And here we are again, me with another chapter and you all with uh... adoration I hope! Managed to get this one done on time thank God! Hope you enjoy!

Also, Wonderlands is coming! I'm so hyped!

Reviews: Hornig3, how can I call myself a Borderlands fan if I don't have Moxxi almost kill someone from bloodloss?

Engineer4Ever, glad you liked the fluff! It makes everything else hurt so much, lol!

Vedahzii, I'm glad I could give you what you needed. Hope you're doing alright.

Let's roll!

Borderlands is owned by Gearbox and 2KGames and My Hero Academia is owned by Kohei Horikoshi and Funimation. Please support the official release.

Please rate and review!

"This means someone is talking."

'This means someone is thinking to themselves.'

This means it's a flashback.

*This means it's a sound effect!*

{This means I'm speaking in a different language!}

Angel in a Gilded Cage

There were many firsts that Angel had come to enjoy during her tenure at Yūei. A real class with kids her age. Her friends made from that class whom she came to deeply care for. Their meals in the cafeteria and many more social events afterwards.

But if there was one first that she didn't appreciate, it would be her first exam day. She was no stranger to formal academic testing (that was the only part of the entrance exam she had been somewhat confident in), her grievances were more related to the fact that they had all of their different subject tests back to back to back, etcetera. It meant that no sooner had she and her classmates finished their first test, they were thrown right into the next one. Even though she felt she was prepared thanks to the study sessions she had with her friends, the pressure was heavy on her shoulders.

That last bit might have just been her posture in retrospect, hunched over her test papers. But she didn't complain and just buckled down. By the end of the day, her head was aching and her writing hand was cramped but now she knew a greater variety of satisfaction, that it was over. She felt fairly unworried about her odds, the only class that gave her hesitation being literature, but that was to be expected. She imagined that she did better than others of course, the looks of panic on Ashido's and Kaminari's faces fresh in her mind. She pitied them, especially after getting to know them two weeks ago.

Now all that was left was the heroics exam, the entirety of the next day dedicated to the occasion. Angel, along with the majority of her classmates was definitely more excited for this, the prospect of hero practice was always going to be more appealing than regurgitating facts onto a page.

That being said, Angel was still concerned. The heroics test couldnt be as simple as Kendo said, right? They used robots for the entrance exam, would they really just repeat it for the end of term? Maybe it would just be the immense zero-pointers, but even that felt a bit lazy and knowing Nezu, he might just shake things up solely to avoid that.

Regardless, there was little she could do about it other than pull on her costume, climb onto the bus and shut up. It was a short trip to the testing grounds, but it still gave her enough time to engage in some light conversation.

Well, kind of.

"How do you think you did yesterday, Koda-kun?" She asked the large and timid boy, smiling in an attempt to soothe his nerves. It seemed to work a little as he gave her a nod and a small hand wave.

"Sort of? Got it. Me too. What about the heroics exam?"

Koda immediately sagged, an uncertain look on his face with his gaze at the floor. Her heart bled at his expression, the sheer amount of self doubt that reeked from his pores.

'This is what it looks like from the outside, huh?' She thought and gave him a light pat on the shoulder.

"I'm sure you'll do fine." She assured him, getting a glance and a thankful half smile.

The bus rocked as it eased to a stop.

"We have arrived! Everyone step off the bus in a calm, organized fashion!" Iida instructed, which hardly anyone heard as they excitedly stampeded outside. There the class lined up on the curb in front of the test fields. Unlike the mock cities in the entrance exam, these zones had a variety of environments for combat tests, including but not limited to forests, fields and industrial sites.

But to Angel, that was all overshadowed by a seperate, glaring fact.

Standing before them, side by side were all of their pro hero teachers. Standing in the middle was Aizawa, which was to be expected, flanked by their normal subject professors like Present Mic, Midnight, Cementoss and Ectoplasm. They were joined by some of the auxiliary staff that had helped at USJ, namely Thirteen, Snipe and Powerloader from the Support Course.

Angel swallowed.

'I've got a bad feeling about this.'

"Alright, looks like everyone is finally here." Aizawa said after a quick headcount. "The end of term heroics exam will commence shortly. Regardless of how you did on the written tests, fail this practical and you can kiss the training camp goodbye."

"Um, Sensei, is there a reason there's so many teachers here?" Jiro asked.

"We'll get to that in a second. But first, we're going to address some rumors that have been circulating in your year. I'm guessing you've already heard what this test is about from the upperclassmen?"

"Pfft of course we have! Bring on the bots, baby!"

"Yeah, it's in the bag! I can see the lodge now!" Kaminari and Ashido cheered, doing little celebratory dances.

"Sorry to disappoint you children!" A new, chipper voice called out. Two seconds later amidst the ruffling of fabric, a white, furry head popped out the side of Aizawa's scarf like a magician's rabbit! "But there has been a change of plans!"

"PRINCIPLE NEZU?!" The class chorused in surprise while the two partiers froze. Angel herself blinked in astonishment at the mouse-dog-koala-person's sudden appearance. She had met the esteemed and eccentric principle a month after she arrived in Japan, so this wasn't the first time meeting in the flesh. She had been initially thrown off by his unusual appearance and quirky personality, yet he had a worldly feeling to him that had calmed her down as she and Moxxi and explained her situation.

She was all too thankful to him for giving her the opportunity to join the school (provided she passed the entrance exam), despite the danger that her past could bring should it decide to haunt her. He only answered by stating that he wouldn't let an innocent girl be hung out to dry if he could do anything about it. From then on, she knew that Nezu was someone she could trust even when the world felt like it was united against her.

Of course, his intrusion now could only mean that this test was not going to be as easy or straightforward as her classmates had been led to believe.

"Change of plans? How do you mean sir?" Yaoyorozu brought the question to bear as Nezu rappelled down the side of Aizawa, using his scarf as a rope.

"It's simple really. If this had been any other year, then yes, you would have the standard bot test that we've conducted before. But recent events have convinced me that this isn't the most effective method to prepare you all for your future, which will very well be fraught with direct confrontation against a united villainous force. Mere mock battles versus unthinking, predictable, mechanical adversaries cannot truly ready you for the dangers you will face. Therefore,"

He threw his arms out. "You will be forming pairs to combat one of the members of our fine faculty!"

All of the students were taken aback, any confidence that they possessed getting thrown right out the window.

"W-Wait… we have to fight?!" Uraraka stuttered next to Angel.

"O-Our own teachers?" She grimaced.

"That's right." Aizawa nodded. "Unlike your other exercises, your teams and opponents have already been chosen. They've been decided on factors such as your quirks, grades, tactics and cooperation. For example and a bit of a coincidence, you two…" He pointed at Angel and Uraraka.

"...are up against me." He declared, giving them his usual dry smirk, the use of which filled them both with dread. They glanced nervously at each other. Sure, she and Uraraka got along well, but they had never actually fought together before. More pressing, this was Aizawa, Eraserhead, a pro hero. They had witnessed first hand how much of a fighter he was.

"And Midoriya," Aizawa continued, turning to the green haired boy. "You're paired with Bakugo."

Everyone's heads spun at the chosen pair in disbelief as the two boys jolted. They all knew too well the animosity that Bakugo held for Midoriya, the former's recent challenge fresh in their minds. How the heck were they supposed to work together?!

"And your opponent will be-"

*BOOM!*

There was a big impact nearby, making Angel jump. Her eyes widened when she saw who it was, towering over the crowd with his typical, sparkling white smile!.

"Me!" All-Might declared, stepping over to the teens now paralyzed from shock. "I'm looking forward to a great fight, so you'd better come at me with all you've got boys!"

Whatever worry Angel had about facing off against Aizawa was replaced with worry for her friend Midoriya and to a lesser extent, Bakugo. There was no way that their opponents could compare. By all accounts, they've been put into a no win situation.

"All the matchups are as follows…" Aizawa lifted a clipboard. Hagakure and Tokoyami versus Present Mic. Asui and Ashido versus Powerloader. Koda and Kirishima versus Midnight."

"You lucky bastards!" Mineta whined from the back.

*Smack!*

"Ow!"

"Todoroki and Kaminari versus Thirteen. Sero and Iida versus Ectoplasm. Sato and Jiro versus Snipe. Hodunk and Uraraka versus me. Yaoyorozu and Ojiro versus Principal Nezu."

"Eh?! Yao-momo and Ojiro-san are fighting the principal?! How's that fair?!" Sero protested.

Nezu only chuckled. "It'd be wise not to underestimate me. I'm scrappier than I look. Continue Aizawa-san."

"Mineta and Aoyama versus Cementoss. Finally, Midoriya and Bakugo versus All-Might."

"Thank you Aizawa-san." Nezu stepped forward. "Your goal is to either capture your teacher, the villain, with these handcuffs…" He held up a pair of hexagonal cuffs. "Or escape through the exit gate on the far side of the zone! You will have thirty minutes to do so!"

"Huh… this feels an awful lot like the combat trial." Kaminari muttered.

"Is it really okay to just run away?" Ashido asked aloud.

Nezu gave her a thumbs up. "Of course!"

"Don't get cocky though! We are waaaay tougher than bots y'know!" Mic laughed.

"Pff, yeah right." Toru snickered.

"Wazzat?! Just for that, I'm not going easy on you two!"

"The point of this trial is to simulate a real battle as much as possible." Thirteen interjected. "Therefore, please treat us as a real threat and not your teachers."

Snipe nodded. "If you really think you can beat your opponent, then by all means try. But…"

"If you feel that you are outmatched, then it is best that you retreat safely and get assistance. I trust you've learned that lesson already, Todoroki, Iida and Midoriya."

'Is he referring to the Hero Killer?' Angel wondered, catching the look of understanding on all three of their faces(minus Iida whose face was covered by his helmet).

"That's correct!" All-Might said. "Remember that there is no shame in running away! But to make sure that you all don't think it's too unfair and just opt to run away, behold!" He brandished a large metal bracer in his hand. "Compressed weights from the Support course! Each of us will be wearing half our body weight to slow us down! We'll still be able to move, but it will even the playing field!" He explained as he fastened two on each of his limbs. "Oof! Heavier than I thought! That Hatsume doesn't mess around!"

'Figure that Hatsume was the one who made them. Even so… are those even going to slow him down?' Angel sweated, still glad that she wasn't facing the symbol of peace.

"With that, we are ready to go. We will be conducting the tests in order. Hagakure, Tokoyami, get to the start zone." Aizawa instructed.

"Yes sensei!"

"The rest of you can watch in the monitor room or plan on your own while you wait. Dismissed." He said and followed the rest of the heroes inside the testing arena. Almost immediately, the class got into their teams and started discussing strategy.

Meanwhile, Angel was already contemplating what to do against her quirk-erasing homeroom teacher, nibbling on her thumbnail.

'It'll probably come down to the environment we get. Ideally, we'll be in some urban or industrial zone so I can use our surroundings to my advantage. But if it's in a forest or something, then that's gone. I probably won't be able to fly me and Ochako very far if he can just ground us with a glance.'

She glanced up at her partner right next to her, who seemed just as nervous. "So it's the two of us, huh?"

Uraraka gave her a shaky smile. "Uh-huh. But I'm sure we can pull it off."

She smiled back. "That's the spirit. Let's go and watch, maybe we can get some ideas that way."

Ochako nodded and began to follow Angel inside, trying to keep a strong front. Since day one, she had always felt a little intimidated by Aizawa. Witnessing him take down dozens of thugs at once during the whole USJ mess made her wary of ever fighting him. She had taken comfort in the idea that that would never happen, yet it seemed fate just wanted to prove her wrong.

'But at least I'm with Angel-chan!' Her smile broadened. 'I know I can count on her!' She thought happily, following her friend down the hall while most of the other teams walked nearby, chatting amongst themselves.

"Hey Kaminari-bro, good luck against Thirteen!"

"Thanks man, though I can't help but be a little jealous."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"What do you mean, what do I mean?! You're up against Midnight-sensei!"

"Really? I thought you were kinda lucky just for being paired up with Todoroki."

"Huh, yeah, you've got a point. I'm definitely getting a pass now!"

Ochako rolled her eyes at the boys, briefly amused by Kaminari's antics. Of course he'd look at it that way.

"That's kind of lame bro, just letting yourself get carried by your partner."

"Hey, I wanna go to that lodge man! What, are you going to bug Uraraka about it too?"

Ochako stiffened and glanced back. 'What?'

"What do you mean by that?" Kirishima asked, earning a laugh.

"Seriously? She's got Hodunk on her side! One of the best students in the whole year other than Todoroki or Bakugo! Her quirk is crazy overpowered and she's super smart! Uraraka won't have to do a thing!" He claimed as they walked past the girl in question, watching them go while frozen in disbelief.

Was that true? Did people think she ranked that much lower than her friend?

'I-I mean sure, Angel-chan is pretty great, b-but I've done some cool stuff!' She assured herself. 'I almost beat Bakugo!'

Then she frowned. 'Right before she almost beat Todoroki…after getting second in the race… and her quirk is a lot more useful than mine… which got her first place in the entrance exam… after saving me…' She recounted, her mind slipping further and further down a depressing slope. A familiar, ugly burning settled in her chest for a brief moment before she slapped her rosy cheeks and shook it away.

'Nononono! I can't be thinking like this! Angel-chan is my friend! I need to focus so we can win!' She thought and marched, fueled by determination and facing forward.

Just to halt as she saw her friend talking with Midoriya. The other girl said something which made him laugh a bit, the sound kicking up a fluttering in her stomach.

Had… had she ever made him do that? And the way he smiled at her… she wanted him to smile at her like that too.

Her mind trailed back to the week before.

"Don't worry about it! You love quirks, I get it!"

"Mmhmm." He nodded again. "E-Everyone's quirks are so amazing! E-Especially A-Angel-chan's, it's so c-crazy and versatile."

"Uh huh…" Her smile shrunk a little.

"A-And the way she uses it, it's just so impressive really!" He returned his gaze to the screen.

"Angel-chan is so cool isn't she?"

Her fist curled.

'Deku talks about her alot too.' A small, spiteful voice whispered in her ear. She knew where she had heard it before.

It was her own.

The burning returned and this time, it didn't leave.

"Hey Izuku-kun, are you feeling alright?" Angel asked as she stepped up to her green haired friend. He had been walking through the hall by himself, his volatile counterpart nowhere to be seen.

He looked up and sighed, not even reacting to how she called him by his first name. "I guess. I tried to talk to Kacchan so we could make a plan. He, uh, told me to jump in a lake."

She shook her head in resignation and shrugged. "I mean, did you really expect anything else from him?"

He gave a small laugh and scratched his head. "I really should know better by now, huh?"

"Mmhmm." She hummed, giving him a cheeky smile before it shifted to a serious frown. "So… what are you going to do? Even if you rein Bakugo in long enough for him to cooperate with you, this is All-Might we're talking about."

He groaned, running a hand through his hair. "I know. He's not really the kind of opponent can prepare for. He's just so… unstoppable." He said. Angel didn't miss how his eyes flicked down and back. She didn't make anything of it though and settled for giving him a pat on the shoulder.

"True. But… I think you'll find a way."

He looked her in the eye. "You really think so?"

"Yup. I mean, who else could find a way to overcome the symbol of peace but his number one fan?"

His face flushed but he retained his composure. "Heh, when you put it that way…Good luck against Eraserhead."

"Thanks, we'll need it. I mean, he's not All-Might but…" She trailed off.

"I'm sure you and Uraraka-chan will come up with something. Let's go and watch the first few fights in the meantime."

"Yeah, lets-wait, hold on." Angel glanced about before finally spotting her partner down the hall behind them. "Hey, Ocha-chan! Come on, we're going to miss the first fight!"

Uraraka didn't verbally respond, only giving her a nod. Her brown bangs covered her eyes as she walked past them without saying a word.

They looked at each other, confusion written all over their faces. "What was that?" Midoriya said, concerned. "I don't think I've ever seen Uraraka-chan act like that."

"I dunno. Maybe she's just nervous? I'll check in with her before our fight. Let's go." She waved and they entered the monitor room. Same as the one back in the combat trial, it was a darkened space with an array of screens on the far wall, each one displaying a live feed of different zones in the testing area. Several of the other teams were there too, formulating their tactics for their own fights. In front of the screens was a revolving chair, seating one school nurse.

"Recovery Girl-sensei!" Midoriya exclaimed. "It's good to see you."

She turned her head and gave him a look. "And it's good to see you in one piece for once. We'll see how long that lasts." She said and he bowed his head.

"S-Sorry…"

"Eh, even if you don't break yourself again, I've got a feeling I'm going to be pretty busy today." She glanced at Angel and nodded. "Hodunk-chan."

Angel waved back.

Just then, one of the feeds on screen blipped and took center stage. It appeared to be a dense forest environment.

"Team Hagakure and Tokoyami, practical exam! Ready! Start!"

"Let's do this Tokoyami-kun!" Hagakure cheered, pumping her floating gloves.

"Indeed. I trust you remember the plan?" The birdboy asked.

"Mmhmm! You distract Mic and I'll sneak up behind him! He'll never see me coming!"

"That's for sure!" Dark Shadow chimed in from under Tokoyami's cloak.

"Enough talk. Our time is now. Get going Hagakure-chan." He said, only to be met with silence. "Hagakure-chan?" He looked around before finally spotting the discarded boots and gloves on the ground. If his head wasn't covered in feathers, he'd be blushing. He still wasn't used to the idea that his classmate would be running around naked.

"Begone impure thoughts." He ordered, banishing said images from his mind.

"Whatchu thinking about Fumi~?" His jet black companion teased, reaching up and poking his cheek.

"Nothing Dark Shadow. Let us mobilize." He ran down the middle of the main road leading from the entrance directly to the exit. If he had to guess, their teacher, now opponent would be waiting there.

He just crested the small hill and he caught sight of Mic's foot tall mohawk when-

"HEEEEEY!" A shockwave of pure sound surged over Tokoyami, forcing him to the ground with his hands over his ears!

"HOWWWWW YOOOOOU DOINGGGGG?!" Mic kept screaming from where he had planted himself right in front of the exit gate.

"Dark S-Shadow!" Tokoyami yelled, getting drowned out by the soundwaves. Thankfully he was loud enough for his partner to hear and the silhouette shifted in front of him, acting as a shield.

"So loud!" Dark Shadow whined, each wave causing him to ripple.

'This is bad! It's too bright out for Dark Shadow to take this for too long! You'd better get him soon Hagakure-san!'

Speaking of the invisible girl, she was currently moving alongside the road, obscured in the thick treeline. Hagakure thanked Aizawa or Nezu or whoever chose the matchups that they put her in the forest. The soft grass felt pleasant under her bare feet. Combined with the warm sun and the gentle breeze, it was a nice day to be outside, especially wearing nothing (she'd deny it if anyone asked though).

"HAVINNNNNG FUUUUUUN YEEEEET?!" Mic bellowed, shaking the trees and making her ears ring. She wasn't directly in his attack range at the moment, being on the side. Still, she needed to hurry before her partner got too hurt.

Jumping from bush to tree to boulder, Hagakure padded through the brush as fast as she could while also taking care to keep the pair of handcuffs low in the grass and hidden from sight. Soon enough, she had maneuvered along the edge of the clearing near the exit. Her target was in sight, with his side to her as he kept screaming down the road at Tokoyami.

"Here we are… nice and quiet." She whispered to herself, buzzing with gleeful anticipation. Step by step she got closer, eyes locked onto the radio host.

'Almost there…' She grinned, lightly biting her tongue. 'I'm gonna get him, just like Zer0!'

Then she felt something hit her foot.

*TWANG! CLANG! CLANG!*

She flinched and looked down to see that her foot had caught against a small wire looped between the trees on either side of her, attached to the two cowbells that just went off!

She looked up and saw Mic staring right at her with a wide grin on his face.

"FOUUUUUND YOOOOOU!" He yelled, the sound emanating from his mouth slamming into Toru like a truck and sending her flying!

"EEEK!" She screamed before slamming against a tree, knocking her out.

"Hagakure-chan!" Tokoyami gasped. With Mic's attention off of him, he clambered to his feet and charged! "Dark Shadow, attack!" He ordered and the shade surged forward!

Mic turned his head and breathed in. "NIIIIICE TRYYYYY!" He howled like a metal band vocalist, maintaining a continuous stream of noise at the oncoming shadow. Bit by bit, he blew away his mass until he was but a sliver of his usual size and flopped to the ground.

Exhausted and his ears bleeding, Tokoyami fell to his knees and collapsed.

"Phew! Too bad!" Mic wheezed. "You two are too straight forward in how you approach combat situations. I could guess your strat easily so I set up a bunch of sound traps! You need to think more outside the box next time! Thanks for trying, callers!"

"Team Hagakure and Tokoyami are unable to continue and are retired. Trial end!" The announcer declared.

"Oh the poor dears. Their heads must be hurting so badly." Recovery Girl tsked sympathetically as she left her chair and strode out of the room, leaving Angel and Midoriya behind to gape in shock.

"They only lasted five minutes!" She said, biting her lip at the sight of Tokoyami on the ground and the indent Toru left in the tall grass.

"Mic-sensei was able to keep them from getting too close and saw through their plan. This is going to be harder than I thought." Midoriya swallowed, studying the aftermath of the test with a grim stare.

"I… I'm going to find Ocha-chan! We need to start planning!" Angel said, leaving him behind to look around the darkened room. To her dismay, Uraraka was nowhere to be found.

'Where the heck did she go?! Wasn't she just here?!' She questioned fretfully, running out the door. She looked down both hallways and let out a tense breath when she saw her wayward partner leaning against the wall. She had a dour expression, with her eyes glued to the floor.

"Ocha-chan!" Angel called out with, making her friend blink and turn in her direction as she approached. "Where have you been?! We need to talk about how we're going to fight Aizawa-sensei!"

Uraraka looked away for a moment. "Yeah… I'm aware." She answered rather tersely. "I just needed a minute."

Angel tilted her head, gazing at her with concern. She had never heard her friend speak so quiet, so restrained. Not even when she was up to face Bakugo in the Sports Festival. This felt different.

"Are you okay? Is there… something we need to talk about?" She asked.

"No." Uraraka muttered.

"Are you sure?" Angel pressed, which made the other girl grit her teeth and give her an irritated glare.

"Yes, I'm sure!." She snapped and Angel flinched. Guilt flashed across Uraraka's face and she sighed.

"Sorry, just… it's just a lot of pressure. I… I just need a little more time. I'll be in soon." She promised and smiled. It didn't feel that authentic to Angel, but she decided not to push the issue quite yet, still feeling uneasy after her typically cheerful friend's outburst.

"All…Alright. I'll just be in here." She told her and stepped away, returning to the monitor room.

Not aware of the cold eyes pointed at her back.