Punishment

After a weekend of working fields, picking fruits, and learning to haggle, most kids would have been relieved to return to school.

Izuku wished he could have stayed a little longer.

It wasn't that he hated school. He actually liked learning a lot. But, if pressed, he'd have to admit that he didn't like his classmates very much. Except for Kacchan, of course. But he knew what he'd be walking into when he got to class. He could already hear students talking about All Might Battle Challenge, but it would only get ten times worse when his classmates would start talking about it just to rub in that he didn't have it.

Even if he was doing backbreaking labor for hours, he'd rather have a conversation with Uraraka, Alicia, or Martin.

A hand landed on his shoulder and Izuku's entire body stiffened. "You goddamn snitch!" He was jerked back and slammed into a locker, Kacchan right in his face, "I told you to keep your mouth shut!"

"K-Kacchan–"

A series of pops from Kacchan's free hand quieted him, but even if it hadn't the look on Kacchan's face would have. He looked angrier than Izuku had ever seen him, "Because of you, the hag took my copy of All Might Battle Challenge before I could complete it!"

"W-wha–"

"Don't try to look innocent you garbage shitnerd!" Kacchan spat, "I was almost done when she yanked me out of the game!"

Izuku cringed against the locker, trying to lift his hands placatingly, "I-I didn't–"

"Bullshit!" Kacchan hissed, throwing him back against the locker again, "Don't think for a second this is the end of this either. You're going to pay for taking that game away from me."

Izuku slid down against the lockers as Kacchan stomped off and silently wished he was back working in the fields.

Reona didn't look up from the RTS she was playing when she heard the door open. She liked to let her customers peruse a bit before she introduced herself, otherwise, they would get fixated on her chest and not buy anything.

She'd taken to demanding her 'regulars' buy at least a candy bar if they were going to stand around and leer at her.

"What sort of customer service is this?" A feminine voice demanded.

Reona jerked up and looked to the counter where an angry blonde woman stood with her arms crossed expectantly. Oh God, Reona thought, a Karen. What was one of them doing here? She put on her best retail employee face and warped to the counter, "I'm sorry, I was just–"

"Goofing off." The woman finished for her.

Reona's smile remained as a rictus grin, "How can I help you today?"

The woman fished a beat-up copy of Kiwame Quest out of her purse and placed it on the counter, "You can take this as a return."

Reona blinked, and shook her head, "I can't take that," She looked at the woman, "it's already been opened."

The woman didn't budge at all, arms folding under her chest again, "Inko?"

Reona's brow furrowed, but then a phone was placed on the counter beside the game. The Karen had demanded her complete attention, so much that she hadn't even noticed the mousy woman standing beside her.

A mousy woman with very distinctive and yet very familiar green hair.

Oh no.

"This is a picture I took of my son's phone where you said he couldn't return the game unless he tried it."

"A game with a ZZ rating." The Karen added, with not at all subtle emphasis.

Reona laughed nervously, "Let me get that return processed for you right away."

"Don't bother closing the till," The Karen cut in, sending panic through Reona's spine, "I'm looking to sell some of my brat's old games."

"Of course," Reona answered automatically, desperately trying to figure out a way to escape being robbed blind, "but the price will depend on the title and condition it's in."

The Karen sneered and, to Reona's shock, pulled out a stack of pristine-looking All Might games, "I already checked how much these can go for. Don't try to rip me off."

Izuku didn't sit so much as fall into his gaming chair. His stomach was still tender from where Kacchan had blasted him after class ended. The blow had completely knocked the wind out of him and Kacchan had followed it up by pressing his face into the ground with his foot.

So far the only thing that had gone right that day was getting home before his mom. It gave him time to clean up, at least the dirt and grit that had lingered on his face. He'd have to come up with an explanation for his shirt, though. He'd thrown it in the washer to get the singe marks out, but he knew it was probably a vain hope.

Logging on, he really hoped he could just take it easy. Maybe he could just meet Carpenter and catch the fruit rather than climb the trees. He wasn't really looking forward to carrying them back either. Maybe they could borrow a wheelbarrow?

"Hero!" Alicia smiled as she spotted him, waving him over, "Come quick, the sprouts have started showing."

Izuku smiled weakly, hoping that looking at the plants was enough, but then Alicia knelt down. He willed his digital avatar to follow. He wouldn't even need to move his real body, he knew that. Even if he could feel in-game pain, there was no reason he couldn't get the avatar to kneel down, right?

"Hero?" Alicia looked up at him, confusion turning into concern, "Is everything alright?"

"Y-yeah, everything is fine." He answered, but he could already tell that Alicia could see through him.

She continued to stare at him, leaving him laughing nervously. "Are you sure?" She pressed.

"Just an upset stomach, that's all." It was technically true, which helped a lot. But it wasn't like he'd be able to explain what happened.

That seemed to smooth things over, at least a little. Alicia stood up, "Oh that's not good. Do you think it was something you ate?"

"Y-yeah." He answered, hoping that would be enough for her to let it go, but instead, she took his arm and began guiding him back inside

"Don't you worry Hero, I'll make you some honey ginger tea. That always helps soothe your stomach." She said it with confidence and a smile, and Izuku felt a pang about the friendship the game had built for him.

He just wished it would work.

But how could it? Even if he had an upset stomach, it would at best be a placebo.

He still wasn't going to turn it down though. It sounded really good after all.

Hero was never a good liar, and being in pain didn't make him any better. Alicia did her best to hide her discomfort as she watched him cringe every few steps. He kept reaching for his stomach before quickly pulling away.

She didn't know what had done it, but she already doubted it was just a stomach ache. It was possible that some of the fancy special foods that Carpenter spent her money on had gone bad, but she doubted it.

Bad food wouldn't have put scratches on his face.

Had his hero sickness progressed? Had he done something risky or foolish? Maybe he'd said something to one of the guards and received punishment for it? If he had, she was sure she and Martin would be receiving a visit soon too, so she hoped not.

"Here you go, Hero," She helped him into a chair, watching as his hand finally settled on his stomach as he gave her a weak smile. It hurt to see him suffer so. She closed her eyes before they teared up, "I'll make your tea."

Alicia hummed as she started the fire, preparing the ingredients while Hero relaxed. She watched him out of the corner of her eye, noticing the way he hunched against the table. He didn't look ill, just pained. "Almost finished," She chirped, and it seemed to bring a bit of life to his cheeks.

"It smells good." He murmured, and to her relief, he sounded honest for the first time today.

"Just wait until you taste it." She said with false cheer, and brought him a mug, "I put in some extra honey, just the way you like it."

Hero accepted it gratefully, breathing on it before taking a sip. His face lit up, and he smiled, "This is great, it should really help calm my stomach."

"That's great Hero," Alicia forced herself to smile. He really did seem to be enjoying it, but she knew, knew he was just trying to make things easier for her. She waited until he set it down before she reached out and caught his hand, "But your stomach isn't really upset, is it?"

Hero sagged, "Was it that obvious?"

She gave him a knowing smile and he sighed in defeat. "What happened?"

"I…" He hesitated, struggling to come up with a lie.

She squeezed his hand gently, "The truth, Hero, please."

He winced and ducked his head, "Someone hit me in the stomach. I… can't really explain it other than that."

"Do you know who did it?" She tried to remain calm, even as her hair stood on end, "Was it a guard?"

Hero looked up, completely flatfooted by the question, "A guard?" He shook his head, "No, no…" He hesitated again, "It was someone I haven't seen in town before."

Now it was her turn to blink. Someone had snuck into Ted? The guards were on alert, but there had been a few merchants that had come in a few weeks before… "Can you describe him?"

Hero seemed to deflate, "Uh… he was blonde? About my height?" He still shrugged, clearly reluctant to say more, "I didn't get a really good look, he just… hit me in the stomach really hard."

"Okay," She'd have to get more out of him later. Why he'd cover for someone who attacked him, she couldn't fathom, but at least it wasn't one of the guards. "Can I see your stomach? Maybe I can make a poultice?"

Hero cringed, "Are you sure?"

"Hero," She admonished, "if you're hurt, you should take care of yourself. Now let me see."

"Okay," He murmured, and began unbuttoning his shirt, "Just… don't worry, okay?"

Author's Note: No idle threats from Mitsuki, I had a lot of fun writing her scene with Reona. I fully believe she can go full Karen.

Bakugo would take care of his games, given his reverence for All Might. A pity he's such a shit kid at this point.

Unfortunately, that means Izuku isn't going to be having a good time.