So, some changes to the seating chart are in order.

Yuga Aoyama (1) / Mina Ashido (2) / Tsuyu Asui (3) / Weiss Schnee (4) / Tenya Ida (5)

Ochako Uraraka (6) / Mashirao Ojiro (7) / Nora Valkyrie (8) / Denki Kaminari (9) / Eijiro Kirishima (10)

Lie Ren (11) / Koji Koda (12) / Rikido Sato (13) / Mezo Shoji (14) / Kyoka Jiro (15)

Hanta Sero (16) / Fumikage Tokoyami (17) / Shouto Todoroki (18) / Toru Hagakure (19) / Jaune Arc (20)

Katsuki Bakugo (21) / Ruby Rose (22) / Izuku Midoriya (23) / Minoru Mineta (24) / Momo Yaoyorozu (25)

"Every champion was once a contender who refused to give up." – I think it's from the Rocky movies.

Chapter 04: May the Battle Begin!

It was one in the morning when Ruby was woken up. This sometimes happens and usually she could go right back to sleep after a nice glass of milk.

She lumbers out of her room in a sleepy daze and towards the stairs. Ruby had done this many times that she had no worries of falling down the stairs anymore, as it became second nature to take a hold on the side rails.

By the time she reached the middle of the staircase, she heard glass shattering. Ruby snaps awake and hurries the rest of the way towards the kitchen to see Yang crouching near the sink, broken glass layed before her. Ruby could almost hear labored breathing from her older sister, but she couldn't see her face because of her blonde locks.

"Yang." She hurries to Yang's side, being mindful of the glass. "Yang, are you okay?" Yang didn't answer her sister. Ruby reaches for her. "Do you want me to get Dad?"

It happened so fast, but Ruby remembered Yang whipping at her with eyes flashing red. Yang grabbed Ruby's wrist and roughly pulled her down to the floor, right on top of the broken glass. Ruby sucked in a quick breath from the impact, feeling the sharp fragments threatening to cut her through the fabric of her tank top. Ruby does feel a stinging sensation in the back of her left shoulder.

Ruby looks up to see the red glare of her sister's eyes. They looked…angry, threatening, and they sent shivers down Ruby's spine.

Then, Yang's eyes return to normal, and she gasps at what she had done. "Ruby!" She pulls Ruby into a hug and mutter apologies and cursing at herself. After a moment, Ruby hugs her sister back, ignoring the stinging of the 2-inch cut over her left shoulder blade.

The sisters stayed that way, ignoring Zwei's barking and the footsteps that are heard from the second floor heading down, likely Taiyang coming down to see what happened.

Morning arrives and Izuku gets ready for school. Today is the day for hero classes and he needs to pack the most important thing: His hero costume, made by his own mother. He runs his fingers on the soft, spring green fabric. He glances over at his opened notebook, the page it's now being the design of his hero costume, from the accessories and to the personal emblem, the latter becoming popular after an interview with All Might about the sunflower-like design found on his hero costumes.

Inko had found the jumpsuit while out shopping one day and had it modified with a mask and 'ears', black shoulder and kneepads, a red utility belt, and ivory gloves she purchased from a hardware store. In that same store, she got a plastic airsoft mesh mask with a row of smiling teeth hot glued to it, meant to mimic the heroic smile of All Might. Ironed to the back of the jumpsuit was Izuku's personal emblem crafted in adhesive vinyl.

The costume is not state of the art nor is it made by a support company. It was made with love.

Izuku folds his costume neatly into his backpack along with his notebook before heading towards the door. "I'm heading out!"

"You're leaving a little early this time," Inko said.

"Yeah, well…I'm meeting with a friend," Izuku smiled.

Inko smiles too. "I'm so happy for you. Have a great day at school!"

Izuku nodded. "I will."

RNJR (as Yang was taking to call them once) and Yang are waiting at the bus stop. Ren and Nora are chattering about something, of what Ruby couldn't tell as her concern focus was more on her older sister, who stood a few feet away from them.

Jaune had taken noticed and speaks to Ruby. "Ruby?" Thankfully, the girl turns to him. "Did something happened?"

The question had Ruby recall what happened last night after Yang inadvertently attacked Ruby in her terror. The commotion had indeed woken up their father and Tai was in the kitchen a matter of seconds where he found his daughters surrounded by glass. After carefully picking up the glass, the man started asking questions.

Yang had apparently suffered a flashback to Adam Taurus' attack, and it sent her into a panic, dropping a glass in the process. In her haze, she thought Ruby was a threat and reflexively attacked her. Thankfully, Yang in that state was only trying to intimidate the illusionary threat. Tai then called a colleague over, a rescue hero who works at the Lucky Phoenix, Madam Xahn, to heal Ruby.

Ruby had indeed been cut by one of the larger shards and Xahn's Quirk, Healing Touch, heals the cut, but it left behind a thin scar.

Before everyone returned to bed, Tai asked the girls if they wanted to stay at home in the morning. Ruby wanted to go to school as it was her first day of classes – and she didn't want to get in trouble with Aizawa. Yang didn't answer at the time, but Ruby came to find out that she snuck out of the house early in the morning to avoid Tai and had been at the bus stop since. How Tai learned this was from Qrow, who was watching Yang before Ruby and the others arrived.

The sisters hadn't spoken since.

"…Um…" Ruby wasn't sure if she should tell someone.

Thankfully, she didn't need to as Nora sees Izuku coming over. "Looky-here! It's 1-A's underdog!"

"Huh?" Izuku blinked.

"Please, excuse her. She had cinnamon pancakes for breakfast," Ren explained.

"And it was good! And I'm just excited! We're officially starting hero classes today!"

Jaune sighs in relief. "Yesterday was still kinda crazy though. I'm happy that no one got kicked out."

"Yeah, me too," Izuku agreed with a nod. He turns to Ruby and notices her staring Yang again, looking concerned. He also noticed the distance between them. Ruby sat with the rest of her friends while Yang stood at the bus stop sign a few yards away.

Izuku couldn't help but wonder what happened. Just yesterday, Yang and Ruby were what Izuku would imagine being siblings be like, friendly banters and care. Yang had even pulled Izuku into a game of twenty questions, much to the embarrassment of Ruby and Izuku's nervousness. Izuku could tell that Yang was just curious about her sister's friend, she even beamed brightly she learned that Izuku's Quirk is a superpower Quirk, similar to hers. She even offered to lend a hand to help him with his Quirk, in those exact words. Izuku wasn't sure if she initially said that pun or not, so he didn't say anything about it.

So, what happened after they parted ways from the train station?

Unfortunately, he gets no answer even as they rode the bus, took the train, and walked their to way to school.

Once there, Ruby hurried at the cubby to replace her boots for her school shoes before going to find Yang, only to see that she was already down the hall.

"Have a good day, sis," Ruby muttered, looking down sadly. Izuku saw this happening was about to walk over to her until he saw two others do the same.

"Rose?" Ruby turns to see Ochako and Tsuyu.

"Uraraka, hey," Ruby greeted, but without her usual enthusiasm. She had met Ochako, plus Tenya, as she, Izuku, and Yang headed out of campus. She liked Ochako abd her bubbly personality. She also like Tenya, despite his intense first impressions. Ruby concluded that he was just very dedicated. "Was there something you need?"

Ochako had a look that Ruby couldn't place yet before she smiled. "No, it's fine."

Tsuyu steps forward. "I didn't get a chance to introduce myself yesterday. I'm Tsuyu Asui, but you can call me Tsu."

Ruby blinked at the introduction before giving the frog-like girl a smile. "Nice to meet you, Tsu."

"Ribbit."

Down the hall, Toshinori was walking down in long strides when he spotted Yang. "Ah, good…" Yang walks past him wordlessly, "…morning?" That was…unusual for Yang. And worrisome. Yang had always greeted Toshinori, no matter what she may be feeling. This silent pass over sent up a red flag in Toshinori's mind and he takes a mental note to call Tai later. He continues his walk until he sees Ruby talking to Ochako and Tsuyu.

"Ms. Rose, good morning!" he greeted and deeply hoping that Ruby would do the same.

Much to his delight, she turns to him with a big grin. "Good morning, Un—Uh, Mr. Yagi." Ruby giggled. Since they were in the school, they had to refer to each other in honorifics. Ruby seems to think it's funny, mainly because it reminded the girl of the Karate Kid movie and Mr. Miyagi.

"I wanted to come by to say 'hi,'" Toshinori said. "Also, that you three may want to head to class so you and your new friends won't be late. I heard that Mr. Aizawa is a bit strict." And then some. Ruby and the girls agree as they remember the events of yesterday.

"Oh, cats, you're right." Ruby turns to Ichako and Tsuyu. "Why don't we walk while we talk?"

"Yeah, I don't want to get in trouble with Mr. Aizawa," Ochako said worriedly.

"Ribbit," Tsuyu nodded.

"We're off then. Later, Mr. Yagi," Ruby said before leaving with Tsuyu and Ochako.

"Good luck with your afternoon classes, Ruby," Toshinori thought. "That's when you truly start on your road to hero."

As the girls walked, Ruby remembers Toshinori calling Ochako and Tsuyu her friends and wonders if she is friends with them. Tsuyu seems to notice Ruby's pondering.

"Penny for your thoughts, Rose?" Tsuyu asked.

"Are we…friends?" Ruby asked. Growing up, all she had was Jaune. All attempts of making friends had her be turned away mostly because some found her annoying. Izuku was her first real friend after a long while. Her anxiety went up a smidge when Ochako and Tsuyu exchanged glances.

"If you want us to be," Ochako said finally.

"…Yeah, I do," Ruby said.

"Then, we're friends," Ochako smiled, making Ruby feel really happy.

"Is it okay if I call you 'Ruby?'" Tsuyu asked.

"Sure!" Ruby excepted. It made since if she called Tsuyu 'Tsu' so why not? "You…could do the same if you want," Ruby said to Ochako.

"Sure, that is if you call me 'Ochako.'"

Ruby could feel her heart swell with joy at the thought she had just made two more friends. "Okay, Ochako."

"Hey, Ruby," Tsuyu spoke up, "if you don't mind me asking, how do you know Mr. Yagi?"

"Oh yeah. Isn't he All Might's secretary?" Ochako asked. Ruby nodded.

"You two seem to know each other personally," said Tsuyu.

"It's kind of a long story," Ruby said. "Let's just say he knew my parents because All Might used to work with them."

"I see, Ribbit."

"Hold on a sec. If All Might's secretary is here, then what about Achillea?" Ochako wondered.

That was a good question. Ruby hadn't even thought about asking that to Toshinori. If All Might is here with his secretary, then what his sidekick?

Once they reached the classroom, they bid temporary adieu as they headed to their seats, Ochako being beside Aoyama and Tsuyu being the third seat being said blonde and in front of Weiss. Ruby walks over to her desk near the windows, second seat behind Bakugo and in front of Izuku, who she smiles and waves at. Izuku returns the gesture.

Ruby takes her seat and was about dig into her Totoro backpack for what she needs before she noticed the student to her right reading a book, Fumikage Tokoyami. And his bird head. Ruby pondered if it was Quirk related or something from his ancestry since the rest of him looked human. She didn't realize that she was staring until Tokoyami spoke up.

"You're staring." Tokoyami's deep voice snaps Ruby from her thoughts and noticed the young man looking at her.

Ruby blinks. "Oh, sorry. Was I bothering you?" Her unintentional staring tends to weird people out.

"Not particularly." Ruby mentally sighs in relief. "You seemed curious."

"…I was."

"Was it about my head?"

Ruby suddenly felt very guilty. "…It was. I'm sorry."

"It's quite all right. While I do have a history of peers mocking my appearance, it's clear that you are just merely curious." Tokoyami returns to the book he was reading. Ruby wondered what kind it was and was about to ask him.

"Don't you think you bothered him enough?" a little voice in her mind asked and Ruby decides not to disturb Tokoyami further and leave him to his reading. The bird boy started to remind Ruby of Blake, who was a standoffish bookworm.

The warning bell rings, and everyone hurries to their seats, dreading the frightful force that is Shouta Aizawa. They only knew him for one day and they were quick to learn that the man will be in no mood for horsing around. They could feel their hearts thumping in their chests at the sound of footsteps getting closer.

"He's getting closer."

The footsteps are closer and some of the more anxious ones started to sweat profusely. Some vaguely noticed the clicking of heels.

The door slides open.

"He's here!"

"Good morning, everyone," greeted the bright smiling face of Pyrrha Nikos clad in her bronze armor. "I hope you all are ready for what today will bring us!"

"Is that…?" wondered Sero.

"No way," Satou voiced.

"It's Achillea!" exclaimed Mina.

"All Might's sidekick?" Ruby and Izuku wondered.

Nora leans back in her chair towards the desk behind her, containing Kaminari. "Is she our new homeroom teacher?"

"Achillea would be the same age as third year students if she was still in UA," Tenya pointed out. "She'd be too young to be a teacher."

"Then what happened to Mr. Aizawa?" Kirishima asked from his seat next to Tenya behind Kaminari.

"Maybe he got fired for yesterday," Kaminari joked.

"Who got fired?" Kaminari and Kirishima flinch in terror at Aizawa's voice as the man entered. "If my method of teaching was gonna get me fired, then I would've been gone a long time ago. I'm sure everyone is aware of Achillea."

"Not Jaune," Ruby said mentally. She looks back to where Jaune seated, next to Momo. Jaune notices her knowing face and rolled his eyes half-heartedly.

"Her real name is Pyrrha Nikos," Aizawa revealed. "She'll be attending UA as a teacher's assistant. If any of you are having academic issues, you can go to her if a teacher isn't available."

Pyrrha beamed brightly like the sun outside. "Let's all work together to make this year memorable!" Her radiant smile brought bliss to the class.

"She's so nice!"

Yang entered the 3-B classroom. she could hear her classmates muttering, likely about what happened with her and Blake. Yang looks at the desk that would have contained Blake, but it was empty.

As she tries to stop thinking about her missing friend, her thoughts went to what happened last night.

"I…attacked Ruby. My own sister…" Yang's chest starts to feel heavy as her breathing starts becoming erratic. She took in deep breathes in an attempt to calm herself down.

"Yang?" The blonde young woman was able to get out of the fuzzy haze at the sound of Mirio. It was odd to see Mirio without a smile on his face. "You're not looking so good. Do you need to see Recovery Girl?"

"N-No. No, I'm fine. I just to chill out a little." She could only hope and from the way it looks, Mirio didn't look convinced. It made her think about her father, who was hesitant on letting her go to school. The bell rings, a saving for her as Mirio gave in, albeit begrudging.

"…If you say so." Everyone gets into their seats as the homeroom teacher comes in.

"I just need to make it through the day. No biggie," Yang told herself.

As she tries to calm her shaking hand.

The classes for 1-A went along smoothly.

After homeroom with Mr. Aizawa, which was a study period as the man slept, was English class with Present Mic. At the start, the man complained about the gloomy atmosphere despite Pyrrha being there because of Aizawa, who was dismissive. Ruby noticed the sense of familiarity between the two. Was it because they're colleagues?

Next class was Modern Literature with Cementoss, a blocky looking man with a calming aura. A nice break from the high energy that is the Voice Hero. Math came next and while it was Ruby's favorite subject, Ectoplasm was a bit jarring. One look at the hero and you don't think he could be a mathematics teacher. Then again, you could say the same with Present Mic and English. Or Aizawa being a teacher in general.

The last class before lunch was Modern Hero History with Midnight. Ruby wondered if the woman is even allowed to teach freshman high-schoolers because of her epithet, the R-Rated Hero. Thankfully, the woman was being professional, aside from her threat of using her cat-o-ninetails as punishment for anyone who gets out of line.

As for Pyrrha, she did as she was instructed to do as the TA, helping the teachers with anything or assisting the students with a problem they are having.

"Wait, so I can order whatever I want?" Ruby asked the man in front of her.

"That's right, young lady!" Lunch Rush confirmed with a thumbs up. "If we got the ingredients, then we'll make it!" At that Ruby contemplates on what she wants before making her decision: a plate of a dill pickle green salad with sliced fresh strawberries and sprinkled with cashews and shredded chicken with a glass of strawberry coconut milk, the same meal she had during her training. Sure, she could've asked for something more sugary, but since what may transpire after lunch, she felt the need for a more balanced meal.

As she carried the tray containing her lunch, Ruby is faced with another dilemma. Where should she sit? She wanted to sit with her friends, but she hasn't found them yet. She spots her sister with her class and was about to move to her when the events of last night suddenly resurfaced. Would Yang want her to be near her?

Lost in her thoughts, she heard, "Ruby!" She looks to see Ochako, Izuku, Ida, Jaune, Nora, and Ren at a couple of tables. Ochako was waving at her. "Ruby, over here!" After one more look at her sister, Ruby happily runs over to her classmates.

"Hey, guys!" Ruby said as she took a seat between Izuku and Tsuyu. She takes a bite of her salad and squeed with delight.

"Hey, Midoriya, can I take a picture of you?" Nora asked Izuku.

"Um, may I ask why?"

"For a little project of mine."

"She likes to take pictures of all her classmates and show them to her great-grandmother," Ren explained.

"Oh, o-okay, sure," Izuku said before grinning big.

Nora makes a face. "Really? Like that?"

"Like what?"

"Smile again."

"…Okay?" Izuku grins again and Nora snaps a picture before showing him, Ochako, and Ruby.

It wasn't a nervous smile nor a cute, boyish one. The smile was extremely big, extremely awkward and showed a lot of teeth, borderline creepy. Even Izuku cringed at it. Ochako tries to be optimistic. "Hey, you have pearly white teeth!"

"S-Sorry. I'm not good with smiling on the fly for photos," Izuku admitted.

"Well, that's ironic," Ruby said, noting his desire to be like All Might, a man full of smiles.

"Ah, no problem. I'll just catch you au naturel!" Nora said. Izuku turns a beet red.

"W-What?!"

"What she meant was she'll wait until you smile naturally," Ren explained.

"Oh. Okay," Izuku said, calming down.

Ruby takes another bite of her salad. "This is so good!"

"They probably use the freshest ingredients possible for this to be so good," Jaune said, sitting next to Tenya.

"Indeed. UA is Japan's most prominent school. I expected nothing less!" Tenya said.

"And very affordable too," Izuku added.

"Very!" both Ochako and Nora said.

"After this, it's the afternoon classes," Izuku said, looking into his katsudan bowl. "In other words –"

"Hero class!" he and Ruby said together.

"I wonder what we're gonna do!" Ruby exclaimed.

"Seeing how the other classes went and with All Might be the one teaching, perhaps he will guide us the proper steps of a pro," Tenya theorized.

"Well, whatever it is, let's give it our all," Izuku said, beaming a smile. He jumps when Nora snaps a picture of him. She smiles at him, happy to get a good picture of him.

"You got it, Midoriya!" Ruby said before rising her fork in the air. "Plus Ultra!"

"Plus Ultra!"

A few tables down, Bakugo watched the group with glaring eyes. Or rather at Izuku.

"I am here! Coming in through the door like a hero!" Toshinori in his muscled form exclaimed as he came into the 1-A classroom. Ruby makes an excited noise at the sight of him.

"It's All Might!" Hagakure declared.

"He looks so cooler in person," Jiro said.

"Yeah," Jaune said.

"Midoriya, look! He's wearing his Silver Age costume!" Ruby said.

"I see!"

"This is so surreal," Kaminari muttered.

"All Might, All Might, All Might, All Might!" Nora chanted excitedly.

Toshinori, All Might, let out a hardy laugh. "Ha-ha-ha! Now that everyone has a chance to replenish, are you all ready to start the very class you all signed up for, the hero class?" The class starts to cheer. "And what way to begin but with a bang!" He holds up a card saying, 'Battle Training.'

"Real combat?" Bakugo grinned ferally at the sight.

"Young Nikos is preparing the exercise over at Ground Beta. But, before we start, let's suit up!" Panels containing everyone's hero costumes emerged from the wall, numbered from 01-25.

"Yes, sir!"

Over at Ground Beta, All Might and Pyrrha waited for the class to arrive dressed in their costumes.

All Might coughs into a fisted hand. "Here." Pyrrha hands him a water bottle and he takes it graciously.

"Thank you," All Might thanked. He takes a drink before clearing his throat. "So, how was your first day as TA?"

"It was splendid! Coco wasn't lying when she told me about the experience. The teachers haven't changed much since my first year and each of the students were a delight …although one was giving me some rather odd looks."

"Oh? Who?"

"He's the shortest of the class with those three spheres on his head," Pyrrha described. "Mineta I think his name was."

"Huh," All Might voiced. Odd looks? What does that mean? "I wonder why."

"What about you All Might? Are you excited to begin your first class?" Pyrrha asked.

"I…actually am." And he wasn't lying. While he was dreading how the class would go about, the sheer enthusiasm from his students – students! – made it worthwhile! "This is an excellent opportunity to teach the next generation of heroes on this righteous path. I'm starting to see why Nezu was so adamant of me starting to teach here."

"The principal asked you to teach before?"

"…Not long after I recovered from my surgery. Being as brilliant as he was, he knew that my time as a hero was dwindling."

"Mind if I ask why it took so long to accept?"

All Might doesn't normally divulge personal information, but Pyrrha had proven time and time again to be a reliable ally despite her age. "…I wasn't ready to face reality. I wanted to remain the Symbol of Peace so everyone could be at ease with their lives." The wind started to blow around them. "It was foolish of me."

"…The more I hear of this side of you, the more I am inspired by you," Pyrrha said.

"Hm?"

"So, are you prepared for class?"

"Uh…Y-yes! I am!" All Might takes out a sheet of paper and shows it to Pyrrha. "I have the plans right here!" Pyrrha takes a closer look at the paper.

"It looks more like a script."

All Might neither spoke nor moved and remained in the position he stood in until they heard the large doors opening.

"Oh, look! Here they come!" All Might said before quickly getting into a more heroic posture. The students soon appeared from the entrance tunnel. "There is a saying that clothes make the pros! After all, the first thing civilians will see is your presence!"

"The hero costumes you wear give the people an idea of what kind of hero you are!" Pyrrha said. "And what I see before me are amazing heroes."

All Might takes a moment to look at each of his students in their hero attire. "Look at you all. You all look so cool! Now, are you ready, you bunch of newbies?"

Ruby felt very giddy now getting wear her hero costume. She wears a hooded cape and attached to her cape is her rose clip and her aviator goggles are wrapped around her head. She wears a black overbust corset with red strip holding it in place over a sleeveless mesh shirt. She wears a red pleated skirt that is split at the side with a small brown belted strap across the gap, and bright red shorts under it and thigh-high stockings reaching to a few inches below the hem of her skirt and shorts, decorated by an image of a long-stemmed rose. Her red-soled black boots contain four straps and buckles apiece. On her arms, she wears black bracers with large brown buckled straps around the wrist as well as black fingerless gloves and on her right arm is a detached mesh sleeve.

"I'm so excited!" she thought.

"Hey, Ruby," Jaune greeted as he walks up to her.

"Hey, Jaune. Whoa, look at you! You look great!" He's wearing a high collar black shirt under a modified pure white chest plate that covers a bit more of his upper abdomen and similarly colored bracers. Both the chest plate and the bracers are trimmed with gold, and he wears two shoulder pads. Additionally, he wears black gloves with gold-colored metal armor plates over his fingers and dark navy jeans and dark brown boots. Going with a knight aesthetic, he dons a helmet designed similarly to a German burgonet, pure white in color with golden designs, and a sword in a scabbard – that turns into a shield – is attached to his brown belt, along with a white half skirt that reaches his knees.

Jaune stood in triumph, his arms akimbo. "Thanks, Ruby." Ruby notices the sword and scabbard.

"Isn't that your dad's?"

"Yep! It's kind of a tradition. He used it, my granddad used it, great-granddad, and so on," Jaune explained. "The coolest thing about it is that the scabbard becomes a shield! It also being a scabbard helps if I get too tired carrying it."

"But wouldn't it weigh the same?" asked Ruby.

"…Yeah, it does."

Ochako runs over to them. "Ruby, Arc! You two look amazing!"

"So do you, Ochako!" Ruby said. She loved the spacesuit it had. Ruby vaguely noticed a symbol akin a ringed planet on the triangular top of the large boots.

Ochako giggled. "Thanks, though I don't why they made it skintight!"

"I mean, you look great," Jaune said. He paused as he took in what he said. "…I mean that as a compliment! I'm not trying to hit on you!

Ochako didn't bothered by it, however. "Thanks for the compliment, Arc!"

Ruby looks around at the other students. She notices Bakugo's gauntlets and wonders about the purpose of them. Realizing who she was looking at, she tries to focus on the other students. She briefly saw Todoroki who was…half-encased in ice? Her silver eyes soon landed on Ren and Nora.

Ren's hero costume had a dark green hooded long tailcoat with long sleeves, black and gold trimming and pink cuffs and is diagonal buttoned down. The hood has a hole for his ponytail to slip through. Under it, he wears a black, sleeveless turtleneck with red, tasseled ropes over the hips. He wears a single detached long black finglerless glove on his left arm, white pants, and black leather boots.]

As for Nora, the first thing Ruby noticed was her large, silvery and pink accented hammer, much to Ruby's excitement.

As for Nora's costume, it had a white sleeveless leotard with black shorts and an open cropped, short-sleeved pink bomber jacket with a damaged black print of her emblem visible on the back and black stripes along the sleeves alongside black buckled cuffs. She wears pink fingerless gloves with white short, detached sleeves and white stockings light blue socks and black boots with silver heels, sole and toe plates.

Ruby looks around some more before her eyes landed on Weiss.

Weiss' costume consisted of a short, glittering dress with a color gradation of white to pale blue at the hem, a sweetheart neckline, and a white, tulle petticoat. A white sash is wrapped multiple times around her waist and a thin white belt with a holster, which is wear a rapier is held, and over the outfit is worn a bell style long-sleeved white bolero fastened at the collar with a large sapphire broach that has three pendants dangling from it and she wears pale blue ring-styled fingerless gloves. Printed on the back of the shrug is the Schnee Crest. Her boots are white, wedged heeled, and higher at the back than the front. They have a small silver decoration across the top of the foot and are lined in pale blue.

When Weiss shot a look at Ruby, Ruby quickly turns away.

"Um, where's Midoriya?" Ruby asked Ochako while trying to look 'normal.'

"I don't know. I was about to ask you that," replied Ochako.

"Do you know?" Ruby asked Jaune.

"He was still getting his costume on when I left," Jaune answered. "He's probably on his way now." He then hears running footsteps echoing through the tunnel. "And here he comes." And Izuku did, appearing donned in his handmade hero costume.

"That's his hero costume? It looks homemade. Look at those ears! He looks like a cute bunny rabbit!" Ruby thought. But what's with the face mask? Is it supposed to be a smile, like…All Might? "Of course, Mr. Fanboy Midoriya would make his costume a homage to his idol? Then again…" Ruby holds the fabric of her cloak that is wrapped around her shoulders.

"Wow, you look amazing, Deku!" Ochako said.

"O-Oh! Th-Thanks!" Izuku said, absolutely flustered. "You look amazing too, Uraraka."

"Thanks! Though, I think I should have been more specific on the size."

"Arc and Rose look amazing too!" Izuku said.

"Thanks, Midoriya," Jaune said.

"Although, I do wonder if Rose's cape's practical. What with the numerous cape related accidents."

"True. But, that's mostly for heroes with flight Quirks," Ruby pointed out. Izuku nods with agreement. "Plus, my cape is made with some special material depending on the situation." She holds the ends of the cloak close lovingly. "And…"

[Two weeks ago]

Ruby enters Tai's home office with a few papers in hand. "Hey, Dad?"

Tai turns away from his computer to face his daughter. "Yeah?"

"I…need some help. I was going to ask Yang, but…"

Tai moves in his swivel chair towards the edge of his bed and patted, silently telling Ruby to sit and she does so. "Like what?" Ruby shows him her hero costume ideas.

"I've been trying to come up with a costume idea, but what I came up with so far wasn't all that good," Ruby said.

"These look great, Ruby," Tai said as he looked through the designs.

Ruby shrugged. "I guess it's missing something."

Tai stares at her for a moment before getting up to look for a book on one of his shelves. He finds what he was looking for and pulls it out. He blows away some dust and brushed the rest away.

Tai hands the book to Ruby. "Here."

Ruby places the book on her lap. It was large, the closed tome engulfing the surface of both of her thighs. There was a title made in craft English letters, 'My Journey to Becoming a Hero' by Summer Rose

"Mom made this?" Ruby asked her father. Tai silently nodded. Ruby takes the moment to open the book. It was a photo album. There were pictures of Summer before she started UA. Starting with moving to Japan, taking the exam, getting accepted, and officially attending UA.

"Your mom was into crafts," Tai said as he reminisced. "She wanted to commemorate every moment." He turns a page to show a picture of himself, Summer, and Qrow in their hero costumes. With them was a woman in black with long feathers for hair and a sword at her side and she wore a mask, similarly to Qrow. "Every moment." Ruby caressed the image of her mother, covered by her white cloak. "Your mother went through slight changes here and there for her hero costume, but hopefully, this could help."

"Thanks, Dad."

"You're welcome, Ruby."

The flashback ends with them looking through the book together.

"Ruby?"

Ruby gasps at the sound of Ochako's voice. "Oh, whoops. Did I space out?"

"Yeah, you kinda did." Izuku and Jaune only stared, knowing the implications of why Ruby spaced out.

Tenya suddenly raises his hand. "Everyone! All Might and Achillea will begin class! Please, give them our undivided attention!"

"Talk about uptight," Kirishima muttered with a grin.

"Right?" Kaminari agreed. But, they did what they were told and gather around All Might and Pyrrha.

All Might holds out his 'plans.' "Here's the scene," he began. "A villainous organization has manufactured a dangerous nuclear missile and has it hidden somewhere in this building and it's up to the heroes to stop them." He points to a five-story building behind him. "Now, for this exercise, you newbies will be paired for a hero vs villain scenario, meaning one team will be the heroes and another will be the villains." Ruby couldn't help but snicker at hearing All Might saying newbies and Weiss catches this and glowered at her. "As for the end game, the heroes need to either capture the villains or the weapon in order to win. Likewise, if the villains are successful in protecting their weapon or capture the heroes, they would win!"

"Isn't this a little advanced?" asked Tsuyu with a tilt of her head.

"What better way to learn than from experience? But remember, you can't just punch a robot this time. You're dealing with actual people now!"

Weiss raises a hand. "Will there be a time limit?"

"How much can we hurt the other team?" asked Bakugo, much to Izuku's anxiety.

"Do we need to worry about the losers getting expelled like yesterday?" asked Ochako.

Tenya raises his hand. "Sir, will you be splitting us up based on chance or comparative skill?"

"Can I be in a team with Ren?" Nora asked.

"I wasn't finished talking!" All Might growled, though he kept his smile up despite getting a little frustrated that he nearly lost control over the session. "Without further delay, Young Nikos will now announce who's teamed up with who!"

"Oh, right!" Pyrrha said, slightly caught off guard. "And the team-ups are…!"

Team A: Izuku Midoriya, Ruby Rose, & Ochako Uraraka

Team B: Shouto Todoroki, Jaune Arc, & Mezo Shouji

Team C: Minoru Mineta, Nora Valkyrie, & Momo Yaoyorozu

Team D: Katsuki Bakugo & Tenya Ida

Team E: Yuga Aoyama & Mina Ashido

Team F: Rikido Satou, Weiss Schnee, & Koji Koda

Team G: Denki Kaminari & Kyouka Jiro

Team H: Fumikage Tokoyami, Lie Ren & Tsuyu Asui

Team I: Mashirao Ojiro & Toru Hagakure

Team J: Eijiro Kirishima & Hanta Sero

Everyone group with who they are partnered with. Mineta looks at both Nora and Momo and their…assets before grinning and said, "I love this school."

Weiss takes one look at Koda and Satou and said, "I suppose this will have to do." Satou and Koda exchanged confused glances.

"Oh, my gosh! We're in a team together, isn't that amazing?" Ochako said to Ruby and Izuku.

Ruby responded by hugging both her and Izuku. "Yes!" Izuku blushed at being so close to Ochako.

Tenya raises his hand once again. "All Might, I wish to ask a question!"

"Ask away, Young Ida!" All Might said. "At least someone asked!"

"I've noticed that some teams have more than others, my I ask the reason behind it?"

Izuku does wondered this too. Five out of the ten teams have three members, his team included. Why? Couldn't All Might have kept with the teams in two? Then again, there's twenty-five of them, meaning either one person was on their own or one team would still have three as the former wouldn't have worked with the odd number of teams. Furthermore, is it because that the number of students is an odd number? After all, the usual acceptance rate into UA's hero course was one in 300 plus students that got in on recommendations. The usual number of students in a class is twenty, but this year, it got increased to twenty-five in both 1-A and 1-B. Izuku then wondered why of such a change to the acceptance rate…

"Are you muttering, Deku?" Ochako asked nicely. Izuku had no idea that he was talking out loud.

"Ah! Sorry!"

"Excellent observation, Young Ida," All Might declared. "Let me explain! There will be times where heroes outnumber the villains or vice versa. Of how we'll determine who's facing who," He gestures to Pyrrha, who is holding two boxes, one black and the other white, "I will be drawing lots!" He digs into the boxes before pulling a ball in each hand. "And the first face off will be these guys! Team A will be the heroes and Team D will be the villains!"

Izuku gasps before verting his gaze to Bakugo, who glared at Izuku, an act of intimidation. Izuku looks down, nervous and was close to doubting himself again until he reminded himself of where he was. Gathering up the confidence and courage, Izuku raises his head back up before giving Bakugo a determined glare. Bakugo could see that Izuku was stepping up against his silent threat, like he did when he got accepted into UA, and curled in his lip in anger that his intimidation had once again failed to rattle Izuku.

"Now that we have everything in place," All Might resumed, completely unaware of the silent battle of dominance between Izuku and Bakugo. "Young Nikos, please take the faux villains to the location of their hideout! Young Ida and Bakugo, you two are acting as the villains for this exercise. The key to being successful in this challenge is to embody villainy. Think from the perspective of an evildoer. You have five minutes to prepare!"

"Yes, sir!" Tenya declared, but Bakugo stayed silent as they followed Pyrrha into the building.

"Heroes!" All Might said towards Ochako, Izuku, and Ruby as he hands them three papers. "Here are the floor plans. Memorize what is shown because in five minutes, you three will be let loose to stop the villains, understood?"

"Yes, sir!" Ruby and Ochako said. Izuku, like Bakugo, kept his silence as he tries to keep up his confidence and calm his racing heart, afraid that if he spoke, his voice would betray his newfound confidence.

All Might then turned to the rest of the class. "Everyone else can head to the monitoring room to watch! Let's go!"

"Yes, sir!"

"All right!"

As he led the class to the location, All Might thought, "Despite the minor hiccups, things are going along very smoothly. Hopefully, it remains that way for the rest of class."

Um…All Might? Have you ever heard of the superstition of knocking on wood to ward off bad luck?

I'm sorry that I have to stop it here guys but the next chapter is gonna be epic! Why? Because guess what, D3lph0xL0v3r? That's win Ruby v Bakugo happens!

If you guys have any questions regarding this fic, please go here: thisisourheroacademia dot tumblr dot com