Disclaimer: I only own Megumi. My Hero Academia belongs to Horikoshi Kouhei.

- Chapter 4 -

Frustration

The rooftop turned out to be a much nicer spot than she had imagined.

Sure, she had to make a beeline all the way over to the building next to the hero department's facilities, but other than that it was an exceptionally calm and quiet place to eat. There were a few students who were milling around, chattering amongst each other and generally minding their own business. She could appreciate that.

From where she was sitting and peacefully eating her ramen, Megumi could take in the view of UA's campus in all its glory. Finally being alone with her thoughts after having escaped the classroom was a huge relief. Not that she had anything against her classmates or the teachers- but it simply just became too much for her seeing such familiar yet surreal faces everywhere.

Not to mention she had no idea how Megumi usually acted during class, so she would have to bear with the strange looks she received until they got used to her new behavior. By no means was she an actor. She also didn't see the upside of trying to act like a brat when she knew that the guilt and shame would eat her alive from the inside. It was better to let them believe that the local Diva of class 1-A had a change of heart following the USJ Incident.

A crash followed by various surprised yelps came from somewhere behind her.

She looked back to see a group of girls who had been sitting together near the stairs. One of them had udon spilled all over her shirt and on the floor. 'Ah, unfortunate. Don't general studies kids have to pay for canteen food?'

Setting down her bowl, Megumi stood up from her place while rummaging through the pockets in her skirt.

The girls flinched when they saw her approaching. Megumi stared right back at their spooked expressions, slightly amused by their suspicion. Her reputation must have reached even other departments. Smoothly, she drew her hand out of her pocket and offered the girl with the soiled shirt a handkerchief along with some tissues. 'I prepared them just in case I broke down crying during the day. But it's been going well so far, so I don't think I'll need them.' "I heard Lunch Rush-san likes giving out seconds for free."

And with that, her job was done and she went back to sitting cross-legged in the spot she had designated for herself. 'Now where was I…'

Ah yes, her behavior. Telling someone about her real identity wasn't even an option- she'd be labeled batshit insane. Or a possible villain who hijacked Airashi Megumi's body during the Incident. Both were not her cup of tea. Moreover, did she even know what her 'real' identity was at this point? Sometimes her memories seemed to blend and turn blurry, like having paint colors mixing together creating a mess. It didn't help that there was no one who could slap her across the face and drag her back up to reality when it happened. Well, maybe if she made some friends…

She couldn't stop the stupid smile from appearing on her face when she thought back to Ashido's offer. Sure, maybe that had just been out of pity or courtesy, but it had made her happy nonetheless. Those words had managed to thaw away the chill that had overcome her while sitting next to the walking glacier called Todoroki. Another reason she had gone out of her way to avoid him during lunch was because he had been making her side of the room freezing despite her facing his hot side and she was very much someone who preferred warm places. What if he made her food go cold as soon as she sat next to him?

That would be evil. She would rather not turn him into such a criminal.

Checking her watch, she saw there were 5 minutes left of lunch time. 'Better get the dishes back to the cafeteria and head back to class. Got 4 more classes to survive before I can go home.'

"Hey hey isn't that the girl?"

"Omg why is she here… this is ruining my appetite."

"Hmph, she looks fine for having faced villains. They were making such a big deal out of nothing."

They couldn't have not noticed her coming onto the rooftop, because hero course students almost never left their side of the school. What was Airashi Megumi, the snootiest and most obnoxious 1-A student doing on their rooftop?

"I bet she got ditched. It's what she deserves."

"Bet. Wish she didn't come here of all places."

"Look at her, looking like she owns the place. UA would have never accepted her if she didn't have a rich daddy."

Just the sight of her made the annoyance and jealousy swell up within them. All everyone had been talking about ever since the USJ Incident was how brave and strong the 1-A kids were. How they would become excellent heroes in the future. How proud they made UA. How fortunate they should count themselves to even be in the same school as them.

All they saw was a bunch of privileged kids lucky enough to have good quirks and good connections.

In the eyes of those lucky bastards, any other department besides the hero department might as well not exist. What made them furious was the utter disregard hero apprentices would give them, looking right through them as if they were just furniture standing in the hallways as they lived out their hero fantasies to the fullest extent. How dare they mock them with their stupid, happy-go-lucky demeanors.

Even if they were loud, rude and annoying, the teachers would always take their side, praising them. They had taken the same exact entrance exams as those guys, yet they ended up being benched and thrown into general studies like garbage that didn't have what it takes.

What did 1-A have that they didn't?

Their whispers and sneers turned into yelps. Komachi had spilled udon broth all over herself.

Light footsteps approached them. They looked on, mortified.

'Did she hear us?!'

A pale hand reached out to them with a handkerchief and tissues.

Her wavy blonde hair looked messy, as if she hadn't bothered to brush it for days. Bandages were wrapped around her head, a few band-aids decorating her face, unusually devoid of makeup. She stood before them with her untied laces and school tie with all the confidence in the world. Teal eyes were set on them, as if daring them to confess what they had been saying behind her back- but no, she couldn't have heard them. Right?

Her lips turned slightly upwards when a nervous Komachi accepted her offer.

"I heard Lunch Rush-san likes giving out seconds for free."

Ah.

Despite all that, they couldn't help but think she looked pretty when she smiled.

The day went relatively uneventful, just the way she liked it.

She religiously ignored Todoroki's suspicious glares and Midoriya's big wide puppy eyes. Nothing could shake her, she was unshakeable- a big ass mountain. Unmovable, unshakeable, a piece of rock personified. Ugh if only he stopped looking at her like that.

Therefore, Megumi made sure to pay extra attention in class: both in order to wrap her head around high school level concepts once again and to escape the pressure she was feeling. English was a torture to sit through- not because it was difficult, but because of how boring it was. Doing basic grammar exercises in English felt like she had been transported back into primary school.

A couple of Yaoyorozu's diligent answers, Midoriya's scary mumblings and Mineta's pervy comments later (little shit was sitting right in front of her she was so fucking done-) classes eventually ended. She could finally go home. 'I survived the first day. Only 3 more years to go.'

With a sigh she started packing up her things. From the corner of her eye she could see Midoriya slowly inching his way towards her. 'Oh god, what does he want. I gotta go fast.' Had he figured it out? No no, even if he was smart, that was impossible. So why was he so dead-set on talking to her? Because he wanted to apologize again? God he should just let it be, what was done was done, it hadn't been his fault in the first place.

Before she could even attempt to bolt out of the door, a certain someone stood in front of her again. Megumi blinked, surprised.

Ashido gave her one of her infectious smiles. "Hey! I was wondering if you wanted to walk together to the train station with Tsu-chan and I."

Ah man. The butterflies were there again. How could she say no to that? Oh but her chauffeur… hm. She bit her lip in deep thought.

The pink haired girl perked up at the equally pleasant smile blooming on Megumi's face. "I would love that."

"Uwah, great! Let's wait a bit for Tsu-chan to collect her things and we can go right away."

Now that she was busy listening to Ashido chattering away about her day, she observed Midoriya scratching his head at the missed opportunity and walking back to Iida and Ochako. 'Oof, safe for now.' The main character showing such interest in her new self made her unnecessarily paranoid. It would be best to keep her distance.

She had been so busy secretly celebrating her minor victory that she had forgotten about what was going to happen next.

Just as Asui was done packing, Ochako's fearful exclamation turned heads. "Woah… What's going on?!"

Outside of their classroom were a horde of students from every department, staring at them as if they were exotic zoo animals. 1-A students stared right back with wide eyes, dumbfounded.

Oh lord it was time for the shitshow.

Bakugou stepped forward, looking unimpressed. "Cuz we're the kids who survived a villain attack. Makes sense they'd want a look before the Sports Festival." Uh oh. Megumi cringed away from the door slightly, praying she could just disappear under the floorboards. "No point, though. Move aside, cannon fodder."

What the fuck was this crazy bastard- couldn't he have waited until she had managed to flee the classroom?!

A wild head of purple pushed his way to the front. He was tall, so tall he stuck out from the crowd. 'Great, more clowns for the circus. Might as well enjoy the show while I'm here.' There wasn't much she could do aside from watch the events unfold before her. It wasn't like her reputation had been all that good anyway.

"Are all the kids in the hero course like this one? Gotta say, I'm a little disillusioned if this is what you're offering."

Megumi tiptoed and came to a stand next to Iida. Front row seats to such a spectacle were a must. She felt like she was watching a TV drama on live recording. High schoolers squabbling with each other over pride and social hierarchy were sort of funny. She remembered the petty arguments she used to get into with her friends back in high school. Good times.

"Depending on the results of this Sports Festival, they might consider transferring us to the hero course. I understand the reverse is also possible for you…"

Wait a minute… this guy… was saying some pretty smart stuff. Why hadn't she thought of that before? If her performance was absolute trash during the Sports Festival, she could be automatically expelled from the hero course. Especially considering she was a recommended student. But… that kind of method of escaping… it felt disingenuous. Running away would only prove that she was a coward.

Once again, she was reminded of her parents and their complete disinterest in the Original. They had never taken her seriously from the very beginning. And from what she had seen so far, they likely never would. They didn't need her to be good in her studies or have a good personality or whatever else. She was the heir only in name- what they needed was a pretty face who could represent them until they could officially delegate the role of company president over to her younger brother. If she really had been the heir, they would have never allowed her to pursue UA's hero course.

What would become of her if she lost her place in UA? She would be… at their mercy.

She suppressed the trembling of her hands. It was as if the Original herself was screaming at her not to end up playing into their games. 'Calling that woman my mother is an insult to my real mom… that snake would manipulate the situation in her favor. Without the hero course, I would be nothing.'

Megumi would proceed as she had initially planned. It would be a hard ride, but continuing her path as a hero was the best choice. This is what Colby had dreamed of all along, and it was what would save her in the end. Fighting off villains was nothing compared to being powerless for that woman to do as she pleased. Her father was a fool with no ambition, but the Original's memories proved far too well how far her supposed mother would go to achieve her goals.

Training… yes, she already had some things in mind for that but-

"And you,"

Huh? "M-me?"

Purple eyes squinted at her in distain. "Don't think you can flatter or bribe people now that you know the Sports Festival is coming up. Everyone knows how you got into the hero course in the first place. Nobody is going to go easy on you just because your family can pull some strings. UA doesn't need someone like you- you're just as arrogant as that guy over there." The murmurs and whispers in the crowd increased.

What in the... "You're lumping me in with him?!"

A blazing red glare fumed in her direction. "HA?!"

'…I just said that out loud.'

Megumi had been standing around, minding her own fucking business and not even hearing half of the things being said, and this asshole decides to rip into her for no reason? What the fuck. Rude.

If he was gonna make it personal, she sure as hell would do too.

She cleared her throat. "Alright, Shinsou Hitoshi-san. Let's make one thing crystal clear. You're the one who came here with intentions to provoke us. You're the one declaring war on us- quite one-sidedly might I add. I don't know what kind of damage you got," She could feel the intense aura of her classmates telling her to please stop talking for the love of god but she had enough of this person running his mouth off and most importantly, dragging her into this. It was starting to piss her off.

She just wanted to go home, damn it. "But you making a scene in front of our classroom doesn't inconvenience only us, but the other classrooms in this hallway as well. The so-called pedestals you're talking about don't exist. I don't give a fuck about what you think of me. If there's someone looking down on general studies, it's you. If they have something to prove, they're gonna do so in the Sports Festival by their own accord. How dare you assume they need you to make unnecessary drama for them. Shut the hell up if you can't show us what you got without sounding like a child you piece of shi-!"

Two people linked their arms around Megumi's and flanked her from both sides as they started dragging her away. Ashido's grip was particularly strong as she nervously laughed, saluting a goodbye as she did so. "Ahaha, don't mind her, she's been having a bad day! We gotta get home soon, wouldn't wanna miss the train, the daily grind y'know it! Haha!"

Asui had Megumi's bag hanging off her tongue as she glanced back. "We'll get going, kero."

The blonde struggled in their hold. "Let go! I got plenty more to say to that son of a b-" and her words faded into the distance as they disappeared around the corner.

You could have heard a pin drop at the silence that followed.

'…What just happened?'

Megumi was crouched in a corner in front of the school gates, gloom hanging over her amidst Ashido's manic laughter.

"Oh man! I can't believe you did that. You went off on him bwahaha!"

She held her head in her hands, desperately trying to stop that scene from replaying in her mind over and over again. "I just… I-I didn't mean to. It's been a long day…"

"You should have seen his face pfhahah that was perfect!"

All the thoughts weighing on her mind and taking a toll on her emotions had burst out of her in that moment. Having Shinsou's accusations interrupt her while she had been thinking of some important plans for the future had made the anger inside of her explode. If they hadn't dragged her away from there she undoubtedly would have said some pretty nasty stuff.

Asui gave her shoulder a pat of sympathy. "That was kind of cool, kero. Never thought I would hear such things from you Airashi-chan."

It must have been out of character to see her not whining or complaining, but reacting with plain anger for once. She'd just been so sick and tired of having shit thrown her way for things she hadn't been responsible for. Did they not know that money meant absolutely nothing to UA? That the Original had worked hard to get accepted into the hero course like everyone else? It was ridiculous how such petty rumors could grow as time passed. Regardless, as someone with the mental age of an adult, she should have restrained herself better and just kept her trap shut.

She peeked at the still laughing Ashido and calm Asui. They had really helped her out today. In fact, they had been pretty much the only people from her class she had properly interacted with so far. Excluding Midoriya and the slew of apologies he had bombarded her with.

Megumi let out a few laughs of her own. "How about we grab something to eat before going home?"

"That was unexpectedly manly!"

Sero and Kaminari watched on in amusement as Kirishima threw his fist in the air, eyes starstruck. "There he goes again..."

"I never knew Airashi had it in her! She challenged him right back! So manly- I'm jealous!"

Kaminari sighed. "Man, that was pretty scary though... both her and blasty going in on that guy, I thought someone was going to die."

Sero snickered at his comment, turning back to the excited redhead. "'Manly' huh? You said the same thing about Bakugou. Who do you think is manlier?"

He looked the cellophane user dead in the eye. "Bakugou."

"Wow, no hesitation!"

With a hand on his chin, Kirishima seemed to be in deep thought. "...for now."

A/N:

Phew. Good day everyone!

I love reviews. Whenever I'm stuck at writing, reading the encouragement you give me is wonderful. Be it long or short, I love them all!

I'm so happy some of you guys have caught on to some hints already.

Writing Megumi and her interactions with people is stressful, but also pretty fun. Writing freeform is a wild ride, too. God knows how many times I've changed the scenarios in this chapter before settling on this. I wonder how the Sports Festival is going to turn out. I have a faint idea of what I want to do, but that's always subject to change whenever I start working on the chapters.

I promise I don't hate Shinsou! This is just how it turned out. Megumi has a short fuse.

Hope you enjoyed this one!