I looked at Togata-San, a dry expression of exasperation on my face. It could have been passed off for discomfort since I just fell.

"I'm so sorry for running into you. I wasn't looking where I was going," he said, bending down and offering me his hand to help me up.

I sighed. I couldn't be that short.

After a moment of contemplation, I grabbed his hand and let him drag me up. I was...shocked, to be honest. He was obviously strong-anyone with an eye could see that-but when he pulled me up, it was like I was a feather. There was no effort on his end. It put him into perspective for me. He was no one to mess around with.

"Thank you," I said quietly.

Another guy that was with him, with dark blue hair and a nervous look on his face was staring intensely at me. "You need to watch where you're going, Mirio," he said simply.

A man of few words. I can understand.

"Yeah, sorry about that, Samiko-Chan. I was really invested in the conversation, I suppose," he said, scratching the back of his neck while laughing.

I nervously held my arm, anticipating an opportunity to escape.

"So, where are you headed?" He asked me.

"Staffroom," I said plainly.

"Ah, I see. Do you need an escort getting there?"

"No, I can get there just fine myself," I said politely.

"Alright then. Also," I started walking away with a nod to both of them, but now I stopped, turning to Togata-San. "If you don't mind me asking another question..."

I shrugged. "Sure."

"It wasn't that long ago I saw you at the school, and you seem a bit beat up. Are you alright? Is someone bothering you?"

The way he said that was kind and his expression was fairly neutral with his smile, but I could read through any mask. He had just the slightest edge in his tone and my eyes barely widened.

"I just got into a tiff," I explained with a shrug. I let out a huff of amused laughter and said, "You should see the other guy."

"Haha!" he chortled loudly, "Well, I'll take your word for it, how about that?"

I nodded. "Works for me. I'll see you...around, Togata-San," I waved as I walked down the hall.

"Stay safe!"

I turned and waved again, leaving with a gentle smile on my face.

Dad always told me to stay away from loud blondes, but he was tolerable, I supposed.

.o0o.

I scanned my lanyard ID card, and the door to the staff room unlocked. There was a ten-second time limit before it locked again, so I quickly went into the staff room.

I was met by Nemuri-San at the coffee machine. She looked over at me, a sadistic grin growing on her face as I walked in and found a free spot and set my bag down, setting my tea on the table.

"Ah, so Shota did decide to homeschool you, eh?" She asked in her usual demeanor.

"Yep. Finally got expelled," I explained simply.

"Dang, Samiko, they finally did you in, huh?" she asked me, leaning on the table.

"Apparently."

"Is that how you go your, uh..." She gestured to her face and I glared at her dryly.

"I was provoked," I defended indignantly, pulling my lunch out of my bag haughtily.

"I'm sure, Samiko. It's odd of you to get into a fight at all," Nemuri said. She believed me, I knew she did.

"He wouldn't take his hands off me," I said lowly. I took a bite of my cold soba.

She straightened where she stood. "Don't tell me he-"

"No!" I cleared my mouth of my food before she had a chance to finish that sentence, thankfully. I looked at her. "No, he didn't. Not everything is sexual, Nem. He just thought it would be fun to grab my arms and not let go."

"Fun indeed. You beat his ass, right?"

"Naturally," I said with a smile, taking another bite.

"Good. That bastard doesn't have any right putting his hands on you, even if it wasn't sexual."

"Technically, it could be," I shrugged.

"So, you were expelled? For him starting it?"

I sighed, swallowing my food. "His family was a sponsor of the school, and I threw the first punch, and I also broke his nose and two of his ribs, so yes. He managed to be suspended for a week and fall behind, though."

Nemuri took a sip of her coffee as she shook her head. "At least he gets something."

"So bias-as well as my actions-got me expelled," I repeated.

"Seems quite unfair, doesn't it, Sami-Chan?"

I turned to Nezu, who just walked in with my dad.

"Quite," I nodded, sipping my tea.

He crawled up on the chair next to me, leaning up to me, careful to mind my space.

"What tea is that?" He inquired.

"Honey vanilla chamomile."

"Ooh! May I?"

I looked at him, then at the cup, shrugging and handing it over to the Principal.

He took a small sip of it, smacking his lips together rapidly as he evaluated the taste of the tea.

"Hm! Interesting. I prefer Chamomile plain, but the honey adds a...smoothness to it! Interesting indeed! And the vanilla is very subtle-not what I expected. Interesting indeed!"

"It's supposed to help her voice," Dad chimed in for me as Nezu handed back my silver cup.

"Oh," he turned to me again as Dad grabbed a cup of coffee. "Do you sing?" He asked.

I blushed slightly, in embarrassment. "S-Sometimes..."

"Oh! That's quite a talent! I'm excited to hear it in practice!"

I swallowed nervously. I don't like crowds, or crowds listening to me, especially when I sing. It's just not my cup of tea. Literally.

I only smiled and nodded in response.

Dad sat down in front of me, stealing a grape from my lunchbox.

"Well," Nezu said, "I hope you enjoy your stay at U.A., Samiko. Feel free to drop by my office any time!"

"I'll keep that in mind," I said politely. "Thank you for welcoming me."

"No trouble at all! Now, let's eat! I'm very much looking forward to having my meal today, and I'm sure you are too," he said as he pulled out a bento box.

My mouth started twitching. I turned to my meal, taking another bite of my soba as dad took another grape, popping it into his mouth.

I glared at him. "Why don't you pack your own grapes for your lunch if you like them so much?" I asked pointedly.

"Because you already packed some," He explained passive-aggressively.

I shot him a look. "But that's stealing."

"I paid for them." He returned without missing a beat.

He had me there.

I looked down, continuing with my meal.

"What did you think of the class?" He inquired.

I thought for a moment. "Loud. They seem like they have high...hopes for their futures. I can't say whether they have the potential to be heroes or not, but they're all there for a reason, I suppose. It's not up to me to decide."

"Isn't it you who told me that everyone has the potential to do anything if they have their heart set on it?"

"Isn't it you who told me I was wrong?"

"No, I said you were irrational. It's not incorrect, it's unrealistic."

I shrugged. I was wrong in that instance, but it wasn't a lie. It was a question, and my interpretation of something I had been told. That didn't count as lying.

"I also haven't known them for as long as you have," I said, "I don't have too much to go off of."

"That's true."

"But still," I continued, "They didn't seem too bright."

"You didn't exactly go easy on them, Samiko," Dad chided.

"Well, that was kind of the point."

"Did she do two truths and a lie?" Nemuri asked.

"Yep."

"Ha! No wonder she thinks this way toward them," she snickered into her cup of coffee.

"Well, Midorya got it," Dad pointed out. "Two years ago, no one could figure it out."

"And you expelled the whole class, Dad."

"She's got a point, Sho," Nemuri chimed in again.

There was a quick silence after a moment or two. My mind got to thinking. I thought the class didn't have much to offer, but he did. There was a reason everyone was there, and my dad wasn't a pansy-type teacher at all. If he didn't like you, you were gone. So why was there a full class? Was it purely their amount of potential?

So I asked my dad a question. "So...how do you judge someone's potential?"

He looked straight at me. "The same way I judge yours," he said. "Making sure they do their best."

That made me keep thinking. I thought about my dad how he taught his average classroom.

Well, there was a full class this year, this far at least. Knowing dad, he would have already done his annual quirk assessment where at least one person goes. At least. The rest are soon to follow, most often.

And since it was after the Sports Festival and there was still a full class, I was confused.

There were two options here. Option one: He had an overflow of students this year and already expelled the excess. That was highly unlikely, knowing U.A., and knowing my father. He would refuse over 20 students in a single classroom in a heartbeat.

Option two: He kept all his students. Which was equally unlikely. Just the smallest bit below.

I looked at my dad long and hard, trying to figure him out. Why would there be a full classroom, regardless of their potential?

He maintained eye contact with me in return, this quickly turning into a staring contest.

Sometimes if we were bored, we would exercise our quirks in this way-since they both related to staring. We wouldn't actually activate our quirks, but it was still good exercise.

He didn't plan on giving up anytime soon.

Neither was I.

There was a tense silence for a good two minutes before my eyes couldn't take it.

"Dang it!" I cursed, leaning back in my chair and rubbing my eyes as my dad sat back triumphantly.

I looked at him with one eye, looking at his smug expression.

I sighed. "I'll figure it out."

"You can just ask."

Sometimes I wondered if he had a mind-reading quirk, like me.

"No, it's just all over your face, Darling," he said endearingly.

I looked at him surprised. He smiled at me in his typical fashion.

"How did you-"

"Karma." He stated simply.

I sat there, confused, trying to wipe the wetness on my eyes away.

"So...Why didn't you expel anyone this year?" I asked.

"What makes you think that?"

"Process of observation and elimination."

"Very good. You're learning well. I...I'm not entirely sure why. I just know there's something different about them all. I can't put my finger on it quite yet, but it would be cruel not to give them a chance."

"That hasn't stopped you before, though," I pointed out.

"You're right, it hasn't," He agreed, taking another grape from my lunchbox, "But there's something about them. I'll give them a chance."

I nodded. Seems legit.

I finished the main part of my meal, snatching my grapes out of my dad's reach before he could get another one, him reaching out farther and farther as I pulled them out of his arm span.

He sighed tiredly, giving me a look. I gave him a look right back.

After a moment, I rolled my eyes and gave him one more grape. I then finished what was left of them.

"Thanks."

"Yep."

We sat in silence for a good minute, Nemuri and Nezu eventually leaving.

When we were alone, Dad said something again. "I've been thinking."

"A dangerous pastime, but continue."

He shot a look in my direction before following my instruction. "I know you're able to take care of yourself pretty well and defend yourself pretty well, but...you might need more training. And you're growing up. Villains are on the rise, people are getting scared and I won't be here forever."

"Don't go there, please," I said quietly. I hated conversations like this. The thought of my dad dying made me more afraid than anything.

"That's not what I mean. And I don't plan on going anywhere anytime soon, don't worry, or giving you away. What I'm saying is I'm thinking of training you more."

I looked at him, straightening myself in my seat. "How so?"

"Weight training, endurance, speed, and how to fight hand to hand, mostly. Things that will be useful-I'm not asking you to be a bodybuilder or anything."

I considered his proposal.

"It would count as your physical activity class," he pointed out.

"It seems as if you are attempting to get me to do this for you..."

He said nothing.

I sighed. "Okay. When do we start?"

"Tomorrow. You have access to the weight room. After I'm done with my classes, we'll lay out a plan there."

"Okay," I agreed.

The bell rang, signaling the end of the lunch period.

Dad turned to me. "Could you head back to the apartment and check on Princess? Make sure she didn't go into labor or anything while we were gone, and refill their food and stuff."

"Yeah. And if she did?"

"Call me. If she didn't, then head back here."

"Okay. See you in a bit."

"Yep."

.o0o.