Symbol

by silentplayermc03

Izuku Midoriya, chosen by All Might to be the next wielder of One For All. Expecting his life to be difficult, he didn't think he'd also become a father figure to a young child, find true friends, become an inspiration to others, be guided by remnants of previous OFA users or catch the attention of both villains & the HPSC. Watch as he struggles through it all while doing his best

28. Chapter 027 - UA Resumes

Author's Note - Hey everyone, here's the next chapter for you! But before that, just a few replies to some reviewers...

Austin Jones - Hahaha, he did, huh? Neito's gonna have a hard time because of that but will he learn from it or not yet?

Hero Guest - Katsuki getting actual consequences for his actions is something that canon should've done. Though he's not expelled just yet, there are other things that will be revealed that may or may not cause that to happen and Katsuki might end up on a different path.

That would be funny! All the girls head over heels for him but Izuku already having a girlfriend would be hilarious! Would that stop them from trying to win his affection or would it cause other things? That might be a good idea for a different kind of story. lol

Speaking about, Himko, Dabi, Spinner, Twice, etc...I have plans for them all that's gonna be different from canon and from most other stories that I've read. They'll still have their 'core' of their character but their situations, actions, beliefs, etc will be different but still make sense.

Izuku and some of the guys are gonna be on rocky ground for a bit due to egos/jealousy. Shoto will be a whole 'nother level because of what's going on in that fiasco. But what I have planned for how things go down between the two, I think you and everyone else will like.

Thanks buddy and glad you're liking it. Till next time I hear from ya!

Dixonjason403 - Hey dude. Normally I reply to reviews in private messages if I'm able to so I can explain things. And I honestly would've, had you refrained from insulting me and my writing. But since you have done that, I'm just gonna reply back to all of your messages right here so everyone can see. And if others who share your viewpoints read this, I hope it opens both your and their eyes.

Anyways, for your first review, you called Izuku in my story a pathetic loser...why? Did you miss all the information about his situation? And how that made him remember all the crap he went through, reflect and let out some grief in private (he was on the beach, sure, but he was alone with no one around at that time) so he started crying a little because he thought he failed after preparing and getting so much support? That because of that, he thought he was unworthy of One For All and unworthy of an attractive girl's attention, even though he saved her life, because he wasn't in the right state of mind at the time? That makes him pathetic?

So a strong person can never waver or feel sullen or have times when he/she is down and going through something? That's pretty stupid...

Nobody's perfect and just because someone goes through something like that, doesn't make them a "pathetic loser".

Oh, and the other part of your review saying that my grammar was bad...so I used a little more commas and had some long sentences that I could've broken apart into smaller sentences. I didn't realize it after writing but...so what? Grammar itself was fine and there was no issue in my Word document when I wrote it.

For the rest of your reviews, many had the same thought behind it. You kept complaining about how the story progression was slow and how Izuku hadn't met his peers yet. That I "refuse" to allow them to meet.

News flash buddy, I even stated right in the beginning that the story is gonna focus on other characters in the beginning to build the foundation because they're all gonna be important in the story.

And there were actual reasons why Izuku wasn't able to join them in the beginning. Did you forget him getting speared to the wall by Overhaul? That he had to have surgery? That they had to wait until he woke up and get a little better before they could heal him using Recovery Girl's quirk since it uses up a person's stamina otherwise he'd die?

You also said that there's too much talking and none of it matters...so understanding a character by learning about their beliefs, personality, actions, thoughts, etc don't matter and things should be just one action point to the next...

That doesn't make sense. If there's no buildup to something, then how does it affect the character or you, the reader? And it's all important because again, it shows who the characters are and shows how Izuku has started affecting them without him even being there.

Which brings me to the next thing. Part of the story is about how Izuku affects others around him, whether directly or indirectly and how things change because of him/it. That's the "point" of the story so hopefully that answers your question about what the point of the story is. Because he's on the path to become the next "symbol", the story is gonna show how and why. So putting some spotlight on others and explaining things is part of that. And you don't need to have the story be always about Izuku being in class or around the other characters to move it further along, which you keep complaining about.

You also mentioned the rape part. How it was a cheap way to add drama and that it was pathetic? You said even my notes about it on the next chapter were just pretentious nonsense. What part of it exactly was nonsense? Oh, wait, you said it was because it was used as a "cheap and ham-fisted plot device". That I "just kinda tossed in a 'yeah and then she got raped'".

Do...do you remember anything that you read or do you just like mouthing off things? I literally foreshadowed Midnight going through horrible shit in an early chapter with Nighteye foretelling it. And because I didn't show the scene itself, it was just shoe-horned in for just cheap drama and it adds nothing to the story? Are you serious?

Apparently you forgot about how devastated Izuku was to find her like that...how it made him almost lose himself in his anger (which is something that's important in the story with all the hints given before that too but you probably didn't notice that either)...how Izuku believes him to be at fault since he took too long in each location...how that's gonna affect him...how the other students felt and what it's making them go through...how because of her condition, they had to find someone else to fill her spot for a bit until she came back, which allowed Nagant to come into the picture...what Midnight's going through and how she feels hollow...and there's gonna be so much more that happens due to the butterfly effect of what happened o her...

Even with Momo's scene in the beginning of the story...or lets even count Ibara's encounter with that sadistic bastard...my explaination from a previous author's notes about how villains will do anything and everything they can and want...especially if they believe they can get away with it...that's pretentious nonsense?

Dude, the real world has evil sick fucks like that and they're all over the place with some even hiding in plain fuckin sight. How many disgusting stories have you seen on the news with even FAMILY members doing horrible things like that to each other? To their own flesh and blood?

You don't think a story that involves heroes versus villains who do whatever they want won't have people like that? How naïve or ignorant are you?

Either you're living in a bubble or you believe that none of that adds to the story and it's just cheap drama and it was ham-fisted...if it's the former, you're lucky. If its the latter, yeah, that makes a lot of sense (that was sarcasm, in case you didn't get it)

Through out all of your reviews, you kept insulting, complaining and not once did you say ONE actual legitimate thing. You call things cheap, overdramatic, unimportant and more while providing absolutely no credible evidence to back up your points. And yet, I've provided reasons, details and more to articulate the points across in my author notes and in the story. Yet even then, you seem to miss it and not understand. Or you just refuse to understand for some reason.

It's funny how someone like you feels the need to do all that when my story is one of your favorites and you've written nothing yourself when I checked out your profile as of this moment (08-25-2024). Apparently you love it so much that you hate it and have to nitpick things which is a contradiction to your stance on my story being a favorite of yours. How the hell does that work? If I don't like something, I either remove it, remove myself or give actual legitimate points to it with the hope that it turns out better if I cannot do the first two.

If you don't like it that much and since you apparently can't give actual reasons behind your words, then just don't read and move on. Or provide actual legitimate things to your viewpoints! And if you can't, then just don't say anything at all!

Were you just looking for attention by writing such "pretentious nonsense" by "pulling excuses out of your ass" so things seemed like "pure retardation" so that I'd respond back to you in order to defend my "shitty soap opera" of a story?

Well, if that was the case, then you succeeded. Good job. Now leave me, my writing and my readers alone. Thank you and have a good day.

I apologize to the rest of my readers for going on a little bit of a rant. Okay, with the replies done, here's the next chapter for my readers. Enjoy!

---

SYMBOL

CHAPTER 027 – UA RESUMES

As soon as Izuku entered his dorm room, he tossed the shirt in his hand onto the desk before plopping onto his bed face first. Groaning to himself, his mind replayed what just happened with everyone downstairs. He couldn't believe how he just let them know about part of his past like that. He definitely wasn't planning that but it just came out thanks to his growing frustration and annoyance over Neito's words and accusations.

A part of him was glad to have done it though for a couple of reasons. First was that it honestly felt good to turn the tables on someone who felt that they had the moral high ground. Secondly was that it felt like a little bit of the weight Izuku was carrying had been lifted and he didn't have to hide that part of himself anymore.

Even with those reasons however, the thing that was making Izuku regret letting all of that be known however, was how he was worried that everyone was gonna treat him even more differently now than before. Though he had wanted a normal school experience for once, he had come to terms with how several of his classmates saw him and admired him thanks to the advice from his loved ones. And he couldn't deny that he did enjoy the positive attention he was receiving from peers his own age for once.

But now, Izuku didn't know what was going to happen. He didn't want too much special attention. It was already difficult with how things went but still…was it too much to ask for some normalcy in his life?

Letting out another muffled groan into his pillow, Izuku stayed like that for a few more minutes while thinking some things. Deciding that there was no point dwelling on what happened, he pushed himself up and ended up sitting on the edge of his bed. That was when he noticed the few boxes he still had to go through.

Might as well finish up…

Getting up, Izuku started going through the remaining boxes and organized them away. As he worked, his mind did wander a bit here and there but he'd quickly refocus on the task at hand. It took almost another hour to go through them before he finished. "And that's that," he said to himself as he stacked the empty and now flattened boxes on top of one another against the wall. "I'll throw those away later." Looking around his room, Izuku was satisfied that everything was put away and organized.

It was at that moment that he heard knocking on his door.

Shifting his attention on the door and staring at it for a few seconds, Izuku then let out a sigh before heading towards it while telling himself to relax. He was about to open the door when he realized he wasn't wearing his shirt again. Grabbing it from his desk and putting it on, he went back to the door. Not bothering with the peephole this time, he just opened the door and his eyebrows rose with his eyes widening slightly at who was there.

It was Ochaco. And she was holding a plate of leftovers from yesterday's group dinner in her hands. "H-Hey, Midoriya. I brought you s-some food in case you were hungry," greeted Ochaco with a small smile with her pink cheeks turning a little redder.

Touched over her action, it took Izuku a moment to respond back while doing his best to control himself. "Oh…um…thank you, Uraraka-san. You didn't have to," he said as he received the plate with his left hand.

"I know but…I wanted to. And you can just say Uraraka," replied Ochaco quietly while doing her best to remain calm even while feeling nervous.

Blushing slightly, Izuku nodded in understanding before he looked at what she brought him. He noticed how the plate was rather big and how much food was on it. "Um, Uraraka, why'd you bring me so much food?" he asked her as he looked back at her.

Ochaco glanced at the amount of food and she just realized how overfilled it was. "Oh…hehe, guess I got carried away and just piled it up," she replied back in a low voice while scratching her cheek with her right index finger.

"I get it and its okay." Glancing at the food again, a thought entered Izuku's mind suddenly and he voiced it out loud without thinking. "Since it's so much, would you like to join me for dinner, Uraraka?" asked Izuku. He raised his gaze in time to see her snap her attention onto him with her face reddening. Realizing what he just said, he too blushed and hurried to remedy the situation. "I-I mean, only if you wa-want to…and since there's just s-so much food and…"

"I'd like that," interjected Ochaco quickly.

Izuku felt something spring up within him over her agreeing but didn't dwell on it. Instead, he nodded at her and stepped to the side to allow her entrance into his room. "Welcome," he said and continued as she entered. "Sorry if things are a little plain."

"I don't mind at all," replied Ochaco as she covertly glanced around the room. Huh, it's cleaner than I thought it'd be. Having never been inside a boy's room before, Ochaco was still surprised at how organized and clean Izuku was. There were a few posters on the walls of the number one hero. On the desk, on top of the shelf where a set of notebooks were lined up, were several collectible action figures still inside their packaging of some of the top heroes. There were a set of weights on their stand in one corner too. She thought it would be messy or cluttered like the boys' rooms she would see in TV shows and movies but it was the complete opposite. And she had to admit, she did like it.

"Thanks. Um, where do you wanna sit?"

"Doesn't matter to me," replied Ochaco as she purposely looked around the room before turning to face him. "How about the couch? We can put the food between us," suggested the brunette.

"Sure, sounds good to me." Making their way to the couch, Izuku placed the large plate in the middle of it after Ochaco sat down. Heading to the bathroom, Izuku grabbed some paper towels he had put there before rejoining her on the couch and handing her some.

"Thank you," said Ochaco, taking a couple paper towels and placing them on top of her lap.

"You're welcome." Izuku grabbed some food and took a bite as did Ochaco. After a short time passed of surprisingly comfortable silence between the two, he decided to voice what was on his mind. "So, what happened after I left?"

Turning her gaze to look at him, Ochaco saw Izuku looking away from her towards the wall with a far off gaze. She finished chewing her food and swallowed it before facing the wall too and answered him. "It was, uh, a little hectic. Some of our classmates, from both classes mind you, told Monoma off for making you reveal some of your past. After getting an earful, he shouted at everyone to stop giving him so much flak because he didn't know before going to his room."

When Ochaco stopped, Izuku used his peripheral vision to look at her for a second before moving back towards the wall. "I see," he replied. "Was there anything else?"

"Well… nothing really important happened but we decided to give you some space for the time being before everyone left to do their own thing."

Izuku turned his head so he could look at her. "But you changed your mind and you're here now." Ochaco's pink cheeks reddened slightly. "Thanks again. And, are you sure that's all, Uraraka?"

Noticing him looking at her from the corner of her eye, Ochaco shifted her gaze to look at him. She noticed the expression on his face of wanting to know. "There was some stuff said. But, seriously, in my opinion, most of it isn't important. It was mindless chatter for the most part. The only thing that might be important, especially to you, is how many of our classmates said they wanted to get to know you better and maybe help you out if you wanted or needed it."

"I…see…" Looking down at the plate of food between them, Izuku's brow furrowed slightly as many thoughts flowed through his mind.

Ochaco noticed his expression and knew something was off. Even with the stirring sensation she was feeling for the last several minutes, she was doing her best to remain as composed as possible. Because as much as she wanted to learn more about him, she wanted him to know that she was there for him too. "Midoriya?" She waited until his attention was on her before she continued. "Are you alright?"

Izuku looked away slightly before slowly nodding and answered in a low tone of voice. "Yeah, I'm okay."

"Midoriya…" Ochaco's tone made Izuku go silent and she locked her eyes onto his after he returned his sight towards her. "Please…what I told you before in Recovery Girl's office, I meant it. For everything. You can talk to me about anything and I'll do whatever I can to help you whenever you need it."

Izuku felt something stir within him but he didn't focus on that. "Uraraka?"

Understanding the questioning tone and expression on his face, Ochaco began explaining even as her cheeks flushed with color. "I'm serious. Anything you need, anything at all, I'm here for you. It's the least I can do for you. I mean, you saved my life after all. And not just once but three times already!" she exclaimed with her eyes shining with emotion and her words coated with conviction.

Izuku blushed a little from embarrassment. "Thank you…but you don't owe me anything. I was just doing what any hero, heck, what any good person would do and I just wanted to help."

"But it wasn't just any person who did. You did," countered Ochaco with a fierce tone that rendered him silent once more. "You didn't even know me and you went out of your way to save me at the entrance exams while everyone else fled. You helped me calm down and focus on helping Thirteen before helping everyone else at the USJ. And you went all out to fight that Nomu, sacrificing yourself to protect me and everyone else! You did so much without asking for anything in return. And what I'm saying isn't so I can pay you back. I really do want to be there for you like you've been there for me."

At this point, Ochaco's eyes became a little watery yet no tears fell as she became a little emotional. But she wasn't done just yet. "I know you said a little about your past but don't think for one second that it'd change how I see you or how I should act with you. I'm here for you no matter what so don't feel as if you have to hide that part of yourself or that you don't deserve my help or attention or respect or whatever. Or anyone else's for that matter who shows that they're worthy of it. You've gone through some bad things but you don't have to do go through them again. At least not by yourself anymore. Okay?"

The brunette's words made the green haired young man start feeling something within that made it feel like his stomach was doing somersaults. It was funny how he's been told this several times before. From All Might. From Dr. Dobrev. From Nemuri. From his Mom. But it was the first time someone his age was behaving like this towards him. If it wasn't for his social training and therapy, he would've been letting out a waterfall of tears by now. Though he did become misty eyed and was barely holding back tears.

Taking in a breath, Izuku controlled himself, doing his absolute best to not start crying before looking the brunette in the eyes. "Thank you, Uraraka. I understand what you're saying and I really do appreciate it. It means a lot. I'm okay right now but I promise that I'll come to you if needed. Sound good?"

A large, beaming smile spread on Ochaco's face. "Deal!" she replied back while raising her hand towards him with her pinkie extended away.

Mesmerized for a second by her smile, Izuku shook his head before smiling back at her. He grasped her hand and they shook. When they separated, Izuku asked another question as Ochaco was about to grab some more food. "So, besides the talks and everyone splitting off, did anything else happen?"

"Not really," said Ochaco with a shrug before picking up a slice of pizza. "I spent some time with friends before we split up. That was when I thought of getting food and bringing you some." Ochaco took a bite from the slice and chewed a bit. Noticing the silent atmosphere, she looked back at Izuku and notice how he was looking at her. Her pink cheeks reddened once more. "Wh-What? Why you st-staring?!" she stammered out.

Snapping out of it, Izuku also blushed as he looked away. "Sorry! I didn't mean to. I just…got lost in thought…" Trailing off, Izuku rubbed the back of his neck while looking off to the side and started chastising himself mentally for getting caught staring at her.

Seeing him become embarrassed and looking away, gave Ochaco time to reorient herself. Taking in a subtle breath, she exhaled it out quietly while thinking something. If getting lost in thought makes him look at me like that, how intense would it be if… Her mind was about to go on a tangent but she stopped herself and refocused. "It's o-okay, Midoriya. Just, give a warning or something next time," she joked in an attempt to lighten the mood.

It worked since Izuku let out a chuckle before turning back towards her. "Okay, I will," he replied and Ochaco lightly scoffed in amusement.

The two felt more comfortable with the situation as they continued eating and conversing some more. After a couple of minutes went by, when Izuku told her that he needed to use the bathroom, Ochaco hurriedly cleaned her hands with the paper towels before she pulled out her flip phone to look at the time. She didn't want him to see how she was using an outdated model nor did she want him to think that she wanted to leave either. Even though it wasn't too late and she still had time before curfew, Ochaco decided that she should probably get back to her own dorm to get ready for tomorrow's classes.

Putting away her phone, Ochaco looked up in time to see Izuku exiting the bathroom. "Hey, Midoriya, I think I should get ready to go. As much as I enjoyed my time here, I still have stuff to do to get ready for tomorrow," she said as she stood up.

Izuku nodded in understanding. "I gotcha. Got some stuff to do too."

"Okay. Should I take the food or leave it?"

"I'm finished but I'll take it back."

Not giving him the chance, Ochaco picked up the plate and walked towards the door. "I brought it, so I'll take it."

Not wanting to argue with her, Izuku rolled with it. "Okay, alright." Right when Ochaco reached the door, Izuku remembered something at that moment. "Uraraka!" he called out to her suddenly as he closed the distance between them.

Ochaco turned around and found Izuku within arm's reach of her already. That surprised her but she was able to keep herself from becoming visibly startled. "What's up?" she asked him.

"There's something I've wanted to tell you."

Curiosity filled Ochaco. "What is it?"

Izuku took in a breath. "My mom told me what you did for me."

Ochaco's face turned crimson within seconds and her heart hammered since her thoughts from yesterday were confirmed. "She d-did, huh?" she squeaked out.

"Yeah, she did," confirmed Izuku. His green eyes seemed to shine in appreciation and admiration as they locked onto her auburn eyes. "That was the kindest thing anyone has ever done for me. I don't even know how to put into words how much that meant to me. Thank you for showing how much you care and thank you for being there for me. And for being here now and what you said. Thank you. What you told me, it applies to you too. If you ever need anything, no matter what it is, please…just let me know."

A familiar feeling that she's been experiencing recently sprung up within Ochaco when Izuku started talking. By the time he finished, it had grown stronger to the point that it almost overwhelmed her. It took all of her willpower to control it and to respond back to him. But it only came out as a whisper.

"I'm sorry, what was that?"

"Ph-Phone, please."

Saying that just loud enough for him to hear, Ochaco held the plate with one hand while reaching out with the other and took hold of Izuku's phone when he offered it to her. Adding herself into his contacts, she then sent herself a message from his phone. Hearing the notification ringtone from her phone let her know that it was successful. Handing his phone back to him, Ochaco faced Izuku who was looking at her with an astonished gaze.

Facing away from him, Ochaco's blush somehow deepened even more as she grasped the door handle. She didn't open the door just yet but used the last of her courage to say a few more things that's been on her mind for a while now. "There's something I've wanted to tell you too, Midoriya. What Bakugo calls you…that name…Deku…he told us it stands for 'defenseless Izuku' and other bad things last week when he overheard us girls talking about you…" Ochaco trailed off for a moment so she could control her jumbling nerves while also making sure what she said next came out right.

Izuku wasn't far off either. He felt embarrassed to learn that the girls had talked about him before he even joined them at UA. But he also felt a twinge of pain flash through his chest all of a sudden, feeling worried about where this was going. He remained silent however because he didn't know what to say in response to her words. Not to mention that she continued soon after her pause.

"…but he's wrong. I knew he was lying through his teeth because he's probably jealous. And because when I hear that name…Deku…I don't think that. What comes to mind instead for me is the word for the phrase 'you can do it'…Dekiru." Turning her gaze to Izuku while keeping her body facing the door, Ochaco's lips spread into a soft smile that clearly displayed affection towards him. "So whenever he calls you that, I want you to think of what I said instead. Because I believe in you." Without waiting for a reply and with the last of her courage spent, Ochaco opened the door and quickly left.

Frozen in his spot with his gaze on the closed door, Izuku didn't move for a good five minutes while his mind did its best to process everything that just occurred. When it finally dawned on him what just happened, Izuku felt his entire body become filled with an unknown but welcomed warmth while his heart was beating faster than normal as the image of a smiling Ochaco stayed in his mind's eye.

His phone suddenly chirped a notification that snapped him out of it. Looking at his phone, Izuku saw that it was a text message from Ochaco.

Ochaco Uraraka – Forgot to say this, but goodnight Midoriya!

A beaming smile formed on Izuku's face as he started typing a response back.

Izuku Midoriya – Thank you and same to you, Uraraka! Sweet dreams!

Staring at the screen for another minute, the large smile didn't leave his face. Even when he finally looked away and began getting ready for tomorrow, Izuku's smile didn't fade for quite some time.

It was only when he heard another knock on his door that it went away.

It's half an hour till curfew. Why is someone here? Izuku wondered as he glanced at the time before heading to his door. Opening it, he learned that it was the short, pale grey haired girl from class 1B. "Hey, um, Yanagi-san, right?"

"Correct. Good evening, Midoriya," replied Reiko with her single visible blue eye locked onto his since the other was hidden beneath her hair. "Pardon my late arrival to your residence. But there is something that requires your attention."

"Oh, okay and it's alright. What is it?"

Extending her hand towards him, Izuku just noticed the paper in it. Reaching out, he grasped it and looked at it. It was the document that he needed to sign that stated he understood the conditions set by the girls so he and Eri can be on their side of the dorms. "Ah, okay, I got it. Let me get a pen."

"No need as I currently have one on my person," informed Reiko before lifting her other hand and offered the pen to him.

"Thanks!" Taking the pen, Izuku placed the paper on the door and read the document more thoroughly. Only taking a minute since it was to the point, Izuku then signed and dated the document. He faced Rieko and handed the items back to her. "Here you go. Thanks for bringing it. Anything else you need?"

"Thank you Midoriya and no, nothing. Also, there is no need for gratitude since it had to be done," stated Reiko rather calmly.

"Even so, thank you for doing this as I appreciate it," replied Izuku back with a smile.

Reiko nodded, turned away from Izuku and took a single step away before stopping. Returning to her previous position, she said one final thing that had been swimming in her mind since the moment Izuku had revealed his scars and part of his past to everyone. "Midoriya…if I may be so bold, I say this not out of obligation or due to any sort of feeling but because I believe it right to do so…I must say, that for one to have gone through much suffering and yet still hold onto their heroic heart, you are an inspiration to us all. If you require assistance of any kind in the future, I implore you to not hesitate to contact me. That is all. Goodnight Midoriya." With her thoughts said and not waiting for a reply, Reiko turned away from Izuku and calmly walked towards the elevator.

Izuku didn't react for a few seconds before snapping out of it in time to step out into the hallway and call out to Reiko from in front of his doorway. "Thank you Yanagi-san and I appreciate it! Goodnight!"

Glancing back at him, Reiko merely nodded again before pushing the elevator button. The doors opened, she stepped inside and disappeared from view after they closed.

Smiling to himself, Izuku returned to his dorm, closed the door and headed towards the bathroom so he can shower before going to sleep.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Ochaco put away her phone while heading back to her dorm after putting the food back into the fridge in the kitchen. And all the while, she kept thinking about what just happened with Izuku while smiling to herself. Things went better than she hoped. She still didn't want to rush anything but with this, it would allow them to get closer and get to know each other better. Her body felt warm and there was a powerful stirring sensation in her stomach every time she imagined him in her mind.

Reaching her room door, Ochaco grasped the handle, opened the door and walked in a few steps before stopping abruptly with her smile vanishing from her face. "Uh, what are you doing here?"

Several of her friends from her class were in her room and they were sporting annoyed expressions on their faces. "Well, it's about time you left Midori's room," remarked Mina, pouting with her arms crossed.

Ochaco's heart skipped a beat and did her best to fight down the blush that she could feel coming. "Wh-What are you talking about?! I wasn't with…"

"Don't even try to deny it. We knew from the start and well…" interrupted Kyoka. She raised her ear jacks into the air and she, along with the rest, could see the realization dawn on Ochaco's face as she paled.

"H-How?!" she croaked out.

"You never noticed me sitting on the couch!" spoke up Toru, both upset at not being noticed and that her friend did this without her. "I saw you take the food upstairs! I knew at once since it was a lot so I told them too! You know, you could've told us you were gonna do something like that! We would've joined!"

"I would've too since I had nothing else to do," stated Tsuyu bluntly.

"Um…I-I…"

Ochaco stammered and sputtered as she tried to come up with something. Mina, Kyoka and Toru kept their jealous gazes locked onto the brunette while Tsuyu sported a neutral expression. Yet they all waited for their friend to say something…

XXXXXXXXXX WEDNESDAY MORNING XXXXXXXXXX

Sitting at his desk in the middle of the classroom, Izuku had arrived rather early. Excitement to finally attend UA normally made him wake up early. And it had nothing to do with what happened between him and a certain brunette from his class last night. It's not like he kept thinking about her even as he went to sleep and all that. Of course not.

Anyways, with plenty of time to spare, Izuku decided to jot down some notes about his classmates' quirks that were said last night. He still hadn't bought the new notebooks he needed yet but did make a 'To Do' list before going to sleep. For now, he was writing on some single sheets of paper.

Well, he tried to. Writing with his left hand was a bigger annoyance than he thought it'd be. Hell, Izuku believed his writing would be an insult to chicken scratch. But even so, if there was one thing Izuku was, it was that he was persistent whenever he set his mind on something. He continued doing his best to write with his left hand until his classmates started joining him a few minutes before homeroom began.

"Hey Midoriya."

"Good morning!"

"Hey man."

"Midori!"

Izuku was both somewhat surprised and glad that several of his classmates were treating him normally even after what he let known last night. He greeted them back as they arrived and sat down in their seats. Mezo, Rikido, Tenya and Mashirao even came up to him and greeted him personally. Mina hugged him tightly even while he was seated, making him yelp and blush a bit and Toru did the same to him. When Ochaco entered, she and Izuku locked eyes onto one another and both smiled while blushing as they waved at each other.

Neither of the two noticed the glares being sent their ways for different reasons however.

Two more interesting greetings happened before their entire class was there except for one. The first was from Shoto. The moment he entered the room and found Izuku, a sharp glare formed on his face and kept it on him as he slowly walked to his seat. Izuku raised his eyebrow in response but refused to look away from Shoto until he sat in his seat.

That interaction was noticed by everyone but no one did or said anything about it.

Well, almost no one. The second greeting that was interesting was from the number one student in the class. Momo had also noticed the negative attention that Shoto gave to Izuku and that made her feel several things. Wanting to show her support to her green haired hero, a sudden burst of bravery filled her and she acted the first thing that came to her.

Momo went up to Izuku when he looked away from Shoto and hugged him tightly while telling him good morning. When Momo separated from Izuku, she smiled softly at him. It was then that her bravery faded and she became filled with embarrassment over what she just did in front of everyone before hurriedly walking to her seat with her face as red as a tomato. As soon as she sat down, she looked away from everyone while doing her best to cover up her face with her arms.

Momo's actions caused several reactions. Izuku looked stunned. Shoto had a scowl form on his face. Minoru was crying tears of jealousy. Hanta and Denki exchanged glances of annoyance. Ochaco looked peeved but wasn't really angry. Kyoka kept a neutral look on her face though inside she was feeling several different things. Mina and Toru, though you couldn't tell on the later, both grinned even as they felt a little jealous. Several of the guys just looked stunned. Tsuyu still had that blank look on her face even while thinking some things.

Izuku, after recomposing himself, felt conflicting emotions. On one hand, he did somewhat enjoy the kindness, attention and respect most were giving him. But on the other hand, he didn't like how it was portrayed by a few. They were being a little too respectful. Too kind. He knew it was from what he told them. Thinking a little bit while pretending to jot down some notes, he came to a decision.

Looking up towards the clock on the wall, he learned that he had just enough time to do what he wanted. Without delay or hesitation, Izuku got up from his seat and walked towards the front of the class. As he did so, he caught his classmates' attention with a couple even asking what was going on but he didn't reply back.

Reaching the front, he took in a subtle quick breath before turning around. Finding everyone having their attention on him, Izuku began speaking. "Good morning. I just wanted to say something to everyone at once. What I said yesterday, I never planned on sharing it. But I did. You all know that I'm a late bloomer and you've seen my scars from the things I went through. I can't make you forget it but I don't want any special attention or behavior. I wanted a fresh start at UA without my past being a factor so I'm asking you all to not let it dictate how you behave with me. So please, act normally around me. Thank you." As soon as he was finished speaking, Izuku walked back to his seat, sat down and continued working on his notes.

All of class 1A was silent as they thought about what Izuku said. Even Shoto was lost in his thinking, wondering what he missed by not joining the others last night. Many wanted to talk to Izuku.

Luckily for him though, the door opened the second the clock struck 9am. "In your seats!" barked Shota as he walked inside the classroom. "Good, you've remembered what you've learned," he commented after seeing them all seated and paying attention to him. Walking up to the podium, he stood behind it and faced his students. "You've had a few days to rest and get your heads on straight after the USJ incident. We even gave you almost two full days to get situated at the dorms. But now, whether you're ready or not, it's back to business."

Shota went to his desk and took out a few stacks of papers from a few different drawers. Moving to the closest student, he handed it to Tsuyu since she was in front. "Take one from each stack and pass it down."

"Yes, Sensei," replied Tsuyu while taking the stacks and did as she was told.

Shota returned to stand behind the podium. "What you'll be receiving are three different documents. The first is the schedule of the mandatory one hour therapy sessions with Hound Dog for the next couple of weeks. You must go attend at least one session, no matter what. It can be rescheduled if absolutely necessary but it must be done within two weeks of your original date."

Shota went back to his desk and pulled out a yellow sleeping bag as he kept talking. "The second one has two writing prompts that need to be finished and turned in tomorrow morning."

"But Sensei, I thought we were excused for the 'staying calm' one that was due last Friday?" asked Denki.

"I never said it was excused," replied Shota with an annoyed and tired expression. "Just because we went through some crap, doesn't mean you forget your responsibilities and duties. UA expects better of you so do better and you should be feeling lucky that I'm not asking for it now. The second prompt is about what you could've done better at the USJ. Both need to be at least one thousand words."

A collective groan escaped from the class but was instantly silenced with Shota using his quirk.

Once in control again, Shota began unzipping the sleeping bag and started placing his feet into it. "The third one has descriptions of different class positions that need to be filled." Several hands rose into the air but Shota ignored them all. "You'll decide it together and I don't care how you do it. You have until the end of class to figure it out. Just don't wake me up until you do so keep it down." Lying down on the floor behind the desk, he zipped up the sleeping bag and Shota quickly fell asleep.

Tenya immediately stood up the second after Shota disappeared behind the desk. "We must choose our class representatives carefully!"

"And pray tell, how should we do this?" asked Yuga.

"We could vote," suggested Mina.

"That could work," said Eijiro, making Mina flash a quick appreciative look towards him.

"Okay, but we barely know each other so wouldn't everyone just vote for themselves?" asked Rikido.

"Maybe but remember the descriptions of each position," reminded Kyoka.

"She's right. We need to vote for the best person for each one," stated Mezo.

"Precisely! These positions require dedication, responsibility as well as extra duties," declared Tenya while still standing next to his seat.

Hearing that there'll be extra work to do, half the class decided to not pursue the positions with a couple being vocal about it. "You know, on second thought, I'm good. I don't want extra stuff to do," said Denki.

"It's already hard enough with what UA gives us, so I don't wanna do it either," chimed in Toru.

"That's fine, I'll do it!" spoke up Minoru as he stood up in his seat. It hardly did anything for him since he was so small but he did draw attention to him. "I'll humbly take the extra work and do my best for this class!" he said, making some of his classmates think if they should. "And as my first decree, I will make a new rule where the girls have to wear skirts that are much shorter so we can see their sexy legs!"

And that completely destroyed any chance of him getting voted for. All the girls gave Minoru disgusted looks while even some of the guys sported disappointed expressions. Izuku even gave the small boy one of his rare looks that he only gave someone if they did something that he didn't like.

Minoru sat back down in his chair and crossed his arms while grumbling to himself about how everyone there was prudes and several other things. Deciding to ignore him, the rest of the class went back to discussing how things should go.

As they did so, Izuku looked back at the paper and became lost in thought over who'd be the best for each position while muttering out his thoughts with his left hand over his chin. While doing that, he didn't notice how his classmates gradually got quieter since his muttering got their attention. It was only when it was dead silent, besides his muttering of course, that he realized something was off and he happened to raise his gaze. "Uh, why is everyone staring at me?" he asked them.

"Never mind that. What were you saying?" asked Hanta for everyone.

"What was I saying?" he repeated before Izuku figured it out. He had done one of his muttering spree's again without realizing it. Damn it! I thought I was getting better at not doing that out loud! His face reddening that was noticed by everyone, Izuku tried to play it off. "Oh, I'm sorry. I was just thinking out loud and it's nothing important and I…"

"Dude, chill. It's fine. Some of them heard bits and pieces of what you said," interrupted Kyoka and Izuku looked at her. She raised her ear jacks and pointed them at him. "And I heard most of it and it makes sense so just say it out loud and in a way where they can understand too."

Izuku glanced around at his classmates and they nodded in agreement. "I…it might not be what some of you want to hear…"

"That's understandable," replied Mezo, catching everyone's attention. "But if we cannot handle honest criticism, especially when it comes to fulfilling job duties, then we either have to develop thicker skin or possibly think of a different career choice."

No one argued against Mezo's words and everyone turned their attention back onto Izuku.

Understanding him and seeing how everyone was waiting for him, Izuku took in a breath and began explaining. "Well, as you know, we have three positions to fill. Class representative, vice representative and secretary treasurer." Looking down at the sheet in front of him once more, Izuku continued. "And from what's written here, in short, the class rep is ultimately responsible for all class activities, helps their classmates in all school related topics if asked and acts as the face of the class whenever the class wants to relay something to the staff of the school. Vice rep takes over for the class rep if he or she is busy or not there while also helping out the class rep. The secretary treasurer is in charge of maintaining any and all records, setting things up with contacts or meetings and makes sure there are funds or can find the funds for whatever it is we're trying to do if it regards the whole class."

Finishing up with that, Izuku raised his gaze and looked at his classmates. "With that in mind, we need to pick the ones who are best suited for each type of position. Who has experience with money handling? Who has experience making agendas and running multiple tasks at once? Who can be approached by their classmates if they need help with something? Who can be trusted to work on things without being supervised? Who does well enough in school that they can do extra work without falling behind? Who can keep the interests of others ahead of themselves? Who can control themselves and not jump to conclusions, especially when they don't know all the facts? All of these are important questions to be considered."

After Izuku finished, most of his classmates were silent for a minute or two as they thought about what he said. Right before Izuku thought he might've gone too far and might have caused issues with them, someone spoke up.

"That makes sense," commented Koji quietly but everyone heard him.

"Your foresight on this is most impressive," commented Fumikage.

"He's got a point," added on Rikido. "I tried reading the descriptions of each position and I couldn't understand half of it. But if that's what's needed, then I'm pretty sure I'm not the right guy for any of these."

"You and me both, bro," sighed Eijiro in disappointment. He thought of trying for one of the spots but he really didn't fit any of the criteria that were mentioned. It really opened his eyes how this wasn't just for show and that there were actual important duties and requirements that needed to be met.

"So, does anyone fit the bill?" asked Tsuyu bluntly.

"I think…" started Momo but she trailed off when everyone turned to look at her. She didn't know if she could continue until she caught the curious gaze on Izuku's face. Drawing strength from it, she continued her thoughts out loud. "I think we should find out if anyone has any experience regarding the questions Midoriya asked. After that, we can make our choices as to who we want for nominees for each position. Nominees should have some support. Then, we vote between the selections."

"Hmm, how many supporters do the nominees need?" asked Tenya.

"Well, one vote would nominate them and at least one more for support, so at least two makes sense to be even considered," replied Momo.

"Sounds like a plan to me!" chirped out Mina as she stood up from her desk and clapped her hands once. "Alright, let's get this started!"

For the next thirty minutes, almost the entire class of 1A got involved in finding out who could meet the requirements. Shoto did not get involved because he didn't want to speak with anyone. But he did decide that he'll vote for someone in the end since he didn't want the position because of the extra work. He just wanted to be free of duties and obligations. Not add more…

When everything was shared, they then wrote down who they thought would be good choices for the positions and folded up their paper. Mina and Toru walked around to collect the papers before the duo went to the front and started going through them to see who got at least two votes for each position along on the white board. And these were the nominees for each position;

Class representative / Vice representative – Tokoyami, Midoriya, Yaoyorozu, Shoji

Secretary Treasurer – Ojiro, Uraraka, Asui, Iida

The nominees were somewhat surprised but not entirely since they did share what they knew and what they experienced that was relative to the positions and requirements.

"Alright, now we get to voting! And remember, you can't vote for yourself! First vote is for class rep and second place will be vice rep!" said Mina. She and Toru turned away from each other to write their choices though both were thinking the same thing. When everyone finished, once again Mina and Toru collected them. They began tallying it up on the board.

Midoriya – 10 votes

Yaoyorozu – 5 votes

Tokoyami – 2 votes

Shoji – 2 votes

"And there you have it!" exclaimed Mina with a wide grin on her face.

"Our class rep is Midoriya and vice rep is Yaoyorozu!" added Toru.

To say he was stunned would be an understatement. Izuku couldn't believe that half the class voted for him to be their representative. He understood the support behind Momo since even he voted for her. But for him? After last night and what he said today before class started? Sure, he was nominated but to actually be elected for the spot? It definitely surprised him. But Izuku didn't dwell on it. He remembered what he learned and what he was told. He would receive it with dignity and do his best.

"Now we pick the third spot! C'mon people! Write it down!" said Mina, practically ordering everyone to do so. Once done, she and Toru collected and went through it while tallying it again on the board.

Uraraka – 11 votes

Asui – 4 votes

Iida – 2 votes

Ojiro – 2 vote

Ochaco was thrilled that she won the position. Though she did feel bad for her friend Tsuyu, she couldn't help it. She'd be able to spend more time with Izuku, even if it was gonna be spent dealing with extra duties.

"So with the voting done, c'mon up reps and say something," suggested Toru.

Izuku, Momo and Ochaco got up off their seats and went to the front of the class while Mina and Toru returned to their seats. Ochaco and Momo stood on either side of Izuku before they faced the class. The two girls glanced at him and Izuku realized that he should start things off. "Thank you for voting for us and showing your support and belief in us. We'll do our best. Right?" asked Izuku as he glanced at Momo and Ochaco.

"Right!" agreed the two.

Most of the class cheered and whooped for them, making the three become embarrassed and blushed due to embarrassment.

"Alright, quiet down!" snapped Shota as he stood up from behind the desk. The class immediately went silent with all eyes on their sensei. "I see you've made your picks," he commented after looking at the three standing and the names on the board. "Good. Now, back to your seats." When the three sat back down, Shota continued. "Alright, with that done, it's almost time for your next classes. After lunch, you'll be going to the PE grounds for some physical training. Got it?"

"Yes, Sensei!"

"Good. And reps, don't forget to talk with 1B's reps cause you'll be working together in the future."

"Yes, Sensei!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

All the girls in class 1B were seated close to one another and near them were some of the guys that they'd befriended. They were waiting for their homeroom class to start and spent the time conversing with one another. Though one of them was being rather quiet and even more so than usual.

Ibara was barely interacting with anyone right now. She would reply back when spoken to but other than that, she remained silent for the most part. And that was because she didn't have a good morning. Actually, she didn't have a good night either. Half of it was spent having nightmares while the other half was spent trying to get some sleep. Not only that, but she kept thinking about what she learned about her warrior angel.

To say Ibara was gob smacked to learn that Izuku was a late bloomer who had suffered throughout his life and yet somehow remained a good person was an understatement. Not only did it prove to her that there are good men out there, but it also proved something else too. And that was a phrase that Father John would say every now and then that she had forgotten about until this morning. Remembering how Izuku saved her, fought the Nomu and revealed a part of his horrible past, it made her repeat the words quietly to herself…

Even as she whispered it to herself, it was still heard by someone near her. Turning towards her, Itsuka spoke up. "Hey Shiozaki, did you say something?" she asked.

Her question made some from their group turn towards the religious girl. Ibara stiffened at the sudden attention on her that consisted of concerned looks. "O-Oh, it was nothing, really. Just something I remembered all of a sudden that my Father used to say about God and his warriors…"

"God's warriors?!" repeated Tetsutetsu, getting interested and so were a few others. "I'd love to hear about that! Can you tell me, please?"

A few others expressed interest and Ibara decided to answer them. "Alright. It's just a proverb, or saying if you will that's not officially recorded but it's been said many times over the centuries. Possibly in different ways as well. No one knows where it came from but it's become quite famous. Here is the saying…"

Ibara took in a breath before saying it. [God only allows the toughest of challenges to be faced by his strongest of warriors].

Her friends were quiet for a moment as they thought about the meaning behind it. "It is indeed a remarkable proverb as it is thought inducing," remarked Reiko. "May I ask what made you remember this?" she asked with the rest wanting to know as well. Though Reiko had an idea, she didn't want to assume. No matter how plausible it might be.

Ibara's face flushed with some color that was noticed by several. Some had an idea as to what was the cause yet no one said anything. "I…" She couldn't continue due to embarrassment.

"Do not fret, Shiozaki-san," spoke up Jurota. "If it'll make you uncomfortable, there is no need for you to share with us."

Ibara however shook her head. "Thank you Shishida-san but it is alright. I cannot be so embarrassed about this when it's not even completely about me."

"What you mean?" asked Pony.

"I remembered those words after thinking about…Midoriya."

"Midoriya?" repeated Kinoko in a questioning tone while some understood and Reiko had her assumption confirmed.

Ibara nodded. "Yes. He revealed to us that he was viewed as quirkless in the past. And he displayed the injustices he survived through…" They all remembered the scars they saw on Izuku's body and a few of them felt a cold shiver go down their spines. "…yet, Midoriya still seems to have a kind and noble heart. Even with such incredible power in his grasp, all he wishes for is to be seen as normal. And he's gone out of his way to help and protect everyone. Even going beyond his limits and hurting himself just for a chance to do what is right."

Ibara felt a stirring sensation filling her and so did a few others as she said that. "Thinking about that made me remember that saying."

"I get it now," spoke up Setsuna, drawing attention to her. "Wonderboy went through so much shit that any normal person would've been pissed off and want to get revenge after finding out that they're actually powerful. And yet, even though he could literally tear everyone a new asshole, he's still a nice guy who wants to do good and help out."

Ibara frowned a little due to her classmate's choice of vocabulary but ultimately couldn't argue against what was said. "Ah, yes. That is what I meant. Though, I wouldn't use those types of words."

Setsuna grinned a little as her friends just rolled their eyes while others chuckled. "Well, better get used to it, Sista!" Noticing the expression form on Ibara's face, Setsuna's grin faded away. "By the way, Shiozaki, I…" Taking in a breath, Setsuna faced the religious girl completely who gave her a neutral look before she continued while ignoring the looks from her closest friends. "I just wanted to apologize for my behavior when we first met. I'm normally able to just shrug things off but when you were saying those stuff, it made me mad thinking that you were trying to control me and I didn't like that. I had some issues with those kinds of things in the past and it made me remember them…"

Ibara's eyes widened in surprise as she understood. She didn't think that Setsuna would apologize over that. Sure, they somehow had a silent agreement develop between them to be a little civil with one another. But she wasn't expecting this. Nor was she expecting that there was a legitimate reason behind it. And with her apologizing, Ibara felt horrible for not doing so as well. She hurried to rectify that. "I understand Tokage and I accept your apology. And I too apologize for my behavior. I never should've been so adamant in how I try to spread my Faith onto others."

Setsuna smiled a little and detached her right hand before having it fly towards Shiozaki. "Apology accepted! Now, let's forget about that shit and look towards the future! A future filled with fun times with friends, causing shenanigans and teasing Wonderboy!"

Most of their group laughed at that. Ibara, though a part of her was a little amused over her words, kept her face stoic. "Must you ruin this?" she asked but nevertheless, she shook hands.

Noticing that, Setsuna's smile morphed into a large grin. "Like I said before, get used to it!"

"I don't know if I fully will," replied Ibara with a small smile.

Itsuka gave her friend an understanding look. "You will, Shiozaki. You'll find out soon enough that there's some things or some people…" She pointed at Setsuna, who blew a raspberry at her. "…that just won't change. Best to just roll with it. And do some damage control whenever you can."

"Please, without me around, you would've died of boredom a hundred times!" exclaimed Setsuna.

"Hmm, maybe."

"Don't encourage her Yui!" chastised Itsuka but Yui merely shrugged. Letting out a sigh, Itsuka turned towards Ibara. "I might need your help in doing that, if you don't mind."

"I shall do my best to do what a friend must," replied Ibara.

"Thanks." Itsuka looked at the two. "Hear that? I got back up now. Watch it, or you'll get her vines too, Set!"

Setsuna however, wasn't intimidated. In fact, she actually smirked before replying back. "Tying me up, huh? It's about time you let your kinky side out, Girl Scout!"

Sputters, yelps and incoherent noises were let out by everyone in the group with them all blushing madly while Setsuna laughed loudly and heartedly. That made the others in the class look at them in surprise and interest over what was going on.

"DAMN IT SET!" yelled Itsuka as she stood up with her hands enlarging along with a reddened face.

Before anything could happen however, their classroom door opened and their homeroom teacher walked in. "What's with the yelling?!" barked Vlad with his eyes snapping onto the red head. "Kendo, what are you doing?!"

Itsuka felt so embarrassed that her already red face darkened even further. "N-Nothing, Sensei!" she barely managed to get out as she immediately sat back down into her seat. From the corner of her eye, she could see Setsuna covering her mouth with both hands to cover her laughing while shaking in her seat. Oh, it's on now! I'm gonna get you back for this!

Vlad narrowed his eyes at Itsuka and noticed her tremble a bit. Blowing air through his nostrils, Vlad decided to move on and went to his podium. "Alright, anyways, good morning and welcome back class."

"Good morning, Sensei!"

"I hope you're all rested enough because we've got a lot of work to do. But before that, girls, did you get the document signed?" he asked them.

"Yes, Sensei," answered Reiko as she stood up with the paper in hand. Walking up to him, she handed it to him before returning to her seat.

Looking over it quickly, Vlad saw that everything needed on it was there. "Good." Going to his desk, he opened a drawer, put the document in it and closed it. Returning to the podium, he pulled out a few stacks of papers from within as he called Kosei to the front. "Pass one of each to everyone."

"Yes, Sensei."

As Kosei did that, Vlad began explaining. "The papers that are being handed out are very important. The first is the schedule for your mandatory session with Hound Dog. There are no excuses for not attending but if you need to reschedule, we can but it must be within two weeks of your date."

Vlad heard some murmurs and grumbles about that but ignored them. "If you don't go, you'll be expelled." That silenced everyone. "That's what I thought. The second consists of two writing prompts. One of them was your old paper that was due last week on Friday. But because of the USJ, you have until tomorrow. The second prompt is about what you could've done better at the USJ. Both have to be at least one thousand words."

Vlad was expecting some more whines but was a little surprised that there was none. Must be learning. Good. "And the third paper has descriptions of class positions. Ones that we will fill together."

Everyone became interested and some became excited to run for the spots since they wanted the prestige that came with the positions.

Ignoring the eager hands in the air, Vlad further explained. "The class representative positions aren't a joke. There'll be extra duties and responsibilities. And I've already narrowed down the potential candidates based on what I've seen from you all. You'll get to vote anonymously between them." Retrieving a button from within the podium, he pressed it and the white board behind him shifted with another that had some writing on it.

Class Representative / Vice Representative Nominees – Itsuka Kendo, Jurota Shishida, Setsuna Tokage

Secretary Treasurer Nominees – Yui Kodai, Ibara Shiozaki, Nirengeki Shoda

"Alright, you have twenty minutes to think over who you want and then you'll be able to vote. And if your name is up there, you can't vote for yourself," informed Vlad before he went to his desk and sat down. Working on something on his computer, Vlad also set an alarm for twenty minutes.

Class 1B began thinking about who they'd vote for. But a few were feeling angry and jealous over the ones who had been pre-selected by their Sensei. Unable to do anything about it however, they reluctantly began thinking about who to vote for. By the end of their allotted time, they had made their decisions on who to vote for.

"Alright, everyone, time to vote," informed Vlad while standing up and holding small index cards in his hand. He passed them out to the front seated students who passed them backwards. "On the card, write your choice for each spot. Second place for class rep will become the vice. You have one minute."

A minute later, all the cards were folded and passed up front. Vlad collected the cards and began tallying up the votes. When finished, he couldn't believe it. Damn it, I knew I should've changed the nominees. Those three are together and something tells me it's gonna cause some things to happen…oh well, whatever. Looking up towards his class, Vlad cleared his throat. "Here's the results; your class representative is Kendo. Vice is Tokage. Secretary Treasurer is Kodai. Congratulations you three."

"ALRIGHT!" yelled Setsuna as she pumped her fist. "The tripod's still together!"

Itsuka face palmed while letting out a groan as Yui merely let out a 'hmm'. And all the while, both their classmates and their homeroom teacher gave the three curious looks…

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Hey Midobro, wanna join us for lunch?"

Izuku turned in his spot in the line to see the metal quirk user from class 1B, Tetsutetsu near him. Beside him were also Eijiro, Mashirao, Rikido and Hiryu.

"Sure, thanks Tetsu," replied Izuku.

"Cool. We'll go get a table. See ya there," informed Tetsutetsu.

After Izuku received his meal from Lunch Rush, he went to join the guys. On his way, he saw all the girls from both classes seated together. They saw him and most started waving at him and smiled at him. Smiling in return, Izuku nodded at them since he couldn't wave back before facing forward. Reaching the table where the other guys were, Izuku sat down next to Tetsutetsu.

"Welcome," greeted Hiryu.

"Thanks. How were lessons for your class today?" asked Izuku.

"Not bad. Had to pick our class reps and stuff today," answered Hiryu.

"Us too," chimed in Rikido. "Midoriya, Yaoyorozu and Uraraka became our reps. Who's yours?"

"Kendo, Tokage and Kodai became our reps," revealed Tetsutetsu. He turned toward Izuku with a grin. "Nice job, bro!"

"Thanks Tetsu, but I wasn't even trying to get it."

"Damn, really?" questioned Hiryu and Izuku nodded. "How come?"

Izuku let out a sigh. "Well, there's a few big reasons and one of them is Eri. I thought that I wouldn't be able to do a good enough job since I'll be taking care of her too." Understanding dawned on the others but Izuku kept going. "But now that I was voted to be class rep, I don't want to let down my classmates and disrespect their belief in me. So I'm gonna do the best I can," he finished saying with conviction in his tone.

Silence between them for a bit before Tetsutetsu and Eijiro both said the same thing together at once. "So manly!"

Catching him off guard, Izuku gave Eijiro a surprised look. "You say that too?"

"Of course I do!" responded Eijiro with a sharp grin on his face, causing them all to chuckle.

Soon enough, all of them began talking and joking around with one another. And all the while, Izuku was enjoying have some normal interactions with them as friends would.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Hello everyone," greeted Kaina as calmly and confidently as she could while looking over classes 1A and 1B. She was given first rotation for their heroics class training since All Might wasn't teaching the class anymore. Nezu said something about how it'll help her step into her teaching role. Whatever that meant. Sure, she was nervous about conducting her first actual class but figured it'd still be easier than her first 'Art History' class that she had to teach tomorrow since she had a plan for today. And she still didn't have a clue what to do about 'Art History' but pushed it aside for the time being.

"Hello Sensei!" parroted back most.

"As you know, my name is Kaina Tsutsumi. My hero name is Lady Nagant. You may call me Lady Nagant, Ms. Tsutsumi or Nagant Sensei unless said otherwise." Her eyes shifted onto Izuku for a split second, remembering what she told him to call her specifically, before returning to look over them all. And nobody noticed that. "Now, before we get started, I'd like for each of you to go in turn and introduce yourselves, your quirk and one quick thing about you. We'll start with you," finished Kaina as she pointed at Sen.

As the students did as she ordered, Kaina did her best to listen intently to what they said. During the entire time, she also had a small recording device attached to her belt that was turned on a minute before class started. Having ordered it through an online shop with the help of Anan, who she promised to pay back as soon as she received her first paycheck, she had picked it up yesterday at the front gate of UA. She'd have to use that later to remind her of everything so she can do those damn reports for the head bitch of the HPSC.

Remembering that made Kaina internally groan over what she had to do. Ugh, it's gonna be tiring and annoying as hell making those reports, thought Kaina while half listening to the students. I wonder, though, would the rat be able to break the code? If anyone could, it would be him, right? I mean…

"…and my quirk is…"

Shit, pay attention! Chastising herself mentally for losing her focus, Kaina snapped out of it and quickly refocused on the students. As they continued, she mentally noted which ones would be interesting cases to keep some tabs on Many of the students from both classes had such amazing quirks with incredible potential and ability. Hell, she thought some of them were even more incredible than Izuku's. So why the hell was the HPSC specifically after him more so than the others? There must be something else. Maybe a test? But how… She was about to get lost in thought once more but quickly pushed aside her thoughts for the time being after the last person went. She'd have time to do so later.

"You all have some pretty good quirks and potential to become some good heroes in the future from the sound of it," said Kaina after the last student spoke. Some agreed verbally, others smiled and a few even let out boasts. Her eyes narrowed and she crossed her arms. "However, having a good quirk and even having potential will mean nothing if you ignore your shortcomings and do nothing to get better." The smiles vanished and the quiet talking ceased. "Nezu informed me about the USJ and even showed me the surveillance recordings of what happened."

At this, Kaina noticed how a good portion of the students seemed to have downcast gazes on their faces. But what surprised her most was how a part of her felt seeing that. Slight feelings of sadness and anger filled her at being the cause of it. Realizing that, she squashed those feelings down and continued with what she was going to say.

"Even with barely starting your UA career, some of your actions were disappointing at best and infuriating at worst. You all got lucky. If anything had been slightly different, most of you would've suffered horrible injuries with some not even being here right now. And…"

"Yeah, well, you wouldn't be here either!" spoke up one from the front of the group.

Kaina shifted her attention onto the one who interrupted her and narrowed her eyes. Hmm, maybe now will be good… "Wanna run that by me again, Mr…"

"Monoma. And we know already, damn it! We already had Principal Nezu tell us and our homeroom teachers! We don't need you, someone who was just recently let out from Tartarus, telling us how we messed up after everyone else already told us! Especially when you've probably done more horrible shit and mistakes than we've done!"

It happened within a split second after Neito finished with his rant.

The muzzle of the infamous rifle from the one and only Lady Nagant suddenly appeared mere inches away from Neito's face. Instantly, Neito's glare morphed into absolute terror. Not only that, but almost everyone else there reacted by either screaming, yelping, taking steps back or just freezing in place due to shock and fear over what was happening. Even Shoto was momentarily startled to the point he didn't react by sending out a blast of ice towards her.

Except for one.

Izuku, even without the use of his quirk, quickly moved to aid Neito.

Kaina noticed this of course with her incredible eyesight. Not to mention how it took about a second for the green haired young man to do so. Even so, she didn't react. She allowed him to push Neito out of the way and stand where he used to be.

Izuku stood right in front of her barrel with his arms both spread out, though his right wouldn't rise as much as his left due to his cast, as if to shield everyone behind him. "You can't hurt him, Lady Nagant Sensei. Even if he was being disrespectful," said Izuku with hard expression on his face while staring down Kaina over the barrel.

No one moved. No one said anything. It was dead silent in the gym. And yet, everyone besides Kaina could hear their heart thumping loudly in their ears.

Kaina held her position for a few seconds more with many thoughts racing through her mind. Finally, after what seemed to be like ages, she raised her arm rifle with the barrel pointing upwards. "Relax, Midoriya, everyone. I wasn't really going to shoot him. Just scare him. Besides, I'm empty. See?" Opening the slide on the rifle, all of her students saw that it indeed was empty.

Sighs of relief were let out by most. Even Neito, who had fallen onto his rear on the ground, was able to finally breathe normally again.

Izuku slowly lowered his arms but didn't move from his current spot. "Even so, that was unnecessary," said Izuku with a frown.

"Maybe. Maybe not," replied Kaina, her rifle regressing back into her arm. "But this just proved my point."

"H-How?" asked Kinoko for everyone.

Shifting her gaze onto the mushroom girl, who began fidgeting in place from the attention on her now, Kaina began explaining. "As I was saying before being rudely interrupted by blondie who's bravado failed to protect his ass…"

"Hey!" squeaked out Neito.

Ignoring him, Kaina continued. "You all lucked out at the USJ. And Monoma lucked out again just now. And both times were because of him." Pointing at Izuku without looking at him, Kaina waited until they glanced at him. She could tell from her peripheral vision that Izuku was becoming embarrassed due to his reddening face.

Kaina enjoyed seeing that for a moment before continuing. "You were able to fight against the villains and held your own at first. But when the chips were down and things escalated in situations you couldn't control or weren't prepared for, you buckled. Except for Midoriya, who reacted and did what needed to be done in order to protect and save others. Both at the USJ and just now. That's what a hero needs to be able to do."

Her words made sense and no one was able to argue. They all thought that they had messed up and made mistakes. But almost all of them looked at Izuku with expressions of admiration, respect, awe and more.

"But even with those compliments, Midoriya messed up too."

That statement made everyone snap their attention back onto Kaina with astonished gazes with several even asking why or how.

"There were many things he could've done differently at the USJ as well. For one, he took too long in each zone. A hero must provide support to those in need but, they should be quick to do so when there are others who need help at the same time. If he had done so, he may have been able to prevent what happened to Midnight."

She turned to face Neito, who had barely gotten back onto his feet. "And if he was able to do that, then you'd be correct. I wouldn't be here but rotting away at Tartarus still. I do not take joy in learning that I was able to escape my torture due to the misfortune that someone else experienced."

Neito had the decency to actually look a little ashamed over his words. Some of them even felt a little bad after Kaina's words. Izuku felt sullen to hear that but he could've sworn he noticed something else too on Kaina's face as she said those words.

Either not noticing the expressions on their faces or not caring, Kaina continued. "Back to my point. Midoriya also put himself in unnecessary danger by recklessly charging forward against a superior opponent. Sure, he put down that Nomu or whatever it was called, but ended up becoming a liability at the end when he collapsed since he could've been taken hostage. And just now, he pushed Monoma aside and took his place. Instead of that, he should've prevented me from aiming by pushing the rifle's muzzle up or used the opportunity to knock me out since he came from the side."

No one said anything since it all made sense. Izuku too couldn't argue since some of them were things he thought about himself. And he realized he once again put himself in arms way instead of neutralizing the threat or preventing anyone from being a target. Frustration grew within him. Damn it, I thought I was learning!

Seeing that they were starting to understand, Kaina decided to wrap things up with her final points. "And right now, you're also lucky because you're at UA and I'm an instructor. If I really wanted to, Monoma would've been shot three times before even Midoriya would be able to react. And Midoriya, I saw you coming from a mile away. Even without the use of your quirk until next week, you were too obvious and slow."

Absolutely terrified of her now, all thirty-nine students made a mental note to never piss off Lady Nagant.

"Now, have I made myself clear?"

"Yes, Sensei!"

"Good. With that outta the way, we'll start today's class. As you can see behind me, the gym has multiple areas sectioned off. Each area has multiple stone dummies for you to use. One person per area since there's enough for all of you. Practice using your quirks if possible and while you do so, I'll be coming around to see what you're doing. It'll allow me to see what your capable of and what your quirks actually do. Then, I should be able to provide advice if you want as well as answer questions if you have any and if they're appropriate. Also, I may or may not throw a curveball your way so stay on your toes. Now go."

Kaina watched them all head towards a section while giving her a rather wide berth. Noticing it, she did her best to ignore that since she did kind of bring it upon herself.

Counting to thirty-eight, she turned her sight onto the last student. "I mentioned this but just to confirm…you can't use your quirk at all, right?"

"That's right. I have to wait until the week after next."

"And you're not supposed to do any physical activity until next week. Right?"

"Yeah…"

"Well, isn't there anything else you can do with this time instead of just hovering around me?"

Izuku's cheeks flushed with color as he rubbed the back of his head again. "Well, I thought you might have something for me to do…"

"I don't," replied Kaina instantly.

"Oh." Izuku looked down at the ground for a moment before raising his gaze back up to see Kaina still looking at him with a blank look. "Well, I could think about what you said and plan some things out for when I can get back into training and practice. Oh, I could even go over my quirk analysis notes or start on my writing prompts for homeroom."

"Then you go do that," replied Kaina as she started walking away.

"Lady Nagant-sensei…" started Izuku and he waited until she glanced back at him. "Is…Is something wrong?" he asked her.

Kaina's expression remained neutral even as she replied back. "No. Why?"

"It's just…I got the feeling that you're…well, that you're…"

"That I'm what, exactly?" asked Kaina, with a hint of annoyance and impatience.

Unable to help himself, Izuku frowned a little. "That you're angry with me for some reason," he said, a little bit of anger filling him too over her behavior with him that allowed him to say that to her.

Kaina had a split second reaction that wasn't noticed. "You're imagining things, Midoriya. I have more important things to do than being angry towards some random teenager." Turning away from him, Kaina headed towards the closest area to check on the student there while thinking. She thought of how she had to be more mindful of her behavior around others, especially around him…

Izuku watched her walk away with his frown deepening. He could tell that she was hiding something. Maybe not anger with him, but there was something. If not, then what could be the reason for her being like this with him? They had an initial good talk but it suddenly went sour at the end of that conversation. And just now too. She had complimented him in front of everyone right before taking apart his actions. He agreed with her but it was done so coldly though.

What had he done wrong to deserve this? Was it all really just because she thought he was trying to sweet talk her at the end of their first interaction? He was just trying to be respectful and honest with his compliment. Or could it be something else?

Izuku had told himself that he wouldn't bother chasing after people or trying to make others believe or understand him. But he was completely lost as to what happened and part of him wanted to know.

Wanting to find out, Izuku was about to go talk to her. But he realized that she was already in the first area and he didn't want to bother his classmates and prevent them from getting important advice nor did he want to distract them.

Deciding that he'd wait for a better opportunity later, Izuku walked towards one side of the gym that had a set of bleachers after grabbing his backpack. Sitting down, he pulled out some sheets of papers and got started on the first writing prompt.

As he did his best to write with his left hand, Izuku kept having thoughts pop up in his mind. Thoughts that consisted of what he needed to do to be a better hero in the future. Thoughts of his situation with his classmates. Thoughts of the growing and somewhat obvious affection towards him from some of the girls. Thoughts of his own growing feelings towards a couple of the girls. Thoughts of his newly appointed class representative responsibilities. Thoughts of the rather cold behavior from Lady Nagant. And of course, thoughts of how his adopted daughter would be coming to live with him at UA very soon…

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Author's Notes - So, what'd you think?

Also, the next chapter, chapter 28, is already up for pa tre on members! I'd really appreciate it if you can become a member as I'm trying to become a full time writer. I'm not asking for much either so if you can, that'll be awesome and I'll be very appreciative of it. If not, that's fine. You'll just have to wait longer to read the newer chapters.

However, it's gonna be the only way to read my all original story that's gonna be posted up there soon along with some member exclusive goodies. I know I've mentioned it before a few times, but I've made some progress on it and some stuff is gonna be posted up soon. To become a member, just add /silentplayermc03 to the end of pa tre on's website!

Hope all is well, that I hear from you all so leave a review, fav and follow! Thanks in advance and take care!

IMPORTANT NEWS!

I've started working on "The Blue Spirit" again and editing for the next chapter, 019, has been completed and uploaded on Pa tre on. ALSO! The very first chapter for "Tale of the Forsaken" has been done and uploaded onto that as well. AND! I've put up some concept drawings of the all original story's world (I can't draw to save my life, so just bear with me on that).

I wanted to give everyone an update and let you know that progress is being made and now that my mind is working again, I'm juggling several projects at once so stay tuned! And like I mentioned above, if you can, please become a pa tre on member as every little bit helps and I'd much rather write full time and get stories out to you all.

ONE MORE THING! I wanted to say thank you to all my supporters & readers. And a BIG shout out to all those who are pa tre on supporters. You don't know how much it helps to keep going when you know that they're are people supporting you and being there for you. And those who have donated, you've helped me keep my lights on and take care of things so I can keep writing. So from the bottom of my heart, I just want to say THANK YOU!

Hope you're all doing well and take care!

My Active Stories (Take a look!)

The Blue Spirit

Tale of the Forsaken

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