Chapter 56: High School Musical

It was a busy time in the common room of the 1-A dorm of the Heights Alliance.

While Sato baked in the kitchen, assisted by the shouting Bakugo, laughing Kirishima, and quiet Uraraka, the two representatives of Class A, Iida and Momo, led the charge with decorations. Surrounding the two of them were most of the rest of the class, and they were currently dividing up jobs between them. Other people were coming in and out. It was the sort of busy time that Mina Ashido found monumentally refreshing, as she and Toru waited at the doors to receive their guests.

"Kinda funny, isn't it?" said Toru.

"What is?"

"That we're doing the diplomacy stuff while Momo and Iida talk about decorations. Almost like-"

"It should be switched?"

She could imagine Toru making an annoyed pout, based on the way her shoulders slouched. "Katayama is rubbing off on you so hard. He always completes sentences before I even get a chance, too."

Mina had to smile at that. "I'm glad to hear it. Trust me, Toru, everyone's in their right place. So far." She could feel that in her bones.

"Oi! Ashido, hello!"

Mina looked down the steps to see two people approaching their dorm. They were not the first third years to come to 1-A's building that day, nor would they be the last, but one of them was perhaps the most notable: bubbly Nejire Hado, her long blue hair bouncing with every step she took. The other was a wiry boy with box-shaped ears and red hair. Mina did not recognize him.

Nejire was waving at them, and Mina waved back, returning the girl's peppy smile, although inwardly she was wincing. Based on what she'd seen, Nejire was everything quirky about people like her or Toru dialed up to an eleven: all energy, all nosiness, all the time. The end-all, be-all of the bubbly character type.

Toru was right; Doko HAD mellowed Mina out somewhat. But that didn't mean, necessarily, that Mina was not prepared to deal with this.

"Hello, Hado-senpai," Mina greeted. "What have you got for me?"

"Well, for one thing, I've got what my class, 3-A, is doing for the festival," said Nejire as she and the boy arrived on the steps. "We're doing a fashion show, of sorts!"

Mina raised her eyebrows. "Like the beauty pageant?" The pageant was one of the biggest events at the "official" festival.

"Sort of," Nejire answered. "It won't be as elaborate, or as focused on individuals. I just know some support people in my year were disappointed that they wouldn't get to design any clothes, and some others who were disappointed they wouldn't be able to participate. Don't worry, it will be small-scale."

Mina's eyes narrowed. "So people from other classes would be allowed to enter this fashion show?"

"If they find someone to make an outfit for them, sure!"

"...Well, alright, but remember that we're keeping crossovers between classes to a minimum. There can't be too much running back and forth across campus, or else…"

"Yeah, yeah," Nejire interrupted, waving her hand. "Isn't this about all the classes getting along again, Ashido? Shouldn't we have as much crossover as we can possibly get away with?"

Mina's mouth twitched. Was Nejire testing her, challenging her? "Well, I mean…"

"Come on, I know you're a daring gal," Nejire interrupted her again. "I mean, you did go through all that trouble to even get this going in the first place…and you sent Midoriya to me, which means you must have put your trust in me to spread the word…"

"I put my trust in Midoriya," Mina corrected, "to find anyone who could help. And yes, every class event is meant to be enjoyed by all the classes. But organizing an event with multiple classes is difficult. We're already taking a big risk just by having you and all the others visit here today. If the board catches on to what we're doing…"

"But that's what's so exciting, isn't it?" Nejire interrupted her for the third time. "The risks! I gotta say, I thought you were supposed to be bolder than this, Ashido! More exciting!"

Mina had to fight to keep the smile on her face. Nejire's blue eyes were glowing, with mischief? Or was she just seeing things? It was like lightning was sparking between them, and for a long moment, they just stared each other down.

Toru Hagakure coughed.

Nejire shook her head, and her large (pointlessly so, in Mina's view) breasts shook with it. "Anyway, where was I? Oh yeah, the second thing! This is Kinri Ikezawa." She gestured to the boxy-eared boy, who offered his hand.

"I'm Class 3-D, general studies," the boy said, friendly enough. "Well-met."

Mina returned his handshake. "And what can I do for you?" she asked. Inwardly, she was a little confused, as a representative from 3-D had already checked in with her today.

"More accurately, it's what I can do for you," he answered. "My Quirk is called Sound Barrier. It allows me to-"

"It lets him create a barrier around an area as large as a city block!" Nejire interjected excitedly. "I've seen it in action! It works like a dome, and no one outside the dome can hear anything going on inside of it…"

Ikezawa gave her a deadpan expression, and Nejire backed off apologetically, still smiling nervously. "Anyway, yeah…sorry." She hung her head, sheepish.

"Basically, I can shield all the dorm buildings from anyone who is watching," the boy said. "All the events can be as loud as they want, without worrying about the consequences."

Mina's heart skipped a beat. "You can maintain an individual barrier around every building at once? That won't tire you out?"

"Oh, no. The only thing that requires energy from me is the creation process. I should have just enough in me to cover every dorm, and the barriers will naturally phase away on their own after about fifteen hours. That's plenty of time, right?"

"Oh, absolutely." Mina was loving the sound of this. She inwardly thanked any god who was listening for Kinri Ikezawa and his magic sound Quirk, because now they had their solution to one of the main, in her mind, issues.

"Jiroooo!" Mina called back over her own shoulder, through the open doors to the common room, in a fake accent. "I have need of you in the front, miss!"

Kyoka appeared after a moment, willingly enough. One finger twirled her left earphone jack, and when she took notice of Ikezawa, she stopped, strutting a hip out to one side. "Nice ears," she complimented.

"Right back atcha."

"Jiro," Mina explained, in a tone that one might use when introducing your child to a distant relative they'd never met before. "This is Ikezawa. He's a third year general studies student, and his Quirk can create sound barriers around the dorms that will last all night."

Jiro took pause. Her face had gone pale, her mouth slightly open. "Does that mean…"

"We can make as much noise as we want," Toru clarified. "Or, more specifically…you can."

Kyoka drew herself up and huffed. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Mina and Toru exchanged a glance (at least, Mina was pretty sure), and then both looked back at her, grinning.

"Oh, I think you do," Mina said.

"What's this about?" Nejire asked.

"It's about what our class will be doing for the festival," Toru explained. "You see-"

But it was too late. Jiro had bolted off, like a scared animal. Mina watched her skinny frame disappear up the steps away from the common room, and sighed.

"She'll figure it out soon enough," Mina said. "In the meantime…OI! MIDORIYAAAAA!"

She knew the green-haired boy would come if called. That was his nature, perhaps even to his detriment. And he appeared fast, Izuku Midoriya did.

"Ashido!" he squeaked, practically popping up next to her. "What is it? Do you need help with anything?" His eyes were a mixture of concern and surprise, and then, he turned his head to see their guests…and his eyes widened.

"Ah! Ha…Nejire! Wh-what are you doing here?"

"Hi, Izuku!" Nejire bounced up and down on her toes. "I was just introducing this guy that can help with the festival."

"I'm Ikezawa," the boy explained again. "I can create sound barriers around the dorms that will trap in all the noise."

Izuku's eyes widened, and as Mina had hoped, the boy instantly went into Quirk analysis mode, muttering up a storm. Mina laughed, and gave him a shove.

"Go with those two, broccoli boy," she told him. "Skirt the perimeter of the building and have Boxy Ears here test his Quirk. See if it will suit our needs. You're the resident Quirk nerd, so I figured you'd be good for this job. Don't screw it up."

Izuku nodded at her absently, still muttering. Toru giggled, and so did, interestingly, Nejire.

As the two third years followed Izuku around the perimeter, Mina watched the blue-haired girl curiously. Her eyes were on Izuku, and they had that usual curious, bubbly spark…but she thought she saw something else as well.

"So…" Toru whistled. "First-name basis, huh?"

Shit. She hadn't even picked up on that. Had her sixth romantic sense gone soft?

"Do you know of anyone else that calls him Izuku?"

Mina shook her head. "Nope. Not even Ochaco does."

A moment of silence. And then: "Ochaco's not gonna like that, if she finds out."

For some reason, Mina didn't really know about that. "Ochaco's had plenty of chances," she said, surprised by the finality in her own voice, the almost harshness of it. "Come on, let's get inside. The next person isn't supposed to be here for another hour, and I can't be bothered to stand in the sun."

"The sun just refracts right through me."

"Oh, good for you. Meanwhile, I'm boiling."

…

Nejire Hado rarely felt left out in a social situation, but now was one of those times.

Kinri and Izuku had hit it off immediately, with Izuku asking rapid-fire questions about his Quirk and Kinri answering as best as he could, laughing at the first year's antics. As she followed them into the shadow of the dorm building, she continued to watch Izuku. He was smiling with such an excited look in his eye. The sort of genuine smile he'd shown to Eri, she remembered. Right before demolishing Overhaul…and showing genuine emotion on the opposite side of the spectrum. Fury.

Nejire realized that she was smiling, too, just watching him. Heat rushed to her cheeks. He doesn't smile like that around me…yet. Around me, he's just a big bundle of nerves. It frustrated her, because she had seen what he was really like…but only from a distance.

They stopped at the corner of the building, and Kinri heaved a deep breath before holding out his hands. A translucent substance began to ooze out of his palms, defying gravity and floating upward, spreading out like the kind of soapy substance kids used to blow bubbles. It formed up and hardened like a shimmery wall, building up a ways out from the building.

"Wow!" Izuku gushed. "Does that have a limit? How does it feel in your hands? Are you controlling its movement once it leaves your hands?" You could practically see the exclamation points over his head. Nejire giggled. When it came to Quirks, Izuku was just like her: bubbly and nosy and asking too many questions too quickly. Maybe we have more in common than I know.

Wait. Where had that come from?

Kinri laughed. "The limit is probably just a little bigger than the buildings are, for a single barrier. So we're safe on that front. It feels squishy and slimy in my hands, but I got used to that when I was a kid. And the substance sort of has its own cohesion, so it gels together and builds up naturally. As long as I keep moving laterally around the building-" He began to sidestep around the corner, the substance emitting from his hands and spreading as he did so. "-The barrier should form up how you want it to."

"That's amazing! And you said you could make enough of these for every dorm?"

"Yeah. It drains me quite a bit, but I can do it."

"Hmm." Suddenly, Izuku glanced back at Nejire, and she saw something cross his face. Surprise? Shock? His face went slack, his eyebrows went up…

Was he…concerned?

Nejire quickly pulled up her smile, suddenly worried that she might have appeared grumpy or something.

"So you're an emitter, then. My Quirk is just strength enhancement, so it works as long as I keep my body in shape, but I know some emitter Quirks run on particular fuel. Isn't that right, Nejire? You're an emitter, too."

Nejire gasped, very softly. Izuku was looking at her expectedly, smiling. Is he…trying to include me in the conversation?

Were her cheeks heating up again?

"My Quirk runs on stamina!" she replied back, grinning radiantly. "That's why I'm always so energetic! I turned into a ball of energy at a young age, to power my wave motion!"

Kinri laughed. "It's funny you should ask, Midoriya. My Quirk is actually connected to stuff I have to drink. The more fluids I have, the longer I can keep emitting the substance…and I've also found that when I listen to louder music, like death metal or something…the viscosity of the substance increases, and it becomes even more effective at blocking out sound."

"Whoa!" Izuku exclaimed. "Wait…does that mean without that viscosity, it may not be as effective?"

"I'm sure it'll be fine, but I'll be sure to grind through a couple Cannibal Corpse albums the night before, just in case."

Izuku blinked. "Ca…Cannibal Corpse? What's that?"

"Never mind…"

"Anyway, this seems great! Thanks a bunch, I should probably get back to Ashido now. Nice to meet you, Ikezawa." Izuku turned to Nejire. "And good to see you again, Nejire." He briefly paused, as if he might say something more, then shook his head a little and began walking back toward the building.

Nejire stood there for a moment, smiling, watching him go.

"Something catch your eye?" a voice asked behind her.

"GAH!" It wasn't often that she got spooked, but Kinri had managed that.

The boxy-eared boy laughed. "It's not often I've seen you this subdued. It's like he had a calming effect on you."

"I was just…thinking…"

"About him?"

"Maybe!" she snapped, her face turning red. "I swear, sometimes you're as bad as Yuyu."

…

Doko felt weird watching people from his window, but like…it was Midoriya and the person Midoriya had admitted having feelings toward, aka Nejire Hado. They were down there beneath the building, beneath his window, with one other boy who was showing off his Quirk for some reason.

Doko flashed back to their conversation after getting back from the Eri hospital visit.

Wait…Hado-senpai? The girl who abducted me and violated the personal space of everyone in our class?

Well, ye…wait. When did she abduct you?

Not important. Where'd this come from, Midoriya? Are you just infatuated with her?

N-no! Honestly, this is why I didn't want to tell anyone…

Okay, I'm sorry I said anything. I just had to make sure.

…Because she IS that kind of g-girl, you kn-know? Popular, sociable, pr…

Pretty?

Izuku had nodded, almost imperceptibly.

Okay, Midoriya. Why do you like her, then?

I don't know, she…paid attention to me?

Doko had hissed through his teeth at this.

Listen. I understand, I guess. Why don't you wait a bit and see if the feelings linger? If they do, pursue them further. If they don't…

I get it. But you know, this f-festival might be the last chance for me to ask her out, or at least to have a c-convenient excuse to…

Well, why don't you offer to see the festival as friends? Maybe not even just the two of you. Test the waters a bit. That'd be another way to gauge your feelings.

Doko watched as Midoriya walked away from Nejire, having not said anything. Rest in peace. He was fairly sure he'd offered good advice, but maybe Midoriya just didn't have the nerve.

This whole situation felt odd. Midoriya didn't seem like the type to break away from his hero goals to pursue a relationship, did he? Sure, Doko and Mina made it work, but Midoriya was different.

Different how? Doko wasn't sure. Midoriya always felt like he had…a responsibility.

Unknowable images flashed through his brain again. Nine shadowy figures in a line. One man forcing another to his knees with his hand, grinning openly, energy passing between them…

Doko blinked, his breath catching in his throat. What were those? Memories? Memories from a dream he'd forgotten?

Maybe he'd ask Mina about the Midoriya/Hado situation. Knowing her, she'd probably have caught on already.

He needed to go down to the common room anyway. He was of no help to anyone up here in his room.

Arriving downstairs, he saw that most of the class had gathered up for discussion now. Mina and Toru were leading the charge, the former reading off of her clipboard.

"Alright, so…are you getting this down, Yaomomo? Okay. 1B are doing some kind of play performance. 1D are making a pancake breakfast, that'll have to be the first thing of the day…2A are having a sparring tournament without Quirks. Yes, Ojiro, I know that interests you. Let me finish. 2F are…"

Doko walked up to Tokoyami and Sero, who were listening at the edge of the circle.

"There you are," Sero greeted. "Where have you been?"

"Spying on people," Doko responded truthfully. Sero just laughed.

"Your girlfriend is a force of nature," Tokoyami muttered, nodding towards Mina as she rambled on.

"You should see her at night," he replied reflexively. Sero gagged.

"Night makes chaos of us all…"

"So," Mina said, storing her pin in the top of the clipboard, and looking out at the whole class. "One crucial question remains, obviously. What are we going to do?"

"It seems a lot of classes are doing one-time events that would have to be scheduled," Momo pointed out. "Perhaps we should do something that would be available all day, to balance that out? Depending on what it is, we could rotate shifts so everyone in the class could enjoy what parts of the festival they want to see."

"But what would that be?" Ojiro asked dryly. "Food?"

"Food!" Sato agreed, pumping a bicep.

"Chill it, Iron Chef," Mina said, pointing her pen at him accusingly. "There is already a ton of food stuff happening. Almost half of the classes who've approached me so far are thinking of doing food. I'm not saying that you can't make food-"

"Good, because if you were I'd have to scream," Sato told her plainly.

"-But our main attraction should be something else."

Doko watched his girlfriend's eyes carefully. They were flickering over to someone in the room, who? He followed the line of sight, and landed on Kyoka Jiro, who was looking down at the floor, hugging her chest nervously.

"I-" Jiro opened her mouth, and then closed it quickly. It was too late, though; everyone had heard, and were now looking at her expectantly.

"I- what?" Bakugo demanded. "Spit it out!" Kirishima elbowed him.

"Jiro, do you have an idea?" Toru asked innocently. Doko shuddered. The girls in their class could be terrifying sometimes.

"Well, it's…" Jiro blushed. "It's not really considerate of other people…I mean, it'd be selfish…"

"Say it anyway," Doko told her. "Whether it's selfish or not is up to us, I think. And we can't make that judgment if we don't know."

She stared at him in something like surprise. "Well…"

"SAY IT!" a bunch of people told her at once, in good-natured exasperation.

"AH! Fine! Ugh." She twirled her earphone around her finger. "I was thinking we could play some music. Like a concert."

Iida raised his eyebrows. "A concert? In here?"

"There's enough space if we clear some of this stuff out. And the acoustics are good." She lifted her head up to the ceiling, and snapped her finger. Sure enough, the sound of the snap echoed a little.

Doko felt strange. Should I say something about? No, probably not…

"What about the noise?" asked Kirishima.

"I was just talking to a second year who can set up sound barriers around every building with his Quirk!" Midoriya exclaimed. "This is perfect! We could definitely do a concert in here!"

"In theory, sure," Iida admitted, "but do any of us know the first thing about doing a concert? Besides Jiro-san, of course?"

All eyes went back to her. She blushed. "That's…why I said it was selfish. What would a concert even be? What kind of music would we play? If it's just me and my acoustic guitar, that's one thing…but like…"

"I could help you, Kyoka," said Momo, putting a hand on the shorter girl's shoulder. "You have keyboards, don't you? I took piano lessons for many years, and have retained much of my skill."

"Okay, but, guitar and keyboards? What's that supposed to be? We need a drummer."

"I have an idea," said, to everyone's surprise, Todoroki.

Shoto walked across the room to his laptop, which was resting on the coffee table. He clicked onto a video sharing site, muttering loud enough for everyone to hear.

"I don't know what it's called, but…it uses guitars and keyboards. And dancing, and effects…if the goal of this festival is to make people happy, well…" His face turned red. "Watching it made me happy, at least."

He pulled up a video of a concert, and the rest of the class gathered 'round. It was a catchy pop tune, with many people on stage, and all sorts of lights and streamers moved around on the stage.

"How would we even do effects like that, though?" Ojiro asked, frowning.

"With Quirks!" Mina exclaimed. "Aoyama!"

The blonde looked up at her in surprised. "Moi?"

"You could shoot lasers. Toru here can reflect light off of herself like a rainbow. Bakugo could make sparks from his hands…"

"I'm not some firework, you lunatic!"

"And Todoroki could make ice sculptures! Plus, Yaomomo can basically make anything we need."

"That's…true," said Momo, frowning. "But say we do this band arrangement. We'd need other people to play instruments besides just Kyoka and myself."

"Yes," Jiro agreed. "I'd need someone on bass, and ideally another guitarist…and if I'm going to sing, then…" she blushed. "I'd like for someone to help with that, as well. Preferably the second guitarist."

Doko almost opened his mouth. Almost.

"And like I said before, a drummer."

"What about those dancers?" Sero pointed. "Would some of us dance?"

Mina grinned, pointing at herself. "I can do that! And I could have a few backup dancers! Not too many, since we don't have a stage's amount of space in here, but…"

"So," Iida said. "Let me get this straight. We'd have a group of people doing effects, a group of people playing the music, and then some dancers?"

"Yep!" Mina said. "And any other jobs can be filled by people who don't really fit into any category, if there's not enough space. Ojiro can be the greeter at the door, Sero can be the grouper, et cetera…"

"Hey, whoa," Shoji muttered.

"What?" Ojiro pushed forward angrily. "Are you saying that we couldn't do any of those other things?"

Mina held up her hands, as if in defense. "I just meant…"

"That we're too normal or plain or something?"

"NO, I was just tossing out random names based on people who hadn't spoken up yet…"

"Ojiro-kun, calm down," Toru said, somewhat pleading. "I'm sure she didn't mean it like that…"

"Well, it's kind of patronizing, alright? And I'm sure Sero feels the same wa-" Ojiro looked around, confused. "Where'd Sero go?"

Tokoyami and Doko looked at the now-empty space between them, then at each other, panicked.

The door leading out of the dorm swung shut. They watched a lanky silhouette shrink into the distance, heading out onto the grounds.

Bakugo groaned. "Fuck's sake."

Mina had gone pale. "I…I didn't mean to…I just got carried away…"

"It's fine, Ashido," said Shoji. "We all understand how it happened."

"Still, I should go after him and apolog-"

"No." Doko put an arm out to stop his girlfriend. "I'll go find him."

The two of them exchanged a glance. Mina seemed genuinely worried, hurt about what she'd done. Doko's mouth went flat.

"Just keep planning without me. I'll warp around and look for him."

"But wait," Jiro said. "What do you want to do for the concert, Katayama?"

He blinked at her. "I'm sure you'll think of something."

He turned, and left the dorm to go look for Sero.

…

The discussion continued, and Todoroki briefly looked back at his computer, where the concert was still playing.

Apparently, though, he'd left autoplay on, and a new video had shown up, one he didn't recognize.

Todoroki raised an eyebrow. "Huh?" He leaned down to click away, just hearing the first sentence of the video.

"Greetings, viewers! It is I, Gentle-"

…

"-Criminal! Today we are giving you a taste! A teaser, if you will! A prelude to the main event coming soon! A preliminary mission we must complete before we move on to our biggest mission yet! Are you watching closely, dear viewers? Today, I, Gentle Criminal, shall invade this home security store!"

Gentle whirled, pushing the door open. The cash register was on the left side, and the cashier immediately froze up, upon seeing his attire. La Brava followed behind, shadowing her taller partner.

The cashier put his hands up in fear.

"Ah, so you understand the game, dear gentleman! There will be no sudden movements, and I am going to need all the money in that machine of yours!"

"I…I know you! You're the guy from YouTube!"

Gentle cackled. "How good it feels to be recognized! If you know me, then you know that it is in your best interest to comply."

Slowly, shakily, the cashier began to dig through the desk. La Brava circled around them, keeping the camera on Gentle, all while looking around the store for the thing she was looking for…shelf after shelf after shelf…where could it be…keep the camera on him…there it is!

From out of frame, she sent Gentle the hand signal. She'd spotted what they'd really come here for. It was time to wrap it up, before heroes arrived.

The white-haired man nodded. "Dear viewers, it will soon be time for us to take our leave! Too soon, some of you might say. But speed is one of the crucial aspects to a perfect crime, as I have often said! There is an elegance in speed, oh yes!"

La Brava picked up what she needed off the shelf and placed it into her bag, all the while keeping the camera rolling, as Gentle took the money from the cashier.

"Now, La Brava, we shall be goin-"

They both turned to look back at the front door, and stopped short.

"STOP RIGHT THERE!" the hero yelled, his three sidekicks posing behind him.

Gentle's smile took on a sheepish quality. "Oh, dear. Four of them. La Brava…cut the camera."

…

Later, the two of them stood out on the street, about to leave the tech store far behind. The heroes were tied up inside, along with the cashier, who'd foolishly tried to help.

"I hope there was a good reason for that, La Brava," Gentle said, the pink glow around his body fading. "You know I don't like to scavenge places that haven't done anything inherently wrong."

La Brava looked down into her bag. "Don't worry, Gentle. This piece of tech is absolutely crucial if I'm going to bypass UA's security system."

"UA…" Gentle looked up, to the hill far away on the other side of Musutafu, barely visible. "Locked down like a prison, as it has been for the past few weeks. Our window closes, La Brava. The reporters are tired of reporting, and the people are tired of complaining. Eventually they will forget about UA's latest failing, at least until the school slips up again."

Gentle's smile almost cracked. He could not let his…vendetta against hero schools blind him to the larger mission at hand: his own reputation.

"No, it must be now," he muttered. "We will ride the wave of UA's bad press like we are surfing on it, La Brava! And I shall be known in the appendices of villainy as the man who struck gold!"

"The students and staff will fight," said La Brava. "If we're detected…"

"Oh, I should hope that they do," Gentle said, grinning. "I wouldn't want the footage any other way. This will be the grandest heist, and subsequent escape, ever put to the small screen! The day of our attack must be soon, when Internet traffic is at its height, and when the individuals residing on that hill are at their most vulnerable, most inattentive. The weekend. The day of our attack shall be…this coming Saturday."

…

Ibara Shiozaki was headed for her garden when she saw someone walking toward it, up ahead of her.

Tilting her head in surprise, she saw that it was Sero. He was walking relatively quickly; did he think she was there? Did he need her for something urgent?

She'd better hurry, if that was the case!

Heart racing, she picked up speed, walking as fast as she was willing to do while still in her uniform skirt. Sero had not seen her. She was looking at his back, and couldn't see his facial expression. Were his fists clenched?

He's upset about something. Oh, dear.

Flashbacks went through her head. Flashbacks from middle school.

Stay away from me, you plant-headed freak!

Do you think everyone's your charity case?

You can't just walk around with that cross and solve people's problems!

Stay away from me! Leave me alone!

Sero wouldn't say that, she told herself. She'd been talking to him long enough to know. Even if he was upset, he'd try to stay relaxed. Always relaxed, that was Hanta Sero.

And if he was going to the garden, then…didn't he expect to see her?

They passed under the dappled half-shade of the trees, where the plants were set up in their long line. Ibara watched from a safe distance as Sero walked to the bench where they'd sat before.

He stood there for a moment, trembling a little, and then kicked the bench with a loud clang. Ibara jumped, and gasped, but he didn't hear her. He whirled, sat down on the bench, and put his face in his hands.

He didn't want to see me at all, she thought, wilting. He just needed a place to retreat to.

She wondered what happened. Those times in middle school flashed through her head again, and she fingered the cross that rested over her breasts.

He probably needs some space. For some reason, she felt disappointed. There you go again, wishing you could "fix" someone else. Even in Class B, some of them had complained. Setsuna had done so, good-naturedly. Tsuburaba and Kaibara, a bit more aggressively…

But for some reason, another part of Ibara's brain fought back. Her disappointment…it felt different with Sero. Maybe because he'd opened up to her a few times before?

In any case, something in her heart was tugging at her, making her not want to leave him. She...didn't want to miss a chance to speak to him?

Her own feelings took her aback. Scared her, a little.

"Shiozaki?"

She gasped, broken from her reverie. While she'd been standing there, he'd looked up and noticed her.

"I'm…I'm sorry, I'll…"

"No, it's alright." His face had relaxed, but it felt almost forced, like he'd done it quickly upon spotting her. "If I'm in your way, I'll go."

"You're not in my way," she said, quickly. Almost blurting it.

"...Were you coming to garden? I didn't mean to intrude, I just needed a place…to, um…"

She'd been correct, then. "Well, I was coming to do that, until I spotted you on your way here," she said. "Do you…do you want to talk about it?" She winced inwardly, loathing herself in that moment. He was going to reject her, right?

"...No. There's nothing to talk about. Nothing you haven't heard, anyway." He leaned back into the bench, putting his head up to the sky, and groaned. "Ugh, why did I storm out like that? They're gonna think I'm really mad or something. I guess I was for a second, but not really…I just felt like I needed to get out of there…"

"What happened?" Ibara tentatively sat down next to him.

"Ehh, nothing much. We were just planning for the festival, like what everyone's task would be? And Ashido just casually namedropped me and one other guy as examples of people who could do like…the menial tasks. I'm sure she didn't really mean anything behind it. I mean, Ashido is a close friend of mine, so it's no big deal. But…aaaaah. I think it's just been on my mind too much recently. How plain and disposable I am, you know? And so when it was just dropped out in the open like that, I kinda…panicked."

Ibara reached out her hand, perhaps to give his shoulder a comforting rub, or something. But the voices from middle school flashed through her again, and she withheld the hand. I've been smothering him, haven't I? Always asking him about his problems…it's so one-sided. What's…what's wrong with me?

"Shiozaki?"

"Huh?" she looked up at him, taken out of her thoughts by her name for a second time.

"Are you…sure you're alright?" He was blinking at her, concern in his eyes.

She laughed it off. "Don't you worry about me. I wouldn't want to stomp all over your feelings right now…"

"Are you kidding me? I'd welcome any distraction," he said. And then, adding quickly, "Not that I consider you a distraction, or anything! You're much more than that. I mean, uhh…damn. Sorry." He coughed.

Ibara smiled gently. "Language," she reminded him.

"Sorry again."

They both laughed lightly, the tension having broken slightly. When Ibara finished her weary chuckle, she sighed, her hand going to her cross again. "I just…I feel bad. I feel like I'm bothering you when I ask about your problems."

He swallowed. "Well, to tell the truth…I feel like I'm bothering you with my problems. I feel like you…like you pity me."

"I don't!" she insisted, quickly. "Not at all. I know you can still wipe the floor with me in combat. Your class will realize your skills eventually. And…the rest of the world will, too. I know it."

"Not if I don't work for it," he said, leaning back against the bench again. "I just gotta keep working. But seriously, though…you're not a bother to me. At all. So don't worry about it."

"It's just…it's happened before…" she half-whispered. "People have gotten annoyed with me, and my…I guess you could call it my schtick? I just want to help people, you know? Whenever I see someone struggling, I want to help. And I think it's to my detriment…"

Sero cracked a smile. "I think that's a good problem to have, Shiozaki. It's the perfect problem for a hero. Midoriya, from my class, is just like that. It will serve you well in the field. As for social situations, well…if you're aware of it, then you probably already know where to strike the balance, see? So there's nothing to worry about."

She just gazed at him, marveling. How could he be so laid-back, make everything seem so simple? It was like a spell. Was all of life that uncomplicated when you broke it down? The way he made it seem…like nothing would ever be an issue.

It made her feel safe, comforted.

"Shiozaki?" he asked again, for the third time. Goodness, she was bad at drifting off, wasn't she?

"I'm sorry," she muttered. "My thoughts are speeding away from me, today. You are correct, I think."

"No problem. Man, I should probably get back soon…"

Stay a little longer, her heart begged, so intensely that the words nearly escaped her mouth. What was wrong with her? This was…this was something else.

A new feeling.

…

Doko pretty much saw the whole thing. He couldn't hear them, sitting at their bench half a hundred yards away, but he watched nonetheless. After a while, seeing that they were keeping each other company well enough, he turned back toward 1-A's dorm.

Spying on two budding relationships in one day. What am I, some kind of deviant?

Sero would be fine, as he expected. Doko knew how he felt, probably. In that moment where he'd left, he'd probably just felt like he couldn't stay a second longer, even if he wasn't even that angry. Tough situation.

Maybe they'd talk later. He considered Sero one of his closest friends, possibly even his best male friend. Back before the dorms, they'd taken the same train together every day. And Sero had come to rescue him at Kamino. He owed the tape user a lot.

He'll get his chance. Smiling, Doko thought of Ibara. And maybe with her, too. Two chances.

As he closed back in on the dorm, he kept his head down at his feet, watching them move forward, one at a time. Holding his Quirk back from exploding into them, causing him to go warp-crazy. A constant push-pull, like keeping his jaw clenched.

He wondered how much longer he could go on like this. Between the Eri visit, the Kurogiri incident, and the constant training with Aizawa and Recovery Girl, as well as normal classes…

I need a break.

Yet, it felt like he was doomed to not enjoy the festival as much as his fellow classmates. Sure, he and Mina were planning to have a bit of time to just themselves…but that would be it.

He'd almost blurted to Jiro about his background with guitar and voice lessons. But…they were so tied to his bad memories with his adopted family, who'd forced him to do them, in an attempt to try and find something he could be good at besides the Quirk they hated.

And he hadn't been bad, according to his instructor. But, even if he could get over the bad memories associated with it, would he even have retained that skill? He doubted it. It had been years.

And he didn't want to put himself out there, give Jiro his trust, only to possibly break it later. That was unfair to both him and her.

Still, though…

As he closed in on the dorm, watching his feet, one of the songs he'd learned came to his head once again. Like a long string of memory suddenly being lifted out of the muck, it returned to him verse by verse.

He began to sing.

Oh, you were born with the sun.

And oh, you'll die with the moon.

And everything you thought you had you lost,

but now you'd never lose what you don't have.

Prayers from above,

never answered quite enough,

now the only one you have…

…is you.

Now the only one he had was him.

Up ahead, someone clapped, very slowly.

Surprised, Doko looked up. Kyoka Jiro was sitting on the steps, her mouth hung open in shock.

"Aak!" Doko coughed. "Were you…did you hear…what are you doing out here?"

"Thinking about my new bandmates. One of which just became you."

"I…huh?"

"You have a great singing voice, Katayama. It's almost unfair. Why haven't you ever said anything?"

"You never said anything about your musicianship either, until we invaded your room!"

She opened her mouth in retort, and then closed it.

"Yeah, that's what I thought."

"Can you play guitar, though?"

"I mean, a little…"

"Great. You'll be my backup. Do my vocal harmonies and the second guitar part. Tokoyami's on bass. Momo is on keyboards. Bakugo's our drummer."

"WHAT?!"

Jiro stood. "Come on, we've got to tell the others. And no, you're not getting out of this. Not after what I just heard."

…

The song is "What It Means To Be Alone" by The Dear Hunter. I do not own it.

Next time, the students get into hardcore preparation mode as the day of the festival approaches. Gentle and La Brava make their move.