You need more practice fighting smaller opponents though. Even if I understand what you were trying to do, you shouldn't put yourself at such a speed disadvantage.

Ryumi raises an eyebrow and picks at her rice bowl. She supposes it's not that surprising. The top heroes talk frequently enough - most of them, anyway.

I don't know what you're trying to imply, auntie... :|

we just talked for a bit after the festival. and we might end up sparring once in a while.

and yeah, I know. but changing forms repeatedly is still too rough to be practical for me. and I needed the extra boost to escape that huge attack.

I see.

Well, I wanted to let you know before you return to class and see your draft offers. I did submit one for you, because I thought you'd be disappointed if I didn't.

Another pause.

However, I think you'd be better served choosing a different agency. You should aim to have a greater breadth of experience and see how your power can compliment different types of work, and heroes.

Ryumi frowns between bites of rice as she reads that. ...Is this about mom? I know she's always felt responsible, in a way...

Before she can figure out a reply, another message comes through.

Later on, when you get your provisional license, I'll take you for a work study if you like. The requirements for those can be a little stricter, so you won't have as many choices when it comes time for that.

Maybe not then... Ryumi sighs as she picks up the last of her rice and rethinks what to say. She had been sort of looking forward to doing her internship with Ryukyu, since she was sure she'd get an offer from her agency at least. But now...

She slowly picks up the final stubborn grains from her bowl and sets the dishes in the sink before returning to her phone.

alright, auntie... I'll have to see what I got once I'm back at class.

I'm sure you'll have plenty to choose from, dear.

As she heads off to take care of some chores and homework before bed, she wonders if Ryukyu actually already knows what offers are waiting for her. Even just a few of them. Maybe she has a specific place in mind when she says I should go somewhere else?

Later in the night, Ryumi's lying in bed poking at her phone when she realizes there's no class tomorrow either. She frowns and pulls a blanket closer. She wishes she could afford to keep it a little warmer in here, but she can't - and the plants out in the living room wouldn't appreciate it even if she could.

As she curls up under her blankets, she starts scrolling through her contacts. For her, it's still rather early to be sleeping, but she's not sure about the others. She mentally goes over who might be awake that she could try to make plans with. Yaoyorozu... definitely not. Kaminari... maybe? Probably.

She passes over the still-fresh text thread with Shoto, still only containing the message with his address. For a moment she weighs whether to say anything.

hey - still awake?

It takes a minute, but a response does arrive.

Yeah. Did you need something?

nah... just thinking about tomorrow. you have plans?

I'm not sure yet.

gonna go see your mom again?

...Thinking about it.

She grins and grabs a random plushie from the stack beside her. One of the dragons this time, a blue and purple one with feathery wings and small antlers. She's still deciding what to say when her phone buzzes again.

Do you want to go?

...You don't have to.

His second message comes almost immediately after the first.

well... if you don't mind. I don't exactly have anything else going on.

She briefly thinks if she can safely say more over text.

...I don't like spending all day here by myself, if I can avoid it.

On the other end of the line, Shoto is also lying in bed. The lights are already off, the dim glow of his phone screen the only illumination in his room. He closes his eyes a moment after he reads her last message. He gets that. It's not for the same reason, but he also doesn't like hanging around the house too much. Not that he usually has anywhere else to be outside of class - well, until today.

I understand.

Same time?

Her reply is swift.

yeah. :) see you then

He sets the phone in its usual place near his futon, screen face down, and settles in. For the second time recently, he's smiling as he falls asleep.

Chapter Text

It's raining the morning that classes resume. Ryumi stands on the crowded train, her hair and wings dripping from the flight over. It doesn't bother her - she actually loves flying in the rain. In fact, the only reason she's bothered with a raincoat is to keep her uniform somewhat presentable.

She feels the stares of the other passengers lingering on her during the ride. It's not an unusual feeling, she is a mutant after all, but there seems to be more this morning than she's used to.

A man standing nearby coughs lightly. "You're Arisato, from the hero course, right? Great job getting into the final four."

Another person in the crowd pipes up right after. "That was a wild battle, and against Endeavor's kid too."

"Uh... thanks." She mumbles awkwardly. Somehow it hadn't yet occurred to her that practically the whole country saw all those fights - that even people outside the hero industry might have taken an interest in the top performers.

I suppose it's like this for Shoto all the time... She muses as her stop mercifully arrives and she can slip away from the crowd. As she flies off to the UA gates, a few people wave and shout more praise and encouragement.

Ryumi doesn't land again until she's well inside of the barrier. She shakes out her wings a little, though she'll still be in the rain for the rest of the walk up.

Or she would be, if an umbrella didn't appear over her head at that moment. "Good morning, Ryumi." Yaoyorozu leans in to stay under the umbrella.

"Oh, morning Yaoyorozu." She grins at her friend. "Thanks."

Yaoyorozu gestures forward and the pair start walking up the hill together. "I'm surprised you'd choose to fly in this weather."

"Eh, it's not so bad." Ryumi stops herself from poking the other girl like she normally would, to avoid leaving a wet spot on her uniform. "Honestly, I like it."

Yaoyorozu shakes her head lightly. "You'll catch a cold if you keep that up."

She waves off the idea and changes the subject. "So, you're sounding a little less doom and gloom today. Your parents convince you that you did fine at the festival?" She looks at her friend with a bit of concern.

Yaoyorozu wears a slight frown. "They tried - but I still feel like I've let them down..." She looks at the dragon girl walking beside her. "You and I both got in on recommendation, but you're already getting ahead of me."

Ryumi shakes her head. "Not at all. It's just a difference of how our quirks are best applied." She points at Yaoyorozu. "Your power works best with more information. You saw what happened to Tokoyami when he fought Bakugo - if you had the right information, you could have easily..." Something catches her eye and she loses that thought for another.

"Hey! Shoto!" She waves to the boy walking just ahead of them, gesturing for him to come over.

He shifts his umbrella and looks over his shoulder. Recognition flashes on his face and he wanders over to the two girls. "Good morning, Ryumi. Yaoyorozu."

The taller girl blinks in surprise. It takes her a moment to recover enough to respond. "Oh, yes. Good morning, Todoroki." Her confusion remains obvious.

"I was just trying to tell her how she shouldn't be upset over losing to Tokoyami. He's a really tough opponent, and with the right information it would've been a landslide in the other direction." Ryumi explains to Shoto, catching him up on the conversation. "You agree with me, right? Like, Bakugo basically just used a flash bomb to win, so..."

Shoto nods. "You handled yourself fine in the cavalry battle, too."

Ryumi grins and gestures toward him. "See? Shoto agrees. You did great. I bet you'll have plenty of offers when we get to class."

"Maybe..." Yaoyorozu continues to seem unconvinced, though she's also obviously distracted by the sudden friendliness between the others. "...When did you two...?" She leaves the thought unfinished.

He freezes up and looks away awkwardly.

Ryumi jumps in with the save though. "Oh, I asked to meet up and talk about our fight. I wanted to get some more insight on what I could've done to win, y'know?" She smiles at Shoto, who cautiously nods his agreement. It was at least kind of true. Though it left a lot else from the last two days unsaid. "I was bored without any classes to worry about anyway. And we ended up talking strategy and stuff pretty late into the night." She stops mid-thought, as if an idea has suddenly struck her. "Should've gotten Midoriya to come hang out too. I bet he'd have some interesting ideas. Since he apparently spends all day thinking about this stuff."

"Next time." Shoto adds.

"Definitely." Ryumi grins broadly.

Yaoyorozu gets quiet, and then suddenly pulls away from them. "Sorry, I forgot I have something to take care of before class. I'll see you two later."

Ryumi tilts her head to the side in confusion as she watches the other girl run ahead toward the main building. "Sure..." She sighs and glances at Shoto, who shifts his umbrella to share with her. "...I don't know what else I can do. I keep telling her it'll be fine, and I'm sure her parents told her the same..."

"Maybe she needs to see it, not just hear." He suggests.

"Maybe. Maybe when we get our offers, that will help." She turns and eyes him carefully. "Say... I meant to ask before, but... were... things... okay? With him, I mean." She hopes the meaning of that is clear enough.

Shoto sighs. "No worse than usual. He was mad, obviously, but he's always..." He leaves that thought where it is.

"...Sorry. I didn't mean to... I was just worried." Ryumi looks away from him, watching the trees along the walk sway in the wind. "You know, if it gets bad, you can always..." She stops, glances at the sidewalk covered in damp green leaves pulled from their branches by the storm, and then finally back to Shoto. "There's space, I mean. At my place. I think there's a spare futon in the closet, even."

"...Thanks. I'll remember that." A bit of that smile from the other day peeks out.

When they arrive at the classroom, most of the seats are already filled and everyone is chatting excitedly over top of one another. There must be at least five conversations going at a time.

Ryumi settles into her desk, fussing with her hair a bit after dropping off her bag. She dried her wings and hair with a towel at her locker, but even so her hair stubbornly remains damp.

"It's so weird that people recognize us from TV. I had all these people talking to me on the way here!" Mina sits sideways in her chair, looking at Kirishima in the row beside her.

"Yeah, me too!" He responds, beaming.

Toru walks up to join them, standing by Ojiro's desk. "Same here! People on the street were staring at me... it was kind of embarrassing!" Her arms are pulled up to her chest, as she bounces nervously and seems to be wringing her hands, based on the way her sleeves are shifting.

"Sure, but isn't that pretty normal for you? I thought you would like the extra attention." Ojiro looks over his shoulder with an awkward smile.

Sero leans in toward Kirishima with an intensely grumpy look. "You won't believe what all these grade schoolers yelled at me..."

"Good effort?" Tsu asks, her voice slightly muffled by her folded arms as she's resting lazily atop her desk.

Sero grimaces and grabs his head as if in pain, whining. Tsu, Mina, and Kirishima all grin at the little joke - apparently all too accurate for their unfortunate classmate.

"All it took was one sports festival and suddenly the world's got its eye on us. We're like celebrities." Kaminari proclaims with a grin as Midoriya walks by.

The green haired boy answers, slightly nervously. "Guess that's UA for you..."

The bell rings, and the classroom door slides open. All the energy and excitement and chattering ceases immediately the second Aizawa walks in.

"Morning." Their teacher groggily greets them.

"Good morning, Aizawa sensei." The class collectively replies, with significantly more enthusiasm.

Tsu perks up, noticing Aizawa's seeming recovery from his USJ injuries. "Ribbit? It's good to see your bandages off, sensei."

"The old lady's treatment was excessive." Aizawa answers, scratching gently at a new scar under one eye. "Anyway. Today we have a big class on hero informatics. And a special one at that."

Kirishima instantly looks concerned. "...Crap. I bet it’s stuff about hero law and junk. I suck at that..."

In front of him, Kaminari starts sweating lightly. "Hero informatics... and a special one? Please don't tell me it's a pop quiz! Give us a break..."

"You need codenames. It's time to come up with your hero identities." Aizawa says flatly.

The class erupts with cheers, and some even jump out of their seats. "This is gonna be totally awesome!"

Aizawa, ever serious, cracks his knuckles and glares at the class, silencing them again. "This is related to the pro hero draft picks I mentioned the last time we were in class together. Normally, students don't have to worry about the draft yet. Not until their second or third year actually, but your class is different. In fact, by extending offers to first-years like you, pros are essentially investing in your potential. But there's ample time for their interest to wane before you graduate. And any offers can be arbitrarily revoked if it does. It happens quite often."

The sleeve of Toru's uniform lifts into the air. "So, what you're saying is, we'll still have to prove ourselves after we've gotten recruited."

"Correct." Their teacher answers with a nod.

Kaminari groans and sinks a little lower in his chair. "Man... adults have such high standards."

"Now, here are the totals for those of you who got offers." Aizawa presses a button on the classroom remote, and a series of numbers are projected on the board.

Todoroki: 4,123

Bakugo: 3,456

Tokoyami: 360

Arisato: 344

Iida: 301

Kaminari: 272

Yaoyorozu: 108

Kirishima: 68

Uraraka: 20

Sero: 14

Aizawa points a thumb over his shoulder at the numbers. "In past years, it's been more spread out. But our top two stole most of the spotlight."

Kaminari flops backward and stares at the ceiling in defeat. "Gah! That's no fair. They're in a whole other league!"

"What about the real star? Moi?" Aoyama complains, taking up a disgruntled glamor pose. "These pros have no eyes for talent."

"I think all mine are just pity offers..." Sero adds dejectedly from the back.

Jiro eyes the numbers curiously. "Todoroki got the most, ahead of Bakugo?"

Kirishima sounds just as confused. "Didn't they get first and second backwards? It's the opposite of how they placed in the festival."

"Maybe they know who should have won that match." Ryumi mumbles, a sly grin on her face.

Shoto sighs. "Ryumi..."

Of course, Sero picks up the playful antagonizing. "They probably weren't excited about working with the guy who was literally chained up at the end."

And predictably, Bakugo takes the bait and jumps out of his chair, shouting. "What the heck are the pros doing getting intimidated?! If I scared a pro, they're just weak!"

Yaoyorozu lets out a shameful sigh as the others try to tame Bakugo. "Well done as always, Todoroki. You must be proud."

Shoto shrugs, clearly uninterested in the vast number of offers he received. "It's probably just my father's influence... It's not really a reflection of my abilities."

"Maybe not, but..." Ryumi nudges him with her wing. "I was impressed, if that counts for anything."

He closes his eyes and thinks a moment. "...More than the scout offers do." He remarks with a faint smile.

Ryumi grins at him, then turns to Yaoyorozu. "And see? I told you not to worry. You still got a bunch."

Yaoyorozu sounds unconvinced. "I suppose..."

"Whoa!" In the other corner of the room, Ochaco gasps, shaking Iida by his shoulders. "People want us!"

Iida looks slightly annoyed, but he's not resisting. "Yes, yes."

Midoriya quietly sinks into his desk.

Aizawa watches the various reactions, and the group settles down again before he has to get too harsh with them. "Despite these results, whether you were picked or not, you'll all have a chance to work alongside the pros. Got it?"

That pulls Midoriya out of his disappointment. "Oh, so we're all interning?"

Aizawa nods. "Yes. You already got to experience combat with real villains during the attack on the USJ facility. But seeing the pros in action and taking part yourselves will still be worthwhile training. Up close and personal, in the field. Firsthand."

"And that's where our hero names come in!" Sato boisterously calls out.

Ochaco smiles and puts her fists up. "This is really getting fun!"

Aizawa messes with some papers stacked on the podium. "These hero names will likely be temporary, but you still want to pick something appropriate. If you don't take them seriously..."

"...you'll know true hell later!" The door slides open again, and Midnight enters the classroom, carefully fixing her hair as she struts over to join Aizawa. "The name you pick today could be your codename for life. You better be careful, or you'll be stuck with something utterly indecent. That's happened to plenty of pros out there!"

"It's Midnight!" Kaminari mumbles, staring at her.

"Yeah. True enough." Aizawa replies to his co-teacher. "Midnight is going to have final approval over your names." He lowers his voice. "I'm no good at this."

"The name you give yourself is important. It helps reinforce your image and shows what kind of hero you want to be in the future..." Aizawa adds as he picks up his sleeping bag - apparently readying for a nap while the students make their decisions. "Because names are capable of reflecting one's true character. A codename tells people exactly what you represent."

A stack of dry erase boards and markers are passed back each row, and everyone is given fifteen minutes to think it over and write something down. Some begin scribbling immediately and others stare blankly into space waiting for inspiration to strike. Aizawa crawls into his sleeping bag and lays in the corner, leaving Midnight fully in charge of things.

As time winds down, she checks the clock and looks out over the students. "Let's finish up. We can start with whoever's ready!"

Kirishima mumbles to himself. "Man, it's like a formal presentation...?"

"Oh great, who's got the balls to go first...?" Sero glances expectantly around the others.

After a silent moment, Aoyama stands and heads for the podium. "Hold your breath..." He flips the board around. "The shining hero. My name is 'I cannot stop twinkling'." He holds the board high over his head. "Mon amis. You can't deny my sparkle."

"It's a whole sentence!" A few in the class react with understandable confusion.

Midnight, however, takes the board and marker from him and changes it a bit. "It'll be easier to say if you take out the 'I' and contract 'cannot' into 'can't'."

Aoyama takes the critique in stride. "I see, mademoiselle! It's stunning." He takes the board back from her and returns to his seat.

"She likes it...?" A few voices question in surprise.

"Are you really French? Or is that just an act?" Sato wonders aloud from the back row.

"Okie dokie, lemme go next!" Mina bounces up to the front. "My code name: Alien Queen!"

Midnight looks chilled by the idea. "Hold on, like that horrible monster with the acidic blood? That's terrible! I don't think so."

"Tch!" Mina returns to her seat full of disappointment. "Dang it..."

"That one wasn't okay?" A few people look around confused.

Actually not half bad in my opinion... Though it would probably cause some copyright issues. Ryumi thinks to herself. She likes those movies well enough. A little too action heavy in the later ones, but still enjoyable.

Nervousness grips the room after those submissions, everyone feeling the pressure to choose something good.

Finally, Tsu raises her hand, rescuing the others from being called. "Can I go next, please? Ribbit."

"Come on up." Midnight beckons, the handcuff-like bracelets on her wrists jingling.

Tsu walks up to the podium and presents her board. "I've had this name in mind since elementary school. Call me Froppy. The rainy season hero."

"That's delightful. So cute! It makes you sound like you'd be easy to get to know." Midnight beams, then turns to the others as Tsu heads back. "The rest of you, take note. This is a perfectly lovable name!"

Several cheers for Froppy ring out, and Kirishima volunteers to step up next. "This is me! Red Riot! The sturdy hero!" He proclaims, revealing his board.

Midnight places a hand against her chin thoughtfully. "'Red Riot'? Interesting. Paying homage to the chivalrous hero: Crimson Riot, yes?"

Slightly embarrassed, Kirishima ruffles his hair. "That's right! He may be kind of old school, but Crimson's the kind of hero I wanna be. He's my idol."

Midnight takes a look at his board. "Heh heh... just know that bearing the name of your personal hero comes with a lot of pressure."

Iida shifts, as if suddenly uncomfortable.

But Kirishima just grins and raises a fist. "I accept the challenge. I'm ready for it!"

"Wow, that's so cool..." Midoriya whispers to himself.

Ryumi takes the opportunity and stands as Kirishima heads back. "I've actually thought about this for a long time too." She turns the board around. "The storm dragon hero: Tempest."

Midnight nods at the choice. "Ooh, to reflect your use of electricity. It's a fierce name, I like it!"

Ryumi bows her head in thanks and slides back to her chair.

"That's a good one." Shoto says quietly, as she sits back down.

She glances his way, a little surprised by the sudden compliment. "Oh, thanks..." She pulls her wings up and twirls her hair around one finger. Seeing his board has been turned over, she leans closer to his desk. "What did you decide?"

He shifts in his seat, and carefully lifts the edge of the upside-down board just enough for her to see.

'Shoto'.

He lowers the board to hide it again. "I'm... not very good at this."

Ryumi hums thoughtfully, swishing her tail. "Well, it makes sense, in a way... ‘burning’ and ‘freezing,’ right?"

Shoto shrugs.

Ahead of them, Kaminari groans, still staring at his blank board, marker in hand. "Blah... I still can't think of anything that's cool enough."

"Hey, I've got one." Jiro offers, poking him while she fiddles with her own marker, held by one of her ear jacks. "How about 'Jamming-yayyy'?"

Kaminari perks up. "Ha! Oh, it's like Hemingway, who wrote A Farewell to Arms, right? That's really clever! Also, cool!"

"Noooope." Jiro turns away, struggling to hold in her laughter. "It's cuz... well, you're strong, but... pfft! You're always jamming your brain and going 'yayyy' when you overuse your power!" She mimics the dull tone of his voice when she says the yay.

Kaminari hisses back at her. "Oh come on! Stop messing with me, Jiro!"

But she swiftly exits the conversation to present her own name. "The hearing hero: I'm Earphone Jack."

"Now that's a good one." Midnight flashes a thumbs up.

When Shoji heads up, he speaks through a mouth on one of his tentacles, as is the norm for him. "Tentacle hero: Tentacole."

Midnight nods approvingly. "Oh, I like what you're doing with that."

Kaminari grumbles, still frustrated over his own blank board. "That just sounds like a Pokémon..."

Sero's up next, proudly displaying his board with an easy grin on his face. "The taping hero, Cellophane!"

"How straightforward! Good work." Midnight claps lightly, causing her bracelets to jingle again.

"Martial arts hero: Tailman." Ojiro proclaims, lifting his tail up over his shoulder, flexing it as if it were an arm.

"No surprise with that one, I guess!" Midnight comments with a little smile.

"Copycat." Sato grumbles as he passes by Ojiro. And when he presents his own board it's obvious why. "I'm the sweets hero: Sugarman."

Midnight makes no comment on the similarity, however. In fairness, it's a pretty common choice for hero names. "Perfect!"

At this point, Mina returns to the front. She rather aggressively puts her board on the podium and yells with one fist up in the air. "Pinky!"

And this time, Midnight cheers for her. "Make those looks work for you, girl!"

"How's this? Chargebolt, the stun gun hero!" Kaminari grins, when he's finally thought of something decent. "Electric, don'cha think?"

"Makes me all tingly!" Midnight responds, and waves for the next person to come up.

Toru volunteers, and calmly sets her board on the podium. "The stealth hero: Invisible Girl!"

"That really suits you!" Midnight says, then points to the rest of the class. "You're all doing great. Let's keep 'em coming! Who's gonna step up next?"

Yaoyorozu slowly gets up to present hers. "I hope to do justice to this name. I'm the everything hero: Creati."

"How creative!" Midnight coos. But despite the praise, Ryumi still sees that cloud hanging over her friend as she returns to her seat.

Shoto reluctantly stands next, knowing he can't avoid it much longer. "Shoto."

"Just your name? Is that it?" Midnight asks, leaning forward to inspect the board.

"...Yeah." He answers plainly.

As he returns to his seat, Ryumi taps his shoulder again. "I think it suits you fine, y'know. Not everyone needs a flashy hero name. Plenty of heroes get by fine without one."

He nods silently, seeming relieved to have it over with.

Ryumi turns to Yaoyorozu. "I like yours too."

Yaoyorozu looks over her shoulder with an uncertain smile. "Thank you."

Tokoyami takes the podium next. "Jet black hero: Tsukuyomi."

"Ah, god of the night!" Midnight nods to herself. Ryumi agrees, it seems a good pick for him.

When Koda's turn comes, he just silently shows the board - 'petting hero: Anima'.

"Yep! All about it!" Midnight praises him, and he sheepishly bows his head and scurries back to his seat.

Bakugo stands and heads up next, walking with purpose to the podium. Around the class, several people seem to hold their breath, waiting for their group's master of chaos to get up to his usual nonsense.

Ryumi is among them. Here we go... wonder what he's going to pick.

"King Explosion Murder." Bakugo declares angrily.

Midnight immediately shakes her head. "I'm gonna say that one's a little too violent. Try again."

Bakugo drops his board as he turns to protest. "Huh, whaddya mean?!"

"Why don't you be Explosion Boy?" Kirishima asks - an obviously sincere suggestion. Though it's doubtful Bakugo would see it that way.

The crimson eyed boy raises a menacing fist in his direction. "You shut up, weird hair!"

Kaminari grins, desperately trying to hold in his laughter, but he can't help lightly snickering.

"Why don't we go outside and I'll show you exactly why murder should be in my name!" Bakugo growls toward Kirishima, as Midnight hurries him back to his seat so the others can continue.

Ochaco stands anxiously, though it should be easy enough to follow that disaster. "Okay, my turn... this is the name I came up with. Uravity!"

Midnight gives her a thumbs up. "How punny! Excellent. I just love that."

The brown-haired girl returns to her seat with a relieved sigh.

Midnight looks out over the class, counting up the names already decided and seeing who's left. "To be honest, this is going smoother than I expected! All we have left is young Bakugo who needs to rethink his... and Iida. Oh yes, and Midoriya too."

Iida starts to write something, hesitates, then erases it and starts again. He's sweating a little when he steps up to present it, silently revealing that the board just reads 'Tenya'.

Midnight taps a finger thoughtfully on her lips. "You too, huh? Just your name..." Something in her tone suggests she expected something else, but she moves on and doesn't elaborate. "Well, Midoriya, are you ready?"

Midoriya jumps slightly at hearing his name. "Oh. Yes!" He heads up and also silently shows his card... 'Deku'.

Kaminari blinks at the choice. "Huh? You sure about that, dude?"

Kirishima smiles at him gently. "Yeah, man, remember... that could be your name forever."

"Right. I always hated it." He begins cautiously. "But then something changed. Someone helped me see it in a new light. Showed me that it could have a different meaning. It took me by surprise, but... it made me happy." A smile appears on his face, and he seems to find some confidence. "So... this will be my hero name. Deku."

Ochaco grins from the back of the room, while Bakugo glares over the edge of his board as he scribbles out another name.

Up front a minute later, the last left to choose makes another attempt. "Lord Explosion Murder!" Bakugo shouts.

Again, Midnight shakes her head, disappointed. "No. Still no good. And it's basically the same thing."

Ryumi rolls her eyes as he proceeds to go through about another six permutations of the same, mostly just with different titles tacked on the front, and all of them terrible. He does know that murder is a crime, right...? These all sound like villain names.

Eventually Midnight gives up, gently suggesting he use his normal name at least for the duration of the internship, allowing him to give it some more thought over the coming weeks. And thus, Bakugo is the only one without a name chosen when the hour ends. Aizawa reemerges from his cocoon and takes over again while Midnight stretches and poses beside him.

"Now that everyone's decided on their hero names, we can go back to talking about your upcoming internships. They'll last for one week. As for who you'll be working with: those of you who were on the board will choose from among your offers." He hands a stack of sheets with individual tags on them to Midnight, and she walks around passing them out to specific students.

"For those who were not drafted..." Aizawa continues, handing out several identical lists to be passed back each row to the remaining students. He holds one extra copy up when returning to the front. "The list I just passed out contains forty agencies from all over the country willing to accept interns from your class. You will choose one from that list. Each agency has a different specialty and region. Keep that in mind. Give your choice some real thought."

Kirishima starts looking over his list. "I wanna fight crime and bad guys in the big city!"

"I'd like a place where I can deal with floods. Maybe a lake. Wonder if they've got that." Tsu hums to herself as she reads the list.

"Submit your choices by this coming weekend." Aizawa instructs, watching the group of them study their options.

Sero's head snaps up at that. "We've only got two days to pick?!"

Midnight waves to the class as her and Aizawa make to leave - it's nearly lunchtime already.

"Yeah, so you should start now. You're dismissed." Aizawa adds as he walks out carrying his sleeping bag.

Chapter Text

Close as it is to lunch, there's still a bit of time before the cafeteria actually opens, so everyone spends the next handful of minutes pouring over their choices and trying to come to a decision. It's going to take longer for some than others - those who got hundreds or thousands of offers have pages and pages of options. Ryumi can see that Shoto even has multiple stapled packets, as the offers spill over onto too many pages for a single staple to hold them all together.

After a while, Mina slumps forward on her desk and glances around at her neighbors. "So, guys, have you decided what pro agency you wanna go for?"

Ojiro has picked up his things already to prepare for lunch, and walks over to her with his tail hanging over his shoulder. "You got pretty far in the tourney, Ashido. It's weird that you didn't get drafted."

"I know..." Mina whines, getting out of her desk with an exasperated look.

Ochaco has also packed up by now, and heads over to Midoriya's desk. "Hey Deku, who's on your list?"

Midoriya is, of course, still sitting at his desk, mumbling to himself and idly chewing the tip of his pen as he studies the options laid out before him. He's split the packet so he can lay both sheets side by side, and notes are already cluttering out the margins beside every listing. "First I have to research these forty potential heroes and divide them up based on their specialties. Then I'll look at the number of resolved incidents for each since his or her debut up until the present and determine which has the attributes that would be most informative for me, as I am now. Such an important decision must be made carefully and without haste. I'll also have to observe how each spends their time when not engaged in heroic operations. Yes, I'll be busy indeed..."

"There he goes again..." The others watching him smile awkwardly, having expected an answer like that from the walking hero database.

Midoriya suddenly jolts out of his thoughts - apparently feeling the many eyes on him. "Huh? Oh. Sorry, what'd you guys say?"

Tsu walks over to get a closer look at his notes. "You're really thinking hard about this, aren't you?"

Ochaco joins her, giving him a reassuring look. "It'll all work out. I've settled on my pick."

"Already?" Mina asks, as her and the rest of the chatty group from her side of the room follow over to gather by Midoriya.

Ojiro stops just ahead, closer to Bakugo's desk - the angry blonde is also buried in his list, but is uninterested in being social like the others. "What agency?"

"The one that battle hero Gunhead runs." Ochaco answers with a smile.

"Huh?" Midoriya looks up from his own research. "Gunhead's a big brawler, though. Are you sure that's where you wanna intern, Uraraka?"

Ochaco strikes a combat pose. "Yeah, I mean, he drafted me!"

"Told you you'd impress some people with that fight." Ryumi chimes in from a distance. She's packing up to head to lunch since she is, as always by this time of day, starving - though she keeps her list of offers tucked under one arm, thinking she can do some more looking in the cafeteria.

Midoriya stares at Ochaco, clearly surprised. "Whoa, really? But I thought you were trying to be a hero kinda like Thirteen sensei, more into rescuing than fighting."

"Ultimately, that's the plan... but my fight against Bakugo got me thinking." She throws a couple play punches and gets a big grin on her face. "Getting stronger opens up all sorts of possibilities! Plus, learning from a battle hero will give me a different perspective. Right?"

"I see..." Midoriya says, still considering even as he seems to agree. "Yeah, totally."

Ochaco slowly drops out of her combat stance and starts to look a little concerned. "This is off topic, but I've been meaning to ask you all day... why are you trembling?"

"Oh. This? It's exercise. I'm practicing air chair." On closer inspection, he's hovering an inch off his seat.

"Air chair?" Ochaco exclaims when she notices him hovering. "Were you doing that during the whole class? That's crazy!"

"There's no way!" Mina insists.

"Air chair? That's pretty old-school." Ojiro interjects with a knowing nod. "Smart, though. The isometric muscle contraction that's needed to hold your body above your seat makes it an easy way to work out without moving."

"Yeah, exactly." Midoriya agrees, glad someone else understands.

"Idiots..." Bakugo growls, struggling to stay focused with all the chatter right behind him. He crumples the paper he has in hand. "So freaking noisy."

Midoriya takes a deep breath and puts on a determined look as he starts to pack up for lunch. "I've got to get stronger."

"Chase two hares, and you'll fail to catch even one." Tokoyami comments, without looking up from his own offers. He has a couple circled, and as Ryumi starts to pass by on her way out, one in particular just happens to catch her eye.

"Tokoyami! You seriously got an offer from Hawks?!" She points at the paper, one of the circled lines - Hawks Agency, Kyushu. "I'm so jealous... Hawks is amazing. He's always been my favorite, ever since his debut."

Midoriya is instantly distracted from packing by the hero talk behind him. "Oh, really, Ryumi? I guess that makes sense, since you've both got wings." He quickly puts away his last couple books and wanders over to Tokoyami's desk. "It's funny though... I've never read anything about him ever taking a student before."

Ryumi looks at him. "Yeah... I guess I haven't either. I mean, a lot of his work is a little more stealthy, so maybe it just didn't make the press? Still... man. It's been kind of a dream of mine to get to work with him someday. Maybe even have a race." She grins that fangy grin of hers. "Even if I'd lose. You better tell me what it was like when you're back. I-If you pick him, I mean..."

Tokoyami lets out a soft chuckle and starts to pack up as well. "Of course."

Across the room as this is going on, Iida remains in his seat, oddly silent, and still looking over his list.

The cafeteria seems busier than normal when Ryumi finally arrives. Even after getting through the line to pick up her usual, it's still tough to find a table with many seats available. She hasn't seen Yaoyorozu yet either - she lost track of the taller girl during the discussion about internships and assumed she went on ahead.

Maybe she already chose something and wanted to hand in her forms early. She'll probably turn up...

As she wanders looking for a table, she spies Shoto coming out of the soba line, and waves to him. He slowly drifts through the crowds to join her.

"Wanna sit together?" She asks, still scanning for a table. "Oh, over here!"

"Uh, sure." He follows along and takes a seat.

Ryumi finds and pulls up a spare chair and settles in to his left. "So busy today. I guess a bunch of classes must've let out all at once." She muses, idly stirring her ramen. It's too hot to actually eat just yet, so she lays the internship list on the table beside her tray and starts looking it over again. The number of choices quickly gets demoralizing, however, and she temporarily shelves the decision, glancing instead at Shoto. "You decide where you're going yet?"

He calmly finishes slurping up the noodles he was eating, then answers with a heavy sigh. "Probably... my father's agency."

She lets her chopsticks slip from her fingers and stares at him. "Are you... sure about that?"

He tilts his head very slightly side to side as if thinking, dips another bite of noodles into the sauce, and eats them before responding. "Yeah. I think so. It's not that I want to spend any time with him, but..." He looks down at his left hand. "If I'm going to use this, there's no one better to train me."

Ryumi presses her lips together in a frown, picks her chopsticks out of the bowl and carefully attempts to start eating. "I guess. I mean, yeah, it makes sense, just..."

"You don't have to worry." Shoto looks up from his noodles, at her. "He should be happy that I want to learn from him. That will help... it won't be too bad."

She watches as he finishes that thought and goes back to his food. To her it seemed a little like he was trying to convince himself as well. But if he's set on going... and obviously he's right about that being the best place to learn about his fire.

"...What about you?" He glances at the papers set next to her food. There's no obvious markings on the list, nothing to indicate she's even begun to narrow down the three hundred or so options.

"Well... I..." She begins, only to be interrupted.

"Sorry guys - do you mind if I join you?"

Both of them turn to see Midoriya hovering around behind them. He smiles sheepishly. "All Might grabbed me for something on my way out of the classroom, so I got here a little late... There's not many spaces left."

Ryumi nods, gesturing to the now-empty chair on her left. "Sure, go for it."

"Thanks." He bows his head slightly as he takes the seat, smiling a little at noticing that Shoto isn't eating lunch by himself anymore. As he gets ready to eat, picking up his chopsticks in his left hand (his right still too bandaged to use well), he can't help but steal a look at the papers lying on the table between himself and Ryumi. "Still trying to decide, huh?"

She takes a long sip of the broth in her bowl. "...Yeah. It's a lot to go through."

The green haired boy pauses in his clumsy effort at gathering up a bite of salad to throw a surprised look her way. "Did you not get an offer from Ryukyu? I guess I assumed you'd want to go there..."

Ryumi sighs in response, and fishes around in her bowl for any chunks of meat that might still be hiding among the noodles. "I mean... she did send one. And I do want to, but... She also made it pretty clear that she thought I should pick something else this time."

"Oh, I guess. You've probably gotten a lot of advice from her already." He nods, and returns to crunching away at his lettuce.

"So, yeah. Now I've got this mess to comb through..." She riffles the stack of pages with one hand as she gathers up the last of her noodles with the other.

"Do you want help narrowing it down?" Midoriya asks, with the earnest enthusiasm he always has whenever the topic turns to pro heroes.

"I thought you were buried in your own research." Ryumi responds, thinking back to overhearing him muttering his whole methodology just before lunch. "I wouldn't want to keep you from making your decision."

He shakes his head and smiles. "I actually had a late draft request come in. So I'm going there. No research needed. That's... actually what All Might was letting me know about before I came down here."

She looks between the ceiling, the thick stack of paper, and the boy on her left a few times. "...If you really don't mind."

"Not at all!" Midoriya answers cheerfully. "I'd be happy to help. Is after class okay with you?"

"Sure, that works..." Ryumi lifts her bowl to drink the rest of her broth, and a thought occurs to her. She turns to Shoto after she finishes her food. "Well, if you don't mind me putting off training until tomorrow?"

Shoto nods. "That's fine."

"Great! I already have some thoughts, just on the ones on this first page..." Midoriya starts to get lost in looking at the list.

Ryumi pulls the papers away with an amused grin. "Eat your lunch, dummy. This can wait."

"Ah, right!" He dives back into his salad, while the girl beside him shakes her head.

She pauses to take a look at the clock and then glances over the other tables. Huh... I wonder where Yaoyorozu got to...

A moment later, Ochaco wanders up to the table the three of them are at. "Oh, so this is where you disappeared to, Deku."

"Mm?" The boy in question mumbles, unable to properly answer with his mouth full.

Ochaco chuckles at the sight. "Well, I just was wondering. I couldn't find you or Iida when I got down here."

"Yeah, sorry. All Might took longer than I thought..." He replies, then a sudden look of confusion comes over him. "Wait, you couldn't find Iida either?"

"Nope. I thought I just lost him in the crowd, but I walked all around after I finished eating, and I didn't see him." She glances around another time, tapping a finger against her chin.

Midoriya checks his watch. "He does like to be early getting to class, but... this is still pretty early, even for him." He quiets, poking at his salad as he thinks about it. "I'm sure there's a reason, though. I don't think Iida would just disappear on us."

Ochaco sighs, and shrugs. "Yeah, I guess you're right. Well, I'm going to head back. Maybe I'll run into him. See you in a bit?"

He nods and waves as she walks off.

Ryumi frowns, staring into her empty bowl. Iida... I wonder if everything's okay.

As the last bell rings and Aizawa heads out to his office, the students are left to slowly pack up and filter out a few at a time. Midoriya is delaying, checking something on his phone since he isn't planning on leaving right away anyway.

Ochaco trots over to his desk. "Hey Deku! Wanna walk together?"

Midoriya smiles apologetically, with a slight bow. "Sorry Uraraka, I'm sticking around for a bit. Ryumi wanted help narrowing down her internship choices."

The brown-haired girl looks a bit disappointed, but she recovers quickly. "Oh, alright. Have fun." She smiles back and turns around toward Iida's desk. "Iida, do you wanna-- huh. He was here a minute ago..."

Midoriya looks up from his phone at the empty seat across the room, then shrugs. "I bet he already decided where he wants to do his internship. My guess is he's off turning in his forms right now."

Ochaco rubs the back of her head. "Yeah, that sounds like Iida. Well, see you guys tomorrow!"

"Bye Ochaco." Ryumi waves as the other girl heads out.

"We can start in a minute, I'm just..." Midoriya trails off, absorbed in whatever article he has pulled up.

Shoto finishes collecting his things around this time. He stands and throws his bag over his shoulder, then stops and pulls his chair over by Ryumi's desk and sits back down.

"You don't have to stay, y'know." Ryumi says as she swaps out her notebooks for her internship list. "This is gonna take a while, I don't know if there will be time to do any training after."

He shrugs. "If I'm going to do my internship with him... I'll be seeing more than enough of that bastard soon. I'd rather not get home early."

"Fair enough..." She throws him a look that says she's still a little worried for him, even if she understands his reasoning.

Midoriya slowly drags his chair back over to the corner where the other two are waiting, though his eyes remain fixed on his phone.

"What's this article you're reading?" Ryumi stands and leans over to peek at the phone.

He jumps a little at her sudden question. "Oh, uh... It's about the hero killer."

Before she says anything to that, she casts a glance around the room to reassure herself that Iida's not here - and that their more gossipy classmates have also left. They have, but she lowers her voice anyway. "I saw a little about that the other day while I was eating breakfast. He was the one who got Ingenium, right?"

With a frown, the green haired boy nods. "Yeah... It's scary to think he's still out there. I can't imagine how dangerous he must be to have taken out seventeen heroes, and permanently disabled another twenty-three..." A shiver passes over him.

Ryumi sits back and shifts in her chair, tail flicking back and forth. "...Are you guys... worried about Iida?" She's expecting the answer to come from Midoriya, but...

"...Yeah." Shoto responds. He's looking at the door, away from the other two, not noticing their surprise until he turns back. "...The look in his eyes has been different since the festival."

Midoriya sets his phone on the desk they're all crowded around, confusion on his features. "I mean, I agree, I'm worried too... but what do you mean, Todoroki?"

He takes a bit to put it into words, thinking hard about how to describe it. "They're cold. Far away. He's not focused on what's happening in front of him..." Shoto pauses, unsure if he's making his point correctly. "...It reminds me of how I looked, before. How my father looks... clouded by hate and obsessed with a singular goal."

The pair listening to him stare in stunned silence for a moment.

Ryumi recovers her thoughts first. "...Y'know, Shoto... you're pretty articulate when you actually get your words together."

He looks at her, confused, like he’s unsure if he's supposed to take that as a compliment.

She smiles sincerely at him, then takes a quick breath to try and pull back to the actual topic. "Hopefully it's just a temporary thing. Stress from worrying over his brother..."

"...I bumped into him on my way in this morning and asked, but... he said not to worry, that everything is fine." Midoriya says as he takes the packet on Ryumi's desk and turns it so he can read it.

"...Doesn't look 'fine'." Shoto comments, but he lets the issue drop.

"I'll try to talk to him again tomorrow. But... we should really get started here, huh?" Midoriya taps the end of his pen against the stack of papers. "So, what kind of agency are you looking for? Combat, rescue... a little of both?"

And so, the three of them settle in to whittle down the three hundred plus offers to a more manageable list. It's a couple hours of Midoriya rattling off details about various agencies from memory, occasionally asking questions of Ryumi. It's starting to get dark by the time they finally wrap up, with the list pared down to a mere couple dozen.

"Well... I've still got some thinking to do, but..." Ryumi grins as she packs the list away and throws her bag over her shoulder. "Thanks for the info, Midoriya."

"Of course! Anytime." He beams, and the trio walk off campus together.

Chapter Text

It's late afternoon the following day, and Ryumi is wandering the hall with her bag in hand, off to see if any of the practice gyms are open for the next couple hours.

"You actually got an offer? Who the hell from?"

"Uh... W-well, I've actually never heard of him. His name's Gran Torino, but I did some searching and..."

Ryumi stops short when she hears the voices up ahead. She slides up to the nearby wall and presses herself against it, carefully peeking around the corner.

She could already tell from the voices, but it's Midoriya and Bakugo. Bakugo has the smaller boy grabbed by the collar, and his other hand hovers threateningly palm open - with little sparks crackling across it.

"'Spose that's fitting... a no-name loser seems perfect to train you." Bakugo tosses the other boy back into the wall and makes to leave.

"Kacchan..." Midoriya mumbles, scurrying off the other direction.

As Bakugo rounds the corner, Ryumi chooses this moment to pop out in front of him. "I thought we talked about this." She explains flatly.

"Hmph. None of your business, scales." Bakugo tries to push past her, but she flares her wings out to block him.

"Midoriya is my friend. So I'm making it my business." She narrows her eyes, glaring at him.

He tries again to get by but she holds firm. "I don't give a damn about you, but if you keep putting yourself in my way..."

"Am I supposed to feel threatened? I used to make kids twice your size beg after I put them on the ground." He's right up in her face now, so she's glaring slightly upward, but there's not a hint of fear in her expression. "You know... my only regret from the sports festival is I didn't get the chance to put you in your place then."

Bakugo actually almost laughs at that. "Yeah, but you couldn't even make the final. You're barely less pathetic than Deku."

"I accept my loss. After all, I was up against the strongest guy in class." A smirk crosses her face, and her tail sways behind her the way a cat's does right before they pounce. "We all know you shouldn't have beat him either."

She can almost see the fuse starting to burn down in the bully's fiery eyes. He looks about to make a move, though before she can determine whether it's just a threat or an actual attack, something stops him.

"There you are."

Ryumi drops her wings back into their normal position and turns, paying no mind to exposing her back to Bakugo. Part of her hopes he takes it as the insult she means it as - a declaration that she doesn't consider him enough of a danger to warrant her full attention.

Shoto is standing there, already changed into his gym uniform. "You're late." He adds, seemingly making no note of the nearly violent confrontation he interrupted.

"Right, sorry." She bows her head and walks up to him, leaving the other boy behind. "Something came up and I got distracted. I'll go get ready now."

Shoto nods back to her, and they start off toward the gyms together.

Behind them, a stunned and still seething Bakugo hangs in the hallway. "Wait! You can't just--!" He howls after them as they round the corner at the far end of the hall - but they don't pay the parting protests any mind.

"So, what do you wanna start with?" Ryumi asks as she tosses her bag on the floor next to his, then strolls out to the center of the space.

Shoto looks at his left hand then back at her. "I know you said you wanted to test yourself against my fire... but I don't think I should. Not until I get more practice controlling the heat level."

She nods as she runs through some basic stretches. "Yeah, alright. Then for now... how about just a little warm up? Basic hand to hand, no quirks?" She pauses, dropping her arms back to her sides. "Well - I can't just make my wings go away, but I won't fly or increase my strength at all. Sound fair?"

He nods slowly, moving to stand opposite her.

Ryumi pulls her phone from her pocket and fiddles with it for a moment. "I don't know about you, but I like to have some music. The first line in this song is 'the flinch in your eye' - we'll go on that." She sets the phone on the sidelines with the volume turned up, and hurries back to the center as the music begins to play.

The opening bars before the lyrics echo through the gym, and both combatants ready for battle. Ryumi's stance is notably low and wide, while Shoto's is comparatively simple.

When the line comes, she's the first to start moving, but he isn't far behind.

Ryumi rushes toward him, throwing a weak punch at his shoulder - a test. He catches it, knocking her fist to the side with his forearm.

He returns the favor, launching a hit at her flank, but she brings her wing up to block. The punch still lands, but it finds the pliable membrane of her wing absorbing all the energy of the attack.

She kicks back, aiming to hit the side or rear of his knee, though he shuffles away enough to make it so she only grazes him.

She follows with another punch. Shoto turns and grabs her by the wrist as her hand passes. Ryumi grins, grabs her caught forearm and pulls hard up and to the side, while putting her wing up to defend what would otherwise be an opening. The motion forces her arm into the weakest angle for his grip, and her wrist glides effortlessly through his fingers.

The surprise is evident on his face. He tries to retaliate while she's in a seemingly weak position - but he fails to notice a critical detail.

Her tail lashes out and wraps around his ankle. As soon as he steps to press the offensive, he feels the pull and his foot slips out from under him.

He lands face down on the gym floor, and before he can begin to recover Ryumi has him pinned. She kneels beside him, one knee holding his right shoulder down while she grasps his left wrist, pulling the arm behind his back. It's an angle that could be quite painful, if she adjusted just a bit. But she doesn't.

"Guess this round goes to me." She stands, releasing the boy. She takes a couple paces away, rubbing her wrist where his nails scratched her as she escaped his grapple. "Almost had me break the rules there. Sometimes it's hard not to activate my power when I get a scrape."

Shoto carefully starts to push himself up and looks past his shoulder to see Ryumi hovering above him. In that instant a brief panic sets in, and without thinking he recoils.

Before today, he'd only ever trained with his father. He knows what failure means. He barely got a single good hit in; she took him down so easily...

He blinks. She. Right. Ryumi... It's just Ryumi. He takes a breath and looks again.

She's waiting there patiently, a blend of confusion and concern bleeding into her friendly smile. Her hand is held out to help him up. "You alright?"

He exhales heavily and takes her hand. "...Yeah. Sorry." He considers explaining, but decides against it. Something in her eyes suggests she's probably guessed anyway.

If so, she doesn't press the issue. "So, best two out of three, right?" She grins and walks over to reset the music. "Or are we calling that just a warm up? Either's fine by me."

He doesn't answer right away, still trying to calm himself down. It's strange, how different it feels. Part of him is reluctant to continue, but... part of him also feels like he owes her for the other day.

"You ready?" She asks, standing by her phone. "Or do you need a minute?"

He's about to answer, when something about the second question strikes him. He's never been asked that before. He's never had someone help him up before, after a loss. Not unless it was his mother coming to take him away from training. He feels the curious gaze of Ryumi's reptilian eyes lingering on him though, and he dismisses the thought for later. "Yeah, I'm ready."

Ryumi grins, restarts the music from the beginning, and hurries back into position opposite him.

The second round plays out much the same as the first, if slightly longer. He does get a couple solid hits this time, but despite not using her power (not even just defensively, to soften the hits), she barely flinches. Again, she ends it by deftly grabbing his ankle with her tail and pulling him to the ground. After Ryumi releases him, Shoto slowly pulls himself up to sitting.

"Break?" She asks, having disappeared to the edge of the gym. She stops the music and pulls a pair of water bottles from her bag, holding one up questioningly.

He nods, still sitting on the floor and trying to catch his breath. Again, the question gets him thinking. Is this what it's normally like? How our classmates train?

A moment later she joins him, handing over the second water bottle. They sit in silence, just resting, until each has downed half their water.

Shoto stares out into the distance, roughly in the direction of the doors. Something else has actually been bugging him since before they started - though it would be a severe stretch to blame that for his poor performance. "...Hey, Ryumi."

"Mm?" She mumbles into the bottle as she takes another drink.

"Why are you always fighting with Bakugo?" He turns cautiously toward her, watching for her reaction.

Ryumi sighs, her wings lowering to either side. She recaps her bottle, though it's nearly empty, and sets it aside. "You might not believe this, but... when I was in elementary school, I was bullied. A lot."

He sees something in her expression harden a bit as she says it. He doesn't question her, and just waits for her to continue talking.

"Things have undeniably gotten better since quirks first appeared, but even today some people..." She pauses, shifting her wings and tail forward to regard them. "...some people still look at mutants as something less than human."

Shoto listens quietly. He isn't sure what to say. He understands the feeling of being treated differently, but... not like that. He goes to have another drink from his water, but finds it already empty and awkwardly sets it back down.

"I was the only one in my school, y'know. Mutations have gotten pretty common since they pass on more readily than other types of quirk, but it's still not all that rare to be the only one in a room." She shifts and stretches out her legs, leaning back on her arms. "So... I was the obvious target. Came home covered in cuts and bruises most days."

"Mom couldn't take it, of course. But dad insisted she try talking to the school first. Even if I already wanted to go into hero work, he felt it was too early to be teaching me to fight. And he definitely didn't want her taking things into her own hands." She picks up her water and drinks the last of it before continuing. "But when the teachers couldn't, or... wouldn't stop it from happening, he gave in... on the condition I wouldn't use my quirk against the other kids, even if they were happy to test theirs on me."

He nods, a sad look in his eyes. "I guess... that's why you're so good at this."

"...Yeah. Way too many years of fighting at a disadvantage." She stops, pressing her lips together as she reconsiders. "Well, one big disadvantage, and with a few small advantages. I was smaller than most of those kids, and I wasn't using my quirk, but I actually had training. I knew what I was doing, not just throwing wild punches and kicks. I knew how to fight when your opponent is actually fighting back. And..." She spreads her wings behind her. "Having a couple extra limbs helps. It gets to be too much for people to keep track of, if they aren't used to it."

Shoto slumps forward ever so slightly. "Yeah. I've noticed."

A faint smile returns to her and she chuckles a bit. "You'll get there, if we keep doing this. I trained with my mom, mostly, and since we both... it just came naturally." She gets up suddenly, taking both empty water bottles and dropping them in a trash bin by the door. "But yeah. Bakugo just reminds me of all the assholes I dealt with back then. Bunch of self-absorbed jerks who think they're ten times better than they are and like to put people down so they can prove it. And don't get me started on how he treats Midoriya."

He nods, slowly. It isn't something he ever had to deal with, but he can see why she would hate the crimson eyed boy, knowing all this.

When she returns to the middle of the floor, she again offers him a hand getting up. "Next round?"

Shoto takes her hand, not hesitating this time. But even so, his reluctance to land on the floor a third time must be showing on his face.

"...You know, you really should have an easier time. You're just not playing to your strengths." She comments, looking him over. "Can I... give you some advice?"

"Um... sure." He doesn't know what she means by that. His strength is mostly in his quirk, so fighting without it...

She walks right up to him, standing just a few centimeters from his face. She has to tilt her head slightly up to meet his gaze. "You see it yet?"

"Uh..." He blinks, and tries to step back, but she stops him with one of her wings.

"Trust me, it's easier to tell from where you're at right now." Ryumi waits another minute, then answers for him. "You're taller than me." She then slides over to his side and holds out one arm straight in front of her, nodding for him to do the same. He does. "You have more reach than I do. You should be able to just stay at the edge of your range, forcing me to try and play a little riskier to close the distance. Think like... when you were dodging my claws at the festival, those quick backsteps you were doing. You should be able to do that, while still being able to attack me back."

He nods again, seeing the difference, though it seems so small. It's the same thing he normally does with his quirk, the same strategy he tried to use against her at the festival - but the relative range is so much closer than he's used to.

She backs away and looks him up and down. "You're probably heavier than me too, but not by much. Lemme see that combat stance again?"

He does as she asks, and he watches her frown as she walks a slow circle around him. "...What?"

"Nothing... it's just..." Ryumi glances at the ceiling, trying to think how to say it. "Well. Even if I didn't already know who trained you... it'd be pretty obvious it was an emitter type." She points toward him. "Your stance kinda sucks for this. You're standing like you're going to use your quirk, even though we aren't doing that. I... think I get why it would work for a normal fight, for you, but... in this case it's only making you a bigger target."

Shoto holds position, turning just his head as he tries to watch her examine his form. He's not sure what she means by that. "What makes it obvious?"

"Mm. It's like what sensei says - actually my mom felt similarly too. Emitter types rely too much on their quirks, because they can kind of get away with it most of the time. Then they end up neglecting the fundamentals and struggling when they can't use their power." She explains, stopping in front of him. "Sensei's whole ambush style is based on exploiting that tendency. I'm sure Midoriya could give you a more detailed take on that than me, though."

"Here, look at this. It's called a bladed stance." She drops into her own fighting stance, low and wide like before, with her upper body on an angle and her arms forming an inverted V in front. "The chest and head is where most of your vital spots are. Any injury that's going to take you out quickly is going to be there. Your arms and legs are - in a sense - expendable. Doing this..." She gestures to herself before resuming the same pose. "...minimizes how much of your chest is exposed to attack. It makes it easier to deflect blows away."

He tries to mimic what she's doing, but it feels awkward after so many years of practice with his father's method. He sees her frowning slightly again.

"Stay there." She walks over to him, inspecting his form again. "You want more of an angle, if you can." She grabs his shoulders and gently pushes him into a better position. She backs up and paces around him again, stopping just behind him. "Footing needs work too." Without warning, she shoves him - hard.

Shoto stumbles forward, though he manages to keep from falling, and he immediately retakes a defensive position once he's steadied himself again.

Ryumi smiles, a soft laugh escaping her. "Good recovery though. But I knew your instincts were solid from seeing your fights at the festival." She walks over to him and he backs away cautiously. "Relax. I'm not going to do it again."

He does, though he stays in his stance. He notices that he fell back into his normal pose though, and tries to correct back to how she had him standing.

She still ends up adjusting his shoulders again, very slightly. When she walks around behind him again, she carefully puts her foot out on the inside of his and lightly kicks at him. "Move a little bit." He shifts some, but not enough. She nudges his foot again. "A little more. There." Again, she steps back to check, and a moment later, she rushes in and shoves him a second time.

He resists. Pivoting and grabbing her arm, he throws her off to the side.

Ryumi clearly wasn't expecting that, and has to put her wings out to repair her balance. When she turns toward him again, there's a broad fangy grin on her face. "That was perfect!" She bounces over to stand next to him. "See, you're getting it. You just need to make some little adjustments... and get used to watching for this." She bats the edge of her wing softly into his shoulder and lifts her tail, flicking the tip tauntingly.

He still has a displeased look on his face.

"Sorry. Was just trying to demonstrate the point." She holds her hands up with a gentle, apologetic smile. "Round three? Give it a try like this."

Shoto sighs, and nods to her. The track begins anew.

They end up going another three rounds, and Ryumi takes all of them. But as they go, each round lasts a little longer, and Shoto manages a few more solid attacks on her.

As she stands from the last fight, Ryumi takes a second to rub her right shoulder. "Got me pretty good that time." She quickly returns to offer him a hand, as she has after every match.

He accepts the help, marveling again at how much of a difference that simple gesture makes. Not that it's the only difference between today and the training he's used to. Her patience, and kind encouragement...

He realizes he's staring, and that she asked him something. "Huh?"

She chuckles, holding a hand to her mouth to cover it. "I asked if you had fun. If you would want to do this again."

Shoto pauses. He looks at her, then down at his hands. "...Yeah." He brings his gaze back to meet hers, and tries again. "Yeah, I would."

"Great!" She falls in step next to him as they walk over to collect their things and head home. "Tomorrow? Or... maybe just a couple times a week? What do you think?"

He thinks that maybe… this won’t be as bad as he feared.

Chapter Text

The next week of classes passes by in a blur of homework and training. But at last, the day of the internships finally arrives. The whole class is slowly gathering up in the train station near UA, with Aizawa supervising.

Shoto walks up next to Ryumi, toward the rear of the forming group, and sneaks a look at her train ticket. "Hosu? I thought you had somewhere else in mind last time we talked about it."

"Mm..." Ryumi looks at him, then rather pointedly shifts her gaze to Iida, standing at the front of the class. She keeps her voice low as she answers. "I had a... call it a bad feeling." She doesn't want to admit - at least not here with everyone around - that she saw Iida's paper, and his only pick was an agency based in Hosu. "Anyway, I'm sure the Normal Agency will still have some useful stuff for me to see and learn."

He follows her eyeline to the class president, who still has that strangely distant feeling about him. Even over the previous week, he's continued to be abnormally quiet - sometimes even seeming to forget to scold those breaking school rules, which he used to be so quick to do. If not for the incident with his brother, it might easily have been blown off as the typically uptight Iida finally starting to loosen up a little.

Shoto looks back at Ryumi, seeing the worry written on her face. He nods his agreement. Someone needs to keep an eye on their classmate.

As the last of the group trickles in, Aizawa clears his throat and addresses them. "Everyone has their costumes, right? Remember, you don't have permission to wear them out in public yet, but don't drop them or lose them."

Many of the costume suitcases are being carried recklessly regardless of the warning - but they are all present and accounted for.

"Gotcha!" Mina cheers, lifting hers overhead with a wild grin.

"Speak properly. It's 'yes, sensei', Ashido." Aizawa grumbles back.

A deflated Mina lowers her costume case to the ground and responds as requested. "Yes, sensei..."

"All of you, make sure you mind your manners and be on your best behavior!" Aizawa commands as he surveys the lot of them. "Now go, get to it." He waves for the students to head out their respective directions to catch their trains, and the crowd rapidly splinters into smaller friend groups wishing each other luck before separating out entirely.

Toru skips merrily toward her own train, waving to Ojiro as she passes. "This is gonna be fun!"

"You headed to Kyushu?" Kirishima asks, tapping Tokoyami on the shoulder. "It's the other way." He points out the line on a map and gestures down the hall.

"Of course... thank you." The bird boy corrects his route and departs.

Meanwhile, Iida starts off alone, without saying much to anyone. Despite that having become the norm these past weeks, it still draws worried looks from those watching. Shoto included.

But he's drawn out of those thoughts again as Ryumi pops up behind him, hitting his shoulder with her wing. "Hey - see you in a week." She grins, and then lowers her voice, taking a more serious tone. "...Don't be afraid to call or text if things get... you know. Promise I'll answer as long as I'm not busy."

He's a bit startled by her sudden reappearance beside him, but he nods. "Thanks. I won't." He stops, seeming to look for something, but he quickly gives up. "See you later." He waves to her and wanders off into the crowd, on his way to his father's agency.

Ryumi can't help but worry for him too, even if Iida has to be her immediate concern for the next few days. It's been obvious to her that Shoto's been dreading this week, whatever excuses he might give about needing to learn from the man, and however logical those reasons might be. But... she can't be in both places. And she didn't get an offer from Endeavor - nobody did, from what she's heard, other than Shoto. She doubts even Ryukyu's influence could have gotten her a place there. So, she has to simply hope that checking in once in a while will be enough, and trust that he'll be alright.

With a deep breath, she bounces off to catch up to Iida, waving at Shoto as he vanishes into the crowds.

When she trots along to catch up to her fellow intern, she sees Midoriya and Ochaco running up ahead.

"Iida, wait!" Midoriya calls out as they close in.

Iida stops walking, but doesn't turn around or say a word.

Midoriya only gets more nervous with that reaction, and he starts wringing his hands. "Hey uh, if it ever gets to be too much and you wanna talk or anything... Just let us know. We're your friends, right?"

Ochaco nods furiously beside him, desperately smiling to cover her clear worry. "Mmhm! Mmhm!"

Iida affords them only a brief glance over his shoulder, and a single word before he carries on walking. "Sure."

He does a bad job of making it sound natural, and the pair left behind exchange looks that show they aren't convinced - powerless though they may be to do more, at least currently.

Ryumi purposefully clips Midoriya's shoulder with her wing as she passes by, turning to face him as she walks backward. Once she has his attention, she points to her own eyes and then jabs a thumb over her shoulder at Iida, before spinning around and running up to join him.

Midoriya nods to himself, and silently walks off with Ochaco before they too must go their separate ways.

The train ride to Hosu is predictably quiet. Though Iida still sits next to Ryumi, and she makes a few attempts at some conversation throughout, it always seems to die down quickly. It's eerie. Not that she was particularly close with Iida before, but they got along well enough. Eventually she just gives in and starts scrolling mindlessly through various news stories for the remainder of the trip. Speculation about the hero killer fills many of the headlines.

When they come into the station, Manual himself is waiting among the crowd in full costume. He must have taken a detour on his patrol route to come and meet his new interns. The hero is a kind looking man, with dark eyes and just a hint of light brown hair poking out from under his soft blue fish fin helmet. His costume has a simple practicality to it, a basic light blue shirt that continues the fishy theme, yellow gloves, and dark pants. He waves to the pair as they disembark and move to join him.

"Welcome to Hosu City." The pro smiles at them. "It's an honor, you know. I never imagined I'd get even one intern from UA - let alone two!" He starts to walk and gestures for them to follow. "The agency's this way, we'll go get you settled in and show you around the place before we get started..."

Manual suddenly pauses, as if he just remembered something. "Right - I'm Masaki Mizushima, by the way." He looks back over the pair. "Of course, I'd recognize a member of the Iida family in a heartbeat." He nods to Iida, then to Ryumi. "So, you must be Arisato. It's good to meet you both."

Iida manages a quiet but polite response. "You as well, Manual."

"Ah, no need to use my code name until we're actually on patrol... unless that's easier for you." He nods as he begins leading the students once again.

It's a short walk to the small office that serves as the base for the Normal Hero Agency. It's rather nice, despite being significantly smaller than Ryukyu's, and it has a clean, modern aesthetic. The main room is almost all window on the exterior walls, and the sunlight is being put to good use as growing space for about a dozen different ferns and other indoor plants. There's a meeting space with a coffee table surrounded by chairs, a side table with basic refreshments nearby, a desk filled with in-progress paperwork near the back, and one of the interior walls is a large TV screen displaying any active reports.

"Well, this is the place. It's not much, but we make it work. Client meetings happen out here, then in back we have more office space and some basic facilities..." Before Manual can direct the students to the back to show them their rooms, Ryumi has wandered over to the plants. He waits in front of the hall and smiles back at her as she admires the azalea bonsai and the cluster of air plants decorating the desk. "You like them? The first one was a gift from one of my sidekicks, when we first moved into this space. She said it needed something to liven up the place. It's turned into a bit of a hobby now. Something that's easy enough to keep up with between missions." 

Ryumi stops to examine another of the potted plants, a dracaena marginata - dragon tree. She brushes her hand through the thin red edged leaves. "I have a little garden at home too. Well... my mom does. But I help look after it."

"Really? What kind of plants?" Manual asks as she wanders back to join them. 

"Mostly bleeding hearts. We have them in a bunch of colors. A couple rarer ones, even." She answers, and the trio resumes walking into the back of the agency.

Manual nods approvingly. "They're beautiful flowers. I've thought about getting some, but... I think I might be crowding out the rest of the office if I keep going." He chuckles to himself. "Anyway, there's a little kitchen slash break area here, locker rooms back there... Here's the office proper... and some spare bedrooms on this side. Usually those would be for myself or my sidekicks if we're in the office late, or if we have to be on standby for something, but for this week, they're yours."

He waves the two of them ahead. "Go on and set your things down. I'm going to check up on some stuff, then we'll go out on a short patrol so you can get the feel of the city."

And so, the three go their separate ways for about an hour. Ryumi spends most of the time unpacking and checking her phone, wondering how the others are doing. 

Her room has a simple bed and a small desk with a swivel chair. She sits on the edge of the bed, periodically glancing out into the hall, but Iida doesn't seem to make an appearance. At least not that she notices.

When midafternoon rolls around, they suit up and head out to begin their first patrol. Manual shows them the route on the screen in the main room before they go, pointing out a few of the landmarks so they have an idea of where they're going.

On the street, the hero and his two trainees make for an interesting sight - though they do all have some blue in their costumes, which gives them a small bit of unity.

"On a normal day I'd just be waiting around for client calls to come in. Not really exciting. But lately, well... it's hectic. Hosu's been in a bit of a panic." Manual explains as they walk, keeping his eyes out for trouble the whole way. A couple passersby stop to wave, and he returns the gesture.

Iida watches from behind his helmet. "So you've increased street patrols to suppress crime." His tone is even, but a little too flat to be natural. Even with his face hidden, it's plain that he's distracted.

"Yeah, exactly. Sure is nice to have Ingenium's little brother with me though." Manual responds with a nod, and glances over his shoulder. "And Ryukyu's protege."

Ryumi pulls her wings up tighter against her back. "I think you're overstating our connection a little..."

But Manual just waves off the concern. "Relax. It's not unusual - actually it's pretty common for pros to take particular interest in young heroes who have similar quirks."

Iida is silent during the exchange, seeming lost in thought. Ryumi, walking beside, is watching him almost as much as their surroundings.

Manual continues, apparently without noting anything strange. Of course, he wouldn't necessarily know that anything's different, having just met the two. "I kinda can't believe it, though. I'm sure you guys had offers from pros with much bigger followings than mine."

"Well, Ryukyu actually recommended I come to you. She said it would be good to get experience with a different type of agency..." Ryumi jumps in with a swift excuse. It's not a lie exactly, but it is stretching things a bit. And she obviously doesn't want to reveal her real reason for coming here.

"Oh wow, really?" Manual asks, beaming at the idea. "That means a lot, hearing a top pro thinks I'm worth studying with!"

As Manual is chuckling over that, Iida stops in place and stares across the street.

Manual stops as well. "You see something, Tenya?" He asks, curious.

Ryumi's eyes narrow. She watches carefully.

Iida stumbles over his thoughts as he's suddenly ripped from them by the question. "Ah, no. Sorry. I thought I did, but... it was nothing. Let's carry on."

Ryumi tries to make a note of the place, but it'll be difficult for her to find again in such an unfamiliar location. She definitely doesn't fully believe that it was 'nothing'.

Far from Hosu City, a few sidekicks at Endeavor Agency speak in hushed tones as they pass by the door to the boss's office. Shoto eyes them briefly, having left the door open just a crack when he came inside. He focuses as he walks over toward the desk, noting the nearly overwhelming heat in the room - it doesn't bother him, of course, but a regular person would be uncomfortable almost immediately on setting foot here. He wonders if that's intentional.

The office is spacious - all windows on the west side, and currently bathed in the last light of the evening. There's a fancy plush rug covering the floor's center, underneath a couch and two chairs arranged on either side of a coffee table, and continuing almost to the plain desk at the back. An outrageous crystal chandelier hangs overhead, unlit, while the desk is equipped with a small lamp, also unlit. A huge painting of a sunset hangs on the wall behind the desk, but he can't see much of that, as Endeavor himself is standing just in front of it.

"I've been waiting for you, Shoto. You're finally ready to walk down the path of the mighty." The number two hero is a huge man, towering over his youngest son even today. He's in his hero gear, his hair aflame and flickering in an unfelt breeze. The costume is a dark suit sporting accent lines that shimmer and glow like molten lava, a blazing collar of flame that recalls the look of the fur lining of a particularly ostentatious coat, matching edging on the boots, and a little bit of white, almost bony-looking armoring around the forearms.

The man holds out a hand toward the boy, but it's obviously just an empty gesture. More beckoning than inviting.

Shoto takes a breath to harden his stare before responding. "I have no intention of following any path you've created. Only I can decide my future." His tone is cold and steely. It's a practiced line, one he's been preparing all day.

But Endeavor only seems amused by his resistance. "Heh. Is that so? You should go get ready. We're going out."

He's slightly surprised by the sudden shift in topic, but he covers it quickly - though he's internally frustrated at himself for the lapse in front of his father. He'll have to be more careful. "Where to?"

"It's time I show you what it means to be a hero." The pro answers without actually answering, as he walks out from behind the desk.

Shoto struggles to not argue, and to keep the anger out of his face. Bastard. You're the farthest thing from a hero... But he goes to get ready anyway, sighing as he walks to the locker room. Just remember why you're here. What you need to learn.

When he empties his uniform pockets to start changing into his costume, his eyes linger on his phone. I'll just... I'll see if she's still up, after this. The thought that he has someone he can vent to later serves as a lifeline, and he finds his resolve again. Irritating as the bastard's smug attitude will be, he can do this. He has to. He needs to see it with his own eyes, not just how to better use his fire, but what makes the country see that man as the second-best hero out there.

It's getting to be late, well past lights out at Manual Agency. Even the front office is deserted at this point, though if a call came in the various heroes would be back within a couple minutes, summoned by the after-hours alert system. But for now it's all quiet, and it's just Iida and Ryumi staying here tonight.

The dragon girl sits in the dark, with only the dim glow of her own eyes and her phone screen, as she types out a message to Shoto.

so how was your first day? everything okay? just patrolling over here.

She isn't sure if she'll get a reply, not knowing what kind of schedule Endeavor will have him keeping, but she decides it's worth a shot. She doesn't have anything better to do currently anyway.

The phone buzzes softly in her hand.

He's insufferable as always, but fine. Just pissed me off is all.

A pause.

How's Iida?

Ryumi breathes a soft sigh of relief at the news. She's still worried, but it's eased some by hearing from him.

...strange, like before. I'm only getting more suspicious since we got here. wish I could tell him I understand how he feels, but...

...Yeah. I know.

She delays, debating what to say as she watches through the crack in her door and listens for any movement. There's a bit of shuffling from Iida's room, but it's hard to say if that's the sound of him getting ready for bed. Though she suspects it isn't - he seems the type to go to bed much earlier than this.

I mean... if I knew who took my mom and dad, and where they were...

Ryumi.

She can almost hear the sharp, warning tone that he surely means to convey.

I'm just being honest.

...it's not like it matters anyway. almost three years with no leads. I'll probably never find out at this point.

It's a long time before he responds again. Long enough she starts to wonder if he even will.

...I know. And I... I do hope you get justice for them someday... But I don't want to see you like that.

Another brief pause.

Your eyes are too kind.

She stares at her phone, trying to decide what she's supposed to make of that comment, when the door down the hall creaks. She drops that thought, pocketing her phone, and steps into the hall.

Iida did try to get to bed on time. Really, he did. But lying here, in this place, so close to his brother's attacker, his mind is restless. He lay awake, staring at the ceiling for over an hour, maybe even two, wondering if the hero killer is out there tonight. If he's hunting someone else. Where he might be. The alleys he noted along the patrol route which match the villain's pattern...

Eventually, he gives up. He sits up in bed and quietly begins to get dressed. He hates the idea of breaking the rules to run off on his own, but the burning in his heart won't go away. He can't just wait around. Not while the man who crippled his dear brother still roams the streets.

He winces at the creak of the door to his room when he opens it. Hopefully Arisato hasn't noticed. He’s sure she’s still up - he could faintly hear her phone buzzing a bit ago, even with the actual tone silenced. He slips into the hall and makes for the exit, moving slow in the pitch black so he won't trip in the unfamiliar surroundings.

A pair of gleaming blue eyes appear from the void, glaring at him. He jumps back from the sight, gasping and pressing a hand to his chest.

"Going somewhere?" The eyes watch him carefully, suspiciously.

His heart sinks. There's no way he can escape now.

Iida stops dead in his tracks when Ryumi steps out in front of him. She waits a moment for him to volunteer an excuse, and when he doesn't, she decides to press the issue. Gently. At least to start.

"Shouldn't you be in bed by now?" She asks, casually, as if nothing unusual is going on. "Manual said we'll have an early day tomorrow."

"...Shouldn't you?" He responds, obviously grasping for a way to redirect the attention off his own actions. It sounds very forced, not at all like his usual tone when he's chastising a classmate.

"I usually go to bed fairly late." She answers, shifting her footing. She has a serious advantage here in the dark - from the way he's squinting she can tell he can barely see anything besides her eyes. She waits a while, letting a silence fall over them, giving him a last chance to speak up. When he doesn't, she frowns and prods him again. "...You gonna tell me what you're up to? Or am I gonna have to tell Manual about this?"

His eyes harden in response to the direct question. "I... don't know what you mean." The excuse is as unconvincing as ever.

Ryumi narrows her eyes and takes a step toward him. "You know running around on our own is prohibited, right? I thought you were a big fan of the rules."

Iida wipes the sweat from his forehead, obviously well aware that he's not fooling her or getting away with this. "I only... stepped out for a glass of water."

In your regular clothes? She watches as he walks to the kitchen and fills a small glass, drinking it, and shuffling with a stiff awkwardness back to his room. "Right... good night, Iida."

He nods and disappears behind the door.

When she returns to her own room, he hears a rough and shaky sigh from next door, followed by a heavy sound - presumably her classmate falling back into bed. She resolves to stay up a bit longer, though she suspects he won't try again tonight. Probably not tomorrow either. He knows she's watching now, so if he's as smart as she believes he is, he'll wait for her to lower her guard before making another attempt.

She lies back in bed, glancing at her phone. It's too late now to text Shoto again, but she looks at his last message one more time before setting the phone aside to charge. She stares up at the ceiling, listening to what she's confident is Iida finally going to bed as well, and turning over that comment in her head.

...What did he mean by that...?

The next evening, after a long afternoon of uneventful patrolling, the three return to the office to rest. The back part of the office, adjacent to the locker rooms, is nearly surrounded by filing cabinets cluttered with paperwork and books - though of course a few plants are crammed in here and there as well. One wall has a sort of scheduling board and there's another copy of the TV map from the front room on a smaller screen in a corner. The center is a grouping of eight desks - three on each side capped by a single wider one on either end, each equipped with a plain swivel chair. It's a very utilitarian space, with only the plants serving as any kind of decor.

"Well, the nice thing about having the whole city on alert is that no villains will dare come out." Manual says with a chuckle as he removes his helmet and sets it on the desk at the head of the cluster.

Iida follows suit, setting his own helmet on another desk and temporarily removing his glasses to clean them. "Oh, yes. I suppose you're right..." There's a tiny hint of disappointment in his voice, but if Manual notices, he doesn't comment.

Ryumi stretches and falls into a chair, getting her phone and checking to see if she has any new messages. There's nothing yet, but... she has an idea. She glances surreptitiously at Iida, making sure he isn't close enough to see what she's typing.

what do you know about the hero killer?

To her slight surprise, and relief, Midoriya answers almost right away.

why?

just wondering. you're the info guy. he was last seen in Hosu, right?

well... 

Several minutes pass. She lowers her phone and looks at the other two. Manual is carefully tending the plants, using a cute whale-shaped watering can and humming to himself. Iida is standing in front of the map of the city, studying it silently. Finally, her phone buzzes.

his quirk isn't known, but it has to be something powerful considering how he takes down pros. even ambushing them in secluded areas, he'd still have to be crazy skilled or really powerful. he tends to choose low traffic back alleys with blind corners to attack from. at each location he's been seen, he's attacked at least four heroes before moving on.

...and here? how many victims in Hosu so far?

...just Ingenium.

Ryumi frowns subtly, as her concern is verified. She quickly taps out a reply.

thanks, Midoriya.

Despite her reasonable certainty that Iida won't make another attempt to sneak out, she still has the lingering worry that they could run into the hero killer. The pattern suggests he's likely still in Hosu. She looks up at Iida, still studying the map on the wall. Is he looking for locations that fit the profile?

It bothers her, but there's not much she can do for the moment. She could bring her concern to Manual, as she threatened last night, but... if she's wrong... As suspicious as Iida's behavior has been, none of it quite rises to the level of outright proof of intent. Especially not to someone who doesn't know him well. Manual would probably keep an eye out, certainly, she doesn't doubt that, but she doubts he would put too much stock in such vague evidence.

She shelves it for now. Her phone buzzes again - Midoriya.

...is everything okay?

yeah. for now, anyway. just... noticed some odd things.

I'll let you know if that changes.

...alright.

She flips back to her other texts, realizing she never properly responded to Shoto.

hey. sorry for disappearing last night.

She glances up at Iida again.

I was... keeping watch.

It's fine. Still quiet out there?

yup. other than Iida trying to go rogue, but I think I scared him off that idea. at least for now.

What?

Ryumi looks up again, without raising her head. Iida has taken a seat opposite her now, but doesn't seem to be paying her much mind, and Manual is looking over a few takeout menus he's pulled from a drawer in his desk. "You two have any opinions on dinner?"

Both of the interns shrug and return to their own thoughts, leaving Manual to make the decision himself.

pretty sure he was planning to slip out and do some investigating on his own last night.

When Shoto doesn't answer right away, she sends another message.

it's fine. I stopped him. and I don't think he'll be so brazen to try again for a couple days. either way, I'll easily be awake longer than he is. I'll keep watching.

She pauses, then decides to change topic.

so how are things over there?

About the same. We captured a few villains.

seeing more action than we are then. :P

hasn't been so much as a robbery while we've been out.

I hate to admit it... but he is good. At finding and catching villains.

Ryumi nods to herself as Manual tosses a menu out on the desks between the two. "Sushi work for you two?"

She waves for Iida to look first. That'll give her time to wrap up this discussion.

plenty of assholes out there who are good at their jobs.

...Yeah.

you're still doing okay?

There's a slightly longer period before he answers her.

Yeah... I can't stand the way he talks, as if he isn't...

Like he doesn't even think about what he did to mom. What he's done to me. Like the results he gets on the job and my skills are all that matters.

Sorry. I just...

do you want to talk later? we're about to go get dinner, but I can call after.

No. I'm fine. He hasn't... he hasn't done anything.

Not like before. It's just his attitude...

you sure?

Yeah... thanks. I'm okay.

And I am learning things. Seeing what makes him so highly ranked. Making better use of my fire... maybe when we train next I can show you.

That thought puts a bit of a smile on her face, even if she can't shake her fears entirely.

looking forward to it. :)

if you change your mind about talking later, let me know. you know I'll be awake.

...Yeah. I will.

Ryumi pockets her phone just as Iida presents the menu to her, and she starts searching over the options.

Chapter Text

That same evening at UA, a familiar detective slides open the door to a small lounge set aside for private meetings. The sunset is visible out the large window, and the tall, gaunt figure that is All Might in his weakened state is already waiting on the couch. He pours two glasses of tea and pushes one across the low table for his guest. Tsukauchi removes his coat and hat, hanging them over the back of a chair opposite the number one hero, and takes a seat.

"I'm sorry to show up unexpectedly. Hope you don't mind." The detective bows his head apologetically.

All Might holds up a hand for him to relax. "Please, it's always a pleasure to see you, Tsukauchi." He pauses, glancing out the window. "This... isn't about young Arisato, is it?"

Tsukauchi looks surprised by the question. "Hm? No. Why do you ask?"

The hero picks up his tea, staring into the liquid. "No reason. I was just reading her file again the other day."

He nods slowly at that, seeming relieved. "As long as she's doing alright. And keeping quiet."

"I've never liked that decision, you know." The thin frame of the pro's shoulders shifts with a heavy sigh.

"It's the same reasoning that was behind hiding your injury, so you can't be too against it." The detective stops. Seeming to regret that line, he also sighs, a sadness taking over his features. "Sorry. I know it's different."

All Might takes a slow sip of his tea. "I just worry about what that does to the poor girl."

"We all do. But your hands are just as tied as mine there. All we can do is keep looking. And supporting her where we can." Tsukauchi takes his glass, but doesn't drink from it.

"Any leads?" He asks, his sunken eyes searching.

But Tsukauchi shakes his head. "None, as usual. Although..."

All Might leans forward. "The other investigation?"

The detective nods, leaving the tea and folding his hands, resting his elbows on his knees. "Right. Well, there were a number of villains who attacked the USJ. Most of them just small-time thugs, nothing to worry over - though seeing them band together in such numbers is odd. But one of them has us puzzled. The one you fought who they called 'Nomu'."

The pro hero nods along with the explanation, remembering. "Ah, that strong bird guy."

"We went ahead and ran some tests on Nomu's DNA. Since he's not very talkative." The detective continues.

All Might sips his tea again, though his eyes remain fixed on his guest. "And what exactly did you find?"

"First... don't worry. I'm not asking for your help with the case. Technically, this is a leak. But... I figured you had to know. Felt I owed it to you." His gaze sharpens as he stares directly at the hero across the table. "We're on the ringleader's trail."

All Might gasps softly and listens ever more intently.

"After several failed attempts at interrogation, it became clear... It's not just that Nomu doesn't speak - or rather, that he can't speak. He shows no reaction to anything. There's not a thought in his head. As though he literally can't think for himself - no matter what's going on around him. As for his identity..." Tsukauchi reaches for the coat on the back of his chair and pulls a photo from the pocket, laying it on the table. It's a mugshot showing a plain looking adult male with dirty blonde hair. "Turns out he's also just some petty criminal like the others - assault, extortion, a whole rap sheet. Or that's what he used to be."

The hero cocks an eyebrow at that phrasing. "Why do you think this will lead us to the mastermind behind the League?"

Tsukauchi takes a slow breath to refocus. "Here's where it gets interesting. Our reports show his whole body has been altered drastically with drugs and other chemicals. And when we analyzed his genetic makeup, we also discovered that he's got the DNA of at least four completely different people in him."

All Might puts a hand to his chin. "Someone combined people's DNA to make this guy." He sounds disturbed, worried by the thought. "Is he even still human...?"

"The transformation is a result of drugs and other unknown methods. Put simply, he's been bioengineered to tolerate multiple quirks. His extraordinarily low brain activity is probably a result of the burden that causes." Tsukauchi finally pauses for a drink. "But we're more concerned about his DNA. He shouldn't have more than one power. Even if new DNA's introduced, that shouldn't give a person multiple powers. Not unless it's completely integrated into someone's body, or there was some other transference factor at play. Most quirks don't work like One for All. But maybe... there's someone out there with the power to pass different quirks on to other people."

All Might grows increasingly concerned, standing with a slight gasp. "It can't be!"

Tsukauchi remains calm, having had plenty of time to process the news, bleak as it is. "Given the evidence, I think it's a reasonable conclusion. S'why I came. I had to let you know immediately."

The old pro walks to the window and stares out, faint smoke trails coming off his body as he unconsciously assumes his more familiar muscle form. His voice shifts as well - not just the normal change brought on by his transformation, either. The caution and worry from before replaced by righteous rage. "No. It's not possible. Don't tell me he's back again."

The detective frowns, sighing. "That's not even all. It's probably the most worrying part of the news, but..." He swirls his tea thoughtfully and drinks again. "Actually... maybe I was wrong to say this isn't about Arisato. We're still verifying, but the preliminary results show that one part of the drug cocktail that changed Nomu into what he is bears some similarities... to ideo trigger."

Though he remains in his muscle form, All Might seems to deflate. He sinks back into his seat, shoulders slumped and one hand held to his head. "The villain factory..." He picks up his tea and takes a long drink. "...We never do escape the past, do we?"

"It seems not." Tsukauchi answers with a sigh, finishing his own tea.

All Might shares in the sentiment, and downs the last of his drink as well. "You really know how to pile on the bad news."

Tsukauchi offers a sad smile to the hero. "Sorry, old friend."

He gets up to leave, taking his coat and hat, and reclaiming the photo from the table. All Might, meanwhile, remains on the couch for a long time, watching the sunlight die over the city skyline.

Chapter Text

It's the third straight day of uneventful patrols for the pair training in Hosu. It's getting to be late again, and they're planning on a short break for dinner on the next pass by the office.

"Just another day of patrolling. I think we'll go through Kyoto today too, before we head back. Sorry it isn't more exciting." Manual comments with a gentle, slightly apologetic smile. "This is part of the job sometimes though. Not every day is glamorous or thrilling... I should probably show you the paperwork side of things too, but I might put you two to sleep at this rate."

Iida turns, looking back and forth. "No. It's actually... better this way."

"Peaceful is the goal... but I'm sure you were hoping for a little more than just touring the city." Manual suddenly looks back over his shoulder at Ryumi. "Hey, Tempest. Why don't you take a lap of the block from the air and report back?"

Ryumi returns a curious glance, but she doesn't argue. "Of course." She steps away from the others and takes off with a flurry of wingbeats. She makes a slow circle above, weaving between the buildings and watching for trouble.

As with the last two days, there's none.

Something else catches her eye from up here, though. In the fading light, she can just make out the faint outline of the full moon. She frowns. Most people would call it superstition, but those close to emergency responders know there's some grain of empirical truth to the notion that bad things tend to happen on the night of the full moon.

It has her a little on edge when she flaps back over to rejoin the pair walking below. Not that she needed something else unsettling her thoughts, between Iida's strange behavior and her concern for Shoto...

"...Another reason why you'd choose my agency. Uh, I mean... don't get me wrong, I'm thrilled that you did!" Manual changes the topic as he spies Ryumi returning to them. "Both of you. I never imagined I'd have two UA students interning..." He pauses as she lands nearby. "Catch sight of anything?"

She shrugs, shifting her wings as she resettles on the ground. "Nah. All quiet around this area."

"Great! Let's keep going so we can get dinner." Manual waves for the two to get moving.

Iida is a little slow to start, keeping his head down. His left hand curls into a fist.

The three of them are just finishing up eating, when an alarm starts blaring from the main room.

Manual drops his takeout box onto the break room table, chopsticks still poking out of it, and rushes out to see what's happening. Ryumi and Iida share a look and quickly dash out to follow him. In their haste, a couple of the folding chairs topple over.

Red dots flash over the map of the city on the TV screen. Iida taps on one, and the box that pops up reads 'unknown attacker'. Both kids look to Manual.

He's standing at the desk, listening to a phone call. "What did you say? Villains appeared? Don't worry. I can head there right now." He holds his hand over the microphone. "Go get ready. Something's happening. We're moving out in five."

They both nod and rush for the locker rooms to change back into their costumes.

As Ryumi steps into her costume, her phone buzzes from where she left it atop the bench. She checks the clock. There's time enough for her to look.

It's Shoto.

Are you okay? Do you know what's going on?

yeah. don't know yet, but we're going out any minute now.

...He says there was a sighting. The hero killer.

We're coming over too.

She finishes pulling her suit on before risking a reply.

really?

I guess he wants credit for catching a big-time villain, huh?

She pauses, a devious grin sneaking into her face.

well I better go catch him first then. can't let you guys have all the fun. ;)

Heh. I guess so.

...Stay safe out there.

same to you.

She pockets her phone and swiftly double checks her costume before running out to meet the others.

When they arrive on the streets, it's widespread chaos all around. Smoke billows up in columns from different parts of the city - with one notably close to the major rail lines. Bystanders nearby start to look worried and panic, searching for any safe shelter from whatever is happening out there. The full moon hangs ominous in the sky, overlooking it all.

Manual glances frantically around as explosions echo in the distance. "Seriously? Why's this happening now of all times?" He runs off toward the sounds, gesturing for his interns to follow. "Tenya, Tempest - to the scene! Hurry! And stay with me. We're running."

The pair both take off at speed, following their mentor... but Iida stops a mere second in and runs in a different direction, unnoticed by the others.

The alleyway that catches his eye is one that matches Stain's profile. For a moment his mind is torn between his duty and his personal grudge… but the burning pain swells again in his heart, and he darts down the alley into a maze of tangled narrow paths, abandoning both his classmate and his mentor.

Around a corner, an eerie figure in ragged red ninja-style garb looks over his shoulder at the sound of a distant explosion. "That idiot's making a move. And he's so noisy. I'll have to dispose of him later. But at the moment..."

Hero killer... As Iida watches, the figure looks back to his prey, held by the face against the wall behind. He's a hero, but Iida isn't sure of his name. He has long dark hair, and his costume is a tan bodysuit, furs, and a striped headband with a white feather tucked in one side.

"I have important work to finish here." The villain brandishes his blade, preparing for the kill.

The hero pinned to the wall cries out, though it's muffled. "My body... I-I can't move... you bastard...! I'll kill you!"

"If you call yourself a hero, you should choose your last words with care." The attacker states calmly, pulling the blade back to strike...

In a blur, Iida charges. His fury feels like too-hot fuel coursing through his engines. Like he might explode if he doesn't act now. He leaps for a kick at the killer's head, but he only succeeds in catching a blade to his face for the trouble. His helmet and glasses are knocked from his head as he's thrown back.

The villain eyes him with a vague disinterest, the way one might briefly acknowledge a small insect. "A child wearing a costume... who are you?"

Iida lands on the ground, the hate still searing in his chest. He starts to get back to his feet. This is him. It has to be. This will be his chance. For Tensei.

"Get out of here. This is no place for children." The blood-soaked man commands, unconcerned by the boy intruding on his business.

Iida ignores him, of course. He feels almost in a trance as he stares down the villain. "A scarf red as blood. Armed to the teeth with blades... you must be the hero killer, Stain! That's you, right?!" As he continues, his anger only builds. "I've been pursuing you. Though I didn't expect us to meet so soon! I am..."

Stain interrupts by shoving the blade into Iida's face, the tip just a centimeter from his eyes, causing him to recoil slightly. "Your eyes are searing with vengeance. Be careful what you say next... or your age won't be enough to save you. If need be, even someone as young as you can be my target." A dark, chilling aura spreads around the killer.

But even that cold malevolence does little to quell the white-hot malice aching inside Iida. He clenches his fist. "To save me? Are you saying that I'm not even a threat to you?" Without realizing, he takes the same tone he would for scolding his classmates over being late - but it has a harder edge to it than normal. "You listen to me. Criminal. I am... the younger brother of an incredible hero who you attacked!" He begins to stand, slowly, but with renewed purpose.

Stain turns and eyes him, waiting. He remains unimpressed.

"Brother to the amazing hero among heroes! The best older brother that anyone could hope for. And I have come to stop you, because he can't anymore!" He has to stop to breathe between the shouting.

In that moment, a distant part of him recalls his brother's words.

Tensei is lying in the hospital bed, looking nothing like the mighty hero his little brother has always known him as. His head is shaved, he's still covered in bandages and tangled in a mess of tubes supplying his weakened body with air and fluids. "I want you to take the name, Tenya..." Even his voice is rough and hoarse.

In the alleyway, Iida stands powerfully, a grim determination set on his face. "So remember this name for the short time you have left! I am Ingenium. The hero who's going to take you down!"

The eerie, bloodshot eyes of the hero killer focus, and his too wide grin sneers at the boy's declaration. "That so? Time to die!"

In another part of the city, an older man wearing an old fashioned two-tone yellow hero suit with a cape and eye mask zips around a lanky, monstrous creature. It has pale gray skin, limbs that are far out of proportion with its body, and four bulging eyes set on the edge of an exposed brain.

The elderly hero evades an uncoordinated downward slap from the beast. But he turns to see the creature ignoring the obvious threat to attack a closer, easier target - a pair of cowering civilians.

"No, stay away!" The young man yells, putting himself in front of the woman he's with, who screams and shrinks behind him.

The old man in yellow zips ahead on a jet blast, going in for another hit on the monster, but a huge wave of flames engulfs it first. The hero pulls back just in time, watching as the flames twist, forming a tornado around the strange beast.

Heavy footsteps approaching down the street confirm the source of the flames. Endeavor has arrived.

"I was actually here looking for the elusive hero killer, but... you've got bad timing. This thing will have to do." He comments to the villain, trapped within the fiery tornado. His gaze slowly shifts to the elderly hero who stands there, shielding his face from the heat. "Thanks, old-timer. I'm afraid I don't know you. But you can leave this one to me."

"It's you..." The old hero wears a mix of relief and... something else. Almost like he has a bad taste in his mouth.

The pair of bystanders cautiously straighten and back away from the action. "Whoa, look!" The man points to Endeavor.

"Why's he in Hosu?" The woman asks, still clinging to the man's arm.

Endeavor's eyes flick over to them. "Isn't it obvious? I came because I'm a hero."

Watching from the sidelines, Shoto can't keep himself from scowling at the pompous attitude. Yeah, sure... Bastard. Irritating though it is, there's actually something else bothering him too. That villain caught in the flames looks an awful lot like the one from the USJ incident. Not the same, but enough alike to be suspect. Their leaders did escape... Do they have more forces than what they showed back then?

It's a worrying thought. Especially since the brain monster was probably the strongest of the three leaders.

He looks at his father. Would he even listen if I told him? His frown deepens as he turns the idea over. If I say 'that thing looks like a guy that even All Might struggled with', he'll only think of it as a challenge... he won't take it seriously.

As Endeavor waves for his sidekicks to fan out and survey the situation, Shoto casts his gaze to the columns of smoke rising from the city. I hope Ryumi is okay. And Iida too.

A bus flips wildly through the air, landing sideways atop an abandoned car. Both vehicles explode into flames, and a huge eyeless creature with dark gray flesh and an exposed brain roars defiantly over the destruction it's wrought. It swats at another hero, while a paler, winged creature with a similar brainy look and a gas mask in place of a mouth grabs another ninja-like hero in its talons and starts to fly up, screeching.

Debris from the explosion flies out toward the approaching heroes. Ryumi summons her scales and tries to cover her face, but a small metal piece just grazes her forehead. Manual throws her a worried look as blood trickles from the shallow cut. She waves off the concern - it's just a minor scrape. Hardly worth worrying over in the middle of this chaos.

"Damn! What are they?" Manual pauses briefly at the edge of the action. "You two focus on evac, I'll help with the fires. Try to stay out of the way of the heroes fighting."

"Manual, wait!" Ryumi calls after him. She's just noticed something much more pressing.

He looks back, and realizes the same thing with a sudden panic. "Where's Tenya?"

Ryumi glances around frantically, but there's no sign of her classmate anywhere along the street. "I... I don't know, I think he was just here... but..." She mentally rewinds the last couple minutes of running, trying to figure out exactly when she last saw or heard him. Slowly, she comes to realize it was almost as soon as they started off this direction. Shit.

Manual has a look that suggests he also knows what she's thinking, and shakes his head. "We'll have to deal with him later. Right now, we take care of this." He obviously doesn't like it, but with people in need right in front of him...

"Right... but... I've seen a thing like these before." Ryumi follows him closer to the battle, though she remains guarded, fretful. "They're insanely strong. I watched one tangle with All Might and nearly match him."

A bull-like hero rips a fire hydrant apart before charging back into the fray. "Manual! Stop the fire! We'll hold off the big guy."

"Yeah. Got it!" Manual turns to Ryumi, concerned, but resolute. "Then we'll stall them and protect the citizens until stronger heroes arrive." He does an impressive job of hiding the fear that thought brings, as he steps up to the waterspout and redirects it onto the bus.

Ryumi nods and glances around before approaching the bus to look for survivors. Damnit Iida... Now of all times... As she waits for the flames to die down enough for her to get inside the ruined transport, she remembers Shoto's message. "One of my friends... is studying with Endeavor. He's coming to Hosu, but... he doesn't know about these things yet either. He said... the hero killer is making a move tonight."

Manual's brow furrows, and his frown deepens. "I know. I know Tenya came here to go after him. I thought I'd talked him out of it..." He shakes his head again. "But as fast as he is, he could be anywhere by now. Without information..."

The flying monster drops the hero it was carrying, and below a second ninja-like hero rushes to catch their companion. Another explosion from the large creature punching a hole in a nearby car sends the lot of them scattering for cover.

Ryumi ducks behind the cooling bus to shield herself from the blast and starts to pull someone out from the wreckage. "I could scout from the air. I could go find him."

"No way. I can't let both of my trainees just go off on their own." Manual replies sternly, as he shifts the wave of water father back on the bus.

The dragon girl reluctantly gives in and follows orders. Though Iida remains in the back of her mind the whole time as she ferries people out of the burned husk of the bus. Some of them have some nasty cuts and burns, but nothing immediately life threatening. And it's far too dangerous to keep them near the ongoing battle to treat anything, so she ushers them away to seek refuge at the nearest hospital.

The evacuation is going well, but as for the actual fight... it's a losing battle. Only a few minutes in and they're basically completely trapped, at least by land. Mindless as the creatures seem to be, and probably are, they’ve done a good job of blocking most of the viable escape routes with thrown cars or other large debris by the time the last citizens have gotten out, leaving the heroes pinned down. The giant brain monster throws a big overhead swing at the bull hero. He catches it, but the concrete cracks under him from the strain, and he coughs painfully. Above, the flying one beats its wings to stir a gust that batters the ninja team and temporarily grounds Ryumi.

Manual redirects the water again to quench a fresh fire sprouting up on a nearby building. "Damnit, Tenya. How could you run off at a time like this?!"

Unseen by Ryumi and Manual, a green suited boy bounds over the debris into the square where the battle is taking place. A female hero in a green and white striped suit with a red bandana and short blonde hair pushes the newcomer away from the fight to protect him. "Stand back and don't get in the way! We can hold these things back on our own. Evacuate with everyone else!"

"Whoa! Right. I'm so sorry!" The boy stutters, stumbling backward.

Manual glances at Ryumi for the briefest second, unable to take his attention from the flames for long. "Tempest, you get the kid away from here."

"Yes, sir." She turns and is momentarily stunned to see who it is. She flaps over to him, keeping low to stay off the flying creature's radar. "Midoriya?! What are you doing here?"

Midoriya shakes his head. "Our train was hit by one of these Nomu." He waves at the two creatures. "Gran Torino went to fight, I was trying to catch up to warn him how dangerous these guys are..." He trails off, frowning. "...But... Iida ran off somewhere? In the middle of all this trouble?"

Ryumi shoos him gently away from the action and lowers her voice. "...Shoto told me... Endeavor got a report that the hero killer is on the move again." She looks over her shoulder at Manual. "I can't go... not without some kind of lead..." She's secretly pleading, hoping he will catch on to what she's suggesting and go search for the missing class president.

Midoriya barely manages a nod before zipping off, jade energy crackling over his body as he leaps away.

Ryumi yells after him. "Tell us if you find anything!" She shuffles, worried, but returns to Manual to report. "That was one of our other classmates. He'll tell me if he finds anything."

Manual is clearly uncomfortable with the arrangement, but he's not exactly in a position to do anything about it. "I don't like putting a kid in danger, even if he's also a hero in training... but I can't stop him either." He sighs. "Tell me if you hear from him."

Ryumi nods. "Yes, sir."

The blonde female hero curses in frustration as the Nomu continue to show no signs of damage or even tiring. "Damn! What are these guys made of anyway?"

"They're... way too powerful!" The bull hero grunts as he struggles in melee with the blind beast. He gets smacked across the face, lifted up, and pitched at another hero. "Watch out, Fly!" He calls out as he collides with one of the ninjas.

The giant Nomu flicks a car at the resting Fly, a hero with insectoid wings. The vehicle explodes in a fireball, engulfing the hero. Manual quickly moves his water spout to rescue him, and Ryumi lingers nearby, ready to lift the car as soon as it's cooled enough to safely move. It looks bad. But if there's a chance...

"Crap! What do we do now?" One of the ninjas grimaces, looking around the battered group of heroes. "Are these really men? Or are they actual monsters?"

The giant Nomu howls again, fists in the air like a victorious wrestler at the end of a match. Meanwhile the winged Nomu circles above, once again holding a captive hero in its claws.

"For Tensei!" Iida launches himself at the hero killer, firing up his engines for a powerful kick.

Stain dodges by leaping above and out of reach. "Ingenium... So you're brothers. Hahh... I let him live so he could spread the good word. Get the rumors going. But you, you're..." As he comes down, he kicks with his spiked boot at Iida's shoulder, spurting blood from the wound.

"Gah!" Iida flinches and stumbles from the sudden pain.

The villain knocks him over, standing with a foot held on the boy's head and upper back. "...a weakling. Just like he was." He flips his blade around, stabbing downward into Iida's other shoulder.

"Arghh!" He writhes, squirming uselessly under the killer's hold.

"You aren't heroes. You have no right to be called that. Both of you are nothing but fakes." Stain explains, toying with the blade still stuck in the boy’s shoulder, twisting it cruelly.

"Shut up, villain! The damage you did to his spinal cord means he's probably going to be crippled for the rest of his life. Paralyzed from the waist down... he's never gonna be able to work as a pro hero again!" Iida shouts through the terrible pain, half sobbing as he does. "My brother was incredible... a caring person, who saved so many people... a leader. Someone people looked up to. He was a great hero! You had no right to take that all away from him!"

His mind flashes to a memory of watching his dear brother, cheering him on from just beyond the police tape, as he carries injured people out of a disaster.

His eyes blur with tears and the image in his mind shifts to an old family dinner.

Their father beams at his oldest son from across the table. "Tensei. I'm so proud of you! You're so young, yet you've already become independent. You command so many sidekicks. That's no small feat, I tell you!"

Tensei puts on an embarrassed smile. "Nah. You say 'command', but... they're not my followers. It's actually the opposite, dad. I'm in no position to accomplish much on my own yet, so they're all there to support me. They're just looking out for me. I honestly couldn't do anything without them. Of course, I'm working hard so I can return the favor." He sets down his rice, looking at his little brother sitting next to him. "I'm not super talented or anything, but if I'm going to call myself a hero, then I have to live up to that title and help people."

The burning ache in Iida's heart grows more and more painful, swiftly drowning out even the actual bleeding wounds in his shoulders. He mumbles in a soft voice, barely audible. "He's my hero..." And then he's screaming again. "He's a great hero... my older brother inspired my dream, that one day I could be a pro too! I won't forgive you! I'll kill you for what you did!" His fingers slowly, painfully pull into a fist.

The killer points back to the paralyzed pro slumped against the wall, taking a matter-of-fact tone. "Save him first."

Iida stares at the killer’s victim, trembling.

"So busy with your grudge you forgot about him." It almost sounds like he's scolding the boy. "You plan on using your quirk only for yourself? You're completely blinded by a selfish desire for revenge. That makes you the furthest thing from a hero. Hahh... That's why..." He finally removes the blade from Iida's shoulder. "...you'll die tonight." A ragged, frighteningly long tongue licks the blood from the blade.

"Gah!" A sudden jolt surges through Iida, locking all of his muscles in place. My body... won't move!

Stain flips the blade downward again, holding it over Iida's neck. "Goodbye, child. Consider yourself a humble offering... may your death bring about a better world."

"No, please! Not like this!" Iida begs, tears in his eyes.

He sees a flash of Tensei's broad friendly grin. "You look up to me that much, Tenya? Guess that makes me a great hero or something! Ha ha."

"Say whatever you want to about me. You're still the criminal who hurt my brother!" Iida howls. He doesn't even care about his personal honor anymore. Part of him knows that Stain is right, but... he also can't let go, can't think of any course other than making the villain pay for hurting Tensei.

Stain starts to bring the blade down, but stops partway as a flash of green farther down the alley catches his eye. Then, before he can properly react, a fist catches his face, knocking him off Iida.

"W-who's there? Midoriya...?! How?" The still paralyzed Iida is equally desperate and disbelieving of the sight.

"Guess I was right!" Midoriya lands, his body crackling with energy the color of jade, and eyes gleaming. "Don't you worry, Iida. I'm here to save you!"

The hero killer skids to a stop a ways back from the pair, without ever losing his footing.

Iida can only stare in a panic at the fresh horror unfolding in front of him. He doesn't want to die, but he also doesn't want his friend to get killed over this. "You found him too? But how...?"

Midoriya watches the villain carefully. "I saw it on TV. They had some stats about the hero killer. Most of his victims were discovered around blind corners in deserted areas... So, in order to find you, I've been scouring the back alleys near the Normal Hero Agency, close to the center of all the trouble. Because most of the possible witnesses will have fled, or will be helping out with the main disaster." He risks a quick look at Iida. "Let's go. Back toward the street. We have to get help from the pros."

Iida grimaces, knowing he can't even do that much. "Ugh. I can't move my body. He cut me... it must be his quirk..."

"They were talking about that on TV too. So, he needs to cut you to activate his power, huh?" Midoriya notices the downed pro lying by the wall up ahead, and grits his teeth.

Iida closes his eyes, a kind of resolve in his voice. "Midoriya. Please... don't interfere. This has nothing to do with you!"

"Iida, what're you saying...?" Midoriya asks, fearful of what he's suggesting.

"You showed up to save your friend's life. You even made a big entrance. But it's my duty to kill these two." For a moment, the hardened killer almost gives the impression that he's grading the newly arrived Midoriya on his heroism. "Him, and this so-called pro. When your friend chose to fight me, it guaranteed that the weaker of us would be culled. So. What now? What will you do?" His tone is almost taunting, but still somehow frighteningly calm and assured.

Midoriya shivers at the cold malice. Discreetly, he takes out his phone behind his back and taps out a desperate text.

Across the city, Shoto watches as Endeavor and his sidekicks move to secure the area around the four-eyed brain monster. His phone buzzes softly in his pocket, and he pulls it out to check. Midoriya?

Endeavor looks away from the villain still caught in the flames and growls. "Put down the damn phone and watch me, Shoto!"

Shoto ignores him, reading Midoriya's message. All he sent was his location? He considers it briefly. Why would he do that? Unless...

He turns and sprints off toward the address.

"Hey, wait! Where the hell are you going?" Endeavor shouts after him, raising a fist.

"An alley at 4-2-10 Ekou street. Once you guys are done, send any pros you can to back me up. I'm sure you can have this all wrapped up in a flash, right?" He glares briefly over his shoulder, unable to resist the parting jab at his father’s ego. "Right now, I think my friend's in trouble."

Endeavor watches him go, making no move to follow. "Shoto..."

At yet another corner of the disaster, Ryumi's phone also buzzes. "Manual!" She pulls back and checks. Her eyes narrow suspiciously – it’s from Midoriya alright, but there's not much content to it. Was he in a hurry for some reason?

Manual glances her way. "Did you get something?"

She nods, spreading her wings, half ready to take off. "He sent a location."

Their mentor looks conflicted, glancing about the square. It's obvious they're pinned here, it'll be almost impossible to get away by land, and even in the air it'll take someone distracting the flying beast. He grumbles in frustration at the whole mess, and removes a piece from his helmet, tossing it to her. "Go find him. But stay in contact the whole time, understand?"

Ryumi clips the earpiece on and takes to the air with a nod.

"You tell me anything you see on the way, get us intel on how the rest of the city is doing..." He pauses, then yells a little louder and more insistently as he shifts his water spout to hit the flying Nomu, keeping it off her. "And do not engage with the enemy! You got that?"

She already knows that she'll pretend not to have heard the last bit, if it comes down to that. Behind her flight goggles, her gaze hardens. She doesn't mention her fears to Manual, that the pair may already be in trouble. She's sure he wouldn’t allow her to go if she had.

"Tempest, do you read me?" As if summoned, his voice crackles over the earpiece. The faint sounds of a struggle come through as well – likely the result of his attempted distraction.

"Sure thing, Manual. The streets are quiet in this direction." It's true. Most people must've evacuated the immediate surroundings of the areas being attacked. She doesn't see a single person running or driving or even watching out a window in this area. “…You okay back there?”

“Just fine. Don’t worry about us.” He responds, though his breathing suggests he’s been running and dodging since she left. Hopefully the others can get the creature back off of him soon. She’s not sure how well he’d be able to handle a drop from height…

She dismisses that thought, checks the address again, and adjusts her path. He gave me a mission. Even if he doesn’t know what I’m really getting into… I have to focus. He’s a pro for a reason.

Chapter Text

Endeavor is still stunned at Shoto's sudden disappearance, but he's pulled out of it by the reemergence of the eerie four eyed brain creature. It staggers out of the fading flames, and though its flesh is badly seared, it quickly recovers. He raises an eyebrow at the sight. "That was only a low temperature warning shot. But... I've never seen anyone stay conscious after a hit like that."

The Nomu twitches bizarrely in place, staring its blank stare at nothing in particular.

"Something's not right. This guy is--" The elderly hero comments, but before he can complete his warning, the Nomu explodes with flames, throwing them out wildly at the two heroes.

The old hero jets back just in time. Endeavor makes no move to dodge, as he simply waves the fire away. "I get it. Your quirk's absorption and release, right?" The number two hero lifts his hand and readies another blast. "But you still suffered some damage from my flame, didn't you? Not a very impressive power."

The Nomu twitches again, muscles spasming, but in a clearly different way than before.

"What's he doing?" The old hero's eyes widen, realizing something. "Watch it, Todoroki! I think this guy's got multiple quirks!"

As he says it, the lanky Nomu instantly beefs up, becoming a hulking mass of muscle and launching itself at Endeavor. When it closes in, it spits out a wriggling tongue which rapidly splits into more and more writhing tentacles to capture the pro.

The other hero takes a moment to make sure the civilians got away, then goes to assist. "Now then..."

Endeavor gathers flames in a ball on his palm as the tentacles close in. "I see. So that's how it is."

In a flash the elderly hero jets off around the spreading net of tongues and redirects midair, kicking the Nomu in the head and cracking the pavement beneath the creature as they slam back to the ground.

He mumbles to himself as he hops off the defeated villain. "Split the damn road... Been a while since I went all out..."

Endeavor looks a little annoyed, or perhaps disappointed, as he dismisses his flames. "Tch! Nice work... you're not bad, old man." It sounds like a genuine compliment, if a begrudging one.

A distant explosion draws both their attention, followed quickly by far off screams.

"That's where the rest of the heroes should be concentrated... It's been two or three minutes; they should've taken care of things by now." Endeavor comments coolly, looking out at the far column of smoke.

The old hero nods. "We need to tie this guy up. The cops will take care of him from there. Then we can help out the others."

Endeavor pauses, thinking. "Hmph... This punk... leave him to my sidekicks. They'll make sure the cops take him. But you, old man. I need you to head to a certain address." He looks to the eager grin of Burnin', his lead sidekick, as she rallies the others to follow his orders. "As for reinforcements for the others... Endeavor alone... is more than enough."

"No! Listen to me. I told you to stand down, to run away! This is none of your business!" Iida screams at his friend, but he doesn't seem to listen.

In fact, Midoriya actually sounds a little angry with him. "If you really believe that, then why are you trying to become a hero in the first place?! I've got a lot I'd like to say to you, but... that'll have to wait." He gets ready to fight, putting his fists up and smiling through his terror. "Because it's like All Might said... giving help that's not asked for... meddling where you don't technically have to... is the essence of a true hero."

Stain looks briefly surprised by the declaration, then his eyes go wild and his grin turns chaotic. "Ahh... heh."

Iida lies on the pavement, helpless, and only able to watch in horror as his friend faces death for his sake. He presses his eyes shut. It's my fault... We're both going to die, and it's because I...

Midoriya charges Stain as the killer swings his blade. He picks up speed and ducks under the swipe just as it passes.

"Trying to close the gap against my long blade... good judgement." The hero killer muses, and he reaches for a knife from his belt.

Iida, despite not wanting to watch, can't keep his eyes away for long. "Watch out! If he cuts you..."

Midoriya slides under as the knife cuts across overhead. He glides past and ends up behind his enemy. Stain tries again with the longer blade, whipping it around to where the boy stopped, but Midoriya leaps into the air and throws a punch down into the villain’s head. "Five percent... Detroit... smash!"

Iida stares, stunned by the new moves accompanying the flashing green energy. What? Those movements. He looks just like Bakugo...

Landing on all fours, Midoriya quickly looks to confirm the results of his attack. "Did I get him? Did Full Cowling work?"

Stain takes some time to get up, though it doesn't seem like it's due to any serious injury. He lifts himself halfway, just enough for the green-haired boy to see. He licks a tiny droplet of blood from the serrated edge of the knife.

A jolt of pain strikes Midoriya, and he suffers the same paralysis as Iida. "Wha--" He checks, and there's a thin slice in his costume on his upper arm. The wound is little more than a paper cut, but apparently, it's enough.

The killer slowly stalks over to the would-be hero. "You lack power. It's not that you predicted my movements. You just exploited my blind spot and maneuvered so that you'd get in a clean hit. But I saw through your plan." After that assessment he walks by the boy, eyeing him meaningfully as he passes and heads to finish his work. "There are countless false heroes around here who are all talk, but you... you're worth keeping alive. You're different from these two." He holds the blade above Iida's neck once again.

"Oh crap... wait, don't! Stop it!" Midoriya yells, struggling uselessly.

As the sword is pushed closer, Iida would flinch if he was able, but he is forced to stare directly into the sharp edge of his death, seeing his own terror and regret reflected in the surface.

"Get away!" Midoriya tries to distract the hero killer, but he obviously won't fall for it.

It all looks hopeless.

And then... a wave of flames bursts forth, forcing the hero killer away.

All eyes turn.

Stain's eyes narrow, framed by his tattered mask. "Someone else to get in my way. Today's been full of distractions, just one after another..."

Shoto stands in the alley, holding his phone in his right hand, with flames playing along his left. "Midoriya. You need to give more details in times like this. I was almost too late."

"Todoroki, you too?" Iida projects a mix of hope and pained disappointment.

"But how'd you get here? And... hold on, you're using your left?!" Midoriya interrupts.

Shoto glances warily between him and the hero killer, holding a ball of flame in his left hand as he pockets the phone. "'How'...? Good question. Your message took me a while to figure out. That group text to everyone with nothing but your location. Next time, try to send more than that." He cuts the fire.

Down the alley, Stain readies to close in and make another attack on the group opposing him.

"But you're not really one to send cryptic messages without a reason, are you?" Shoto shifts his right foot, filling the alley with ice and capturing the downed pro as well as his two classmates - though the killer leaps out of the way before he can get stuck. But that's fine, he wasn't actually trying to get him this time. "So, I figured you were in trouble and asking for help. Don't worry. The pros'll be here any minute."

It's a slight bluff. He doesn't actually know how long it will take the pros to reach them, though he expects it won't be too long. If anything, the parting shot at his father should only speed things along, since he has something to prove now.

 Shoto takes a breath, and shoots a wave of fire above the others, forcing Stain back again and also melting the top layers of ice. The three paralyzed victims slide back toward him, landing in a tighter, more defensible group.

"Oww!" Midoriya whines, presumably from the heat.

The pro hero doesn't complain, but he is a bit startled by the move - though he seems somewhat impressed once he realizes the intent of it. "Whoa!"

"You're just what they said you were. But you're not killing these guys today, hero killer." Shoto steps forward, standing protectively in front of the trio, flames in hand.

"Todoroki, don't let him get your blood! Pretty sure he paralyzes opponents by tasting their blood! That's how he got us!" Midoriya calls out, tone full of urgency.

But Shoto remains calm. He has the advantage at range anyway. "So, he ingests blood to keep people from moving. That explains all the blades. All I've gotta do is keep my distance..." His thought is violently cut off by a thrown knife just barely grazing his cheek.

Almost before he can react, the hero killer is flying at him. "You've got some good friends, Ingenium." He taunts, slicing with another short blade. "Or you did!"

An ice pillar sprouts up to freeze the blade in place, and Shoto just catches a glimpse of something above. The killer threw his longer sword during the distraction - or perhaps as a distraction - but there's something else up there too, farther away. Is that...?

Stain lunges for him while he's seemingly distracted by the katana overhead. He grabs the boy's collar and nearly catches the tiny drip of blood on his cheek with that creepy tongue.

Shoto explodes in flames to punish him for trying. As the killer retreats, he sends the blast up higher than necessary. He hopes it looks like just a desperate move, that the excess flame is due to lack of control. And maybe some of it really is - but his true intent is for it to serve as a beacon for the other thing he saw in the sky above. Despite the close call, he smiles faintly as he wipes the blood from his cheek.

The distant shadow folds in its wings and dives straight for them. Good. She got the message.

Stain doesn't seem to have noticed anything. He leaps for the lone hero again, two blades at the ready.

Shoto defends with another ice wave, which the killer carves right through. He replaces the ice immediately, but he knows it's buying him a brief delay at most. "He's strong!" He curses to himself, hoping that help will be here soon. If not the pros, then at least...

"Why...? Both of you. Just stop it... why are you doing this?" Iida begs, becoming more hysterical and insistent. "His fight is with me! I inherited my brother's name. I have to do this. I'm the one who should stop him... the hero killer is mine!"

Shoto answers without looking at him - his focus is on the fight as he blasts more flames down the alley. "You're Ingenium now? Strange." He switches up and sends out a huge glacier to block the path. "Cuz the Ingenium I knew before never had that look on his face. You've got a dark side... guess my family isn't the only one." He pauses, breathing out an ice cloud before the heat of his other power restabilizes his temperature.

"Careful, Todoroki..." It's not clear if Midoriya is warning him about the killer, or about being too harsh with Iida. Unnoticed by the others, as he says this, his finger twitches just barely.

Stain carves the glacier to pieces with his blades, leaping through the destruction. "Obstructing your own vision when up against an opponent faster than yourself... Poor strategy, indeed."

"You'd like to think so." Shoto readies a blast of fire, but it gets cut off by biting pain as two daggers sink into his left arm.

Stain bears down on him from above. "You're not bad either, kid... unlike him." Midair, he shifts, dropping with blade pointed down straight toward the disabled pro hero.

Shoto grips his wounded arm, making no move to run. He pulls the daggers out and tosses them aside.

What the hero killer can't see, silhouetted sharply by the moon, is a winged shadow rapidly approaching.

Ryumi struggles to find the address, even several days of patrolling hasn't given her a full picture of the city yet. It's easier from the air, but she still keeps having to glance between her phone and the buildings below - and the destruction isn't helping to make things more identifiable.

Then, as she's rechecking her heading, a pillar of fire shoots up from a nearby alley.

Shoto? She dives toward it, taking off at full speed and tapping her earpiece. "Manual, think I got something here..."

"What is it, Tempest?" Her mentor's voice crackles over the line, more distorted than before. The network must be struggling either from the volume of calls or from damage to the towers.

"Not close enough yet, hold on..." When she sees the scene, two of her friends down, a pro hero alongside them, and Shoto alone standing to defend them, she makes her choice. "It's him. I... sorry." She stops suppressing her power, draining the tiny battery of the earpiece with a sharp electric crackling, brings out her scales, and plummets into a powerful dive - talons-first, directly into the base of the hero killer's neck.

Stain doesn't see it coming and crashes hard into the pavement, while Ryumi bounces gracefully off of him, flipping around midair to land delicately in front of Shoto.

Unnoticed by all, except perhaps the killer himself, a single drip of blood falls from the cut on her forehead.

"You're late again." Shoto comments dryly, his arm still wreathed in fire.

Ryumi sighs, then puts on a conspiratorial grin. "Have you seen the city tonight? Traffic is terrible."

"But you can fly." He answers, with complete seriousness.

"We're going to have to work on your sense of humor... But first, you guys look like you need some help." She flares out her wings and gets into her combat stance.

Iida only seems more pained by the arrival of another classmate. "Arisato, you too...?"

"Wasn't I clear enough the other night?" She hisses over her shoulder at him. "I've got plenty to say to you too, but that's for after we get out of this mess."

Stain hasn't moved while the kids talk. Instead, he's staring at something small. A speck of red sitting on his hand. "...So many interruptions..." He lifts his hand to his mouth, and slowly, deliberately, licks the droplet.

Shoto sees it happening, and guesses what it means, even if he doesn't know Ryumi is bleeding. He pushes in front of her, ice surging out to try and stop the killer, but it's too late.

A jolt of pain slams through Ryumi's nerves, locking up her muscles. It's a feeling not unlike the searing burn of her batteries running empty, but not quite the same, and not everywhere at once. This strange paralysis must only affect larger skeletal muscle, because she can breathe, blink, and speak just fine - if rather painfully.

"What... is this his quirk?" She growls through bared fangs.

"Did he cut you?" Shoto demands, once again the only line of defense for the remaining helpless people behind him. He sends out a barrage of fire blasts to buy them some time.

Trapped as she is and with little to do but observe, Ryumi can see that he's sweating, and trying to hold back the pain from his injured arm. He won't be able to ward off the villain by himself for much longer. "Huh? No, no way he got through my scales. Not with blades like that..."

"Then you were already bleeding..." He grits his teeth and prepares another attack as Stain leaps toward the pair in front.

A rush of wind. Someone disappears.

Crackling with that strange new emerald energy, Midoriya is suddenly above the hero killer, planting a fist squarely on his jaw.

Shoto staggers slightly, still clutching his injured arm. "Midoriya!"

"I'm not sure why, but I'm able to move now!" He grabs Stain by the collar and drags him away, farther down the alley, dragging him against the wall of a building as they go.

"So it has a time limit?" Shoto wonders aloud as he takes the moment to catch his breath.

The hero lying on the ground among them speaks up. "No. He was the third one hit. I was first, and I still can't move."

Iida attempts to struggle, testing the paralysis, but it's no good.

Stain jams an elbow into Midoriya's side, breaking the boy's hold and sending him flying.

"Guhh!" He lands roughly, scrambling back to his feet.

"Get back, Midoriya!" Shoto calls out as he runs up to join him and lashes out with another ice wave.

"Eek!" The other boy scurries away, still coughing lightly from the hit - but it hasn’t rattled him enough to stop his instinct for analysis. "So, he swallows a person's blood to paralyze them, but I was the first to break free somehow. I can think of three possible explanations. Either the effect is weaker the more people he uses it on, or the amount ingested could play into how long it works, or its effectiveness depends on blood type..."

The hero who was the initial victim offers his information first. "If it's the last one, my blood type is B."

"I'm type A..." Iida adds.

"O. Obviously." Ryumi answers, her tone suggesting it's a silly question to ask. 

The killer solves the mystery for them. "Blood type... Hahh... That's right. So you figured it out. Bravo. Very impressive."

Midoriya throws a quick glance at Ryumi. "Me too. In that case..."

"She'll be up before too long." Shoto finishes the thought for him.

"Though it doesn't really help us that much to know how his quirk works..." Midoriya responds with a frown.

"I thought we could hurry and carry the others out of here, but it won't work. He's quick enough to react to both my fire and my ice, so I'm not seeing an opening. I'd have to leave myself unguarded." Shoto glances at the others behind him and Midoriya. "And there's too many down now. Our best option is to keep him at bay and keep dodging until the pros arrive."

"Ryumi, your scales... if you can get moving again..." Midoriya begins, trying to suggest something without saying it, so as not to give away a possible advantage to the hero killer.

Ryumi knows what he means - her true form would make it awfully hard to get cut, but an enemy this fast and nimble would only jump over her or slide under. It would be like her fight with Shoto, only worse. Plus, the confines of the alley... "This space is too narrow for that. Although..." A dangerous thought occurs to her. "...If you two can carry the others to safety... Once I'm free, I can make sure you make it."

Midoriya shoots her a worried look. He obviously caught her meaning, if not her exact plan.

Something in the hero killer's eyes changes at the same time - he must've caught it too.

Shoto glances at Midoriya to confirm. He obviously did not pick up on what she's planning.

The shorter boy shakes his head. "Only as a last resort." But his tone says he wouldn't want to go for it even then. "Todoroki. You've got too much exposed blood. I'll draw his attention while you provide rear support!" He calls on his power again, the crackling energy spreading over his body.

"Pretty risky plan... but yeah. The two of us will protect them." Shoto stands ready, little embers flickering to life between the fingers of his left hand.

Frozen and only able to watch, the dragon girl curses herself for getting caught, even if she didn't know what she needed to avoid. And for rashly destroying her quickest means of summoning backup. But, as she lay there, she can't deny that the pair standing up and protecting them look pretty damn heroic right now. Shoto in particular has a confidence and determination that she doesn't think she's ever seen from him before.

If she wasn't so mad at herself, she might smile at the sight.

"Two on one, huh... this fight won't be easy. At least you're not naive." The hero killer comments as he lifts his blade again. He almost sounds like he's testing them now. Grading them.

Midoriya bounces off the walls of the alley like a frenzied pinball, flying back and forth at odd angles to make his motion harder to track. He goes for a punch during what looks like an opening, but the killer dodges to the side. Spires of ice block the strike coming to punish the boy for his error, and flames follow swiftly behind to buy him some space to recover.

Midoriya leaps in again to kick and gets slashed across his lower leg. "Gyahh!" He falls at Stain's feet, clutching the fresh wound, and the hero killer bears down on the boy.

"Midoriya!" Shoto shoots a volley of flames out at the pair to force them apart and let his friend escape.

A panicking Iida sobs from the ground behind. "You have to run. Stop it... I can't... take it... I can't watch this..."

Stain licks his blade, charging ahead as he's once again down to one credible threat on the field.

Midoriya grimaces as the jolt of the paralysis takes him again. "I'm sorry, Todoroki...!"

"You wanna make your brother proud? You wanna stop this? Then stand up! Stand up and be Ingenium. Because I've just got one thing to say to you!" Shoto shouts to Iida, blocking Stain with his ice. He's barely holding the killer off. Even balancing his powers, he's coming up on his limit. 

The hero killer carves through the ice with relative ease, looking like a demon as he rushes the last remaining defender.

"Never forget who you want to become! Be the hero he wanted you to be!" Flames ignite across Shoto's arm again.

Just behind him, Iida's fingers twitch, and Ryumi feels the searing pain begin to dull.

The flames roar forward but Stain dodges past the column of fire and leaps over, refusing to be pinned to one side of the space.

"Watch your right!" Midoriya calls out a warning.

Stain lands on an ice column left from an earlier attack, bouncing off it just before the next blast melts it away. "Ice... and fire. Hasn't anyone ever told you? Relying too heavily on your quirk makes you sloppy." He swings the blade toward the boy.

Midoriya panics. "Todoroki!"

But the steel stops dead, a mere few centimeters from his chest. Ryumi holds the sword in her claws by the edge. "Alright, you really don't need so much... reach." She growls as she strains with the blade, slowly bending it. The killer struggles against her, trying to drag the blade across her palms, but her scales are too tough. Power surges in her arms and she actually starts to force Stain back. "Shoto."

He stumbles backwards, a little unsteady after the close call. "...Right. Glad you're up again."

As soon as he's safely at range, Ryumi snaps the katana close to the hilt, tossing the sharp hunk of metal back. "Quick, your ice!"

Shoto presses his right hand against the wall and forms a large chunk of ice around the remains of the blade, sealing it away - at least for the moment.

Stain drops the useless handle of the long blade for another knife, slashing at the girl.

She parries with her arm, the serrated edge skittering off her dark scales as she pushes it away. Her tail sways dangerously behind her.

"Hahh... You have skills." He says it like a compliment, but it sounds awful coming from the villain. He presses with a flurry of knife strikes, trying to break her guard and catch the drying blood on her face. "And you don't hesitate."

Ryumi blocks each attack, battering them to the side with her scaled arms, though it's taking all her focus to keep up. She hisses in pain as the knife catches on her scales and pries up one, but it's not deep enough to bleed, as long as she keeps her quirk active. If it drops... hard to say.

Stain lunges for her face at that moment, but a wing curls in front of the open wound to keep him from it. As he pulls back, she catches him by the wrist and nearly disarms him with a forceful twist.

Before she can finish prying the knife loose from his grip, he pulls a second knife in his offhand, forcing her to let go and hop backward.

"Ryumi!" A jet of fire from Shoto helps buy her some space.

There's a brief gust again - at first she thinks from the heat of the flames, until a familiar cry echoes through the alley.

"Recipro... burst!" Iida sprints ahead and kicks the killer, shattering one of the knives he's carrying, then striking him again in the shoulder and shoving him farther back from the others.

Midoriya's eyes light up. Three of them are free now. "Iida!" He struggles, but finds he's still stuck.

Shoto lets out a relieved sigh. "You're free too? Guess his quirk isn't as great as I thought it was."

Ryumi holds her defensive position as she takes the brief reprieve to catch her breath. She wipes away sweat from her forehead, then quickly double checks that she didn't spread blood on her arm by doing so. Luckily she's in the clear there. "Thanks for the assist, you guys." She nods to Iida standing beside her.

"Arisato. Todoroki. Midoriya... this had nothing to do with any of you..." Iida says with a darkened expression. "I apologize..."

"Come on. Not this again..." Midoriya frowns at hearing it.

"That's why..." The badly wounded Iida looks up with pure determination in his eyes, though they remain slightly unfocused without his glasses. "...I swear I won't let any of you lose any more blood over me."

The hero killer is unimpressed by his resolve, and huffs dismissively. "It's no use pretending to be a hero now. A person's true nature is not so easily changed. You're a fake who prioritized his own selfish desires! You'll never be anything more than that. A cancer on this society, the sickness that's ruined the name 'hero'. Someone needs to correct the system and teach you a lesson."

"You're a fundamentalist lunatic. Get with the times." Shoto responds, stepping up to join the others. "Iida. Don't even think of listening to this murderer's nonsense."

"No. He's completely correct. I have no right to call myself a hero... at all." Iida insists, shaking his head as blood runs and drips down both his arms. "Even so... I won't let him break me. Because if I break... then Ingenium's really dead."

"Pathetic!" Stain's gaze hardens. "You're hopeless."

Tiring of the killer's preaching, Shoto takes another step, pushing Iida back, and silences him with a burst of fire.

"Idiots!" A voice calls from behind the group of kids - it's the pro hero, still paralyzed on the ground. "The hero killer's only after me and the kid in the white armor! Stop fighting back, just get out of here!"

Shoto ignores the man's protests. "I don't think he'd let us run even if we wanted to. Something clearly changed in him just now. He's all fired up too."

Ryumi spares a short glance at the pro, as she bares her fangs and readies to defend Shoto. "Besides, we're heroes too. We can't just leave you to die."

Even as ice surges from the ground throughout the alley, Stain deftly leaps away or carves right through any spires that near him.

Iida starts to run ahead to engage, but he halts suddenly, noticing his engine on one leg is producing some unusual smoke. He grits his teeth, trying to think how to fix it. As another column of ice bursts forth to delay the killer, an idea comes to him. "Hey, Todoroki! Can you regulate your temperatures?"

Shoto has switched to fire again, and the hum of his vest grows slightly louder as it tries to keep up with the shifting temperatures. "Not well with my left, but yes I can. Why?"

"You need to freeze my leg for me... without blocking the exhaust pipes!" Iida answers, moving closer.

Stain kicks off the wall and flies back toward the trio. "You're in the way. Stop interfering!" He throws out a barrage of several small knives.

Ryumi and Iida both move to block for Shoto, since his costume isn't as armored. The knives do nothing to Ryumi's scales, and the thicker bits of plating on Iida's suit protect from some of the hail, but one catches a gap in the hardened pieces near his shoulder.

Iida stumbles forward from the pain.

"No, Iida!" Midoriya cries, still helpless. Though based on experience so far, he doesn't have much longer to wait.

"Why won't you stay down?" Stain flips another larger knife, one of the serrated ones, at his staggering prey. Before Ryumi can even begin to get in place to block, the vicious blade sinks into Iida's arm and pins him to the ground.

"Iida..." Shoto throws a retaliatory fire jet at the killer and reaches to help his friend.

Iida stares up at him. "Just do it, quickly!"

While they set up for the class president's plan, Ryumi runs ahead to keep Stain off of them and buy time. She grabs the last large knife by the blade and twists it from his hand using the same move she failed previously, and chucking it far from the battle. But though he lacks any more obvious weapons, this still leaves her open to a nasty kick to the chest, sending her flying back into the wall.

Unnoticed by the three, Midoriya stumbles to his feet. The paralysis is gone again, but his cut leg is in rough shape, barely able to hold his weight. Still, he calls on his power.

"Ryumi..." Shoto grimaces and quickly freezes Iida's leg. "There! It's done." He returns to throwing fire at the hero killer to hold him off so the rest can recover at least a little. He's in need of a break too, sweat running down his face and struggling to ease his breath, but the others are worse off, so he holds firm.

Iida bites down on the edge of the serrated knife and rips it from his arm. When he stands, he's trailing even more blood than before.

Ryumi winces at the act, but she'll have to yell at him later. She coughs, setting off a fresh explosion of pain in her chest. Probably cracked a rib from that last hit. No, definitely cracked. And probably more than one, she corrects as the pain reasserts itself with each slight motion.

But... a soft hissing sound draws her attention. Carefully, she turns only her head. She's been thrown into an electrical box. She grins, and a slow, soft chuckle that hurts like hell escapes her. She starts working her claws through the damaged casing and into the wires.

"Go, guys." Shoto watches from a distance, as the other two boys take over for him. Midoriya zips upward and appears on the killer’s left, punching him hard in the jaw, while Iida leaps up at the same time on Stain's right, kicking him in his flank with his frosted leg.

Midoriya clutches his punching arm in pain, having clearly pushed too far. If it's broken, they might be in trouble again.

As his two attackers drop their guards, the hero killer pulls another blade from somewhere and lunges for Iida.

He barely ducks under the swipe, losing a few strands of hair from the near miss. "I will defeat you, Stain! This time for sure! Because you are a criminal..." Iida delivers one last kick to Stain's chest as the ice on his leg melts away and the engine begins to overheat and choke again. "And I am a hero!"

"Keep him on the ropes!" Shoto launches a jet of flames as the other two start to fall away from the killer. "Don't let him get away!"

Stain groans painfully as he falls, burns showing on his upper body. They might finally have worn him down.

This is it... Ryumi stands, power surging in her limbs as coils of electricity race across her skin. She has to focus to keep from breathing too deeply. "Look out, you two!" She rushes ahead, pushing off with her wings and disappearing into a cloud of energy, reappearing in her dragon body a split second later. She slams Stain into the wall, pinned by her claws.

Shoto catches the other two with an ice slide, exactly like he did for Ryumi at the sports festival. Iida and Midoriya briefly panic as they slide gently to the ground. "Get up, he's still..."

Ryumi shakes her head - the killer has gone limp in her claws.

The trio below stare in disbelief.

"He's out cold... right?" Midoriya stands up cautiously. "He's gotta be, after all that..."

Ryumi lets out a deep rumbling growl and turns to her classmates. "Seems like it... Shoto, can you restrain him for now?" Even in her reptilian form, the pain on her face is clear. "I can't hold this form much longer. Not enough power." Actually, the cracked ribs are the bigger issue, the pain disrupting the focus she needs to direct the flow of electricity through her body. 

Shoto nods, expanding the ice to surround the unconscious hero killer. "Right... but if I keep him on ice, he'll probably shatter his own body the second he wakes up."

Ryumi releases her transformation, landing on her knees on the ground. She takes a bit to catch her breath, holding a hand to her head until the shock of switching back wears off. "Yeah, okay..."

"Let's tie him up and get out to the main road. See any sort of rope we can use?" Shoto looks to the others, then glances around the alley.

Midoriya nods. "Yeah. And we should probably take all his weapons too, just in case."

Ryumi takes too much of a breath and winces in pain as she somewhat unsteadily returns to her feet. "I think we took or broke most of them already..." She trails off, as a sudden thought reoccurs to her and she glares at Iida. "Speaking of weapons, what the hell were you thinking there? Do you have any idea how risky a move it is to rip out a knife like that?"

Iida, still sitting stunned on the ground by the others, looks confused by her outburst. "But... Todoroki..."

Shoto seems to figure out what he's suggesting and shifts uncomfortably. He tries to hide his punctured arm behind his back, but a brief unthinking glance at the pair of bloodied throwing knives on the ground gives him away.

Ryumi huffs, so irritated she almost ignores the pain from the gesture. "You too?!" She growls as she unclips her first aid kit from her back. "Are you trying to bleed to death? And don't even get me started on the potential nerve damage..."

Even as he's being berated, Shoto cracks a small smile.

She eyes him suspiciously. "What's that for?"

"Nothing... just thinking. You must sound just like him right now. Your father, I mean." He answers.

Ryumi freezes. Caught off guard by the comment, she momentarily drops all of her frustration. "Oh." She shifts her feet. "Yeah... I guess."

Shoto frowns, obviously regretting saying it now.

"...Anyway. Iida, get over here. You're hurt the worst." She kneels and starts fishing for supplies and cleaning her hands.

Iida shakes his head, only just now getting to his feet after the battle. "No, I... I'll help Midoriya secure the weapons and tie him up."

The sharpness starts to return to Ryumi's voice and her eyes narrow. "Iida..."

He holds up his hands and bows his head. "Please. This is my fault. Let me finish cleaning up the mess I made." He turns away and starts to follow Midoriya. "At least... see to Todoroki first."

Ryumi sighs. "Fine. Don't go far though. You're next." She waves for Shoto to sit by her, and he does.

"Sorry." He mumbles.

She shakes her head as if to say it's fine, and uses a towel to mop up the blood from his arm. Once the majority is cleaned away, she switches to a disinfectant wipe to work the areas closer to the actual wounds. "This will sting a bit." She assumes he knows, but the warning is habit - she's heard it herself a hundred times.

Shoto whines as the wipe touches his cuts. "'A bit'?"

"Don't be a baby." She chides him without a hint of sympathy. With the cleaning finished, she fetches a roll of bandages from the box and starts slowly wrapping both cuts. She glances at the others briefly, checking if they're close enough to hear. "...I thought you'd be used to it, after what you said about... him."

"Yeah, but... still hurts..." He rubs his right hand over the bandage as soon as she finishes, trying to soothe it.

Ryumi rolls her eyes, catching the cut on his cheek with another wipe while he's distracted.

Shoto instantly recoils and starts pouting.

"You don't want an infection, do you?" She asks flatly.

The only response he gives is a vague, noncommittal grumbling sound. He lets her finish, though. Before he gets up to bring Iida back, he pauses and looks her over. "...Are you sure you're okay?"

She shrugs, but there's obvious pain on her face. "The cut is nothing. And this is just a little scrape." She lifts her arm, showing the pinkish mark where the skin is roughed up - the place where she lost that scale. It looks now almost like it was dragged against the pavement, but it isn't bleeding. "I think... No, I'm pretty sure he cracked at least two of my ribs though." She winces slightly as she moves to sift through the supplies again.

Shoto stays watching her, clearly worried.

"I'm alright... just have to mind how I'm moving. And breathing. Now, go get..." She trails off mid-thought as Shoto picks up an alcohol wipe from the box. "Fine. If it'll make you feel better..." She pulls back her hair to expose the small cut on her forehead. She's sure he knows it's not actually worth fussing over, but it's obvious he wants to feel like he's helping.

He tears open the wipe and gently cleans the little cut. It's more jagged and rough than his own, but still not particularly deep.

She does an impressive job of not reacting to the stinging, though it's at least partially due to the greater pain in her chest. Even as he taps the wipe over the scrape on her arm, she barely flinches.

Shoto seems almost disappointed as he finishes. "Making me look bad..."

Ryumi actually laughs a little, but it’s quickly cut off by pain and she clutches her side. "Ahh... That was stupid." She takes a minute to recover. "...Anyway. I told you what school life was like for me. This was basically daily routine for most of my childhood."

He nods, looking a bit saddened again. "I... Ah..."

"Don't worry about it." She finds enough of a smile to reassure him.

Shoto looks down at the first aid kit and picks out a small bandage. He opens the packaging and taps it into place over the cut.

"Complete overkill." She shakes her head, and her hair falls back into place, mostly covering the area. "Now, fetch Iida for me?"

"Right." He hastily stands and runs over to the others.

They've just about collected all the weapons, and Midoriya has turned up a short length of rope. Shoto buries the stack of blades in a chunk of ice, and the pair move to free and then resecure the hero killer.

As he's walking away from the pile of weapons, something shiny catches his eye. He thinks it might be a fragment of one of the destroyed blades, but when he looks more closely he sees it's navy and black. He picks up the scale and pockets it. He isn't sure why.

Chapter Text

Iida has an obvious cloud of dread hanging around him as he returns to where Ryumi is set up. She's just finished recleaning her hands and grabbing another towel to clean up the blood when he kneels across from her.

A heavy silence settles in as she cleans him up. His wounds are harder to get to because of their placement and his costume, and she has to carefully use her claws to peel away the fabric around them.

Iida breaks the silence first. "So... are you... going to yell at me...?"

"Not right now." She answers calmly, trading out the towel for the disinfectant wipes once again. "We could still be in danger. The immediate threat is done, but..." She casts her eyes to the horizon, the columns of drifting smoke. "...those other things might still be out there." She pauses just before touching the wipe to the first of his cuts. "This will sting a little."

He nods, quietly accepting it, though he winces every time the wipe touches him. He looks away from what she's doing, watching as the others finish their work, and the pro hero is at last freed from his paralysis.

A moment later she's done. "It's not perfect. I don't want to tear your costume apart or make you leave half of it if we might have another battle. But this should hold well enough until we can get to an actual hospital." She replaces the bandages in the box. "Try not to move your arms any more than necessary until then."

"Native, can you move?" As the pro hero starts to get up, Midoriya limps over to offer him help.

"Yeah." He takes the boy's hand. "I think I'm good as new now."

Shoto ends up having to run over to help steady them both - Midoriya stumbles as soon as the pro hero pulls on his hand, having forgotten that his leg can't take the extra weight.

"S-sorry." Midoriya mumbles, and starts limping back to where Ryumi and Iida are sitting.

"No, it's fine. You kids are really something..." The pro brushes himself off and checks his cut. "Here, let me help you. I saw you hurt your leg back there. At least let me do this for you."

"Are you sure?" Midoriya asks, but Native is already lifting him up and walking back to the others. "Thank you very much..."

"I should be thanking you." Native answers, with a slightly embarrassed smile.

"Alright, how bad are you two?" The dragon girl doesn't waste a second looking over them to see if they also need patched up.

Native shakes his head. "I only have a small wound. Just enough to paralyze me." He points to the minor slash. There's not much blood, it's been long enough to be mostly clotted up by now.

Midoriya nods. "It's the same for me, although..." He glances from the faint slice in his shoulder to the one on his leg, gently tapping near it. "I'm... having a hard time putting much weight on this leg now."

Ryumi nods. None of the bleeding on the pair is severe, and there's little she can do to help with the pain that's hampering Midoriya. Same problem as her own primary injury. "I can do something to disinfect and cover it if you're worried, but..."

"I think we'd best get to the road." Native answers. "We need to meet up with more heroes, and get him to the police..." He looks pointedly toward the unconscious Stain, bound and held by Shoto. "And get you kids to a hospital."

It takes another minute to arrange everything, but soon enough the five of them are on their way, with the captured villain being dragged along behind.

"We're lucky someone threw this rope in the dumpster." Shoto comments as he pulls Stain along.

Iida steps over to him, holding out a hand for the end of the rope. "Todoroki, please allow me to drag him from here."

"Your arms are all messed up though." He responds, stepping away from the class president and taking the killer with him.

"So is one of yours. If anything, I should handle him." Ryumi doesn't really want to, she knows it would only aggravate her injury, but still...

Shoto shakes his head. "It's fine. I can take him with just my right."

"Sorry... I'm supposed to be a pro, but I was useless back there. All I did was get in the way." Native mutters, largely to himself. He's already apologized to the group several times in the last few minutes.

"Don't sweat it... It would've happened to anyone in a one on one against the hero killer and his quirk..." A pained and exhausted Midoriya mumbles back. "He's so strong..."

"Even in a four on one fight, we just barely won because he screwed up. He was getting riled up and desperate, and forgot all about Midoriya's quick recovery time. Then he wasn't able to block Iida's last recipro burst or Midoriya's assault." Shoto continues.

Ryumi nods, agreeing with the assessment. "And that left an opening for me. Didn't help that he basically threw me at a power source either."

Shoto glances toward her. "...Not that it matters, we won anyway... but... Why were you so low on power? You used your dragon form for much longer against me."

She sighs. "It's not actually..." She gently taps her chest, where Stain kicked her. "...the pain makes it harder to direct the energy correctly. It's... like how a short circuit drains batteries extra fast. I end up using more power than I should if something is distracting me." She turns to look back at him. "Same problem got me at the festival. I was already low, then your fire made me lose focus... and switching back is always a bit tough. All of it at once was too much."

Shoto nods slowly at the explanation, and the group exits the alley onto the main road.

Native looks back and forth, but the area seems deserted. "Right, let's get him to the police as fast as we can."

Before they can decide on a direction to take, a tiny old man in a yellow hero costume pops out of another alley across the street. He shouts at the group. "Huh? Wha-- what are you doing here, boy?"

Midoriya's eyes widen. "Gran Torino! I was only..."

He doesn't even get time to figure out what his excuse might be, let alone voice it, before the elderly hero jets across the road and plants a foot firmly into his face. "I thought I told you t'stay in your seat!"

"Gran Torino..." Midoriya mumbles, his voice muffled by the hit.

Shoto stares at the little hero. "Who's this?"

"Your mentor, Midoriya?" Ryumi guesses, based on the brief exchange.

Midoriya nods weakly, and gestures to the angry old man. "Uh huh... Gran Torino, the hero I'm interning with. I don't get it. How'd you find us?"

"I was told to come here by someone else." Gran Torino lands in front of the group, still visibly fuming at his charge. "Well... I don't know what happened here, but... I'm glad to see you're not dead, at least."

Midoriya bows his head as much as he can. "Me too. And I'm sorry..."

"Tch." The old hero still looks annoyed, but his tone does soften a bit.

Across the road again, several heroes run out from the same alley that Gran Torino had appeared from.

"Around the corner!" The lady in the green ninja-like garb and red scarf who had been at the fight with the giant Nomu earlier calls out as they rush ahead.

A robotic looking hero in a red helmet and white armor looks at the collected group. "Who's that?"

The ninja lady checks her phone and glances back across the road. "Is this... the alley he mentioned?"

All the heroes run over across the road, a solid half dozen of them.

"Endeavor told us there was a request for help here, but..." A tall man with a sort of ropey appearance reminiscent of a yarn doll explains as they arrive.

"Kids...?" The red helmeted hero stares in surprise at the four students.

A white-haired hero with goggles eyes the bloodied bandages and wounds on them. "Those injuries look bad. I'll call an ambulance right away." He pulls out his phone and steps aside.

Just as he leaves, a hero in a tan business suit with a helmet covered in horizontal lines points at Shoto. "Hey, look."

The ninja lady standing by him gasps as she sees the captured villain behind the boy. "Is that... the hero killer?!"

"What?" Even Gran Torino seems shocked, apparently too busy chastising his student to notice the man tied up and being dragged along behind.

The hero with the ropey appearance pulls out his phone so quickly he nearly drops it. "I'll get the police on the line!"

Shoto steps up to one of the other heroes. "So he's..." He stops and corrects himself. "Endeavor's still over there fighting, then?"

"Oh yeah. Those Nomu siblings or whatever..." Midoriya leans in then climbs carefully down from Native's back.

The ninja lady nods. "Yes! Those of us whose quirks had no effect on those villains came to help you guys."

Shoto stares out at the smoke columns on the city skyline.

"Can you walk?" The tan suited hero approaches Midoriya.

The boy nods. "If you prop me up, then I think so."

"Okay, and you?" The hero turns to Shoto next.

"Only minor injuries." He answers calmly, though he still seems a little distracted.

Ryumi hits him with her wing, pulling his attention back. "Liar. You're lucky you didn't graze an artery." She rolls her eyes, then addresses the tan suited hero. "He'll be fine as far as the hospital at least. Iida too." She looks over her shoulder at their other classmate. "I patched up the worst of it for now."

"Don't pretend you're not hurt too." Shoto insists.

The hero walks up to her. "You need help, miss?"

Ryumi sighs, waving him off. "Cracked ribs. Nothing to be done for it except try to rest. I'm fine."

"You guys... all three of you..." Iida wanders up behind the others and bows as deeply as he can. "You were wounded because of me. I am truly sorry... I... was blind... I was just so angry. I couldn't see anything else...!" Even with his eyes hidden, it's obvious he's crying. A few tears drip onto the pavement below him.

"No, I'm sorry too..." Midoriya limps over and puts his hand on Iida's shoulder. "I knew something was wrong, but I couldn't tell how much it was upsetting you. And I'm supposed to be your friend... I should have said something sooner, or pushed harder..."

Iida cautiously raises his head just enough to see the others.

Shoto regards him coolly. "Get it together. You're class president, aren't you?"

"Shoto." Ryumi hits his shoulder with her wing again, shooting him a warning glare. "Give him a break."

Iida awkwardly dries his eyes with his upper arm. "No... He's right, Arisato."

She sighs back at him. "Too much to hope you'd have gotten over that, I guess."

Gran Torino twitches as something catches his ear and he looks up. "Get down!"

The ninja lady turns and sees it too as she takes cover. "Oh no!"

Most of the group drops down or huddles up together, but Midoriya is slower to react than the rest. "Huh?"

The flying Nomu from earlier dives toward them. It's newly blinded in one eye and spurting blood from that side, but it still seems to be moving just fine. It swoops low over the crowd and snatches up Midoriya, speeding off down the road and gaining altitude fast.

"Hey! Let go!" Midoriya squirms in the thing's talons, but its grip is too strong.

"Midoriya!" The other three students call out in unison.

The ninja hero glances between the way the Nomu came from and the direction it's taken off. "That villain? How could Endeavor let it go...?"

Gran Torino takes a half step forward. "Too fast... he's too high for me to catch..."

A drip of blood strikes the ninja lady on her cheek. "Crap. It's bleeding. It must be trying to escape."

"Wahhhh!" Midoriya flails around helplessly as his captor makes off with him.

Ryumi clutches her side and readies to take off, even knowing her speed will be severely affected by her injury. She'll pay for it later, but if she pushes hard enough, she can probably still catch up to them.

She's only taken a step or two when it happens.

While all eyes are on the Nomu and off the captured killer, Stain wakes. With a flick of his bound wrist, a hidden small knife slides free of the cloth wrappings it was concealed by. Before anyone even notices what's happening, he's cut the bindings and dashed ahead, licking the Nomu's blood from the female hero's cheek. All in barely the space of one breath.

The Nomu seizes up midair, plummeting like a stone.

Stain leaps for it, grabbing Midoriya in one hand and plunging the knife first into the Nomu's unblinded eye, then its brain with the other. "The word 'hero' has lost all meaning... both this sham filled society... and the criminals who wield their power in the name of petty mischief are targets of my purge..."

The pair land safely atop the Nomu's lifeless body, and the killer sets Midoriya down, though he doesn't immediately let go of the boy's collar. "Hahh... Hahh... Everything that I do... all for the sake... of a better society." For a moment he struggles to stand, the dramatic action having worsened his injuries.

The crowd of heroes back by the alleyway stares in shock. "Did he just save that kid...?!" The one in the red helmet asks.

"No, he took him hostage, idiot." The tan suited hero answers.

The white-haired hero agrees. "This is an unrepentant murderer we're talking about. He killed that guy with no hesitation."

"Enough already! Everyone be on your guard; we've got a fight on our hands!" The ninja lady yells, and they all ready to fight.

Another voice yells from down the road in the opposite direction from the hero killer. "Why're you all standing around like fools?!" The fiery, imposing figure of Endeavor points at the cluster of heroes. "The villain must've flown this way, right?"

"Endeavor!" The ninja-like hero calls over her shoulder.

The tan suited hero risks a brief glance back. "You took care of the rest?"

"Mostly. Things got a little rough at the end. Wait..." Endeavor growls, looking past the crowd. "Is that...? Don't tell me that man is--"

Midoriya struggles, but Stain still has a hold on him. "Ugh... get off of me!"

He obliges, letting the boy free as he slowly stands, mask falling away from his face. "Endeavor..."

"Hero killer!" Endeavor roars, gathering flames in his hand as he rushes down the street.

Gran Torino jumps ahead of him. "Todoroki, wait!"

Ryumi blinks, surprised to hear someone calling Endeavor by name - and even moreso to see the pro actually stop his attack.

Stain leaves Midoriya, turning to face the rest, his burned and distorted face fully exposed. "You fake... you false hero... I'll make this right. These streets must run red with the blood of hypocrites. If I don't fix it... if someone isn't stained with blood!"

A powerful aura crushes all observing, freezing them in their tracks. Some stumble and fall backwards, and even Endeavor takes a half step back.

Ryumi alone, without thinking, manages a single step forward. Just enough to place herself between the killer and Shoto. She's as terrified by the immense pressure of Stain's conviction as the rest - in fact, between that and her ribs she's struggling with each breath. Her legs are shaking. If she didn't have her wings and tail to steady her balance, she might fall. She presses a fang into her lip, drawing another trickle of blood. She doesn't even realize.

The killer staggers forward, howling like a rabid animal. "Hero! I will reclaim that word!" Another step. His eyes are frenzied, unfocused, insane. "Come! Just try and stop me... you fakes! The only man I'll allow to kill me is... All Might. He is a true hero! All Might is worthy!"

The ninja lady stumbles and falls backward, landing hard on the ground.

And then the killer stops, his eyes empty, still standing there. A moment passes, none daring to move - until the knife slips from his hand and falls to the sidewalk, the sharp ring of the metal striking concrete breaking the spell.

Endeavor seems to take a long-held breath. "I think, he... he's... out cold."

Shoto also collapses, and Iida drops to his knees. Ryumi shifts awkwardly and nearly trips, again saved by the superior balance given by her wings and tail, but the motion is hardly graceful.

Minutes later, it's all over. The action, anyway. Repair and recovery crews will still be working round the clock for another day at least, possibly longer in some areas. But injured as they are, the four students are in no shape to assist, so they're packed off to the hospital while the pros continue their work.

Chapter Text

A few hours into the night, well after all four of them have been stitched up and properly bandaged, Ryumi wakes suddenly in her bed. She has enough sense not to bolt upright, thankfully, but a panic grips her all the same.

Slowly, as she stares around the plain hospital room, reality reasserts itself in her mind, though the haunting image of the hero killer lingers. She carefully sits up, causing herself only a small amount of pain, and looks out at the other three beds where her friends are presumably sleeping. Though the room is lit only by a few small lights set just above the baseboards, she can make out each of them well enough. The hospital staff offered Ryumi a separate room from the boys, of course, though she politely (but adamantly) declined. She prefers to be with her friends.

Or more accurately, she prefers not to be alone.

Iida is on her left, a fresh pair of glasses set on the nightstand between their beds. He lies on his back, the blankets and sheets somehow perfectly square. She wonders how he could have managed that with his arms both heavily bandaged and held in a sling, and yet it seems a natural state for the surroundings of the ever-precise class president.

She worries about how his scans will come back in the morning. She hasn't said anything beyond her outburst right after the battle, but there's a real chance he could have suffered some serious, potentially permanent damage from those wounds. Probably not enough to end his hero career before it can even start, but she wouldn't be surprised if he lost some function in at least one hand.

Midoriya is directly across from her, laying on his side. His sheets and blanket remain tucked in neatly, but not perfectly aligned like Iida's. As she watches, he turns over onto his other side, though it's hard to tell if he's actually awake, even with her night vision. It's not a surprise, though. With a likely fracture in his right arm, and cuts on his left arm and leg both, it must be hard to find a comfortable position.

Shoto is in the opposite corner, the farthest from her, and the hardest to see. His sheets and blankets have been pulled loose from the end of the bed, and he's curled almost into a ball on his side, the blanket wrapped close around him.

She wonders how well any of them are sleeping, as her eyes drift to the large windows on the far wall, past Iida and Shoto's beds. The smoke over the city remains clearly visible, though not as thick as it was during the attacks that evening. A few places are still lit by the unnatural, eerie glow of uncontained flame, and occasionally she thinks she can see the brief flash of emergency vehicle lights somewhere in the distance.

Ryumi closes her eyes, only to see that leering, demonic face yet again. She shivers, pulling the blankets closer. It's chilly in here, but she didn't want to complain too much earlier. She knows the hospital staff will have their hands full with other patients after an event like this.

She waits another moment, trying to prepare herself to reach for the pill bottle on the nightstand. Though Manual obviously left to continue aiding in fire suppression throughout the night, he did make time to deliver a couple things from the office for her and Iida. She's grateful for that, especially now. Even if she likes to think they would be understanding about it, she'd rather not risk waking the others if her dreams were to continue to worsen.

Finally, she leans over to grab it, pressing her eyes shut to focus as she does, to keep from being too loud as the pain in her side returns. Uncapping the small bottle, she tips it until a single small oval falls into her palm. She pops it into her mouth, swallowing it easily without even the need for a drink of water.

She carefully recaps the thing and makes the agonizing reach to set it back on the nightstand. It'll still be a few minutes before the pill takes effect and it's worth trying to sleep again. Normally she would grab her phone and try to distract herself with browsing the news, but she knows what all the headlines will be already, and it certainly won't help her feel better.

Very slowly, she lowers herself back onto the bed, whining softly to herself until she's lying flat once again. She rests a hand on the aching spot, though she knows it won't do anything to help ease the pain any more than what medication the nurses gave her earlier. She sighs, staring at the blank ceiling, and she waits.

Across the room, unnoticed by Ryumi, a single gray eye peeks out from the edge of the blanket. Part of him wants to say something, to ask if she's alright, but he doesn't want to disturb the others. Though Shoto suspects none of them are getting much in the way of good sleep tonight, he knows what it looks like when someone wakes up from a nightmare. And he has some idea of what those pills of hers are for.

He considers asking her in the morning, though he's not sure he wants to admit that he was watching her. He could say he woke up around the same time, but...

He curls up tighter and tugs the blanket back over his eyes, blocking his view. Hidden under the covers, he runs a hand through his hair and tries to think of any halfway reasonable way to bring it up gently.

It's late the following morning by the time all of them have officially given up on sleeping. The faint pinks of dawn have all faded to the normal blue out the window, and though the sounds of city life aren't audible from the hospital room, one can assume them from the scramble of foot and street traffic seen far below.

"...Did you guys sleep okay?" Shoto asks, sitting on the edge of his bed and awkwardly trying to start some kind of conversation. He's hoping Ryumi might say something about earlier, though he doubts she will... This is the best he could come up with though, after probably an hour of agonizing over it.

"No, not really." Midoriya mumbles.

Iida shakes his head, and Ryumi just lets out a soft growl that answers well enough.

So much for that brilliant plan. Of course she wouldn't say anything about it in front of the others... Shoto sighs. "...Yeah, I figured. Me neither."

Midoriya sits up in his bed and looks down at the heavy bandaging on his right arm and left leg. "Thinking about that fight now, we did something pretty incredible."

"Yeah... I agree." Shoto adds, regarding his own bandaged arm.

Iida sits cross legged on his bed, staying mostly to himself. But his distance and silence has a completely different tone to it now than it did before yesterday. There's still a bit of grief, but the anger is gone, and overwhelmingly the feeling coming from him is shame.

"After everything that happened back there, it kinda feels like a miracle we're even alive..." Midoriya rests a hand gently over his leg wound. "And with my leg messed up, I was an easy target. If he really wanted to kill me... he easily could've."

"Yeah. He definitely let us live." He's been thinking the same thing, on and off, for most of the night. Shoto looks over at Iida, trying to drag him into talking. "But you stood up to him even with all that bloodlust. Impressive. I came to save you but ended up still needing help. Sorry."

Iida shakes his head. "Not at all. It's not like that. I..." He drops the subject and redirects, turning to Ryumi. "Besides, if you're going to praise someone for standing up to him... I think she deserves it more."

She cocks her head to one side, obviously unsure what he means.

"Yeah..." Shoto nods and stares at her, almost in awe as he recalls the moment he knows Iida is referring to. "I can't imagine how you did that at the end there."

"Huh? I... really don't know what you guys mean." She flicks her gaze around the room in confusion.

He glances at each of the others in turn, and they both nod - they noticed it too. "You put yourself in front of me. That... aura he had. So much pressure even the pros could hardly move, but you..." He trails off, deciding not to mention how much safer he felt in that moment. How it felt like she was almost deflecting that pressure, the way the lead bird in a flock reduces the wind resistance for those that follow.

"I... don't know what to tell you. I was terrified like everyone else, I just..." She seems flustered by the admiration, and her wings pull closer to her back. "...I guess I just... I knew where I needed to be."

"I wonder... in some ways it felt like your roar." Shoto tips his head back and props himself up with his right hand, thinking. "But... much stronger. I don't think that was part of his quirk though."

"Yeah. It was just the strength of his..." Midoriya frowns and looks to Iida, who shakes his head - he looks like he wanted to shrug or wave a hand, but that's obviously impossible for him right now. "...his ideals. As flawed as they might be. But if the effect is similar, even if the source is different, maybe that's why you could push back easier than the rest of us." He taps a finger against his chin, looking around, probably wishing he had his notebook with him. Unfortunately, since his mentor is based a fair distance away, Gran Torino hasn't had time to bring the boy any of his things.

"Right." Shoto agrees, sitting up straight again. "That makes sense."

Ryumi looks at her hands, lost in thought. Something in her face says she isn't convinced by the theory, or at least that she thinks there's something more to it than just the similarity.

As the conversation hits a lull again, Midoriya turns and gazes out the window for a moment - even now there are faint smoke trails visible over the city. "Actually, Ryumi... I wanted to ask you something."

She looks up, the comment drawing her from her thoughts, and shrugs. "What's on your mind?" Whatever it was, it must not be bothering her too much.

Midoriya shifts his eyes downward. "Your... plan." He takes a breath as if preparing himself, then stares right at her. "Maybe I'm wrong, but... you were planning to charge him, weren't you?"

She doesn't answer right away. She returns the intent stare with her slitted eyes, waiting for him to continue.

And he does, though there's a hesitation to it. "...You said in that narrow space you wouldn't be able to do much in that form, but if you could get on top of him, he couldn't escape you. Even if he paralyzed you then, if you were already above, you'd just turn into a bunch of dead weight, pinning him."

"Midoriya!" To the shock of everyone, Iida suddenly interjects.

"What?" The green haired boy asks, completely baffled by the reaction from the class president.

Iida calmly pulls one arm from his sling and adjusts his glasses, eyeing the other boy. "It's impolite to talk about a lady's weight." He says it in his usual matter-of-fact, scolding tone.

Ryumi cracks a slight smile. "Yeah, Midoriya. What are you suggesting? Geez." She clearly wants to turn to the side in a huff, but a centimeter into the motion she decides better of it. Still, she snickers lightly.

Midoriya immediately turns bright red as he starts to put it together. "No, no - I didn't mean it like... It's just... uhh..." As he searches for an escape, the only thing he finds is his pillow. He snatches it up and buries his face behind it.

Ryumi is still laughing, until she catches her ribs just the wrong way, then she doubles over in pain, clutching her side. "Ahh. Damnit, Midoriya... Blaming you for that." She whines.

Shoto glances between the three. He's not sure he understands what's so funny. Obviously she's heavier in her dragon form. It's bigger. That's just how physics works. Why would that be impolite to point out? And why would she be laughing about it if it was insulting?

She takes a couple slow careful breaths as she recovers, eventually returning to the question at hand. "Right... you're not wrong, though. Talking about... half a ton or so. He was strong, but I doubt he could lift me in that form."

He gives up on figuring out the apparent joke, and slowly starts to put together what Midoriya was saying her plan must've been. She was going to charge him, pin him, and then...

She said... She said "I can make sure you make it." You. Not we.

"Wait... So you planned on just holding him there while we ran away?" A touch of anger slips out, and he slides into a tone he normally reserves for talking about his father. "Were you counting on him to just not kill you? Did you really think that I would ever--" Even as he starts yelling, he cuts himself off, correcting his words. "--that we would have just left you behind?"

"Todoroki... calm down." Midoriya carefully lowers the pillow at last, peeking over it.

Ryumi casts her eyes away from them both, her voice calm and distant. "...I did say it was a bad plan."

"Of course it was!" He stands up, glaring at her, before he takes a breath and his voice drops to a low mumble. "...We're friends. You can't have thought I would actually..." He trails off again. He can't even begin to find the words to explain it. He surprises himself a little, as he realizes he's so mad that his hands are shaking.

Ryumi has turned back, staring at him. At first there's disbelief in her eyes, but slowly as the silence stretches out between them, her expression softens to a weak smile. "...Yeah. You're right, we are. I... I'm sorry."

Shoto watches her. He's surprised by the quick admission, but also glad. He doesn't quite know what to do now though, as he was mentally preparing for a much longer argument. So he just sits back down on the edge of his bed. "...Good."

The dragon girl hops up and goes to stretch before seemingly remembering what a terrible idea that is. She walks across the room and sits next to him. "I know, I'm an idiot."

He nods in agreement without looking at her. "Just don't do it again." But his attempted air of smug triumph vanishes entirely when he notices she's put her wing out around his back, hooking it on his opposite shoulder.

He's not sure what to think about that, but... it's... a nice feeling. He thinks it reminds him of something, but he can't place it.

The others look from the pair to each other and smile softly, seeming relieved by the resolution.

Changing the topic, Ryumi nods to the boy sitting across from them, her tail idly tapping against the edge of the bed. "Midoriya, I actually wanted to bug you about something too."

"Oh? What's that?" Midoriya sets the pillow down on his lap, resting his hands on it.

She points at him. "Those crazy new moves of yours, obviously. Since when can you zip around like that?"

"I was wondering that myself. At times you reminded me of Bakugo out there." Iida pauses. "In a good way. Of course."

"Oh, yeah! Actually, Ryumi, I kinda have you to thank for that." He grins broadly at her.

Ryumi tilts her head to the side again. "How so?"

"Well, not just you. Gran Torino, and Kacchan, and... well, lots of our classmates." Midoriya admits, and he shifts a bit on the bed. "I um... I don't like to talk about it, but..." He looks at his arms, then the others. "...I only got my quirk recently. It's... a rare thing, I guess, but it happens sometimes. I'm working really hard to master it, but I'm still a good ten years behind all of you."

Ryumi narrows her eyes. She clearly finds the idea suspect, but she doesn't comment on it or otherwise press the issue.

"Studying with Gran Torino, he said something. And I got to thinking about how for all of you guys, using your quirks comes as naturally as breathing. I was flipping through my notes, and then I got to your page..." He looks around again as if he wishes he had the book with him, and nods to Ryumi. "...and I thought about what you said about your dragon form at the festival. Power in your whole body, at the same time..."

"That's what that is?" She sounds genuinely curious.

Midoriya nods enthusiastically. "Mhm! And if I limit my power output, it helps keep me from breaking my bones, too. Though..." He lifts his bandaged arm, the one he fractured near the end of the battle. "...it's easy for me to get carried away still."

"Well, I guess I'm glad I could help? Even indirectly." She shrugs, then gently nudges Shoto with her elbow. "I like that new costume of yours too, by the way."

He's startled out of his thoughts by her prodding at his arm. He had gotten momentarily lost in trying to decide what this feeling reminds him of and stopped following what the others were saying. "Huh? What?"

Ryumi returns a patient smile. "Your new costume. It's a nice design. Simple, but I like it."

"Oh. Right." It still takes another moment for Shoto to find his thoughts again. "Well, the old one only had a heater in it, so I had to change to something that could adjust in both directions..."

She nods along with the explanation, then suddenly grins at him, an idea seeming to strike her. "You know, you didn't actually have to chase me all the way to Hosu to show off your new skills. I'm patient. I could've waited for after the week to see."

He's initially unsure how to respond. After a brief moment he gets a slightly indignant look on his face. "Well, I couldn't wait to show you."

Her fangy grin widens at his reaction. Struggling not to laugh, she jabs him with her elbow again. "Cut that out, I'll hurt my stupid ribs again."

"I was being serious." Shoto answers flatly.

She proactively clutches her side with her other hand, as she starts snickering and jabs him another time. "Shoto, stop it..."

Midoriya lightly chuckles as well. But not everyone is feeling the lightened mood.

"You guys... I..." Iida casts a sad look around the room, even as the others seem to be having fun. "I still feel I must apologize for all this trouble. To Arisato, especially... I..."

Ryumi interrupts him. "Can your apology take the form of calling me by my first name?"

He squirms a little, clearly uncomfortable with the idea but feeling obligated to agree anyway.

Before he can finish agonizing over his answer to the question, she sighs. "Relax. I'm over it."

Iida cautiously nods. He's just opened his mouth to speak again when there's a knock at the door.

Chapter Text

There's a short delay, and the door slides open. Manual and Gran Torino are visible, standing in the doorway.

"Ohh, look. all the little wounded warriors are awake!" The elderly hero calls out as he steps inside.

Midoriya shuffles around on his bed to face the door. "Gran Torino!"

"And Manual, too." Iida adds quietly, a little reluctantly, like he suspects what's about to happen.

"Idiot. I could yell at you for hours right now." The tiny old man strides purposefully up to Midoriya's bedside, with far more menace than you'd expect from someone of his size.

Midoriya worriedly shifts backward, stumbling over his apology. "Y-yeah, I'm sorry."

"But before I do, you've got a visitor." Gran Torino turns and points to a tall dog headed man now stepping through the door. "This is Mr. Kenji Tsuragamae, Hosu's chief of police."

Iida, Shoto, and Ryumi all stand up, and she quietly pulls her wing back.

Midoriya mumbles to himself, half panicked. "Tsuragamae! Chief of police?!" He starts trying to shuffle to the edge of the bed and stand, but he only makes it as far as sitting on the edge.

The chief holds up a hand for him to stop. "No, please, stay seated, woof."

"'Woof'?" The boy whispers under his breath.

"Hey chief. Long time no see." Ryumi puts on a slightly mischievous grin - she knows a bit of what's coming.

Midoriya glances over his shoulder at her. "You know him?"

"Hm. Would that it had been longer. I admit some disappointment seeing you here, Arisato." The chief responds, looking down his muzzle at her.

She shrugs. "You shouldn't be surprised. You know I've never been able to mind my own business."

Tsuragamae holds a hand to his mouth and clears his throat. "I said disappointed, not surprised. Too much of your mother in you." He shakes his head. "Regardless. I understand you four put a stop to the hero killer, woof."

"Yeah. We did." Shoto answers, but Ryumi notes a caution in his voice. He catches her eye and whispers. "The police chief came all this way? Why?"

She shakes her head, replying in a low tone. "Just wait. He'll explain."

Chief Tsuragamae continues. "It seems Stain has some rather serious injuries. Burns, broken bones, and a number of other things. He's currently at the hospital receiving treatment - under strict guard, of course, woof."

Worry passes through three of the four, but Ryumi holds her mildly defiant attitude. She knows the tune that's coming. Heard it a thousand times before.

"Here's a lesson you should have already learned. When quirks became the norm, the police force sought to prioritize leadership and to maintain the status quo... So they decided not to use quirks as weapons. The profession of 'hero' rose as one that would fill that void, woof. They could do what we couldn't - if they were licensed, of course." He narrows his eyes as he scans over the four. "Authorizing the use of such might... of these powers that could so very easily kill... it would be impossible for the police to condone the use of such a thing. After all, we're here to stop such harm from being done. The only reason pros can use their powers now is because of the strict code of ethics that your predecessors chose to abide by. That's why it's against the law for uncertified people to use their quirks to cause injury."

Ryumi rolls her eyes. It’s not that she doesn't care or understand why it is the way it is. She just despises the inflexibility of it all. But she's had that fight with the Chief, and Tsukauchi, and many others... several times.

"Whether you were up against the hero killer or not, none of you had the authority to harm the villain. Such action represents a stunning breach of the law, woof." The chief pauses, brushing a hand over his chin. "That means the four of you, as well as your pro hero mentors... Endeavor. Manual. Gran Torino. The seven of you must be dealt with strictly and impartially. You should receive harsh punishments for this gross abuse of your powers."

"Now wait a minute." Shoto growls and takes a step forward.

A concerned Iida holds out a hand to stop him. "Todoroki..."

Shoto ignores the gesture. "If Iida hadn't stepped in, Native would've been murdered. And if Midoriya hadn't shown up, both of them would be dead. Nobody else was even sure the hero killer was still in town." He's getting angry again, gradually raising his voice - though it's a less personal rage than when he was yelling at Ryumi. "Are you saying we should've just stood by and watched people die, all in the name of your 'law'?!"

Midoriya leans over to stick his hand out and block Shoto from continuing forward. "Whoa, whoa. Calm down..." He's not having any more success than Iida, though.

And Ryumi, for her part, makes no move to stop him. Actually, she's pretty impressed. She's not used to seeing this - for lack of a better term - fire from him. She cracks a small smile.

Manual also moves to intercept the boy, but the chief waves him off, unconcerned.

"Isn't it a hero's job to save people?" Shoto asks, harshly. One of his hands curls into a fist.

Tsuragamae shakes his head, taking note of Ryumi's grin. "So, it's okay to break the law as long as it goes your way? Hmph. Clearly you've much to learn. Some education you're getting, woof, from UA and Endeavor."

Shoto looks ready to start an actual fight over that. "You damn mutt..." He takes a threatening tone and starts stalking forward again.

Iida walks up behind him. "Stop! This is serious! Listen, he's right..."

Gran Torino also steps in front of the chief and lifts a hand. "Stop there, kid... Just listen to what he's got to say."

He reluctantly stops, but he's definitely still angry.

Ryumi sighs, walks up next to Shoto, and puts a hand on his left shoulder. "Give the chief a chance, alright? He might surprise you." She feels him relax slightly at her touch, but there's still a sharpness in his glare.

Tsuragamae clears his throat again. "All of that... is what I'm obligated to tell you. The official stance of the police department. But... the real question is whether or not to deal with this issue publicly, woof. If we let the story out, you'll all be lauded by citizens everywhere, but you won't be able to avoid being reprimanded." He watches each of their reactions in turn. "On the other hand, if we keep all this nasty business to ourselves... we could say Endeavor saved the day. Stain's burns will support the story that he was the key operative, and we could pretend you weren't involved. But he'll receive the accolades, woof. Fortunately, the number of eyewitnesses was small enough that we can hush up this whole matter before it causes problems, woof. But in that case, your decisive action and achievements will remain unknown to the general public."

"The choice is yours. Personally, I know where I stand. I'm an understanding man." The chief smiles and flashes a thumbs up. "So when it comes to a promising group of young people... I'd rather not have to pursue charges."

Ryumi nudges Shoto with her wing, as if to say 'see?', and turns back to Tsuragamae. "You know how I feel about it, chief. I didn't choose this for the glory anyway..." She glances among the group. "...The people who were there, who were directly impacted... We'll always know the truth. That's enough for me."

The Chief nods. "I expected as much. And the rest of you?"

Shoto grumbles. "Can't say I like the idea that he gets to take credit for it... but fine."

The other two nod as well, and the four kids offer slight bows to the chief. Ryumi only lowers her head, to avoid shifting her ribs too much. Midoriya does much the same as her, since he's still sitting on his bed.

Manual walks over to Iida, looking equally sad and disappointed. "Either way, our negligence is to blame. We have to take responsibility."

"I'm so very sorry. I should've listened..." Iida glances up for a moment without raising his head. "...to both of you."

Manual swats at his head lightly, just enough to be annoying. "Yeah! You caused big trouble for your mentor, so don't do it again!" He turns and eyes Ryumi. "And don't think I've forgotten about you."

"Of course not, sir..." She mutters.

Midoriya slumps forward. "And... I apologize as well."

"Me too. We'll leave it to you." Shoto adds, though he still looks upset.

Tsuragamae sighs. "I know it's not fair. You'll receive none of the commendations that you might have otherwise, but... at least... as someone invested in keeping the peace... I can thank you." He returns their bow with one of his own.

Of the four, only Shoto stubbornly refuses even a slight smile, obviously irritated over the lecture even if his tone has softened again. "You know, you could've led with that." He grumbles under his breath.

"Todoroki." Midoriya mumbles, smiling weakly at the other boy.

Ryumi was never truly worried, of course. Knowing the chief as she does, she expected something like this. Her mother told her once that the chief used to be a bit of a loose cannon himself, when he first joined the force. And some of that willingness to bend remains, even if his rank these days requires him to keep closer to the book.

No, the only thing that worries her is what comes next, as the chief sees himself out, and their mentors remain.

Ryumi sighs and looks at Manual. "I suppose now you're going to yell at us, huh?"

"Hmph." Manual folds his arms. "Actually, I'm just here to yell at him." He nods at Iida.

Both of his interns exchange confused glances. Now Ryumi is really starting to get concerned.

"I brought... someone else to deal with you." Manual explains, his voice stern.

Ryumi pales slightly. "W-who...?"

The door opens again, and a woman with short blonde hair and wearing an elegant red and gold dress with white gloves and long black boots steps inside. It's not her full hero costume, lacking the claw and wing shaped hair pieces, but she's still immediately recognizable.

Ryumi takes a step back and shrinks, pulling in her wings and curling her tail around her ankle. "Uhm... Hello, auntie..."

Ryukyu returns a harsh glare to the dragon girl. "Come with me, child."

She presses her lips together, nods silently, and follows her out without so much as glancing at any of her friends.

Gran Torino shakes his head. "I'll deal with you later, kid." He waves to Midoriya as he starts to walk out. "I still got work to do."

Midoriya deflates slightly. "Yeah... I'm sure those hours of lecture you have planned aren't going anywhere..."

"You better believe they aren't!" The old hero grumbles over his shoulder. "But I'll give you the day to rest first."

Midoriya sighs heavily. "I'm not sure if I should be grateful or not..."

Manual waves for Iida to follow. "Come on, I have to get back to work too."

Iida hastens to head out for his talking-to. "Of course, sir."

The door slides shut, leaving just Shoto and Midoriya alone in the room.

Shoto stands there for a moment, then walks back to his bed, falling back onto it and staring at the ceiling.

Midoriya shuffles back to a more comfortable position and looks at him. "You alright, Todoroki?"

He sighs. "Fine. It's just..."

"Yeah... I suppose you're dreading what Endeavor is going to say about this later." The green haired boy finds his pillow where he dropped it earlier and returns it to its proper place.

Shoto doesn't answer that. He folds his arms behind his head and closes his eyes.

The older dragon leads her charge to a small side room.

"...Isn't it a little early for this? Can we at least have breakfast first...?" Ryumi asks cautiously. She is actually hungry, of course, but really she's just looking for an excuse to delay things a bit.

Ryukyu shakes her head and stares at the young girl. "Explain to me what exactly you were thinking out there." The words themselves don't imply any frustration, but her tone is accusatory.

Ryumi's tail wraps ever tighter around her leg. "I was saving my friends." The confidence from earlier is gone now.

"And did that require you to destroy your best means of summoning backup? Did you even need to engage the hero killer? After you were directly ordered not to." The pro hero's gaze is harsh and searching. "...Or did you just want a fight?"

"I..." She begins, but the excuses die before she can form them.

"You could have carried them all to safety without fighting. I know you could have." Ryukyu answers for her.

Ryumi is silent for a moment. "...Yeah. Probably." She's not sure if she could have actually outrun the killer, but maybe they could have lured him toward the other fighting... But then... Stain and the Nomu together? She thinks more would have died that way.

The older dragon sighs, her look softening a little. "It's not that I'm not pleased to hear what you and your friends were able to do... but you can't simply run off on your own, disobeying direct orders. It'll be different when you have your own agency, but even after you have your license, even after you graduate, you'll still be expected to follow orders while you work as a sidekick. Wherever that might be." She steps up and lays a hand on the girl's shoulder. "You can't just run off and do as you like."

Ryumi's shoulders slump and she looks away from her mentor. "...Yeah. I know..."

"The chief was right. You're so much like Maki." Ryukyu ruffles the girl's hair. "Just... try to remember that the direct approach isn't always the best one. Alright, dear? And don't go making any more trouble for Manual."

She nods silently, and the pair return to the room.

Ryumi walks back to the opposite side of her bed and sits, barely glancing at the others. It's long enough to note that Iida isn't back yet though, Midoriya is scribbling on some scratch paper he must've found, and Shoto is lying on his bed facing away from the door.

Ryukyu lingers in the door, and the green haired boy looks up from his work.

"Oh, uhm. Ryukyu?" He asks, searching for a blank sheet of paper. "I-I know you're probably busy, but uh... could I... get your autograph?" That familiar gleam comes into his eyes as he holds up a page and a pen.

The pro hero smiles and walks over to him. "Of course." She takes the paper and quickly scratches out a signature, handing it back.

"Thank you so much!" Midoriya eagerly takes the page back and examines it, then bows his head. "I wish I had my actual notebook... but I'll paste it in with the rest when I get back." He tucks the paper somewhere safe and looks back at her. "Actually... can I ask one other thing?"

"What is it?" Ryukyu checks her watch, but otherwise doesn't indicate any need to rush.

"Ah, well..." Midoriya shifts awkwardly. "I understand Ryumi's mom is or was a sidekick of yours, and I've been trying to..."

Ryumi presses a fang gently into her lip. The spot is still healing from yesterday, but she doesn't think of that now.

Ryukyu steps closer to the boy and sets her hand on his shoulder. Physically, it's a gentle gesture, but there's a threatening weight behind it that freezes him in place, staring at her slit pupiled eyes. "Allow me to clarify something for you, child." She begins. Her tone has no malice, but it is warning. She glances ever so briefly to Ryumi.

She shakes her head. It's a tiny, frantic response.

On the other side of the room, Shoto has turned to watch too.

"There are... certain things in the world which are best left alone." Ryukyu fixates on the boy in front of her. "This is one such topic. I appreciate your enthusiasm for heroes, but... if you value your future, your career as a hero especially, you will drop this investigation." She pauses for a breath, and to emphasize her point. "Do you understand?"

Midoriya swallows hard. He nods, the words seeming trapped in his throat. When Ryukyu doesn't back off, he squeaks out a rough "Yes ma'am..."

The hero nods and takes her hand back. It's instantly clear how much pressure has left that corner of the room, though the atmosphere remains heavy. "Right. I need to get back to work." She turns and waves to Ryumi. "Goodbye, little stormcloud. I hope you all have a quick recovery."

"Yeah... thanks, auntie." Ryumi answers, with only a slight hesitation.

Chapter Text

Things continue to be quiet for a long time in the room, even well after Ryukyu departs. Iida returns after a while, but nobody seems in the mood to talk - half the room recovering from their mentors' words, and the other half still stuck imagining how bad it will be when their turn comes. Midoriya is still scribbling away on whatever note paper the nurses were willing to give him (and looking a touch rattled by Ryukyu's earlier warning), Iida is staring out the window, and Shoto seems like he's trying to take a nap and mostly failing.

Ryumi is poking at her phone, trying not to disturb the others, but the quiet is slowly becoming unbearable. She's scanning through the headlines out of habit, but it's all hero killer.

Hero Killer Arrested

Violence in Hosu Enacted by Gang of Criminals?

Riots in Hosu City

Slayer Stopped by Endeavor's Efforts

Hero Killer: Special Report

She puts her phone down with a sigh and looks over the others again. She isn't sure what to really say. But maybe they're all thinking that.

She pockets her phone and just goes with the first thing that comes to mind. "So... this everyone else's first time getting lectured by the police?"

The others slowly turn around, and Midoriya looks up from his notes. "...Yeah."

Shoto nods.

Iida stares at her somewhat anxiously. "It... isn't yours?"

Ryumi shrugs. "If the way the chief was talking about me didn't make that obvious."

"What were you getting up to?!" The class president looks increasingly concerned.

"Defending myself." She answers simply, looking at Iida. "...Based on what you said the first day of school, I'm guessing... you didn't see a lot of violence at Somei, huh?"

The shock doesn't leave his eyes. "No... of course not. The academy was a fine institution."

"Yeah... the school I went to wasn't like that. Fights were pretty common." The dragon girl explains.

Midoriya shuffles a bit in his bed. "...There's places like that?"

"You too, Midoriya?" She's actually a little surprised. He seemed like he would understand - maybe the bullying wasn't as violent as it was at her school, but she always had the impression... "Considering what I've seen of you and Bakugo, I thought..."

He puts on an awkward, weak smile. "It's not... Kacchan really isn't like that. I um, I guess I see why you'd think... but it's not."

"If you say so." Ryumi shakes her head, disbelieving. But that can be a debate for another day. "I was... targeted. Because I'm a mutant. So I was involved in a lot of fights."

Shoto, obviously thinking back to what the chief told them and her own previous comments to him, puts a hand to his chin. "I thought you said you never used your quirk against them?"

"Of course not." She answers with certainty. "But those kids... they were smart, or... well coached. They knew what to accuse me of to get me in trouble. Obviously, the cameras always backed up my side of the story. But... getting that stuff takes time. So I had an awful lot of chats with the police."

Among the others, only Shoto doesn't seem taken back by the story. But that makes sense, he's heard enough of the details already to not be too shocked.

Ryumi looks around the three, noting their reactions. "...Maybe it's just that you guys are all fairly... normal looking."

Iida tilts his head to the side. "What do you mean, Arisato?"

She sighs. "I assume you've at least heard of mutant hate groups? People like the CRC?"

Midoriya is the only one who nods. Unsurprising, given how much time he spends reading on hero and quirk related topics. "I didn't think they were still that active, though... I see them get talked about in the news sometimes, but..."

"I'm not surprised you wouldn't have seen them." She looks the boy up and down, studying him, thinking back to that first day of class before she knew what his power was. "Don't take this as an insult or anything, but you could honestly pass as quirkless, if you kept your mouth shut and didn't activate your power. Even the craziest of the crazy, the anti-quirk cults, probably wouldn't look twice at you unless they saw you zipping around."

Midoriya looks stunned by the assertion, but he nods eventually.

"It's... all a matter of degrees, right?" She continues. "If Midoriya is a classic type one - no outward signs of a quirk of any kind - then Shoto is a type two. Your hair is just strange enough that people would assume you have a quirk of some kind, even if they don't know what. You might be able to pass it off with some fast talking if you tried, though."

"And Iida... you'd be a type three. Clear mutation, but it's minor. Some of the mutie haters might harass you, but you look human enough that only the strictest ones would bother. As for me..." She flexes her wings, just to emphasize the point. "Type four. Obvious, significant mutation. Bonus points for looking animalistic, so the CRC people..." She stops, sighs, and drops that thought for another. "At least I have it a little better than the type fives. I know a couple guys - older than me, but they lived around my neighborhood too. Life... hasn't been kind to them."

Shoto glances around uncomfortably.

"It's really that bad? Even so long after the emergence of quirks...?" Midoriya mumbles.

Ryumi shrugs. "I mean, don't just take my word for it. Ask Shoji sometime. I don't know for sure, but..." She pauses again, frowning. "He's from a pretty rural area, and it tends to be worse out there. The 'purists', I mean." She says the word with a distinct venom. "...I could be wrong, but I doubt the guy wears a mask at all times just for fun or cuz he thinks it looks cool."

"Ryumi..." Midoriya begins, sadly.

"It's fine. I didn't bring it up cuz I wanted pity points or anything." She waves off his concern and tries to get back to the previous topic. "But yeah, I've had it out with the police, argued with them back and forth..." She looks at Shoto. "I've fought with the chief about it too. That's why I wasn't too worried. He's... actually a good guy. Tsukauchi too."

"...I see. Well, I apologize for making assumptions, Arisato." Iida bows his head slightly. "But I do hope this is the last time any of us have to endure anything like this."

"Right. We'll see." She responds with a subtly mischievous grin.

Privately, she expects she'll end up in at least one brawl with Bakugo before the year is out. At least, with the way things have been going. But she does hope that the police won't end up involved in that, if it happens.

The following afternoon, Midoriya has already spent large portions of the day responding to questions from various classmates about his bizarre message from the night of the attack. He's been in and out of the room several times so he doesn't bother the others while he's on the phone, and also to practice walking around with his crutch.

At some point, Iida is called away too regarding the results of the scans and tests the doctors had been running since yesterday.

It's just Shoto and Ryumi in the room. There's a long, awkward silence.

"Hey... Ryumi?"

She looks up from her phone. "Hm?"

He looks at her but almost immediately pulls his eyes away. "I um... I'm sorry. About the other day, I mean... with the chief, I..."

Ryumi stares at him, unsure why he seems so nervous. "I mean, I thought it was obvious I was on your side the whole time."

"Not that..." He mumbles, wringing his hands. "I mean... what I said..."

It takes a moment, her replaying the conversation in her head, for it to click. Right... "You mutt".

She sighs. "You should apologize to the chief then, not me."

Shoto seems to shrink a little more as he sits there, unable to look at her.

"But... I know you're not actually like that. You were just mad, and not thinking." She says, as she once again walks over to sit next to him.

He nods, but his expression remains regretful.

"Just... try not to do it again." She hooks her wing around his back, just like yesterday.

"Yeah. Sorry."

It's quiet again for a long while.

Eventually, he cautiously looks up at the girl sitting next to him. "Ryumi... can I... ask you something?"

"Of course." She answers immediately, a curiosity in her eyes.

"I thought... Isn't the polite term 'heteromorph'?" He sounds hesitant, uncomfortable.

"Mm." She shrugs, her wings shifting slightly. "I guess."

Again, he risks just barely making eye contact. "But you... always say 'mutant'."

"Heteromorph... from Greek, for 'different form'." Ryumi closes her eyes, considering how to explain it. It's not an unfair question. She's a little bit surprised it's taken this long for any of her friends to bring it up. "I guess... where I grew up, it just didn't matter. You could put a nicer word on it if you wanted to, but that wasn't going to change how people treated you. So... a lot of people felt like, why bother? Or... some people felt like it was more... honest. They wanted to own it, instead of trying to dress up the truth in a fancier word."

"...And you?" He asks. "Why do you say it that way?"

Before she has to answer him, the door slides open and Iida walks back in.

"How'd it go?" Ryumi asks as the class president sits on his bed, not missing a beat, as if there wasn't just a very heavy topic being discussed a half second before.

He closes his eyes and shakes his head.

She sets Shoto's question aside for now - partly because she isn't sure she wants to say, and partly because she isn't entirely sure how to - and mentally envisions the diagrams from her father's books, trying to guess based on where Iida's injuries are. She taps her own shoulder in the vicinity of where his wounds would be to try and visualize it.

Finally, the answer - or at least a likely possibility - comes to her. "Severed your brachial plexus nerve?"

He nods sadly, saying nothing.

Well, at least that was from something Stain did, and not from him ripping that knife out.

She's about to say something encouraging, but again she's cut off by the door opening.

A cheery Midoriya hobbles back in, holding his phone. "Ah, hey Iida. I just got off the phone with Uraraka and..."

"Midoriya." Shoto interrupts him, throwing a sad look across the room. "Iida... just got his diagnosis."

The class president's brow furrows, and he stares at his hands.

Midoriya limps over closer on his crutches, the quiet obviously making him more anxious.

Ryumi tilts her head toward Iida, to prompt him. It should be his news to give.

"My left hand..." He begins. "Could have permanent damage."

Midoriya's eyes widen in shock. "What? Permanent?"

"...Both my arms were pretty torn up, but my left was especially severe." He shifts in his sling and gently rubs his left arm with his other hand. "He severed something called the brachial plexus nerve. Which just means... I'll have trouble moving my fingers, and some numbness... but they said that I might regain most of the feeling and use of my hand and fingers if I receive a nerve transplant." Iida stops, taking a deep breath. "When I found the hero killer, my mind went blank. I stopped thinking rationally. I should have told Manual before doing anything else, but I got lost in my own anger."

Ryumi nods, agreeing - but she doesn't want to push the issue while he's still recovering.

"I may hate him... but I can't deny he spoke the truth. So... until I succeed in becoming a true hero..." Iida regards his injured arms. "I'll leave my left hand as it is. To serve as a reminder."

Shoto turns to him. "Are you sure?"

"Oh..." At first Midoriya appears conflicted, then a sudden determination finds him and he hobbles up to Iida's bedside. "Iida. I... feel the same way." He holds out his scarred right hand. "Let's... get stronger. Together."

Seemingly out of nowhere, Shoto looks as if he's been struck by something, his expression turning awkward and nervous. "I'm... sorry..."

All three of the others look at him with varying degrees of confusion.

Midoriya is the first to ask the obvious. "For what...?"

"Whenever I'm involved, it feels like... people's hands get messed up... or something...." Shoto mumbles to himself, looking at his own hands. "Is something wrong with me? Is it a curse?"

The other three look stunned as they glance between themselves, then they all start to laugh.

"Ha ha ha ha! What on earth are you talking about?" Iida turns to the side, unable to cover his laugh with a hand as he usually might.

Midoriya snickers, clinging to his crutch. "Todoroki, I didn't know you had a sense of humor!"

"No, I'm not joking. I'm like, 'the hand crusher'..." He gives a worried look to Ryumi. "You... should probably stop spending time with me."

"'The hand crusher'!" Midoriya nearly falls over, struggling to balance while trying to catch his breath.

With an amused grin, Ryumi tugs Shoto closer with her wing. "Yeah, you won't be getting rid of me that easily."

"But you might..." He protests.

"What do I keep telling you? I'm tougher than I look. I'm not worried about it." She calls her scales and lightly punches his shoulder. "...But y'know, if you really think you're cursed... you could stop by a shrine, get an exorcism."

Shoto gets an intensely focused look on his face, like he's seriously considering it.

As Iida recovers from laughing, he struggles to wipe tears from his eyes with his bandaged arms and his glasses in the way. "That's not a bad idea, Arisato. Exams are coming up soon."

"Oh yeah. I guess they are, huh?" Midoriya says as he resteadies himself and starts to move back over to sit on his bed.

Ryumi nods. "I was planning on going to get a blessing before exams anyway." She looks to Shoto. "Well? You wanna join me?"

Iida answers before he can decide. "Why don't we all go?" He suggests with a smile, one far more genuine than the others have seen from him in a while.

That trip would have to wait though. Later that day, Iida would leave to recover back at his parents' house, and see his brother. And the following day, around noon, Shoto and Ryumi are both cleared to return to their internships - though they're both stuck with light duty restrictions while they finish healing up.

Shoto, once again dressed in his regular school uniform, picks up his bag and looks to Midoriya. "I'm going back now."

"Back to your dad's agency?" He asks, pulling himself away from the stack of notes spread over the bed in front of him.

"...I still wanna learn everything I can from him. Besides, they're saying he defeated the hero killer, even though it was actually his son who helped out. I wanna see if there's any shame on his face." Shoto waits by the door and looks over his shoulder at Ryumi. "Coming?"

"Yeah, yeah..." She answers, looking around, double checking she has everything, then looks to Midoriya. "Sorry to leave you here by yourself."

He waves his hands in front of him, smiling. "Don't worry about it. I have plenty to keep busy with."

Ryumi nods and runs up to join Shoto. "Alright, to the station then?"

He steps out into the hall. "You don't have to follow me; I'm sure Manual is waiting..."

"It's fine. It's not much of a detour." She waves to the green haired boy behind them. "See you at class in a few days, Midoriya!"

Shoto also waves before closing the door and starting off down the hall.

"So... you really think it'll be okay?" She asks seriously as she falls in step beside him. She knows Endeavor didn't ever drop by the hospital during the few days they were there. He apparently texted a couple times, but the conversations were brief - not enough to have been more than a warning of what's coming.

Shoto sighs before responding. "Yeah." To her eyes, he's clearly burying his concern as they step outside and onto the streets of Hosu. He looks back at the building. "...I'll miss the food here."

Ryumi chuckles, despite her lingering fears. "Your dad's agency doesn't serve soba, huh?"

"No..." He grumbles, disappointed.

"So picky. You could try something different once in a while." She nudges him with her wing to get him going and they walk the few blocks to the station. "Well..." She begins her usual reminder that she's always available.

Shoto interrupts before she can finish the thought. "I know." He offers a small smile. "I will, okay?"

"Okay. Talk to you soon then." She returns the grin and waves as he heads on into the train station. "Oh, wait a sec." She trots up behind him.

"Hm?" He turns.

Ryumi looks a bit uncertain. "This is going to sound odd, but uh... do you like cats?"

He raises an eyebrow. "I guess... I wanted one as a kid, but..." He trails off, looking at the sidewalk.

"...He wouldn't let you, huh?" She asks, expecting she knows the answer.

Shoto nods. "Apparently it would be a distraction..." He pauses, becoming briefly distant as he remembers. "I tried to take in a stray once, but, well..."

"...Yeah, I never got to have a pet either. Couldn't afford one." She gets a momentary sad look before dragging the conversation back to her main point. "Anyway... there's somewhere I wanna take you. Maybe... after our first day back to class?"

"Sure, but... what for?" He stares at her, questioning. "And why ask about cats?"

She waves it off. "It'll make sense when we get there. And just... think of it as a way to celebrate our victory, okay?"

"Alright..." Shoto shrugs, gives her a quick wave and heads into the train station. "See you."

"Yeah. See you soon." Ryumi smiles and waves back, even though he isn't looking.

As she turns to make her way to the Normal Agency, she can't help one last glance over her shoulder. I hope it goes okay... She presses her lips together, thinking of the intimidating figure of Endeavor.

She shakes her head and takes off into the air. She has to take it a little bit slow still, but she can manage. And she's eager to get back to flying after so many days stuck indoors.

The end of her internship is as uneventful as it began, but even quieter without Iida's presence. And a couple days of patrols, office work, and some light cleanup from the previous attack later, it's over.

Chapter Text

Ryumi lands on the main walk of the UA campus on their first day back to class. She flutters down right next to Shoto, the gust throwing his hair and mixing the colors wildly. "Morning." She greets him as she pulls her flight goggles off and stows them in her bag.

"Good morning..." He responds, distracted as he pauses to attempt to fix his hair.

She bats her wing into his shoulder to try and get him moving again. "You're so fussy."

Shoto ignores the push, still struggling to get the different colored strands separated again without a mirror.

"Fine, here." Ryumi says with a sigh as she steps in front and helps him out.

"Thanks." He runs a hand over the area to resmooth it and starts walking again.

"So... how've you been? I... assume everything was okay, since you didn't say anything?" She asks, watching him carefully.

He nods. "Yeah. I couldn't do much until my arm healed, though." He gently rubs the part of his left arm that was wounded in the battle. She doubts it's actually still bandaged, though with his uniform jacket on it's hard to say.

"And... him?" She cautiously prods him toward her actual concern.

But surprisingly, Shoto just shrugs. "It was fine. He... never said anything about it."

Ryumi jumps ahead to look him in the eyes, disbelieving. "Seriously?"

He nods again. "Yeah... I even asked once. He brushed it off." Shoto looks upward, like he's trying to remember. "He just got a weird look and said something like... 'less important than what I'm trying to show you now'. It never came up again."

"Huh..." She puts a hand to her mouth, considering, her tail swishing behind. After a moment, her eyes flick toward him. "Could've saved me some worry if you'd just said so on the phone, y'know."

He shifts uncomfortably and shoves his hands in his pockets. "I... felt bad. Since you all got yelled at..."

"You would think like that." She grins her fangy grin. "Still worried about that curse of yours too?"

Shoto doesn't really answer, but he grumbles in a way that says 'yes'.

Ryumi laughs again, nudging him with her wing. "Well, I'll ask the others if they're still up for stopping by a shrine after class. Even if not, we can still drop by one on the way to that place."

Shoto nods, looking a little less anxious. He glances her way as she mentions the plans they made before. "You never said where we're going."

"Didn't I?" She answers coyly. "Well, it's..."

"Hey you two!"

A voice comes from behind them, and the pair turn to see Yaoyorozu running up to them. She slows as she catches up and joins them, walking to Ryumi's left. "Good morning Ryumi, Todoroki."

"Morning, Yaoyorozu."

"Good morning."

She smiles at the pair. "So how were your internships? Do anything exciting?"

"We fought some villains..." Shoto begins.

"Mostly a lot of patrolling, but things did get a little crazy at the end." Ryumi takes over for him. "Got in a bit over our heads, actually."

He sighs. "A bit, yeah..."

Yaoyorozu gives them a confused glance. "I didn't think you two were interning at the same place."

Shoto starts to answer, but Ryumi jumps in instead. "We weren't, we just... we both ended up in Hosu that night."

The taller girl's eyes go wide. "Wait, Hosu? You don't mean..."

"The hero killer, yeah." Shoto answers, as if it isn't even a big deal.

Yaoyorozu covers her mouth with a hand. "So the four high school students mentioned on the news..."

Ryumi nods and ruffles her own hair. "Yup. Like I said, in over our heads." She pauses, thinking. "I'm surprised you hadn't heard already. I know Midoriya was on the phone with like half the class while we were all in the hospital to explain that message he sent."

"So that's what that... that makes sense." Yaoyorozu lets out a worried sigh. "It's a good thing Endeavor was able to save you all before anything worse happened."

Ryumi shoots Shoto a warning glare that says 'remember, play along'.

"...Yeah." He says, though his tone isn't exactly convincing.

"So, what about yours, Yaoyorozu?" The dragon girl asks. She's genuinely curious of course, but it's also just a good excuse to change the topic.

Yaoyorozu immediately grows quieter. "Oh, well... nothing so exciting."

Ryumi prods at her to continue. "Where did you go again? I remember you saying, but..."

"Uwabami's..." She answers reluctantly.

"I know Midoriya mentioned her... I think I got an offer from her too, but I'm not sure..." Ryumi hums softly, trying to remember. "Anyway. How was it?"

Yaoyorozu sighs and looks toward the pavement. "Well, I got a lot of experience with the uhm, business side of being a hero... photo shoots, publicity, sponsorships, autograph sessions, interviews..."

Ryumi nods along as she explains. "That's important stuff too. At least if you don't deliberately avoid it like sensei does."

"I know... I guess I was just hoping for something a little more heroic feeling?" The taller girl's shoulders slump. "Even when we finally went on patrol, it turned into an impromptu photo op before we even got four blocks from the agency doors..."

The dragon girl puts on a good-natured smile. "I suppose that's how it is when you're that popular. I mean, look at All Might." She's thinking again, flicking her tail. "And hey, you're way ahead of us on that front. I could probably fumble my way through an interview, but this dummy..." She gestures to Shoto and her grin widens to show her fangs.

Shoto stares back blankly at the sudden mention, looking like a deer in headlights - or like Midoriya anytime too many eyes are on him.

But Yaoyorozu doesn't seem to find the attempted joke very funny. "I guess..." She takes out her phone and does a bad job of faking remembering something. "Oh, I need... Sorry, I have to run on ahead. I'll see you two at class!" She runs off, leaving them behind.

Ryumi reaches out, slowing her walk as the other girl vanishes up ahead. "Wait, Yaoyorozu..." It's too late, of course. She sighs and looks at Shoto. "I don't know what to do with her. Obviously the internship wasn't any help..."

"Don't ask me." He shakes his head.

"Yeah, I know... Maybe Midoriya or Iida will have an idea. Or Ochaco? She bounced back from her loss shockingly well..." She frowns as they approach the main building, trying to come up with anything she could do to help encourage her friend.

When they arrive at the classroom and take their seats, the place is alive with chatter, like usual. Or maybe more than usual - it has been a week, after all. Though Ryumi notes that Yaoyorozu isn't here just yet.

It's getting to be warmer now, though not quite time for summer uniforms yet, so several in the class have removed their outer jackets and left them on their chairs. Shoto does as well, after setting down his bag, but Ryumi elects to keep hers on at least for the morning.

Immediately when Bakugo walks into the room, it's clear something about him has changed. It takes Ryumi a moment to pin down what it is, but his hair is strangely tidy, well groomed, and lying flat against his head - a far cry from the messy explosive puffball he normally has.

Sero and Kirishima take note instantly, bursting into uncontrolled laughter. "Bwa ha ha ha ha! Really? What the heck, Bakugo?!"

"Stop laughing! It's just stuck like this, even after a good washing I can't get it back the right way..." Bakugo snarls, his whole body trembling with rage as the other boys continue to point and howl hysterically. "Did you not hear me? Keep it up and I'll murder the both of you."

Sero gets the widest, most evil, taunting grin on his face. "I'd like to see ya try, pretty boy!" He slaps his leg and starts laughing all over again.

Kirishima falls forward into a desk, pounding on the top with a fist and cackling.

Bakugo continues shouting, ruffles his hair until it halfway resembles normal and stalks menacingly toward the jokesters. "What'd you call me?!" As he gets up in their faces, an explosion seems to poof from his head and fully restores his regular hairstyle.

Both the other boys point and start laughing even harder. "Hey, there it goes!" Sero adds breathlessly.

Ryumi contemplates the need to step in as Bakugo grapples with the two, but despite his threats it looks more like a bit of (relatively) harmless wrestling between the three. And... she checks the time. Sensei will be in before much longer. She keeps half an eye on the struggle near the front of the room even as Midoriya and Iida pop in and walk back to the corner where her and Shoto sit.

On the other side of the room, Mina leans on Tsu's desk as a few of the girls chat. "Wow, awesome! So you got to take out some actual villains? I'm jealous!"

Jiro stands there by them, idly twirling one of her earjacks around a finger. "I mean all I did was help people evacuate and provide logistical support. No real fighting."

"That's still awesome! Sounds like so much fun." Mina cheers, leaning in excitedly.

Tsu calmly removes her jacket and hangs it on her chair. "I spent basically the whole time training and cleaning the ship deck. Though one time, we did catch a bunch of drug smugglers."

"That sounds amazing!" Mina bounces a couple times.

Jiro, in her usual way, is significantly more chill than Mina - yet she's clearly slightly jealous of the feats of her classmate. "Okay, that's really cool."

Tsu peeks past the two by her desk, calling out to another of the girls. "How about you, Ochaco? How'd the past week go for you?"

Ochaco turns, her normally light and bubbly attitude replaced with a dangerous aura. "I'd say that it was very... instructive." She throws a couple punches into the air, probably miming some of the training she did.

Tsu presses a finger to her lips, observing. "Ochaco's had some kind of awakening. I think she found her fighting spirit."

"She was with the battle hero, right? He must've been something else." It's hard to tell if Jiro is more concerned or impressed by this.

"Such a transformation in just a single week... She's like a totally different person." Kaminari is awed but also terrified as he watches her throw a couple more punches. "I, on the other hand, was pretty spoiled. Everyone at my internship loved me, it was actually kinda great. Now if you wanna talk about the ones who really changed... it was those four." He casually points at the back of the room, and the cluster of those who were in Hosu turn to look.

"Oh, yeah! The hero killer!" Sero also points to the group, looking entirely unconcerned about Bakugo dragging him around by the collar.

While most of the class is distracted, Yaoyorozu walks in silently and takes her seat.

Kirishima is also being wrestled by Bakugo and paying it little mind. "I'm just glad you guys made it back alive. Seriously."

Sato walks over, joining a forming crowd near the four in question, along with Ojiro, Shoji, and Toru. "You were lucky Endeavor showed up and saved you guys."

"So cool. Just what I'd expect from the number two hero." Toru almost sings - it's odd hearing such praise for the man. Talented and powerful as Endeavor is, and even given the results he gets, he's never been what you might describe as popular - largely down to his famously grumpy attitude.

Ryumi shoots a look at Shoto, waiting to see what he says.

Shoto tilts his head down before answering. "Yeah, that's right... he saved us." His tone isn't that convincing to Ryumi, but nobody else seems to notice.

"Uh-huh..." Midoriya adds nervously.

Ojiro turns toward them. "Did you guys hear the news about the hero killer? Everyone's been saying that he was somehow connected to the League of Villains? I hate to think how things could've turned out if a scary guy like him had showed up at the USJ that time."

Shoji nods in agreement, but doesn't add anything.

"Hold on. Sure, he's scary... but did you see him in that weird video?" Kaminari asks, looking over shoulder at the tailed boy.

Ojiro glances back at him. "I didn't know there was a video of him."

Kaminari fiddles with his phone like he's trying to find the video and pull it up. "Yeah. It's all over the internet. He's a pretty evil villain, but like, you can really see his tenacity. His one-track mind. Kind of cool, don't you think?"

"Of course you'd think that. Since your mind also only has one track." Jiro sasses him, glaring across the room.

Midoriya jumps in too, but his tone is more concerned, as he flicks his gaze between the electric boy and Iida. "Kaminari!"

Kaminari is initially too busy glowering at Jiro, but suddenly realizes what he's saying and covers his mouth. "Huh? Ah... Iida... sorry dude!"

"No... it's okay. You're fine." Iida says distantly, staring at his mostly healed hand. Some bandages remain barely visible on his left wrist, peeking out under his uniform's sleeves. "It's true, he's certainly a man of conviction, so I understand if some people might think he was cool..." He lifts his right arm, gradually sounding more like himself as he continues speaking. "But instead of helping the world, his beliefs led him to cold-blooded murder. And no matter what one's motives are, killing cannot be condoned. So that no others must suffer my fate... I promise, I will correct my course and strive to be a perfect hero!" He ends the declaration with his signature dramatic chopping gesture.

Midoriya cheerfully lifts a fist in support. "Iida...! Yeah, let's do it."

The class president smiles, then looks at the clock. "Now, class is about to begin. Everyone, please take your seats!" He directs, waving his arm overhead. "Let us work much harder until we all become pros. The villains won't stand a chance, and class 1-A will ensure there is peace!"

"He's back... and still loud." Tokoyami grumbles to himself as he returns to his desk.

Jiro rolls her eyes and glares at Kaminari. "This is your fault for talking about weird stuff."

Kaminari sulks his way back to his seat. "Sorry... I'm gonna keep my mouth shut."

Shoto doesn't look particularly enthusiastic about the speech happening right next to his desk either. Though he's surely relieved to have Iida back to his old self, the tired look in his eyes says he thinks it's far too early in the morning for this much shouting.

In the afternoon, the class meets out at one of the many training fields. This one looks like a mockup of a sprawling industrial complex, and is labeled with the Greek letter gamma on a large plaque near the gate.

"I am here! Hope you're ready to return to our lessons." All Might stands before that gate, his hands on his hips, posing as ever like an action figure of himself. "Today it's hero basic training. Feels like I haven't seen you in a while, so welcome back. Now then, listen carefully for what's in store." He pauses to clear his throat. "As an immediate follow up to your internships, today's activity is a playful one. We're going to be conducting a little race. Take everything you've learned the last week and apply it to this rescue training."

Yaoyorozu shifts her feet, looking a bit gloomy again.

Iida, dressed in his regular gym uniform since his costume is out for repairs, lifts his hand almost immediately. "If it's rescue training, then shouldn't we be at the USJ instead?"

Next to him, Midoriya is quietly fanboying to himself, gone all starry-eyed and staring at All Might. "His golden age costume...!"

Ryumi chuckles at the pair and lightly nudges Shoto. "Nice to have everything back to normal, huh?"

He nods silently.

"Ah, that place is for disaster rescues in particular. But what did I say earlier? That's right... this is a race. So prepare." All Might gestures to the area behind him. "You're about to step into field gamma! Inside it's a dense spread of factories that wind together to create an intricate network of mazelike alleys, so good luck finding your way around. You'll be competing in groups of five, with each person starting from a different location on the outskirts of the model city. I'll send up a distress signal from somewhere inside, and you do what you must to rescue me. Whoever finds me first wins!" As he wraps up his instructions, he not so subtly points at Bakugo. "Naturally, try to keep the destruction of property to a bare minimum, please."

"Stop pointing at me." The angry blonde growls.

But All Might doesn't pay him any mind and just moves along with the exercise. "Okay, first group, get to your marks."

Midoriya, Ojiro, Iida, Mina, and Sero fan out to the designated locations around the perimeter of field gamma, while the rest of the class waits at a location with a large monitor for observation.

"Iida's still not totally recovered yet, right? Maybe he should sit this one out..." Kaminari asks as they all file into the observation deck.

Kirishima walks over next to him and the big screen flashes through images of each of the five as they arrive at their designated places. "Man, everyone in this group has really good mobility."

Yaoyorozu sits down, setting her hands delicately in her lap and staring patiently at the display. "Huh. If I had to say, I think Midoriya's at a heavy disadvantage against those four..."

"That's what I think. Moving around quickly isn't really one of his strong suits, that's for sure." Jiro adds, sitting casually next to Yaoyorozu. "To be honest, I'm not really sold on his power yet."

"Right. And whenever he uses his powers, he always gets badly injured." She answers, while the screen shows the green haired boy stretching and warming up.

Kirishima turns excitedly to Kaminari. "Who's your pick? I say Sero's taking first. He's the best bet."

"Oh, yeah? I got odds on Ojiro." Kaminari responds.

From the back of the crowd, Bakugo grumbles to nobody in particular. "Deku'll come in last."

Ochaco, sitting in a butterfly pose with her hands clutching her ankles, looks at Tsu next to her. "Even if he's still recovering, I've got a good feeling about Iida. I think he's got this one."

Tsu nods, but doesn't offer her own opinion.

"Well? What do you think?" Ryumi turns to Shoto.

He puts a hand to his chin and briefly closes his eyes. "...The environment is too vertical for Iida's speed to help him much. I haven't seen enough of how Ashido handles climbing to be certain... probably Sero or... Midoriya."

Ryumi nods, then adds in a low voice. "Bakugo is gonna lose his mind over this." A conspiratorial grin spreads on her face.

Finally, when all competitors are in place and have had a couple minutes to prepare, All Might's voice comes over the speakers. "Is everyone ready? Begin!" An air horn blares and the distress signal activates.

All five charge in - Iida sprinting through the alleys, Ojiro bouncing along across the rooftops, Mina gliding on her acid, Sero firing off his tape and swinging around like Spiderman. Predictably, Sero is off to an early lead.

The others haven't noticed Midoriya yet.

Kirishima jabs an elbow into Kaminari's arm, excited that his pick is winning. "See! Look at him go! In a cramped maze like this, it makes sense - overhead's the way to do it."

Kaminari looks disappointed and gradually more worried as Ojiro makes slower progress than he was hoping - though the tailed boy is still performing respectably.

"So that means Sero's at an advantage because he can take to the sky. He's great at staying airborne." Shoji adds, speaking from one of his tentacles.

In the corner away from the rest of the class, Koda also looks fretful. Though he didn't voice a pick, it's easy to infer his choice isn't in the lead.

Meanwhile, Midoriya bounds across the factory rooftops, leaping from one to the next, that emerald energy crackling over him.

The whole class is stunned by the display - minus the three who already saw a preview of it in Hosu. Several of those sitting jump to their feet and stare.

"Whoa, Midoriya?!" Kirishima blurts out, gaping at the screen.

Kaminari is similarly caught off guard. "Since when can he do that?"

Ochaco holds her fists tight to her chest as she watches. "Crazy. Those jumps... he looks just like..."

Near the back of the crowd, Bakugo hunches over, growling to himself. Ryumi eyes him subtly, a smug smile on her face.

Even among the other competitors, Sero, Ojiro, and Mina all pause briefly in shock at the sudden new abilities of their classmate.

And then mere seconds after it starts to look like he might win, Midoriya miscalculates his landing, his foot slipping on the edge of an uneven pipe. He crashes to the ground, leaving Sero to take first. Ojiro ends in second, Iida third, Mina fourth, and Midoriya barely crawls to the finish in last place.

Sero stands triumphant with a sash across his chest that reads 'thank you, hero!'. Ojiro sighs in disappointment, while Mina waves her arms and wails, throwing a fit. Iida falls to his knees but reaches out toward his fallen friend, still face first on the pavement.

All Might stands before them, regarding the group. "Young Sero may have taken first place, but compared to the start of the year, you all showed some incredible improvements. You've figured out new and better ways to use your quirks! Keep up the good work as you prepare for your upcoming final exams."

"Sir!" The others reply - most of them, anyway.

Midoriya finally drags himself back up to sitting. "Right. Finals are soon..."

All Might tweets a whistle and helps the kid to his feet as the others shuffle out. "Okay, group one, leave the field. You're up, group two!"

"That's us..." Yaoyorozu says, heading out by herself.

Ochaco taps Tsu on the shoulder as the frog girl hops away. "Good luck!"

Of course, Bakugo stalks off on his own too, and the rage is obvious in his walk.

Just before they have to separate to go to their respective locations, Ryumi nudges Shoto with her wing. "See you at the finish line. I'll be waving to you when you get there."

"Not if I get there first." A small smile briefly appears on his face.

"Oooh, a challenge?" Ryumi replies with an eager fangy grin. "You're on. Wanna bet dinner on it?"

Shoto glances over his shoulder at her. "...Sure."

She chuckles to herself and flutters away with a wink.

As with the previous group, they're given a couple minutes of prep time after arriving in position. Eventually, the buzzer goes off and they all tear off in search of the beacon. Tsu hops gracefully from building to building, similar to Midoriya in the previous round, but her grip lets her move in much riskier paths without fear of matching his fate. Yaoyorozu spares a moment to create some boosters and a hang glider before setting out for the center. Bakugo blasts off at top speed overhead, and Shoto glides on a trail of ice, pushing himself up over obstacles and propelling him forward.

But Ryumi's moves are the most reckless by far. She dives through tight tangles of pipes and wires between the buildings, expertly tucking in her wings just enough to fit through the gaps.

The crowd observing stares transfixed, terrified by the near misses she's pulling through.

But to her, this is exhilarating. This is what it means to have wings. This is what it is to be born for the skies.

She was made for this.

Coming out of a dive she spies a warm vent spewing heated air up, and pushes into the flow, grazing the side of the building and allowing her to regain some altitude without losing much speed.

She spins around just for fun as she scans the mess of industry for any sign of their teacher. She can see Bakugo and Shoto clearly, since their means of mobility leave such obvious trails. She doesn't see the other two girls though.

Finally, she closes in on the signal. Her slitted pupils narrow as her gaze fixes on the number one hero. He's tucked in a thin space between two larger buildings this time. She folds up her wings and falls toward the goal.

Bakugo seems to notice her movement and accelerates again, his blasts rising in intensity. She's too focused on the goal to see, but his eyes are burning with hate, with a need to prove something.

Unfortunately for him, the cycle of fury visibly spinning in his head distracts him just enough. He miscalculates the distance and angle of his approach and sails past the narrow alley on one side as Ryumi drops in from above.

She opens her wings just a bit a few meters from the ledge to soften the landing - All Might is surely sturdy enough to withstand the shockwave of her crashing in deliberately, but in a real distress call she wouldn't be able to count on that.

Besides, we were asked to limit collateral damage. She thinks to herself with more than a little amusement as Bakugo recovers from that costly mistake.

Still, he doesn't recover quite fast enough.

A blast of chill air from behind causes Ryumi to turn, folding her wings around her chest to keep warm. Shoto steps off the ice column onto the platform only half a second before a seething Bakugo arrives.

"Guess you're buying." Ryumi grins, splitting her wings just enough to wave to Shoto - as promised. "Sorry, but I'm never more serious than when food is on the line."

"I could say the same..." He sighs, a faint steam cloud forming around him as he readjusts his temperature.

On the far side of the platform, Bakugo roars and punches the nearby wall as hard as he can. The metal is severely dented and scorched - but from the look on the boy's face, the hit wasn't without backlash.

All Might tries to walk over and make an effort to calm him, but one glare freezes the hero in his tracks.

Tsu arrives next, making probably the most graceful finish of the group, and Yaoyorozu stumbles in a minute or two behind, apparently having changed her approach at least once on the way over as her equipment is completely different from how she began. The tall girl looks relieved at first, but as she notices how many of the others beat her here, her expression quickly falls.

Again, All Might congratulates the five competitors, presenting Ryumi with a sash that matches Sero's. As they file out to allow the next group to go, Ryumi tries to catch Yaoyorozu, but she seems to ignore her every effort.

Koda, Toru, Jiro, Kaminari, and Kirishima are up next. It's a much slower run, the group having little in the way of exceptional movement ability, so they have to actually suffer navigating the dense labyrinth. It ultimately comes down to Jiro, Kaminari, and Koda taking the first three spots thanks to their ability to more quickly and precisely trace the source of the signal. For a moment it seems like Kirishima might've managed fourth - but only because Toru's finish is nearly overlooked.

The final group consists of Aoyama, Sato, Shoji, Ochaco, and Tokoyami. Back in the realm of movement specialists - though not quite as stacked as the first two groups were. Ochaco sails easily over the rooftops and looks to be an easy first place until the nausea catches up to her. Though Tokoyami's Dark Shadow-assisted leaps are less impressive than Ochaco's zero gravity on paper, he can keep that trick going for longer without any ill effect. He finishes first, with a very determined and very sickly-looking Ochaco not far behind. Shoji finishes in third thanks to his recon abilities and gliding, and Aoyama lands roughly on the platform in fourth, covered in bruises and scuff marks from dozens of ungraceful jumps - and looking almost as green as Ochaco, for that matter. Sato comes in just after him, panting from the struggle of climbing and running everywhere. He doesn't say anything about it, but he looks a little miffed at being stuck in a group with so many better suited to the terrain than him.

The whole time the remaining races are running, Yaoyorozu keeps mostly to herself, watching from a corner of the observation platform. Ryumi considers going over, but she has a sense that her friend is more making a show of being occupied with the race than actually analyzing it.

It's not like I'd know what to say, anyway... I've already tried everything I can think of.

So, she leaves Yaoyorozu her space, though the lingering question of what - if anything - she can do keeps her distracted through the remainder of the class.

Chapter Text

"Ah, that was some tough training today, huh?" Sato comments to the other boys as they start changing back into their uniforms. His tone is genuine, apparently mostly over his loss by now.

Aoyama sits on a bench and removes his red visor, delicately wiping his face with a deep blue handkerchief speckled with silvery glitter. "It's the first class in a while that's had me glistening."

Kirishima stands nearby, pulling off his armbands and laying them in his costume case. "Man, I really gotta work on my mobility."

"Yeah... me too." Sato adds, looking over his shoulder at the shorter boy. "But you had a chance, at least..."

Kirishima shrugs. "I dunno man, we both still ended up in last."

"You could also compensate by improving other skills." Tokoyami observes calmly, already nearly back in his uniform. He moves over to a mirror on one wall to fix his tie.

Kaminari is being slow of course, only just taking off his costume's shirt. "We'll still fall behind at this rate... I wish I could use my quirk for speed somehow. I'm jealous of guys like you and Sero." As he watches Tokoyami walk away, something on the wall seems to catch his eye. He drifts over to the worn poster - a list of some basic rules with a friendly cartoony image of principal Nezu in one corner. It barely clings to the wall, apparently the tape holding it in place has long since given up.

He attempts to smooth it out, but the effort only makes it worse and the corner peels up more. "Come on... Hey, Sero, can you..." But he gets distracted before he can finish asking. His eyes widen and he turns to Midoriya, dragging the other boy over to the falling poster. "Hey, dude, check this out!"

Midoriya looks confused by his classmate's sudden excitement. "Hm? What is it, Kaminari?"

The electric boy has a stupid grin on as he gestures to the wall like a used car salesman. "Behind this poster... the greatest treasure... You know what's on the other side of this wall, right?"

Midoriya shakes his head, though he seems increasingly concerned by where this is going.

Kaminari hits the other boy's shoulder gently. "The girls' locker room!"

A jolt passes through the air and some of the others (particularly Sato and Sero) take notice and start to creep toward the poster.

Shoto mostly ignores the commotion, though he does make a point to turn away from that wall and shuffles farther from it as he starts tying his tie. He's sure Iida will handle things.

True to form, Iida stalks over to the group, his uniform shirt still unbuttoned and showing the bandages across his chest. "Don't even think about it, Kaminari! Peeping on them like that would be criminal!"

Kaminari steps backwards from the class president and fakes tripping and stumbling into the wall. As he pretends to catch himself, he tears the poster fully off the wall and throws it into Iida's face. "Oh, whoops? I slipped, and..."

Before his eye can reach the hole, something pops through and stabs him.

"Ahhhhh!" His pained howl draws looks from everyone in the room. He falls away from the wall clutching his eye and his ears, wailing incessantly. "Stop, stop - please! Mercy, Jiro!"

Midoriya shuffles father from the hole just in case, spying the fleshy cord sticking out of the small hole and currently torturing Kaminari. "Jiro's accuracy and stealth makes for a deadly combo..."

Iida hurries over and swats the cowering Kaminari on the back of the head. "You reap what you sow! I should ask sensei to give you extra homework for this."

"C'mon man..." Kaminari whines, curled into a ball on the floor and still holding his eye.

On the far side of that wall, Jiro stands guard with one of her jacks plugged into the wall itself for listening purposes, and the other defending the small peephole.

"Ugh. Thanks, Kyoka." Toru comments indignantly.

Ryumi stands a meter or so away, her shirt held in her hands, only half finished changing. She has her wings folded around her chest as she glares toward the wall.

Most of the girls are halfway dressed again already, or had barely started removing their costumes, but Toru and Mina seem irritated just on principle. Among them all, Toru is probably the least dressed, still in her costume - though Ryumi has to wonder how much it really matters when you're invisible. It's not like there's anything to see.

"How despicable!" Yaoyorozu pauses - she's only halfway out of her own costume, but it honestly isn't showing all that much more than it already does. "Let's plug that hole immediately!" She concentrates and starts crafting something to repair the wall with.

As the day comes to an end, Aizawa pops into the classroom for one last announcement before dismissing everyone. "Well, it's almost time for summer vacation." He begins, but before anyone can start daydreaming of a vacation, he shuts those thoughts down. "Don't get too excited. It would be completely irrational for you to just relax for an entire month." He shuffles a stack of papers on the podium in front of him.

"Don't tell me..." Kaminari looks behind, sharing a fearful but cautiously excited glance with Kirishima.

"You'll be doing a summer training camp in the woods." Aizawa explains in his ever flat and uninterested tone.

"I freaking knew it. Nice!" Kaminari and Kirishima cheer together.

Mina leaps out of her seat, fists in the air. "A big sleepover!" She stops and gasps. "And truth or dare!"

Kaminari leans back in his chair, taking a wistful tone. "Bathhouses..."

"Fireworks." Tsu adds, smiling to herself.

Iida nods, reserved as always but still pleased with the news. "Curry, yes. And s'mores."

Ryumi grins and flexes her wings. "Food, friends, plenty of open air to fly in..."

"I hope there's soba..." Shoto mumbles.

Yaoyorozu puts a hand to her mouth thoughtfully. "We've been training in cities, so these will be very different conditions for most of us."

"No matter what the environment, we must always remain vigilant. Yes, very wise." Tokoyami comments, folding his arms.

"Hot springs..." Kaminari whispers to no one in particular. He's lost in his imagination already.

Toru's short sleeves wave back and forth in the air. "Hanging out with everyone all summer - I'm so excited!"

Aizawa pointedly clears his throat and glares out at them. A slight red flash passes over his eyes and the class instantly falls silent again. "However... anyone who doesn't pass the upcoming final exams is in for summer school hell, right here."

"Everyone do your best!" Kirishima calls out, one fist raised.

Bakugo grumbles to himself. "This is so freaking stupid."

Kaminari turns and gives a little wink. "Do your best, girls!"

Several unimpressed glares are thrown back his way, and shortly after Aizawa dismisses them all for the day.

"So, still feeling cursed?"

"Huh?" The question startles Shoto from his thoughts and it takes a moment for him to process what was said. "Oh. I don't know yet..." He shifts his bag on his shoulder, a slight jingling sound comes from inside. "...but the priest said I should keep that charm for a few days, just in case, so..."

Ryumi chuckles as they cross the street. "Of course."

It's not a part of town he's very familiar with. He knows it's not far from her apartment, though. Part of the big shopping district a ways off from there, he thinks. But he's not really been paying attention, just following along behind her.

"This is it." She gestures to a nice-looking cafe just ahead.

The doors are almost as large as the one to their classroom, and open automatically when they approach. The sign above reads 'Hopper's Cafe'. One of the windows has a faded old flyer taped in the corner: 'Children of Naruha - every Sunday, 7pm'.

Shoto wonders if that's a music group or something as he follows Ryumi through the door.

Just inside is a little podium with a map of the tables on top of it and a folder of menus on the side. Behind the stand is a... a man, judging by the voice, with smooth looking skin. He's still roughly humanoid in shape, but his head and body have the look of a spotted eel, including a stubby finned tail poking out from his fine suit.

The eel's eyes light up as he sees them enter. "Welcome to Hopper's! I..." The pattern of spots running along down either side of his head and neck glow a soft blue-green, and his smile broadens. "Ryumi! It's been a while."

She lifts a hand in a casual wave, returning the grin. "Hey Terou. Yeah, I guess it has..."

"Well, we're always happy to see you." He starts to delicately pick out two menus from the folder, looking at Shoto. "Who's this?"

"Friend from school." She answers, about to follow him over to a table when the soft jangling of a bell draws her attention. "Oh, Katy! Hi there..." She kneels, picking up a dark gray cat with a bell collar. It meows, staring at Shoto until Ryumi starts gently petting its head.

Ryumi looks to him and smiles. "Katy's a sweetheart." The gray cat purrs softly as the dragon girl holds her.

As Shoto looks more closely around the cafe, he starts to notice a variety of carpeted climbing trees, and about a dozen other cats lounging in various locations or slowly wandering around.

"Here." She holds the cat out to him.

Though he's a bit worried about accidentally hurting the little thing, he does take her. The cat... Katy, settles easily onto his left arm and starts purring once again.

The well-dressed eel - Terou - leads the pair to a table in the far corner, near a bank of windows where two more cats are laying in the afternoon sun. Ryumi waits a moment, and Terou removes the chair from her side of the table, returning swiftly with a stool to replace it.

"Thanks." She sits, and Shoto takes the regular chair across from her. Katy carefully shifts off his arm as he does and settles into his lap.

As he looks around the cafe, he begins to notice a number of unusual chair and table designs throughout - as well as an abnormally high number of heteromorphic quirks. They're common enough, sure, so the sight doesn't surprise him, but the concentration here is definitely odd. Behind the bar at the back, an octopus-like man works four different coffee machines at once, flicking his eyes between them as his many arms expertly prepare the drinks.

"Your usual, Ryumi?" Terou asks, laying menus on the table.

"Sure." She smiles, noting Shoto's still wandering gaze. "He'll probably need a couple minutes."

Terou gives a slight bow and retreats from the table. "Of course."

Ryumi lifts a menu and pushes it into Shoto's face. "Look at this first - the shop will still be here after you order."

"Ah... Right..." He mumbles, taking the menu and reading it over. The whole time still circling the question of why this place in his head. He rests one hand on Katy's head, gently scratching at her ears as he reads.

Shortly after the orders have been placed and the eel man trots off to deliver them to the kitchen, Ryumi speaks up again. "So? What do you think?" She pauses, a slight embarrassed smile crossing her features. "I know, I know, no soba. But besides that."

He looks around the restaurant again. "It's..." He can't quite figure out what to say about it.

"Yeah, I suppose you've never..." She begins, but Shoto shakes his head.

"No, I... I see why you like it here. Most places do what they're required to, but..."

Her eyes brighten. "Yeah. They put in the extra effort here." Her wings shift behind her, able to move freely and comfortably without the back of a chair in the way.

It occurs to him that even in Ryumi's own home the furniture is normal - none of it is designed to accommodate her, even though her mother had similar features. But he sets that thought aside for now and glances down at Katy, a soft smile on his face. "And the cats are nice."

"I thought you might like it... but I wasn't sure." She ruffles her hair, then turns as a giant praying mantis in a suit with a large apron over top approaches the table.

"Ahh, so she's not too good for us after all." The mantis says, his mandibles spreading slightly in what might be a smile.

Ryumi pokes out her tongue at him. "Don't be like that, Hop. I've just been busy with school and stuff..."

The mantis folds his bladed arms over his chest. "Mhm. Too busy with your big fancy school."

She shoves her wing at him, and he stumbles a little, though it barely actually affects him given his extra legs. "UA is pretty demanding, I'll have you know."

"Alright, alright." He waves a blade back and forth as if it were a hand. "It is good to see you, y'know. I have to get back to work, but... don't be such a stranger, huh?"

"I'll try." Ryumi lifts her hand in a wave as the mantis strolls back into the rear of the shop.

Shoto looks between her and the mantis man as he returns to work. She seems to sense his confusion, and tilts her head. "Something bothering you?"

"Nothing, just... 'Hop'?" He asks with a curious look.

"Mhm. One of the owners." She answers, apparently missing what he meant by the question.

"But he's a mantis?" Shoto clarifies.

Ryumi chuckles as she catches on. "Yeah, it's kind of a little joke. His business partners are... well, I guess they're technically locusts? But they're the actual 'hoppers'... Just they don't actually look like bugs. So, I call him Hop."

"Huh." But he doesn't have much time to think on that before their food arrives.

A few minutes later as Ryumi idly stirs her strawberry smoothie, she looks up across the table. "You do agree with me, right?"

"Uh... about what?" He doesn't think he missed anything she said, they've both been fairly quiet since the food arrived, but he has no idea what she's talking about.

She blinks, as if suddenly realizing she didn't actually give any context for the question. "Oh, right. Yaoyorozu. She's so capable, I just..."

"Of course." Shoto responds quickly. "I voted for her to be class president."

"Oh, so you were the third vote? I wondered..." Ryumi pauses to sip from her smoothie and sighs. "I voted for her too. If she could just have confidence in her own decisions... Honestly, when we're in the middle of things she seems to do fine. But as soon as she has time to second guess herself..."

He nods. "Did Midoriya or Iida have any thoughts?"

"Not really..." She catches a bit of whipped cream on her straw and licks it clean, staring into what's left of the smoothie. "...I just wish I could help somehow. But I can't think of anything else to do or say to her."

He thinks for a while, briefly distracted as Katy leaps down from his lap to start wandering the cafe once again. "Mm. I don't think you need to worry. She'll find her way eventually."

"You're sure?" Ryumi toys with her straw, frowning.

Shoto shrugs. "Just a feeling, I guess."

Terou ambles back over with the check, laying it on the table between the pair. Ryumi digs in her bag, but before she can find her wallet, Shoto has already picked up the bill.

"You don't have to..." She starts to protest.

He nods to Terou. "It's fine. I... did lose the race after all."

Ryumi smiles gently. "Yeah. You did."

Chapter Text

She's back in Hosu. The city is aflame, and she's leading a group of civilians to safety. Her eyes dart around, searching for any further hint of trouble that might lurk in the darkness. "This way, the hospital isn't far."

A wave of smoke passes through the road, and there's a sharp pain in her arm. She swats at the spot, but there's nothing, just a buzzing sound that sets her on edge.

She keeps moving, guiding the group forward. It's just around the next corner.

But something changes. Her head starts pounding, and a sickness grips her stomach. She curls up, barely keeping to her feet.

The people turn to look at her. A couple of them ask something, but it sounds like they're underwater, and she can't make out the words.

A red haze inches into the edges of her vision, and lightning crawls across her limbs.

A part of her panics. She coughs as her body starts to shift.

The dragon roars, freezing the terrified crowd in place, at her mercy. Pain courses through her whole body. She only dimly registers what's happening as her claws tear through the petrified masses. The sickening crunch of bones breaking under the weight of her claws is distant, muffled, but still perfectly recognizable.

Blood soaks the pavement. Screams and pained gurgles echo dull and faint in her ears.

In seconds, it's over.

Her power runs dry, and she returns to normal. The haze fades from her eyes, but the pain wracks her body.

Everyone is dead.

All those she was supposed to protect. As she looks at them in horror, two faces stand out in the pile of twisted and mangled limbs.

Her parents are among the sea of shattered bodies.

She starts trembling, then shaking, uncontrollably and ever more severely. She falls to her knees, unable to stand. As her eyes blur with burning tears, she coughs. Blood splatters out, mixing with the river of crimson surrounding her.

Every breath only makes her cough up more blood. She can't stop. She wants to scream, but she can't even get enough air to try.

A voice from behind her. "It's no use pretending to be a hero now. A person's true nature is not so easily changed."

The hero killer.

She knows it's right. She doesn't resist.

The long blade pierces right through her, the tip emerging from her stomach.

She wakes up screaming.

Ryumi's eyes fly open and she frantically scans her room. Her hairline is damp with sweat, and she's shaking.

It wasn't real. It wasn't. I didn't... I never...

It takes a long time before she can convince herself that she's back in reality.

I... That wasn't how it happened. I never killed anyone... He wasn't there. Mom and dad aren't... they're just missing.

And then, with incredible effort she starts to slow her breathing from the panicked hyperventilation she's caught herself in.

I never killed anyone.

She takes a breath.

I never killed anyone.

She repeats it again and again in her head, deconstructing the inconsistencies with the real history she knows. It helps, but even knowing, reassuring herself it was a dream, the images still haunt her.

"It's no use pretending to be a hero now. A person's true nature is not so easily changed."

She shivers and curls up tighter. She grabs an armful of her plushies and hugs them to her chest.

"I'm not... that's not... how it happened..." She mumbles to the silent eyes of the plush dragons in her arms.

When she's almost breathing normally, she turns and reaches for the pill bottle on her nightstand. As she did back at the hospital, she carefully tips out one small white oval and swallows it. It's hard to keep from spilling them everywhere because her hands are still trembling.

She spends a moment petting one of the plush dragons, trying to focus on the feel of the soft fabric.

She hops out of bed, taking the dragon plush with her to the kitchen where she fills a glass with water and slowly drinks it. She stares at the plants in the living room as she does. Even as the visceral shock of the nightmare begins to fade, the oppressive emptiness of the apartment lingers.

She finishes the water and returns to bed, pulling her blankets tight around her. But she's still cold.

Ryumi stares at the stars on her ceiling. They aren't glowing right now, and she'd have to turn on a light to fix that, so she doesn't. Without really thinking about it, she finds her phone in her hands.

It... would be nice to talk to someone.

But it's the middle of the night and...

She stares at her texts. Shoto is the top number in the list.

He's probably not awake... and I... I can't tell him about... about that. He wouldn't want anything to do with me if he knew. Nobody would.

She looks around the empty room, the silent stares of her plushies, even with their friendly smiles. She curls up, pulling her knees up to her chest and folding her wings around them.

With a deep but still shaky breath, she types out a message.

hey... are you awake?

He probably won't answer anyway, and--

Her phone buzzes.

Yeah.

Are you okay?

Far away at his house in Musutafu, Shoto is laying in bed, staring up at his ceiling. He has the scale in his hand, brushing his thumb over the surface and slowly turning it over in his palm.

He still can't figure out why he picked the thing up, or why he's held onto it. It's basically a piece of her skin, and that's weird, but every time he's almost convinced himself to get rid of it, he can't help but think of the stories he used to love when he was little, and the mystic powers dragon scales were said to have.

He knows they're not real, of course. And Ryumi - even if her quirk makes her like a dragon, she's still human. There's no magic here.

But there's something about the color, the smoothness of it... almost perfect, aside from the small chip on the edge.

He sets it down by his phone, and he sees a faint light from the screen as his hand passes by it.

Ryumi?

Ryumi stares at the screen for a bit, not believing that he answered at all, much less so quickly.

Nightmares?

She blinks. That stirs her from her surprise. How would he...?

yeah... but how did you know?

I noticed back at the hospital. You haven't been sleeping well since then.

I um... I didn't wake you up, did I?

There's a slight pause.

Then or now?

...either...

No.

You've just looked more tired than usual.

She sighs and grabs one of her plushies - the crocodile this time. Before she can decide what to say, Shoto's responded again.

Do you want to talk about it?

Ryumi gently presses one of her fangs into her lower lip. I mean, yes, but...

I don't want to keep you awake.

It's fine, I don't mind.

She shifts uncomfortably and turns onto her side, propped up on her elbow.

but you're always tired in class already.

I wouldn't want sensei to yell at you for dozing off because of me...

There's a moment of quiet, and she wonders if he's actually gone back to bed.

Then her phone rings.

"Shoto?"

"How are you doing?" He asks quietly, not a hint of annoyance in his voice.

"Ah, well..." Ryumi struggles to answer.

"It's alright. I... I know it's tough. I have or... I used to have..." He trails off, but it's clear what he's trying to say. "It's been better recently. But I remember what it was like."

"I... I'll be okay soon. You really don't need to... did you even read my message before calling?" She can imagine, even if she can't see, that he's shaking his head.

"I did. But it's fine. Your pills take a bit to work, don't they? We'll just talk until then." He stops to think, then adds. "Besides, you can just make sure I don't fall asleep during class."

Ryumi sinks into her pillow. "What, you want me to poke you every couple minutes all morning long?"

"If that's what it takes." Shoto answers, as if it's really that simple. "...So, what happened?"

She growls softly in protest, but... as much as she doesn't want to be a bother to anyone, she really does want to talk. She can't tell him the worst part, but maybe it will still help.

She sighs. "...I was in Hosu again."

"The hero killer?" He asks, gently.

"...Mmm." It's more a noise than a real answer, but it conveys enough meaning. "And mom and dad... they were..." Her voice breaks, she can't quite finish that thought.

"Hey, it's alright." Shoto jumps in immediately, his tone calm and comforting even though he's obviously a little worried. "I'm sorry. That must've been..."

She takes a few breaths before saying anything else. "I know it wasn't real, but it's still..."

"Yeah. It sticks with you anyway."

Ryumi closes her eyes. Sometimes it amazes her how well he catches on. Especially when he can be so dense with other things. The chat they all had in the hospital that day returns to her mind, and the faintest smile sneaks briefly onto her face. The same big dummy who decided he was cursed over a couple little coincidences...

She nods, even though she knows he can't see her. "...Yeah. It does."

On the other end of the line, Shoto has the loose scale in his hand again, idly turning it between his fingers as he does his best to reassure her.

He realizes he's not very good at this, but he's determined to try anyway. He promised he would, after all. But even if he hadn't...

He flips the scale over again, tilting it in the low light from his phone. He watches the exact place where the blue turns black shift slightly as he rotates it back and forth.

"Hey, Shoto?"

"Hm?" He puts the scale down and stares at the phone. He knows this is silly, it's not as if she can tell what he's doing.

"I'm alright now." She says softly. "...Thanks."

"Are you sure?" He slides the phone closer.

"Yeah. I'll see you in the morning?" She does sound a little better, but it's hard to tell.

"Of course."

"Good night, Shoto."

"Good night, Ryumi." His hand hovers over the phone, reluctant to actually end the call - but she does it for him.

He sighs, replacing the phone in its usual spot next to his futon and laying back down. He looks at the ceiling a moment before closing his eyes.

The next day, Ryumi steps off the train at the Musutafu station with a yawn. She rubs her eyes for probably the fourth time during her commute.

Before she can take another step, someone taps her on the shoulder.

"Good morning."

She spins around. It's Shoto - and he also looks notably tired.

"Oh, uhm. Morning..." She responds awkwardly.

What's he doing here? We usually meet up on campus. She looks at him, it's hard to be sure behind the tiredness but... Was he... worried about me?

He waves for her to start walking, and she falls in beside him.

"You didn't have to get up early to meet me at the station, you know. Especially after I kept you up." Ryumi mumbles, shifting her school bag on her shoulder.

Shoto waves off the concern. "You worry too much. And..." He pauses to cover a yawn. "...you're supposed to keep me from dozing off this morning."

A faint sheepish smile finds its way onto her face. "Yeah. I didn't forget."

The whole walk up to UA and into their classroom she can't help but wonder if that was the real reason, or just a plausible excuse.

Either way, it's nice to have some company for the trip, even if walking is much slower than flying.

The afternoon's class is more rescue related topics. Today it's evacuation techniques, specifically. Currently the class is grouped up on the third floor of a damaged building in one of the faux cityscapes, where a large fabric tube has been anchored to a window and runs down to ground level.

Ryumi remembers seeing things like this a few times as a kid, when she was helping at disaster sites. Just like a big version of a playground slide - if she didn't have wings, she might've thought they looked like fun - but being able to fly really skews one's perception of what qualifies as exciting.

"Next. Midoriya." Aizawa calls him up, readying a pen to mark the last of the boys off on his list. As ever he sounds unconcerned, like he's simply going through the motions of the day.

Midoriya nervously lingers at the edge of the chute, holding the window frame with one hand. "Okay..."

Ochaco pokes out from the group of girls still waiting to be called. "Good luck, Deku!"

"Mhm!" He answers with a sharp nod and steps into the large slide - his sudden haste likely partially to hide the crimson filling his cheeks. Down below, he crawls out of the bottom of the fabric tunnel and pops up to join the others in waiting.

Aizawa marks the paper and moves down the list. "Great, boys are done. Girls next. Come on, Yaoyorozu." He waves her forward without glancing up from the clipboard.

"Yes, sensei." The tall girl drops into the tube without hesitation, and climbs out the end a moment later.

"Arisato." Aizawa again marks the sheet and gestures to the slide.

Ryumi pauses before the opening, spreading her wings and giving him a funny look. He shrugs in a way that says 'just do it anyway', and she hops in, bursting from the end of the tunnel shortly after.

It is kind of fun, she admits. But it has nothing on the feeling of true freefall. And it's far too short at only three stories. Of course she knows it isn't designed for that, or for someone with her abilities.

"I suppose it's kind of silly for you, huh?" Midoriya comments with a slight smile, watching her get to her feet.

Ryumi shrugs, her wings shifting behind her as she walks over to join the crowd. "Probably. I guess if one of my wings was broken, maybe I'd need to use something like this?"

"Wipe that dumb grin off your sorry excuse for a face, Deku." Bakugo growls from the outskirts of the group.

Unintentionally true to the demand, Midoriya's expression falters. "Really, Kacchan...?"

Bakugo huffs, kicking at a bit of loose gravel on the street they're all standing in. "Evac training is just the pits, is all."

Ryumi glares across at him from her spot standing next to Shoto. Hardly a reason to say something like that out of nowhere.

"How can you say that?" Iida says in his typically overserious way. "Any hero worth their salt must be ready to prioritize the rescue at any time! Learning how to utilize lifesaving tools such as this one is key, making this a wholly worthwhile lesson!"

"Honestly, fights are fun, but saving people is the best part." Ryumi adds with a fangy grin, very intentionally needling Bakugo.

The red eyed blonde just scoffs at the notion. "Like I care. We all got our strengths, y'know? You and scales can handle this rescue crap while I kick some villain ass."

Iida presses a hand to his chest as if wounded, or just horrified, by the other boy's words. "Do you truly hope to become a hero someday?"

"Take it easy, Iida." Midoriya offers, trying to gently deescalate the brewing conflict.

"He's not wrong about people having different strengths." Shoto suddenly says, drawing everyone's attention.

Ryumi turns to him and cocks an eyebrow, wondering where he's going with this. He's gotten a lot less quiet since the festival, but it's still a rare moment when he actually steps up to offer an opinion unprompted.

And Midoriya is just as curious and oblivious to what the other boy means as Ryumi is. "You think so, Todoroki?"

"I just mean it's hard to picture Bakugo saving anyone." Shoto answers frankly, seeming completely unaware of the possibility that it could (and would) be taken as an insult.

This only makes it funnier for Ryumi, knowing that he meant it completely earnestly. She covers her mouth, desperately trying to suppress her laughter, but completely failing in the effort.

Bakugo takes a menacing step closer to them. "Try saying that again!"

"No doubt! He'd probably hurt 'em even worse!" Kaminari joins in prodding at him, grinning wildly.

"How about I make you my first 'rescue' then?!" Bakugo howls, spinning to face his newest tormentor, sparks crackling on his palms. "I'll gladly take all three of you idiots!"

By now the rest of the girls have finished descending the evac chute, and they've gathered a short distance from their other classmates to watch the fireworks. Ryumi steps up in front of Bakugo and the two glare daggers at each other, while Shoto looks on with concern - apparently just realizing that he provoked this with his comment before. Meanwhile, Kaminari hangs nearby like a cheerleader, egging them on.

"Have you all forgotten why you're here?" Aizawa demands without a hint of amusement, flashing his quirk to get their attention. "Different strengths or not, excuses like that won't cut it once you're on the scene. Pro heroes willingly do whatever they can to help."

Everyone falls silent in an instant, and Ryumi steps back to stand next to Shoto, the slightest touch of a smug smile on her features. Bakugo stays where he is, faint smoke trails still curling off his fists.

Aizawa continues, surveying their reactions and paying particular attention to Bakugo. "When the police and rescue teams can't make it in time, it's up to you to point evacuees towards safety."

"Isn't it faster to save them for real, instead of just guiding them or whatever?" The empty sleeve of Toru's gym uniform lifts into the air.

Yaoyorozu takes a cautious step forward. "I believe sensei is referring to mass evacuations?"

Their teacher nods curtly, confirming her suspicion. "Exactly. Saving one or two people is one thing, but these rescue tools are invaluable when dealing with a larger group. You don't want to find yourselves lacking the knowledge to use them when the time comes, which is why their basic application is part of our curriculum." His gaze wanders back to the grumpy child in front of him. "Understood, Bakugo?"

"...Sure." He answers, reluctantly, and still clearly fuming.

Midoriya gasps and starts muttering to himself. "Of course! And I bet we could even combine these rescue tools with our quirks in order to better deal with mass evacuations!" He starts counting on his fingers as he thinks up applications. "Like Uraraka's ability to make things float, or Sero's tape... A pro hero should be ready to come up with all sorts of clever combinations on the fly!"

"Anyhow, next up is..." Aizawa begins, only to be cut off by incessant whirr of helicopter blades slicing the air above.

A familiar muscular figure leaps down from the slowly descending transport. "I am here! From the sky!" All Might hits the ground on one knee, shaking the area and making a few of the students stumble. He stands and puts on his trademark grin.

"All Might!" Midoriya calls out, instantly fanboying over the hero. It seems no matter how many times he sees the man, his enthusiasm never dims.

"So sorry I'm late, everyone! I was on my way when - wouldn't you know it? - a pesky villain turned up, just begging to be dealt with!" All Might explains with a hearty laugh.

Aizawa rolls his eyes at the hero. "Unbelievable. This was supposed to be your class to teach."

Midoriya steps up, beaming, and eagerly spouting what information he knows about the event. "I saw the news online during lunch! You really caught a bank robber?"

"Indeed, but what hasn't made the news yet is that there was another ne'er-do-well holed up inside the bank." The number one hero poses, flashing a thumbs up.

Midoriya practically swoons over the casual greatness of his favorite hero. "So awesome, All Might!"

"Praise is always appreciated, but let's shelve it for now, hm? We wouldn't want to keep the chopper waiting, would we?" The hero gestures behind him where the helicopter is slowly landing.

Midoriya's eyes widen. "The helicopter? You mean it wasn't just bringing you here...?"

"There's no emergency, kid. And I'd never use it just to make a grand entrance." All Might proclaims, waving him forward.

"Sure, you wouldn't." Aizawa mutters under his breath.

All Might chuckles again. "No, the helicopter is part of your rescue training! Prepare yourselves!"

Midoriya stares at the flying machine, stunned. "The hero course sure is something else."

While the others head over to the landing site, Ryumi freezes up, frowning deeply at the chopper.

Shoto nudges her as he passes by. "C'mon, aren't you going?"

She doesn't say any actual words, just letting out a soft whine.

He turns and gives her a blank stare. "I know you're not afraid of heights. Or flying."

"...expecting me to get into this metal deathtrap." Ryumi folds her arms over her chest and turns, taking an offended tone. "You can't possibly be comparing that... thing to my wings."

Yaoyorozu, noticing the pair lagging behind, returns and gently attempts to reassure her. "Oh, you'll be fine. I've been on helicopter rides often. I promise it's much safer than what you're used to."

The dragon girl's tail lashes anxiously behind her. "...I don't believe you."

"Even if something were to go wrong, don't you think you're better equipped to handle it than anyone else?" Yaoyorozu offers, putting on a soft smile.

But the logical argument doesn't seem to help any. Ryumi pulls her wings up and wraps her tail around her leg.

"I don't think that's helping." Shoto sighs and takes her by the arm, tugging her forward. "Come on. We're going."

Yaoyorozu frowns briefly, then steps over to Ryumi's other side to assist in getting her moving. "Right..."

"Thanks." He nods, and the two drag their reluctant and mildly terrified friend onward.

Ryumi whines wordlessly the whole way, putting up a weak fight by trying to dig her talons into the dirt. When they at last get her on board, she instantly calls her scales and maintains a death grip on the inside wall for the entire flight.

Shoto stands next to her, a little embarrassed by the stares she's getting over her obvious fear. He does feel a little bad for her, though. As soon as All Might draws the class's attention away, he sets his hand on her arm.

For a brief second, her eyes flick over to meet his. He nods to her, as if to say 'it's fine, I'm right here.'

While she doesn't even come close to relaxing, something in that brief glance tells him she appreciates the gesture.

Chapter Text

The helicopter ride takes them from the mock cityscape they were working in and out to the USJ. A few of the students exchange looks at the idea of returning to the site of their first villain encounter, but with both All Might and Aizawa around nobody seems too worried.

Ryumi is beyond grateful just to be off the helicopter, and doesn't even pause to consider the return to the USJ. She sighs heavily as she steps down and heads into the massive building.

The remainder of the afternoon is a parade through a few of the different environments in the dome - likely a lot of the sorts of things they should have been covering during their initial visit. Today they focus on snow and water rescue, with other topics presumably to follow later in the week.

Up on the snowy mountaintop, Aizawa explains the basic equipment used in avalanche recovery operations, as well as cold weather safety gear. As their teacher talks through each item, Ryumi and Tsu huddle close to the heater at the makeshift camp. Neither of them are particularly well suited to the cold.

Eventually the kids are let loose with a set of beacons and probes, challenged to recover as many hidden buried dummies as possible within the time limit.

"You doing okay?" Shoto asks as he wanders up to Ryumi, trying to follow the same beacon signal that she is.

"Yeah." Her wings are pulled up close to her back in an effort to preserve heat as much as she can. "It's chilly, but I'll manage. Just enough to be uncomfortable." She glances up to him, noting that his coat isn't even buttoned up, though he is wearing one. "I guess you probably don't even notice it, huh?"

He shrugs. "Most of my family... Well, mom, Fuyumi, and Natsu, anyway..." He trails off, losing the thought as he struggles to figure out which direction the signal is coming from.

"So, everyone with the ice quirk, huh?" She trudges up next to him and makes a small adjustment to the beacon he's using. "I suppose... because using it makes you colder, you need some resistance."

He nods absently, following the signal. "Yeah."

Ryumi checks her own beacon. "Hey, Shoto, hold on a se--" She begins, but cuts short as her foot catches on something beneath the snow. She tries to catch herself as she normally would, but in the deep snow she has only her wings to rely on, and their movements are clumsy in the freezing air.

She trips and lands face down in the snowbank.

Shoto immediately turns and rushes back to her. "Hey, be careful."

Ryumi struggles to pick herself up, coughing lightly. "Ugh... What did I..."

He reaches for her, offering a hand to help his poor snow-covered friend back to her feet.

"Thanks..." She takes the offer, careful not to pull too hard and drag them both back down. Even through her gloves, she can feel the heat coming off his left hand. Of course, even if it's too cold for his resistance, he can always just adjust his own temperature to compensate...

She realizes somewhat awkwardly that she's still hanging onto his hand. "Uh..." She lets go and picks up the beacon from where she dropped it, turning to try and figure out what she tripped over.

Shoto joins her in looking at the area. He kneels and holds his left hand out, turning up the heat as much as he can without actually creating any flame. The snow rapidly melts away at his touch, and he gradually shuffles forward to clear the area, entirely ignoring the shovels they'd all been equipped with.

Without even thinking about it, Ryumi takes a couple small steps closer to find the pocket of slightly warmer air around him.

As the snow disappears, a dummy starts to become visible, and Ryumi jumps in to help unbury it. "...that's strange, where's the beacon?" She looks over the dummy, not finding the device that should've been leading them to it.

Shoto heads back in the direction of the signal, finding it a couple meters away. After a moment of digging, aided by his quirk, he picks up the missing beacon. "Found it."

Ryumi lifts the dummy, slinging it over her shoulder. It's still cold, but not too bad. She checks the time, and their distance from the camp. "We still have time, let's see if we can find another."

Once the mountain exercise wraps up, the group heads down to the shoreline of the lake to start in on water rescue equipment and techniques. The warmer environment is a relief for Ryumi and Tsu both, though Tsu is even more pleased by the change of venue.

After another hour of splashing around and practicing with diving gear, the class returns back to the main campus.

Kaminari leans back in his desk chair, staring up at the ceiling with a satisfied grin. "Man, if I ever have a heart attack, I hope one of you lovely ladies is the one doing the CPR..."

"Were you even paying attention? Rescue breaths are for hypoxia-initiated arrest, like in drowning or certain drug overdoses. In other cases, keeping the correct rhythm of chest compressions, uninterrupted, is far more important for survival rates." Ryumi explains - though a proper medical professional like her father would always do both, even as pro heroes they wouldn't generally have the level of training that true paramedics would.

Kaminari sits up and throws his hands in the air. "Fine! If I'm drowning, then."

"As someone who had two broken ribs fairly recently, I doubt it would be worth it for a 'kiss' you likely wouldn't even remember since you'd be unconscious." She responds flatly, putting heavy air quotes on the word kiss.

"Why you gotta ruin my dreams?" He slowly sinks down into his chair, a deep frown on his face. “...and break my hypothetical ribs?"

"As sensei explained - CPR is violent. The line between enough force and breaking ribs is a thin one." She flashes her scales to help make the point. "Doubly so with my quirk."

"Maaaaaaan..." Kaminari whines, nearly disappearing under his desk as he continues to slide down.

Tokoyami shakes his head at the other boy's antics. "Truly an embodiment of lustful desires."

Aizawa returns at that moment, and all the students quiet and straighten in their seats. "Good work today. We still have more to go over, so keep it up for tomorrow." He stops, checking a stack of papers on the podium. "Moving right along, we'll be having Parents' Day next week."

"Even the hero course has gotta do stuff like that?" Kirishima asks, surprised, but not entirely upset by the idea.

"C'mon, don't we have enough to worry about with finals?" Kaminari complains, falling forward into his desk.

Aizawa ignores the complaints, passing out the stack of handouts. "Make sure your parents or guardians see this. And for homework, you'll be writing them letters of appreciation."

Several among the students exchange confused glances and then start laughing.

"Hang on - what are we, little kids?" Kaminari asks through his chuckles.

Their teacher returns only an intense glare. "Have I ever been one to joke?" The class falls silent again. "During the class, you will each read your letters aloud to your parents."

"For real? That's ridiculous." The electric boy says with a frown.

Behind him, Kirishima ruffles his own hair. "Talk about embarrassing..."

Iida stands, waving his arms in his signature chopping gesture. "Everyone, quiet down! Quiet! Quiet!"

"You're louder than anyone else, Iida." Tsu adds in her calm tone.

"Oh. Apologies." Iida nods to Tsu, then turns his attention back to Aizawa. "However, surely you understand why we're all so vexed, sensei? Parents' Day implies an ordinary class that our parents or guardians come to observe, so I can't understand why we would instead be reading letters of appreciation! Shouldn't they bear witness to an activity more befitting the hero course?"

"Nothing would be a better fit for the hero course." Aizawa answers plainly.

Iida is startled by the simple rebuttal. "What do you mean, sensei...?"

Aizawa takes a moment to survey the reactions of the others before continuing. "As aspiring heroes, you're all bound to receive thanks and appreciation from those you save. Which is why it's essential to consider just what that entails. Well, not that you all becoming pros is necessarily set in stone."

Iida thinks for a moment, then nods to himself. "How true! This exercise will confirm whether or not we have the correct frame of mind to be heroes, who must remain modest, humble, and always grateful! That makes perfect sense!"

Ochaco snickers at the instant change of opinion from the class president as he retakes his seat. "You didn't take much convincing."

"Before the recitations, we'll give them a brief tour of the campus and a practical demo." Aizawa adds, almost as an afterthought, before dismissing the class.

A confused Kaminari watches as their teacher leaves. "...Shouldn't that be the main event?"

Ryumi sits oddly silent in the back of the room, staring at the handout on her desk. She sinks lower in her chair.

"Parents' Day, huh? And what do we do about these letters?" Midoriya wonders aloud, frowning with intense thought.

"No choice but to write them." Shoto answers as the four of them - Midoriya, Iida, Shoto, and Ryumi - walk toward the edge of campus together. He's obviously displeased with the assignment as well, but resigned to having to do it.

"I had my doubts at first, but now it seems like a fantastic idea. Naturally we feel grateful to our families for all they do, but rarely do we get a chance to express that in words." Iida pauses thoughtfully. "I wonder if there's a page limit? Too short, and I'm afraid I won't be able to fit all my feelings into the letter."

Ryumi hangs at the back of the group, saying nothing.

Midoriya stares at the class president, impressed. "Wow Iida. You think you'll be writing that much? I can't even imagine how to start. I mean, I'm always leaving comments on heroes' websites, but an actual letter is a different story."

"Is that so? I find myself writing thank you cards now and again." Iida answers, sounding somewhat puzzled.

"For what?" Midoriya asks, curiously.

"When I help senior citizens cross the street, for instance, they sometimes send me gifts in the mail." He explains as if it's the most natural thing in the world, like everyone must surely have had this experience at least a time or two. "My parents raised me to always reply with a thank you card on such occasions."

Midoriya blinks up at the taller boy, briefly stunned. "That's kind of amazing, actually!"

Iida tilts his head. "You think so? It seems perfectly ordinary." He glances to Shoto, looking for backup.

"No. Can't say I've ever done that." The other boy answers.

Iida, becoming desperate for an agreement from someone, looks to Ryumi next.

"Uhm... No, sorry." She says, her tone somewhat softer and more reserved than usual.

"Oh. I see..." Iida's shoulders slump a bit as they continue down toward the campus gates.

Midoriya jumps in, suddenly feeling guilty over singling out his friend. "But that's not a bad thing at all! Good experience, even, especially for an assignment like this."

Predictably, it doesn't take much to perk him up again. "Yes, of course! A letter is the perfect way to truly make one's feelings known. Which reminds me... Oh!" Iida slows and fishes in his bag for something.

"What's the matter, Iida?" Midoriya asks, as the whole group stops to wait for him.

"How silly of me to forget!" He declares as he pulls an envelope from the bag.

The green haired boy watches him, obviously wondering what might be in the unmarked envelope. "Forget what?"

The class president presents the envelope, drawing four items from inside. "I received these theme park tickets from Native, for the four of us."

Shoto stares into the distance, trying to remember. "Native? Who's that?"

"The hero who was on the scene when we fought Stain!" Midoriya excitedly clarifies, before Iida can even open his mouth. "I wonder why, though?"

"As a means of thanking us, I suspect." Iida says, examining the tickets more closely. "However, these are only good through next week. Are you all free on Sunday?"

"Sunday...?" Midoriya puts a hand to his chin, mentally calculating, until he's struck by a realization. "Ack! Sorry, I can't make it!"

"Other plans, then?" Iida questions.

The other boy's eyes widen and glimmer. "There's a hero exhibit at the culture hall. A can't miss event covering everything from the dawn of heroes period! The stuff on display isn't usually available to the public, and everyone who attends gets a deluxe photo collection with detailed profiles of those early heroes!"

Iida returns a good-natured smile and a slight chuckle. "You certainly are fond of heroes, Midoriya."

"I'm really sorry!" He bows his head.

"I can't do Sunday either. I usually visit my mom then, sorry." Shoto adds.

Ryumi nods apologetically as well. "Yeah, sorry Iida. I'm busy then too."

Shoto jumps in before Iida can respond to either of them. "You don't have to come, you know."

"Yeah, but what if I like miss Rei's company, hm?" She argues, but her heart isn't entirely in it, the comeback being notably less spirited than she usually gives. She hopes the others don't notice the difference, even if only Shoto would be able to guess at why.

"I see." Iida begins, a brief disappointment coming over him, but as before he snaps back to normal quickly. "Unfortunate, yet unavoidable. I would hate for these tickets to go to waste, so I'll simply have to think of others to invite."

"I'm sure if you twist Kaminari's arm, or Mina's, or Toru's..." Ryumi offers, thinking of the classmates she expects would be most likely to jump at the invitation.

"Wait, Ryumi?" Midoriya looks at her with a slight confusion. "You go to visit Todoroki's mom too?"

Ryumi responds awkwardly, pulling her wings close. "She's a nice lady."

The other boys both look to Shoto for further answers.

He shrugs, barely adding anything. "Mom likes her."

Midoriya shares a look with Iida, but drops the subject as they all finally resume walking together. "So, um... Who's coming to Parents' Day from your family, Iida?"

"My mother. My father has his work, you know. Will either of your folks be attending, Midoriya?" Iida tucks away the park tickets and glances at him, adjusting his glasses.

"My mom, too." He says, then looks back over his shoulder. "How about you, Todoroki?"

Shoto is caught off guard by the sudden question. "Me? Probably no one."

"Oh." The other boy pales, instant regret covering his features. "Shoot, I'm sorry..."

Iida delicately pauses before adding his thoughts. "Ah, yes. Your mother is in the hospital, isn't she? Apologies."

Shoto shakes his head. "Don't worry about it. Nothing worth apologizing over."

Though Ryumi is partially distracted by her own worries over the upcoming event, she spares a glance for the boy at her side. She knows it bothers him more than he lets on. Like her, he has the unfortunate habit of burying and downplaying his problems to others.

"I'm certain your parents would be delighted to see how far you've come, though. It seems a shame." Iida offers, in a clear earnest effort to brighten the mood.

Shoto crumbles the handout that he stuffed in his pocket. "It's fine, really. Besides, last thing I want is that bastard showing up."

"'Bastard'? You mean Endeavor?" Iida looks horrified. "You shouldn't call the man you raised you 'bastard'. Why not 'father', at least?"

"Even bastard is too good for my pathetic excuse for a father." He grumbles back.

Iida continues trying. "If not father, perhaps 'papa'?"

Shoto stares incredulously at the class president.

"Or 'daddy'...?" He offers again, completely oblivious.

Ryumi steps in at this point, mustering the effort for a stern look. "Iida, just leave it alone."

Midoriya seemingly also senses the brewing issue and works to defuse the situation. "Hey, that's alright. There are plenty of families out there where kids call their parents by name, or by nicknames."

"But nicknames imply friendship among peers, no? It would seem disrespectful." Iida strokes his chin thoughtfully, though he seems to be genuinely considering his friend's suggestion.

But Shoto isn't exactly on board with this - apparently not realizing that it was an attempted lifeline thrown to him. "A nickname? For that bastard...? Not a chance."

"I mean it's totally up to you what you call him, I guess. It's none of our business, really!" Midoriya frantically continues, searching for an exit from the topic.

"Sorry, I... have to be somewhere." Shoto abruptly walks off on his own, picking up pace toward the city.

Ryumi meekly waves to him as he runs on ahead. "Bye Shoto..."

"Todoroki?" Midoriya blinks, recovering from his failed effort. "Uh, alright. See you tomorrow!"

Iida waves stiffly, almost looking more like a salute. "Farewell, Todoroki!"

After a moment, the green haired boy shuffles awkwardly, trying to find something else to talk about. "So Ryumi, what about you?"

"Probably... Nobody for me too." She answers without raising her eyes from the pavement.

"Oh, uhm. I'm sorry..." Midoriya is half panicking over his ongoing chain of accidentally upsetting his friends.

Iida doesn't seem to notice him fretting, though. "Busy with work, I suppose."

Ryumi nods distantly. "You know... I... have something I should go take care of before I head home." She pulls out her goggles and makes to fly off. "See you guys."

Midoriya frowns, looking terribly guilty. "Yeah... see you tomorrow."

Ryumi lands at the station a few minutes later and settles in to wait for her train. She's not sure she wants to head straight home, but where else would she go? She presses her lips together in a tight frown, trying to figure out what she can possibly do.

Parents' Day... It's not the first time, but it hasn't gotten easier. She kicks idly at a bit of loose gravel.

A tap on her shoulder startles her out of her thoughts and she spins around to see a familiar face waiting for her. "Shoto? I... thought you had to be somewhere." Of course, she knows full well that was a lie, an excuse to escape a conversation he didn't feel like having.

"...Maybe this is where I needed to be." He quiets, lowering his gaze to the pavement. "Sorry. I know this is going to be hard for you too."

Ryumi sighs and shifts over to make space for him to lean against the wall next to her. "Yeah, I'll ask Ryukyu, of course, but... I don't expect anything. She's got her work, and she's not, I mean..." She stops to take a breath. "She was close with mom, but I'm not her daughter. She doesn't have any obligation to do things for me."

He nods, a slow, sad gesture.

"So, if that falls through, I think I'll go talk to sensei and... I don't know." She closes her eyes. "Maybe I'll just stay home that day."

Shoto glances her way, but quickly returns his eyes to inspecting the floor in front of them. "...I'd offer to let you take my bastard father, but he wouldn't be interested in anyone besides himself - or me."

It's a lame joke, but she gives it a small laugh anyway, though it doesn't really do much to dispel the gloom hanging over them both. "...Yeah, sounds right. So, what are you going to do?"

He shakes his head. "Don't know yet." He pulls out the crumpled handout and stares at it for a moment before repocketing it. He looks toward her. "...I don't think I could get away with skipping class. But if you do end up staying home, I'll make sure to take good notes for you."

"Thanks, Shoto." Ryumi smiles, but it's a sad smile. She wishes she could do anything to repay him, but she can't think of any help she could be to him right now. "It's a shame. I'm sure miss Rei would be thrilled to go if she could."

"...I know." He's quiet for a while, staring out into the distance, watching the trains come and go. "I know I don't really know them, but... I think yours would be too."

She sighs, her eyes falling shut again. "Maybe. I don't... even back before..." Her brow furrows, and she drops the sentence entirely. "They were around as much as they could be, but there was always work getting in the way of being a 'normal' family. Not that I'm not proud of the work they did, obviously I am, it's just... we rarely got to do the kinds of things other kids did with their parents."

"But they would be proud to see how far you've come. That you're still working hard." He insists. "I'm sure mom will love hearing about it from both of us, anyway..."

Ryumi looks up, her train is here. "Yeah, I bet she will." She forces a slight smile. "That's my ride. See you tomorrow." She waves and takes off for the platform.

Shoto waves, waiting against the wall until she disappears into the train, then wanders away.

Chapter Text

It's getting close to sunset now, and the taller buildings of the city are bathed in deep orange. In his head, he's walking home after seeing Ryumi off at the station, just like any other day. And yet, when he looks up, he finds his legs have carried him to the hospital.

He considers turning around, but if he's already here... maybe just a short visit before dinner. He crushes the Parents' Day notice, still in his pocket. As much as he wants her to go, he knows there's no point even asking.

He resolves to just stop by and chat, to pretend he's only dropping by because he happened to be close by after running some errands.

As he reaches his mother's floor and passes by the nurses' station, one of the nurses looks up from her computer and smiles at him. "Shoto? What a nice surprise."

"Oh. Hi." He does a bad job of hiding how distracted he is. A surprise? He's not sure why she said that. For a moment he considers asking what she meant, but the phone rings and draws her attention away. He leaves the thought and walks on, the paper becoming heavier in his pocket.

He sighs, and enters his mother's room, closing the door behind him. "Hi mom."

"Shoto?" His mom turns and smiles gently.

Shoto feels like something is off, but he can't place what it would be. "What's wrong?"

"Oh. Nothing, honey. Come on in, sit." She gets out of the desk chair and moves to sit on the edge of the bed.

"Mom?" He asks awkwardly, realizing she's staring at him as he takes the chair.

"Sorry."

"It's fine. Is there something on my face, or...?" He rushes to reassure her, even if he doesn't know what's wrong.

"No. It's just... I haven't had the chance to see you on a school day in quite some time. You're growing up." There's a sparkle in her gray eyes as she regards him. Pride, maybe? He can't tell.

On a school day...? Oh. He suddenly figures out why the nurse said his visit was a surprise. He casts his eyes down, embarrassed. "Sorry for showing up unannounced."

"Don't be silly. I'm always happy to see you." His mother's smile softens. Such a pure kindness. He wishes he had time to visit like this more often. Really, he wishes she wasn't stuck here. That she could be at home, waiting for him, that they could have dinner together like they used to.

Like he assumes they used to, anyway. So much of that time is still fuzzy in his mind - a distant haze of misery blocking out and concealing the faint sparks of his few happy memories.

As flustered as he feels by her constant doting during these visits, part of him appreciates it. It reminds him of those happier times, and sometimes he feels like the memories become a little stronger when they talk.

Of course, as long as his father...

He puts his hands in his pockets, finding the paper again. I shouldn't tell her. I know she can't go.

He's not sure why he even came. It was for this, of course, but why did he bother? He wasn't really thinking, he just spaced out as he walked and found himself here. It seemed inevitable then, once he was staring at the hospital.

I guess it's not that different than Ryumi. She knows Ryukyu won't be able to go, and yet... He frowns ever so slightly. ...but I don't want her to feel like she's letting me down. I shouldn't have come, I just...

"Want anything to drink, honey?" His mother asks, looking like she suddenly remembered something.

Her voice stirs him out of mentally berating himself. "Huh? Oh, sure." He stands and starts for the door, intending to go to the vending machine in the hall.

But his mom calls out to stop him. "No need to leave. I have some things in the fridge."

He turns and checks the mini fridge under the desk, finding a few different sodas and a yogurt drink with a cartoon cow on it. It's pink. Strawberry flavor.

His mom smiles when he sees it. "Your old favorite. The yogurt with Mrs. Cow. I saw they were selling it, so..."

Shoto freezes, staring at the drink. He has a vague memory of it, but nothing concrete. He doesn't remember the mascot, but the color of the packaging seems familiar.

Behind him, her grin turns sheepish. "I know, I know. You're in high school now, so I picked up some other things as well. Take whichever you'd like."

The trouble she's gone to for him stings. A desperate grasping across so much lost time for any hint of something they once shared. Though the soda sounds better, he takes the yogurt, his silent guilt compounding. "This one, I guess..."

"Sure." She seems glad to see her effort rewarded.

He can't tell her that he doesn't really remember the drink clearly. It hurts to have to pretend. Again, his mind wanders to Ryumi. She must feel the same, whenever she has to talk about her parents.

Silence.

Shoto finishes the drink and idly fiddles with the empty carton as he thinks.

"How's school?" His mother asks, drawing him back to the present.

"Fine, I..." The peace he felt in the quiet vanishes at the topic of school. The handout seems to burn in his pocket. I can't tell her. It would only upset her. She seems concerned by his hesitation, so he hurries to talk about something - anything at all. "We did rescue training in class today. Got to ride in a helicopter, even."

"A helicopter? Well, isn't that something." She looks surprised, and as enthusiastic as she always is when he's talking about his life.

It helps a little, even if he still feels awkward just going over all the details of his day. "Yeah. Ryumi hated it though."

Her smile turns slightly amused. "Really? She doesn't seem easily frightened, from the stories you two tell."

He actually chuckles a bit at that. It's true, when it comes to most dangerous situations, even villains, she generally comes off as fearless. "She kept calling it a deathtrap, or a metal coffin. I think she just doesn't like flying if she's not in control."

His mom nods, agreeing with the guess. "I suppose having wings changes her perspective on it."

"I actually had to drag her onto the helicopter..." He admits with a look of slight embarrassment.

She holds a hand to her mouth, laughing softly. "Poor girl. You helped her through it, though?"

"...Yeah. I tried, anyway." He pauses, momentarily distracted by how much easier it feels to talk about Ryumi than about himself. Almost like she's helping him past the awkwardness even without being present. "We also slid down an evacuation chute. And learned to send distress signals..." He finds he has much less to say about the rest of the stuff they did. "Oh, and some snow rescue. Ryumi didn't like that much either."

"I see." She watches him intently, fascinated by every small thing. "She didn't like the snow, huh?

He shrugs. "I don't think it was the snow, so much as the temperature. She gets cold easily."

"Poor dear. Sounds like she had a tough day." She gets up and grabs a water bottle she left on the desk and takes a drink. "It wasn't any trouble for you, though."

"Yeah, I..." He stops, as his mind catches on the previous comment. Yeah. And it got worse from there, but I can't... He awkwardly skips on to a different topic. "All Might was there too, teaching the class. At least, for part of it."

If she notices, she doesn't say anything. "You always were a fan of All Might. Remember how you always used to wait until your father wasn't around, and we'd watch those video clips in secret?"

"Uh huh." As before, the memories are little more than a vague suggestion. He couldn't name a single clip, or even the content of any of them, but he clearly recalls the sneaking around to be able to watch them. A part of him wonders if Midoriya would somehow know the clips even if he himself doesn't anymore.

It grows quiet again, then the door slides open.

"Mom, I've got your laundry and... oh. Shoto?" His older sister, Fuyumi, steps inside with a bundle of clothes in her arms. "This is a surprise. What's going on?"

"'Surprise'? That's twice now." Shoto mumbles to himself.

Fuyumi tilts her head and cocks an eyebrow. "Twice what?"

He shakes his head. "Nothing. Forget it."

"Hmm?" Fuyumi looks around the room and spies a bit of empty space on a nearby shelf. "Oh. Mom, I'm leaving your laundry here, okay?"

She nods to her daughter. "Thanks as always, honey."

"Don't mention it." Fuyumi sets the bundle of clothes on the shelf, then looks to her brother. "Any special reason you're here today?"

"Not really." He stands to toss the empty drink carton into the trash by the door, accidentally dragging the crumpled paper from his pocket when he pulls his hand free.

"Oh? What's this?" Fuyumi asks as she bends down to fetch it.

"No, don't--" Shoto reaches out to stop her, but she's already uncrumpled the page.

"A notice about Parents' Day?" Her eyes scan over the battered paper.

Their mother glances between her children. "Oh...?"

"None of your business." Shoto grumbles at Fuyumi, trying to swipe the handout back from her.

"Right, right. I get what's going on." She smiles, but this only draws a deeper scowl from her brother.

Rei shifts on the edge of the bed. "Shoto, I'm sorry. I'm afraid I can't attend..."

"No, I, uh... I just wanted to pass on the notice. No big deal, really..." He curses himself for even coming, for not getting rid of the handout, for making her feel bad, like she should have to apologize for anything. "I'm sorry, mom..."

"Oh, Shoto..." She looks at him, sorrowful. 

"Hey, c'mon now..." Fuyumi fumbles for a solution, her expression filled with guilt for her role in upsetting both of them, when a sudden idea seems to come to her. "I know! I can attend Parents' Day!"

"Huh? That's crazy. And you've got your own school to worry about." Shoto protests. It'd be better than his father showing up, but still...

Fuyumi beams, looking far too pleased with herself for thinking of it. "Nice of you to worry, but I can put in for a half day off since this is a family affair. Plus, I can record the whole thing!"

He hates the thought even more now. "This isn't like Sports Day with the little kids you teach."

Fuyumi takes a playfully taunting tone. "Oh? Don't want me to? I'm telling you though, there are plenty of cameras in the room when my kids have Parents' Day."

"Why not, then...?" Their mother quietly asks, still sounding terribly disappointed at the thought of missing out.

"I'd have to check with the school..." He concedes, grumpily. It's far from the worst part of it all, but it irritates him that his sister would compare him to the little ankle biters she teaches. But what can he do now? What excuse could he make that wouldn’t upset his mother more?

“I’m sure it’ll be fine.” Fuyumi insists, eyeing him. “We’ll figure something out, won’t we?”

“Uh… yeah.” He struggles to find any enthusiasm for it, but the glimmer of excitement in his mother’s eyes has sealed his fate. He’s not escaping it now.

The two kids wish their mother good night and make their way home for dinner. In the elevator, Fuyumi turns to her little brother. "Your homeroom teacher is... Aizawa, right?"

"Yeah." Shoto answers reluctantly, still thoroughly upset with everything about the situation.

"What's the matter, mister grumpy? Oh, I know. Why not have dad attend instead?" She asks, taunting him with a smug grin.

"...You wouldn't." He hisses, glaring at her sharply. It hurts to think she would even suggest that, even if she only meant it as a joke.

"But..." She begins, obviously still playing around.

"Don't you dare breathe a word of this to him." Shoto demands, in a deadly serious voice. He knows she wouldn't really, but she knows as well as he does what the bastard did. How much he hurt their mother, and Shoto himself. Even if Fuyumi feels like it's far enough away to joke about, he very much disagrees.

She sighs. "Oh, fine." She stares at her brother's gloomy face as they start down the hall. "You really hate the recording idea that much? Would anything convince you?"

"Yeah, I hate it. But it's not just that." He looks out vaguely into the distance.

"What, then?" She asks, watching him curiously.

Shoto sighs heavily. "I knew all along she couldn't go, so I shouldn't have..." He trails off, though his thoughts continue to spin on through the cycle of blaming himself for even showing up today.

Fuyumi returns an easy grin and bonks him lightly on the head. "Ah, that."

He growls at her, putting his hands up defensively and frowning. "What the hell was that for?"

"Listen. There's no parent out there who wouldn't be thrilled to learn their child actually thinks about them. Mom might feel terrible about not being able to go, but I know she was glad you came to tell her anyway." His sister explains. "Remember, it's not just your Parents' Day notice. In a way, it's hers too."

Slowly, his anger melts away. "...You ought to be a teacher or something."

"You don't say?" She chuckles and bops him on the head again.

He grumbles back at her, but it's a much less annoyed grumble than before.

Aizawa sits at his desk in the shared office space for the UA faculty. He neatly arranges his papers in front of the computer and grabs the phone to begin the work of contacting each of his student's parents regarding the upcoming day. Not for redundancy, mind - that would be a waste of valuable time - but for a special plan that will require their cooperation.

The papers before him are a list of his students, alphabetical by last name. He didn't pull the full files, of course, he only needs a few basic details and contact information.

Aoyama, Yuga

Arisato, Ryumi

Ashido, Mina

Asui, Tsuyu

Bakugo, Katsuki

Hagakure, Toru

Iida, Tenya

Jiro, Kyoka

Kaminari, Denki

Kirishima, Eijiro

Koda, Koji

Midoriya, Izuku

Ojiro, Mashirao

Sato, Rikido

Sero, Hanta

Shoji, Mezo

Todoroki, Shoto

Tokoyami, Fumikage

Uraraka, Ochaco

Yaoyorozu, Momo

He starts at the beginning, as it's the most rational place, and dials the first number. The call goes by quickly and easily - he explains what he needs to and makes all the arrangements with Aoyama's folks. Then, he hangs up and draws a simple, precise check mark next to Aoyama's name in the list.

He picks up the phone again, but his gaze lingers on the next name, hand hovering over the keypad.

Arisato.

Aizawa stares at the page and slowly lowers the handset back onto the receiver. He closes his eyes. What do I do about her...?

It's only been a moment, barely long enough to begin to come to a decision, when he's disrupted from his thoughts by a familiar, obnoxious voice. "Heyyyy, Eraser. How's it hanging?!" Mic calls out as he slides up beside him.

Obviously, the instant I have a quiet moment to start to get any actual work done... He sighs heavily, without looking up at him. "What do you want, Mic?"

"Just to chill with my best pal of course!" He leans against the edge of Aizawa's desk, getting up in his personal space and partially crunching the bottom of the paper he's working from. "Come on, take a break. Let's grab some grub!"

"I'm working, Mic. You could try it sometime." He gently pushes his fellow teacher and pulls the sheet free, aligning it back in front of himself.

Mic flops his head back dramatically, staring upward. "Ughhh, you're such a buzzkill." He not-so-subtly turns to examine the paper closer, lifting his ridiculous sunglasses that he insists on wearing even indoors. "...What're ya working on, anyway?"

"Parents' Day." Aizawa answers flatly.

Mic points mockingly at the lone check mark on the page. "Making lots of progress, huh?"

"Can't you bother someone else? Isn't Kayama around?" He glances about the office, looking for her - or anyone, really, who might take the excitable radio host off his hands for a while.

But before Mic can snap back at the transparent effort to get rid of him, he suddenly notices why progress has stalled out so early in the list. "Oh."

Aizawa had been mentally preparing to yell at him, but that reaction puts a halt to those plans. "...Yeah. Arisato."

There's a rare moment of quiet, and when Mic speaks again it's in an even rarer low voice. "...What’re you gonna do?"

Aizawa takes a deep breath, picks up the phone, and dials the number for Ashido's parents. "I don't know. I'll figure it out later. But I'm finishing the rest of these today."

Mic looks as if he's about to say something, but he stops, frowns, and then walks off.

Small mercies... Aizawa thinks to himself before jumping into his prepared explanations once again. He hates jumping around in the list like this, backtracking is inefficient after all... but he can't stand to spend the hours considering what to do while the rest of his task remains unfinished either.

Ryumi, like Shoto, finds herself wandering thoughtlessly to a familiar place before heading home for the evening - though one might argue she had some intent behind it. She never had a specific destination in mind, nothing more than 'not home,' anyway... But she's hardly surprised with herself when she ends up standing outside Hop's.

I suppose...

The door chimes softly as she walks in. It's mostly empty today, only a couple of folks hanging around. Even Terou is nowhere to be seen.

In the back behind the bar, Hop beckons her over.

Ryumi sits on one of the stools across from where the giant mantis is working, casting a look around the cafe. "Slow day?"

"Mhm. I told Terou he could go home early." He briefly stops tidying up the supplies behind the counter. "Where's your boyfriend?"

"Hop!" She scowls at him, instantly defensive. "He's not... we're just friends. Training partners. That's it."

Hop's mandibles spread slightly, approximating what would be a sheepish grin. "Heh. Alright, alright. If you say so." He nods to the stack of menus nearby. "So, the usual?"

Ryumi fidgets in her seat. She'd like to, but she's already over budget for the month, and with tuition costs for UA... "Nah. I just came to see the kitties, really..." She reaches down and picks up a black one with white socks - Jinx - and pets him.

One of the hard plates above Hop's eyes shifts. "Alright, what's wrong?"

"...Parents' Day." She answers, without looking up from the cat in her arms.

"Mmm. I see." He nods understandingly. "...I'd offer to go, but I'm guessing any of us would just raise more questions for you."

Ryumi sighs, her voice distant. "Yeah. Thanks for offering, though."

It's quiet for a while, some minutes passing without a word between the two. Ryumi pets the kitty in her lap, and Hop goes about cleaning glasses and wiping the countertop. Eventually Takobe, the octopus chef of the cafe, pops out from the back room and leaves a plate and glass on the counter in front of her with a little wink - a barely perceptible gesture given his tiny eyes.

Ryumi is startled by the clatter of the dishes, and their appearance in front of her. It's just a basic sandwich, nothing too fancy, and the smoothie she usually orders. But even so... "Hop, what... I can't..."

"Don't worry about it, kid." He responds, looking as gentle as his chitinous appearance allows. "You'll always be one of us, you know. And we look out for each other."

She fidgets in her seat again, and reluctantly puts Jinx back on the floor and starts eating. "...Thanks, Hop."

"Yeah, don't mention it." He pauses, looking over his shoulder. "Really - don't. I don't need those two on my ass about it."

A weak smile finds her face then. "Sure."

Hop waits a while before speaking again, seemingly giving her time to eat the sandwich. "So, did you tell him?"

Ryumi glances at him over her smoothie glass. "Who?"

"Your boyfriend." He grins in his funny way, waiting for the glare, then corrects himself. "Sorry, training partner. Whatever."

She stares into the drink, swirling the straw around idly before responding. "...Which part?"

"'Bout you. I thought maybe you would, since you brought him here." He looks over the rest of the cafe.

"I brought him here because I thought he'd like the cats." She answers plainly.

"Sure. They are little sweethearts, aren't they?" Hop finds an orange one, Toast, on the counter and strokes him with the flat side of his bladed arm. "Y'know, I wasn't sure what to think of him. Endeavor's kid and all..."

Ryumi frowns deeply at that comment. Even if he's not here, she feels compelled to defend him. "He's not... Don't say that. He's nothing like his father, okay? Shoto is... He's... He's really kind."

The mantis lifts his bladed arms defensively, mandibles again splayed to the sides in a grin. "Hey, I believe you. After all, Katy seemed to like him. She's a great judge of character."

She rolls her eyes at the excuse and mumbles into her straw. "Katy just likes him because he's warm."

"Please, Katy isn't that easy to..." He rests one of his arms against his chest, feigning insult - but of course his strange smile gives him away.

Ryumi gestures to the cat. Katy is halfway across the cafe from them, lying in a sunbeam, and completely unaware of this discussion.

Hop huffs, seeming to give up that particular fight. "Anyway. You didn't answer me. Did you tell him?"

The dragon girl freezes up, pressing her lips together. Her wings tighten against her back.

"...So that's a no." He ventures.

"I haven't said anything yet." She protests immediately.

Hop shakes his head slowly. "Sure, but I know what that means."

Ryumi sinks into the counter, pushing the empty plate aside as she does.

He takes the plate and sets it in the dish return. When he walks back over, he's looking past her, out the front windows. "You're afraid of what he'll think, huh?"

Her answer comes in a faint, small voice. "...Of course I am. He wouldn't... nobody would even talk to me if they knew."

Hop sighs and again shakes his head, folding his blades across his chest. The gesture is actually somewhat tough for him in this form, as his arms are longer than his torso is wide, so the tips of the blades stick out to either side. He gives up on it quickly, having made his point. "I don't know about that. I guess I can't speak to the rest of them, but your--" He cuts himself off from making the joke this time. "--your training partner. He seems like a good kid. I think he'd understand."

She says nothing, though she lifts herself up enough to resume sipping the smoothie in front of her.

With whatever busywork he had apparently completed, Hop sits on a special stool behind the counter. "Well, that's just what I think."

The silence returns again, and her face remains gloomy. "I guess... I should ask sensei tomorrow. After class..." She finally says, barely looking up from the glass as she drags the topic away from her other problems and back to the more immediate issue.

"Mm. Who is your teacher, anyway?" He mumbles, brushing the edge of his arm across his chin. "Used to know a couple folks who went into teaching hero stuff. Not sure where."

"Shota Aizawa." Ryumi answers plainly, though she perks up a little, curious about who he means. It must've been way back, probably even before the cafe. Probably... during those times.

Hop's mandibles spread and eyes widen. "Damn! That grouchy old bastard is still teaching? I thought for sure he'd have given up."

"Are you sure you're thinking of the same person?" She stops swirling her drink around and tilts her head to the side. "Sensei isn't that old."

The mantis shakes his head and laughs. It's a rough sound, not quite the natural chuckle you'd expect from a normal person. "Ah, yeah. He's not really old, but he sure acts the part. Let's see... Eraser Head, right? He did a bunch of work around here back in those days."

Now it's her turn to be surprised. She never expected anyone here would know one of her teachers. Ryukyu, sure, but she's a highly ranked hero. Most of the big names are at least aware of each other and the general goings on. But Hop and the rest were awfully far from that world, at least as far as she knew. "Uh. Yeah. That's him."

He closes his eyes briefly, what might be an attempt at a smug smile on his chitinous face. "In a way, he helped us decide on this place, y'know? Big fan of cats, that guy."

Ryumi finishes her drink and flicks her tail, lips pressed together as she tries to imagine it. And actually... yeah, she can kind of see it. She might not have guessed it on her own, but it seems reasonable - or maybe rational.

Hop gets up and clears away the empty glass, wiping the counter of any stray crumbs and drips of condensation. "Huh. Well tell him I said hi, won't you? And the kitties miss him."

She smiles awkwardly and shakes her head as she starts to head out. "Yeah, alright. I will."

Chapter Text

It sounded easy at the time, but now, standing before the staff room door, she can't help but shuffle her feet and curl her tail around one ankle.

Shoto leans on the wall near the corner where this offshoot meets the main hall, waiting for her. He glances her way.

Ryumi nods, takes a long breath, and knocks as she slowly opens the door and peeks inside. "Um. Aizawa? Sensei?"

The inside of the room reminds her of the setup of the back office at Manual's agency, though most of the desks here are far more cluttered. From here she can see one that has a couple small shooting targets and a nerf gun laying around; another with dozens of CDs scattered on the surface, nearly burying an English textbook; and another with a tiny zen garden and a couple abstract stone sculptures.

The last one in the row stands in stark contrast by virtue of its utter plainness. There's almost nothing ornamental at all, just the absolute basics required for work, all arranged neatly for easy access. The only thing you might call decor is a small photo pinned to the wall beside the desk - it shows what looks like a younger Present Mic and Aizawa, with another person Ryumi doesn't recognize. He has a mop of fluffy looking light blue hair, bright blue eyes, bulky goggles up on his forehead, and a bandage across the bridge of his nose. His grin is as wild and enthusiastic as Mic's typically is, and even Aizawa has a small - if somewhat reluctant - smile in the image. Though he still looks just as tired then as he does now.

Aizawa spins around in his chair at hearing his name, taking no note of what his student may have been looking at. Or at least, not mentioning it if he does. "Ah. Arisato. I needed to talk to you." He waves her closer, and she slips into the staff room.

The door falls shut behind her as she cautiously walks up to Aizawa's desk. "Uhm, about Parents' Day..." Ryumi pauses, and he gives a subtle nod for her to continue. "I... don't have anyone who can come. I asked Ryukyu, but she's going to be busy all day, and..."

Aizawa closes his eyes and nods slowly. His expression is somehow much softer, more gentle, than it usually is in front of the class. He waits a moment, as if considering. "What will you do?"

She immediately casts her gaze back to the floor. She had been hoping he would have a suggestion for her - but of course, seemingly everything is a test with him. "I... I was thinking about just staying home. I don't know if I..."

He takes a deep breath, rubbing his chin with a hand. When she risks a glance up at his reaction, she's met with his intense stare, though it has no sharpness to it. "Well... I understand if you feel like you can't attend." He turns back to the desk and shuffles a stack of papers. "...However, I do think there will be something valuable for you to get out of the experience."