A/N: Guess who's back, back again? Incident Zero returns for chapter 51!
Some of you eagle-eyed readers may have spied a story going out yesterday. Let's just say that "Incident Zero: The Musical Episode" is not entirely serious or canon to this fic, but a damn good way for me to celebrate with an April Fools. If you haven't read it, and fancy something completely wild and different to read… go for it. I just couldn't resist.
Every week I'm doing a shout-out to as many different people as I can. This week's shout-out goes to Maxemilien, who was a driving force behind the April Fool's chapter and continues to make me feel a lot better about my drafting. Max has an AU called Ripples Reach Far, and is the King of ProHero!Overhaul over on AO3… I'm always a sucker for good and different concepts, executed well. Go and check it out!
A lot of you got traumatised last chapter on behalf of Uraraka, and for what Dabi has planned for Shoto… so I'm going to ignore both of them, and focus on our protagonist and his crew again. Enjoy!
(***)
Since the moment that he agreed to go home with his friends, things had been a whirlwind for Izuku.
It had been an absolute blessing to be reunited with them, and to get to go home after all he'd been through. They had been through hell and back, stared death in the face together, and somehow come out the other side of it all able to continue on with their dreams. The Four Musketeers, as Setsuna called their group, were inseparable even in the most desperate of times. And Izuku couldn't have been more glad to follow them out the door with barely a backwards glance, Himiko clinging to his side like she was afraid he'd blow away in the breeze, filling him up with warmth that had been missing since the USJ attack.
He was lucky to have them as a group of friends. Tenko may have been a little awkward when he broached the subject of wanting to go his own way a little bit more, but that didn't stop him from sticking to him like glue and chatting away to update Izuku on what had happened in the world during his unconscious absence. Setsuna was full of her usual mirth, bouncing along and throwing in sharp one-liners whenever she saw even the narrowest opening, but he caught her looking over to both of them once or twice with a soft smile totally unlike her. He couldn't wish for a better group.
And it hadn't stopped with them. He couldn't imagine how his mother had felt when she heard the news; he remembered the look on her face when he and Tenko had come home from the Combat Trial, Tenko covered in bruises because of the beatdown he had endured from Kendo and Shoji. On that day, him boldly claiming that she 'should have seen the other two' had not helped the situation at all. Izuku was glad that at least this time, Tenko had been sensible enough to not make a joke about what happened to them both, or play it down.
It had been a long-running thing in the Midoriya household that Tenko swore on both Izuku and his mother having secondary Quirks which manifested whenever they were upset. Izuku knew that he could be quite emotional, and had done his fair share of crying- growing up with Katsuki Bakugo as a tormentor would do that to anyone, even if he was long-gone by now- but apparently his mother took it to another level. When she had seen Izuku for the first time since he had been knocked down by Nomu, Setsuna was only half-joking about it being a close-run thing on whether they would need to call the fire service to deal with a flood of tears.
Nothing in the world could have stopped Inko Midoriya from pulling her son close and telling him how glad she was to see him. Doctor Garaki could have placed his Nomu in the way, and Izuku's mother would have bulldozed right through that pile of unnatural flesh to see Izuku on the other side. When her son was concerned, she was a force of nature, and Izuku couldn't have been more happy to finally see her again, his tears staining her cardigan unashamedly as he hugged her tight in return. Nothing could have ruined that moment.
Fortunately, his spiritual companion had seemed to realise this in advance. Shigaraki had mostly kept completely quiet as the family reunited, as Himiko shyly hovered before his mother pulled her in for a hug too. It had felt like such a relief to be within the four walls of home again, and he appreciated the fact that Tenko and Setsuna had clearly had some discussions without him about what had happened at the USJ and how All For One had been the subject of the Doctor's attention. Like him, his mom was stunned that the Doctor they had seen all those years ago was connected to the villain present at Incident Zero, but her prior knowledge of his Quirk made it so much easier to discuss things, as did the fact that Himiko now knew the truth. There wasn't much time wasted, once the tears had dried up at last.
He had worried a little that she might step in and say no. He wouldn't have blamed her if she had, as hard as it would have been to hear; while Izuku had made his peace with the loss of his father many years ago, he knew that his mother would always hold some residual worries that she might lose her son at the hands of a villain, just like her husband. She hadn't stood in the way of his dreams of being a Hero, but she wouldn't like the idea of her son dying a Hero's death, no more than any mother would. So there had been part of him, deep within, that had feared the worst when he came home; feared that his mother would put her foot down, feared that they would have passed the point of no return.
He was grateful that this worst case scenario did not come to anything. She remained fiercely proud of her son, and even if the Quirk he had been given at Incident Zero was a beacon to forces beyond their understanding, she wasn't prepared to let him give in. She had looked him in the eye, green orbs reflected in green, and made her mind up.
"Those people… they want you to inherit the legacy of a villain, Izuku? Then if I withdrew you from UA, where you can train to become a great Hero… you'd be more at risk of them coming to find you. But if you stay at UA… they're going to struggle to change your mind when you become the new Number One Hero, aren't they?"
She had still sounded a little sad when she said it, because of course some part of her was afraid, but so was he. But clearly she had made her mind up and accepted he would still continue on, or she wouldn't have said it out loud; Inko Midoriya wouldn't have held back if she felt otherwise. And the fact that she was still willing to support him on his journey, to attempt to become what he'd always wanted? That meant the world to him.
That was the only moment where Shigaraki had said anything that evening, as he leaned in for another hug with his mother. The words which had made him stiffen slightly in her grip, the words which had meant his night's sleep had been spent tossing and turning and unable to fully drift off to sleep. Shigaraki's increased presence in his life had kept him on edge that he would start interfering more, but in the end the subtle knife cut deepest; one simple murmur in his ear that left him restless and tired the morning after.
Another tireless supporter of your dream to climb to the top of the Hero world… I'm glad we're all in agreement.
He was damned if he did, and damned if he didn't, with the vestige clinging onto his psyche every step of the way. All he could do was keep stepping forward, and hope that the miscalculation years ago about Izuku's Quirklessness was enough to keep the ghost of All For One permanently at bay-
"Yo. Zuzu. Earth to Zuzu? You still in there, cuz?"
Izuku blinked once, twice, Setsuna's voice just enough to cut through and shake him from the tired stupor he found himself in. Himiko's skinny fingers were laced through his and she squeezed his hand, as both his cousin and girlfriend raised an eyebrow at him. "O-Oh! Did you ask me something-"
"Nah, but I did." Himiko jumping in made his heart sink a little, at his accidental rudeness, and as he stammered an apology she interrupted by kicking him in the ankle. "Don't be like that, it's okay! I'm guessing you didn't sleep that great, huh?"
Izuku reached up with his free hand, scratching the back of his head sheepishly. "I g-guess that must be obvious…"
"Yeah, no shit. Look at your eyes. You've got more bags than Yaomomo on a family holiday." Setsuna's usual brand of sympathy had returned, even if Izuku could tell from the look on her face that she was actually a little concerned. "I don't blame you. Ten feels the same at the moment. Don't you, Ten?"
"Hmm?" Tenko was at the head of their group as they walked down the corridor towards the classroom, hands stuffed into his trouser pockets. He didn't usually make much effort with his uniform anyway, much to the consternation of Iida, but he looked even more dishevelled than usual. "Oh, that. Forced cutscene dream sequences? Me too. Keep seeing Nomu charging at you?"
"Yeah…" He really had. Izuku had experienced that dream last night, the sickly screech of nightmares reverberating around his skull like the recoil from one of the abomination's punches. It just… wasn't the only thing that had kept him from being able to sleep properly. "It'll… be a while before I stop seeing that."
"I'm just glad you two both took it down while I was gone." Himiko made a sucking noise between her teeth, her two canines poking out. Izuku would never not find her little fangs cute. "I didn't wanna have to face that thing again."
"It's better that it was us who faced it, in some ways." Izuku's friends turned to him as he said that, as the door to their classroom came into view. "What?"
"You wanna run that by us?" Setsuna raised an eyebrow. "Didn't know being around Himi so much had turned you into a complete masochist."
"H-Hey, it's not like that!" Izuku tried to ignore her snort of laughter. "No, I mean… if it had been others in our class, then I don't know how well they'd have h-held up against Nomu! Not with the Quirks they all have-"
"I mean, Transform wasn't exactly the most use, and all," Himiko interrupted. "Hello? Kinda got taken out first."
"Yeah, but even if you had a bad type match-up, you at least had more than one move you could use," Tenko said, his gaming wisdom somehow managing to express Izuku's thoughts better than Izuku could. "You just didn't get a chance. Others in the class… what the hell would they have done?"
"They all had a bad ride of it anyway," Himiko said, and Izuku nodded. Setsuna had filled them all in on the way home; apparently the Doctor's cruelty extended to his classmates, forcing them into zones where they were impossibly out of their depth all based on his prior knowledge of their Quirks. Combined with a host of villains who had been picked to suit the environments, it turned out Izuku's crew weren't the only students fighting an uphill battle. "From what I heard."
As if those amateurs were anywhere near the threat of a Nomu. You flatter your classmates, my boy.
Izuku felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up as his companion made his presence known. Shigaraki had been unusually quiet the whole morning while he prepared to go back to school, as he had been the night before; Izuku had almost hoped that his conversation in the hospital had been a hallucination. 'They're stronger than you know.'
Oh, is that so? And yet our dear Doctor clearly didn't see it that way. There was a ghostly tingle, as if a finger was poking his chest right on his heart. All those Nomu he's made over the years, with and without my assistance, make me quite confident that he could have spared a few if he felt it was necessary. The fact that he only brought one… speaks volumes about the fact that only you were worth his time.
'Just because they don't have your Quirk, it doesn't make them beneath you or your allies.' Izuku took a deep breath to steady his nerves. It would be a waste of time arguing back with Shigaraki when he was being like this; it would only distract him from getting back into the groove at UA. 'Your arrogance… it was, and still is, your weakness.'
Hm. Your faith in your friends is yours. There was a strange feeling, like a pat on the back. Enjoy your first day back in class, Izuku. I'll be watching on with pride, as ever.
Izuku shook his head briefly, as if to clear his thoughts, before focusing back on his friends. Fortunately, the exchange with Shigaraki had been pretty instantaneous, and as they pulled up to the door of the classroom, it gave him the chance to join back in immediately. "Say, Set?"
"Mmm?"
"You… found out about what happened to the others, have you heard much from any of them?"
"Heh, you mean because I'm the only sociable member of this Nerd Squad we have over here?"
"We all know you're a nerd too," Himiko muttered, before catching a blow from an elongated and detached finger that jabbed at her stomach. "Ow! Hey!"
"Yeah, and don't forget it! Call me a nerd again and I'll make you catch these hands!" Setsuna detached them at the wrist as if to make a point, orbiting them around her own head as if ready to strike. "And when I say that… I mean it."
Tenko chuckled, shaking his head in second-hand embarrassment. "What I think Set is trying to say, if I can translate from braindead reptile into nerd-"
"Heh, better!"
"Is that because you and I were both AFK for a long time in the middle of all that, and because Himiko needed a revive, she did keep in touch with the others for us. Right?"
"Right! Well… some of 'em, anyway." Setsuna's hands went back to their normal place, as she shrugged. "I don't really know what happened to some of the others. I guess some didn't reply because they were getting some treatment too, but everyone's been a little quieter than normal. Even Iida was kinda subdued. I literally ran past him in the corridor when I saw him the other day to try to get a reaction…"
"Nothing?" Tenko asked, and when she shook her head, he whistled through his teeth. "Damn. What the hell happened to him?"
"Beats me. He said he was fine with Kodai and Awase to back him up, but he's still not been perfect."
"Living through a big villain attack in your first term as a first-year's probably enough to spook a few people," Himiko offered, and Izuku winced in agreement. "He'll be back to it. He just needs people to break a few more rules, I'm sure-"
"Now you're speaking my language!" Setsuna grinned. "Nah, but seriously, I've spoken to a few. Metalhead's been the one I've got most of my intel from."
"You mean gossip, right?" Tenko snarked.
"Probably both," Izuku offered, and as they all turned to him he laughed awkwardly. "I-I mean, she i-is a nerd, after all…"
"..." Setsuna's mouth hung open, just briefly, as the other two cackled. "I have been tricked, I have been backstabbed, and I have quite possibly been bamboozled."
"Yeah, yeah." Himiko kicked her in the shin. "Mourn the fact that your social standing got destroyed by Izu of all people later-"
"Hey!"
"Wow…" Setsuna shook her head, green hair flying everywhere, before she carried on. He was in trouble at some point; the green gleam of mischief in her eyes was plenty enough confirmation of that. "Before I was so rudely interrupted, yeah, Tetsutetsu's been keeping me as updated as much as he can. He took a few hits having to fend off Mustard with the others, but he seems okay. Took him a day or two to call anything he did at the USJ 'manly', but he got there in the end."
"I-I see." Izuku remembered their conversation the day before. "Did you speak to him about-"
"Joining us for a training day? As if I'd forget!" Setsuna nodded. "He's game. I told him that you wanted to ask for tips on how to build muscle mass-"
"... Oh, no. What did you sign me up for?"
"Hey, hey, what I believe you're trying to say is thank you, oh wonderful cousin of mine!" Setsuna gestured to his arm, up and down. "Gives you an excuse to build your strength up while you train, right? Perfect cover. You're welcome, by the way."
"Poor kid." Tenko saw the prospect of Izuku being beasted by Tetsutetsu's usual workout regime, just the same as Izuku did; they had been ever so slightly fearful of the boy since he told the others that he had begun willingly sitting in a pottery kiln to train his heat resistance. The sympathetic pat on Izuku's back made no difference. "You've doomed him."
"Nah, relax. He's got a little stay of execution, at least." Setsuna rolled her eyes. "Turns out FourTetsu's got plans for the next couple of evenings. He got all weird when I asked about it, but… nobody survives an interrogation for long from me."
"Ooh, gossip?" Himiko could be as anti-social as Tenko sometimes, but that was enough to make her light up. She was a romantic, really; Izuku could testify to that. "He's meeting someone special?"
"See, it's not technically a date or anything, but… I think he's hoping it starts turning that way, you know?" Setsuna was clearly revelling in being the fountain of knowledge. "Who knows? Got my fingers crossed for him, anyway. Hunk of junk deserves something that makes him happy."
"Now I really wanna know who it is. Do you know, or-"
"If he's hoping it's a date, I guarantee it's Yaomomo." It really was a rare day, Izuku thought, when Tenko willingly joined in discussions like this. "After all the shit they went through together, it's no shock that route unlocked for him-"
"Yaomomo! Pfft. No chance." Setsuna folded her arms, a challenging look on her face. "Not his type, dude."
"Not his type? Have you seen her?" Tenko's gloved hands came out in front of him and made a complicated gesture that turned Izuku red, making his point perfectly clear. It was lucky Setsuna had total faith that he only had eyes for her, or he wouldn't have been surprised if she hit Tenko for that. "She's rich, stacked, smart and goes out of her way to be too nice to people. She's literally every perfect customisation possible, what the hell doesn't she have that would make her his type?"
"An extra chromosome?"
"An extra…" Izuku caught up to what she meant just before Tenko did, and his best friend blinked. "Huh. I… guess I shouldn't have assumed."
"You poor, sheltered boy. You didn't think he was obsessed with all things manly for no good reason, did ya?" Setsuna smirked. "You were right about the route unlock. But, well… turns out he has a thing for blondes, after all."
"Blondes…" Izuku's eyes went as wide as Himiko's. Now that was a surprise. "Wait, MO-"
One detached hand clamped itself over his mouth at rocket speed, nearly feeling like a punch to the jaw. "Idiot! You wanna go yelling about it now with everyone on the other side of the door? Real smooth!"
"Mmm!" Izuku shook his head, and Setsuna's hand dropped pretty quickly. "S-Sorry!"
"Jeez, king of subtlety over here. But yeah. Try not to give him a hard time over that, since he's your rival and all, but Tetsu can't stop talking about him since he pulled some shit with Thirteen's arm and copied her Quirk."
"No, I wouldn't-"
Oh to be young, and so easily distracted by inane gossip about who likes who.
Sometimes, Izuku really wished that he could find an off switch for the vestige. 'Can't you just leave us alone like you did last night?'
But where would be the fun in that? No, I simply came to offer advice, since you're all so immersed in the world of romance and drama. Shigaraki sounded slightly sarcastic, from deep within. Treasure it while it lasts. The storm that's been brewing, and threatens all of society? You will find that love may struggle to endure throughout such dark times.
That depressing thought should have been enough to derail Izuku's day. But in the face of being able to see his classmates again for the first time in a week… Izuku knew he couldn't let everything his passenger said get to him, and stop him from enjoying the moment. Shigaraki could be as loud as he wanted inside his head, but it didn't mean that Izuku would listen to what he said. "Well, as much as Monoma d-doesn't like me… it's not like I don't want him to do well, you know? Even if he's not the nicest to me-"
"Not the nicest? Ha." Himiko didn't approve of the understatement. "He couldn't have been more of a dick to Izuku since we started here if he tried."
"... I don't know. I just… after what we had to put up with, a little happiness isn't too much for someone to ask for. That includes Monoma, as much as Tetsutetsu… right?"
"Relentlessly positive and wanting the best for people, even when they don't treat you right? Yep, you're Izuku alright." Setsuna bopped him on the head. "Glad to hear Nomu didn't knock everything out of ya. Wanna go say hi, rather than stand outside this door for the rest of the day and see who else turns up?"
"Yeah, let's go in." Himiko snickered. "We don't get attacked by villains in the classroom. It's like our one safe space."
"... You had to say that out loud, didn't you?"
Izuku opened his mouth to join Tenko, and protest the fact that she'd doomed the whole group, but one kick of the door put paid to that. He had been expecting a group of their classmates to all be gathered around together, and they were all over Kendo's desk as he was expecting, but it looked like they weren't the last to arrive for once. Usually despite his best efforts, they were borderline late to class because of Izuku and Himiko, earning the wrath of Iida. Maybe this time they were actually on time; maybe that was why the group in class swivelled round so suddenly to face them. "O-Oh! Hey everyone-"
"MIDORIYA!"
"SHIMURA!"
"TOGA!"
"Hey, no love for me?! What the hell, guys?!" As their friends rushed towards Izuku and the group, Setsuna sounded indignant. "I'm a protagonist too, you know!"
"I'D NEVER FORGET YOU, NUMBER ONE PARTNER!" The yell of Dark Shadow was deafening over the top of everyone else, Tokoyami's phantom familiar rising up from where Tokoyami slouched at his desk to charge for Setsuna and wrap her in a shadowy bearhug. Izuku didn't know what was more surprising; the fact that Tokoyami was able to escape Iida's attention for furniture neglect, or the fact that he swore Shiozaki was petting Dark Shadow on its beak before the creature zoomed away. Was he imagining things or had the vine-haired girl, previously keen to keep her her distance from his dark-loving friend and his eldritch Quirk, actually pouted when Dark Shadow had left her behind? They must have become a lot closer during the tribulations of the USJ. "YOU DIDN'T COME AND HANG OUT WITH ME ALL WEEK!"
"I'm a busy gal, you know?" Setsuna jumped up and caught the top of Dark Shadow's head as she laughed. "Gotta keep an eye on these three idiots as well as be part of this dream team."
"Can we all perhaps consider not crowding these four the second they arrive in our class?" The polite indignation and the trademark chop of an arm signalled Iida's entrance into the costume, and Izuku couldn't help but laugh. It was a refreshing slice of normality to come back to. "I'm sure they're appreciative, but we can't overwhelm them immediately like this-"
"Give it a rest, Iida! It's the first time I've seen them for a week, I'm not letting up!" Tetsutetsu's call out was booming and loud, especially as two metallic arms grabbed both Izuku and Tenko and pulled them in close for a grapple of his own. "I can't believe you two went up against that Nomu… and won! There's manly, and then there's peak masculinity!"
"Honestly, zero out of ten experience," Tenko groaned, his face squashed against Tetsutetsu's chest by the strength of the boy's grip. "Would not repeat it even if you paid me all the money in Japan."
"Yeah, I-I'm with Tenko on that." Izuku couldn't have agreed more. "I'm just glad we m-made it out the other side-"
"I think we all are." Past the invisible form of Hagakure and the normally implacable Asui, whose eyes seemed to shimmer with something Izuku didn't quite understand, Yaoyorozu stepped forward. Her voice was normally so steady and so reassuring- it was no wonder she was picked as class vice representative when she could calm anyone- but to hear her voice wobble as she looked Izuku up and down… if he hadn't understood the gravity of what they'd all been through before, he would have when he heard that. "I heard you only woke up yesterday, Midoriya."
"That's right." There was a sound like the sucking of teeth from Tetsutetsu as he released Izuku from the vice-grip, and a couple of poorly-disguised gasps from a couple of their classmates who perhaps hadn't realised. "Sorry, I just-"
"We're used to turning up late or last to class anyway," Himiko said slyly, nudging Iida as she did. "I think Izuku just wanted to keep things consistent for Iida."
"S-Such levity about something so serious?" Iida looked like he was struggling a little with their dynamic. Izuku couldn't blame him; he was used to Tenko mocking him long before Himiko joined them, and even he struggled at times with how little filter the others had. "... Your friends are delinquents, Midoriya."
"Hell yeah! And you'd miss it if we weren't, because what would you get outraged at?" Setsuna's response was to wrap both arms around Iida's side and give him her own bearhug; several people laughed at how stiff Iida went in response, including Izuku. If someone had pushed Iida at that moment, he probably would have twanged. "Perfect just the way we are, see?"
"..." With his arms pinned at his side and unable to be chopped, Iida had to settle for vibrating with confusion. "Someone help me."
"Revelry in the dark." Izuku caught the way that Shiozaki groaned, and the way Tokoyami sent her a challenging smirk, just as much as he caught the strange colour that flushed to Asui's cheeks for a second when he caught her staring at the two of them. That… looked complicated. And the fact that his attention was distracted by stuff like this, with everything going on in the world and inside his own head… it felt refreshingly normal to Izuku. He'd missed this.
As if their company could compare to mine.
Yaoyorozu shook her head, and then leaned in, closing the gap between them to bring Izuku into a hug of her own. It was so unlike her that Izuku couldn't help but go red out of sheer embarrassment, not used to being so close to her that he could smell her shampoo. "I'm glad you're alright now. You're not… rushing yourself back too soon, are you? I could speak to the teachers if you feel that you need more time."
"U-Um, no, I promise I'm okay now! I don't know what Melissa did, but she did a really good job!" Izuku nodded, frantically, until Yaoyorozu was satisfied that he genuinely meant it and released her hug. "We're lucky that we have her-"
"I agree." Shoji was talking with the mouth hidden behind his mask for the first time since Izuku had met him, and that felt a little strange to see. For a second Izuku wondered if his Dupli-Arms had sustained damage which he was still resting from, before one of his hands was extended out towards Tenko, finally released from the iron prison that was a Tetsutetsu hug. "The fact that you're both on your feet, so soon after facing Nomu… it's a testament to her work."
"You can say that again." Tenko clasped the offered hand with his own gloved mitt in a handshake, looking Shoji straight in the one eye not obscured by Shoji's fringe. "I didn't want to leave you without having our rematch, Shoji. We've got to prove my DoT beats your regen someday."
"Hmm." Shoji bowed his head, not jibing back at Tenko, but Izuku could have sworn he saw the end of one of his arms crease. Almost as if a mouth was smiling. "We'll see."
"Eurgh, boys." Hagakure's complaining was good-natured. "Not even five minutes, and you're already thinking about how you're gonna beat each other up next! Of course you're all like this-"
"Not just the boys." Kodai had managed to extract a hug from Himiko, which was enough of a sign to Izuku that the normally-stoic young woman also had been knocked sideways by what had been going on. Not that he could blame her at all. "Itsuka, too."
"Wow, Yui. I nearly missed that bus, but I'm glad you stuck around to make sure I got thrown under it." Kendo's reply made Setsuna snort, before the ginger girl grinned at Izuku. "Guilty as charged, though. I hear you're planning on hitting the weights with the Iron Giant, over there?"
"I'm gonna make him a man!" The clang as Tetsutetsu's steel fist rebounded against a steel pectoral was honestly a little intimidating, as was the enthusiasm in his voice. "He's a little scrawny, so I don't know if I can make him shredded, but he'll be so much stronger when I'm done!"
"And what's he gonna do with those gains if he doesn't know how to use them? Trust me. He needs more than that." Kendo jerked a thumb at herself. "I'm not gonna stop you going with him, Midoriya. But if you're serious about starting to train a little more, then you should come to the dojo with me too. There's a lot more to fighting than just having strong muscles, or Shimura would've been snapped like a twig. No offence, Shimura."
"None taken." Tenko grinned. "I know I've got noodle arms, but I've got more than four moves in my learnset, too."
"So to translate from nerd into regular speak," Setsuna added, to a tut of disapproval from Tenko, "he's got a few tricks up his sleeve, too. Just like Yui."
"... Mm." Kodai's face gave nothing away; her eyes, however, betrayed her amusement. "I like being unpredictable."
"But that's the thing. You wanna build up muscle mass so you're not completely outclassed in a short-range fight, because your Quirk and fighting style focuses on long-range attacks. Right, Midoriya?"
Obviously. Poor girl thinks she's being clever when she simply states the obvious.
Izuku dismissed his errant vestige's bitterness, and nodded. "Th-that's right!"
"Exactly! So you should actually learn how to fight up close and personal, and cover that weakness off. Not just bulk out, and hope to cross that bridge later when you're out on duty." Kendo's offer was kind, and sensible, and she turned to the others. "That goes for all of you, really. If anyone can give me tips on what I can do that deals with my weakness to ranged fighters like Midoriya, that'd be great. But if anyone wants to come over to my dojo at any point, I can show you some moves. My teacher's a bit of a brute, but I can ask him too-"
"That's a good idea, ribbit." Asui had a finger to her mouth as if in thought, and whatever she had been distracted by earlier, she wasn't paying it much attention now. "I know I focus on kicks because of my Quirk, but not every opponent I face will give me the space to kick out. I could do with that sort of training, too."
At least she's pragmatic in recognising her failings. Then again, the Doctor's strategy will have been a cold wake-up call to most here.
"Then we should totally all start doing that more with Itsuka, if we get the chance!" Hagakure's arms were waving more than Iida could ever manage, out of excitement. "I'd like to make sure I have something to back me up if a sneak attack fails-"
"Sounds like a smart plan." Honenuki, who had apparently slipped into class in the background of everyone talking, waved a brief greeting to Izuku. "Midoriya, Shimura, good to see you both. But yeah, Kendo's got the right idea. It gives us all an opportunity to cover our bases if we're learning something like that to keep in reserve. And if possible, some of our faster fighters can show us all techniques to mean we have escape plans, and don't always have to run."
Several heads turned to Iida, of course, and he puffed up slightly because of the attention. "If there's anything I can do to help, I shall!"
"You were right, Honenuki." Izuku turned to the lipless boy. "We really were out of our depth in the end."
"Believe me, I wish I hadn't been right. And even if I was, I wasn't expecting it to be like that." Honenuki bowed his head briefly. "The second Midnight mentioned a Landslide Zone, I thought I'd struggle with it. Turns out when your teacher's injured beside you and there's a bunch of villains on the attack, it's a little harder."
"The fact that you were able to keep Thirteen safe, and not get injured yourself, is a small miracle," Shiozaki said, as several nodded in agreement. Izuku couldn't have agreed more. "Especially on unsteady ground."
"Ashido was a good partner," Honenuki replied, graciously. "I got lucky with my chosen partner, in the end."
"I think a lot of us did." Tenko saying that so openly surprised him, but Izuku met the gaze of his best friend and nodded back, not needing to say anything to add to that. He owed Tenko his life, really, and it seemed he had just enough to stall Nomu that Tenko could say the same in return. That was a bond that couldn't be broken. "Power of friendship really does need a nerf, huh?"
"Say, about that…" Izuku trailed off, as Honenuki took a seat at his desk in the middle of everyone. He had been doing a small count in the background, and even with Honenuki arriving later than they were… they were short of a few people. "Ashido and Kirishima normally arrive with you, don't they, Hagakure?"
It was hard to describe what happened when he asked that question, but he could almost feel the mood change in the air. Several people seemed to shift uncomfortably, the light fading out of their eyes a little; even though he couldn't see Hagakure's face, her head seemed to drop just a fraction. "Um… yeah, you're right. I, uh…"
"I'm afraid you're currently looking at what remains of Class 1A, Midoriya."
… You didn't really think that all of them would get through this unscathed, did you?
Ignoring Shigaraki's taunt for now, Izuku stiffened, and turned to face his rival as he spoke. Monoma had been unusually silent the whole way through everybody greeting him, loitering at the back of the group, but now he had Izuku's full attention. Even Monoma looked a little scruffier than usual; usually one to take such pride in his appearance, his tie was looser than before, one button undone. "... I thought… e-everyone made it?"
"They did… and I'm glad to see you and Shimura did too." Izuku blinked, not expecting such a genuine and caring comment from Monoma of all people, but Monoma carried on. "But that doesn't mean that everyone came back, sadly."
"Wait, for real?" Setsuna looked stunned, turning to Kendo and Tetsutetsu as if a little lost. "Nobody mentioned anything like this to me before-"
"It didn't feel right to burden you with that while Midoriya and Shimura were still out of action," Yaoyorozu said, and as much as Izuku was trying to process what he was being told, he felt himself agreeing with her logic. "It was a discussion we needed to have when we were all back together."
"It was. Although I thought that we agreed," Honenuki interrupted, as Dark Shadow rose from Tokoyami, folding its arms and glaring at Monoma, "to tread carefully when talking about this. To be… a little delicate."
"Please. It's a pretty big elephant in the room. Rather than waste time tiptoeing around the subject, let's deal with what's obvious and get it out of the way." Monoma showed absolutely no remorse for bulldozing the subject through into conversation.
He's not wrong. A simple headcount would show the truth, after all.
"Like ripping a bandage off in one…" Himiko bit the inside of her lip in thought, before nodding. "I… yeah, I can kinda see his point. As much as I don't like saying it."
"It's a sad fact of our continued existence as a class, really. But yes, Class 1A endures, but there's a few people who've left." Monoma waved a hand in the direction of Honenuki. "Now that Juzo's here, this is… well, this is it, it seems."
"Really?" Tenko spun around on the spot, looking over everyone. "So, hang on… we're missing-"
"Ashido, Awase, Yanagi and Kirishima." Yaoyorozu cut in, and confirmed the worst. "They're… well, it's complicated."
"I take it that Setsuna told you about the news stories from outside? How some of the upperclassmen got withdrawn by their families?" Kendo waited for them to nod, before running a hand through her hair in frustration. "Ah, yeah. Turns out it wasn't just upperclassmen. Reiko, she-"
"Didn't want to go." Izuku had never heard Kodai sound so sad and so defiant at the same time, and several people turned sympathetically to her, Himiko rubbing a hand down her back awkwardly in an attempt to reassure her. Kodai and Yanagi had essentially been best friends since class started… she would feel that. "Her parents, they… mm. They wouldn't listen."
"Some of us were fortunate enough that our parents eventually respected our wishes to remain, even if they wanted us to withdraw immediately." Izuku had expected Yaoyorozu to be the one to say that. Given her family's wealth, he expected that all options besides UA were immediately considered when their daughter's life was threatened. "Yanagi, well… I wouldn't wish to speak ill of her family, but-"
"They don't care what she wants." Kodai had no such hesitation, and slumped into her seat. "... It's not fair. Her and Awase-"
"Awase left too?" Setsuna asked, sounding as surprised as Izuku was. "His parents did that?"
"No… that was his decision." Monoma pulled a face, enough of a reminder to Izuku that he had been one of Awase's best friends from even before UA. He, Awase and Tetsutetsu had been a little trio all on their own… and then, there were two. "He's done so well since middle school, but then he came here, and I think he felt that he's been falling behind since the Quirk Apprehension Test. Throw him into the middle of a fight against real villains when he feels that way and, well…"
"I just can't believe it." Iida was not the person who Izuku thought would get upset about Awase's departure. Awase was brash, foul-mouthed and academically not the hardest of workers; Iida was none of those. "Without him and Kodai at the USJ… I would have been severely outnumbered and unable to form any defensive strategy. When my Engines stalled, I would have been a sitting duck without him. I owe him, and yet three days ago, I was saying goodbye to him."
"He said he wasn't as he thought, when we were both doing our forfeits for the Quirk Apprehension Test." Hagakure nervously kicked at the leg of a nearby table. "I get that, but… I didn't think he'd leave because of it, y'know?"
Naive boys and girls, playing at being a Hero because their expectations match what they see on the screen. Sanitised, glorified fights which present it as some type of commercialised dream. People like that would never be ready for what the title actually means.
Izuku was not happy at the opinions offered by Shigaraki. 'You can't possibly know that about people. Something like the USJ… not every trainee Hero is going to have a fight like that before they even qualify.'
Perhaps not. But in a world like this, most Heroes will have a fight like that to contend with sooner rather than later, once they get their licences. It's not all fame and glory, the flash of cameras and the cries of joy. Villains and disasters won't hold back, or think twice about hurting anyone who stands in their way. After all… There was a dark chuckle, full of reminiscence and cruelty. I never did.
Izuku shook his head, tuning back in as Tetsutetsu was talking. "-ven't heard anything at all since the attack from Kirishima. He hasn't replied to any of my texts or calls-"
"Mina's gone completely off the grid too," Hagakure said, showing her phone to Setsuna as if proving her point. "Usually she's going off in our little group chat all the time, but… nothing! She's left me on read for the last few days."
"Nobody spoke to them before they left, at all… it's hard not to be a little worried." Yaoyorozu stared at her own phone for a second, before putting it away. "I just hope they're both alright, wherever they are."
Izuku swallowed, not liking the uncertainty around it either. At least with Awase and Yanagi, there was an explanation left behind as to why they would no longer be part of the class. Ashido had always been so happy and so fun to be around, unfailingly positive, and as much as Tenko joked about Kirishima being one half of the same person as Tetsutetsu, Izuku loved his enthusiasm and drive to do well. Hearing that both of them had gone missing, with no clue as to why… they would be a big loss to the class.
They chose you as a leader, for a reason, you know.
As soon as Shigaraki said that, Izuku looked up and saw some of his class shooting looks in his direction. It sounded so arrogant coming from his vestige, but unfortunately it didn't appear that he was totally wrong. So much had happened and yet it was as if they were waiting for him to say something, as their chosen class representative… 'You're right about one thing, Shigaraki.'
Only one thing? Shigaraki sounded more amused than put-upon. And what would that be?
"It's not the last time we'll have to face something like this." That was said aloud, for his classmates and not just Shigaraki. It was the inescapable truth, so as much as the vestige would laugh at Izuku for conceding that he had a point… it gave him something to say. "I… I didn't expect to face it so soon, but this world is crazy. It has been since we lost All Might, so the way things used to be, everything we could expect? It's… c-clearly going to be different now. Or the USJ wouldn't have happened at all."
Izuku took a deep breath, as all of their attention turned onto him. "But that makes it even more important for us to do our best. No matter how sad it is that we've lost friends along our way… we have to get up and keep trying. There's people out there depending on us to make a difference, people out there who need their Heroes… so we need to stick together now, and do whatever we can to support each other through. So that at the end of this, when we qualify and get our licences… we can help those people. Together."
"DAMN RIGHT, SHORTY." As several people murmured their agreement, the collective resolve of the class strengthening, Dark Shadow was the one who spoke up for his less sociable master. "ONE DARK DAY DOESN'T STOP CLASS 1A!"
"That's why I don't let you write poetry." Tokoyami rolled his eyes at his familiar, before turning and nodding to Izuku. "If we can get through what we've been through…"
"Then whatever we face next… we'll get through that together too." Izuku clenched a fist, staring at the scars left by Nomu's attack, and felt the fire inside him flicker into life once more. Nomu had left its mark on him… he would do whatever he could to ensure that nothing else did. "Right, everyone?"
"Hell yeah."
"Exactly!"
"Mm!"
"Y'know…" The drawl from the doorway was enough to cut off their discussion. "I can see why Nem speaks so highly of her class representative, Midoriya. Pretty convincin'."
Izuku would have recognised that heavily-accented voice anywhere, foreign-sounding and made echoey by the mask on the newcomer's face. That was even without seeing him in all his glory, one hand resting on top of a holster attached to his belt, the other arm obscured by the red cloak he wore. Between that, and the cowboy hat… one of the most distinctive Pro Heroes Japan had ever produced had sneaked into the class unnoticed. The Gunslinger himself… "S-Snipe!"
Well, well. The Lone Ranger returned from the wilderness. They really must be concerned, here.
"What the…" Tenko took one look at the heavy boots of the Pro Hero, as if disbelieving that nobody had noticed him arrive and lean against the doorway. "But I thought you'd gone to America for good? That's what the news said at the time?"
"The times, they are a'changin', Shimura. Haven't you seen the world outside?" Now Snipe pushed himself off from the door and strode forward, past their group to the teacher's chair at the front of the room. "Japan's got itself into a mess, what with the skeletons in our Number One's closet, and a crackdown on vigilantes. And in the midst of all that, you folks were just the target of the biggest attack on a Hero School since the Rhode Island Statute. And you're currently without a teacher for a lil' while."
"Midnight…" As Snipe unhooked two holsters from his belt and placed them on the desk with a resounding thunk, Izuku processed his last sentence. "She's… not well, still?"
"Oh, Nem's getting there. But take it from me, bullet wounds ain't the sort of thing you rush back from to carry on as normal." Snipe rolled her chair out from under the desk as she spoke and sat back, lifting both feet to place them on the desk in front of him while fixing Izuku with an impassive, mask-covered look. "Both her and Thirteen need some time. So when Nezu came callin' and asked if I might be able to assist… well, here I am. Holdin' the fort until Nem comes back, and maybe stickin' around on the other side too. Who knows."
"A… replacement teacher!" Iida seemed to spring to life, bowing deeply. "I am so sorry for our tardiness in being seated, sir! Everyone, if our teacher is present-"
"Heh, relax, Ingenium Junior. I know you're a stickler and all, if your brother's much to go on, but nobody's gettin' in trouble since I just got here." Snipe laughed, brusquely, behind his mask, as the class dispersed and moved to their seats anyway. That course of movement made it abundantly clear that there were gaps in the seating plan, and Izuku winced looking over at the opposite corner of the room by the door; both Awase's seat in the front, and Ashido's seat behind, were painfully empty. "Well, seems we're a couple shorter than I expected. Who're we missin'?"
"Ashido and Kirishima, as well as Awase and Yanagi, sir," Yaoyorozu called, from the back of the class.
Turning around made Izuku aware that Kodai was now looking forlornly at the gap ahead of Himiko, where Yanagi's empty desk sat. The girl clearly needed a friend now, more than ever, and he smiled softly when she looked at him. "H-Hey… it'll be okay. You've got us too… we're not going anywhere."
"... Promise?" Kodai's gaze was so deep, a glimmer of hope underneath the surface of uncertainty.
"Promise." He held firm, and was so glad to see the light grow a little in her eyes.
"Yeah…" Himiko nodded, joining him. "We're your friends, too."
"I… okay." Kodai looked over to Himiko, and then to him. "... Thank you."
Sure, the boy intent on keeping his Quirk a secret, promising to allow somebody who's not in on the secret into his friendship group? It'll definitely be easy to be friends with her and still maintain the charade. However could it not?
"Yeah, I don't like the seating arrangement like this either, Kodai, Midoriya, Toga." Snipe's voice cut off any further conversation, as the three of them turned back around. "It's not right to have a reminder here all the time. We'll… fix that, as soon as we can."
"Sensei, you… mentioned coming back from America to do this," Shiozaki asked, sounding a little uncertain. "Should we… be concerned? You must have been on very important missions."
"Well, I'll be blunt. Both Nem and Thirteen are out of action because of the USJ. Frankly, it's impressive that Midoriya and Shimura are even in action, but since they're here and show no inclination of wanting to leave, I won't say no." Snipe shuffled his boots on the table, to a wince from Iida. "Thirteen's class are more senior, and weren't the subject of an attack, so they're getting the pleasure of sharing Presentation Michael himself as a homeroom teacher. You folks… yer' a lil' different."
"You're… like extra security." It wasn't a question from Setsuna, it was simply a realisation Izuku had made. This was a Pro Hero who wielded guns and was one of the few Heroes known by the Japanese public to be licenced to carry out shoot-on-sight missions if absolutely required. The fact that Nezu had pulled strings to return him to Japan… it must have meant that UA wanted to send a message to the public, that UA would not be a simple target again. "For our sake."
"That's right." Snipe looked up, taking them all in from behind his distinctive mask. "Y'all seem like good kids, from what I know and what I've been told. You shouldn't have had to go through what you did, and I'm sorry for that. But the USJ incident has done things to society we never expected. The Commission, and private Heroes, are suddenly under attack by people who think the whole system ain't fit for purpose anymore… there's a lot going on, and we need to keep you safe through all that."
"A lot more intense training coming our way, then?" Kendo asked, from her seat at the front.
"Somethin' like that. But l told you I'd be blunt, so in the interests of being perfectly clear, I'll keep on bein' blunt." Snipe folded both of his arms, his red cloak dangling at the side of the chair. "Things ain't lookin' good for Heroes, right now. Or for UA. We need to show people that we care, that we can make a difference, and that they should trust us when we say we're raisin' some damn fine Heroes in our classes."
"That means we've got a lot of work to do, and that means that because we have a duty to protect you, it means we'll be workin' you extra hard to make things stick. To give you the best damn training you could ever ask for." Snipe paused, briefly. "But we're a Pro Hero Agency as much as we are a school. Y'all are technically our Hero Apprentices. Which means when there's trouble brewin' on the streets, and people who need our help… we can't stand by completely and shut you away from all that. We should have no right to ask you that, as kids under our wings, but… desperate times call for desperate measures, partners."
"I see…" Iida looked thoughtful. "More field experience, sooner than expected, because of everything going on… the USJ attack truly has changed things."
"If anyone here has any doubts, however, that's why I wanted to raise it now." Snipe nodded to Iida, reassuringly. "I'm not askin' you to decide now. I'm just warning you that it may be comin', in case you need time to think-"
"I… don't think any of us want to be shut away, ribbit." Asui speaking up like that was rare. "Midoriya was right. There's people out there depending on us… so if you ask us to help, we'll do it. Or… at least, I will-"
"And me." Tetsutetsu's fist clanged into his metallic open palm, punctuating his agreement. "There's no way I can just sit and watch."
"I think everyone here would go if you asked, sensei." Monoma leaned back on his chair to look at everyone, his smirk returning. "Pardon me if I'm speaking out of turn, of course-"
"I…" Yaoyorozu looked around at several people, seeing nothing but nods from everybody, and leaned around Kodai to look at Izuku. "I think that's everyone in agreement, Midoriya."
"I…" Izuku had eyes only for his friends, and could see the fire in their eyes too. That was more than enough for him. "That's everyone, sensei. Tell us what to do, and we'll do it."
"... Alright. But there's a price involved for each of you, as part of your agreement." Snipe whipped his boots off the table and leaned forward. "Y'all wanna do your bit as Heroes. That's great. But yer' still kids. Kids who've seen things they shouldn't have to see. So I don't want anyone carrying on fuelled by bravado, and neglecting themselves by putting others first."
Snipe paused, looking towards the door, and in the silence that followed the only sounds were the ticking of the clock, and the breathing behind his mask. "... Huh. That was supposed to be the part where Hound Dog made a well-timed entrance and explained everything. Darn."
"Hound Dog?" Himiko leaned forward. "Melissa Shield mentioned something about him being around… he's like a school counsellor, right?"
"Correct. And that's the price I'm askin' you to pay." Snipe turned back to look at them. "Each of you is gonna have a slot to talk to him, around all our other classes. I want to know, before I agree to put any of you into the line of duty again, that if you need any help because of what you've been through, yer' gettin' it. Askin' you to do field assignments, and riskin' you being in harm's way again… I need to be crystal clear that yer' up to it in yourselves."
That might be the most responsible thing UA have done in my lifetime. Actual pastoral care… rather than just gung-ho throwing you out of a frying pan, and into a raging inferno. Imagine.
Izuku nodded to himself, accepting that it sounded like a good plan. At the end of the day, he knew that he would still picture Nomu charging at him for quite some time in his nightmares… but if he could get help with that, and if he could satisfy them that it didn't impede him from helping people, he would pay that price. 'If people could see that UA cared this much about its students… maybe they wouldn't be so strongly against UA?'
There's plenty who want UA to fall who would gladly ignore that, Izuku. But I agree. It surprises me, and I've lived a long enough life to not be surprised by many things.
'They're good people here, wanting to make a difference. I… I'm glad I still got to come here.'
They'll do right by you, if you're determined to achieve that dream of yours. Although I must say… Shigaraki laughed to himself. I don't think there's a single therapist in all of Japan who would be ready to hear that your soul was being haunted by the vestige of a Demon Lord. Not even the one in Tartarus would be prepared for that.
'It's a good job Hound Dog won't get to find out for a while, then. Not until I'm ready.'
And I still maintain that's a bad idea. But alas, you are stubborn. Shigaraki paused. Speak of the devil…
"Hmm?" Izuku turned to the door, just in time for it to open. How the vestige did that was beyond him. "Sensei!"
The imposing figure that came into view had terrified Izuku the first time he ever saw him on the television, in the early days of his career before becoming a UA teacher. It was hard not to be unnerved when the Pro Hero was a hulking mass of muscle and fur, and when he lived his life permanently muzzled. Class 1A had seen very little of him at all, so Izuku didn't blame some of the others for their gasps of surprise.
Snipe, cool as a cucumber, turned in response to Izuku's cry and gave Hound Dog a lazy wave. "Inui. Not like you to be tardy."
"Mrmmmm…" Hound Dog sounded as if it was taking a lot of self-restraint to not snap at the joke. "I got distracted… ended up picking up some strays."
"Strays?"
"Sorry!" That cheerful voice, so distinctive to everyone in the class, made everyone's heads whip up as two people stepped around the towering Pro Hero and waved to everyone in the class. Izuku couldn't believe it; he thought they'd gone, and yet with her unmistakable pink skin and his bright red hair, who else could it be…
Mina Ashido waved to everyone, sticking up a peace sign. "Hey, all! Sorry we've been a little silent recently-"
"ASHIDO!"
"MINA!"
"Well, well. That sure is a nice surprise." Snipe looked her up and down and made a little noise, as if laughing to himself behind the mask. "Figured out where you wanna be, partner?"
"Yeah, well… friends have gotta look out for each other, right?" Ashido nudged Kirishima with an elbow, whose toothy grin looked more nervous than genuine. "We had a little blip, but… turns out we each had this dream of making the other proud by coming to UA. We just had to remind ourselves of that, and not do anything we'd regret. Right Kiri?"
"R-Right!" It was the first time Izuku had ever heard the usually fired-up Kirishima sound less than one hundred percent confident about anything. "I… I've got something to say."
"Go on?"
"I'm…" Kirishima slammed into a bow, at an almost ninety degree angle. "I'm sorry, everyone! I doubted myself because I felt useless, like I couldn't help properly while other people got help… I didn't think I could live up to what I wanted to be."
"And I'm sorry I started second-guessing myself, too!" Ashido didn't bow, but the cheeky smile she usually had had faded; she was never normally this serious. "I shouldn't have disappeared on all of you and said nothing… it won't happen again!"
"SO MANLY!" Tetsutetsu's yell was pure elation. "Hell, I'm so glad you two came back!"
"They both took some time to think, and came to find me when they needed to talk…" Two furry paws clamped down, one on Ashido's shoulder and one on Kirishima's, and Hound Dog huffed. "They should be proud of themselves."
"I second that." Snipe waved a hand at the rest of the class, and the empty seats; Izuku looked back briefly and saw how several faces had seemed to light up with their return. "Gotta say, you two completely screwed up the seating plan like this. I could have changed to four by four, but that ain't gonna work now. And the numbers are kinda janky for any team exercises…"
"Rrrr… only you could complain when two of your students decide not to run away." Hound Dog clapped both Ashido and Kirishima on the back, and as they slipped away to take their seats again the Hunting Dog Hero shook his head. "I expect you told them that I want to see them all for counselling."
"Absolutely. No exceptions." Snipe turned to look directly at Izuku. "Midoriya, you'll be pleased that your group can have a couple days' respite, and don't have to go first. Nem would kill me if I didn't ease ya back into things the day after you resurfaced."
"Oh, sweet," Himiko muttered, fingers dancing over the keys on the touchscreen of her phone, which she had balanced under the desk on her leg. "I kinda had plans with my old man tonight, and all-"
"Toga, if you think I can't see someone usin' a phone in class from over here, you're not as smart as you think you are. I may be a substitute, but there's still rules. Put it away."
"Yes, Sensei!" As Himiko flushed and put it away, Izuku couldn't help but start to laugh. "What? Izu, quit laughing at my suffering!"
He couldn't help it. It just felt so weirdly normal, in the face of everything. Not only had the Doctor failed to tear their group apart, and not only were they healed and back ready to pick up where they left off, but even as the world went crazy outside, things still felt like they had before. Himiko being told off by their teacher felt refreshingly like business as usual, and not even the different teacher or the depleted class size could change that for Izuku.
Back to where we left off, eh Izuku?
Maybe, just maybe, things might turn out alright after all.
(***)
"We have confirmation."
Spinner, sharpening the edge of his enormous sword for the third time that day, looked up when Stain spoke. "Confirmation?"
"Sanguine." Stain held up the mobile phone for him to read Himiko's texts. "No last minute distractions from UA. She can join us… and you know what that means, Snitch."
"Guess that means it's really happening, huh?" Hitoshi Shinso, sat on the worn sofa with a red scarf of his own wrapped around his neck, shot Stain a look with a questioning eyebrow raised. "Tonight's the night?"
"Tonight's the night." Stain looked fondly at his own blade, resting against his chair, and began the countdown in the back of his head. "Time to add to our ranks."
(***)
A/N: And for that… you must wait a chapter!
For me, I knew that I didn't want all of Class 1A to make it through the USJ. The canon USJ is an incredibly traumatic event because of the damage Shigaraki does and our first introduction to the unknown Nomu… I wanted to replicate that with mine, but that meant I wanted to do its aftermath justice. These are kids, after all, and if people don't make the cut for a number of reasons (whether that's legitimate PTSD or others fearing for their safety) it seems more realistic to me to show that effect.
And yes, that also means some background for the Hardened Twins, Kirishima and Tetsutetsu. I love Kirishima in the canon, and how his previous hesitancy shapes his heroic desires and his will to keep pushing in canon- I wanted his relationship with Mina here to reflect that side of their canon relationship too. And as for Tetsutetsu, I love the parallels with him and Kirishima and wanted to add to that with my take on him. Given that Monoma fills the "blonde arrogant rival" hole left by Bakugo in this fic, given that Kirishima and Tetsutetsu are lampooned as twins, and given that Tetsu's VA in the dub is gay… it felt right for me to mimic the KiriBaku ship with Tetsu and Monoma in this fic, as a parallel. How could I resist when I love me some mirroring?
Some hints of what's to come throughout the chapter, but otherwise, focus now turns to the next, and let me tell you… it's something I've been looking forward to for quite some time now. I won't spoil anything, but I will say that by then I should hopefully have caught up with replying to reviews- I am sorry I've left it, but work has been manic and I really wanted to make sure I got the chapter written and the April Fools treat too!
If you enjoyed this, please feel free to favourite and follow if you have not done so already, and please review with your thoughts- as long as criticism is constructive (and not some sweary rant without actual suggestions) I am happy to hear that too. And as ever, if you want to talk more about this fic, please join the Ignite to the Call Discord where Incident Zero has its own channel. The join code is DEj8c96v.
Until next time, ya boy is out.
