For the next several seconds, Izuku stared down at his phone as the speaker blared out a dial tone. It took a few tries, but his brain finally got his hand to move, and he silenced the phone and slipped it away, "huh…"

The phone call had not gone how Izuku had imagined it. It had actually been something close to normal. At least, what Izuku imagined a phone call between a father and son should be. A few of his father's phrases still came off as self-centered, but overall, the call had been…

"Well, that was informative," Mei said happily.

That, Izuku thought to himself. It had been that.

It had been an actual good call. Informative, and if Izuku forgot that his father had made it clear he had wanted nothing to do with him, it could even be called pleasant.

It was really fucking weird.

"Soooo…" Ochako began slowly, "That was… um…"

Ochako, like Izuku, wasn't exactly sure what she had listened to. She had heard Izuku's father's last voice mail, and the difference between that and this has been a little jarring.

Tsuyu tapped her chin, "It seems like he had good advice, kero."

Izuku nodded. He couldn't argue with that. It seemed like breathing was the key to control of his Quirk. At face value, that might have been obvious, but the added details of how he breathes out can change the fire was still important to know. Also, learning he should avoid whistling was interesting.

"Perhaps your father is trying to make up for past mistakes by helping you now, Midoriya?" Tenya offered, "The way he responded was not how I imagine a neglectful parent to sound."

No, he definitely sounded different. Izuku agreed. His face scrunched up as he ran over the phone call in his head, "he almost sounded excited… and when I think about how he sounded when I won the sports festival…Maybe even proud?"

Izuku chewed on that revelation while Ochako sat up straight. Alarm bells going off in her head. Proud was not the word she would use. Self-serving would be one of the less R-rated words she'd use. Ochako didn't want to be the one to throw cold water on anything, but she could see Izuku beginning to weigh some options he might not have thought were there.

Fortunately for Ochako. Someone else decided to be the one to drop some truth into the situation. And best of all, if they came off as the bad guy, all the better.

"Tell me you're not fucking stupid enough to think that anything your shitty old man said was actually genuine, Deku?"

Everyone at the table jumped as Katsuki exploded onto the scene. While Izuku was left trying to come up with a response, it was Hitoshi who recovered first, "Um, why are you here?"

"Mind your own business, Lavender."

"But you're at our table…"

Tenya cut in, "It is extremely rude to interrupt a private conversation, Bakugou!"

"Private? This shitty nerd is airing out his issues for everyone to hear. You don't want people to hear, don't turn your phone onto speaker to have a private convo."

Ochako frowned, "You were like three tables dow-"

Katsuki didn't wait for a reply before turning his attention back towards Izuku, "You want to tell me what the fuck you're thinking? Are you an idiot?"

Izuku blinked, "I um… Was just trying to get some advice about my Quirk?"

Katsuki clicked his tongue against his teeth in annoyance, "Tch, Not that you moron. Anyone with half a brain knows you should have done that as soon as you started puffing out that green shit. I'm talking about after."

"Um…"

"Are you so brain damaged at this point that you think your shitty father would ever be proud of you?"

Izuku's eyes went wide, while Ochako flinched at Katsuki's word choice, maybe not the way I'd put it, you jackass.

"Let me ask you something, Deku. Your sack of shit father said he knew about the attack, right?" Izuku nodded. "And he knew some U.A. students were involved. Right?" Izuku nodded again. "Did he fucking call to check to see if you were alright?"

Every eye at the table went from Katsuki to Izuku as they waited for an answer.

"No, he didn't." Ochako hated how defeated Izuku sounded. "But the way he-"

"I swear to god, Deku, if you make me have to go through this whole fucking song and dance a third fucking time, I'm going to destroy you."

Third time? Ochako blinked, "Third time of what?"

Katsuki pointed at Izuku and seethed, "He's gone through this fucking 'maybe my dad isn't a sack of shit' stage before, and I've had to be the one to fucking break it to him, that his father doesn't care about him! You know this shit cries at the drop of a hat. You want to see him cry when he lets his heart get broken? It's fucking pathetic."

Izuku pushed Katsuki's hand away, "I wasn't that bad."

"You crawled under my fucking bed and wouldn't leave."

"... Okay, maybe I wasn't at my best back then. But-"

"Your father was talking to you in front of his boss, right? Maybe the only person your father actually cares about because he's a brown nose, ladder climbing sack of crap. Of course he's going to act proud so he can play the part of the happy parent. Especially if his boss was impressed with you."

A body blow after body blow of some harsh facts on the matter, Izuku slumped in his chair and sighed, "I guess you do have a point, Kacchan."

Katsuki scoffed, "Of course I have a point. You got what you needed, now you can pass it to whoever is going to be working with you-"

"All Might," Mei added, "He's getting special lessons from All Might."

Izuku muttered to himself softly, "Yay, more special training. At least it's not ten months this time."

Katsuki frowned, watching Izuku. As loud as the cafeteria was, no one at the table could hear Izuku except for Katsuki, who was standing right next to him. He narrowed his eyes but continued with his other train of thought, "You can tell All Might what he needs so he can unfuck your new Quirk."

With his piece said, Katsuki started walking off before he paused, "Deku. You and I are going to have a talk later. Don't you go scurrying off with your friends and groupies after school."

Himiko huffed, "Who are you calling a groupie?"

"Who do you think, Bun Bitch?"

"What? Not Cyclops?"

Katsuki huffed and stomped back to his table. Leaving everyone in varying states of confusion. Hitoshi scratched his head, "Maybe he has standards on his nicknames?"

"You alright Midoriya," Tsuyu asked.

Izuku nodded, "yeah, I'm fine. Guess I just needed the reality check."

Ochako crossed her arms, "He could have been a little nicer when he was doing it."

Izuku shrugged, "That kinda is nice for Kacchan. Even when things were pretty… bad between us, if he heard something come up about my father, he always had some choice words to say about him."

Tenya looked over at Katsuki and back to Izuku, "He tried to cheer you up?"

That made Izuku laugh, "Maybe not that far, but I think my father just really pissed him off as a kid, so whenever he got brought up, it gave him an excuse to rip him apart."

Shouto, bringing the topic back to its origin, focused on the info they had learned about Izuku's Quirk, "It's good you made the call. Though, it's concerning that your father wasn't able to offer any advice on cooling yourself down."

Izuku, happy for the topic change, nodded, "Yeah. Breathing out the heat will help a little, I guess, but if my Quirk can't do it naturally like yours can Todoroki, I may be in a little trouble."

Shouto rubbed his chin, "Endeavor also shares that fundamental issue. His costume does have gear that helps mitigate it, but beyond that, it's something he had to learn to be aware of when in battle. He's gotten better at pacing himself, though, in his early days, he would have to step out of a fight or stop a pursuit and allow himself time to cool off."

At the mention of gear, Mei perked up and cheered, "Ooooh, mama and daddy are gonna make so many babies!"

Izuku flushed red, very much aware that some of the other students, unaware of Mei's strange terms and phrases, were looking at him, aghast. Those were almost as bad as the other students that looked at Mei and gave him some thumbs up.

I think I miss the hospital.

"Just let me die."

Izuku rolled his eyes and kept pulling at the mess Hitoshi was in as they walked down the halls. It was near the end of their heroics period, and Izuku, Ochako, Himiko, and Hitoshi had been granted permission to leave early to meet up with Power Loader in the support department to have some adjustments made to their hero costumes. For Himiko and Izuku, the damage theirs had sustained required them to get repaired. Unlike the rest of the class they had been forced to go through the period in only their gym clothes. Ochako had already requested permission the night before, which was approved. Himiko and Ochako had gone on ahead while Izuku hung back to try and help a tied-up Hitoshi. His reasons for joining them were a little trickier.

"I swear, he did this on purpose. He and Ms. Joke were in on this."

"I think you're just being paranoid."

"She literally told me she was going to talk to Aizawa Sensei about some support gear for me and wanted it to be a surprise." Hitoshi reached up and yanked at the tangled-up binding cloth around his neck, shoulders, and arms "He then shows up during our hero class and chucks this at me and tells me to use it during that race. And this happens."

"...Okay, maybe you do need to be a little paranoid."

"Then, as I'm tied up, he tells me that I need to go get my gear request filled, and then I'm supposed to meet up with him for extra training after school."

"Well, look on the bright side."

"..." Hitoshi waited for izuku to continue, "Well?"

Izuku finally got one of the ends of the capture cloth free from the mess, "...I was kinda hoping you'd be able to fill in that blank."

"... You are a bad friend and deserved everything Bakugou did to you."

Izuku broke out into a fit of laughter as he kept tugging and then gave a triumphant cry as he was able to loosen up a knot so that Hitoshi was able to pull an arm free, "So, what other gear are you going to ask for?"

"Something so I can change how my voice sounds. I might not be able to do it naturally as those ventriloquists can, but Ms. Joke might have been onto something with the premise at least."

Izuku made a soft humming sound as he thought about that, "Sounds like she gave you exactly what you needed."

Hitoshi grunted but couldn't say he disagreed, "Well mayb- ACK! Choking now!"

"AHH! Sorry, sorry!" Izuku quickly worked to loosen the cloth that had tightened around his friend's neck.

"I swear, Midoriya, can't you just rip this stuff apart?"

Izuku frowned, "This thing is really tough. No chance I'm tearing it with my own hands. Plus, I don't think Aizawa Sensei would like it if you showed up with it in pieces."

Hitoshi was kinda beyond caring at this point, "Just use your Quirk the-" he stopped as he recalled why that wasn't going to be an option. The annoyed grunt from Izuku was his only response as he went back to trying to feed the cloth backward through another knot, "Sorry. Guess that's still a sore subject."

Izuke stayed silent. When he and the rest of the class had learned that they were going to have a race through one of the training zones to 'rescue' All Might he was excited. His excitement was immediately dashed when All Might told him that he was not going to be taking part in the race and that until they began their training, he should avoid using his Quirk. Izuku knew why All Might was doing it. After everything that had happened with One for All boosting his power, dealing with the effects of overusing that power that had done so much damage to his body and brain, on top of having a new Quirk he had no experience with, it was probably safer to figure everything out after school and away from people that might get hurt. All Might had assured Izuku that this was more than likely just for today and that things would resume normal tomorrow.

All of this still didn't help make Izuku feel any better, neither then nor now. Especially after seeing his classmates demonstrate some spectacular improvements as they raced through the dummy industrial site. Watching Ochako leap and twist her way through the maze of pipes was awesome. He could tell she had adopted some of Miruko's moves to add to her mobility. But at the same time she was and had been his closest rival for over a year. To see her excel and not be able to respond was incredibly annoying.

Then Katsuki had gone, and had literally flown through everything to reach All Might in amazing fashion. When he had rejoined the class, he had looked at Izuku. He didn't say anything but Izuku didn't need to hear it. They were rivals too, and Katsuki expected Izuku to live up to that. Falling behind even by one class was unacceptable. So when the last group of students had begun to line up for the race, Izuku joined them, ignoring his friends and classmates reminding him that All Might had told him not to participate. What he couldn't ignore was All Might suddenly landing in front of the group after jumping off from his perch at the other end of the training ground and asking Izuku what he thought he was doing.

Don't make me repeat myself, Young Midoriya.

"Yeah," Izuku said, "Sore's one way to put it."

When the two finally made it to the support classes Development Studio neither were ready for what they saw. The first sight that greeted them was Ochako, knocked to the ground, arms around her waist and rolling around while laughing her head off. Both boys blinked and then looked up to try and see what was going on. They found a small contingent of support students gathered around someone with very fluffy and curly hair. Very red, fluffy and curly hair. Hair so red, and fluffy, and curly it didn't even look real.

Then one of the students moved, and Izuku promptly died.

"T-TOGA?!"

More students were suddenly shoved aside as Himiko, alarmed at her name being called, pushed to see who else was in the room she was going to have to kill, "IZUKU?! HITOSHI?! LEAVE NOW, OR I'M KILLING YOU TOO!"

Izuku had no words. He had nothing he could possibly say. The sight was too strange and unreal, "Y-you're- you're- you're a-"

"Don't. You. Fucking. Say. IT!"

Izuku didn't.

Hitoshi did, "So you're a clown now?"

"ARRRRRHHHH!"

"Bwahahahahaha!" Ochako began laughing with renewed vigor.

"THIS IS NOT WHAT I MEANT WHEN I SAID I WANTED A LESS SCARY COSTUME!"

Surprisingly, none of the support department students shrinked back from the raging Himiko. The bright yellow overalls and disgusting blue and purple striped top and collar made it impossible for her to look scary. If she wasn't in such a rage, she would have told herself that she should have been paying attention to what she had been handed and had put on. The head of the group working with her, a woman with blond hair that was styled with too many twisted hair drills, and so much eye makeup that her eyelashes were almost solid objects, put her hand up to her mouth and laughed, "If you wish to not be scary then obviously you must dress to bring joy and laughter to all."

The group of students all nodded their heads, "Of course, Kenranaki!"

Himiko glared at the group and then at Bibimi Kenranaki herself, "You gearheads are all nuts. Not being scary doesn't mean I want to look like a freaking cartoon charac-"

Click

Flash!

Himiko froze as a light flashed.

Ochako stopped laughing to roll over.

Izuku resurrected himself and looked to his side.

Hitoshi had his phone out as it flashed a second time, taking a second picture. No one moved as he pulled his phone back and tapped at the screen, "Aaaand sent."

…

…

A series of chirps from Himiko, Izuku, and Ochako's phones broke everyone out of their stupor. They each looked at the message there, meaning that Izuku died again, Ochako started laughing again, and Himiko looked ready to murder Hitoshi, "DID YOU JUST SEND THAT TO EVERYONE?!"

Hitoshi shrugged, "Just our little squad."

Himiko screamed and reached into one of the costumes overly large pockets and pulled out a knife, "I'M GOING TO KIL-"

Squeak

Everyone stopped as Himiko blinked a few times and held up her knife, squeezing the handle a few times.

Squeak

Squeak

"Why is my knife squeaking?"

"Because the handle is a squeaky toy now. Don't worry, the blade part is still fine. We just painted it to match your new color scheme."

True to Bibimi's words, the metal was painted yellow with blue and purple polka dots. Himiko dropped her head, defeated, "I'd like to try on some of the other options, please."

While Himiko was taken back to the changing room, everyone else went to get their adjustments made. A few students took Hitoshi to the side to help finish untangling him from the binding cloth and so that he could finally ask them about the new gear he wanted.

"I need something to change how my voice sounds."

A support student nodded his head, "That shouldn't be too difficult-"

"But it can't be electronic."

"Huh?"

"For my Quirk to work," Hitoshi explained, "it has to be my voice directly. It can't be changed by electronic filters. So no megaphones or broadcasting it over the radio. That kind of thing."

Hitoshi noticed a few eyes drop to the speakers on his belt. Pulling one off, he pointed to the metal wire that was attached to it, "These aren't electronic. They work on the same principle as the cup and string phones kids play with. The metal wire sends the vibrations of my voice to the speaker via an analog method. Not digital. It's why I have these in my collar," Hitoshi pulled the collar of his costume down to show the multiple speakers lining it, "each wire connects to a different receiver."

The students huddled together as they began to brainstorm. As they talked, Hitoshi could overhear them repeat something along the lines of artificial vocal cords.

One student looked back over at Hitoshi, "Are you opposed to making a slight adjustment to your costume to accommodate this new gear?"

"I'm fine with that. What do you all have in mind?"

Himiko stepped out of the changing area and held up a red and black bodysuit and matching jester cowl with pigtails, topped off with cute little white balls, "Okay, to be clear. No clowns, jesters, or harlequin costumes. Got it?"

Bibimi sighed and, with a wave of her hand, had some of her fellow students wheel away a large costume rack with multiple brightly colored costumes, "Oh very well. They let's move on to some of the costumes that might fit your other criteria then. Your hero name."

Izuku looked over at the costumes, getting taken away and then back over at Himiko, "What criteria did you ask for? Did you have a sketch?"

One of the students wheeling the rack listed them off, "'Not scary. Can work with my hero name.' That's all we had to work with for the past couple of days. Fortunately, this is just basic clothing mockups, so it was easy to put something together."

Izuku blinked at the large selection getting taken away and then the large selection of costumes getting brought in. It dawned on him that Himiko had pretty much given the support department free rein on her new custom, and she was about to deal with the consequences.

When he saw Himiko gulp at the new mountain of costumes, he was so glad he was here to watch this.

Himiko grabbed a random hanger and walked back into the changing room, "I swear I should have just said I'd wear my school uniform and my gear over that. That would have been just fine."

Ochako rolled her eyes while discreetly taking a photo with her phone. Making sure the flash was off so that Himiko was unaware and quickly sent the photo to a special chat room Mina had set up for the girls of 1-A, "Oh, quit being a baby."

A hand burst out of the changing room and flipped Ochako off.

Ignoring Himiko, Ochako turned back to talk with Power Loader, "So were you able to go over everything in my email?"

"I was," Power loader confirmed, "Unfortunately, most of the stuff you requested will need to be handled by the company that designed your costume originally. The reinforcements and design changes are just too big for the school to be allowed to make them. Plus, the tech you want to have installed," Power Loader whistled, "Yeah, something this complicated has to be done by the company."

Ochako shifted nervously, "Do you think they'll be able to make it? It was just an idea I had and-"

Power Loader waved Ochako's concerns off, "Oh, they'll be able to make it. It's honestly not the craziest thing I've seen. But it still is complicated, so it'll take a few months of R&D, I think." Power Loader looked over the sketches and notes Ochako had sent, "Some of these changes make it pretty obvious you trained under Miruko. This major change though… not so much."

Ochako shrugged, "I saw some pretty amazing things over my internship. Gave me a few ideas."

"I see. Well, while I said most of these changes will have to be sent out, not everything will need to be. We'll be able to have the work on your bracers done here no problem."

"Oh, great!" Ochako cheered happily.

"It'll still take a little bit. You aren't the only student making some changes to their costume before term finals happen. Senior privilege and all that."

"Will they be done before then?"

"Oh yes. That won't be an issue, but you may not have as much time to practice with them as you'd like. Though, we should have some odds and ends lying around that you can use as mock-ups to practice with instead. Though I want to be sure you understand, we will be removing four of your bracers' firing mechanisms to replace them with this gear. So your ammo will be cut in half."

Ochako nodded, "I understand. I guess you can't make the rubber bullets any smaller, can you? So I can have more?"

"Not if you don't want them to pack the same punch."

"Then it's fine."

Power Loader looked over the schematic drawings of Ochako's bracers, "And the bracers will have to be made bigger, of course, though you already said you were fine with a size change. And they will be heavier too."

Ochako looked over the drawings, "How much bigger and heavier?"

"Size wise, they'll be pretty much on par with Gunhead's arms or that other boy's bracers in your class, Bakugou."

Ochako was fine with that, "And weight?"

"That I'm not sure just yet. It'll depend on the material we use. The stronger stuff will be heavier. You may end up with a cinder block on each of your arms."

Power Loader wasn't sure why, but the smile that crossed Ochako's face when she said she was fine with that was maybe just a little scary.

Bing

Ashido: OMG!

Hagakure: Did sh try the red 1 on?

Jirou: Tsu jst showd us the 1st pic 2

Asui: is Hitoshi ded yet?

Yaoyorozu: Is Toga going to try on ALL of those clothes?

Ochako was about to type a reply when Himiko burst out of the changing room, wearing what could best be described as a ball gown after a group of goths got their hands on it, "Okay. Are you guys just having a laugh here? How am I supposed to fight in this?"

"But look at you. You're like a majestic vampire ballroom dancer." One of the support students said.

"... I'm wearing a freaking corset here."

"And now your figure is gorgeous."

"One, I don't need my stomach and sides crushed to look gorgeous; just ask Izuku." Izuku made a startled 'eep' while he stood with Mei as she began getting her equipment ready, "and Ochako," Ochako found the ceiling suddenly rather interesting, "and two, I can't fucking breathe in this thing!"

Pulling at the dress, she tossed the black costume onto the hanger, leaving herself in some very old fashion looking undergarments. Taking a gothic-looking knife that had come with the costume, she cut the cords around her corset and let the medieval thing fall to the ground, "Ahhh, much better." She grabbed another hanger and disappeared into the changing room.

Hagakure: Awwwwwwwww

Hagakure: Tht 1 was soooooooo cute!

Jirou: Tht 1 she jst grbbed looked lik a nurse unifrm

A few seconds later, the costume was sent sailing out of the changing room, "NO FREAKING SEXY SHIT! NOT DRESSING LIKE MIDNIGHT ON ROLEPLAY NIGHT!"

Reaching out her hand, Himiko blindly grabbed another hanger and yanked it inside.

Izuku laughed nervously as more and more clothes were tossed out of the changing room before his attention was brought back to the person he had come to see. Mei. She grabbed his attention by yanking up his sweatshirt and undershirt and snapping a metal band around his chest.

"H-Hatsume!"

"Oh, be quiet. You act like this is your first time here. Now take your shirt off, I need access to your chest." Mei then proceeded to attach small sensors onto the metal band, which blinked and chirped to life.

"B-but it's normally not so um, crowded when we work together."

Izuku felt more than a little exposed. Why did it feel like he was being looked at? The other support department students were busy with their work. Hitoshi was having his neck and jaw measured, which looked unbelievably uncomfortable. Himiko was still inside her changing room, though the curtains were oddly bunched up in the middle along where they were separated. Like someone was gripping them, though Izuku didn't notice this. And Ochako? She was on the ceiling. Which was odd.

Maybe she's to demonstrate her Quirk for Power Loader? Izuku thought. But at least she wasn't looking at him. Not that she would or have any reason to. And if Izuku was being honest with himself, he needed to stop this train of thought as quickly as possible and focus back on Mei. The idea that Ochako could be sneaking glances at his exposed body was making him heat up and blush.

Bad thoughts! Go away! Ochako would never want to see-

"Wow. Again, I've seen you in your boxers when I was taking measurements. I thought we were past this phase." Mei said with an eye roll as she connected the last device to Izuku, a collar that fit snugly around his throat, "And there."

Pulling out a computer and some cords, she started plugging everything in, "Um, Hatsume, what exactly is all this? Shouldn't we be going over new gear for my costume?"

Izuku saw on the computer a program was running, uploading something to the devices, "We can, but it would be a waste of time trying to design anything right now. Firstly, because I bet you don't want to make any major alterations to your design, right?" Izuku nodded, "So if I'm going to make you some babies that still fit with your look, I need data. Which is the second reason we're not talking about your new gear yet. I need data on exactly what your Quirks can do now. Data is key."

Izuku scratched his forehead absently, which just happened to be the same spot the crest to his costume went, "But doesn't the crest um… do that?"

"Well yeah, but it's only for your Psychokinesis. Which, you know, was the only Quirk I had to worry about keeping track of. Now though? I need to figure out what your Boric Pyre is capable of doing. Heat output and heat build-up. How quickly do you heat up, and how long does it take for that heat to dissipate? Where is that heat held in your body, and how long can you function while your body is a furnace? These are the things I need to know, and afterward, I can figure out what kind of gear I need to make for you."

Izuku poked one of the devices, "And that's what all these things are going to tell you? I don't think that even when I'm allowed to use my Quirk, I'll be allowed to use it inside."

Mei waved Izuku off, "Well duh. You're going to wear these while you train with All Might after school. You'll swing by here every day, so I can get them on you and programmed, and then you'll drop them off so I can go over everything."

While Izuku contemplated doing any kind of training with so many gizmos strapped to himself, another issue arose he felt he needed to bring up, "Wait, Hatsume? When are you going to go home?"

"Pfft! Why would I want to do that? I'll just grab a sleeping bag and live here for the next few weeks."

Izuku frowned, "Hatsume…"

Mei groaned loudly, "Oh, pleeeeease don't go all Power Loader Sensei on me and talk about healthy work versus personal time habits."

"I-"

"Oh wow," Mei cut Izuku off, her gaze briefly focused behind him before she turned back to her work, "I thought she said she didn't want anything sexy."

Izuku blinked, not sure what Mei had meant until he remembered that Himiko was changing behind him and had screamed that very line. Curiosity and maybe some hormones made Izuku turn around to see what had been able to actually grab Mei's attention away from her work, even if it was for just about a second.

Oh… Wow…

Izuku wasn't the only one taken aback by Himiko's new potential costume.

Yaoyorozu: Oh my. Are you sure someone didn't accidentally mix up someone's dress with the costumes?

Asui: Tht is vry

Asui: um

Asui: …

Asui: …

Jirou: mature?

Hagakure: ^

Ashido: ^ that ^

Uraraka: No kdding

Himiko glided out of the changing room, her pale legs slipping out from the high thigh slits in the dark wine-red ombre dress that clung to her body and flowed over her hips, reaching well past her feet and pooled on the floor. Each step was followed with a soft ringing as her gold stilettos clicked sharply on the concrete floor. The dress had a very deep and wide v cut in the front that almost reached down to her stomach with a matching deep cut down the back, with everything held in place with a pair of gold rounded shoulder pads that perfectly kept the dress from slipping off Himiko's frame. The sleeves fell loosely around Himiko's arms and ended just above her wrists which had several gold bracelets that circled and criss-crossed up her arms. As a final touch to her look, Himiko had untangled her hair out of the twin buns and let it hang naturally, giving her a mature and almost regal appearance.

Himiko glanced at Ochako and then at Izuku. Finding them both gawking at her, she smirked in triumph, "Yeah, I'm keeping this."

A support student clapped in response, "So you want this to be your new hero costume?"

"Oh hell no," Himiko answered immediately, "This thing would be a horrible choice. I mean, look at these heels. I can walk in them, yeah," Himiko didn't admit that a 'barely' needed to be slipped into that sentence, "but anything else and my ankle is going to snap. And then there's all the stuff dragging on the ground. Someone steps on that, or it gets caught on something, and I'm in trouble. Worst of all though is this," Himiko pulled at the edges of the deep v cut, that did nothing to hide her cleavage and one pull one way or another, and it wasn't going to be hiding anything at all, "I'm one wrong move away from just spilling out of this top."

"B-but you said you were keeping it?"

"Yeah. As a dress. I'm sure there's going to be some school dance I'm going to have to go to, and if so. I'm wearing this." With that settled, Himiko began to browse the hangers again, "This is taking forever. Trying on each one of these is just a pain in the… huh," Himiko paused as she pushed a costume aside and noticed a pair of thigh-high boots, "Those are neat."

She glanced at the rest of the costume, something that was close to being pirate-themed and wasn't much of a fan. But she did like the boots. On a whim, she grabbed them and tossed them into the changing room.

Hell, maybe instead of all or nothing, I can just pick out some random stuff and see if it all fits together…

"Okay, it's mix and match, discount department clothes shopping time." Ignoring the objection from a few of the support students, Himiko began pulling costumes apart, taking things she thought looked neat and tossing them into the changing room, and leaving the rest to pile up on the floor.

Oooh, that's a nice shirt, and I love the frilly collar. Hate the color, but…

Colors could be changed. Right now, Himiko was more worried about design.

Would I look good in a vest? Could line the inside with my knives…

Design and potential to hide her gear. She had been serious about wanting to be less scary. A key part of that would be making sure all her pointy weapons were not easily seen. Didn't mean she wanted less of them, of course.

So in a flurry of chaos and with clothes raining down around her, Himiko began to build.

Ochako shook her head, greatly amused at the sight. She was about to take another pic, maybe even a video of the chaos, when her phone chirped.

Toga: So u all knw I cood c everything rite?

Toga: Becaus Im a prt of th chat remember

Toga: Th 1-A girls chat

Ochako blinked and looked over at Himiko, who was giving her a hard side-eye, before holding up her hand, which was holding her phone.

Oh fuck.

Toga: All of u r getting stbbed

Hagakure has left the chat

Ashido has left the chat

Jirou has left the chat

Yaoyorozu has left the chat

Asui: U lookd really pretty

Asui has left the chat

"I'm so glad I don't have to clean that up," Mei said as she typed away on her computer.

Izuku nodded in agreement. Turning his attention back to Mei, Izuku looked down at all the sensors he was wearing. All to record the data that Mei would need to make new gear for him. If he was going to wear all of this, he wondered, "Do you want me to wear my costume crest while I'm training? I thought you had mentioned before you had made a spare."

Without looking at Izuku, Mei reached into a drawer in her desk and pulled out the very thing he had been talking about, "Thanks for reminding me. Yeah, that would be great. I've updated the software on this spare one but until I make some new ones, try to avoid going nuts with your power like before."

Izuku nodded, "Yeah, I'll do my best."

"Oh, and before I forget, I'll be attending your training lessons or at least some of them."

Izuku tried not to look too panicked at the idea, "O-oh? You are?"

Mei nodded, "I want to see first hand what your Quirks are doing. How you use them. Data's good, but I think some first-hand experience will do wonders for making sure the babies I make are able to support you."

That… makes a lot of sense. Hatsume had me demonstrate my Quirk a lot when she was making my crest…. I'll need to make sure I tell All Might. Don't want to be talking about One for All around her by mistake…

That last thought gave Izuku a moment's pause. He had gear for his Psychokinesis, and was covered with sensors to record his Boric Pyre. All of which would be collecting data to make sure he would have gear that would work with his Quirks. But he didn't have just two Quirks. He had three, and he didn't have anything that would be helping with One for All.

Hatsume won't be able to update my costume properly if she's not getting all the data she needs…

"Um, Hatume, you wouldn't happen to have anything that can read… energy buildup inside a person, like a person's arms and legs. Or something that could deal with impact forces and resistances?"

Mei stopped working and turned to look at Izuku, "Why do you ask? That's the kind of stuff someone needs if they want to know the limits of their super strength. You don't have super strength. Right?" Her eyes were sharp, and Izuku suddenly felt a little uneasy. Mei wasn't stupid, and she took her role as his support gear designer very seriously.

Izuku quickly explained to Mei his story about the super move he had been working on, his Tactile Psychokinesis. How he pumped his body full of his Quirk's power and used it to enhance his strength. While he left out the details about how he had tried to punch Stain, and as a result of his new strength had demolished a street, he mentioned that the power had messed his body up pretty bad during the Hosu City attack.

By the end of everything, Izuku was soon wearing sensors on his upper arms, forearms, and around his ankles. Though, it was a little unsettling how quiet Mei had been when she fished the gear out. Normally things like that would have her going on about what she could make to deal with the issue and super move.

Hopefully, Izuku thought, This will give Hatsume everything she needs. She was pretty scary during lunch. I'd hate to see her like that for a second time if she thought I was hiding things from her. She really does take this job seriously. Kinda like Mr. Shield All Might talked about… That he never told…

With the final ringing of the bell for the day, the students of class 1-A began to collect their things.

"Before you all leave," Aizawa said as he emerged from his yellow sleeping bag, "as I'm sure you all are aware, it's almost time for summer vacation. Of course, with you all training to become heroes, it wouldn't make any sense for you all to take a whole month off."

The class winced. While they knew something like this was probably going to happen, hearing it was still a bit of a let-down. What's worse, it sounded like they were about to be told that they would be taking mandatory summer classes.

Not fun.

"So during your summer vacation," Aizawa continued, not caring about the worried looks of his students, "You will be taking part in a special training camp in the woods."

Several students cheered while some let themselves relax into their seats. While it was still extra work, a class trip was still a class trip, even if it included a training camp. Camping out, fireworks, campfire song, and cookouts. Everyone started to talk about the fun things they would get to do.

"However!" Aizawa's eyes flashed red as he got his class' attention, "Before the camping trip, you have your end-of-term finals. Anyone who does not pass their written or practical tests," The smile that crossed Aizawa's face was terrifying for the whole class, "will be in summer school hell."

Immediately the atmosphere in the room changed to absolute terror at what Aizawa's idea of hell could be.

"You have two months to get ready. I suggest you all make the most of your time."

Of course, everyone agreed with that.

"Midoriya."

Izuku looked up, startled at being called on, "Yes, sir?"

"I want you to be aware that while All Might has taken the lead on helping you get a hold of your new Quirk in time for the test, he is not the only one that will be evaluating you and determining if you will even be allowed to take the practical portion of the test."

"I… huh?"

A few students looked at Izuku as he shifted around in his chair nervously.

"All Might will be reporting your progress to me. As I'm sure he's told you, he will not allow you to participate in the test if you have not demonstrated a certain degree of control over your Quirks. I'm sure that he will wait until the last possible second before making that final decision. As such, to prevent any delays, he will be reporting to me on your progress. If I am not satisfied with how things are going at any point, I will pull you out of the test immediately. Is that clear?"

Stiffly, Izuku nodded his head, "It is."

Aizawa didn't say anything else for a second as he let this news sink in. Then with a sigh, he picked up his sleeping bag, "However, given your work ethic and… single-mindedness to your goal, on top of the commitment All Might has shown to your development, I don't see a scenario where you'd fail before taking the test."

Izuku perked up at that, "Oh. Thank you, sir."

Aizawa's gaze then turned to Hitoshi, "As for you, Shinsou, do not keep me waiting."

Hitoshi sunk into his seat, grumbling about set-ups and conspiracies.

Aizawa then turned to address the class, "As for the rest of you, I expect you to follow your classmates' example and take this upcoming test seriously. Just because school is over does not mean our facilities are closed or that the teachers and staff aren't available to you for extra training."

"Yes, Sensei," Came the class's chorus answer.

With that said, Aizawa left, and the rest of the class began to collect their bags. As Izuku got his, he was a little startled to find Minoru staring up at him, "Um, Yes?"

"So how'd you manage to snag All Might as a private tutor? And when is it our turn?"

"Ummm..."

Before Izuku could answer, Hanta walked over to Minoru and gave him a little shove, "Come on, dude. Don't be a jerk."

"Bah! It's a legitimate question! There's some favoritism going on here," Minoru replied with an exaggerated huff.

"Midoriya's new Quirk almost killed him, and it happened under All Might's watch. It's no wonder he would want to make sure Midoriya was okay after that." Momo said with a convincing degree of certainty.

Denki laughed, "Man, the price of admission to get taught by All Might is maybe just a bit too high. Step one, get a new Quirk. Step two, almost die using it."

"You're forgetting step three," Mina added, "Pick a fight with no less than two Nomus."

Izuku chuckled, "I would not recommend that."

"Still," Fumikage thought aloud, "To get a chance to be personally trained by any hero is a stroke of good fortune and an opportunity one should take full advantage of."

Hitoshi rolled his eyes, "If anyone would like an opportunity to take advantage of that, you're more than welcome to take my place." The deafening silence from his classmates made their views on that crystal clear, "You all suck."

"Still," Momo said as she collected her things, "I think I will look into exactly what options are available. Both for the practical and written portion of the test. While finals are still only a couple of months away, it never hurts to get an early start."

"Do you mind if I tag along?" Kyouka asked, "You're probably right, so I'd like to see what U.A. has to offer."

Momo smiled brightly, "The more, the merrier."

Soon more and more of the class left the room. Some agreed that it was worth looking into what was there for them, and some were not overly concerned. Izuku turned towards his friends and bowed, "I should probably hurry and get ready to meet with All Might. Hatsume has a bunch of stuff she wants me to wear while I train, and I don't want to keep her nor All Might waiting."

"Same for me, I guess," Hitoshi said with a sigh, "Catch you all later."

The group said their farewells though Tsuyu held back for a few seconds before looking over at Himiko, "You'll be fine then, kero?"

Himiko raised an eyebrow before pointing up at her eyepatch, "What? Because of this?"

Tsuyu nodded, "I don't mind staying after school if you need help with anything."

"It's fine, Tsu. I'm fine. Besides not like there's much you'd be able to help me with. Gonna be spending some time making sure my aim isn't crap now. It's not, by the way, but I have to prove to the teachers that it isn't. They'll probably want me to start with stationary targets too, which is boring…" Himiko trailed off when she saw that Tsuyu still looked worried, "... but once I've graduated back up to moving targets, if you want to come and throw some around for me, that would be fine. I'm sure that tongue of yours could launch some stuff pretty hard and make it a challenge for me."

That seemed to perk Tsuyu back up, "I'd like that."

With that agreed upon, soon only Izuku Ochako and Himiko remained, with Himiko scratching her head, "Still not used to that."

Izuku frowned, "Used to what?"

"Having people care enough about me to be worried."

With all of Mei's equipment in hand, Izuku hurried down the halls to the boys changing room. He had split up from Ochako and Himiko, who had been very amused to see him run off. Bursting into the room, Izuku put the stuff down and began fishing for his sweats in his locker.

"Oi Deku!"

"AHHH-! FWOOSH!"

Izuku, not expecting anyone else in the locker, nearly had a heart attack when someone screamed out his name. His shock at being surprised turned to instant embarrassment as a jet of green fire burst from his mouth and left his locker room door scorched.

Ooooooh, that's gonna come back to haunt me… Wonder if I can get Todoroki to take the blame…

"...The fuck is wrong with you, Deku?"

Suddenly remembering that he wasn't alone in the locker room, Izuku whirled around to find a very annoyed-looking Katsuki, "Kacchan? Why'd you sneak up on me like that?"

"I didn't. You're just a spaz. And a fucking fire hazard."

Sheepishly, Izuku poked his fingers together, "That's not fair. You were hiding in here and ambushed me."

"I was waiting here for you and said one word."

"More like yelled…"

"Deku," Katsuki growled.

"Why are you waiting for me anyway, Kacchan? And why here?"

"Because this is the one place Round Face and Bun Bitch won't follow you."

"... So this is an ambush."

"Deku, I swear to god I'm going to destroy you."

Izuku threw up his hands, "Okay, okay. Moving on. What do you want?"

"What's going on between you and All Might?"

If there was a list of things Izuku did not expect to hear come out of Katsuki's mouth, that would have been pretty high up there, "Between… I'm not sure I follow."

"Don't try and play dumb. I know there's something going on."

"Kacchan, All Might is helping me with my Boric Pyre because he feels responsible about what happened and how it got triggered."

Katsuki crossed his arms, "Then why isn't he getting a pro with a fire Quirk to help you?"

Izuku shifted his weight from one foot to the other, "He spoke with Endeavor, and I spoke with my father. Endeavor gave him some things to look out for in a fire-based Quirk, and I spoke with my father to get more details about mine in particular. I think we have everything covered."

"Hmph," Katsuki narrowed his eyes, "that's a good enough excuse, I suppose."

"A good enough-?"

"For someone that doesn't know there's something up between you and All Might."

Izuku's eyes bulged, "Wait, what are you-"

"Did you forget I overheard you and Half-and-Half talking?"

Izuku paused. He did remember that. It was how Katsuki knew that he and Shouto had talked about his father. It was, Izuku recalled, as Shouto nailed him on his connection with All Might.

Ooooooh, this… this might be trouble. Izuku thought. Then as he looked at Katsuki, he could tell he was waiting for Izuku to respond. Okay. Fine then. At this point, trying to hide it will only cause more issues. Also not like I don't have practice with this because of Todoroki. I'll just tell Kacchan enough so that he'll think he figured everything out.

"Do you remember that sludge villain?" Izuku asked. Katsuki's growl and the small crackles and pops from his hands were all Izuku needed to hear to know that was a 'yes', "Well, that was the second time I ran into him that day. And the second time that I ran into All Might."

Katsuki raised an eyebrow at that, "The second? The hell happened the first time?"

"I almost died."

Izuku recalled the sludge villains' attack in the tunnel. Him trying to use his body to hide from All Might, who had been chasing him through the sewers. Recalling the feeling of being suffocated as the villain tried to fit his entire mass inside his body made both booths shudder. Izuku then told Katsuki how All Might had appeared and had defeated the villain with just the shockwave of a punch, though he also got caught up in it, which made Izuku laugh.

"So you just randomly run into the number one hero, and he decides he's going to train you?"

Izuku laughed, though it was an uncomfortable one, "Not exactly."

Izuku then explained the next series of events, with Katsuki groaning loudly when Izuku said he had latched onto All Might's leg when the hero jumped into the sky, "Because of course you'd do something that stupid."

While Izuku didn't mention everything that he and All Might talked about, making sure to avoid anything about his injury and the fact he was losing his ability to hold his bulked-up form, he did talk about his question to All Might. Asking if someone like him could become a hero.

"And he told you yes because your life is a fucking comic book and-"

"He told me no, Kacchan. He told me that I couldn't become a hero and that I should give up on my dream. That I should shoot for something I could actually achieve, and then he left saying I should be able to find my way off the roof."

Katsuki was scowling, but Izuku couldn't get a read on what he was thinking. But it was clear to Izuku that Katsuki was thinking. His fingers were tapping against his arm, and his eyes were twitchy. Looking around as he went over his thoughts.

"He left you on top of a building?"

"Yeah?"

Katsuki's face soured, which was a strange sight. Like he was tasting something really nasty. Izuku blinked a few times, before he took a guess at what might be bothering him, "Oh."

Katsuki's scowl deepened, "No. No 'oh.'"

"Are you worried because I was left on a tall building the same day you said-"

"Move. The fuck. On."

"... I didn't think about jumping."

Katsuki hissed, "God fucking damn you, I don't care."

Izuku swore Katsuki didn't sound nearly as angry as he had been a few seconds ago. Apparently, the whole 'go kill yourself thing' was still a touchy subject for him, which was really strange since Izuku had moved on from it. Mostly.

Almost completely.

Even if the last few times they had talked, the subject had been brought up.

Which was weird.

Deciding to move on and not risk triggering something that the two of them were maybe not ready to talk about yet, Izuku continued his explanation. How after All Might had left him alone, he had then seen an explosion a block or so away. He ended up going to it, even though he hadn't meant to since All Might's words had put him in a really sad mood. It ended up that the explosion he had seen and walked over to had been Katsuki fighting for his life against the sludge villain.

Katsuki frowned as he listened to Izuku's story, "Hold on a second"

"Yeah?"

"Something about that doesn't add up."

Izuku gulped, wondering if he had said something to tip Katsuki off about All Might.

"You were still on the roof when you heard my explosions?"

"Yes?"

"Which was me getting attacked by that sludge bastard All Might had captured."

Uh oh.

"How in the fuck did he get away? The fucker was huge, so it should have been obvious. Your timeline is fucked."

Oh, I'm dead. Quick, think of a lie!

"All Might was able to cram him into a soda bottle and put him in his pants pocket."

… THAT WASN'T A LIE!

"... His pants pocket?"

"Yeah…" Izuku gulped out.

Shoot, shoot, shoot!

"And what did you say you grabbed onto again?"

"His leg.."

The calmness of Katsuki's voice when he asked his next question was deeply unsettling for Izuku, "Did he get free because you decided to act like an insane moron and hitch a ride of All Might?"

Izuku really wished he could think of an excuse, he really really did, "There's a good chance that me grabbing onto All Might made the bottle fall out of his pocket."

…

…

…

POW!

Katsuki's fist shot up and popped Izuku right square in the nose. Izuku clutched his nose with his hands and stumbled back, his back hitting his locker's door, "Ow, ow, ow. That stings." Izuku hissed through his teeth.

Katsuki rolled his eyes, "Oh, don't be such a pussy. I can hit way harder than that. And you would have deserved it too."

Izuku couldn't argue with either point. While his nose hurt, it wasn't bleeding. And Izuku knew from experience just how hard Katsuki could hit from their fight in the sports festival. And secondly, if he was being honest, he kinda did deserve that hit.

"So All Might leaves your ass at the top of a building, and then you hear an explosion which is me fighting for my life."

Izuku would go on to explain he hadn't meant to end up there, but he had been so lost in thought that he walked to the commotion without realizing it. He described the feeling of horror and guilt when he saw the sludge villain holding him. Then when it became obvious no other hero was able to do anything, it only got worse. Then he got a look at Katsuki's face, and the next thing he knew, he was running straight into danger. His body just acted on it's own.

"Fucking hell. That's your defense?"

Izuku shrugged, a sheepish grin on his face, "Well, it worked out."

"Only because All Might ended up showing up. But before that. You were using your Quirk to attack that sludge fucker. How?"

"I didn't even know I was using my Quirk. I wasn't even aware I was until All Might told me about it later. Until then, I thought you had blown us free of that saw what happened in the alley, and after he learned that I hadn't been using it for the majority of my life, he figured that I was suppressing it subconsciously. That's why it had become so weak; I just never used it because all of my life people kept…" Izuku trailed off, and Katsuki swore.

"Fucking course." Though, that did line up with everything else Katsuki thought. He supposed the idea that Izuku had been hiding his power really had been a stupid idea. No, the truth was much simpler but just as hard to swallow. He had been a large reason for keeping Izuku's Quirk buried. Well, him, the school and teachers, the other kids, and Izuku's father. Though the very idea that he was comparing himself to that fuck turned Katsuki's stomach, so he motioned for Izuku to continue with his story.

Not like that fucking deadbeat. He's supposed to be Deku's father. I was trying to become strong while he just ditched his fucking family.

Izuku went on to say All Might had tracked him down after everything that same day. To apologize for what he had said earlier and to offer to train him. All Might had found Izuku's actions inspiring and felt that spark deserved to be nurtured and given a chance to grow.

So after he was ungrounded, which Katsuki laughed at, All Might took Izuku to Dagobah Beach to train.

"You mean that shit hole that suddenly became a love fest for those horny idiots?"

"... Yes, and it's called a dating spot. I'm kinda proud that after cleaning it, it's become so popular. Feels pretty good, actually."

"He made you clean it yourself? That's how you trained?"

"Um, not exactly," Izuku said before talking about the different things All Might did to train him. Besides just picking up trash. "I also wasn't alone."

Izuku told Katsuki that the beach training wasn't the first time he had heard the idea. Before running into All Might, it was Ochako that had come up with the idea to use the beach as a spot to train. When Izuku said that, a look dawned on Katsuki as another piece of the puzzle fell into place. When Izuku explained how Ochako ended up joining him to train with All Might, Katsuki rubbed his temple, "That explains a fucking lot."

When Izuku was finally done, Katsuki was back to his neutral scowl, "So that's the big secret to how you got so strong. Picking up fucking garbage."

Izuku shrugged, "To be fair, it was a lot of garbage."

"And what about that Yagi guy that you three mentioned. He even came to see you, right? What's his deal?"

"As we said, he's a scout, and he does work at All Might's agency, but All Might brought him in after he met us first. He helped train us using All Might's plan and took over whenever All Might wasn't able to be around. He pretty much became the public face of our training since we didn't want to draw attention to it. When my mom got worried about our training, it was Mr. Yagi that spoke with her and got her to relax."

Katsuki's eyes widened, and he looked genuinely shocked, "Wait? Your mom doesn't know you were trained by All Might?"

"Um, no?"

"...For fucks sake, Deku, are you a fucking idiot?"

When Izuku walked out of the locker room, dressed, wired up, and ready to go train, he was a little startled to find Ochako and Himiko, both in their U.A. sweats. Ochako carried a large duffel bag while Himiko was wearing all her old costume's knives, both waiting for him.

"Guys?"

"Well, there you are, we were just talking about who was going to go in there and see if you were alright," Ochako said with a smile, "You were taking so long we were wondering…" Ochako's smile fell when she noticed his nose, "...Hey Deku? Why's your nose all red?"

Himiko rubbed her chin, "Looks like you got popped in the face."

Izuku laughed wildly, "Oh come on! That's so… rude! I mean, why are your cheeks so pink, Uraraka? Asking about a person's looks is really rude, you know."

Ochako blinked, head tilting to the side as she was not sure what to make of that sudden diversion. Himiko smirked at Izuku's horrible attempt to throw them off, "That was pretty sad, Izu-"

The door to the locker room swung open, and Katsuki, dressed in his sweats with hands stuffed in his pockets, stomped out. He glared at Izuku, who just laughed nervously, "What?"

Then Katsuki noticed Ochako and Himiko who were more than a little startled to see him come out. Ochako looked at him then her eyes drifted back to Izuku. Then she focused on his nose. Her eyes went back and forth.

Nose.

Katuski.

Nose.

Katsuki.

Nose, red and a little puffy, like someone had punched the poor innocent Izuku in the face.

Katsuki, someone that would punch Izuku in the face just because they are a horrible shit of a person.

Ochako's duffel bag dropped to the floor, making a very loud and surprisingly crisp thud before she began quickly advancing on Katsuki, "You disgusting monst-!"

Izuku, alarmed at the sudden violent intent coming from Ochako, wrapped her up and held her away from Katsuki, who took his hands out of his pockets and looked ready to defend himself, "Whoa whoa whoa! Uraraka, hold on a second! It's not what it looks like!"

"It looks like he punched you in the face, Deku!" Ochako growled out as she pulled against Izuku.

Katsuki rolled his eyes, "Because I fucking did."

"Kacchan! Not helping!" Izuku called out in dismay. More than a little worried at how hard it was to hold Ochako back. In fact, his feet were starting to skid on the title floor as Ochako pulled them both forward.

Katsuki, no longer bothered by the pair, looked over at Himiko, who was glaring at him but hadn't moved from her spot, "Hey nerd. What's her deal? She's part of that team you made, right? Green Drink Anonymous or some shit? Whatever it was you three were talking about before hero lessons today."

"Green Tea Rescue," Himiko corrected.

"Whatever, what's her deal, Deku?"

Izuku, now holding on to Ochako for dear life, glanced at Himiko and suddenly understood what Katuski was asking, "She knows."

Himiko blinked, "I know wha-"

Katsuki turned back to Ochako, stomped right up to her, and pointed at Izuku, "I punched the nerd in the face because it was his fucking fault I got attacked by that sludge bastard last year."

One second, Ochako was reaching to Katsuki's throat, then next the fight in her vanished. Unfortunately, Izuku had still been pulling her back, so when she stopped trying to attack Katsuki, they both tumbled backward and landed on the floor in a mess of limbs.

"Fucking spazzes. If I knew Deku couldn't lie for shit, I'd never believe they were both trained by fucking All Might."

Ochako's jaw dropped in shock, "What? How? You can't-"

"Uraraka, stop. He figured it out like Todoroki did." Izuku hoped that would be the best clue for Ochako and Himiko to get what was going on. He looked over at Himiko and saw her eyebrow raise before she discreetly nodded. He could also feel Ochako relax. Not a whole lot, but enough to know she got the message. Shouto knew about All Might's training but nothing else.

Ochako, getting up and straightening herself out, glared at Katsuki, "How'd you figure it out?"

Katsuki shrugged, "Was it supposed to be hard?"

"He eavesdropped when Todoroki and I talked during the sports festival," Izuku answered, not bothered by the death glare Katsuki shot him.

"I don't eavesdrop. You two morons were talking in the middle of a fucking hallway."

"The hallway that Todoroki took me to that was empty so that we could talk privately. About private matters," Izuku countered. Again, Izuku hoped his message was clear, this time for Katsuki. Leave everything else about that talk out of this.

Katsuki huffed, "Whatever. That shit isn't my problem. My problem is that Pink Cheeks needs to understand that you fucking deserved that punch, so I don't have to put her down."

Ochako growled, but crossed her arms and turned away from Katsuki. Which was enough for him, "My other problem is that if this is supposed to be a secret, you guys suck at it. All of you."

Izuku laughed, rubbing his neck, "I mean, that's a little ha-"

"No, no, he has a point. All three of you really suck at the whole secret thing," Himiko cut in with a finite nod. Izuku sighed in defeat while Ochako rubbed her brow, feeling like it was Izuku and All Might that sucked at this. She was just guilty by association.

Katsuki just waved Izuku off, "Look, not everyone in our class is an idiot. Get better at this shit, or pretty soon the whole fucking school is going to know." He frowned and pointed at Ochako, "And before you say anything, no, I'm not going to go around talking about this. So don't even waste my time with that shit." Ochako growled in response but didn't press the issue. 'As for you, Deku, I'm keeping my eye on you. Whatever special training you have to do to get your Quirks under control, you better not let it make you start lagging behind because of it. If I don't like your progress, I'm going to drop you right then and take my place as the strongest. Got it?"

"That's not going to happen, Kacchan," Izuku said with confidence.

"Hmph, we'll see," Katsuki said before turning around and storming off.

With Katsuki gone, Izuku, Ochako and Himiko were left in the hallway by themselves as they digested everything that had just happened.

"So he knows about All Might now," Himiko stated simply.

"Yup. He's known since the sports festival but this was the best chance to confront me about it."

"Fun," Himiko said with a chuckle.

Ochako picked her bag up, "Not the word I'd use."

Izuku shrugged, "It is what it is. All in all, it's not the worst thing to happen, and he isn't the worst person to find out about it." When both Himiko and Ochako looked at him with varying degrees of doubt, Izuku quickly added, "He's just as big a fan of All Might as I am. He'd never do anything to make trouble for him." Both Ochako and Himiko looked like they accepted that, though Ochako still didn't look happy, "Hey Uraraka, it's fine really. And my nose doesn't even hurt. He had every right to be upset about what happened to him with the sludge villain."

Ochako shrugged her bag onto her shoulder, "Just because he had a right to be upset doesn't mean it was okay for him to hit you, Deku. After everything he's done, I don't like that the default action he takes against you is still violence. Doesn't matter the reason."

"I see, I see." All Might had his arms crossed as he nodded his head as Izuku informed him of everything that had just happened with Katsuki. The group of four were out in a heavily wooded area in U.A., which was perfect for Izuku's training as far as All Might was concerned. It was away from buildings and people so no one would get hurt by stray fire or psychic attacks. And without anyone around, it was safer to talk more openly when Izuku began to work on his control of One for All.

"That Young Bakugou was able to put together something was up because of a conversation he had overheard shows that going forward we need to exercise a bit more caution when discussing ourselves and, of course, One for All," All Might said sagely. Ignoring the fact that Ochako was looking at him pretty hard because he was guilty of letting the same thing happen with Aizawa.

"I figured that as long as Kacchan only learned about the training that it should be fine. I did have to go into a little more detail about how everything happened, though," Izuku rubbed his hands together, "A lie of omission was easier at that point."

"Probably for the best, Izuku," Himiko said as she flipped a knife around in her hand. While she had her own training to get through, she tagged along to make sure she was on the same page as everyone else. Though the chirping from her phone made it pretty clear she wasn't going to be able to stay long. "If you got tripped up over your story, it'd only make Baku-Bitch more suspicious."

"Overall, I think everything worked out for the best. Right now, Young Bakugou, Young Todoroki, Eraser Head, and Midnight are the only four that know I trained Young Midoriya and Young Uraraka. We should endeavor to ensure this number of people does not expand past what it is."

That last name got a few raised eyebrows. All Might quickly explained that he spoke with Principal Nezu and that the two agree that given Himiko's relationship with the teacher as her counselor, that having her be totally in the dark was unacceptable.

Izuku winced, "I never even thought of that when I told you, Toga. I'm sorry. I didn't realize I was putting you into such a difficult position."

Himiko quickly waved off his concerns, "Please don't start worrying over silly stuff like that. It sounds like it got taken care of, and even if it hadn't. I gave you my word I was going to keep your secret safe." She then smiled wickedly, "Though if we're being honest here, it's you guys that seem to be bad at keeping everything a secret."

Izuku flushed and shuffled his feet while All Might poked his fingers together. Ochako looked absolutely offended, "Hey, don't lump me in with these two. I've kept my mouth shut."

All Might quickly clapped his hands together, "Well, moving on, Young Midoriya. I assume I don't need to tell you why you're here."

"No, sir."

"Good. I have complete faith you will rise to this challenge. You've shown great determination, grit, and a desire to become a hero. Now we just need to refine how you go about doing it."

Izuku nodded, "I'm ready to start… though I do have one question."

"Yes?"

"Why is there a kiddie pool full of ice over there?" Izuku then pointed to the brightly colored plastic of the pool in question, filled to the brim with water and ice cubes.

"Ah. That's there in case you get too hot or catch on fire."

Ochako and Himiko looked at the pool, then at Izuku, who looked like he wanted to go home. Himiko then smirked and leaned over towards Ochako, "if he has to cool off, he might take some clothes off before he jumps in. If he's topless, I want pics."

Ochako blinked twice, imagining Izuku standing in the kiddie pool, his wet t-shirt clinging to his body before he tossed it away. Showing off his abs and pecs and-

Shaking her head violently and making sure Izuku didn't see how red she was, Ochako took a swing at Himiko to ducked away laughing, "Welp," Himiko said with a wave, "I think that's my cue to get out of here. I've got target practice to get to. Izuku, don't burn to a crisp. Ochako, don't forget what I said."

Ochako growled, "You'll get nothing from me!"

Himiko gasped, "So greedy! Keeping them for yourself!"

Ochako went even redder, "No, that's not-! Aaaaand she's gone." When she turned around, she saw Izuku looking at her, clearly confused at what had been said, "Deku. Don't ask. You wouldn't understand."

Izuku nodded. He had long accepted that there were things that were said between ochako and Himiko he was never going to hear or understand. Life was simpler by letting it slide than sticking his nose into it, "So what will you be doing, Uraraka? It looks like you have something to keep you busy."

Izuku leaned over to try and get a peek at her bag, which she pulled away. A teasing smirk on her face, "You worry about yourself, mister. I'm just going to get some practice in for the new gear I ordered."

Izuku waited for a second for her to continue before he crossed his arms in a huff, "You're not going to tell me what you're getting added, are you."

"Nope."

"You're mean."

Ochako laughed before she walked off into the woods, "All Might, please make sure he doesn't set himself on fire!"

"I will try my best!"

And then there were two. Alone with All Might, Izuku sighed. He had to admit he had kinda hoped that Ochako would be staying around. It would have been like the good old days at the beach. Which admittedly weren't that good. They were, in fact, a garbage hell, but he got to spend them with Ochako, so it made them much better. Izuku knew that it couldn't always be like that, though. Ochako needed to also focus on herself, especially if she had new gear she needed to train with. It was also the case with himself, as his Quirk training was really a one-person thing. It wouldn't be fair to Ochako to just make her stand around and watch him.

Still, even though he knew all this, he was a little sad to see her go. I guess I just really love spending any time I can get with Uraraka.

Izuku blinked at his own thoughts before his face flushed, and twin puffs of smoke burst out from his nose as he overheated in shock at his own words.

Don't say the L word! Don't! Bad Izuku! Next thing you know you'll be using it for other things too. Like, loving the way Uraraka looks, or loving the way she's always in control, or just loving her…AHHHHHHH!

This time fire blasted out of his mouth as Izuku had a crisis. All while All Might tried his best not to laugh. Izuku was so obvious that it was almost painful to watch. Still, as funny as it was to watch his protégés completely miss the obvious clues right in front of them, he was here for a reason.

And so was Izuku.

"Well, Young Midoriya? Are you ready to get started?"

Izuku, collecting himself, looked up at All Might and nodded.

Ochako hadn't gone far before she set her bag down. The area was open enough for her to work but surrounded by just enough trees to give her plenty of privacy. Opening up her bag, Ochako began to unload and get her training gear set out. First, she pulled out a set of metal cans with small targets painted on them. Looking around, Ochako began to set them up on a large log lying on the ground. With that done, Ochako went back and started pulling everything else out. First was the largest item, Mei's Hover Soles. Picking one up, Ochako examined it closely. For such a large boot, it was surprisingly light, which made sense given how she recalled Himiko's acrobatics from the sports festival. Even with the boost these things gave her, she wouldn't have been able to move if they weighed her down. Of course, being light was a double-edged sword for Ochako at this point. While the boots would help her with one aspect of her training, it was pretty obvious that they were going to fail at the other. Being so light and so clearly fragile, she was not going to be able to wear them when she wanted to practice the kicks Miruko had taught her. Nor did they really simulate what her costume's boots felt like. With all the gear her boots had in them, they were much heavier than these Hover Soles.

And they're only going to get heavier. At least that's what Power Loader warned me about.

If Ochako was being honest she didn't really think her costume was all that heavy, but at this point, it was easier to just let everyone else worry about it. Still, she needed to be prepared in case her suit did get noticeably heavier on her legs, so after putting the Hover Soles away, Ochako pulled out a set of ankle weights and dropped them onto the ground, where they made a very satisfying thunk and sunk into the soft grass. She'd wear those for her kicking drills.

Next, Ochako pulled out a book of martial arts moves and step-by-step instructions that she set aside. The book, written by Hanzo Hasashi, had been a top recommendation during her internet searches, and she had thought she had been lucky to find a copy in the school library. After visiting though, Ochako had learned the library had a whole wing dedicated to training manuals for different fighting styles from all over the world. From ancient to modern. Putting the book where it would be easy to read, Ochako opened it up and turned to the first page of the instruction. With that ready to go, Ochako pulled out the last piece of the training gear she was going to use. This was a simple thing, that the support department had taken all of a minute to get put together for her.

A cord that was about a few meters long with an attached billiard ball.

Wrapping the cord up around her hand and wrist, Ochako gave the weighted end a few experimental swings and smiled at the whooshing sound it made.

Oh, this is going to be a cakewalk.

"I still think you should go have that looked at Young Uraraka." All Might said carefully as he, Izuku, and Ochako walked back to the school after a rough day of training. One look at the two was enough that anyone could tell their day had not ended very well. For Izuku, his training hadn't really had a chance to start. Izuku had struggled to use his Boric Pyre on command. More often than not, when they would attempt to begin, Izuku would spend minutes blowing out air or smoke before he could get a flame going. All Might had expected this, it was a whole new Quirk, so of course there would be hiccups. When Izuku was still only able to blow smoke, All Might had been ready with a compliment and reassurance that the smoke could be useful down the road. Perhaps as a smokescreen or distraction. This still had done little to placate Izuku, who was growing more and more frustrated. All Might knew why, of course; Izuku was worried about falling behind and not being able to take his final exam. It was when frustration had started to turn to panic that All Might stepped in to let Izuku know that Aizawa was not going to fail him after one day. He was tough, but he was still fair. Most of the time. He knew this was a Quirk Izuku was starting with from scratch.

After that, a calmed down Izuku took a few more tries before he was able to start breathing fire. Which while initially celebrated, soon turned into a small disaster. First, Izuku almost started a small forest fire when he completely missed a target All Might had set up and had hit the trees behind it. In his panic to try and help All Might put out the fire, Izuku then accidentally set his shirt on fire, which caused him to panic and breathe even more fire which ignited even more trees. All the while, Izuku was beginning to overheat. So All Might quickly put out the fires and tossed Izuku into the icy water of the kiddie pool.

This was when Ochako had returned, with an unexplained black eye, swollen lip, and a lump on her forehead that made it look like she was growing a horn to match Eri. Once the shock at what she was seeing passed, and she saw that both All Might and Izuku were looking at her in utter confusion, she went on the offensive, poking fun at the sorry state Izuku was in.

"Only you Deku could find a way to be burned and soaking wet." Poking one of the floating ice cubes, she smirked, "But at least you're not hot, I take it?"

Izuku glared at Ochako before he and the water he was in glowed green. A giant glob of water lifted out of the pool and hovered over Ochako, who took a step back and held up her hands, "Okay, Deku, don't you-"

Splash!

Izuku then promptly dropped the water on Ochako, leaving her just as soaked as he was, "-dare…"

After that, All Might made sure he stayed between the two as they made their way back to the school. So that they couldn't start an impromptu spar that he was sure would level the rest of the forest.

"I still think you should go have that looked at Young Uraraka."

Izuku and Ochako were glaring daggers at each other as they swiped at one another around All Might's body. Hearing that, Ochako reached up and pressed a finger against her eye, "It's not that bad. It doesn't even hurt."

"What did you even do?" Izuku asked.

Ochako stuck out her tongue, "None of your business. What did you do today, huh?"

Izuku crossed his arms, "Feel like I wasted my afternoon."

"As I've said, Young Midoriya, this is all brand new for you. Give yourself some time."

"I know… I know. It's just I'm starting at square one again while everyone else in the class is moving forward. It's annoying."

"You're worried about falling behind, aren't you?" Ochako asked, hitting the nail on the head immediately.

"At this point, everyone is starting to really find their groove. Just look at how everyone performed during that race. Everyone was comfortable enough to be able to use their Quirks to help them in the race. Ashido was skating around on pipes and ledges like a pro. Sero too was using his Quirk like we'd never seen him. Ojiro too. You and Kacchan didn't even have to touch the ground once you started. Think back to Aizawa Sensei's test. At the sprint and long-distance runs, people were struggling to think of a way to use their Quirks. Now look at them!" Izuku shrugged before he kept going, his voice steadily getting louder, "And look at where I am. It takes me almost an hour before I can even use my Quirk on command. And while I'm busy thinking about it, I'm not thinking about new ways to use my Psychokinesis!"

Izuku stopped and took a breath, surprised that he had almost started yelling at the end, "... Sorry. I don't mean to sound ungrateful for all the help, All Might. Or sound like I'm jealous or resentful at how strong everyone is in class, and especially you Uraraka. It's just… I went through this before, and it took me ten months. Having to do it again while at U.A. is just…I dunno, stressful, I guess. I know I need to do it. I can't keep accidentally blowing fire into people's faces or setting things on fire. And after what happened in Hosu City," All three shuddered at their memories of that night "… I get why I have to do this. I do."

All Might nodded, remembering having to remind Izuku earlier in class that he was to sit out. He was driven to become the next number one hero, and you don't get to that spot by letting your classmates get ahead of you, "Young Midoriya, I understand. I think anyone trying to reach the heights you are would be frustrated right now. Just have faith in yourself and in the work we are trying to do. I wouldn't have set such a definitive timeline for you if I didn't think you'd be able to do it."

"He's right, Deku," Ochako chimed in, "You're thinking it's going to take you the whole two months to get control of your fire breath, but I bet you'll have it down in way under half that. And it's not like before when we trained. You didn't have the experience you have now nor the faith in your own Quirk. You had to build that up first. Now, you already have that faith, so it's just applying it to your Boric Pyre and then One for All."

"Well said, Young Uraraka. I couldn't have said it better myself."

"Thank you," Izuku said bashfully, tears starting to well up in his eyes. Thankful for their encouragement.

Ochako, seeing Izuku start to get emotional, reached over and ruffled his still dripping hair, "I still say you're going to go through at least five tops before you're done, though."

Izuku looked down at himself, topless except for the numerous data recording devices that were thankfully fire and waterproof, "Maybe I should just come to practice topless from now on. Save some sweats from becoming ash. What do you think, Uraraka? Think I can pull off the shirtless look?"

Izuku then proceeded to flex while wearing the goofiest grin he could. Ochako looked at Izuku, let her eyes wander from his unbearably adorable freckled face, down his chiseled chest to abs, that looked hard enough to grind solid stone, to his waist where his wet sweatpants hung down just enough to let her see a little extra navel and the edge of some blue and yellow boxers.

God, Deku, that is so unfair… Wait, is he serious about being topless from now on? Oh fuck me, I'm going to be changing my sheets every night if he does that.

"Uraraka?"

Snapping out of her daze and realizing she had been staring, Ochako quickly coughed into her hand, "I mean… If you're comfortable being topless in front of Mei, and Toga, and anyone else that decides to come see how your training is going. Maybe Tsu might drop in. or maybe Jirou and Yaoyorozu come looking for All Might for advice and see you."

Izuku turned bright red, "I, um… I think I'll keep wearing my shirt."

Okay, got Deku to keep his top on… Wait, was that what I wanted?

"Honestly, Deku, it's not that big of a deal. We've already used the school pool as a class when Aizawa Sensei wanted to make sure we could swim."

"Yeah, but that's at a pool. It's totally different. Though maybe I can just splash everyone that visits with water, and it'll be fine." Izuku said with a laugh.

Ochako frowned and pulled at her wet black shirt, "I'm still gonna get you back for this, by the way. And I'm pretty sure anyone else you splash will want your head too. I mean look at what you did to me."

Izuku did as she asked and looked. And kept looking. Now that Ochako had brought attention to it, it was very hard for Izuku to ignore just how the wet shirt clung to Ochako's body. How it made every muscle stand out and how it bunched up perfectly over her perfect curves. Izuku could also make out the outline of Ochako's sports bra, and as he followed that outline, his eye fell upon her chest.

…Preeeetyyyyy… WHAT AM I DOING?!

Izuku ripped his eyes away before Ochako caught on and mumbled out a quick apology for getting her wet while also promising not to do it again. Ochako, startled at how ashamed Izuku suddenly seemed, immediately waved it off with a laugh. Saying it was fine and that she was kinda asking for it when she was poking fun at him.

While this was all going on, All Might had to physically hold back his groans and laughs at just how unbelievably clueless these two were.

"Oh man, my plan to introduce myself is kinda ruined now. You already addressed your problems with working on your Quirk."

"Does that mean we can leave?"

"Wooooow. Was that supposed to be flirting? That was so painful to watch. But cute too."

All Might, Izuku, and Ochako stopped as three new voices reached them. Looking up, they found two students in front of them on the patch back to the school and one floating overhead.

Izuku and Ochako both blushed scarlet and shook their heads in denial, "No one's flirting!" they screamed at the same time.

The flying girl pouted as she floated down to join the other two boys, "Awwww, that's too bad. You'd both be super cute together."

All Might coughed into his hand, Young miss, you're not supposed to just come out and say that… I think? After All Might let the dangerously accurate comments pass, he finally got a good look at the students and felt himself feel a little guarded. Wait a second…

Now that he was focused, All Might immediately recognized the three students in front of them, though his eyes zeroed in on the young man standing front-and-center of the small group. The blunt and curious Hadou Nejire, the king of introverts Amajiki Tamaki, and the loud, brash but honest Toogata Mirio. All Might eyed Mirio carefully but kept his smile up.

Young Toogata does work for Sasaki, but I can't hold that man's actions against him. I promised I would judge this young man on his own merits, and I'm not going to change that.

Ochako tilted her head to the side, "Ummm, hello." Now that Ochako recovered, she found herself curiously looking at the three students. All three were in U.A. sweats and she could tell they were older than she and Izuku. She thought they looked familiar but was having trouble placing them. Also, the strange reactions from All Might and Izuku were throwing her for a loop. All Might was on guard, and Izuku, while partially excited, also seemed conflicted and strangely nervous. Ooooookay. What am I missing here?

"Young Midoriya, Young Uraraka. Allow me to introduce U.A.'s Big 3. Officially recognized as the three strongest students here. You probably just saw them take the podium spots during the third year's sports festival."

Tamaki tried to disappear behind Mirio, horrified that All Might was introducing them like that. Mirio just grinned, "That's such high praise, sir. Thank you!" He then turned his attention towards Izuku and Ochako, "it's nice to meet you two. I saw your matches. They were spectacular!"

While Ochako blushed at the compliment, Izuku rubbed the back of his head, "that's kind of you to say." Izuku felt weird. This was the person that had been originally planned to receive One for All under Sir Nighteye's recommendation. Considering that whole mess that had just happened, Izuku couldn't help but feel a little twisted up. Of course, he knew that holding those feelings against the other student wasn't right, but there was something the other boy had said he couldn't ignore, "if you don't mind me saying this, it almost sounds like you were looking for us or waiting for us. I thought I heard you say something about introducing yourself?"

"That's completely correct. I had heard you were taking part in some special Quirk training because you'd developed a secondary Quirk you had no control over."

Izuku blinked several times, "Wait, you know about that?"

Nejire snickered, "When a student who just won his first sports festival and gets selected by All Might, people are going to pay close attention to everything he does. Especially if he develops a new quirk and his classmates talk about it in the cafeteria where anyone can hear."

Izuku flushed as he realized neither he nor All Might were doing a very good job keeping a low profile. His embarrassment wasn't helped by the knowing look Ochako was shooting him, Not helping Uraraka!

"So," Mirio continued, "When I heard all that, I thought it was the perfect excuse for us to meet so that I could offer some advice on the situation. I had my own troubles with my Quirk. But I happened to overhear a little of your conversation, and it seems like you already have the right mindset to deal with your problems," Mirio laughed at that, "Just a little behind it seems."

Izuku was about to offer his thanks again, but then he paused and replayed what Mirio had just said. 'I thought it was the perfect excuse for us to meet.' That phrasing was odd. It almost sounded like, "Excuse me, but it sounds like you were going to come find me regardless of my Quirk situation, as it's just a convenient excuse?"

Ochako frowned, "Deku, that's a little harsh. I'm sure that's not the case at all."

"No, that's totally the case," Mirio confirmed, startling Ochako.

Nejire nodded, "Wow, he caught on immediately. You were right on the money, Toogata."

"I don't want to be here," Mumbled Tamaki, "This is going to be a pain…"

"I think you should explain yourself, young man." All Might said seriously. He had a rousing suspicion where this might be going, and he didn't like it.

Without missing a beat, Mirio answered, "I'm here because Sir Nighteye wants me to keep an eye on Midoriya."

There was a pause as the three took that fact in. Then Ochako immediately stepped forward and put herself between Izuku and Mirio, "You're working for that fu- freaking jerk!?"

"Young Urar-"

Ochako wasn't in the mood to listen as she advanced towards the three students, "Give me one reason I shouldn't throw you to the freaking moon?! Do you have any idea what that horrible person said to Deku!"

"Young Urarak-"

Jamming her finger into Mirio's chest Ochako continued to let loose, "How dare you just show up here pretending you care one lick about the issues Deku is going through!"

"YOUNG URARAKA!" All Might finally powered through Ochako's rant, "Please refrain from threatening your fellow students. As for you, Young Toogata, I regret that Sir Nighteye had thrust you into this type of situation. It is unfair to you and, quite frankly, is a new low. So I must inform you that you will not be-"

"Um," Izuku nervously cut in, "Can I say something, please?"

Everyone looked back at Izuku, who shifted around nervously but still kept his head held high as he walked up, past All Might and Ochako, and looked up at Mirio, "Toogata, I'd like to ask you something. You could have just spied on me if Sir Nighteye wanted you to keep an eye on me. Or you could have not said you were here because of him."

Mirio nodded, "That's true, but the whole subterfuge thing isn't really my strong suit. You see, I'm aware that All Might and Sir Nighteye have some issues between them and that, unfortunately, it seems like you and Sir have some bad blood now as well. I heard he used his Quirk on you, and while I haven't been told what he saw, it was enough that Sir Nighteye wanted me to keep an eye on you."

"But why come out and say it?"

"Because the how I keep my eye on you was left up to me. While our teachers have issues, I didn't want us to have issues. So I decided to be honest and to come to you with a genuine offer of help. In regards to your Quirk and other areas. As a third-year I feel like there are things I may be able to help you with that you wouldn't be aware of as a first-year. You," Mirio looked over at a glaring Ochako, "and your friends. I know you have yourself an inner circle that you keep close. Same for me. That's why I told my friends what I planned on doing so that they could also help you and yours if you needed it."

All Might raised an eyebrow while Ochako's angry glare lessened. For both, it seemed pretty clear that Mirio was telling the truth. While they weren't a fan of the cause of his actions, the way Mirio had chosen to go about it was something else altogether. Izuku, for his part, was thinking the same thing. It really seemed like Mirio was here to help, and if that help extended to his friends, he did feel grateful. These three were the best U.A. had, and it would be crazy not to take them up on the offer.

"I think I'd like it if we could get along. Honestly, watching you on tv, I thought the way you fought was really cool." Izuku said, making sure he kept up a friendly demeanor, "Though I have to ask. Why does Sir Nighteye want you to keep an eye on me? After everything that happened, it'd be easy to think he didn't like me very much."

Mirio shook his head, "I think that's the furthest thing from the truth Midoriya. He was worried about you. As I said, he kept what he saw to himself, but I think what he saw has him worried about your safety. He's not so callous as to wish or hope for harm on someone. If anything, I hope you believe that."

All Might crossed his arms, "It's a fair point. The two of us have our issues, but Sir Nighteye would never willingly put a child in harm's way because of a grudge. I may greatly disagree with his methods, but," All Might sighed, rubbing his brow, "I suppose they do come from a good, if ill-advised, place."

Ochako frowned, "He still sounds like a jerk."

"Oh, he undoubtedly is. Good intentions do not excuse cruel actions… Young Toogata, let me ask you something. If I told you you were not to come near Young Midoriya, what would you do then?"

"Ignore you, of course." Nejire laughed while Tamaki looked for a hole to crawl in. Mirio held up his hand, "While you're a teacher, Sir Nighteye is my boss. And, the concerns for Midoriya he had, I feel trump everything else."

All Might had to admit, it was very brave to take a stand like that. Especially against him, "So you are truly here to offer him help."

"Completely and absolutely."

There was a moment's silence as the two groups waited to see what happened. It was then that Izuku realized that everyone was waiting for him to give the final say. Which was alarming for him, even if he realized that since he was the reason for everything that of course, the final decision was going to be him.

I guess since I have One for All, I'm going to be the one that ends up making a lot of the final decisions on things… Greaaat.

"Um, Toogata, I would be honored for your help. I agree that we should endeavor to keep our relationship on good terms. Despite everything. And if you're also going to help my friends, I would be grateful."

A little while later, after Izuku had gotten changed and Ochako had gotten a little healing done, the two were on their way home. Every so often, Izuku would glance over at Ochako, who was deep in thought, "You alright?"

"Grrrr, I really don't like that Sir Nighteye."

Izuku laughed, "Just wait until you actually meet him. He's much worse."

"Grrrr."

"Oh, come on. Honestly, this isn't that bad. Having the Big 3 available to help everyone else is a huge deal."

"I know, I know."

"Which you seemed eager to take advantage of."

Ochako conceded the point. After everything had concluded, she had gone up to Nejire and privately asked if she had any advice on flying. Something the other girl seemed eager to talk to her about. So overall, this seemed to be a net positive. Still, there was something bothering her, "Hey, Deku."

"Yeah?"

"When you and All Might first saw Toogata. You both seemed a little on edge? Is it because he was working for Sir Nighteye?"

Izuku nodded, "Yeah. Actually some of the bad blood between everyone is because of Toogata…" Izuku frowned and quickly added, "Not because of anything he did, of course. It's because he was who All Might was going to give One for All to on Sir Nighteyes suggestion."

Ochako's eyes bulged, "Wait, what?!"

Midoriay: Toga

Midoriay: Plz com 2 th front g8

Midoriay: Need 2 talk b4 class

Midoriay: Super Important!

Himiko had been pacing in her room since the early morning, going back and forth over her decision to let the whole class know about her past. In only a few minutes, she and her friends were going to meet in Nezu's office, and she was going to spill the beans. It was nerve-wracking. So to suddenly get a text from Izuku and have an excuse to get out of her room, was a godsend.

Rushing out of her room and pushing past the growing number of early-bird students, Himiko hurried past them all on her way to the front entrance to the school. Reaching the front gate, Himiko groaned as she saw the growing sea of reporters as she looked around for Izuku, Oh look. The fuckers are back. I swear to god, if they try and breach the perimeter again, I should be allowed to shank a few of them. Why are they even here? Has All Might done something recently? Ah fuck it, where's Izuku?

Himiko scanned the sea of people, looking for the fluffy green mess of hair that belonged to the most oblivious boy in the world.

"Toga?"

Speak of the cute devil, Behind Izuku was Ochako, cute devils, Himiko thought with a smile.

"Hey guys," Himiko greeted with her trademark grin, "busy morning, huh?"

Ochako rolled her eyes, clearly annoyed that once again reporters were clogging up the front entrance to the school, "It's ridiculous. What even is going on?"

"Maybe they're here because they want to interview All Might about his capture of Stain."

Himiko scrunched up her face, "Riiight. Because that's totally what happened."

"Toga," Izuku quickly motioned his hand across his neck to get Himiko to drop the subject, making her roll her eye.

"Yeah, yeah. I know."

Ochako, not wanting to be around the press any longer, motioned for the gate, "Well, let's get out of here. We have… a meeting to get to."

Somberly Izuku nodded, "Yeah. How are you feeling, Toga? I'm sure this hasn't been an easy morning for you."

Himiko shrugged, "It is what it is. Nervous… yeah, I guess, but honestly, this is probably for the best."

"And we'll be there for you," Izuku added quickly.

Ochako nodded vigorously, "Totally. You aren't alone, Toga."

Himiko felt a blush creep across her face, once again amazed at the two dorks she was madly in love with, "You two are just incredible. You know that?"

Both teens smiled and together began to walk towards the gate before Himiko called out to them, "Hold on a sec, Izuku."

"Yeah?"

"What did you want to talk about that was so important?"

Izuku frowned in confusion, while Ochako looked between him and Himiko, "I… what?"

"Your text you sent me," HImiko said, fishing for her phone, "You said you wanted to meet out here. You had something super important you wanted to talk about before class."

Izuku was completely still as he listened to that, "I… are you sure?"

Himiko pulled her phone out, "Yeah, look here's the texts you sent. You didn't hit your head or anything this morning, did you?"

"N-no? Toga, I haven't sent any texts this morning," Izuku was checking his phone now. Making sure he hadn't gone completely insane since waking up.

Ochako, looking at Himiko's phone and after reading through the texts, frowned deeply, "Toga… That name is spelled wrong."

Himiko blinked while Izuku put his phone away and looked at what Ochako was pointing at. Ochako pointed at the name displayed, "See. That says Midoriay. Not Midoriya."

The three looked at the phone in utter confusion, "The fuck?"

Izuku rubbed his chin, "Check the number. Click on the name and check the number." Izuku suddenly didn't like what was going on.

Himiko tapped the name and pulled up the phone number. Izuku looked at it and his feeling of unease got worse, "That's… almost my number, but the last two digits are flipped."

Ochako pulled out her phone and pulled up Izuku's contact info, confirming that the number that had texted Himiko was indeed a fake. The three stood, completely unsure at what was going on. Izuku pocketed his phone, "Guys, I think we need to get inside. This feels… bad."

Ochako nodded her head, "Yeah. This is beyond weird."

Himiko felt her stomach twist. All of her instincts, honed from years of survival on the streets, were screaming at her that she had just walked into a trap. She needed to get the fuck out of where she was. She needed to leave now before something-

"TOGA!"

The world came to a screeching stop. The noise from the crowd was gone. Himiko couldn't even hear Izuku and Ochako anymore. The only thing echoing in her ears now was the voice that had called her name. A voice she never thought she would hear again. Slowly, painfully slowly, Himiko turned and felt her world shatter around her. The crowd of reporters, camera men and cameras had all turned to look directly at her, and the young man they had parted to let through.

Saito marched through the parted crowd, face twisted in rage as he walked into the opening and pointed right at Himiko, "I finally found you, you monster!"

We interrupt your regular new broadcast to bring you a breaking story. We come to you live, at U.A. High School, where wanted serial killer Toga Himiko has been confirmed to be in attendance. We will continue to bring you up to date news on this developing story. We now go live to our reporter on the scene.

Authors Notes:

We interrupt to bring you breaking news. U.A. is fucked. We had "The Calm Before", now get ready for "The Storm."
So yeah, it's a good thing I split this chapter up because this part 2 got a little long. Hope you all enjoyed it because things are going to go downhill fast come ch 37.
Not a lot to say here tonight. Just got back from seeing World Heroes' Mission. So that was awesome. Totally gonna adapt that down the line. And FYI, all movies are getting used, and I'm gonna try and use the OVA's too. in some way at least.
For everyone curious, Himiko's final dress was based on Carmilla's dress from season 4 of Castlevania.
And the clown was the original Penny Wise from the tv movie.
Huge shout out to my beta reader who made so many corrections. Though, quick question. because I refuse to think I'm the only one that uses this phrase. Everyone knows the phrase "That smarts" right? For when something hurts. Please, my discord betrayed me on this and I need some validation!
As always comments, critques and reviews are more than welcome. Love hearing what you guys think.