In U.A. Academy...
Rena Rouge and Melissa ran towards the portal room, hoping to catch up with Skylar soon. She kept running as she held onto Melissa's wrist. All of the teachers were left behind as they kept running after Skylar. Melissa could barely keep up with her as she pulled her along.
"Rena Rouge, I... I can't run this fast. Can you please slow down?" Melissa asked her.
"Oh! Yeah, sorry about that," Rena Rouge said back as she kept running, "Come on. Let's keep going. We can't let Skylar get away so easily. She could be taking advantage of your friends."
Melissa seemed to pick up the pace a little bit, and Rena Rouge tried to catch up to Skylar. They ran down the stairs and almost into a classmate that she recognized right away. It was Kaminari and was also with Jirou, and they looked a little distraught.
"Rena Rouge? Melissa? What're you doing here?" Jirou asked them, "Aren't you suppose to be hacking the systems?"
"Yes, but we found something. Can you come with us? We need backup," Rena Rouge asked them back.
Kaminari and Jirou didn't hesitate and headed downstairs with them. Rena Rouge didn't have time to explain as they all ran towards the portal room. She didn't know what to expect, just that Skylar was onto something. Whatever Skylar was planning on doing, Rena Rouge had to be ready for anything. Whoever this hacker was, she wondered if she had anything to do with this.
Rena Rouge kept running and got her flute ready to fight. She thought of maybe planning ahead to catch her off guard, but then they almost ran into her. Skylar was a little thrown off, but Rena Rouge didn't back down. Skylar spotted Kaminari and Jirou, which seemed to make her nervous.
"Oh. H-Hey Denki, Kyouka. I was wondering where everyone was," Skylar said to them, "I went to go get dressed, and then I ran into Ochaco. She said that everyone was going over to help out Izuku. I might've gotten lost along the way."
Rena Rouge gave her a suspicious look, and even Jirou seemed a bit suspicious of her. Kaminari wasn't exactly convinced and tried to help her out.
"Skylar. You went in the complete opposite direction," Kaminari told her, "The nurse's office is on the other side of the school. Come on, we can show you the way there."
Skylar played with her hair like it was no big deal. Rena Rouge did notice that and knew that she was trying to shake it off as if this was just because she was new here. Something about her posture seemed nervous as Kaminari tried to help her. Then Kaminari was pulled away by Jirou.
"Kaminari. What're you doing?" Jirou asked him quietly, "Can't you see that Skylar is clearly lying?"
"What? What do you mean? Skylar hasn't done anything wrong," Kaminari told them.
"You're wrong," Rena Rouge whispered, "Skylar is up to something. We caught her on security cameras just now. She's leaving the portal room and clearly knows about it. Whatever you guys told her, she clearly knows more than she's letting on."
Jirou and Kaminari were shocked and didn't understand how this was even happening. Skylar didn't even seem like someone who knew anything about the portal room. Then again, they did accidentally mention it while Midoriya and Adrien went to check on it. Kaminari looked like he still couldn't quite believe it and walked over to Skylar. Jirou was a little nervous, but didn't leave his side.
"Skylar, you wouldn't be lying to us right?" Kaminari asked her a little nervously, "I mean, you are our friend and a part of our class now. I would hate to think that you would just be doing things behind our backs."
Rena Rouge was surprised to hear Kaminari question her, and so did Jirou. Melissa even seemed a bit thrown off by the whole thing. Kaminari never looked away from Skylar as she twirled her hair. She looked a little bit flustered, like she was caught doing something that she shouldn't have been doing.
"D-Denki. H-How could you think something like that? I-I would never do anything like that. I was just trying to find the Nurse's Office. Izuku was hurt because of me. I wanted to make sure that he was okay," Skylar told them, "I might've gone a bit too far during our hero training. I just... I feel bad for hurting him..."
Rena Rouge noticed how hurt and guilty Skylar looked for a moment. Something about it felt genuine, which threw her for a loop. She didn't expect her to talk to them in this manner. She actually expected her to reveal her true colors in that moment, maybe even fight them. She gripped her flute, Melissa noticing her right away.
"Rena Rouge?" Melissa said to her under her breath, "What do we do now?"
Rena Rouge loosened her grip and put her flute back around her hip. She hesitated at first, but then looked at Skylar. She looked really upset and guilty as if she had done something that she didn't want to do. Something about her seemed different from anyone else that she had encountered before compared to others here. Rena Rouge looked at her bracelet and got a sense of familiarity. She tried to shake it off and faced Melissa.
"We can't let her out of our sight. Whatever she was doing, she clearly has something else going on that we're not aware of," Rena Rouge explained to her.
Kaminari soon directed her towards the Nurse's Office, which caught them off guard. Jirou kept up with him and pulled him away from her.
"Denki, what're you doing?" Jirou asked him under her breath, "She clearly can't be trusted."
"Why not? She's probably just lost," Kaminari said a little nervously, "There's no way that she even knows about... you know, the other Paris. How would she even know about any of it?"
They all hesitated, but agreed with him. There wasn't any way that she would even know about Rena Rouge's Paris. No one ever told her, which made them worry about her intentions even more. Rena Rouge looked at Skylar, and she was waiting for them to head over to the Nurse's Office. She wasn't looking at them, just at the floor as she played with her bracelet. Something about the bracelet really bothered Rena Rouge, but shook it off for now.
"You can't bring her to Midoriya. We don't even know why he's even in the Nurse's Office in the first place," Jirou told them, "Clearly something happened between them during hero training."
"Are you saying that she hurt him?" Kaminari asked her, "Why would she do that? She's our classmate."
Jirou scratched her head like he was really annoying her. Even Rena Rouge and Melissa were a little thrown off by his clueless nature.
"Denki. Why do you have to be so clueless?" Jirou said back.
"She's right," Melissa told him.
"She's after something. I don't know what, but she's here for a reason. We can't let her out of our sight. Not even for a minute," Rena Rouge told them.
Kaminari looked back at Skylar, and she had sparkles in her eyes. Something about it seemed like she was trying to get through to them. He tried to shake off this feeling, but he couldn't stand the thought of someone betraying them. Even if they barely knew her, she was still their classmate and friend. He hesitated, but soon looked back at his classmates.
"I'm sorry, but I don't believe you," Kaminari told them, "Skylar would never betray us like that. She's just new here, that's all. Clearly she's been through a lot and needs some guidance around here."
Before they could say anything, he walked over to Skylar and grabbed her wrist. He gently pulled her away from the group, shocking everyone.
"Come on Skylar. Midoriya is probably worried about you as well," Kaminari told her, "I'll help you find him."
Rena Rouge and everyone else followed him with worried expressions on their faces. Jirou almost interrupted Kaminari, but Rena Rouge stopped her from doing so. She gave her a confident look, stopping her from stepping in.
"Let Denki help," Rena Rouge whispered, "He's just trying to help. If anything, we need to keep her close. We don't want to lose sight of her anytime soon. Whatever is going on with her, she clearly is hiding something."
"Rena Rouge is right," Melissa told her, "We'll explain things after we get to your dormitory. It'll be easier that way."
Jirou looked back at Skylar and Kaminari, and her shoulders tensed up. Something about him helping her gave her unneccessary chills, and they wouldn't go away. They followed them towards the Nurse's Office, which worried them a little. Whatever happened with Midoriya and Skylar, they worried that she might've been after his quirk. They've been through this already with HawkMoth and Chrysalis and worried that she was doing the same thing.
Whatever was going on, Rena Rouge had to stick around for much longer.
Soon enough, Kaminari directed Skylar to the Nurse's Office. Once they got to the door, it opened before they could enter. Mr. Aizawa opened it to find Skylar with Rena Rouge and his classmates. His eyes widened, clearly thrown off seeing Skylar already here. Even Rena Rouge standing there seemed to get him into hero mode.
"Rena Rouge? What're you doing here?" Mr. Aizawa asked him.
Rena Rouge could tell that he wasn't happy that she left the staff room. He didn't like the fact that she was wandering around the school especially with Skylar around. She felt herself stiffen up from his intentional question, but tried to relax. She couldn't reveal as to what happened in front of Skylar, so she tried to make it more simple.
"We heard that Izuku was hurt," Rena Rouge told him, "Me and Melissa wanted to make sure that he was okay. Even Skylar wanted to apologize for what she did."
Skylar looked a little surprised for a moment, but then Mr. Aizawa spotted her. She stiffened up, but soon nodded her head in agreement rather eagerly.
"Y-Yes! I came here to check on him!" Skylar said a little too loudly, "I just... I feel bad for taking things too far. I didn't mean to hurt him. I just wanted to show him some of my special moves."
Then she spotted Midoriya behind him and was suddenly forcing her way through to the Nurse's Office.
"Izuku..." Skylar said surprisingly quiet.
For a moment, she didn't say anything. She just stood there, looking guilty at what she had done. Rena Rouge kept an eye on her as Midoriya sat there looking a little pale. He kept rubbing his neck for some reason as she stood there. Even Bakugo looked a little angry at her as if he was also suspicious of her. She then looked at Mr. Aizawa, and he looked about ready to bring his students back to their dormitory.
Skylar finally apologized as Rena Rouge stood there next to Mr. Aizawa. She kept going on and on about how sorry she was. Rena Rouge didn't want to stir anything up, especially with Midoriya in the Nurse's Office. She had to keep things quiet for now and knew that Mr. Aizawa could handle this.
"Mr. Aizawa. You might want to keep an eye on Skylar," Rena Rouge whispered to him, "Me and Melissa wanted to explain things in the dormitory, but short story is that Skylar might be hiding something. I'd say keep her close and don't let her out of your sight."
Mr. Aizawa's eyes widened a little, but something about it made it seem like he had suspicions about her. Whatever happened in the Nurse's Office, clearly things were a little tense. He stood there for a moment, and soon let out a sigh. He rubbed his nose as if all of this was already giving him a headache.
"This is going to be a long week."
In Class 2-A's dormitory...
After a long apology from Skylar, Rena Rouge and everyone else left the Nurse's Office. Midoriya stayed behind in the Nurse's Office to get some rest. AllMight was hesitant to leave him behind, but he knew that he had to look after his students. Midoriya was a little stiff when he talked to Skylar, but then realized that she was feeling really guilty about what happened. He felt like she meant it, but something about it did feel off.
She kept rubbing her bracelet as if it comforted her.
Midoriya accepted her apology and even noticed that his arms and legs were less sluggish. He could soon lift his arms and legs, but they still felt a little weird. Before Bakugo could leave him behind, he found himself grabbing his wrist without even realizing it. He looked back at him, confused as to why he wanted him to stay.
Everyone left, and Recovery Girl seemed to be fine with him staying. Midoriya could barely look at him and felt that dryness building up in his throat. Something about it felt like he had been through this before and didn't know why or how. He didn't want to be alone and somehow Bakugo being there with him felt comforting.
"Kacchan. Can you stay for a while?" Midoriya asked him without looking at him, "I... I don't want to be alone."
Bakugo's eyes barely reacted as he looked down at his arms and legs. He noticed all of his scars from hurting his body with his quirk. Something about it gave him chills, realizing that this might have something to do with One for All. His stomach tightened, not wanting to leave him behind as well. Without saying a word, he went to grab a chair and sat there with him.
For a while, they didn't say anything. It was quiet as Midoriya played with his sheets. Bakugo couldn't even look at him without feeling a little awkward about this whole thing. He wanted to say something just to break this tension, but he couldn't get himself to do it. Maybe it was this nightmare that Midoriya had that was bothering him.
Something about it really bothered him, and he didn't know why. Whatever it meant, clearly he vaguely understood what it was. If he were a kid when it happened, then he thought maybe he would be able to figure it out as well. He hoped that it wasn't anything to be worried about. After all, Skylar was the one that he was suspicious about.
"Kacchan? What do you think of Skylar?" Midoriya asked him.
Bakugo wasn't expecting him to ask that and looked up at him. He looked a little bit confused, but also upset as if Skylar had done or said something to make him feel this way. He thought about it for a moment, but didn't understand where this was going. She was a new classmate of theirs and recommended by her father because of her quirk. Even just thinking about her made him realize how familiar she felt. He didn't know why, but her quirk really bothered him.
Even when he arm wrestled her that one time, something about her felt like he had faced something like this before. It was really starting to frustrate him as he scratched the back of his head. Then he looked up at Midoriya who was still waiting for him to answer. He didn't understand why he looked like he still cared about her. The look in his eyes made him realize that he still worried about her. He tried to shake off this feeling, knowing full well how Midoriya was feeling.
"Izuku... Why do you still care about her?" Bakugo asked him, "She clearly has it out for you. You should back off from her before you get into something that you might regret. Clearly this isn't something that you shouldn't get involved in. Rena Rouge and Mr. Aizawa will handle it."
Midoriya was about to say something, but then pulled back. Something about what Bakugo told him got through to him. He looked like he really confused and upset about something as Bakugo sat there. Midoriya could barely look at him as he gripped onto his sheets.
For a moment, it was quiet between them.
"Kacchan. You of all people know that I can't do that," Midoriya told him.
Bakugo sat up, knowing full well that Midoriya wasn't going to back down anytime soon. He let out an annoyed sigh like he knew that he would say that. He combed his hair with his fingers, not knowing how to stop him from getting involved. Something about it felt like he needed to at least let him know that he wasn't alone in this.
"Fine. If you want to get involved, that's your decision to make," Bakugo told him, "But don't expect me to sit back and watch you do this by yourself. I don't trust Skylar as much as you do. Whatever the hell is going on with this nightmare of yours, we can't have them getting in the way."
Midoriya rubbed his throat, and Bakugo could tell that it wasn't going away any time soon. Whatever Midoriya was going through, something about it did seem to remind him of something in particular. It was right there, and yet he couldn't figure it out. Soon enough, Midoriya started to cough a little and soon took a sip of his water.
Once he gulped it down, he let out a gasp. Bakugo wanted to help, but didn't know how. It's not like he could get inside of his dreams and fight off this burning sensation.
Then it clicked with him and soon found himself reaching for his phone. Before he could even look through contacts, he realized that he never even asked for Marinette's phone number. He hesitated to even ask for Midoriya's phone to call Marinette. He didn't want him to know about any of this, and yet he had to do something about this. He soon reached for his phone, confusing Midoriya for a moment.
"Give me your phone," Bakugo said to him.
"What? Why?" Midoriya asked him, hesitating to do so.
"Just give it to me. I'll explain in a minute," Bakugo told him, "I need to do this. I think I know how to get rid of your nightmares."
Without even hesitating, Midoriya gave him his phone. He watched him go through his contacts, confusing him as to who he was calling. Then it hit him as he got ready to call them.
"Kacchan. Please don't tell me you're calling Marinette," Midoriya told him, "You can't do that."
"Why not? She's the only one who can heal you," Bakugo told him.
Before he could call her, Midoriya got up to grab his wrists. For a moment, Midoriya felt like he understood what he was trying to do for him. He really appreciated Bakugo for trying to so hard to help him. He couldn't help but smile at his attempt to actually call Marinette. Bakugo would never call her unless he really needed to.
"Kacchan. You and I both know that One for All is what helped her heal us in the first place," Midoriya reminded him, "She's strong, but her Miraculous can't undo this. We need to handle this ourselves."
Bakugo hesitated, but he knew that he was right. He looked at the contact that could easily reach her. Bakugo almost pressed call anyway, but then remembered that she too was busy with other things in Paris. She had a lot on her plate already, especially with Alya taking charge over here. He loosened his grip around Midoriya's phone and soon let it go. Midoriya took it back, and Bakugo felt helpless.
For a moment, he thought that he could actually help Midoriya. He gritted his teeth, feeling a little frustrated.
"Besides, Marinette's Parisian's hero. She needs to stay there and look after Paris," Midoriya reminded him, "We can't drag into these situations like Rena Rouge. She'll help us find this hacker. I'm sure these nightmares will go away by the time she figures out what's going on."
Bakugo felt weird hearing Midoriya say all of these things without him even feeling like rebelling against him. Maybe he felt like this because he knew deep down inside that he was right. He hated to admit it, but Midoriya's nightmares weren't worth risking the hacker coming back. He couldn't help but smile a little at how much Midoriya has changed.
"Man, when I did ever start agreeing with you?" Bakugo asked him, "It's starting to get on my nerves."
Midoriya couldn't help but smile, knowing full well that his childhood friend was sticking with him.
No matter what.
Another amazing chapter!
I actually enjoyed writing this one. I like that Kaminari and Jirou talked to Rena Rouge and Melissa about what was going on. Kaminari is denying what's going on, which I found interesting. He's dumb, but also hopes for the best in others. I can definitely tell that Kaminari would definitely hope that there's nothing going on with Skylar. I like Jirou tagging along as well and trying to knock some sense into him. It's cute :)
Now for Midoriya and Bakugo. I wanted them to have a quick quiet moment between them. I knew that Bakugo would feel the need to do something for him. He knows or feels like there's something weird about his nightmares, but can't figure out why. There's a reason for it, but it'll come up later. Marinette wouldn't be able to help as much because One for All is what ultimately boosted her Miraculous. She might be able to heal still, but we'll see what happens next time!
More to come soon!