Fall was starting to turn into Winter, the temperature dropping every day and the leaves nearly non-existent on each tree, and Class 1-A of UA High School was about to learn about their next school event.
Once all the students had filed into the classroom that Friday morning, Aizawa looked out at them all, waiting until Iida had shushed everyone before he started talking. "I have an important announcement. Starting next week, we'll be taking part in an academic exchange program with two other hero schools from overseas."
The teacher paused there for a few seconds, knowing full well he had the teenagers' attention. He wanted to draw it out of a little, just to spite the well-rested pains in his ass. "Specifically, Class 1-B will be going to learn at the Manchester School for Gifted Youth. Your class will stay here." More than a few members of the class let out annoyed sighs that they'd be missing such a foreign trip.
"Half the freshman class at Titan Academy will be living here and studying with you all. This way, you can all learn more about different ways of approaching hero work and make professional connections that could be useful later on." There was a lot of excited muttering from that, but almost immediately one student raised his hand with a question. Aizawa let out a sigh. "Yes, Midoriya?"
At the beginning of the year, Izuku Midoriya was the kind of student who raised his hand frequently but blushed and stammered once everyone was looking at him. That still happened from time to time, but he had built up enough confidence throughout his first year that he could actually ask his teacher a question without stuttering.
"Mr. Aizawa, how will that work? Titans Academy doesn't teach students individually, but instead places them in five person teams who succeed and fail as a unit."
Of course, Aizawa reflected, Midoriya would know enough about the American hero school to pick out that detail ahead of time.
"You're correct, that is one of the major differences between our teaching styles. While in Japan heroes most often work in agencies, either running them or working at one as a sidekick, in America superheroes are more often on teams. This is about teaching you all something new, though, so while our guests will be here, you'll all be in teams as well, and you'll be graded in your teams for the next month."
Some of the students looked as though they found the idea interesting, but more than a few others looked skeptical.
"What, so I've gotta do everything carrying a bunch of dead weight?! There's no way I'd ever join a damn hero team! How is this going to teach me anything?!" Of course it would be Bakugo to object so quickly and vocally. But several other students, including Todoroki and Kaminari, seemed to agree with him.
Giving the bombshell of a young hero a glare, Aizawa responded, "Don't speak out of turn, Katsuki. But since you asked: even if you don't join a team as a pro hero, you will be forced to work together with other heroes more often than you'd expect. You, more than anyone else, should know that improving your social abilities is important for your future career."
Sure, it was a bit hypocritical coming from Aizawa, but it was something Bakugo needed to hear regardless. "Now then, regarding the teams, I bet you'd all like to form your teams yourselves, pairing up with those you feel you'd work with the best. Am I correct?" Everyon vocalized their assent, looking over at those they wanted to partner with the most. Giving his best sadistic smile, Aizawa told his class, "Well, that's too bad!"
Pulling out a piece of paper from inside his scarf, Aizawa informed them of their fates. "Instead, your teachers have put together your teams, each with a designated leader. Other than that, roles can be determined for any task as you desire. Yayarozu," he started, looking at every student as he read out their names. "You will lead a team composed of yourself, Ojiro, Koda, Tokoyami, and Sero." The members of that first team all looked at their new leader, who considered the situation put in front of her.
"Iida, your team includes Todoroki, Sato, Kirishima, and Aoyama. Bakugo, you've got your own team to play with, and your teammates will be Asui, Mineta, Hagakure, and Ashido." Iida didn't appear to have any issues with his listed team, though with his stoic look it was always hard to tell. Bakugo, on the other hand, seemed to hate every name read after his own.
"That just leaves Midoriya's team: Jiro, Shoji, Uraraka, and Kaminari. If any of you want to change teams, tough luck. They're permanent for the next month, end of story."
It was just about time to actually start class, when Aizawa remembered one last thing. "Oh, and you'll all be using a buddy system with the visiting students. You'll know who you're with when they arrive, and their safety is your responsibility."
There was a knock on the door, which meant Present Mic was there for his lesson. Honestly, while Aizawa saw the benefits to the student exchange, considering who it meant he'd have to spend time with for the next month, he was privately just as annoyed with what was to come as Bakugo was.
There wasn't a lot that Dick Grayson didn't love about teaching at Titan Academy. Perhaps one of his absolute favorite parts, though, was the yearly student exchange with UA High. Mostly because it allowed him to spend time with one of his favorite overseas heroes.
He and the rest of his class had just arrived in Japan less than an hour ago, but the kids had gotten the chance to set themselves up in their new temporary living space with the guest dorm building UA was providing for them. That left him and his fellow teacher to meet up with Aizawa at the track field. As soon as he saw that curmudgeonly crabapple, Dick couldn't stop grinning.
"Hey, Eraserhead! Miss me?"
The kids were all looking at Dick with either confusion or awe, clearly depending on whether they recognized him or not. To be fair, his hero costume had been redesigned after he'd decided to go with a more disco look, with yellow shoulder fringe and a brighter hue of blue, but how could any of the young heroes not know about-
"Nightwing," Aizawa grumbled. "I've missed you as much as a blow to the head." Then, he turned to look at the woman standing at Dick's side and nodded his head in a gesture of actual respect. "Omen, it's good to see you."
Lilith was looking as radiant as ever, her bright orange hair contrasting nicely with her costume's mix of greens. Her dazzling smile was wasted on Aizawa's sleep deprived mug. "It's good to see you too, Shota."
Then, her attention focused on the students standing around in their own hero costumes. "My name is Lilith Clay, and I'm happy to be working with you all." Something in her eyes became even more warm and caring, and she added, "If any of you struggle with any interpersonal conflicts in the coming month, please know you can come to me for help. My door will always be open."
[LILITH CLAY/OMEN! HER QUIRK: PREMONITION! THIS PSYCHIC QUIRK LETS HER LOOK INTO POSSIBLE FUTURES, THOUGH THE FARTHER SHE LOOKS, THE MORE POSSIBILITIES THERE ARE! -Present Mic]
Ready and waiting to step into the spotlight, Dick addressed the tykes himself. "My name's Dick Grayson, and I go by the hero name 'Nightwing'. I'm the class's actual homeroom teacher, while Lilith acts as a guidance counselor and therapist for our students."
Then, he pointedly looked down at a wrist that didn't have a watch on it, which got a laugh out of a spiky-haired student. "Well, look at the time! My class should be here any minute!" Sure enough, the kids were soon visible approaching the field, all of them dressed in their own tailor-made hero costumes.
"I'm excited to have the chance to teach all of you, and to see what you can teach me and my students in return. That said, it's introduction time! First up," Dick started, pointing at the first group of five, in the lead before everyone else. "Is the team Scientific American! Led by Virgil Hawkins, there's also Grant Emerson, Karen Beecher, Mal Duncan, and Antonia Monetti. They're the only team I teach where all the students have Quirks!" That got some interesting reactions from some of the students. It seems they didn't know that quite a few Ameican heroes didn't have Quirks.
Once they could better see the next group, some actual gasps came out, though Dick didn't think they were trying to be rude. "Up next is In Your Head. Team Leader is M'gann M'orzz with backup from Joseph Wilson, Kole Weathers, Tara Markov, and Cassandra Sandsmark; this team has a wide range of capabilities but as their name implies, you better watch what you think around them.
"Winning an award for the most suggestive team title is Hard and Fast. The one in charge there is Avery Ho, and behind her is Cassandra Wayne, Stephanie Brown, Jaime Reyes, and Traci Thurston. So far, they've managed to beat more than a dozen school records when it comes to practical exams." By this point, most of his class was standing opposite Aizawa's, everyone looking curiously at students on the opposite side. His own kids were still grouped into teams, but the Japanese student heroes were a jumbled mess.
Finally the stragglers arrived, looking a little embarrassed by their late arrival. From the blush on their leader's cheeks, Dick knew he had some kind of explanation to give his teacher later. "And, bringing up the back, is the New Teen Titans. That's Tim Drake, the third Robin, in the front, and behind him is the rest of the team: Garfield Logan, Victor Stone, Raven Roth, and Princess Koriand'r of the planet Tamaran."
Now that both classes had assembled, Dick explained, "I'll be calling out matching names, and those are the buddy pairs. Try to play nice, since you'll be stuck with each other for the next month."
He read out the names, and once everyone was paired up, they were sent out to do two-person exercises, starting with stretching before leading to light sparring. Easy way to build camaraderie. Looking at the forty kids gathered together, Dick Grayson was confident that this year was going to be something special.
