Ochako's quiet giggles carried over the soft splashing of water as the small log boat rocked in the dark sawmill ride tunnel. Izuku's fingers brushed against her tummy, tickling her like feathers. Wanting a firmer touch, Ochako moved her hand over his so that both were under her shirt. Ochako's giggles lowered into a heated moan as she used her hand and guided Izuku's hand up towards her—

Beep!

Beep!

Beep!

Ochako didn't smash her clock as she rolled and silenced the alarm, but she was damned close. No, it got a reprieve since the dream hadn't gotten too steamy. Rolling out of bed, Ochako went about getting herself ready since her ride was going to be showing up any minute now. Throwing on her summer uniform, Ochako looked herself over, before she pressed a hand over her stomach, trying to quiet the jitters and butterflies she had been dealing with since last night.

Because she was going to be picked up by All Might to swing by Izuku's house—the boy she was head over heels in love with—so that they could get on a plane, fly out to an island that probably fit better in a science fiction movie than real life, that Izuku—again, the boy she was maddeningly in love with—wanted to take her on a date at. Her first date was going to be on a faraway island, staying in a private hotel, so she could go to an amusement park being held at an expo that people from around the world were going to attend. Topped off with a fancy reception and dinner that was going to give her another chance to get dressed up. And during this whole thing, she was expecting Izuku to confess to her.

So yeah, she was just a little nervous.

What if he wants to kiss too?

Ochako scrambled over to her patchwork suitcase and started checking the side pockets, sighing when she found the mint gum she had stashed inside. "Okay… Okay, I remembered…"

The last time the two had been dressed up, Ochako had let slip a chance to finally get to feel Izuku's lips against hers. She was not going to let that happen a second time.

"Alright. This is happening." Ochako's face started heating up. "This is actually… happening. I'm… on the ceiling again…" Ochako grumbled as for what seemed like the hundredth time, she had accidentally floated herself due to her own embarrassment and nervousness. With her back softly bouncing off the ceiling, Ochako rubbed her brow, wondering if there was anyone else in the world more scatterbrained than her right now.

"AHHHHH! WHERE IS IT?!"

Said 'more scatterbrained' Izuku was running around the Midoriya apartment like a chicken with its head cut off, desperately trying to make sure he had everything packed, by unpacking everything he had packed up last night and redoing it. But since said unpacking meant he was throwing things all over the place, stuff ended up getting lost.

While this comedy of errors was going on, Eri was drinking her morning apple juice and Inko was sipping on her coffee as she walked around and magically found all the things Izuku was sure had disappeared into a black void.

"Oh no, oh no I can't find my costume suitcase! Oh, I'm going to get expelled!"

Eri let out a giggle as the sofa she was sitting on was lifted up in the air when Izuku crouched down to see if the case had somehow slipped underneath.

"Izuku," Inko said, trying her hardest not to laugh, "isn't All Might bringing that when he picks you up?"

"…Oh, right." Sheepishly, Izuku put the couch back down and took a second to take a breath and collect himself. "I guess I'm a little nervous."

"A little?" Inko teased before putting down her cup and walking over to Izuku and putting her hands on his shoulders. "Stop worrying so much. Everything is going to be fine."

"I just…" Izuku rubbed his arms. "I just want to make sure everything goes perfectly. And that can't happen if I end up forgetting something here."

"Izuku, the two of you are going to an island together. You're whisking her off to a whole different world. Forgetting to pack socks isn't going to mess that up, alright?" Inko smiled as she reassured Izuku. "Now, let's get everything put back away. I'm sure All Might and Ochako will be here any moment."

As Izuku started to calm down, Eri pulled herself to the edge of the couch and looked down. "Where are your shoes, Izuku?"

Izuku blinked, looked down at his sock covered feet, and went right back into panic mode. Inko turned to look at Eri with disapproval. Eri didn't seem to mind as she had her entertainment back.

It wasn't much longer before there was a knock on the door and Inko went to answer. All Might and Ochako smiled brightly as they were let in. "So, is Young Midoriya ready to go?"

"That's… debatable," Inko said with a soft huff.

Ochako frowned. "Why? Is everything alright?"

Inko waited for a second, then pointed back down the hall. Eri's giggling voice carried out, "You put your shirt on backwards."

"Ahhh!"

Izuku came tumbling into the hallway as he was pulling at the buttons of his summer uniform shirt to turn it around, only to see that Eri had been teasing him. "Eri!" He stormed back into the living room only to pop back out chasing Eri into their room.

"Ah. Well this should put your mind at ease, Young Uraraka. You weren't the only one having issues this morning."

Ochako looked absolutely flabbergasted at the accusation. "I was the picture of calm and collected."

"You were on the ceiling."

"I was calmly on the ceiling."

"Uh huh," All Might then held up a metal suitcase. "Would you mind giving this to Young Midoriya so he can pack it away with the rest of his belongings?"

Inko took the case with a smile. "Thank you. He's asked for this so many times. Completely forgetting you were bringing it."

All Might laughed. "Well, I'll go wait down at the car. Young Uraraka, make sure you two don't take too long now. We have a plane to catch."

Ochako thought about pointing out that the plane belonged to him and wasn't going to be leaving without them. But as she watched him walk away she was more curious as to why he was leaving. "All Might?"

"I'm just going to let you two do your thing."

Ochako wasn't sure if she should be happy All Might was giving her and Izuku some space, or worried that he thought they needed some immediately on the morning of the trip. It wasn't like she was going to jump him in the freaking hall.

Inko for her part smiled and let Ochako know she'd go make sure Izuku was packed and ready. Walking away she did say that she might take a peek inside the case. She hadn't had a chance to see Izuku's new costume yet after all.

So Ochako was left to wait in the hall, trying her best not to revert to the mess she had been during the ride to the apartment. She just needed to calm down.

I'm calm. I'm calm. I'm not going to freak out here. There's nothing to freak out about.

"Oh my, I didn't realize how much protection you had."

Inko's comment drifted down the hall and crawled right into Ochako's ear. Her eyes snapped open and her heart just about burst out of her chest. PROTECTION?!

"Come on mom, you didn't think I was going out with nothing, right?" Came Izuku's nonchalant response.

Ochako could feel the blush spreading over her face and down her neck. Oh my god. Oh my god. Deku's got condoms.

How?! How did Deku of all people manage that? The little voice that sounded like Himiko that lived in the back of Ochako's head asked. He should spontaneously combust just looking at the health aisle you'd buy them from!

I know! I thought I was going to have to be the one that… Nevermind.

… You thought what exactly?

You're me, shut up and—

"Oh, but these seem so small? I can't imagine it's comfortable having to squeeze into that."

Ochako's breaths were coming out as puffs of steam, her eyes glazed over and spiraling as she lost her mind.

Oooookay, it sounds like Deku bought the wrong size. That's either hilarious or you might want to start getting your stretches in now.

Shut up shut up shut up!

"I mean, it should be, right? That way nothing slips off when I'm really going at it."

Ochako died. She died right then and there.

Wow, sounds like Deku is getting ready to give you a Virgin Islands smashing.

The corpse formerly known as Ochako hated everything about that. Hated the ugly pun, hated that it made her blush just spread everywhere and hated that even if her horny thoughts sounded like Himiko, it was still her damned subconscious that was coming up with it.

"Well I suppose that makes sense. I suppose Hatsume knows what she's doing with these leg guards. I just expected them to be stretchier."

…Leg guards? …Mrs. Midoriya is looking at Deku's costume isn't she?

I mean, yeah? That makes way more sense then the whole condom thing.

Ochako wished so much she could strangle that damn voice in her head. I hate you so much.

Izuku, carrying all of his luggage, walked out into the hall and smiled at Ochako. "Hey! You ready?"

Ochako, desperate not to get caught looking like she just had an internal argument over condoms, straightened up and flashed Izuku a smile. "Yup I'm really looking forward to the trip."

"Same. I can't wait." Izuku, ready to get going, turned and waved at Inko. "I'll see you later, mom."

"And you're sure you have everything you'll need?" Inko teased as she walked after Izuku while he moved to leave with Ochako and meet All Might who was waiting outside in the parking lot.

"Yes mom. I'm all packed up." Izuku had both his duffel bag and hero costume case in hand. "It's only for a few days. Don't worry," he said like he hadn't been a mess just a few minutes ago over making sure he hadn't forgotten anything.

"Oh, but did you pack enough underwear?"

"MOM!" Izuku screeched as his face went scarlet. "Could you not!"

Ochako doubled over, holding her sides as she laughed. Izuku glared at her. "Hey! Cut that out!"

Ochako just kept laughing and Izuku, cheeks puffing out in annoyance, snapped, "Well, what about you, huh?!"

Ochako wiped a tear from her eyes and just looked at Izuku expectantly. "'What about me' what?" Ochako crossed her arms. "You got something you wanna say about my underwear?" The 'come on, let's hear what you got' look on Ochako's face spoke volumes. When Izuku didn't immediately reply, she arched an eyebrow.

Izuku turned and knelt down, giving Eri a little hug. "Now you be a good girl while I'm gone, okay."

"I will," Eri said with a smile.

Izuku smiled and ruffled Eri's hair when he stood up. "That's my little unicorn princess."

With one last wave to Inko from Izuku and Ochako, the two were out the door. Ochako, once they were far enough away from the door, smirked and gave Izuku a playful shove. "Coward," Ochako snickered as the two walked down the stairs to the parking lot.

Izuku eyed Ochako carefully before he just shrugged her off, waving his hand dismissively. "Sorry, but I just couldn't think of anything funny to say about the decade old bed sheets you picked up at the thrift store to cut up to hide your shame."

All Might down at the parking lot had many questions for why Izuku was suddenly thrown off the stairs down towards the pavement below. But when Ochako leapt off the same stairs to chase him down and whale on him as they both floated to the ground, he wisely decided not to ask.

The drive and plane ride had been relaxing. While both teens had a lot on their minds, being near each other seemed to put them at ease. They exchanged small talk, talking about the place they were going. All in all, a very normal start to their trip. Once the island was in sight and the two had spent an appropriate amount of time gawking at it through the private jet's windows, All Might suggested it was time for the pair to change into their hero costumes. Izuku changed first with Ochako right behind him.

Ochako walked out of the changing room and back into the main lounge of the jet. Putting her change of clothes back into her personal carry on, she wasn't doing anything to draw anyone's attention. Regardless, Izuku found himself just watching her in a light daze. Maybe the fact that he was going to an island to take her on a date and confess his feelings had something to do with how he was acting. Why he was noticing just how knee weakening incredible the fabric stretched and wrinkled over her body was. It certainly would explain why when she sat down across from him he let slip, "You look really good in your hero costume."

Ochako, who had been reaching over to grab another small bag of airplane mixed-nuts, froze with a little squeak, turning her head to look at Izuku, her eyes wide at the sudden and surprising compliment. "I… Thank you."

Izuku's daze vanished as he realized what had just leaked out. Panic set in and Izuku started flailing about as he hurriedly tried to course correct. "Oh! Wait, um… Sorry, that was probably super inappropriate! I didn't mean that! Well I did mean it, I just didn't mean to say it! … Wait, that doesn't sound right either!"

Ochako in the meantime was, one, flustered that Izuku had just openly complimented her, and two, also trying to make sure he didn't take the compliment back because he was freaking out over saying it. Cause darn it, she liked that Izuku liked how she looked. "It's okay, Deku! I think you look amazing in your hero costume too!"

There was a pause before both teens just sort of shorted out and sat in their chairs, heads down and blushing from ear to ear.

All Might from the other side of the jet lounge buried his face into his hands as he felt the weight of second hand embarrassment threaten to crush him. "Good lord, this is going to be them for the next month at least. Trying to figure this out while I and everyone around them suffers."

There was a soft ping as the automated pilot came on through the plane's intercom. "This plane will soon begin its descent to I-Island. Touchdown will be in a few minutes."

All Might sighed. He had been fortunate that his agency had a private jet with an autopilot to get him to places around the world. "But now it's going to get exhausting." All Might's body bulked up as he tossed aside his civilian clothes so that he was left in his hero costume.

The change got the attention of both Izuku and Ochako. "All Might? Are you sure you want to change now?"

"It's best to make sure I'm already in my muscle form even while landing. Best not to risk anyone getting a camera shot through the windows and seeing me all shriveled up." All Might, now at full height, had to bend and squat down to make sure he fit inside the cabin. "Hopefully things will go nice and smooth when we land. Immigration wont take too long, it's all automated. And neither I nor my agency sent out any press release that I was to be arriving today. So It should be smooth sailing to get to our hotel."

At first things seemed to go as planned. Like All Might had said, immigration wasn't a problem at all. Their private jet landed and while their luggage was carted away to their rooms the jetway took them directly into immigration processing. Which was just getting on a moving walkway and getting scanned a few times by automated machines, during which Izuku had a chance to dive deep into his knowledge of the island.

It was created as a place for all the world's scientists to gather and research Quirks. This research soon also developed into the research and development of support items for both civilians and heroes. To help prevent the research and scientists from the threat of villains, the island was turned into a mobile floating fortress, with security measures that were the rival of some of the world's most hardened facilities, such as Japan's Tartarus. To date, there had never been a crime committed by a villain on its shores.

By the end of Izuku's little mutter spree, All Might was laughing at what he had started and Ochako was shaking her head, wondering how this was the boy she was letting take her on a date. Fortunately the scans were over quickly, so the move so far had been simple and best of all, private. However, upon exiting immigration, the trio were out in the open, so the smart thing to do would be to quickly and quietly get to their hotel.

This of course didn't happen. But it wasn't really anyone's fault. At least not Izuku or Ochako's. Stepping out and getting their first look at the wonders of I-Island, and the many extravagant wonders, marvelous machines, fantastic rides, outrageous pavilions and the jaw dropping reality that all these incredible things were out there waiting to be experienced at the I-Expo, of course the pair would be frozen in shock and awe.

"Deku," Ochako whispered, finally able to get her mouth to work. "Thank you."

Izuku pulled his eyes away from the sci-fi amusement wonderland, and looked over at her and was mesmerized. Ochako was still looking out at the city turned Disney World with rapt awe, and the sheer joy on her face made his heart thunder in his chest. His hand twitched, as he started to reach out for Ochako's hand, but he stopped just before his fingers brushed against hers. Swallowing a lump in his throat, Izuku worked out, "I'm… glad you're here. It makes this all the more wonderful."

"Ahem," All Might cleared his throat. "Are you two going to even make it to your date? Or are you just going to get all mushy right now?" All Might scratched his head with a grin when the pair gave a little start.

The two took a few small side steps to separate, Izuku laughing nervously. "Maybe we should get going to the hotel. We can get unpacked and settled in before taking a look around."

"Sounds like a plan, Deku," Ochako nodded in agreement. So the three started their walk down the main avenue entrance to I-Island and the expo itself. But they didn't get far.

One of several expo cast members walking the giant entrance walkway smiled up at them as she approached. "Hello there. Welcome to…" She paused as her eyes widened with astonished recognition. "ALL MIGHT?!"

The three winced, because as soon as the cast member screamed that, word spread fast. It was like throwing gasoline onto a fire. It spread everywhere. Guests, cast members and reporters, along with anything in between converged and began to crowd around them. All Might laughed loudly, waving to the people as they pushed to get a better look at the number one hero. "Ha ha ha ha! Thank you for such a warm welcome!"

So much for a quiet entrance, Izuku winced as he was getting pushed around by the people. Ochako wasn't doing much better.

The reporters were getting their cameras set up and rolling as fast as they could, broadcasting to the island and world that All Might was on I-Island for the expo. Soon, All Might's face was getting plastered on jumbo screens all over, many of which you could see easily from the main entrance. In a matter of seconds, the whole of I-Island knew exactly where All Might was.

"Now let's not be rowdy! I'm more than happy to sign some autographs if everyone wants to line up for them."

The crowd cheered, and hurried to assemble in some kind of orderly fashion. At the very least, it gave Izuku and Ochako a chance to breathe. "Well… I just got flashbacks to trying to sneak past the reporters at school," Izuku said while making sure he had all his hero gear still on him.

"Really? I felt like I was back in that stampede at school," Ochako countered.

"Yeah well, at least things shouldn't get any—" Suddenly the intercoms across the I-Island entrance along with the broadcasted voices of the reporters, were cut off, leaving just static to play over the crowd and a good section of the island. "—craizer?" Izuku wondered if he hadn't just jinxed something.

Then, like a low rumble from a great distance, the roar of a jet engine, no, several jet engines were heard. Not so uncommon so close to the I-Island airport, but soon that roar started to get louder. And closer. Everyone turned, looking up towards the upper edge of the giant wall that surrounded I-Island as the roar got closer and closer. Then the static coming over the intercoms and screens went silent.

There was a beat of silence before a guitar riff rocked the soundwaves just as several flying black wing jets screeched over the wall and out into the open sky above the crowd. Though with the rock and roll blaring out of every speaker around them, you almost couldn't even hear the jets. The screens flickered, and soon red white and blue banners waved on the screens with stars glittering in a digital breeze.

Then came the fireworks. As the planes circled overhead, fireworks began exploding all around them, dazzling enough to be seen even in the bright noon sky. Cameras panned upward with people shouting at the spectacle. Reporters were desperately trying to relay and update their audiences as to the cause of the commotion.

It was chaos.

Just as any star spangled entrance should be.

Ochako, with her hands over her ears, screamed over the noise, "What the heck is going on?!"

All Might was watching the jets circle around when he spotted something and laughed. "Ha! Looks like America wants to make an entrance."

Ochako made a face. "America? What does that even—"

"THERE! LOOK!" Izuku shouted suddenly, pointing up towards one of the jets overhead. "Is that… Is there?!"

All Might smirked. "Oh, I'd say it's a safe bet, Young Midoriya."

Ochako was left looking up at the sky, trying to see what Izuku was pointing at. "What's a safe bet? What are you pointing at Deku… Wait… IS SOMEONE RIDING ON THAT JET?!"

As the cameras all focused on the lead jet, screens flickered to show the island that someone was indeed riding on the back of it. Dressed in patriotic red white and blue, and trimmed with gold, stood a giant figure that rivaled even the mighty All Might himself, standing tall even as the jet corkscrewed around, firing off more fireworks and smoke trails, their cape and hair the only thing blowing in the jetstream.

"It's America's number one hero!" A reporter screamed into their mic as more and more people confirmed who was at the head of the sudden dramatic entrance.

"The reports have been confirmed! Number one hero Star and Stripe is on I-Island!"

"We have two countries number ones here folks!"

"This might be the first recorded meeting between the two!"

Izuku's eyes kept switching from the jet show overhead then towards the nearest giant screen which had Star and Stripe projected for all to see. "Oh wow! The heroes forums talk about her a lot. She rocketed to the number one spot after her debut, stopping an armed robbery. Her rise is even faster than Hawks. And his rise to the top ten was already considered too fast." There was a sparkle in Izuku's eyes that made Ochako's eyes twitch.

I'm not jealous. I'm not jealous. I'm. Not. Jealous of the freaking blonde amazon giant… Why'd she have to be blonde?!

"You seem to know a lot about her even though she's a hero from another country, Young Midoriya," All Might observed while never taking his eyes off the show.

"I mean, I might not know them as well as the heroes in Japan, but I know some of them. Like Salaam, Clair Voyance, Captain Celebrity before he retired and The Crawler took over his agency. There's also Pankration, Nyikang and Big Red Dot." Izuku listed off the heroes on his fingers. All Might and Ochako both just stared at him blankly, thinking the exact same thing. Not all of them he says.

"But Star and Stripe has gotten a lot of attention worldwide, especially in Japan too," Izuku continued on. "There are a lot of parallels between you two. Her flamboyant flair for one."

"Oh, come on now. I'm much more subtle."

Ochako looked at All Might aghast. "You literally walk into rooms screaming your head off." All Might laughed nervously while scratching his nose.

"She's always smiling, her overall demeanor and how she fights crime and villains is pretty much one to one with you. Her hairstyle is also clearly inspired by yours. Though I'd love to know why she went with eight hair tufts instead of the two." Ochako and All Might were counting the tufts quickly on the screen. "Plus, no one knows what her Quirk is. She's always coy about it. A lot of forums think she's a clone of you, but during the process the US government damaged the Y chromosome of your DNA, so they just copied the X chromosome twice." That sent All Might reeling into a laughing fit.

Suddenly, as the jet made a low pass directly over the crowd, the American giant simply separated from the jet, and began a free fall straight down. The crowd gasped in shock as she plummeted head first for the ground. Then, as she fell, she began to spin herself around, stretching out her hands. Faster and faster she spun, corkscrewing down, while around her, more fireworks exploded and sparkled. The little dancing lights began to twist around her, creating a vortex of color and light. Then a few hundred yards above the crowd, Star and Stripe slammed her hands together and the sparkling lights exploded out in a shockwave. Everyone clapped and shouted, absolutely enjoying the show. But as Star and Stripe got closer and closer to the ground and all the black jets had peeled off and were flying away, a question was raised.

What was going to happen when she hit the ground? The two most obvious answers were either splat, or boom. And no one really wanted to be near either of those outcomes. However, as she got closer to the ground, she flipped so she was coming in feet first, then her rapid descent slowed to a crawl. Star and Stripe, fist on her hips in a classic hero pose, just floated the last few yards and touched the ground as soft as a feather. Feet now firmly on the ground, the rock and roll music faded along with the roar of the jets. Video and audio was returned to normal and collectively the crowd held their breath.

Star and Stripe then raised her hands up and out and spoke with a voice that boomed like thunder, "Hello I-Island! The number one hero is here!"

And the crowd went wild. Screaming and jostling to get a better look at the woman.

At the same time Ochako crossed her arms and nodded to herself. "Okay… I get how people think she's All Might's clone."

"Some rumors also say she's his illegitimate daughter."

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! Do they now? That's hilarious!"

All Might's laugh seemed to draw the attention of the other hero. She turned to face All Night and their eyes locked. "So there he is. The one some damn fools think is the best."

The gathered crowd pushed back, giving the newly arrived living giant room to walk towards the living legend himself. There was an almost feral smile on Star and Stripe's face as she stormed across the distance. Her footsteps sent small shockwaves through the street with every step. At the same time, All Might squared his shoulders and stomped towards Star and Stripe. His smile widening with every step as the distance between the two closed. "Star and Stripe."

The crowd wasn't sure if they should be taking pictures or fleeing for their lives. It was like watching two bolderes hurtling towards each other with explosive force. A great photo opp, but equally great chance of dying from the explosive debris that was certain to come rocketing your way.

The two giants were in arms reach and Star and Stripe's arm stretched out first. "You son of a bitch."

All Might's arm rocketed out and with a thunderous clash, their hands clasped together in an epic handshake. A few of the crowd took a chance to breathe, thinking that whatever confrontation might have been coming was past, but others noted they were still in the danger zone. Because All Might and Star and Stripe hadn't shook hands like regular people. Their clasped hands were high and their elbows down, like they were pressed into an invisible table. Soon everyone saw the heroes bulging arm muscles and intense smiles the two were sharing. Tight and unyielding, like the grips they had.

Eye to eye, the pair's arms began to shake as the two number one heroes engaged in a fierce in-air arm-wrestling contest. Their handshake had become a battleground between two heroes shouldering their countries pride and honor.

Also ego. So much ego.

Star and Stripe griminced brightly as her biceps threatened to rip through her costume's sleeve. "What's wrong old man? U.A. got you pushing too many pencils?"

All Might snarled back, his smile never wavering while the ground under his feet started to tremor. "Sorry, am I leaning too much on you, schoolgirl?"

In this mighty test of will and strength, when something was going to give, it was going to give violently. Fortunately for the pair, it wasn't either of their arms snapping from the ungodly amount of force they were pushing against each other. Unfortunately for them, it was the concrete underneath their feet that cracked and shattered, throwing the two off their balance and tumbling to the ground in a cloud of dust.

The crowd of reporters and onlookers all leaned forward, with the same twisted curiosity of people that slow down to gawk at a car crash, trying to peer through the cloud. But even before it had settled, twin peals of laughter roared out. Thunderous joyful laughs that rose up towards the sky and echoed throughout the island.

Dusting themselves off, the two heroes got back on their feet, and were all smiles. Those smiles faded a little when an I-Island security bot rolled through the crowd and presented itself in front of the two. With a chirp a small slip of paper was ejected from a slot. All Might took it with a raised eyebrow. Star and Stripe leaned over to see what it was.

"Quirk usage resulting in property damage has been recorded for visiting heroes All Might and Star and Stripe. Citation must be paid before passports are released. Please visit any I-Island government terminal to pay the fine." All Might read aloud. Star and Stripe facepalmed while All Might laughed nervously. "I mean… it's not that bad, right?"

The silence from the crowd was his answer.

After the two gave an impromptu PSA on the importance of being careful with your Quirk, even in a place you were allowed to use them freely, All Might and Star and Stripe returned to the excited crowd, signing autographs and answering reporters' questions.

"All Might! All Might! Do you have any comment on the number of records that Star and Stripe has broken during her career?! Many of those previously held by and set by you during your time in the United States!"

All Might scratched his chin thoughtfully. "Comment as someone happy to see the States in the hands of such a committed protector, or as a fellow pro hero who is very competitive?"

The crowd laughed.

"Star and Stripe! You've spoken highly of All Might in several interviews but this is your first time meeting him. Anything to comment on this?"

Star and Stripe smirked. "First official meeting sure."

That got some buzz from the crowd, many reporters asking for clarification on what that meant. Had they met before? Star and Stripe just winked at the cameras. "If I told you, then what would all the late night talk show hosts have to chew on?"

All Might covered his mouth and snickered.

"All Might! Star and Stripe was scheduled to be here, representing the United States, but you weren't. There aren't any records of a planned trip from Japan' Hero Public Safety Commission or your agency."

Star and Stripe nodded at that. "He's got a point. I only learned about it when your private jet got its flight plan all set."

All Might puffed out his chest and pointed to himself with his thumb. "As you may or may not be aware, I am now a teacher at the prestigious U.A. Japan's finest hero school. As a responsible teacher," someone snorted, "when I learned one of my students had won an all expenses paid trip to attend the I-Expo with a friend, I felt that it was my responsibility to chaperone them."

Ochako crossed her arms and tried oh so hard to keep a smiling face. "You really didn't have to."

All Might just laughed. "Oh, it's no trouble at all, Young Uraraka." All Might paused and considered that maybe that wasn't what Ochako had meant.

I'm sorry Young Uraraka but you'd destroy the poor boy if I wasn't here to protect him.

Star and Stripe looked over towards Ochako, then at Izuku. Her eyes lingered before recognition began to set in. "That's the boy that won U.A.'s sports festival for first years?"

Izuku gulped under the intense gaze of the hero.

"Correct! Young Midoriya performed excellently. More than earning that first place." All Might beamed with pride. Something the crowd and especially Star and Stripe noticed. More than a few cameras were now turned towards Izuku, with some in the crowd murmuring and working to get a good look at the boy who was getting such open praise from All Might.

"Didn't you also offer him an internship?" Star and Stripe asked All Might as she walked past him and started making her way over towards Izuku. "As far as I'm aware, you've only taken one other person under your wing. Though he wasn't anywhere near this young."

All Might cleared his throat. "Ah, well… I suppose Sir Nighteye came to me. This time it's the other way around."

Boy, did that get some surprised looks. More cameras were now focused on Izuku who was sweating under the cameras.

"You sought him out, huh?" Star and Stripe was now standing in front of Izuku. "So, he's your disciple then?"

All Might laughed. "Disciple might be a bit much there. But, I suppose Young Midoriya has shown me something that reminds me of myself when I was his age."

Star and Stripe cocked her head to the side, an eyebrow popped up. "Oh?" Then she took her attention off All Might and looked down.

Izuku went suddenly stiff as the blonde giant shifted her gaze back down to him. Those aqua eyes seemed to glow as she looked down at him intently. Getting such an up close look at the American hero, Izuku could see some scary intelligence behind those eyes. Star and Stripe wasn't just some charismatic bruiser. She was sizing Izuku up, and it was fucking terrifying.

"H-h-h-hello ma'am!"

There seemed to be a physical pause as Izuku, Ochako, All Might, and all the sea of reporters waited to see what happened next. No one expected what came next.

Star and Stripe suddenly reached down and picked Izuku up from under his arms and smiled brightly at him as she lifted him up into the air. "He's adorable!"

"Eh?!" Izuku gasped dumbly as he was swung around like an infant while Star and Stripe gushed over him.

"I watched you in your sports festival. Holy hell kid, how is someone that nuts at your age? That Delaware Smash move of yours was the bomb!"

Izuku's face flushed at the unexpected praise. "I! It was?!"

"Hell yeah! Just throw a huge wall of rock at a person. Badass!" Star and Stripe started to spin Izuku around excitedly. "Course, I hear that's not all you do now. Got something spicy on top of those psychic powers right?"

Izuku, his embarrassment at the onslaught of praise making his cheek redden and smoke puff out his nose, squeaked out, "I! Fire! I breathe fire. My Boric Pyre."

"Ah! Does boric mean it's green?!"

"Yes! Exactly!"

"Cool Quirks gotta have cool names!"

"I know right!" Izuku was beyond elated to find someone that saw things his way at long last.

While Star and Stripe twirled Izuku around, singing his praises, much to the boy's embarrassment but also strangely giving him a nice confidence boost as well, she could feel a dark gaze on her, so she looked back down towards All Might's feet to find Ochako, cheeks puffed out and glaring up at her like an angry little kirby. She blinked, looked back over at Izuku, then towards her. "Oh… is this yours?"

"Yes!" Ochako confirmed immediately.

All Might laughed along with Star and Stripe. "You may want to put Young Midoriya down. Young Uraraka can be a little territorial when it comes to the young man." All Might's laugh trailed off into a cough when he realized that Ochako was glaring at him now.

Star and Stripe nodded in agreement as she put Izuku back onto the ground. "I saw her matches too. I don't want any of that smoke."

Instead of immediately standing back up though, with Ochako giving All Might the Kirby-glare, Star and Stripe took the opportunity and lifted the suddenly yelping girl up just like she had with Izuku. "But how do you get such adorable students like this?"

"Oi! Hey, I'm not a little kid!" Ochako struggled vainly while Star and Stripe just looked amused, going on about how she was like a vicious little bunny, all soft but with nasty, big, pointy teeth. When Ochako reached up to grab the woman's arms to try and wretch herself free, she was a little thrown off at just how solid she was.

Holy are American women built differently…Okay so maybe it makes a little sense for Deku to get flustered with madam amazon here holding him. I mean he likes my muscles so… Wait what was my point?

"A-All Might. Deku. Could one of you help me ouuuu… Deku." Ochako had looked around for some help, since she doubted she was getting away from the American hero by herself. When she did, she saw that Izuku had his phone out. Taking pictures. "YOU! You delete everything you have right now!"

Izuku shook his head. "Nope."

"Dead! You are dead when I get down!"

"Worth it."

"Young Uraraka has the makings of a great hero I feel. Both she and Young Midoriya are already making plans of opening their own agency right out of school. Rare to find kids so eager to hit the ground running." Now cameras were on Ochako as she gulped. The crowd was impressed by the drive All Might was selling about them.

If this was them being genuinely impressed that a couple of first years were aiming to be on their own after graduation or just impressed because All Might was impressed was impossible to tell.

Star and Stripe at least was giving her and Izuku a sized up look. "Okay, I want them. How about you two come to the States with me after the I-Expo is over?"

All Might burst out laughing at that. "You'd have to fight me."

All Might and Star and Stripe spent a little more time signing autographs and answering some more questions, but eventually he was able to pry himself away from the crowd, under the pretense that he should really be acting like a propper chaperone and get his students to their hotel. However he did promise to give another interview later.

Star and Stripe also had an excuse to get away, stating she needed to check with air traffic control about her jets' low flyover above the crowd. She was 90% sure everything was in order. When pressed about that other 10%, Star and Stripe laughed loudly, before suddenly leaping over the crowd so that she sailed away and was out of sight.

"Definitely a clone," Ochako muttered.

But now the trio were free, and collecting themselves at a nice flower garden off from the main entrance road down a hill.

"Well that was something," Ochako grunted as she leaned against a bench. "Maybe we should have put you in a hat and trench coat. At least then we could pretend we were trying to be subtle."

"How are you doing All Might?" Izuku asked concernedly. They had spent a lot longer with the crowd than he thought any of them had been prepared for. Fortunately All Might flashed him a thumbs up.

"We still got time. Not a whole lot, but plenty to make it to our hotel."

"Uncle Might!"

The random call startled the trio. Izuku glanced around, wondering where it had come from. Also, Uncle Might was a strange thing to say. As he looked around, his eyes went up the stone stairs of the hill, and he blinked. While the angle wasn't great, he thought he saw someone bouncing.

"Uncle Might, it is you!"

Yup, they were bouncing. Literally. A young woman, with blonde hair and glasses was bouncing, abnormally high, down the path towards the edge of the hill.

"Is she… bouncing on a pogo stick or—"

Izuku's question was cut off when the young woman bounced off the hill and began falling down to the ground.

All Might stepped forward and easily caught her, holding her at the waist while the red pogo stick-like device landed on the ground gracefully behind her. "Melissa!"

"Uncle Might! It's so good to see you!" The young woman beamed happily. "When I saw you on the TV I rushed right over!"

"Ha ha! Look at you. I can believe how much bigger you are. It hasn't been that long has it?"

Izuku and Ochako looked between the two. Seeing All Might so openly holding the young woman was a little strange to say the least. They clearly were familiar with each other. Very familiar, Ochako added. When All Might finally put her down, Izuku and Ochako still had to strain their necks to look up at her. She wasn't as tall as All Might, but she sure as heck was taller than the pair.

She wore a white short-sleeved dress shirt that had plaid cuffs. A large plaid bow hung around her neck, and she had a dark raspberry pink waistcoat. Stretched over her hips were pale gray Capri pants, under which were some plaid pink socks and a pair of heeled brown boots. Her oval-framed glasses gave her face an innocent and young look. She was cute.

Ochako felt her brow twitch.

"Ahem, Young Midoriya, Young Uraraka. Allow me to introduce Melissa Shield. She's the daughter of a very dear friend of mine, David Shield."

Melissa smiled and waved. "It's a pleasure to meet you… Oh! Wait, I recognize you two! You both were at the sports festival, right?!" Neither Izuku or Ochako were prepared as Melissa ran up to them with a sparkle in her aqua eyes. "Oh, you two really are Midoriya and Uraraka! I remember you two winning the first event, flying together. That was so cool. Then those tournament fights. That was crazy!" Melissa quickly grabbed both of their hands, shaking them excitedly. "I can't believe I get to meet my Uncle's prized students! He talks about you two a lot, you know!"

Izuku and Ochako were trying to catch up to the conversation and had only just figured out that apparently Melissa was a bit of a fan of theirs thanks to All Might and their showing at the festival. But as soon as that clicked for them, Melissa was already moving on. Now, leaning in close and encircling them, Melissa was giving Izuku war flashbacks from his visits with Mei. Ochako might have objected to Izuku's personal space getting suddenly invaded if she wasn't also on the receiving end.

Melissa was going around, poking and picking at their costumes, mumbling to herself the whole while, noting the designs, but paying particular attention to any support items she could see, not only finding them even if they were hidden in with the design but also, given that she seemed familiar with their Quirks, guessing at their functions.

All Might coughed into his hand to get her attention. "Melissa. There'll be time for that later."

Melissa shot up and gasped. "Oh! I'm sorry. I got a bit distracted."

Izuku smiled and waved off her worry. "It's fine, really."

Melissa looked nervous. "Really? I know I can be a little off putting with my fascination with support items."

Ochako laughed. "You don't need to worry about that. Hatsume who designed and made Deku's suit and support gear is like a billion times worse."

Melissa blinked. "Oh, you know your suits' designer? And they made both the gear and items? I thought students get their stuff sent off to corporations?"

Izuku shook his head. "Mine was designed by a friend in U.A.'s Department of Support. Her name is Hatsume and the teacher of the class gave her the assignment because he said she had a lot of potential."

"Really? And she's in the same year as both of you… Wait… Wait, Hatsume… Was that the girl that took over the systems in the sports festival and used all those gadgets?"

"Melissa," All Might cut in again, knowing she was about to go on another tangent.

"Sorry!" Melissa turned, walked over to her pogo stick and picked it up. "Why don't you come with me? Papa is still in his lab right now, but with I-Expo, everyone else has gone home for the break. I know he'll be over the moon to see you."

Izuku was about to cut in that they were going to need to find their hotel rooms first, trying to be polite since he didn't think All Might had the time to make the trip, but a discrete hand wave from All Might got Izuku to pause.

"You know what, that sounds like an excellent idea. Though, last I heard he was working on some super secret project. You sure he won't mind the surprise?"

"He said it was on hold for a few days, so there shouldn't be any issues. Plus even if that wasn't the case, I know he'd drop everything to welcome you." Melissa reassured him.

"And your mother? Is Zuri around too or…?"

"Oh Mom's off the island right now for work."

"Bachelors night it is then!" All Might said with a flex.

"… You're not going to blow up a building this time, are you?"

"That was not my fault! And I did not blow up a building!"

All Might really didn't like the looks he was getting.

"Uncle Might, either Papa got drunk and built a bomb or you got drunk and threw a punch. End of the day, a building was gone."

"It was marked for demolition so no harm no foul! And it was a small building!" All Might added for clarification. "Like a small dry cleaners!"

While Melissa rolled her eyes and made her pogo stick disappear into a compressed ribbon around her wrist, a display of tech that would have fascinated Izuku to no end if he wasn't too busy trying to get a discrete answer from All Might as the three followed after Melissa. "All Might? Is this okay? Your time limit is getting close."

Leaning over, All Might whispered, "It's okay. David is… aware of my condition. So if he's alone like Melissa said, there won't be any issues."

"But isn't this the friend that you told me about? The one you didn't… you know… tell?"

All Might coughed. "That's right. He… doesn't know about that, no. But he is aware of my injury and who caused it. So his lab should be fine. In fact, I was planning on visiting him as soon as I could today anyway. Knowing his co-workers are on break means visiting now is best for me."

Izuku nodded. "Okay. That makes sense." At least why All Might would change the plans to go see his friend right away. Not the other thing that was on Izuku's mind now. If David knew about All for One, why hadn't All Might told him about One for All? But now wasn't the time to be asking this. "Oh. Does she know?" Izuku pointed up towards Melissa who was chatting away with Ochako.

All Might frowned deeply. "No. She doesn't. About my injury or anything. Young Midoriya I… would very much like to keep it that way."

When the door to David's office opened, All Might wasn't able to contain himself and burst through immediately. "I am here! Shaking with emotion from our reunion!"

When Izuku and Ochako peaked their heads through the door, they found All Might had already yanked the man they assumed was David up into the air into a giant bear hug. Melissa smirked as she walked into the room after the hero. "I was right. You've been cooped up in this lab for so long you had no idea that Uncle Might landed on the island today." Melisa gave the other man in the room a playful glare. "As his assistant, aren't you supposed to make sure Papa gets out once in a while, Mr. Abraham?"

David's assistant, Sam, an older heavy set man, smiled nervously. "You know how your father is, Miss. You are just like him after all."

Melissa shrugged, not denying that. "At least when my projects are put on hold I go outside."

All Might put David back on the ground and the much smaller man rubbed his arms trying to get some feeling back into them. "All Might, I can't believe you're here. I had no idea, you could have sent word ahead of time, you know."

"Ha ha ha! And ruin seeing your surprised face? Not a chance! Not after how long it's been since we've seen each other"

David smirked and tapped a fist into All Might's side. "Oh, don't remind me about how old I am now. Or else I'll have to point out which of us got the big five in front of our age first."

"Oof, that's dirty." All Might throwed his head back with a laugh, which David soon followed with one of his own. When he had calmed down, All Might put a hand on David's shoulder. "It is good to see you again, Dave."

"It's good to see you too, All Might," David replied with a happy smile.

Izuku from at the door was shocked at the open display he was witnessing. There was a joy in All Might that Izuku wasn't sure he had seen before. David was truly a friend of All Might's. Oh sure, he had heard about him, any All Might fanboy knew who David Shield was. But Izuku was more focused now on the apparent bond the two men shared. Watching them greet each other, Izuku felt a twinge of sadness in his heart. Because even though it was obvious these two were friends, there was still the shadow of One for All in the room. A secret All Might had chosen to keep from his friend. A decision that, more and more, Izuku was beginning to have serious doubts about.

"Young Midoriya, Young Uraraka. Come in and let me introduce you to one of my best friends!"

"—was All Might's partner when he lived in America and was responsible for creating all of All Might's hero costumes. He's the genius inventor who made the 'Young Age', 'Bronze Age', 'Silver Age!' and the most recent 'Golden Age!'"

David laughed nervously at the sudden onslaught of praise. It wasn't often he got his accolades called out so enthusiastically.

"He's also the inventor of the iconic Allmobile!"

Ochako, who had decided that the ceiling was more interesting than paying attention to Izuku go full otaku fanboy, had to do a double take. "All…mobile?"

All Might smirked and flashed a thumbs up. "You like? I came up with the name myself!"

"…Yeah, that tracks."

David chuckled. "Fortunately All Might let me name his new car. Hercules has a good ring to it, I think."

The happy scene was interrupted when All Might discreetly coughed into his hand. Something that was immediately noticed by a few people in the room. David glanced at his friend, his smile falling just a tad, though he was quick to cover it up. "You know, it's been a long time since I saw All Might. Do you think I could have a chance to talk to my friend alone for a bit?"

"Melissa, do you think you could show Young Midoriya and Young Uraraka around the island? Maybe take them to their hotel rooms as well?"

Melissa nodded. "Sure, leave everything to me. You and Papa catch up."

"Sam," David glanced over at his assistant. "You can take the rest of the day off too."

"O-oh. If you're sure?" A firm nod from David made it clear he was.

"All Might?" Izuku and Ochako glanced up at the hero, but he offered them a reassuring smile.

"You two will be just fine with Melissa. Don't worry about me and go have some fun."

As everyone left, and just before the door closed, Izuku glanced back. He saw the beginning whiffs of white steam start to come off All Might's body, signaling he was at his limit. At the very least, Izuku was glad he had someone here he could relax around.

"Um, Shield?"

Melissa giggled and waved Izuku off. "Please, Melissa is just fine."

"Oh! Um, Melissa, if you don't mind me asking, are you an inventor like your father?"

Melissa beamed. "Yup. My dream is to be just like my Papa."

"I guess that explains why you were so fascinated with our costumes," Ochako added.

Melissa laughed nervously. "Yeah… sorry about that. But I grew up watching my father invent things that went on to be used by heroes the world over. He's a hero to me, just like Uncle Might. So I can get a little carried away when talking tech."

"I still can't believe All Might has a niece," Izuku admitted, "what was it like growing up with him around?"

"Even though we aren't blood related he's been there for me ever since I was born. He was always there for holidays and my birthdays. Sometimes he'd just visit for no reason at all, just to come see me. And if he heard I had had a bad day, he was on his jet flying out to comfort me in person. For the longest time I thought I was going to grow up to be a hero just like him." Melissa sighed a little wistfully.

Izuku picked up on the slight change. "Why'd you stop?"

"Quirkless. Same as Mama and Papa. So, kinda put a damper on that idea." Izuku winced and Ochako looked up at Melissa apologetically but Melissa just smiled at the pair. "Aw, don't look like that. I got the news when I was five. I might've been sad back then, but when Uncle Might heard I was upset and beelined it back to the States to visit me. You know what he said to me?"

Izuku and Ochako shook their heads.

"He told me that my Papa was his hero," Melissa smiled at that memory, "and that inspired me to become an inventor and scientist just like him. To become the kind of hero that Uncle Might looks up to. And as I grew up, and worked to get better at making things… I learned that there is more to a person than just their Quirk."

When Melissa looked down again, she was startled to see Izuku openly crying at her little story. Even Ochako was getting a little misty eyed. "Ah! Wait! Please, it's not something to cry about!"

"But it's so motivating!" Izuku choked out between heavy sobs.

It took a while before Izuku was able to compose himself. Melissa was shocked that he hadn't flooded the street behind him with the waterfalls pouring out of his eyes.

Ochako decided to move the topic on. "So you mentioned in your dad's lab you had a bunch of projects on hold? What kind of stuff are you working on?"

Melissa sighed. "They're supposed to be on hold, but I got so many freshman projects that even with classes closed for the expo, I still like to visit the lab. Guess I picked up my Papa's unhealthy work habits."

"Freshman?" Izuku looked up from his notes, head turned to the side. "What do you mean?"

Melissa smiled. "Oh, I mean I just started my first semester here on I-Island."

"She means she just started going to university, Deku," Ochako filled in. Though she could understand his confusion. She had assumed Melissa was a graduate for sure. So she was surprisingly younger than—

"My first semester of high school." Melissa corrected with a chuckle. "I-Island Academy is an amazing place. I impressed my professors enough with some of my inventions that I was even given a personal lab. Normally you have to be a Junior or Senior to get a private lab. Though I wouldn't be surprised if Papa and Uncle Might pulled some strings. I really wish they wouldn't do… Hmm?" Melissa soon realized that Izuku and Ochako were just openly gawking at her. "Is… something wrong?"

"Y-you're a first year like us?!" Izuku gasped in shock.

"Yeah? I turn 16 this fall… Why?"

Ochako's eyes went over Melissa again, starting at her feet then working her way up, taking in everything with this new information, until she was looking up at the blonde. "What do they feed Americans?! And where can I get some?"

"…Uraraka… I don't think anything's gonna help you with getting tall like— ACK!" Izuku dropped to his knees after Ochako's elbow found that soft spot under his ribs.

Melissa smiled sweetly at the pair. "I have been told I look a little older than I actually am. But, it's not like I'm that much taller than everyone."

"H-how much?" Izuku gasped out while rubbing his side.

"I'm only a hundred and ninety-five centimeters."

The blank stares she got from the pair made her fidget nervously. Ochako crossed her arms. "It's not fair."

"Wait… that's as tall as Endeavor!" Izuku exclaimed in shock.

Ochako's blank stare shifted over to Izuku, joined by Melissa. "Isn't that the fire hero that's always in a sour mood in Japan?"

Izuku nodded in affirmative. Melissa's face scrunched up, not liking the comparison.

"Deku."

"Hmm?" Izuku replied innocently.

"How do you just… know that?"

Izuku blinked up at her. "I mean… it's common knowledge."

Ochako threw her hands up in exasperation. "This is the boy I let ask me out! What is wrong with me?!"

"I mean, I'm adorable?"

Ochako pointed down at him. "And walking on thin ice!"

"…" Izuku pushed himself back up to his feet, and dusted himself off. "You really should appreciate me more."

Ochako's forehead twitched as she looked at him with the mother of all side eyes. "Oh? How so?"

"I mean, not many awesome boys like me would want to date short girls."

Melissa spent the next few minutes watching Ochako throw Izuku around like a rag doll. She was pretty sure his body left some craters in the concrete.

The three reached their surprisingly fancy hotel after Ochako was done teaching Izuku a valuable lesson. At least that's what Ochako had tried to teach. Izuku was still snickering even after his beating.

When Ochako walked up to the terminal to enter her information and get her room key, Izuku whispered under his breath, "You sure you don't need me to lift you up so you can reach the screen?"

"Going to kill you. Going to kill you so freaking hard," Ochako grumbled as she snatched her keycard from the terminal and glared angrily at Izuku.

Izuku just grinned his gremlin grin and put his info into the terminal and got his keycard as well.

"Keep digging, Deku," Ochako grumbled.

"At this point my best chance of seeing daylight is to just keep going until I pop out the other side," Izuku said with a shrug.

Ochako paused, then snorted, quickly covering her mouth and turning away. Izuku cheered, "And that's daylight."

"Darn it, that wasn't even funny!" Ochako complained past her hand as she tried to stop laughing. "That's freaking cheating!"

Izuku flashed a peace sign while Melissa shook her head. It was kinda adorable how down bad these two were for each other.

"Oh, I forgot to mention, the Ferris wheel is another great ride for couples. Since the one we have is the world's largest, you'll get one of the best views of the island and get to spend some private time enjoying it."

Izuku was busy trying to get that added to his notes along with everything else Melissa had told them while Ochako had a new blush on her cheeks as she asked with a squeak. "H-how private?"

Melissa answered with a wag of her eyebrows and a knowing smirk. Which just got Ochako to blush hotter.

"Now, which floor do you two need to go to?" Melissa asked as the doors closed.

"Third," both answered.

Izuku looked up. "Oh, we're on the same floor? That's nice."

Ochako, face now mostly back to normal, nodded. "Yeah, nice and convenient."

Exiting the elevator, they all turned the same way, and started walking down the hall. "Well, at least I won't get lost trying to find your room later," Izuku said with a laugh.

Ochako gave him a coy smirk. "Find my room later? Why'd you need to do that?"

Izuku missed the look on Ochako. "Oh, if we wanted to hang out before bed or for when I… you know. Come to pick you up for our… date tomorrow."

The innocent response made Ochako smile and Melissa chuckle. Though her mood became more and more curious with each door the trio passed. As they got to the end of the hall, Izuku pointed out that it looked like they were going to be next door neighbors.

"Oh, and here's my room," Izuku said, pulling out his key card.

"Mine too," Ochako copied.

However they didn't turn to go to the two last doors at the end of the hall, but took steps toward the same door. Both with their cards out ready to scan them on the lock.

There was a pause as the two sorta just stopped and Melissa had a hand covering her face. Uncle Might… no. Please tell me you didn't.

"314?" Izuku asked mechanically.

"314." Ochako confirmed, just ask mechanically.

Izuku put his key to the lock and it flashed green. Ochako waited a few seconds before trying hers. It also flashed green. They then stiffly pulled out their reservation cards and shared them. Both had the room number 314 printed by their names.

"M-maybe it's like a twin room. L-like two bedrooms o-or something," Izuku stuttered out while trying not to even think about the potential screw up he and Ochako were facing.

Ochako nodded her head stiffly. "Yeah. That's… totally what's going on. All Might wouldn't… actually put us in the same room."

"Ha ha ha ha! Nope. He's All Might. We can always rely on him."

"Ha ha ha ha! Yup! It's not like he totally forgot to tell you about the trip at the last second and had to rush to make sure all the travel arrangements were taken care of."

The forced, nervous, laughter of Izuku and Ochako came to a shuddering stop. And they both looked at the door with a sense of dread.

"He would totally make this kind of mistake, wouldn't he."

"Deku, I'm just glad you're able to recognize that now."

Another pause as the two worked up the courage to open the door. Finally, Ochako grunted and pressed her card against the lock. Her hand was on the door knob when Izuku asked, "Do…. You want me to carry you in?"

Ochako's head whipped around and her cheeks had an extra dusting of pink blush spreading over them. She looked at Izuku, also blushing, though with just a pinch of a coy, smug, gremlin smile. And like a little ray of green sunshine peeking through the fog, the embarrassment of the situation didn't seem so bad. Ochako still made sure to poke an elbow into Izuku's side for even thinking he could get away with a joke like that. But now at least they were a little more relaxed.

Pushing open the door, Izuku and Ochako walked in with Melissa behind them. Though she almost ran smack into them only a few steps in.

"Is that a bathtub in the middle of the room!?" Ochako gasped in shock.

Melissa looked around and winced. "Oooh, this is a honeymoon suite for sure."

The room was spacious and very open, with little to nothing separating the different parts of the suite. An open washroom with twin sinks, with a door for the toilet. The shower was built into the wall. As Ochako had said, right in the center of the room was an open tub. A jacuzzi tub, just big enough to allow two people to soak together. At the other end of the room, was a bed. An unbelievably large bed, but all the same, a single bed. On one of the nightstands was a metal ice bucket with a small bottle of champagne sitting in it, flanked by two glass flutes and a little card.

Melissa walked over and picked up the card. "Compliments of the staff to the newly happy couple."

Melissa looked over at the pair, and saw two shell shocked, blushing teens that were trying to wrap their heads around everything. "Let me… make a quick call to the front office and see exactly what kind of reservation Uncle Might made."

While Melissa got on the phone, Izuku and Ochako wandered around the room. Ochako walked up to the bed, and pressed her hands into it. It might as well have been made of cotton candy with how deep her hands sunk into the comforter and mattress.

Izuku checked the closet, and found their luggage packed away. He was going out of his way not to look at the bed or jacuzzi tub.

"Hello yes, I'm calling on behalf of Might Tower and All Might. He wanted to make sure that the reservations he submitted were all ready? This should be for Midoriya Izuku and guest Uraraka Ochako." Melissa spoke into her phone, smiling as apparently this was enough to get the person on the other end to start looking things up. "Oh, you have reservation notes? That's excellent." Melissa flashed the still stunned pair a thumbs up. "…'Something special for both of them.' 'First romantic getaway together.'" Izuku chirped while Ochako decided to press her face into the cloud comforter to hide her face. "…Wait, could you repeat that? … 'A couple's suite?' Did he ask for a couple's suite or a couple of suites? Okay, and you confirmed it… Got it." And suddenly, it made sense how the mix up occurred. All Might, in a rush to get rooms, flubbed up a simple line. "Is there a problem with the room? Oh, um…" Melissa looked at the two. "Um… they're speechless."

After a few last pleasantries Melissa hung up with a sigh. "Well… now we know."

Ochako, after extracting her face from the bed, scratched her head nervously. "Just outta curiosity… What are the odds of there being any rooms still…" She trailed off when she looked at Melissa. The look on her face and the gentle shake of her head made it clear that this close to the big event, there weren't going to be any rooms open.

Izuku looked over at Ochako. "So… I guess I could just… find a place to sleep outside or—"

Ochako's head snapped around so fast, Melissa wasn't sure if the move was good for the other girl's neck. "Deku. I will bop you if you actually finish that sentence. Look," Ochako took a breath to steady herself, "we're both mature heroes in training and we know we can trust each other. So, given the situation I say we just… roll with it."

Izuku's hands flailed around as he nervously tried to point towards the bed. "B-b-b-b-but. One bed."

"Deku," Ochako stood in front of the bed, and stretched out her arms. "Look at how big this bed is. It's literally like, twice as wide as my height. We'll be fine."

"We will?"

"Yeah. Sure we will. So let's actually take a look around and then go on the tour Melissa said she'd take us on." Ochako beamed happily, trying to help put Izuku's mind at ease. Fortunately she was very good at doing this and Izuku nodded after giving it some thought.

"Okay…" Izuku, getting back on track to his cheerful self, rubbed his hands together as he started looking over their room. "Okay you're right. Let's see what we got. Two questions though right off the top of my head."

"Yeah?"

"What are we gonna do about the champagne?" Izuku pointed at the chilled half-bottle, "I mean we can't just leave it sitting there… and well… you're supposed to drink something like that… after… to celebrate… things." Izuku poked his fingers together as he trailed off.

Ochako picked up the bottle. It had enough for maybe one to two glasses for two people to share. The responsible thing to do would be to return the bottle. They were, after all, underage. At least in Japan. Clearly this was part of the mix up with the reservation. The hotel must think that she and Izuku were older than they were. So yes, the responsible thing to do, was to make sure this was returned and… "Suites like this have mini fridges, right? Let's keep this cold until tomorrow night."

Melissa smirked and pointed to the mini fridge, which the bottle was able to fit inside perfectly. Izuku, while initially shocked that Ochako was keeping the champagne, then realized just what she had said. 'Keep it cold until tomorrow night.'

"Any objections?" Ochako asked.

"Nope!" Izuku answered immediately, making Ochako smirk. The two glanced over at Melissa but she dragged her fingers over her lips, zipping them shut with a wink.

Ochako closed the fridge and then crossed her arms. "And the second thing?"

"Oh um, what about that?" Izuku pointed to the jacuzzi tub, just existing in the center of the large suite.

"Ah," Ochako had to admit that that one was a head scratcher. "Lets… just ignore that for now. No need to make things more complicated than they need to be."

Izuku was totally fine with that. His poor heart was still coming to terms with the idea that he was apparently going to be sleeping in the same bed as Ochako. He didn't need anything else making him heat up and possibly smoke out the whole room. So he just kept looking around. The room was really really nice. The walls were painted white, which matched pretty much all the furniture. There was a small splash of purple here or there to keep the room from being monotone, the tile floors a warm tan, which matched the paints used for the open bath room. The toilet was mercifully in its own little room, with a door for privacy. The sink mirrors were backlit with soft purple LEDs and the shower… Izuku had to pause. Because as he checked out the shower, he found the door separating the shower from the rest of the room was just glass.

Plain see-through glass.

Uh oh. Now don't panic. There must be a curtain or something on the inside. A quick check showed that there wasn't. Okay. Panic time.

"The shower just has glass," Izuku chirped out, some smoke puffing out of his nose.

Ochako, who was going through her luggage, looked up. "Huh?"

Izuku made a point of opening and closing the shower door, even sticking his arm behind the glass, just to show how see-through it was. "It's just glass."

Ochako looked at Izuku, then the shower door, before her face went scarlet. Melissa though, seeing the problem, raced over to the shower and turned a knob on the wall right next to the door. "Hold on, don't panic. See." When she turned the dial, the glass frosted over. "It's opaque smart glass. No worries."

It was true, the glass wasn't clear anymore, but. It wasn't like it was totally opaque. It was hazy. Heavily hazy, but still, only hazy.

"D-Deku. Go stand in the shower," Ochako stuttered out while trying not to make herself float. The single bed and open air jacuzzi right in the middle of the flipp'n room was making that very hard though.

"G-go into the shower?!" Izuku chirped. "W-why?"

Ochako was scratching her neck nervously. "Well… we should probably see just how… well that frosted glass… you know… gives us… privacy."

Another smoking chirp escaped Izuku's lips. "Wait, you mean…"

"Come on, Deku. Let's… see what that glass will let us see. Test out the shower."

Izuku looked down at himself but nodded.

Ochako sighed, as she got herself to calm down. She knew once she and Izuku spent a little time together here that things would be just fine. Until then, she had to stay strong and make sure they didn't squander this… What was the word she was looking for…?

Gift?

No. Silence horny. Not dealing with you.

Okay. Okay… hey? Why is Melissa suddenly all red?

Ochako frowned and saw that Melissa was indeed flushed and covering her eyes with her hands. "Melissa what are…!" Ochako turned and saw the issue. Izuku was in the process of taking off his costume, unzipping the top and pulling it off his shoulders and chest. Exposing his rippling back muscles.

"DEKU?! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Ochako screamed, in shock while covering her face and floating up towards the ceiling. All the while totally not peeking.

"H-huh? But you said I should test the glass?"

"JUST STEP INSIDE YOU DUFUS! DON'T TAKE OFF YOUR CLOTHES!"

Izuku blinked and his embarrassed stupor lifted and he suddenly realized what he was doing. Shrinking he quickly wrapped his arms around his body and dove into the shower, pulling the glass door shut behind him. You could make out the vague outline of his body, but you weren't going to see anything besides that. So it was safe. Though that wasn't exactly what Ochako was focused on right now.

As Izuku worked to put his costume back on, Ochako needed some answers. "Deku, why would you just start undressing like that?" Ochako asked as she worked herself back to the ground.

Izuku peeked over the top of the frosted glass door. "Well… I thought you were telling me to."

Ochako tapped her fingers together and fell into the bed. Taking a second to marvel at how soft it was, she then pivoted, "Wait, you make it sound like you just default to 'Do what Ochako says' now that we're kinda sorta together."

"I mean… yeah? Aren't I supposed to?"

YES!

Horny, no.

Horny yes!

"Deku," Ochako sighed. "Just because we're getting together doesn't mean you have to do everything I say."

"It doesn't?" Izuku sounded genuinely surprised by that.

Hey brain, you might want to reel this in before you lose this.

Ochako quickly added, "Just most of what I say!"

Izuku frowned. "What's the difference?"

"The difference is I get an out."

"… That feels like cheating."

"It is." When Izuku seemed to nod in defeat, Ochako felt a little guilty. All things considered, she probably could guilt trip and use other methods to get Izuku to listen to her more. And boy, did that leave a sour taste in her mouth. "Deku… you know I'm joking, right? You seriously don't have to do what I say."

Izuku laughed nervously. "Yeah, I figured. But guilt tripping you made you say it out loud so, it's all good."

…Did Deku just outplay me? I don't know if I should be proud or infuriated. One look at the goofy smiling face made her mind up, Infuriated. Definitely infuriated.

After getting settled in, Melissa had offered to give the two a tour of the I-Expo grounds. Izuku and Ochako were happy to accept. Leading the two out into the grounds, one of the first places Melissa pointed out was the pavilion. Even from a distance the area looked huge. The pavilion was where most of the rides, food stalls and general amusement and recreation was being held.

"How big is it all?" Ochako asked as she stood on her tippy toes to get the best look.

"About as big as California's Disneyland I think," Melissa answered.

Izuku whistled, while Ochako just kept staring, awestruck. Several rides reached up over the buildings and scraped the sky. One ride in particular that caught her attention was the ferris wheel, or at least the I-Expo's scientific wonder of a Ferris wheel. Multiple cars were orbiting around a humongous metal ring, instead of being attached to a giant wheel. But as Ochako observed, she noted that the cars were enclosed with big windows. So you could probably see the whole island from them, but also at the top, no one could see you.

Melissa smirked and gave Ochako a discreet thumbs up. "See?"

Oh, Ochako saw. Up there, away from prying eyes. It was the perfect place for a little snogging.

When Ochako glanced at Izuku, and she saw the blush on his face, it was pretty darn clear he was having similar thoughts. And boy oh boy did that make her feel a certain kind of way.

Down girl, you're in public.

"So I wasn't planning on showing you guys around there. Since I figured you'd want to explore it for the first time during your date," Melissa said, smiling at how darn adorable the two were as they nodded their heads. "But there are other parts to the I-Expo to see. A lot of it dealing with Quirk competitions and support items."

Izuku perked up at that. "Quirk competitions?"

Ochako snickered. "Ah, one of Deku's loves. All Might did say people are free to use their Quirks openly here."

"Yup, one of the few places in the whole world that doesn't have restrictions on Quirks. Want to go check those out first?"

Izuku nodded his head very fast, and Ochako shrugged with a smile. "You just opened Pandora's box."

"Eh?" Melissa was sure Ochako was exaggerating.

Ochako had not been exaggerating. Melissa found herself a little flabbergasted at just how much detail Izuku was able to take in and jot down in his notebook, and also just his absurd level of knowledge of the local and visiting heroes that were walking around the I-Expo. Melissa fancied herself a decent source of knowledge in the Quirk and hero field, but all too soon she found herself defeated by Izuku on the matters as she showed them around.

It was honestly very impressive. And the more she saw, the more it made sense why All Might seemed to be interested in him.

"Oh! Oh what's that?" Izuku stopped and pointed at a small attraction. Though unlike the many others around them, this one was abandoned. Propped up with heavy steel beam reinforcements that were bolted to a solid steel plate base which was in turn anchored into the concrete, was a giant mallet. The head was easily the size of one of those wooden barrels used to age whiskey, while the pole arm was just about as long as Izuku was tall and just about as thick as the business end of a baseball bat. The thing just looked like it was forged out of the heart of a dying star. Someone had even gone so far as to etch into the side, 'Mjölnir.'

"That," Melissa explained with a sigh, "is the mallet to a Test of Strength attraction. Unfortunately whoever designed and made that mallet… went waaaaay overboard with it."

"How so?" Izuku asked.

"It's too darn heavy. Even the heroes that showed up with Quirks that enhance their strength haven't been able to swing that thing."

Izuku's eyes went wide at that. "But there are so many heroes here though!"

"Yuuup."

Ochako eyed the mallet with amusement. "Does that include Star and Stripe?"

"Nah. She hasn't given it a go yet. Supposedly she was going to today, but there's been a change of plans. See how there isn't a tower with a bell?" The two nodded, "Almost the second word got to the people running this that All Might was on site, they were contacted by the I-Expo to have this towed to the main tower for the reception party tomorrow."

"Why?" Ochako asked.

"So All Might and Star and Stripe can compete to see who can get the bigger score." Izuku started vibrating at that idea.

Ochako tapped her chin. "They want to give All Might a giant hammer and ask him to hit something as hard as he can… And do it inside a giant skyscraper filled with thousands of people."

Izuku scoffed. "Oh don't be a buzz kill."

"Deku there are times I think I'm the only one with a… what are you doing?" Ochako frowned as Izuku looked around before he strolled forward, right into the closed station area. "Deku?"

"Im'ma lift it."

"Deku no!" Ochako sounded like a parent that wished they had spent money on one of those kid leashes. "You can't."

"Hmmm, I'm picking it up," Izuku said without any worry.

"Deku! Look, there's even a sign saying the thing is closed." Ochako pointed at a cardboard sign, hanging on one of the metal beams by some twine. 'Closed' was hastily scribbled across it in marker.

Izuku looked at the sign and then flipped it around. "I don't see anything."

Ochako threw her hands up in disbelief while Izuku calmly looked the giant mallet over. When Ochako turned to see if she was going to get any help from Melissa, she found the other girl with her phone out, getting ready to record.

"Seriously? Aren't you supposed to be watching us?"

"I mean… I am," Melissa said as she tapped the record button just as green lightning sparked up around Izuku's body.

Ochako buried her face in her hands. "Everyone connected to All Might shares just one brain cell."

Melissa burst out laughing while trying to keep her camera steady. "Ha ha ha! Well, aren't you going to try and stop him?"

Ochako crossed her arms. "I'm going to let him deal with this on his own."

Totally not because I kinda want to see him try. Nope, not at all.

Izuku gripped the handle of the mallet with both hands, and with his body crackling with green bolts of electricity, Izuku pulled and grunted, straining his muscles trying to lift the mallet, but to no avail. He was red in the face from the exertion before he had to let go and gasp for a breath. "Holy cow, that thing is heavy!"

"Told you," Melissa said with a smirk. "Though why are you trying to pick it up with your hands? Shouldn't you use your Quirk? Also… what's with your new glow?"

Izuku looked down at himself and smiled sheepishly. "Oh, this is what happens when I use my Quirk to try and boost my strength. And I figured doing it this way was more fair for the challenge, since it's a test of strength after all. Though I probably could lift it if I use— ACK! Ow ow ow ow!" Izuku was cut off before he could try to use his Psychokinesis to lift the mallet as Ochako stomped up and grabbed him by the ear.

"That's enough of that, mister. Not spending my time dragging you to an E.R. because you wanted to show off." Ochako gave Izuku's ear another tug as she pulled him away from the game.

"Ow! That's my ear, Uraraka! I need that to hear things," Izuku complained, weakly swatting at Ochako's hand.

"Oh? You actually use this to hear? Sure didn't seem like it to me when I was telling you not to try and lift the darn thing."

"Oh, I heard you, I just ignored yooo-oW OW OW OW OW!" Izuku was promptly punished as Ochako gave his ear just a little twist for good measure.

"You know," Melissa stepped in, "if you two wanted to play a game where you can use your Quirks, there's always Villain Attack. It's actually really popular."

Ochako nodded. "Yeah, take us to that. Maybe Deku can use it to drain some of the stupid that's gotten into his system."

"You're just jealous that I'm the only one here that had a hope of lifting the malle— ow ow ow uncle! Uncle!" Ochako finally let Izuku go and glared at him as he nursed his red ear like a poor pitiful puppy. Ochako just crossed her arms, not buying the act at all.

"And I totally could lift that stupid mallet."

"Okay, the rules of the game are simple. In the arena are a number of robots posing as villain targets. You'll have to move up the arena's mountain to destroy each robot as fast as you can. This is a Quirk attraction, but your Quirk must be limited to the arena and only used when your time has started. If you have a Quirk that requires some sort of charge up, you may not start that process before the bell. Licensed support items are allowed as long as they are cleared by our safety inspectors."

The safety instructor looked over the small group that would be lining up for their turn at the game. With it being the I-Expo's early access event, the number of participants had been small. Right now, there was only one determined looking girl and one overly excited boy. "Any questions?"

"Is All Might's record still standing from when he competed at this?" Izuku asked.

The safety inspector laughed. "Ha, you know your history, kid. Technically it is. Three seconds has been the fastest anyone has cleared this game. Been that way for years at this point."

"Technically?" Izuku pondered.

The man pointed a remote at a screen to bring up the current world records and there was All Might's name at the top. But right beside it was another name. "Star and Stripe ran the event yesterday. Tied the record. Crazy thing is both won pretty much the exact same way. Both just threw a punch and obliterated the robots. All Might also obliterated the whole area when he did it, though." Some images played across the screen, showing All Might leaping into the air and throwing a punch downward. The shockwave from the punch flattened the whole arena.

Ochako groaned and even Izuku laughed nervously.

"How Star and Stripe pulled it off without blowing everything up is a mystery." The screen switched to show the American hero calmly strolling up to the starting line. The timer rang and instead of leaping into the air, she pulled her arm back and twisted her body around, winding herself up for one heck of a haymaker. The move sent her cape wiping around her body and face. Then she threw her punch. A devastatingly powerful one for sure, but the shockwave coming from it didn't look like it would cause that much damage. But as it hit, the robots all exploded into fire and smoke.

Izuku and Ochako both titled their heads as they stared at that, neither knowing how in the world Star and Stripe was able to pull that off. The instructor laughed. "Yup. You and everyone else had the exact same reaction. Now," he called his hands, "who's going first?"

"I am," came the twin replies. Immediately Izuku and Ochako glared at each other. You could almost see the sparks crackling between them. They then pulled their fists back and for a split second, the instructor thought they were going to fight for the spot. Which, since they were heroes (in training), was a totally believable outcome.

"Rock, paper scissors!" They screamed and threw their fists at each other. "Go!"

Two rocks. They quickly withdrew their hands. "Rock, paper, scissors! GO!"

Two papers.

"Go!"

Two papers.

"Go!"

Rock and scissors.

Ochako held up her fist in victory. "Good old rock! Never let's me down."

Izuku responded by shoving her towards the arena entrance with his boot.

Melissa leaned on the railing and cheered when the pretty announcer revved up the admittedly small crowd in the stands. Once the I-Expo was open for all, a lot of people were going to be watching these games since that's when the pro heroes on site would be showing their stuff.

"Our next challenger comes all the way from Japan! A student at the world famous U.A High School! Give it up for Uraraka Ochako!"

"Go Uraraka!"

Ochako crouched down in a sprinter's stance, as she waited for the signal.

"Ready! GO!"

Ochako took off like a bat out of hell, sprinting forward towards the first bot at the base of the mountain. Leaping up, she floated herself and let her own momentum carry her flying forward. As she closed in on the bot she fired a grappling line at it while at the same time firing another from her other arm up into the stone face of the mountain. Twisting in the air, her fingers touched the line and floated the robot, pulling it up with her. The weightless robot was then hurled up towards another one, the two crashing together and reduced to scrap.

Ochako, using her grapple lines, propelled herself up higher and higher. Swinging around, she pulled more of the bots towards her with all her grapple lines, where she either bashed them against the rocks or used them as giant projectiles. Reaching the top, she let herself soar over the remaining bot, and as she turned her Quirk off, plummeted down towards it. The poor bot's head was then caved in as Ochako delivered a kick that would make Miruko proud.

Landing on the mountain's top, Ochako raised her hands over her head in victory. Her smiling triumphant face broadcasted on the games jumbo screens. Down below the announcer called out her time. "Incredible! She finished with a time of eighteen seconds!"

Melissa's eyes sparkled as she watched Ochako descend back down. It had been a very impressive run. She had guessed that those large bracers had some sort of function, and them having grappling hooks was such a retro callback.

"Next up, another U.A. High School student and winner of their sports festival. Give a cheer for Midoriya Izuku!"

Melissa leaned forward, ready to watch Izuku take his turn.

"Ready, GO!"

In a flash of green, the air behind Izuku exploded, sending him catapulted upwards. Izuku's body was yanked upward while at the same time, his Psychokinesis broke off chunks of rocks that were launched at robots as he sailed past. Multiple times, Izuku braced himself on the arena mountainside before he used his Quirk to pull himself upwards. Thanks to his Quirk, he kept to a straight line accent while destroying the robots at range. With one final pull, Izuku was yanked several feet over the top of the mountain, where the last robot was waiting. As he fell, the green glow around his body crackled into bolts of electricity. Pulling his hand back, Izuku swung his arm and punched right through the fragile target, turning it into scrap and smoke.

"Fifteen seconds! What a showing!"

The people in the crowd applauded while Izuku awkwardly received the attention. Melissa noted that his gaze seemed drawn back towards the ground, where Ochako was. She had an annoyed but proud smile on her face, and was clapping along with everyone else.

His Quirk is very versatile. Mobility and attack in a single go, though it looks like he struggles to use it on himself. Otherwise he probably could have flown straight up to the top. He did it in the sports festival, but that was thanks to Uraraka's help. There must be an outside factor that he has to work around… But then there's that other move.

Izuku's punch at the end had piqued her interest. She had seen Izuku use a lot of power while at the sports festival. Even just now, the power it took to rip stone apart to fire at the robots was nothing to scoff at, But that punch. Why did it seem so weak? If he was using his Quirk to boost his strength, then shouldn't it have been…

When Izuku and Ochako rejoined Melissa up in the stands, Ochako was taking her loss well. Ish. She was taking it well-ish.

"ARG! That's so annoying!" Ochako growled while stomping besides Izuku who a few moments ago had looked rather smug. Now he looked smug and cocky.

"There's a reason I won first place after all," He said with a broad smile and wink.

"I wanna rematch!" Ochako complained while lightly bopping Izuku's shoulder.

"Ow! Careful there! I'm delicate!" Izuku whimpered playfully.

Ochako paused briefly. "Wait, really or are you just being a baby?"

"… Can I pick none?"

The bopping continued while Melissa rubbed her chin. "Is being sore an issue?"

While Ochako continued, Izuku shrugged. "Kinda sorta. I have to be careful with how much power I use when boosting my strength. If I'm not, I might accidentally hurt myself… Again."

"Again?" Melissa was looking him over. Noting that he didn't seem to be carrying any kind of old injuries and nothing he was wearing seemed to be made to help him in that case.

"Yeah, one of the first times I ever tried to boost my strength I kinda messed my arms up pretty bad." When Melissa saw Ochako shudder, she got a feeling that 'pretty bad' was an understatement.

"Deku's arm looked like raw hamburger," Ochako filled in with a frown making Melissa hiss. "He's fortunate that U.A. has Recovery Girl. She was able to fix him right up."

Izuku had a lot of trouble looking in Ochako's general direction for a few seconds after she said that. He had to physically stop himself from touching his head. He was fortunate that before anyone could notice his sudden unease, there came a sudden commotion from the arena. The trio turned just in time to see the arena's mountain become encased in glacier ice and the announcer below screaming out a new time. Fourteen seconds.

"Oh, I guess that would be Todoroki," Ochako stated simply.

"… Gosh darn it."

"Never change Deku."

It turned out that Izuku and Ochako weren't the only U.A. students that had been interested in the Villain Attack game. Soon after Shouto's run, Momo, Kyouka, Mina, and then Tenya all had their turn.

Things got a little dicey when Tenya noticed that Izuku and Ochako were apparently walking around the I-Expo unsupervised. Fortunately, Melissa introduced herself and said that she was showing the pair around the island while Uncle Might was visiting with her father. The 'Uncle Might' thing took a second to clear up and soon after that, Ochako pointed out to Tenya that the two of them weren't technically on their date. The two of them just walking around was a completely normal thing they could do. Fortunately for everyone involved, Tenya seemed fine with this and let the topic go.

But while one bullet had been dogged, the next pink round was getting loaded into the firing chamber. Mina eyed Ochako closely. The gossip bloodhound could smell something juicy. Something had already happened today, she was sure of it, and she was going to sniff it out. The trio all agreed between themselves without a word that no one could let Mina or Tenya know about the hotel debacle. So Melissa pointed out she knew a nice cafe nearby that they could all grab a tea at.

On the way, when asked how he had ended up at the I-Expo with early access, Shouto said that his father's agency got two invites but the Flame Hero was unable to attend the event. So Shouto was sent in his stead, along with another senior student intern from the agency who was given her ticket as a reward for her services.

But after they had landed, Burnin had bolted off to go have her fun. He was sure she'd turn up for the reception party tomorrow night at least. He still wondered if it was good for her to have accepted since she was supposedly prepping for her upcoming hero provincial license exam. But considering how strict Shiketsu High School was, maybe she did just need the break.

When they reached the cafe and had a chance to sit down, the group was startled to find themselves being served by Shouji and Ejirou. Shouji had taken the chance to apply for some summer work at the expo, since the island was very open in their hiring for event jobs. Eijirou explained that he had been planning on lounging around until summer camp, much to Mina's annoyance, but ended up getting dragged along with Katsuki when he left for his job.

The mood at the table dropped as Ochako learned that Katsuki was on the island, but in a rare moment of empathy and just being able to read the room, Ejirou quickly added that he wasn't around now.

In a strange and convoluted turn of events, the small restaurant Katsuki had been working at had served one of the assistant chefs for the reception. Apparently the chefs were worried about being short handed since a couple of their cooks were calling in sick. When he ate the sandwich Katsuki had made, since he had been working behind the counter, the chef immediately scalped him from the restaurant and dragged him to the reception kitchen to work the event.

Better yet, Katsuki had been able to get Eijirou and Shouji waiter jobs at the reception as well, which the boys were happy to accept. The event paid really well for a single day, and they would get tickets to go to the I-Expo when it opened to the public.

"I still can't believe Bakugou knows how to cook," Ochako muttered to herself. Feeling unnecessarily annoyed that apparently the explosive boy had enough talent in a kitchen to get picked up by a chef. At the very least, he was going to be too busy doing his job for Ochako to have a chance to run into him. So at least there was that.

After saying goodbye to their friends, Izuku and Ochako continued on their tour of the island with Melissa, who was super excited to show them one of her favorite places, a pavilion completely dedicated to hero support items. Many of them being state-of-the-art or not even released to the hero community yet. The giant building interior was bathed in soft blue light from floating orbs that neither Izuku or Ochako could even guess how they worked.

"SO MANY HERO ITEMS!" Izuku squealed as Melissa hurriedly ran from one display to another. Ochako had to admit, even if she was a little jealous of it, Izuku having someone he could completely go full fanboy with was incredibly cute.

"You know," Melissa started as she took off a helmet that she had stuck on Izuku's head, which apparently displayed over thirty two cameras, nearly overloading the poor boys senses, "that a lot of the support items here are based on my Papa's patents."

Ochako fanned off the overloaded Izuku and looked around the huge room. "Wait, really? Holy cow!"

"Amazing," Izuku worked out while his eyes worked to stop spinning.

Melissa motioned out towards the large room, bringing Izuku and Ochako's attention to all the inventions and support items on display. "Each and every item here helps heroes around the world. My Papa isn't just a hero to All Might. In so many ways, he's a hero to so many more."

Izuku smiled softly. "You really respect your dad, don't you?"

Melissa beamed. "Well, it's like I said. My dream is to become just like my Papa. A hero that helps other heroes."

The three continued on, only stopping when Izuku noticed one of the displays for nanotech rescue items. A common trait was that all the items were able to shrink down into something that could fit in the palm of someone's hand. "Oh Melissa. Is this like that pogo stick you used when we met?"

"Oh? Kinda. I did base my ideas off nanotech, but instead of trying to shrink things down, I focused more on creating something that could make a multitude of items." Melissa pulled out the small red device and activated it. It glowed brightly and unwound like a giant ribbon before taking the shape of a pogo stick.

"Wait, you invented this?" Ochako asked with a gasp.

Melissa laughed. "This is something I've been working on for a while. You program a basic shape or function into the ribbon and it can take that form. It evolved from one of the first projects I ever worked on. Actually, Papa was able to get it patented for me. So I'll be able to sell it to other companies here soon."

"That's so cool!"

"Totally!"

Melissa smiled at the praise. "On the subject. Maybe some time before you both leave, I'd like to show you the original project. I think you'd get a lot of use out of it, Midoriya."

"Oh, I'd love to!"

Ochako smirked and nudged him with her elbow, "Careful Deku. You better not let Hatsume find out you were looking at another girl's babies. She might just kill you."

"Ah ha ha ha… ha… Yeah, that's probably a good idea." The more Izuku thought about the potential fallout, the more he agreed with her.

Beep

Beep

Beep

Melissa's head snapped up in alarm at the sudden beeping coming from her pant pocket. Quickly, she pulled out her phone and stared at it in shock. Izuku noticed that the timer app was going off. "Oh my gosh! It's been that long already?!" Melissa looked around before she quickly pocketed her phone, and gave a fast apologetic bow. "I am so sorry! I completely lost track of time, I was having so much fun hanging out with you two. I completely forgot I had an appointment I needed to attend!"

"Oh no, I hope we aren't going to get you into trouble." Izuku said apologetically.

Melissa shook her head. "No, it shouldn't be a problem. I just have to… go." Melissa frowned. She really had been having a fun time with the two. She wasn't really ready for it to have to come to an end. Her mind was trying to figure some things out before she snapped to a decision. "If… you two don't mind, I might be able to get this… cut down, so I'd only be away for maybe thirty minutes. Maybe an hour. If you'd like to keep looking around the pavilion, I could rush back here and I could keep showing you around?"

Izuku and Ochako had absolutely no issue with that. They too had been enjoying Melissa's company. She was a much better chaperone than they could have hoped for. Ochako waved her off with a smile. "We've only explored a little bit here. We'll look around and you can come find us. Don't worry about it."

"Definitely. We'll see you when you're free."

The three quickly shared contact info and then Melissa dashed off. Izuku scratched his neck with a laugh. "She must have to really get going."

"Again, people connected with All Might need to learn to have multiple brain cells," Ochako said with a good-natured laugh. Izuku turned to look at her, a coy smirk on his face.

"You know, you're included in the group, right?"

Ochaok crossed her arms. "And who do you think has the brain cell most of the time?"

"Toga."

"YOU!" Ochako was about to start pounding Izuku, only to stop when she saw his attention was off of her and he looked shocked about something. "Deku?"

"Oh no!" Izuku exclaimed. "She left her pogo stick." Izuku picked up the item and held it up. "Doesn't she use this to get around? If she doesn't have it, she might end up late."

Ochako quickly pointed in the direction Melissa had run and Izuku, bolts of green sparking off his body, took off in that direction. Fortunately for Izuku, he had noticed the missing item quickly so he should be able to catch up to Melissa in no time.

Hitting a hallway, Izuku glanced around. There wasn't a marked exit anywhere, but as he turned, he swore he spotted someone with long blonde hair hurrying into a side office in the hallway. "Melissa!"

Chasing after them, Izuku quickly opened the door, gasping as it bumped into someone. There was a small clatter and Izuku looked down. On the floor were Melissa's glasses. "Oh no." Izuku put the pogo stick aside and reached down to pick them up. He quickly inspected them and sighed when he saw no obvious damage."I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to bump into you. You forgot your pogo stick and I wanted to make sure you had it when you left for your appoint… ment?"

When Izuku stood back up, he was confused. The room was filled with white steam, billowing out and filling the room, making it hard to see anything. Using his hand, he fanned away some of it as he tried to find Melissa in the room. It had looked like a simple office so it wasn't like there was anywhere she could hide.

"Melissa are you… huh?"

Izuku found who he had bumped into. But it wasn't Melissa. The odd thing was, they were wearing Melissa's clothes, but they couldn't be her. The woman, standing where Melissa should have been, was much, much taller and muscular, a genuine giant of a woman. Melissa's clothes were stretched over her bulking frame, looking like they'd tear at any moment.

"Um…"

It took Izuku several seconds before his brain could start to put things together and his eyes went wide. The woman in front of him, even though she was missing the cape, the star spangled costume and the multiple hair tufts… There was no mistaking that it was Star and Stripe in the room with him.

Star and Stripe looked down at Izuku with equally large eyes, a hand over her mouth as she gasped out, "Oh…no."

Authors Notes:

The song played during Star and Stripe's entrance was Kickstart My Heart by Mötley Crüe

Been sitting on this idea for close to two years now. And now, IT'S FREE to cause mayhem and utter confusion for all of you!
But why the change you may be asking? Because fuck canon.
Yeah this change, was made out of spite.
The I-island arc is in full swing now. Got to have Izuku and Ochako just be complete dorks. It's really fun to write them just wragging on each other. And got to use the most diabolical trope in the world, there was only one bed. Oh there's so much fun in store for these two. Just you wait and see.
We also just passed the 4 year anniversary of this story getting published. Honestly can't believe it. Thank you all for sticking with me!
Now I wonder... will I hit 1 million words, or have "the kiss" first? I honestly don't know which.
A huge shout out to my beta reader WereTech!
As always comments, reviews and critiques are always welcome!