"This will be no different than training at school; the Unforeseen Simulation Joint is an extension of UA and under strict safety protocols," Aizawa explained, miraculously unwavering on the school bus he, I, and the twenty students of class 1-A were using for transport. With only one face-forward chaperone seat in the front I was snug against Eraserface, grabbing onto his belt every time the bus hit a pothole. He glanced down at me, amused. He doesn't need you to steady him, Chiyo. He's a professional hero, remember?

"There are six main zones- each with different climates, situations, and terrain. We'll separate you accordingly once we arrive."
He slid back down with a heaving sigh, hair tangling around him like a distorted crown. I at last let go of his belt and he cracked an eye in my direction.

"Drink too much last night?"
He didn't dignify my chipperness with an answer.

I had meandered home at a snail's pace, thoughtfully observing two parts of my brain fight one another.
There was the rational, safe portion, demanding I let go of any notions of attraction to Shota Aizawa and his pressing ways and focus instead on Toshi, whose text I hadn't noticed until I'd left the bar myself;

I think Kayama slipped something in my drink. I've got to get home- So sorry! : - (

I couldn't say I was surprised- that woman was one disciple away from starting a cult.
At least he hadn't left for other reasons- namely, me wrapped up in the arms of someone clearly not my date, pressed so close he'd surely felt my drumming nerves straight through my skin. What if he had seen? Sweet, kind Toshinori, who blushed at even the most tame of teases.

Dark eyes were suddenly watching me, like a hidden animal in the brush between his mess of hair and tapered scarf, beholding my thought process. I reached out, annoyed, and pressed two fingers against the inside of his left wrist.
"God, yes," He moaned, body turning liquid. His eyes fluttered out of sight and I returned to my thoughts in forced peace.

The other part of my brain- one I had only seemingly discovered recently- raged against the safe logic of Toshinori and pointed instead to the unknown of Shota Aizawa, and how I might grow- not just as a significant other, but more than that. As a person. Less afraid of the world, and quirks. Less afraid of myself.
The man who wasn't into damsels, who expected me to save myself.
The one whose face seemed to even follow me into bed, smiling coyly in my dreams and pointing out every freckle on my skin.

"Whatever you're thinking about, knock it off," The man in question suddenly grumbled beside me. "You're increasing my heart rate, too."
"Maybe you're just secretly in love with me, and the fact that we're so close is affecting your senses." I clapped back without thinking. The tempo of his pulse raised just a fraction and I looked over, surprised. Aizawa looked out the window, still too sluggish from submersion to do much else.
"Don't read into that- we're here." Came his paltry answer. A smirk licked my lips but I fought it down, starting to pull away. His other hand, quick as lightning, pressed it back against his.
"One more minute," He said, eyes fighting the sun. "I can already tell this day is going to be exhausting."

A great, silver dome was on the horizon- the USJ. My nerves momentarily fluttered. Was this...excitement I felt?
"I had...Something to tell you," Aizawa mumbled. He let out a sigh. "Don't let me...Forget."
"If it's important, it'd be best to tell me now, before-"
"Classmates! Line yourselves in an orderly fashion- Mineta, your place is not between Yaoyarozu and Uraraka-"

How had I forgotten about the twenty kids also accompanying us?

"Everyone," I called out, rising from my seat. Aizawa stirred but fell back as I placed two fingers against his temple, reverting him to butter once again. "I expect your behavior to reflect the high standards of our school. Think of this simply as an extension of our classrooms- the rules still apply," A pointed look sent a shiver through Mineta's bauble-headed body. "I am very excited to see your quirks at work- this is a first for me! But safety should always be at the front and foremost in your mind."

"She's right," Aizawa had lazed himself out of his stupor and watched the students with seriousness.

"Let's go."

The students filed out, fissuring with excitement. A nervous smile was distorting my face and I didn't know what to do with my hands, wiping them on the stretchy black material of my leggings. After harassing Toshinori with outfit ideas, I'd gone with simple athletic wear, a light grey, sleeveless tank shirt covering a boob-flattening sports bra and my hair pin straight in a high ponytail. No one had ridiculed me, so I guess it was good enough.

I tripped on the bus stairs and would've eaten shit if a slender hand hadn't caught me, attached to a quietly amused Shota Aizawa.
"Relax," He murmured, pulling me upright. His eyes glowed with laughter. "You've got this."

Before I could respond, a person in a spacesuit- Thirteen, as I recalled from the meeting- walked out of the domed building with extended arms. "Welcome!"


The arena was split into six realms, each as different as the next. A center plaza was graced by a glimmering fountain- odd, in the midst of all the debris-filled zones- but beautiful all the same, tying the building together.

"I created this training facility to prepare you to deal with different types of disasters," Thirteen explained, gesturing around the awe-striking arena. Aizawa was glancing around, not taking in the scenery.

"Where's All Might? Shouldn't he be here by now?"
He was right- the mountain of muscle was nowhere to be seen. Aizawa left my side and Thirteen spoke to him quietly, holding three fingers up. What's that mean? It's not like I could try and read Thirteen's lips, seeing they were hidden under that reflective dome. He'll be here in thirty minutes?

"Will you be joining us in the shipwreck zone, Ms. Tsutomi?" Tsu asked. Her tongue peeked from the side of her lips. I refrained from poking it.
"I'm not sure where they'll want me; it'd make sense for me to be there," I lifted a hand, feeling the blood beneath the skin. "Even if I don't use-use my quirk, I could identify where you and the others were in the water, in case anything goes wrong."
"Really?" Iida asked. Curious eyes were watching me, like an exotic animal emerging from its cave. I felt that nervous smile ticking just as much as the warning bell in my cranium.
"Yeah, I can- I feel the blood in your body."
"Damn! Could you control it?" Mineta asked, interest piqued. My own blood began rushing up my neck.
"I could manage it, but I don't use my quirk. You're the next generation of heroes, right?" I waved them off with a well-placed grin. "Let's get you trained so I won't ever have to!"

Something rippled through the air.
The reaper just walked across your grave, Mom had said once at such a feeling.

I glanced around quickly; superstition or not, something was wrong. My stomach lurched at the abrupt change in humidity. Every hair on my body suddenly stood on end, intuition sensing a disturbance my conscious hadn't caught yet. Without thinking I moved in front of the students, turning my attention to Aizawa and Thirteen. "Mr. Aizawa-"

The fountain was blurring. A swirling miasma, tinted the color of an old bruise, was swallowing the water.

And then it appeared.

'Your power isn't a gift; quirks are not gifts, they're instruments of death.'

The violent eyes.

Hair like foamed waves, sucking the earth from beneath me.

The drowned face of my nightmares.

It was his.