Katsuki opened his eyes with a soft groan only to be met with a set of red numbers reading 4:32 on the digital alarm clock sitting upon the nightstand beside him. No matter what time he went to bed, it was always the same- his body had gotten so used to getting up before sunrise that he simply couldn't sleep in. A painful pulse in his forehead told him that he definitely hadn't gotten enough sleep, and that the day ahead would be less than enjoyable. Katsuki considered rolling over and trying to lull himself back into slumber, but he knew that it would be in vain. Instead, he propped himself up onto his elbows and blinked several times as he stared across at the adjacent bed.

Though the sight of Momo Yaoyorozu slumbering in Eijiro's bed momentarily confused him, Katsuki quickly managed to recall the events of the previous night. He couldn't help but watch her chest rise and fall for a few moments as she slept peacefully, and as much as he hated to admit it to himself, he found the sight adorable. The young woman's expression was one of total contentment, and she appeared to be lost in a deep sleep as she laid upon her side with the blankets clutched up to her neck. It was enough to make Katsuki move incredibly slowly as he got out of bed, doing his best not to rouse her from her slumber as he collected his socks and shoes from the mat near the door.

Fortunately for Katsuki, he was quite adept at sneaking around after years of living in an abusive household. The aspiring hero managed to make his way out into the halls and close the door behind himself without waking his temporary roommate. Without bothering to see if anyone else was around, he strode toward the long bathroom situated between dorm rooms and shoved the door open with a scowl. His headache only seemed to be increasing in severity as he strode up to the urinal closest to the door and pulled down the front of his shorts before fishing around within his boxers. Seconds later, the door at the far end of the bathroom opened and footsteps echoed from beyond the shower stalls.

"…Bakugo?" asked a groggy Daisuke as he ambled up to the stalls, choosing the one at the opposite end of the lineup and pressing close to it as he, too, reached into his waistband. "I wasn't expecting anyone else to be up…"

"Yeah, well," Katsuki grumbled as he finished his business and pulled himself back into his shorts. "Didn't get a lot of sleep. Too much on my mind."

"Same here," Daisuke said with a wide yawn as Katsuki walked behind him and toward the sinks. "Somehow I get the feeling the same thing'll happen again tonight…"

Katsuki looked up into the mirror to observe Daisuke behind him as the other boy stepped away from the urinal. He, too was wearing a pair of basketball shorts, though his were a dark blue with a white stripe on the side in the classical U.A. University colors. His shirt was black and sported a band logo that Katsuki didn't recognize, as well as short sleeves. Daisuke's shaggy hair was an absolute mess, and the black bags under his eyes were dark enough to be noticeable even from a distance. Katsuki finished washing his hands and grabbed a paper towel from the dispenser to dry them. He took a long inhale before he turned around to lean back into the countertop as Daisuke began to use the sink beside him.

"You feeling any better?" Katsuki asked, feeling as though he had to force each of the words out. "Or are you still dealing with… whatever?"

"I'm actually feeling way, way worse," Daisuke admitted. "Thanks for asking."

"…figures," Katsuki muttered. "Forget I brought it up."

"It's not that easy," Daisuke replied as he pulled some paper towels from the dispenser. He turned and checked each of the stalls to make sure that they were open before craning his neck to inspect the two doors at either end of the bathroom. "If you really want to know…"

Katsuki pulled a face. He could feel his headache getting worse, but he also knew that to reject the offer would sour his relationship with the other boy. Given that Daisuke didn't annoy him too much, he decided to hop up onto the counter and sit between the two sinks before leaning his head back into the wall between the mirrors.

"Sure. Hit me with it."

"It's about my Quirk," Daisuke began as he stepped back to lean against one of the stall supports, facing Katsuki. He folded his arms and looked off to the side, his weighty tail slowly dragging from side to side behind him. "And… Inhibition."

"Why does that matter?" Katsuki asked. "You made it here, didn't you? You passed auditions just like everyone else, and you made the 1-A roster. You can't be that bad with your Quirk."

"…maybe, but… Yaoyorozu is one of the class leads," Daisuke explained. "She reports directly to Professor Aizawa, and he has a reputation for cutting people loose if they don't perform up to his standards. Seeing her, or Iida, or Todoroki around in the dorms… all they would need is one reason to dislike me, and I've got a high chance of being kicked out. I'm nowhere near as skilled as any of you, despite the fact that I've been working my ass off since I was a kid. I'm the weak link, and I know it."

"You've seen us all in action once," Katsuki pointed out. "What makes you think you're the worst hero here?"

"I can't say for sure," Daisuke admitted. "But… the fact that we're going to be getting rankings soon? It makes me feel sick with anxiety. Even if Professor Aizawa ends up liking what I can do, I don't want to end up being #20. I don't want people to look at me and wonder why I'm even here when they can do such amazing things. Knowing that Kan is on the complete opposite end of the spectrum only makes it worse- her Quirk is so powerful that she could lose control of it entirely, while I struggle to get mine off the ground. Literally."

Katsuki's frown deepened as he was wrought with mixed feelings. On one hand, he did feel some sympathy for the other hero-in-training. On the other, he couldn't help but feel somewhat angry that Daisuke was making excuses even before their first day of class. Ultimately, he settled for speaking objectively, the other boy's feelings be damned.

"…Yaoyorozu's in my dorm right now."

"What?" Daisuke asked, eyes wide. "Why?"

"Our roommates are a couple," Katsuki spat. "They kicked her out because they were busy fucking last night, so I offered to let her stay with me. We talked for a while, and if any of the class leads are going to give you shit for not being up to speed with the rest of us… it isn't gonna be her. She's… caring. Annoyingly caring. She actually asked me if she should approach you to talk about this, and I told her not to. I said I'd take care of it, because the issue had something to do with her."

"Oh…" Daisuke replied, going pale.

"…relax. I told her you're not interested in her like that."

"Oh… good," Daisuke said with a sigh of relief. "It has nothing to do with her, and everything to do with me. That actually made me even more nervous around her- I didn't want her to think that I was freaking out because I'm like… you know… Mineta. I'm not, at all. You could say I'm the opposite…"

"I don't think she thinks that," Katsuki reassured as he shifted slightly upon the counter. "She doesn't seem particularly interested in all the sex talk going around, either. Yaoyorozu's focused on the job, and she sees her job as helping all of us. So… just chill out, alright? Worry about Iida and Todoroki… and Hagakure, if she ever shows up again."

"She's back," Daisuke let on. "I did a bit of a building tour last night, while I couldn't sleep. Got back to our floor just in time to see Tsu's door open and close without anyone touching it. It was late. Really late."

"…I don't like it," Katsuki asserted. "Something's up with her. If this keeps happening, I'll talk to Professor Aizawa. We need class leads that actually give a shit about their job."

"Actually… I don't know if that's the best idea," Daisuke considered as he pushed off the support between the stalls. "I think we should let Iida and Tsu talk to him, instead. We should just be there for support before and after. Even though Hagakure's behavior affects all of us, those two are the most directly impacted. I think they'd appreciate being allowed to take charge."

"And they need to stand up for themselves," Katuski added. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I'm just used to being the one to finally say something when everything's going to shit. My entire friend circle back in high school would just let things get worse and worse until I finally snapped and handled it. Deku was the absolute worst with that."

Daisuke gave his friend a look that he didn't quite understand. Katsuki could feel his cheeks reddening as he was inspected up and down, and though he had no idea what the intention was, he knew that he did not like it at all. With a frustrated grunt, he looked off to the side and put his hands in his pockets.

"What?"

"…nothing," Daisuke said simply. "I think I'm just starting to understand you more. You won't have to worry about that with me- I might need a little time, but I'll stand up for myself… and everyone else here, if I need to. I think we've got a good crew, for the most part. People willing to share the load."

"We'll see," Katsuki replied as he finally looked back over at Daisuke. "I think I'm going to head to the gym. There's no way I'm falling back asleep."

"Me either," Daisuke agreed. "I found one on the bottom floor while I was wandering. Free weights machines, boxing ring, pretty typical. I'll join you. Might as well get something productive done while the others are all asleep."

"Yeah. I'd rather work out in the morning, anyway," Katsuki grumbled as he slipped off the counter and moved toward the closer bathroom door. "Lead the way."

Daisuke stepped around and in front of Katsuki to push the door open and begin heading toward the stairwell. Katsuki followed, watching as the man's girthy patterned tail dragged along the carpeted flooring. The limb made a gentle scraping noise as it went, and Katsuki couldn't help but raise a brow.

"…does that ever hurt?"

"Hm?" Daisuke asked, looking over his shoulder as he continued to walk.

"Your tail," Katsuki clarified. "Dragging it around like that."

"Oh. Nah, not really, it's just… exhausting," Daisuke began. "It's a pretty significant portion of my body weight- almost half, actually. It usually doesn't hurt, but it does weigh me down and wear me out."

"…sorry about that," Katsuki offered, feeling awkward. "Must be…"

"…annoying to have a Quirk that has two halves actively working against each other?" Daisuke tried, sounding uncharacteristically annoyed as he held the door to the stairwell. "Yeah. I'll work past it, though. Always do."

"Yeah, you will," Katsuki encouraged. "As uncomfortable as you feel and as tired as you seem, I can see there's some fight in you. That's part of why I'm sticking with you."

"I appreciate it," Daisuke replied as they descended to the next floor's landing together. "I've got your back, too."

The sudden opening of the door from Class 1-B's floor caught both of them off guard, as did the appearance of the person who stepped through into the stairwell. Standing in the doorway was a boy that neither Katsuki nor Daisuke had seen before, though he looked almost like a hybrid of the two. His blond hair was combed forward in a downward-spiked pattern, and he had a similar height and frame as Katuski. He wore an outfit of blue track pants with white stripes down the sides quite like Daisuke's shorts, as well as a sleeveless white tee. What really caught the boys' attention, though, was the large tail that sprouted from the small of his back.

Unlike Daisuke's extra limb, the new boy's appendage was seemingly prehensile and very obviously composed of toned muscle. The tail was slung up and behind the boy's back, its fluffy tip dangling above his shoulder. Katsuki's first instinct was to give Daisuke a worried look, and what he found on the other boy's face was exactly what he expected. Daisuke's face was very pale, and he wore a forced smile that barely did anything at all to hide his tension and frustration.

"…hi!" Daisuke said with a little too much enthusiasm. "You must be from 1-B…"

"Oh! Hey there!" the newcomer said with a wave as he used his tail to adjust the towel slung up around his shoulders. "Mashirao Ojiro. Nice to meet you both!"

Daisuke took the hand and shook it, squeezing a bit harder than necessary.

"Daisuke Aki…"

"Katsuki Bakugo," he answered as he, too, gripped Mashirao's hand with quite a bit of force. "You look like you're headed to the gym…"

"I am, yeah!" Mashirao said with a smile. "You two heading downstairs, too?"

"No, we a-"

"Yeah, we are," Daisuke interrupted, giving Katsuki a pointed look. "We were on our way there as well. Want to join us?"

"Yeah, sure!" Mashirao answered. "Should be a good time."

"Always is," Daisuke echoed as he watched the other boy begin to descend the staircase before them.

"…the hell are you doing?" Katsuki whispered as neither boy moved. "You're clearly uncomfortable…"

"Yeah, I am," Daisuke agreed, glaring after Mashirao. "But I also want to know what I'm up against…"

Author's Note:

Let the rivalry begin.

-RD