The next two weeks passed in a blur. Katsuki and I trained harder than ever. I tried every quirk in our class and discovered every drawback. There were several times I fainted from sheer exhaustion. I would get headaches from Kaminari and Jirou's, nausea after Aoyama and Uraraka's, extremely sore after using Kirishima, Yaoyorozu, Mina and Sero's. Mutant quirks were worse, they left me sore all over and some left open wounds. I couldn't walk for days after Iida and Ojiro's. So far the only ones that didn't leave much of an effect were Katsuki's since I was used to his, Hagakure's, Koda's, Todoroki's, and Tsu's. I still hadn't tried to copy Izuku's but I didn't really want to. Finally the day of the festival was here. I got ready like I would on any other day, taking extra care of my hair and fur. I knew we were going to be on TV, so I had to look my best. When I walked outside Katsuki was waiting for me.
"Hey, are you excited?" I grinned.
"Whatever, I know I'm going to win." He scoffed.
"Sure, like I don't beat you first." I grinned.
"You could never." He glared at me.
"Ah but I can. I've done it before." My tail flicked in excitement.
He looked away. "I remember no such time."
"I do. And I won't let you live it down." I nudged him.
He tched and started walking away. I quickly followed him.
"Are you trying to leave me behind?" I asked.
"Yes," he said bluntly.
We finally made it to the school, it was packed with pro heroes and civilians alike. Katsuki and I shoved our way to the entrance. I overhead several people talking about us.
"Dang, I guess we should have gotten here earlier." I murmured.
"We would have been here earlier if you weren't messing with your hair." Katsuki muttered.
"Well excuse me for trying to look nice. we're going to be on TV you know." I flicked my tail in annoyance.
"So? You're going to be a mess anyway. We're probably going to fight one another."
"Oh," my ears perked up. "If that's true I want to be up against you that way I can prove to the world that I can beat you."
"I won't go easy on you." Katsuki opened the door to our class waiting room.
Most of the class was already there. Kirishima walked over to us.
"You're here later than normal." He said.
"That cause miss pretty kitty had to fix her hair." Katsuki strode passed him.
"Aw, you think I'm pretty." I purred.
"I didn't say that." Katsuki growled.
Kirishima laughed. "I see you two are still getting along."
"Never stopped." I grinned. "You ready for today?"
"Of course!" Kirishima hardened his hands and hit them together.
"Good," I nudged him in the side.
I grabbed my gym uniform and quickly went and changed. I ran into a couple of the girls in the locker rooms.
"Hey girl, you ready?" Mina leaned against me as I tried to get my tank top on.
"Ready as I'll ever be." I replied, straightening my tank.
"I wonder what we'll be doing." Another voice mused.
I jumped slightly and glanced over. Hagakure was standing next to me.
"Oh hey, I didn't notice you." I laughed lightly.
"Sorry," she laughed too. "I tend to surprise people."
"Makes sense, with your quirk." I finished changing. "Well I'll see you guys in a moment."
I headed back to the waiting room. Katsuki was sitting at a table with his legs crossed. I walked over and sat next to him. After several moments the rest of the class came in. I looked over at Katsuki.
"It should be starting soon, you ready?" I fidgeted with my gloves.
"You've already asked me that." Katsuki glanced at my hands. "Are you ready?"
"Um yes?" It came out more like a question.
"You're nervous." He stated.
"Okay, so maybe I am. This is a big thing and we have no idea what will happen. We're up against so many different people. I have no idea what their quirks are and how to beat them. I won't be able to analyze them quick enough. I don't know that my physical skill is enough to win. What if I do something wrong and royally mess up my chances—" I stopped as I was pulled across the table.
"You'll do fine." Katsuki had my hands in his.
I looked down at our hands then back up at him. I was leaning against the table, practically laying on it. He released my hand, a blush spreading across his cheeks. I glanced around, several people were looking at us.
"Mind your own damn business!" Katsuki yelled.
Everyone quickly looked away. Katsuki looked back over at me.
"Don't over think it. You were about to have another panic attack." He narrowed his eyes. "You will do…" he paused then started again. "You will do great today. I have no doubt."
My eyes widened and my cheeks grew warm. He was acknowledging my skill. I smiled.
"Thank you Katsuki. I'll do everything I can to win."
"You're not beating me." He grunted.
"Watch me." I grinned.
"Oh I will," he smirked. "But you better be watching when I win this whole damn thing."
"If you win. You may be watching as I win." My smile softened. "If you do win, I'll be cheering for you the entire time."
Iida burst in. "Everyone get your game faces on! We're entering the arena soon!"
I grinned. "Here we go,"
"Midoriya," Todoroki walked over to Izuku.
"Hey Todoroki, what's up?" Izuku asked.
Everyone near looked over at the two. Something was about to happen.
"From an objective stand point I think it's fairly clear that I'm stronger than you." Todoroki said.
"Uh yeah," Izuku nodded slightly.
"However, you've got All Might in your corner helping you out."
I tensed. That was an understatement.
"I'm not here to pry about what's going on between you two. But know that I will beat you."
A declaration of war. I glanced at Katsuki, this couldn't be good.
"Ah, what's with all these declarations of war lately?" Kaminari asked.
Kirishima got up and grabbed Todoroki's shoulder. "Yeah what's the big deal. Why are you picking a fight all the sudden? And right before we started."
Todoroki knocked him off. "We're not here to be each other's friends. Don't forget this isn't a team effort." He started to walk off.
"Wait a sec Todoroki." Izuku called. "I don't know what's going through your head or why you think you need to tell me that you'll beat me and yeah, of course you're better than me. In fact you probably way more potential than anyone in the hero course. That's why you got in so easily."
"Midoriya maybe you're being too hard on yourself and us." Kirishima cut in.
"No, he's right you guys. All the other courses they're coming for us with everything they've got. We're all gonna have to fight to stand out. And I'll be aiming for the top too." Izuku met Todoroki's gaze.
"Fine," Todoroki said shortly.
"Okay, okay, let's break it up." Iida stepped in front of the two boys. "We need to get ready."
I stood up and stretched. I offered Katsuki a hand but he batted it away. Everyone lined up just outside the entrance to the arena. Since we were the first class in the hero course we were in the first to go out. I could hear Present Mic yelling.
"Let me hear you scream as our students make their way to the main stage!"
That was our cue. We walked out into the sunlight.
"Welcome to the UA Sports Festival. Where up and coming heroes leave everything on the field as they fight for the chance to achieve world wide fame and celebrity. This first group are no strangers to the spotlight. You know them from withstanding a villain attack, the dazzling students lining up their key base with solid gold skills. The hero course students of Class 1-A!"
We made our way across the field. Izuku looked nervous. I looked all around, I felt a little nervous myself.
"Present Mic sure did talk us up a lot. Kinda makes me nervous." Kirishima glanced around. "How you feeling man?"
"I'm not worried." Katsuki grinned. "Makes me want to win this thing even more."
I stepped closer to Katsuki, there were so many people here. Katsuki glanced down at me then wove his fingers between mine. I stared at him in surprise. I missed what Present Mic said next. We all lined up and Katsuki let go of my hand. Midnight stepped up onto the podium.
She cracked her whip. "Now the introductory speech."
I flushed after taking one look at her costume. It seems a few other girl and some boys felt awkward too.
"Uh someone should talk to miss Midnight about what she's wearing." Kirishima muttered.
Kaminari nodded. "Yeah that costume should come with a warning."
"Is that really appropriate apparel for a high school game?" Tokoyami added.
"Silence everyone!" Midnight called. "And for the student student pledge we have Katsuki Bakugou."
Katsuki stepped forwards. I gave him a smile.
"He's the first year rep?" Izuku asked.
"I guess that hot head did finish first in the entrance test." Sero said.
Someone sighed. "Only for the hero course exams."
"Oh right," Izuku murmured.
"That girl obviously hates us." Sero muttered.
"Yeah and we've got Bakugou to thank for them not liking our class." Kaminari grumbled.
"Come on Katsuki's just overly confident." I shrugged. "He's been that way for years."
"Oh so you're defending him?" It was that same girl.
My tail curled. "Don't judge someone just by the way they act, you never know who they truly are."
Katsuki made it to the microphone. "I just wanna say, I'm gonna win."
I groaned, that was Katsuki all right. The rest of the classes booed in response.
"Why would you be so disrespectful? You're representing us all." Iida called.
"Not my fault that the rest of you are just stepping stones to my victory." Katsuki glared at Iida and gave him a thumbs down.
"I'm gonna crush this overconfident jerk." The silver haired kid yelled. "I can't wait to knock him down a size!"
Katsuki walked down the stairs, Iida making incoherent noises behind him. I nudged Katsuki.
"You couldn't have said anything else? Now they're gonna target us."
"Good, I'll take them all down."
I sighed. "Fine, suit yourself."
"Without further ado, it's time for us to get started." Midnight called. "This is where you begin feeling the pain. The first fateful game of the festival." A screen popped up behind her. "What could it be?" It stopped on obstacle race. "Tada!"
"So it's gonna be an obstacle course." Izuku mused.
"All eleven classes will participate in this treacherous contest. The track is 4km around the outside of the stadium." She cracked her whip again. "I don't want restrain anyone at least in this game. As long as you don't leave the course, you're free to do what ever your heart desires. Now then, take your places contestants!"
We were all ushered to one gate. Everyone tried to get to the front. I was shoved behind several people. The green lights on the top of the gate began to count down.
"Begin!" Midnight called.
Everyone began to run through the gate. Everyone pushed against one another. I reached over and touched Tsu's arm. I shuddered slightly as I felt the change. I used my new power to jump above everyone and climb on the walls.
"And we're off to a racing start! How bout some color commentary mummy man?" Present Mic called.
"How did you talk me into this?"
"What should we be paying attention to in the early stages in the race?"
"The doorway."
I nearly laughed at Aizawa's comment but I couldn't get distracted now. I felt a shift in the air pressure. Todoroki. I tried to spot him but I couldn't in the crowd. I jumped off the wall just as it was covered with ice. I landed lightly on top of a couple people. They yelped and tried to knock me off but I jumped to another person. I made my way to the front of the pack. Most people were frozen to the ground. I jumped next to Katsuki.
"Hey,"
"Back off," he growled.
"Come on, I'm only trying to win." I grinned.
He ignored me and launched himself over the rest of the students. I glanced over and saw Aoyama, Yaoyorozu and Kirishima jump over the crowd.
"Nice trick Todoroki." Yaoyorozu called.
"I won't let you get away so easily, you icy hot bastard!" Katsuki yelled, propelling himself forwards.
I jumped and started running across the ice. It was tricky but I managed it. I finally made it to the path were Todoroki hadn't covered it in ice. I skidded to a stop as a robot arm smashed to the ground inches in front of me. I yelped and scrambled backwards into Izuku.
"Are you okay?" Izuku grabbed my shoulders.
I nodded numbly and quickly got back up. The robot looked around.
"Targets acquired. Terminate them."
"It's those robots from the entrance exam." Izuku murmured.
"I survived one of these before." I muttered. "I didn't want to face them again."
"Ooo enemies that showed up out of nowhere!" Present Mic yelled. "I bet we're in for a treat here. A test of strength and cunning, it's a Robo-Infernal!"
"So this is what the other students faced in their entrance exams." Todoroki didn't budge from his spot in the front.
One of the robots lunged forwards. Todoroki stepped forwards and created an ice circle around him.
"They obviously went through at lot of trouble but I wish they'd prepared something little more difficult." Ice swirled around him. "Especially since my dear old dad is watching."
He raised his hand and ice shot towards the robot. It froze instantly. Todoroki ran through its legs. I quickly ran after him. Todoroki glanced back, surprised to see someone following him.
"Careful now, I froze them while they were off their balance. On purpose."
The robot came crashing down all around me. I narrowly missed getting crushed. I hissed at Todoroki, it could have killed me.
"That's Todoroki from Class 1-A pulling ahead to an early lead with a devastating display. Amazing! He's one we should watch. It almost seems unfair. Thoughts?"
"His attack was both offensive and defensive." Aizawa added.
"No wonder he was let in on recommendations! He never even fought those Robo-Infernals before but they didn't stand a chance agains his chart topping moves." Present Mic paused. "Wait a minute, is that…It's another member of Class 1-A! Koneko Chino is in second after just barely missing the collapsing robot!"
I glanced behind me. It looked like I was the only one who made it through before it fell. Other's were close behind. I was able to catch up to Todoroki. My top speed was faster then most human's, other than Iida's of course. Just as I was about to pass Todoroki I felt the temperature drop. I hissed as something cold enveloped my leg. He froze my leg.
"Cheap move Todoroki." I growled.
"Anything is fair." He ran passed me.
"Kirishima from Class 1-A, what a hard core debut for this rookie! Tetsutetsu from Class 1-B was also stuck underneath. What are the odds? Back to our two leaders, wait a moment, it looks like Todoroki has frozen Chino's leg. She's stuck!"
I looked ahead. I could see the next obstacle. I wasn't that far. I stared down at my leg, wishing I had Katsuki's quirk.
"Class 1-A's Bakugou is rocketing over the obstacles! Clever. Looks like the leaders are all from Class 1-A!"
"Class 1-A has learned not to hesitate."
I reached for a rock and started chipping away at the ice. It was too slow. I could see the others catching up. I growled and started pounding against the ice. It splintered into tiny pieces. It hurt but I would live. I looked back up, Todoroki was already half way across the gorges. No matter, I could catch up. They didn't call narrow walkways catwalks for nothing. I got up and winced as feeling returned to my leg. That might make it difficult. I shook it off, as long as my tail was fine I would be fine.
"They have seen what the world is like, they've felt the fear of facing villains. Yet they fight on, trying to overcome that fear. They've grown, all of them. And they know that they have to act quickly if they want to stay alive."
I ran to the edge, using my catlike agility and Tsu's quirk I was able to jump halfway across the rope. I could hear several people behind me stop at the edge. I nimbly ran to the other side.
"For those of you who thought the first obstacle was easy, let's see how you feel about the second one! If they take a spill they're out. If they want to pass this test they'll have to get creative. It's the Fall!"
I glanced behind me and saw Tsu crawling across the rope. I jumped onto the next rope. I could see Todoroki up ahead. I was gaining on him.
"In the world of hero's it can be hard to get popular without a flashy quirk, right Eraserhead?"
"I don't know what you're talking about, idiot."
"Looks like Todoroki is still skating by easily."
I made it to the end with only one slip up. I could hear Katsuki's explosions behind me. I winced as I landed, my leg still hurt slightly.
"You suck!" Katsuki yelled at Todoroki.
"The leader is putting distance between him and the students stuck at the Fall. It hasn't been enough, too many competitors will make it through to the next round, so there's no time to relax."
Katsuki landed on the ground just ahead of me. He grinned back at me. I glared at him and sped up.
"And now we're finally approaching the last obstacle. Everyone had better tread carefully, you're stepping onto a mine field!"
So Todoroki had made it to the final obstacle. It was a mine field, I could easily avoid them.
"If you look carefully you can where those little bombs are buried. So keep your eyes on the ground folks. By the way those land mines were designed for the game so they might be loud and flashy but they're not all that powerful. Just enough to make you wet your pants!"
"Get ahold of yourself."
I flattened my ears. Great, they were loud, that might throw off my senses. I glanced over at Katsuki, we were neck and neck. I nudged his shoulder.
"What do you think you're doing?" He growled.
"Stealing your quirk." I grinned. "Just in case."
I sped up and passed him with ease. I made it to the mine field. Todoroki was already partially across the field. I glanced behind me. There were more people that I expected. Katsuki was right behind me. I carefully made my way onto the field. Just as I expected it was easy. I used my ears to make sure I wouldn't hit anyone and kept my eyes on the ground. Katsuki came flying passed me, almost knocking me over.
"It's over," he shot passed Todoroki. "Bastard, your declaration of war was to the wrong person!" He aimed an explosion at Todoroki.
"Just like that a new student takes the lead! The media here is going crazy, there's nothing more that they love more than an upset. Hey, hey, hey, the rest of the competitors are catching up too. And what's this, can our two leaders fight each other and stay in front of the competition."
Mines exploded all around me. I winced at the noise. One exploded close to me, my tail curled as the sound resonated through my body. I was nearing the two boys when there was a giant explosion behind me. I froze, what happened? I thought they were supposed to be small mines.
"What's with that huge explosion in the back? That was way more powerful than it should be!"
A figure appeared out of the pink smoke. It was Izuku!
"Incredible! What just happened? Whatever the case, Class 1-A's Izuku Midoriya is suddenly in hot pursuit of 1st place! Strike that the lead is his!"
I gaped at Izuku, he created a giant explosion to launch him across the field. I gritted my teeth, Izuku may be my friend but that did not mean I would let him take first that easily. I glanced at the ground there were more mines than before. I quickly started running again. I made it passed the boys just as Katsuki launched himself off the ground in pursuit of Izuku.
"Deku, what the hell do you think you're doing?" He growled.
Todoroki created an ice path across the mines. I was still faster than him even dodging all the mines.
"Look at that plot twist! Those two aren't fighting anymore, they're chasing Midoriya! That's what having a common enemy will do in this competition. This fight is still far from over though!"
Izuku started losing speed and falling from the sky. Part of me wanted to help him but I couldn't. I would lose my spot in second. I glanced back, Izuku was falling between Todoroki and Katsuki. He some how managed to flip himself around and brace himself on Todoroki and Katsuki's back. He flung the armor piece and hit the ground, setting off the mines and launching himself forward. At the same moment I stumbled and set off another which knocked me back. I rolled out of the fall which set off more mines. I winced at the noise and the pain of the explosions.
"In stunning move Midoriya has blasted passed his classmates from 1-A. I don't believe it he cleared the mine field in an instant! Eraserhead, your students are amazing! What the heck are you teaching them?!"
I jumped back up as Katsuki and Todoroki passed me. I managed to avoid the rest of the mines even though my senses were messed up and my entire body hurt.
"This has nothing to do with me. Each of them is powered by their own drive to succeed."
"There you have it! Eraserhead is a terrible teacher!"
"I—What?"
I would have laughed but I was too focused. Katsuki was just in front of me and Todoroki just ahead of him. Izuku was so close to the finish line.
"How would have imagined at the beginning of this race that the climax would be a non-stop mega mix of surprises! The first to make it back to the stadium is the first place winner. Izuku Midoriya is our champion!"
Todoroki crossed the finish line then Katsuki then I finally made it across. I grinned, I made it within the top ten. I ran over to Izuku and tackled him in a hug.
"You did it! You did great!"
"Thanks," Izuku sounded tearful.
I ran over to Katsuki's side. He gripped his arm.
"Deku, no way, not again."
"Hey," I put a hand on his shoulder.
He jerked away. "Leave me alone."
"Katsu," I grabbed his arm and began to massage the muscles. "You did amazing, you may not have won this round but you still have another chance. I believe you will win this entire festival."
"Shut up," he growled but didn't pull away again.
"The contestants are pouring in one after the other. Let's hear some applause for all our competitors as we prepare the results."
I continued to massage Katsuki's arms as the rest of the students poured through the gate. Finally everyone was here. Katsuki pulled his arms away. We all grouped together in our classes.
"The first game for the first years is finally over and what a game it was. Now lets take a quick look at the standings, shall we?" Midnight gestured to the screen.
Izuku was in 1st, Todoroki in 2nd, Katsuki in 3rd, I was in 4th, a Class B student in 5th, another in 6th, Iida was in 7th, Tokoyami in 8th, Sero in 9th and Kirishima in 10th. I scanned the list for the rest of my classmates. Ojiro was in 12th, Tsu in 14th, Shoji in 15th, Sero in 16th, Uraraka in 17th, Yaoyorozu in 18th, Mina in 19th, Koda in 20th, Jirou in 21st, Kaminari in 24th, Hagakure in 38th, and Aoyama in 42nd.
"Only the top 42 will advance to the next round but don't be too let down if you didn't make the cut. We've prepared other opportunities for you to shine. Now the real fun is about to begin. The chance to fully move yourselves into the limelight. Give it your best!" Midnight cracked her whip. "Let's see what we have in store for you next. Will your wildest fantasies come to life? What could it be? The waiting is torture. Prepare yourselves, for this!"
A cavalry battle, interesting.
"Allow me to explain. The participants will form teams of two to four people as they see fit. In theory it's basically the same as a regular playground game but there is one difference. Each player has been assigned a point value based on the results from the obstacle course."
Everyone started murmuring at that. I glanced over at Izuku, that meant he would have the highest amount of points.
"Maybe you should shut up and let me explain things to you!" Midnight exclaimed.
Everyone quickly shut up.
"Now then the points go up by increments of five, starting from the bottom. For example 42nd place is worth five points and 41st is worth 10. And the point value assigned to the first place contestant is…ten million!"
Izuku froze. Everyone turned towards him. I winced, everyone would go for him now.
"That's right, it's survival of the fittest with a chance for those at the bottom to over throw the top."
I shifted closer towards Izuku, I nudged his shoulder.
"Hey don't worry you've still got someone on your side."
"First years," Midnight called. "These are the rules that you'll abide by. The game itself will last fifteen minutes. Individual point values will be added together to reach your team total everyone will know how much you're worth thanks to your headbands. Swipe as many headbands as you can to raise your team score. Stolen headbands must be worn from the neck up so the more you steal the hard it'll be to manage them. And another thing even if your headband is stolen or your team falls down you can keep playing until time's up. This is going to be rough, you may use your quirks as much as you like but there are still rules. Make a team fall in purpose and I'll slap you with a red card, you'll be disqualified. Now you've got 15 minutes to build your teams, I recommend you get started."
I glanced around, who should I go with? I wanted to go with Katsuki since I knew we worked well together. I walked over to his side. Several other students were surrounding him, all asking to join his team.
"Wait remind me what your quirks are again and your names." Katsuki said.
"You're kidding, we're your classmates." Mina exclaimed.
"Can you really be that self centered?" Sato asked.
I laughed and walked over. "I thought I drilled everything into that big brain of yours." I thumped him on the head.
"Oi hands off." Katsuki growled.
"Well Katsuki, should we team up or would we completely dominate the field?" I grinned and leaned against him.
"Bakugou!" Kirishima cut in. "I was gonna try Todoroki but he already picked a group. So hey, we should team up."
"Hey dumb hair,"
I snorted. "Katsu,"
"My name is Kirishima!" Kirishima exclaimed. "And my hair's not that different from yours."
I touched Katsuki's hair. "You know, he's got a point."
"Come on, you wanna be the rider right? So you're gonna need a strong front horse who won't be hurt by your blasts. That'd be me."
"I need someone with guts." Katsuki was thinking about it, I could tell.
"My quirk was made for this. I got you covered, man. Let's go charging into battle together. Ten million, bring it."
"Well done, you've made your way into his heart." I remarked.
"Shut up," Katsuki shoved me off.
"Fine, fine, I see I'm not wanted. I'll find my own team." I glanced around.
I could look for my cousin but he probably wouldn't team up with me. I spotted Shinso in the crowd. I made my way over to him, he already had Ojiro and someone else with him.
"Hey Shinso, want to team up?"
He looked me over. "Sure, what quirk do you have?"
"Um currently explosion but I can copy anything else." My palms crackled slightly.
"Keep that, then you can borrow mine later."
I nodded. "Okay, do you have a plan?"
"Go after first place?" Shinso nodded towards Izuku.
"No, that's what everyone will do. Let's go after the smaller teams. We can use your quirk to get the headbands. It would be pretty easy."
The timer sounded.
"Oh goodie, it's time to get this party started."
"Hey, hey, look alive. After fifteen minutes to pick teams and talk strategy 12 calvary teams are prepared to go head to head."
"I see some unexpected student combinations."
"Come on, everyone get your hands in the air, it's time for arena pumping UA battle royal. Let me hear you scream!"
Shinso tied his headband with our total 480. He looked down at me and smirked.
"We got this,"
I nodded. I was at the front, Shinso was on top, Ojiro was on the right side and the other student was on the left side. I noticed Shinso had brainwashed the other two students. I thought about asking but I decided not to.
"Okay all you first years, I hope you're happy with your chosen teams. Let's get this party started. One final countdown before the game starts. 3, 2, 1."
"Begin!" Midnight yelled.
As I thought everyone went for Izuku. We held towards the back and swiped a few smaller point headbands. Suddenly Izuku and his team flew over our heads. I stopped and stared at him. He landed a short way away from us.
"Hey, look alive." Shinso tapped my head.
"Oh right," I looked around, there was a group of student right next to us. "Let get them."
"Wow, barely two minutes have passed since we started and it's already a total free for all. Yeah, watch those headbands! You can even ignore the ten million and go after the other chart toppers."
Shinso managed to grab another headband. I heard the familiar explosions above me, I stopped and stared up. Katsuki had launched himself at Izuku. He reached for the headband but was blocked by Dark Shadow.
"What?! Bakugou has been separated from his horses!"
Katsuki began to fall but Sero brought him back with his tape. His team caught him easily.
"Is that even allowed?"
"He never touched the ground, so technically it's okay."
"Your boyfriend's pretty smart." Shinso said.
I flushed. "He's not my boyfriend."
"If you say so."
"You two really need to get your head in the game,"
I whipped around. Neito Monoma was twirling our headbands around his finger.
"Neito," I growled.
"Long time no see, cousin." He grinned. "Have you gotten so full of yourself that you forgot that I got into UA too?"
"I've been a little busy, you know, getting attacked by villains."
"Oh poor you," Netio's team turned and ran off.
I grit my teeth and took a step forwards.
"Forget him, let's go after the others."
"Now who wants to take a look at each team's point so far? It's been seven minutes, so let's get those ranking thrown up on the screen."
I glanced up as the rankings appeared. The crowd got quiet and gasped. I froze, Katsuki had zero points.
"Hold on here, this is an unexpected turn. Other than Midoriya, Class 1-A's not doing so hot. Even Bakugou is losing."
I looked towards Katsuki and his team. Neito had snatched their headband too. I growled, Neito had too many points.
"No, we're going after him." I hissed, I stepped closer until I could hear their conversation.
"Oh while I have you attention, you're kinda famous aren't you?" Neito smirked. "For being attacked by that sludge villain. You'll have to tell me about it sometime. It must be strange to always find yourself in the roll of the victim."
I hissed and took another step forwards. I was going to kill him, cousin or no.
"Kirishima," Katsuki growled. "We have a slight change of plans. Before we take down Deku, we're gonna kill every last one of these B list idiots."
"And now we've reached the halfway point of the game." Present Mic called.
Shinso tapped my head. "Hey, we need to get more points. Your boyfriend can take care of himself."
"Fine," I gritted my teeth.
"As the cavalry battle enters its second half it's anyones game. Class 1-B has made an unexpected showing but who will win the ten million points in the end? That's the real question, sport fans."
I turned towards another team. Most of the teams were trying to get Izuku. I ran behind one team and Shinso managed to snatch their headband.
"Would you look at that? He stopped all those teams cold in their tracks."
"But only after Kaminari had immobilized the students using his electricity. In the obstacle course he was surprised by how many people avoided his attack, he's adapting his strategy."
I glanced towards the other teams, a few were frozen in ice.
"Let's go over there."
Shinso nodded and we made our way over to the ice patch. Shinso grabbed another headband. The team that had the most headbands managed to fight us off.
"Team Midoriya has nowhere left to run."
So Todoroki had trapped Midoriya. I looked around, we needed more points. Neito was running away from Katsuki, Katsuki hot on his tail. We couldn't get Neito as much as I wanted to.
"Only one minute left. Todoroki has cornered the ten million point team and is poised to seize the ultimate prize. At least that's what I would have predicted five minutes ago. Unbelievably team Midoriya has bee able to keep away from the ice master for the last half of the game."
One minute. I looked around, the silver haired kid's team was close. I opened my mouth to warn Shinso when the headbands were snatched from him.
"What the—" I turned to see the silver haired boy holding our headbands. "Not again!"
"Whoa what just happened? That was one big blur! Holy smokes folks, why didn't he show off the super speed in the preliminaries? Insanity! This entire game was just turned completely on its head. Todoroki's team has the ten million points and Midoriya's team is suddenly left with nothing at all!"
Todoroki got the points. I glanced up at Shinso.
"Copy my quirk." Was all he said.
I nodded and quickly copied his quirk.
"Team Bakugou now has two headbands and moves into third place. The final moments of the game have been full of shakeups. Oh to be young again."
Katsuki got his points back. I smiled, good for him. Knowing him he wouldn't settle for third.
"Now look at this, Class 1-B's strategy was a reasonable one but there's one thing they forgot to consider. Class 1-B didn't take into account Bakugou's overwhelming tenacity."
"Bakugou is a merciless force! What a point hog, that was a shield break heard around the arena. And I can't wait to watch the replay."
I looked up at Shinso. "What are we going to do?"
"Go after him," Shinso pointed at the silver haired kid. "He has the most points."
"Right," I ran after the other team.
"With just eleven seconds left team Midoriya is back in the game! Oh no, team Midoriya didn't get the ten million points after all. The game is almost over. Time for a count down."
Ten seconds. I stopped in front of the silver haired kid.
"Hey, give me your headbands." I smiled.
"Why would I—"
"Gottcha," I grinned. "Give them to me,"
The boy started to hand them over. Shinso grabbed them and I jumped back.
"Times up! And with that the second round is officially over!"
Shinso climbed down and I stretched my shoulders. Carrying someone for a long period of time hurt. Shinso released Ojiro and the other student from his control.
"Now let's take a look at who our top four teams are. In first place, team Todoroki! In second place, team Bakugou. In third place is Testute—wait what? It's team Shinso, when did they come back from the dead?"
"Thanks for all your help." Shinso said.
"Sure, that was a tense game." I smiled.
"Wait we won?" Ojiro looked at me.
"Yeah, sorry about that."
"And in fourth place, is team Midoriya!"
I looked over at Izuku just as he burst into tears.
"These four final teams will advance on to the final round!"
I made my way over to Katsuki's team. "Hey, good job guys."
"Hey Koneko, how'd you do?" Kirishima asked.
"Not bad. We had our headband stolen several times but we made it through to the end." I shrugged.
"What team were you on?" Mina asked.
"Oh Shinso's. He's the boy with purple hair that was at our classroom yesterday." I looked over at Katsuki. "How's Katsuki feel about all this?"
"I don't think he's very happy." Kirishima nodded towards Katsuki.
"He's never happy." I scoffed. "He'll get over himself." I walked over to his side. "Katsuki, you did so well."
"Shut up!" He stood up and stomped away.
"Oh come on, you know you did well." I caught up to him. "You faced my cousin and won. I'm surprised you didn't kill him."
"Cousin?" Katsuki stopped.
"Yeah Neito Monoma, he had the copy quirk."
"Oh him," he glared at the ground.
"Now let's take an hour lunch break before we start the afternoon festivities. See you soon. Hey Eraserhead let's grab some food."
"I'm taking a nap."
"Come on Katsu, let's get some food." I tugged on his arm.
"I can walk myself." He pulled his arm away.
"Alright, alright." I followed Katsuki.
We walked with the rest of the students. Katsuki paused and looked down a hallway.
"You go ahead. I'll join you soon."
"Okay…" I cocked my head. "Is everything okay?"
"Yeah just give me a minute." He didn't look away from the hallway.
"Alright, I'll get you some food." I smiled. "Extra spicy, right?"
"Yeah,"
I reached over and squeezed his hand. "Don't take too long."
I walked to the cafeteria. After waiting in line I got two trays of rice, meat and vegetables. I carefully balanced the two trays and walked to an empty table. I set them down and sat down to wait for Katsuki.
"Hey Koneko, are you sitting by yourself?" Mina asked, setting her tray down across from me.
"No, I was waiting for Katsuki but you're welcome to sit here." I smiled.
"Hey Koneko!" Kirishima walked over along with Kaminari and Sero. "Can we sit here?"
"Sure," I shrugged. "I was just waiting for Katsuki."
"Thanks," Kirishima sat his tray down.
Everyone started eating. I hesitated, I wanted to wait for Katsuki but I was famished. I picked up my chopsticks and picked at my rice. Katsuki slid into the seat next to me.
"You didn't have to wait." He whispered.
"It felt wrong to eat without you." I shrugged. "I don't mind waiting."
He hummed and began to eat his own meal. We ate in silence, Kirishima, Sero and Mina chatting about the calvary battle. Kaminari had disappeared a while ago. I shifted closer to Katsuki's side. We were all moving on but just what could the next game be?