AN: How about something new? Something fresh? Well now, we got just the thing ready for you guys!

AtW: So, long story short, I'm not in a great place. And this is partly venting for me and partly a break. Hopefully, my school projects aside, we'll have another post tomorrow too.

Anyways, have fun.


Onizuku - Chapter 1 - Moongazing


While there were quite a few differences between Oni and humans, enough of them that Izuku could spend hours lecturing on the subject and its intricacies, there were quite a few important things that the two species had in common. Behavioral patterns which could be pointed out in both species. Such similarities weren't at all uncommon amongst other Youkai races such as the Tengu, Yuki-Onna and Kitsune.

Like the need to form familial groups and connections.

Ones that didn't have a vested interest in what they tasted like, especially.

The need to socialize, too, was true in both races. Oni were wild, extreme, depraved even. But that wasn't to say they had to be, civilization wasn't in their blood, but it wasn't alien to them. Not like some people thought. As bad as Mount Ooe was, the Jomsvikings were basically identical in what they did and how they treated humans.

Even with dissonance of values, of the vast miles of difference in what each species called common sense, it was clear that Oni held values towards each other that most humans would accuse them of lacking.

Such as respect.

Loyalty.

Mercy.

In the old days, nascent Oni would congregate together and seek strength in numbers. It wasn't that uncommon for one of them to feed on a human and accidentally turn them, leaving the victim to contemplate their new existence. Mostly because the Oni in question would pluck out the human's liver, particularly the livers of those with a degree of power themselves, in an attempt to grow in personal strength. Old myths, indeed. Everyone knows the heart and brain held far more power. But that meant you had a wounded human, usually in immense pain, clinging to life as a foreign energy filled the wound.

You couldn't blame such a desperate being for grabbing ahold of life with both hands. It would be hypocritical at best and likely just stupidity or speciesism speaking otherwise. That said, there's something to be said for restraint. Otherwise you left a hundred newly created, confused, terrified monsters in the middle of a highly populated area with no idea what to do.

One value that Oni, particularly adolescent ones, held dear to their chests was the notion of teenage rebellion.

Like turning your high school crush without permission.

Joining one of the gangs that lived hidden by the shadows of society.

Trying to summon an evil god through ancient rituals. And lots of tantric magic.

Every one of them went through a phase. Some flashier than others. Most got over it.

Izuku liked to think he was better behaved than most Oni his age. He didn't try and eat people. Only drank their blood with explicit consent, maybe took a nibble here or there if they were into it, and never, ever, ever lied about what was involved with it. Of course, blood was cloying and rotting flesh stunk to high heaven and he couldn't stand being unclean.

He brushed his fangs and kept his horns small enough to be hidden by his bushy hair, a small boon born from an otherwise daily struggle. Yet that didn't mean he didn't act out every once in a while.

Mind you, he wasn't getting into fights or antagonizing any of the powers that be.

That would have been stupid.

Rather, Izuku was often taken by the need to stroll through the dark streets of Masutafu at night, when most were asleep and the only ones active were villains, the heroes hunting them, Youkai, and the hunters trying to kill them. It wasn't always clear which was which. Not when everyone had super powers or crazy weapons stashed on them.

But again, he wasn't looking for a fight. Nor did he sneak out that often either.

Only when the moon was full and the night was clear enough to see its splendor.

Moon gazing was one of Izuku's favorite activities. Compared to his hobby of quirk analysis, both for pleasure and for practical purposes, and the sparring sessions he had with his mother, those more for pleasure and to avoid the urge to feel flesh tearing under his claws, there was just something about it which… soothed his soul. A magnetic force which demanded his eyes bask in its silver light for as long as he could keep them open.

Yet he never felt tired. Quite the opposite, in fact. Whenever he returned home from his stakeouts, Izuku felt as if he'd just had a hearty breakfast with plenty of sugar. It made him hyper, giggly as a toddler. His mom always knew and never approved.

Her reasons were logical, carefully laid out, and totally reasonable. But they never did stick.

So she opted to prepare him for his outings as painfully as possible.

'Tough love, thy name is Inko Midoriya.'

It was moments like those that made Izuku happy he wasn't undead and that things like motrin worked for his kind.

But that was that and Izuku was more concerned with the shining silver jewel hanging in the night sky. Humming a soft lullaby, one his mother had taught him, he stuck his hands in his pockets and watched as his breath misted in the chilly evening air. It was December after all.

Winter moons, especially full ones, seemed especially beautiful. Perhaps the crisp air and still nights made everything sharper. Perhaps he was just edgy. Izuku wasn't particularly concerned. Right then, the only thing in the cosmos was his brilliant lady and the beauty she displayed for him.

To Youkai, the moon was considered sacred.

Such a thing was a reminder, harkening back to older times when their kind lived in isolation as exiles of society, unable to live alongside humans, forced to come out only under the cover of darkness. Indeed, those were the dark times for their kind. Where all they held was pride and power, even as they drowned in the blood of their kith and kin.

When the moon was their only consolation.

A balm to their lonely souls.

But times had changed and with the rise of quirks those who had once been forced to live as outcasts were finally able to step into the light of the sun. Nowadays, they did not need the comfort of the lonely moon. It was considered tradition, a throwback to what they used to be. What many still clung to. More than one Youkai sang to her still, just as he did, and all too often they were songs of their people's sorrows.

After all, the Hunters were growing stronger and bolder than ever before.

Izuku didn't care, he was just out here to gaze at the moon.

And there was no better place to do it than Masutafu's Regional Park. A vast expanse of forest land kept by the government as a wild preserve. It was a regularly visited tourist attraction, a preferable alternative to the now ruined Dagobah Beach.

The vast canopies of the trees and the small river combined with the crisp night air was pleasant, a gentle breeze blowing through his hair with a soft caress.

It was like a liquor, when it hit his nose. Intoxicating, perhaps, would be the word most apt. But even then, it was more than that, more primal, more demanding, more… tempting. When the scent danced past his nose, Izuku felt his body twitch.

His claws flexed, his eyes flashed red even as his pupils dilated and his skin flickered a shade of pitch black.

'Calm.' Izuku let his desires wash over him. "Calm." His voice was softer than a feather falling. "Calm." Finally, the moment passed.

Whatever he had just smelled still had a hold over him, there was a powerful need in his stomach that Izuku knew meant he'd need to eat something… raw. Soon, too. But curiosity killed the cat and satisfaction brought it back.

Izuku was dying to know what smelled so utterly, deliriously amazing. He turned down the side pathway, one he knew by heart, and began lightly stepping across the stones. His passage no more than a breeze in the night.

There, sitting on a park bench, was a young woman.

More interesting was the fact that the young woman was a nadeshiko.

A perfect, traditional, Japanese beauty.

From the dainty white gloves, to her elegant seven layered kimono, to the tabi and sandals she wore, this woman was the picture of… perfect grace. Perfect femininity. Perfect subtlety.

Inko, his mother, always insisted that he know real traditional garments from the modern knock offs. How a proper Japanese gentleman, or gentlewoman, should dress, how they should speak, and behave, and the proper etiquette associated with old, old families. And with a woman such as this, there was only one thing to do.

He bowed.

"Young Lady-" Izuku was formal, polite, and he kept his head inclined. "If I may ask, what are you doing out here, on a night such as this, by yourself. Don't you know Youkai hunt on full moons?"

A tinkling laugh answered him.

"Oh, so polite young sir. Surely you don't believe in fairy tales? A boy as strong and as close to being a man as you surely have moved past them."

Izuku looked up, the elegant planes of the woman's face and long, silken hair striking some cord in him. Not of lust, but of… familiarity. As if he knew her.

'But that's crazy. I don't know anyone like her at all.'

"Perhaps. Perhaps not. We live in a world of gods and demons, regardless if they are from myth or not. And it is often those who wish to seek to do harm to others that are out at this time. With all politeness intended, may I enquire what a woman as beautiful as you is doing out this late, on your own, in an abandoned park… smelling of innocence and… more."

Her eyes flashed with a light that seemed so oddly familiar Izuku would have sworn he recognized it.

"You may. But it's hardly fair to tell such things to a young man whose name I don't even know."

Inclining his head, this time only ever so slightly, Izuku kept his eyes on the other woman.

"And I may tell you. But names have power, my lady. And I must once more wonder, what need does a beautiful woman have for an empty park. Especially dressed as if you're off to visit the Shogun. It makes me wonder if, perhaps, you're a kejourou. Or trying to imitate one."

This time the woman clicked her tongue.

"Are you calling me a whore, boy?"

Chuckling, Izuku shook his head.

"Fairytales are they?"

Blinking, the woman let out a belly laugh.

"My oh my! You are a clever one. I do confess, I greatly enjoy those old fairy tales too. Especially the horror stories, even if they do tend toward the grim. My name is Nanako, young man. What's your's?"

As the woman inclined her head, so too did Izuku finish his second bow.

"Midoriya Izuku, ma'am. It's nice to meet you."

Quirking her lips, as if smothering a chuckle, she just gave a small shake of her head.

"If I promise I'm not a kejourou, would you come take a seat next to me?"

"Of course." Izuku gave her a wide smile and stayed exactly where he was.

"Well Izuku? Are you going to sit with me?"

At her impatient tone, Izuku shook his head.

"You haven't promised yet."

"Hah!" She laughed this time, short and sharp. "Very well young man, I promise I'm not a kejourou or a villain or any other kind of Youkai. Just a plain old human. Fair?"

"You haven't promised me you mean me no harm."

At Izuku's deapan the woman just quirked an eyebrow. Chuckling to himself, he reiterated what he said earlier.

"An age of gods and demons, ma'am."

This time Nanako rolled her eyes.

"Just come sit next to me you brat."

Her tone was light and Izuku wasn't one to rankle easily.

"If you say so… aunty."

Izuku had the feeling she wanted to do something very unlady like. That's just what his gut told him. That and how her hand involuntarily moved in a short stabbing motion.

Once Nanako was calmer, and Izuku sat down on the cold park bench next to her, the two shared a companionable silence for a while. Simply sitting together and gazing up at the moon, or at least Izuku was. Remaining next to the source of that impossibly amazing scent was leaving his head swimming and his eyes dancing with spots. It was only the cold, pure beauty of the moon, his lady, that kept him grounded.

"So, Izuku, you enjoy moon gazing?"

It took a few seconds for his brain to catch up, so entranced was he by the moment of stillness and peace. Even the noises of the city had faded away, leaving only a few insects or frogs singing in the cool night air. This bothered him, but even the unease creeping up his spine seemed… unimportant. Less important than chatting with the pretty woman sitting next to him.

'She really is very pretty.' He let out a deep yawn. 'And so nice too.'

"Yes ma'am." Izuku rubbed his eyes slightly. "She's just so pure. So… perfect, I guess. Even her scars are more like… beauty marks. Because if she didn't have them, the gods would have just stolen her away. And us mortals wouldn't get to look upon her. The Moon… is the most precious jewel in all the heavens."

"Ah, jeeze, you're too romantic Izuku. You'll never get a girlfriend if you talk like that. What woman could compete when you're so clearly already in love?"

Nanako leaned forward to rest her chin in her hands.

"I was hoping to get at least a few compliments you know? I got dressed up all fancy like, hoping maybe a forest spirit would sweep me off my feet or maybe at least a cute Tanuki would let me bully him a little."

"Um, miss?"

"Just call me Nanko." The woman waved him away.

"Yes Miss Nanako." This time she snorted. "Forgive me if I'm rude, but I fail to see how a woman as pretty as you could have issues with finding… suitors."

"Wah! That compliment was too polite! There wasn't even a bit of passion or romance in it. I can't believe I lost to a rock. And all the men at work are afraid of me. Sure, some guys invite me out, but Japanese men just aren't that assertive. But even if I get a date, I always scare them off. Even the ones that say they like to be dominated. I'm never even gonna get a kiss!"

Seeing a grown woman, especially one that just minutes ago had been so refined, sulk and pout like a, well, a despondent teenager that'd just been told her crush liked another girl, was a new thing for Izuku. So, like any good Japanese man, he defaulted to politeness. Gently patting her back, he gave her an awkward smile and tried to calm the crying woman down.

"It's ok, it's ok. I'm sure you'll meet the right guy sooner or later. There's plenty of fish in the sea, so he's definitely out there. Somewhere."

"'SNIFF' You think so?"

Doing his best to channel All Might, Izuku gave her an ear to ear smile.

"Yup! I know so!"

After a moment, Nanako dried her eyes. Suddenly brightening up, she pulled a wad of papers out of one of her sleeves.

"Izuku, you like fairy tales too? And magic?" At his tentative nod, she rifled through them until she pulled a charm out. "A monk sold me this! He said that if I meet a nice person I should have them touch it and the characters will move to predict their fortune!"

Izuku chuckled. At first, he'd been worried. Some of the papers looked like actual charms, the kind onmyouji used to torture and imprison Youkai. But little gags like this were common enough. Some inventor out there had made a few types of "moving" ink, mostly by making them sensitive to the oils and heat of the human body. Plenty of tourist traps at shrines sold things like these, meaning this woman was probably a wealthy person from one of the big cities. She was certainly… eccentric enough for the role!

"Sure, sure. So I just run my finger across the paper, right?"

"Yup!" With another enthusiastic nod Nanako handed the paper over and Izuku complied.

"Oh dear." Upon inspecting the now moving kanji, the black haired woman frowned. "It says here… that you have a curse of bad luck!? What's that? Did you upset a kami Izuku? How though, you're such a nice person! Did you eat too much meat? Damage a shrine on accident?"

Grabbing Izuku's hands, Nanako pulled him forward.

"It says you should make some miso soup and put it out, that means you have a poverty spirit haunting you." She looked him up and down intensely enough to leave Izuku blushing. "Well, you look ok. Maybe it was just misfortune that one got you. Hmm… do you go to temple?

Before Izuku could sutter out a response, he realized something. He couldn't hear anything, aside from the pounding of his own heart, or smell anything but the perfume Nanako was wearing. And that all of a sudden, it got a lot colder.

"N-Nanako… not that this isn't… very interesting, we should go. Something feels off all of a sudd-"

Crack

The sound of a twig breaking was enough to snap Izuku out of his reverie, the world suddenly coming back into focus as the haze which had clouded his mind up until that point was lifted by an all too familiar sensation. A wave of anger and hunger which seemed almost like a physical pressure bearing down upon the two of them.

Killing Intent.

A large shadow lumbered out of the forest, at least seven feet tall with dark scarlet skin and a mane of wild white hair cascading backwards. Its body seemed like it couldn't decide what it wanted to be, with muscular arms double the usual length of a man and an overstuffed stomach bloated out of proportion. Its legs were stubby by comparison, though they were no smaller than a normal set by any means.

Everything else about the creature was just massive.

From the curved saber-like fangs poking from its mouth, to the large crooked horns growing from the sides of its head, curling to the sides much like a sheep's.

Its eyes, a menacing red, glowed in the darkness like flashlights.

Izuku knew immediately what they were facing.

'A starving one?! Here of all places?!'

Izuku's return to clarity came accompanied by the sudden desire to bash his head against one of the trees nearby. How had he missed that thing approaching them? Starving Ones couldn't keep their human form, permanently stuck in between their two selves. The abnormal skin tone and warped body type making it look like a mutant-type quirk gone wrong.

Horribly wrong.

The clearing shook as the disfigured yokai stepped closer, its knuckles supporting the creature's massive girth much like a gorilla. It growled ominously, runny saliva dripping from his maw and sizzling against the ground.

Izuku stood up, and nearly fell flat on his face, his body felt like it had gone asleep. Muscles stiff and bones leaden with exhaustion.

What in the name of Yomi was happening?

He didn't have much time to think, however, when the larger Oni charged towards them, fists thundering against the ground as it launched itself towards them like a very angry bus. Its roar echoing in Izuku's ears as he forced himself up off the ground and met its charge with his own.

His pale skin darkened into obsidian, thin crack patterns spreading over his limbs giving them the appearance of scales. Normally curly hair pulled back as it grew into a mass of silver waves, revealing the nascent horns growing from his forehead, curving ever so slightly against the wind like an antelope's. Scything, jagged, gnashing teeth pushed through his jaw, forcing his lips open and scraping against one another.

"Run! I've got this. Run damn you!"

Roaring back a challenge of his own, Izuku slashed out even as massive, vicious claws pushed through the tips of his fingers, popping his nails off as they grew, and slashed the monster across the face.

And as the beast reared back, he pushed forward, throwing all of his weight into a flurry of blows. Then, as he was pressing the advantage, his foot caught a loose stone. If Izuku had been sober, this wouldn't have even made him stumble. As he was, still addled by both the perfume Nanako was wearing and because his body seemed to be misfiring for some reason, he fell.

Limbs flailing and body twitching as erratic spasms pushed through his body, he could do nothing as the Starving One raised his fist high into the air and brought it down.

Izuku didn't scream, he didn't cry out. Instead, he vomited blood, choking as the red fluid was stuck in his throat, and tried to pull himself free as the monster picked him by the inside of his ribcage. Even as he flailed about, the wounds he'd left on the Oni's face slowly knitted themselves closed.

'Really, of all things not working in the feral freak's body, the regeneration is still okay?'

He spat out a glob of blood into the thing's eyes, the larger oni bringing one of his hands to clean it up. Izuku grit his teeth and jerked forth, his foot burying itself on the monster's neck with a sickening crack.

It dropped him like a hot potato. Though missing one or two ribs.

Izuku's torso was a mess, though he'd already started healing from it. He made to stand up and continue his assault when he noticed something.

A familiar smell, followed by an even more familiar haze.

This time, however, the pain of having someone else play surgeon with his torso managed to keep the smaller Oni alert. Enough to see that the area was starting to be covered by a plume of pink mist which seemingly appeared out of nowhere. And it was becoming increasingly dense, to the point where he could barely make out the shape of the trees across from the clearing.

He held his breath.

The bigger oni? Not so lucky.

Wobbling, the thing began to stagger back and forth, definitely trying to come towards him but letting out a massive yawn and almost falling over instead.

Two glinting knives suddenly plunging into his eye sockets woke the beast up. Yowling like a cat, roaring like a bear, squealing like a pig, the thing began to grope at its face, trying to pull the blades out. Izuku didn't give it a chance. Recovered enough to attack, he slashed at the thing's belly, disemboweling the obese monstrosity.

Claws perforated intestine, spilling half digested remains across the ground. Garbage, bits of animals, what looked like a scrap of tire, and even an entire, semi digested arm spilled out of the three foot long gash Izuku ripped in the thing's body. One hand blindly groping at its eyes, the other trying to hold its stomach closed, the monster was easy prey for the double attack that came for it.

A long, thin, silver blade slid elegantly past its ribs even as Izuku's fist collided with the monster's head.

Brains and blood and bone filled the air as both fighters leapt away. Izuku swallowed when he noticed the flesh around the wound sizzling and hissing, the burned, blistered, blackened meat slowly falling away even as the Oni's neck bubbled and shards of bone tried to slot back together. And then it all stopped.

Monstrous flesh and muscle suddenly sagged, growing limp and weak.

Izuku swallowed.

"So, Midnight, you're a Hunter?" The pink fog, the quirk of the famous heroine Midnight, enveloped him once more and Izuku's muscles gave out. Falling backwards, he just sighed. "Well… at least tonight's a full moon." Pink sparkles filled his vision. "And I'm going to be killed by a beautiful woman. There's worse ways to die, you know?" His chest throbbed, he vomited more blood.

With his heart still reforming, Izuku knew there was nothing he could do. He was weakened, his body wasn't responding, and even as the wounds he'd suffered healed his mind began to drift farther and farther away. So, he smiled. Small, a little afraid, but… peaceful.

Midoriya Izuku smiled up at Death, come to him in the form of a maiden fair.

"It was nice meeting you, Na… na… ko."

His eyes closed.

Blinking, confused, Izuku sat up.

"Where am I?"

He wasn't confused by the fact he was outside, more that he was alive at all. Looking around, he recognized the back area of the park soon enough. Hidden behind a small copse of trees, he was stretched out in a small hollow, a scratchy brown blanket covering most of him even as birds chirped in the trees and children laughed in the distance.

Looking down, he noticed a piece of paper sitting in his lap.

"The fortune telling charm? … Oh."

It was an odd thing, a Youkai being spared by a Hunter. And it was in that moment that something very important occurred to Izuku.

"Crap! Mom!"

Carefully folding the charm, Izuku slid the thick paper into his pocket and wrapped the blanket around his shoulders, concealing the bloody tatters that was all that remained of his T-shirt. Leaping up out of the hollow, he vaulted over the metal fence around the park, and began dashing towards home as quickly as he could.

"She's gonna kill meeeeeee!"


As it turned out, his mother didn't kill him.

Instead, Izuku had been grounded for the next lunar cycle.

Apparently meeting a part time heroic exorcist during a night stroll was too much of a stretch and Izuku was confined to the basement from that point onwards whenever the full moon appeared. It was practically torture, but he was a big boy now and could tough it out.

He was lucky his mother hadn't forbidden him from taking the entrance exam for U.A.

She'd considered it too!

But that had been his lucky day of the month, so Izuku's dreams were spared Inko's wrath for the moment.

The exam was laughably easy all things considered. Flimsy tin cans barely put up a challenge once he got going. Mundane metal couldn't hope to put up a fight against a Yokai, not without being blessed in some way. Or, at the very lest, being in the form of something designed to actually kill.

Otherwise it just… folded.

So him passing was expected.

Getting turned into paste by the Zero Pointer had been less prepared for, but it was to save a pretty girl. So who could blame him for doing so? But even that was in the past. Accidental exhibitionism aside, unfortunately regenerating pants had yet to be invented, that stuff had been months ago too.

And today was the day before the first day of school.

"Man, this place is quiet." Even with his enhanced hearing, the fact that he could only detect the faint whirring of gears and the occasional chirp felt off. "Almost like this place is too quiet. I guess I better hurry up though."

The fact he hadn't been given a guide was strange though.

'I wonder if it has to do with there being so few people around?'

But, he supposed, it only made sense. Not everyone was aware of both sides of the world and those that were tended to appreciate the slow integration of them. Kept things stable. Finding the principal's office was also hardly difficult - not with quite clear signs posted helpfully across the campus. Almost like sane people had designed an institution of learning and not a committee of bored bureaucrats.

Knocking on a door two stops before the actual principal's office, it had a large sign taped to it asking all students to stop there first, he waited until a rather odd voice told him to enter.

Almost like a squeak.

So he did so.

And walked into a very tense room.

To one side he could see two students. One with a bird's head for a face and black feathers the color of the night sky.

'Tengu.' His memory supplied.

The other one was odd.

With oddly shaped lips, her hair was a shade of green different from his, and she stood with an odd hunchback, arms folded. Almost like a frog….

Then it hit him.

Kappa.

He could smell it on her. The scent of mud and fresh rain. If not a half blood, she was definitely some kind of Kappa.

The two looked at him awkwardly, the girl's nose wrinkling in distaste as it caught the scent of onion on his breath. He would have tried to smile in a friendly way. Anything to get them more at ease. But the sight of his fangs would have accomplished the exact opposite.

Izuku was just glad his horns were hidden by his mop of hair.

His scent had already put them on the defensive.

"Thank you for joining us, Midoriya. Please, take a seat."

The principal… wasn't what he expected.

'Small'

He was small, with a light grey pelt. Though he couldn't really tell what exactly he was. A tiny human with an animal quirk? A large animal with a humanoid quirk? He was definitely no Youkai. He lacked any scent.

"Miss Yaoyorozu. If you so much as twitch, I will have you escorted out of my office."

Izuku stopped.

There was someone else?

And there it was. Not the girl's scent. That would have been too obvious. But, rather, it was the lack of smell that he now noticed. Behind him and to the right, whatever it was was slightly disrupting the air flow out of a vent and that was enough. Because, from her placement, he could pick up a smell that was not a smell. Some kind of chemical that registered as "nothing" to him.

Not rust, not mildew, not food, or drink, or just other people. All of those should have been there. Instead, he let out a breath, transferring his weight to his front leg, and let his hands relax.

Whether he needed to block or strike, an open palm would respond the most quickly.

"Midoriya, that goes for you as well."

Izuku barely caught himself. Wanting to snap back at the principal for putting them in this situation. Locked inside a room with someone like her.

With a 'scent' every yokai was taught and raised to fear.

Death.

An Exorcist.

She looked human. About as human as you could look on the outside. With a large flowing ponytail and eyes dark as coal. She was dressed… traditionally. So much so she might be mistaken for a festival performer.

A demure smile, the picture of innocence, met his fanged one.

"A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Oni."

"And you, Ms. Murderer." His eyes cut back to the principal now that he'd seen her. "So is this an ambush? If so, I hope you brought more than her." Izuku couldn't help it. He was angry, his teeth lengthened, his hair began to lighten. "Because unless you have All Might hiding in the bathroom of this little teacher's lounge, I won't be the one dying today."

"Now, now, there's no need for that. Sit down Mr. Midoriya, would you like some tea?"

Incredulity in its rankest form crossed his face.

"I'm hardly a saint, but she isn't either. And those two over there are practically drowning in the hatred she's putting off. And you want us… to have tea."

He knew who his principal was. That Nezu was a quirked animal who had been gifted with hyper intelligence. And that he was also, undoubtedly, one of the "good guys". It begged the question, though, as to what in the world was going on.

"Of course. I offered some to Ms. Yaoyorozu as well, but she politely declined." The rat… bear… dog thing dipped a tea bag into a cup, blew on it, and held it out to Izuku. "I promise it's just camomille. To help calm any nerves."

Izuku had no idea what to do.

Absolutely, utterly, totally, not the faintest idea what to do.

Sure, it had been six months since he'd last met a hunter, but that didn't mean he was eager to just give one his back. Their current positions notwithstanding. He closed his eyes.

"Ok. I want to be a hero. You're my teacher."

It went unsaid, of course, that if this was a trick Izuku would eat him alive.

Because that did not make for polite conversation.

He did take the cup of tea though.

"Thank you."

The drink was nice, warmth relaxing muscles as it passed.

"You are very much welcome." The principal smiled. "Now, with pleasantries out of the way, I'd like us to get to the meat of this little meeting of ours. It is not often that we receive students from the hidden world, not to mention ones with such… peculiar backgrounds. Nonetheless, consider this your orientation."

It made sense to single them out before classes started, Izuku realized. To make sure there wouldn't be any trouble down the line.

"Can I ask a question, kero?"

The kappa girl spoke up for the first time, hand raised.

"Of course, Ms. Asui. I am an educator above all else."

"Why not just… split us into different classes? Why have us all come here together?"

The mysterious mammal's eyes glinted with joy.

"Good questions. The answer is simple. Even if we were to split you amongst our two hero course classes, there is no guarantee that you won't interact. Our teachers run tests and training simulations all the time, so it would be a stopgap at most. And frankly…" he smiled mischievously. "I believe you four stand to gain much from the experience."

Izuku dearly wanted to protest.

He did not want to get stuffed into a closed room with an exorcist every day for the rest of the year. And he was sure the other two did not like the idea any better than he did.

"I, too, would like to express my displeasure with this arrangement." The tengu spoke up. "Was it at all needed to single us out? Have we not reached a state where Youkai have become part of society?"

Ponytail girl scoffed, but said nothing.

"I understand your feelings, Mr. Tokoyami. However, you must understand that this is not the first time U.A. has accepted students of your background. In many cases, it proved to be simple overreaction, but the few exceptions have proved to us that caution is a necessity when dealing with the Youkai."

"Hanyo, kero." Asui corrected him.

"Or Hanyo." Nezu complied easily.

"As little difference as it makes."

"Anything you'd like to add, Ms Yaoyorozu?"

"I just find it strange how far you are willing to bend the rules to accommodate them, Principal. I could see an argument for allowing a Tengu into your institution. But the Kappa are nothing but bandits and murderers. Child killers."

"Hanyo." The half kappa corrected.

Yaoyorozu ignored it.

"But an Oni? Pardon my forwardness, but doesn't that come off as naive? Expecting an Oni to be anything but a menace to humans?"

"A menace to exorcists, you mean." Izuku was rightfully indignant. "I've never killed a human, believe it or not, and the hanyou smells innocent." He turned to the other girl in the room. "Have you ever even gotten into a fight?"

"You're right, I don't believe it." The exorcist cut right over the half Kappa when she tried to speak. "I doubt you're a corpse-eater and you're most certainly not a registered oni. And since you're not a starving one either, that means you've been getting food from somewhere."

"Tch." His fangs lengthened. "I'm mostly a cannibal. And I've never fed from a human who wasn't willing. And unless you're a vegan, you can't even try to claim the moral high ground over our diets."

"I do not need the moral high ground. You are youkai."

Izuku stood up, he was done playing.

"Midoriya, sit down."

"Principal, you can't expect me…!"

"I can and I do expect you to maintain a level of civility." The small mammal interrupted firmly. "I do not condone her words. In fact, I find them distasteful and you will be happy to know that we of U.A do not judge our students based on backgrounds. Had that been the case, Ms. Yaoyorozu wouldn't have been accepted either."

The exorcist looked ready to protest.

But another look had her bite her tongue.

"U.A prides itself on always looking farther beyond than other hero courses. Youkai, Hanyo, Exorcist. Those are labels that lose their meaning inside our halls, and we are happy to keep it that way."

"Then why single us out to begin with, kero?"

"It was to test the waters, so to speak. And to warn you. The general population isn't aware of the hidden world. We would like to keep it that way and to remind you, all four of you, that you are here to become heroes and that any questionable behavior won't be accepted."

"We are children of the Other Side, the world that most can not begin to truly accept." The tengu was speaking, his beak slightly parted. "Amongst gods and demons, oni and onmyouji, that is where we normally dwell. But all of us have answered this clarion call."

And that was that. Izuku sighed and finished his tea. Because, in the end, he wanted to be a Hero. Someone others looked to for help and guidance. Someone the world trusted.

"Of course, Principal. I'll behave. I only hope that this experiment goes as well as you think it can."