Izuku Midoriya

The bright and warm rays of the sun were a stark contrast to how Midoriya felt as he walked with Clark and Diana to the school. U.A. Hero Academy had a remembrance ceremony for Snipe and all the work he did for both the school and Japan with his work as a pro hero. All the students were lined in groups according to their classes, so class 1-A was all together. Clark, Diana, and Izuku met up with Michael on their way in so they all stood next to each other during the service. There were also a few people from news stations recording the ceremony allowed to be on school premises, though only because of the ceremony.

The service was led by principal Nezu, informing the students about the incident and giving his own thoughts and experiences with the Wild West themed hero before asking the teachers and Alumni of the academy to speak on it. The alumni that came to the podium and gave a few speeches about their time spent with Snipe as his students and helping them with their hero work. Each teacher gave a small statement, or in some cases a speech, about the things they remembered him by, including All Might. All Might even stood at the podium to give his own speech in his current hero costume, cape and all.

"I know this is a hard pill to swallow for most of you young students, that a great hero had succumbed to death at the hands of a villain. I know that a lot of you have questions about what this means for all of us going forward." He began, his usual smile nowhere to be seen on his face. "It is true, that death is a very common thing in this line of work. It is unfortunate and grave, but we must remember that it is not in vain! The hero that died this week decided he wanted to save the people we love every single day despite the incredible risks it would entail. That is the calling of a hero, the same calling all of you have been drawn to. So, let us not dwell on the dark truth that he is no longer with us, but let us celebrate the great things he did while he was with us!"

The smile returned on his face as he placed his hands on his hips, "Let us remember that he went beyond! Plus Ultra!"

The students were told not to let the sad news "deter you towards your journey to becoming great heroes!" by the principal of the school, Nezu. Then, all the students were given leave to go to classes like normal once the ceremony ended. The news stations didn't waste time in rushing towards the teachers, though the focus was namely on All Might. It still was unknown by the general public if he really was a teacher at U.A. Hero Academy at this point, so the Japanese boy was sure that was the reason for that herding. Some journalists eventually turned to students for their takes on the events. Izuku turned to Michael to see what he thought of it but he simply had his hands in his pockets and looking forward as the rest of the group. Making it clear he didn't want to be disturbed, Izuku looked ahead himself to respect his space.

Unfortunately, some reporters and journalists didn't agree as they tried to get in front of the group of students. One man jumped in front of them and placing a microphone in front of both Clark and Michael. The man was tall with hair that was only beginning to turn from brown to grey in some roots of his hair. He had dark circles under his eyes and a suit which was put on very messily.

He spoke in English, which Izuku could luckily piece together and fill in the gaps enough to know what he was saying, "Perry White from the Daily Planet, the American people are dying to know about the few students that made it into the number one hero academy in the top class from our home country! I won't take too much of your time, just a few questions." He gestured to the hallway in front of them, "What are your thoughts on recent events?"

Diana almost recoiled, whispering to the group in Japanese, "This man reeks of tobacco. Can I dispose of him?"

"I'm with her on this." Michael concurred.

"Don't be like that, guys!" The Kansas boy shushed. "In a way, this is something we'll have to deal with as heroes. PR and all."

"I still agree with Diana."

Clark scratched the back of his head with a nervous smile on his face, "It's a terrible tragedy and a void that the whole city will never be able to replace." He said, switching to English for the reporter.

The microphone gestured towards Michael. He simply glared at the man until he continued.

"What about being students to the number one hero in Japan? You must have a few great stories to share!"

The black-haired student nodded, "It's a great honor to be taught by someone with as much experience as he has." Clark raised his hand, "But, we really should be going now-."

The older American turned to Michael, pulling out a yellow envelope from his jacket, "Just one more question! You're from Gotham City, right? Don't answer, I can tell from your demeanor you are."

Michael began marching forward. The rest of the group hesitantly followed.

"Hold on, I haven't-!" Perry was interrupted by Michael.

"You wanted one more question, you asked a question. Then, you answered it yourself. Don't waste our time anymore." He glared back.

Izuku raised a finger in the air timidly, "C-couldn't you be just a b-bit nicer about-?"

The microphone came between him and the blonde, the man's fist coming close enough to graze the Japanese boy's ear. He jumped back reflexively. The reporter paid him little attention. He opened the envelope, pulling out a photo and facing it towards the students and drawing the eyes of others once he continued.

"Hold on, kid! You are the Batman, right?" The photo was blurry but there were two barely distinguishable figures on top of a rooftop. One was floating, with a light grey body with a red spot on the front of their shirt. To Izuku it was clearly one of the U.A. uniforms. The other figure seemed like a black shadow that had risen from the very rooftop. "The people know you're here now, but they deserve to know more about the vigilante who left people broken and bleeding on the streets. Like why you were on the rooftop of Snipe's-!"

He was stopped by a hand being placed on his shoulder. He turned around, meeting All Might's grin with a face of surprise. The number one hero gestured behind him with his thumb towards the exit of the building, "I believe all reporters were to leave the premises as soon as the service was over. You wouldn't be trying to trespass, would you, Mr. White?"

"Not at all, I was just asking one of your students some questions is all!" He turned back to the group with a nervous smile on his face, "Isn't that right…" The rest of the group turned to where Michael was standing, but he seemed to have disappeared without a trace. "Where did he go?"

"You seem confused, Mr. White." The teacher replied, tightening his grip, "To me that sounds like trespassing, but I'm sure you were simply asking for directions for the exit so I may help you from here on out."

"R-right. Thank you, All Might." He replied, visibly defeated. He was promptly escorted out of the building and the other students were finally able to make their way to class.

When they entered the classroom, they all made their ways to their seats. Michael was already in his seat and began a conversation initiated by Clark. Izuku wasn't paying much attention to it, however, as he was getting his things ready for class while his mind was preoccupied with the reporter.

He was stuck on the question the man was about to ask, 'why was Batman on the rooftop of Snipe's crime scene?' But that also meant Clark was the person flying across from him on the rooftop since they were together at the school when they met up with him. So, the question to Midoriya was now why Batman and Clark Kent were on the rooftop. There were multiple reasons why it could be, but only one stood out to Midoriya because of how scary it was to him. Batman made powerful enemies in Gotham and if he crossed the wrong person they might decide to take revenge on him.

That would include people he associates with-!

Izuku was interrupted by a hand slamming down on his desk, the owner of which being the explosive teenager he grew up with.

"Oi, nerd! Quit your mumbling before I make you!" He demanded, taking his assigned seat in front of Midoriya.

"S-sorry, Kacchan." The boy whispered.

He took a deep breath, looking back towards the Americans. Clark seemed to be getting on Michael for leaving us behind with the American reporter. The Gothamite didn't seem to acknowledge the complaint too much, but he did match eyes with Clark at least.

Guess I'll have to ask them about it later. The green-haired boy noted in his head.

Everyone was in the class and seated before the bell rang. Aizawa wiggled his way up to the podium, refusing to remove himself from his yellow sleeping bag. The class had gotten used to this sight in the mornings, the teacher habitually moving out of the sleeping bag only after the lunch break at the earliest. He, like every morning, started off with attendance. Once every student was accounted for, the class began.

Kind of.

Aizawa began wiggling towards the corner of the room, speaking as he grunted along the floor, "Today is the day to choose the representatives of class 1-A. Final decisions will be made before the lunch period, otherwise you all get to decide however you wish to." Once he was leaning against the corner completely, his eyes closed, and he presumably went to sleep.

There was silence in the room as almost everyone exchanged glances at the loose orders from the teacher. That was until Bakugou stood up on his chair, pointing to himself with his thumb.

"I'm class president! Anyone who disagrees can die!"

There was an eruption of contention throughout the classroom. It didn't last too long as the class gradually began challenging his declaration. It lasted until Clark raised his hand with his own suggestion.

"In America, we usually vote for our President of the country. Wouldn't it be best to leave it to democracy?"

Michael crossed his arms to lean on his desk before adding, "Though, they usually have a campaign to help convince others to vote for them." He glared out to the classroom, "Considering we've only known each other for a little less than half a month, people are more apt to vote for themselves or their friends without it."

Tenya perked up, raising his hand in the air as he stood, "We also don't have time for everyone to go so perhaps everyone who wants to be the representatives should make an argument to everyone to vote for them or whoever they think would make a good representative." He turned to Bakugou, "I'm sure this would satisfy you, right, Bakugou?"

The blonde clicked the roof of his mouth before marching towards the podium, "Fine, but I'm going first!"

No one argued, letting him march up to the podium. He began as soon as he reached the front of the class, sneering at the class.

"You better vote for me, or else," He made a gesture of slitting his throat with his thumb, "I'LL KILL YOU!"

He gained small obligatory applause from a few people, which caused him to sneer more as he stormed off-stage. Some eyes followed him to his seat, but things proceeded without much trouble. Aoyama stepped up, next. He turned to the class with a smile on his face and his hands gesturing toward his face by boxing it above and below his head.

"Excusez-moi, I believe the person that should lead should shine!" He declared, some glitter falling from the raised hand. He took his seat promptly and received even less applause than Bakugou. He didn't seem so fazed by it compared to the angrier blonde, however.

The next person to stand up was Tenya, who marched to the podium with almost robotic movement. When he reached the podium, he adjusted his glasses and cleared his throat.

"Get on with it, shitty glasses!" Bakugou groaned.

Tenya turned to him, gesturing with his karate-chop-esque gesture which had turned into something of an icon for him. "We allowed you to speak with respect! You should respect others to a similar degree!"

The blonde chuckled, crossing his arms and placing his feet on his desk. Tenya ignored it, unlike how he confronted Bakugou on the first day of school when he did the same thing. The blue-haired boy stood tall and with a stern face.

"I believe that we all should hold ourselves to a great standard as the highest regarded of our graduating class, and I believe we can all achieve this together. However, it takes a dedicated leader to guide others towards that standard. I believe we should take that into great consideration when we decide who we vote for as the person to represent us all as a class!" He bowed to the class, "Thank you for your time and I wish everyone else luck in getting their votes."

He got a more reasonable applause as he was the first of them to make a legitimate argument, even if it wasn't a direct advocacy for himself. In Midoriya's honest opinion, he kind of wanted to pick Tenya.

Sure, it would be in my own interest to try to be Class President if I'm trying to be the number one hero like All Might. But, he began to think back to his life. Izuku had never been the center of attention and had no experience being a leader in any sense. Someone like Tenya or Kent would be more suited to be a leader.

The next person that decided to walk to the plate was Tsuyu, which seemed odd to Izuku since she didn't seem like the type of person that might want to lead. However, the boy also gathered that she was really observant from the small conversations he's had and overheard with her. He was sure Tsuyu could do a very good job in all the responsibilities of a Class President if she earned the title.

She reached the podium, no change in her demeanor being evident. "I believe Michael Lane should be Class President."

Students began exchanging glances with murmurs and whispers filling the room between them. This didn't deter Tsuyu.

"Lane showed us his ability to strategize when he fought against Kent in the combat training, who I recall beat the Entrance Practical Exam record previously held by All Might. Even if he didn't defeat Kent per say, his strategy secured his team the victory."

Hagakure popped up, raising her hand in the air, "Kent even has super vision! Lane told me after the combat training that he figured out Kent could see through walls. He even saw me through my quirk!"

Kaminari scratched his head, turning to Clark, "Wait, does that mean you saw her nak-?"

He was interrupted by a book slamming against the side of his face thrown by the invisible girl who shouted, "Don't say it!"

This was new information to Izuku. The American told him what the title of his quirk was, but he had never heard of an enhanced body being capable of doing anything close to the extent of x-ray vision! Being able to see Hakagure, too, meant that he must logically be able to see things at a wider light wavelength than most people. It almost seemed like the range of his abilities were inhuman. A notion Izuku pushed to the side as it sounded ridiculous even in his head.

After all, that would mean he was something like a monster or an alien. He doesn't look anything like that, though. Even if anything like Martians existed, they were little green men, not human-like with the ability to fly! He reasoned with himself before turning back to Tsuyu who began to continue her reasoning.

"Besides that, he already has experience as a hero from Gotham City. If anyone should represent us as we become Pro Heroes, it makes sense it for it be someone with experience in it if that opportunity arises."

Everyone looked towards the American, seemingly convinced by that argument. Michael just seemed annoyed at that point, his arms still crossed and his glare directed at Tsuyu. There was a pause before he broke the silence.

"Don't vote for me." He commanded, sternly.

There was more contention in the class. Clark smiled towards him in an attempt to reason with him, "C'mon, Lane, you can't not admit they have a point." He nudged the blonde who didn't seem to budge, "You could at least aim for Vice President. We could use your strategies!"

The boy looked to the Kansas boy, "I'm a vigilante from Gotham City who 'left criminals broken and bleeding on the streets.' I don't think that's the kind of representation you want."

The class' mood soured and Clark didn't pursue further when he turned away. Clark seemed annoyed more than anything. He took a deep breath before he composed himself and that was left where it was.

"If that's the case," the pinkette of the class spoke up, standing from her seat and raising one hand and beckoning to Izuku with the other, "I'm voting for Midori!"

Izuku recoiled, pointing to himself, "W-w-wait, m-me! Why m-m-me?"

"You weren't half bad at the combat training yourself! Besides," she flexed her arm and placed a hand over her bicep, "it felt like you were going all-out like a real Pro Hero! You got everyone watching pumped up for their fights!"

"N-no, I mean, I d-didn't mean to stand out so m-m-much. Everyone else d-did well, too!"

Kirishima began shouting from across the room, "But you were manly as hell, Midoriya! The way you pushed yourself to the limits made me want to push myself even harder!"

The green-haired boy tried to downplay himself, but no one was listening. His place wasn't as their representative at the moment, he simply wasn't ready. He looked to some of his friends for support, but they weren't giving the support he wanted; Clark and Diana both gave him a thumb up when he really wanted a thumb down. Of course, Diana wouldn't stand between him and that position, she always took things in stride. Then there's Clark, who seemed invulnerable and impossibly strong. He wouldn't have any reason to be afraid of this position.

That's when it clicked for the green-haired boy. He stood, catching the attention of everyone, "W-w-well, I'm voting for K-Kent!" Everyone turned to the American while the Japanese boy spoke, "Tsuyu said it herself, he b-beat All Might's record in the entrance exams and s-seeing him fight firsthand, I can say t-that he's the most natural choice for the number one hero in the future…"

He trailed off as he said it. It was almost like admitting defeat from Kent. He looked back to the American, whose hands were raised defensively as he tried to downplay what Midoriya said just like Midoriya had tried to do. The abilities he had were just on another level compared to even All Might at times; even he wouldn't be able to carry the robot trap at the Entrance Exams at his peak in the same way Kent had, with what seemed like very little effort. In a world of heroes, the American meets the marks of what would be considered a superhero.

Wait, he's American! Midoriya perked up, observing the class as they had their discussions. Lane said he was going to go back to Gotham after getting his Pro Hero License, which means Kent is probably going to go back to America, too. This revelation that he would still be able to become the number one hero of Japan's ranking system was a large breath of relief. However, standing out among them now was important towards that goal still. That meant he would have to make larger strides than he was before to meet this higher bar being set by Kent.

He looked to Lane, who was observing the class discussions on the sideline, Lane also sets the bar higher. It's not every day an urban myth enrolls in a school and the Batman is a popular urban myth among Pro Hero message boards. Just like how the American reporter was only truly interested in Batman, others will be, too. Whatever his quirk is, I have to stand out above it in order to have a chance at being the next Symbol of Peace.

He was brought out of his thoughts when Yaoyorozu clapped her hands with a nod, "I do believe we only have fifteen minutes until lunch, so we should start casting our votes!" She turned away from the class, lifting her shirt and using her quirk before turning around, shirt down, with a ballot box in hand. "Write who you're voting for on a piece of paper and after everyone votes the results of the polling will be written on the board."

The ballot box was placed at the front of the class on the podium and everyone took two minutes to get their votes in. Midoriya, though reluctant, cast his vote for Clark and took his seat. It didn't take long for Yaoyorozu to write down the results on the chalkboard.

Clark Kent had gotten first place, earning him the title of Class Representative. Surprisingly, second place went to Michael Lane, despite his wishes not to be voted on, earning him the place of Deputy Representative. The next three honorary mentions were Izuku himself, Yaoyorozu and Diana.

Without anyone calling out contentions with the results, with the exception of Bakugou who clicked the roof of his mouth, the lunch bell rang, and the class made their way to the cafeteria.

Joker

The news coverage of the school's ceremony gave Shigaraki, the leader of the seemingly small group of villains, the answer he was looking for. All Might, 'Japan's Symbol of Peace' was a teacher at U.A. Hero Academy. This would become the beginning of the foundation of their plan against the heroes, starting with All Might.

"See, Shallow-taki! The killing of that rootin' tootin' cowboy was just what you needed to start piecing together how to get at those heroes." The clown leaned forward from the tending side of the bar, getting right in the face of the boy with the dried skin, "Aren't you glad you didn't kill me now?"

He took hold of the glass in front of him, turning the glass to ash, "I still want to fucking kill you. There isn't much of a point to keeping a shitty quirkless pawn when I can find champions with better buffs!"

Lex Luthor set his own glass on the counter of the bar, smirking at the older villain, "Come now, Shigaraki. You can't exactly say that his efforts were useless anymore. He gave us valuable information about All Might and one of the students at the academy."

"What the fuck do I care about a student? All Might is the only one that matters, Luthor."

Joker clicked his tongue as he swayed a pointer finger to either side like a metronome, "Don't forget about the flying rodent, Shigaraki. He's important, too."

"The Bat Man?" The boy growled, "Why should I be concerned about him?"

A newspaper from a Japanese branch of the Daily Planet slid down the countertop in front of the two criminals. On the front page was a picture of a shadowy figure under the title, "BAT MAN IN JAPAN: HAS HE BROUGHT GOTHAM WITH HIM?"

Luthor responded, "Because it's confirmed he's here. If even half of what I've heard from Gotham is true about him, he's got potential to be an equal threat compared to All Might. At the very least, he's comparable."

"And you're trusting the clown with that responsibility?" He thumbed to Joker.

The clown placed his elbows on the countertop, smirking at Shigaraki, "C'mon, Carmex," the jab earned the paler man a sneer, "Just give me a chance! I'm full of surprises." The last sentence rolled into a chuckle.

"Actually, I'm somewhat interested to know how you're going to handle him, too." The rich boy inquired, "Shigaraki has enough networking and a few aces up his sleeve to warrant taking on All Might. Let's be forthright here, you're just some guy from Gotham. That's not enough to warrant taking on the Bat."

"Hm…" the Gothamite hummed, placing a finger on his chin. "I suppose that would depend on what our fearless leader decides to do." He turned to Shigaraki, "So, All Might is a teacher. How are you thinking on using that?"

"There isn't much of a strategy involved there with just that." He reached for his neck, beginning to scratch at his five o'clock shadow. "I need to know what the teachers' schedules look like."

"Is that so? If that's all you need, I can-."

"No, you won't!" Shigaraki grabbed the Gothamite by the collar of his leather jacket. "I don't need another unforeseen fucking setback because of you! You'll sit the fuck back until I decide to sacrafice you as the shitty pawn you are!" The teal-haired boy shoved the clown back, making him slam against the glasses and liquor behind him. He fell down against the glass with a chuckle as his rear-end landed, "Even if that means I decide not to use you in the first place, quirkless."

Joker looked back up to the Japanese villain's red eyes, looking down on him. Nothing had changed from when he was in Gotham. He was just the quirkless one. Not the one who killed an entire mob singlehandedly. Not the one who killed Snipe in his own home with a chemical he created!

"Just a quirkless loser, right? Heheheh…" He began to chuckle again, gripping the shelf behind him to pull himself back on his feet as his chuckle began to rise into sheer laughter. He began to limp towards the exit of the bar, "Well, if my services aren't required, I think it's about time I find my way around this town! Maybe I can find something fun to do in the meantime."

As he made his way to the stairs, Luthor simply watched without saying a word and without even looking at him. He placed his hand on the rail nailed to the wall. The blood from the glass in his arm making its way on the metal. The only mark he could make that would be visible to them.

He made his way out the door and into the alleyway where he embarked to find a way to blow off some steam.

Clark Kent

The disguised billionaire was the last to sit down with quite a large amount of food on his plate. It was easily triple of what Tenya was eating and had a bit more meat on it even after that. It was only a little less than double of what the Kryptonian was used to in America, but compared to the typical Japanese lunch, it was a mountain. The rest among them were Uraraka, Diana, and Midoriya with their own humble trays of food.

Uraraka laughed nervously, aweing at both American's plates, "Looks like it's true that Americans eat a lot, huh?"

"I don't know," Clark began, smiling towards the other American, "I feel like Lane is a bit of an outlier here."

The boy shrugged, taking hold of a piece of beef with his chopsticks, "It just so happens that lunch is on schedule with my regiment. So, I plan on taking advantage of that as much as possible."

"I understand wanting to keep to a regiment. Even I maintain a regiment," Tenya chimed in, his stern face unchanging, "However, this amount seems absurd even for an American diet."

"It works for my goals." Michael explained, taking a bite of another slice of meat before taking hold of a chunk of rice, "I've been using a regiment that rises in mass gradually, so by the time my body has fully developed my body can be at its greatest potential peak."

"You've thought about it that far?" Midoriya jumped in, eyes sparkling with his usual curiosity. "How could you know when to increase the amount of food to intake on top of which foods need to be added? That would also mean you would need to increase the amount of exercise you would need to do in order to maintain the same calorie intake." He placed his fingers on his chin, "But then the type of exercise would also need to be considered. In order to continue to be able to fight with the same amount of agility you seem to possess would also mean you would need to make sure your muscles didn't get too out of hand, which would limit the kinds of exercises you could do…"

He continued to ramble on, causing the others at the table to exchange glances and nervous smiles. Lane leaned forward, knocking on the table in front of him and bringing him back to this dimension. He apologized but the blonde simply returned to his meal.

"You're pretty observant, Midoriya." Uraraka pointed out, "I guess that's why so many people voted for you earlier."

"Speaking of," Clark began, turning to Lane, "I thought you said you didn't want to be a representative."

"I don't care either way," Bruce explained, taking hold of another bite with his utensils, "I just thought someone else deserved the spotlight more than me." He pointed to Midoriya after taking the bite, "Since you were the next runner up, Midoriya, I wouldn't mind giving it up to you if you wanted it."

"M-m-me?" He recoiled with one of his bowls in hand and the chopsticks in the other, "Why are you insisting on me?"

"I voted for you, after all."

Tenya looked towards the green-haired boy, "Lane's assessment wouldn't be wrong. Even I considered voting for you rather than myself."

Uraraka raised an eyebrow, "You didn't vote for yourself? I felt like you would have been a really good pick, Tenya."

He shook his head, "I felt like it wouldn't be right to vote for myself and that my own speech would be enough to convince everyone to vote for me."

Clark nodded, "Ah, I get it now!" He beamed before taking a bite of fried chicken that was marinating in sauce, "You were thinking that if you were able to remind them about the important marks of a leader, they would see that you have their best interests in mind."

"Precisely." He sighed, taking a bowl from his plate and taking a piece of fish from atop the rice underneath, "However, it looks like you and Lane were chosen to be our leaders. I have faith you two have what it takes to lead the class with all those things in mind as well."

"I concur!" Diana announced with a smile and nodding to the Americans, "You two seem to boast the confidence of individuals who can lead. Though, I can't help but be envious that I could not be the one to lead in battle."

"I'm sure you'll get that chance, Diana." Clark laughed a little, "I, for one, don't have very much experience leading people so I'm not so sure how I'm gonna do." He turned to the billionaire, "What about you, Lane?"

"I have some experience."

"What was it you led? If you don't mind me asking." Tenya asked.

His face turned to his food, the expression on his face growing grim. "I do mind." He took another bite of food.

Tenya nodded, "No worries. You have no need to explain yourself if you don't want to. No matter how grave your experiences in Gotham City."

The fake blonde frowned, looking back up at Tenya slowly. "What… are you talking about?"

Tenya stared back at him. Then he quickly stood up and bowed hard enough Clark was sure he wasn't going to be able to stop himself and break the table in two! It was then that the Kryptonian made the connection, Tenya thought he got his scars on his back from Gotham and that he was talking about what happened in the locker room the first day of school. His past which was 'better if you don't know.'

"I apologize for making assumptions of you and your experiences!" He shouted mid-postulation. "As someone striving to be your friend, I shouldn't assume anything of you nor the place you call home!"

There was a small awkward pause before Bruce picked up his plate and stood. "Sure." Was all he said before turning away and dumping the rest of his food away.

Clark turned back to Tenya, who simply slumped in his seat. The Kryptonian turned to Diana. She scratched the back of her head.

"I suppose that is my fault to bear. I should apologize, too."

Clark shook his head, standing up himself, "I'll talk to him. I am going to be working with him from now on, after all."

The rest nodded and returned to their meals. Clark walked out of the cafeteria, using his x-ray vision to track down where Bruce went. He found him marching up the closest staircase and heading towards a vending machine on the second floor. Clark followed, turning off his x-ray vision. Once he got to the middle platform of the staircase, he heard an object flying in the air towards him.

He brought his left hand up, catching the item and looking up at the disguised perpetrator of the projectile. In the Kryptonian's hand was a can of orange juice.

"For going to the trouble of following me." Bruce explained in English.

"You wanted me to follow?" Clark responded, conforming to the other American's language.

"No, I actually wanted some alone time."

There was a pause before Clark responded, "Try not to get mad at them. It's not as if they know any better."

"I'm not mad."

"Then why-?"

"I needed some space to clear my head. My experiences from then aren't exactly what I'd call good memories." He shoved his hands in his pockets, making his way down towards Clark. He walked past him, moving to prop himself against the wall. "You can tell Tenya it wasn't anything against him. It's just with that part of my past, then mentioning Gotham…"

"It reminded you of them. Your parents, I mean."

Bruce smirked, letting himself slide down on his rear end. "You looked me up, huh?"

"It's the second thing to pop up in search results after your reappearance in Gotham."

"I suppose it is."

Clark weighed what to say in his mind for a second. He could only think to share his own past with him, though. After a few seconds of weighing it in his mind, he reasoned that he would just find out eventually anyways if his previous deductive abilities were anything to go by. Besides, he couldn't just let Bruce continue to feel as defeated as he did. Not if he wanted to call himself a good friend!

Though, given his deductive nature, he still decided a bit of caution was necessary talking about himself.

"You know, I'm the last of my kind." He finally said to break the silence. He moved to the wall next to the billionaire, sitting next to him and opening the orange juice can. "I only met my father and my mother recently through some recordings they left behind when I was a baby." He took a sip of the orange juice before continuing, "I don't have as much of a connection to my birth parents as you did with your parents, but I kind of know how lonely it can be sometimes. I'm still just trying to figure out what I am."

"Looks like you're a step behind me in that regard, at least."

Clark chuckled with a nod, "I suppose I am."

"Just make sure when you figure that out you know that you should have the choice to choose what that is."

"You're almost talking as if you don't."

"Didn't." He corrected, "My path was decided long ago."

Clark frowned, turning to the billionaire, "You still have a choice, Bruce." The alien gestured to the building in front of them both, "That's why we're here, to make ourselves what we want out of ourselves. To make that decision."

"If only it was that simple." Bruce replied, pulling a smooth, round and bronze locket out of his pocket. At least, that's what it was underneath the black and multicolored stains which were clearly made by a fire. When he opened the locket, both his parents' photos were inside with the sides of the paper of their photographs charred. "You don't live the life I've led since their deaths and have the same kinds of opportunities as everyone else."

"This about what happened when you were away from Gotham?"

The billionaire didn't respond, but his silence said enough.

Clark's tongue was dry, but he proceeded, "What's so bad about your past that you can't tell anyone? Aside from your quirk."

He sat in silence for another few moments, but he sighed before closing the locket. "I can't tell them much of anything, not in good conscience." He halfway turned to Clark, "I'm only willing to tell you because of your set of abilities, but your guardians in Kansas are also potential targets to them. So even for you I can't say much in order to protect them. I was a part of a group, whose goal was hidden from me until it was almost too late."

Clark glanced up to Bruce, an eyebrow raised, "And that goal is?"

"The destruction and death of what they deem as corrupt civilization, like Gotham. They're willing to go to any extent to achieve that goal." Bruce frowned, looking towards the ground, "They almost did achieve that goal, too."

"How close were they?"

"Let's just say that had they not been stopped, at the same time I returned to Gotham it would have been burnt to the ground."

Joker

He was strolling down the alleys without any direction. What direction was there to go, anyhow? He wasn't given any orders by the dearest leader, so there wasn't anything he could do! The brat could do anything he wanted just because he had the permission of the anonymous big boss. That was the funniest part of all.

"So funny that I could DIE!" He kicked a loose can, launching it forward and towards the street. He didn't notice, however, the can almost hitting two people in front of him.

One was a man with a blade replacing both of his thumbs and a woman who was already cut and being held against the wall. The woman didn't have any visible quirk, just bland with brown hair and bright green eyes. The man swiped the can from the air, but accidentally caught it with the thumb-blade. He groaned, throwing the woman to the ground and yelling at her to stay where she was.

Joker looked to the girl as the man marched towards the clown. "Oh, I know how it feels to be the one without power."

She looked towards him, "A-are you a hero? P-please…"

The man looked back, "I said shuddup you dumb bitch! I'mma get to ya in a sec an' finish ya!" He began turning back to the quirkless clown, "As fer you, ya Pro Hero wannabe-!"

The man was struck in the face, blood immediately drawing from his nose. Partially because of the punch itself but also because a piece of glass dislodged from Joker's fist and was transferred to the tip of his nose. He stumbled back, recoiling from the strike and almost losing his balance. So, Joker took that opportunity to lunge forward and throw his foot forward, striking the man in the groin. He was sent to his knees.

"One thing I've learned in my time being quirkless, is that sometimes you need to grab that power! Hehe!" The girl smiled up at him, his smile beaming back towards her. "Especially," He struck the man's face again. Again. Then, again! "When that means…" The man fell to the ground, his head smashing a bottle that was beneath his head. Joker adapted, turning his punches into kicks. "Taking that power FROM SOMEONE ELSE!"

One kick turned into a stomp, which pushed the shard of glass into the back of the man's head! The stomps continued and with each stomp, the woman's smiled quickly turned into a face of horror. She was stuck in place, placed in further shock as the grey organ from her assailant's skull began speckling on the ground on top of the crimson puddle. Joker stopped striking the man, the smile still on his face as he glared towards the girl. She only snapped out of the shock once he began chuckling.

"It's the perfect irony for people like this, don't you think?"

She began shaking her head, trying to stand to run away but couldn't muster the strength. Her compromise was to crawl away, something Joker could only laugh at.

"You know, I was like you until a few weeks ago." He began striding towards her, leaning down and taking hold of one of her ankles, "Always trying to run away from my problems! Hoping the big heroes would save the day and make things right again." He began dragging her back into the alley, pulling her through the blood of the person that would have made her a pool of blood not one minute ago. "But just like you, no heroes came and I realized the truth behind them all. Behind every person, in fact!"

She tried kicking her feet, but it only made his grip on her tighter, "P-please! I-I-I don't want to die!"

When they were finally deeper down the alleyway, back far enough that the people on the street wouldn't hear or see anything, he let go of her legs and moved toward her head, grabbing her hair and reaching into his pocket. He shushed her as he showed her his own knife.

"What I found was that behind every person is a villain. The only question left to answer is how much it takes to turn them into one and how good they are at it!" Joker placed the blade on the ground in front of her, gripping at her hair tighter, "So, how long will it be before you become the blight against humanity you were meant to be? How bad will you be?"

The woman only stared at the knife, tears still streaming down her face. She tried shaking her head, but struggled due to the fingers entangling her hair and taking control over her head. He was about to apply more pressure, but was interrupted by a dumpster sounding behind him. He jolted up, pulling Snipe's signature pistol from his belt and pointing it towards a man with a plague doctor mask and in a ragged, patchy suit being held together with stitches and rope tied in knots occasionally.

Joker laughed a little, "Who the hell are you supposed to be?"

The man spoke in English, but was muffled by the plague doctor mask, "A friend who can appreciate your talent for creating fear." He turned to the girl, slumping towards her and spraying a gas towards her once he was close. She began coughing roughly and continued to even after the gas dissipated. "You want power so you can create the same fear you've felt your whole life, yes?"

The woman finally looked up at the man in the mask, finished with her coughing fit. What was shocked horror quickly turned to screaming and panic!

"MONSTER! YOU'RE BOTH MONSTERS! GET AWAY FROM ME! GET AWAY!" She screeched.

The man in the mask rose from his crouch, turning back to Joker. "Such a beautiful sight, is it not?"

The clown giggled a bit before responding, "That's a nice trick, for sure!" He stopped smiling, pointing the gun at the man again, "But, you ruined my punchline."

"Fair enough." The man bowed like an actor on a stage, "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Jonathan Crane; Scarecrow! You may have heard of me."

"Ah, a fellow Gothamite!" Joker chimed, smiling towards him.

Then he pulled the hammer of the pistol back, preparing to fire it further, "I don't particularly like people from back home."

"Ah, but I like you." Scarecrow rose back up, turning back to the screaming woman with his hands behind his back, "My associates want to help your organization's cause a little bit. I advocated you as the middleman."

"Man, you are really bad at negotiating!" Joker chuckled, stepping forward and pressing the gun against his head, "Didn't you hear the news? Apparently, I'm just a quirkless pawn to that BRAT! Now that's two strikes on you. One more," the clown leaned forward, whispering to the doctor, "And you're out!"

"I think they would be satisfied with your own goals in this game, too. So, how about a trial with you as a lone entrepreneur?" He brought out a stapled stack of paper, showing only the blank side to the clown, "The brat needed information regarding the school's schedule, right? I got this from Snipe's apartment before police arrived, so you can easily play it off like you already had it. On top of that, I can give you some funds you can do whatever you like with."

"And what do I have to do with those funds, exactly?"

"As I said, whatever you wish. So long as you are able to prove your destructive capabilities, I'm sure the League would have no problem allowing you to pursue your goals as a separate entity. Do well, and I shall vouch for you." Scarecrow leaned forward, hints of a grin visible through the fabric of the mask, "Then, you and I shall be that much close to killing the Bat Man and showing him what true fear looks like!"

The grin returned to Joker's face, wide enough for the scars on his cheeks to sorely separate once again. He pulled the gun away and pointing it away from the fellow Gothamite with a giggle. He was about to respond before he was interrupted by the panicking woman throwing a brick at the two criminals' feet. Joker promptly aimed the revolver at the girl, pulling a trigger and sending a bullet through her heart. His grin never left his face and the ideas brewing through his head were somewhat overwhelming!

He turned back to Scarecrow, "I think it's time we showed this town what a real villain looks like! HehEHAHAHA!"