It's been nine months since the start of their second year at UA High School. During those nine months class A has found many things about Keralynn Mayson, the foreign exchange student that joined their class, like how she has autism, has depression due to her past, that she is not a Heteromorph, but a literal half cat, and that her quirk had always been sentient, much like Tokoyami's Dark Shadow just to name a few. The girls of class A noticed that Mayson has a crush on Koda of all people, while some of the guys noticed that Koda has had a thing for her since the day she was introduced to the class. What was most surprising during those months, was that Tokoyami acts like a totally different person when he is around Reika Takami. The other new student, Keigo Takami's, better known as Hawks' younger sister, and Tokoyami's adopted sister and childhood best friend that also joined their class. He tells everyone that it's just his 'brotherly instincts,' but everyone knows that he had fallen in love with her.
It was the last week of January as the students were walking towards UA from their alliance buildings. The sun blinded most of them as it reflected off of the fresh snow in the ground. Some kids threw snowballs at each other, while others tried to mind their own business. Class A was no different as someone threw a snowball at Tokoyami's back. He turns around to see Reika also turned around, flying backwards with her arms crossed. "Okay! Which one of you threw it?" She asked as she glared at Kaminari and Kirishima.
"It wasn't us, we swear!" Kaminari said. She looks at them in disbelief.
She looks towards Mayson as she looks around innocently, hands behind her back, whistling a gentle tune. Koda was hiding his bright red blush as he tried to keep himself from chuckling. She looks back at Reika and waves. "I'd be careful walking backwards, Reika. You may fall and hurt yourself." She said as she smiled cutely.
He looks towards Koda then back at Mayson as he smirks. "Keep acting all adorable like that and Koda just might not be able to control himself from hugging you again." He said, making both of them blush a deep red. He chuckles to himself as he turns back around.
Just as he turned around a bunch of snow fell on him from above. He looks up to see Reika giggling. "You're right, Koda. It is fun." She said.
"You're going to play around too, Rei?" He asks as he looks at her, smiling lovingly as he hears her laugh. He closes his eyes, keeping his smile. "Alright then, If that's how you want to play. I shall amuse you, love. Dark Shadow." He said quietly to himself.
Dark Shadow appears without Reika noticing. He flies back a ways before using his long arms to grab a bunch of soft snow, then flies back. He sneaks up behind Reika till he is just above her. Once he was in the right spot above her he dropped the snow he had gathered onto her, making her fall to the ground, covered in snow. "Mess with the raven, you get the talons, Rei Rei!" He laughed before returning to Tokoyami.
"I deserved that." She said as she started getting up then ran to catch up with them. "But now I won't be able to fly till my feathers dry."
"Apologies Rei, but you did start the fight." Tokoyami said.
"Did not! Kera and Koda did!" She said with surprise in her voice.
"It was Koda's Idea, I just threw the snowball." Mayson said.
"HAH! YOU ADMIT IT!" Reika said as she turned around and pointed at her half feline friend. Tokoyami gently grabs her arm to turn her back around.
"Oh come on. You knew it was me the whole time. You were even part of the plan." Mayson said as she crossed her arms.
"Come on you guys. If we don't hurry then we will be late!" Ida said as he made the arm chopping motion.
When they arrive at the school entrance they see a crowd of girls huddled together, acting like fangirls. "I wonder what's going on there?" Kaminari asked.
"Fumi, Can Shadow carry me up above the crowd? I'll see what's going on." Reika asked.
"Of course." He said as Dark Shadow appeared again, wrapping around her a couple of times before wrapping his arms around her. He lifts her up above the crowd as she sees a young man with short white hair, blue eyes, dimples, wearing a UA uniform surrounded by most of the girls in the school.
"Looks like he's a popular one." Dark Shadow said in annoyance. The young man looks towards Reika and Dark Shadow as he notices them. He winks at her, blowing her a kiss. She blushes slightly before Dark Shadow holds her protectively in his arms, growling at him. "Who does he think he is?! He has all the girls fawning over him like he's some celebrity!" He flies back down but still holds Reika protectively in his arms.
"That's how the guys were when everyone found out I was Keigo's sister. You know how that went down." Reika said as she crossed her arms, waiting to be let go.
"And that's how it will go down if he looks at you like that again." Dark Shadow said.
"What'd you guys see?" Tsuyu asked.
"A first year student that was probably popular in his middle school." Reika said.
"Maybe he has a quirk that makes him popular." Midoriya said as he looked down in thought.
"Or he could just be a major flirt towards all girls, like Kaminari." Mayson said in English.
"Oh yeah. Definitely a flirt." Reika said, also in English, agreeing with Mayson as she nodded her head.
"Wh-What's a flirt?" Koda asked shyly.
"A flirt is someone who walks up to another person of the opposite sex and asks them in such a manner to go on a romantic outing with them, hoping that it would end in something so natural yet so vulgar, I dare not speak of it." Ida explained.
Reika and Mayson look at each other before they burst out laughing. "Not quite the explanation he wanted but that's most of it." Mayson said.
"You do know that not ALL guys think like that. But how would you know about flirting if you have never had a girlfriend before." A male voice said from within the crowd. The girls all parted ways as the boy with the white hair and blue eyes walked towards them. He kneels down on one knee, gently taking Reika's hand, kissing her palm, then Mayson's. "My goodness. I must have died and gone to heaven! I see two beautiful angels standing right before my eyes." Tokoyami gets between the girls and the young man, glaring daggers at him. Koda's eyes widen as he feels something in his chest that he has never felt before. Jealousy.
"MIKOTA! I leave you alone for FIVE MINUTES and you're already trying to use your quirk on our UPPERCLASSMEN!" They hear a young woman's voice from afar. They see a young woman in the school uniform with short red hair and purple eyes and white glasses, running towards them.
"Looks like that's my cue. Until we meet again, lovely maidens." the boy called Mikota said before he jumped into the trees.
"Who was that guy? He gives me the creeps." Uraraka said.
"I'm so sorry about my younger brother, Senpais. Mikota likes to flaunt his part of our quirk. The two of us are twins who have the same quirk, only his works on girls while mine normally works on guys." The young woman said as she bowed towards Class A.
"What are your quirks?" Ida asked.
The young woman sighs. "Long story short, he uses our quirk by looking and winking at a girl and they fall head over heels in love with him just like that. Mine works in the same manner, but with guys. The only time our quirk is ineffective is if our target is already in love with someone." She explains.
"Did it have an effect on the Furball or Redlocks?" Bakugo asked.
"Sadly, I cannot tell which ones he hypnotizes and which ones he had no effect on. It's the same with him and my quirk." She explained.
Tokoyami growls, balling his hand into a fist. "How dare he do this to them." He muttered.
"He's gonna pay for that!" Dark Shadow said.
"My name's Mikani by the way, We're first years in the Hero Support class. It was nice meeting you all, gotta go." She said as she bowed then ran off in the direction her brother was going.
"And I thought Rhyan and Rhyley were a weird pair." Kirishima said.
"They're NOT weird." Reika and Tokoyami said at the same time.
Once everyone was in the classroom and had taken their seats, the bell rang and Aizawa walked into the room. "Alright students. Principal Nezu has chosen our class to host this year's Valentine's Day party. So today you will be talking amongst yourselves about deciding on a theme. You will have the whole afternoon to discuss it but for now, let's begin with today's lesson." He explained as he yawned. He turns around towards the board, beginning to write on it. He hears most of them struggling not to laugh. He glares over his shoulder at them. "Quiet."
Reika sighs, facepalming. "Definitely the Twins' doing." She said to herself.
"Rhyley's art and Rhyan's handwriting." Tokoyami replies in a quiet tone.
"We're sorry Mr Aizawa. I think the young ones may have played a prank on you this morning." Mayson said as she tried to keep herself from giggling. "You have something on your back." On Aizawa's back was a child's drawing of his face with Cat ears and whiskers.
Above the picture it said in a child's handwriting: "Have a good day" and below it said: "Kittyzawa!" where each letter was in a different color.
When it was finally afternoon, Class A returned to their classroom from lunch. Everyone but the class reps took to their seats. "Alright everyone. Let's begin discussing this year's Valentine's Day event. Who here has a suggestion?" Ida asked.
All of the usual classmates raised their hands, blurting out their ideas. Some were the usual Maid and Cosplay Cafes, some suggested a dance, and Kaminari suggested a kissing booth. "Quirk Battle Royale!" They hear Bakugo say. Everyone shut that down quickly. Uraraka and Ashido suggested something where everything is pink but it was immediately shot down by a lot of the guys. (Mainly Tokoyami.)
Reika raised her hand and stood up. "While the dance Idea is good, why not try a masquerade ball. Everyone has to wear or at least have a mask in hand so that no one can see who's who. We can have all of the students elect two or four members of each class to be nominated as Duke and Duchess for first years, second years for Prince and Princess, and third years for King and Queen. At midnight the winners will be chosen and once crowned, those six winners will have a dance all to themselves." She explained.
"That sounds like a great Idea Takami!" Yayorozu said.
"What if all the girls give the guys they ask to the ball a red rose! That way people can tell if the guy already has a date!" Ashido said. All the girls agreed to that.
"Then it's settled. We will host a Masquerade Ball and we have plenty of time to prepare for it." Ida said. All but one was in agreement.
Mayson shrunk into her seat, her gray feline ears pulling back as she put her hood up, hiding her face. Koda looks at her in worry, feeling his heart sink to his stomach. 'Keralynn doesn't seem too happy about this. I'll have to ask her why later.' He thought.
That night, both the Bakusquad and Dekusquad were sitting in the commons area debating who in their class they should nominate for prince and princess candidates. Reika, Tokoyami, Koda, Jiro, Shoji, and Mayson were talking to themselves in the dining room as to who they would nominate. 'Please don't nominate me. Please don't nominate me. Please don't nominate me.' She thinks to herself. "I-I nominate Jiro for a candidate. She's the most talented out of all of us." Mayson said.
"Mayson, I am FAR from princess material. I may know how to sing, but I have two left feet when it comes to dancing the waltz." Jiro said. "I think we should nominate Takami for our princess candidate." Jiro explained.
"I second that notion." Tokoyami said as he smiled, nodding his head in agreement.
"Why me?!" She asked.
"Because you were the one that thought of the whole event. You would be the perfect candidate." Mayson said shyly.
"Not me Keralynn. I think we should all nominate Keralynn for our princess candidate and Koda for our prince candidate." She said as she smiled. Mayson sinks into her seat again, hiding her face in her hood. "It won't be anything like your middle school Sweetheart dance, I promise."
"What's wrong, Mayson? If you were a candidate, I would definitely vote for you." Shoji said.
"As would I." Tokoyami said.
"Shut your beak Tokoyami. You already said you would nominate Takami." Jiro said.
"If Reika refused it, then my second choice would have to be Mayson, and I would second the notion of nominating Koda." He said.
Koda blushes a deep red hue. "Wh-Why me?" He asks shyly.
"I-I would be the th-third notion f-for Koda's nomination for candidacy, b-but I shouldn't be a c-candidate for p-princess." Mayson said, raising her hand as she continued to hide her face.
"Why not? C'mon It'll be fun, Ma-." Jiro started to say before she interrupted her, raising her voice at her.
"No it won't!" She yelled before she got up and ran towards the elevator.
Everyone looked at her as she ran. "K-Keralynn! Wait!" Koda yelled as he ran after her.
"What did you idiots do to her this time?! You know how sensitive she is!" Bakugo asked in an angered tone.
Before the elevator closes completely, Koda stops it and squeezes into the elevator with her. He sees her curled up into a ball with her long fluffy gray tail wrapped around her legs, hiding in the corner. He kneels down in front of her, placing one of his big hands on her small ones and smiles. "Let's go to my room. I think you need some cuddle time with Yuki." He said softly. She looks up at him, nodding her head as he notices that she was crying. He wiped her tears with his thumb.
When they entered his dorm room, Yuki, his white rabbit, was laying down on his bed as she yawned. When she notices Mayson she quickly gets up and jumps into her arms, cuddling her snout into her cheek and making her giggle. "It's nice to see you too, Yuki." She said sadly as she sat down on the floor, her back against his bed.
"At first I thought you were against this whole Masquerade Ball idea during class. I see now that it's not the ball itself that you're against, it's the idea of being nominated for princess. I'm right, aren't I?" He said as he sat on the floor beside her. She looks down as she nods her head yes. "And I wanna bet that you had a bad experience at being a candidate for princess for this 'Sweetheart' dance Takami mentioned earlier. Right?" She nods her head again as she hugs Yuki, hiding her face in her fur, and wrapping her tail around her legs again.
"It turned out to be a prank from the whole school just to humiliate me." She said, beginning to cry again, her voice muffled. She feels a pair of strong arms gently pick her up, one around her back, the other beneath her legs and set her down on his lap.
He wraps his arms around her, holding her close as he hugged her. "I promise that if something like that happens here, whoever's responsible will have to answer to Class A. We'll do everything we can to make sure nothing like that ever happens." He said as he smiled. He looks off to the side as he blushes slightly. "A-And for the record, I-I would have nominated you for our princess candidate as well as Takami. But I think Tokoyami would be a much better candidate for prince than me."
She dries her eyes with her palm. "It's not that I don't want to be a candidate, I'm just afraid of something like that happening again. Also Tokoyami would be more like a Dark Knight than a prince." She said as she laid her head down on his chest, listening to the thump thump of his heartbeat.
He chuckles at her remark. "I would agree with you on that if Takami was his princess. He's not even hiding the fact that he's in love with her anymore. You saw how Dark Shadow reacted when they saw Mikota in the middle of the crowd." He said.
"If Reika was the princess then he would be her Prince of Darkness." She replies. They both laugh. "I think that Jiro and Kaminari would also be good candidates as well. Either one of them would be a better fit for the role than me. It's just a dumb party. I don't understand why a lot of people make such a big deal out of it. This isn't prom or anything."
He looks at her in confusion. "What's prom?" He asked.
"Basically it's American high schools' equivalent of excitement to your sports festivals, only everyone dresses up in super fancy formal wear. Some kids even rent limos just so they can arrive in 'style' then after prom some kids go to after parties. I think it's all stupid if you ask me." She said.
"Have you been to one before?" He asks.
"No and I'll never go to one. My aunt just told me all about hers when I was little. Besides, prom is mainly for juniors and seniors anyway. While freshmen aren't allowed to go, I don't remember about sophomores. I'll bet that this Masquerade Ball will be just like my aunt's prom." She explained.
"I think this Ball sounds like a great Idea. We just have to choose who best suits the roles for our class's prince and princess candidates. It's not like they're guaranteed to win. Our class is going against all of the second years." He explained.
"I agree with the ball being a great idea, I just hope our class doesn't vote for me for Princess." She said as she yawned, cuddling into his chest as she began to purr.
He smiles as he pets her head. She leans her head into his hand, purring. "I would still vote for you, Keralynn." He said in a soft tone to himself.
The next day they see Mikota sitting in the middle of a smaller crowd of first year girls, flirting with them. Tokoyami pulls Reika closer to him and moves Mayson behind him as they pass by. "Let's go, Rei." He growled.
"Jealous much, Tokoyami?" Mayson asked as she crossed her arms.
"He's not jealous, Kera. He's just being a protective big brother." Reika said.
"Looks to me like he's jealous." She said as she giggled.
"It's only natural for a brother to protect their sister from threats. I am no threat to you, Senpai. I am merely wanting to get to know them." They hear Mikota's voice from behind Mayson.
She feels a strong but soft arm gently grab her across her shoulders, pulling her backwards a little. She looks up to see Koda, his arm wrapped around her shoulders. "Sorry extra, You won't be able to 'get to know' these girls without their bodyguards with them." Bakugo said.
"And that is perfectly alright. I like meeting new people of all kinds." He said.
"Mikota! You're not bothering the upperclassmen again are you?!" They hear his elder sister from behind him.
He turns to see his sister with her hands on her hips and tapping her foot. "Of course not dear sister. I'm just saying hello." He said.
"Riiiiight, from the looks of two of them I'd say you are." She said.
"Come now sister, I am only saying hello to them right now. But I guess if you want me to go then I guess I can't argue. Until we meet again, fair maidens." He said. He bows towards Reika and Mayson before leaving.
"I'm sorry if he was bothering you, senpais. I don't know what's gotten into him. I tried asking him about it yesterday but he won't tell me anything." She said.
"I wonder if Mikota has a crush on one of them, Kero. Or maybe he has a crush on both." Asui said as she looked down in thought.
"Highly doubtful. If he had a crush on anyone then he wouldn't use his quirk on them at all. He told me that he tried to use his quirk on the red head yesterday." She explained.
"Did he tell you if it had an effect on her?!" Tokoyami asked as he grabbed Reika's hand tightly.
"He didn't say." She said as she nodded her head no.
A week later the Valentine's Day event was still two weeks away. The results for the candidates were in. A lot of the classes voted for students in other classes. Most of the first year girls voted for Mikota for the Duke candidacy and two random girls for the Duchess candidacy. For second years four girls were nominated for princess, two of them being from class 2-B. Konda and Tsunotori. Takami and Mayson were 2-A's unanimous choices. Reika accepted while Mayson didn't like the idea of being a candidate, but with everyone's encouragement, she reluctantly accepted, on one condition. "I think we already know what your condition is, Mayson." Yaoyorozu said as she smiled.
"What do you mean?" She asked as she looked at them in confusion, tilting her head slightly. Yaoyorozu looks towards Koda and Tokoyami.
"Koda, you, Tokoyami, Midoriya, Todoroki, Tetsutetsu, and Monoma, got the top votes between classes A and B. Todoroki has refused the candidacy, as did Midoriya. You and Tokoyami are the only ones left from our class to take part. If my suspicion is correct, Mayson's condition is that you should be a candidate for Prince alongside her." She explained.
"C'mon, Rockhead. This would be a good way for you to come out of your shell some more. It's the whole reason why a lot of us voted for you and Bird Boy in the first place." Bakugo said, smiling as all the boys looked at him.
"The only times I've seen him come out of his shell is when he's around us. But I've been noticing that he has been opening up more whenever Mayson's with him." Ida said.
"That's because She's been encouraging him to open up more to us, trying to teach him not to be afraid to ask for help when he needs it. Something she needs to do herself." Reika said.
"So what do ya say, big guy, will you be a candidate?" Kirishima asked.
"Y-You don't have to i-if you do-." Mayson started to say in a shy tone.
"I-I'll do it." He interrupted nervously. "I-If it'll make her feel more comfortable as a candidate, Th-Then I'll do it, for her."
Mayson sighed in relief, smiling as she hid a deep blush. "That's great to hear, Koda. What about you, Tokoyami? Will you be joining him as a candidate?" Yaoyorozu asked.
"It would be an honor." He replied.
"And whether or not Reika wins, She'll always be a princess in your eyes?" Ashido said with a giant smile.
"M-MINA!" Reika said in a surprising tone as a slight red blush appeared along her cheeks.
He glances at her before closing his eyes as he smirks. "Indeed." He simply said, making her blush a slight deeper red hue.
The girls laugh as she looks away shyly. Mina looks over at Koda with the same giant smile. "The same goes for you whether or not Keralynn wins. Right, Koda?" She asked. He blushes a bright red hue before covering his face with his hands. He peeks through his fingers and nods his head shyly.
Ida clears his throat. "Alright then. With that out of the way, Now let's discuss the theme the masquerade ball will be and of course the event itself will take place on the fourteenth. The teachers are discussing the time the ball will take place." He said.
"Let's go all out! Big, bright and colorful!" Ashido suggested in a cheery tone.
"N-Not everything should be bright and colorful. Maybe have some of the decorations be darker cool colors. Something the guys will like, as well as girls. N-not everyone can handle bright places." Mayson said shyly.
"How about a photo booth? That way couples can take pictures for the scrapbooks." Hagakure suggested.
"Not just a photo booth. Why not a whole room specifically for pictures!" Sero said.
"Yeah! And we can hire a professional photographer!" Uraraka said happily.
"It can be a whole room where kids can dress up in old time clothes,like the renaissance or Edo times!" Asui suggested.
"Midoriya, Do you still have that business card the reporter guy gave you last year?" Todoroki asked.
"Oh. Yeah, it's in my room." He replied. His eyes widened as a light bulb went off in his head. "He can be our photographer!"
"That's right. His quirk allows him to take pictures without the need of a camera." Reika muttered to herself as she looked down in thought.
"S-Since it's a masquerade ball, Why not make the theme a little bit scary? I-I know that Halloween is over, but because of the fight with Bagheera. We weren't able to celebrate Tokoyami's birthday l-like we originally planned. S-So maybe we can use a tiny part of the ball to celebrate it." Mayson suggested.
Koda looks at her and smiles sadly. 'That's right. Because we fought with her cousin's father. We were not able to celebrate Tokoyami's birthday. But not just his, but Keralynn's as well, like we promised her.' He thinks to himself. He groans as he bows his head down, putting his hands over his horns. 'Dammit! Now I feel bad. I have to make things right with them somehow.'
He sees a few blue feathers place a note on his desk."Don't worry Koda, we'll make it up to them. I have an Idea. It will also be a perfect chance for you to tell Kera how you feel." It said. He looked up to see Reika looking at him with a smile. She winks at him in assurance.
The class discussion ended an hour later with the name of the ball being called, "Mysterious Valentine." Classes were over for the weekend as everyone headed into their alliance buildings. "Hey Koda, Come with me for a minute." Jiro said as she and Reika dragged Koda away from the others.
Once Mayson saw that Jiro and Reika had taken Koda away from the others, she turned to the class. "D-Does everyone know the drill?" She asked shyly. Everyone nodded their heads.
"Don't worry Furball, I'm sure he'll be surprised about this party." Bakugo said as he ruffled her hair, grinning. "We even have Sparkle and the Midget coming over to celebrate."
"This was all your Idea, Mayson. I'm sure he will love it." Tokoyami said as he put his hand on her shoulder.
A few minutes later Koda opens the door, noticing that all the lights were off. "Why are all the lights off?" He asks. Just then the lights came on and everyone jumped out of hiding.
"Surprise! Happy birthday, Koda!" Everyone yelled and cheered.
He jumps back a bit with an "Eep!" escaping his lips. Mayson walks up to him, Looking away shyly with her hands behind her back.
"Y-You told me and Reika that your birthday was February first…t-today. S-So I thought that we should all celebrate it." She began to say shyly as she blushed. "A-Also I uhh-. W-Well I-."
"It was all our shy little kitty's idea." Mina said happily.
He looks at Mayson with surprise in his eyes before he quickly picks her up, wrapping his arms around her, hugging her tightly. Bakugo laughs. "Look at that, He's too shocked for words." He said calmly.
"D-Did I do something wrong?" She asked in a shy, worried tone.
"No. It's perfect. Thank you, Keralynn." He whispered to her. She sighs in relief. She blushes before asking him to hold her up till she was eye level to him.
Once she was eye level to him, she whispered in his ear. "Before I was interrupted by Ashido, I wanted to ask if you wanted to go to the ball with me?" She whispers shyly.
He looked deep into her eyes and smiled. "I was wondering when you were gonna ask me. My answer, Is yes. Of course I'll go to the ball with you." He said. He gently sets her back down before he is dragged away from her by Jiro.