In the nurse's office, Recovery Girl just finished healing Luna's injuries while Tarot Chariot and All Might stood together with concerned faces. On the first day of her healing process, Luna had slumbered peacefully on the bed. Her physical body was successfully healed, but she remained unconscious.
"Your daughter's in good condition. Lucky for her, she didn't receive any permanent damage from that brutal fight. But she won't be waking up for a while." Recovery Girl informed. "For now, she needs to stay here and rest."
"Thank you, Recovery Girl." All Might smiled.
"Toshinori, I-I don't know what to do." Tarot Chariot said worryingly as she looked at her daughter with agony in her eyes.
All Might gently turned his wife around and comfortingly wrapped his arm around her.
"I know, Ursula. But our daughter is strong." All Might assured. "Recovery Girl may have healed Luna's physical wounds, but it's up to our daughter to heal her mental spirit on her own. All we can do until then is wait."
"I'll keep you posted for the time being." Recovery Girl said.
"Thanks again." Tarot Chariot nodded.
Tarot Chariot and All Might walked out of the office.
Once Recovery Girl closed the drapes, a pink triquetra-shaped mark started to glow faintly on Luna's forehead.
In a dark mindscape, Luna hugged her knees close to her chest and buried her face as she wept in immense sadness. All her memories of All Might's fierce fight against All For One, the unexpected news of All Might's retirement, and her brutal fight with Katsuki that led to her severe injuries began overflowing her state of mind.
After everything, what good will any of this do? Luna thought. I knew I should've kept my anger under control, especially since my dad's retirement. But I gave in to Bakugo. And now, I'm to suffer for my outcome.
Then, the entire mindscape gradually rained tiny droplets of snow. Each droplet froze the ground into solid ice and erupted several ice crystals on the surface.
Wh-what is going on? Luna thought as she looked around the freezing area. She looked down and noticed that she's standing on freezing water. Whoa…And I'm not even cold. But I-I don't understand…
"Oh, Ursula. I'm so relieved. And so happy."
Luna turned her head to the source of that faint, sorrowful voice. Her eyes lit up in shock at Ariella kneeling on the ground right in front of an ice-cold statue of Tarot Chariot. Ariella herself was crying in tears of joy and sadness.
Who's that woman? Luna wondered. She quietly tiptoed towards Ariella. Is she… my mom's other sister?
"I know I'm supposed to be excited, but I'm also sad." Ariella said with a heavy-hearted smile. "What provoke you to do such a thing, I wonder. To me. To our family. We're sisters, after all. I still think we are." Her eyes moved sideways, perceiving her niece's presence as Luna kept tiptoeing over to her from behind. "Come forth, child. I know you're behind me."
Luna flinched in surprise. But she quickly composed herself and approached Ariella, who stood up on her feet and spun around to meet her niece face to face.
"Oh my. You looked exactly like Ursula." Ariella stated with a happy smile. "I'm so thankful that she's alive after all these years. But I just couldn't understand why would she betray her own family. After everything we did together. The good and the bad times."
"Were you and my mom two close?" Luna asked.
"Very." Ariella responded as a single tear drop leaked out of her left eye. "I was the only one who could understand her."
Even though she's meeting her aunt for the first time, Luna couldn't help but feeling empathy for her saddened aunt.
"Has she…told you about our family tree?" Ariella asked.
"She did." Luna replied. "You, Carina, Oriana, and the history of Divine Trinity. It took me a while to process it in my head, and I think about it all the time whenever I used that power."
Ariella unexpectedly leaned against the statue as more tears welled up in her eyes.
"I'm sorry. I'm doing it again." Ariella apologized with a chuckle. "Mother always said I was the mellow one of the family. Heh, she's right, though."
Ariella slumped down the statue as tears flowed down her cheeks. Luna looked at her aunt with a concerned face as she walked up next to her.
"And this is why she what she did in the past, isn't it?" Ariella questioned as she looked up at the statue. She wiped her tears clean from her face and looked down with a sad smile. "It's a shame. But in the end, she did make the right choice."
Luna placed a comforting hand on Ariella's shoulder.
"She was right to betray the coven." Ariella said. "All these years, I always thought that she wasn't prepared to be on her own in this world. But, if she's happy as a hero, then maybe...she has become an amazing inspiration for you."
Ariella glanced at Luna and smiled softly.
"I understand now." Ariella said, inching towards Luna and placing her hand on her niece's right cheek. "You know, I'm not entirely sure how you managed to connect me mentally. But I'm glad I finally got the chance to meet you for the very first time, Luna."
Ariella greeted Luna with a hug. Luna looked surprised and happily returned the embrace.
"Yeah, me too." Luna said with a smile.
Luna instantly woke up from her mental dream with a sharp gasp. The pink triquetra mark faded from her forehead.
While breathing slowly, Luna looked around and found herself back in reality.
Then, Recovery Girl opened the drapes.
"Oh my." Recovery Girl said. "Glad to see you're awake."
"Wh-what...H-How did I...?" Luna asked, rubbing her eyes with a groan.
"Your parents brought you here." Recovery Girl replied. "I'll contact them once they return from the opening ceremony."
At U.A. High, Class 1-A students began walking inside the hallway in a single file line. As a class president, Iida led his classmates the way to the school grounds for the opening ceremony.
"Listen up, everyone! Stay in line and move promptly into position!" Iida instructed as he moved his hands in weird motions. "I want to see order!"
"Uh, you're the only one who's not in line." Sero pointed out.
Diana snickered under her breath.
"The dilemma of a class rep!" Iida said frustratingly.
"I heard a little rumor about Class 1-A."
Class 1-A students turned to the sound of that familiar voice, where they saw Monoma leaning his elbow against the wall.
"Three people! You had three people fail the licensing exam, you losers!" Monoma mocked.
"Monoma from Class B." Sero said.
"He's just as unhinged as usual." Kaminari commented with a disturbed face.
"Delusional is more like it." Aisha remarked with a glare as she crossed her arms over her chest.
"Denying your failure, I see." Monoma said mockingly. "Sorry, you didn't pass which means you didn't get your license. Get used to it."
Aisha gritted her teeth in rage as Jiro and Tsuyu restrained her by the arms.
"Bet you were the only one in your class to fail. Just like in the final, huh?" Kirishima said.
Monoma started laughing and then turned away.
"That wasn't an answer!" Kirishima asked in confusion.
"Ha! Actually…" Monoma replied. He turned back to the Class 1-A students while the rest of his classmates standing behind him in a single file line. "Every one of us passed. We've pulled ahead of you big shots."
Aisha's eyes narrowed as she glared at Monoma.
One more word out of you and you're gonna wish for Kendo's karate chop. Aisha threatened.
"I'm sorry. It's my fault." Shoto apologized in a guilt-ridden expression.
"They're the ones who're turning it into a competition. It's no big deal." Kirishima assured.
A female Class 1-B student came up to Class 1-A students.
"According to Vlad, we'll have classes together this semester." Tsunotori said. "Doesn't that sound like it'll be fun? I'm looking forward to it."
Monoma then walked up to Tsunotori and started whispering into her ear.
"I can't wait to test out my skills!" Kirishima said excitedly.
"Oh hey, isn't she the exchange student?" Kaminari asked Kirishima with pink blush.
Monoma moved away before Tsunotori looked back at the Class 1-A boys.
"Touch me and I'll pummel you till yo mama doesn't know ya!" Tsunotori said randomly.
Kirishima and Kaminari looked utterly shocked from Tsunotori's unexpected confrontation. Monoma started laughing and gave his confused classmate a thumbs up.
"Stop filling her mind with crazy!" Kendo scolded as she came up behind Monoma.
Kendo chopped him behind the neck, knocking him out.
"Hey, we're trying to get through back here."
Class 1-A students turned their heads to the sound of another familiar voice that belonged to Shinso.
"Our apologies." Iida apologized. He turned to his classmates. "Come now, everyone. Save your chit chat for later. We're clogging up the hallways."
Shinso and the other students began walking in the same direction where Class 1-A and Class 1-B are heading.
"I honestly can't believe how uncool you are." Shinso said indifferently.
"Shinso." Tokoyami muttered.
"Oh, right. The guy who fought Midoriya at the sports festival." Jiro commented.
"You sure that's the same guy? Looks like he bulked up a bit since then." Sero stated.
On the sports ground, all U.A. students finally stepped outside and lined up in front of their principal, who stood on the platform to address the opening ceremony.
"Hi there! It's the adorable small mammal you all know and love, the principal!" Nezu spoke. "You may notice the fur I'm so proud of has deteriorated in quality. I haven't been taking care of it. This is something that can happen to humans, too. Even if you eat a balanced diet full of vitamins and minerals, you won't have a mane of luscious locks unless you're getting lots of sleep. That's the secret. Disturbances in your normal resting patterns are terrible for your hair. So, if you want to improve your fur's…"
In the Class 1-A line, Selene, Diana, and Aisha are listening to Nezu's longwinded speech with sweatdrop expressions.
I know he's the school principal, but is he really going to give this whole hour speech right now? Aisha sweatdropped.
Oh, boy. Selene thought with a sweatdrop.
No disrespect, but get to the point anyway. Diana said irritably.
"My own sleep cycle has been upset by the incidents that took place over summer vacation, which I'm sure everyone here knows about already. We lost a pillar of hope." Nezu added.
Tarot Chariot placed her comforting hand on All Might's shoulder.
"The ramifications of which have appeared faster than I could have ever imagined. And there will likely be even more chaos throughout our world in the near future." Nezu continued. "In particular, this will be most apparent to those of you studying in the hero course. You must approach extracurricular activities, like the hero work studies available to second and third years, with a greater sense of caution."
"Hero work studies?" Diana and Aisha whispered.
"Could this have something to do with our internships that we already did?" Selene pondered.
"The air always feels heavy when we talk about gloomy subjects." Nezu concluded. "But, rest assured, your teachers are working hard to remove this weight from your shoulders. I'd like all of you to learn from their diligence, and remember that hard work will help you develop into capable heroes. Whether hero course, support, business, or general studies. I don't want any of you to forget that you're the one's who will inherit our society."
"Well spoken. Thank you, Principal Nezu." Vlad King spoke. He went up on the platform alongside with another Pro Hero. "Now, we'll hear from the extracurricular guidance teacher. Please give Mr. Hound Dog your attention."
Vlad King stepped back, which allowed Hound Dog to walk up to the microphone.
"Yesterday…" Hound Dog spoke. He growled for a second and grabbed the microphone. "Two students…!"
Hound Dog suddenly started screaming ramblingly into the microphone and howled loudly at the end of his speech. The entire student body went completely dumbstruck for Hound Dog's rambling speech. He then walked off the platform before Vlad King returned to the microphone.
"All right. As you just heard, there were students fighting last night. I know you're not used to life in the dorms, but let's all be a little more respectful moving forward." Vlad King concluded.
"Uh, what? I think Mr. Hound Dog forgets his human speech when he gets angry?" Diana sweatdropped.
"That's it. Back to the classrooms, starting with the third years." Vlad King said.
The third-year students proceeded to return to their classrooms.
"Hey, hey, listen to what I heard!" A blue-haired female student said, tapping her hand on the back of her tall, male classmate in front of her. "It was a couple of first-years who were fighting. Two boys and one girl from Class 1-A. Isn't that a scoop? Hey, do you know them? They must get excited easily."
"Really?" A tall, male student smirked.
Once the opening ceremony ended, Class 1-A returned to their respective classroom.
"Okay. Starting today, we'll resume our regular classes and training schedule." Aizawa announced. "I know a lot has happened recently. However, you need to switch gears and focus on your school duties. We're lecturing today, but this semester, you'll have even harsher training than before."
"He can't mean that, right?" Mina whispered to Tsuyu.
"Like to share, Ashido?" Aizawa questioned threateningly with his floating hair and glowing red eyes.
"His icy stare is back!" Mina exclaimed lowly with a frightened face.
Tsuyu raised her hand, making Aizawa calm down and deactivated his Quirk.
"Excuse me, sir. May I ask a question?" Tsuyu asked. "What were those things the principal was about the opening ceremonies? I've never heard the term hero work studies before."
"I know, right? That had me pretty confused, too." Sero said.
"I also have concerns." Tokoyami said.
"He said they're something the upperclassmen participate in, correct?" Yaoyorozu said as she raised her hand.
"I was planning to talk more about those at a later date, but I guess telling you now is more logical." Aizawa replied. "To put it simply, it's work outside of class. Like the internships you did at pro hero agencies before. Only closer to the real thing."
Then, Uraraka quickly stood up from her seat and raised her hand up in the air.
"Wait, then why did we work so hard at the sports fest?!" Uraraka questioned frustratingly.
"She has a point." Iida concurred. "If we have work studies, those who weren't scouted at the sports festival still have career paths."
"You gotta calm down. You're acting kinda nutso." Sato said to the panicky Uraraka.
"This doesn't make sense!" Uraraka said frantically.
"You'll be using your connections from the festival to secure a work study. It's basic networking." Aizawa explained calmly. "This isn't part of your normal classwork. It's discretionary for each student. That means those who weren't scouted at the sports festival will have a hard time lining one up, I'm afraid. Originally, individual agencies recruited on their own. But there was lots of competition as people tried to recruit U.A. students. So, this is how things ended up. Good enough, Ochaco?"
"I'm sorry I jumped to conclusions, sir." Uraraka apologized as she sat back down to her seat.
"Now that you have your provisional licenses, you can assist in real ways for longer periods of time." Aizawa continued. "Until now, there haven't been many first years who've received their licenses. With the increased activity of villains, we're currently exploring the idea that you can participate in work studies as well. We'll explain more about the work study positions and what that program entails at a later date, but for now, we've got other things to worry about." He turned to the door. "That's all. Sorry to keep you waiting, Mic."
Suddenly, Present Mic opened the door wide.
"First period is English! In other words, it's jam time!" Present Mic announced. "Been an age since I stood on this stage! Ya miss me? We've got a lot to cover today! Let's get rollin' with it! Ya dig?"
Aizawa walked out of the classroom and into the hallway.
In Heights Alliance, Mineta squatted on his knees and wiped off dust off the windowsill as Sero stood next to him with a teasing smile.
"Excuse me, but what is with this dust, Bakugo?" Mineta mocked.
"Deku was supposed to do that! Shut up!" Katsuki rebuked furiously. He turned to Izuku, who was collecting all the trash. "Hey, can't you even clean something right, you idiot?!"
"Right! Sorry!" Izuku apologized.
Izuku then listened to his classmates, who began chatting about their first day back in class. Mina, Sato, Kirishima, and Kaminari talked about Present Mic's grammar class. He turned his head to listen Jiro, Hakagure, and Ojiro speaking about work studies.
Izuku's face went stunned. Due to his house arrest punishment, he already felt way behind with the rest of his classmates.
"In just one day, I've been completely left behind!" Iida spoke in a high-pitched tone. He posed a strange position in front of Izuku. "That's what you're thinking right, Mr. House Arrest?"
"Hey, don't call me that. It's mean!" Izuku said. "Um, Iida. What's a work study?"
"Something I can't tell you about. The teachers have forbidden us from giving you any detail about our classes." Iida replied. "Sorry, but you'll just have to experience the same shock and surprise we went through." He turned to the irritated Katsuki. "Did you catch that, Bakugo?"
"Shut your mouth! I heard you, four eyes!" Katsuki snapped.
"Hey, everyone."
Class 1-A turned their attention to the sound of that familiar voice. Their faces, mostly Izuku and Katsuki, went simultaneously dumbstruck.
Walking into the main room was a recovered Luna.
"Oh my..." Uraraka muttered in surprise.
"Luna?" Iida whispered.
Mina and Diana slowly walked up towards Luna until they ran over to hug their friend.
"Whoa...girls." Luna said.
Selene, Aisha, Hagakure, and Uraraka began nuzzling Luna into a tight hug.
"We were worried sick! Are you okay? Do you need anything? Are you hungry? Are you thirsty? Or maybe...?" Selene, Aisha, Mina, Diana, Hagakure, and Uraraka asked dramatically.
"Girls, girls, it's alright. No need to worry." Luna assured. "I'm back and ready for action."
Earlier, All Might and Tarot Chariot returned to Recovery Girl's office just in time to see Luna stretching her arms and legs after the opening ceremony was concluded. They embraced their daughter in a tearful hug, but they haven't given her an official punishment yet.
"So, what did I miss when I was resting?" Luna asked.
"Sorry, Luna. But just like Bakugo and Midoriya, we are forbidden to give you any details about our classes by the teachers." Iida replied firmly.
"Oh, yeah. That's true." Mina said.
"It's fine. I totally understand." Luna said. "All I can do now is catch up where I left off. I'll be in my dorm room if anyone needs me."
Luna walked away.
"Hey, Luna."
Luna halted and turned around to Izuku, who was smiling kindly at her.
"Welcome back." Izuku said.
"Thanks, Midoriya." Luna smiled back.
Luna's eyes then moved to Katsuki, who stared at her with a somewhat soft face. That earned him a sideway glance with upset eyes in silence on Luna's face.
With no words to say, Luna walked off.
Only Izuku looked concerned.
Later that evening, Luna went out for a jog outside. She wore a sleeveless bubblegum pink top, magenta shorts, and white tennis shoes. Throughout her jog, she can't shake the thought of her mental conservation with Ariella. She even told her parents about it when she woke up in Recovery Girl's office. She pictured her mother's surprising face when she heard the news.
Luna then stopped running and crouched on her knees for deep breaths.
"Oh, hey, Luna."
Luna looked up to see Izuku standing in front of her while carrying heavy bags of trash.
"Hey, Midoriya." Luna greeted. She pushed herself up and grabbed some of the trash bags that Izuku was holding. "I know this is your punishment, but let me help you."
Luna and Izuku then started walking their way to the dumpster. Izuku's eyes moved at Luna's silent face. He's aware that talking about Katsuki in front of her will create tension between them, so Izuku decided to make their conservation very pleasant.
"Thanks for helping me." Izuku smiled.
"No problem." Luna smiled back. "I mean, taking out this much trash by yourself is pretty harsh."
"Tell me about it." Izuku agreed. "Aw, man. What is a work study? We're clearly being left behind. I know it's just the start of the semester, but these three days of house arrest are gonna hit me really hard."
"I know. We're stuck being at the bottom of our goal while the rest of our class are learning new stuff without us." Luna said.
"I hate this. We're falling behind. We can't slow down now." Izuku said.
As Luna and Izuku continued walking, they halted for a second. Their eyes moved to their right and saw something from the corner of their eyes. It was a male student's smiling face sticking in the wall. His unique face has blue oval-shaped eyes with no visible sclera that looked like it was drawn in a simplistic style and a rounder nose.
"Ha! Trash, am I right?" The male student spoke.
Luna and Izuku startled slightly with shocking yelps.
"What are you two doing? You know you can just throw away the food trays with the burnables, don't you." The male student said, pointing his left finger to the right.
"Uh...yeah." Izuku said in confusion.
The male student nodded. He then sank into the wall and disappeared out of sight.
Luna and Izuku stared at the wall with downright confusion on their faces.
"Midoriya, either we've gone insane or did we just see a face talking to us on the wall?" Luna asked.
"I know. What was that?" Izuku questioned.
Then suddenly, the male student's face popped out from the ground. Izuku and Luna screamed shockingly in unison, making them back away.
"So, you two must be those excitable first-years, aren't you?" The male student asked. "Ha, ha! I bet that was a freaky surprise for ya. Kinda sorry about that. Gotta admit, I did pop up here because I thought you'd be shocked, though."
"What in the world are you?" Izuku demanded.
"Not a bad question there, my friend." The male student replied with a laugh. "I admit, something I even weird myself out. You know, once in a blue moon. But don't worry, you're gonna find out who I am soon enough. I'm just glad it looks like you two have got a fighting spirit. You see, the truth is that people are talking about you two, so I came to see what the fuss was about."
Then, the male student's face descended back into the ground in mid-sentence. That left both Luna and Izuku alone again. They looked around the environment to perceive if the male student's face was going to pop out again, but nothing occurred.
"Okay. What just happened?" Izuku asked slowly.
"I. Have. No. Idea." Luna replied slowly.
"But I feel like I've seen him somewhere before." Izuku said.
"Yeah, me too." Luna said.
Three days have eventually passed, officially concluding Izuku's house arrest. Izuku and Luna have written their apology letters and handed them over to Aiwaza, who remained unaware that Tarot Chariot hasn't given her daughter a punishment. After an one day of recovery, Luna spent two whole days relaxing and training in her dorm room. Izuku and Luna dressed in their school uniform and exited the dorms, leaving Katsuki alone to continue his house arrest duties. Katsuki paused vacuuming to glance at Izuku and Luna for a moment before returning his duties.
Then, Izuku and Luna returned to their classroom together.
"Guys! I'm sorry for all the trouble I caused!" Izuku apologized with an angry expression.
"Same here." Luna said calmly with a bow.
Luna looked at Izuku with a confused face as Izuku's nose erupted a heavy puff of steam.
"No sweat, Deku. Thanks for your hard work." Uraraka smiled. "We're still glad you're better, Luna."
"All Midoriya did was vacuum." Jiro pointed out. "And what's with those stream nostrils?"
"Your guess is as good as mine." Luna said with a shrug.
"Class rep! Iida, I'm sorry I disappointed you!" Izuku shouted to Iida.
"Right. Well, I'm glad you and Luna have learned from your mistakes." Iida said. "Follow the rules from now on."
"I'll catch up with everything I fell behind on these past three days!" Izuku declared.
"That's fighting spirit! Do it, man!" Kirishima grinned with approval.
Suddenly, Aizawa arrived behind Izuku and Luna.
"Time to take your seats, everyone." Aizawa spoke.
Izuku and Luna yelped.
The rest of Class 1-A students hurried back to their respective seats and prepared to listen to their homeroom teacher.
"Morning. Now that Yagi and Midoriya are back, we'll go into more detail about what the work studies entail." Aizawa announced. He turned his head to the door. "Go ahead and come in."
Class 1-A students looked over to the opening door, where two male students and one female student walking into the classroom.
"I'll have people who've experienced them firsthand explain." Aizawa said. "I suggest you listen carefully sad they point out how work studies differ from internships."
Luna and Izuku gasped with shocked faces. The male student on the left is the exact same student that they encountered the other day.
"These three are third years at UA. They rank at the very top of our student body. You may know them as the Big Three." Aizawa continued.
The male student that Izuku and Luna met the other day was a tall young man with a very muscular build and marked scars all around his lower arms. The top part of his blond hair was arranged in a cowlick while worn swept backward at the bottom section. He wore his UA school uniform without the blazer and a brown belt with a large, rectangular golden carnivorous mouth-shaped buckle.
The female student was a fair-skinned girl with wide, curious royal blue eyes and long and thick eyelashes. Her periwinkle hair went all the way down to her knees, twisting around itself at her waist and curving inwards around her legs. One short clump of hair was curved towards her face on the right while the short hair clump tucked over her ear on the left. She wore a gray waistcoat over the white shirt of her UA school uniform.
Another male student was a tall young man with pale skin and long, pointy elf-like ears. He has messy indigo hair sticking out behind his head and thin, tired-looking eyes. Unlike the other male student, his white shirt was somewhat tucked in with his slightly slackened tie.
"I can't believe it's really him." Luna muttered. "He's with…the Big Three."
Mirio smiled widely at Luna and Izuku.
Enjoy and review.
