The walk to the visitors' parking lot of U.A. University was both filled with silence and entirely too much talking. Katsuki, of course, stuck to silence and the occasional grunt of affirmation when asked a question he didn't particularly care about. The rest of the group- Eijiro, Amaya, Tsuyu, Juzo, and Kyoka- seemed to be in high spirits, talking about all sorts of topics that Katsuki chose to actively ignore. After all, he was pissed that they were coming with him and he was already mentally running through how to make the drop-off as painless as possible in his head. Unfortunately for him, nearly every scenario he could think of ended awkwardly for everyone involved.

All that was left to do was march forward, deal with the annoyance, and stew in anger later. It was a routine for Katsuki, and given the fact that he expected to be badly embarrassed by his classmates, he was already feeling a bit of the inevitable anger to come.

"So…" Kyoka said as she walked past the rest of the group, beginning to keep pace with Katsuki. She waited to make sure that the other four people with them were deep in conversation before she continued, keeping her voice low. "What should we call your mom? Or should we just… not say anything? I know you said things aren't great at home a while ago…"

Katsuki spared her a glance and took a sharp inhale through his nose as the group made their way out of the dormitory tower and onto one of the many footpaths.

"…just don't. I don't want any of you coming with me for this, and the only reason I'm allowing it is to avoid a fight and obnoxious bullshit drama right as classes are starting. Easier for me to just take the brunt of whatever stupid garbage you're all going to put me through in front of her than to cause a problem. If you're the only one smart enough to keep your mouth shut, then at least I won't be mad at you afterward."

Kyoka gave her friend a quizzical look, seeming almost offended.

"Bakugo… what exactly do you think is about to happen…?"

Katsuki didn't answer for a moment as he continued to lead the way. The sound of Eijiro and Amaya laughing about something or other grated on his nerves, and he cast his eyes down to the sidewalk.

"…I don't know. I'm just expecting the worst. Why would you all even bother if not to take advantage of the situation? There's no point in following me down here."

"Because it's interesting," Kyoka emphasized. "Seeing where people came from, even just a little bit… it usually explains a lot about them. I'm here because you seem cool, so I want to see what your mom is like. How do you feel about her?"

"…I don't know anymore," Katsuki admitted. "I don't know a goddamned thing about anything other than how to study and fight."

"…dude. Are you okay?" Kyoka asked, her voice becoming increasingly nervous. "After this morning, I figured you might be loosening up a bit, but is something going on? I owe you one. Several, actually…"

Katsuki could see his mother's car as he reached the edge of the parking lot. Mitsuki Bakugo was standing beside the vehicle, looking out for him and offering a wave.

"Nothing I can talk about," Katsuki said honestly. "Just… leave it alone and keep the idiots in line. That would help."

Kyoka opened her mouth to say something, only for Katsuki to speed up and begin weaving between cars to get to the waiting woman. With a sigh of resignation, she stopped at the edge of the pavement and turned to face the rest of the group.

Katsuki paid them no mind as he made his way to the familiar car… and the less-than-familiar expression on Mitsuki's face. She stood with two cardboard boxes beside the vehicle, wearing an expression of concern. Katsuki simply gave her a nod as he moved to grab one of the boxes, finding it a bit heavier than he had anticipated.

"…what did you even put in here? Nothing I left behind should be this heavy…"

"You'll see," Mitsuki said cryptically. "All of your music equipment, for one. The rest… there were some things I thought you might miss, along with supplies that neither of us thought of before you moved in. I hope it helps... and I hope you're okay after last night? You must have been pretty busy…"

"Yeah," Katsuki agreed halfheartedly, adjusting his grip on the box as he looked back to where he expected his classmates to be approaching. Instead, he found only one headed his way, and he wasn't at all surprised by who it was. Katsuki rolled his eyes before finally looking at his mother, his face full of disdain. "Don't make this weird, alright? I don't need it."

"Don't make what weird?" Mitsuki asked as Amaya approached. She seemed to notice the winged girl only after she had arrived on the scene. "Can I help you?"

"Hey there, Mrs. Bakugo," Amaya said, her voice far more cheerful and inviting than usual, enough so that Katsuki was taken aback by it. "Amaya Kan, one of Katsuki's classmates and daughter of Vlad King. Nice to meet you."

"Yeah, you too," Mitsuki said awkwardly as the girl gave her a small bow. "That's not really necessary, but I'll take it."

"Maybe not, but might as well," Amaya said with a shrug. "Katsuki's been pretty great to us so far. Strong as hell and a good leader, too. He really stepped it up in the entrance exams and carried a lot of us to U.A. with his instincts. You should be proud."

Mitsuki's smirk was a bit subdued. The woman nodded gratefully and gave her son an encouraging look.

"Honestly… I'm not surprised at all, and I am proud. I did see an article written about the two Hero Course classes, and I recognized your name. Sounds to me like you're no slouch, either. Take care of each other, alright?"

Katsuki could only stare, though he wasn't sure which person he was more confused by as Amaya bent to pick up the other box. She, too, gave him an affirming nod and smirk, as though the two women were in on something together that he just didn't understand.

"…what the hell is this?" Katsuki finally asked. "Why are you… this isn't how…"

"Hey!" came Eijiro's obnoxious loudly voice as he quite literally ran up to the conversation, his arm up in the air. Tsuyu, Juzo, and Kyoka were trailing behind him, walking like far more reasonable people as Eijiro doubled over into an exaggerated bow for Mitsuki. "I'm Eijiro Kirishima, Bakugo's roommate! You're his mom, right? Nice to meet ya!"

"…I am, and you too," Mitsuki said with a raised brow as the boy returned to a standing position. "You seem… energetic."

"Just ignore him," Katsuki warned, though he was too late to stop Tsuyu, Juzo, and Kyoka from introducing themselves in kind.

The situation was quickly becoming exactly what Katsuki didn't want it to be, though Amaya stepped in to reel it back in before he had the chance.

"Right, so, we're all in Class 1-A with Katsuki," Amaya let on as she made a circular motion with a finger between the rest of the group while adjusting her grip on the box. "We'll make sure nothing goes wrong while he's away from you."

"Not that anything would," Tsuyu added quickly. "It's been going well so far, and he really helped me out with moving in. My roommate made a mess of things, and Katsuki made sure everything worked out in the end. We're all happy to have him with us."

Juzo just nodded, hesitant to say anything but his name from behind the mask.

"I'm glad to hear it's all working out so well," Mitsuki replied. "And nice to see that he's made some friends so quickly."

Katsuki didn't see a point in protesting… especially being in a state of total confusion rather than anger.

"It's… nothing," Katsuki said awkwardly. There was no malice in his tone at all. In fact, though he refused to admit it to himself, seeing his classmates stand up for him felt nice. It certainly wasn't a feeling he was used to. "I've just been doing what any class member should do…"

"Oh, bullshit," Amaya said, finally letting her filter drop as she elbowed Katsuki in the arm. "Stop being so humble! He's done a lot for several of us, including standing up to the resident creep on the floor and helping one of our other friends quite a bit."

"In that case… why don't you call your other friend and we can all go somewhere together for dinner?" Mitsuki offered. "We'd have to take two cars, but…"

There it was. The unpredictable, horrible event that Katsuki had been dreading throughout the entire conversation had come not in the form of embarrassment and frustration, but as a social obligation he couldn't object to without looking like the villain in the situation. He didn't know what to say to get out of it, and he knew that the others would jump on the opportunity to extend his misery and discomfort immediately.

Once again, Katsuki was wrong.

"Ooh, I don't think I can do tonight," Amaya said with a regretful hiss. "My dad said he needed help with something in his office- so I'm headed there right after this. Sorry…"

"I… need to settle some things with my roommate," Juzo added, finally breaking the silence. "We have some issues with the plumbing in our kitchen that need attending to. Apologies."

"Yeah, there's a lot going on with classes starting up, and I'm supposed to be meeting someone, too." Kyoka chimed in. "Another time, though? It sounds like it could be fun."

Mitsuki actually looked disappointed, though she was quick to wave it off.

"Yeah, that's actually a better idea. Let's pick a weekend when everyone's available and go somewhere together," the woman suggested. "I wouldn't mind getting to know all of you better and getting more involved in any way I can."

"We can help out, too!" Eijiro insisted, pumping his fist. "Anything you need back at home, now that Katsuki's with us? Repairs, renovations…"

"Down, boy," Amaya commanded as she took out her phone. "Don't scare off the nice lady. Let me have your number, and I'll handle coordinating things?"

"What? Why?" Katsuki asked as Mitsuki took the phone and began entering her information.

"Because you won't do it if we leave it in your hands," Amaya said simply as she narrowed her eyes at the boy. "This will be good for you… and her. Us, too, probably. If we're going to be working together as partners, family matters more than you might think."

"It really does," Tsuyu agreed. "Thank you, Mrs. Bakugo. You're kind for offering, even if things didn't work out tonight."

"Not a problem," Mitsuki said as she gave Amaya back the phone. "I'm honestly still surprised things are working out at all. Whatever he's told you about me… I hope it hasn't been too terrible. I'd really like for this to be the start of something new."

"Sometimes you've got to take a leap of faith," Kyoka advised, looking Katsuki in the eye. "Especially when it comes to family. Just have to go for it, even if it seems like it could cause problems. A new start could be good for all of us. Right?"

Katsuki heaved a sigh, casting his eyes down to the box in his hands.

"…right."

"On that note, I should get going," Mitsuki said. "You all seem like good people. Take care of my son… and kick his ass if he gets uppity. See you all soon?"

"Will do, and I hope so," Amaya agreed with a wave. "He and I will probably be fighting it out for field team leader. I won't go easy on him."

"Good," Mitsuki praised. "He wouldn't like it if you did."

Katsuki watched his mother slip into the driver's seat with one final wave before beginning to pull out. He was full of conflicted feelings and unsure what to say first as he turned to look over his group of apparent friends. Fortunately for him, Eijiro spoke up first to break the silence.

"…so… Kan, do you need help with whatever you're doing for Vlad King, or…"

Amaya brought a hand up to her face and let out a sigh.

"…that was a diversion, dumbass," the woman said with a roll of her eyes. "Follow me. Food court's this way…"

Author's Note:

Next time- back to Mirio before the fallout of this whole situation.

-RD