Chapter 25

Training Camp (Part 1)

The morning started brutally at five in the morning, with the sun not even coming over the high crests of the mountains in the distance. The sky was painted with purples and blues, serene hues that spoke of slumber and whimsical dreams that danced around in enraptured heads.

Such dreams did not include those of Class 1-A.

The girls managed to haul themselves out to the front of the building after Mandalay had shaken them awake, with everyone meeting outside the dorm building by five thirty. Yaoyorozu had interwoven her arm with Rei, keeping the latter upright as she blinked blearily, trying to pull herself awake.

She definitely wouldn't engage in girl talk tonight if it meant losing out on precious hours of sleep again.

But the longer she stood upright and focused on her breathing, the more alive she began to feel. Frowning and crinkling her nose, Rei yawned, patting Yaoyorozu's hand with one of her own. "Thanks, Momo. I'm good now."

"Are you certain?" Her friend didn't seem to believe her, and for good reason. As soon as their class had assembled in front of the main building, Rei closed her eyes and nearly fallen over to the side, and if it weren't for Momo's quick thinking she most certainly would have smacked her face into the ground or stumbled in a painful and awkward manner. It was obvious that she wasn't a morning person, and her friend had seen to it that at least she wouldn't get left behind or caught unawares by their homeroom teacher, just in case he asked anything. Aizawa wouldn't tolerate anything less than their best, and it stood to reason that he wouldn't care if they were exhausted, and would probably pick on them more if he saw them slouching or less than prepared.

But now that she was standing Rei was beginning to wake her blood up, thoughts clearing as her mind became sharper, the cat girl starting to do calf raises in an effort to get the blood flowing even faster. Nodding her head, she smiled at Momo, rolling her shoulders and stretching her arms after the class vice president relinquished her hold. Rolling her neck and hopping up and down, Rei forced herself away from her friend so as to not accidentally smack her or step on her feet. "Yeah, I'm good now. Just took a little while."

At least Momo wasn't invincible either, the girl hiding a yawn behind her own hand as she nodded. No one had been prepared for the five o'clock wake up call. They would know better than to stay up talking tonight, or lounging too long in the baths before bed.

"Good morning, everyone."

Aizawa had appeared in front of everyone, looking rather… well, himself as usual. Was he simply so sleep deprived that nothing bothered him anymore? Regardless, he looked to be one of the most awake in the group, and for good reason. With his hands in his pockets, he looked at each individual, assessing their status and making sure that he had everyone's attention before speaking again. "Today, we will begin training camp to increase your strength in earnest."

Rei's nose crinkled, as she looked to the side, muttering to herself. "Yesterday wasn't earnest?"

If he heard her comment, he ignored Rei entirely. "The goal of this camp is to increase everyone's strength, and with that, for everyone to obtain their provisional licenses. It is to prepare you all for the hostilities that are becoming more real by the minute. Proceed carefully."

Provisional licenses? That was right, that had been a question on the final exam, concerning laws and statutes regarding heroes. Anyone in a hero program could attain a provisional license before completing their cohesive certification in order to act independently and have full rights as a hero during times of crisis and disaster. But that was strange; Rei didn't remember seeing anywhere in those laws how old one had to be, or how many years they had to complete of high school or any other requirements. It was possible that she had just forgotten them after cramming for the test, but for once she didn't think that that was the case.

Was it common for first years to get their provisional license? Especially after only one term; that didn't seem very logical. With such little training they were prone to forgetting mistakes or not having them instilled in them quite like higher years. Perhaps she would have to ask Midoriya about that later. He would certainly know the answer to that.

"So, Bakugou." The class stood up, alert as Aizawa tossed a familiar round object to the boy in question. Everyone peered around at Bakugou without trying to be too nosy or get into his business. "Try throwing that."

Near the back of the group, Rei walked forward to get a closer look. She could hear Aizawa mentioning something to Bakugou about his previous score at the beginning of the school year.

Oh. As soon as she saw him tossing the ball up and down in an experimental manner, she understood. The fitness test. Mina and Sero were the first ones to explicitly make comments about it as Bakugou stepped away from the group and into the clearing, rolling his shoulders and warming up as quickly and thoroughly as possible. Rei crossed her arms over her chest. She had almost forgotten about the fitness test at the beginning of the year. Hadn't she placed fifth or something? A part of her was curious to see how much they had improved. Surely Bakugou-

"GO TO HELL!"

Wincing at the noise, Rei peered through lidded eyes as she tried to track the ball as best as possible without having to completely shut her eyes from the gusts of wind that had picked up from the explosion. It was difficult as it hurtled through the air quickly, launching high into the sky before finally slowing down and beginning its descent back toward the earth. From what she could tell, it had been a fairly precise throw. The angle and trajectory were decent, neither too high nor too shallow to the ground. If he had truly improved, then they would see how far it had gone this time.

"Seven hundred nine point six meters."

The class turned and began to mutter in confusion, sounds of surprise coming from those that had been closest to the front in particular. Rei pushed forward to the front, standing near Midoriya toward the side and leaning over toward him. Her arm brushed against him, making him jolt in surprise at not having noticed the girl's approach, but he leaned over anyway as Rei lifted her head toward his ear.

"What was his old record?"

Midoriya's eyes shifted up for a moment to look at Bakugou, as though checking that the boy wouldn't hear him. "Seven hundred and five, I believe is what Aizawa-sensei said."

Two eyebrows skyrocketed on her face. Astonished, she blinked at Midoriya. "That little?"

"Shh!" He looked about frantically, relieved that Bakugou hadn't heard. "Don't let him hear!"

Rei only shrugged her shoulders. "If he wants to fight, I can take him on."

"Still…"

"It's been about three months since you've started high school." Aizawa took center stage once more, the group frozen with varying looks of surprise on their faces. His voice was quiet and dangerous, but everyone could hear every word. "Through various experiences, you all have definitely improved. But that improvement has mainly been at the mental and technical level, with some increase in stamina."

Pacing in front of the class, a dangerous gleam suddenly came into his eyes. Rei shuddered involuntarily, knowing that what awaited them during the day would certainly be a living hell if this test was anything to go by. "As you can see, your quirks themselves have not improved much. That is why we will work on improving your quirks starting today."

Midoriya startled, back straightening as an idea flooded through him. Rei looked at him curiously for a moment before her eyes returned to their teacher. She almost wished she hadn't, what with the nightmarish look that he wore on his face.

A smile on Aizawa never meant anything pleasant.

"It'll be so hard you'll feel like dying, but try not to actually die."

"Allllright!"

Rei immediately stiffened as she felt a hand snake up her back and loop around her upper arm, pulling her into someone new. Turning her head ever so slightly to the left, she relaxed marginally when she realized it was only Pixie Bob, the blue eyes woman looking hungrily between her and Midoriya. It was then that Rei realized that her classmate was in a similar situation, Pixie Bob positioning herself between the two as she cooed at them. "Looks like it's our time to step in, isn't it?"

She could have sworn that she saw the woman wink at her, but she didn't have time to react as the woman immediately pulled away, rejoining the rest of her team at the front of the class.

"Wild, Wild, Pussycats!"

"We're here to help monitor your progress and make sure you're getting ground into the dust!"

Rei felt slightly nauseous at Pixie Bob's sadistic comment, but she managed to repress the shudder that threatened to go down her spine for the third time in the morning.

Tiger was the first one to move, pointing at certain people in the group. "Those with power up types, come with me!" He gave no time for them to waste, immediately turning around and walking down a path that led deeper into the forest. Rei knew that they were all going to go into the forest for training, but beyond that she had no idea what awaited them. With a small nod of encouragement to Midoriya, who looked rather nauseous and nervous to be following after the most intimidating pro hero, she watched as a small group followed along.

"Alright, listen up." Aizawa took the lead again for the rest of the group, pushing out directions immediately. "We've decided how to split you up and best train you, specific to your quirks. Listen up for your instructions, and get going as soon as you know them."

"Uraraka and Akatsuki." The two girls perked up at their names, Uraraka in particular looking more awake. "You'll be working with Pixie Bob. See her for further details." He gave no time for them to ask questions, immediately looking for Yaoyorozu and Sado and moving along. Wasting no time, Rei and Uraraka likewise turned toward the woman dressed in blue.

"So, you're Uraraka."

"Uh," the gravity girl stuttered, suddenly quite awake. "Yes. That's me."

"Great!" She pointed to the side of the forest, where a massive plastic ball was waiting. Rei was shocked that she hadn't seen it before, and yet she had a very good idea where this was going. "Can you get inside that please?"

"Uh, yes! Okay." Uraraka moved quickly, trying to appease the woman as she climbed into the massive plastic hamster ball. Pixie Bob then sealed the exit, much to Uraraka and Rei's dread. "Huh?"

"Alright! All you have to do is go with the flow and not get sick!"

"W-wait a seco-"

"Here we go!"

With a screech Uraraka was sent flying into the air and over the trees, launched by a sudden surge of the earth as it rose with horrifying ease and fluidity before sinking back down and hardening. Rei's own gut rose in her torso as pity went out to her classmate, feeling sick without having the misfortune of being subjected to such torture.

Poor Uraraka. Of all the people in their class, she and probably Aoyama would have it the worst, what with their quirks making their stomachs quite literally sick.

It was only inevitable that Pixie Bob then turned back to Rei, a grin on her face. "So, you're Akatsuki, aren't you? You're that fabulous fighter from yesterday's exercise."

"Uh, yes ma'am." A dangerous glint came to Pixie Bob's face, and Rei realized her mistake, one that Midoriya had already made multiple times. "I mean, miss!"

The look on her face softened in acceptance as she began to circle Rei, looking over every aspect of her. Folding her arms over her chest again in self consciousness, Rei looked to the pro hero. "Ah, so, what will my training be?"

"Akatsuki Rei. The quirk Nine Lives grants you cat like reflexes, such as high jumping, the ability to fall from great heights, as well as retractable claws." If she had any thought that Pixie Bob had been flirting with her earlier, it was now gone. The woman cut straight to business, analyzing her quirk and repeating most likely everything that she had learned from Aizawa. With a scrutinous glance she took everything about Rei in, as though still trying to determine what sort of torture she would subject the young high school student to.

"Passive abilities include heightened hearing and sense of smell, as well as sight in low light environments. Additionally, regenerative properties allow you to heal at a rapid pace."

It felt strange for someone to essentially tell Rei everything she knew about herself. It was so cold cut and upfront, almost foreign to hear it back. But she nodded solemnly, hands dropping to her sides. "That's right."

"Alright."

Rei blinked. "Sorry?"

The blonde woman extended her paw out to Rei, who looked on in uncertainty before realizing that she was supposed to take the items in her hand. Four slender bands the size of bracelets were passed over, and Rei was surprised to feel how heavy they were, their size and delicate appearance deceiving her for a moment. Pixie Bob continued, pointing to Rei's wrists and ankles. "One pound weights for your arms, two pound weights for each ankle. We'll be starting light today, but we'll be increasing the weight as we go along. You'll keep them on for the rest of camp, even after day training, so that you can get used to them."

It was surprisingly obvious and intuitive, but Rei was caught off guard. The thought had occasionally passed through her mind about using weights in training, but she had never really looked further into them or taken the initiative. They would certain help her build up strength even faster and push her quirk to her limit at a speedier pace. Locking the clasps into place on each bangle, she stood up to her full height, shaking her legs and arms out and testing how heavy they were. The difference was barely noticeable, but Rei knew better than to make mention of it. She would be feeling it soon enough.

"You'll start with a five kilometer run out into the forest. The only rule is that you can't touch the ground. Trees, rocks, plants, whatever it takes."

"In which direction?"

"Whatever you'd like."

Golden eyes narrowed in suspicion. "What's the catch?"

Pixie Bob was almost purring in satisfaction as she peered down at Rei. "Smart girl," she cooed, bending over slightly. "Once you get out there, make it back by lunch to the clearing that's a few kilometers north of here. Mandalay will direct you if you get too off course. I'll be watching you!"

Fool her once, shame on her. Fool her twice…

"This is going to be like yesterday, isn't it?"

The glint in those blue eyes told Rei she had hit the nail on the head.

"Why don't you find out?" Pixie Bob laughed, tossing her head back. "The clock's ticking."

The clearing was almost empty, with most of the groups heading down the main path and talking with one another as they headed out to a clearing that had been designated for training. With a plan forming in her head, Rei took a quick survey around the current clearing before dashing off in a new direction, heading out deeper into the forest. Some of her classmates called her name as they watched her bolt through the space and leap into the trees, flying into the wilderness as they stared after her, bewildered at her speed and precision.

Rei paid no mind to them. It was best to separate from the rest of the group as quickly as possible, putting as much distance between her and the others as she could. In almost any other situation she would have gone with her class; at least her path back would be peppered with allies that could potentially help her.

But that was not the reason for this training. This was something for her and her alone, created so that she could push her own limits and overcome the challenges that she faced. No assistance, no competition, other than the competition she gave herself. Flying through the emerald foliage she pushed herself as hard as she could, making record time while speeding through the treetops and carefully watching her landings.

Stamina and strength. She knew that this training was going to be harder than most of the others. Because she regenerated and healed faster, she required less sitting down time, less time to catch her breath and let her muscles stretch out and heal. Pixie Bob would surely know this and push her to her absolute limit. It would be training with Chirasaki on steroids, a beefed out version of their gauntlet in a high urban environment now changed to become that of the wilderness and countryside.

Aizawa had said that they would feel like dying. Rei already knew what that felt like on a very literal level. But this would be different, and with a maniacal grin on her face she darted off, ready to face what was coming.

The sun had already risen in the sky by the time Class 1-B joined up with 1-A, dispersing to their respective areas and beginning their intensive training. Aizawa walked around, observing his students and watching as they slaved away.

Indeed, everyone was taking this seriously. He could already see the exhaustion on some of their faces, such as Todoroki. The boy had some serious catching up to do now that he was using both sides of his quirk, his control over fire severely lacking in contrast to the ice. When the day came where he could demonstrate not just a proficiency over both, but a mastery, would be a fearsome day indeed. But still, they all were fledgelings, beginning to spread their wings.

Tenacity was appreciated, but it was their raw power and talent that kept them in this school, specifically in Aizawa's class. Midoriya as well was beginning to show promise, but he still had quite a ways to go, especially seeing as how his path just got rockier with his limited use of his arms. Aizawa had been alerted of the doctor's diagnosis back after the Hosu City incident, keeping the green boy's handicap in the back of his mind. Reckless, the fool. But beggars couldn't be choosers. If Midoriya wanted to remain on this path, then he would have to prove it.

As he watched over those within his view, his mind trailed to the others that he couldn't see. Most of them were gunning to be heroes, to be crowned in the spotlight. It would be a lie that ever since the sports festival in particular, the students hadn't considered popularity and the condition of heroes in mainstream culture. But there were a few who didn't seem too concerned with that, or who had very specific ideas of what they wanted to do, out of the spotlight.

One person stood out in particular.

When Aizawa had received his roster of students for the year, he had been surprised to see Akatsuki Rei's statistics and application. Everything about her was strange; she had come from a low achieving school, doing average on the written portion of U.A.'s exam, with no family to speak of. Low support outside of the classroom traditionally led to drop outs, not individuals who sought a place at some of the highest ranked high schools and universities in the country. It didn't help that her track record wasn't blameless. To top things off, her quirk was average, nothing spectacular to brag about. Having slight powerups in a range of categories was beneficial, but tended not to stand out against other, more ostentatious and specific quirks.

Sometimes, it was better to have a master of one than a jack of all trades. When it came to the popularity contest that was hero culture these days, having a flashy and hyperspecified quirk tended to make one outstanding if by name alone. But additionally, having a wide variety of specialties led to mediocrity in each area, rather than an intricate knowledge of what one did best and a comprehensive understanding of how to not just survive but thrive.

But it was Rei's practical portion that had Aizawa's eyebrows lifting in surprise. Second place. It was rare for girls to score higher on the boys, mostly because of the physical component that was required for high achievement. Most of the girls tended to have higher rescue points that counteracted the other category and balanced out their overall score, generally able to be more empathetic in action and think of others rather than one singular goal.

Akatsuki Rei had one of the highest villain point categories out of anyone. Sure, it hadn't been as high as Bakugou, but it was noteworthy and worth highlighting. She proved herself to be tenacious and vicious when it came to combat, something that he noticed when he rewatched the tapes of the exam. She had saved Kaminari, but had also immediately turned on the zero point villain in order to distract it from tormenting the other test takers in the arena. And more than that, she did real damage. Her claws, though hidden away, were sharper than steel cutting through hot metal beams.

She was a fighter. He had wondered just what brought her to U.A., why she had wanted to become a hero. She was standoffish, separating herself from the others almost from the beginning. He should have known that it was a wall that she had put up on her own.

Then came the day when they had chosen their hero names. No one had been able to see it, since he had been stowed away in his yellow sleeping back and facing the wall while lying on the floor, but he had snapped awake upon hearing her declare her intentions for her career. Not a flashy hero, not a rescue worker per say.

He should have known, from the first day, that she wanted to return to the underground on the other side, to become the hero everyone had told her that she couldn't be.

Few people ever thought about the behind the scenes work, the dirty world that existed under each civilian's feet. It was what Aizawa had thrived in, due to the nature of his quirk. And knowing what he knew, Akatsuki Rei was a perfect fit.

It was why he had told her about the scholarship application after she had admitted financial need. She wasn't perfect, but she had the talent, the skills, the drive. U.A., and Class 1-A, would be a decidedly lesser place if she had dropped out. Even if she had started as the loner, she had become one of the keystone pieces. The others were beginning to depend on her for her insights, considering her a part of their team before she had even realized she was on a team.

Aizawa rarely invested in students. But there was something about Akatsuki Rei that made him reminisce and think about the past, the present, and the future.

It was also why he had detailed a particularly brutal plan for her during this training camp. She had to be ready for the world ahead, for the difficulty. She needed to find it in herself to create the power to pull herself back up when no one else was around. It was a critical skill that would be desperately needed, should she choose to go into the field of infiltration and undercover work. She would be alone, and she would need to understand her own strength and turn the odds back on its head at times.

She would need to be superhuman, defying all odds to survive.

If Akatsuki Rei survived this camping trip, then she just might have the ingredients to surviving the field.

The run hadn't taken too long. By the time thirty minutes had passed Rei had almost made it to what she estimated was about five kilometers away from her starting point. She had done well to control her breathing, focusing on her landings and keeping things light but fast. The deeper she had gone into the forest, the easier it had become; the trees were larger, older in this place, their boughs wide and seemingly made for her to use as a path. It compensated for the fact that she was beginning to feel a slight burn in her legs from the weights, which had made her focus even harder on softening her landings. At times it felt like she was starting from the beginning all over again with Chirasaki, having to put so much emphasis on quiet and soft landings without shattering her surroundings, but it wasn't anything terribly arduous. In fact it was almost pleasant, but she knew thinking such thoughts was dangerous.

She had to remain on task, stay focused. Nothing about this trip would be pleasant, that much she knew. Serenity was a premise for disaster and a general bad time.

"Akatsuki-san, you've reached the five kilometer mark. You can stop now."

Landing on the bough of a massive fir after hearing Mandalay's directions echoing in her head, Rei let out a sigh. Wiping her forehead she stood up to her full height, looking around in wonder. She really was in the thick of things, not a clear path visible on the ground for people to traverse. Instead, much to her surprise…

The ground was rather dull, with only a few patches of grass. Empty, devoid of plants.

Rei frowned. That didn't seem natural.

"As per Pixie Bob's instructions, you have until dinner to make it back here to the site. Other than that, there are no additional rules. Use your quirk as you please, and the terrain to your advantage. Also, you are now allowed to run on the ground."

So all she had to do was run the five kilometers back, without restrictions anymore? Now she knew something was up. Lingering in the trees for a moment longer, she watched around her carefully, ears perked up as she listened for any sort of danger.

"Ready, set, go!"

There, off to the side almost a hundred yards, a distinct groaning and shifting of dirt that made Rei's skin crawl. But it wasn't so unfamiliar; no, this was something fresh from recent memory. The sound began to move, emitting from multiple locations. In the shadows of the forest, Rei's eyes began to pick out the figures, her face hardening.

The dirt monsters from the other day had returned.

Pixie Bob's quirk is legendary! Earthflow can control all types of earth and form whatever she wants. Landslides, mountains, and those creatures that we fought in the forest. It's easy to imagine how good it is for both rescuing and for creating those monsters for defense or offense when fighting villains.

Right now, Rei was thanking her lucky stars that Midoriya had already divulged all of his fanboy knowledge about the Pussycats over dinner during the previous night. At least now she knew why Pixie Bob had taken her aside; it was essentially a free-for-all with Rei and the terraformed creatures, and both sides could now let loose and create havoc in the forest, from what Rei could already see from the actions of the creatures.

But unlike the previous day, the creatures were now honing in intently on her location. Without hesitation they tore themselves from the earth, still forming their own limbs and faces as they began making their way towards Rei's location in the trees. Deadened and empty eyes stared up at her, screeches already tearing from their throats as they reached for her with talons, hands and appendages that seemed to spawn from her worst nightmares.

Clenching her hands in a fist for a moment, she flipped them out at her sides and extended her nails, sharp talons that were ready for action. She knew from the previous day that she could kick them and claw at the earth in order to tear their bodies apart, but it would be messy. She would have to be careful; her primary objective was to make it back to the camp, not tear through every enemy that crossed her path. It would be a difficult feat indeed, what with the way the creatures were trained on her figure.

With one final crouch on the tree branch she launched herself toward the first enemy, colliding with its face and delivering a solid kick. It screeched in horror, but Rei wasted no time in clawing for its throat, going for the jugular, or at least where it would be in a human… creature?

Now that she thought about it, fighting these beasts was more like fighting a Nomu. Hair raised at the comparison, she tensed as she watched the creature she had just attacked melt back into the ground in defeat. No, now was not the time to freeze up. Enemies were enemies, and she had a job to do.

The creatures were much faster than the previous day. Another golem came galloping up toward her position, jaw unhinged as it shrieked at its prey. Taking off running, Rei slid underneath its belly, claws ripping its underside open. She both hummed and cringed in satisfaction as it collapsed with a cry, mud and dirt splattering all over her from the action. With disgust and a crinkled nose she tried to shake the dirt off of her and brush her shoulders, but it only seemed to smear things in.

Great. It wasn't even noon and she was already ready for another bath.

There was no time to cringe or react, as another creature had already taken the downed earth beast's place, headbutting and ramming right into Rei. She cried out from the surprise attack, sailing high into the air as she was launched right off of the ground. Twisting around, she grimaced as she took in her surroundings midair, digging her claws into a tree trunk in order to secure herself and catch her breath. Five more enemies had appeared, moaning and creaking strangely as they stared up at her almost absent mindedly. It was horrifying and unsettling, yet Rei was determined. She was no longer thrown off or thinking about how odd these creatures were. In the zone and focused, she narrowed her eyes as she began to think of a plan.

Clearly Pixie Bob was creating these creatures at a much faster rate than before, intended to get in her way and slow her down from making it back to camp. It would be a waste of time to try and eliminate all of them in an effort to clear a path, when more would simply spring up from the dust of the dead. She would have to multitask, keeping herself oriented and moving while balancing fighting and maneuvering around the enemies.

A tall order, but one that all heroes should be able to accomplish easily. There was no easing into the situation. Aizawa's method was that of pushing one off into the deep end with minimal scaffolding and support as he went along. Those who couldn't even float were deemed worthless. Those who did at least stood a chance, should they prove themselves worthy.

As expected, in order to push her to her limits.

A new beast with wings had leapt up from the ground in Rei's direction, talons reaching forward with deadly intent. Pushing off from the tree Rei backflipped over the monster, sailing through the air and watching her landing, centering herself over another monster in the ground. From the height she had been at she gained enough momentum to send the beast into the ground, driving her feet into its back and pushing the air out of it as it collapsed.

… Did these things even breathe? Technically they were made of dust and earth…

Now that she was back within range, the beasts rushed toward her position with roars and shrieks galore. Steeling her wills and narrowing her eyes in determination, Rei readied her fists and slid into a defensive stance, ready to burst forward at any given moment. She was already sweating and filthy, half about to scream in frustration at the arduous task that stood before her. But she couldn't deny that a part of her was enthralled, more than ready to push herself in order to prove how strong she was and to find the next level in order to go beyond her current limits.

Training camp had officially begun, and the gates of hell had unleashed a monstrous challenge that somehow made Rei's blood sing in exhilaration of the beating to come.

For a majority of the students, lunch couldn't come around soon enough. For others the time flew by so quickly that they were surprised at the timing, almost wanting to train a bit longer and harder instead of taking a meal break. But all in all, everyone was thankful in the end for the brief respite. Cold sandwiches and other easily transportable snacks were dished out at the center of the clearing, the students retreating into the shade of the forest to eat. It was the first time that the two classes were able to mingle with one another, some of the students choosing to get to know the other class while the rest stuck to their friend groups and ate in relative peace.

Finally, a moment to relax and recharge. Everyone was taking advantage of the break, lying out in the shade and relaxing against the trees.

Almost everyone.

"Where is Akatsuki?"

The girls all paused, looking around in confusion and surprise. Sure enough, just as Uraraka had noticed, the black haired and golden eyed girl was nowhere to be seen. No one would have been offended if Rei had chosen to sit somewhere else for lunch, the one character in their group that was relatively unpredictable, but it was surprising that she wasn't joined at the hip to Yaoyorozu for their afternoon meal. Six pairs of eyes looked around the clearing, noting where most of the class had spread out and furrowing their brows as they realized that not one of them was their favorite, brooding, tactician.

Yaoyorozu looked to Uraraka in concern. "Were the two of you not together with Pixie Bob this morning?"

Nodding her head, Uraraka's lips twisted. "We were, though, I don't remember seeing where she ran off to after I started my training." The poor girl was still nauseous, only grabbing a can of ginger ale and half a sandwich to try and calm her stomach down from the dizzying trials that Pixie Bob had sent her through. Once she had stepped into the clear ball she hadn't had much time to orient herself, all her focus being pulled in her attempts to try and not llose her stomach inside the tight space. She certainly remembered that she and Akatsuki had gone with the blue outfitted Pussycat, but after that, she wasn't entirely sure what happened.

"This is strange." Cobalt eyes looked around the clearing one last time before returning to the group in front of her. "Tsuki-chan isn't one to miss meals either."

"Hey, do you think it's a part of her training?" Ashido piped up, though she looked rather concerned for Rei's wellbeing. The thought of not having a break, especially for food, was horrifying for the pink girl, her eyes wide in sympathy.

"It's possible, since we don't know the specifics."

"Poor Tsuki-chan." Tsuyu chewed her sandwich thoughtfully, swallowing quickly and rotating the food in her hand in an attempt to eat it more evenly and less messily. "I hope she's alright."

Uraraka pumped her first, inspiring a bit of confidence in the group at her upbeat attitude. "Tsuki-chan is strong! She'll be okay."

"Kero!" Everyone looked to Tsuyu, who had perked up at something. "Listen! Do you hear that sound?"

"Sound?" Yaoyorozu looked around along with the group, trying to discern what Tsuyu had heard. The group went silent, straining their ears to pick up any odd sounds. Nothing, for a moment. Perhaps they had been imagining things.

Suddenly, they heard a familiar roar that sent shivers down their spine. This time it was loud enough for everyone to hear, startlingly close and sending all of Class 1-A to their feet as they tensed, prepared for a fight. Only Class 1-B looked around in confusion and fear, uncertain of what was going on.

The earth beasts from yesterday were back. Was this another test?

Instead they heard a battle cry ring out from the forest, close enough that they knew the person was within range but far enough away that no one could clearly see what was going on. Suddenly one of the earth beasts flew into the clearing, startling everyone and making a few people shriek in surprise and horror. It had flown over the heads of a few students from Class 1-B, sending them running in random directions screaming in an attempt to get out of the way of whatever would follow. But nothing else did, and eventually all eyes turned back toward the hulking creature that sat in the clearing, now downed and out for the count.

It was monstrous in size, but unmoving. After a few moments it began to dissipate, granules of dirt, dust, and sand morphing back into the ground as Class 1-A began to relax. At least it wasn't a threat any longer. But what exactly had been the cause of its abrupt appearance?

Pixie Bob had left the food station, shouting in jubilation and running over with her hands above her head in a ridiculous fashion, peering at something in the middle of the beast. "My, my! That was fabulous! That only took an additional thirty minutes from what I gave you! And you beat my expectation that you would take longer!"

A more human groan sounded this time from the beast, and as the outline finally melted back into the ground a few eyes widened at the sight. With one knee on the ground and the other foot propping herself up, arms resting on the leg in an attempt to keep herself upright, an extremely dusty and dirty Rei emerged into sight. Coughing while hacking away at the earth beast's crumbling exterior, she shook her head frantically, eyes closed as she tried to get the dust out of them.

With the enemy vanquished everyone began to relax, but multiple sets of eyes were still on the one student who was crouching rather wearily at the center of it all. Pixie Bob smacked her on the back in congratulations, making her jolt forward and extending her arms to catch herself on the ground as the older pro hero laughed. "But unfortunately you don't get an extended lunch! Thirty minutes left!"

As the woman skipped back to the rest of her team, Yaoyorozu stood from the group and marched her way over to her friend, kneeling down next to her as she looked Rei over. Her arms and legs were trembling, most likely from muscle exhaustion, lungs sucking in air greedily as she tried to recover from whatever living hell she had just exited. Putting a hand on Rei's shoulder, Yaoyorozu offered a small smile as her friend slowly looked over to whoever had thought to approach her.

"Do you need some help?"

Rei wanted to roll her eyes, but instead she closed them and exhaled sharply. "No, but I'd appreciate it."

Smile still on her face, Yaoyorozu stood up and moved in front of Rei, extending two hand in front of her in offering. With a grimace and a grunt Rei managed to lift one of her hands up, Momo clasping it between her two and heaving her friend to her feet. Standing upright once more, Rei began to stretch out her arms, moving her limbs slowly as she cringed at the pain.

Not even a few hours into the day and she was already feeling it. A week of this was sure to kill her at some point.

Momo stayed next to Rei as she moved to get some food, taking half a sandwich, some fruit, and a water before following her friend's lead back into the shade. The girl waved the duo over, making room for Rei to join their little circle and immediately pestering her with questions.

"Tsuki-chan, are you fighting those beasts?"

"That's so brutal!"

"Tsuki-chan, what are those bracelets you're wearing?"

Leave it to Tsuyu to be the most observant. Wearily she lifted one hand up, flashing the silver bangle that slid down her arm innocently. "They're weights. One for each arm and leg."

"Woah, that's so intense!"

Frowning, Yaoyorozu looked at her friend in concern. "Are you sure you're alright? If you push too far, you might tear something in your body."

Rei only shrugged her shoulders, biting into her sandwich greedily. She had wanted to eat at least two full sandwiches based on how hungry she was, but she knew that if she overate she would be at risk for throwing it all back up later. The afternoon was only going to get warmer, and the last thing she wanted to do was get sick on top of being physically, mentally, and overall drained and deprived of strength from basic training. Chewing thoughtfully, she looked back to her silver eyed friend. "My regeneration's getting tested, but I should be able to handle it."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

Uraraka pumped her fists, a serious look on her face. "Tsuki-chan, you're so cool!"

"Yeah, yeah!" Ashido joined in, a grin on her face this time. "Like Kirishima would say, 'you're so manly!'"

The girls devolved into a fit of giggles at Ashido's impression and gestures, Rei offering a genuine smirk instead of a full laugh, given that she was eating and didn't want to accidentally choke on her food. She had to admit, some of Ashido's impressions were pretty on point. As the group began to relax once again Rei fell back to the sides, simply taking things in as they came and relaxing in the shade.

To be honest, she was almost certain that she had been about to tear her hamstring after a particular kick she had tried to deliver to one of the earth beasts. It was only about thirty minutes prior, when the exhaustion from the weights was settling in and her moves were starting to get a little sloppier. She hated admitting it, but it was the truth. In the heat of the moment her momentum had pulled her leg a little further than she had anticipated, and she was barely able to compensate for the move and twist her torso a bit extra. A bit further and something would have broken inside her.

If the rest of the afternoon was going to be anything like the morning, then Rei was in for a rough ride. Something in her was going to break, and she would have to figure out how to handle it. A dark look came over her face. Actually, how was she supposed to handle that?

As lunch came to a close and the students began picking up their trash and cleaning up the training ground in anticipation of the next few hours, Akatsuki made her way over to Aizawa. He was standing on the edge of the clearing near the path back to the main building, standing with Class 1-B's homeroom teacher Vlad. A bit apprehensive, she edged toward them slowly, waiting for Aizawa to notice her approach.

To his credit he noticed almost immediately as soon as she had begun making her way over, raising his eyebrows as Rei began moving more purposefully toward him. "Aizawa-sensei." Standing before him, she looked between the two teachers, bowing a bit awkwardly as she looked at the other pro hero teacher standing next to him. "Vlad-sensei."

At least the other pro hero grunted in assent, nodding his head at her greeting. It was as best of a mutual greeting as she would get from the gruff hero.

"Akatsuki. What's your question."

Monotone, but to the point. Rei straightened up as best she could, returning her attention to her own homeroom teacher. "A question about how far to push myself. If I continue at this rate, I'm liable to tear something. What should I do in that case?"

There was silence as he looked her over, brain working over her question. A glimmer lingered in his eyes before he wiped his expression again, looking completely unbothered and unperturbed by anything. "This training camp is meant to push you beyond your limits," he began rather diplomatically, "and as such you should be prepared to break. You know your quirk best. Whether you think it is best to pause and regenerate or continue to push is up to you."

"And what would you have me do?"

It was clear that the two of them already understood Aizawa's first answer, Rei staring at him and waiting for his personal opinion on the matter. He seemed to be reevaluating her for a moment, the smallest bit of pride on his face before answering again in a monotone voice.

"Based on your plans for your future career, you must understand that at times you will have to face impossible odds. You must be able to carry on even in the face of certain defeat, if you want to live to see another day."

Rei smiled a tiny smile, appreciative of his honesty. Most students would have balked at his blatant expectation that the student would continue on in the face of injury, especially at the expense of potentially hurting themselves further. But Rei was not most students; she knew that at the end of the day, she would regenerate and eventually be fine. Even more than that, she would not die, could not die. In Aizawa's eyes, the more she prepared for the inevitable, the better.

In the face of pain and injury she would have to carry on. This camp was about pushing her quirk further and further until it broke and was reborn into something newer and stronger, and it was Rei's luck that this goal coincided with her future hero training.

The more she broke now, the less she would break in the future.

"Thank you, sir." Bowing in gratitude she took off back toward the rest of the class, the students receiving their next assignments for the afternoon. She took off at a jog as best she could what with her muscles screaming in protest, but she needed to catch up. She couldn't fall behind, not now. She had already been late to lunch, and although she had surpassed Pixie Bob's expectations with that she had failed her personal own. This afternoon she was determined to make things work, to be successful in every manner, even if she broke along the way.

As she ran back off to see Pixie Bob for her next assignment, Aizawa folded his arms over his chest, he and the other teacher watching her move away. Vlad raised an eyebrow inquisitively, tilting his chin up as he looked after the black haired student. "Not bad. Is she the one you were telling me about last night?"

"Yes." Reaching into his pocket Aizawa pulled out his eye drops, tilting his head backward as he carefully squeezed the tiny bottle and blinked away at the sudden moisture. "She's on the right path."

"Not what I'd imagined, but she's pretty tough."

"Not tough enough. But that will change after this week."

That was the plan, at least. It was up to Rei how much she decided to push herself. Aizawa couldn't make that decision for her. But somehow he was convinced that he knew how things would turn out and what decisions she would make.

Brutal. Agonizing. Dirty, frustrating, hair pulling, exhaustive, and inexplicably rage inducing. They were all words that Rei would use to describe the afternoon's training session, as well as a few more explicatives that were less than savory or polite to be using in general. Truly, she had never been pushed this hard in her life. She imagined that Chirasaki had been absolutely brutal on her, but now his testing and training seemed like a cake walk.

Had he ever trained with weights as well? And if he did, was it insulting or merciful that he hadn't subjected Rei to the same experience back a few months ago?

It was always easy to look back in retrospect at the ways that Rei could have prepared better or more efficiently used her time in training. The idea of weights was so simple that she found herself mentally berating herself for not acting upon her previous ideas of incorporating them into her personal training sessions. But perhaps it was better this way. Surely if she had tried to use weights earlier, she wouldn't have been as mentally strong as she was now to endure them for this long.

For the afternoon portion, Pixie Bob had switched things up a bit. Instead of trying to make it back to a specific location in a set amount of time, it was time to play a new game. Of course, Rei had immediately known by the menacing glitter in the pro hero's eyes that this game wouldn't be fun at all for Rei, but she had sucked it up and shouldered the dread that had immediately risen in her chest at the mention of a game.

Now instead of fighting the earth golems, Rei's primary objective was to outrun them. She was permitted to fight in self defense, just in case they got too close for comfort, but her objective was to run for as long as possible without getting captured. The time limit started as five minutes, and with every successful run the time increased by one minute that she would have to survive.

It all seemed quite clear and easy when Pixie Bob had explained things to her, but of course things couldn't be so simple.

First and foremost, the creatures were as fast as her now.

No longer was Rei fighting to escape the cumbersome giants that lumbered after her with stumpy limbs and almost sloppy swings that traded speed for strength. Instead she was being chased by lithe creatures that lashed out with surprising dexterity and aggression, hungry to hunt down their next meal.

Second, the definition of "being captured" was ill defined and much more horrifying than what Rei had imagined.

The round ended either when one of the creatures swallowed her whole (a disgusting sensation that Rei ranked as one of the top most unpleasant experiences she would never wish on anyone ever) or when she tapped out and screamed that she was done. Unfortunately, the latter rarely ever happened, since she was too proud and Aizawa's words would ring in her head about facing impossible odds, so she found herself on multiple occasions being shoved into a creature's mouth and tumbling down a short tunnel before being dropped on the earth as the creature disintegrated. She would then have five minutes to recollect herself before the game would begin anew.

If this was the pro hero's definition of a game, she definitely didn't want to get on Pixie Bob's bad side.

So that was how another four hours had passed, Rei finally managing to rack up her survival time to eleven minutes. It had been at that limit for a while now, especially since her strength was waning and her muscles were beginning to delay. She was sweaty and covered in dust and grime, her exposed skin scratched up from the gravel and pebbles that attacked her skin every time she was swallowed whole.

Now lying on the ground and nearing the end of her five minute respite, she rolled over and hauled herself to her feet, slowly but surely. She had to flip over and crawl onto her hands and knees before pulling one foot forward and using her leg to push her upper body up, eventually coming to sway onto her feet as her muscles contracted, entire body shuddering. Hacking, coughing, and spitting out the dust that she had accidentally inhaled while inside the belly of the beast, she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and staggered toward a tree, leaning on it for support.

"Akatsuki-san, time's up. It's time for dinner. Please make it back to camp. The building is directly south of your position."

Rei couldn't help the sigh that reactively left her chest as she breathed heavily in relief. It was over, at least for today. Orienting herself by the slowly setting light of the sun she began the trek back to camp, dragging her feet dusting herself off as best as she could.

When she had first been told that she was expected to keep the weights on at all times during the training camp, she hadn't thought much of it. Now that the day was done though, she wanted nothing more than to throw them off so that she could at least walk at a normal pace instead of feeling like she was being weighed down by four boulders that she dragged on each limb. With a long groan of displeasure she began stretching her limbs out slowly, making her way back. She had to at least stretch now, otherwise the next day would be impossible to survive without either Rei herself snapping into two pieces like a twig or Rei reaching out and snapping someone in half in agitation.

By the time she emerged back at the camp most everyone had already changed into regular clothes and were coming out of the dorms. Midoriya was the first to see Rei, beaming over at her and waving his hand. "Oh, Akatsuki!"

His shout had attracted several more looks in his and Rei's direction, much to her displeasure. But even as she began to bristle, folding her arms across her chest, the irritation began to dissolve as she saw the green haired boy racing over to meet her. With a small sigh to herself she shrugged her shoulders, expression on her face turning more neutral.

How could she ever hate Midoriya?

"Akatsuki, did you just get back?"

"Yeah." She blinked, taking the chance to look around at the rest of the two classes. They had begun organizing themselves, what with Iida doing a bit of directing as stations began to be set up. "What did I miss?"

"Ah, they told us to clean up a bit before we start cooking. It looks like the pro heroes only cooked for us last night, so it's up to use from here on out."

"I see." Rei's lips twitched, a smile just barely forming for her friend. "Thanks. I'll be back soon."

"Right!" The boy darted off, heading back toward the rest of the class and joining in with the work. Rei took a moment to look on after him, surprised and exhausted just at watching him move faster than a walk. How did he still have energy? Rei was completely wiped. Frankly she wasn't sure if she would make it back outside after cleaning up, so tired that she was almost ready to sleep without eating food. But that was irresponsible, so holding her grumbling back she began trudging back to the dorms.

Right as she walked into the foyer, tugging off her shoes with a bit of effort, Bakugou came into view. He looked rather surprised at Rei's appearance, taking in her dirty face and uniform as Rei returned the look with one of displeasure.

To his credit, he didn't even sneer or begin picking on her in front of everyone else. Instead he only blinked at her, shoving his hands deeper into his pockets as he spoke softly, keeping their conversation to themselves. "You look like trash."

"Is it that obvious?" Responding with a dry tone, she watched in amusement as he rolled his eyes, moving into the foyer and grabbing his shoes in order to tug them onto his feet. "I think I'm ready to drop dead."

"Don't you dare fucking skip out on helping out with food."

"Does it matter if I fall asleep and don't eat?"

"Just hurry up and wash your face. You look pathetic."

Rolling her eyes, Rei scoffed as she shot back with sarcasm again. "How do you know the right words to say to a girl in distress?"

"Distress my ass. You're better than that." His shoes finally on, he tossed a soft looks in her direction that had none of the anger and all of the concern that he was slowly beginning to show more openly around her. Was he tired too? It seemed like it when the facade of anger came tumbling down, even if it was momentary. "Hurry up and help out."

"Yeah, yeah." Rei tossed her hand to the side lazily in a dismissive wave, arm flopping down to her side from the weight afterward. "I'll be there."

After a quick wipe down of the grime and dust, Rei had to admit that she felt markedly better. Her limbs were still trembling from the exertion and threatening to give out at any minute, but now she felt more ready to eat than to sleep. Stomach gurgling and growling in anticipation, she quickly changed into a pair of black leggings and a black tank top. The silver of the weighted bangles stood out more clearly now that her outfits was more simple and uniform in color, and she twisted them around her wrist mindlessly as she made her way back outside.

It was strange to see everyone in such casual clothing. Save for perhaps Midoriya, Todoroki, and Bakugou, Rei had never seen anyone else in clothing aside from school uniform, gym uniform, and their hero costumes. It was a nice touch, making her feel a little more relaxed in her own chosen clothes and seeing others dressed more casually. Melding back into the group, she observed the different stations before approaching one table that seemed to be chopping and preparing vegetables.

A bit shyly, she stepped up to the group, apprehensive as the two girls sitting down looked up at her. "Ah, mind if I join you?"

The duo looked at one another before smiling brilliantly at Rei, earnest and jubilant. "Of course! Are you any good at cutting vegetables?"

It was Rei's turn to smile, though just a bit as she was still a tad wary of meeting new people. "Good enough."

"Then that's good for us! Grab a cutting board and knife over there." They gestures to the next table over, supplies stacked up in an orderly fashion. Grabbing the tools necessary, Rei took a seat next to the orange haired girl. The two girls moved the vegetables toward the center of the table, making it more accessible for their latest addition and reorganizing their set up.

Pausing in her work, the orange haired girl extended a hand to Rei, who looked up in surprise after sitting down. "I'm Kendo Itsuka from Class 1-B! It's nice to meet you."

"And I'm Tokage Setsuna! You're that crazy girl from the sports festival, right?"

Startled at the association, Rei nodded slowly. "Yeah. Akatsuki Rei."

"Nice to officially meet you!" At least the two of them seemed rather friendly towards people from 1-A, a marked difference from the general attitude that everyone else seemed to bear. Relaxing into her spot, Rei began chopping away quickly, keeping her ears on the conversation even as her hands started moving. "We never got to tell you, but we were all rooting for you! The girls at least."

That was surprising. Rei looked up briefly across the table to the green haired girl before returning back to her work. "Really?"

"Yeah! After Class 1-B was eliminated, pretty much all of the girls were rooting for you. Gotta support one another, right?" Kendo winked at Rei just as she looked up, the two sharing a smile in support. Rei had never given much thought to Class 1-B, so focused on her own studies and abilities that she never really spared so much as a glance in their direction. But these two were kind, reminding Rei of the girls in her own class. Perhaps making friends beyond 1-A wasn't such a terrible idea.

"Thanks for your support," Rei sheepishly thanked them, still a bit flustered that people she hadn't known had been cheering for her. But the duo only smiled, chattering away.

"Not a problem! Say, what's your quirk? And what were you working on today?"

Even if they had just met, Rei found that conversation came naturally with the other two girls. She explained the barebones of her quirk, skimping over her regenerative properties as they immediately began asking questions. It wasn't all an interrogation, however, as they were more than willing to share about themselves. Rei found herself warming up to Tokage in particular, whose quirk was reptilian in nature and putting her in a similar situation to Rei and her cat like qualities. With easygoing conversation their work flew by, and sooner than later they found themselves finished with the vegetables they had been given.

With their part of the work completed and with everyone else taking care of the rest of the jobs and the cooking, the trio returned to their table to continue their conversation. Yaoyorozu eventually joined in, searching for Rei and getting roped into the conversation with the four of them as they chattered away in an amiable fashion. Clean, tired, and now in a generally good mood from meeting two new friends, Rei was surprised how fast the time flew by until food was ready to be eaten.

After the sun had set and the sky was once again tinged with navy and purple, the two classes began to chow down side by side. Yaoyorozu and Rei sat next to one another, the other two girls apologizing for leaving before returning to sit with their class, Kendo mentioning something about keeping their class member in line. It was after the first bite that Rei realized just how hungry she was, and she tried to not scarf everything down in one go.

Ashido, who had been sitting behind Yaoyorozu and Rei, leaned over to chat. "Woah! Yao-momo, you sure eat a lot, don't you?"

Delicately wiping her mouth and chewing thoroughly before answering, Yaoyorozu sat up straight. "Yes. My quirk turns lipids into various atoms to create things, so the more I eat, the more I can make."

"Wow, it's like poop."

Rei didn't even hesitate to reach around Yaoyorozu and karate chop Sero straight over the head, making him sputter and almost drop his bowl in surprise and pain. He didn't need to look up to know that Rei was giving him a death glare, aura deadly enough to suffocate any further miscomments.

"Excretement is created out of the remaining substances that the body can't absorb. Momo's quirk takes the good fats that have already been processed and transforms them into objects." Her voice was level and deceptively flat, but everyone in the area felt chills going down their spine at the sudden change in Rei's demeanor. "Have some consideration before you speak."

"Y-yes, I got it! I'm sorry!"

"Good." Just like the flip of a switch, Rei returned to normal, face placid and rather happy as she popped another bite of food into her mouth. Everyone looked on in horror for another moment before muttering amongst themselves.

"Damn, I forgot how scary Rei can be."

"Yeah, she's been so lowkey recently that I forgot that she can murder someone with one look."

Rei ignored them, merely looking over to Yaoyorozu to check in with her. At least the creative girl looked rather pleased at what Rei had said, shoulders held a little bit higher. A small smile had returned to her face, looking at Rei with warmth. "Thank you, Tsuki-chan. I'm surprised you know that much about my quirk."

"Basic human anatomy. Anyone who understand the digestive system should know that stuff." Shrugging her shoulders as though it was no big deal, Rei was secretly pleased at the compliment. But she continued to eat quietly, watching as the conversation returned to the table.

Looking up, Midoriya's figure suddenly caught her eye. He had grabbed a plate of curry and was walking out into the forest for some reason. Brows furrowing for a moment before smoothing over, Rei returned to her food. Strange. He must have some reason for doing whatever it was he was doing. She would make a mental note to ask him later, if she had time.

Eventually the meal time came to a close. When everyone was finally satisfied the few remaining leftovers were packaged up and put away inside the kitchen, while all the students pitched in to clean up their mess. In no time the outside mess hall was left spotless, not a bit of trash on the ground or charcoal left in the burners. Everyone hurried inside to make it to the baths, eager to take a shower and sleep.

Now that she was full, clean, and satisfied, it didn't take long to Rei to fall asleep. The girls had still been talking around her by the time her eyes had fluttered shut, dead to the world. It had been a long day, and there were only longer ones ahead.

She would take every moment of sleep that she could grab.

AN: I'm literally so wiped out, I nearly passed out at work today (yikesss).

I've gotten a few questions regarding the I-Island/ Movie arc, so I'd like to clear that up again. I know I mentioned it before, but I wasn't terribly clear, since I only wrote an explanation in a response to a review. When I was writing massive chunks of this story back in March, I fully intended on writing the movie into the story. However, I found myself stuck in a writer's block, and I only got one and a half chapters in before I completely froze. It was so bad, I actually stopped writing for about two weeks. So in order to get around that block, I decided to temporarily scrap it and move on. I do have plans to revisit what I've written and to finish writing that arc, but it might not be for a while or until I can figure out exactly what I want to do with it. Rest assured, I will keep you all updated for when I finish it! It's the next thing on my bucket list to complete, since I'm satisfied with everything else canon that I've written so far. Thanks for your patience!

This chapter was uploaded in a bit of a rush, since I've got a paper due tomorrow and it's not finished yet. I was honestly tempted to not update this week, but I would drive myself nuts if I did that (and no doubt, that would drive some of you nutters as well). Sorry if there's any grammatical errors that I didn't catch in this one!

Thanks for the reviews!

TheBlackDagger456: Should I put in the description of the story that this is slow burn? I've tempted that thought a couple times, but I've ended up going against it for a while... But I'm glad you love it! Trust me, it's killing me a bit too.

dragontamer64: I'm glad you're okay! Yeah I thought it was strange that you didn't review so I just thought I'd give a little shout out. Glad it could make your day! And who knew Bakugou could be smooth... but he's such a noodle at the same time lol. Take care of yourself during the summer too! I know those feels... I can't be out in the sun very much since I get heatstroke easier than most, but I guess that's an excuse to write more...?

raquil . lowinraven: Thank you for the review! I'm glad you're enjoying the story so far. It's hard to believe that it's come all this way, but I'm glad that people are still really enjoying it.

Anseo: LOL all the flirty feelings and the cute things! I honestly can't believe she confessed either, it was just one of those moments where I was trying to beef up a chapter and my writing was like, "... surprise?" So apparently yeah she's finally confessed, and that's a thing. There went all my careful planning for later. Guess that's what happens when I've written so far ahead and I've planned even further; when I go back to edit, some things just come out.

yaoi4adollar: They're like basically a couple! Which is... so wild to me! But they're not really a couple, more like two dorks that kind of like each other and don't really know what to do beyond that. High school couples in my opinion are rarely ever serious until later, so that's the approach I'm taking with this. We're in it for the long haul! And yes, all the angst... no spoilers here, but it'll be... a time.

RandomThingz123: Thanks for the review! I totally get how you feel about wanting things to be "show ready" before uploading or publishing a story anywhere. I was exactly the same. However, I noticed that I never finished things, so I decided to try something new and start uploading as a way to motivate myself to finish. It's been working for some stories (this and Limitless are my two successes so far), while others it hasn't. It's all about finding what gets you writing! Sometimes you just have to try different things.

Dear Apollo: I'm glad that these chapters are making you happy! I hope that you continue to enjoy them even as we get to more angsty times in the future.

shad. e. dc16: Hopefully my note at the beginning of this author's note cleared things up; I promise that I-Island is still in progress. I apologize for having to take it out, but if I hadn't moved on from writing that arc I wouldn't have ever gotten past chapter 24. Sometimes things just have to switch around, but I do plan on taking up that challenge again and finishing that section! Please be patient in the meantime, and I hope you enjoy the things I do have written!

Thank you for the reviews!

Of the original characters, which character would you like to see more of?

Leave a review and let me know!

Have a great week :D