AN: Hey everyone. Sorry it's been a long while. I've been pretty busy in my own life. I've made it into a master's program and have been preparing for all the things that come with that, loan applications and such. I'm actually really excited. I'll get to move back with my family again, for now, and the state of Colorado. Most beautiful place I know. I guess being able to work on skills for grad school during lock down means at least something good came of lock down for me.

Anyways, that said, I will be taking a short break from this story. It has been... years since I watched RWBY and a while since I've played a KH game, at this point. I need to RE:Connect, as it were. Maybe rewatch Volume 3. Definitely play KH2 a little. I also need to fix up some things in the outline of this story. For instance, I've decided to completely change the My Hero world to coincide with the current Manga arc eventually. The other worlds will see some remodeling in the outline as well. Thanks for the patience.

Now, for a couple responses:

To GameLover41592: Yep, All-Might. He's actually also present at Dawn's birthday in the first couple chapters!

To Chretner: I'm happy you liked the last chapter. Devil May Cry is one of the things I've started getting interested in more recently, and I can see why so many people liked it for so long. Not just edgy white haired anime boys. Though there is a sufficient amount of that, actually. Super cool combat was a must, and I hope I can live up to the series' style when I return to it.

Anyways, I'll try to see you guys again, soon!

Chapter 9: Don't Worry, for HE is Here!

"Wow, this place is so peaceful," Oscar said as he and Dawn wandered through a picturesque, forested campus. "But... a lot of it looks familiar. You know, it's almost like some of the designs here are like the ones back at the Academy. That fountain – it looks just like the one where we met."

"Mom and Dad brought back a lot of stuff from other worlds," Dawn explained. She stopped at the edge of the path and took a deep breath, shutting her eyes and imagining she was back at home. It felt nice. Peaceful. But it all collapsed back around her and she let out an aggravated sigh. "Mom... she, uh, figured out a ton of her favorite weapons to add to her Transformations. She wasn't super interested in stuff like this."

"I'm just surprised Master Sora did," he admitted, chuckling.

Dawn shook her head. "Nah. That was Ozpin. He took it all from pictures Mom and Dad had."

"Ozpin... I wonder what he was like."

"Everyone says he was great." She shook her head and grinned over at him. "I bet he didn't have anything on you, though!"

Oscar chuckled. "Sure, right." He sighed. "I – Are we okay?"

"Of course. You wouldn't be Oscar if you weren't worrying too much about everything," Dawn supplied, throwing her hands up and shrugging. "Besides, I promised we could find my dad soon and this is a fun thing to do instead. We get one last adventure in before we head back! The way I see it, you've already done way more than you said you would."

"But I..." he trailed off. He wanted her dad to know, he wanted Dawn to be safe. But he also wanted her out there, running around different worlds; he hadn't seen her this happy in years. "Gah, this is hard!"

"Huh?"

Oscar flinched and shoo his hands in front of him. "N-nothing!" he exclaimed. He sighed and settled down. "Dawn... I'm sorry we didn't find what we were looking for."

She shrugged and looked up at the nearest building, with a massive 'USJ' across the top. She laced her fingers behind her head and her gaze turned down to a school bus parked outside. She wondered how the newest batch of students were doing. How... how her father was doing. "I don't know. I think we found a ton of awesome stuff, Oscar. All of our friends so far? All the... everything we've done? Couldn't ask for someone better to sight see with, y'know?"

Oscar put his hands in his pockets and clutched at the fabric inside. " – L-let's head in, D-Dawn," he replied, marching towards the door. She watched him go for a moment, crossing her arms and chuckling at his back. Finally, she jogged after him. She passed him and turned grinning, then slammed into the door too fast and yelped.

"I guess it's locked," she muttered, pushing herself up and rubbing the back of her head. Se turned and glared at the huge doors. "Well, how are we going to get it?"

"Dawn, come on," Oscar muttered. "We can unlock any door."

She grumbled and stuck her tongue out. "You're no fun," she growled. Still she turned to the door and summoned the Kingdom Key D to her left hand, tapping it softly against the doors. There was a soft shine that flowed over the doors, and they clicked unlocked. "Finally!" She shot forward, ready to push the doors open –

And slammed face first into it again. "Ach!"

"Dawn... They're pull..." Oscar explained, shuffling up beside her and grabbing one of the handles to slowly pull it open.

Dawn glared up at him, eyes narrowing. "You did this on purpose..."

"N-no!" Oscar protested. He threw his hands up and shook them anxiously. "I swear, I didn't think you'd run into it!"

"Yeah, yeah," she remarked. Her Keybade vanished and she slid through the door he'd opened. "At least you let the lady through first"

"W-where's the l-lady?" Oscar mumbled, just too quiet for her to hear. He followed after her, smirking at his own joking question.

"Wooow!" Dawn let out, walking up to a group of kids and watching spinning around. The inside of the building was gigantic, with a small cross section of a city on one end, a large, sinking yacht on another, a shattering parking garage, and a ton more. It was huge. "This place is so cool!"

"Right!?" A boy near her asked, excited. He turned his plain, freckled face towards her, wide green eyes filled with bright joy. He clenched his fists in his white gloves and looked over at where what looked like someone in a space suit and a very annoyed man were talking quietly. "And we get to learn from some of the best!"

Oscar stumbled and put a hand to his forehead. This guy, he felt like... compounding echoes. Something was – not wrong, but very odd about his Heart. The feeling began to grow ever louder in his head until, finally, it was as if something in him simply shut the door. Oscar gasped, realizing he hadn't been breathing for a moment there, but no one noticed. They were too preoccupied by someone much louder.

"Shut the hell up, Deku, I can't concentrate with your damn talking!" A boy his age came over, dressed like a grenade and with hair and a temperment that screamed explosion. He turned angry red eyes on Dawn and Oscar. "... And what the hell? These two aren't part of our class! What the hell, Deku, are you an idiot missing something like that!"

"K-Kacchan!" the Deku kid yelped, throwing up his hands and begin to mumble nervously about how he had just missed it.

"Hey, leave him alone, Kacchan!" Dawn snapped, getting face to face with him and scowling back.

"It's not Kacchan!" he snapped. "I'm Bakugo, despite what that loser says. And what are you going to do about? You don't even belong here!"

Dawn slammed her forehead into Bakugo's. "Oh, yeah? Well the door was unlocked so we just walked right it? No laws against that, Jerk!"

"Th-that's not quite -" Oscar began anxiously, only to be cut off again.

"Oh, yeah? Well how about we get our professor involved and you can get your asses kicked by all of us!" Bakugo snapped, pushing back against her with his own forehead. "I'll blow you to hell right now, come on!"

Deku swallowed nervously, sweat pouring down his face. "Kacchan, i-it must be okay if they're here. How else would they get through U.A.'s front g-"

"I don't think you could!" Dawn hissed. She pointed over her shoulder at the door. "Let's go outside, Bratugo! You're basically an angry little nobody next to some of the guys I've fought!"

He raised one of his hands, grinning wide as explosions began to pepper in his palm. "Oh, I'm gonna enjoy wiping that smirk off your face, you -"

"He's going at it with someone else, now?" Oscar and Deku looked over at a girl with brown hair and rosy cheeks, dressed in a pink, black, and white body suit. Oscar froze as she walked up, surprised as the feeling of bright, powerful Light began to stream from her like an unstoppable river.

Another Princess? Oscar wondered internally, studying her with wide eyes. They kept running into Princesses on their travels – if Saber was a Princess like he suspected, that made four with Dawn's mother included. Four Princesses... No way this was just luck. He quickly turned away. Is... someone planning this?

He flinched when he finally realized that both Deku and this girl were staring at him. "Ah! Uh, sorry! I'm O-Oscar," he said, holding his hand up and waving.

"Oh, you met another ball of anxiety, huh Deku?" the girl asked, elbowing Deku in the side.

"Wha? U-Uraraka, I'm n-not that anxious!" he protested, turning bright red as she got close.

Uraraka chuckled and tented her hands in front of her. "Oh, it's nothing bad," she explained.

Deku chuckled more, but stopped suddenly and turned to Oscar. "But, Kacchan is right that we don't know you. How'd you get into U.A.?"

"Erm... D-Dawn knows someone from around h-here," he explained, hoping the truth was a better lie than a good lie when he was telling it. He wasn't sure if Master Sora's friend was here, but he was here on this world. He looked out at the teachers, who were glaring at the two arguing teens, one of them wondering just who the hell these new kids were.

Dawn turned at his shout, cocking his head to the side for a moment. "Hey, Dry Eye, do you know Uncle Toshi?"

"Dry Eye?" Bakugo asked, surprised she'd ask that.

Dry Eye glared down at her, hair beginning to swirl and eyes glowing red. "That's not -" His hair fell and he turned around when a loud, swirling noise began to fill the building like waves.

Dawn and Oscar felt their stomachs drop. Sliding up to her, Oscar hissed, "We came here to find your dad's friend and instead we get stuck in another big fight!"

"Yeah, well, it's all my fault," Dawn hissed back. She grit her teeth and watched the center portal more closely, seeing a figure covered in –

"Oh, th-that's...," Oscar muttered.

"Creepy," Dawn finished with a shudder. The man had hands all over his upper body, clutching at his face, his arms, and tight around his throat. But even worse was the thing that lumbered out off the Corridor after him. Eight feet tall with a horrible, beak like face. Its body was like pitch, and almost as muscular as Toshi, she noted. Growing out of its face... was a white and red, bone like protrusion and glowing yellow eyes. A Grimm. But... At the center of its chest...

A stylized Heart with an 'X' over it.

"That thing's a Grimm and Heartless?" she whispered. She could basically feel Oscar stiffen into a board beside her, the air in his lungs freezing before it could escape. He let out a strangled noise as he tried to breathe out and found he couldn't. Dawn glanced over and reached out, grabbing his hand. "Hey..."

He breathed out and looked over at her, calming as she shared her strength with him. She silently asked if he would be all right. He nodded. She smiled back and let go, returning her attention to the monster.

The monster staring straight at her. Handsy turned to follow its gaze, then turned back and barked an order. A moment later, Dawn was tumbling through the Darkness, reaching out for Oscar. She had to save him – this was all her fault! "O-Osc -"

X X X

"D-Dawn!" Oscar screamed before he slammed hard into a white, metal walkway. The air rushed from his lungs and he gasped out in pain, rolling and slamming into the wall. "Ach!"

"Deku!" Oscar opened his eyes and watched that boy and girl he'd met earlier tumble like he had, the boy rolling to the edge of the boat before the girl dove and grabbed his arm. The boy began to float upward, yelping in surprise before the girl yanked him back onto the boat.

"Thanks, Uraraka," Deku said as he tumbled off of her, growing serious. His green eyes widened upon catching sight of Oscar, and he rushed over. "Are you okay? Oscar, right?"

"Y-yeah. I'll be fine," he explained, grunting and pushing himself up. He looked around, glancing over the edge of the boat and grimacing. Marine Heartless and Grimm were swimming around the boat, a few even slamming their claws into the boat and preparing to climb slowly up the hull.

"What happened?" Oscar wondered aloud before looking around. In the distance, he could see a small group contending with Heartless near the open door they'd entered, but significantly smaller than he remembered.

"Somebody must have used a teleportation Quirk to separate all of us," Deku said. He glanced over the edge at the Heartless. "They must think these monsters are enough to deal with us."

"We don't have a lot of experience fighting, Deku," Uraraka pointed out.

"Maybe you don't," Oscar finally interjected. "But I do." He turned back to them and swallowed down a pit of worry. He didn't have time for that. "We can at least get most of these H-Heartless and Gr-Grimm out of the way pretty easily. Most of the ones I see aren't known to be v-very durable."

"You know what these things are?" Uraraka asked. She frowned and looked over the edge. "They feel... wrong..."

"What do you mean?" Deku wondered.

Oscar nodded. "These things are made out of Darkness. And that th-thing back at the e-entrance..." Oscar trailed off, the image of the monster burned into his mind. Back home, there were no examples of Heartless and Grimm being combined like that. That someone had managed to do it here? Now? They were targeting Dawn and him, they had to be. "I-it's worse than any of these. It's not made of evil, it is evil."

"Then we have to go help Mr. Aizawa!" Deku exclaimed. He glanced towards their teacher attacking the monsters and charging towards the center of the building, vanishing behind another sector as he charged down the stairs.

"That still leaves us with these monsters, though," Uraraka said, looking over the edge at a shark like Grimm that leaped up and gnashed its teeth at her. She flinched back in surprise.

Deku sighed. "You're right," he agreed. He turned to Oscar. "So, what's your quirk? I'm super strong, but right now it breaks my bones. I, uh, can't control it really well."

Uraraka chuckled. "You'll get better, Deku!" she exclaimed. She turned to Oscar. "Mine's called Zero Gravity. I can turn gravity off for anything I touch. It's not easy when I do it for myself or things that are too heavy, though..."

Oscar's eye twitched. Great. Another world with its own weird version of magic with rules he didn't understand. He frowned and placed a hand on his chin. The best way to put this..? "It's like a Sembance..." He nodded. That was right. Targeted, specific. A muscle. But his Semblance... well, it wasn't much help here. But his Keyblade and magic... Magic! "I can... manipulate energy into d-different 'elements.' I can even heal your broken bones, e-er... maybe. It gets stronger if, I – er, if I shape it. Like th-this!" he shouted, raising his hand and summoning Chronal, hoping beyond hope that explanation would work well enough.

Deku's eyes widened like Master Ruby's did when she got her hands on a new weapon, sparkling bright. He began to mutter under his breath, words moving faster and faster until they were basically seamless. "Uh... d-does this happen? A lot?"

Uraraa looked at Oscar. "I've only known him for a couple weeks, but I get the feeling this is pretty normal, yeah."

"Huh?" Deku asked, head snapping up. His eyes widened and he shook his head. "Oh, jeez, sorry! I didn't mean to – er..." He shut his eyes, took a deep breath, and let it out, steadying himself. After a moment, he opened his eyes, that steel returned. "I have a plan."

A few moments later, the trio had assembled on top of the boat, staring down at the Heartless and Grimm that were just reaching the railings of the boat. "Are you sure this is a good plan?" Oscar wondered cautiously, readying to channel a reflect hexagon beneath them the moment Deku took them into the air.

"Do you think you can heal my broken legs?" Deku asked instead.

Oscar nodded. If there was one thing he was confident in, it was his skills with magic. "Y..Yeah."

"Then we'll get out of this just fine!" Uraraka exclaimed. She grinned at Deku. "We're ready."

Deku smiled back, taking in their confidence, then took a deep breath. "Get ready, guys!" He shouted, energy beginning to coil around his legs. "SMAAAAASH!"

There was a boom, and the trio were in the air, soaring into the air with a massive geyser of water exploding upward after them. The Heartless and Grimm slammed into each other, crashing together and turning to Dust and smoke with every collision, destroyed by the massive power Deku had unleashed. The trio flew through the air for a moment, nothing keeping them safe from crashing, until Oscar aimed his Keyblade down and summoned a large Reflect hexagon beneath their feet. Immediately, Uraraka placed her free hand on the spell, the Light reacting and reversing its flow of gravity. The trio hit the wall softly and Oscar yelped, struggling to guide the now flying spell across the air. "We – AGH!" Oscar screamed after turning to look at Deku with his shattered, bloody legs twisted in the wrong directions.

"I-it l-looks worse than it i-is!" Deku tried to explain.

Oscar really hoped a Curaga could fix that.

X X X

"Of all the stupid, wannabe losers I could get stuck with, it's the one I caught breaking and entering that I get stuck with!" Bakugo snapped, slamming his heel into a pile of cement and glowering over at Dawn.

She turned from the edge of the parking garage. "And I had to get stuck with little Mr. Inferiority!" she snapped back.

"I'm superior, Dumbass," Bakugo growled, explosions popping threateningly in his hands.

"Sure, Kacchan," Dawn muttered, rolling her eyes and turning back.

"GAH!" He snapped, leaping towards her, tackling her out of the broken garage. She hit the ground hard and felt a chunk of her Aura drain away from taking the brunt of the fall, then began to tumble down debris now separated from Bakugo for a short while. She slammed into a wall and groaned, in pain but thankful she could finally push up to her feet.

"We don't know you. You walk in, and two seconds later this happens?" Dawn's head snapped up and she barely threw herself out of the way in time. Bakugo, palms sending out explosions that could shatter stone, slammed into where she was and blew the wall out. "I ain't a moron like Deku who believes in stupid coincidences!"

"I never said it was a coincidence!" Dawn growled. She summoned her Keyblade and held it at the ready. This nutjob was trying to kill her! "But we aren't friends with the guys doing this!"

Bakugo didn't seem to buy it, because he began charging her again. Dawn grit her teeth and charged right back, swinging the Keyblade up to deflect the explosion incoming on his hand. The flames burst over her shoulder, singing her even as she twisted to avoid the worst of it. Moving with the force of the explosion, she looped around Bakugo and slashed at his head, only for another explosion to send him flying up to flip over her. She dove forward in a roll to avoid his next blast where she was standing, coming to her feet and turning to stare across a small crater at him.

"You're really starting to get on my nerves, Kacchan," Dawn grumbled under her breath after a moment. Then, louder: "Look, we're wasting time. Everyone else is in a lot of danger now and we should go and help them!"

"Still sounds like a trick," Bakugo growled, thoroughly unconvinced.

Dawn groaned and shook her head. "You're killing me."

Bakugo's grin widened. "That's the plan," he said darkly.

Dawn glared at him for a moment. "You need serious help."

Dawn glanced around. "You need to calm down, okay? Between my Keyblade and you being a big jerk, we're going to be swimming in Heartless and Grimm any second, and neither of us want that!"

"So if I get rid of you fast, those monster things won't show up at all?"

"Really not what I wanted you to take from this," she grumbled. She tightened her grip on the Keyblade and snarled. "I don't want to fight you, but if you insist on being an idiot I'll do it no problem!"

Dawn rushed Bakugo first, throwing him slightly off balance. She launched a flurry of attacks that he was forced to dodge using his explosions, bouncing backwards through the rubble as she followed close behind. She grit her teeth and jumped forward, eyes flicking to his right when she finally noticed a blur of movement. She ducked beneath an explosion aimed at her head and rushed past him, slashing up at a Soldier leaping at the back of his head. "Got you!" she shouted, leaping up and cleaving it in two before its claws could get close to Bakugo. He turned and watched with wide, surprised eyes, then turned as more loudly appeared around them.

"Okay, maybe I'll believe these guys aren't friends with your dumb ass," he said as the Grimm and Heartless began to circle around them.

"Really? What gave it away, Bratugo?"

"Didn't say I trusted you, Dumbass," he growled. "I'm still gonna kill you, and I know you have something to do with this!"

Dawn glared dryly at the monsters surrounding them. "Can we at least not fight until after this whole thing is fixed? It'd be easier to get to Oscar with you instead of leaving you here unconscious."

"As if you could!" He shot away from her, slamming an open palm into a Beowolf's head before blowing it clean off, using the force of his own attack to soar high into the air, flipping onto the back of a flying Heartless and slamming his heel right into its neck.

Dawn rolled her eyes as he began to pepper its head with explosions, and turned to make sure she wouldn't be outdone. She raised the Keyblade and charged the closest group of monsters, cleaving through a Shadow on her way to a larger Ursa. She deflected one of its claws over her body and rolled past it, slashing up. The Grimm turned quickly and slashed back, slamming her weapon to the side before lunging at her. She got hit with a shoulder check and the Grimm began charging her towards a cement pillar. Dawn grimaced as they got closer and she raised her Keyblade, summoning it backhand now, before burying it as deep as she could in the Grimm's shoulder. The monster shrieked in pain and veered off, slowing just enough to drop her and nearly trample right over her.

"Ow," she grumbled as she pushed herself up and watched the monster careen right into Bakugo. She couldn't help but let out a slightly satisfied chuckle. "Okay. Not bad." She got to her feet and summoned the Keyblade back as she glanced around to see where the next attack would come from. This time, it was in the form of a pair of Soldier Heartless spinning towards her from opposite sides. She threw herself forward in a dodge, letting the pair collide. They shook their heads, disoriented for a half second, before spinning at her again from the same spot. This time, Dawn threw her Keyblade up to block, the reflect wall causing both of them to recoil backwards and giving her enough time to charge flames along the edge of her Keyblade. She dashed forward, slashing through the Heartless, and they erupted in flames as their crystalline Hearts soared upwards.

She turned to the sounds of explosions and saw a familiar, battered Ursa fly through the air trailing smoke, a hole blasted into its chest. It slammed into the ground in front of her, already half dissolved into Black Dust. "There are too many of these morons," Bakugo grumbled as he pushed himself over the hill of rubble and into view. "We need a way to take them all out right now if we want a chance at the big thing that showed up."

Dawn grinned. "You know, I almost like the way you think sometimes!" she exclaimed. Her grin soured. "Then I remember you're a jerk."

"Shut up!" he snapped. "And help me think about a way to get all of 'em!"

Dawn glanced around at the Grimm and Heartless. "How big can you get an explosion?"

"If they were all bunched up, I could take all of these things out no problem," Bakugo explained pridefully.

Dawn bit her cheek. Her dad had said he'd been able to unleash powerful attacks with his friends a long time ago, at the cost of his current magical reserves. Limits, or something like that. He'd even said he'd done one with Ren a long time ago. But... it required friendship exist between a pair of people. She definitely didn't have that with this Bakugo guy. She shoved that idea to the side. That only left... two ideas. And for one of them, she'd kind of promised Oscar she wouldn't do it. So, really, that only left one option. "Then we run."

"What did you say!?" Bakugo growled, voice low and dangerous.

"Think about it! These things are wasting our time. The faster we find Oscar and the others, the faster we have more people to help us take down that big thing!"

Bakugo looked like he was ready to explode. "Running away is for cowards!"

"It's not running away!" Dawn snapped. She turned and blocked a Beowolf's claws. "This isn't a real fight, Bratugo. This is a distraction! It's... it's meaningless and stupid and if we don't run, um... Deku will beat that thing first!"

"WHAT!?" he turned from the smoking crater that used to be a group of Shadows.

Dawn sighed in relief. Finally, something that worked! Bakugo glared at her, then towards the center of the room. "Dammit, fine. Let's hurry and I'll kill that thing before that stupid nerd can even think about getting in my way!"

"As long as we get out of here," Dawn agreed. She slashed through a Shadow and pointed. "Can you manage to clear us a path, or do I have to take care of it, Bratugo?"

His crimson eyes flashed with rage and explosions began to pop in his palms. "Oh, I know you're tryin' to make me mad," he said quietly. "But it's working. And I'll show you just how a real hero does things, Dumbass." He blasted away in a blink of an eye, the explosion he'd used to propel himself nearly tearing Dawn from her feet before she stabbed her Keyblade into the ground. She watched him go, spinning like a flaming drill through the Heartless and Grimm to form a large pathway for her to follow.

"I'm really happy Oscar wasn't stuck with this crazy guy," Dawn muttered. She took a breath and rushed after him, preparing herself to fight that... thing and find Oscar again. "Hang on. I'm going to be there soon."

X X X

"Dammit, he got here first!"

Oscar watched Deku visibly flinch at those hissed words, and the two and Uraraka turned to see that angry Kacchan guy rushing up, crouching low to hide behind the hedge. And behind him - "Dawn!" Oscar shuffled past Kacchan and grabbed hold of her in a hug. "You're okay!"

"It was close," she admitted. "Almost killed him once or twice." Her grip tightened and Oscar could feel her trembling. "I was worried about you, Oz."

Oscar's face went bright red. "I-I... Thanks. B-but we were o-okay. Th-they're good people."

Dawn separated from him and grumbled. "Why do you always have it easy?"

"L-luck?"

"I could use some of that," she said with a chuckle. She turned to glance over the hedge. "What's been happening so far?"

"Mr. Aizawa has been taking out those things left and right. But the guy with the hands and the big monster haven't started to attack yet," the girl kind looking girl whispered. Uraraka, Dawn recalled. And she was right. The guy was twirling like an acrobatic ninja between the Heartless and Grimm, using the powerful whips he was holding to slam the monsters into one another an destroying them, then immediately flipping over an attack that came at his back and soaring into the air to repeat the process. He was almost as impressive as Uncle Ren, she noted with a low whistle. He yanked up another large Beowolf Alpha and axe kicked it into the ground, crushing a few Shadows and Soldiers that had been in its path for good measure.

"I guess he doesn't need our help," Dawn said, grinning at Bakugo.

"Dammit, and I left behind a chance to take down villains back there for this?"

"You got Kacchan to back off from a fight?" Deku asked, wide eyed. "I didn't think that was possible."

"She was right, even if she's a Dumbass," Bakugo admitted, sounding like it was causing him physical pain to say it. "I'm not fighting some second class losers when a real villain needs fighting. But even second class losers are better than watching a fight..."

"Hate it all you want. At least we're safe," Oscar muttered. He glanced up at the exit door. "Is any help coming?"

"All Might, probably," Uraraka said.

Bakugo grunted an affirmative. "He was running late, so he would already be on his way."

Deku fidgeted at that statement but said nothing, instead opting to focus more intently on his teacher's fight. "Maybe, but... the big guy. He hasn't moved yet."

"So you think he's a trump card?" Dawn voiced.

"..." Deku grew silent, frown deepening.

And a moment later, his fears were confirmed. "This is getting boring. Nomu – remove this... miniboss."

The beaked Heartless-Grimm thing – the Nomu – was on top of Aizawa before he could react, fist wrapping around his arm and squeezing. The snap was loud enough to echo over to the kids and they froze. This guy who had just been destroying monsters was dangling with one limp arm from the grasp of another monster. He turned and tried to lash out at its face with his foot, but it simply slammed him into the ground instead. Once, twice, three times. "H-he's going to die..." Uraraka muttered, eyes wide and fearful.

"SHUT UP!" Deku and Bakugo screamed, and they both vanished at the same time. A pair of huge explosions sent them flying towards the Nomu thing, one riding flames and the other glowing with intense, burning Light that trailed even from his mangled and broken slammed into the creature's chest and it was blown backwards, flying past the one commanding it and through a wall.

"Dammit!" Dawn shouted, surging to her feet and charging after them. Oscar and Uraraka weren't too far behind, splitting off to tend to Deku's apparently completely shattered legs and Aizawa's mangled body while Dawn slid to a stop in front of the guy covered in hands. "Stay back! Keep all... erm... twelve – no, wait, sixteen! - all sixteen hands where I can see them!"

` Said villain stopped and cocked his head to the side, snarl slowly growing across his face. "Damn, a protected NPC," he grumbled. "He said I'm not allowed to kill you, but here you are getting in my way!" He screamed like a child throwing a tantrum.

Dawn glared at him, unflinching despite the sudden change in attitude. "Get out of here."

His snarl grew wider, and the eyes visible between the fingers covering his face narrowed. "No... I don't think you get to tell me what to do."

Dawn glanced over her shoulder. Deku's legs were healed, and Uraraka was moving Aizawa somewhere safe. "Bring it on, Handjob," she snapped back.

"NOMU!"

Her cocky grin turned into a grimace. Of course he wouldn't fight his own battles...

She was barely able to turn in time to swing her Keyblade around, intercepting a massive, black fist that the Nomu had intended to use to flatten her. The creature's strength was still intense enough that the reflect wall shattered and she was blown back, arms screaming from the sudden impact right up until an explosion occurred beside her and she felt Bakugo grab hold of her, spinning to pepper the air with more explosions until they could stop safely. The two still hit the ground hard, tumbling over one another until sliding to a stop in a pile of bruises. Then Bakugo kicked her off of him. "Be more careful, Dumbass. I won't catch you every time, got it?!" he snapped at her before turning and rocketing towards the fight again.

Dawn glared at him, then groaned and pushed herself up. With an annoyed grumble she muttered, "So much for not being allowed to kill me..." She reached up and cracked her neck, thinking about anything but the Dust in her pocket that might give her an edge. It was... well, it wasn't that bad yet, she supposed.

Oscar saw Bakugo fly past him at the Nomu, slamming into it like a rocket with flames trailing behind him. It didn't even scratch the thing. "I need to help!" Deku growled as the Curaga finally stitched his bones and muscle back together.

"You need to wait," Oscar snapped. He glared at the battlefield. "Mr. Bakugo unleashed more firepower in that blow than I've ever seen and it didn't do anything. Your... ability might be the only thing that can hurt it, but I can't keep healing these wounds. And eventually you'll die before my energy comes back. Or you'll reach your limit on how much I can heal you."

Deku frowned and glared at his feet. "Useless..." he growled. He shook his head to clear it and pushed up. "You're right, I can't just do things wildly. I have to be careful I have to – Did you just say Mr. Bakugo?"

Oscar stared at Deku, then blinked. "Uh... Did I?" he wondered. Not important. "We'll keep it in place. You just get ready to hit it with everything you've got, okay?"

Deku turned towards the monster as Bakugo and Dawn barely managed to dodge around its powerful blows and uselessly lash out in return. "I – O-okay."

Oscar nodded and rushed towards the battle, wishing Cure spells didn't drain all magical energy when used. He brought his Keyblade up in front of him and charged in beside Dawn, slamming Chronal into the Nomu's wrist to divert an attack just inches from hitting her. "Thanks!" Dawn shouted, flipping over the arm and slamming her own weapon into its beak as it slowly turned towards Oscar and he froze under the weight of the combined Heartless-Grimm-Thing's gaze. It stumbled backwards and Dawn landed in front of him. "Head in the game, Oz!" She rushed towards the monster again, leaping into the air and coating her weapon in flames. It cleaved into the monster's block, igniting and charring flesh around it. But the creature shrugged the attack off and grabbed hold of her leg, slamming her down into the ground before throwing her hard at a nearby rock outcropping.

"DIE!" Bakugo screamed, shooting in from behind with a savage grin across his face. Flames swirled around him, explosions chaining into a maelstrom of destruction as he got closer with palm outstretched. "HOWITZER IMPACT!"

There was a bright flash, and a tidal wave of force blasted out from the impact. "That had to have done something!" Deku shouted hopefully, only to see Bakugo held by the head, the monster's fist gripping tighter. "Kacchan!"

"Deku, don't rush in!" He turned, halfway through a step, to see Uraraka standing off with their unconscious teacher. She was... worried. Terrified for him.

He grit his teeth and brought his foot back down. It wouldn't be any good to rush in, miss, and get killed acting like an idiot... "Dammit..." he growled.

Dawn grimaced and watched the creature begin to squeeze, eliciting a roar of rage and pain from Bakugo. "Dammit..." she reached into her pocket and turned to Oz, who was trying to channel energy into a spell that could lock the creature down. "... Oz, I have to do it!"

He glanced her way. "... But..." He wanted to say it wasn't safe. Because it wasn't. He wanted to say it was a dumb idea. Because it was. But he knew it was also the only idea. He shut his eyes and returned his attention to the swirling, icy chains that he was crafting. "Damn. Do it!"

Dawn grabbed the Dust pellet and charged forward, shattering it with her Aura and becoming charged with brilliant, scarlet energy. Darkness trailed in the flaming petals behind her and Bladebleed appeared in her right hand. "Drop him, Ugly!" She shouted, twisting her second weapon to a backhand and shooting past the Nomu. The teeth widened to catch its wrist and she twisted. The Keyblade's innate abilities shattered the bone, giving Bakugo just enough leverage to blast away and out of the Nomu's grip. Unfortunately, the bone snapped back into place just as quickly as it broke, and the Nomu shrieked and slammed its fist into her side. Dawn felt something in her give unnaturally as her Aura fizzled, barely staying up, and she was suddenly half buried in a wall of stone. "D-dammit..."

The creature turned and tensed its legs, claws readying to impale Dawn when it charged. "Hey, I never said we were done!" Bakugo snapped, flying in again and letting loose the strongest blast he could at its head before flying away, just barely inches away from its fingers. It snared and began to move towards him, only for Bladebleed to snap its ankle. It turned and swiped at Dawn, but she managed to roll just out of the way this time, gasping in pain and remaining pinned on the ground as the pain in her side flared and stabbed into her.

Bakugo came in and blasted the back of its head before it could slam its fist through Dawn's chest. The creature barely budged this time with as tired and weak as this attack was. The creature's head snapped back and into Bakugo's head. He hit the ground hard, vision tunneling. The creature turned back to Dawn, fist raising slowly.

Dawn threw up her hand, casting Darkness up at the creature's face. It froze for a moment, blinded by the assault, and it reared backwards. Why didn't I just fight harder and smarter!? "OZ! ANYTIME!"

"I'm working on it!" He snapped. He glanced over at Deku. "Ready!?"

A bright glow began to appear around Deku's legs. "Ready."

"Glacial Manacles!" Oscar snapped. He threw the tip of Chronal forward, aimed directly at the Nomu's arm first. They wrapped around the creature and swirled up the arm, yanking it back, followed by the other one. Bones creaked and the ice slowly spread from the chains across its body, chaining tighter and tighter, freezing more and more of it.

"SMAAAASH!" Deku screamed. The ground shattered beneath his feet, sending stone and dust flying everywhere. He was already on top of the Nomu, fist raised tight, and slammed the glowing appendage into its chest. There was another massive explosion, and Oscar felt his Chains turn to dust, atomized by the pressure. He resisted the force blowing him back as the energy in his limbs vanished and he fell to his knees.

"We... did..."

The Nomu stomped out of the cloud, skin shredded from its muscles, beak shattered and bent, an arm missing. But alive. Very much alive. It held Deku's broken body, barely conscious, in its remaining fist. Oscar felt fear erupt in his chest, freezing his Heart solid. "No..." he muttered. He began to fall to the ground, eyes drifting shut. They'd... failed...

"Take your hands off my students, Monster!" A blur of yellow crashed into the Nomu and gently tore Deku from its grasp. "Because I am here!"

And then the word went black.

X X X

Dawn's first thought was that everything really hurt. A lot. "That was... a mistake..." she grumbled, eyes still shut tight. She took a shallow breath and cracked one open, glancing around. She was in an infirmary, of some kind. There was that sterile smell, a few beds. One other, and a couple others, maybe, behind a curtain separator in this room. And, now that she was concentrating, there were other rooms nearby, too. At least if Bratugo's loud shouting from somewhere outside was any kind of indication. She opened her other eye, squinting for a moment as it got used to the sunlight streaming in from a window, then looked around. She saw the other bed and shot straight up, groaning and nearly fainting from the surge of blood and pain rushing her brain. "Ow..."

"Dawn?" Oscar asked, slowly pushing up in his own bed. He cocked his head to the side. "Ugh... wh-what happened?"

The talking behind the curtain stopped and it shot open, revealing a very injured Deku and a bandaged up skeleton with long, golden hair. "Ah, you're finally awake!"

"A-All – Um, I mean – Mister – Uh – Sir, that is – Do you re-really want them t-to see you?" Deku asked, flailing about in his casts for a moment.

The bandaged skeleton chuckled and turned his bright blue eyes on the pair. "It's nothing to worry about, Young Midoriya. I know them, after all," he explained before placing a hand on Deku's head and ruffling his hair.

"Know you..?" Dawn asked. She shook her head. "Sorry, but I don't know any skeletons. Though I have met a ghost in a suit of armor!"

"A-Al's not a ghost, Dawn!" Oscar protested.

"Well, I mean, it's the best way to describe it easily, right?"

Oscar opened his mouth to protest again, then sighed. "Well, you're not wrong, I guess..."

"Oh, we know each other, Young Nomura," the skeleton man explained. He chuckled. "Though, I do admit it's been a few more years than I wanted."

"A-are you sure you know her? I m-mean... she doesn't seem to know you."

"Well, I do look pretty different, I guess," the man said with a sigh. He rubbed the back of his head. "But come on, I was hoping you'd recognize me anyways, Young Nomura!"

She glanced at Oscar. "You recognize him with your thing?"

"... It's weird. I can't get over the fact it's... almost like he's in the room... twice? Deku and him."

Deku gasped. "Wait, that sounds a lot like -"

"OFA. Yeah," All-Might agreed. He sighed and put his hands on his hips. "Well, I guess there's nothing I can do about it." Steam began to rise from his shoulders and his voice slowly grew louder and more boisterous. "Maybe you'll recognize me like this!"

"UNCLE TOSHI! I'm so happy to see you!" Dawn screamed as his hair drifted upward like electric bunny ears and his eyes darkened. His jawline became wide, and his muscles massive. She shot from her bed and tackled him to the ground. "Oh, man – Bad idea..."

Toshinori Yagi chuckled and lifted her up easily, placing her back on the bed with a grin. "Ah, that's right! I am here, revealing my identity to an old friend!"

"A-All-Might..." Deku grumbled as Toshinori began laughing at himself. "You're being weird..."

"It's been too long, hasn't it?" Toshinori asked. He opened his mouth to say more, then yelped and let out a spray of blood that caused everyone to scream in surprise. Smoke appeared all around him and he reappeared, skinny and skeletal once again. "Ugh... ow..."

"Uncle Toshi, are- are you okay?!"

"Er, no, but that can wait," he replied, raising his arm to wipe the blood off. "You do know your dad is worried sick, right? Called me up a while ago and said you were missing! He wanted me to tell him if you showed up here! What happened?"

"Y-you haven't called him yet? H-have you?" Oscar asked quietly.

Toshinori grimaced. "Well, you've been unconscious for a few days, so..."

The door slid open and everyone's heads turned to see a pair of angry, blue eyes set on the two kids stuck in the beds. Spiky, brown and graying hair trembled with rage. "Oh, it's a little late for that," Sora Nomura growled as he leaned against the door frame, arms crossed over his chest. "You two... are in so much trouble."

Dawn swallowed her fear and chuckled. "I-I... Uhm... H-Hey, Dad! W-what's up?"

His eyes narrowed. "So. Much. Trouble, Young Lady," he seethed. He uncrossed his arms and stepped into the room. His Keyblade appeared and a Curaga flashed throughout, washing over all present. Deku and All-Might's recent wounds healed. And, unfortunately, so did Dawn and Oscar's.

Sora nodded in thanks at his friend, then turned back to his daughter and student. "Get dressed. We're leaving, and neither of you are so much as seeing an image of a Gummi Ship for the next ten thousand years! Or each other!"

"Dad, no -!"

"Shut up or it'll be worse!"

Dawn's jaw snapped shut. He had... never spoken like that to her. Ever. And to hear it from her usually easygoing, if... worried Dad was... unnerving.

Oscar stared at his best friend for a while. He knew that they'd be in trouble, but... Well, Sora seemed angrier than he'd even expected. He wasn't sure, but it was almost like something had gone very, very wrong while they'd been gone. "W-what happened?" Oscar asked. He cleared his throat, forcing courage into his voice. "We knew you'd be mad, but this is... you're scared."

Sora's eyes flashed towards Oscar. He bit his cheek and slowly turned away. "Dove is missing. We don't know what happened, but she never reported back after searching for you."

The room rang with silence. Then: "No..." Oscar whispered, terrified.

Dawn clenched the sheets on top of her tightly, fighting down a surge of emotions of her own. "Dammit..."