"You failed again. How disappointing."

My heart races as my lungs cry for air and countless parts of me hurt and sting.

"N-no! L-let me try again, please! I swear I'll do it right this time!"

I shout desperately as a shadowy figure with a strange bronze face mask in the shape of a bird beak and white gloves walks towards me. The figure is all too familiar in my memories of when I was a kid, and the last thing I want is to remember him...My eyes are wide and terrified. Panicking, I try to crawl away but the figure grabs my shirt and tosses me into a chair. They put a hand to my forehead and I attempt to peel it off, my fingers trying to dig into his flesh. My screams echo through the empty white room as I claw at his forearm. The pain shoots from their hand and rockets throughout my body like fire and stings my lungs and throat like I'm drowning. I bite my tongue to muffle my cries until I taste blood. My screams of pain fall on deaf ears as he finally let's go. I collapse onto the floor, my trembling body laying on the cold tile. I feel as if all of my insides were swirled around, ripped apart, then put back together when in reality, all he did was mess with the pain receptors in my brain. Blood starts to drip from the corner of my mouth as I slowly breathe in and start to shiver. I choke back tears and twitch as I try to sit up.

"I'm sorry, Tazuma. But this is the only way. How do you expect to get stronger when you won't allow yourself to progress? This is your own fault. You're an utter failure..."

His hand slowly inches closer towards me again. I thrust my shaking arms over my head and scream.

"NO! PLEASE!"

I jolt upright in my bed, sweat dripping from my forehead and ears ringing. Frantically glancing around my room, I remember that I'm at home. Far away from him... I pull my blanket around my shoulders as I stare at the darkness that surrounds me. The ringing in my ears slowly fades into silence as I swallow back tears.

I-I thought the nightmares stopped a while ago...I guess not...

Glancing at my phone on my desk, I grab it hastily and check the time. I feel shaken by the realness of the dream. And the fact that it's a memory makes me feel even worse.

It's five-thirty in the morning? Already?... I-I might as well get up anyway...

Shuffling out of bed, I clutch my blanket as I sit down at my desk. I stare blankly at nothing. My mind feels empty and hollow, as my hands grip tighter onto the blanket. My body won't stop trembling as I try to take deep breaths.

M-maybe if I take a short walk I'll feel better.

I let go of the blanket and slowly, I get up from my desk and make my way over to my closet. I glance at the floor-length mirror sitting next to it, as I grab a thick jacket. Pulling it on, I quietly tiptoe out of my room and down the stairs. I zip up the black jacket as I stumble a little trying to put my shoes on. Kneeling down, I tighten the laces and roll up the ends of my pajama pants. I stand back up and rest a hand on the door handle.

The walk will help, stop worrying about it. You can clear your head better this way and by the time you get to school, you'll have forgotten about the nightmare. Got it?

I tell myself as I open the door. A crisp morning breeze gently caresses my face as I clutch my fist over my chest.

Everything will be fine...Right?

"Wow, he really is a teacher!"

The boy with spiky red hair exclaims as the class stares in awe at the number one pro hero standing in the doorway. I ignore their amazed remarks, as I take mental notes.

The rumors are true. Good. This is why I'm here in the first place. The nightmare from this morning may have shaken me a bit, but it's fine now.

All Might marches toward the podium in front of the class and puts his fists on his hips.

"I teach Hero Basic Training! It is a subject where you train in different ways to learn the basics of being a hero. You'll take the most units in this subject!"

I try my best to hide my smirk, but it keeps tugging at my lips.

"-Let's get right into it! This is what we'll do today-"

He shows off a plain white card with big red letters on it.

"-Combat training!"

I grinned evilly to myself.

Oh, this is going to be fun!

"-And to go with that, are these!"

He extends an arm to one side of the room. Suddenly, Columns of metal shelves slowly emerge from the wall, carrying futuristic-looking boxes with numbers on them.

"Costumes made based on your quirk registrations, and requests you sent in before school started!"
The class gasps again.

"After you change, gather in Ground Beta!"

The class responds in unison.

"Yes, Sir!"

I'm not so sure about my costume design now...

Mina gasps at the sight of me as I stand awkwardly outside the girl's locker room.

"Oh my gosh, Ritsu you look adorable!"

She claps her hands excitedly.

"No, I don't. Go on ahead."

Mina smiles and waves as she leaves for Ground Beta.

What is she talking about? I don't look cute at all...

My costume was rather simple. It was made of a special fabric meant to stretch and contract to fit my form perfectly so when I transformed, the clothes transformed and morphed with it instead of ripping and tearing. On the top half, I wore a tight gold yellow sleeveless crop top and an open black zip-up jacket with the sleeves rolled to my elbows along with a black ribbon choker around my neck, and black fingerless gloves. My hair was also tied into a ponytail, of course. On the bottom half, I wore black shorts that ended mid-thigh and gold yellow knee-high boots. The boots are also designed with the same special fabric and have pads on the bottom that can stick to walls and ceilings. They're also very flexible so they can seamlessly fit even when I'm transformed. Sure my costume was a bit revealing, but it works. I found myself chasing right behind Mina towards Ground Beta until we reached the huge dark entrance. Mina smiled when she noticed I was standing next to her.

"Isn't this exciting? I can hardly wait!"

She giggles as the class kept walking towards the light at the end of the hall.

"They say the clothes make the man, young men, and ladies. Be fully aware, from now on, you are heroes!"

All Might's voice booms as the class emerges from the dark hall, and into the light. I raise my arm to cover my eyes, and out of the corner of my line of sight, I spot Todoroki staring at me. His eyes quickly revert back to All Might, as he continues speaking.

"That's great everyone! You all look cool!"

I scan my classmates, getting a good look at their costumes. My eyes land on Bakugo.

Oh...

A sudden warmth appears on my cheeks as I look him up and down from a distance.

He certainly looks-

I grunt and cross my arms, as I glare at the floor.

You're a disgrace sometimes, Tazuma. Focus!

"Now, shall we begin, you zygotes?"

I tap my foot on the ground impatiently, my arms still crossed as All Might continues.

"The situation is that the villains have hidden a nuclear weapon somewhere in their hideout. The heroes are trying to dispose of that. The heroes need to catch the villains or get the nuclear weapon back in the allotted time. The villains need to protect the nuclear weapon for the whole time or catch the heroes. Teams and opponents will be determined by drawing lots!"

All Might starts drawing the lots. Team A, is Midoriya and the gravity girl.

Should I learn her name? Yeah. Do I want to? No.

Team B is Todoroki and a guy with six arms. Team C is grape-head and ponytail. Team D is four-eyes and goldie locks. I'm in Team I, with some guy with a tail, and an invisible girl. I glance over at the tail guy and cross my arms as I glare at him. We make eye contact and he shudders a bit.

"The first teams to fight will be…"

All Might sticks his hands into monochrome boxes, one with "Hero" on the front and the other with "Villain" written on it.

"-Team A and Team D! Team A will be the heroes and team D will be the villains! Everyone else, head toward the monitor room."

"Yes, sir!"

I saunter up to Bakugo and lean my elbow on his shoulder with a hand on my hip, a smug look on my face. I watch gleefully as he grits his teeth and growls at me.

"Go easy on him, goldie locks. He already looks like he could snap in half like a twig."

"Why the hell do you care, smart ass?! And don't call me that!"

I scowl at him.

"I'm just saying if you want to beat that kid, don't underestimate him. Hell, don't underestimate anyone. It's the most stupid thing you can do in a fight."

My arm falls to my side as I turn around.

"I suggest you take my advice. Or I keep calling you goldilocks."

"I know that, smartass!"

Laughing quietly to myself, I run to catch up with Mina as she waves at me. Suddenly, I subconsciously decide, that even though I'm focusing on Todoroki, it wouldn't hurt to see what else I can practice while I'm here. For future reference of course.

"Hey, Mina."

Mina turns and smiles at me. Everyone is staring at the giant screens in front of us displaying live footage from the fake villains base in the dark monitor room. I rub the back of my neck awkwardly and avert my eyes. I may not entirely be faking it, but I do hope I seem genuine enough.

"I apologize for being rude to you. I was just a bit off that's all."

Mina claps her hands together and beams.

"It's alright, Ritsu!"

I gave a slight smirk, perfecting the half-act before I then turn my attention back to the giant screens and cross my arms.

Watching Bakugo fight, it's honestly kind of frightening. He's much more ruthless and brutal then I thought...Now that I think about it, we have similar fighting styles.

On the screen, Bakugo fights viciously against Midoriya as gravity girl runs off to find Iida and the fake weapon.

From what I can tell, he starts with a big right swing and keeps striking, leaving no room for recovery. He does whatever he needs to beat his opponent, whether it's fair or not. When I fight, I deliver attack after attack, making sure to tire them out and frustrate them so they forget to think before they attack, then the finishing blow. I don't really have a strategy, I just do what I need to win...

I turn my slightly saddened expression to the ground as chaos ensues on the screens. All of a sudden, my attention snaps back to the screen as Bakugo releases a huge bullet of fire straight at Midoriya from his gauntlets. The class gasps, and so do I. I feel my eyes widening as I stare at the monstrosity that Bakugo created. Thankfully, it misses Midoriya, and when the mass of smoke starts fading away, he's revealed to be alright but a massive hole was made in the wall behind him. The smoke fully clears, and Bakugo leaves no room for Midoriya to think and charges straight at him. They shout as the two go in for another attack, but Midoriya switches his fist formation at the last minute and aims it upwards instead. The force of the punch shatters glass, breaks floors, and sends debris flying. Right above them, gravity girl manages to grab the weapon. I stare at them in awe.

I-I knew Bakugo was powerful, and I assumed Midoriya had some fight in him too but...

I never expected this...

For the first time in a while, I suddenly felt extremely weak and insecure about my abilities. I only felt a small bit of this watching Todoroki, but Bakugo is just too much. I clench my fists and growl under my breath as I glare intently at the screens.

It doesn't matter. I could beat them both.

No...I can't... You know you can'y...

I turn around and accidentally push past Mina.

"Tch."

Mina looks at me, confused.

"Huh? What's wrong, Ritsu?"

I grumble.

"Shut up, pinky."

Biting my tongue, I storm out of the monitor room. Unaware of the drastic aftereffects of this one moment.

"Match two! Team B are the heroes, and Team I are the villains!"

I tap my foot impatiently as I watch Ojiro stretch his arms. Toru is just finishing setting up the fake weapon. The anger I felt watching Bakugo and Midoriya has faded away mostly, but the insecurity just drove me to try harder for this match.

"Remember, Toru will go out first so when I restrain one of them she can try to take the other, but I have to get to them first."

I glance at the two with an evil yet subtle smirk on my face. Ojiro chuckles nervously, a bead of sweat dripping from his forehead.

"A-and what will I do?"

I put a hand on my hip.

"You'll stay behind and guard the weapon. Now, we just wait for the wannabe's."

I can't see her face, but I assume Toru looked at me with a puzzled expression.

"Got a problem with the plan?"

I scowl and glare at her and she jumps.

"N-no! Not at all!"

"Good."

Crossing my arms, I walk towards the exit and stand by it. I hear Toru's gentle footsteps walk over to Ojiro. She whispers to him in a quiet voice, her hand cupping his ear.

"She's kinda scary..."

Ojiro mumbles.

"Yeah..."

I grip my arm tighter and grit my teeth, trying not to make it obvious I overheard them.

I'm right here. Maybe choose a better time to talk behind my back.

"Ojiro! I'm going to go ahead. I'll take off my gloves and boots, too!"

Ojiro watches awkwardly as she takes off her gloves. Taking off her boots, she puts the items down on the floor and skips out the exit. Then, the alarm to signal the start of the match goes off. I laugh to myself, forgetting about Toru's comment.

Let's do this.

In the form of a tiny black and gold gecko, I crawl across the ceiling. I keep my breathing to a minimum as I watch Shoji walk outside at Todoroki's orders. I listen in as I prepare to strike.

"I'm sure our opponents intend to fight a defensive battle..."

Frost starts swirling around his left hand. In the spur of a few seconds, I instantly turn back into a human and let go of the ceiling. Thinking quickly, I kick him down onto the ground and turn my hands into deadly tiger paws. Grabbing the nape of his neck with my right hand, my knee digs into the back of his thigh and I restrain his right hand with my left. Making sure I don't leave his left hand available, I use my other leg and step on it, almost crushing a few of his fingers underneath my heel. My left-hand squeezes on his wrist. Suddenly, ice shoots from his right side, trying to grab onto my arm, but I tighten my grip on his neck. He gasps for air and glares at me out of the corner of his eyes. Shoji watches and suddenly starts running towards me.

"Toru! Now!"

I call for Toru and she jumps in front of me, blocking Shoji. He tries to attack but she dodges every single one and lands a few punches herself. My attention turns back to Todoroki and I lean my head down next to his ear.

"Try anything funny, and I hurt you."

I purposely pound my knee into his thigh and he grunts in pain. Part of me is surprised I managed to apprehend him this easily, but I'm careful not to lose focus. Ojiro's voice echoes in my ear through the earpiece.

"How are you guys doing?"

Toru shrieks as Shoji manages to get passed her. For the split second I got distracted, I loosen my grip on Todoroki's neck. He takes the opportunity and shoots me backward with a wave of ice. I curse loudly as the ice crawls up my back and legs, making me immobile. Todoroki strains as he stands up and breaths heavily as he then glares at me. He puts a frost-covered hand on the wall, and in seconds, the whole building turns into ice. I curse under my breath again as we glare intently at each other. His neck and left wrist are red and he has a slight limp when he walks.

"You bastard..."

I growl at him.

"Don't call me that."

His voice is as calm as ever, and it irritates me. I try forcing my way out of the ice, but pain shoots through me when I try to move my bare skin from the ice.

Damn it...I hate losing...

"It's fine if you lost, Ritsu! I thought what you did was pretty cool!"

Mina says cheerfully as I sulk back to the class, discouraged and angry.

"Good work everyone! We didn't have any major injuries other than young Midoriya, either! You guys took this seriously! You all did a good job for your first training!"

All might says with his fists on his hips.

I hope I didn't hurt Todoroki too badly...I must've gotten carried away. And wasn't I supposed to try and build his trust?! God, I'm really screwing up today...But I still overpowered him even if it was for a little bit so I guess that's something.

"Make sure to change and return to the classroom!"

All Might speeds through the exit and leaves the class behind. Scanning the crowd, I find Todoroki and walk up to him. I put a hand on his shoulder and he turns to look at me.

"Hm?"

Letting go, I calm myself down a bit.

"I apologize if I hurt you. I wasn't feeling the greatest so I was just mad."

He blinks in confusion then turns to face ahead of him with a blank stare.

"It's fine."

He pauses. The silence continues and I hate it.

"Do you mind telling me more about your quirk?"

He thinks about this for a moment then nods lightly. We start to follow the class back to homeroom.

"I make ice with my right and fire with my left. But I'll never use my left."

"Why is that?"

"It's personal."

"Good to know. My quirk's not that simple."

He nods, keeping his eyes ahead of him.

I mean, at least he's pretending to be interested. I'm trying to start a conversation here, idiot.

"I can turn into any animal I want, fully or partially. A good example of me partially transforming is this-"

I lift my hand up in front of me and he watches as it transforms into a tiger paw.

"What else?"

He says with seemingly genuine interest. Turning my hand back to normal, the skin on my forearm slowly turns into hard scales.

"I can also do this-"

My arm turns back, and sharp porcupine quills pop out from my skin like blades. They then get sucked back into my skin and from the top of my head, emerge two cat ears. He looks at them with an awkward expression. The ears then disappear into my head again.

"As you might've noticed, I can't do multiple animals at once but I can still get creative with what I do with them."

He nods.

"What about when you transform fully."

"That's a different story. You see, the fabric in my costume is specifically designed to stretch and contract when I use my quirk, but when I'm not in the costume, normal clothes usually rip or fall off."

He nods again, and I realize we're close to the locker rooms. I give a small wave as I turn to the girl's locker room.

Phase one, completed. Yet when I say it like that I'm acting like it's some big heist like an idiot.

"Oh, I'll uh-see you back in the classroom I have to do something."

Todoroki nods and keeps walking toward homeroom. We had both changed into our uniforms and met back up talk some more. I found that he was surprisingly easy to talk to, and the conversation seemed one-sided at a point. As soon as he leaves, I let out a sigh of relief.

Today was tiring. I'll have to meet up with the League today though and tell them everything I found out. And I had no idea Todo liked cold soba...Although he seems to have the same emotional range as a bag of wet sand, he's alright I guess...He's got his own dreams just like me and isn't a dick about it like Bakugo.

I put a hand on my hip and cover my eyes with the other as I look out a window. The cherry trees lining the entrance looked prettier than usual today. Then, something catches my eye. I spot Bakugo leaving school early, and he looks upset. For some reason, I feel the need to go down there and talk to him.

I shouldn't. If he's got problems he can sort them out himself. Hell, I wouldn't even know what to say. It's just a stupid idea.

I watch him and a pit of guilt starts to grow in my stomach. Cursing at myself under my breath, I storm down the nearest steps and walk towards the entrance. Suddenly, a green blur rushes past me and catches up to Bakugo, calling his name.

Midoriya... Although Bakugo called him Deku.

I decide to stay hidden behind one of the pillars outside U.A and hold my breath. I can barely make out what they're saying, but Bakugo is obviously in distress. The guilty pit in my stomach grows bigger as I sit down and lean against the pillar.

I don't know why I feel so guilty. What could I have done to make him feel better? We hardly know each other. I'd just make him more upset. He clearly hates me anyways...

Stealing a glance around the corner of the pillar, I catch him rubbing his eyes with his arm as tears slip from his cheeks.

He-he's crying...?

The guilt now feels the size of a boulder as I stand up and carefully walk back into school.

I-it's not my job to interfere. My job is to betray U.A for the benefit of the League. And right now, the League is more important than anything...

I guess that's all I have to say to get myself back on track...

"Holy shit..."

Maintaining my composure, I try not to freak out as the sea of reporters, journalists, TV crew members and photographers blind me the second I step out of the front gates of the school.

"Hey! You there! How are All Might's classes?"

A lady wearing a blue suit asks me, shoving a microphone in my face. I glare at the lady and growl at her, causing her to jump a little.

"Don't you realize how much of a pest you all are being?! Go bother a celebrity or something somewhere else!"

The lady backs off as I push her microphone out of my face and keep walking. I watch as she moves on to another student. I whip around and shout at her.

"I said stop being a pest!"

She jumps again as I turn back around. I growl to myself and continue my way to a bus stop away from the crowd.

I hate reporters. They get paid to bother and annoy people. How do celebrities enjoy it? It just seems like a nuisance to me. I should head home and change then meet with the League. If it all goes well, I'll have secured my position even more. I briefly overheard Aizawa mention a meeting of some sort to All Might during lunch hour and I think that's where I should go first tomorrow. I just have to make sure I don't get caught...

Shigiraki listens in, full of anticipation as I spill everything about All Might. He even laughs, but it unnerves me.

"Well done, Oritsu, well done. You have proven yourself invaluable once again with this information."

I nod and stare blankly at the floor.

"Yes, sir."

"You seem off. Do you feel guilty about your job?"

Making eye contact with him, or rather the hand mask on his face, I shake my head.

"Oh, god no. No, not at all. It's just something else has been on my mind lately."

He nods, then starts itching his neck absentmindedly.

"More importantly, was anyone suspicious of you?"

"No sir. And might I ask when will the attack take place?"

Shigiraki pauses.

"We will find that out tomorrow, when you return with more information."

"Yes sir. Do I have permission to leave?"

He nods and taps the bar table, getting Kurogiri's attention. A cloud of mist appears behind me, and I walk through it. In an instant, I'm in the alley near my house. I look both ways as I run across the street. Letting myself through the door, I start taking off my shoes.

"I'm home!"

I call as I leave my shoes by the door. All I get is silence.

Auntie's not home? That's weird. If she's not here then she's just probably still at work.

Sighing, I make my way towards the stairs. I drag myself into my room and drop onto my bed.

God, I'm so tired...

I feel my eyelids getting heavier the more I try to force them open. Curling up on my side, I close my eyes. The quiet is peaceful and calm as birds sing outside my window and the sun peaks above the horizon. In a few minutes, I'm out cold.