There was no telling how long I was out of it, but opening my eyes, the area was unfamiliar. I trees surrounded me, and I had to wonder what I did to deserve getting dragged out to the middle of the woods and left.

"Good to see you, kid, you're looking good." I heard from my left, but when I turned, there was no one there, turning back and seeing Ivy standing no more than a foot from me.

I stepped back in shock, bumping into a giant hulking beast that I'd seen before, his grey skin a reminder of what he was. Undead. The living zombie.

"Solomon Grundy, Born on a Monday, Christened on Tuesday, Married on Wednesday, Took ill on Thursday, Grew worse on Friday, Died on Saturday, Buried on Sunday. That was the end of Solomon Grundy."

A dead man, a woman who controlled plants, and me. What else was new?

A woman with plant wings looked down from the trees above, like I was shit on her shoe.

A green man with leaves all over his body and hair that looked like plant life stood off to the side, clearly interested but in what I didn't know.

Finally, there was a giant green mass of what looked like he was made entirely out of plants. Deep red eyes sunk in two dark sockets staring at me, and as scary as it was, I wasn't afraid.

"So, what's, uh, what's going on?" I asked calmly, looking around at the group of them.

"The green chose him, a child?" The plant man spoke, his voice deep and menacing.

Ivy clicked her tongue, staring up at the... man? Thing? "Give him time. He grows on you."

The green chose me? Did it choose them, too?

Looking around at the forest, it didn't feel special or different from any other forest.

"Is this it? Is this the green?" I asked, touching the ground and noticing my hand.

"Holy shit, I'm green. When did I get green?"

The leafy man scoffed, like he was in disbelief of my own wonder, before I pressed my hand to the ground and listened. The green was all around now, power beyond anything I'd ever felt at my fingertips. Something that felt older than time.

"This is incredible, amazing, and it feels awesome. Still doesn't answer why I'm here or what the green choosing me means.

"You have been chosen to represent the green and to defend it." The plant monster told me, and I thought about it.

"Okay, and what's in it for me? No offense, but green skin and talking to plants doesn't help me save anything. I look like the average human with a fairly common quirk."

The plant thing didn't look like it liked my question, but he, or was it an it? Whatever. He held itself back from saying anything.

Something tugged at my arm, but nothing was there.

"I am going to protect the plants and animals, all of them, even humans. If the rest of you can't or won't, I don't think your gardening club is for me."

Finally, the woman in the trees spoke, her tone commanding and firm, like she was used to giving orders.

"He's not ready. Look at him. Barely a child, let alone a defender of the green."

Salomon Grundy grunted, lifting his arms before speaking again.

Solomon Grundy, Born on a Monday, Christened on Tuesday, Married on Wednesday, Took ill on Thursday, Grew worse on Friday, Died on Saturday, Buried on Sunday. That was the end of Solomon Grundy."

A sigh went up from everyone, and I assumed her point was moot. If Grundy could do it, so could I.

"It's not our choice, is it? If the green chose me, I know it chose right because it chose Ivy, and I trust her with my life." I answered, finally standing and feeling something pulling on my arm fully, a hand wrapped around my wrist.

"I think I have to go. Ivy, tell mom I love her, and I'll see you guys when I can. The rest of you can suck eggs."

Flipping them all off, I was pulled back to camp, screams, and explosions going off all around me, sucking in a deep breath of air and scaring Hanta, who was pulling me along in under the cover of darkness. Just how long was I unconscious for?

"You're not dead!" He told me, dropping my arms.

My head was pounding, confused by what was happening.

"Wh-What's going on?"

Helping me to my feet, he made sure I was okay while explaining what the hell was going on.

"The League of Villains attacked after you passed out. Your warning gave us enough time to prepare a little, but they still broke through."

Villains? Here? Jeez, and I thought I was stupid. Attacking a school of heroes in training had to be dumber than anything I've done.

"Well, I'm up now, and I ain't running away from anything, and neither are you. Let's go." I told him, feeling the green all around me as I kicked off my shoes and pulled off my socks, feeling the ground beneath me.

"I wasn't running, I was taking care of you." He rebutted, making me pause and look at him.

"Thank you. You probably saved my life. Now, let's make sure no one else loses theirs."

It was short and sweet, but it would have to do, Hanta nodding and leading the way back to where the fighting was loudest, passing a hospital bed that had gotten stuck along the way.

A shadow moved, the trees warned me, and I pushed Hanta aside as a girl in a school outfit left at him, a knife held out.

"Get to the others. I can handle little Miss Pycho." I told him, taking a deep breath and moving my body into a fighting stance, Hanta using his tape to swing away while I looked at the girl.

"Man, if you weren't crazy, you'd be hot." I told her, my defense falling while she did the same.

"Aww, that's so sweet." She cooed, moving closer to me and putting a hand on my chest.

"Maybe you can be crazy and hot." I decided, pushing her gently against a tree and lifting my chin with a smirk.

"You know, you're pretty cute too. That's part of the reason I joined the league. I saw you in the news online and that you were coming to U.A. I like your face. You'd look better covered in blood, though." She whispered, her hand moving to stab me, but I turned into gas before she could, quickly solidifying again once the knife wasn't going to end up in my side and pinning her against the tree, growling as I leaned in, my lips brushing against her ear.

"As long as it isn't mine, I don't care."

Using the tree, I had tree limbs grow and wrap around her, keeping her locked in place as I leaned away.

"This was fun. Let's do it again if you get out of the big house." I told her, admiring my handiwork. For my first time commanding plants like that, it worked fairly well.

Putting my hands behind my hands, I hummed a tune, turning away.

"Don't go." She whined, her voice mixed with different kinds of want. Wanting to kill me and kiss me.

"Sorry, I've got a man already." I replied, and as she started to laugh, I turned to look at her.

"What's so funny?"

She kept laughing for a few seconds, finally stopping to look at me with a terrifying grin.

"I wasn't talking to you."

Her words put me on edge, trying to turn into gas before whoever was there could get the drop on me, but something hit my shoulder, and the next thing I knew, I was trapped, watching the world from a new, much smaller perspective.

"Fuck! Let me out!" I cried, not sure if anyone could hear me in my tiny prison, my hands beating against the side of what felt like glass. Whatever it was, I couldn't break it.

That didn't stop me from trying, banging on the side of whatever I was captured in, screaming at the top of my lungs until my throat hurt, a stitch in my arm popping.

"Dammit! Shit! Fuck! Ass! Tits!" I cursed, kicking the glass until my foot hurt, and I gave up on breaking it. What I could do now was wait, ready to strike whenever they got me out of here. My class could do it. I knew they could.

After a little bit of waiting, I was tossed out of my little glass prison, knocking into Shoji who caught me in his many arms.

Getting up to my feet as quickly as I could, I looked up to see strangers being enveloped by a purple-ish mist.

"What's the game plan?" I asked, turning into gas and moving towards them, seeing a head of blonde spiky hair.

"Kacchan!"

He glared at me, a hand tightening on his throat, the whole mist thing getting smaller as I moved closer and solidified, trying to reach him, something small running up my arm and biting the hand holding Bakugous neck.

"Ow! Dammed beast! You're lucky I don't make you dust!" The voice called, slinging her off and into my arms.

"Stay back, Deku." He told me, the portal closing, my body hitting the ground and rolling, trying to protect myself and the pig in my arms whined loudly, the realization hitting. We'd lost. We'd lost, and they'd kidnapped one of us.

The feeling of losing someone washed over me, and I felt sick, a scream ripping the silence until my throat was raw.

Of the fourty students, fifteen were in critical condition thanks to one villain's gas attack. Eleven had injuries or varying degrees. Thirteen got off without a scratch and... one was missing.

Six professional heroes, and one had a serious head injury. Another couldn't be found, leaving behind only a massive bloodstain.

When I'd passed out before the villain attack, I was unconscious for a day and a half, my warning and their preparations not enough to stop the villains, or to stop that hulking beast who called himself Muscular. The fact that no one died was thanks mainly to Shinso for taking control and redirecting his fury at the other villains, all of whom escaped.

We'd lost one of our own, and we only had one stinkin' villain to show for it.

My own injuries weren't too bad, nothing I didn't have when I'd passed out, although my skin was still green. From now on, I'd just look like a walking stalk of broccoli, my piggy refusing to leave my side until she was sure I was okay, and once she was sure I'd live, she'd eat anything I fed her.

"You haven't gotten a name yet, have you? Well, you're pretty smart, and you're brave. Maybe too brave for a piglet, but brave. How about Beatrix, like the lady who wrote Peter Rabbit?"

She squealed and nibbled my shoe a little before oinking.

"Beatrix, it is."

Those of us who weren't hurt enough to warrant a hospital stay were told to go home, stay inside, and don't let anyone see your face. It made sense, and the Tokoyo Inn I was staying at was pretty nice, but how could I be expected to stay sitting still when a member of our class had been kidnapped?

There were no classes, but I visited campus, walking around the lonely halls and trying to ignore the feeling of failure in my stomach, my newly named pig sleeping in my hood.

Bruce and Tim called, I told them what had happened, how useless I felt, and how I wasn't sure if heroism was for me.

"It's a tricky situation, that's for sure, but if you can't handle this, you can't be a crime fighter. I'm sorry, but if this is your limit, I might as well bring you back to America." Bruce told me, showing no signs of emotion. Was I really that much of a failure? He couldn't show empathy?

My voice cracked as I spoke, "I can't do this alone. I need you guys. I need mom and Ivy."

"I didn't realize you were the only one in your class." He replied, sounding bored with the conversation. Jeez, was he always so dick-ish?

"I'm not. I'm just not built for villains attacking and kidnapping my classmates. None of us are."

As soon as I said it, I knew where he was going with this. I wasn't alone. I could do this. But I couldn't do it by myself.

"See? I told you if you dangled the answer in front of him, he'd understand." Tim told the older hero, and I stuck my tongue out at him.

"Good to see we've cleared this up." Bruce told me, nodding as he cut the call.

"Yeah. Me too, old man." I mumbled, putting my phone away and taking a deep breath. Okay. I could do this. We could do this.

Hanging around the hospital paid off quickly, a quickly purchased magazine and some grapes wrapped up with a nice bow and a fistful of flowers in my hands as I jogged over to the punk chick, finding most of the class besides Bakugou with her.

"Yo, Midoriya! Man, no one's seen you in days! Where have you been?" Kaminari asked me, the others turning to look at me.

"Feeding Beatrix here as many snacks as she wants." I told them, the three-legged piggy hearing her name and crawling out of my hood to look over my shoulder and oink.

Silently counting, i noticed we were one member short, not including Bakugou.

"How many of us are still in the hospital?"

The good feeling died down, and I could see I wasn't the only one with get-well soon gifts.

"Yaoyorozu got a head injury and hasn't woken up yet." Tsu spoke, her matter of fact tone not doing much to cushion her words.

"Then let's go drop off these gifts." I suggested with a smile, getting plenty in return. I wanted to be liked, to be nice, but how could I when I knew that a spy likely walked among us? I mean, heroes don't get into the business for nothin', but a student, someone young and easily moldable? Well, it wasn't a stretch to think one of them could do it under the right circumstances.

Kirishima patted my shoulder, smiling in a way anyone with half a brain could see was forced.

"You know, you're not as mean as you pretended when we first met. Turns out you're a good guy."

Good guy? Me? Since when?

"Thanks, I appreciate that, Red. You're all pretty decent people, too." I replied, taking the stairs with a few of the others who didn't fit in both elevators. It gave me time to think without as much noise, Googling something before arriving on the same floor Yaoyorozu was, a few of us at a time going in to deliver our get-well gifts, waiting until the others had their turn before setting the box down and putting the flowers next her.

I focused on the flower, making them grow, then change into something different, something much worse than the orchids I'd bought, the room taking on a stink like death, then getting worse, the smell making me gag but I couldn't stop, not until a heard a small gasp, and saw Yaoyorozu open her eyes.

"Someone get a nurse, and some air freshener!" I called, working on returning the flowers to their natural state, even if the white orchid petal were stained red from their time having the properties of the corpse flower.

"Well, good morning, princess. I'm glad you can join us in the land of the living." I joked as nurses and doctors pushed me aside, checking on the tall beauty.

"What did you do?" Iida asked, and I felt a smirk pull at my lips.

"Using my powers to help people. That's what heroes do, right?"

Iida looked like he wanted to say something else, but turning his head, he just seemed relieved that Yaoyorozu was okay for now.

It took a while before we could see her, parents getting called, doctors checking on her and making sure she was okay, but eventually we got to crowd the room.

"I know you just woke up, but we've got a serious problem on our hands." I told her, standing by the window and releasing all the toxin I had in my body. What was green mist had been neutralized by the doctors days before, raining harmlessly down on the streets below.

"See, I'm a lot of things. An ex-criminal, painfully handsome, smart as a whip and twice as quick, but I'm no idiot."

Floating over their heads and extending the weightlessness to Beatrix, I moved to the door, closing it with a friendly smile.

"You've been attacked before, right? I looked up this league, and you were involved in their debut, correct?" I asked them, watching confusion grow on some of their faces.

Shinso looked tired, more so than usual, at least, his hands buried in his pants pockets.

"Where are you going with this? You obviously have a point, so just make it."

My shoulders raised, shrugging to keep up an air of confidence I didn't have. Pro heroes weren't infallible, but students? Well, they were more easily controlled.

"I'm just saying that it's unlikely that staff leaked the location to the league and that 1-B wasn't involved at the first training location."

A seed of doubt was the last thing I wanted, but if I could grow that seed, I could cut the traitor down.

"You don't honestly think that one of us would sell out to the league?" Iida asked, outraged at my suggesting that one of them may have something to do with recent tragedies.

"I am. I was in jail, and all of my communications were being monitored by staff. We can cross me out as a suspect, but the rest of you, not so much."

"How dare you? You've been with us a week, and you think you're qualified to judge us? What is wrong with you?" An offended Hagakure asked as she poked me in the chest, the others agreeing with her.

"I used to run with a gang, I know about snitches. Everything points to a spy, most likely the one person here who's not part of any friend group, who's wildly different from everyone else, maybe loud and boastful to make themselves a different kind of target."

I could see them thinking it over, and i wondered if it was making as much sense to them as it did to me.

"Now see, isn't that refreshing? Looking over your shoulder, pointing fingers at one another? That thought that one of you is responsible for so much suffering. Well, it's terrifying, isn't it? When I find out who did it, and trust me, i will, I'll kill you. I'll make you bite the curb and stomp your fucking brains out."

They were silent, staring at me as I stared back, refusing to back down.

"That's right. Don't fear the others in our class. Don't fear the people you work for. Don't even fear God. Fear me. Pray to me that I'll be merciful."

"Where are you going?" Tokoyami asked, his dark shadow looking at me like I was insane.

"I'm going to go find and rescue Bakugou. I've had enough sitting around and waiting on your nation's useless heroes to do something."

Turning on my heel, I opened the door again, leaving them with the knowledge one of them wasn't one of us and a reminder that I was an outsider. I wasn't one of them.

I was vengeance masquerading as a man.