When Elsa awoke, the competition was already over.

"Good work everyone," Shinsou declared, hopping off the cavalry with his headbands victoriously. "And warn me about your quirk next time, Bradt," he said, teasing. "You almost froze my leg off."

Her heart lurched in alarm, looking down at her hands. A thin sheet of ice had solidified on the skin, telling her she'd been releasing her quirk for a while. Looking around the field, she saw walls and spears of ice surrounding them, with the occasional patch of frozen ground. Were those all hers? Or were some of them Todoroki's?

She looked at the scoreboard to see if it had an answer on who remained. But all it did was serve to confuse her. Why couldn't she remember anything?

Something inside her seized with panic, the thought of her completely blacking out and releasing her quirk without her knowing unsettling her deeply. She looked at everyone on the field critically, trying to see if anyone was frozen solid or stuck somewhere. 'Conceal don't feel, don't let them know. Conceal, don't feel, don't let them know-!'

"What happened? Is it over already?"

Elsa turned suddenly, and finally took note of the other two students she could only assume were her partners. They seemed just as confused as her, looking around and at each other with just as much uncertainty. The one who had spoken was a taller boy with blond hair, and a thick prehensile tail.

"It seems like it," Said the other student. He was short and slime, with longer, slicked back hair and some sort of mechanical belt around his middle. He tossed them a wink and struck an oh-so-sexy pose. "And I'd say that we've won!"

Elsa remembered the other boy's words too late, and she spoke up. "Are you guys alright?" She asked fearfully. "Are you frozen at all? Or cold?"

They blinked at her from the unexpected question, then looked down at themselves to double check.

"I don't think so," the tall student answered, switching his attention back to her. "Though it does feel a little cold, now that you mention it. Why?"

"Oh no," she whispered to her self before flinching back, holding her fists to herself. "I-I have to go calm down-"

She darted away from them, and they stared after her a moment, but were too wrapped up in their newest development to linger on it for long.

From the stands, Hans texted Anna, telling her that Elsa had made it to the next round. But he was thoughtful as he looked down at the field, wondering over the events. Looking close, he could see the tiny glistening patches of ice trailing her team, like she wasn't fully reigning in control. And really, the fact that she was one of the carriers instead of the leader just didn't fit her profile at all. She would have known she couldn't hold someone with her bare hands without putting them in danger. And honestly, he would have assumed her to want to take control of the team anyway- both with her upbringing, and the conscious desire to win from the last race. Strange. He'd have to ask her how on earth the other student had convinced her to go against her usual MO.

He didn't like not being able to predict someone.

Either way, it looked like both Todoroki and Elsa were moving onto the final games. Time to see if all their training had paid off.

There was a lunch break before the next round. Elsa waited a bit before following everyone to the cafeteria. Once she calmed down, she got her lunch, despite not being hungry. The anxiety had tightened her stomach into knots, but she knew she'd need fuel for the next leg of the competition. She took a seat with her classmates in the business course, being the only familiar faces she had. She tried to focus on her food, forcing herself to refuel, even as her mind wandered. It didn't seem like anyone had gotten hurt, but that didn't ease her anxiety anything. Anything could've gone wrong, and she could have revealed herself to everyone and-

"Impressive performance Bradt!" One of them gushed.

"Indeed!" Another adjusted his glasses as he leaned over. "I predict your stock would have increased 30% after that first performance!"

"It would have been more, if your performance in the Cavalry battle had been more impressive." He informed solemnly, nodding to himself. "Unfortunately the public is rarely satisfied with simply "staying" in the games, if you catch my drift."

"But I'm still impressed! I had no idea you were so athletic!"

"Are you really trying to transfer into the hero course?" Asked another classmate, this one female.

"Yeah," she confessed, a little subdued with the reminder of her last "performance". "I've always wanted to be a hero, but my father wanted me to take over his company. I couldn't pass the entrance exam, so I thought I could do it here."

"I see..." she marveled.

"Well I think you have a chance!" Said another student, also female. "Given your talent and personal drive, I think the staff will have no choice but to put you in the hero course!"

Elsa laughed a little to herself, smiling at her. "Thanks. But I guess we'll see," she said, taking another bite of her food. "There's still one more game to get through."

This wasn't such a bad thing, right? So what if she couldn't remember? She still made it, so obviously that meant she was still capable of doing this.

Right?

Some time after lunch, once kids' food had time to digest, it was time for the next, and last leg of the competition. As Midnight was announcing the oncoming tournament, Elsa was clenching her hands, trying to steel herself, and her resolve. She knew it would be a one-on-one match, because Hans had done his research, and warned her ahead of time. So she was already prepping herself for the small scale strategies she'd been practicing with Anna. She could still defeat them without hurting them.

"E-Excuse me."

Just before Midnight had the chance to get students to draw lots, a voice caught her attention, and she turned at the sight of that tall student with the thick tail raising his hand. Now that Elsa thought of it she had never gotten his name-

"I'm withdrawing."

Everyone gaped at him, baffled by this sudden declaration. In that moment Elsa learned his name- Ojiro- and also his honor code. As he clarified, his words cut harshly, reminding Elsa of the reality of her situation. And then brought everything into horrifying perspective. She whirled to the wild, purple-haired boy, who was now avoiding both of their gazes.

Elsa wanted to yell at him. 'Do you realize what you almost did!?' she wanted to snap. 'You put everyone in danger! I could've frozen over the whole stadium!'

But she couldn't say all that- not without revealing who she was.

She clenched her hands and forced herself to look down. She couldn't help but admire the taller student- Ojiro- for his morals. When he put it like that… none of them really deserved to win.

But she couldn't afford to give this up. If she gave up this chance, she'd never be able to get into the hero course.

'I'm sorry, Ojiro,' She sent a silent prayer, hoping he'd forgive her. 'But I've come too far to give up now.'

She had to go through with this.

And then, hopefully, have a chance to defeat him.

… that still didn't answer the question of why the 1-A girls were in cheer leader outfits.

As the recreational games started, Elsa decided to opt out, taking her time to think and plan. She already knew she'd have a hard time against Todoroki, but that other guy…

She was pacing in a little patch of the woods outside the stadium, trying to figure out how he had done it. Her memory was so foggy. All she could remember was feeling overwhelmed at the crowd, and then seeing him and suddenly…

Blank.

Maybe it was eye contact? That would… kinda make sense. But if that was the case, how could she stop herself from falling under his quirk again?

She could keep her face down at the start of the match. Maybe throw up a wall? But that wouldn't win her anything and he could just move around it. Maybe she could just just make a little "igloo" around him and trap him? That could kind of work.

But what if it wasn't eye contact?

She thought about it a little more, before finally deciding on something she felt would cover all her bases. If she froze the floor, and then threw up a giant wall, she could just push on it until he was out of bounds. His quirk wouldn't be able to get him out of that, and she'd be safe.

Ok. Onto Todoroki.

Her pacing got faster, thoughts spinning faster and faster. None of her usual strategies would work on him. He wouldn't slip on ice since he was used to it, and even if she threw up some walls, he'd break through them instantly. She could nail his feet to the floor, but he'd just break out of it like she could. She could throw him off balance with some pillars and then…. Then what? She couldn't spear him with her spires. She was fairly sure that wouldn't be allowed. (Even if it was, she doubted she could bring herself to do it anyway.)

She spun herself in circles, muttering to herself and gesticulating the more she thought about it and the more she planned. Until the announcements finally came on to signal the end of the recreational games, and the beginning of the tournament.

She was in the last half of the matches, meaning she could afford to watch them. She had that one advantage that now she could analyze everyone and figure out their quirks, so she'd know what to expect. She hadn't had the chance in the race or the cavalry battle, so this would be her one shot to figure out how to battle everyone.

The first match was crazy boy- er, Midoriya- versus the boy that had take control of her before. While everyone else was shocked and confused at Midoriya's sudden change in behavior, Elsa could only stare grimly. She fully expected this outcome. And all his future matches would just go this same way. But she had noticed that for whatever reason, he hadn't taken control of the boy instantly, maybe just wanting to toy with him. Elsa would take advantage of his cockiness and use her strategy against him. She'd take him out and-

There was a sudden gust, and the whole section winced, throwing their arms up to defend themselves. Elsa peeked over her arm to watch in bafflement. Was that Midoriya's quirk? Wind control, like her mother? But then how had he broken free?

The match ended, Midoriya using his superior strength and skills to finally take him out. Elsa sighed with relief. That was at least one less thing to worry about. If she had a chance to speak with that boy, she would ask him how he broke free, just in case something happened to her like that again.

And it answered Hans' question. A brainwashing quirk would definitely make someone go against their usual MO.

Next was Todoroki's first match and she was eager to watch. If she could see a bit of how he fought, it might give her a chance to see which of her million strategies could work.

The other boy was impressive however, snapping his tape around him and yanking him to edge. Could he actually-?!

But then a mountain of ice erupted, and the match was set.

It was a massive glacier that curled significantly over the audience reaching all the way from the stadium ring to over the enormous stadium walls. The audience was silent, terrified and trying to avoid touching the sharp, dangerous ice. Elsa was terrified too, but for an entirely different reason.

'Oh… oh no.'

He can't control his quirk either.

Even in her practicing, she had never created such a huge, massive structure before! (Though to be fair, she had never actually tried.) She knew he had to be strong, but this was on another level.

But what got her wasn't even the power. It was the cheers of the crowd around her.

"Don't miiiiiiiiind!"

As they began to reassure him- the one who lost, not the winner- Elsa's couldn't help but feel despair. Of course they would be cheering for the poor, trapped boy in the ice- who would congratulate such a monster in his victory? She gripped her hands tight, eyes on her lap as her chest became tight. They would think the same thing of her, if she ever released her full power. So panicked at this idea, she didn't pay close enough attention to notice Todoroki approaching his opponent and classmate. She didn't notice how he was quite literally thawing Sero out of the mountain of ice with his left hand. All she could think about was how this had thrown all her strategies out the window.

She couldn't even pay close enough attention to the other matches to take good notes, too fearful as she rethought her "strategies". If he was going to go huge from the get go, then she'd have to go big just to keep up with him! How was she going to keep herself under control like this? They'd just keep trying to "out ice" each other until they froze over the whole stadium!

'Think, Elsa! Think!'

Before she realized it, her own match was up, her classmate having to nudge her to remind her. She darted downstairs, shaking her head to clear it. This next match she didn't have to get worked up over. It was with the boy that had been with her on the cavalry team- the shorter one with the mechanical belt. She would just immobilize him, and it would be done.

So the moment Midnight announced the start, she threw her arms out, shooting out her particles and sealing the bottom half of his legs in ice.

Normally, people might see that, and think how quick that was. It would be useful against most villains in a fight, to be able to trap them easily like that.

At least, that's how most of the audience saw it.

"What?!" Izuku jumped from his seat, leaning over the wall like it would give him a better look. "How'd she do that?!"

"Do what?" Kirishima blinked. "Todoroki makes ice all the time."

"I mean just make the ice appear like that! Randomly!" He pointed to the stage emphatically. "She didn't touch the ground or anything! It's like it just magically appeared out of nowhere!" He flipped his notebook instantly, furious scribbling down in it as he began analyzing. "It shouldn't even be possible for it to appear away from her body like that- unless she's disguising it with another quirk. A growth quirk maybe, like with crystals? But then where would she be planting the seeds? I can't believe I missed it in the race, it should have been so obvious from the way it appeared away from her like that-"

Everyone did their best to ignore him as he began muttering, but of course once he started he was a muttering force to be reckoned with. So Izuku watched her match like a hawk, determined to figure out her quirk.

She straightened, thinking the fight was already over.

"Oh ho ho," Her opponent, Aoyama laughed. "It is true, you did indeed immobilize me! However-!" He laced his hands behind his head, jutting his hips out with a wink. "I can still fight~"

And then the large glass circle on his belly began to glow with light. Elsa gasped, jumping aside as she threw up a wall. The sparkling laser shot through her ice but she managed to avoid it, just in time.

Literally, since it grazed her side.

She cried out from the disintegrating burn, but he was already firing again and she was forced to run, scrambling to avoid getting hit. At first her mind could only think of two things: avoid getting hit, and the agonizing, sizzling pain from her side. As she ran she was grabbing her charred side with one hand. She released her quirk automatically, frosting over the exposed gaping wound with soothing ice. But he shot out consecutive short bursts, forcing her to stay on the move.

"Ho, that boy is impressive."

"She can handle her own wounds in battle- not a bad skill."

"Being able to attack while immobile certainly helps on the battlefield."

"Whoo! Is the air getting colder to you?"

'Come on, Elsa,' Hans mentally chided. 'You can knock him out easy. Just focus.'

It was almost frustrating, seeing such potential wasted. But really, what could you expect from someone who had been behind books her entire life and had no real combat experience? Her only mistake had been underestimating her opponent. She was trying so hard not to "hurt" anyone she wasn't going full out. She should have sealed his whole body.

… Though to be fair, even if she had sealed his whole body in ice, it still wouldn't have worked, since the laser could apparently cut through it, and likely still hit her.

Ok fine, maybe this match was a slightly more difficult one for her.

Losing stamina fast, Elsa dropped to a knee once the pain became too much for her. But as he prepared to fire, she shot a burst of particles with an upward sweep of her hand, throwing a sharp, jagged wall in front of him. He reeled back to avoid the blast, throwing off his laser. Taking her chance, she shot two beams of particles on either side of him, making large patches of ice on the ground. But as he reoriented himself to fire again, she flung her arms diagonally above her, shooting two large pillars to slam him on either side.

The audience gasped, leaning over to see if he was alright. But there he was, simply squished between the flat surfaces. He was trembling, both from the cold, and the painful, awkward pose he had been trapped in. He tried to release a beam to fire at her, but stuck as he was, he couldn't aim it. So it fired a few feet from her, dissipating harmlessly into the air.

"Aoyama is unable to move!" Midnight decided, raising her- uh, instrument. "Bradt is therefore the winner!"

Elsa collapsed, one hand supporting her on the ground, and the other awkwardly over the piece of ice blocking her wound. There were already workers coming onto the field to clear the ice and help Aoyama down. A pair of robots came with a stretcher, and she clambered on gratefully, letting herself finally rest and wrestling with the sick feeling she'd been battling with. Though she was sweating, the air around her began to freeze, leaving tiny flakes of frost to fall harmlessly to the ground.

Izuku paused his note taking, noting the white glistening and falling to the ground- without freezing the robot carrying her. "I see… so she is freezing the air around her..."

And her father watched from his office, where he had been unable to leave work. He was watching on his laptop, face growing pale at the sight of his little girl struggling onto the stretcher. He felt awful, because he knew she had worked hard for this, but he couldn't help but hope she would lose, and no longer be chasing such a dangerous occupation.

From the sound booth, Aizawa relaxed his gaze, relieved he didn't have to trigger his quirk. Her scale and control had gotten impressive, and very clearly was no longer putting people in danger in the heat of battle. Granted, this was a tournament and not a life or death match. But whatever she had done to get this far seemed to be working- and with a little more practice would be a force to be reckoned with.

Maybe she had a chance after all.

Izuku was scribbling across the page lightning fast, trying to take down as much information as he could muster. "-She can make large shapes but it doesn't seem to be coming from her hands- but there's a strange phenomena in the air just before the ice appears so maybe they're moving ice particles? It's likely she's "building" the structures instead of simply making them so that would explain how she's able to "add onto" them after they're already made-"

His classmates simply sighed, realizing he was probably going to be wrapped up in this for a while.

Bakugou and Todoroki were the only ones ignoring him completely, tuning him out as they considered the match. She had been going for a quick victory and hadn't known about Aoyama's quirk, which was why she had difficulty. But they wouldn't have that advantage, which meant she'd likely be more aggressive with them.

She may have only been from the business course, but it was obvious she had been practicing and training on her own. They'd likely still have to bring out all the stops with this one.

In the recovery wing, Elsa helped herself on the bed, all but collapsing on it. She was even paler than usual, sweating bullets and breathing raggedly. She felt like she was going to throw up. How was she going to continue? She couldn't possibly fight like this.

"Alright dear, hold still," The little old lady warned, before she puckered her lips.

Elsa winced despite her pain. "Wait, what're you doing? I could freeze you!"

"Let me worry about that, dear," the old woman argued. And then kissed her cheek to release her quirk.

Elsa squeezed her eyes shut, already dreading the inevitable freeze of the poor woman. But despite her fear, she still felt the effects of the quirk, noticing the pain lifting. She blinked in awe at her side, though the ice was still there.

"Wow, it's really better," Elsa marveled, looking back to the old woman. "Thank yo- ack!"

True to form, the old woman's puckered lips were frozen solid after the direct contact, making Elsa bow and apologize profusely. But the woman waved her off, plucking off the ice and smiling at her benevolently. "I suggest you hurry and change." She advised. "You wouldn't want to miss the next matches."

Elsa took her advice and darted out, hurrying through the corridors to her travel bag. When she came back to the stands, she missed the first part of the match, but settled in expectantly. It was the girl she had noticed on the race who had made the canon, and a boy with the head of a crow. He was keeping her on the defensive, using some kind of moving shadow to strike her. Interesting… and very effective. It definitely stopped her from making anything dangerous that could take him out.

So he pushed her out of bounds, thus ending the match. Elsa joined in the clapping automatically, making a mental note to be careful of that one. That shadow could easily go around her defenses and try to attack directly. All of these kids were surprisingly strong and powerful.

'And if I can win this, soon I'll be joining them,' she realized. 'I can be just as good as them!'

She would do her best to pay attention to the next match. She didn't want to be caught off guard and make a mistake like her first match. She would have to stay focused and on guard, no matter what.

She recognized the blond boy instantly when he came on, now more than a little curious. He had been so angry at her before, so now she had a chance to see what he was made of. He was facing a girl she didn't recognize (though she would have, if she had been conscious for the cavalry) and wondered if she'd do well and make him eat his words.

Then the match started, and Elsa just about jumped out of her seat. The explosion rattled and the smoke billowed through the stage, starting the match off with a bang.

And Elsa could only stare in horror, already pale face going even whiter. "His quirk is… explosions?"

It seemed like this tournament was going to be a lot more difficult than Elsa first realized.

Hi everyone! Thanks so much for your patience! Sorry to make you wait so long, I'll try to get the net chapter out in a couple weeks! :D