Rule #46a: Work hard, play hard

Time seemed to fly by as they prepared for the school festival and soon enough, they were only hours away from it all. This was their last rehearsal before the big day, which would begin tomorrow at 9am sharp. Although the school festival opened up at 9am, 1-A's performance didn't start until 10am, which gave them just enough time to set up and get any last minute details ready. As Toru stood on the stage in the gym alongside the rest of her class for their last run-through, she marvelled at how quickly that month seemed to have passed them by.

Not only was the 1-A performance looking good, but things were going well for the DFD showcase too. All the costumes were ready and done, shoes finally worn in and the dancers (although jittery with nerves) had their moves down and polished to their highest standards. They may have been a class of delinquents/heroes, but that didn't mean they wanted to make a fool of the themselves in front of the whole school plus family and friends.

"…We'll have to clear out of the gym soon!" Kirishima called from the front of the stage where he and the rest of the effects team sat playing the role of the audience. "But we should have enough time for one more run through!"

"Look alive!" Mina clapped, gaining their attention. "And one & two & three, and one & two & three! And…pose! Then Aoyama goes to the center and Midoriya books it offstage"

"Oui!" Aoyama chirped as he tiredly trudged over to the center of the stage.

"On it!" Midoriya nodded, moving to make his way off stage and up into the rafters where he would marionette Aoyama's harness.

"Midoriya!" Mina pointed to the greenette, making him pause before the stairs. "You're still lacking passion, so bring. The. Fire!"

"Roger!"

"I was worried we'd look like amateurs, but things are looking good" Sero commented from next to Kirishima. "The band & dance teams are stepping up their games and putting in the work. Guess it helps that Ashido's a merciless coach"

"Yeah" Kirishima smiled fondly, "Dancing's her thing, so she's taking this seriously. I think Bakugou fired everyone up too and not just the band members"

"I'll admit, I am getting a little nervous!" Momo whined off to the side where she stood grouped together with the band members as they played air instruments, trying to memorise their notes.

"Hey, don't improvise during the actual concert" Jiro had turned to Bakugou who looked suitably annoyed with the advice.

"HUH?!" Bakugou snarked.

"It's just that not everyone can keep up with you"

"Why you gotta drag me like that, Jiro?" Kaminari whined beside them.

"I don't think you're the only one she's talking about, friend" Tokoyami placed a reassuring hand on the downtrodden blonde's shoulder.

"WE NEED YOU UP ON THAT CATWALK LIKE YESTERDAY!" Mina called up to the greenette though cupped hands. "SO HURRY! WHEN AOYAMA'S IN PLACE, GET 'IM IN THE AIR!"

"Weeeeeeee!" The Frenchman squealed as he was hoisted sky high with his arms and legs splayed out like he was dancing in the wind.

"THAT'S IT! PERFECT!"

BANG!

"IT'S ALREADY 9PM! STUDENTS SHOULD'VE CLEARED OUT OF THE GYM BY NOW!" Hound Dog-Sensei bellowed as he burst through the side door, his voice bordering on the barks and growls he usually dissolved into whenever he was overexcited or annoyed with a student. It made Toru wonder why he was school's councillor on more than one occasion.

"Crap! Let's beat it!" Kirishima hissed as they all scrambled to get their gear together before slipping back off to the dorms in the dark of night, the path only lit by their phone lights and the flickering street lamps above them.


The atmosphere the next morning was filled with anxiety, anticipation and nerves galore as the hours ticked down until the school festival. With their class slotted in for (one of) the first performance slots, the first years were suitably antsy about the whole thing. Currently, they stood huddled in the green room (AKA the locker room) of the gym they were to be using. Toru tugged at the hem of her golden skirt for the umpteenth time that morning, more out of nervousness than actually trying to adjust the hem.

The costumes themselves varied only slightly between the genders, with the girls wearing golden blazers & shirts that cropped just above their navels and a purple body suit laying beneath it all. A golden & fur-trimmed skirt matched the button-lined top and tied the whole ensemble together with their school ties tied short. The boys wore something similar; with the suits being golden in colour, the blazer's lapels lined with buttons and tie tied way too short, but that was about it. In comparison, the band and effects teams costumes wore just simple orange t-shirts that read A Band/Effects that were tucked into their pants/skirts from their school uniform. They looked good anyhow.

Currently, they were waiting for Midoriya to return with the rope needed to hoist Aoyama into the air, arguably one of the more important stunts of their performance. It felt like if one piece or person was out of place then they'd be toast, and labelled the jokes of the school. Aizawa, Mirio and Eri had come by to wish them well at one point; well, well-wishing was a stretch because their Sensei had reminded them once more that there would be some haters who believed their class to be the root of all problems this year and were just looking for an excuse to dump on them. So, y'know, great confidence booster. In the end, Aoyama (dressed in his hero costume) chose to search for his handler in the hopes that they could hurry everything along.

Thankfully, both Aoyama and Midoriya made it back—and dressed—by the skin of their teeth where they were berated by both Bakugou (mostly Midoriya) and Momo for their lateness. Iida, for once, appeared far more occupied with his sudden nerves to tell anyone off, which was understandable considering the roar of the crowd that flowed in from behind the stage's curtain. "There are way more people here than I'd thought there'd be!" Toru whispered nervously as she and Ochako peeked out through a gap in the curtains to see a packed room standing before the stage—at least half the school had to be there!

"At least everyone sounds like they're in a good mood" Sato replied, although it sounded more like a question than an answer.

"Well, yeah stupid, it's a festival" Mineta drawled. It would've been more convincing if his knees weren't knocking together.

When the clock struck 10am, the lights in the gymnasium went dark and the curtains parted to reveal 1-A precariously poised in front of them, some baring instruments and others standing (hopefully) tall. A series of jaunts, taunts and cheers sounded from the audience and Toru found herself once more thankful that she was invisible to others around her so that she didn't have to force a wobbly nervous smile onto her face like Midoriya had done. She was also thankful that the lights at the front of the stage blocked everyone from view, bar the first few rows so she could pretend there were less people in the room than there actually were.

"NOW! START DAMMIT!" Bakugou roared from the back, drumsticks raised in the air as he pumped them all up. "Get ready UA! OUR SOUND IS GONNA KILL YOU!"

Just as it had many times before, the word 'kill' ignited something inside of Toru that only the students of 3-E could explain and she knew that she would be fine. Behind her, a wave of sound exploded outwards as Bakugou blew up and the song & dance began with a roar. It seemed to have been a confidence booster for the rest of her class as well because she watched from her peripherals as Jiro shook off her nerves and cheered into the microphone. "THANKS FOR COMING OUT TODAY!" Her voice reaching the furthest corners of the room as Ojiro & Mina were thrust up into the air, before magical voice flowed out across the upbeat melody, bringing all their hard work to life.

What am I to be?

What is my calling?

I gave up giving up, I'm ready to go

The future's left unseen

It all depends on me

Put it on the line to follow my dream

Yeah, tried all my life, I've tried to find

Something that makes me hold on and never let go, oh!

The excesses of Bakugou's explosion still littered the stage, the smoke hung around their ankles as Toru and the other dancers flowed with the punchy beat, their feet light as they spun and moved. A genuine grin flittered onto her lips and Toru found herself easily giving in to muscle memory as she moved through the dance.

Hero too, I am a hero too

My heart is set (my heart is set) and I won't back down

Hero too, strength doesn't make a hero

True heroes (true heroes) stand up for what they believe

So wait and see

As one, the dancers launched themselves high into the air with fists raised and expressions filled with such glee that it was almost contagious. Flying high, Toru closed her eyes as she hung in the air for a moment, arms spread like she was flying, before gravity took a hold. No sooner had they touched back down on the stage did Midoriya and Aoyama surge towards each other in the center of the stage, where Aoyama was then thrown sky high with navel laser blazing as he spun, making him appear like a human firework.

What do they think of me?

Who do they think I'll be?

I could not care less, I don't wanna know

Am I doing right?

Am I satisfied?

I wanna live my life like it's meant to be, yeah!

Tried all my life, I've tried to find

Something that makes me hold on and never let go, oh!

Next the girls (begrudgingly) fell into step, forming Mineta's promised harem, if only for a moment. Nevertheless, Toru felt incredibly sleazy bowing to the pervert's will no matter how brief; she was sure that he would laud that moment for days to come. Thankfully, Iida's (supposedly) serious mirror of the moment where he performed the most deadpanned robot dance ever, assuaged this feeling. It was funny seeing their strait-laced class rep so carefree.

Hero too, I am a hero too

My heart is set (my heart is set) and I won't back down

Hero too, strength doesn't make a hero

True heroes (true heroes) stand up for what they believe

So wait and see

At the second round of the chorus, Todoroki's ice erupted out over the crowd's heads as Momo's confetti & Sero's tape showered down like snow. Meanwhile, with the audience occupied with the amazing effects above them, the dancers slipped from the stage and made their way up into the icy rafters to continue dancing whilst also showcasing the band still on stage.

People will judge for no reason at all

Yeah they might try

To say your dream's dumb, don't listen

They may look down on me and count me out

I'm going my own way

They may look down on me and count me out

I'm a hero, I've got music!

It was here that Aoyama was dragged along behind Midoriya like a disco ball, Ochako was flung about in a similar manner with the use of Tsu's tongue as she clapped raised hands & pushed people into the air. Koda's birds wove and dove between the flying people, practically dancing about them as Toru's violet fireflies shimmered against the misty ice like fairies in the snow.

Hero too, I am a hero too

My heart is set and I won't back down

Hero too, strength doesn't make a hero

True heroes stand up for what they believe

Yeah I'll be!

Down below, the roar of the cheering crowd echoed their sound and Toru felt like her cheeks were going to split apart with how hard she was smiling. All around her, her classmates bore similar expressions as the gym was turned into a concert hall; expressions, mind you, that was mirrored in the students below them. In fact, Toru would bet that not a single frown was present in that place as Jiro sung her heart out.

Hero too, I am a hero too

My heart is set (my heart is set) and I won't back down

Hero too, strength doesn't make a hero

True heroes (true heroes) stand up for what they believe

So wait and see

As they jumped, danced and flung themselves about the place, Toru couldn't help but think that this right here, was the kind of hero work that people should aspire to do. Not the punch-the-villain-in-the-face kind of hero work that most were known for, but the small happy-moments-that-make-you-smile kind of work. Y'know, the kind of things that stand out like a light in the dark, something that you'd remember forever; perhaps not verbatim, but how you felt in the moment. People did say that happiness was the best medicine.

I have met so many heroes in my life

Gave me the strength and courage to survive

Gave me the power to smile everyday

Now it's my turn to be the one to be the one to make you smile!