Sorry I've been gone so long! T.T here's an extra long chapter to make up for it!
It was quiet, the room that Suzuka currently sat in, despite her being surrounded by her peers, the winners of the cavalry battle. It was unnerving, honestly and she couldn't wait until they dismissed them for lunch. As if on cue, the loud speakers blared.
"Everybody, it's time to dismiss for lunch break before we start round 3!" Present Mic practically screamed. Suzuka flinched, looking up at the speaker quietly. Oh how her head pounded. She wasn't even sure if she could eat anything because of how her stomach churned. Around her, her peers began to file out, exchanging pleasantries of food as they did.
Suzuka groaned, standing up to leave with them when Katsuki suddenly appeared in front of her. Suzuka bumped into him, which knocked her back into her seat. She looked up at him in silence, clearing her throat awkwardly. Katsuki said nothing as he looked down at her with narrowed eyes.
"What do you think you're doing?" Suzuka froze, looking from Katsuki to the door behind him.
"I was going to go to lunch. Would you like to join me?" Suzuka asked him, suddenly regretting her decision.
"That's not what I meant." He spoke, his voice low. Again Katsuki only looked at Suzuka, who growled, standing up and shoving him out of her way.
"Well then how about if you tell me what you mean because I'm tired of your guessing games!" She shouted, shoving him again. Suzuka, furious, went to shove him one more time, when he caught her hands in front of her, pulling her towards him. Startled, Suzuka gasped, nearly falling over as her feet caught her. Katsuki glared down at her feet first, before finding Suzuka's wide eyes. He was pissed at her, but also he wasn't. He didn't know how to describe this feeling inside of him.
"Why did you catch me?" He asked her suddenly. He honestly needed to know. Her answer was important to him because of the moment they'd had earlier in the week at the disaster simulator. Before All Might came along, they'd had a few minutes to themselves in the simulation. He wanted those moments back.
Suzuka blinked several times, thinking hard about what he'd just said. Her silence only made Katsuki growl under his breath.
"Because you-" She began.
"Think hard about what you're going to say to me." Katsuki Interrupted her. Suzuka stopped, biting her lip. She could feel her eyes burning and she sniffed as she pulled her hands from Katsuki's grip.
"Because you're an Idiot, Katsuki Bakugou!" She shouted at him. "You're an idiot and you took off like 100 feet in the air and probably didn't even think about how you were going to get down, did you?" Her words were met with silence, so she took a deep breath and continued. "I caught you so that you wouldn't get hurt because, even if I'm mad at you, you getting hurt is the last thing I ever wanted." Suzuka told him, crossing her arms in front of her chest.
"You're… Mad at me?" He said after quite a long pause. That wasn't what he wanted to hear. "Why?" Suzuka growled in frustration. He couldn't be this dense, could he?
"Y-you called me a stepping stone!" Suzuka's told him, her eyes tearing up. Katsuki froze for a moment, his eyes returning to their normal glare.
"I called the extras a stepping stone."
"But that's not what you said!"
"But it's what I meant." He told her finally. Suzuka, furious, found herself at a loss for words as the boy took a step towards her. Katsuki watched Suzuka quietly, bringing a single finger to her cheek where he wiped away a tear. He hated when she cried and he wanted her to stop. He wanted her to not be angry with him anymore. He wanted, well, he wanted her. Taking a glance behind him at the empty room, he reached for Suzuka, bringing her tightly into his chest. "Uncross your arms." He demanded her, as her elbows jabbed his chest. Suzuka, frozen, ignored Katsuki's request, and he growled to get her attention. "I said uncross your arms, dammit!" He hissed.
Suzuka did as she was told, dropping her arms to her side. Her wide eyes watched the wall behind Katsuki, confused, but not mortified. With a grunt, Katsuki grabbed her arms, wrapping them around himself as he held onto her tightly. Suzuka was shocked to say the least, but Katsuki seemed so sure of what he was doing and after a few seconds Suzuka found herself hugging him back.
"Katsuki-" Suzuka muttered, taking a deep breath. "What are you doing?" She asked him finally. Katsuki smiled, a small, tiny smile, one that Suzuka could not see.
"I'm hugging you, dumbass." He smarted to her quietly, leaning back to look at her, his smile hidden. It had been some time since he'd returned one of her hugs, he was too much a hardass to do it anymore, but when she hugged him the other day and he returned it, something clicked inside of him. He wanted to do it again, so here he was. Suzuka felt her stomach clench and she flinched in Katsuki's arms. Katsuki pulled away from her, studying her face quietly.
"I'm sorry." Suzuka said embarrassed, looking at the floor as her stomach growled loudly. Katsuki glared at her, huffing as he did. "I'm just really hungry." Katsuki sighed, shifting his weight, his hands still resting on her shoulders. He gave her a light shake, one that caused her to look up at him.
"Let's go get some food." Katsuki growled quietly, the hug now forgotten. Suzuka's eyes lit up and she smiled at katsuki, one that made his heart nearly burst in his chest. She tucked her hair behind one of her ears, standing up to her full height and began towards the door. "Uh-" Katsuki started, causing Suzuka to stop. He didn't know what he was going to say, but he looked down quietly at his hand before returning his gaze to her. Suzuka watched him, looking from his hand to hers before holding her hand out for him to take.
"Come on, Kachaan." Suzuka said to him. "My treat."
"Get those foam fingers in the air! It's almost time for our last round!" Present Mic Shouted to the now full stadium. Suzuka sat quietly in the stands, her belly full as she watched the losers of the cavalry battle parade down on the floor of the stadium. They were having last minute shows of their quirks before the final round, a chance to show off for the pros who were in attendance since they wouldn't have a chance to otherwise. From out of nowhere, a set of UA cheerleading clothes was thrust in front of her face and Suzuka looked up, shocked to find Yaoyorozu standing there clad in the same uniform. Beside her, Katsuki shifted to watch them.
"Yaoyorozu, what-?"
"We've been informed that there's supposed to be a cheer battle this afternoon before the final round."
"A what?" Suzuka replied emptily, her face a look of shock. Yaoyorozu nodded, Jiro stepping out from behind her.
"Yeah, Denki and Minetta just told us, so Yaoyorozu made the uniforms for all of the girls." Jiro shrugged. Suzuka narrowed her eyes, looking behind her at Kaminari and Minetta. The two seemed inconspicuous enough and with a shrug she took from Yaoyorozu the Cheerleading outfit.
"I guess I'll go change." Suzuka smiled at her, standing up as she did. Katsuki stopped her, grabbing her wrist.
"No." He said, catching Suzuka and Yaoyorozu off guard. With a nod of his head, he gestured towards Kaminari and Minetta, who were watching the girls intently, anticipation evident on their faces. Yaoyorozu stopped, looking from Katsuki to the boys before wilting where she stood.
"They tricked me!" She sighed, dropping to the ground. Beside her, Jiro growled, marching up to Kaminari and chasing him throughout the stands, shouting something about him being a pervert. Suzuka felt her face flush and she gave Yaoyorozu a quick smile.
"I'm sorry, but the uniforms are at least cute!" She told her, handing hers back to the creation quirked teen. Relieved, Suzuka sat down in her seat again as Present Mic called for the competitors of the final round to join them on the field.
As the students filed out, they were greeted with loud, boastful cheering from the crowd around them. Suzuka smiled nervously, waving up at them equally as nervous. She wondered for a second if Katsuki and Izuku were just as nervous as she. Glancing up at the boys revealed that Katsuki was as cool as a cucumber, but Izuku was a different story. He too waved nervously at the crowd from behind Suzuka.
"Welcome to the final round where the sixteen students of the top four teams will be duking it out one on one in a tournament style fighting competition!" Suzuka took a deep breath looking up at the jumbotron where a bracket filled the screen. One by one, the faces of each of the students filled the brackets until Suzuka's face and Katsuki's face were the last two left. Suzuka gasped as she realized who her first competitor would be: Katsuki Bakugou. She frowned to herself and looked over at Katsuki quietly.
"First round." She muttered under her breath. Katsuki didn't look at her, which was just as unnerving as her placements. Behind her, someone placed a hand on her shoulder, and she turned to find Izuku. He watched her intently and looked over at Katsuki before smiling at his sister. Suzuka returned his smile, though nervously, realizing that most of the class was watching her.
Again Suzuka looked over at Katsuki, who finally had turned to look at her. The pair shared a glance, and Suzuka bit her lip. His eyes were so fierce, so ready to fight her. It made her wonder exactly what kind of moment they'd shared earlier in the locker room. Was it even real?
"Aw yeah, finally getting a chance to show what we're made of!" Kirishima said excitedly from a few students down. "I watch these finals every year and now I'm actually in them!"
"So wait, is it always a tournament?" Suzuka asked him. Kirishima smiled at her, fists raised.
"The final is always a one on one competition, but they switch it up every time."
"Yeah, last year it was a foam sword fighting match!" Sero Interjected. Suzuka hummed to herself, taking her spot back in the crowd. With a sigh, she looked up at her and Katsuki's portraits again, this time more determined than the last. She wasn't going to lose to Katsuki, that much she knew was certain. Suzuka and Katsuki again caught eyes, each one thinking the same as the other; They weren't going down without a fight.
"Um, excuse me!" Someone from the crowd piped up suddenly, grabbing Midnight's attention. It was Ojiro. "I'm withdrawing." he told the scantily clad teacher, earning gasps from both the crowd and the students around him.
"Ojiro, what?" Suzuka whispered, her eyes intently trained on her classmate. Ojiro glanced up at her before looking away at Midnight again.
"It just wouldn't be right. I barely remember anything about the cavalry battle until the very end of it. I think it was that guys quirk." He told his peers. Suzuka frowned at him. What did he mean? Was he talking about Shinsou? Her eyes flew to the purple haired kid, who smirked at Ojiro with his arms crossed.
Could he have something to do with this? The thought came suddenly and was very intrusive. She suddenly had a bad feeling about this student.
"I know this is a great opportunity and i wish i could take advantage of it, but my conscience won't let me. Everyone gave their all in round two but i was just someone's puppet. No way." Ojiro raise his fist, clenching it. "I don't want to advance if i don't know how I got here." Despite his classes protests, Ojiro didn't give in and to Suzuka's surprise, another student stepped forward from the crowd."
"Nirengaki Shoda, from class 1-b. I think i should withdraw for the exact same reason." he told them, earning another set of gasps."regardless of how strong I am, this isn't how I wanted to get here. It would go against the values of the festival to advance without earning my spot!"
"Listen to these guys! They're so manly!" Kirishima began to cry, wiping the tears from his face with his fists."
"This sort of talk is incredibly naive my boys." Midnight began. "That turns me on!" She finished. Suzuka groaned, burying her hands in her face as Kaminari and Minetta swooned. "Shoda, Ojiro! You're withdrawn!" Midnight paused, her finger on her lips in thought. "Now lets see, we'll have to move up two students from the fifth place cavalry team so we have enough contestants."
"We were frozen most of the time, honestly we barely did anything in the battle." one of the students, a girl with red hair, chimed in. "You should choose from the group that kept fighting the whole time, Team Tetsutetsu." Suzuka felt a small smile tug at her lips as Team Tetsutetsu told her how grateful they were. Suzuka couldn't believe how gracious everyone was being today and she smiled back at her brother who gave her two thumbs up.
"Hey guys look at this!" Kirishima practically squealed to his classmates, Aishido and Yaoyorozu. His outburst caught the attention of Uraraka and Iida as well, and both of them were quick to join Kirishima at his side. "I was checking Chatter and look who's trending!" He told the group, pointed excitedly to his phone.
"What? No way! She's going to love this." Uraraka squealed, taking the phone from him. She turned, running down the stands, plopping down in her chair next to Suzuka, who jumped nearly out of her skin. "Suzu, look!" She shouted, shoving the phone in Suzuka's face. Suzuka stared at it for a moment, her eyes going wide after several seconds. Playing on the phone was a highlight reel of her soaring through the air in the first round, as well as her fight with Todorok, all chatted by Mount Lady. "They're calling you The Sugar Glider! How cute is that!" Uraraka gushed.
"The... Sugar Glider?" Suzuka wasn't super keen on the name, she prayed it didn't stick.
"Yup, I bet she offers you a work study for sure!" Kirishima told her.
"A Work study with Mount Lady would be a huge step for you." Iida said quietly, hand on his chin. Suzuka suddenly felt butterflies in her stomach and she looked up at the bracket on the jumbotron. She knew if she didn't beat Katsuki, she'd be letting down Mount Lady. She had to win that fight.
"After all the action you've already witnessed, it's time for the real battles to begin! Can ya feel the excitement!?" Present Mics boomed over the loudspeaker. Suzuka took a deep breath while the rest of the students took their seats. To her surprise, Uraraka sat next to her, pulling out her own phone.
"I gotta tell my mom you're trending on Chatter!" She smiled at her opening up a new text.
"Your mom?"
"Of course! My dad doesn't have Chatter so he won't understand, but I've got to tell her my friend is famous!" Suzuka froze in her seat, watching Uraraka quietly, a small smile cracking over her face. Friend. She thought to herself, wringing her hands together.
"And now for the first match of the final round! Izuku Midorya of the Hero Course versus Hitoshi Shinsou from General Studies!" Present Mic squealed. Suzuka leaned forward in her seat, staring down at the stadium below her. Cementoss had made a cement fighting platform for the competition and far below her, Izuku made his way out onto the platform, while Shinsou joined him from the opposite side.
"Go Deku!" Ochako chouted, cupping her mouth. Suzuka smiled over at her, a big cheeky grin, and joined in on her cheering.
"Let's go Izu!" Suzuka smiled, clapping her hands.
"Where's Bakugou?" Uraraka asked, mid clap. Suzuka turned, looking around the grandstand. It didnt surprise her that Kachaan wasn't going to be watching Izuku's fight, but she was surprised that Ochako asked about him.
"Not sure, why?"
"I saw you guys together at lunch holding hands." She waggled her eyebrows suggestively at Suzuka. Suzuka felt her face flush, but she did not deny holding his hand.
"It was just lunch."
"Sure it was." Uraraka teased, the crowd around them going quiet. Below them, Izuku and Shinsou had made their way to the edges of the platform. Ojiro took a heavy seat on the other side of Suzuka, leaning forward in his seat expectantly.
"You alright, Ojiro?" Suzuka asked him. He gave her a curt nod, turning to look at her.
"Hopefully your brother keeps his mouth shut." he told her as the fight began. Suzuka watched the battle below quietly, her lips pursed.
"Why?" She asked as her brother and Shinsou were both stood still. Ojiro shifted in his seat uncomfortably, crossing his arms.
"I can't prove it, but i think that kids quirk is mind control." Ojiro told her. Suzuka gasped, suddenly afraid for her brother. Below them it seemed like Shinsou was doing all of the talking, trying to goad Izuku into speaking. "I can remember a bit more from the cavalry battle, its hazy but the last thing I recall is telling that kid my name…" Ojiro frowned, grabbing his head. Suddenly, Izuku began to shout, something that Suzuka couldn't make out, and her heart sank to her knees.
"Oh no…" Suzuka breathed.
"AH! I warned him not to say anything!" Ojiiro growled, frustrated.
"Hey what's the dealio?! This is the first match, it should start out with a bang!" Present Mic cried out. Slowly Suzuka stood, her eyes never leaving her brother. His face was blank, staring off into space in silence. Suzuka bit her lip, looking over at Uraraka who wore a matching expression of her own; Izuku was in trouble.
"What's this? Hitoshi Shinsou seems to have Izuku Midorya completely stunned!" As if on cue, Izuku turned, beginning a slow march back towards the exit of the stadium.
"Izuku!" Suzuka shouted, gripping the metal bar in front of her. "Stop!"
"It doesn't matter. He can't hear you now." Ojiro told her sadly, arms crossed across his chest. Suzuka frowned at Ojiro, but that did not stop her shouting.
"Izuku! What are you doing?!" she shouted at the top of her lungs, practically leaning over the side of the box.
"Midorya!" Iida shouted, grabbing a hold of her waist. Suzuka did not budge and she continued to stand there, watching as her brother continued his slow walk towards the out of bounds line.
"You can't walk out of the ring! You'll lose the match!" Suzuka shouted down at him. But it was no use. It was like ojiro said: Izuku couldn't hear her. Izuku's trot continued, ever so slowly, as he was mere feet away from boundary to the match. Suzuka growled, taking in a deep breath. "IZUKUUUU! TURN AROUNDDDD!" She shouted as loudly as she could.
Below them, Izuku's fingers began to light up, the way he usually did before he used his power. Suzuka watched, not moving, not breathing, as her brother stopped, inches from the boundary line. A giant whirlwind kicked up from Izuku's left hand, nearly toppling Shinsou over with its power. Butterflies grew in Suzuka's stomach as Izuku bent over, gasping for air and clutching at his fingers.
"He-he broke them!" Uraraka muttered from next to Suzuka. Behind her, Iida released Suzuka's waist and the entire 1-a box went silent as they watched Izuku regain himself.
"What's this?! Midorya stopped just in time!" Present Mic shouted. The crowd around box 1-a cheered furiously, Iida and Uraraka joining in.
I knew you could do it. Suzuka thought, clapping her hands excitedly. Kick his ass!
Furious, Izuku turned to look at Shinsou. Now he understood; Shinsou's quirk allowed him to take control of someone's body, but only after they spoke. Thankfully, he was able to break the spell Shinsou had over him with help from One for All and his sister. Her words of encouragement was what brought One For All out in him, despite his mind being controlled. He saw them, just now in the dark corridor that he'd come from, but they couldn't have been real, could they? Thankfully they were able to move his body for him, if not he'd have been out for sure.
With a smile, he glanced up at his sister, who he could vaguely see up in the stands. Izuku gave her a brief thumbs up before he ran at Shinsou full speed. He placed a strong hand on Shinsou's shoulder, pushing the purple haired boy towards the boundary line.
With a shout, Shinsou threw a punch at Izuku, which landed square on Izuku's cheek, and to Suzuka's surprise Izuku continued pushing Shinsou. With renewed vigor, Izuku forced Shinsou all the way to the edge, until Shinsou struck out at Izuku's broken fingers.
Izuku cried out in pain, but he did not have time to hold his hand. In an instant, Shinsou had turned against him, and now he was the one pushing Izuku out of the ring.
"No!" Izuku shouted, grabbing for Shinsou's arm. With one giant pull, Izuku tossed Shinsou up over his shoulder, flinging him outside of the ring, where he landed with a hard thud. The world around them grew silent, the crowd shocked at the sudden display of strength from Izuku. Groaning, Shinsou tried to stand up, but it was no use, he had lost anyways so why bother?
"Shinso is out of bounds! Midoriya advances to the next match!" Midnight called over the loudspeakers.
"YES!" Suzuka shouted from where she stood, her right fist above her head, triumphant. She turned to Uraraka, who was also celebrating his win. The crowd was roaring at this point, every single one of them pumped for the outcome.
"He won! He won!" Uraraka chanted, jumping up and down.
"He did!" Suzuka grinned at her. Looking around at their class, she noticed they too were all celebrating. To her surprise Katsuki had joined them to watch Izuku's match. He looked pissed as his eyes settled on Suzuka and he sneered at her. With a frown, Suzuka returned her gaze back to her brother, who was looking up at her in silence. Suzuka smiled at him throwing him a brief thumbs up.
There you go, bro. She thought happily. Katsuki glowered at Izuku, his frown growing even more as he saw Suzuka give him a thumbs up.
That Jerkwad. He growled, turning to walk away from his fellow students, only stopping to give Suzuka one more passing glance.
The rest of the tournament was set to start soon, after a five minute break set for after Izuku and Shinsou's match up. Suzuka watched as Sero and Todoroki were gathered for their match and taken down to the staging area. Only a few minutes after they were taken, Izuku finally showed up, his fingers kissed and bandaged by Recovery Girl, no doubt.
"Izuku." Suzuka smiled at him, standing from her chair. She met him in the aisle, where she gave him a big hug. "I knew you could do it."
"Thanks, Suzu." He grinned at her. "I couldn't have done it without you, your yelling is what helped me break through." He told her half the truth with a grin, bringing his hand up to scratch his head. Wincing, Izuku dropped his hand and Suzuka gently grabbed it, taking a look at the bandaged fingers.
"Izuku, you really need to get this quirk of yours under control." She told him finally. "You can't keep hurting yourself like this." Izuku frowned at her, taking his hand out of hers and placing it at his side.
"I know, I know." He told her with a laugh. "You sound like mom." Suzuka gave him a sour look, earning another laugh from her brother, followed by a ruffle
of her hair.
"Ladies and gentlemen here comes match number two!" Present Mic shouted, catching the attention of the entire crowd, including Izuku and Suzuka.
"Come on down here, I saved a seat for you next to Uraraka." She told him suggestively. Izuku groaned as his sister led him to their seats, and as promised, he was nestled between Suzuka and Uraraka.
"Great job, Deku!" Uraraka smiled at him, giving him a thumbs up. Izuku's face flushed scarlet and he couldn't find words. Thankfully Iida stepped in.
"Yes, you did amazing!" Iida agreed with her. From behind them, Ojiro leaned forward in his seat, clapping Izuku on the shoulder.
"Thanks for avenging me." He told Izuku. Izuku exchanged with him a determined smile, clapping a hand on Ojiro's.
"Enough standing around! Now welcome to the ring our next players!" Mic shouted, causing the crowd to cheer. On the jumbotron pictures of both Todoroki and Sero flashed, and as Present Mic did their introductions, the two made their way out onto the field.
Right as Present mic counted down to start, Sero jumped into action, shooting from both of his elbows strands of white tape. The tape wrapped its way around Todorokis body, and using the tape as momentum, Sero begin pulling Todoroki to the outside of the boundary. Instantly, Todoroki stopped all of Sero's momentum, planting one icy foot into the earth. With nary a movement from his hands, Todoroki beckoned forth a giant iceberg, which took up nearly half of the entire stadium, and encased Sero in its icy wake.
Suzuka, who had been on the edge of her seat the entire time, found herself gaping at the giant block of ice which sat mere inches from her face.
"Holy-" she breathed, taking her single finger and poking the ice quietly. Beside her Deku, Uraraka and Iida seemed terrified and they all turned to look at Suzuka with wide eyes. "I think he went a little overboard." Suzuka muttered.