April 29, 2232 12:23 PM
Midoriya finds himself stationed outside of Recovery Girl's tent again, this time waiting for news on Shinsou. UA has a few recreational games going on before the start of the final event and Izuku can hear the cheers of the stadium from here. He runs his thumb over his bruised knuckles, flexing his fingers, soaking in the ache. He doesn't think he's ever legitimately punched anyone barehanded before.
Izuku looks up at the sound of the tent flap opening. Recovery Girl stands at the entrance, cane stationed between her hands. "I was wondering when you'd drop by," she calls as Midoriya stands, walking towards her. "Bakugou was dragged in earlier by some of his classmates. He seemed intent on not letting me heal him," she huffs, turning to head back inside as Izuku follows her silently into the tent.
Midoriya's eyes immediately find Shinsou. He's asleep in one of the beds towards the back of the tent, totally unaware of what's happening around him. He looks peaceful.
"A friend of yours?" Recovery Girl asks, taking immediate notice of his sudden hesitance and glancing between the two.
"Yeah," Midoriya confirms. "Did he break anything?"
She shakes her head. "Just a bit of bruising, he's lucky that's all he came away with."
"You make it sound like it's his fault." Izuku does not turn to her. He does not take his eyes off
Shinsou.
The heroine studies him for a long, quiet moment before busying herself with the clipboard in her hand. She does not say anything in response.
"Will he be able to participate in the finals?" Izuku asks, changing the topic.
"That's up to him," Recovery Girl responds. "Physically he's fine, but the fact that he fell asleep immediately after healing him tells me he was already tired before the start of the festival."
Midoriya nods grimly in understanding.
She motions for Izuku to take a seat on one of the empty beds. He looks at her in confusion until she points at his bruised knuckles. He looks down at them a little blankly. "Take a seat Midoriya."
He does as he's asked.
Recovery Girl takes his injured hand in hers, studying the damage. "Is this the worst of it?"
Midoriya nods, watching as she presses her lips to the back of his hand. Soon enough the ache in his knuckles has faded entirely. He stares at them almost mournfully when she lets go. The physical mark of the anger Bakugou had manifested in him has been erased.
She tucks another handful of gummies in his hand.
"If you're not hurt, they'll be holding a short ceremony soon to announce the next event. I assume you'll want to be there."
"Are you telling me to get out?" Izuku chuckles absently.
"Would saying yes mean making sure you get there on time?" she quips back at him. Izuku slips off the bed, bowing. "I'll see myself out then."
"Try not to get hurt in the next event," Recovery Girl warns him. "Even though you're fully healed I was against you participating in something as intensive as this blasted sports festival. However, I cleared you for it when Present Mic came around asking if you'd be okay because you don't seem the type to back down from a challenge like this. You might be fully healed, but realistically you lost quite a bit of muscle mass after being on bed rest for so long."
Izuku shrugs. "Like you said, I'm not one to back down so easily. I've been through a lot more than kids my age should probably go through, but I've never let it hold me back for too long."
The heroine turns from him where he can't see her expression. "If you don't go now, you'll miss the announcement."
Midoriya misses the announcement anyway.
Of the students advancing to the next event, he was the last to arrive and had rounded the corner and come face to face with the back of Bakugou's head and had immediately turned right back around in favor of being nowhere within close proximity to him.
Izuku sighs, leaning his back against the wall, listening as Present Mic's voice reverberates down the hall.
After landing that punch Midoirya wasn't scared of Bakugou anymore, at least, not in the sense that he used to be. Bakugou is powerful, his quirk would allow him to save thousands. He has the potential to become one of the best heroes of their generation. Izuku used to look up to him because of that power he wielded, because of that potential.
Watching him barrel into Shinsou's chest had dispelled that glamour, shattering it like thin glass. Bakugou's path was paved in privilege and gold. He was born powerful and has the potential to become the hero Midoriya has always wanted to be. Even so, Bakugou Katsuki is nothing more than a bully.
Izuku has known this, he's been aware of it since the age of four when his quirk failed to appear. But Izuku, just like everyone else, found himself overlooking this detail in favor of seeing Katsuki succeed in the future. That first punch, fueled with the remainder of Izuku's strength and suppressed anger, shattered those past ideals.
Red, to him, was no longer the color of power.
The cheers from the crowd echoes loudly down the hall. And the shuffling of feet tells him the group has been called, but Midoriya stays where he is. The roar of the audience grows as they exit.
Izuku opts to pull the broadcast up on his phone. He cranks the volume up, watching as the camera pans across the remaining students before resting on Midnight. "It's what you've all been waiting for! The announcement of the final event!" A graphic overlay appears on screen, obscuring the shot of the stadium. The event title flashes on his screen. Midnight's voice crackles through his speaker, "One-v-one solo battles between the members of our four qualifying teams! And these–" the hero pauses dramatically, "are the matchups!"
An event bracket appears, taking up the whole of his screen. There's a total of eighteen contestants, it's an uneven number as far as the bracket goes, two too many people to have a proper one. There's a total of ten students from 1-A, five from 1-B, and a surprising three from 1-C. With two powerhouses taking up residence in 1-A he's not surprised to see how imbalanced the numbers are
from each class.
He anxiously skims the bracket for familiar names.
Iida has been matched up against Todoroki, and Hagakure is set to fight someone by the name of Kendo from 1-B. Yaoyorozu, whose name barely fits on the bracket, is the person Midoriya himself is set to go against. He grimaces on instinct upon seeing Shinsou, whose name he finds towards the tail end of the bracket, paired against Zheng.
When the noise in the stadium begins to die down he takes a quick screenshot of the bracket and heads back towards Recovery Girl's tent where he can wait for Shinsou to wake up. The heroine raises a brow to see him back so soon, but doesn't comment on his return as he takes a seat next to Shinsou's bed.
YOU MADE IT
YOU
YOU MADE IT
I JUST REWATCHED THE– YOU MADE ME THINK—
i hate u why would u do this to me im so hurt
I THOUGHT YOU LOST
Re oh no ⟩ Today 12:39 pm
for you to have so little faith in me
Izuku only leaves the tent twice while Shinsou's sleeping. Once to use the bathroom and the second time to meet up with Reo to have a look at all the festival booths that have been set up around the stadium.
Reo hugs him the moment they spot each other. Words of congratulation flood out in excitement and Izuku feeds off his energy, smiling and laughing and explaining how he'd come up with the plan that'd won them the second event. They stick their tongues out at Death Arms as he passes on patrol and hop from booth to booth looking at this or that and buying snacks from the food stalls
that draw their eyes. They talk and wander even as the first match starts and they watch from one of the big screens as two hero students face off in a fight that eventually ends up with the student from 1-A tangled in his own tape.
"Are you nervous?" Reo asks as they watch several people enter the arena to help untangle the boy before the start of the next round.
"Obviously," Izuku sighs, "If I want to win I'll be going up against some monsters power-wise." "...Piper... is used to fighting people like that though, isn't he?" he asks hesitantly.
Izuku pauses for a moment, realizing what the boy was implying. "...Not really. A lot of these guys have flashy, powerhouse quirks. Villains with flashy quirks like that don't usually keep a low enough profile to be dealt with by people like Piper."
Reo lets out a hum of understanding.
"What do you think you'll do then?" Reo asks.
"My best."
Reo glances at him briefly from the corner of his eye before looking back at the screen where they've almost finished untangling the hero student.
"Winning the festival is the easiest path to becoming a hero. It's not the only one though," Izuku reminds him.
"You'll still be disappointed though." "Of course."
"I'm proud of you," Reo says suddenly, "You've come a long way from that guy I found napping on my fire escape." He pulls Izuku into a side hug, watching as the boy on screen is escorted off the field.
"I fell from the roof," Midoriya whines, poking him in the side, "Give me a break."
"Maybe it's a little cruel of me," his friend laughs. "but I'm glad it happened the way it did." It's a gentle laugh, as warm as sunshine and as airy as the breeze at their backs.
"You know," Izuku smiles, "as much as I dislike Death Arms he's the only reason I came back."
Reo snorts. "I never thought about that way, but now I kind of feel bad about leaking that photo of him mid-sneeze."
"You what," Izuku chokes, pulling out of the hug to gawk at his friend.
Reo holds his hands up. "Nothing, nothing, I don't know what you're talking about. I did no such thing."
"That photo has been circling social media for weeks!" Izuku laughs in disbelief. "I literally saw someone on Twitter use it as a reaction image last night!"
Reo bursts into laughter at that, clutching at his stomach. "Maybe I don't feel that bad," he cackles.
Cal
@cawemybeloved
no no no no no no no this isn't real you've gotta be fucking with me, i know i didn't just hear that with my own ears i know it wtf wtf wtf please no please dont be real im begging you please please please please
1:13 PM · 4/29/32 · Twitter for Phone 1 Retweet 11 Likes
Taz (derogatory) @taztaztazz · 5m Replying to @cawemybeloved
you okay??
Meerkat tbh @meer_kat · 3m Replying to @cawemybeloved what happened?
Replying to @cawemybeloved huh???? context please?
)ܫ( Ferret
Replying to @cawemybeloved
Hey if you need to talk let me know, my dms are always open
@droppedmycake · 2m
@fewwet · 43s
Midoriya returns to the medical tent shortly after he parts with Reo after he explains he's going to find a seat in the stadium so he can watch their matches. When he gets back Shinsou is still fast asleep. He settles back into his chair from before, pulling out his phone to watch the rest of Iida's fight against Todoroki only to find his previous teammate slowly being thawed out of an iceberg that reaches out into the stands.
Izuku winces, questioning how he'd even begin to fight against someone with such a powerful quirk in their arsenal. He'll have to give Iida a good pat on the back next time he sees him.
Shinsou makes a quiet rustling noise beside him and when Izuku glances over at the boy he finds him staring at back blearily. "We won?" he croaks.
Izuku smiles. "Yeah, we won."
Shinsou pushes himself up, accepting the glass of water that the other offers him. He takes a few sips before speaking again. "What did I miss?"
"Well, they've announced that we're competing in one-v-one battles."
"Anything else?" he asks groggily.
"There's been two matches so far. Someone from 1-B beat out a 1-A student in the first round and in the second one Iida got turned into an icicle. Your match is towards the tail end of all of them so you can rest a bit more until then."
"Do they have a list of matchups?"
Midoriya nods, handing off his phone where an updated digital bracket has been uploaded to the school's website.
"Guess I'll be fighting Zheng then." Izuku remains silent.
"And," Shinsou trails off, "you, if we both win our matches." Hitoshi sighs. "I expect you to go all out against me."
Midoriya glances at him from the corner of his eye.
"We're both aiming for the top," Shinsou chuckles dryly, "Of course we'd be fighting each other at some point. You should be more worried about beating this hero student you're fighting first before you start overthinking our match."
The two of them watch the next few matches together on their phones, watching as Hagakure gets pushed out of bounds by a girl with hands the size of Midoriya himself. Kirishima meets a fate similar to that of Hagakure's. His match lasts longer, but he ultimately gets flung gracelessly into the stadium wall by the shadowy creature that is Tokoyami's quirk.
When Bakugou's turn is announced Izuku stands to leave. His own match would be starting soon enough.
"Win for me," Shinsou tells him before he gets a chance to leave. "I'm looking forward to our fight, so you have to win for me."
Izuku attempts a smile. "Well, I certainly don't plan on losing."
April 29, 2232 1:58 PM
"Before continuing our coverage of UA's sports festival, we, as a station dedicated to bringing you the hero news no one else will, want our audience to be aware of what's happening in your
neighborhood. Please be advised that the topics covered in this next segment are sensitive ones and may be triggering to certain audiences. Viewer discretion is advised."
April 26, 2232 2:46 AM
Shimeka, Izuku thinks, is a fitting name. The process of watching a body being built before him is disgustingly fascinating. He's watching as his own corpse is created. He, Giran, and Shimeka are completely silent for a good half an hour or more, the start of the process requiring more concentration than the last half.
"It's alright to speak now," Shimeka says eventually, opening his eyes for the first time since he started. He looks up at them. "We can begin discussing the details."
Izuku nods. "DNA wise I guess there's no helping it," he explains cautiously, "but I still can't have this body traced back to me in any form. My face can't be recognized," he states, more confident now. He pauses for a moment to think, remembering how Giran had said that it would decay just like any other body. "Is it possible to leave it in the ocean for a few days before you let it wash up somewhere?"
"Given our proximity to the ocean that's a frequently requested process," Shimeka replies, tiredly watching the boy over the rim of his glasses. "It's very doable."
Izuku nods, meeting the man's eyes. "Good."
"In the midst of UA's annual sports festival, Musutafu's Chief of Police has released a major update on the case of the vigilante Pied Piper. Early this morning a body was discovered on the shore of Dagobah beach. Police, while still in the process of identifying the remains, have confirmed that the victim's personal effects seem to belong to that of Pied Piper."
"Any major scars need to be taken care of. The ones on the neck and ribs especially, they're too memorable."
Shimeka nods quietly. "Of course. I can try fabricating a few fake identifiable ones if you want. I'm not too experienced at it though since most people are looking for exact copies."
"If you can that'd be preferable," Izuku agrees, "The body still needs to look beaten to hell though. I broke a bunch of ribs and almost died, you know?" He huffs out a sardonic half-laugh, "Well, I guess I did, didn't I?" He pauses for a moment thinking as he stares at the steadily forming corpse. He grimaces, "And the teeth. You have to take the teeth."
"Medical examiners have stated that the dental records were inconclusive. But, what identifiable features remain match up with what police know of Piper. Many of the wounds found also correspond with injuries that the vigilante is suspected to have sustained at the USJ attack several weeks ago now."
"What exactly do you want the story to be?" Giran asks, eyeing the boy from his spot by the wall. There's a lit cigarette between his fingers and he takes a careful drag of it before continuing. "Everything we do to the body will be scrutinized by the police."
Izuku glances back at him, wrinkling his nose as the smoke drifts towards the folding chair he's been stationed at for the last hour. "There's lots of people out there that want to do more than simply kill me," Izuku explains. He stares at the body, his body, thinking about things no kid his age should ever have to think of.
This will be the last time.
He turns away with a grimace. "The eyes too... they can't stay.".
"We will now show a short clip of the press conference that Musutafu's chief of police held earlier today discussing the discovery. Ahane, if you will?"
The station footage cuts, expertly replaced by press coverage of the conference. The video zooms in on the face of an older man, deep wrinkles cut rough lines beside his eyes and across his forehead. He pats at his face with a handkerchief.
"As many of you know, the vigilante Pied Piper was someone with many enemies. Although the investigation behind the vigilante's death is still ongoing, it is believed that after escaping the USJ in a heavily injured state that he was intercepted by an individual or group that would detain and eventually kill him."
"I can't have anyone so much as question the legitimacy of Piper's death, but, like I said, I also can't have any of this lead back to me." Midoriya's eyes trail the full length of the body, pausing where he can just see the feet beginning to form. "The pinky toes," he murmurs, just barely loud enough for the other two to hear, "Is there a way you can fuse the first two bones in them?"
Shimeka raises a brow but says nothing against it. He looks thinner than before, an assumable side effect of his quirk. "That's not the most unusual request I've had," is all he responds with.
"It is suspected that Piper was held captive for a prolonged period of time before his death. And while the main cause of death has yet to be determined, the ongoing autopsy has concluded that a majority of the wounds Piper sustained were obtained postmortem. While investigators familiar with Pied Piper's case can confirm that the body belongs to that of the vigilante, we are still working tirelessly to uncover the civilian identity of Piper. Our officers are also heading an investigation to find and capture the ones responsible for his death. People like this can't be left on the streets. If you or someone you know has any information that you feel may be useful to the investigation, we have a 24-hour hotline set up—"
Bakugou of course wins his match, even paired against another powerhouse like Shiozaki, he stands no chance of losing. Izuku paces the room that's been reserved for him, refusing to look at his phone, impatiently waiting for the intercom above him to crackle to life and proclaim that the chopping block was in place and his executioner was on standby. He does his best to shake off his fear, to swallow his anxiety. There are other ways, he reminds himself. He says it over and over again in his head, trying to drown out the voices chanting that this is his last chance because for so long it had been. UA used to be his only chance.
He shakes his limbs out, jogging in place. The muffled roar of the stadium thrums through his bones, sings in his skull.
A voice crackles through the speaker above him. "Midoriya Izuku please make your way to tunnel
A for standby. Midoriya Izuku please make your way to tunnel A for standby." He releases a shaky breath.
He can do this.
Midoriya instantly regrets not taking Reo up on his offer for the 'black market' info the business department was 'selling'. Standing face to face with his current opponent, he can see now where the information would've come in handy. After watching one of the 1-A students getting carried out on a stretcher from the last round he realizes that, whether it felt like cheating or not, Izuku could use all the help he could get.
He'd been too set on the fact that Piper had constantly worked with little information when it comes to fighting criminals.
Present Mic's voice booms throughout the stadium. "All-purpose creation! She was admitted through recommendation, so her skills are certified! From the hero course, it's Yaoyorozu Momo!" The crowd roars with an excitement that reverberates through him. "Versus— The guy that fooled even the audience with his strategy in the second event! From general education, it's Midoriya Izuku!" He looks up at the sound of his name, finding Reo in the stands, cheering him on.
Izuku steels himself, wind ruffling his bangs, scars all the more visible beneath the sun. Midnight's whip cracks. "Match Eight! Start!"
Izuku immediately takes the defensive. With as many unknowns as he's facing rushing in could be dangerous. He keeps his stance, waiting for his opponent to make the first move. He eyes her carefully for any abnormal movement.
The girl, Yaoyorozu, gives off the air of an athlete, but she doesn't look necessarily strong. The look on her face is grim, determined, nervous.
Izuku takes his first step forward.
A gentle shine starts up along the exposed parts of her arms, sparking with bright blue and fuschia. He thinks he's seeing things at first, thinks that the stadium lighting is finally getting to him. But, when a heavy smoke begins curling out of the shimmering sections of skin Izuku realizes it's the work of a quirk.
"And Yaoyorozu becomes the first to make a move, summoning a smokescreen to cut off Midoriya's line of sight! How will he handle low visibility?"
To Izuku, being enveloped by the white haze is more comforting than it is intimidating. It's true that while he can't see, his opponent won't be able to either. He takes quiet steps forward as the smoke thickens, treading carefully. When he approaches what he assumes is the center of the arena, he stops. He waits. He listens.
The crowd has gone silent in anticipation.
It feels like several minutes have passed as he crouches in the center of the field, waiting with
bated breath for something to happen. There's a soft crunch of dirt to his left, he dodges right.
In the time it took for Yaoyorozu to get to him, the smoke has already begun to thin, dragged into the stands by the breeze. As it begins clearing he sees the tell-tell glint of something metallic careening towards the spot he was just in.
The girl's head whips around in confusion, a pair of what Izuku assumes are a set of basic thermal goggles covering her eyes.
That's how she was able to find me then.
He crouches low, keeping himself out of her line of sight. When Izuku catches sight of the weapon she's wielding he wants to laugh at the pure irony of it.
Midoriya eyes the staff in her hand. He could easily take it from her. Her grip on it is weak at best and her center of gravity is off. Stealing it could give him the advantage he needs to progress to the next round, but it could also put him in danger of revealing himself as Piper. Izuku, however, needs all the advantages he can get. He weighs his options for a moment, watching as the girl drops into a more defensive stance. The skin along her arm lights up again, but instead of more smoke, he's greeted by the sight of a shield materializing along her forearm.
Izuku can't afford to do any less than his best.
He darts forward from her blind spot, taking ahold of the staff and twisting. Her wrist twists with it, forcing her to release the weapon. He rips it from her hand in one swift motion, jumping back to distance himself before she can try for any counterattacks.
"And Midoriya slips through Yaoyorozu's guard! Taking the staff Yaoyorozu had intended to beat him with! Her creation quirk has turned against her, arming her opponent!"
Izuku stands, pulling himself to his full height, more confident now that he has a familiar weapon in his hands. He expertly twirls the staff in his hands, getting a feel for its weight. It's heavier than the pipe he used as Piper, heavier even still than the solid oak ones they use at the dojo. He'll have to be careful with it, it'll pack more of a punch than the ones he's used to working with.
By now a majority of the smoke has cleared and Yaoyorozu has generated another staff from her hand. She stands a good six feet away from him, watching him cautiously.
Now that he knows her quirk, he can't afford to let this fight go on any longer than necessary.
Yaoyorozu wields her weapon one-handed, more like a sword than any bo staff he's seen. The shield along her right arm is smaller, but, if she knows how to use it, it too could be used as a kind of weapon.
Izuku stills the staff in his hands, taking a defensive position.
He can tell from the girl's facial expressions alone that she lacks the confidence to beat him. She lacks the confidence to make the decisions that she'll need to make in order to win. She doesn't trust her abilities, doesn't trust herself. That's why Midoriya will be the ultimate victor.
Izuku makes the first move, staff slamming into her shield with a sharp clang of metal against metal that makes his ears ring. Yaoyorozu flinches back from the blow, eyes pinching closed on an instinct that she hasn't shaken just yet.
He can't give her time to think, can't give her the time to regain her confidence.
He attacks again and this time she blocks with her staff. He puts a bit of space between them and she makes a wild swipe with the staff that he sidesteps with an ease granted to him only after years of hard practice. The next swing she makes he bats away, staves vibrating painfully in their hands upon impact. With her grip as low as it is Yaoyorozu drops the weapon, shaking her hand out. She doesn't have time to create a new weapon before Midoriya is attacking once again.
She grits her teeth, stumbling back.
Izuku spins, leg arching high and foot catching behind the back edge of her shield. He brings his foot back down, pulling both the shield and the girl attached to it, towards the ground.
Yaoyorozu hits the ground hard, unprepared for the attack. The breath is knocked out of her in one fell swoop and the arm still trapped against the shield flares with pain. She rolls over, blinking against the harsh rays of the sun as she cradles her arm to her chest. Above her, her opponent looms, stationed in an attack position and staff hovering in direct alignment with her throat.
"I-I give up," she croaks.
"Yaoyorozu has lost! Midoriya advances to the next round!"
Izuku feels all the tension run out of him as the match is called and the noise of the crowd drowns out the blood still rushing through his ears. After a moment he reaches out to help the girl back up. "Are you hurt?" he asks, nearly shouting to be heard over the cheering.
Yaoyorozu looks up at him in surprise. "My arm," she replies simply, taking his offered hand with her uninjured one.
Midoriya winces. "Sorry about that." "It's fine."
One of the medical robots Izuku had seen at the end of the previous round makes its reappearance to escort the Yaoyorozu to where he's sure Recovery Girl is waiting with that disapproving look on her face.
"Hey!" Midoriya shouts after her nervously, wondering why he feels so desperate to say the words locked on his tongue. When she pauses on the field, turning back to him, Izuku continues. "You lack confidence," he calls out bluntly. "That's why you lost. You had the skill to make it into UA's hero course, on recommendation nonetheless. You've worked hard to get here." His thoughts swirl. Maybe, he thinks, just maybe... this is something I would've wanted to hear in her place. "You should have more faith in your abilities."
He'd seen the defeat in her eyes when she'd found her own staff pointed down at her threateningly. He'd seen the doubt.
"You fought hard."
You can be a hero.