"Good work with yesterday's battle training," Aizawa spoke to the class as he flicked through a stack of papers as he stood at the podium. His face was disinterested as usual, though Katsumi didn't care about that, too focused on getting a good look at his hands from the back of the class. "I've looked over your grades and evaluations." He looked up, "Bakugou, grow up already. You're wasting your talent."
"...Got it."
Katsumi's eyes drifting to the blonde at the front of the class. He sat hunched over at the desk, the guy's ego was really bruised after yesterday.
"And it seems Midoriya ended yet another day with a broken arm." Izuku jumped a little at the mention of his name, Katsumi had to stifle a laugh. "Learn to control your quirk… just trying isn't going to cut it. I hate repeating myself. But you do have potential, assuming you can overcome this. Work at it."
"Yes sir!"
"Lastly Yagi," It was her turn to be surprised, eyes snapping back to Aizawa as he looked at her. "He might be your father but treat All Might as a teacher while you're in school. And don't throw tantrums."
"Huh?" Katsumi's mouth flew open, "Tantrums? Seriously?"
Izuku turned his head to shoot a confused look at her. Her face got warm. Of course, he had no idea just how upset she had gotten yesterday.
"Don't answer back," Aizawa shook his head. "Even Bakugou here respects his teachers."
Katsumi wanted to strange that stupid, beautiful man. Instead, she took in a deep breath and smiled, "Yes sir."
"Now, onto homeroom business, apologies for the sudden announcement but today…"
The mood of the class obviously shifted, the students straightening up in preparation for the next challenge they would face.
"You'll pick a class president."
How boring. Katsumi breathed out, leaning her chest onto her desk. Who would want to do that? Well to her surprise, everyone. Pretty much every student raised their hand, more than a few shouting out to be picked. Izuku had his hand raised as well as Bakugou, that was a surprise. She glanced to the side and to no surprise, Momo had her hand raised too.
"Quiet down everyone!" One boy's voice rose out of the crowd, Katsumi almost groaned as she saw who it was. "Leading the many is a task of heavy responsibility and ambition does not equate to ability." Iida asserted as he stood from his desk, "The sacred office demands the trust of its constituents. If this is to be a real democracy, then I put forward the motion that our true leader must be chosen by election."
The way he talked reminded her of her mum, how gross.
"It's pretty obvious you want us to vote for you," Kaminari said, clearly a little put-off.
"Is this really the best idea?" Tsu questioned him in the flat tone she always seemed to use, "We've only known each other a few days, how do we know who we can trust?"
"Besides," Kirishima butted in, "everyone will just vote for themselves."
"Oh who cares who it is," Katsumi groaned into the desk. "Why would you want more work?"
Iida tutted, turning to her, "Have some ambition Yagi-"
"Katsumi." She looked up to give him a dark look.
"Ah- Katsumi." He coughed, "As for people voting for themselves, most people will. But that means whoever does receive multiple votes must truly be the most suitable person for the job. It's the best way, right, sir?" Iida looked to the front of the class for the teacher's approval.
"Do what you want," he sighed as he began to step into a yellow sleeping bag, "just decide before my nap's over."
"Thank you for your trust!"
Katsumi thought about it as Iida handed out slips of paper. She wasn't going to vote for herself, that was for sure. Izuku seemed to want to do it, should she vote for him? Iida honestly seemed like a good pick, but she was still salty about him constantly getting on her ass and telling her off. She looked to her right, the choice was obvious.
"I got three votes?" Izuku gasped.
"Okay, you idiots," Bakugou raised up off his seat as he yelled, "Who voted for him?
"Why would anyone vote for you?" Katsumi snickered.
"What did you just say?!" He turned around, brow furrowed further down than Katsumi thought was possible. "Of course, you'd vote for him!"
"And what does that mean?" Katsumi cocked her head, scowling right back at him, "You still tryna spread lies about me?! How childish."
"Childish? Ain't you the one throwing tantrums in class?"
"You're the one pissing yourself 'cuz no one voted for you." Katsumi's face relaxed slightly as she snickered, "No one wants a walking bang snap ordering them around."
"Oh yeah," He gripped onto the back of the seat as he shouted back, "so you'd prefer that whiny little nerd?"
"I didn't even vote for him!" Katsumi grinned as she laughed at the absurd boy.
"Be quiet already," Aizawa snapped, shaking his head. "The class reps will be Midoriya and Yayorozu, seeing as they drew they'll do rock paper scissors for the role. The loser will be deputy."
"It's always so crowded in here!"
"That's because students in the support, management, and hero courses all share the same cafeteria."
"Wow, how interesting."
After congratulating Momo on getting deputy (though she really should have been class president) Katsumi decided to go with Izuku for lunch. Dad's words last night about befriending Izuku's friends had stuck with her. She might as well, if not to expand her circle then to keep an eye on the cute short brunette he had befriended. It didn't seem to be working out so well though.
"I was simply providing context. Must you be so antagonistic?" Iida responded, his frustration obvious as he held his hands out in front of him.
This Iida guy was annoying the hell out of her, but at least he was funny to wind up.
"This rice is delicious!" Uraraka's bright voice cheered, Katsumi immediately put down the bowl of rice she was about to eat. There was nothing entertaining about her.
"Guys," Izuku said in a wistful manner that made Katsumi want to giggle, "I'm kinda worried about the class rep thing, I don't think I'm qualified."
"Yeah you're not," Katsumi said as she went to take a bite of fish.
"Ah!" Izuku turned to her, eyes wide. Iida snapped to look at her, mouth opening to respond.
"I'm kidding," Katsumi laughed, quickly shooting Iida a glare before he could tell her off. "You should relax, it can't be that hard. Seriously, what qualifications do you even need?" She really didn't understand why they were taking it so seriously.
"Courage and quick thinking under stress!" Iida answered, despite Katsumi very obviously not asking him. "That is what makes him a worthy leader." Iida turned his attention to Izuku, "Not to mention the strength you've demonstrated. Those are the reasons I voted for you, at least."
Katsumi nodded her head at the blue-haired boy, a mock impressed expression on her face, "That's so sweet of you four-eyes."
"You voted for me?" Izuku blinked.
"Didn't you wanna be rep really badly," Uraraka asked the boy besides her cheerfully, "I mean you do look the part. 'Cause of the glasses!"
This girl was so unfunny, Katsumi could almost feel the irritation rising up her torso.
"Wanting a job and being suited to it are quite different things. Observing the Iida family's hero agency has taught me that much."
"Agency?" If Izuku was a dog his ears would have perked up at the word.
"Hold on, what does your family do?" Turning to look at him, rice bowl still in hand, Uraraka asked.
"Uh‐ Oh, it's nothing."
"Oh it's nothing," Katsumi said mockingly, pretending to adjust a pair of glasses mysteriously.
Iida just shook his head, "Must you mock everything I say?"
"Do you have to critique everything I do?" She shot back, leaning towards him.
"Y'know, I've been wondering something about you." Uraraka interrupted quickly, "Admit it, Iida. You're filthy rich!"
"Well-" Iida coughed, "I was afraid people would treat me differently if they knew about my family." He paused for a moment before looking across to Katsumi, "I'm sure you can relate to that Yag- I mean Katsumi."
Katsumi shrugged as she shoved a large bite of fish into her mouth.
"You see, the Iidas have been pro-heroes for generations. It runs in our blood.
Katsumi covered her mouth as she spoke, "Is that a metaphor?"
"Yes." Iida indeed sharply, Katsumi snickered.
"That's awesome Iida!"
Iida scratched his chin before committing, "Are the three of you familiar with the Turbo Hero, Ingenium?"
"I know all about him!" Izuku physically lifted off his seat as his face lit up, "He's a super-popular pro with 65 sidekicks working alongside him at his Tokyo agency!"
Katsumi smirked as she watched him, eyes gleaming with excitement. He was so cute.
"He's my elder brother!" Iida said proudly.
Uraraka gasped, "Your family's famous!" Katsumi's smile dropped, how was it that the mere sound of this girl's voice annoyed her? It must be a secondary quirk of hers.
"Ingenium is an unmatched commander who honours the hero code. As the second oldest Iida son, I strive to be just like him. However, I think it might be a bit soon for me to be in a real leadership role. You, for example." He nodded to Izuku, "Midoriya, you figured out what the judges were looking for in the practical exam. A rep needs that sort of insight."
"I dunno," Katsumi began to respond, not bothering to look up from the dish she was eating. "You're pretty bossy and nosey, you seem perfect for a leader." Iida blinked, mouth opening slightly at Katsumi's words, trying to decipher if they were positive or negative.
"Though I admit Izuku'll be easy to ignore so I'm quite happy with the results."
"You're so mean." Izuku sighed, Katsumi bit down a laugh and patted him on the shoulder.
"Oh Katsumi," At the sound of Uraraka's voice her face immediately fell. "Who did you vote for?"
"Momo," Katsumi replied, not even glancing at her.
"Ah, yeah that makes sense," Uraraka nodded. She wanted to say more but she was beginning to get a feeling that Katsumi didn't want to talk to her.
Izuku took in a deep breath before looking to Iida, "Hey, yeah, so about that practical exam-"
BEEEEEEEEP
"What is that?"
"Warning. Level Three security breach." A robotic voice came over the speakers, "All students please evacuate the building in an orderly fashion."
Students immediately rose from their seats, moving toward the exits while panicked voices echoed around the room. The student's voices drowned out into a background drone by the sound of the blaring alarm. Katsumi felt her chest tighten, anxiety pressing down on her like a weight.
"What's a Level Three security breach?" Iida shouted out to a nearby student.
"It means that someone's managed to get past the school's barriers!" he replied, his face stricken with fear. "This hasn't happened in my three years here!"
…
…
…
Shit.
Did he lie to her? What the hell was going on? Someone had entered the school? Katsumi instinctively rose from her seat along with the others, pushing through the surge of students scrambling to get out of the room. Her heart pounded as they were swept up in the crowd.
The frantic shouts and cries of the students were a muffled backdrop to Katsumi's racing thoughts. Someone had breached the school. Didn't they have security in place to stop this? She vaguely remembered her dad telling her about the school's security being incredibly tight. And that guy had said that nothing like this had ever happened here in their school years- well until now. Now that All Might was working here. Damn it, why had she ignored that strange feeling she had gotten outside the school gate? She'd known something felt off. But why lie to her? What was he planning? No- maybe it wasn't him. Oh, be real. Of course, it was.
"Katsumi? Are you good?" The feeling of someone grabbing her arm broke her out of her deafening thoughts. Her head snapped towards Izuku, who looked at her with wide, worried eyes. She could feel how wide her own eyes were opened, having to blink to get rid of the dryness.
"Crap!" Izuku gasped, "I can't stop!" Izuku shouted as he was pushed further into the crowd, Katsumi was jerked forward with him, his hand still holding her arm.
"Deku!" Uraraka called out to them, "Katsumi!"
Despite her preoccupation, Katsumi managed to turn her head to shoot a glare at the girl, when did she say she could call her by her first name?
"Katsumi! Just hold on my hand!" Izuku shouted over the loud hectic noise of the crowd.
"Villians." It slipped out of Katsumi's mouth before she could think.
"What? No, we don't know that!" Shaking his head he assured her, "Don't worry, even if it is the teachers will-"
Izuku was cut off as the crowd surged and Katsumi was pushed hard forward, bashing straight into him.
"Crap sorry!"
"Ah- it's fine, just- uh."
As the crowd pushed and shoved, they were pressed tightly together, faces inches apart.
"Uh, I'm sorry I can't-" Katsumi attempted to step back only to be met with an impenetrable wall of students and pushed right back into Izuku, her forehead smashing into his.
"Ouch!"
"Sorry!" Wincing Katsumi placed her hands on his shoulders, trying to separate them slightly.
"It's okay." Izuku didn't know where to look, his face was burning hot. They were literally pushed up against each other. He found himself praying to any god or deity above that his body would not betray him. "We'll get out soon." He said, despite their faces being inches apart he still had to raise his voice slightly to be heard over the crowd.
Katsumi pursed her lips, cheeks flaring red. The position was… something. But there were more pressing matters. She turned her head as best as she could as her eyes scanned the windows. She couldn't see out over the mass of bodies struggling and shuffling slowly along. Three crowds in one day, and this was definitely the worst. What the hell was happening out there? A frustrated breath hitched in her throat. She bit down on her bottom lip as her vision began to splotch with growing tears.
"Katsumi," Izuku's voice made her jump. He leaned over to her ear so she could hear his words clearly. "It's okay."
He moved one of her hands off his shoulder to interlock her fingers with his.
She stared at him, mouth dry. He looked back at her, eyes firm as he held her hand tight. With great difficulty, Katsumi began rearranging her face into a smile- but they were both distracted as a large object flew over their heads.
Katsumi and Izuku's mouths flew open as they watched Iida smash against the wall, a perfect replica of the man on the exit sign. "Listen up, everyone! " he shouted seriously. "Everything is okay! It's just the media outside. There's absolutely nothing to worry about!"
The students froze as they stared in shock and awe at the first year, still stuck up against the wall.
'Just the media.'
Katsumi felt her body relax, exhaustion washing over her, she let herself collapse against Izuku, wrapping her arms around his neck as she buried her face into his chest.
"Ah, Katsumi!" Izuku whisper-shouted, the pink that had already claimed his cheeks spreading across his face.
After that horrific ordeal of a lunchbreak, Izuku gave up his position as class leader or president or whatever it was called- Katsumi really didn't care. Now it was Iida which made more sense honestly. The only amusing thing about the afternoon was Momo's face when Izuku gave it to Iida, completely ignoring the fact she had just as much of a claim to the role. Poor girl.
"Vice prez is pretty good Momo-chan," Katsumi encouraged. It was the end of the day and the pair were walking down the corridors to leave the school.
Momo sighed, allowing her shoulders to slump for a moment before she straightened her posture once again. "I am incredibly grateful for the position," she declared, "deputy or not, and I will give my all for it!"
"Thats the spirit!" Katsumi grinned and knocked the girl's arm. "Thats why I voted for ya'!"
"I thought it would be you," Momo rubbed her chin with a finger, a little smile on her lip. "I wonder who the other vote was from."
"Didn't you check the board for who got zero votes?"
"No, it slipped my mind." She admitted.
"Oh well," Katsumi snickered, "just means you have a secret admirer who sees just how amazing you are!"
"Don't phrase it like that," Momo blushed. She collected herself, taking a deep breath in. "I'll make sure I prove myself worthy." She clenched her fists together in front of her, "Just being in this school is something I must constantly be grateful for! This position makes it so I have even more to prove."
Katsumi frowned, if Momo didn't think herself worthy of being at the school Katsumi might as well leave. "Well the school isn't that great, the security must suck if they couldn't stop reporters getting in."
"Don't you know?" Momo turned to Katsumi, "They seal up the entrance with a metal door, impenetrable to the average person. It comes down if someone without a student ID comes too close."
"Damn, I better never forget my ID." Katsumi had a habit of forgetting little things, getting locked out of the school was the last thing she needed. Her brow creased as she thought about it more, "If that's true, how'd the press get in then?"
"From what I've heard, the door was turned to dust. It must have been one of the reporter's quirks or…"
Momo continued to talk but Katsumi stopped listening, her voice droning in the background as her mind blurred. Dust. It was decayed.
"Shit."
Katsumi spent the entirety of the next morning feeling like she had swallowed a massive bowling ball, now pressing down on her chest and blocking her throat, making her short of breath. She barely ate at lunch, telling Momo and the others she sat with she was feeling a little ill. By the time Aizawa announced the day's hero basics training would be rescue training in an off-campus facility, Katsumi could have puked.
"Deku? Why are you wearing your PE clothes? Where's your costume?" Katsumi wasn't sure how she had ended up standing with Uraraka but she was almost thankful. The girl was probably used to Katsumi ignoring her, her silence hopefully didn't seem too strange.
"You saw it after the combat training. It was kinda trashed." Izuku smiled as he adjusted a new neckpiece, "I'm still waiting on the support company to fix it up. Talking about hero costumes, sorry Katsumi I never got to say but yours is really cool!" He grinned brightly at her. It only added more pressure on her, the feeling slicing up her chest.
"I changed your design a little," Katsumi managed to wear a smile as she responded, mentioning his contribution for nothing if not to remind Uraraka of how close they were. She was absolutely being childish, but she needed a distraction.
"Woah you designed her costume Deku? That's awesome!" Katsumi felt an irritation rise in her as the short girl simply turned to her with a smile. "I remember seeing it the other day and I was like, 'Wow what a cool costume!'"
Izuku's face flushed, "Well all I did was the idea for using All Mights colours…"
Katsumi's eye twitched before she shrugged, "Still it was really helpful. I had no idea what to do for mine, and that book you made for me has been really helpful." If she still wasn't almost going crazy with anxiety Katsumi would have found it impossible to not smirk at the brunette's confused face.
"A book? Wha-"
"Gather around, Class 1-A!" Iida waved, interrupting the conversations going on around the class. He presented them with a piece of paper with a seating plan displayed, saying, "Using your student numbers, form two neat lines so we can load the bus efficiently."
"Iida's kicking it into high gear as our class rep, huh?" Izuku laughed a little shyly.
"Seems so." Normally Katsumi would have fought against the unnecessary seating plan, but not today. As they boarded the bus and Iida realised his seating plan was unusable she just focused on her breathing. In and out. She just needed to actually see her father there with them, then she would feel safe. She had left without him again that morning and he wasn't coming in until the afternoon to meet them at the facility.
Katsumi took a slow, deep breath in. There was no way her father would lose, he would protect them. It was all going to be fine.
