Chapter Text
Vlad watched the students do their exercises, standing beside Aizawa. The original idea was for the kids to be separated by class, but after seeing how many students were friends with each other changed his and Aizawa’s minds. Some students worked together, either due to having similar quirks, or competing quirks. A handful worked directly with the Pussycats or the Hose Duo. Several, however, worked alone and (thankfully) far enough away to avoid injuring their schoolmates.
Bakugou Katsuki was working on increasing the intensity of his explosions. Monoma was (silently) practicing with some of the more volatile quirks he could mimic, and worked on how fast he could switch which quirk he mimicked. Todoroki was practicing both sides of his quirk by freezing a barrel of water with his ice before melting it with his fire. Tokage was literally halfway across the clearing, training how far she can separate her parts and how many parts she could split into. It was very clear each student was doing their absolute best. After looking in a different direction, he leaned down to be level with Eraserhead.
“We should give them a break soon,” Sekijiro muttered. “Looks like Ashido’s about to hit her limit.” Aizawa turned towards the student in question, seeing her on all fours trying to force out more acid. The ground around her was uneven and hissing from the acid she’d been making. Even her acid-resistant clothes had been melting away under the sheer corrosiveness Ashido was manifesting. It was hard to tell how much of her glistening skin was acid or sweat, but her pained expression was clear.
“Agreed,” Aizawa nodded. “Another minute or two, then we’ll take fifteen. After that, we’ll have them work on the Second Set until lunch.”
“...You know,” the bloody hero admitted as he and his coworker moved to a different part of the clearing, “it’s still so weird seeing you actually like…this. But it’s a good weird, ya know? Kinda wish it happened years earlier.”
“I’m the same,” Eraserhead sighed. “Might have avoided the whole fiasco with Fuwa if I had hallucinated that horse even a year sooner.”
“A horse?”
“Yeah, a big horse. Thought it was Midoriya before it started talking.”
“...Sorry, but did this horse happen to have green eyes and a red mane?” Instead of immediately responding, Aizawa gave Kan a worried look.
“Have you hallucinated it, too?”
“No, but it sounds similar to one of our 3rd-year Management students. He can turn into a horse with those features, and can talk in that form. And come to think of it, I think I’ve seen him and Midoriya talking in the past…” Vlad stopped when he noticed Aizawa had stopped walking. Looking back, he saw the underground hero staring at the ground, his eyes darting from side-to-side like he was mentally comparing notes or files.
“...Son of a bitch…”
—
Kaminari trained with his quirk alongside Izuku at one end of the forest clearing. The two opted to work together, with Kaminari firing his quirk as long as he could without ‘going whey.’ On Izuku’s end, he was practicing mimicking different heroes and using their quirks to dodge or defend from Kaminari’s electricity. It was time-consuming, as Kaminari had to let his quirk cool down for a few minutes before letting out another massive burst, but the two friends felt they were making progress. Though that did not mean they were not appreciative when the teachers called for a break.
“Thank god,” Izuku groaned as he turned back into his fuzzy self and flopped on the ground. “It’s way too hot today to keep dancing around like that.”
“You’re telling me!” Kaminari whined as he lifted his arms. "It's so hot and muggy lately! I mean, look! My armpits are like Niagara Falls!"
"Please never use those words in that combination ever again."
The two teens sat in silence after that until Bakugou walked up with three bottles of water. The explosive teen had been closer to them than anyone else, so he’d volunteered to bring them water, which they gratefully accepted as he sat down next to them. They probably would have crawled to the shade if they weren’t already too tired to move. At least it was somewhat cloudy.
“Okay,” Kaminari said after a minute of silence, “guy talk time. Who do you think is the prettiest chick in our class?”
“Shut the fuck up,” Bakugou groaned.
“That was sudden,” the tanuki muttered before humming in thought. “Well, they all got their cute points. I mean, Ashido’s rambunctious energy is infectious, but I also really like how Asui’s so straightforward with everything. Though overall, I think Yaoyorozu’s the physically prettiest.”
“Same here,” the electrokinetic chuckled. “Tall, long hair, longer legs, she’s definitely hot. I’d have probably asked her out already if I didn’t see her making heart-eyes at Uraraka during the Sports Festival.”
“Bold of you to think you’d stand a chance even if that wasn’t the case,” Izuku snorted.
“I think we just need to grab those two and lock ‘em in a closet,” Katsuki grumbled, surprising the other two. “I swear, everyone in class knows they’re crushing on each other except for them. ” That statement led to a short silence before all three boys laughed.
“Alright, my turn,” Izuku piped up. “Most embarrassing thing you did during your Experience Week, and ‘going whey’ doesn’t count.”
“Oh, asking the tough questions, are we? Sorry to disappoint, but my week was actually fairly nice. More boring than yours, for sure. Still can’t believe you fought the Hero Killer and won.”
“Eeeeeeeeeeh, I wouldn’t say ‘fight’ is the correct term. I just kinda morphed into All Might, talked until I could get close and bitch-slapped him into a wall.” That blunt statement made Bakugou choke on his water.
“That’s it? No epic battle, just a slap and done?”
“Had to go quickly, Kacchan. Didn’t want the other heroes to know I can turn into All Might. Now come on, what happened in your Week that was embarrassing?”
“I told you guys, already. Remember my shin guards?”
“Right, right, sorry. You wanna ask anything, Kacchan?”
“Yeah, who’s your teacher? You geek out about her a lot, so is she?” That question made Izuku choke.
“H-how do you know they’re a she?” the tanuki asked. “I-I mean, they could be-”
“Dude, you’ve slipped a few times,” the explosive teen pointed out, “and sometimes you sound weird when you talk about her. Now come on, spill.”
“Err…” Izuku turned to Kaminari for support, but his wide-eyed expression and wider smile only proved Izuku was alone and surrounded. With a defeated sigh, he continued, “I can’t say their name, since they’re an underground heroine. She’s a heroine who’s worked with Eraserhead in the past, and I only know that cuz I got a photo of them together last year.”
“Like, together-together?” Kaminari asked, soaking in the details.
“God, no,” Izuku laughed. “Anyway, we first met a bit after this happened.” Izuku gestured to his face, indicating his bestial features. “A bit after that, she declared she’d start training me.”
“What’s she like?” Kaminari pressed.
“Her training regimen is crazy, but never goes overboard. She’s always sure to ask how I’m feeling, and lets me take breaks if things are really hurting. She’s told me so much about underground heroism, she’s amazingly strong, she has such a beautiful laugh, and her smile is…”
Izuku’s words slowly faded as he really got to thinking about Amaterasu. Sure, he’d been in her presence a lot these past few months due to the Experience Week and the whole thing with Endeavor, but this was the first time in a while he had the chance to sit down and just think about her. Unfortunately, as he was daydreaming about her, Kaminari and Bakugou gave each other flabbergasted looks before turning back to their friend.
“Dude,” Bakugou whispered, “you’re crushin’ on your mentor.”
“WHAT!?” Izuku exclaimed loud enough for some of the others to hear. Izuku took a breath before speaking at a much-quieter volume “What are you talking about? Th-there’s no way-”
“Mido, you started daydreaming like the main chick of an otome game,” Kaminari jabbed his shoulder. “ I was half-expecting you to start sparkling. You’ve got a crush, and you’ve got it bad for teach.”
“B-but it would never work! I mean, she’s, I dunno, in her 20’s, and-”
“Ok, so you gotta wait a bit,” Kaminari shrugged, “but that age difference ain’t crazy. I mean, my mom’s like eight years older than my dad, that ain’t nothing special.”
“What if she doesn’t even think of me like that? I don’t wanna make things awkward between us.”
“Then don’t, ya fuckin’ chicken,” Bakugou flicked one of Izuku’s ears. “Look, I dunno how often you talk to her, but next chance you get, just tell her how ya feel, straight and without any twists. If your mentor’s anything like my girlfriend, she will not like being pulled around.” That got both Kaminari and Izuku to look at Bakugou with astonished expressions.
“You have a girlfriend?” Izuku asked.
“So just be direct, be open, and don’t get too sappy,” the explosive teen concluded, completely disregarding Izuku’s question. “She might say no, but having a direct answer is better than floating in the unknown, got it?” Before any of the teens could try grilling him further, Izuku heard a rustling behind them. He quickly got to his feet and turned to the noise, startling the others.
“I heard something,” the tanuki explained, keeping the other boys quiet so he could listen closer. He knew there weren’t any students in that direction, so whatever was out there was entirely unknown. He closed his eyes, focusing on hearing whatever’s out there. After a few seconds, though, he couldn’t hear anything. He waited a bit longer, trying to hear anything, but was interrupted by Aizawa calling them over.
“I dunno what that was,” Izuku stated, “but I think we should bring it up with Aizawa. Can’t think of any animals that would make a noise like that.” The other two nodded in agreement before all three rushed to the others. After a few moments, a very inhuman groan of relief came from the bush.
—
“Hey hey hey, that’s my spine! What do you think you’re-”
Amaterasu shifted her left arm and twisted with her right.
“AAAAAAH! Stop it! I don’t even know what that is, but you’re hurting it!”
“Then maybe you should think twice before breaking and entering, huh?” the lupine heroine scoffed as she applied a bit more pressure. “Now stay down unless you want me to break your nose for real, got it?” With a pained affirmation from the would-be thief, Amaterasu straightened up and looked around. Fortunately, the only witness to the alleyway scuffle had been some drunk man who’d run away screaming about toads at the start. Otherwise, the alley was empty. Now the heroine just waited for police to come take the moaning man away before she continued her patrol. It sucked, she went on patrol to try relaxing, but what she’d learned recently kept her stressed.
In her most recent update, Kaina had been able to leave a note detailing the upcoming attack on the UA summer camp. It would mostly be an attack to kill, but the MLA had an agenda. In return for ‘lending’ Solovey to the League, the MLA wanted Bakugou Katsuki captured alive and relatively unharmed. He’d apparently been their ‘star student’ in Aldera and were hopeful they could get him to join their cause. After what she’d heard about the more extreme indoctrination facilities, she did not have much hope if they managed to grab the kid. And that was assuming Izuku didn’t do anything stupid.
…Dammit, now she was thinking of her apprentice.
Amaterasu sighed with relief when the police finally showed up to haul away the man she had pinned to the ground. With him cuffed, the wolf heroine leaped away. She had a few hours left of her patrol, hopefully something more exciting would happen. Something to draw her thoughts away from Midoriya.
She shook her head as she landed on a roof. Ever since Kuki and Kasa had pointed out those few details, she’d found herself looking at Midoriya in a different light. There had been moments where she’d thought back to the week they spent together after the Festival, wondering how nice it’d be if they’d had longer. Thinking about all the dinners she’d shared with him and his mother. Gods, there’d even been one or two dreams in the past, and while it was nice that Midoriya was older in those dreams, they were a subject she’d share with no one.
Arithmancer had told her Midoriya was perfect in every way…well, this stress was far from perfect.
“Oi, Ammy!”
The voice jerked Amaterasu from her thoughts. She looked down to see Mineta Shinobu waving at her from the street. Maybe not the distraction the heroine was looking for, but a welcome one nonetheless. Thankfully the street was empty so no one heard Shinobu’s shouting.
“What is it?” Amaterasu asked.
“First,” the purple-haired woman stated, “tell your boss to hire a postman. Second, she somehow knew you’d be passing this street later and wanted me to give you this.” The information broker held up an envelope…which had clearly been opened. Probably by Shinobu. The heroine gave an amused snort as she accepted the letter.
“Couldn’t help yourself, huh?” Amaterasu asked as she pulled out the letter and read it. The air seemed to turn still for several moments before the wolf looked back at the human. “For real?”
“I’ll admit,” Shinobu nodded, “it was kind of a given for the Russians, but the fact they’re racing a team of Indonesian Retrieval Specialists to catch Solovey is news to me. Tell me who wins that race, okay?”
…
For the first time all week, Amaterasu laughed.
—
“...AND THAT CONCLUDES THE LESSON!” All Might announced to the class of second-year hero students. “NOW, WATCH ME HEROICALLY RUN OFF TO MY NEXT TASK!” He gave his trademark bellowing laughter as he rushed out of the classroom. Once he made it to the nearest Teacher’s Lounge, he gave a whine as he steamed and dropped his bulk. It was getting harder to maintain his appearance, and his time dwindled bit by bit as each day passed. Taking a hammer blow from Uraraka during the Finals had certainly not helped that. All Might felt he’d lose his bulk before the end of the year.
Toshinori grunted as he lifted his shirt and rubbed his scar. The damnable scar, physical proof of everything he lacked. It always ached and itched after he dropped his bulk, and today was no different. He’d love to just dig his fingers in and tear the scar out entirely, but that was crazy talk. As he scratched the scar, Yagi turned his gaze up and realized he was not alone in this room.
Sitting at one of the tables, alone and out of place, was a young girl. Far younger than any of the students, with long white hair and red eyes. All Might recognized her from past sightings on campus, but he had no idea who she was. Even worse, the girl appeared to be mid-bite through an apple, and her wide, horrified eyes were focused on his scar. It took a few moments for Yagi to realize this and he quickly pulled his shirt back down.
“S-sorry,” the hero quietly admitted.
“That looks like it hurt,” the girl replied. “What happened?”
“Err, a very very bad villain,” All Might explained, trying to sugarcoat the explanation. “He hurt me a lot, a long time ago. P-please don’t tell anyone about this, okay?” The girl kept staring for a bit before looking down at her apple. Perhaps it’d be best if he looked for a different room to rest. Before he could turn to leave, however, the girl looked back at Toshinori.
“How long ago were you hurt?” she asked.
“Uuh, around 7 years?” Why did she want to know that? The man watched as the young girl counted to seven on her fingers, then slowly raised her other three, making it ten in total. She gave a quiet hum before looking back at Yagi with a wide smile and held out her hand.
“My name’s Eri!” the girl introduced herself. “Tsutsumi Eri!”
“Oh,” All Might jumped from the sudden introduction before holding out his own hand. “Nice to meet you, young Eri.” He took her hand and gently shook it.
Toshinori Yagi barely had time to notice the girl smirk before his vision was flooded with bright light.