The group of twelve approached and looked around some of the scattered ruins. Izuku noticed that there were some pedestals that stood empty, relics that were likely removed by teams who might've been earlier than him. There were even some relics that remained behind, more than enough for all twelve, though whether they would be picked up or not remained to be seen. Still, he psyched himself up a bit as he focused on the immediate; the relics He and Pyrrha would pick out. It didn't take long before he picked out a set of relics for them and, as he turned to inform Pyrrha he found that she was some odd distance behind him. Nora was talking excitedly to her, from what he could hear she was asking a lot of questions about the fight with the Giant Nevermore which Pyrrha seemed all too willing to entertain. Izuku smiled a bit before turning back toward the relics in question, only to see that Weiss had joined him in picking out a pair from the set he had gone for.
He turned to look over at her and couldn't help but flinch; Weiss looked positively stressed. She was muttering something about 'needing sane companionship' as she snatched up two relics and returned over to Nora, muttering all the way...
'Is that what I sound like whenever I start muttering?' He thought starting to understand why people seem a bit put off by it. Still he just shrugged it off and grabbed himself and his partner a relic before returning to Pyrrha. The rest of his fellow students seemed to be in the process of doing so as well and, before long, everyone had a relic in hand and was ready to go. There was a nearby cliff with more ruins scattered about and, after looking around there for a bit, they all managed to find their way safely to the top. It was a short jaunt and there weren't any Grimm to stop their progress... He suspected that perhaps the Grimm had been, for once, cowed. Perhaps the death of something so old had struck a chord with the local Grimm for the time.
As they reached the top of the cliffs they found that they were not entirely surprised to see Ozpin and Glynda at the top of the cliff. What was a surprise was a woman with pinkish-orange hair standing off to the side, dressed in a doctor's coat and looking over the various members of the group.
"Well, I have to admit, I wasn't expecting that I'd see so many students making it out of the Emerald Forest at once. Some are still in there giving it a good fight while others did manage to get ahead of you all... but they didn't quite face the challenges each of you did in doing so." Ozpin spoke with a soft tone as he drank from his cup of coffee. Izuku really couldn't help the smile on his face, nor could anyone else really, as Ozpin praised all of them for their efforts. "Before any of you ask; yes, you all have passed Initiation. Well done." The various members of his group respond accordingly; some hooped and hollered, others nodded their head with silent stoicism and Izuku?, well, he managed to fight back any tears that tried to come to the forefront.
He did it.
He really did it.
He passed the Test.
HE WAS A HUNTSMAN IN TRAINING!
... OH JEEZ, REEL IT BACK, REEL IT BACK, FIGHT THE TEARS!
"We'll be holding the ceremony for announcing Teams and their leaders once the test has officially concluded here in... my, my, four hours. You all did make good time all things considered." Ozpin smiled as he waved over to the woman. "This here is Professor Peach, our local botany specialist and the School's nurse. She'll be taking care of those of you who suffered direct physical injury during the Initiation... of which I only count one." Everyone's eyes were on him again as he flinched a bit, feeling a bit flustered as he scratched the back of his head with his good hand.
"A-Actually, Headmaster, sir? I-I think I'll be fine. My Aura seems to be slowly patching me up itself and-"
"I'm afraid I have to insist Mr. Midoriya. Legal issues and what not; I'm not sure your mother and father would be happy if they learned you were injured during our test and Beacon did nothing to see to your health." Izuku cowed for a moment as Ozpin said this. It made enough logical sense he supposed but... well, there was something odd about the way he was saying that, that didn't quite sit right. "Those of you who have registered Scrolls with the school will be receiving a copy of your class schedule soon so that you can start to plan out your schedule for the next semester here at Beacon. For those of you who don't you'll receive it and your Scroll after the ceremony. Now then, those of you who won't be accompanying Peach to her office, please follow myself and Glynda." The rest of the group, save Kacchan, gave him their regards as they walked off, Pyrrha giving him a congratulatory pat on the back before she followed Ozpin and Glynda along. He followed Peach a ways toward the nurses' office, the woman not being much for conversation as the pair of them walked along. Eventually he managed to work up enough nerve to speak.
"Uh, Professor Peach? I really am okay, I don't think this is-"
"Relax kid, you aren't coming here to get checked out." He stumbled a bit as Peach suddenly spoke up, the two of them arriving just outside of her office. "Didn't want to make a big show of it and... well, secrets are secrets I suppose. Just needed an excuse to get you away from your friends so the two of you could get some privacy." He blinked in confusion as Professor Peach opened the door to the office, nodding her head for him to go in. He was nervous but eventually nodded as he took a few uncertain steps into the room. Professor Peach closed the door behind her and he didn't hear her walk off. It seemed like she was here to keep a close eye on the door and make sure nobody got too close.
He couldn't say he entirely understood though. After all, what could've been so important that he needed to be brought here for some private meeting?
"Gotta say young man, you've got 'a lot' of explaining to do." His breath catches in his throat as he heard the voice just to his right. he turned to face it and his green eyes went wide with mirth. Standing there just off to the side in a nice yellow suit that looked way too large for the shrunken man, his mess of blond hair scattered about his head, was him. His mentor. His hero.
"Toshinori!"
"I mean, I left you alone to come to Beacon two days ago and you'd only just finished up your training then. So really, after everything I saw, I have to ask you very seriously..." His frown twisted up into a grin as the blue eyed Huntsman just grinned at Izuku. "What the Hell young man, when did you get so cool?"
It made him smile; sure it was a simple thing but... to have Toshinori say that he thought what he did was cool... on top of everything that happened today, he couldn't help but get misty-eyed.
"W-Well... I didn't do it cause it was cool... I-I did it because it was the right thing to do. It's what you would've done." He gave a shaky smile as he looked appreciatively at Toshinori. "And really... it's only because of everything you've done for me that today was possible. Passing Initiation, joining Beacon as a student... living my dream as a Huntsman. None of it wouldn't have been possible without the help you've given me." He felt full on tears in the corners of his eyes as he spoke, to which Toshinori just responded with a sigh.
"Come on young man, I get done saying how cool you looked out there and you start crying? Jeez, way to kill a moment..." Still, he saw the grin that was on his face as he nodded his head, wiping at his eyes with the left sleeve of his shirt.
"I'm sorry, it's just... wait." Suddenly a thought snapped into his head as he looked over at his hero. "How do you know what I've been up to that would've been so cool?" At that a slightly more mischievous expression crossed Toshinori's face as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a Scroll. On the screen of it was a video... playing Izuku's Smash against the Giant Nevermore. his mind went blank for just the briefest of seconds as he tried to absorb that information... "WAIT, WHAT? THERE WERE CAMERAS IN THERE?!" Toshinori nodded as he places the Scroll back in his pocket.
"Yep... and teachers. Live feeds directed into Scrolls for everyone on the cliff side too. All basically there to make sure that if anything happened, that someone would be able to step in to handle the situation." Izuku immediately felt himself deflate slightly as he leaned forward, eyes wide.
"We... we weren't actually in danger?"
"I wouldn't say that; the Grimm were definitely out for your blood and they were all about as dangerous as Grimm of their age and species can be. It's just that if it looked like you were actually going to die that we'd step in and pull you out. What, you don't think people actually 'died' during Beacon's test did you? School would be up to its neck in lawsuits if they did." His jaw went slack as he listened to all of this.
"WHAT?! THEN WHAT WAS THE POINT OF SCARING US HALF TO DEATH LIKE THAT?! HOLY WOAH, I REALLY THOUGHT PYRRHA WAS GOING TO DIE THERE!"
"Really, that's part of the point." He paused in his panicked screaming as Toshinori just looked up at him, an inquisitive expression on his face. "You thought you and your friends, your partner too, were in danger. That their lives were at stake and that only you had the power to change that. You made a sacrifice knowing the risk to your own body and safety because you wanted to save their lives... tell me Izuku. Would you have made the same decision if you 'knew' that I was waiting in the wings to save you?"
He gave it a long think as he stroked at his chin, his thoughts whirring over the question at hand. "... I would have." Toshinori raised his brow slightly as Izuku looked up at him, a determined look in his eye. "Before I even thought about the consequences to myself, I was already trying to move to help her. Even if I knew help might arrive... I would've tried to do something. Because she could've gotten hurt before help could've come... and it was my plan that put her in danger in the first place. If I couldn't put myself at risk to take care of my mistakes, to take responsibility, then I wouldn't deserve to be called a Huntsman."
"... Kid, you are something, you know that?" Despite the words themselves, a wide grin was on Toshinori's face as he nodded. "Yeah, I hear you young man, I hear ya loud and clear."
Toshinori continued to smile as he leaned back in his seat."Frankly kidThat's why they do that spiel; it's sort of a face-first test with reality. Do you have what it takes to be a huntsman, to sacrifice yourself for others... or are you shrouding yourself in colors far nobler than you are. For what it's worth, I knew what you'd do before you even acted on it... that's just who you are young man. It's why I picked you as my successor in the first place." Izuku was roused from his own thoughts as Toshinori said this, something flickering to the forefront of Izuku's mind.
"Oh yeah, that's right... er, Toshinori... is it... okay? I mean, for us to be meeting like this? While you're in that form... do people-"
"Know about One For All? Not everyone, but there are those that do. They also know my relationship with you." Toshinori leaned back as he said this, crossing his arms. "All the teachers know about this form of mine... the staff have been informed about my condition but not everyone knows about One For All. That's saved for a handful of people; Ozpin, Glynda and Peach... the latter of which was informed because I knew, given how short on time we were, that you might need some medical attention if you ever needed to use One For All." Toshinori sighed as he rubbed at his chin. "Still, even when you're with us, it's probably best to be a bit discrete about it. Nobody outside of this group I've told you about really should know about One For All or my condition... people gotta believe that the Symbol of Peace and Hope's still going strong after all. At least until you're ready to take over for me."
"Oh, speaking of." Izuku snapped up to attention as Toshinori quirked a brow. "I was wondering... if you have any ideas or tips for how I can improve my use of One For All? Or a place we can train with it? What I accomplished today was a lot but... I'm nowhere near done yet. Nowhere near in control of it yet. And like you said, I need to be ready to take up your mantle. The sooner the better." He nodded firmly as Toshinori fixed him with a long look. Eventually Toshinori just sighed as he scratched at the back of his head.
"To be honest kid... I really don't have a lot of good advice for you on how to control One For All."
"... Huh?"
"Yeah... when I was being brought up for it, my teacher spent a few years drilling me before I accepted the gift. Heck, even without that I was a pretty big, pretty strong and pretty healthy guy... when I got One For All... well, I really didn't have much trouble using it." He quirked back a bit as Toshinori said that, a slight 'oh' escaping his lips as he frowned. "To be honest, most of my training was... p-practical training..." Izuku was treated to a very odd sight; Toshinori shivering in fear as a ghost of a memory danced across his eyes. "Y-Yeah... it was mostly just to improve my technique with it. Make me better at using it in general... I could pretty much control it normally from the get-go." He frowned as he says this... yet Toshinori just clapped his hands together before Izuku could get too far down into the dumps over it.
"But, that doesn't mean there isn't some progress we can't make. I told you before that you could trust this old man to shape up your plan and, well, you still can." Toshinori coughed into his fist slightly before he continued. "The staff have their own training areas in the school. They're a lot more private and Oz can cut any feeds to make sure that no one takes a look who shouldn't. We'll have to work around both of our schedules and I'd rather not do this all the time with you... not because I don't want to, but because what I have in mind is... a little bit of a bump up from these last ten months, let's say." Toshinori grinned a bit. "I can't teach you how to control One For All, I never got that part of the lesson... but I can help you continue to shape your body into a proper vessel. If you'd want that, that is."
Judging by the look on Toshinori's face, he was expecting Izuku to just agree immediately and that would be that. It must've been a surprise to him then when he looked off to the side, thinking for a moment, before he turned to him with a determined look. "Anything out of my own time. Absolutely, I'd do it without a second thought... but, I also have a team now. I can't just improve myself at their expense either. I won't just leave them hanging... I have a responsibility to them as a teammate. But..." He clenched his right hand, it having already mostly healed up. "Anything I can give of myself, I'll give it! I'll do it!"
Toshinori's jaw hung open for a moment before a series of dry chuckles escaped his throat. The older huntsman just scratched at the back of his head and, Izuku swore, he hear him mutter something along the lines of 'always exceeding those expectations...'
Finally, he turned back to Izuku, a wide grin on his face. "Alright young man. That sounds like a deal to me. Whenever you have time for it... well, if I can't make time for my successor, then I'd be one Hell of a lousy teacher. I'll make the arrangements whenever you're ready." Izuku gave a firm nod as he smiled back at his mentor.
"Also I'm curious... about classes here?"
"I'm sure you'll do fine. Nothing too crazy here at Beacon that would be too different than what you did at Combat School. You still got your pen and paper classes, still got your Sparring sessions. The only thing that's different is that every now and then you'll get some practical exercises that'll actually pit you against live Grimm." Toshinori actually grinned a bit as he said that last part but he moved on quickly. "Knowing you and your work ethic and that mind you got there, I don't think you'll do too badly in classes unless you just shunt them off all-together. You'll do fine, I'm sure." Toshinori offered as Izuku nodded a bit... before a slight blush came to his face.
"A-And... Toshinori?" His idol quirked his eyebrow at his sudden change in demeanor as he nervously swallowed a lump in his throat. "C-Can you give me advice about... girls?"
... There was a deafening silence in the room as that question was uttered.
"... Oh... oh. Ooooh..." Toshinori started to sweat bullets as he pulled at his collar. "Well... Hell, why are you asking me, young man? I mean, surely your parents have already given you some advice?" Izuku peeled his lips back into a slight frown as he shrugged.
"I mean... yeah, they have but... I was never any good with girls to begin with... and the girls here at Beacon... Toshinori, they're all gorgeous!" He exclaimed with a very vibrant red hue on his face as Toshinori... actually nodded in some understanding.
"Well I can't say that I don't know how that feeling goes... in my year Glynda Goodwitch was a classmate of mine." Toshinori grimaced as he seemed to think for a bit. "Do you really think you need this kind of advice kid, I mean, seriously..."
"Toshinori, I really want to make a good impression here. If I'm just sputtering and muttering all the time with no idea what to do... heck, I almost alienated Blake before when I first met her because I could barely get two words out. I just really need some advice." Toshinori grimaced as he spoke, the man placing his face in his hand for a moment as he took a deep breath to consolidate his thoughts.
"... Okay... well, think of it like... being the 'opposite' of the Symbol of Peace." Izuku must've looked as confused as he felt because Toshinori immediately launched into an explanation. "So, you know, being the Symbol of Peace is about always smiling. People are scared when the Grimm attack or criminals or the White Fang suddenly appear. You gotta be able to reassure them with a smile and a confident attitude, even if you're secretly scared stiff about all of it."
"Yeah I get that... so wait, is the advice just to act confident? Girls like that?" He winced as Toshinori loudly slapped his forehead.
"Let me finish will ya? And I said it's the opposite of being the Symbol of Peace. Look, people who are scared latch on to hope, even if the person giving it is scared themselves. It's a life raft in tough times... but if you keep trying to 'fake it' in everyday situations... well, it can come off as... desperate or like you're tryin' too hard..." Izuku looked confused again as Toshinori just grinded his head into his hands. "Look, think of it like this... who would you prefer to just walk up and talk to you? Some guy who felt like he had to keep throwing bluster in your face to get you to like him, or a guy who was earnest and upfront with you?"
"Well I mean, I'm not a girl so I wouldn't-"
"It's a basic thing about people Izuku! Girls are just people with different body parts going for 'em, alright?!" Izuku nodded swiftly as Toshinori calmed down a bit, his own face red from embarrassment as he pulled at his collar. "Look... Izuku, you're not the kind of guy who's going to wow a girl with how sure you are of yourself. You don't have that and you really can't fake it. But I've seen how people responded to you over the past couple days and I've known you for months now... your peers you've met so far, Hell, Pyrrha Nikos wants to be your friend and even be on a team with you because of who YOU are. Just keep being earnest and honest and don't worry, you'll be able to handle the whole girl thing just fine. Heck, there's probably a lot of girls out there who'd be fine being with ya."
...
His face went beet red.
"T-Toshinori... I-I-I wasn't... I-I didn't mean like that! I just meant like how do I talk to them without coming off like a spaz!"
...
"What the hell Midoriya!? I'm sitting here sweating bullets trying to give you advice man-to-man and THAT'S all you meant?!"
"AAAAAAAH! I'm sorry! This is so embarrassing!"
"YOU THINK YOU'RE EMBARRASSED, I THOUGHT I'D NEED TO GIVE THE TALK TODAY, HOW DO YOU THINK I'M FEELING?!"
"WHY WOULD I NEED THE TALK MY PARENTS GAVE IT TO ME YEARS AGO! I'M SEVENTEEN NOT A KID!" The cycle of embarrassment just kept moving right along as he and Toshinori spiraled off of each other's embarrassment, only ending when the blonde huntsman just slapped his hands to his face.
"HOW THE HELL AM I SUPPOSED TO KNOW THAT WHEN YOU WORD IT THAT VAGUELY, SERIOUSLY!?"
It took a few moments of the two of them just sitting back and keeping their heads turned away from each other, letting the previous conversation slowly wash away as the both of them fight to put themselves back at ease. Eventually, a question crossed Izuku's mind and... well, the nature of it did cause him to frown a bit as he looked over at Toshinori.
"Toshinori... be honest. Without One For All, what are the odds of me keeping up with my fellow classmates in a fight?" Toshinori finally looked back over to him with those black and blue eyes of his, the man fixing him with a long look before he reached up and rubbed at his chin.
"... Without One For All, it probably wouldn't look good for you kid. Not because you haven't trained yourself hard, Gods know you did, but... these kids here have had the benefit of years of training with Aura backing them up. They've been able to make more progress than you simply because they'd have Aura to help push them along. Plus... well, I'm sure you've noticed how much stronger their Auras are in comparison to your own. The effects it has on their bodies and what it can allow them to do in a fight... well it can't be understated. They have an advantage on you and, for now, it'll be hard for you to keep up in a spar."
Izuku nodded. He figured that was the answer; seeing how Kacchan, Ruby, Pyrrha, Tenya and Blake were able to fight and guessing how good the others are... well, he suspected he might not be able to keep up easily. Or at all, honestly.
"But knowing you, I suspect that won't be the case for long." Izuku looked up, a bit startled, as Toshinori just smiled. "You keep saying it yourself; you're going to work harder than anyone else, because that's what you need to do to be here. You'll do it... and in doing so that'll also strengthen your Aura. And, of course, as you come to master One For All you'll be able to use it to help further close that gap... Hell, maybe one day even go beyond their level." He was a bit taken aback for a moment at just how sure Toshinori sounded about that... but soon enough he found himself smiling and nodding. they both looked out the window and it looked like the sun had pretty much set. "That late already huh? That means the test is about over... which means you need to get your butt out to the ceremony." Midoriya nodded as he got up out of his seat and Toshinori did the same. "Good luck kid... and remember. Everything that's coming, you earned it." Izuku quirked his brow curiously at what Toshinori said but, before he could think too much on it his mentor just gave him a wave and departed, sharing a quick nod with Professor Peach who, in short order, waved him along and guided him to the Ceremony Hall.
"Blake Belladonna, Yang Xiao Long, Tsuyu Asui and Tenya Iida. The four of you retrieved the Black Bishop pieces... from this day forward you will work together as Team TABY (Tabby). Led by... Tenya Iida." The look of disbelief and concern that crossed Blake's face was quickly lost on Izuku and the rest of the crowd as Tenya Iida immediately snapped to a very exaggerated salute, his glasses practically shining as he stood tall and firm. Before the excited young man could begin to spout off whatever series of thanks or promises to fulfill his responsibilities that he could, his team rapidly ushered him off the stage, Ozpin just smiled and nodded at them before, quite suddenly, Izuku felt a slight push at his back. He turned around and saw that his team was being ushered off and, with a nervous lump in his throat, he begun to walk forward.
He might've suspected that the types of pieces had something to do with what teams would be formed and... well, he certainly wasn't disappointed with the team composition that he'd been put on. He already knew without a shadow of a doubt that Pyrrha, his partner, would be with him and that alone was pretty great. The two got along just fine and he knew that would keep being the case. He had a congenial enough relation with Weiss so he really didn't see any problems there, and Nora? Well, Nora just seemed like a nice person all around. He thought he'd be able to get to know her quite well and, he hopped, he would get along just fine with her as well.
As for leaders? Pyrrha or Weiss would make for solid picks in his opinion, perhaps Weiss more so than Pyrrha. Weiss just seemed to have that aura of command around her, something that demanded you respected her. Pyrrha was a strong fighter but she seemed more inclined to get along and go along with others. Still, either one would be a solid pick in his mind. He couldn't know about Nora but... well, given how Weiss seemed so nervous about her, maybe she wouldn't be as good of a pick.
"Izuku Midoriya, Weiss Schnee, Nora Valkyrie and Pyrrha Nikos. The four of you retrieved the White Rook pieces... from this day forward you will work together as Team MNVW (Mandevilla)."
... Huh... that's... that's odd. Weiss Schnee, Pyrrha Nikos, Nora Valkyrie... none of them started with the letter M. The only person whose first or last name did was-
"Led by... Izuku Midoriya."
"... L-L-L-L-L-Led by..." He could feel them. He could feel them pricking at the corners of his eyes. Fight them Izuku! Toshinori's probably somewhere in the audience watching this! He wouldn't want him to cry! It wouldn't be cool to cry! He just got named as the leader of a Team of Hunters! He was the leader! Him, of all people! He almost thought it a mistake for a moment and, with that thought, the tears well up even more as he looked over to Ozpin...
Only to be met with one of the warmest smiles a near-stranger had ever given him.
"Congratulations young man. You earned it."
It was all too much. Defeating his first Grimm, getting such an amazing partner, meeting so many new people who didn't immediately hate his guts, making... friends, coming together with a handful to make a team, killing an Elder Grimm with One For All, passing Initiation and becoming a Huntsman-in-Training, setting on the first step of his journey to achieve his dream of becoming a Heroic Huntsman and Toshinori's pride and words of encouragement all wrapped together into that one and final moment, the capstone to the day.
He was made the leader of a Team.
And Ozpin, Headmaster of the most Prestigious Academy in all of Remnant... just said he earned it.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" He had to be pried out of the floor by his team before they were all able to leave, Pyrrha and Nora just laughing hysterically and smiling as they patted him on the shoulder, congratulating him and just sharing in the mirth. Weiss... well, he couldn't see it himself but she didn't seem to be as into the celebrations as him and the rest of your team were. There was a general cacophony of barely contained laughter but his team is applauded nonetheless, especially by the teachers, as they all left the stage. As he departed, he managed to hear one last thing over the sound of his gushing tears.
"Up next is Shoto Todoroki, Ruby Rose, Katsuki Bakugo and Lie Ren. The four of you retrieved the White Knight pieces... from this day forward you will work together as Team RSBR (Raspberry). Led by... Ruby Rose."
...
"ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?!"
A/N: So yeah, once again, after the people playing along in the Quest picked which other partner pair would pick out their teams (in this case they picked Weiss and Nora) I went ahead and randomly rolled who else would get paired up. In the end, these were the teams and, I have to say, I've always felt pretty satisfied with how this turned out.