"Katsuki, you got a letter from UA," Mitsuki Bakugo called out when she heard her son enter.
"Hell yeah!" Katsuki bellowed triumphantly. "Time to see my first place score!"
Ever since his encounter with that slime villain ten months ago, he had been training himself hard. Whenever he could, he worked on improving his body and his quirk. There was no way he couldn't have scored anything less than first!
Grabbing the sealed envelope from the counter, he bolted for his room, slamming the door closed. He tore the envelope open to find a holographic message disk, much to his excitement. He set it on his desk and pressed the button to activate it. A grin appeared on his face as he saw none other than All Might standing there smiling at him.
"Greetings, young Bakugo! I Am Here… to discuss your exam results!"
Bakugo watched with a fierce smile as All Might went over the boring written exam. He had scored in the top two percent of scores, which was a little disappointing but not surprising, and then All Might began talking about the part that really mattered - the practical portion.
"And during the practical exam, you scored an impressive sixty-four villain points!" All Might proclaimed proudly. "Unfortunately, due to your focus on the villains above all else, you didn't gain any additional hero points, leaving you with a final score of sixty-four. It is still an impressive score, enough to earn you ninth place on the entrance exam!"
"Ninth place?!" Katsuki exclaimed.
With a dramatic sweep of his arm, All Might showed Katsuki the leaderboard. His eyes went wide as he scrutinized the scores.
Izuku Midoriya - 129 Points
"I didn't even see Deku there! How did he get more points than me?!"
"Congratulations!"
Elsewhere in Mustafu, at a local Quirk Fried Chicken restaurant, six friends were holding an impromptu celebration after five of them received their own acceptance letters to UA.
"I still can't believe I did it!" Aika squealed, tightly clutching the disk in her hands.
"I'm impressed that you managed to tie with this Kirishima person for third place," Jiro admitted, a note of fondness in her voice. "Bet that made up for the written portion, huh?"
"Yeah yeah, don't remind me - Oh yeah!" Aika turned toward Izuku and Ochako. "Can you tell us about our classmates?"
Izuku and Ochako shared a nervous glance, quickly engaging in silent debate before turning back toward their energetic friend.
"I think you'll get along just fine with Kirishima," Ochako explained. "He has a hardening quirk just like you, actually. Although he doesn't sing - instead his body becomes hard and rocklike."
"Eww." Aika made a face. "I'm glad my quirk works just by singing!" She exclaimed as she puffed out her chest. "Plus, it lines up with my goal to be a famous singer and idol in my spare time!"
"You still think you're going to have spare time?" Emily raised an eyebrow.
"I found a bunch for us this last semester," Himiko teased, earning her a glare from the blonde.
"You know what I meant! Idol work is hard and time consuming - a full time job!"
"I'll find a way!" Aika punched her open palm with her fist.
"The rest of us didn't do half bad either!" Himiko pointed out smugly.
"Yeah, but at least we didn't need to get the high score to compensate for our written exams," Jiro said playfully.
"Ehehehe." Aika rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "It worked. That's what matters, right?"
"Yep!" Ochako nodded cheerfully. "We managed to get Shizu into UA. That means we can do anything!"
Despite Aika's weak protests, the other five shared a laugh at that.
"UA is sneaky though - not telling us about those Hero Points," Jiro remarked.
"It makes sense," Emily spoke up. "What would be the point if you knew about them ahead of time? Aizawa does it all the time in his class - you need to prepare for unexpected situations."
"Doesn't that break your trust?" Jiro asked. "Having a teacher lie to you and hide information?"
"Yes," Emily confessed, "but Aizawa does take his homeroom duties seriously. Even if we don't trust him, he still tries to ensure our needs are taken care of. From what I hear, Kan does too!"
"Does the fact that you babysit Eri change anything?" Ochako asked curiously.
From their many conversations, she had a better experience with the homeroom teacher than Izuku did, and they both knew this version of Aizawa was, thankfully, closer to hers than the version Izuku remembered. That didn't change the fact that Eraserhead the hero and Aizawa the father figure for Eri were vastly different from Aizawa-sensei, the homeroom teacher.
"Nope," Emily declared smugly. "He basically treats me like two different people. It's for the best, really!"
"At least he doesn't treat you any worse," Himiko added as she leaned into her girlfriend. "Some bullshit about showing everyone you don't have special privileges."
"Nope!" Emily wrapped her arm around Himiko as she stole one of her fries, much to the other girl's protests. "His 'Rational Logic' may be frustrating in class, but it does have its benefits!"
While the others descended into conversation, Izuku looked over to Ochako and dropped his voice, speaking in hushed tones so only she would hear. "With Shizu and Himi making it in, that means at least two students didn't make it in. Plus, I never made it into the hero course in your time."
"I know," Ochako said solemnly. "Do you want to talk to Nezu about it?"
"You know me too well," Izuku teased with a playful smile on his face. Ochako giggled. "Think we can go talk to him?"
"Mhm." Ochako looked at their friends. "Tomorrow though? Let's celebrate everyone getting in today."
"Okay." Izuku rubbed the back of his head. "Sorry, I'm getting ahead of myself."
With a grin, Ochako bumped his shoulder with hers. "That's why I'm here - to keep you out of trouble."
"What're you two whispering about?" Himiko asked pointedly.
"Ocha's just wondering how I managed to get more points than her on the exam," Izuku answered, earning a glare from his girlfriend.
The other four students laughed before the conversation shifted to their future plans. Now that they had been accepted into UA, all of their dreams felt much more real; the excitement was palatable.
As Izuku and Ochako approached Nezu's office, they heard the door unlock.
"Come in!" the principal called from the other side of the door. While the trick often spooked other students, the pair had spent enough time working with Nezu that the trick no longer worked. They didn't even stop as they entered. "I wasn't expecting to see you two so soon. Congratulations on passing the exam."
"Thank you," Izuku said. "And well, the exam's actually why we're here."
"We did the math," Ochako began, "and with Himi, Shizu, and well… Izuku, all passing the entrance exam, that means some of our classmates didn't make it."
"Ah yes, the consequences of you changing the future," Nezu noted as he hopped off of his chair. "I suspected you would be worried about that."
"You did?" Izuku asked in surprise.
"Indeed! This was the first time you were forced to make a decision like this - knowing there is only room for thirty-eight more hero students, do you let events play out like they did, or do you help your new friends from this timeline instead."
"I guess I never thought of it like that," Ochako said. "We just helped because it was the right thing to do."
"It may have been, but there are repercussions," Nezu explained.
He pressed a hidden button on his desk. They heard the door lock behind them as he walked over to his hidden safe. Unlocking it, he took out a pair of folders and placed them on the table. "The contents of your original class rosters, as well as the new roster for class 1-A. Class 1-B remains unchanged."
Picking up the roster, Ochako immediately noticed and felt the loss of her rival from the list. Head snapping up, she looked at Nezu. "Inasa Yoarashi isn't going to be here?!"
"I'm afraid not." Nezu let out a sigh. "There was a disagreement between him and Shoto Todoroki during the recommendation exam. Despite being the highest scoring student, he declined our invitation, stating that as the cause. It is a shame. He is a very passionate young man. It is unfortunate that he decided to go to Shiketsu for his schooling over his opinion of one student."
Izuku shook his head sadly. "Shoto…"
"Hey, we'll knock some sense into him!" Ochako's smile brightened. "You've got practice now! And I'll help in any way that I can!"
"Thanks." Izuku smiled at Ochako before turning his attention back to the roster. "The other two students missing are Minoru Mineta-"
"Ugh, good riddance." Ochako made a face.
Izuku gave her a sympathetic look before looking back down. "And Hanta Sero."
"They placed thirty-eighth and thirty-seventh in the exam, respectively," Nezu elaborated. "Mineta did not score any Hero points, which may have put him over the top, and Sero had a mixture of both, but when his score was averaged with his written exam results, he fell below the cutoff line."
"What will happen to them?" Izuku asked.
"I believe they will both be fine," Nezu assured them. "While most schools aren't willing to share their rosters even amongst each other, those two have placed as high as they did at my school. No matter what their second school of choice is, they should have no problem placing within the top ten of the entrance exam, if not taking the coveted first place spot for themselves."
"If they applied to other schools," Izuku muttered, thinking about his own application.
"I can confirm they have," Nezu said. "Their application sheets both listed multiple other schools on them. So I believe that even if they are not at UA, they will be in good hands and will be able to pursue their dreams elsewhere."
"Speaking of pursuing dreams," Izuku tentatively started, "what happened to Hitoshi Shinso?"
"Oh, hmm." Nezu's voice got quiet.
He should have expected Izuku to ask about the indigo-haired student, but for some reason, it had slipped past him. Yet another one of his flaws that he would have to seek to rectify. Recalling all of the files of applicants, he quickly brought up the mental image of Shinso's file and reviewed it.
"It appears that your attempt to help fell on deaf ears," Nezu explained. "He didn't act particularly heroic, earning him no bonus points, and he didn't have any training to help him defeat the robots the same way your sister or other applicants did."
"Oh." Izuku's face fell.
"I'm sorry Izu," Ochako murmured.
"It's ok, I just-" Izuku forced a tight smile on his face. "I hoped it would work, you know?"
"Indeed, it would have been another data point of interest," Nezu agreed. "But despite your efforts, some things just cannot be changed."
"I'll… keep that in mind," Izuku said.
Ochako silently squeezed his shoulder, offering him strength. He responded with a small smile, silently thanking her.
"Well then, is there anything else you need?" Nezu asked the pair.
"No sir!" they both replied.
"Very well, I believe we are done here then." Nezu retrieved the folders and sealed the safe. "I can't wait to see you back here in six weeks to begin as students. I hope you find this first year to be much more pleasant than your last one."
"Us too," Ochako said.
All For One sat, enjoying a quiet moment of privacy; his fingers traced across the page of the comic book until he heard a beep informing him of an incoming call.
"This had better be important, or else," he growled as he turned his chair to face the computer, pressing the button with more force than necessary. "What is it?"
"Sir," the fearful voice of a middle aged woman came across the line. The parent of one of the children he had ordered to take UA's entrance exam, he recalled. "W-we have good news."
"Excellent," All For One said with more cheer than necessary. "What do you have to report?"
"Our son, Yuga, has been accepted to UA, as you requested."
"Wonderful!" All For One gave a bright smile. "It seems I had chosen correctly with the quirk I gave him. Please pass along my congratulations."
"W-we will sir," the woman said. "And there was something else."
"Oh?" All For One asked curiously.
"It's about the admission letter - All Might was the one who told our son the results!"
"All Might you say?"
"Yes! Apparently he is going to begin teaching at UA next semester and wanted to tell the students first."
"That is good news. Thank you for sharing it with me."
"Of course, sir!" the woman replied a little too quickly. "Do you have anything else for us?"
"Not now. Tell your son to keep an eye out for anything… interesting when he gets to UA and keep me informed of what he finds."
"We will! Goodbye, sir."
"Goodbye, and congratulations again - your son must be quite talented to have passed UA's admission exam."
When the light on the phone went off, All For One sighed and set his comic book aside as he pressed another button to contact Dr. Garaki. All Might teaching at UA meant he had finally chosen a successor. While it would explain some of the strangeness that had occurred recently, it didn't account for all of it, and he only had six short weeks to plan his next move.
"Freedom!" Aika cheered as their group gathered, having survived their final day of middle school exams.
"Be glad you didn't have to take those twice," Himiko complained as she crossed her arms. "I'm done with middle school."
"It was worth it though, right?" Izuku asked hopefully.
Himiko gave her brother a fond stare. "I guess I can't complain."
"So can we talk about hero costumes now?" Aika asked.
Jiro laughed before poking her friend's shoulder with an ear jack. "You've been excited about those ever since we got our paperwork."
"I have!" Aika said. "I've been thinking about them for weeks! But you've insisted we study!"
"We still need to pass, you know," Ochako reminded her.
"Aren't we getting close to the deadline though? I want my costume to be ready in time!"
"We'll have them ready," Izuku assured her. "But that doesn't mean we can't talk about designs in the meantime?"
"Traitor," Ochako said playfully as she nudged his shoulder.
"Yay! You're the best Midoriya!" Aika cheered.
"If you want, you two can talk costumes," Kyoka said. "We're going to go to Karaoke instead."
"You know I invited Emmy, right?" Himiko asked, a too-wide grin on her face. The American girl couldn't hold a tune to save her life, trying to substitute skill with pure enthusiasm. Emily horrified Kyoka enough that she tried to get her banned from all future trips to a karaoke bar, but she was outvoted.
"Ugh, nevermind," Kyoka dismissed, shuddering. "I guess I'm talking costumes with Mido and Aika instead."
After the group was done laughing, they packed their bags and departed, ready to celebrate clearing the final hurdle of middle school.
A week later, Izuku and Ochako waited in Tokyo Airport alongside Toshinori. The three stood in front of the international arrivals gate, waiting when they heard a familiar voice.
"Uncle Might!" Melissa called, seconds before she jumped at Toshinori. His reflexes kicked in, and he deftly caught her, spinning her around before setting her down next to him.
"Melissa, it's good to see you! Where is David?"
"I'm back here!" David called from several meters away, keeping watch over a small pile of luggage. "Mel left me with everything so she could say hi."
Toshinori laughed. "Of course she did!" Glancing at the three students, he walked toward his old friend to give them a moment to themselves.
"Welcome to Japan!" Ochako greeted cheerfully.
"Hopefully things will be happier this time," Izuku said in a sorrowful tone.
A flash of sadness crossed Melissa's eyes but she buried it. "Don't say things like that. The future's what we make of it right?"
"You're right." Izuku gave her an uplifting smile. "S-sorry."
"Don't be." Melissa shook her head before surprising both of them with a hug. "The past is the past. Now, we're going to build a great future!"
"That sounds nice," Ochako agreed as they separated before giving her a thumbs up. "I'm counting on you!"
"I won't let you down!" Melissa shot a glance back at her dad and Toshinori before returning her gaze to the pair. "Also, I think I need some time away from I-Island."
Izuku and Ochako followed her gaze and bobbed their heads in understanding.
"As long as you're ok with another scientist's daughter hanging out with us," Izuku said sheepishly.
"Right, Emily came from I-Island," Melissa snapped her fingers. "That'll be ok. Windsong doesn't have any ties with Shield Industries so everything will work-"
"You don't know how competitive she is," Ochako cut in with a shaky smile. "Really I don't know how Himi puts up with it."
"She wants to be a hero though," Izuku pointed out. "Since Melissa's in support, maybe that'll be enough?"
"Well, I'm sure it'll be okay!" Melissa exclaimed, quite unsure. "Besides, maybe we can come up with some gear together! Izuku said she likes talking about quirks and support gear, right?"
"Yeah she does," Izuku affirmed.
"See, it'll be fine!" Melissa beamed. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed her dad and uncle had finished up. "But first let's find some dinner, even though it was a chartered flight, it was long!"
"You sure you don't want to move into your apartment first?" David asked as he came up, followed by Toshinori.
"Absolutely!" Melissa took a pair of bags from her dad. "It'll still be there after we've eaten."
Without another word, the five departed the airport, loading all of the bags and cases into the back of a van helpfully provided by Might Tower before beginning their journey back to Mustafu.
"That's your costume design?" Emily stared incredulously at the page.
"Do you have a problem with it?" Himiko asked with a fake sweetness in her voice, knowing it would annoy her girlfriend.
"It makes you look like a vampire princess!"
"Exactly!" Himiko gave Emily a fanged smile. "And I don't want to hear it, miss 'I look like a scientist because of my parents.'"
Emily sputtered and glared at her girlfriend, knowing Himiko had a point. Finally sighing in defeat, she grabbed the paper from Himiko as well as a pen. "Fine, but we're filling your coat with as much support equipment as mine carries."
"Fine by me! You can also help me figure out where I want to put all the hidden pockets for my knives." Emily choked on air, causing her girlfriend to laugh. "Oh come on! You knew that!"
"I wasn't expecting you to hide them!"
Aika and Kyoka looked at the two girls and laughed nervously before they both turned toward Melissa.
"Hey Shield, can you help me out?" Jiro asked. "Mido had some ideas for support gear for me, and I could use your opinions."
"Me too!" Aika said. "I need some help with my designs."
"Hey-!" Emily looked up from her page to glare at Aika. "I gave you those designs!"
"Y-yeah, but you're busy…"
"I can help!" Emily insisted. "Just- let me finish Himi's first!"
Melissa gave Emily a sympathetic look. "I'm not going to barge in on your work, don't worry."
"Good." Emily tried to sound defiant, but the slumping of her shoulders gave her away. "I still haven't forgiven Izuku and Ochako for signing an exclusivity agreement with you."
"In our defense, we did that while you and Himi were on your first date," Ochako pointed out.
"Right," Himiko said as she wrapped herself around her girlfriend's arm. "We were having our shojo manga encounter, remember?"
Emily responded with a pout. "Fine, I'll forgive you for distracting me that day. But only because you're cute." She leaned forward and kissed Himiko before returning her attention to the paper with laser-focus.
"How's your costume looking Ocha?" Izuku asked as he leaned into his girlfriend to see her paper.
"Do you like the design?" Ochako asked him, dropping her voice so Emily wouldn't hear. "I'm trusting Melissa with all of the support gear, but I wanted something familiar."
"I know what you mean," Izuku said, as he examined the design of Ochako's outfit. It was primarily white-and-black with pink accents, in stark contrast to the costume he was most familiar with. But it still felt very Ochako. "I like it."
"Good!" Ochako chirped, rewarding her boyfriend with a kiss on the cheek. "Now show me your outfit…"
All of them continued for several hours, making sure their costume designs were perfect - better than perfect, because Izuku and Ochako knew what was coming, and insisted for everyone to be prepared to face the trials ahead.
AN: Happy One Year anniversary everyone! What started as a sleep-deprived one-shot has since grown into 53 chapters and nearly 200k words, and we have lots to go. Now the kids are finally at UA, but there's a ton of butterflies floating around in the air, ready to come home. I can't wait to show how the kids tackle UA.
Thank you all for the love and support over the last year.