Oh, wow, sorry for my unexpected absence, I had some unexpected things occur. This included getting some kind of unexpected infection that landed me with a High-Grade fever for the last two days. Thankfully, I'm through the worst of it and I am feeling much better, albeit I still have one hell of a headache from all of the coughing. Anyway, my schedule has been completely thrown off, so I trying to see how my upload schedule will be going forward from here.

Anyway, that all said, please enjoy.


My Hero Academia Untold: The Knights of Fafnir

Saga I: Dusk

Arc II: The Incident

Chapter XX: The Trial's Conclusion


It's not just about winning or losing, but to learn about teamwork, learn about sportsmanship, learn about discipline. The value of working together for a common goal. Have the emphasis on fundamentals, not just games."

Erik Spoelstra


Nejire was worn out from her hunt.

Ryu may have failed to land a single hit on her, but he did manage to get her winded by the time she finally caught him. Now, however, Nejire was dealing with one of the two Recommended Students from the class, judging his technique and sheer judgment as their fight continued.

He had to have been well-trained by a Pro-Hero. However, that being said, Nejire could tell that the boy was not using the full extent of his abilities. She could see quickly that the lad primarily used his ice for capture and defense. While using his flames for offense instead of mixing and matching the two elements to gain the edge.

The bubbly bluenette was unsure if this was on purpose or if he hadn't considered using his Quirk in this manner. His lack of combat experience also showed when she found a pattern after only a few test rounds at the start of their fight. It proved to be her saving grace since it allowed her to conserve her strength while he seemed to be using it without concern. That being said, Nejire knew that she couldn't last much longer despite how good she was at hiding it.

The boy with the dual-colored hair had the edge in stamina here, without a doubt.

Nejire blasted another wave towards the ice shielding Shouto and swiftly hopped aside to dodge the incoming fire blast she foresaw coming. That was when she began those familiar coded taps on her earpiece.

'Oh? Mirio got trapped? These first years really are something else!' She thought, surprised at the news, yet she also found herself proud of these first years. However, now was not the time to be impressed. Nejire knew that she could not waste any more time on this fight. Mirio needed backup, so she planned to make her escape. She dodged a few more times before noticing a pattern in Shouto's fire attack.

It was always slower at the initial blast before picking up speed.

'Does using his ice slow down his fire attacks? I could use that...'

With that thought in mind, Nejire picked that opening to make her escape; she began building up as much energy as she could into her limbs as she waited for the moment. It wasn't long until Shouto blasted another stream of his fire at Nejire. However, instead of dodging like he had expected her to, the senior took a step back to brace herself. Raising her arms up to blast through the fire itself, causing the flames to split right down the middle, catching Shouto by surprise. The boy quickly switched out his flames for his ice to protect himself against Nejire's sudden surprise attack.

Nejire did not relent as she continued to focus the energy beam, narrowing it to pierce through the thick layers of ice. This prompted Shouto to create even thicker layers, causing frost to begin coating his body. Once, the bubbly girl saw that both the line of sight had been broken and placed her hopes that he was slowed. She swiftly turned around and kicked off from the ground, using the energy charging in her legs to go airborne and make her way towards Mirio's location.

"Damn it," Shouto gasped, shaking ever so slightly from the cold, trying to produce heat from his left side as quickly as possible to melt the ice that now coated his body. Still, he quickly radioed the situation to give the rest of his teammates a heads-up. "My target has escaped, and I believe she heading out to back up the boss."

"Leave her for now," Shouto heard Katsuki's voice growl. "I got something more important for you to help with."

"Understood," Shouto answered as he began to listen to the new plan.

This fight with their seniors really helped put things in perspective today. He had kept his thoughts on most of the class to himself up to this point, especially after Tenya told him about his frustration with being initially assigned as the medic. Shouto knew that Tenya was trying to prove himself here at UA. Still, he has also always known that Tenya had a small but noticeable bout of envy against him, which started with his one-sided rivalry.

One that started shortly after they first met.

Shouto was not the most social person and, at the time, did not understand why Tenya, the one who had become his closest friend, acted that way toward him. Now, however, he could feel the gap himself. It reminded him of something that Mei had said. Only now, in hindsight, did it make it easier to understand Tenya and where he was coming from and explain why the crazy machinist seemed to hang on to him so much.

"Teni has always looked up to the big boss, but I could tell he just wanted to be seen...to be noticed like me! Maybe because it was the same with me and Yuno. Our parents always praised them, our elder brothers! I mean...they left us to catch up. We had expectations that we were kind of scared we might never meet...I know none of my babies got any attention from them...not like with Yuno...but they did get a lot of attention from Teni!"

Shouto remembered that Mei had a massive smile on her face that day. Tenya came from a family of heroes that started before heroes were formally established. However, one could say the true irony was within Shouto himself, as he had bouts of envy towards Tenya. The two shared quite a bit in common; both came from wealthy hero families. Both had moments of being socially awkward, and both were the youngest siblings, with high expectations weighing heavily on their shoulders.

Yet, despite these similarities. Shouto had always been envious of Tenya's ability to be so much more forward than he could. Such as speaking out without too much concern, a skill he always seemed to lack. While Tenya could be a bit much at times, he had a way of grabbing attention when needed. Something Shouto still struggled with, and lunch today was proof of this. Since it was Tenya, who had done almost all of the talking for the both of them.

Tenya managed to speak to Izuku, Ochako, and even Katsuki without any trouble, as if they were all old friends.

Well, Katsuki, not so much, but still...

While he had mainly just sat and ate in silence. He was barely getting a word in as he often found small talk troublesome. It didn't help that he almost gave Izuku a minor panic attack when trying to reach out to him. He wanted to be the first to offer to reach out to Izuku despite Tenya warning him not to push it. And yet that is precisely what he did, and now he regretted it; Shouto sighed deeply as the trial climaxed. Shouto could feel the weight of the trial crashing down on him, making him deal with these complex emotions. From what he could observe, this trial was designed to break them down; maybe it was something they were all going to need in the end.

"I don't have to repeat myself, right?" Katsuki asked with a hint of sarcasm as he finished explaining his plan to the boy.

"No," Shouto answered as the last frost melted away from his body; he knew it was time to finish this.

"I'm on my way."


Izuku and Tenya had been going through every room on every floor at breakneck speed to find the bomb. Each was split up to search through each floor, and Izuku took the even-numbered floors. Meanwhile, the speedier Tenya checked the odd-numbered ones.

"Iida, any luck?" Izuku asked his earpiece as he searched the last room on the fourth floor.

"I just finished my sweep of the fifth floor; this does not make any sense! We saw a picture of the bomb during the briefing; it is far too large to be easily hidden!"

"We have to keep looking for it! It has to be here somewhere!"

"THE ROOF NUMBNUTS! YOU HAVEN'T CHECKED THE FUCKING ROOF!" Katsuki suddenly yelled out in their earpieces, making Izuku sprint toward the staircase, which doubled as an entrance to the roof.

"Right! We have yet to check the roof!"

Izuku was the first to arrive at the roof, with Tenya appearing right behind him a moment later. In the middle of the roof was a large cardboard box decorated with doodles from their upperclassmen. The doodles included words of encouragement, a few jokes, and what Izuku suspected was an adorable set of five chibi portraits of their upperclassmen with a stylized blue eye serving as the artist's signature.

"Midoriya...I am perplexed by this..." Tenya said with a stony face as he looked at the box.

"I am too, Iida, but we can't wait," Izuku immediately ran to the bomb. "We don't have much time left; help me take the cardboard box off the bomb. The system said that the new objective is to get the bomb out of Site Gamma...and while it's easier said than done, it could be tricky if we're not careful."

"That's where I come in. I already got a plan in the works," said Katsuki as he began explaining his plan.

"Izuku, Legs, listen carefully..."


Mirio was enjoying his time floating in the air without the usual pull of gravity. He even thought of how Ochako's quirk could synergize with his own if the two worked together someday. Of course, if it weren't for the fact that he needed a way to propel himself around without support gear.

However, he wasn't just wasting time.

Mirio had also been testing if he could somehow use this effect to gain momentum to get himself moving and back into the game. No luck, however, as the gravity girl simply shifted him back into place if she noticed any strong movements or motions to get him back to the ground. Mirio could see that the girl was not taking any chances after the last time he had gotten the drop on her.

So, when physicality failed, Mirio tried getting her to talk. But after the first question, or more accurately, when her two teammates left, she had seemingly gone silent, wearing a firm poker face.

'Weird...and here I thought she was a little more like Nejire,' He wondered as he started to float upside down. 'She was talkative during our earlier fight, but now she's just quiet. Not like the chatterbox girl I was expecting to remain here...'

"Uraraka!" Mirio heard a feminine voice say, making him look up. The senior saw another duo of his juniors, both on the taller side, one male and the other female.

'These two are Yaoyorozu...and Satou, right?' Mirio observed as he tried to remember what he could about their Quirks, though their outfits were quite telling. Momo was wearing a rather exposed-looking red leotard with matching red boots and a yellow belt. While Rikidou had a much simpler mustard yellow body suit, save for the white boots, gloves, and belt.

"Yaoyorozu, Satou!" Ochako called out as the appearance of her companions helped her snap out of her funk and put her mind at ease.

"I am sorry it took us a while to get here, but Bakugou managed to brief us on the situation," Momo answered, slightly out of breath as she made a small cloth to wipe her brow. "Aoyama and Ojiro should already be on their way as well."

"Sounds good," Ochako chirped, trying to keep focused on the trial despite seeing the look of disappointment on Momo's face with all the "What ifs" running through her head at the moment.

"OCHAKO, WATCH OUT!" The trio suddenly heard Izuku's voice call out to them over their earpieces as a large blast of energy flew at them from the sky.

"Looks like my backup has arrived!" Mirio said delightfully, looking up at Nejire, who continued to blast away at the three juniors. At the same time, she slowly descended and made her way toward Mirio's floating frame. The trio immediately split up in different directions to try and dodge Nejire's powerful blasts.

"Oh, Ho! Mirio, you're going to get us in trouble for going too easy on them!" The playful bluenette chastised the blond, who, in turn, simply stuck out his tongue as he answered her.

"I know! I know! But I just couldn't help it in the end!" said Mirio with a sheepish grin. "Mr. Aizawa's demands were just too harsh for me to go all out!"

"Well, we got about four minutes before the test is done...so as long as they don't get the bomb out, we'll still win."

"Oh! I forgot to mention," Mirio interjected with a laugh. "Two of our other juniors are currently searching for the bomb right now!"

Nejire pouted for a moment before a villainous smile appeared on her face.

"Okay then! I'm in charge now, Mirio~. No more holding back!"

'Oh boy...' Mirio thought nervously, looking behind and casually adding. "Oh, might want to watch out, Nejire-Cha-"

Nejire instinctively dodged to the side rather than question Mirio, avoiding a net launched to catch them mid-air. She turned her head to see that Momo had created and used a catapult. However, she wasn't the only one who had begun their counterattack.

"SHIFT!" They both heard Ochako yell out as Nejire suddenly found Mirio becoming increasingly heavier, to the point he began to drag her back down to earth with him.

"Let me go!" Mirio yelled out as they rapidly descended. Nejire tried to slow their descent by blasting more energy from her legs, but it wasn't enough.

"Nejire!"

The girl looked down, seeing that confident smile on Mirio's face that always made her heart skip a beat.

"Trust me."

That was all he had to say for Nejire to let go without questioning him. Allowing Mirio to phase through the ground as gravity took him while she landed safely on the street. Her eyes were hidden underneath her hair. Rikidou quickly charged from behind, thinking this was his chance and hoping to catch her off guard. Unfortunately for him, she was ready with her own remote with one quick assist from her Quirk. She turned at breakneck speeds as she landed an uppercut on the tall boy's jaw, knocking him onto his back.

Nejire wasted no time and made her point by stepping on him as she pointed a remote at him with the coldest expression on her face.

POP!

"Hero, Rikidou Satou has been killed in action!"

Poor Rikidou lay there, stunned that he had been taken out so quickly and easily. It only added to Momo's continued loss of morale and confidence, as it had been her plan to try and catch their seasoned senior. Nejire looked at the two girls, her cold, blue eyes freezing them with her icy death glare.

'She's not even a real villain yet…I could almost feel like I'm staring at Death Incarnate!' Thought Momo as Nejire turned to face Ochako. 'These seniors...what have they been through to be this skilled?!'

Ochako was doing her best to keep Mirio out of the game, but after seeing Nejire turn her attention towards her, nausea hit her full blast. Add to that the unknown risk of keeping Mirio underground for so long, and she had no choice but to let him go.

"Release..." Ochako gasped out, touching her fingers before clutching her mouth and stomach.

Soon, Mirio launched right out of the ground.

Although his face still had his trademark cheery expression, he was secretly a bit panicked as he stayed back to catch his breath. The sudden descent and the extra time underground, despite his Quirk timing out due to the lack of air, should have had him just shoot up when it was done. Of course, he couldn't really do that due to being kept underground by Ochako's gravity Quirk.

Nejire, however, darted after Ochako with the remote in hand, seeing her as their biggest threat at the moment. Momo could only stand there and watch, unsure of what to do next, as almost everything she had tried continued to go wrong, making her second-guess herself.

"Sorry, I kept you all waiting." A cool voice from above said as the ice began to launch forward, trapping the two villains by their feet.

"Todoroki!" Momo called out, relieved to see Shouto descend from one of the buildings, expertly sliding on his ice ramp.

"Ooooo!" Nejire pouted with frustration. She had hoped that she had bought enough time to keep the Icyhot boy out of the picture, but this wasn't the case. Instantly, Nejire started blasting away at Shouto to keep him at bay.

Ochako, seeing the chance, began to retreat towards Momo, not wanting to take a chance at getting popped like Rikidou while she was this nauseous. However, as she ran, an idea began to form in her head as she remembered reading about Momo's Quirk from Izuku's notes earlier today. Using this information, Ochako was quick to tell the Recommended Student of her idea. Ochako knew Mirio would simply phase through the ice without too much effort once he had caught his breath.

She had to be ready for him.

"Two minutes remain until bomb detonation!" The system announced, only further putting pressure on the young heroes-in-training.

"HOLD THEM THERE FOR NOW! LEGS AND IZUKU GOT THE BOMB! DON'T PANIC, JUST KEEP IT UP!" Katsuki's voice rang out in their ears. "Ponytail! Stop worrying and just keep them busy with another net or some shit! Uraraka, Legs will be down there in a second; make sure he gets away!"

The girls got their second wind at this demand from their explosive Operator.

After completing Ochako's request, Momo opened up her costume to work on another net, not realizing she had accidentally flashed Shouto. The young Elementalist instantly snapped his head to the side to look away, despite it making it more difficult to defend against Nejire.

'You saw nothing, Shouto...' One voice in his head said before another piped up. 'But I di-'

'NOTHING.'

Tenya was still inside the building, taking in the battle unfolding in front of him. Katsuki's plan was simple yet clever, and while he disliked his role in the plan, he again forced himself to swallow his pride as he gripped his cargo as if his life depended on it. His engine legs were revving, ready to go when given the signal.

"Ready, Iida?" He heard Izuku's voice over his earpiece.

"I am."

"OK, NOW!"

"RECIPO BURST!"

They all heard Tenya's voice yell out as he blasted through the front door with a large cardboard box overhead. Unfortunately for the Speedster, he had failed to notice two critical things. One was the thin layer of ice that now covered most of the street, including the very front of the building's entrance, causing him to slip.

The second was Momo's exposed chest.

In his efforts to be a gentleman and despite falling on his ass, Tenya forced himself to close his eyes. Leaving himself completely defenseless as he still held the cardboard box overhead. Making him an easy target for the seniors. Mirio quickly leaped into action, going after Tenya, only to have Ochako run right behind him with a bit of surprise from Momo. Nejire couldn't attack Ochako due to her declining stamina and efforts to keep Shouto at bay.

All eyes were on the ground level and not on the sky above.

Tenya had landed awkwardly, with his armor protecting him from the worst of the damage. Still, between his brain rebooting from the pain and the shock of having Mirio getting closer to him, he couldn't do much of anything. But before Mirio could do anything, he heard a familiar voice behind him.

"SHIFT!"

Mirio turned around, un-solidifying the upper half of his body out of instinct as Ochako launched right through him with ease. The lass couldn't warn Tenya of her plan since she needed to keep the element of surprise, preventing Mirio from defending against it.

When Mirio turned around, making himself solid again, he was immediately met with the flash of a stun grenade that Ochako had Momo produce with her Quirk. Mirio's Quirk would have typically prevented light from entering his eyes, blocking such things. Yet, it also made him temporarily blind and deaf as well. The moment he turned around and became solid again was the moment Ochako had pulled the pin on a gamble.

Despite his stinging eyes and ringing ears, The First Seat of the Big Five couldn't help but keep on grinning. He was impressed by the sudden improvisation of his juniors as Ochako managed to touch him and get him floating once again. Nejire was about to blast Ochako out of the way when a thick beam of light punched through Shouto's ice wall, striking the dead center of her stomach.

"Kohf!" Nejire wheezed out as the remote slipped from her hands.

"We are here!" Yūga called out from behind Shouto, sparkling like a beacon, while Mashirao got a running start using his tail to assist his jump. He gracefully cleared the ice wall before taking full advantage of his opponent's lowered defenses. The tailed boy began to strike at her with his fists, yet Nejire managed to dodge and block most of his attacks despite still being in pain from Yūga's attack.

But she was utterly spent on stamina by this point.

"Ojiro, move out of the way!" Shouto called out. Mashirao, hearing the urgency in his voice, instinctively hopped back just in the nick of time for Momo to fire her freshly reloaded catapult net again. This time, Nejire wasn't able to dodge in time and had been caught under it. Only to almost become utterly frozen, save for her head and right arm by a layer of Shouto's ice.

"Oh! SO COLD!" Nejire shrieked as her bodysuit provided little protection from the cold. Seeing his chance, Mashiro wasted no time as he jumped forward and cuffed Nejire's hand, capturing her.

"The Villain, Nejire-Chan, has been captured!"

Mirio took a deep breath and gave a big smile despite still being blind. He couldn't help but be extremely proud of this new first-year class.

"Hey, Gravity girl!" Mirio called out as he turned his head to and fro, unsure where Ochako was due to his blurred vision.

Ochako looked at her senior with an air of caution.

"No tricks, cuff me. There is no way I can beat you guys like this," Mirio requested as he slowly extended his arms outward, fingers outstretched, showing no remote in his hands. Ochako slowly and carefully walked forward before cuffing one of Mirio's arms as he floated in the air.

He had proven true to his word.

"The Villain, Lemillion, has been captured!" The system announced, followed by another message. "All Villains have been successfully captured!"

The remainder of the hero group either sighed with relief or cheered. Meanwhile, Shouto began removing the ice on his body and Nejire, who was begging to be unfrozen. At the same time, Ochako gently released Mirio from her Quirk's influence.

"The Bomb must still be removed from Gamma City! Countdown T-Minus 42 seconds!"

As if that trial was not stressful enough. The students had to be reminded of the bomb, and almost everyone who could still stand scrambled towards Tenya's position to help him remove the bomb.

"Iida, hurry! You need to get the bomb out of here!"

"Here, I can make it lighter!"

"You're the only one fast enough to get out of here in time!"

Tenya couldn't help but laugh as he opened his eyes, revealing their dark red color(*1). Having been spared from the flash bomb's glare and giving everyone a reassuring smile.

"I do not believe your concerns are warranted, everyone; after all, where do you think Midoriya is at the moment?"

It was as if, on cue from the far distance, a massive flash of light followed by a loud noise had occurred.

CRASH

Only a few seconds later, the speakers called out to all of them again.

"The Bomb has been successfully removed from Gamma City! Hero Izuku Midoriya has been killed in action from the bomb's detonation! Mission Accomplished!"

A loud horn began to sound throughout Site Gamma, marking the battle trial's end.

"GOOD JOB, EVERYONE!"All Might's voice announced from the speakers."PLEASE REPORT BACK TO THE BASE AND REST UP. WE WILL GO OVER THE RESULTS AFTER A SHORT BREAK!"

/

Almost everyone, from the field to those in the control room to the teacher's observation room, remained silent; many were simply left stupefied by the whole event. Eraserhead was left speechless, not necessarily by the victory but by the last-minute switch.

Katsuki's plan was to have Izuku use an ice bridge that Shouto had created to get the bomb from the highest rooftop. Then, using his own quirk, he would jump from rooftop to rooftop carrying the bomb, all before landing safely on the ground near the entrance.

Tenya and the cardboard box were just a distraction. It was reckless, but it had gotten the job done. Eraserhead could observe an exhausted Izuku making his way back to the base, completely winded. His costume was torn to shreds, with a crater only a few feet away from the fake bomb he had left there.

'Well, looks like they did much better than expected despite being first years... still, they have a lot to learn, and it looks like some of my third years need to be reminded of what I expect when I demand the kid gloves; to come off...' Shouta thought, annoyed bit by the results, but in the end, he reasoned this may just be karma.

'Heh, as if I would believe in something so irrational..'


Everyone slowly began to unwind; some were using the restroom, others were at the nurse's office, and the rest simply stuck around, awaiting the results.

Mina was slowly stirring awake in the makeshift recovery room, thanks partly to the light chatter that filled the room. She blinked as her eyesight slowly returned; she could hear the deep groans of someone in a nearby bed, followed by the cries of a familiar voice.

"I'M SORRY! PLEASE FORGIVE ME!"

Mina blinked as she heard Eijirou's voice cry out from behind the curtain to her right.

'Kiri?'

"This is…still the worst...pain...ever," Mina heard another familiar voice wheeze out between breaths, one that helped to snap her out of her daze.

'The battle trial,' Mina finally remembered as she forced herself to sit up, only to receive a sudden shot of pain that made her gasp out loud, forcing her back down. The noise was enough for Eijirou to stop his pleas and peek around the curtain to see her.

"Hey, Ashido..." The redhead laughed nervously. "Glad to see you're awake. I'm sorry about your injuries; Springfield threw me on top of you while I was hard..."

"PHRASING! HAHAHA!"Alex called out from behind the curtain, which was followed by a hard smack. "OW, SON OF A BITCH!"

Upon realizing how that could be interpreted, Eijirou's face turned a deep scarlet. Mina, however, simply waved it off with a laugh. She wasn't entirely displeased, given that Eijirou's body left very little to the imagination, which she wasn't going to complain about.

"It's okay, horn buddy. I can think of worse ways of getting knocked out," Mina paused to blink a few times as she looked at her surroundings. "But how did I get here?"

Eijirou was about to answer when Alex called out again in a mocking voice.

"Your prince charming here carried you~."

"HEY!" Eijirou called out, his face starting to burn now, making Mina giggle. "Can't you spare me, Springfield?"

"Nope! Not after what you did to my nuts, boy! I need my nuts, damn it! You have broken one of the most sacred rules of the bro code, so you have yet to begin to suffer my wrath!"

SMACK!

"Ow! Fucking hell, Shouji! You're supposed to be on my side! You're breaking the bro code too!"

Eijirou groaned, much to the amusement of everyone else.

"Well, if that's the case. Thank you, Horn buddy." Mina said warmly, hoping to cheer him up. The redhead blinked a few times at that, but he smiled.

"Uh...Yeah, it was no trouble." Eijirou answered back, a bit relieved that at least Mina would grant him mercy.

"You know I can hear you guys..." They both heard Hanta's voice call out from Mina's left. "Seriously, your flirting is cute and all, but can you keep it down a bit?"

"Shut up, Sero!" Eijirou yelled out, his face finally turning as red as his hair.

"I ship it!" Alex called out again, followed by a few laughs from around the room.

"Oh, come on!" Eijirou exclaimed, clutching his head from the teasing, while Mina spoke up, answering Hanta.

"I'm sorry, Sero!"

"Yeah, yeah."

"WHEYYYYY!~"

Mina blinked at that last noise, unsure of the source.

"What was that?" Mina asked Eijirou, only to have Kyouka answer instead while clearly trying to keep herself from laughing.

"K-Kaminari apparently goes dumb if he," Kyouka had to stop for a moment. "Hehehe...Overuses his Quirk."

"Oh, hey, Jirou. Are you okay there?" Mina asked as she turned around to face another curtain, hearing it as the source of Kyouka's voice.

"Ehh...I was the first hero to 'die,' so that really blows..." The short girl answered while suddenly sounding very annoyed by the fact.

"Hi everyone! It's nice to finally meet you all."

A new voice called out from another corner of the room, accompanied by squeaking wheels, where Mina assumed the entrance was. Eijirou, along with Tsuyu and Fumikage, proceeded to open her curtain to give everyone a clear view of their guest. It was a girl around Momo's height with tan skin, short, shiny blonde hair, and amber eyes. She was wearing an adorably fluffy-looking white apron over her UA uniform and pushing a cart that seemed to be completely packed with snacks.

"I'm Jou Mori," the girl cheerfully introduced herself. "But you guys can also call me Pani."

"I'm your Business Course Liaison, and I've got a bunch of homemade shacks to get you guys feeling better," Jou added as she uncovered some of the more tasty-looking treats, such as brownies, mochis, jellies, fruits, buns, and a few simple sandwiches, in addition to a few other random assortments, much to everyone's delight. Several of the students who could still stand began to make their way to get their fill.

"I've got another two carts outside the room in case you guys want more," Jou reassured the heroes-in-training as some seemed unsure if they could have some of the scarcer items on the cart. "So you just let me know, okay?

"Awesome!"

"Sweet!"

"Oh good, ribbit," Tsuyu added as she happily helped herself to some of the jellies on the cart.

Jou looked delighted as the hero class seemed to enjoy the treats she and her fellow business course classmates made. All while slyly pulling out a small notepad to jot down the incoming results. Katsuki helped himself to a spicy pork bun while eyeing up Jou; he didn't complain at the sight.

"She catch your eye, man?" Hanta joked as he ate a sandwich, seeing the Ash blond's eyes looking around.

Katsuki only grunted in response as he currently had a mouthful of the spicy pork bun.

'Damn, this is good.'

"Oh yeah, baby, that's the good stuff." Alex proclaimed as he was being helped up by a singed-looking Mezou Shouji. The American was quick to scarf down a plate of brownies brought his way by Eijirou.

Meanwhile, Rikidou Satou made his way inside the recovery room without his face mask, surprised to see Jou here. Still, he wasn't going to complain, given that she had brought them all some much-needed provisions.

"Hey, Pani," Rikidou yawned out, grabbing a bun and sandwiches, only to be enveloped by a hug from the blonde.

"Heya Hun," She answered, much to everyone's surprise.

With her shipping senses maxing out, Mina made herself shoot right up, ignoring her pain and looked at the two with a surprised yet gleeful smile.

"Hun?!"

"We've been dating since middle school," Jou answered her with a playful wink. "But I've known him for ages!"

Rikidou bashfully looked away from everyone else. He wasn't as touchy as Jou, but it wasn't like he would keep it a secret.

"Oooh, ouch, looks like you had no chance to begin with, Bakugou," Hanta whispered to Katsuki, who clearly looked irked by this revelation.

"GUYS, I THINK SOMETHING IS WRONG HERE!" Tōru cried out as Ryu seemed to be convulsing on his bed. Mezou, being the second oldest and currently most capable, made his way to the boy's bedside.

"Get back; I think he might be having a seizure," Mezou ordered as he grabbed Ryu to steady him while ensuring he wouldn't choke himself on his own tongue. "Someone, please go get Recovery Girl!"

After a few moments, Ryu's eyes snapped open. Unable to breathe, he looked around wildly. Mezou, almost by complete instinct, pulled back while making Ryu face the ceiling before the black-haired boy coughed out a large jet of fire from his mouth.

"HOLY SHIT!" Was among the cries as the fire began to blacken the ceiling, Ryu now coughing heavily, trying to get air in his lungs.

"Are you okay, my young friend?" Mezou asked calmly. He held the teen firmly while keeping an eye pod on the ceiling to ensure it hadn't caught fire.

"W-wa-w-w-water...cold...water...please," Ryu managed to croak out before being handed a bottle by a concerned-looking Minoru, who had just returned from the restroom, only to see his friend seize up like that. Ryu simply nodded his thanks before biting the cap off and downing the whole thing in one quick gulp.

"Damn man, easy there before you choke again," Hanta commented nervously.

"Ah...yeah, sorry about that," Ryu growled, his voice much hoarser. "It happens sometimes when I forget to breathe."

Katsuki clicked his tongue, annoyed by the guy who already put him on edge.

"How the fuck do you forget to breathe Ass Breath?"

"It's called Sleep Apnea,(*2) asshole." Ryu deadpanned with an annoyed look on his face.

Katsuki, irked by Ryu's response and seeing it as a challenge, instantly shot back.

"Then how about you swallow your tongue? After all, corpses aren't supposed to be breathing or talking Ass Breath!"

"Whoa, man, isn't that a bit much?" Eijirou interjected, trying to defuse the situation.

Ryu, however, wasn't one to back down either.

"I don't see you saying that to Jirou or anyone else who got axed blondie!"

The two continued their back-and-forth, with some of the other braver students trying to calm them down. Katsuki only grew angrier with the teen who seemed to have his dead master's face and saw it as an affront to the man he respected.

"You're pushing it, Ass Breath!"

"Can't handle the fire, Kacchan?"

Katsuki stood up with murder in his eyes, motioning his way toward Ryu's bedside. His master, Eri and Izuku aside, nobody was permitted to call him that, least of all, this prick. However, several of their classmates moved in front of the explosive blond to block his way.

"YOU'RE PUSHING IT ASS BREATH!"

"CAN'T HANDLE THE NICKNAME?!" Ryu continued, unconcerned with Katsuki's increasingly aggressive attitude; he matched it with a cruel sneer. "YOU GIVE ALL OF US THOSE STUPID NAMES! WHAT? ARE WE ALL UNWORTHY OF BEING ADDRESSED BY OUR NAMES? WHAT ARE WE THAT BENEATH YOU, SHIT HEEL!?"

"Kasei, calm down, please!" Tōru pleaded, trying to get the two to stop. While Mezou finally stood up and got between the two, extending both sets of his arms to ensure they kept their distance. He may have been older, but he wasn't exactly sure how to defuse the situation.

"I AM ABOUT TO BLOW YOUR ASS TO HELL!" Katsuki bellowed out, the tension reaching its breaking point.

"PHRASING! HEHEHEH...OW!" Alex laughed out again loudly. This time, he gained everyone's attention as he forced himself out of bed, clearly still in pain, given how much trouble he was standing up. "BOTH OF YOU SPICE BOYS, SHUT. THE. FUCK. UP!"

"My bruised nuts aside," The American had to let out a small groan of pain as he bent over slightly before managing to straighten himself up on the bed rail. His glowing sapphire eyes only highlighted the surprisingly stern face that the typically light-hearted senior was capable of producing. There wasn't an ounce of humor in his voice, only a tone that commanded attention and unshakable authority. "I will smack the both of you down if I have to. Now, I don't know, and I don't care what is up both your asses, but it stops now!"

The room finally stood quiet as their senior had finally laid down the law, ready to act if either teen tried something. Seeing this particular senior act so different from what they saw during the trial was almost unnerving.

"Now, neither of you ladies is winning the beauty pageant anytime soon," Alex continued as he sat back down on his bed once he saw Katsuki's body language slacken, and Ryu laid back down on his cot. Much to the relief of everyone else. "So, just calm down, eat some of these kick-ass brownies and chill the fuck out. Cool? Cool."

After a few moments, the tension in the room finally seemed to relax until one of them felt the need to make one last remark.

"Just for the record, " Ryu spoke up dryly with a shit-eating grin. "I don't swing that way, my fellow spice boy."

"MOTHERFUCKER!"

/

Hitoshi groaned when he heard the commotion from the recovery room opposite the break room they sat in start again. Everyone still out in the field, yet not injured, had come in to relax before the results were announced. Hitoshi spoke at length with Reiko, his fellow liaison, about their experiences and general complaints about their roles.

"So noisy..." Hitoshi commented, rolling his eyes at the antics of the hero course students. "I'm just glad it's over, and we'll get our chance to train with Eraserhead soon."

"Well, I mean, at least you got to eat something," Reiko pouted as she relived her experiences with Nejire. "I had to deal with Hadou's constant questions, which got old very quickly."

However, Hitoshi simply sipped his water bottle as he observed a pink-haired girl from the support course gathering everyone's support gear and meeting with two others in Class 1-A.

"You'd think they would have secured us first, though."

"This trial was way more advanced than any of them were ready for Shinsou. You can't blame them for that."

Hitoshi grunted his response, though he reluctantly agreed with her. However, he also knew that he could have easily gotten out on his own if he had been given the liberty to use his powers. The same could be said with Reiko's poltergeist Quirk. They could have been used to support the heroes, but no such chance was given or permitted. How else would they get an opportunity to practice using their powers?

In the end, all he could hope for was that the side training would be worth it.


The announcement was made to have everyone change back into their usual uniforms.

Their broken gear or torn-up costumes were handed to a small team of support course students led by the wild card Mei Hatsume for repairs and general preventative maintenance. Some got changed quickly due to their simple costumes. In contrast, others took a bit longer thanks to the multiple layers needing removal.

"Man, is anyone else feeling better after eating?" Hanta asked aloud as they got dressed.

"It's most likely Pani's Quirk whenever she makes food or drinks. She can add a small boost to it, kind of like a stat boost or a buff in an RPG," Rikidou answered offhandedly. "Last I checked, I think it depends on the food, like, spicy stuff makes you stronger, cold stuff makes you tougher, but avoid eating too much of the sweet stuff if you can."

"Why?" Izuku asked as he seemed to stop getting dressed in favor of jotting down notes about Jou's Quirk.

"Ehhh...It just gets kind of…weird..." Rikidou answered awkwardly, much to everyone else's confused and worried looks.

"Well, I wouldn't worry about the brownies," Rikidou continued with a reassuring hand, trying to ease his concerned-looking classmates who had eaten said brownies. "If you ate like one or two, you should be fine."

"Wait a minute..."Eijirou thought for a moment when he remembered what he had done earlier. "Oh...oh no."

Outside of the conversation, the Denki, Ryu, and Minoru trio chatted as they got changed. Denki was still suffering a few side effects from his Quirk, yet he was feeling better thanks to some sour candy Kyouka had brought him. That's when Denki noticed something rather odd about his dark-haired companion.

"Du-de, are you okayyyy~?"

"What?" The muffled voice Ryu questioned as he started putting on his shirt.

"What happened to your back?"

The other students, who simply happened to be listening, faced to see what Denki was talking about. Some were still worried due to Ryu's earlier freak-out despite getting the all-clear from Recovery Girl. It was not a pretty sight, as the young man's back was riddled with several scars, both big and small. The most noticeable were two long, jagged ones that ran parallel to his shoulder blades. Maybe the most disturbing thing to note was that they all looked like they had been burned into his flesh.

"Ah...those..." Ryu paused for a moment before putting his shirt on. "Eh…I wasn't the healthiest kid growing up. So I occasionally need surgery to get fixed up, ya know?"

"Kaminari, it is rude to point out something like that," Tenya interjected as he finished putting on his shoes.

"Oh geez, sorry, man," Denki said sheepishly, putting his hands together to show his sincerity.

"Thanks, Iida, but it's cool. I honestly tend to forget that I even have these scars."

"Don't worry about Ass Breath's shit," Katsuki said as he walked by, bumping right into Ryu intentionally before walking out of the locker room.

"Kacchan!"

"Bakugou!"

Izuku and Tenya said in unison before leaving the locker room to catch up to him. Shouto's eyes, however, narrowed. Katsuki didn't seem to have an issue with anyone except Ryu, but why was this the case?

Ryu, however, seemed to shrug it off while his golden eyes narrowed.

'That Bakugou punk has been a real pain in my ass...What the fuck is his deal with me? Does he know something about me?'

"Damn, what's his deal?" Denki asked, having been informed of their last confrontation by Minoru.

"Yeah, he seems to have it out for you," Minoru added worriedly about the way the ash-blond teen had been acting. "You should be careful."

"I don't know what is up his ass, and I don't care. A hothead like that is the type that normally causes trouble with his alpha dog bullshit anyway. It's not worth my time to worry about it," Ryu answered dismissively as he closed his locker door. "Come on, let's go get the results."

/

Izuku finally caught up to Katsuki in the hallway after he had asked Tenya to go and check on Ryu, given that he knew how to best deal with his best friend.

"Kacchan! What was that about?" Izuku asked nervously, given what he had heard happen earlier. "You've really been getting on Kasei's case...just what is the matter?"

Katsuki turned around slowly, his brow furrowed, showing that he was clearly deep in thought.

"The prick rubs me the wrong way ever since he showed his fucking face."

Izuku remained silent; he had noticed it as well. Ryu's face looked a lot like his deceased father, except for the shape of his eyes, which actually looked more like Katsuki's. Still, Izuku also knew that saying that would likely set him off. It didn't help that tabloids still spread rumors of his father having mistresses when he was alive. Yet, Ryu had a quirk that let him breathe fire, rather than his father's Quirk that gave him scaled skin and claws.

"I mean, Dragon Slayer comments aside, it's not like he's done or said anything that would set off alarm bells. Besides, you acted like this with Ochako."

"And last I checked, she still doesn't know about Uncle," Katsuki said with an annoyed huff. "Look, just keep an eye on the bastard, okay?"

"Kacchan, this isn't middle school anymore..." Izuku tried to reason, unsure if he should mention what Shouto had told him earlier.

"Then why did I have to shut down some of the cameras from the control panel near the end of the trial to make sure you weren't outed?" Katsuki retorted to shut him down.

Izuku flinched but was determined to see this through.

"Still, there is no proof that he knows anything."

"You don't know that for sure...look, my gut just keeps telling me to keep an eye on the guy..."

Izuku sighed; he knew Katsuki wouldn't let this go anytime soon. Hell, he had only recently warmed up to Ochako, which took over a month. Izuku knew he simply had to let it go for now and let Katsuki be, hoping he would slowly let it go as he did with Ochako.

"Okay..." Izuku said with a sigh. "If you really feel that way about Kasei, fine; keep an eye on him. But you better promise me that you try not to purposely pick a fight with him. With Eri coming tomorrow, I can't allow you to make things harder for us."

"But..." Katsuki was about to retort until Izuku brought up Eri.

"I mean it, Katsuki," Izuku emphasized with a harsh stare. "I can look past a lot, but not if it will affect Eri."

"Fine..." said Katsuki with a sigh, admitting defeat here. "That's fair...I won't rock the boat. But if Ass Breath starts shit, then it's fair game."

"Kacchan..."

"Goddammit! Fine! I promise to try..."

"Thank you."

Finally, with that settled, the two began walking back to class, hoping to quickly put this conversation behind them.


The classroom filled up with chatting students. Some showed signs of fatigue, others seemed a bit more relaxed than they should have been, and the rest still seemed to be full of energy despite the hell they had gone through.

After a few moments, Eraserhead and All Might walked in, followed shortly by The Big Five. Only Alex was being pushed by Mezou in a wheelchair, groaning and giggling to himself as his head lolled to and fro. The American's lips were still stained brown from all the brownies he had eaten.

'Ah, crap.' Eijirou thought to himself upon seeing Alex's condition.

"So the results of your battle trial proved far more interesting than originally expected." Eraserhead started as he held up a few of the reports.

"Indeed, my young batch of heroes!" All Might proclaimed while giving everyone a thumbs up in approval. "You all performed far better than was originally projected, given that your first trial was far more advanced than what you were meant for!"

The class collectively felt like that was the understatement of the century.

"Originally, had I designed for you to fail this exam no matter the circumstances, even though you captured all the villains and saved the city." Eraserhead continued after allowing All Might to comment. "You still failed by not being able to save the hostages."

Most of the class collectively flinched or looked away in shame, especially those who lost hostages in their care or were just within their reach.

"However, in terms of an overall grade, you all passed."

The room went silent, some from relief and others from shock, as the comment only raised more questions from the class.

"Sir!" Tenya said as he raised his hand in full view of everyone.

"Yes, Iida?" Eraserhead said, looking at the tall Engine Quirk user.

"Just why was this trial so advanced?" Asked Tenya as he adjusted his glasses with a raised brow. "As much I would enjoy a good challenge, why the need to throw us to the wolves?"

The final line especially made some of The Big Five laugh.

"A valid question, my young lad." All Might commented as he turned to see how his peer would answer this.

Eraserhead, however, was more than prepared.

"I'm going to assume you have all had some idea of how the day-to-day life for a Pro Hero works: flashy fights, interviews, marketing deals, and the like." He started off before continuing with a severe tone. "Like many things in life, there is often a bit of an exaggeration than the straight truth. No one ever talks about mission or incident reports that need to be filled. The victim processing reviews; the real down, dirty and unglamorous side of our work as Pro-Heroes."

After taking a moment to see everyone's reactions, he continued with his explanation.

"Using this trial, for example, unless the Hero in question has a quirk to assist with it. They do not serve as Mission Operators," Eraserhead looked at Momo, Izuku, and Katsuki. "That job tends to fall to the police, who can authorize changes in the mission parameters as prescribed by law."

The veteran educator could see the cogs in some of his students' heads beginning to turn as they processed what he just said.

"This trial was also used to identify glaring issues like certain habits," The Department Head's voice suddenly became sharp. "Getting distracted..."

Denki and the many others who knew they fell under this category lowered their heads.

"Underestimating the threat of your opponents and mission on hand."

Izuku and Katsuki both fell into this one for sure. However, Ochako and Tenya could also feel some shame in this.

"Losing your cool as the situation continued to grow dire."

Momo took that last comment especially hard.

"And collectively, not taking the trial as seriously as you should have. Since some of you decided to take full advantage of the trial and allowed yourselves to die," Eraserhead had an especially stern look in his eyes. "And if I start to see martyrs among you. I'll have your homeroom teacher address these possible concerns."

"All of these and much, much more are habits that need to be identified so we can begin correcting them early when lives are not at risk. I'll be sure that Midnight will review the individual reports with you to work on your faults..."

"Now, as for you lot..." Eraserhead finished before his scarf suddenly activated and wrapped around Mirio, Nejire, and Tamaki. Mezou and Alex, however, seemed to be spared from his wrath. "You will introduce yourselves before joining me in my office for a very severe lesson in what I mean when I say not to take it easy on them."

The sudden shift in tone and aura from Eraserhead terrified everyone in the room. When he seemed satisfied that he had finally made his point across. The Department Head released his senior students and began walking out of the room, leaving four of the Big Five sweating lightly. Alex, meanwhile, simply sat there, still completely out of it, as he giggled in his wheelchair.

"Oh, that reminds me," Eraserhead said as an afterthought when he stood right by the doorway. His head turned to the class and eyed two specific students.

"Bakugou and Tokoyami, please stop by my office after school. We need to discuss something important."

With that, he made his exit out of the classroom. The two boys looked at each other for a moment before giving each other a silent nod, understanding something no one else knew. Izuku wondered what that was about, yet he wasn't the only one.

Mirio quickly snapped out of his own funk caused by Eraserhead and started off the introductions.

"Hello, everyone. This may not be the best way to make a good introduction, but the name is Mirio Tōgata!" The blond pointed a thumb to himself. "My Hero name is Lemillion! First Seat of the Big Five! And I have to say, you guys really impressed me with some of your skills!"

Next was Tamaki, who simply turned around and placed his head against the wall, dreading the "lesson" with Eraserhead.

"Tamaki Amajiki...I'm the Second Seat, and I just want to go home..." the young man said in a trembling voice, producing a depressing aura that seemed to darken the room.

"His Hero name is Suneater!" The bubbly Nejire interjected to spare Tamaki and try to brighten the mood with her own. "Hi! I'm Nejire Hadou! I'm the Third Seat of the Big Five! My Hero name is Nejire-chan! Some of you really impressed me! Others, not so much."

Ryu's head drooped with an annoyed click of his tongue, feeling the blow to his ego on how he had been taken out by her. Denki and Minoru both patted their friend on the back. Katsuki, on the other hand, had a silent cackle to himself, knowing how badly Ryu had been owned.

The tallest and most formal of the group, the boy with six arms, bowed to everyone as he introduced himself to the class.

"Hello, everyone. My name is Mezou Shouji, Fourth Seat of the Big Five; my Hero name is Tentacole."

"Hheeheh...Don't mind the biiig guy! He'sa definition of da' Strong, silent type.' "The brown-haired boy in the wheelchair suddenly spoke up, slurring before going through another giggling fit.

All Might was quick to whisper to Mirio.

"He is alright?"

Mirio shrugged before whispering back.

"Recovery Girl got him on some painkillers since she can't heal him yet, but it shouldn't be affecting him this much..."

All Might grimaced; the injury must be bad if Recovery Girl was delaying treatment.

"Alex Spriiningfieeldfld issss mah na- mah na- mah name; I-i'm fine! I mean...five! I mean...And... I juss wanna say...I love y'alllllllll..." The American slurred out with a bit of drool coming out from the corner of his grinning mouth while becoming wall-eyed, much to everyone else's confusion in the class by the foreign boy's antics.

Of course, it would be Katsuki who would be the one to break the ice.

"Is he high?"

"Bakugou! It's rude and disrespectful to ask something like about our upperclassm-! " Tenya had started, only for Alex to interrupt in a high-pitched voice.

"Like a kite!"

It was said with a completely straight face, only for the American to suddenly break into another giggling fit. This also caused some in 1-A to laugh, finding his laughter infectious. Eijirou laughed nervously as he continued to feel guilty for Alex. As he punched the guy in the balls and got him several brownies, Rikidou warned him about eating, which may have led to his current condition.

All Might coughed, trying to get everyone's attention as the Big Five made their exit.

"Hey, Shouji...can we get mora 'ose browries? They help make the pain go away...Oh! And milk, too!" Alex could be heard saying as he was wheeled out of the room.

"Now for the final bit of the trial. There is one more key lesson. While this was a collective class trial, we still hold rankings for both teams and individuals."

This made everyone look back up at All Might. As he pulled up the roster with point values via a hand projector.


1st Place, Team Four: 2 Captures, 4 Assists, 1 recovery, -1 loss

2nd Place, Team One: 1 Capture, 2 Assists, 3 recoveries, -1 loss, Bonus: Bomb Removal 1

3rd Place, Team Three: 1 Capture, 2 Assists, -2 losses, Bonus: Scouting 2

4th Place, Team Two: 1 Capture, 1 Assist, 1 recovery, 0 losses


Everyone looked at the scores with unease, especially those in Team Two who had been exhausted early on in the trial and had no chance to recover.

"Despite the results, our MVP for this operation is none other than Team Two's Katsuki Bakugou!" All Might announced with Katsuki's name appearing at the bottom highlighted.

A sudden ring of praise and applause was given to a smug-looking Katsuki as he sat confidently in his seat.

"From being on the field to taking control of the situation when things took a turn and building on what the others left behind. You did an excellent job today, young Bakugou!" All Might continued, remembering that Eraserhead had been entirely against this placement. Still, it was ultimately his choice in the end.

"I'm aiming for the top, All Might, nothing more, nothing less," Katsuki answered with a proud smile.

All Might nodded firmly.

"Excellent. Now, I will end today's lesson with this: I am sorry about the trial." The veteran apologized with a bow. "If it makes you feel better, Class 1-B will undergo the same exercise once young Springfield recovers. Once they are done, we will go over hero work that is more in line with what is expected for your year group."

Many in the class felt relieved to hear that.

"Secondly, for those of you who were taken out of play or feel especially drained from this trial, chin up! All of you did much better than expected, far exceeding our expectations despite the hardships that were laid out to you unfairly," All Might gave a thumbs up. "Yet I know now I can say with absolute confidence that we do, in fact, have a very promising batch of future heroes here!"

The trial revealed those who felt down due to their personal shortcomings. They did start to feel better upon hearing those encouraging words from the Symbol of Peace that almost everyone in the room admired. Others, however, continued mulling over the trial, hoping to take this lesson to heart.

"All Might you all done~?" a rather sultry voice by the door said as the class collectively turned to see their homeroom teacher, Nemuri, in a rather provocative pose, leaning against the door.

"Hmm, yes! Yes! Class dismissed! I will leave them to you now, Midnight." All Might answered with an awkward cough before walking out of the classroom. Meanwhile, Nemuri retook her place at the podium with an armful of sheets to go over with the class.


Katsuki walked to the teacher's lounge with Fumikage as the day ended.

The blond bomber knew this would have to come up sooner or later. However, he didn't want to worry Izuku about the details. So, Katsuki simply told his friends to go home without him since he wasn't sure how long this could take.

"Bakugou…it is not my place to ask, but tell me, are you also on probation?" Fumikage asked with a quiet caution as the two of them walked down the hall. Katsuki remained silent for a moment before answering; there was no denying they were heading the same way for the same reason.

"Yeah... had to go to anger management counseling before I was allowed to come here. You?"

Fumikage hummed in acknowledgment.

"My Quirk has a mind of its own," The raven-head boy started. " While I can control it, for the most part, but there have been times when I have lost control and well…The laws in place have a heavy bias towards those like myself."

Those with volatile quirks

Or so Katsuki wanted to say that but found it to be redundant.

When the two arrived at the entrance of the teacher's lounge, they were met by two other students. Their uniforms confirmed they were also First Year, Hero Course students(*3). The first was a tall, muscular boy with glasses who had a face that reminded Katsuki of a dog due to the tremendous amount of wild brown hair covering his body. The second was a tall and lanky boy with palish-green skin and green hair styled in a mohawk with what looked like two hooked blades on his face.

Upon seeing the two walking towards them, the hairy boy started to speak up.

"Hello there, gentlemen; I am assuming you are here to see Mister Aizawa as well?" The dog-like boy said in a very polite and formal tone that mentally threw Katsuki off guard. Fumikage, however, simply nodded to answer his question. "I see, then forgive me if I seem forward. However, are you two on-"

"Yeah...It's exactly what you think," Katsuki interrupted before turning away to avoid looking him in the eyes.

"Ah...Yes, I understand," The hairy boy added in an apologetic tone. "I know none of us are proud of our shared status."

However, the lanky green-haired boy simply clicked his tongue, seemingly out of frustration and annoyance.

"What's your problem, bug face?" Katsuki asked, facing the teen who did not like the sudden attitude.

"Kamakiri, please. There is no need for that," the polite boy interjected before turning to the other students and motioning toward his classmate. "I apologize for him, friend."

"Heheheh, ah, stop that, Shishida. There's no need to apologize when I'm not going to be doing that shit for 1-A rivals." The boy commented with a wild grin, a comment that only served to get Katsuki's blood boiling.

"So you do want to start something, huh, Bug Face?"

"Bakugou, wait!" Fumikage stated quickly, trying to diffuse the situation, not wanting a repeat of his spat with Ryu.

The door suddenly opened, and Shouta Aizawa stood there with his Quirk active.

"Inside. Now." The veteran said sternly. The tension broke suddenly when the four made their way inside.

"I hope for your sake that little spat of yours is the only thing I will see from any of you." He started, however, before any of the boys could retort; the man followed up with. "Look, I know you've all been briefed by your parents and/or guardians. So I am not going to waste our time by repeating information you already know."

The man crossed his arms as he raised an eyebrow.

"However, I am legally required to personally inform you that since you are still on probation until the beginning of next month. You are forbidden from the following: Joining after-school clubs, getting a part-time job, and joining the student council."

After a moment of shared glances between the boys, Eraserhead continued with his job.

"The last one is especially notable since the first-year class elections for class president and vice-president will be held tomorrow. So your names will automatically be removed from the ballot."

All four students could feel the sting of being told about their probation, as serving on the council would always look good when the Pros would begin to scout them as the school year continued. Shouta sighed, seeing the hurt and humiliation on the faces of his students.

"I know that this can be very frustrating and illogical given your records, and yes, gentlemen. I have seen all of your records, and nothing in them warranted the extremes that you are being subjected to, in my opinion," the man held up a hand. "Although I won't deny that the anger management counseling for you two, Bakugou and Kamakiri, had to take would be seen as a negative."

The blond and greenette looked at each other with narrowed eyes before turning away from each other.

"Keep your noses clean, and soon we'll be able to remove you from probation; however, I do need to make one last thing clear..."

The man's voice suddenly became far more stern.

"If you get removed from probation and then cause trouble shortly afterward. Your probation will be reinstated and doubled in extension," He continued after taking in the boys' grimaces. "Now, I do not expect that to happen, but I need you all to understand it."

The four boys remained silent, making sure to not interrupt their teacher until he was finished.

"With any luck, the recent changes in the public sphere may soon make this system pointless. And we can drop it altogether," Shouta added, almost as if it were an afterthought.

"You are dismissed."


When Izuku arrived home after a long, tiring day.

The first thing he wanted to do was feast on a large bowl of Katsudon that his mother had made. Given how much power he had to use at the last minute of the trial, he was absolutely famished. He ate with Eri bouncing on his lap; his thoughts were flooded with many things that occurred that day. From the trial to Katsuki to even Ochako, acting strange ever since they completed the test. He wasn't sure if it was just exhaustion or something else. As they had simply sat together quietly for the whole train ride over, barely saying anything to each other the entire time.

"Are you okay, Izuku?"

Izuku turned to look at his mom as she brought him back to reality. The boy lowered his bowl and pondered for a moment, thinking carefully before he gave her an answer.

"Yeah, it was actually a really cool day; tiring but really cool. I mean, I even got to wear my first hero costume!" Izuku began with a cheerful demeanor. "I think I'm just pretty tired from our first real test."

Inko smiled, relieved to hear him say that. It allowed her to think back fondly to her own time at UA, and she was glad to see that her son was off to a good start.

"I can understand from my own time at UA when your father..."

And just like that, she suddenly trailed off, and the room became quiet. Near the end of the month, the anniversary of Hisashi's death was approaching once again. As such, the household's mood became much more somber as they were reminded of the hole in their hearts.

Eri suddenly perked up, sensing the sudden shift in tone and seeing the sadness that now lined their faces. So, she made her own effort to try and lighten the mood. She lightly poked Izuku in the chest, causing him to look down at the child's bright red eyes before she gave him the biggest hug she could manage. Izuku smiled, grateful for the sudden affection, so he slowly placed down his bowl to gently return the hug.

"Thank you, Eri."

Once satisfied with her work, the girl hopped off Izuku's lap and ran up to Inko to do the same. It was a small gesture, but it proved that Eri had clearly learned and grasped the importance of physical affection. As Inko doted on the white-haired girl, Izuku sat there amazed that it was the same girl he had found with Ochako just a little over a month ago.

While she still didn't smile, she was less jumpy and more expressive. She was much livelier, and Izuku hoped he could teach her how to smile someday. As her psychiatrist had pointed out, that would be a significant point in her development. Izuku had even been reading up on the subject, which led him to read some research materials on parenting.

Suddenly, Izuku felt his phone buzz and was about to answer it when his mom asked about something significant that had completely slipped his mind.

"Izuku, are you and Uraraka ready for tomorrow?"

Izuku paused, his eyes wide as he remembered what else he needed to do that day.

'Oh, crap...I forgot we're taking Eri to school tomorrow... and I forgot to ask Tokoyami to take pictures of him; IDIOT!' Izuku sighed in frustration, angry at himself for forgetting something so important.

"I told the class, and they seemed to be okay with the idea, but I didn't get the picture..." Izuku answered in a bitter tone. 'So much for making Eri a priority.'

"I see; that's okay, honey, it happens. You'll simply just need to be extra careful when you try to introduce her to everyone," Inko reassured her son as she held Eri in her arms. "I'm going to get Eri ready for bed, okay?"

"Yeah...thanks, Mom," Izuku said while looking down at his partially empty bowl of uneaten Katsudon. His appetite left him as he felt like he had let Eri down. 'How could I have forgotten about that?'

That's when he felt his phone buzz again. Remembering that he had gotten an earlier message, he finally pulled out his phone and saw a notification from Ochako. To his surprise and amazement, he found many different pictures of one Fumikage Tokoyami inside the base. A message from Ochako followed the pictures.

/

Occhan: Hey, Izuku, sorry about being so quiet after school. I had a lot on my mind from the battle trial, and I kind of needed some time to myself, ya know?

Please tell Eri I'm sorry that I couldn't visit. I knew that you were trying to ask Tokoyami for pictures back during lunch.

But I got the chance to ask him during the trial while we waited for our turns. It was actually just like your mom said!

He did have experience with accidentally scaring kids before, so he was, I guess I would say, happy to help?

Anyway, I'll be sure to swing by a little early tomorrow morning to help prep Eri for school; see ya then!

/

Izuku couldn't help but feel grateful to Ochako, who had come to his rescue and made up for where he had fallen short. Still, he endeavored to correct this and do better next time, but this did secure one thing in his mind.

'I'm not alone in this.'

The young Dragon's appetite returned quickly as he felt so much better about the situation.


Eri walked hand-in-hand with Izuku and Ochako.

Izuku carried a large basket filled with yummy food, while Ochako had a giant rolled-up blanket as they walked to find the perfect spot to start their picnic. They walked past emerald green fields, gigantic mountains with snowy tops, and a great big tree with its crown hidden in clouds. The cool breeze was oddly soothing for the little girl, so she basked in it while the sun's rays from above warmed her face.

"This seems like a perfect spot!" Ochako proclaimed with her trademark arm pump that went straight up as they arrived at a large lake with crystal clear waters that mirrored the sky. Save for the ducks gracing the surface with only the tiniest ripples hinting at their movement.

"You're right, Ochako. This is the best spot!" Izuku cheered, mirroring Ochako's gesture.

At the same time, Eri looked at the two with some confusion, yet she started to feel this strange, warm sensation in her heart every time she was with them. As they set up the blanket and broke out the food, Eri looked around, wishing every day could be like today, sunny but not too hot, cool but not too cold, with yummy food and with the two who had helped her.

Eri's thoughts returned to the fluffy white bunny in the picture book. For a moment, Eri thought she dared to ask, to speak out what she truly wanted to say. 'Mama' was what she wanted to call Ochako, and 'Papa' was what she wanted to call Izuku. They were the ones who had saved her and always made her feel safe.

She wanted them to be her family.

"Only…they are not… your family… Eri…" A cold voice said behind her, making Eri freeze; the warm feeling in her heart snuffed out as though an icy hand had suddenly gripped it.

"No..." She spoke ever so quietly, slowly turning her head trembling with fear, a fear that she had been found by the Demon that stalked her.

"What's wrong, Eri?" Izuku asked with a worried look on his face.

"Are you okay, Eri? Are you tired?" Ochako asked, sitting closer to Eri and embracing her to try to ease her fears. Eri, however, continued to look out for him.

Searching for him, the Demon who had been the ruler of her nightmares for as long as she could remember.

"I'm scared, Mama," Eri said tearfully to Ochako, grabbing onto her as hard as she could.

"Of what, Eri?" Ochako responded, doing her try and ease her worries.

"Of me." The voice said again; however, it sounded much closer to Eri, and Ochako and Izuku instantly disappeared. Only to reappear right in front of her with faces that looked like they didn't have a care in the world, and standing right behind them...was him.

Eri sat there in horror as Overhaul began reaching for the two of them with hands ungloved. The little girl couldn't call out; she couldn't breathe; all she could do was watch the nightmare unfold before her, knowing what was going to happen next.

"I will always find you, Eri, you accursed little bitch. And for your punishment, a reminder of what happens to those who defy me."

Finally, Eri let out a scream.


Izuku's eyes snapped open the moment it happened.

The instant Eri started screaming, Izuku instinctively leaped out of bed and made his way to Eri's side, finding her thrashing wildly in her bed, screaming at the top of her lungs.

"Eri! Eri, it's okay!" Izuku spoke out, grabbing hold of her in the way the psychiatrist had taught him. (*4)

It wasn't as common as before, but Eri still had night terrors from time to time. Izuku knew that she simply had to ride out the storm. After a few minutes, her breathing steadied and slowly returned to normal. Her eyes snapped open, revealing bright ruby eyes that were now swimming in tears.

"It's okay, Eri, it was just a dream," Izuku quietly reassured her, holding her as firmly yet as gently as he could while rubbing her back.

"T-tt-the bbbired per-pel-people...took me aga-again..." Eri managed to say between sobs, latching on to Izuku as tightly as they could before stuttering, "Th-they ki-lled you and ma-mama..."

Izuku's mind went blank as he heard the word Mama and wondered if Eri was finally starting to see his own mother as her mom. It would make him a big brother, a title he wouldn't mind.

"Izuku, do you have it covered, sweetie?" The young Dragon heard his mother say from behind his door.

"Yeah, Mom, I've got it... no problem." Izuku answered back before hearing her footsteps fade away.

"Eri..." Izuku thought very hard about what he should do next, and then an idea formed when he saw Ochako's book on his desk. Carefully sitting Eri up, he wondered if this was the best course of action.

"Can I…show you something very important?" Izuku then asked the sniffling Eri.

"It's one of my greatest secrets that not even Ochako knows about it. It's the secret that will make sure I will always keep you safe," Izuku said in a low voice as Eri looked at him, a bit confused about what he meant before Izuku continued speaking.

"Eri, what I am going to show you, well… it can look a little scary," Izuku momentarily glanced away with a bit of shame. "But, it's part of how I fight and use my Quirk to protect people. You know how Ochako can make you float?"

Eri nodded, remembering all the times Ochako would play with her using her gravity powers.

"You've never seen my Quirk yet, have you?"

Eri stopped to think about it momentarily, but then she realized he was right and shook her head. Izuku slowly began to focus; he began to glow. With a slow, warm glow, Izuku's skin became green and scaly. Eri looked surprised. Yet, she didn't seem scared by Izuku's sudden scaly appearance. He had light green scales that now covered most of his body—scales that shined like polished steel, while Izuku's eyes had turned into a warm blue color.

"This is my Quirk...my power..."Izuku looked Eri right in the eyes.

"My armor. It's what I will use to protect people," Izuku said as he pointed at the book on his desk with a clawed finger. "Just like Jin does in the story, remember?"

"Like Fafnir?" Eri questioned, remembering snippets of the book.

Izuku gave her a smile and answered with a slightly pointed grin.

"Yep, like The Fafnir Knight..."

Izuku slowly raised his clawed hand to Eri's face, using it to gently wipe away some of the tears away. Eri reached forward slowly to feel the scales on his shifted arm. She could feel the weight as well as a great power hidden beneath them. Just like Izuku said, he was like Jin from the storybook; someone who can turn into a brave knight to send bad guys away. He was her Fafnir Knight, a thought that eased her mind, if only for a moment.

"I promise you, Eri, Bird people or otherwise. I will always do my best to protect you. I also know that Ochako and everyone else in the Hero course at UA will protect you, too," Izuku said with a surefire grin when he declared. "We want to be heroes who use our power to save people just like you."

As she looked at him, Eri was no longer crying, yet she still had a slight hiccup.

"But...there is something else, Eri," Izuku followed up just as softly.

"I need you to protect me too. Because there are people who would be scared of me, just like how you are scared of the bird people," The young Dragon's eyes looked down, a crestfallen tinge to them. "Because of my Quirk."

Eri gasped; she couldn't believe anyone would be scared of Izuku since he had always been so lovely and polite.

How could anyone be scared of him?

"No," Eri said firmly with a slight pout, an action that actually surprised Izuku. "You're nice...nothing like them."

"Then can you please promise me something, Eri? Please don't tell Ochako about my power...she doesn't know...yet," Izuku pleaded to her, knowing that every day only increased the chance of exposure. "But I am planning on telling her soon."

Izuku had finally decided to tell her on his own terms. After Eri's evaluation, Izuku would reveal the truth to Ochako about one of his greatest secrets. Eri looked puzzled again because, like how Jin was like Izuku, Ochako was like the princess in the storybook, like Arianna.

"Chako likes you; she wouldn't be scared of you."

Although Izuku's face was partly covered in green scales, Eri's comment still turned him a deep shade of red. That being said, it did help make him feel a bit more reassured about his choice.

"Umm..." Izuku chuckled nervously as he scratched behind his ear. "I'm not sure about that just yet. But you promise me this, Eri? Just for now?"

Eri looked at him for a moment before nodding.

"Thank you, Eri," said Izuku, giving the little girl the biggest smile he could muster. Then he saw her fidget around with her hands as if she had a question.

"Ummm..."

"Yes, Eri?" Izuku asked, seeing the pleading look in her eye.

"Can I please sleep with you tonight, please?"

Izuku knew this was coming and wasn't surprised by the child's request. Like every other time she had a night terror like this, Eri would immediately request to sleep with him or Ochako afterward.

"Okay, Eri." He said as he returned to his normal form

. Izuku gently lifted her up slowly and moved her to his bed, tucking her in first before climbing in next to her. Eri quickly latched on to him as he finally settled in. Within moments, Izuku started to gently brush Eri's soft, silky hair, slowly lulling her back to sleep.

"Good night, Eri," Izuku whispered to her, giving her horn a small kiss before settling back to sleep himself.


Author's Commentary

Tenya's red eyes (*1): In the manga, Tenya Iida actually has blood-red pupils that were changed in the anime version; I changed them back to red for story reasons. The red eyes here are also shared with Tensei and Hikari.

Sleep Apnea(*2): A real thing in which someone's brain can actually forget the automatic progress of breathing while you sleep. (Yours truly has some personal experience with this, and it is scary as fuck)

Additional details (*3): Here, I am acknowledging the fact that there are differences in UA school uniforms based on things like School Year and which Course the student is in.

Night terrors (*4): I actually consulted a few psychiatrists I happen to know for this story. (As I didn't want to write something that may not be medically recommended) waking up people/children experiencing night terrors and if it is okay to try and wake them. And they are all almost basically the same thing. While it is better to let them calm down on their own, in some instances, like if someone has breathing or heart issues, it might be better to wake them early to avoid straining the heart and/or lungs.

ZX