Flare Signal
chapter ten

Time was ticking down. Izuku panted as he ran through the streets, searching for another robot to take out.

He dove behind a building to avoid a terrible explosion, light at the edge of his vision and sound ringing in his ears. When it passed, Izuku kept going.

He glanced up. Two minutes left on the clock.

"I need more points…"

Izuku had managed to score a little under twenty points, if his rushed calculations were any marker. He knew it wasn't enough, but Izuku wasn't fast enough.

It wouldn't be enough to get him into U.A.

"Come on…"

Izuku spotted a robot heading his way and ran towards it. There wasn't time to use his knives; Izuku had lost one of them, anyway, stuck in some poor robot now buried under rubble.

Two of his fingers were already twisted and broken. Though they throbbed dully, Izuku could hardly feel them, too caught up in the rush of the fight.

He pressed his thumb to his middle finger, ignoring the way his hand hurt, and felt One for All swell in him. He flicked out, and power surged from the tip of his finger.

The robot didn't stand a chance. It flew backwards, the center crumpling in on itself where Izuku had aimed. Another point, maybe two. Izuku had forgotten.

A minute and a half.

Izuku hissed, clutching his hand. He had to go back to using his remaining knife, or else his hand would be useless.

For the past few minutes, Izuku had fought his way towards the center of the city: where the robots seemed to come from. They quickly moved away, meeting combatants in battle, but if Izuku could reach the center, there was a chance he could catch a couple more.

There.

Izuku took off. He leapt onto a nearby mailbox and then onto the robot he'd found, clinging to its arm. His hand burned as he dug his fingers in. Tears gathered at the corner of Izuku's eyes, but he pulled himself up.

Now on the robot, Izuku dashed quickly to the base of the neck. He almost lost balance but caught himself again.

A hand came at him. Izuku jumped between two fingers and found himself in freefall for a brief moment—

He slammed onto the robot's face, its single eye gleaming red as it tried to search for him. Izuku hooked his fingers on the metal plates, pulling himself closer. Then, careful to keep his balance, Izuku used one hand to swing his knife out in an arc.

The knife broke through the glass of the eye. Something sharp bit into Izuku's wrist, but he kept going until the red light flickered, then died.

One more.

A minute left on the clock.

Izuku was running again, searching for robots. He had to climb over one, lying in the streets with a large hole gaping in its chest. He vaulted over the scattered pieces of another robot.

Minute. Minute. Minute.

"Come on," Izuku said again, searching still. "Where are they?"

There was screaming in the distance.

Izuku shifted gears and headed towards the sound. A blur passed him, followed by several people in a panic.

"A zero-pointer!" one of the kids cried. "Get out of here!"

"AAAAAHHH!"

"I didn't sign up for this!"

A distant robot loomed far above the city. A glittering eye searched for a target. Izuku could only make out the head of the robot through the buildings and thick smoke pouring from a fire.

The robot broke through a building, and Izuku dropped low to the ground, covering his head. Debris flew around them. Izuku shut his eyes, waiting for it to pass.

When the air seemed to settle, at least for a second, Izuku got back to his feet and turned to head in the opposite direction. He was not dealing with that. Definitely not. No, sir, Izuku was going to run as far away and as fast as he could.

"Help!"

Izuku stopped.

He turned on his heel, using his hand to direct his vision.

"Help! Someone!"

Where was the cry coming from? Izuku's heart pounded. He clutched his knife tightly, looking around in an attempt to discern what he was looking for.

"Help!"

Izuku's gaze zeroed in on a small figure struggling under rubble. She was trapped, he realized—and the zero-pointer was heading right towards her.

"Don't do anything stupid, don't do anything too stupid," Izuku chanted as he ran in her direction. "Izuku, don't do anything stupid…"

As he got closer, Izuku realized he recognized the trapped girl. He was at her side in a flash, trying to pry off the rubble. Another candidate hollered at Izuku's back.

"What are you doing? You're going to get yourself killed!"

Izuku didn't care.

Help her.

"Hey," he said, crouching down at the girl's side. Izuku started moving away the rubble frantically. "We're going to get you out of here."

"There's too much—"

The girl slammed a hand on a piece of rubble. It began to float immediately, but her face turned green, sick with the effort.

The ground shook underneath them. Izuku swore again.

Save her.

"Go!" the girl shouted.

Izuku did as she said—but he ran towards the zero-pointer. Someone screamed.

Izuku launched himself in the air.

Help her. Save her.

It was the same instinct that had led Izuku to put himself in front of Toshinori, the first time they'd met. It was the same instinct that had driven Izuku to fight the sludge villain when he'd seen the look on Kacchan's face.

It was the same instinct, pushing Izuku to act. Being a hero, Toshinori had called it.

"Come on…" Izuku said to himself.

There was a moment before the chaos—just one. Izuku breathed.

Power swelled in him, gathering like thunderclouds before a storm. One for All spread and leapt down his arm as the robot in front of him locked its single eye on him.

The blast left Izuku's fingertips. A shockwave travelled back up his arm as he was blown away by his own Quirk. There was a screech of metal as the robot crumpled, destroyed by One for All.

Izuku had about a second to celebrate victory. Then he started to fall.

Great, Izuku thought. He'd gone and done something stupid after all.

"Hey!"

The girl Izuku had just helped was suddenly floating next to him. She reached a hand out, and Izuku stretched out his uninjured arm. He twisted, trying to get closer.

Their fingers brushed, but it was enough. Izuku came to a sudden stop as the girl released Izuku's body from the confines of gravity. They hung in the air for a moment, staring at each other.

"Release," the girl whispered, reaching out for him again. She dropped them slowly but steadily, activating and releasing her Quirk until they drifted to the ground. Once down, the girl immediately leaned over and puked.

Izuku, unsure if he should do anything, patted her back gingerly.

"Thanks," she said after a while, straightening. Her face was pale, but she managed to smile at him. "You saved—"

"And that marks the end of the exam!"

"It's over," Izuku said to himself, turning in a slow circle to survey the damage. "Wow."

The city was half in ruins. It was a good thing it wasn't real. Large buildings had been destroyed. The fire Izuku had passed earlier seemed to have died down a little bit.

All around them, robots were in pieces on the ground. Izuku looked at the remains of the zero-pointer and only felt a sort of strange awe.

The applicants were all directed towards the exits. They would take a short break to recuperate while the staff prepared the next portion of the exam.

Some of the people were told to stay still as Recovery Girl swept through to heal any injuries with her Quirk. Izuku sat down slowly on a large piece of cement; the girl, though mostly unhurt, plopped down next to him.

"Hey, that was really cool! Your Quirk is amazing."

Izuku stared at her. "My Quirk is amazing? Have you seen your Quirk?"

"You destroyed that robot like it was nothing!"

"Uh," Izuku said, feeling like he was missing something. "Your Quirk lets you reverse gravity, doesn't it? I think that's way cooler than mine."

"No way!"

"Way," Izuku said.

"Oh, I didn't get to finish! Thank you for saving me…" The girl wiped sweat from her brow. "I really thought I was done for."

"O-oh," Izuku said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I'm, well, I'm sure others would've come. And I mean, the teachers really wouldn't have, have let you be crushed by the zero-pointer or anything, you know?"

"Still, that was really heroic of you."

Izuku ducked his head. "...Thanks."

"I'm Uraraka, by the way! What's your name?"

Izuku opened his mouth and closed it again, remembering the right name to give.

"Akatani," he said, holding out his uninjured hand to shake. "So, your Quirk…"

A tapping sound interrupted him. Izuku looked away from Uraraka to meet Recovery Girl's stern gaze.

"A-ah… hi, Recovery Girl?"

"Of course it's you," she said, pursing her lips in disapproval. "Come on, boy, I have others to get to. Let me see."

"Only a few fingers," Izuku said, holding his hand out.

Recovery Girl tutted. "You didn't break this many before," she said, but she pressed a gentle kiss to Izuku's knuckles. "Goodness, finally, I'm not going to see you for a week until results come out."

"Hey," Izuku protested. "You like me."

She shoved his head. "Don't get silly thoughts like that stuck in there."

Recovery Girl turned to Uraraka. "Any injuries?"

Uraraka shook her head. "A few bruises, but I think I'm okay!"

Recovery Girl checked over Uraraka anyway, telling her to be sure to rest and take a drink and snack during the break to recover from the strain of her Quirk.

Izuku flexed his fingers. Good as new.

Still, the fight and Recovery Girl's Quirk had drained his energy. Now Izuku staggered to his feet, catching his balance.

"Want to walk together?"

Izuku shrugged.

Uraraka kept up a steady stream of chatter as the two of them left the battle center together. She talked about her own ambitions in heroics and wondered about his.

Izuku didn't say much.

"I want to help people," he told her when she asked.

She kept the conversation flowing as they were ushered into a large room that looked like a cafeteria, set with tables. Already the room was filled with people, chatting about how their exams had gone and cramming quickly for the written exam.

"-nervous? I studied a lot, but to be honest, I don't know what to expect from a written exam about heroics. Definitely probably questions about real-life situations I guess, and what choices to make, but I don't know…"

Izuku nodded along. He searched the crowd for Kacchan but couldn't find him anywhere. Izuku guessed that was a good thing; they wouldn't run into each other. Izuku didn't want to see his childhood friend, especially since said childhood friend apparently hated his guts.

Akatani Mikumi, not Midoriya Izuku. But whatever. Kacchan didn't know they were the same person.

"-wonder if they've got snacks? Recovery Girl said something… oh, there!"

Uraraka, grabbed Izuku's arm and pulled him in the direction of where a group of kids wsas crowding. She squeezed through, and Izuku followed, uncomfortable with the push and pull of the bodies around them.

They reappeared on the other side victorious, clutching energy bars and juice pouches.

Izuku spotted a corner where they could hide in and gently steered his new friend in that direction.

Izuku and Uraraka sat down together. He pulled his knees to his chest and ate the energy bar slowly. It was a good idea to take a break between exams—the practical exam was demanding, not to mention tiring. Izuku imagined if they'd been shoved into desks and had thick exam papers piled in front of them, he'd have fallen asleep in an instant.

Uraraka chatted with Izuku for a few more minutes. She asked him about his Quirk, noting its power and its drawbacks. Izuku gave a few vague answers, not really trusting either of them.

In turn, Izuku asked about Uraraka's Quirk, which he discovered really was an anti-gravity Quirk. The possibilities and the fine details of it made Izuku want to barrage Uraraka with questions, but even Izuku knew that made for a bad impression.

She was nice, though. Izuku liked her a lot.

It wasn't often Izuku got to spend time with kids his age. It made for a strange experience but not an unwelcome one. And Izuku had missed this, too; even with Silver and all of his teachers, he never had the chance to connect with someone who was really like him.

He felt a little disappointed as time was called. The bright mood in the cafeteria deflated, talk quieting.

"I think we're in different rooms," Izuku said, smiling apologetically. "But, um…"

"That's too bad!" Uraraka tapped her chin. "Are you free after the exam?"

"Uh… uh, what?"

"I asked if you were free after the exam," she chirped. "We could hang out."

Hang out wasn't really in Izuku's dictionary, but with time running out, he accepted warily. They planned to meet just outside the main entrance once the exam let them out.

"Hey," Izuku said, as they walked together as far as they could to their examination rooms. "Good, um. Good luck."

Uraraka beamed, and Izuku knew it'd been the right thing to say.

"You too!"

The candidates were put into classrooms, with an exam proctor to watch over them as they tested. Izuku's proctor was Vlad King, who introduced himself as the Class 1-B homeroom teacher. Izuku had heard of him in passing but had never gotten the chance to see him, nor did Izuku know his Quirk. He seemed kind, though—encouraging, despite his large stature and almost rough look.

Vlad King went quickly over the parameters of the exam, not wasting any time. Then there were tests in front of each of them.

Izuku flipped to the first page.

U.A. ENTRANCE EXAMINATION: WRITTEN PORTION

General Heroics

Rescue Efforts

Combat Situations

Publicity & Media Attention

Hero Choices

Izuku flicked his gaze up to the clock on his wall and sighed. He turned to the next page, greeted with questions and empty boxes to write his answers in.

It was a long three hours. The only reprieve was a short, fifteen-minute break in the middle. Izuku put his head down the entire time and reconsidered the whole 'hero' thing. This sucked.

Izuku scribbled in his answers. The exam wasn't difficult. Some of the questions were easier to answer; others, it seemed, had multiple 'right' answers.

By the time Izuku was on the last few questions, he thought his brain had turned to mush and his hand to jelly. Looking around, his fellow test-takers didn't look any better. One student had given up, putting her head down on her desk.

Given two choices that are both morally 'wrong,' what is the best course of action?

Izuku frowned at the paper. He didn't like the question. It was vague (though Izuku didn't think specifics would make it any better), and he wasn't sure there was a right answer.

"Both wrong…," Izuku mumbled under his breath. "Two choices that are both wrong…"

The exam seemed to be mocking him.

He could practically hear Bonestealer's voice crooning in his ear.

So what'll it be, kid? The tap of Bonestealer's cane against the ground.

If you don't want to help us, I do have some means of convincing you… A sharp smile. The first time Izuku had been threatened, years ago, but the memory was so vivid it hurt.

Take your pick.

Izuku screwed his eyes shut. No. Not here, and not now. He just had to get through the exam—it was just one question.

He'd do the opposite of Bonestealer, Izuku figured, if given the question.

Not the right thing, but the best thing. That was all Izuku could think to do. He started writing.

Before Izuku knew it, time was up. He sat, tight-lipped as Vlad King collected their papers.

"Well done, well done," Vlad King said, going down the aisle. He smiled at Izuku when he got to his seat. "Don't be nervous, I'm sure you did great."

Izuku fidgeted in his seat as Vlad King picked up the last of the papers.

"You've done it," Vlad King announced, "you've finished the U.A. entrance exam."

A loud cheer echoed through the examination room. Izuku smiled faintly.

"I know you're all in a hurry to leave, so I'll make this quick. Results will be sent out in a week. You'll be contacted by mail with an acceptance or rejection letter based on your cumulative performance in the practical and written exams. In the meantime, keep your hopes up! And Class 1-B is the best, by the way, so don't be discouraged if you're placed there. That's what the B stands for, best."

A laugh rippled through the room.

"You're free to go," Vlad King said, stepping over to open the door. "And of course, please don't discuss the exam or exam questions with anyone!"

Another, quieter laugh rippled through the crowd as they all swarmed for the door. Right, like that was going to happen. The moment they left the room, there would be talk of what had been on the exam and who put what on which question.

"Thank you," Izuku said as he passed Vlad King.

"Good luck!" Vlad King responded, holding the door wider. Someone ducked under his arm to continue out.

Izuku headed for the main entrance of U.A., looking for Uraraka. It was bright outside, now just after noon.

"Hey! Akatani, over here!"

Izuku spotted Uraraka standing by the gates, waving a hand. He jogged in her direction.

"So you are free, right?" she asked.

Izuku shrugged. He didn't have any plans, and he'd told Hisashi to leave him alone after the exam.

"Yeah. I'm good. A-are you sure you want to, uh, do whatever? I mean, we're kind of strangers. Not that I'm a creep or anything! I promise I'm not a creep."

"Well, we're not really strangers anymore. I firmly believe there is nothing like bonding over the shared suffering of an exam!"

Izuku decided he really couldn't argue with that.

Uraraka smiled. "I already contacted my parents to tell them I was going to stay out a little longer. Hey, are you hungry? There's a ramen shop down the street I hear all the U.A. students go to."

"Whatever works."

They did, in fact, end up getting ramen. The lines were long, though, but Izuku didn't mind, just glad to be out of the exam.

"That was tough, huh," Uraraka said, sipping at a spoonful of soup.

"Yeah," Izuku agreed. "I'm going to burn all my study materials later, probably."

Uraraka laughed.

"I hope we both get into U.A.," she said, tone sincere. "I think you're really cool."

Izuku choked on a noodle. Uraraka reached across the table to pat his arm as Izuku wheezed.

"Th- thanks," Izuku said, "You, too."

"We're friends now, right?"

"...we are…?"

"We are!"

"Oh. Okay."

Friends: two, Enemies: too many to count. Izuku had levelled up, it seemed.

"I'm not sure I'll get into U.A., though," Izuku confessed, staring down into his soup. He stirred it with his spoon and watched the particles swirl about. "I don't think I did so great in the practical exam."

Uraraka frowned. "But you demolished that robot at the end! That has to count for something."

Izuku shook his head. "I don't know… I mean, Present Mic said it was useless, right? He even told us not to fight them."

"Yeah, but there has to be a reason for the zero-pointers, right? Besides, even with that one, I'm sure you got plenty of the other villain-bots."

"Not enough," Izuku said, frowning, "Probably twenty points, maybe more."

"That's— not bad," Uraraka said, faltering. "Hey, that's not fair, though. You saved my life…"

"No, it's not," Izuku agreed, "but I can only hope it's good enough. Sorry. What about you? I'm curious how you used your Quirk against the robots."

Uraraka lit up. "Oh!"

Izuku was happy to listen as she described using her Quirk to manipulate gravity. By making the robots weightless, it was easy to send them crashing to the ground, destroying them.

"That's… really, really cool."

Izuku's analytical brain started kicking in. He wondered about what Eraserhead would ask about the Quirk, what questions he'd pose to Izuku if they were discussing it.

He muttered under his breath about the different possibilities. Used on herself, it could be a cool and effective way of transportation by pushing off objects and timing the activation and release of gravity. And it would be really useful in a fight. But mostly it would rely on close combat, though maybe Uraraka could launch some kind of projectiles from a distance. It was hard to judge how well that would work, but it was a cool thought. Eraserhead would've asked how well Uraraka could use her Quirk for stealth, or for situations—

"Uh, I think what you're saying is really cool, but I also can't quite make out everything?"

Izuku stopped.

"Was- was I saying all that out loud?"

Uraraka nodded. Izuku blushed, waving his hands in front of himself frantically in apology.

"Sorry, sorry, I just get a little, I think your Quirk is, uhh, really cool, that's all!"

"You said something about transportation, right? And close combat, and stealth?"

Izuku was impressed she'd been able to catch all of that in the midst of one of his mumble-storms.

"Uh, yeah. Haha. Yep."

Bowl of ramen finished, Uraraka pushed it to the side, propping her chin on her hands.

"You seem like you have some really good ideas, Akatani."

"A-ah… I'm a bit of a Quirk… er, enthusiast," Izuku stammered, "I mean, I'm not- I'm no expert or, or anything, but I- I like to think about this kind of stuff in my free time."

"Tell me more about my Quirk!"

"You're.. encouraging… me?"

"Please?"

It was too hard to say no, so Izuku obliged. He launched back into his thought process, careful to slow down so his words were intelligible. Uraraka was a good listener, though a bit excited, interrupting to make a comment or correct Izuku if he made a wrong assumption.

The afternoon passed just like that. The next time Izuku blinked, the sky had changed, and the day had slipped away without him even realizing.

Uraraka's dad called her—the only reason they realized they'd been out for so long.

"I've got to go," Uraraka said apologetically, twirling a piece of hair around her finger. "But it was really nice to talk to you!"

"Yeah, um. Same."

"Here—"

Uraraka held out her phone, opening a new contact. Izuku took it warily, but Uraraka insisted on Izuku putting his number in.

"So we can tell each other about our results!" she said cheerily. "And like I said, we're friends now."

Izuku's resolve crumbled to nothing.

"Okay," he said finally, tapping in his number. "Um… here."

Uraraka smiled. "I'll see you around, Akatani!"

Left alone outside the ramen shop, Izuku fiddled with his fingers for a moment, wondering if the past few hours had actually happened. He'd made a friend. They'd hung out together. And afterwards, she'd actually liked him enough that she wanted to keep in contact with him?

"Wonders never cease," Izuku said to himself, starting his own journey back.

Hisashi wasn't at the apartment when Izuku returned, which suited Izuku just fine. He wouldn't have to look at Hisashi and feel like he'd failed.

With lunch taken care of, Izuku decided to take the rest of the day easy. There was nothing he had to do, nor was there anyone talk to, so Izuku curled up on the couch with a book. He flipped absentmindedly through the pages, skimming more than reading.

His phone buzzed on the coffee table by him. Izuku checked it.

Unknown Number 4:22 PM
Hey this is Uraraka! :)

Izuku typed out a quick reply and added her to his contacts. His contact list was growing; there were seven contacts now, though Izuku wouldn't use half of them.

The wait began. Izuku checked the mail every day, even though he knew the letter wasn't going to arrive until a week later. He found himself pacing the length of his room nervously.

At one point Izuku got so nervous he accidentally powered up One for All and broke through the wall separating his bedroom from the hall.

Hisashi appeared in the carnage, looking decidedly confused.

"Just testing out a new Quirk," Izuku said, voice deadpan.

Hisashi rolled his eyes.

"Sorry," Izuku said, trying not to laugh. He hid his hand behind his back. "Um, I'll… I'll work on replacing the wall. Good thing we have guest bedrooms!"

Izuku didn't dare try anything else. Instead he practiced with his original Quirk, pushing it to the limits. His broken finger he had to splint; Izuku went quietly to a nearby emergency room to get it set. Out of commission for a month, he was told.

Yeah, without Recovery Girl, any kind of adult supervision, or his wits, Izuku decided he needed to keep things calm until the letter came.

A week later, the exam results arrived as promised.

Izuku's heart fluttered as he snatched the envelope out of the mailbox - one of the only two pieces of mail they'd received. He tossed the other envelope, addressed to Akatani Hisashi, on the dining room table for Hisashi later.

Hisashi was in the living room, head bent over papers he was reading. Probably a report from one of the others. He lifted his head when he heard Izuku rush past.

"Izuku, is that—"

Hisashi was ignored. Izuku went straight to his room, shutting his door and clutching the envelope with shaking hands.

"This is it," Izuku whispered, staring at the envelope, sealed with the crest of U.A. High. "This is really it."

He'd been waiting nervously the entire past week, and it was finally here.

Izuku suddenly didn't want to be alone, though the only other option—opening it with Hisashi watching—wasn't very comforting either. Izuku opted to open his phone, pulling up the chat with Uraraka.

You 1:30 PM
Just received my letter from U.A. Hope the results are good.

Uraraka 1:30 PM
ME TOO! Good luck.

Izuku eased the flap of the envelope open carefully, and then took a step back when a hologram appeared in the air.

He smiled when he saw All Might.

"...recording? We are? Oh, ah, ahem!"

All Might spread his arms out, grinning.

"Greetings, young Akatani! This is your U.A. results letter… and I am here! To tell you your results, of course."

"All Might…"

Izuku hadn't seen Toshinori in a week, just like the man had told him. It was nice to hear his voice again, even if it was just a recording and not the real thing.

"To begin, I am pleased to tell you that your score on the written examination was good. The graders were pleased with your answers, and you passed that section with no issues."

Izuku sighed in relief but chewed on his lip nervously. All Might had started out with the written portion, which meant that there were problems with Izuku's practical portion. Probably.

All Might's face turned grave. "However…"

Izuku covered his face, then peeked through his fingers.

"Your practical exam, on the other hand…"

"There it is," Izuku muttered. "I'm done. I'll never be a hero. This is it."

"You defeated twelve villain-bots, culminating in a point-total of 23 points. This alone is not enough when compared to the scores of the other potential students."

Izuku swallowed hard. His legs gave out from underneath him, and Izuku slid to the ground. He'd been right. He really failed the exam.

"But do not lose hope, young Akatani! Before I continue, I would like to show you… ah, can we get that clip… er, is it working?"

All Might smiled awkwardly at the camera. "Please allow us one moment for technical difficulties."

Technical difficulties?

What kind of technical difficulties were there to Izuku failing the exam?

"No, no, just play the- yes… we discussed this…"

The hologram seemed to disappear. Then a different scene opened, and Izuku watched in confusion as the clip began to play.

"Excuse me?"

"...Uraraka…?"

It was Uraraka, approaching one of the teachers. She looked nervous but determined. Izuku couldn't tell when this occurred, but he guessed it was probably after the exams in the past week. Why were they showing him Uraraka, though?

"I wanted to ask if it was possible… to share my points. With my fellow candidate Akatani."

Izuku's mouth dropped open. Share her points? Share her points?

But…

"He saved my life!" The Uraraka on-screen waved her arms in a large gesture. "I spoke with him afterwards, and he said he didn't think he was going to pass. But he deserves to! I know it!"

Izuku felt the familiar feeling of tears beginning to slip down his cheeks. The two barely knew each other, and yet—

"He saved me." Uraraka's face was set with a determination that Izuku knew wouldn't budge. "And even though the examination is judged on points… is judged on how well you can use your Quirk… shouldn't it be judged on acts of heroism as well?"

The clip stopped there, and All Might reappeared in frame.

"Young Uraraka here is correct… We at U.A. did not grant her request of splitting her points. However, there was an undisclosed, secondary criteria to the exam that no examinees were informed about."

All Might was smiling again. "For those who are pursuing heroics cannot only defeat villains. We were also searching for selflessness, a desire to help others… something that you displayed."

All Might glanced off-screen.

"And so, while you were only awarded 23 combat points for defeating villain-bots… the examiners awarded you with an additional 53 rescue points for your bravery and show of selflessness. Therefore, your total is 76 points, putting you in second place behind Bakugou Katsuki with 77 points."

A scoreboard appeared. Izuku was happy to see his name there - second to Kacchan, like All Might had said. Uraraka's name was also there, in 4th place.

The screen switched to a freeze frame caught of Izuku mid-air. The sight knocked the air from Izuku's lungs. He had his arm outstretched, about to fire One for All at the zero-pointer. His hair blew around him; on his face was a determined, set expression, with brows drawn and teeth bared. A fire was blazing in his eyes.

Izuku had never seen himself like this. It was— it was… it awakened something inside of Izuku then.

"So I am pleased to tell you," All Might continued, "that you have been accepted and will be attending U.A. as a student in the upcoming school year."

Izuku clutched his chest, then slowly lifted his hand to cover his mouth as he started crying.

All Might's smile shifted a little, and he stepped closer to the camera.

"Well done, young Akatani," he said quietly, "and I promised to tell you this when you passed the exam… I'm proud of you. I'll see you soon."

On the ground next to him, his phone buzzed with messages, but Izuku couldn't bring himself to respond. Instead Izuku sank back on his knees, holding the acceptance letter close to his chest.

You 1:42 PM
[hacker voice] ...I'm in!

You 1:43 PM
I mean. You already probably know that but

Eraserhead 1:44 PM
why are you texting me

Toshinori 1:44 PM
Yes!

Toshinori 1:45 PM
You could at least try to sound excited, Aizawa. I know you are.

Eraserhead 1:46 PM
Why would I pretend to be excited

Eraserhead 1:47 PM
I better not be getting texts from this group chat. Unless it's an emergency. Maybe not even then

Toshinori 1:50 PM
Congratulations, Mikumi.

You 1:51 PM
Technical difficulties?

You 1:52 PM
Really. I couldn't have done it without either of you. Thank you.