Though he was privy to the knowledge of Sir Nighteye's death prior to its public announcement, the news still filled Katsuki with dread in a way that he hadn't expected. All Might's final words on the matter did nothing to help the sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach, and Katsuki knew that a few choice phrases would be echoing through his mind for days, weeks, or even longer afterward. As the footage flipped away from his idol and back to the news anchor who began to rehash the information shared previously, Katsuki found himself drawn to something other than the screen. Despite his prior intentions of simply locking himself in his dorm and spending some time alone to collect his thoughts, he couldn't bring himself to ignore the reactions of his classmates no matter how much he wanted to.

Daisuke's mouth was drawn into a thin, silent line as he continued to watch the screen. The boy's eyes were completely unreadable, and Katsuki found that he had absolutely no idea what his friend was thinking at all. His only clue as to what Daisuke may have been feeling was a clenched fist balled tightly at his side, firm enough to turn the knuckles white.

Tenya and Tsuyu's reactions were quite similar to each other. Though they stood on opposite sides of the lobby, both had turned their eyes to the floor, and neither bothered to hide their emotions. It was difficult to tell if their sullen looks were due entirely to sadness, shock, disappointment, or some combination of emotions. All that Katsuki knew for sure was that neither looked like they wanted to talk about it, and he was happy to leave them well enough alone.

As Katsuki swept his eyes around the room, they landed next on Juzo. The mask did well to hide much of his expression, but his eyes told more than enough of a story as to what was going through his brain. Despite their usual oddly wide appearance, they were even more open and full of fear. Juzo's chest rose and fell at an elevated rate, as though he was watching a horrific event transpiring right in front of him. Katsuki understood the reaction, because in a way, he was. Even so, the pity he felt for his classmate was fleeting and only served to annoy him in the end. He moved his eyes to the next of his comrades, and his chest suddenly felt as though it was filled with lead.

Kyoka stood alone in front of one of the couches, her arms folded across her chest as her hands gripped the opposite arms. Tears streamed down her cheeks, and she had her eyes fixated upon the glass coffee table between the pieces of furniture. She was shivering slightly and appeared to be very uncomfortable. Her expression was oddly similar to Daisuke's emotionless one, though it was somehow infinitely more empty. Katsuki recognized it as the expression of someone who had seen death before and never quite gotten over it, despite being told to suppress their emotions as much as possible in public.

It was an expression that was familiar to him.

Something about Kyoka's reaction in particular urged Katsuki to walk over to her and offer some meager form of comfort, though he managed to resist the notion. He wasn't sure just why he didn't want to get involved, but confusion played a part in his hesitance. As he watched Kyoka struggle to barely hold herself together, Katsuki noticed something odd- though he could clearly hear the sound of crying, it was coming from someone else. Kyoka's tears were silent and personal, and the much louder, much less restrained sobbing came from a person he never would have expected.

Minoru was the source of almost all of the noise in the room as the news report continued. The diminutive teen was doing what could only be described as ugly crying, his entire body shaking as he kept his face buried in his hands. He was sat upon the couch opposite of Kyoka, though he wasn't alone- Amaya had sat down next to him and draped a comforting wing over Minoru's back and an arm around his shoulders. Her expression was solemn and subdued, and her voice lacked all of its usual fire as she spoke softly to finally break the relative silence of the lobby.

"…we'll get through this," Amaya encouraged, though it wasn't immediately clear whether she was speaking specifically to Minoru or everyone around her. "We have to get through this, together. It's just the first of many times we're going to have to go through something terrible as a class in our careers."

"Heroes die," Kyoka said sadly. "Something like this is… it's almost expected. No matter how careful we are, no matter how good we are at our jobs… there are always factors we can't control. Always people who want to see us dead."

"And that's why when it comes down to it, we need to support each other," Amaya agreed. "I hope all of you were listening to All Might beyond just the announcement itself. There are things at play here that are bigger than any of us, and arguably bigger than all of us. We only stand a chance if we keep at it together."

"Kan is right," Daisuke chimed in as he finally peeled his eyes away from the screen and turned to face the others. "I can only speak for myself, and I might not be the best at this, but… my door is open, if any of you need to talk. That goes for everyone, for anything- not just this."

"Ditto," Amaya said with a nod. "I might give some of you shit from time to time, but if you need me, I'll be there."

"…thanks," Tsuyu said as she wiped at her eyes and looked up at Amaya. "I might take you up on that…"

"Me too," Juzo added quickly. "I don't even know what to say right now."

"There's nothing to say," Katsuki replied. "We lost one of the greats in hero society. All we can really do… outside of whatever we end up doing for each other, I guess, is to keep pushing forward and try to live up to who Sir Nighteye was. Don't pussy out over this. Don't compromise or back down. Train harder. Get angry. Use that to push yourselves. That's what I'll be doing."

"Within reason, I hope," Tenya said cautiously. "I agree with all of what has been said, but we cannot let anger blind us. We need to remain logical and consistent while adhering to the laws of hero society. I believe it also needs to be said that we have yet to have one day of formal, college-level hero training. This affects us all, yes, but there is nothing we personally can do about it. A situation like this is best left to the professionals."

"…like dealing with bullies on a middle school property is best left to the teachers?" Katsuki asked in a scathing tone. "I remember that day. What would've happened if I left you to whoever was supposed to intervene?"

Tenya fell silent and removed his glasses to buff them on his shirt instead of immediately replying.

"Bakugo's right."

Several people jumped at the sudden feminine voice, only to realize that it came from a floating crop top and pair of gym shorts that few had even noticed prior. Toru Hagakure sat upon the middle couch between Minoru, Amaya, and Kyoka, her flesh as invisible as ever and her posture indecipherable.

"Sometimes, you have to take things into your own hands… especially when someone hurts people you care about."

"Hell yeah, vigilante justice," Amaya added with a bit of her usual passion back in her voice as she gave Minoru's shoulders a light rub. "C'mon, Shorty. Let's get you either back to your room or to a counselor. Sitting here sobbing isn't going to do anything to help…"

"How can you…" Tenya began, only to shake his head in frustration as he replaced his glasses. "Whoever did this likely saw it as vigilante justice from their own perspective. Have you no sense of caution?"

"Have you no balls?" Katsuki retorted mockingly.

"Bakugo…" Kyoka said softly.

Katsuki cast the girl a look and let out a snort before shaking his head.

"…you know what? Fine. It's not like we could just leave U.A. and go after the people that killed him. We have no idea who that is, and we've got a lot to deal with regardless. But don't act like you're morally superior to people who would do something if they had the chance."

"I can only hope that you would seriously consider the ramifications of your actions before you carry them out," Tenya warned as he watched Amaya help Minoru up off the couch. "The last thing I want is to see any of you get hurt."

"It's unrealistic to think we won't," Kyoka pointed out with a shrug. "Statistically, one or more of us w-"

"Don't," Tsuyu said immediately. "Please don't talk like that, especially not right now."

"Running from the truth isn't smart, either," Katsuki warned. "What were you going to say? One or more or us is going to get killed in this line of work? Drop out of U.A.? Both are probably true. It's just a matter of time that those who can't deal with the hero lifestyle will leave it one way or another."

"…I think it might be best if we all go our separate ways, for the moment," Tenya suggested. "Or at least, we split up a bit and go back to our dorms. Everyone needs time to process and cool down…"

"Fine. Whatever," Katsuki said dismissively. He watched as Daisuke left to follow Amaya and Minoru into the hall and several others split off to begin moving toward their dorms. "Jiro- you got a minute?"

"…huh?" Kyoka asked as she looked up at Katsuki in confusion. "Yeah, sure, I guess…"

Katsuki turned without another word and headed back into his dorm room, holding the door open behind himself. He did a quick check to make sure that both Eijiro hadn't yet returned and Momo had left, and he found the space devoid of life. Kyoka's footsteps echoed into the smaller space beside Katsuki, and so he shoved the door closed.

"What's up?" Kyoka asked with a small sniffle.

Katsuki took a moment to close his eyes and try to think of what exactly he wanted to say. Finding only a blank canvas, he instead shook his head and sat down upon the bed to look up at Kyoka.

"…you gonna be alright, or whatever?" Katsuki asked awkwardly. "This all sucks shit, but… never mind."

"But what?" Kyoka probed as she remained standing, her arms still protectively across her chest. "Say whatever you're thinking. It's a lot easier when people are honest…"

Katsuki shifted slightly atop the mattress, unsure whether or not he was walking into a trap.

"…I didn't think you'd be so affected by the news. You seem more level-headed and realistic than most of the other people on this floor," Katsuki tried, quickly realizing just how accusatory his statement came off. He decided to add to it to try to save face, though he was less than confident in his ability to pull it off. "So… I figured I'd check in. Because last time, you needed that. And… All Might said we should take care of people."

"People that can make us better versions of ourselves, yeah," Kyoka echoed. "People we care about."

"…whatever," Katsuki bristled. "So, are you good, or not?"

"I'd say good is a bit of a stretch," Kyoka teased with a slight smirk. "I guess I'm… fine? Sad, shocked… but I'll get over it and move on. It's all we really can do, right now. I do feel a little better knowing you're still looking out for me. You're a good guy, Bakugo."

Katsuki rubbed at the back of his neck, suddenly feeling incredibly uncomfortable with the situation.

"…yeah. Look, I've got more people I need to… check on. If you're mostly alright, then I'm leaving."

Kyoka watched as Katsuki stood up and eyed the door.

"…if I was bawling my eyes out, would you have stayed? Or even invited me in to begin with?"

Katsuki tensed his shoulders, not bothering to look back at Kyoka.

"I don't know, alright? You're one of the people in 1-A that doesn't piss me off, and I wanna keep it that way. I don't like seeing you upset. Is that a crime?"

"I was just curious," Kyoka said as she raised her hands in a gesture of surrender. "I wasn't trying to accuse you of anything. If you have other people to see, then go. Again, though… thank you. You can come to me if you ever need anything, too."

Katsuki wrinkled his nose and pulled the door open. He stepped out into the hall without another word.

Author's Note:

This chapter says a lot about the members of 1-A. Some of the things it says won't become obvious until way later…

-RD