You're Here, Too?

The whole class, Sora couldn't help but feel distracted. Anger still bubbled in her blood, though every time Bakugou glowered at her, she shriveled back. Why couldn't she just match his antagonistic energy for once? And keep it?

To make matters worse, she was so distracted that she failed to notice All Might—who was acting as the "villain" in their class exercise—got up and ran away. To be fair, none of the others—including Todoroki, Bakugou, and Midoriya, who were all top of the class—failed to notice, too. So, they all failed the extra credit course. But the knot in Sora's chest tightened. She couldn't help that nasty voice in her head that whispered it was her fault. Somehow, that voice always sounded like her mother.

As they left UA, Sora slowed her pace while Uraraka, Tsu, Iida, and Midoriya talked about where they went wrong in the exercise. Todoroki walked with them, but remained quiet as ever. Bakugou walked past Sora, his hands in his pockets.

"Hey, Bakugou!" Sora called, jogging to catch up to him.

"What do you want?"

"To start over," Sora said, sucking in a deep breath. "We got off on a bad start—"

"Why the hell do you even care?" Bakugou interrupted, his lip curling. "You said it yourself: I'm mean to you. So, why do you care what I think?"

Sora blinked rapidly. "I don't—"

"Yes, you do," said Bakugou, stopping in his tracks. "You care what everyone thinks about you, and that's your biggest weakness. You don't need everyone to like you."

Frowning, Sora folded her arms. "Hold on, I don't need everyone to like me. There's a difference between needing to be liked and just being kind."

"Yeah, and you like to walk that line. You're avoiding the question, too."

"I care what you think because I respect you," said Sora. Bakugou's usual glower softened with surprise. "Even if you are a bit mean."

Bakugou shrugged. "Tch. Whatever."

Sora offered him a small smile. "Well, my offer still stands. And, uh, sorry for calling you a dickhead."

Bakugou snorted. "Don't apologize for standing up for yourself, Sugar Queen."

Sora's face warmed and she turned away from Bakugou. Todoroki and the others caught up to them, but Bakugou kept walking ahead. Still, Sora felt a little at peace with Bakugou.

"I hope you apologized for what you said," said Iida. "You could get into trouble one day."

"I think it was good that Sora stood up for herself," said Tsu.

"Still… You do need to be careful with what you say. I don't want to see you get blown up," said Midoriya with a slight chuckle.

"What did you say to him?" Todoroki queried.

"Oh, I… I sort of apologized to him. We're good now. I think."

When they reached the gates of UA, a man hurried up the hill toward them. Bakugou stopped, too. But the man ignored Bakugou and hurried toward Sora.

"Sora!" he called.

Sora gasped. "Dad?"

Taking a few hasty steps forward, Sora suddenly faltered. She hadn't spoken to her father almost since starting UA. He was supposed to keep in contact, but hadn't. Her chest stung, seeing him okay. Had he just forgotten about her? Then, her stomach twisted. Why was she sad to see him okay? Had she hoped he was hurt? Maybe that would've explained why he hadn't called?

"Sora? Are you okay?" Uraraka queried.

"Yeah," Sora replied, forcing herself to walk toward her father. Tadashi had started growing a beard since Sora'd last seen him. Dark, curly hair obscured most of his face. His glasses sat askew on the tip of his nose. He held his arms out to Sora.

"What, no hug?"

Sora hugged him gingerly and pulled back. "What are you doing here?"

Tadashi's smile faded. "I came to see you, of course. What's wrong?"

Sora folded her arms. "You… You haven't called. I thought…"

Tadashi's brow puckered. "Let's talk about that later, okay? Who are your friends?"

Sora's skin heated as she turned, and her friends clustered together, watching her interact with her father with concerned looks. Even Bakugou stood off to the side watching—out of curiosity rather than concern, probably. Braving a smile, Sora gestured to them.

"Dad, these are my friends. Iida, Uraraka, Tsu, Midoriya, Todoroki, and… Bakugou. Guys, this is… my dad."

"Asa Tadashi," said Sora's dad; he waved at them.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, sir!" said Iida, bowing to Tadashi.

"I thought you lived with your sister?" said Uraraka quietly, looking at Sora.

"She does," answered Tadashi. "I travel for work a lot, so Asi looks after my little Sora."

Sora dodged her father's head pat. Todoroki's eyebrows gathered, but he said nothing. Sora tugged on Tadashi's sleave. "We should go. Bye, guys."

Tadashi and Sora walked ahead of her friends. Sora maintained a brisk pace and bowed her head slightly. The more Sora rolled the interaction over in her mind, the more her stomach knotted and heat crept up her neck. Why had she been so awkward? Wasn't she happy to see her dad?

Of course she was. Right?

"Sora," Tadashi murmured, placing a hand on Sora's shoulder, "what's wrong? You're looking a little stormy."

Sora screwed her eyes shut for a moment. "Can we just… not talk for right now? I'd rather talk at home."

Tadashi swallowed. "Of course, sweetie."

The train ride to Sora's neighborhood crackled with tension. It bellied between Sora and her father, growing heavier with each passing second. But Sora preferred the silence. It gave her time to think. Part of her wanted to yell at Tadashi. Where had he been? Why hadn't he contacted her? Why did he seem so giddy, as if he hadn't broken his promise to call her?

The other part—the part that made Sora's stomach knot with guilt—didn't really care. She'd kind of forgotten about her father, the same way he seemed to have forgotten about her. She'd been so busy with hero training and making new friends that… Well, her father's attention hadn't seemed all that important.

But the fact that she didn't feel entirely bothered by her father's absence bothered her more. Was she really so uncaring?

[New Message]

Sora opened up her phone to find a group text with Iida, Tsu, Uraraka, Midoriya, and Todoroki.

Tsu: Sora, was that really your dad? You seemed really uncomfortable and I can't get it off my mind. Sorry if this is too blunt.

Sora's stomach squirmed again, but she felt a slight rush of warmth for Tsu.

Sora: Yeah, he was. I just wasn't expecting to see him.

Sora: Thanks for checking on me.

Uraraka: Are you okay?

Sora: uhhh I'm not sure

Sora: I'm not in danger or anything

Todoroki: Why would you be in danger?

Crap. That probably hadn't been the best thing to say if she was trying to lay low.

Sora: I just didn't want you guys to think

I was going off with a stranger or something

Midoriya: Well, if you're sure you're okay…

Iida: Let us know if you need anything!

Tsu: Yeah, keep us updated on how it goes.

Sora blinked back tears.

Sora: Thanks, guys. I'm okay, I promise.

Slipping her phone back into her pocket, Sora got up when the train stopped. She and her father walked to her apartment, where they found the lights still off. Asi would be home from her shift later, but Sora wished she were home now. Asi never had a problem with telling Tadashi off when she needed, but Sora always seemed to shrink away from him. Whelp, maybe she should channel Bakugou and stand up to Tadashi.

"I like what you two have done with the place," said Tadashi, looking around. "Lots of green."

Sora folded her arms while Tadashi paced around the small apartment space. "Thanks."

Tadashi glanced over his shoulder at her and lifted a brow. "Why are you so upset? I thought you'd be happy to see me."

Chin dropping to her chest, Sora tried to ignore the lump that swelled in her throat. "I am happy to see you."

"But?"

"But you were supposed to call! But you never did!" Sora cried, her eyes stinging.

Tadashi sighed. "I know, sweetie."

"I thought you might've been in danger or something." The lump in Sora's throat hardened painfully.

"You never called, either."

Sora's stomach knotted, and she grimaced. "I didn't know if it was safe."

That wasn't a total lie. But Tadashi had a point. Relationships worked both ways, and she failed to really reach out to her dad.

Several seconds ticked past. "I'm sorry that I didn't call, Sora."

Sora's heart hurt as she lifted her gaze to meet Tadashi's. "Why didn't you?"

Tadashi sighed as he sat down on the sofa. "I've been busy with work, and… I was in danger."

Eyes widening, Sora rushed to her father's side. "What happened?"

"It wasn't for very long, and I'm not a hundred percent sure… But I think one of Vortex's people was following me. I didn't call because I didn't want to endanger you."

"Oh," Sora's shoulders slumped. Was everyone in danger for just being close with Sora? Would Vortex eventually track her down here in Japan, even surrounded by Pro Heroes? "I'm sorry."

"Forgiven," said Tadashi, kissing Sora's forehead. "How about I buy dinner for you and Asi tonight?"

"Yeah, sure." She smiled, but it failed to reach her eyes.

After finding a place to eat, Sora and Tadashi relaxed a little bit. He asked to see any art that Sora'd been working on. She showed him some sketches, and two paintings, including her hero costume sketch.

"You're going for a very simplistic design, I see," said Tadashi.

"I figured my Quirk is flashy enough."

"Yeah, that's true. No gloves?"

"I need my hands for healing."

"Of course… And you want it to be black?"

"Mostly," Sora said. "I didn't want it to be too distracting, you know?"

"Yeah. I like it."

"Thanks!"

The back door opened with a jingle of keys, and Asi entered the apartment. "Sora! I'm home! What were you thinking for dinner? I was thinking takeout since we kind of need to go to the store—"

She stopped when she saw Tadashi.

"Asi, it's good to see you."

Asi's face tightened. She set her things down by the door. "You could've called."

Tadashi watched Asi hang up her purse and slip out of her shoes before saying, "I figured it would be a nice surprise. And don't worry about dinner. It's on me."

"How nice," said Asi tightly. She turned to Sora, her expression warming. "Have you packed yet?"

"No," Sora admitted, shifting uncomfortably.

"Well, you better do that tonight or tomorrow. You leave soon."

"Leaving? Where are you going?" Tadashi queried.

"I-Island," said Sora, bouncing in her seat. "My friend Yaomomo had extra tickets to the Expo."

"Very cool," said Tadashi. He looked up at Asi. "This would've been nice to know."

"Maybe if you checked in more often, you would've," said Asi.

"Vortex sent someone to follow me. It wasn't safe."

"I'm sure." Asi folded her arms and leaned against the wall.

"You're okay with sending Sora away from you? You can't protect her if she goes to I-Island."

"She deserves to have some fun," said Asi. "Besides, she'll be with some of her friends from UA, and the security measures at I-Island are insane. Plus, there will be tons of Pro Heroes around. Sora will be perfectly safe."

"That's what we thought when we got her into UA, but then that villain attack happened."

"And look? I'm fine!" said Sora, gesturing to herself. "Besides, that wasn't because of Vortex."

"Sure, sure," said Tadashi. "I'm just uneasy about the idea of sending you off to some island with your friends."

"We're all training to be Pros," said Sora. "And Asi's right: I-Island is super secure. We looked into it before deciding."

"If you were around or called more, then maybe we would've consulted you," snapped Asi.

"I told you what happened," Tadashi sneered.

"Can we please not fight?" Sora begged.

Tadashi and Asi glared at each other for a moment longer, but Asi cracked first. She beamed at Sora. "I had my gown cleaned for you. You need to keep it in the plastic wrap to protect the sequins in your suitcase, though."

Sora smiled. "Thank you! Are you sure it's not too much?"

"Your friend's ticket said a formal gown, and that's the only one we have. It'll have to be good enough."

Sora hoped the gown wasn't too much for the event. "Formal gown" was pretty vague, and the other girls hadn't mentioned what they were bringing. Momo said she wanted it to be a surprise. Knowing Momo, her dress was exquisite, so Sora didn't feel too bad about hers.

"Alright. Let's go eat, then," said Tadashi.

Asi pursed her lips and nodded. Sora jumped to her feet, her stomach growling. Asi and Tadashi might not always get along, but they at least agreed to be civil for Sora's sake. For the moment, that sufficed.

Shouto's fingers hovered over the keyboard of his phone, an unsent message to Raijin glaring up at him.

Shouto [typing]: Is everything okay between you and your dad?

Like his companions, Shouto failed to miss how awkward Raijin seemed around her father. Mr. Asa—another oddity that they did not share the same last name—had been nervous, too. The way he brushed off Raijin's concerns and insisted that she introduce him to her friends had obviously irritated Raijin, but she had done it anyway. Raijin was usually quite reserved—or at least shy and soft-spoken—but still warm and friendly. But around her father, she'd acted more… Well, like Shouto. A bit cold and stiff. It reminded Shouto of how he interacted with his father, only less severe.

But it would probably be weird if Shouto texted Raijin. They were friends, sure. But Shouto doubted they were that good of friends. Would Raijin see that as prying or rude?

With a sigh, he backspaced the message and put his phone away. He tried to put the event out of his mind while he packed for I-Island, but it kept drifting back. Raijin had said she was fine in the group chat, so Shouto trusted that she'd been honest. Besides, why was he worried about this so much anyway? Raijin's business was her own.

Gritting his teeth, Shouto closed his eyes for a moment. He needed to focus on the task at hand, not worry about his friend. Besides, he wasn't sure how good of friends he was with Raijin.

A knock sounded on his door.

"Come in."

Fuyumi poked her head in. "Hey, dinner's almost ready."

"Okay. Thank you."

Fuyumi pushed the door open a little further. "Are you almost done packing for the Expo?"

"Yeah. I need to pick up my suit from the tailor's tomorrow."

"Okay! Aren't you glad Dad gave you this opportunity?"

"I guess."

"Doesn't the winner of the Sports Festival get to go?"

"Usually, why?"

"Maybe you'll see some friends at I-Island!"

"I doubt it."

Fuyumi tilted her head. "Are you okay? You seem a little more… off… than usual."

Shouto huffed. "I have a lot on my mind."

Fuyumi puckered her brow and tapped her fingers together. "Dad won't be eating dinner with us tonight, if that's what you're worried about."

"Hm? Oh, I wasn't."

"Is it Mom?"

"No."

"Okay, well… Let me know if you need anything."

"I will. Thank you," Shouto called after his sister, who glanced back at him with a smile, her glasses catching the light as she went.

With a sigh, Shouto pushed Raijin and her problems from his mind. If she wanted to talk about it, she would. Besides, he usually let his familial problems eat away at him. It wasn't really anyone else's business, so Raijin's situation wasn't his. He just needed to focus on the task at hand. Packing for I-Island.

The next forty-eight hours swept by in a blur. Shouto picked up his suit, finished packing, and got on his flight to I-Island. Napping most of the way there helped the time pass. Shouto met with some people on behalf of his father, who gave him some instructions about the Expo and the formal party later that evening, and then brought him to his hotel room, where he settled in. He hung up his suit, and then sat down at the desk and withdrew his sketchpad.

Because of school, he hadn't enjoyed his hobby as much as he wanted. He found sketching soothing—it kept him from descending into dark thoughts about his past. After his father sent his mother to the hospital, Shouto took to coloring and drawing to distract him from the harsh training and bad memories. Endeavor had encouraged Shouto's hobby, since it made him more "well-rounded."

He sketched Fuyumi's eyes, making sure to catch the tired and concerned lines in her stare. His stomach hardened slightly as Fuyumi's concerned expression gave him inspiration for his sketch. He might've been fairly cold with her when she asked him what was wrong. Why couldn't he just express himself more easily? Say everything on his mind? Offer warmth or sympathy, some sort of tenderness?

But he remained closed and stiff. Encased in ice, inexpressive, and… cold. Always so cold.

He once depended on his ice to shield him from his father's flames, but it seemed that kept him a glacier, isolated in frozen waters and impenetrable, even to his siblings. What he would give to have a normal childhood and be a normal person… Would he be like Ashido and Kaminari, carefree and expressive? Or like Midoriya, warm and kind and encouraging?

Or Raijin?

How did she manage to be so warm and kind after suffering something similar to him? Maybe what she experienced hadn't been so bad?

Or maybe she didn't let resentment gnaw away at her? But how?

Perhaps he could ask her. But would she tell him? She seemed open and friendly, but also… not.

She hid her powers for a reason, but Shouto sensed she lied about the true excuse. Why, he had no idea. Perhaps it was like him, and that maybe her powers really did remind her of her mother, but she would go no further in her explanation. But she always seemed like she carried something inside, something that ate away at her the same way Shouto's resentment for Endeavor and his hurtful past chipped pieces away from him.

Yet, she never let it detract from her kindness.

Shouto didn't really understand Raijin. On the one hand, she seemed kind and friendly, but she was also fierce when necessary. Sometimes, she seemed fearful and timid, and others, she seemed outrageously brave and determined. She possessed both an incredibly destructive Quirk and the ability to heal herself and others. It made no sense.

It was almost annoying.

There he was, thinking of Raijin again. Why did she never seem to leave his thoughts?

With a sigh, Shouto set down his pencil and got up. One of the attendants who showed him his hotel room earlier mentioned a training arena. Maybe he could check it out, let off some steam, and see what new battle technology I-Island had to offer.

He changed into his hero costume and left the room. Wandering I-Island distracted Shouto from his busy mind. The technology and equipment on display was impressive, but Shouto pushed out of the crowd to find the training arena. The immense amount of people left Shouto feeling a little restricted, so he picked up a map to quicken his search.

After finding the training arena, he waited in a lobby area underneath the stands. Explosions sounded outside. Explosions that reminded him of Bakugou. Several seconds to a minute passed, and an attendant rushed in, looking a little frazzled.

"It's your turn!"

Shouto strode down the dark hallway and entered the arena.

A rocky cliff spiked toward the sky. Robots stood on different plateaus on the rocky cliff, and these looked more difficult to beat than the ones at UA. However, they resembled the ones from UA greatly; these must be newer additions, and Shouto guessed that they'd appear in next year's training sessions sometime. He strode toward the green ground where he was free to start taking down the robots. A signature move like the one he used to take down Sero at the Sports Festival would suffice.

Crouching, Shouto placed a flat palm against the ground. Ice surged up like a tidal wave, completely covering the rocky cliff and every single robot in a matter of seconds. Huh. I-Island needed to up their game in making these things more difficult to defeat. That was too easy.

The announcer squealed, and the shrill sound echoed throughout the stands. "This is insane! Fourteen seconds! This gentleman has jumped to the top of the pack!"

A few cheers sounded distantly as Shouto straightened. He let out a clouded breath. Frost trickled up his arm, but he used his left side to melt it away quickly.

An explosion from the stands boomed, and hurtling through the air screamed Bakugou. "Out of the way, Icy Hot bastard!"

"Bakugou," Shouto greeted.

"You can't just appear out of nowhere and show me up!" Bakugou insisted, clenching his hand into a fist.

Behind Bakugou, waiting in the stands were Iida, Midoriya, Uraraka, Jirou, Yaoyorozu, Kirishima, some blonde girl, and Raijin.

"And I see the others are here, too," Shouto added, ignoring Bakugou's irrational anger.

"Don't ignore me! What are you even doing on the island anyway?"

"My father was invited, so I'm representing him."

"Um…" interjected the announcer in a wavering voice, "The next person is waiting."

"Shut up, I'm doing it again!" Bakugou snapped at her, and she let out a terrified squeal.

"Everyone please stop, you're going to make everyone think UA is full of a bunch of degenerates!" Iida shouted, charging toward them at full speed.

Midoriya and Kirishima jumped down from the stands and rushed over.

"Kacchan, please—" Midoriya tried, but Bakugou lunged toward him. It was a surprise he wasn't foaming at the mouth.

"Shut up Deku, you bastard!"

"Bakugou, you are embarrassing us and UA! Please conduct yourself in a respectable manner!" Iida cried.

"Who you calling embarrassing?" Bakugou snarled, wheeling toward Iida.

Kirishima grabbed Bakugou. "Come on, man! It's not that big of a deal!"

"Let me go! Let me go!" Bakugou roared, thrashing to break free of Kirishima's grip.

Shouto sighed and melted the ice from the cliff while Midoriya and Iida apologized to the announcer. Kirishima pulled Bakugou out of the arena, who bared his teeth like a dog. The girls met up with them outside the arena.

"Guys, this is Melissa Shield. She's been showing us around!" Midoriya said, gesturing to the blonde girl.

"Nice to meet you," Shouto offered. He turned to Raijin, who was the only one of the others not in her hero costume. She wore a pair of overalls over a T-shirt with Van Gogh's Starry Night on it. "You're here, too?"

"Oh, Yaomomo had some extra tickets, so…" Raijin shrugged.

"You didn't want to stay with your father?" Shouto queried.

Raijin lowered her gaze. "I don't want to talk about it."

Uraraka offered Raijin a sympathetic glance, and then scowled in Shouto's direction. He blinked. Did he say something wrong? What did he miss?

Katsuki snorted under his breath. Holy shit, Icy Hot was denser than a lead pipe. Raijin and her dad obviously had some sort of tension going on. One would think that having a tense relationship with their father would enable them to recognize that in others, but in Todoroki's case, that didn't seem to ring true.

Raijin played with a strand of thick hair. "But what about you? I figured we might see Bakugou since he won the Sports Festival, but I'm surprised to see you here!"

"I'm representing my father," replied Todoroki.

"Oh, well I'm glad you're here!"

Todoroki blinked. "Thank you."

Katsuki rolled his eyes. "Why aren't you in your hero costume, weirdo?"

Raijin's eyes stretched. "Mine is still being repaired from our practical and with my new suggestions for it, it's taking longer."

Oh, yeah. The lightning that tore through her costume. "You need something that can withstand your Quirk."

Raijin toyed with a chunk of hair, loosening her ponytail. "Well, I don't really plan on using my lightning, so it's not that big of a deal."

"Huh? Why not? You've got a powerful ability, and you're not going to use it? That's stupid."

"Choosing to not use an aspect of your own Quirk isn't stupid," interjected Todoroki. "And it's her choice, not yours."

"I know that," Katsuki grunted.

"Well, we want to check out more stuff!" Yaoyorozu said.

Melissa beamed. "Coming, Raijin?"

"Oh, yeah!"

With a small wave, Raijin hurried after the other girls. Midoriya and Iida went with them after saying farewell to Katsuki, Kirishima, and Todoroki.

"I should get going as well," said Todoroki, checking his phone for the time. "I was supposed to meet with someone and then I need to get ready."

With that, Todoroki left, too.

"Tch. Let's go grab something to eat."

"And we should check out some of the stuff in the Expo, too. There's some really great stuff going on!" Kirishima agreed.

"Yeah, whatever."

They ventured around the Expo for a while before grabbing some food. Katsuki had to admit that some of the stuff there was pretty cool. Impressive, really. And it would help the heroes. He and Kirishima grabbed some snacks and headed up to their hotel room.

Katsuki grabbed the first shower, rinsing the sweat and grime from the practice earlier off his body. The weird stench of caramel mixed with gasoline washed down the drain. Once he finished cleaning, he stepped out of the shower and tried to dry off. The steam hugged his skin, but no way in hell was he stepping into the main room with Kirishima munching on chips in there. Katsuki dressed into sweats and a T-shirt (growling under his breath as his clothes clung to his damp skin).

Then, he swept into the room and plopped on the bed with a sigh. As soon as the shower was free, Kirishima got up and closed himself in the bathroom. Katsuki flipped through channels, finally settling on some action movie. He hardly paid attention, instead dozing off every few minutes.

His phone dinged with an incoming message, jolting him out of his light nap.

Iida: Meet in Lobby 7 of the Central Tower at 6:30 sharp! Don't tarnish UA's reputation with tardiness, as there will be Pro Heroes attending the Reception!

Katsuki [read at 5:45]

Sighing, Katsuki laid back again and closed his eyes. Muffled voices sounded within the bathroom, and the water shut off. But Katsuki slipped in between dreams and consciousness. Shitty Hair was probably just on the phone or something.

The lights flicked on, jerking Katsuki out of his second partial nap. He sat bolt upright. "What the hell, Shitty Hair?"

"Hey, Iida called me to say that we should meet in Lobby Seven of the Central Tower for the Expo Reception."

"I already know about it. I don't want to go."

Kirishima frowned. "Huh? Why not?

Falling back against the pillows with his hands clasped behind his head, Katsuki said, "Why would I want to go to a party? It'll just be a bunch of old geezers I don't know giving speeches. Sounds like a pretty lame night to me."

"But we could eat a bunch of gourmet food as we want!"

Hm. That sounded halfway decent. Their cheap meals from earlier hadn't been that good. "Well, it's not like I brought a bunch of fancy clothes with me, anyway."

"I figured you wouldn't."

"Huh?" Katsuki tilted his head.

Kirishima grinned sheepishly, holding up two nice shirts and vests. "So, I brought some stuff for ya!"

Katsuki bolted upright again. "You gotta be kidding me, you spiky-haired idiot!"

"Come on, our invitations to the Expo included this Reception thingy, and I knew that since you didn't say anything about it, you were gonna try to weasel out of it. So, I packed for the both of us."

"I don't want to go!"

"It's important to make an impression. Plus, the others will be there!"

That only set Katsuki's teeth on edge more. "Why would I care if they're there?"

Kirishima frowned again. "Come on, man. Free food, friends… We can make fun of the speakers!"

Katuski sighed. "Fine. But only because there isn't much else to do anyway."

"All right!" Kirishima punched the air with one of the shirt-vest combos.

"And I get to pick the suit," Katsuki added, snatching the one with red flowers on it. Red was a better color, anyway.

Kirishima grinned. "I can't wait to see the others all dressed up!"

"Don't be weird about it," Katsuki muttered.

"You're not even a little curious?" Kirishima queried. "I think it's cool getting to see everybody out of uniform or hero gear! You get a sense of their personalities! Like Ashido, for example."

"Yeah, her clothes are just as loud and obnoxious as she is."

"Well, those aren't exactly the words I'd use… but, sure."

Katsuki slipped into the steamy bathroom once more and dressed in the suit. He brushed his teeth and then stepped out. Kirishima followed suit, and then they stepped out of their hotel room with fifteen minutes to spare.

"I don't know where the Central Tower is," Katsuki realized.

"I do! I saw it while we were out earlier!" Kirishima promised, leading the way.

Katuski sighed. The food damn well better be worth it.

Hey guys! Sorry for the late update. Life's been busy. I decided to split the I-Island chapters because they were about to be one, obnoxiously-long chapter. I'm really excited for the next chapter, because it's a real turning point for Sora, Shouto, and Katsuki! I'm even more excited for the training camp arc!

Anyway, I wanted to get this chapter out as a little holiday gift. No matter what you celebrate (if anything), I hope you all are doing well. I know not everyone feels happy and joyful this time of year, because some of us have complicated home lives or whatnot. So, hopefully this helps make you a little happy!

As always, thank you for reading, and let me know what you thought!