Chapter 1: Daedalus' Army
Chapter Text
Shouta slumped into his chair at the staff meeting table, placed right in between Nem and Zashi, and took out his pocket journal. Whether he'd be actually taking notes or playing one of the prepared sudokus was still up in the air. Nedzu had called an emergency staff meeting only an hour before classes were set to begin and he still wasn't fully awake. Aizawa was supposed to be finishing his grading that he hadn't done the night before due to an extended patrol.
Aizawa sighed and put aside his journal and took out his grading just as the door slammed open and the idiot, Yagi, walked in. Shouta rolled his eyes as the scrawny man muttered apologies before taking a seat.
Everyone's attention was drawn to the head of the table as Nedzu clapped his paws together. "Thank you all for coming on such short notice." Shouta grunted in acknowledgment and noticed the other teachers giving their own forms of acknowledgement as well. "It has gotten to the point that we need to re-address a few things in regards to the school and our students."
Aizawa frowned at the grim look on the principal's face. "Is this about the villain attacks?" A couple of the teachers flinched at his bluntness, but to talk about this softly was illogical. Besides, there was little else regarding the students that would have Nedzu showing such emotion.
"Indeed," Nedzu agreed, clasping his paws together. "Our first year class has been in too many altercations with the League of Villains and it is our duty as heroes and their teachers to try and prevent any more interactions between them."
"Have we had any leads on the traitor?" Hizashi asked, grabbing Shouta's hand under the table. Shouta squeezed it once before relaxing his grip.
"I must agree with Yamada," Yagi said with a sharp nod. "It is of utmost importance that we find this traitor and bring them to justice as they deserve."
"Unfortunately, we've yet to find any substantial evidence to back up any of our theories," Nedzu admitted, his whispers twitching just barely in annoyance. Shouta couldn't fault the slight loss of composure though, they had hoped that putting the dorms in place would reveal the traitor, yet nothing had come to light.
"If this is just about Class 1-A, do we all really need to be here?"
Shouta, Nemuri, and Hizashi all turned harsh glares on the general education teacher that'd only been hired this year. Aizawa's eyes glowed crimson as he glared at his fellow teacher, quirk flaring in his anger. The man flinched back from their gazes.
"Your question has been noted and discarded as it is not constructive or appreciated," Nedzu said sharply, making Shouta smirk as he dropped his quirk and returned his gaze to the principal. "In fact, this matter concerns everyone in this room no matter what you all may think. If we fail to prevent these attacks or locate the traitor, the school very well may be shut down for good."
Shouta's eyes widened in surprise. He knew that the Commission had been putting pressure on Nedzu, but this was extreme.
"From here on out, I want everyone to keep their eyes and ears open. We will be finding the traitor within the semester and they will be dealt with swiftly for both the safety of our students and the safety of our school. I expect any suspicious behavior to be brought to me immediately, no matter how small it may seem, so that it can be further looked into," Nedzu demanded. He tapped four fingers on the table twice and then quickly departed.
Conversations burst out around the room, but Shouta, Nemuri, Hizashi, and Kan ignored it as they stood from the table and left the conference room, heading for the principal's office.
"There's more to it, isn't there?" Kan asked.
"There always is, but we'll discuss it when we arrive," Shouta said, stopping all conversation as they continued their walk in silence. Luckily, there were no students around this area before classes or they might have been frightened at the sight of the four teachers stalking down the hall with angered and conflicted expressions.
When they entered the office, Nedzu gestured for them to sit on the more comfortable couch before sitting across from them in his armchair. Shouta was just grateful that the couch was large enough to seat four adults comfortably. "Thank you for being as efficient as always," Nedzu said, pouring himself a cup of tea.
"What happened?" Aizawa asked bluntly. "Last time we talked it wasn't nearly as dire a situation."
"The Commission knows of our little traitor problem," Nedzu said, hackles rising. The four teachers grimaced at the news. "There is twice the pressure and threats of school closure if it's not dealt with as soon as possible, and that's not to mention what will happen if the media gets ahold of this."
"This will cause a media explosion, when they get ahold of it," Kan said with a grimace.
"Can the Commission really do that though?" Hizashi asked.
"Legally, no. What they can do is refuse any of our students hero licenses as well as strip the licenses of any heroes that teach here," Nedzu explained.
"So we go vigilante," Shouta said. "Boo hoo."
Nedzu clicked his tongue as Nemuri punched Shouta's shoulder. "I'm not too concerned about the Commission to be honest. I am more worried about 1-A and the threat posed to them. We need to find the traitor for their sake."
"None of my students are traitors," Shouta stated bluntly.
"I would highly agree. From what they've faced, the surveillance we've watched of them all, and your relationship with them, it is highly unlikely that any of your students would be the traitor," Nedzu noted. "I'm even wondering if it's a student at all."
"You think it's a teacher?" Nemuri asked.
"I truly don't know what to think," Nedzu admitted grimly. "And that is the scariest part of all of this."