Bakugo awoke in a daze, it was strange. He could've slept for a few seconds and it wouldn't have mattered, he was wide awake. Scenes from last night were playing on loop, and this was the first time he had a girl on his mind like this in quite some time. He sat up, lazily running his fingers through his hair and opening his eyes to see a treat by the crack of his door.

A piece of cake on a small plate, fork with smudges from its previous use.

"Raccoon Eyes, huh…"

Aizawa had let the two boys sleep in on their second day of in house. No crazy tasks early in the morning, no rude awakenings. Just a piece of cake with a dash of a certain pink girl's flavor to start off the explosive boy's morning.

"Okay, that should be it." Midoriya wiped the sweat from his forehead, before turning to see Bakugo and his usual expression.

"Oh, hey Kacchan."

"Deku…! Don't tell me you did all the cleaning by yourself!" Midoriya thought he was doing him a favor, but apparently not.

"Well you see, you had so much on your plate yesterday, I wanted to pull my own weight."

"Hmph! I won't be in debt to you nerd, move aside!" Bakugo brushed past Midoriya per usual and inspected everything.

"Dammit! You must've missed something…!" Although they were keeping up with the cleaning, Bakugo searched for something overlooked. But Midoriya did indeed clean everything. Damn place was spotless to the "T", and it only made Bakugo more angry. He continued his spatting at Midoriya, but Izuku's mind was elsewhere.

"Hey Kacchan, when did you start indulging in sweets? You've always been the spicy type."

Bakugo's eyes widened, and his gaze returned to the piece of cake he'd left on the counter. This bastard was way too observant for his own good.

"S-shut up! What's it to you, huh!?"

"Sorry, I was just curious!"

"Yeah!? Well...curiosity killed— you know what? I'll kill you!" Bakugo threw countless pillows as well as other subtle objects at the defenseless boy, who dodged, ran and blocked the best he could.

"I just...think you're amazing."

Bakugo stopped.

Damn, where did that come from? This was starting to piss him off.

"Deku."

Midoriya looked up in confusion. What was with this sudden shift in tone?

"Y-yeah? What is it?" He was still quivering from Katsuki's momentary fit of rage.

"You ever get these…"moments", where you can't get someone off your mind?"

Someone? Well sure. Of course, Midoriya was always concerned for All Might's safety, Todoroki's overcoming of his past, even Bakugo himself. Hell, when he was kidnapped, Midoriya's only concern was Bakugo and his safety, and this was on multiple occasions. Not to mention his other friends and their well-being. But surely he didn't mean…

There were times when Midoriya would daydream about Uraraka, for lack of a better relation.

"Kacchan, where's this coming from? Are you alright?"

"If you ask me that question one more time, I'll blow your damn head off."

Low-toned threats. Bakugo was definitely deep in thought. "Look at you, still analyzing like a goddamn nerd..." Katsuki would look away, effectively taking a butcher's knife and hacking away at his pride momentarily while taking All Might's advice.

Just. This. Once.

Bakugo enjoyed the rest of his shared cake as the morning light warmed his skin. It was a different kind of morning, a morning where his worries of his extra classes or even U.A didn't really matter. Midoriya returned with a stack of notebooks and scrap paper in his arms, as Bakugo requested strangely.

"I brought all my notes on our classmates. But Kacchan, what's all this about?"

Bakugo ignored the green-haired boy, ruffling through the notebooks and papers. They were labeled and navigable to say the least, but even Bakugo could see the in-depth analysis of Midoriya's thoughts, and how urgently he slapped them onto paper. To their favorite color, to battle patterns and techniques, this guy was on top of everybody.

As Bakugo ravaged through his entries and notes, Midoriya was starting to pick up on what was going on. The amount of time he spent on some notebooks and papers was longer than others. Some he just tossed to the side, while others he glanced at and even went through. Bakugo had even taken time to look at his own notebook, from years ago which Midoriya salvaged. And then Izuku remembered Katsuki's odd question moments ago.

It was a cover up.

"You're looking for information on somebody...and you don't want me to know. That's why you had me get all of the notebooks, isn't it?" Bakugo closed his book in distaste, slowly glancing up at his rival.

"That's gonna get you killed one day, and it won't be a damn villain that gets the job done..." Midoriya felt shivers down his spine. That was uncalled for, he thought miserably.

Bakugo sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose as he picked it up and through it at Izuku. Midoriya just barely caught the tattered notebook in time, turning it over to see the name of…

No way.

Bakugo, as if on cue, very briefly recapped the events of last night. What stood out to Midoriya the most was what Mina said to Bakugo, as he didn't take her for a sentimental type. No one did; she was the biggest goofball they knew. Then again, she did place in the finals of the U.A Sports Festival, and along with Sero and Kirishima. Maybe she credited her fame and success to the others? In fact, it would appear that she credited it mostly to Bakugo.

But Mina Ashido?

Of all the girls in the class, Midoriya would've never expected her to be the one on Bakugo's mind, right now.

And it was clear Bakugo thought the same thing.

"Hm…you know now that you mention it, she was talking about how hard you trained you were this one time." Midoriya was connecting the dots, and Bakugo laced his fingers and pressed his thumbs together. "Even though she's mostly a clown, I'd say Mina's one of the most capable in our class, to say the least."

"Of course she is." Midoriya looked to the blonde boy who was still locked onto his hands. "She's got practical usage of her quirk, and she knocked that French bastard out cold with a clean hit. 'Capable'? Give her credit, you idiot…" Midoriya liked Bakugo's conviction. He'd defended Uraraka during the Sports Festival and showed respect to her similarly to Kirishima— hell, he calls her by her name.

"But it's possible she's just masking her feelings…" As Midoriya started to come to conclusions, Bakugo wanted answers now.

"What are you talking about nerd?" He saw Midoriya getting upset with realization, and that was never a good sign. His hunches were always on point, or damn-near.

"I never thought about it until now but Mina's not the highest ranked in the class, and she's one of the few that flunked the final. And I don't think I've ever seen her genuinely upset, really down on herself until then. And it's obvious that she admires you the most." Izuku held his arm in dismay, really thinking about the weight even someone like Ashido could be carrying with her. How shocked he was when he realized Katsuki, someone he least expected, to be hurting inside.

"My guess, is that she wears a mask, so others don't see what she really thinks of herself." Bakugo growled with anger.

"Gr! Dammit Deku...!"

But that was quite the painted picture. That would explain why Mina could talk about the Sports Festival for hours and went on about everyone— especially himself— and their spectacles except for her own.

As much as he occupied her mind, Mina would've died if she knew she was on Bakugo's- especially at this very moment. But then again, it would've been another one of her fantasies.

Class was a blur, and Mina couldn't recall much, other than the same curriculum being drilled into her brain just to be dumped out in mere seconds. Hagakure flicked the girl in the horn to stop her from playing with her food, Mina just realizing she was indeed at lunch.

"Mina, what's up? You're paying less attention than usual today."

"Ha-ha, very funny. You know, I bet if I could see your face, you're holding back a laugh right now." The invisible girl released her laughter as the two girls poked fun at each other, but a pair of observant eyes saw how sad Mina was inside. The acid quirk user just didn't know they had been watching.

"Anywayssuhh~! Momo, we still on for tonight!?"

"Sh! Hagakure, you'll spoil the surprise!" Yaoyorozu hushed.

The girls couldn't wait for Girl's Night in Yaoyorozu's regal room. Most of the talk revolved around what food there was going to be, who got to sit where, and what movie were they watching. But for the most part, Hagakure and Yaoyorozu disclosed further details.

Of course, all talk of Girls' Night had to cease when a certain grape-headed pervert was around.

As Mineta approached the girl's table, faces of grimace and 'here we go again' crept on his classmates' faces.

"Now before you guys say anything, hear me out." Yaoyorozu folded her arms and sat up, arching her eyebrows with attitude. Mineta's pulled a thousand-too-many tricks for her to fall for another. She'd had just about enough of these perverted games.

Which was what made this whole ordeal even harder.

Earlier today…

"Alright, go eat lunch, and await further instructions." Aizawa dismissed his class oddly, but Class 1-A knew by now that he had something up his sleeve. However, they could all agree that class was more boring than usual today.

As the students filed out of the class, Aizawa stopped a certain student before he made his way out.

"But Mr. Aizawa, you know, like, none of them will listen to me, right?" Mineta was confused. Why would he entrust him with telling the girls to change into their training uniforms? He could tell the boys no problem, but the girls? No way.

"It's a part of the next training exercise: trust in your fellow heroes. Just know that if everyone doesn't come in their gear…" As his teacher walked out of the room, Mineta could feel the pressure exploding. "Then things are gonna go south for all of you. Fast."

"Dude no way they're gonna believe you. Mannn~ we're so screwed!" Kaminari ravaged his hands through his hair as the others tried to think of a way to tackle this secret task at the lunch table. "Man, Mineta of all people? We really got our work cut out for us, huh? Teach' sure knew what he was doing on this one..."

"Well hold on Kirishima. Maybe things aren't as bad as they seem." "

What do you mean Iida?" Iida grabbed his brethren's attention, coming up with a sort of plan. "Think about it: I believe if Mineta can somehow convince Yaoyorozu that his request is just, we may have a chance."

"Wait a sec, why Yaoyorozu?"

Mineta's casual question was shot down with mere glances.

"I agree." Tokoyami took this time to chime in. "But that's easier said than done. Mineta, did Mr. Aizawa say you could have help of any kind?"

"Mm-mm, he said this was something I had to do, and that he'd figure out if I had help from 'outside sources'."

This was no good. Things were looking grim for their class.

"Merci, the opportunity for a true confession of love shines bright."

"What!? I can't confess my love for her Aoyama!" Mineta spat, before reaching into his own soul. "But Momo is one of my precious little angels…"

However, it was as if the boy with a navel laser shone light in all of the boys' heads.

"Hey, wait a sec. Aoyama's onto something." Ojiro snapped his fingers, Sato seeing that everyone was on the same page as he was.

"Yeah, I think so too. If Mineta can pull Yaoyorozu aside—"

"Then maybe he'll have a better chance of convincing her." It took Tokoyami a little longer than the others (light didn't shine for everyone it seemed).

But, none of them seemed to be moving, and Yaoyorozu's presence only became more intimidating to the perverted warrior. Phase One was starting to look like—

"A total crapfest!"

"Relax Kaminari. Mineta's got this...I hope." Even Kirishima was starting to lose faith.

Meanwhile, at the girls' table…

"N-no, I'm serious— this is why I said hear me out!"

"You guys, maybe Mineta's telling the truth this time." Uraraka was the only ray of hope, but Mina snuffed that out quite quickly.

"You know he, like, totally got us last time with this, right? He did this."

"But this time I'm serious! Mr. Aizawa said we'll all seriously get it if everyone doesn't come outside in their uniforms! Something about the 'next phase'— I-I don't know! I'm just as much in the dark as you guys!" The desperate boy turned to Yaoyorozu with beady eyes. He almost melted her heart, but then she remembered the constant pranks and schemes he's attempted or pulled off in the past.

But then again, he was her friend.

Jiro saw the confliction on Yaoyorozu's face and put an end to this.

"Momo, you're not seriously considering this, are you? I bet the little weasel's smirking under that face right now!"

"Don't listen to her Yaoyorozu!"

"Momo!" Jiro snapped.

"Momo please!" Mineta cried!

The pressure on Yaoyorozu boiled over, causing the girl to scream in distress.

The boys waited outside, anxious of the girls' decision. "Y-you think they listened to Mineta?" Kaminari asked nervously.

"Fat chance. We're screwed…." Sero had already given up, scratching his head in misbelief. Aizawa and company waited at the training ground for the rest of their class, the girls of Class 1-A.

However, to the general expectation, they arrived not dressed in uniform. Groans and sighs left the mouths of the boys, as realization started to make its way to their clueless classmates.

"I think we made a mistake..." Mina pointing out the obvious, as they joined the other group.

"Well then."

Aizawa started off his next project with a smile. But it was a smile that said "man, you guys really screwed up."

"Mineta, you get an 'A' for effort." Aizawa said, confirming any suspicions behind this little task.

"Oh shoot you guys! I think Mineta was telling the truth."

"Of course I was! Now it's all over…!" Mineta yelled hysterically at his invisible friend, waterfalls streaming from his eyes.

"As I'm sure you guys all know by now, I tasked Mineta with telling each of you to meet outside, in your training uniforms. With the girls being late— presumably because you guys went to the classroom first, realized we weren't there, and then came outside…" The girls looked at their feet, in other directions, or just gritted their teeth.

That was exactly what happened.

"...and since none of you have your uniforms, I'm going to say that you guys bombed this test...as a unit.

"Wait, seriously? We all fail?" Jiro asked.

"Yes, this test was designed for the quality of trust, a big factor in the real world." Aizawa laid down the lesson plan for them.

The teachers had devised a test for the first years but seeing as Class 1-B was still training for the Hero exam, Class 1-A were guinea pigs.

Because the possibility of a traitor residing in UA was very much reasonable (Aizawa left this part out in order to maintain peace), they wanted to teach the heroes-in-training the importance of trust and making the right decisions when on the job.

In the class (meaning Midoriya and Bakugo were already ruled out), a student had been assigned with the role of the "Traitor". In fact, this student was with the group as Aizawa spoke. On a randomly-selected day, the dorms would be put through a simulated attack. So, similar to previous tests, the group was paired, and needed to find the traitor before time ran out.

But there was a catch.

Should one half of a group be immobilized and captured, that group would fail.

"Unfortunately, with the incident of Bakugo and Midoriya, Uraraka and Mina are partner-less. For now, you two will be partners. Other than that, class dismissed."

Class dismissed? But it was so early. Yet Aizawa walked away from the uniform and uniform-less students with that.

"He can't be serious!" Sero exclaimed. Class 1-A was really starting to lose faith in his teacher, as the crowd dispersed in anger and disappointment. "Everyone! Heed Mr. Aizawa's words: we need to be on our guard!"

"Do you even believe that Tenya?" Uraraka nudged her friend in the side, bringing him down to the same level of disappointment as the others.

But the walk back home was a time to cool off from the jokes and giggles. Well, for some at least. Yaoyorozu and a few others apologized to Mineta for not listening to him earlier, which bolstered his ego exponentially.

However, Mina's ego was far in the dirt. She was just as much a 'shit nerd' as Bakugo probably thought she was, boiling with anger while Ochako shot the breeze with friends, Mina wondered back to the dorm, looking haggard. ...

"Partners"

Momo Yaoyorozu, Minoru Mineta

Mashirao Ojiro, Kyoka Jiro

Izuku Midoriya, Mina Ashido

Tsuyu Asui, Shoto Todoroki

Yuga Aoyama, Hanta Sero

Rikido Sato, Mezo Shoji

Ochako Uraraka, Katsuki Bakugo

Denki Kaminari, Eijiro Kirishima

Toru Hagakure, Koji Koda

Fumikage Tokoyami, Tenya Iida